Opening illustration: A spy was captured and sentenced to death by a general in the Persian Army. Before carrying out the sentence the general gave the spy a strange choice. He told him he could have his choice of a firing squad or a big black door. After much deliberation the spy chose the firing squad and within a few moments he was dead. The general turned to his aide and said, “They always prefer the known way to the unknown.” The aide then asked the general, “What’s behind the black door?”
“Freedom!” Replied the general. Behind the black door is a passageway that leads outside, but only a few have been brave enough to see what was behind it!
*Fear is the big, black door that keeps us trapped inside our comfort zones!
In order to be free from what imprisons us, we must be brave enough to open the door!
Introduction: All of us are surrounded by comfort zones; those invisible barriers that make us feel cozy and secure. Comfort zones develop after we have done things a particular way for a period of time. Unfortunately, they can make us feel so comfortable, that we never want to change the way we do things! The only people who like change are babies with dirty diapers! Sometimes it’s easier to keep doing the same things over and over again than to make adjustments in our lives!
Comfort zones aren’t all bad. They make us feel security in our lives, and that’s certainly better than going through life fighting feelings of insecurity. However, security is like money . . . it makes a wonderful servant . . . but a very poor master! Healthy security is found in loving home, warm friendships, an enjoyable career, and good church relations . . . but a different kind of security is found in a prison!
In prison the inmates don’t have to make decisions . . .
Worry about house payments . . .
Insurance payments . . .
Where the next meal is coming from . . .
That’s the reason many prisoners commit crimes when released . . . they want the security they had in the prison. However, that is a real danger for us also . . . WE CAN ALLOW OUR COMFORT ZONES TO BECOME OUR PRISON!
Illustration: When a crab grows, it breaks out of its hard shell and begins the process of forming a new one. Its life span is marked by passing through successive shells. The crab grows when it is in-between shells. It will continue to grow as long as it dares to break out of it shell. When it stops breaking through shells, the crab ceases to grow and eventually dies. THE LAST SHELL BECOMES THE CRAB’S COFFIN!
I wonder this morning . . . which comfort zone we will allow to become our Spiritual coffin?
What to do in order to leave our comfort zone? / How to leave our comfort zone?
1. Evangelism (Fulfilling Christ’s ‘Last Commission’)
Matthew 28: 19-20 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, "teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
Notice that Jesus said "in the name" as opposed to "in the names." We insist that because the word "name" is singular and not plural, Jesus is suggesting that only one name, not three, is being spoken of. To teach and observe as we are commanded to, demands us to be learners (to be teachable) first. If Christ promised us that He would be with us and never leave us then why don’t we take Him on and fulfill His last commission to the Body of Christ?
In the 1970s we were less sophisticated but so much more zealous for Jesus. Putting our best to fulfill the last commission. We handed out tracts and witnessed to everyone. Sharing our faith was the priority. Yet most people in churches today have never led anyone to Christ. We are no longer contagious. Spirit-filled believers spend more time chasing “financial breakthroughs” than lost souls. We have rejected sacrifice and compassion and embraced a counterfeit gospel that produces bored, selfish spectators.
Where are our missionaries? Today the third world countries lead in every sphere of life. Even the top three countries which have the maximum global missionaries are from the continent of Asia. The second on the horizon is Africa.
Do we honor "The Great Commission" in our lives? We do if we are...
• Submitting to the authority of Jesus
• Working to make disciples of Jesus
• Striving to make disciples in all the nations of the world
• Abiding in His Word and thereby ensuring His abiding presence in our lives
Shortly after giving "The Great Commission", Jesus ascended to heaven (Acts 1: 9-11). His earliest disciples took that commission and did great things with it. What are we doing with His instructions and commandments? May these words of Jesus motivate us to do great things in our service to Him also!
2. Faith Walk (Walking on Water)
Matthew 14: 28-32 “And Peter answered Him and said, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water." So He said, "Come." And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!" And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.”
Peter was about to break through a comfort zone by stepping out of the boat and walking on water. Any scientist will tell you that water will not support the weight of a person who tries to stand on it! But Peter forgot what he’d learned in his science class and thought, “If Jesus is walking on the water and then it’s possible for me to do it too!” This time the law of gravity would be suspended! But, before Peter could walk on the water … he had to get out of the boat! … He had to let go of the “security” of the boat for the “insecurity” of the water! Of all the things Peter could have requested of Jesus (Like a bridge to come to him on … sunny weather, etc… WHY DID HE ASK JESUS TO COMMAND HIM TO COME TO HIM? BECAUSE … IN ORDER TO GET OUT OF THE BOAT AND BREAK THROUGH HIS COMFORT ZONE … HE HAD TO HEAR A WORD FROM GOD! When Peter heard he put “both feet” in the water … not half & half … total commitment! Is it the same is true for us today?
Why we continue to stay in our Boat?
Different fears will keep us in the boat! Before Peter stepped over the side of the boat, a lot of thoughts must have run through his head.
(i) Fear of Criticism: “What will the other disciples think of me if I get out of the boat?” Who cares? . . . The biggest critics we have will be those who stay inside the boat - the ones who don’t take the risk! We must not allow what somebody else thinks to keep us in the boat! Our actions must be determined by what God wants us to do!
(ii) Fear of Failure: “What if it doesn’t work?” Many folks don’t ever try to break out of their comfort zones because they think if they fail people will make fun of them, so, to avoid the potential for embarrassment, they simply opt to do nothing! I had rather to fail trying to do something than to succeed at doing nothing! Failure is not “falling down,” failure is “staying down” when you could get back up!
Proverbs 24: 16a says, “For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again …”
If we are in bondage to our fears, then we will never succeed because we never attempt anything “different” or “new.” We must take some risk in life if we are ever to accomplish anything significant!
Illustration: Most people know that Babe Ruth set a record of 714 home runs in his baseball career . . . How many people know that he struck out 1, 330 times on his way to that record?
Jonas Salk discovered the polio vaccine . . . he failed two hundred times before he found the right one! Michael Jordan is probably the greatest basketball player of all time . . . He was “cut” from his high school basketball team! . . . He didn’t quit playing because of one failure! Henry Ford went bankrupt five times before he finally succeeded.
Thomas Edison failed over ten thousand times in his attempts to find the right filament for the light bulb . . . When an aide encouraged him to quit after several hundred failures, he replied, “Why quit now? We now know of at least a couple of hundred things that won’t work!”
None of these people could have accomplished what they did if they had stayed in their comfort zones because they were afraid they would fail! Neither will we accomplish for God those things we should accomplish if we are afraid we will fail!
(iii) Fear of The Unknown: “I wonder what is going to happen to me if I step out of the boat.” Fear of the unknown keeps a lot of people in the boat . . . As humans we tend to want to know what we’re getting into “before” we get out of the boat. But . . . occasionally we must step into the unknown . . . fully on faith in God! Many want to figure out God before they embark on a relationship with Him.
Note: Getting out of his comfort zone placed Peter in some very elite company!
Twelve men walked on the moon . . . only one man (only Peter excluding Jesus) walked on water. However, breaking through a comfort zone is no guarantee of continued success.
Peter got his eyes on the waves … his mind reverted back to “science class” and he began to sink! Not only did Peter stop walking on water … HE BEGAN TO DROWN! When we break through comfort zones … we may sink if we take our eyes off Jesus!
You see, being inside God’s will is more fulfilling than staying inside our comfort zone would have ever been!
3. Giving (Tithe & Offering - Faith Test)
Malachi 3: 10-11 “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, And try Me now in this," Says the LORD of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. "And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field," Says the LORD of hosts;”
Tithing pleases God because it is done in faith. Tithing is not about money, but it is about our faith. Our sacrificial giving of tithe makes God very happy! Tithing never comes naturally. Sometimes the struggle to begin tithing may seem as painful as Abraham’s struggle to give up Isaac. We don’t want to give up what belongs to us – our house, our cell phone, our motorcycle, our money or our relationships. But when God claims any of these as His, we should not ask any question, but obey Him. If we do not have faith that it is what God requires, then we cannot give it up.
I would not have articulated this. But God said it, so I’ll just say it. God is willing to take up the challenge. But let me clear something up. Tithing is not something you try, it is something you trust God by doing. Tithing is a great place to start, but it is a terrible place to stop. Have you ever thought about this? The very people who say they can’t tithe maybe can’t tithe because they aren’t tithing. If we pay our debt to God, then God will do amazing things, even things beyond your comprehension, which seem impossible to us. Remember always God’s hand is never shortened. Amen!
Why is giving our tithes and offering to the Lord good for us? Because ‘money’ is an accurate measurement of one’s faith – money talks! Tithing is God’s way of wanting to see His children show their gratitude to Him. Until we are regularly and faithfully tithing there is something defective about our life as a disciple that will not be replaced by obeying all other commands. The attitude of gratitude – giving thanks – is a biblical mandate and only true response to God’s grace, by which Jesus came and died for us on the cross.
God doesn’t need our money. He owns everything. But we give first because it takes faith to give first and God wants us to trust Him. He tells us in Proverbs 3: 9-10 to "honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops and then your barns will be filled with overflowing." We give first and the blessings of God follow.
Relationship with God comes first (more than anything else or anyone else in your life)
• Don’t tithe to get good with God.
• Accept Jesus, you’ll then want to do it.
• Your level of giving shows where your heart lies.
* Get out of your comfort zone and see how God will bless you and your family because of your giving unto the Lord.
Application: Someone sent me the following article some time ago . . . that person didn’t know what I was going to preach for our vision for 2012.
Parable of the Candles
There was a blackout one night. When the lights went out, I fumbled to the closet where we keep the candles for nights like this ... I lit four of them.
I was turning to leave with the large candle in my hand when I heard a voice, "Now, hold it right there!" "Who said that?" "I did." The voice was near my hand. "Who are you? What are you?" "I am a candle." I lifted up the candle to take a closer look. There was a tiny face in the wax. "Don’t take me out of here!" it said. "What?" It said, "Don’t take me out of this room." "What do you mean? I have to take you out. You’re a candle. Your job is to give light. It’s dark out there." "But you can’t take me out. I’m not ready," the candle explained with pleading eyes. "I need more preparation." I couldn’t believe my ears. "More preparation?" "Yeah, I’ve decided I need to research this job of light-giving, so I won’t go out and make a bunch of mistakes. You’d be surprised how distorted the glow of an untrained candle can be." "All right then," I said. "You’re not the only candle on the shelf. I’ll blow you out and take the others!"
But right then I heard other voices, "We aren’t going either!" I turned to the other candles, "You are candles and your job is to light dark places!" "Well, that may be what you think," said the first one, "You may think we have to go, but I’m busy... I’m meditating on the importance of light ... It’s really enlightening (no pun intended)." "And you other two," I asked, "are you going to stay, too?" A short, fat, purple candle with plump cheeks spoke up. "I’m waiting to get my life together; I’m not stable enough,"
The last candle had a female voice, very pleasant to the ear. "I’d like to help," she explained, "but lighting is not my gift ... I’m a singer. I sing to other candles to encourage them to burn more brightly." She began a rendition of "This Little Light of Mine." The other three joined in; filling the closet with singing ... I took a step back and considered the absurdity of it all. Four perfectly good candles singing to each other about light but refusing to come out of the closet.
Here is a question for you, "When was the last time you shared the gospel with someone?" This world is full of darkness, with many people stumbling around trying to find their way. You can be a light for them. "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. "Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5: 14-16
I wonder this morning . . . will you commit to do whatever it takes to get out of your comfort zone?
