INTRO.- Do you remember the beautiful gate story in Acts 3:1-10?
1One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. 2Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. 3When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. 4Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, "Look at us!" 5So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
6Then Peter said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." 7Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. 8He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. 9When all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
This is a short story about helpfulness. It’s a story about helping someone out of their lame condition and bringing them to the state of praising God. And after all, isn’t this why we’re here? Is this why God put us here on earth? He wants to help people to come to the place of acknowledging God as God and praising Him in life! God wants us to help people out of their spiritual lameness so they will know Him and praise Him!
We’re here to help one another in our relationship to Christ and in our various ministries.
I saw them tearing a building down,
A gang of men in a busy town;
With a “ho-heave-ho” and a lusty yell,
They swung a beam and the side wall fell.
I asked the foreman. “Are these men skilled,
As the men you would hire if you had to build?”
He laughed and said, “No indeed;
Just common labor is all I need.
I can easily wreck in a day or two,
What builders have taken a year to do.”
Are you a part of the problem or a part of the solution? Are you on the construction crew or the destruction crew?
Everyone is either good for something or good for nothing. We need to be good for the cause of Christ.
PROP.- In our text, Paul tells of some people who were helpful in the ministry and some who were not. Let’s examine these people to see how we can helpful to the Lord’s work.
1- Demas deserted
2- Mark helped
3- Alexander harmed
4- Christ strengthened
I. DEMAS DESERTED
9 Do your best to come to me quickly, 10 for Demas, because he loved this world, has deserted me and has gone to Thessalonica.
AWOL. What do these letters mean? Absence without leave, meaning absent without permission. I read that it can refer to either desertion or a temporary absence. And the way I see it is this: The Lord gives no one permission to be absent from His presence, His life, His table, His worship, or His ministry.
Demas was a deserter! Shame on him. And there are many deserters today when it comes to the Lord and His church, His army.
ILL.- I have a running friend who ran only one marathon on Sunday morning. It was Chicago, I believe. He’s a Christian and he said, “I’m never going to do that again.” Do you know why he said that? Because he didn’t want to miss the Lord’s Day worship!
Many people forsake the Lord’s day worship for all kinds of non-essential activities. You name it and people have done on Sunday morning instead of going to church.
Have we forgotten who created us, gives us life and breath and every good gift, and the promise of eternal life? WE OWE HIM! We owe Him worship and praise, both now and forevermore! We owe Him praise every day and on Sunday! But many have gone AWOL!
ILL.- In the United States, before the Civil War, deserters from the Army were flogged, while after 1861 tattoos or branding were also adopted. The maximum US penalty for desertion in wartime remains death, although this punishment was last applied to Eddie Slovik in 1945. No US serviceman has received more than 18 months imprisonment for desertion or missing movement during the Iraq war.
Fortunately, for deserters of the Lord’s army He doesn’t flog them or tatoo them or put them in prison. OR DOES HE?
Hebrews 12:5-6 “And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."
Demas deserted Paul and more than likely, he deserted Christ, but WE MUST NOT!
II. MARK HELPED
11 Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is helpful to me in my ministry.
Perhaps Mark was helpful just by being a good friend, a good sidekick, an encourager. Who in the Bible was known as the son of encouragement?
Acts 4:36 “Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement).”
ILL.- My daughter Holly is a 5th grade teacher in public school in Hanover County, VA. Here is a note she received from the parents of a little girl in her class at the end of the year: “Thank you so much for all you have done for Allison this year. You not only educated her mind but you helped shape her heart and who she is. Thank you for helping us through the transition this year. I truly believe God had you picked for Allison & for that we are blessed. As a mom, it was such a comfort that she had a believer as an influence at school. You will always have a special place in our hearts. Thanks again! The Webbs” (The Webbs are a Christian family)
This little note gives us the idea that we all can be helpful to one another and especially, when it comes to ministering to others.
We all need to be encouragers! Everyone can help in the ministry in some form or another. And everyone can help the minister as well.
I’ve been preaching 45 years and I’ve had very few people come to me and ask, “What can I do to help you in your work?” In fact, I’m not sure anyone has ever asked me that question. I wonder why?
ILL.- People need people. A lady said: Laurie was about three when one night she requested my aid in getting undressed. I was downstairs and she was upstairs, and ... well. "You know how to undress yourself," I reminded her.
"Yes," she explained, ’but sometimes people need people anyway, even if they do know how to do things by themselves."
ILL.- Someone once said, “Too many professing Christians never get religion in their hands and feet.” And “A candle loses nothing of its light by lighting another candle.” We don’t lose anything when we give ourselves in service.
Proverbs 11:17 “A kind man benefits himself, but a cruel man brings trouble on himself.”
ILL.- Thomas Edison, when asked why he had a team of twenty-one assistants, said, “If I could solve all the problems myself, I would.”
Everyone needs some good assistants. We need to be good assistants to one another in the work of Christ.
III. ALEXANDER HARMED
14 Alexander the metalworker did me a great deal of harm. The Lord will repay him for what he has done. 15 You too should be on your guard against him, because he strongly opposed our message.
Alexander was a bad dude. He was not helpful, he was harmful to Paul. He strongly opposed Paul’s message of Christ. I don’t want any church members like him!
ILL.- I remember when I was a young minister in my twenties and a lady wanted to tell me something after church. She and her husband waited until almost everyone had left the church and then she let me have it! Did she ever! And it wasn’t over what I preached. It wasn’t my sermon. It was over an announcement that I made. This is why I don’t like making announcements. You never know when you’ll stick your foot in your mouth and I’ve done that a few times!
I look back and laugh about this now, but I wasn’t laughing then nor was she! WELL...I apparently said the wrong thing, at least, in her book or eyes. That lady took my words to mean something entirely different than I intended.
Now opposing the message of God’s Word is a different matter. I’ve never had anybody say, “Your message was awful or horrible or totally off base.” Or “Your message was not according to scripture.” Or “You don’t know what you’re talking about.” In our scripture, however, Alexander probably not only opposed Paul but the message of Jesus that he preached. And I’ve never had anyone in a church do that.
ILL.- I was preaching in a nursing home one time many years ago when an old man challenged me when I said, “The Bible says...” He spoke out loud and said, “The Bible doesn’t say anything....”
I stopped and tried to explain to him that I believed the Bible was God’s Word even though it was written by men, but that they were inspired by God’s Spirit and in that sense, God spoke through His Word. Well, he wouldn’t listen and continued his tirade so finally the nurses took him out of the room. I hated to think that I was going to have to whip that old man!
God save us from those who would do harm to the gospel and to gospel messengers, in the pulpit or otherwise.
IV. CHRIST STRENGTHENED
16 At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17 But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Now for the good part. Demas deserted Paul and Christ. Mark was a helper. Alexander was hurtful, but Christ was the most helpful of all! AND GUESS WHO WE NEED MOST OF ALL?
16 At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them.
Shame on those people for deserting Paul. People need to be supportive of their ministers.
ILL.- As you know, my son-in-law, Chris Santasiere, is the Associate Minister with the Fairmount Christian Church in Mechanicsville, VA. Sometime back his mother contracted cancer. She eventually had it in her lungs, brain and bones. She got so bad he had put her in a nursing home and she was only 55 years old. Chris lived at least an hour and a half from her nursing home and he made that trip many times and often several times a week. And through it all, the church was supportive and helpful.
I wrote his Sr. Minister to express my gratitude for the church being so supportive. And that’s the way it should be. Of course, when a family member is dying you expect people to be helpful and supportive but they don’t always do this.
May it not be held against them. I like Paul’s non-vengeful attitude. That’s the spirit of Christ in him.
17 But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength.
Can you quote Philippians 4:13? “I can do all things....”
Here is where we get the most help and strength, from the Lord Himself. When no one else is around to help or give us support, the Lord is always at our side to give us grace and strength.
Ephesians 3:16 “I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being.”
Ephesians 3:20 “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.”
Hebrews 4:15-16 “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
Thank God for His grace which strengthens and empowers us for life! And all we have to do is ask!
CONCLUSION----------------------
Some church members are like wheelbarrows — not good unless pushed.
Some are like canoes — need to be paddled.
Some are like kittens — more contented when petted.
Some are like balloons — full of wind and ready to blow up.
Some are like footballs — you can’t tell which way they’ll bounce next.
Some are like trailers — they have to be pulled.
Some are like neon lights — they keep going on and off.
Many, thank goodness, are like the North Star — there when you need them, dependable and ever loyal.
Steve Shepherd, Jonesboro Christian Church, AR
jonesborochristianchurch@suddenlink.net
