How Large is Your Family?
Text: Luke 9:49-50
Text Introduction: Some of the incidents in the ministry of Jesus are well-known. Others are mentioned briefly and then the story moves on. The incident in my text is one of those. We shouldn’t miss its implications.
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Imagine the scene.
Remember that earlier Jesus had sent the Twelve out to preach the Kingdom of God. It was a breathtaking experience: First, they were used by God to heal people and free them from the clutches of Satan; then they had the privilege of announcing what God was doing through Jesus. In the midst of this mission John and one or two others enter a village to tell the people about Jesus.
The disciples call the people together and say something like this, “We’ve come to tell you about a wonderful man named Jesus.”
To this the villagers reply, “Oh, we know about Jesus.”
Then they take the puzzled disciples to another part of the village where they observe a stranger doing what they had been doing,
Quickly, John and the others approach this stranger and say, “Stop! You must not do this.”
The stranger replies, “If you knew Jesus, you’d know why I must do this.”
With great indignation the disciples retort, “What do you mean ‘if you knew Jesus?’ Why, we’re some of his closest followers. We were commissioned to proclaim the Kingdom of God. And we didn’t see you at the commissioning service.”
As the stranger calmly returns to his work, he says, “Well, I’m sure Jesus wouldn’t mind what I’m doing.”
The disciples rush to Jesus to tell him what has happened.
John says, “There’s a man who’s liberating people from the power of Satan. He’s doing it in your name but he’s not a member of our group. We tried to stop him but he wouldn’t listen.”
Then Jesus says something like this, “You’re right, John. He’s not a member of your group, he’s a member of mine.”
There’s a touch of tragedy in this little story. Here’s a man doing a power work of spiritual liberation. He’s bringing honor to Jesus. Yet, the disciples tried to stop him.
Jesus saw the danger of such a chauvinistic spirit and moved quickly to squelch it. He knew the challenges of the future could not be overcome if such a spirit prevailed.
In this little incident, Jesus shows us how we ought to respond to others who minister for him.
I
JESUS CALLS US TO DISPLAY A SPIRIT OF COOPERATION NOT COMPETITION
Lots of people see the work of the church as a kind of competition. We need to understand the peril of a competitive spirit.
A few years ago a mother in Channelview, Texas, tried to hire someone to kill the mother of her daughter’s chief rival in upcoming cheerleader tryouts. She thought the girl would be so upset that her daughter would easily win. That’s competition gone bad.
When we’re motivated by a spirit of competition, the losses and defeats of our fellow-Christians become our gains. We hope that the fallout of another church’s problems will somehow benefit us.
When were motivated by a spirit of competition, the quality of our own efforts is diminished. We become mere spiritual headhunters.
If only we could understand the power of a cooperative spirit. We’re able to multiply our influence.
Our spiritual growth is furthered as we discover our own strengths and weaknesses. A spirit of cooperation makes us part of a great support system.
II
JESUS CALLS US TO DISPLAY
A SPIRIT OF CELEBRATION NOT CRITICISM
A spirit of condemnation can be harmful to the work of God. Historian Edwin Gaustad has written much about the Great Awakening, that spiritual revival in 18th century America which say thousands come to Christ and churches transformed. Gaustad says the Awakening began to wane when its leaders began to criticize one another over minor differences about how the revival was being conducted.
There are differences that should be discussed and debated. But such things as church music shouldn’t become the focal point in our evaluation of fellow believers.
Instead, we should celebrate the faith of our fellow-believers.
We should rejoice because they share our allegiance to Christ. That focused devotion to Christ is something we share, something that ought to create a kinship, something which creates a ground for communication and understanding.
The faith of Christians who belong to different churches or denominations reveals the breadth of Christ’s appeal. The custodian and the banker, the teacher and the student, the pacifist and the general find something of beauty in Christ. We should celebrate that.
Maybe this is time to mention a matter which some of you have raised with me over the past couple of weeks. We’ve been reading stories of how a once great denomination is now debating some of the most crucial elements of the faith, how some of that denomination’s leaders are raising doubts about the Biblical assertion that Christ is the only Savior.
Please understand, this is not simply a report on minor differences of opinion, this is a tragedy. That the denomination which inspired so many missionaries to expend their lives in the cause of spreading the gospel should now question whether Jesus Christ is truly the only way to salvation illustrates just how perverse our thinking can become when we abandon the authority of the Bible.
This morning I am talking about celebrating faith, not celebrating disbelief. I am talking about the possibility of working with those who may baptize differently than we do, not joining forces with those who have jettisoned the very foundation of our faith.
We need to pray for those denominations. And we need to pray for the faithful believers who remain within those denominations, believers who are heartbroken about what has happened to the church they love as much as any Baptist loves his or her church. We need to pray that they might have wisdom to know what to do in response to what has happened, to know if they should leave or stay.
In the meantime, when we find a shared commitment to Christ, we can celebrate.
And, we should celebrate the fruitfulness of our fellow-believers.
More than we like to admit, jealousy often mars our relationship with other Christians. A church begins to grow and we feel jealous. That jealousy often leads us to criticize and condemn that church, to take cheap shots at its leaders. Such jealousy should have no place in our hearts.
All true spiritual success comes from Jesus Christ. When our fellow-Christians experience victories in building the Kingdom we ought to remember that it means Jesus is at work in our community.
Some Observations
How can we put these attitudes Jesus calls for into practice?
1. We can remember to pray for all Christians.
I once met a young woman who had attended a fundamentalist university in the South. She said that during Billy Graham’s Piedmont Crusade monitors patrolled the halls of her dormitory, listening at doors to make sure no one was praying for the evangelist.
That’s a rare attitude but many non-Christians wouldn’t know that. They think we’re more likely to pray against each other than to pray for each other. Let’s pray for our fellow Christians—not simply those in far off lands, but for those near us, as well.
2. When the opportunity arises, we should work together in building the Kingdom of God.
There are some opportunities for cooperative ministry. We should seize them.
3. While recognizing that honest differences of opinion exist we should stress what we hold in common, not what separates us.
During the Evangelical Awakening in 18th century England the tireless evangelist John Wesley, founder of Methodism, met publicly with Charles Simeon, pastor of the university church at Cambridge. They differed on many issues. But listen to what happened on that platform on October 30, 1787.
“Sir,” said Simeon, “I understand you are called an Arminian; now I am sometimes called a Calvinist, and therefore, I suppose, we are to draw daggers. But, before I begin to combat, with your permission, I will ask you a few questions, not from impertinent curiosity but for real instruction. Pray, sir, do you feel yourself a depraved creature, so depraved that you would never have thought of turning to God, if God had not put it into your heart?”
“Yes,” said Wesley, “I do indeed.”
“And do you utterly despair of recommending yourself to God by anything that you can do; and look for salvation solely through the blood and righteousness of Christ?”
“Yes, solely through Christ.”
“But, sir, supposing you were first saved by Christ, are you not somehow or other to save yourself afterwards, by your good works?”
“No, I must be saved by Christ, from first to last.”
“Allowing then, that you were first turned by the grace of God, are you not in some way or other to keep yourself by your own power?”
“No.”
“What, then, are you to be upheld every hour and moment by God, as much as an infant in its mother’s arms?”
“Yes, altogether.”
“And is all your hope in the grace and mercy of God, to preserve you unto His heavenly kingdom?”
“Yes, I have no hope but in Him.”
“Then, sir, with your leave, I will put up my dagger again: for this is all my Calvinism; this is my election, my justification, my final perseverance. It is in substance al that I hold, and as I hold it; and therefore, if you please, instead of searching out terms and phrases to be the ground of contention between us, we will cordially unite in those things wherein we agree.”
There are times we can put away our daggers and seek ground of agreement.
4. We should remember that the boundaries of God’s family are usually wider than we imagine.
Kerry Veale tells about visiting a family reunion for the very first time. She says, “I met relatives I never knew I had—a flight attendant, a university vice-president, a lawyer, an accountant, a missionary, an elementary school principal, and lots of farmers.”
Someday there will be a great spiritual family reunion. I suspect that, like Kerry, some of us will meet relatives we never knew we had. Wouldn’t it be wise to open our eyes now to see how large Christ’s family is? Then we can enjoy fellowship with our newly-found brothers and sisters.
5. Actively rejoice in the victories God wins, regardless of the human instrument he uses to win those victories.
Conclusion
As a group, we human are group-oriented. That’s why we have clubs and lodges, fraternities and sororities. As Christians we form groups, calling them denominations. There is nothing wrong with that. But we must be careful that our natural sense of loyalty to our group doesn’t become unhealthy.
If someone is liberating people in the name of Jesus,
If someone is bringing honor to the name of Jesus,
Rejoice with that person,
In the Name of Jesus, embrace that person.
