Waldron Street Christian Church - Corinth, Mississippi

Dedication service for WSCC new building
By Johnny Wagnon
April 11, 2010

THE SACRED PURPOSE
Matt. 28:19-20; Ac. 2:42; Eph. 4:11-12

A. Introduction: I always consider it an honor to get to come and speak to this congregation, especially since it is through this congregation that I came to know Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. And it was through this church that for many years I was nurtured in the faith and eventually launched into the preaching ministry. Most all this took place in the old church building across the street, a church building I assume that was at one time dedicated much as we are dedicating this building this afternoon.

I want you to know I share your excitement today and have been sharing it for some time as I have talked with Ted, looked at the drawings, and watched the building go up from both here and mainly from a far. It has been really neat to go the church website and see the progress. I have enjoyed everything from watching the ground breaking on Youtube to watching the workers work on the webcam! So even though I have not physically been here to share in the excitement I have been with you in a virtual reality kind of way.

Before we officially dedicate this building I would like to talk to you about what it means and does not mean to dedicate a new building. Let’s begin with the definition of dedicate in the context of a new building. According to my Microsoft Word dictionary the word dedicate means, to set something apart for a sacred purpose or to the memory of a holy person, saint, or god, especially in a ceremony for this purpose.

The first part of that definition pertains more to what we are doing here today. We are not just setting this building apart for the memory of a holy person, saint, or god. Although, ideally it will be a place where the Lord is remembered as well as the saints of Scripture. But we are primarily setting this building apart for a sacred purpose. Of course the word sacred carries the idea of holy, hollowed, consecrated, sanctified, words that pertain to the character of God. Thus, the purpose of this new building is a Godly one.

This means that as long as this building is fulfilling its sacred purpose it far more important than the secular buildings around it, even though they may be more expensive, larger in size, and much more elaborate. The bank building across the street is a fine looking building. I’ve admired it for years but it is not as important as this building. The courthouse just up the street is very impressive with its massive columns and steps. But it is not as important as this building. The coliseum across the street is beautiful inside, very ornate, a real work of art, but it is not as important as this building.

Yes, this building is superior to the secular ones here in town as long as it used for the sacred purpose. If it loses its sacred purpose it is no better than any other building. And could in fact become inferior in importance.

This is where you, the congregation, come in; it is your responsibility to see to it that this building does not loose its sacred purpose. In other words, in order for this building to fulfill its sacred purpose you the congregation must fulfill your sacred purpose.

B. Now in a broad since the congregation’s sacred purpose is to GLORIFY GOD. Hopefully all the activities that go on in this building will some how bring glory God.

I. In a more specific sense, I believe much of the church’s sacred purpose is found in Matthew 28:19-20, which has come to be known as the Great Commission. There Jesus says, Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

We see in these verses that Jesus expects His church to be in the disciple making business. That is, Jesus expects His church to produce Christ followers. People who live out what Jesus taught. In the Great Commission Jesus tells us how this is to be done. It is implied that the Gospel is preached, people are convicted of sin and come to faith in Jesus as their Lord and Savior, they are then baptized into Him, and then they are deepened in the faith through the teaching of God’s Word. Hopefully all these things will take place in this building (except for the baptism, you will still cross the street for that part). But the preaching and the decisions for Christ, and the Bible teaching will hopefully be a part of this building’s sacred purpose.

II. In Acts 2:42 we also find more of the sacred purpose mentioned. Speaking of the early church the Bible says, “They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

A. So in addition to teaching God’s Word we find that fellowship is a part of the sacred purpose. This is a word that refers to sharing together. Ideally, the church is a place where people share their lives together. It is a place where relationships are developed and maintained. In fact, the Bible refers to the church as the household of faith (Eph. 2:19; 1 Tim. 3:19). The early church viewed itself as a spiritual family. They considered themselves brothers and sisters in Christ (that was not just religious jargon). If the church is to achieve the relational closeness of the early church it will require that the church family spend time together. And a multipurpose building like this provides and ideal place for the church to spend time together in all kind of activities--- fellowship suppers, games, sports events, out reach events, Christian concerts, VBS, and the list goes on. I hope this building will be a place where you all will dedicate time to grow closer together relationally as you grow closer to Jesus spiritually.

B. We also see that part of the sacred purpose is breaking of bread. This seems to refer to the Lord’s Supper (which took place back then in the context of a full meal (1 Cor. 11). Even the Lord’s Supper had a relational dimension to it. In this building you could actually have the Lord’s Supper in the context of a full meal if you wanted to (I am not saying you have to but now you could if you wanted to). Some churches today will even hold Passover Suppers to show how it all points to Jesus the true Lamb of God. We recently did this at the church were I minister and partook of the Lord’s Supper in this full meal context at it was very meaningful. These kinds of things can be done in a multipurpose building like this one.

C. We also see that part of the sacred purpose is being devoted to prayer. Hopefully this building will provide a place where you can pray together as a large group in a worship service context; you can now even break it down into smaller prayer groups if you choose to. There are no pews in here to dictate to you where and how you have to sit. You can form smaller groups and sit in circles and pray or sit around tables and share your requests with one another within each prayer group. There are all kinds of prayer possibilities with this building.

III. One more aspect of the sacred purpose is found in Ephesians 4:11-12. “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up . . .”

A. These verses tell us that the preaching and teaching that goes on inside these walls is not just to bring people to faith but to also prepare people for works of service. This is NOT to be place where you come and sit and soak for years and years and never get involved in the work of the church. It is not supposed to be a place where people just come and “go through the motions” of religious ritual. But rather it should be a place to come and get equipped for works of service; a place where your gifts work in harmony with the gifts of others so that the Lord’s work goes forth in a might way. This church should be a place of spiritual synergy for Him as His people work together.

I have heard brother Ted say that the church building should be like a gas station were people come and fill up and get the fuel they need to do what God has called them to do. But then he mentions how ridiculous it would be to come and fill up and just sit their idle the motor and never move out. I don’t believe brother Ted wants this to be a place where people come and fill up just idle their motors. No! It should be a place where people come and fill up on the Word of God and move out into ministry.

There is a slogan in Rick Warren’s book, The Purpose Driven Church that has stuck in my head for years. It basically says the church’s purpose is to, “Bring’em in, build’em up, and send them out!” (have people repeat that) Really that is the gist of the Scriptures I have shared with you today pertaining to the sacred purpose. We are to bring’em in, build’em up, and send’em out, and I would add, all to the glory of God.

Remember, if this church, you the congregation, loose the sacred purpose this building is just another building in town. But with the sacred purpose, it is more important than all the secular building around it put together!

In conclusion I would like to leave you with one last thought. This building is basically one big box. Now don’t get me wrong. I like this box. I would like to have one like it where I minister. It is a nice box--- I like the colors, I like the flooring, I like the kitchen, I like doors back there in the back, I could go on and on. I think Doug and the folks at AERC did a great job designing this box. I think Chris Woods Construction Company did a great job at constructing this box. I say all that to say this to you the congregation: if the sacred purpose of this building is going to be fully realized you are going to have to continually “THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX.”