Mission Possible – Series Intro
And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Mark 16:15 (NKJV)
It should be noted that Jesus gave this command to roughly twelve men. These men depended on transportation with a top speed of about 20 miles/hour. It must have been an overwhelming assignment – one that most of us would say was impossible.
But here we are 2000 years later on the other side of the world celebrating their success. Why?
For nothing is impossible with God. Luke 1:37 (NIV)
God has asked every one of us to do something. Here is the interesting thing about this request… No matter where we are in our walk with God, God is challenging us to do what seems impossible. (If it seems possible, it probably isn’t what God wants you to do…)
We’re all at different stages – we all face different issues in life. And all of us feel overwhelmed at times.
That’s one of the reasons many of us can get lost in a book. Or in a movie. We are drawn to heroes – people that overcome impossibilities and do great things.
This past week on the Tonight Show, Jay Leno was talking about the nuclear weapons that were flown over the nation… Did everyone hear about that? He said the good news was – the nation was never in danger at all. Why? Because apparently Jack Bauer had stowed away on the plane!
I must confess – I’m sort of a 24 junkie… I love the suspense… Why do we like these stories that are so filled with suspense? We enjoy them because we know that in the end, our heroes come out on top…
We all live in suspense, don’t we? Of course, we only call it that in a book or a movie. In real life, we just call it worry. We call it stress. Why is that? Because unlike the movies – we don’t know the outcome, do we?
What if you could enjoy your life as much as you enjoy a good book or movie? How do I turn the worry, which is not fun – into suspense, which is fun? Worry is reduced to suspense when we know the outcome.
That’s what this sermon series is about. Jesus said that we would have life, and have it more abundantly. That doesn’t mean everything is just going to be smooth, and without problems. It means that he intends for you to enjoy life as much as you enjoy reading or watching your favorite stories.
You will succeed! You will accomplish something great. You will leave a legacy. You will overcome impossible odds. Why, because you’re with God. And with God, nothing is impossible!
THIS MESSAGE WILL SELF-DESTRUCT
Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look upon the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall die in like manner:
[isn’t that depressing? don’t stop reading...]
but my salvation shall be for ever, and my righteousness shall not be abolished Isaiah 51:6 (KJV)
For God’s gifts and his call are irrevocable. Romans 11:29 (NIV)
We just saw a movie clip from the most recent “Mission Impossible 3” movie. The idea of a self-destructing communication device has been a theme of these movies since their inception. The methods of communication have become much more sophisticated over the years… (the first was a LP record that dissolved).
Of course – the idea behind this is secrecy… Nobody would ever hear that message but the person for which it was intended. But because the communication device was gone – they would not hear it again either… The rest of the mission had to be carried out on the memory of that initial instruction.
God speaks to us in many different ways. In the Bible, there were many ways God spoke. Once it was through a donkey. Another time it was in a storm. Some heard an audible voice from heaven, and others received message from angels.
A lot of us are familiar with the story of Elijah, who needed to hear from God about his next mission. We find the story in 1 Kings 19 (9-13). Wind – Earthquake - Fire – Gentle Whisper.
-All of us will have, a moment with God
-One thing we can count on – the moment passes
Have you ever had a moment with God? But then later wondered where God was?
Have you ever had a person that really helped you, encouraged you – leave?
Worse yet – have you ever heard God through someone, and then they failed, or even betrayed you?
When the moment, or the messenger is gone, we may
-we may feel empty or lonely
-be disillusioned
The word ‘disillusioned’ is actually quite accurate. We become disillusioned only because we trusted an illusion. It means “no longer believing in what is not real”. That is good and bad. Good in that we are no longer believing in an illusion. Bad in that we were putting too much stock in the messenger, instead of the message.
Has anyone ever heard of the Law of Thermodynamics? The second law of thermodynamics in a nutshell is, “Left to itself, a system always become more chaotic, not less”.
Everything in the natural will break down. It will self-destruct. Left to time, natural things get worse, not better. What does that mean? The vehicles that God uses at times to speak into our lives are not going to be around forever. Will people fail you? Yes. Will moments pass? Yes.
But notice I said that was the second law… What is the first? It is simply, “The total energy of the universe remains constant”. Think of it like this… When ice melts, does it cease to exist? No, it just becomes water. When the water evaporates, does it cease to exist? No – it just becomes the atmosphere.
Jesus summed up all of the laws of thermodynamics in once sentence, in Mat 24:35
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will by no means pass away. Matt 24:35 (NKJV)
You see – all that we know and see in the natural was formed by the Word of God. In every day of creation, things happened because “And God said…”.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. John 1:1-4 (NIV)
And so – we should not be surprised when people fail. When moments pass.
So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. Isaiah 55:11 (NIV)
What we should be about is the message, not the vehicle. Stability and success are born in the persistent pursuit of what we know to be true, in spite of what we feel.
That’s why I’m titling this sermon “This Message will Self-Destruct”. A few years from now, you may not even remember this sermon. You may hardly remember this preacher. Worse yet – I may fail you in some way. I’m human, just like you. Don’t put your trust in me alone.
But there are some things that you can put your trust in. That you can count on long after the moment passes. After the messenger leaves. The scriptures we read at the beginning tell us at least four things we can count on:
HIS SALVATION (Isa 51:6)
One of the biggest things we miss sometimes in our Christian walk is “feeling” saved. Eternal security? Perhaps not – but it is at least difficult to be lost once you have experienced His salvation.
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:37-39 (NIV)
HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS (Isa 51:6)
He is always right… If God speaks to you, you can take it to the bank, regardless of what people say.
People were overwhelmed with amazement. "He has done everything well," they said. Mark 7:37 (NIV)
He will not lie (he cannot lie – Titus 1:2). This shows us the power of His word. If he said, “The sky is pink” – you know what would happen? The sky would turn pink! That is the power of his word - and that is why God cannot lie!
HIS GIFTS (Rom 11:29)
He is not an Indian giver (only gives in exchange for a return, and takes it back if not returned).
HIS CALLING (Rom 11:29)
[share my testimony about leaving God for a time - brief] I remember many instances as a child and as a young adult when God spoke to me.
As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more. But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children-- Psalms 103:13-17 (NIV)
