CLASS Series  

                    CHRISTIAN LIFE AND SERVICE SEMINARS                                           

Please contact the office on 01255 435577 Monday to Thursday between 9.00am and 4.30pm if you cannot find what you are looking for.  

101 - Discovering Church Membership

Every pastor has experienced a time when he realised he and his congregation weren’t on the same page. “Why are we starting this new ministry?” “Are we really trying to reach those ‘kind’ of people? “You mean the church really believes THAT?” And invariably confusion ensues. If that’s what is going on in your church, 101 might be a good fit. You’ll never be able to centre your church on God’s five purposes if the church family has confusion about its identity. 101 is the first of a four part series written by Rick Warren that will help your church members begin to internalise God’s purposes for their lives.

“These sessions are the heart of Purpose Driven® paradigm,” said Saddleback Senior Pastor Rick Warren. “We started using them when we were very young and they have been one of the keys to our growth.”

101, the Membership Class. Your congregation will focus on four key messages that will unite your entire congregation as you begin your purpose driven journey.

1. Common Salvation

Your church will never have unity of purpose until they have unity of faith. Make sure your congregation starts their purpose driven journey of faith on the same starting mark - faith in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. This first segment of 101 will help your congregation understand the basics of what the Bible teaches concerning salvation. After focusing on how sin has disrupted God’s original design for humanity - perfect communion with him - 101 then shifts to the only possible solution to the sin problem: the death of God’s own Son, Jesus Christ.

This session concludes with the meaning of the two Biblical symbols of salvation - baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

2. A Common Belief

This session turns to the basic beliefs of the church, starting with the congregation's purpose statement. For many in your congregation this will be their first introduction to what it means to be a Purpose Driven church. The session goes through all five purposes of the church (worship, fellowship, discipleship, ministry and evangelism) and explains how they impact your church’s ministry.

The session will then focus on the essential theological beliefs of your church, including what your church believes about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, eternity and more, while giving you the chance to adapt the text to meet your requirements. Finally in this section you can take a look at the lifestyle expectations of church members, including their responsibility to tithe, to be ministers and to share their faith.

3. A Common Strategy

If your church members agree on a common salvation and common beliefs but not on a strategy, you’ll still be climbing uphill on your journey to becoming a purpose driven congregation. Thet’s why 101 will help you explain your church’s strategy for reaching your community.

4. A Common Understanding of Church Structure

This section helps unpack different metaphors the New Testament uses for the church, including the church as a family, as the Body of Christ and as a flock. it then helps show how those two truths affect how your church structures itself.

As a prelude to what attendees will learn in 101, the class also teaches the Biblical role of pastors as administers of the church and members as the ministers. This will help prepare your congregation for learning their SHAPE and using it to serve others in your church. Then using Saddleback as a model, you’ll be able to include information on your own denominational affiliation and membership expectations.

Finally, those attending the session will be urged to join your team as church members. Included in the materials will be a basic membership covenant you can adapt to your own needs.
Go to 101 Resource >>

201 - Introduction to Spiritual Maturity

How does your church measure spiritual maturity?
What process do you use to move those who come to church regularly to active members of your congregation?  Years ago Rick Warren saw a void in solid Biblical material that would help move members to ministers within a congregation.

The Purpose of 201
The purpose is the same goal that Epaphras had for the Colossian Christians. He said, “That you may become mature Christians and that you may fulfill God’s will for you.” That’s what God wants us to do. He wants us to grow up. Ephesians 4: 14 - 15 “We are not meant to remain as children but to grow up in every way into Christ.”

Discovering Spiritual Maturity
God’s number one goal is to make us like Christ - that’s maturity, to become like Christ. He says here that it’s by putting off the old habits and putting on new habits that we become like Christ.

What’s the focus of the course?
We’re going to focus on four basic habits that every Christian needs to develop in order to grow to spiritual maturity. 201 will equip you with the skills you need to begin these habits and will explain the tools you will need to continue.

The four habits we need to look at: Time with God’s Word, Prayer, Tithing and Fellowship.

One: TIME WITH GOD’S WORD. “If you continue in my Word then you are my disciples indeed. And you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” The Bible says that the first thing that a disciple is, is he/she is someone who continues in God’s Word.

Two: PRAYER. “If you remain in me, and my words remain in you, then you will ask for anything you wish, and you shall have it. In this way, you become my disciples.” We will look at the habit of prayer. How do I pray effectively, pray and get answers.

Three: TITHING. Jesus said, “None of you can be my disciples unless he gives up ...” ten percent of his possessions. Is that what it says?  No. It says “... unless he gives up all.” Tithing is simply the indication that that’s true in our lives. If I’m not willing to give the first ten percent of what I make to God, how can I say that I’ve given it all to God.

Four: FELLOWSHIP. “Love each other just as much as I love you. Your strong love for each other will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” He says as you love each other - that’s fellowship - you’re going to prove that you’re My Disciples.
As a prelude to what attendees will learn in C.L.A.S.S. 301, the class also teaches the Biblical role of pastors as administers of the church and members as the ministers. This will help prepare your congregation for learning their S.H.A.P.E. and using it to serve others in the church. Few other Biblical truths can have such a transformative effect on the life of your congregation and free your church to reach its ministry potential.

Then, using what Saddleback has done as a model, you’ll be able to include information on your own denominational affiliation and membership expectations.

Go to 201 Resource >>

301 - Introduction to your SHAPE

Welcome to 301. We are going to be guiding you  on a discovery of who God made you to be. We believe that once you understand who God made you to be, then you’ll understand what God made you to do.

This is the third session of four. Since these sessions build on each other it is recommended that you first will have completed Discovering My Membership 101 and Discovering Spiritual Maturity 201 before going through this session.

The Purpose For The Class

God didn’t design ministry for just the few with seminary degrees. In the church every member of the church is a minister. This is what 301 is all about. Through the SHAPE process, you’ll learn how God can use your Spiritual Gifts, Heart, Abilities, Personality and Experiences to minister to others in need.

Ephesians 4: 11-12 “God has given pastors and teachers to prepare God’s people for works of ministry, so the body of Christ may be built up.” In 101 we said that the Bible teaches that the pastors are the administers and the people are the ministers. That’s the whole strategy in relation to our structure. It’s not just the pastor's job to do the ministry. The Bible says that it’s a pastor's and teacher's job to prepare God’s people to do ministry. We consider this class to be the most important thing you do in your church. We consider it more important than Sunday morning or anything else because out of this session we’re helping people discover what ministry is all about.

The Principle Undergirding This Session

Your Ministry is determined by your make-up. What God made you to be determines what he intends for you to do. You will understand the purpose you were created for when you understand the kind of person you are. This is the secret of knowing God’s will for your life. God is consistent in His plan for each of our lives. He would not give us inborn talents and temperaments, spiritual gifts and all sorts of life experiences and then not use them. We believe by reviewing and studying these factors you’ll discover the ministry God has for you, the unique way God intends for you to serve Him.

What are the goals for the session. Two basic goals:

1. That you will discover your unique (SHAPE) for ministry and commit to developing and using your God-given gifts and abilities in serving God and others through your church family.
2. That you will select and begin serving in the ministry of your church that best expresses (and this is the key) what God made me to be.

We are going to look at discovering your primary ministry and your secondary ministry. You ought to spend the maximum of your time in the ministry that best expresses who you are. But in addition to that, there are secondary ministries where you may not be as strongly gifted in. but you have a servant’s heart and you are willing to help.

Finally. God has placed a multitude of experiences in your life to help mould you for ministry. God can use many of our experiences in our background to help heal hurts in our church and in our community.

Go to 301 Resource >>

401 - Discovering My Life Mission

This is the fourth of the purpose Driven sessions. In 101 you committed to being a member of God’s family. In 201 you committed to the habits for spiritual maturity. In 301 you committed and learned about discovering your shape for being in ministry through your church family, and in this session you’re going to begin to discover your mission in the world.

401 is dedicated to helping your members discover and realise their place in the world and in home missions. “Discovering My Life Mission” is equipping and empowering your core for world and life-changing missions.

The Basis for the Session
I Was Created To Fulfill God’s Purpose. Proverbs 16:4 says “The Lord has made everything for His purpose.” God had a purpose for bringing you here today because he wants you to understand better his purpose for your life.

God Planned My Life Mission Before I Was Born. Ephesians 2: 10 “God is our maker and in union with Christ He has created us for a life of good works which He has already prepared for us to do.” God planned your life mission even before you were born. Your life mission has both universal elements and unique elements. There are parts of your life mission that apply to every Christian and there are parts of your life mission that apply uniquely to you, what God custom designed you to do. When you became a believer you were given a new mission in life. That mission is unique.

Fulfilling My Life Mission Brings Glory To God. Jesus said in John 17:4 “I have brought You glory on earth by completing the work You gave me to do.” I don’t know a more important topic than what we’re going to talk about. Discovering and developing your life mission, your life purpose in the world.

My Primary Task In Life Is To Fulfill My Life Mission. The Bible teaches us this. Acts 20:24 “The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me to tell people the good news about God’s grace.” Regardless of what else God wants you to do with your life, if you are a believer, He has an assigment for you.

The Goal Of These Sessions: That I commit the rest of my life to being a messenger of God’s good news to other people, using my time, talents and treasures for His kingdom regardless of where it leads or what it costs. Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:9 “we make it our goal to please Him.” What is our goal? To measure up to God’s plan for our lives.

Session Outlines

Discovering My Life Mission, Sharing The Message,  Fishing My Mission Pond, Becoming A World Class Christian, What Does It Take To Be On Mission With God?

Go to 401 Resource >>

Please contact the office on 01255 435577 Monday to Thursday between 9.00am and 4.30pm if you cannot find what you are looking for.