Video Illustration: Leaving a spiritual legacy a father to a son.
Theme – Legacy of the Pew!
Thesis: Sowing seeds today results in bearing fruit tomorrow which in turn leaves a spiritual legacy!
Introduction to series:
We need to invest our lives into leaving a spiritual legacy for our children and our spiritual children just like Jonathan and Sarah Edwards did in the early 1700s in colonial America.
Jonathan Edwards felt God's call to become a minister. He and his young bride became the pastors of a small congregation. During the many years that followed, he wrote numerous sermons, said many prayers, and wrote some books. He was influential in beginning the Great Awakening and seeing a nation be transformed by the Holy Spirit. Together they produced eleven children who grew into adulthood. Remember Sarah was a partner in her husband's ministry, and he sought her advice regarding sermons and church matters. They spent time talking about these things together as a couple, and, when their children were old enough, the parents included them in the discussions. The effects of the Edwards's lives have been far-reaching, but the most measurable results of their faithfulness to God's call is found through their descendants. These descendants are their spiritual legacy!
Elizabeth Dodds records a study done by A. E. Winship in 1900 in which he lists a few of the accomplishments of the 1,400 Edwards descendants he was able to find:
• 100 lawyers and a dean of a law school
• 80 holders of public office
• 66 physicians and a dean of a medical school
• 65 professors of colleges and universities
• 30 judges
• 13 college presidents
• 3 mayors of large cities
• 3 governors of states
• 3 United States senators
• 1 controller of the United States Treasury
• 1 Vice President of the United States
These were just their biological descendants can you imagine what their spiritual children did for the Kingdom of Heaven? When we talk legacy – a spiritual legacy this is what we mean!
Questions to ponder this morning: “What kind of legacy will you leave? Will it be lasting? Will it be imperishable and eternal? Or will you leave behind only physical things like buildings, money, and other possessions?”
Our new series is called “Legacy of the Pew.”
Brief History of the Pew:
The original orthodox church had no pews people would stand or kneel but the pew idea took shape during the Protestant Reformation with the rise of preaching to train the people in God’s Word. The reformation ushered in extensive teaching sermons to train the masses in the knowledge of the Bible. So people sat for longer periods of time listening to the sermons. When pews first took off the church usually did not buy them people did – yes – they bought their own pew to sit in and then surrounded it with a pew box which in those days actually had their names on them. They really did claim them as their own and some families rented them out to those who could not afford their own pews – really I am not making this up! This was common until about the 19th century. Then the church got in the act of charging for the pew. But it became too political and not so biblical and so the church introduced the common pew that anyone could sit on at church service – but this was paid for by the church. So the pew has evolved from wood benches to padded pews to what is now padded comfortable chairs.
So there is the quick history of the pew and the chair you now sit in!
The symbolism of the pew and its history is not what we are talking about – this pew in front of you today represents people – the spiritual lives of others to be exact. It represents the many people who sat, laid and lounged in the pew during services and sermons. So when we talk about the “Legacy of the Pew” we are not talking about the historical story or it’s evolvement over time. What we are talking about is the people who sat in those pews year after year, message after message, service after service, prayer after prayer and so on. The pew represents the spiritual lives of the people and families whose kids slept on them and even under them. It represents the many kids who stood on these pews and grew up on them. It represents the kids who were rocked to sleep on their pew along with some adults too. The legacy of the pew is about generations of church goers who came before you and who will come after you.
Yes, we are talking about the many lives of Christians who sat on those pews and listened to the Word of God, who praised the Lord on them and who kneeled on them to pray to God for help and hope. We are talking about generations of families who grew up on the pew. We are talking about people’s spiritual legacy’s.
Reference the one country song “What I Love About Sunday’s.”
When I first came back to Christian Hills Church 8 years ago - I was very perplexed – you may ask why? Well I had been here as an Associate Pastor 11 years before and I noticed a perplexing reality. My concern was really rooted in our topic today, “The legacy of the pew.” I asked the Lord and some of the people where are all the kids and grandkids of the church had gone? I noticed a whole generation missing from the pews (we did have pews then). I would name some of the families and ask what happened to them and their kids. These were people who grew up sitting on the pews of CHC. Those kids who use to jump up and down on the pews? I kept asking “What happened to the younger generation?” “What happened to the legacy of the pew and a passion for Jesus in the younger generation of CHC?”
I discovered some were serving in other churches – a bit of relief. But many were not even going to church! Some had thrown the church off as a burden and as a hindrance to their lives! Some had grown to even reject the church and what it stood for! Some were hurt from people with in the church and never wanted anything to do with church ever again. Some had not just walked away from the church but away from Jesus. They were not even serving Jesus? So I have made it a mission of mine to invest in the younger generation of CHC and CHC School. I know it is critical for us to invest in the younger generations!
But this sad scenario was not just a Christin Hills Church scenario really it was reflective of our society as a whole – America - “One Nation Under God” has become known as a post-christian culture? The church had failed to develop and to leave a spiritual legacy for this next generation. The result a declining church, a weak Christianity, a dismissal of absolute truth and a mindset that believes anything goes – there is no right and wrong.
I have had to ask the question, “What happened to following Deut. 6:1-25?” The passage where God told the Israelites to instill in their children a spiritual legacy that they could carry on. They were told to never forget how they got to the Promised Land and how God was responsible for this blessing. They were told to teach their children about God’s Word and laws so they too could be blessed and their kids blessed. But Israel failed at some point to do this and the nation was hauled off into captivity! Adults and children alike! Is the church in America and our nation on the same downward path? Where are the spiritual legacy’s? What happened to God’s truth?
The apostle Paul instructed Timothy to invest his life into other faithful men (I add women, children, teens too) who would be able to pass God's truth on to the next generation. It’s imperative that we pass our Christian experience and spiritual legacy on to our children and to their children. Both biological and spiritual children.
T.S. - Listen to John’s thoughts from 2 John complementing the chosen lady and her children:
Scripture Text: 2 John 1:
1The elder, To the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in the truth—and not I only, but also all who know the truth— 2because of the truth, which lives in us and will be with us forever: 3Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father’s Son, will be with us in truth and love. 4It has given me great joy to find some of your children walking in the truth, just as the Father commanded us. 5And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love. 7Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully. 9Anyone who runs ahead and does not continue in the teaching of Christ does not have God; whoever continues in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. 10If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take him into your house or welcome him. 11Anyone who welcomes him shares in his wicked work. 12I have much to write to you, but I do not want to use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to visit you and talk with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete. 13The children of your chosen sister send their greetings.
Historical Background of our text from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Epistle_of_John:
The text or letter is addressed to "the elect lady and her children" (some interpretations translate this phrase as "elder lady and her children"), and closes with the words, "The children of thy elect sister greet thee." However, some translators prefer to transliterate the Greek word for "lady" with the proper name Kyria. The person addressed is commended for her piety, and is warned against false teachers. The lady has traditionally been seen as a metaphor for the church, the church being the body of believers as a whole and as local congregations. The children would be members of that local congregation. He also includes a greeting from another church in the last verse, "The children of thy elect sister greet thee." The term the elect was a fairly common term for those who believe in the gospel and follow Christ.
So our text refers to passing on the legacy of Jesus – His Word – and guarding that truth against those who deny Jesus full humanity and divinity. They are told to walk in love which means they follow the commands of Scripture and live by them. A person who genuinely loves Jesus will follow and obey God’s Word. They are warned to guard themselves from the deceivers, the antichrist spirits of this world who promote lies. In a sense they are challenged to leave a spiritual legacy by following the Word of God, investing in others and loving God more than anything else.
The Bible is clear on this point: “We as disciples of Jesus are to live a life which creates a spiritual legacy for the next generation – WHY? - because it is one of our God given assignments on the earth to do!”
T.S. - To leave a spiritual legacy you need to do the following from what I can see in the Bible and in 2 John:
I. We are to live our lives by the Truth of Scripture!
a. Psalm 112:1-2 reads: "How blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in His commandments. His descendants will be mighty on earth; The generation of the upright will be blessed."
i. We are called to obey God’s commands – His Word – The Bible and we will do this if we really love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.
b. In other word’s as Christ followers we are to live by a Biblical worldview!
i. A recent nationwide survey completed by the Barna Research Group determined that only 4 percent of Americans had a "biblical" worldview. When George Barna, who has researched cultural trends and the Christian Church since 1984, looked at the "born-again" believers in America, the results were a dismal 9 percent.
ii. Barna's survey also connected an individual's worldview with his or her moral beliefs and actions. Barna says, "Although most people own a Bible and know some of its content, our research found that most Americans have little idea how to integrate core biblical principles to form a unified and meaningful response to the challenges and opportunities of life."
1. Taken from http://www.focusonthefamily.com/faith/christian-worldview/whats-a-christian-worldview/whats-a-worldview-anyway
iii. To understand what a Biblical worldview is we must first understand everyone has a worldview – or a lens by which they look through to interpret reality or make sense of the world they live in.
1. For example: One world view says casual sex is awesome and healthy for you from http://www.breakpoint.org/
a. In this article they sight the following thought: “In 2005’s “Hitch,” Will Smith’s title character gets into a conversation with a buddy at a bar about relationships. His friend, recently married, gushes about how the love between his wife and himself is on a different level from the philandering these guys once enjoyed. “You know what your problem is?” the friend asks. “You’re all about the short game.” As two attractive women stroll by, Hitch smiles and retorts that married life isn’t for everyone: “Just leave me to my hot, sweaty, totally varied, wildly experimental short game.” To be fair, the movie ends with Smith’s character swearing off his womanizing ways and settling down with the girl of his dreams. But you don’t have to look far to find movies, TV shows, bestselling novels, and political organizations touting no-strings-attached sex as the good life.
i. We see it promoted everywhere on TV, in movies, books and magazines – it’s suppose to be every persons dream to live a life like this.
b. Our secular world view tells us, “It’s fun, exciting, and so much better than being stuck with the same person night after night. Casual sex on screen is the purview of sophisticated, attractive, career-focused urban socialites. Everyone has a good time, goes to work the next day, and laughs about it over cocktails come Friday. At least, that’s how it goes in the movies.”
i. It’s true that is how it goes on Tv and the movies but is that reality?
c. They go on to add, “And left-wing political groups like Planned Parenthood have set about giving the short game a patina of medical and scientific approval. (Shocker: The nation’s largest abortion provider wants folks shacking up as often as possible.)(Why so they make more money!) These groups put tremendous effort into normalizing bed-hopping among young people, with sex-education campaigns that could be more accurately described as promiscuity propaganda. And then, of course, there’s pornography, an industry whose Internet bandwidth dwarfs that of Netflix, Amazon, and Twitter combined. The unspoken premise of every millisecond of porn is that women (and men) are bodies to be used and discarded at the viewer’s leisure. Everyone is physically flawless, no one catches any diseases or gets pregnant out of wedlock, and the guilt and regret described by real people who’ve lived the dream and found out it’s a nightmare are nowhere in sight.”
i. So is the message of deception and lies spilled to our younger generations today – over and over it is repeated and celebrated!
d. But the truth is as the article highlights, “Emotional attachment, long-term faithfulness, and yes, love, are to porn what Brussels sprouts are to fried Twinkies. They may be better for you, in the long run, but they’re just no fun. At least, that’s the message, fed intravenously through screens of all sizes to Americans of all ages, day and night. But lies are tough to maintain, and the truth about this rosy picture of casual sex keeps slipping out in embarrassing places. Recently, it happened at Buzzfeed. James Ball, who I strongly suspect will find himself unemployed shortly, reports the results of a new YouGov survey, which found that “very right wing people” are the happiest with their sex lives. Carried out for a new edition of the book “Sex, Lies and the Ballot Box,” the survey involved more than 19,000 people in the U.K., Germany, France, Denmark, and Sweden. In all five countries, participants with the most right-wing political views were likeliest to report being sexually satisfied. A connection emerged on the opposite end of the political spectrum, as well. Those in the U.K. who leaned furthest left were the least likely to describe their sex lives in positive terms. Right-wing political views, meanwhile, predicted the greatest overall happiness…At the very least, this survey means that those who espouse views Americans would call socially conservative have, on average, a better time in bed. This raises the obvious question: If casual sex is so mind-blowingly awesome, why are the fuddy-duddies on the right enjoying themselves so much?”
i. Maybe the Bible’s view of sex within the context of marriage is a better and more healthy and emotional way to live your life?
2. A biblical worldview sees everything through the lens of the Bible and they use the Bible’s teachings to navigate their life and their choices in life.
a. Focus on the family challenges us to see if we have a biblical worldview:
i. Do you have a biblical worldview? Answer the following questions, based on claims found in the Bible and which George Barna used in his survey:
1. Do absolute moral truths exist?
2. Is absolute truth defined by the Bible?
3. Did Jesus Christ live a sinless life?
4. Is God the all-powerful and all-knowing Creator of the universe, and does He still rule it today?
5. Is salvation a gift from God that cannot be earned?
6. Is Satan real?
7. Does a Christian have a responsibility to share his or her faith in Christ with other people?
8. Is the Bible accurate in all of its teachings?
ii. Did you answer yes to these? Only 9 percent of "born- again" believers did. But what's more important than your yes to these questions is whether your life shows it. Granted, we are all sinners and fall short, but most of our gut reactions will reflect what we deep-down, honest-to-goodness believe to be real and true.
1. The above taken from focusonthefamily.com website.
iv. So to leave a spiritual legacy requires us to follow God’s truth through love and a Biblical Worldview!
T.S. – So John challenges us to love God by obeying His word and truth and then the other way I see on how to leave a spiritual legacy is to invest in other’s personally.
II. Invest what you have learned from the Lord into others – pass it on – simply put make disciples through the process of God’s love!
a. We need to pass on to others what we have experienced in Jesus and what we have learned from the Bible.
i. This means passing on a spiritual legacy to our children and grandchildren. But it also means passing it on to others within the church – the spiritual children God has called us to invest in.
ii. Story from Tim Clinton: “Years ago, in one of his columns for Christianity Today, Charles Colson tells the poignant story of an interview on PBS that demonstrates the power of caring, sacrificial love. In pointing out the limits of our best efforts to reform culture through political activism and persuasive argument, Colson asserts that “there is only one way people will genuinely ‘hear’ the gospel message: by observing how the church itself lives . . . They should see in the Christian community a unifying love that resonates with their own deepest longings— and points to a supernatural source.” Then he told this wonderful story: The interviewer had an aggressive manner and a hard expression under layers of make-up and mascara. “How can you be so sure about your faith,” she challenged me. I answered by telling her a story of my time behind bars after Watergate, when several Christian men stunned me with a quality of love I had never known before. I’ll never forget that day because one of them— Al Quie— called to say, “Chuck, because of your family problems, I’m going to ask the President if you can go home, while I serve the rest of your prison term.” I gasped in disbelief. At the time, Al was the sixth-ranking Republican in the House, one of the most respected public figures in Washington. Yet he was willing to jeopardize it all out of love for me. It was a powerful witness that Jesus was real: that a believer would lay down his life for another. As I retold the story for the cameras, the interviewer broke down and waved her hand, saying, “Stop, stop.” Tears mixed with mascara were streaming down her cheeks. She excused herself, repaired her make-up, and— injecting confidence back into her voice— said, “Let’s film that sequence once more.” But hearing the story again, she could not hold back her tears. Later, she confessed that Al’s willingness to sacrifice had touched her deeply, and she vowed to return to the church she had left years earlier. A Christian community united in love attracts attention in the most jaded culture. Sacrificial and caring love does offer up the best remedy to influence and change the hardest hearts.”
1. Clinton, Tim (2009-09-21). Caring for People God's Way: Personal and Emotional Issues, Addictions, Grief, and Trauma (pp. 11-12). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
b. I have been listening to Chuck Colson’s book “The Faith” recently and was amazed as one of the most notorious and rude and heartless men in government was changed by the power of the Holy Spirit and Jesus. Why and How? Love! The key reasons for his salvation and transformation was a group of Christian men who in the midst of Watergate gathered around him and discipled him and loved unconditionally. There prayers, their words of wisdom and love transformed his life!
i. One pastor noted how discipleship is really 75 percent informal! Did you hear this?
1. These guys just reached out to Chuck in the worst time of his life and they loved on him and encouraged him through the trial with the truth of Jesus and the Bible.
2. Throughout this book Charles Colson warns the listener over and over how important it is to have a biblical worldview and he warns how the secular worldview is taking over the minds of Americans who once had biblical worldviews!
a. He says the results of this will spell catastrophe for our society and our nation.
c. I recent read some thoughts from the book Gaining By Losing by J.D. Greear
i. In the book he challenges his readers to see if they are planting seeds in the fields of God’s Kingdom or if they are hoarding for themselves their “spiritual food” just for themselves.
1. He honestly and passionately believes that every Christian – every church – every ministry should be devoted to planting – to giving away what they have received from God’s Kingdom.
2. He uses the analogy of 3 ships to describe how people see the mission of the church:
a. The Cruise Ship:
i. He notes how some Christians think the churches mission is to be a cruise liner filled with Christian luxuries, sports for the whole family, entertainment for all, childcare services, business networking, and a fun filled time that makes them feel good about their position in life.
ii. He adds that these types of Christians show up at church asking only “Can this church improve my religious quality of life?” I add and “Where is the party?”
b. The Battle Ship:
i. Other Christians believe the churches mission is to pull up along side enemy ships and blast them out of the water with artillery shells so as to sink these threats.
1. They use overly aggressive and legalistic ways to do this!
ii. The church is seen as successful by how loud, forceful they are in fighting for the causes of Christianity and the Kingdom.
iii. People believe the church should be right there in the fight going blow to blow with the enemy of the soul.
c. The Aircraft Carrier:
i. Like Battleships they also engage in battle but from a different and more successful tactic – this technique proved valuable to the Allies in World War 2 in the Pacific.
1. Aircraft carriers equip – train – empower fighter planes to carry the battle elsewhere.
a. They bring the fight to the enemy!
2. He believes churches are given the mission by Jesus to equip, train, empower and send out individual people into the battle so as to win the war for men and women’s hearts.
a. This is done one person, one plane at a time.
b. He said the members – the individual planes must bring the battle to their communities to be able to win this war.
3. So in essence he is calling churches and Christians to become discipleship factories – sending agencies that equip their people to win the lost – one person at a time!
d. Question: “Are you investing in someone today? Pouring the Word of Life into someone else?” Planting seeds of the Kingdom into others?
i. You need to see that the worldview is using TV, Media, Movies, books, News reports, political agendas to convince your kids – your neighbors that their view is the right view and our view is the evil view.
1. Did you hear what I just said? It’s true!
ii. It needs to be noted that the Bible predicted this would happen in this world:
1. Isa. 5:20: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.”
a. This is how the world works and has been working for 1,000 of years!
2. 2 Timothy 3:1-5: “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self–control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.”
a. Did you hear this warning from Paul to Timothy and the church – we are not to be like the people described above – these types of people have secular worldviews which are not in alignment with God and His ways.
b. I recently watched just a few minutes of a pilot last night on NBC called “The Good Place” it started the show off by saying all that you were taught in church is only 5% accurate as wells as all other religions too are as equally right.
i. The show started off by telling it’s listening audience that The Church and the Bible is only 5% right or accurate – it along with every other religion in the world is only 5% right.
ii. The show gets you to laugh but in the same funny way is telling and sending the message to you and your children that the Church and the Bible are only 5% correct!
iii. This show promotes a secular worldview of life and the afterlife and even attacks in a funny way the truth of Scripture and God’s Word. Why – to convince you and your kids that Christianity and the Bible are 95% wrong in what they teach!
1. Do you see the danger?
2. Do you understand they are trying to deceive you and the kids that their view is the right view!
T.S. – We need to leave a spiritual legacy by investing in others for the Kingdom of Heaven. To do this we need to model our spiritual lives to those around us and therefore leave a legacy by doing the following 10 things.
III. Be remembered for these 10 things so you can leave a legacy like Jesus did: (the following taken directly from http://www.whatchristianswanttoknow.com/leaving-a-legacy-10-things-i-want-to-be-remembered-for/).
a. Legacy of joy in the midst of difficulty:
i. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance” (James 1:2-3).
b. Legacy of receiving and giving grace:
i. “By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care” (1 Corinthians 3:10).
c. Legacy of encouraging and inspiring others towards greatness:
i. “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness” (Hebrews 3:13).
d. Legacy of giving my time, treasures, and energy for kingdom work:
i. “But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving” (2 Corinthians 8:7).
e. Legacy of modeling forgiveness:
i. “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32).
f. Legacy of unconditional love for my family and friends:
i. “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8).
g. Legacy of leading and discipling people to Christ:
i. “Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well” (1 Thessalonians 2:8).
h. Legacy of hearing and doing God’s word:
i. “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says” (James 1:22).
i. Legacy of doing good and productive work:
i. “Their work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person’s work” (1 Corinthians 3:13).
j. Legacy of looking towards my heavenly home:
i. “But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13).
Conclusion:
What do they need to know?
Leaving a spiritual legacy is a choice we make today! It’s the things we do today that later bring forth spiritual fruit! If we don’t leave a spiritual legacy with our children both biological and spiritual who will?
Why do they need to know this?
We need to understand that we have to be intentional about leaving a spiritual legacy with our children – both biological and spiritual. We need to work at it because the world is working hard to convince people that our Biblical worldview is wrong and their secular worldview is right!
What do we need to do?
We need to be intentional about doing the 10 things above so we can leave a spiritual legacy that will carry on into the next generations. We also have to love God by following His word and also by investing into the lives of others for the Kingdom of Heaven. We must take our commission seriously and fight for our children! If we don’t they will be lost to this destructive and deceiving world system!
