As we seek to carry out our mission here at South of making disciples by reaching those who are far from God, while growing up those who are in Christ, one of our key steps we desire a person to take is the step of getting themselves equipped.
One of the reasons this is one of our key steps is that the Bible has a lot to say about the equipping of followers of Jesus Christ. And as you consider what it has to say, you come to learn the following:
- The meaning of the word “equip” is that of being prepared for full use, put into proper condition, complete. It is used throughout the New Testament to communicate the idea of being completely prepared and ready to be used for the task at hand — that task being a follower of Jesus Christ, and all that is involved with that. The reality is that none of us is naturally prepared and ready to follow Christ; we all need to be equipped.
- The church has been designed by God to be a primary agent in the equipping process. Ephesians 4:11-14 informs us that God equips the church with evangelists, shepherds, and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry.
Now, because of how important equipping is in the life of a Christ-follower and the role the church is to play in that process, we take the responsibility of equipping very seriously at South. As a result, a few years ago we designed Core Classes, which meet each Sunday morning at 9:30 am.
We chose the name Core Class because it not only conveyed a teaching environment, but it also conveyed that what would be taught in these classes is core, and therefore extremely important for everyone to know. We also designed these classes with a more streamlined purpose and focus. We recognize that if any one ministry of a church tries to accomplish too many purposes, that ministry will struggle to accomplish any of them, or it will naturally accomplish only one. Therefore, instead of trying to use Core Classes to accomplish the purpose of prayer, community, service, and learning, we have tried to keep the purpose of these classes as strategic, interactive, transformational Bible study that will equip Christ-followers.
We want our Core Classes to be all about equipping Christ-followers through Bible study and learning. And as we are close to starting a new year, with a new round of Core Classes, I would strongly encourage you to make a commitment to equip yourself and your entire family by being here Sunday mornings at 9:30 am. Our young children and school-age kids have Sunday School as well, at the same time! We provide the opportunity for you to be prepared and made ready for the task of following Christ — you just need to take advantage of that opportunity. Are you?
Over the next several days, I will be posting blogs from our different adult Core Class teachers in order to give you a sneak peek as to what the 2016 Core Classes are going to be about. I hope you will check back each day in order to see what these men are preparing to equip you with throughout the coming year.