Commitment

Thomas Andrew Dorsey (1899-1993) was a jazz pianist and composer. He accepted Jesus as his Lord and transitioned to playing and singing Gospel music. He is known as the Father of Black Gospel Music. But shortly after his commitment to sing and play for God, tragedy struck his family.

Thomas Dorsey was a broken and hurting man. This song shows, with very descriptive words of his pain and suffering, that we need God’s strength to make it through life, especially during times of tragedy.

As we continue our series Going Viral, we look today at perhaps one of the major differences between the early church and the church today: commitment. It is something that people today have trouble making and sticking to. The early church understood the need to be committed in the long term. They were committed to these five important components of the church.

They Were Committed to Building Relationships (Connect)

²⁵ “And now I know that none of you will ever see my face again—everyone I went about preaching the kingdom to. ²⁶ Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of everyone’s blood, ²⁷ for I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole plan of God. ²⁸ Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock that the Holy Spirit has appointed you to as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood. ²⁹ I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. ³⁰ And men will rise up from your own number with deviant doctrines to lure the disciples into following them.³¹ Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years [in Ephesus] I did not stop warning each one of you with tears. (Acts 20:25-31)

Paul spent 3 years connecting the people of Ephesus to the Gospel message of Jesus as he planted a church in that city. He started just as we did with a small core group meeting together often. This led to the growth of a larger family of God: the church. He not only taught them, but he built relationships with each of them.

Paul loved them. And in his departure, he wanted them to know how much he would miss them and how concerned he was for their safety and continued spiritual growth. They had become part of his family, a great fellowship of Jesus followers.

People today don’t want to spend the time to really build a strong relationship. They want their spouse/partner to instantly connect with them on every level even though they don’t know much about them. They want their job to instantly pay full benefits and a great salary, even though they have no experience. Healthy relationships take time.

They Were Committed to Discipleship (Grow)

¹¹ And he stayed there [in Corinth] a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them. (Acts 18:11)

Paul spent 18 months teaching the Word of God to the followers of The Way. He wanted them to become disciples of Christ. He wanted them to grow in their knowledge and understanding of God’s Word. Discipleship is vital if we want others to connect with us as a church, if we want believers to learn how to live a life that is fully devoted to Jesus, and if we want our church to become a family unit rather than just a country club of like-minded people.

At Elevate, we begin the discipleship process in our Membership Classes. We focus first on how we connect to the church and what that means. About 14 people have taken our Connect class this year. We would love to have everyone take it because it explains who we are as a church, what you can expect from us, and what we expect from you.

Our second class is our Grow class. This explains how you can become a disciple of Jesus. The third class is our Serve class. This discusses our worship, our leadership plans, and ministry within the church. The final class is our Go class. In that you will learn all about a missional mindset and how to share Jesus as you go, wherever you go.

They Were Committed to Worship (Serve)

¹³ “This man,” they said, “persuades people to worship God contrary to the law!” (Acts 18:13)

Paul persuaded people to worship God. The Jews complained that they worshipped contrary to the Jewish law. Many of the Jewish laws were so steeped in tradition that they had nothing to do with God’s original commands. The reality is that they did not like that Paul was teaching people to worship Jesus, the Messiah.

Not only were they worshipping Jesus, but they were serving each other. They were doing ministry by caring for the widows and orphans, helping the sick, visiting those in prison. Our worship, our love of Jesus, should lead us right into service. Our worship should lead us to think less of self and more of the needs of others. We should naturally flow from loving God to loving others.

If you are not serving, make sure that Jesus is really the object of your affection. A true worshipper of God will desire to serve others, will honestly care about others, and will even love the unlovable.

They Were Committed to Evangelism and Missions (Go)

¹⁰ And this went on for two years [in Tyrannus], so that all the inhabitants of Asia, both Jews and Greeks, heard the message about the Lord. (Acts 19:10)

⁸ Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed the Lord, along with his whole household. Many of the Corinthians, when they heard, believed and were baptized. (Acts 18:8)

Paul and the followers of Jesus continually told others about Jesus. They wanted everyone to hear and many believed and were baptized as a result. They followed God’s commission that we are to tell others about Jesus. Not only are we to be disciples, but we are to make more disciples.

They Were Committed to Prayer

³⁶ After he [Paul] said this, he knelt down and prayed with all of them. (Acts 20:36)

Throughout the Bible we see the importance of prayer. King David prayed before each of his great victories in war. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were praying while in the fiery furnace and they were saved. Daniel was praying in the lions den and he was saved.

The disciples were in an upper room praying when the Holy Spirit came down and filled them. Paul and Silas were praying when God sent an earthquake to open the prison doors. Peter was praying when God sent an angel to take him out of prison. Ananias was praying when God told him to go to Saul. Saul was praying when Ananias arrived to give him back his sight.

Prayer undergirds each of the four emphasis of our church. We Connect as the family of God by loving each other enough to pray for each other, to care for each other, and to celebrate and mourn with each other. We Grow by being obedient to God, which includes praying daily and continually, increasing our knowledge and understanding of Jesus, and preparing ourselves for ministry. We Serve as we worship God through our words, our actions, and our prayers (conversations) with Him. This worship leads us to a selfless lifestyle where we authentically love others and want to help them as a servant of Jesus. We Go into all the world through the power of our prayers, telling others everything that we have seen and heard about Jesus.

Thomas Dorsey learned that it wasn’t enough to simply be committed to connecting with others, growing in faith, serving others, and going into all the world. Our commitments need to be backed up by prayer. When Dorsey finally called out to God in his suffering and pain, he came to understand that God had been there all along and was ready to take his hand and lead him on.

What about you? Are there things in your life that you need to be more committed to? Family, marriage, homework, church, friends, work? Those commitments must be supported by prayer each and every day. It is only because of God’s strength, power, and ability, that we can make it day by day and step by step. If you’re having trouble with commitment, spend more time in prayer. God will remind you of His great love for you. God will hold your hand during the highs and lows. God will be with you wherever you go. God will lead you on.