Calling The Rescuers

INTRODUCTION

-FACTS ABOUT THE TITANIC

-Maiden voyage began on April 10, 1912

-On board were:

-883 foot long vessel

-9 decks

-75,000 lbs of fresh meat

-40,000 fresh eggs

-200 barrels of flour

-40 tons of potatoes

-1,500 gallons of fresh milk

-1 Renault 35 hp automobile

-3,364 bags of mail

-50 cases of toothpaste

-5 grand pianos

-30 cases of golf clubs and tennis racquets

-4 cases of opium

-Squash court

-Turkish bath

-20 lifeboats

-2,228 people

-11:40 PM, April 14, 1912 the boat strikes an iceberg over 60 feet high

-After ignoring several warnings

-Over an hour later the first lifeboat was launched

-Followed by 17 others / 2 never to be launched

-2 ½ hours after it struck the iceberg, the Titanic sank into the ocean

-Everyone on the Titanic ended up on one of two lists

-Saved and lost

-People on board: 2,228

-Saved: 705

-Lost: 1,523

-Jesus said that He came to seek and save that which was lost, spiritually

-He was sent to be a rescuer to those on a spiritual Titanic, headed for disaster

-There are many lost in our world and community today

-Ron Hutchcraft - “The gap between those who are saved and those who are lost has never been wider than it is today.”

-We live in what has been called a post-Christian culture

-A pagan society born out of a rejection of Christianity

-They have rejected it without even fully considering it

-That is what makes it so challenging to reach them

-Often they seem virtually unreachable

-Because they seem unreachable, we have given up on them

-The sad fact is, up to 90% of believers never tell somebody about Jesus Christ

-SHAME ON US!!!

-Over 200,000 people died in the South Asian Tsunami for lack of a warning system

-Most likely, most did not know Christ

-How many countless thousands and millions are dying today and have died without anyone who knew the way showing them the way

Jude 20-23

I. There Are Lost People All Around Us

-In our community

-We are often too far-sighted to see them

-We look at those across the country or around the world rather than those in our own back yard

-In our church

-Surveys have said that around 50% of those attending church on Sunday have never accepted Christ as their personal Savior

A. They may be happy, content people

-You may not be able to tell just by looking at their face

-They smile like the rest of us

-They are satisfied with their lives as they are

-Why change a good thing, huh?

-Their happiness and contentment are based on factors outside of God

-Money

-Social standing

-Job security

-Good family

-Health

B. They may be moral people

-You can’t tell much of a difference between them and the average believer

-Part of that is the fault of the average believer

-They strive to live by the rules

-Many times they think they are OK spiritually because they follow the rules

C. They may be quite intelligent

1. Reasoning out faith

-Anything that does not fit their scientific, logical minds cannot be real to them

-God won’t fit within their mind-set

2. Reasoning in foolishness

-They forget that God made science

-God is all powerful, He is not bound by His own rules

D. They may not know they are lost

1. Misinformation

-They’ve been led away by false teaching

-Sometimes even from well-meaning churches

-False doctrines

-Confusing doctrines

2. Ignorance

-They’ve just never heard the gospel of Christ

-Even in America, some have not heard

-Even in the Bible Belt, some have not heard

-Even in Crooked Creek, some have not heard

E. They need Jesus

-Only His cross can rescue them from their doom

II. The Lost People Need Rescuing

-Death Tragedies

-We don’t understand why:

-Many children and adults died at Columbine High School

-Hundreds died on September 11, 2001

-Over 100,000 died in the South Asian Tsunami

-6,000 die every day in America

-1500,000 died every day around the world

-Many of those who die each day are lost, without God

-They have a death sentence on their heads

-For crimes against God

-“Against You have I sinned. . .”

-They have stolen control of their lives from the creator and placed it in their own hands

-We all have

-That is what redemption is all about

-Restoring control to God

-The lost need rescuing to free them from their death sentence, which they totally deserve, but do not need to face

III. The Lost People Can Be Rescued

A. By the cross

1. Not by the church

2. Not by being good

B. On their turf

-It requires going to them

-Why? Because they are lost

C. Through their situation

1. Using what they are familiar with