Pt. 3 – I Choose To Share
I. Introduction
We have been talking about the choices that we are faced with in life. Thousands if not millions of decisions must be thought through and made during a lifetime. Some choices are important . . . while some are trivial.
For instance have you ever thought about the 1000’s of choices you have to wade through to purchase a car? Did you know that there are approximately 16 million new vehicles sold annually? So if there are 16 million cars every year, just stop a second and think about the number of vehicles that had to be available so that you could pick the exact color, wheel package, interior package, and floor mats that you wanted.
Are there any ice cream lovers in the house? If you love ice cream then you have more than likely been to a place called Baskin & Robbins. Home of the 31 flavors, right? Wrong! Did you know that this company has actually created more than 1,000 flavors since 1945? More choices!
Over the last few weeks I have challenged you to make choices that are lot more crucial and important than what color of car you will drive or the flavor of ice cream you will eat. I have asked you to make some life changing choices. The first was to choose to forgive. Lay down grudges and allow God to be the judge. Then last week I challenged you to choose to submit to God’s Word, to Jesus as Lord, and to the assigned relationships in your life. These choices, when made, will change your life forever. This morning I want us to make another critical choice. This choice should be the easiest of the choices we have discussed so far, but incredibly the longer we are Christians the more often we fail to make or ignore this choice.
TEXT: Romans 1:14-16
14I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. 15That is why I am so eager (passion) to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome. 16I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. (NIV)
14Everyone I meet—it matters little whether they’re mannered or rude, smart or simple—deepens my sense of interdependence and obligation. 15And that’s why I can’t wait to get to you in Rome, preaching this wonderful good news of God. 16It’s news I’m most proud to proclaim, this extraordinary Message of God’s powerful plan to rescue everyone who trusts him, starting with Jews and then right on to everyone else! (Message)
It would seem like a no-brainer, but we must decide or choose . . . are we obligated? The word "obligated" means to be bound legally or morally. It also means necessary or essential. Do we feel like sharing is an essential part of our life? Are we eager or passionate about sharing? Is there any urgency about us? Or are we apathetic? Are we ashamed of the gospel? Does our lack of willingness to share reveal shame as if the answer we have found isn’t worthy of being shared?
I wonder about the true answers to those questions when statistical we are told that 95% of all Christians will never win anyone to Christ. And that only 49% of born again Christians shared their faith in Christ in the past year by taking a non-Christian friend to church so they could hear the gospel. (2004) According to a 2007 survey, only 54%, just over half of born again Christians feel a sense of responsibility to tell others about their faith. (2007)
I believe the apostles would have been sickened by those statistics. They wouldn’t understand our lack of willingness to share when they were willing to share even if it meant they would lose their lives in horrific manner for doing so.
Jesus evidently knew that we would hesitate when it came to the idea of sharing our faith and so He addressed it so that He would understand His position on sharing. In Matthew 5:13-16 He says this:
13“Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. 14“Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. 15If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. 16Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.”
John Vassar knew how to be light! One day, while in a large railroad station, he saw a lady with a serious look on her face sitting by herself. He went to her and began to talk to her, and found out she was unsatisfied with life. He urged her to consider Christ. She did not yield although her eyes were filled with tears. Just as he left, her husband came up and, seeing the tears, demanded to know what was going on. She told him that a man had just been telling her of her need to be saved. "Why didn’t you tell him to go about his business?" said the indignant husband. And she answered, "Husband, if you had only been here you would have seen that he was about his business."
We have failed to realize that we are obligated. This is our job our duty our privilege. Sharing is our business!
We have been placed here as salt and light! We can’t change that or get away from that. And yet, it seems to me that we have turned obligation into option!
Question if you had a sure fire way that anyone you loved could invest $5 and it would be guaranteed to turn into $50,000 would you tell them? If you had the cure for cancer or aids would you keep it to yourself? No, we would gladly share. And yet we continue to refuse to share the greatest gift, cure and hope of mankind. Why? We have made a choice. We choose not to share!
I want to challenge you this morning to make the right, the necessary, and perhaps even the costly choice . . . share.
I want to challenge you to share in three areas.
1. Share with World
Have you ever noticed that we are so focused on our lives that we often forget that there is anyone else out there? In fact, for the most part if I am not careful my world is confined to 39th Expressway and Memorial Road. That is where I spend my time. That is where my thoughts are centered.
Most of us are so insulated from the rest of the world that we feel no urgency or compassion for those in need. We have the ability to ignore by choice. We simply turn off the news, turn the channel and we never get a glimpse of the world in need.
As Christians we have been commanded to keep the world in mind at all times. Jesus commands us in Mark 16 to go into all the world. Then in Acts 1 we are reminded that we have been given the power to be witnesses not just next door, but to the uttermost parts of the earth.
In other words we are obligated to be involved in missions. I want to challenge you this morning to be involved in sharing your faith with the world in one of two ways. First, I encourage you strongly to actually go on a missions trip. I am not talking about selling everything you own and moving to deepest darkest Africa. I am talking about going on short trips where you come face to face with the fact that the world is in need. It serves to soften our hardened hearts and drives us back to our knees. We hope to facilitate this in 2009. I have asked Mayra to consider putting together a trip next year some time so that we you can choose to become involved in sharing with the world.
The second way I want to challenge you to share with the world is by giving to missions. You probably can’t move and give your life to a foreign field. However, here at Passion we are committed to those that choose to do so. We believe it is one of the greatest things a person can do and those that do should be our heroes. That is why we chose from the very beginning that 1% of everything that we receive in the offering goes directly to missionaries. I want to introduce to you today our missionaries. We are supporting Marty & Becca Gossett. I have asked them to share just a few minutes about the choice they have made for the world. Would show your appreciation to our heroes?
At the end of service this morning we are going to take up a special offering for them as token of our love and appreciation. I also encourage you take one of their cards and pray for them and ask God if you might need to support them monthly above and beyond your tithes.
2. Share locally
I also want you to know that sharing with the world doesn’t mean that we are now no longer obligated to share locally. I have actually been a part of churches that were incredible at sharing with the world. They would literally send 10s of thousands of dollars overseas, but at the same time they did nothing in the town or state where they actually lived. We are obligated to share with the world, but we are also obligated to share in Judea! We should be making an impact where we live. If we ceased to exist would anyone notice? Would anyone miss us? Would anyone be affected? They won’t unless we share locally! I need to stop and remind you that we are wealthy. When you stop and compare what we have to those around us and those around the world we are blessed beyond measure. We are blessed with abundance. When you look at the plight and pain of those around us you can quickly determine that not only can we help, but we are obligated to help. Paul tells us very plainly that we should share!
Romans 12:13
Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
Hebrews 13:16
And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
James says it like this:
James 1:27
27Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world.
So I challenge you this morning share locally. How? We are making that very easy and very concrete for you. I challenge you to bring at least one coat and as many canned goods as you can next week. Together we can clothe those who are cold and feed those who are hungry. I also want to challenge you to stop by the Angel Tree in our lobby. We have the opportunity to minister to broken children during Christmas. These are children that are wards of the State. They have no real family of their own. If we don’t assist they will not get a Christmas present this year. Decide as a family to buy each other one less unneeded item and instead give it to a child that needs to be loved and blessed. Besides we really aren’t giving coats, cans and toys to strangers! We are giving them to Jesus.
Matthew 25:34-40
34“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what’s coming to you in this kingdom. It’s been ready for you since the world’s foundation. 35And here’s why: I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, 36I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37“Then those ‘sheep’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? 38-39And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?’ 40Then the King will say, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.’
3. Share personally
Just sending someone else overseas or giving a stranger a coat or meal isn’t enough. We must also make the choice to fulfill our obligation to share our faith personally.
In a 1991 article in Leadership magazine, people from around the country were asked to list the factors that encouraged them to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It will be no surprise that family environment and family members topped the list with over 70% of the respondents citing those factors. Some research says it is even higher up to 90% of people who come to Christ due to personal witness.
George Barna’s research says that the average Christian comes into contact with about seven "unchurched" people every day. He also states that if the Christian were to invite each of those seven people to church, four would say they would come, and two will actually show up. That means that if ten members were to invite seven people for each of five days in any given week, there would be one hundred new visitors in that church on Sunday.
We must choose to invite and to share our faith. I understand the hesitation. I understand the fear of what to say. I understand the nervousness and that is why next week is so incredibly important. Not only do I want you to bring coats and cans next week, I am going to give you the opportunity to help me preach the sermon. I want to challenge you to go through this week and invite everyone you know to come and hear you preach. If that won’t get them to come then find some other hook that will. Tell them we are collecting coats and cans and you want them to come and help us in that way. Do whatever you have to do. You might think that you can’t preach. I understand that thought. So I am going to make it possible for you to share your faith without ever saying a word. How? I want you to watch one of the most powerful things I have ever seen.
CARDBOARD TESTIMONY - AVAILABLE ON YOUTUBE
All of us can do this. A simple, creative statement about where we used to be before Jesus and a clear statement about where we are now. It doesn’t get any easier than that. I challenge you to choose to share our faith personally. I am asking you to stop by the table that I have set up and get your cardboard and the instruction sheet. Take it home and work on it this week. Invite your friends. Share it by yourself or as couples or families.
Why is it important for you to share your story and your HIS-Story? Because when you flip a piece of cardboard you may possibly flip their life forever! Your choice may change history.
In 1858, Mr. Kimball who was a Sunday School teacher, led a Boston shoe clerk to Christ.
That shoe clerk was Dwight L. Moody. He became a world renowned evangelist. In England in 1879, he awakened evangelistic zeal in the heart of Fredrick B. Meyer, pastor of a small church.
F. B. Meyer, preaching to an American college campus, led a student named J. Wilbur Chapman to Christ.
Chapman, engaged in YMCA work, employed a former baseball player, Billy Sunday, to do evangelistic work.
Billy Sunday held a revival in Charlotte, N.C. A group of local men were so enthusiastic afterward that they planned another evangelistic campaign, bringing Mordecai Hamm to town to preach.
During Hamm’s revival, a young man named Billy Graham heard the gospel and yielded his life to Christ.
Only eternity will reveal the tremendous impact of that one man, Mr. Kimball, who chose to share personally.
I want to close with a video clip this morning!
GUARDIAN VIDEO
That is the # that should keep us up at night. I want us to become driven by the number we fail to get. If we become driven by that number we will win more and we will make the choice to share.
Prayer – shake us out of apathy and make us realize our obligation. Make us passionate and remove any shame that would keep us from sharing. Make us passionate about the world, our community, and those we are in relationship with! Help us to choose to share!
