We are all Called!
Made for Mission: Week 1
CCCAG January 5, 2020
Scripture- Matthew 9
Today we are going to start a 6 week series that will help focus us in the new year. It’s called “Made for Mission” and we will be focusing on how God has made each one of us to fit within His Kingdom as part of His sovereign plan for our area and for our lives.
Prayer
We will begin by looking at a biblical example of a person who was the least likely to ever be used by God in his time.
This man had the worst job a person could have as far as how his relatives, neighbors, and people were concerned.
He was so despised and hated that if you was walking toward you on the sidewalk you would go to the other side of the street to avoid him.
I don't think he intended to end up here. No one dreams as a child to have a position or a job where everyone would hate you.
His parents had turned their backs on him. His friends wanted nothing to do with him.
He knew what was in every person’s mind as they would pass him by each day.
“Sell Out.”
“Contempt.”
“Traitor”
Listen- People in his position were so hated that he couldn't even be grouped in the same category as “normal sinners”.
Instead, guys like Matthew were one step worse, “Tax Collectors.”
On one day Matthew was alone, as usual, sitting at his post on the side of a busy intersection. There was a bit of a commotion heading toward him and he saw a crowd of people surrounded a man who seemed to be taling and teaching.
Matthew heard someone said the name Jesus in passing, and immediately he knew who this was- that troublemaker from Nazareth that his Roman bosses warned him about.
Still, I imagine Matthew leaned in to try and hear what the popular teacher had to say. Right in the middle of Jesus’ sermon, a group of men interrupted Jesus and brought a paralyzed man right to his feet. Instead of being annoyed, Jesus immediately looked at the man and simply said “Your sins are forgiven.”
Then Jesus turned back to the man and said, “Just to show you that I can forgive sins, Get up and walk.” At once the man jumped up and the whole crowd stood in amazement.
Matthew had seen nothing like this before. Then Matthew looked up and Jesus was walking directly towards his table. If Matthew didn’t know better, the teacher was looking right at him
Jesus stopped at the table, leaned in, and whispered to Matthew just loud enough to hear.
“Follow me.”
At that moment, Matthew knew very little about Jesus. He didn’t know his mission, his calling, his plan, or his purposes.
Yet, Matthew found himself immediately standing up and leaving his life of tax collecting behind. Somewhere in the deep part of his soul he knew that this was the most important decisions he’s ever made in his life.
My friends, Jesus is leaning into your life this morning and whispering “follow me”. It doesn't matter what you have done , where you have come from, or even what our society thinks about you in this moment.
Jesus still puts out the call to everyone who would believe in him and says “follow me”.
Everyone today is searching for and are seeking a purpose to their lives that is part of something bigger.
This is exactly what is driving many young people today. They want their lives to matter and be about something bigger than themselves.
Stanford University did a study recently to find out if people truly desired happiness or meaningfulness. They found there as a connection between the two but ultimately what people really want is a life of meaning.
This speaks to a deeply help human need within each one of us, and it was placed their by God.
The idea is- We were made for a Mission. Your life has a purpose.
Over the next 6 weeks we are going to spend some time figuring that out for your life.
Turn to Matthew 9:9. We are going to read about Jesus calling on Matthew’s life and believe it has incredible significance for our lives today.
Read Matthew 9:9
As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
I thank God that Jesus chose Matthew. The fact that Jesus approached Matthew says so much. It shows that those the world rejects are still loved by God.
Tax collectors were seen in that culture as the worst of the worst. Tax collectors were Jews that had sold out their own people in order to become wealthy. People hated them. If we could go back in time and freeze frame this scene and then pick out of the hundreds of people there who would be the last person Jesus would pick to train up and send out to change the world it would be Matthew.
This is incredible significant for us.
If God can call the most hated and reviled person in his time to follow and serve Jesus, then he can call you.
JD Greer in his book Gaining by Losing says, “There is a widespread myth in the church that “calling into ministry” is a secondary experience that happens to only a few Christians. Their job is to do the ministry and everyone elses job is to just show up and foot the bill. Few lies cripple the mission and the witness of the church more than that one. Each believer is called to leverage his or her life for the spread of the gospel. The question is no longer whether we are called, only where and how.”
You are called by God! He has chosen you to be an active part of his mission.
Since your called, you need to start asking some big questions.
Look where you are at right now in life- the jobs you have done, the obstacles you have overcome, the grief, the trials, the good and the bad have all gone into the you that is sitting here this morning listening to this message.
It doesn’t matter what you do for a living- cleaning, farming, gas station, retail, factory, or medical. The same question applies if you’re in the military, fire department, teacher or student. God has put you on the frontlines for mission.
What would happen if you started viewing your job as a mission- a calling from God?
Illustration:
Tomorrow morning, most of us have a routine. We get up and take a shower, get dressed, maybe we help the kids get ready for school, go to work, and come home to prepare supper, do some leisure activity before bed, and start over again the next day.
Sounds like a typical American life.
OR you could like you were MADE FOR A MISSION.
You wake up expectant of what God has in store for you today. You spend time with God through prayer and reading His word before you do anything to listen in for his instructions that he has for you that day.
JD Greer says, “You don’t need a voice when you got a verse.” Scripture makes it abundantly clear that God wants to work through us to share his love with others. To many of us are waiting for the clouds to part and God to speak in a thunderous voice when He was already given us everything we need to know in His word.
Look at Jesus’ invitation to Matthew. This is critically important for us to understand when we consider Jesus’ call to each one of us.
Jesus doesn’t say, “get in line” or “do what I do.” Or “follow this program to prepare you to work for me”
He simply says, “Follow Me.”
Here is the main point-
Jesus invites Matthew first and foremost into a relationship with him. The relationship was not the byproduct of them doing ministry together, the relationship was the assignment.
The ministry is what would come from them spending time together. The Christian life is not about doing stuff for God but being with God.
From Matthew’s point of view he’s obviously shocked that Jesus approached him, but it’s also remarkable how Matthew got up immediately with no questions asked.
Think about what Matthew gave up. He has one of the best paying jobs in Israel during his time. He was well off while 90% of Israel was living underneath the poverty line. He didn’t have to work hard. (He’s just sitting there)
On top of that—Jesus’ invitation was a bit vague. He just said, “Follow me.” He didn’t say his name. Where they would be going. What they would be doing? Not even what would be in it for Matthew.
Matthew simply stood up, and left it all behind
Matthew had just seen the impossible- Jesus healing a paralyzed man.
I don’t think that’s what got his attention though.
What drew him in was this-Jesus forgiving that man of his sins.
The question that must have been racing through Matthew’s mind was “Could Jesus forgive me of my sin and my shame?”
Jesus invitation to Matthew is the same one He gives to us- to move from sitting to following.
In other words, Matthew had to get up. He had to make a conscience decision to make a move. He couldn’t just stay in his seat and follow. The moment he took a step he was on mission but a step of faith was required.
For us, God is calling us to get off the sidelines and get in the game of being made for a mission. It will require you to consciously get up even if it may be a bit uncomfortable.
Read Matthew 9: 10
While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples.
It’s inferred that Matthew asked a question at some point
Jesus, where are we going? Jesus: Your house.
That’s notable for us because there is this fear that if I put my Yes on Table, (def. Phrase meaning you are all in) then Jesus may move me to Africa or Antarctica.
God says, “let’s just start with where I have you now.”
This next scene takes place at Matthew’s house.
Who probably provided/cooked the meal they were eating? Matthew.
Had Matthew probably had friends over to his house before? Yep, but this dinner would have felt different. Before he was Matthew the tax collector but now he’s Matthew the missionary. His ability to BBQ is now being used for the mission of God. When I go from sitting to following God is going to internally start changing the way I start seeing things in my life.
This shows us that If we follow Jesus on His mission, God will transform how I use our resources.
God has blessed me w/ stuff that can be used for mission. Matthew used his house and food to be on mission. The same is true for us. You’ll look at your finances differently. You’ll look at your possessions differently.
Then God will transform how I see our relationships.
Matthew would have had many meals together with his tax collector buddies before, but this is the first time they had the religious leaders join them.
Talk about awkward. That’s like Packer and Viking fans watching their teams play in the NFC championship game together. Not going to turn out well.
The religious leaders would have been the ones who told the people the tax collectors were scum.
What do you think the conversations looked like between the two groups?
What did Matthew hope would happen?
He risking alienating every friend he ever had by bringing these two groups together, but Matthew put that aside because he had witnessed firsthand the life changing power of Jesus and was willing to risk everything to introduce these two opposing sides to the possibility of a new life in Christ.
When you join God in a life on mission you begin to realize that none of your friendships or even acquaintances are coincidental. Can I say- even your enemies? Those who gossip or lie about you or mistreat you.
God has placed them in your life and He desperately wants what happened to you to happen to them. At some point all of us had someone tell us about God—we realize that we get to do the same thing for others.
Are you investing your time and resources into who can pay you back or are your eyes on a reward not found in this world? That we were made for a mission is bigger than Christian thing- it’s a Kingdom priority as well as one of the greatest needs in our world today- to feel needed and important in a cause bigger than yourself.
Read Matthew 9:11
When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
It’s crazy to realize that the Pharisees are dining at Matthew’s house.
I bet they are thinking, “what the heck are we doing in tax collectors home.” They must be blown away by what they saw.
Here is a third way God begins to transform us when we move from sitting to following.
God will transform how I respond to ridicule. Remember who the Pharisee’s were- they are the rule keepers. They are the religious elite of their time. They were the Hollywood stars of their time.
The tax collectors knew that they were the bottom of the totem pole but it still didn’t change fact that they wanted to be in good standing with the popular Pharisees. But one afternoon of following Jesus and it all changes. Now they didn’t care about approval of the Pharisees because they were too busy with their new friendship with Jesus.
This is a critically important point for us to understand and live out-
You were not made to fit in, you were made to stand out. When you’re on mission you’re not living for the approval of man but for God.
Read Galatians 1:10 (Paul Speaking)
Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.
A good leader never askes a person to do something they are unwilling to do or have done themselves in the past.
Saying that- Jesus faced all kinds of ridicule so wouldn’t you expect that if you’re following him you’d experience persecution too.
Listen to Jesus’ words in Matthew 5.
Read Matthew 5:10-11
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.
For Matthew, maybe some of his tax collector friends had no interest in Jesus and that stung a little. Imagine if one of his friends stayed after their party to share that he wanted to have what Matthew had? Had awesome would that be? Check out how the passage ends.
Read Matthew 9:12
On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.
What is Jesus’ mission? He’s a spiritual doctor rescuing physically and spiritually wounded and sick people. That means He came for you and me. He didn’t come to judge or pile on rules we could never attain.
The takeaway for us is this-You have no idea the impact God might want to make through your life. There is no greater joy in the journey of figuring it all out.
Often our lives can only be understood looking backwards. Hindsight is always 20/20.
The pain, the trials, the suffering, the grief all has a role that God uses to shape us into the person He needs us to be to fit into the roll He has for our lives.
I look back at my life and realize that much of what I went through as a child prepared me to be comfortable standing alone for truth. I have grown into not caring what others think of me except for God, and my wife, but don’t tell her that.
I think of Pastor Roger’s life, and what he was willing to do to fulfill God’s mission for his life.
Pastor Roger held a degree from one of the most prestigious university’s in our fellowship, yet for many years he bagged grocery’s so that he could earn enough money to live on while he founded church’s. A man with a college degree doing a job that teenagers usually as their first job.
I think it taught him humility, and how God can love even the least of these and it made him tenderhearted to show the love of God to those society had tossed aside.
But most importantly, Roger’s life was a result of a deep, personal relationship with Jesus. He heard the call follow me, and he did just that his entire life.
God has that same kind of mission for you today- to come into relationship with Him on a deeper level, and through that relationship, follow Jesus wherever HE might lead.
Let’s pray.
