Bunbury
Wed pm
19/01/11
“For the man who has heard everything”
Intro: *** What do you buy the man who has everything? Coral’s father is really difficult to buy anything for. To begin w/ he doesn’t want us wasting money on him (his words). & secondly what do you buy the man that has practically everything in life that a person could want? Every Christmas / b/day he gets another Bunnings gift voucher just like the last one & I’m sure it buys just another thing he really doesn’t need.
*** One pastor was talking to me about a similar situation w/ his wealthy father. He said to me “What do you buy for the man who goes out & buys a boat on a Saturday morning b/c he has nothing better to do? Again it’s a situation of trying to buy a meaningful gift for the man who seems to have every material thing he’ll ever need in life.
The problem here is that nothing impresses them anymore.... they’ve got everything – nothing thrills them!
It’s a similar thought w/ people who have heard everything.
The pastor’s ongoing dilemma is – what do you preach to people that have been hearing sermons for 10/ 20 years or more?
10 / 20 years or sermons / revival meetings / conferences / tapes / CD’s / DVD’s books etc.
I got to thinking about this ....... there is no remedy for this problem apart from the heart of the hearer.
Something has to happen in the heart of the man / woman who has heard everything.
Something has to happen so that they realise that what is actually hanging in the balance in their salvation.
T/n I want to preach a message I’ve called ‘For the man who has heard everything’.
Text: John 6:53-69 (NKJV) 53Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. 54Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. 56He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.
57As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. 58This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.” 59These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum. 60Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?” 61When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you? 62What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? 63It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. 64But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. 65And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” 66From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more. 67Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” 68But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
# 1. Preachers of the Word.
A. The common thought of the long term saved is – it all depends on the preacher.
a. There is no doubt about the truth that preachers have an obligation to their flock / congregations.
i. Let’s take a sample of what the Scriptures have to say about a preacher’s responsibility.
1 Peter 5:2 (NKJV) 2Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly;
Proverbs 27:23 (NKJV) 23 Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, And attend to your herds;
Jeremiah 23:1 (NKJV) 1“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” says the Lord.
2 Timothy 4:2 (NKJV) 2Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.
ii. Some of the last words that Jesus spoke to Peter b/4 his ascension were to do w/ preaching.
John 21:15 (NKJV) 15So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Feed My lambs.”
b. When a preacher fails to put the welfare of the flock first he is a hireling.
John 10:13 (NKJV) 13The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep.
i. I’ve met people like this & this is at the heart of some churches dissolving.
ii. Once there is no shepherd or the shepherd is taken out the sheep begin to scatter .....
Matthew 26:31 (NKJV) 31...... ‘I will strike the Shepherd, And the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’
iii. So I’m not ignoring the role / validity / need for a preacher who has a heart for the sheep – his role is vital.
B. But the truth is that good & even great preachers still have people problems.
a. I’ve had opportunity to rub shoulders w/ many great preachers of the Word.
i. Every one of them w/o exception has dying disciples / prob people / critics & those who simply b/co disenchanted.
*** I was preaching in the church of one of these men of God one time in a series of revival meetings. This pastor was a well respected / seasoned conference preacher who had been ministering for many years. After the service one night two couples announced they were parting from the church. I thought ...... the sermon wasn’t that bad!
Here were two couples who after more than 20 years had heard it all & could no longer be moved or reasoned w/.
b. Do preachers ever preach bad sermons?
i. Well .... do workers ever make mistakes on the job, do pilots crash planes / doctors lose patients etc. ....... absolutely!!!
ii. Like everyone else they have bad days / sometimes moods / problems – just like you they make mistakes.
*** I knew one pastor that made someone so mad one service that the guy was going to storm out of the church. So the pastor ordered his ushers to physically restrain him from leaving – prison ministry!
iii. Yeh of course pastors / preachers have bad services / make mistakes / preach duds / have ordinary services.
*** One man in my church used to come & correct me after every slip of the tongue / slightly incorrect fact / details not quote right. But he was completely missing the point / purpose of what I was preaching about.
iv. But none of this is the reason why a member of a congregation of a disciple begins to go into decline.
*** One lady in our church, no matter how bad the preaching may have been would regularly come up to me & begin to explain what God was saying to her & how it had touched her life. Even though it might have only been mashed potatoes she would say – “Pastor that is the best mashed I have ever had!”
c. Our text is Jesus preaching one of His most memorable sermons – listen to what happens as He gives the altar call.
Vs 66. 66From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.
i. Here’s Jesus (the perfect preacher) preaching a perfect sermon & folks want to leave & find another church.
ii. Things must have been bad at that time b/c He turns to the disciples & says .....
Vs 67. ......“Do you also want to go away?”
iii. The point is that no matter how good the preacher is there are going to be people that are not having a good time, not happy .... saying they’re not being helped.
iv. In one of Paul’s services ....... one guy falls asleep, falls out of a window & dies! Wow that’s not a great result!
*** there was a man in one of our churches that was so unresponsive to the preaching that it was a challenge amongst pastors who would preach in the church to try to get him to come to the altar. No one ever did!
C. The preacher’s job is simple – to preach the Word.
a. He is commissioned w/ the one task of bringing the Word of God to the people of God.
i. The outcome is not his responsibility – he is not the H/G.
ii. He is simply tasked w/ preaching what God has given him & the rest is up to the H/G.
Paul said ......
1 Corinthians 1:23 (NKJV) 23but we preach Christ crucified, .....
# 2. The words of the preacher.
A. Preachers are called by God to bring god’s Word.
a. The Word of God involves the broad spectrum of life.
i. What this means is that he is going to have to deal w/ the entire issue of living life as god wants us to live it.
ii. And this isn’t going to help his approval rating b/c sometimes he is going to have to draw lines / boundaries / polarise / rebuke / stir up / shock / challenge what people are or believe.
Acts 20:27 (NKJV) 27For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God.
b. B/c of this calling it means that he (the preacher) is going to have to risk b/co deeply unpopular.
i. Preachers are going to have to preach on marriage / money / work / ethics / morals / character / discipline / laziness / lying / honesty ....... & every other human failing.
ii. In our text He is preaching one of those deeply unpopular sermons, listen to what he is saying –
Vs 53. “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.
iii. Think about it .... the Son of God is having to draw lines / exclude some & He is losing popularity big time!
Vs 60.60Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”
iv. Translated it means .... that’s a bit rough – there’s no need for that kind of preaching.
v. Can I point out that you may not u/s the significance / reasoning behind everything you hear preached.
vi. This not just a matter of a few raised eyebrows – people were getting together after church to complain about the preaching.
vii. Even his disciples were getting in on the act.....
Vs 61. 61When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you?
** A politician’s job is to smile, shake hands w/ constituents, kiss babies & pat dogs if he is going to win votes.
A pastor’s job is to point the finger at his congregation, growl at some of the naughty little babies & kick spiritual dogs out of the church & not lose votes!
viii. But when the church reacts badly to what God has called him to do he is supposed to remain unmoved by their reaction.
ix. Jeremiah lamented the hardness of the people’s hearts when he said ....
Jeremiah 5:3 (NKJV) 3They have made their faces harder than rock; They have refused to return.
B. Sermons mean nothing unless you grasp the spirit behind them.
a. The Word of God can save you if you’ll let it.
i. This is the problem w/ preaching many times ...... those hearing the Word fail to u/s the spirit behind it.
Vs 63. 63........ The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
ii. Here is Jesus seeking to save / direct / heal / restore lives but they fail to u/s the spirit of his preaching – they are offended & they leave!
b. We literally prove our/s fit or unworthy of eternal life based on the response we have to God’s Word.
i. Think about this ...... in the parable of the sower no less than 4 x the words are repeated – he who hears the word.
ii. It’s a parable about different kinds of hearers & each hearer proves h/s either fit or unworthy of eternal life based on the way they responded to the Word.
iii. Paul is preaching in Pisidia laying out the gospel & some didn’t groove on what they heard – how does Paul respond to this?
Acts 13:46 (NKJV) 46Then Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first; but since you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, ......
iv. Our response to the preaching of the Word of God is the prove ground of our willingness to embrace eternal life.
Vs 65. 65And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.”
c. The preaching of the Word can save you if you listen to it, believe it & open your heart up to it.
*** Michael & Beth .... came to church one Wednesday night for a midweek service but b/4 they arrived they had already decided that they were going to separate. It was going to be their last night together. Not knowing any of this I preached a sermon on marriage which the H/G moved through & brought both of these folks to conviction. That sermon saved their marriage!
i. I wonder what the Word can do for you? I wonder what area of your life might be saved / salvaged rescued from hearing the Word?
# 3. The heart of the hearer.
A. The danger of the man / woman who has heard everything is that they no longer hear anything!
a. No think about this .... the people who heard this sermon from Jesus on bread & blood were hearing God preach!!!
*** You Can drive past some churches & at the front you’ll see a sign board w/ the next Sunday’s sermon title on it. Sometimes even a guest preacher is advertised on those church sign boards.
Can you imagine seeing one of those signboards w/ the coming Sunday am service “This Sunday guest preacher Jesus Christ preaching “Eat My Flesh & Drink My Blood”.
*** One pastor was telling me that when he lived in London he would sometimes go along to hear the great J.I. Packer preach....... £6 to get in & hear a great preach the Word! History in the making!
i. Here however is the Son of God & they are saying .... this sermon’s not for me!
ii. Our defence is ..... Yeh I’d be there eagerly hanging on to every word Jesus preached, I wouldn’t have done that.
iii. Let me point out that whenever the Word is genuinely preached it is the Word of Jesus.
iv. Our defence .... I’d have listened / obeyed / submitted .... reminds me of the people that said to Jesus – we wouldn’t have killed the prophets like our fathers – oh yes you would!
v. What stops you from listening / obeying / submitting to the preaching now?
b. We face the danger of b/co connoisseurs of preaching.
i. I’ve heard preachers would could make people laugh / happy / cheer / amuse them but ...... w/ little or no spiritual value.
ii. You can begin to score preachers / sermons as though it were some kind of competition rather than realising that every sermon is an occasion where God meets w/ His people.
iii. We remember fondly back to some messages we’ve heard & compare them like some memorable meal at a restaurant.
iv. Can I point out that not every meal you have is going to be a 5 star dining experience.
v. And likewise w/ the preaching too there are going to be some meat & potato sermons / toast / baked beans.
c. Considering whose table we are dining at our attitude is impt.
Psalms 23:5 (NKJV) 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; ...
i. We were always taught table manners .... your attitude at the table is as impt as your presence.
ii. How offended God must be at times when he observes us at His table! When we come to the table of the Lord during the preaching ... sleepy / disinterested / bored.
B. The great danger facing the man / woman who has heard everything is that you are no longer hungry.
a. If the preaching of the Word is going to mean anything to you in the future then you’re going to have to get hungry.
O.M.S. “Hunger is the best sauce.”
i. To a hungry man everything tastes good ..... a hungry man never questions whether or not it’s his favourite / right sauce / cooked medium / rare or well done.
Vs 67-68. 67Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” 68But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.
ii. A hungry man / woman has a hunger to feed ..........
b. Jesus points out here that the problem is a lack of faith.
V s 64. 64But there are some of you who do not believe.”
i. The challenge facing the man / woman who has heard everything is to believe that God still wants to speak to you.
C. The answer for the one who has heard everything is to realise that you haven’t really heard anything.
a. God is bigger than your appetite ..... You will never explore all there is to know about God.
i. The one thing that separated those that stayed from those that left was their hearts.
ii. If you have heard all there is to hear & every service is just like the last ....... maybe you need to go on a mission to find God.
iii. If you’ll begin to pray b/4 every service & say God I want to hear your voice ..... God will not only speak to you but he’ll meet w/ you.
iv. I believe that in some of these sermons God has a burning bush waiting for you.
James 1:21 (NKJV) 21Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
