Sermon Brief
Date Written: April 27, 2007
Date Preached: April 29, 2007
Where Preached: OZHBC (AM)
Sermon Details:
Sermon Title: What are we going to do now?
Sermon Text: Luke 10:1-20
Introduction:
Wow what a great 4 nights of services we had this past week! Let me share with you that if you missed any or all of these services you missed out on a blessing that was refreshing to the soul… and when we look at this past week we can say that the Albany Area-Wide Crusade was a success in many ways.
There were close to or over 300 people at every service including Monday and Tuesday nights. The love offering was tremendous on all 4 nights especially on Wednesday night. The preaching was simple, straight-forward and God-inspired. The music was lively, upbeat and led us into worship each night. But do these meetings represent ‘revival’ in our midst?
I believe that the ultimate test will be how we honestly answer the question, “What are we going to do now?”
After all revival is something we all long for… or at least I would hope we all long for – but just what is revival:
• Revival is the humbling of God’s people before God
• Revival is the people of God seeking the face of God
• Revival is the people of God submitting to the plan and purpose of God
I believe that believers tend to limit revival to simply the winning of lost souls, and although that is must be our central focus, but, revival is truly about preparing the hearts and lives of God’s people to do God’s work.
The salvation of souls should come about as the RESULT of what revival does to the church member… Revival should bring about a newly refreshed and freshly washed believer who is ready to take on Hell with a water pistol!
The great evangelist of the mid 20th century Leonard Ravenhill once wrote this about revival, he said,
“…revival is like childbirth in that the fruit of your labor is only revealed after much time, tension and travail…”
I believe in our case, I would take that illustration just a bit further. I know that this past week and the services we experienced were a tremendous blessing… but is that all there is to revival? I say NO, that revival is NOT over but what we have experienced is beginning!
I dare say that this past week of services and experiences we have had were the conception of a revival that is on its way in our community.
I truly believe that TRUE revival is coming but that is going to require time, tension and travail on our part as a fellowship before the fruit of our labor will be revealed.
We have experienced the joy of conception and now we must remain faithful and true to God through the gestation period before TRUE revival can be fully revealed and made visible for ALL to see…
We all know that when a woman becomes pregnant it is supposed to be a happy and joyful occasion in her life. She begins to think about the baby and the wonderful joy of being a mother. She doesn’t dwell on the pregnancy, but focuses on the result and blessing of the birth of her child!
Like the mother and child, the church and TRUE revival should be the same way! We should be of the same mind as a mother waiting for her baby to be born.
We know that TRUE revival is coming, and we know that we are going to have to face many trials and tensions and travails before it gets here!
But let’s look to the joy of knowing that God is bringing revival our way and not at our current situation and circumstance! Today may look bleak but know that God has a better future in store for us… REVIVAL IS COMING!
And like a mother who wants her baby to be the healthiest baby possible she is going to change a few things about who she is…
She will change the way she eats, the way she exercises, the way she entertains… everything about her begins to focus on the health and well being of that baby.
Our church has conceived revival this past week and many left those meetings with joyful and refreshed spirits. But if we truly desire revival in our midst we have to be willing to be like an expectant mother… we must be willing to change the way we do things to enhance our spiritual health and ensure good health to the revival that is coming!
So once again I want to ask the question, “What do we do now?”
Well this morning I want us to turn to the Gospel of Luke chapter 10:1-20…and stand in honor of the reading of God’s Word…
READ ENTIRE PASSAGE
I believe that when we look at this passage of Scripture we can find the answer to the question, “What do we do now?”
1. Look at v1 – read v.1 again…(emphasize last part)
Where God is… that is where Revival – TRUE revival is going to be! But I want us to notice something here in this text. Jesus sent His disciples before Him to places where HE was about to go…
Last week I told you that first and foremost revival comes from God and is initiated by God. Here we find Jesus taking the initiative and SENDING out His disciples.
These men did not go out for their own glory, but went out in the name of Jesus. These men did not go out for FBC Jerusalem or Galilee Baptist Church… but they went out because Jesus sent them out!
God is at the beginning of EVERY revival – and I truly believe that this past week God gathered many people from this community together to prepare them to GO OUT for Him so that TRUE soul changing revival can come to this community!
2. But look at v.2 – read v.2 again…
Here we find Jesus emphasizing prayer in the life of those He was sending out! Where fervent prayer is… that is where REVIVAL… TRUE REVIVAL is… this was a command by Jesus for His followers to pray for the harvest and for more workers to help with the harvest.
We can glean at least 2 lessons from this command from Jesus. The 1st is that there is a vast harvest of souls that are simply out there waiting for God’s workers to come and share Christ and bring them into the kingdom thru the grace and mercy of God!
But the 2nd point here is a little more subtle… Jesus tells us that the workers are few and He implies that we need more workers! But the overall implication in this verse is that the harvest is coming in… REGARDLESS of how many workers are out there!
Do you want to be a part of the harvest of souls that God is going to bring to the Albany Area? I pray that more and more workers will become involved in this great and mighty harvest, and I pray that no one here in this room misses out!
Do you remember that last week I preached how prayer was the life’s blood of any REAL revival? Here Jesus emphasizes the importance of prayer, but also the importance of us getting involved in Kingdom work.
Today there is a world of lostness that envelopes our society and the need for more faithful, Christian workers for the Kingdom has never been at a higher demand! We need faithful workers now more than at any other time in the history of our planet!
But is seems as if those sitting in the pews of the church have developed the thought process that says, “…I know it NEEDS to be done, and I know someone has to do I t, but I can’t be bothered by this now, let’s hire someone to do it for us!”
Now don’t misunderstand me when I say that because there is nothing inherently evil about hiring someone to work in the church, BUT truly speaking we abuse that method to the highest degree!
God has called many in THIS fellowship into service to Him but they are NOT being obedient and they feel that it is the JOB of the preacher, youth minister or children’s minister to DO IT FOR THEM!
If people are saved and they have become a ‘new creature’ in Christ like God’s Word proclaims…
If people are brought from death to life and from darkness to light…
Then we should have an OVER ABUNDANCE of workers. Right now our children’s minister is struggling trying to sign up workers for Vacation Bible School… she needs teachers, not helpers, not cooks, not recreation people… but TEACHERS… she needs people who love God enough to teach children the Bible and share stories about His love to them… for 5 nights in June!
How ‘bout it? Are you ready to become a worker in the kingdom? Jesus tells us plainly that there is a lot of work to be done and that we need more workers…
we must be about praying for those workers, but we also need to be about submitting to the call of God on our lives and being obedient by beginning to work in His kingdom.
3. Look with me to v.3, read verse again…
Last week I preached that where Christians desired revival… with a TRUE and PURE desire… revival would come… God would honor their desire!
And likewise revival is NOT going to come where revival is NOT truly desired by the people! Here we find Jesus telling the disciples to go out into a world that will NOT befriend them, and into world that will seek to destroy them!
It took a serious desire on the part of these disciples to be obedient to Jesus command to go on this mission. And we have to realize that we are helpless before the enemy, just like sheep are helpless before the wolf!
However, sheep are led by and protected by a shepherd, as we are led by and protected by the Great Shepherd. The shepherd fends off the wolf and protects those who follow him.
Christ will fend off the Enemy and protect us, but we have to be willing to follow Him in total submission and obedience.
v.4 always seemed to confuse me when I read this passage, but God has shared its true meaning with me,
4. let’s look at it…read verse 4 again…
Focus is what Jesus is emphasizing in this particular verse! We have to be focused on the task at hand. We cannot allow distractions to come into our lives and take us away from what God is having us to do…
For many believers, money is an issue and a circumstance in life that distracts us from serving God as we should. Money or the lack of money can become the focus of our lives and when that happens there is NO room for God! Jesus said that you cannot serve 2 masters… that you cannot serve God and money!
For many believers, material possessions and the acquisition of those material possessions becomes a focus in their lives and they are distracted from what God desires of their lives. Don’t get me wrong here, it is NOT the possessions but the attitude of the heart that God sees…
For many believers, fellowship and friendship can be a distraction to serving God and doing what He has called you to do! Friends and fellowship are important in the kingdom, but when your friends and your fellowship get in the way of your mission for God… it is a distraction and Jesus has said that we cannot be distracted from our mission!
5. In v.5-11 we find Jesus teaching about sticking to our commitment and continuing in what He has instructed us to do.
Read v.5-11 again…
How often do we believe we have heard from God on some certain issue but after a time we begin to get bored or the task seems to become mundane to us… and we lose our focus!
When God places us somewhere in His kingdom, we are called to STAY there until God moves us. Henry Blackaby tells us in his Bible Study entitled “Experiencing God”
“…if you don’t know what to do for God, keep doing the last thing He told you to do until He tells you to do something else…”
If God has placed you in ministry, He has a purpose and a plan for that ministry, don’t be distracted and don’t lose focus, stay in there and keep doing what God has called you to do…
Another thing we can gather from these verses is that when you try to go where God does NOT want you to go… you are NOT going to be welcome.
When you come to a place that rejects God and does not want to receive His message, don’t try to force it on them, but pray for them and move on!
Shake off your shoes and know in your heart that you have been obedient and it is THEY who have rejected the Gospel, it is NOT a failure for you or for God, but a rejection by them!
6. And v.12—16 reveals to the believer what happens when God is rejected.
Jesus calls out the names of several towns in the area… these towns had rejected Him and His teachings… and all the miracles He had performed.
Jesus says that if Tyre and Sidon… possibly the most wicked cities in the world in the time of Jesus. He says that if they had heard of what Jesus had done and if they would heard His message… that they would have repented…
But this is not about Tyre and Sidon, it was about these cities who had rejected Jesus. The Bible shares with us that it is only thru Christ Jesus that we know eternal life with God in heaven!
If we do not have Christ in our lives, we are headed to hell! If we do not accept Christ… then we are rejecting Him! And Jesus is saying here that those who reject Him will suffer by going to hell.
Here Jesus also teaches that when we are accepted or rejected that it is not our charisma that the people accept or it is not our demeanor that the people may reject…
But that if they accept… they accept God and if they reject… they are not rejecting you but they are rejecting God! And this gives us great insight on our duties as believers!
Our job is NOT saving others… that job belongs to the Holy Spirit. Our job is simply to present the good news in a loving and caring spirit to those around us! If they accept God, great and wonderful, but if they reject Him… it is NOT something we need to take personally and feel like we have failed!
The enemy will use this feeling against us to prevent us from sharing our faith, but we have to understand that rejection of our words is not rejection of us… but rejection of our God! And Jesus teaches here “Woe to all who reject Him!”
7. In v.17-20 read verses again…
Here we find Jesus completing His teaching of the disciples at this point! The disciples are coming back and they are bringing great and mighty reports of what has happened on their journey!
They say things like… the demons submit to us in Your name! I can imagine how strong in their faith they must have felt, in fact Jesus knew that for some this would turn into a ME thing instead of a God thing!
Jesus tells His disciples of his unfailing presence with them and the power that is available to them, but He warns them to NOT be too proud or haughty in spirit.
Now Jesus was not saying here that we should not rejoice in the salvation of souls, but that we should not be surprised that we can overcome the enemy through His name! Paul understood this teaching all too well and it is revealed in his writings, especially Phil 4:13 where he writes, “I can do ALL things thru Christ who gives me strength…”
Conclusion:
People we must be willing to DO the work of the kingdom if we desire to see TRUE revival come to our church, to our community and ultimately to our country!
What are we to do…
1. We are to go out where Jesus sends us… be obedient to the call of God on your life…
2. We are to pray for more believers to become active and submit to God’s plans and purpose in their lives…
3. We are to recognize and understand that the world we live in today is a field that is ‘white unto harvest’ the souls are out there… we have to be willing and obedient to go into the field…
4. We have to have a desire to see revival come and that desire has to be greater than our fear of what is out there in the world… we have to be focused on revival and overcome the fears of our heart!
5. We cannot become distracted by money, material possessions or personal attachments. Money, possessions and friends are NOT evil, but when they distract us from serving God, we are being disobedient and rebellious!
6. When God puts us in a place of service, we cannot pout or get bored, but we are to stay focused and stay TO THE WORK of the Kingdom until God calls us to change what we are doing!
7. When others reject the message we carry, we cannot take it personal, or hate them for rejecting it… continue to pray for them and understand that they are rejecting God and not us!
8. Finally when we are obedient and the enemy shakes in his boots at our actions and when God moves in a mighty way, we cannot revel that we have overcome, but we must realize that THRU Him we have overcome and we must rejoice in the fact that we are part of the kingdom!
