Erik Spohr: NAC 2012 Tuesday Morning Speaker

June 11, 2012

By Carl Stagner

A recent positive trend among churches across the country has seen more and more churches deliberately reaching out to their community. Local congregations are choosing to minister beyond the four walls of their sanctuary and demonstrate love to their neighbors. Last year’s NAC stressed the importance of living out the Great Commandments (Matt 22:37–29). While steps have been taken in the right direction, there is still much to be done. Erik Spohr, Tuesday morning speaker at NAC 2012, desires to see every individual, church, and agency loving both God and neighbor. Through his message, he intends to encourage the Church of God to “Refresh our Relationship with the Community.”

For Erik Spohr, refreshing relationships with the community is a vital component of renewing our efforts toward relational connectivity and identity (John 17:21–22). He warns that the church may need to take a new approach to relationships in and outside the church, as well as change the way we present our timeless message. “The gospel is not merely for those who are already a part of the Church,” Spohr insists, “but for those not yet a part, as well. It is these people—those not yet a part—that we are called to serve and reach.”

When asked how relational connectivity and identity play a role in the transformation of culture, Spohr emphasizes the need to get back to some basics. He believes that preaching the gospel and making disciples must be the foundation for ministry. “As the Great Commission and the Great Commandments are carried out in obedience, and as lives are impacted and changed, the culture will ultimately be affected. In this way cultural change is tied inextricably to the church’s relationship with the community. The church cannot merely focus on itself, nor can it so focus on others that it forgets its primary mission.”

Those who hear Erik Spohr’s message during NAC 2012 will no doubt recognize a heart for the lost. Listeners will hear him describe how local communities desperately need churches that are engaged with them, offering spiritual and tangible support. “My prayer is that God would see fit to use me to convey the absolute necessity of the church in the local community. As such I hope to convey the reality that as the church we have a very specific command (The Great Commission). This command is then the unalienable substance of our message. When done effectively, the church becomes an outpost for the kingdom of God in our communities. This requires specificity, urgency, and integrity.”

Spohr invites everyone to join him at NAC 2012 for the chance to be challenged, encouraged, and renewed. He recalls NAC as “an annual time of inspiration as a Christian and a wonderful time to meet new people, begin new friendships, and rekindle previous relationships.”

Erik Spohr is the senior pastor of Centerville Christian Fellowship in Centerville, Ohio. His biggest passion in ministry is leading people to grow in their relationship with God and their obedience to him as they submit themselves completely to his Word and Spirit. Hear him speak at NAC during the 10:30 service on Tuesday morning, June 26.