FOLLOW ME:
An Introduction to the Journey
Matt 28: 18-20 (p698) April 7, 2013
INTRODUCTION:
I’ve had to plan for a lot of trips in my life…some not as important as others, but lots none-the-less….Mission trips….Vacations….Revival, Seminars, Home comings….Trips that involved my children coming home from war, trips that involved moving them or friends from one place to another…Lots and lots of trips….some were fun, some were not…most were a mixture…and all of them had a purpose of some kind…
I’ve always wanted to just get on my motorcycle and ride…maybe head out west with no real purpose or destination…but Kari, family, ministry and money have always put a damper on that dream…and I’m the luckiest man in the world and wouldn’t trade my life for anyone else’s.
But when I think of that life I’m amazed at how God has shaped my journey…sometimes I was aware of it, and sometimes I wasn’t…I realized in some childish way that God had saved my life when I was 10 and was burned terribly when an alcohol lamp fell over on me…3rd degree burns…50% of my body…3 months in St. Joseph’s hospital…skin graft surgery…even at 10, with reinforcement from my parents I realized God was saving me…I wouldn’t have chosen this stop on the road, but as I look back I wouldn’t change it now for anything.
That scripture from Romans 9:15 – In which God says
“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion. It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort but on God’s mercy…(v 15,16). Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy; and He hardens whom He wants to harden”. (v18)
And there are some who read this and think…”Well, why should I even share the gospel…In fact God can’t blame those who say “NO”…or congratulate those who say “yes” After all salvation, election…call it what you will…doesn’t depend on anything I do or you do…it’s all on God!!!
Come ‘on Rick God had your journey all mapped out…what choice did you really have? What choice do any of us really have…whether we are on life’s journey here in Louisville, KY or Haiti or the Dominican Republic or Damascus Syria?
The Psalmist writes…. Psalms 139” 1-16 (p 433)
So if we believe, like the Psalmist, that God knows our days before one of them comes to be. Why fret about the journey…? If God’s gonna show mercy when he chooses and harden whom He chooses why put down our nets…why should we leave our lives to find a purpose in following Jesus?
Well, first of all…I’m not God…I do not have the intelligence or vocabulary to explain God and His eternal plans to you completely…it’s kind of why Paul answers that same question like this in Romans 9: 20-24
Romans 9: 20-24 (p 788)
I cannot explain to you completely…”If God already knows do I have a choice?” It’s kind of like answering the questions…”Since God knew Adam and Eve would sin…why did He create them?”
I often tell folks…God created time…days and nights…months…years…In the beginning….Its creations beginning…not God’s….creation…including us have always been bound by time…since creation began….Past….Present…Future….God isn’t bound by time…A day is like 1,000 years and 1,000 years like a day…”HE IS” “I AM” not “I WAS” or “I WILL BE” So perhaps God is able to see…like a 3 ring circus….Past….Present….and Future all at once…..Just a thought.
But scripture plainly teaches us that God has a plan for our salvation…Mankind’s, salvation. The journey would begin with His perfect creation in Eden, but will only end when Jesus Christ returns for His Bride, the Church…
I do not completely understand election…God’s compassion…or His thoughts…but I’ve always understood…at least from my conversion.
I I’M ON A MISSION TRIP EVERY DAY.
[I love short term mission trips…I’d encourage… (and did last year) everyone to tithe 2% of their time to living their lives in another context…But when you do this…for a few days…usually a week or less…you eat strange foods…. (Crawfish etouphe) or Burgar (rice and beans with an egg) You try to speak a foreign language…maybe you even witness extreme poverty, hunger, sickness…harsh conditions…
And as great as it is to get home you also feel “let down” You’re back in the real world. You felt a sense of purpose and peace when you were doing “Kingdom” work on foreign soil…but now your back to the routine and you feel much of what you do have no real valve.]
So, what if you could live your life on one continuous mission? Is this possible in the real world?
I’m going to share with you not only is it possible…It’s essential if you and I are to truly grasp our purpose and our calling…
[From the moment I surrendered my life to Christ I had an understanding that He saved me for a purpose. And that purpose was to share….”Jesus saved me! I Believe He can save you to…Let me tell you about it.”
The only times I’ve struggled and stopped growing spiritually is when I’ve forgotten that and gotten caught up in other stuff…stuff that was urgent and pressing…but I failed to remember….”Wasn’t nearly as Important”
Paul said it like this: No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.” (2 Tim 2:4)
I know I have the privilege to be a soldier in God’s army everyday…I receive my wages as a soldier so I can support my family…I’m a minister…I know that’s different than the ordinary Christian (If there is one)
But all of us are Christians every day…you’re not just in “the Kingdom” on the weekends…scripture says we are to live differently…we’re called out from the world to be distinct…this is where the abundance comes from.
You may be looking at your life and assuming you have no options…Isn’t a person with bills, family, and responsibilities destined to be “entangled in civilian pursuits?”
And my answer: Absolutely NOT…you and I were made for much more…
II WHERE THERE’S A COMMAND, THERE’S A WAY
Jesus would not command us to do something without giving us the power to accomplish it…and not only that He rewards us when we’ve done what He commanded…THAT IS THE ABUNDANT LIFE.
Jesus gave His followers (which include us) a remarkable task in Matthew 28…this command immediately follows His resurrection…”He rose from the grave” and with the resurrection as the backdrop Jesus says, “Therefore Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy spirit. And teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
Jesus wanted followers from every nation on earth, so He commanded His followers to reach them and train them…and that’s exactly what they did---but this work isn’t complete…it’s not finished.
The church began in Acts 2 when three thousand people were converted. By AD 100, estimates claim twenty-five thousand followers. By AD350, estimates claim over thirty million followers? How could the church grow at this incredible rate, especially under persecution? The early followers saw their obligation to make disciples. We see the same mind-set with the church in China. So we shouldn’t be surprised to learn that the results are also the same. China claimed one million followers in 1950. In 1992, the State Statistical Bureau of China indicated that there were seventy-five million Christians. Is it so impossible to believe that Christians could have this same disciple-making mind-set and experience the same type of revival here in American?
Ultimately, it doesn’t matter if you like this strategy or not. We don’t really have an option. That is the point of a command. You take a big chance if you ignore an assignment given to you from your boss at work. Most of us would never consider it. So how can we ignore the King of the universe who will one day return as Judge?
The God of this world comes “To Kill, steal, and destroy…” His native tongue is “to lie”. He invented it…So, He tries, very successfully mind you…to get us busy…caught up in our own purposes and pursuits…”Our lives get so busy we’re on the brink of meltdown.”
How could Jesus who said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light” throw such an amazing “burden” on us as this command to reach and train all nations…The answer is… Consider who you’re yoked” or formed together-with. Picture yourself yoked with Jesus (Got the imagery of two oxen under one yoke?) Who wouldn’t want to be yoked with Jesus? It’s more of an honor than a burden…Jesus even ends his command by comforting us…”And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age.”
He promises to accompany His workers until the task is complete…That’s what give us peace, confidence, even anticipation…
And you
III MISSING OUT?
Mandy people who come to church…claim to be Christians say, “I don’t feel close to Jesus.”
And my question would be…”Are you following His command? Are you making disciples? Jesus said Here’s how you can tell if someone really loves me…really “If they obey my commands” (John 15:10)
You see Jesus promise to be with us is directly tied to his command to make disciples…and while every Christian wants to experience the power of the Holy Spirit…we often forget that the Spirit’s power is given for the purpose of being His witnesses…and growing in our understanding of His word.
If you’re missing out in the power of God in your life...If you “feel” distant from Jesus…I’d advise you to change…”repent”
You don’t need more quilt, or ignore the part that your actions don’t match up with your beliefs.
I could sincerely ask…How many of you believe Jesus is God’s Son…He died for your sins and the sins of all mankind…He rose from the dead proving His authority over sin and its consequences. How many of you have publicly said, “Jesus you are My Lord…You are my Savior…And you made a lifelong commitment to Live for Him?
And you believe there is a real Heaven and real Hell…If someone dies apart from Christ they face a Horrifying Future?
And yet you’ve made little effort to warn your Family or friends…you have neighbors, co-workers and others you pass daily and have never even mentioned Jesus to them.
Faith…It comes by hearing according to Romans 10…Hearing the message of the gospel of Christ” (Romans 10:17)
You see the solution isn’t to ignore the fact that very few individuals who call themselves Christians share their faith…the solution is “Repent”…If you leave this morning feeling sorrow…regret…because you’re guilty of disobedience…to the command of Jesus it only does some good if you repent…Change…If you don’t get past sorrow to the Joy of repentance it means nothing.
You remember that the Rich Young ruler walked away sad after hearing Jesus call, but Zacchaeus who was also rich leaped out of a tree with excitement (Luke 18-19). The difference between the two was repentance…The Rich young ruler was sad because he decided not to change…Zaccheaus let go of his pride and possessions to joyfully follow Jesus…
This is what Christ wants for us…It time to trade our guilt and sorrow for the Joy of the Lord. No regrets.
“Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death” (2 Cor. 7:10)
As I conclude let me encourage you…
IV FINISH STRONG
The end of the age…the finish line…the last chapter…the final assignment…it’s hard to maintain the same enthusiasm for the last leg of the journey as the first leg. Paul wrote…”The time of my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the Righteous Judge will award to me on that day---and not only to me but also to all who have longed for His appearance. (2 Tim 4:7)
[I had a great lunch with my friend Dan the other day…Dan and His wife are missionaries working with refugees, while they also go through Arabic language training….Dan and Meg are here for a short period of time (especially Dan) because they are Grandparent’s again…Dan will be headed back in about a month…they live and serve in a place where 1,000’s of refugees…many of them having been shot, tortured, or beaten leave everything behind to save their lives and their families lives…Dan and others are working daily with these families…who have nothing…And are now dependent on people who hate them, or at least have a history of distrust built in….Dan and others show up bringing some hope…mattresses, food, some supplies to people who have nothing and don’t know where help could possibly come…many of them left businesses, houses, cars…prosperity ( 1 business man spent everything he had to purchase passports for His family…and when they arrived as refugees…they had nothing…their lives are in tatters…they are broken…lost…sometimes terrified (10 year old boy who lost all his hair because of war)….This ministry was not what Dan had planned…or those of us who have sent him…but…it’s what Jesus had planned…the Great Commission…therefore Go and Make disciples of all nations…literally…”As you are going make disciples from every Ethnic region.”
