It is also our 1st week in this month of October with the theme “I Am Involved, I Am Prepared for Eternity”. Now some of us may not know that this is also the anniversary month of the whole JIL Church Worldwide. And for 43 years God has been faithful to this ministry because many people are also involved in spreading the gospel not only here in the Philippines but in the whole world. Our church has been recognized not only here in the Philippines but in the whole world because men and women of God has been involved and committed to proliferate God’s word all over the world.
How many of us wanted to be recognized as they work for a company they are working, or even for the church they belong? However, before we can be acknowledged and be recognized, there should be involvement. You see many wanted to be acknowledged and yet they don’t want to be involved.
Our theme verse for this month is found in Matthew 9:37 but let me use the verses from 35 to 38 for today’s message…
Be Involved for God!
Matthew 9:35-38
35Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.38Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
On a similar passage we can read in…
John 4:35-38
34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.35Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.36Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.37Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true.38I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
These 2 passages happened in the lives of the 12 disciples as Jesus continue His public ministry. But little the disciples did not know; they were being trained by God by showing them how to minister to people publicly. And another principle of God is going to be shown to them and it is to be involved. Jesus is telling them the levels of involvement. These levels will determine how deep God wants us to be involved.
“Tell me and I forget, show me and I may remember, involve me and I learn” – Benjamin Franklin -founding father of USA.
“Sabihin mo at maari kong makalimutan, ipakita mo at maari kong matandaan, isama moa ko at maari akong matuto.”
What are the Levels of our Involvement?
1. Many were just Informed. Marami ay nakaalam lang.
36When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
For others, their involvement is simply knowing information. It is enough for others to be aware of the things around them without being affected and take no action. They never wanted to be involved because they simply don’t care.
But in verse 36, we saw Jesus moved with compassion because He saw the crowd’s specific need.
What did Jesus saw on people’s need? The Bible says they were…
Harassed – they were threatened. Their harassment came from the Roman government and from their religious organization. Because of that their freedom was threatened as no one could help them.
Helpless – they were alone. Most of the crowd were living in fear, they need a hero who will save them from their hopeless condition as many of them were sick and they needed deliverance and freedom.
Hopeless – they were like sheep without a shepherd. For the Jews, a shepherd is a role that is important. They look at them as leaders who will lead their flocks for security, shelter, and food.
Jesus was fully informed of their situations, just like us. We see our…
• Countrymen suffers because of this pandemic. What have we done? Did we do our best to contribute for welfare of this nation?
• Churchmates weakened their faith because of the limited church fellowship. What have we done for them? Have we encouraged them to attend even on virtual service?
• Covid 19 cases in our country. What have we done to stop or limit its spread?
Our country has many needs, many lost their lives because of this pandemic, and even inside the church has many casualties. Even most of our churchmates are now nowhere to be found? Are we just sitting and standing because it’s enough for us to be informed only? Do we still care?
But what we need is the next level of our involvement…
2. We need to Initiate. Kailangan nating magpasimula
We need to be like Jesus who initiated to see the actual needs of the people just like in verse 35.
35Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.
After Jesus called His 12 disciples, Jesus went along with them to show them what to do. Jesus would lead them by initiating what to do and show them examples. His mission is to finish the work He started and to initiate things for them.
John 4:34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work.
ASND “Sinabi ni Jesus sa kanila, “Ang pagkain ko ay ang pagsunod sa kalooban ng nagsugo sa akin at ang pagtupad sa kanyang ipinapagawa.”
Our Lord Jesus knew that His disciples were not yet ready for the works that He intended for them to work. And so, He showed them everything they need to know. He did not wait for His disciples to ask Him what to do but He instead do the things of His own.
Initiatives must be present in us in order for God’s work to be finished. But our initiative could not be sustained without…
• Vision – this will fuel every initiative or plans we have. God will give us the burden in order to pursue our vision into completion. Without spiritual vision, many believers cannot see and understand the divine plan of God. God will open our spiritual eyes to see His vision!
Look at 2 Kings 6:15-17 the story of Elisha and his servant Gehazi
"15 And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16 So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 And Elisha prayed, and said, “Lord, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.”
John 4:35
“Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.”
Matthew 9:37
“Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.”
Vision is our spiritual eyes in order to see that the harvest is ripe and plenty. This is what Jesus saw every time He see the crowd coming at Him. For the normal eyes see them as needs but for our spiritual eyes these needs are opportunities, opportunity to harvest the works of God.
• Values – another factor that pushes us to initiate is to know our values. Once we follow the vision, our values will come in to guide us and direct us. Our own church has our core values that guides everyone of us so we could continue the works that God initiated.
P-assionate love for God
L-ove and compassion for others
I-ntegrity
F-aithfulness
E-xcellence
All we have to remember is that God is the one initiated new thing for us.
Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”.
• Victory – the result of our initiative is secured and that is to bring glory to God. Look at the rewards and results of our initiative in John 4:36-38
36Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together.37Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true.38I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.”
This is the victory sets for everyone of us who are willing to initiate.
It draws a wage and harvest an eternal life v36a – may sahod at ani na buhay na walang hanggan. What are our rewards in spreading the seed of salvation to others? Crowns in heaven and eternal life in Christ Jesus.
We enjoy the joy of the sower v36b – God Himself is pleased since He was the One who sow the seeds of good works in us.
Matthew 25:23 ““His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’”
Lastly, we reap what God sow in hard work v38 – God will let us enjoy the fruits of His labor on us.
1 Corinthians 3:6 “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.”
Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”.
Galatians 6:9 “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
And so, we must not only stop being informed and do not take action, but instead we must initiate what God started within us. However, we can’t do it alone, we can’t do all things for God. We need the help of others to be involved. So…
3. We must Influence others. Kailangan na maimpluwensyahan ang iba.
We need to see that others as well are influenced by being involved. After Jesus the crowd and felt the compassion over them, His attention was caught by His disciples knowing that they were immature, insensitive to the needs of others, inactive faith, and intolerant. That’s why Jesus told them in v37 of Matthew 9.
37Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.38Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
ASND “Kaya sinabi niya sa mga tagasunod niya, “Marami ang aanihin, pero kakaunti ang tagapag-ani. Kaya idalangin ninyo sa Panginoon, na siyang may-ari ng anihin, na magpadala siya ng mga tagapag-ani.”
We need God who initiates and influence workers to His harvest fields. However, what kind of workers is God looking at? Look at Matthew 20:1-16 The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyards
1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.2He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.3 “About nine in the morning he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing.4He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’5So they went. “He went out again about noon and about three in the afternoon and did the same thing.6About five in the afternoon he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’ 7 “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered. “He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’ 8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’ 9 “The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius.10So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius.11When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner.12‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’ 13 “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius?14Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you.15Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”
This parable exposed most of the motivations why we were influenced to be God’s worker in His vineyard. Now let me emphasized that this parable has nothing to do with salvation. The denarius does not represent salvation (for no one works for his own salvation) nor rewards (for we are not going to receive the same rewards according to 1 Corinthians 3:8b “and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor.”) The landowner was represented by God Himself.
The parable is emphasizing about the right motivation or attitude why we are involved in God’s service. Now we can see that there were possible reasons why we get involved to be represented by these different workers depending on the time they were hired and paid.
A. Contractual Worker v1-2 – these were hired early in the morning and agreed to be paid 1 denarius for a day. Now it is agreed 1 penny for the whole day let me stress that point.
B. Conditional Worker v3-4 – these were hired at 9AM and were just standing in the marketplace and agreed to be paid according to what was right in the eyes of the landowner.
C. Comfortable Worker v5 – these were hired at 3PM and gave the same agreement as the recent worker.
D. Idle Worker v6-7 – the were hired at 5PM and has been given the same agreement with 9AM and 3PM hired workers.
Now the problem came when they started to receive their wages according to the last hired workers to the first – v8. As the last workers receive the same amount of money with the first workers, the first workers started to complaint to the landowner. But what did the landowner reply to them? To the first owner they agreed a denarius for a whole day and they get it. To the 9AM and 3PM workers, their agreement is to be paid according to what was right based on the landowner’s assessment.
What was the lesson we can find on this parable?
Many will work based on their contract.
For the Contractual Workers, they agreed on a denarius pay for a day. But had they trusted the goodness and generosity of the landowner, they could get more than that. Of course, since they were contracted on that agreed amount, the same service was expected from them.
Many will work based on their skills.
For the Professional Workers, there could be no questions on their skills, but there is a big question on their heart and motivation why they work so hard. The landowner saw on them that they were a typical hireling who doesn’t put their heart on their work.
Many will work based on their heart.
The idle workers, they may be idle for quite some time before they met the landowner, but maybe the landowner saw on them the quality of their hearts in serving him. That’s why he gave them same salary as the rest of the workers though they only worked for 1 hr.
The problem lies when these workers started to compare with what they received. Jealousy, overconfidence, pride, and selfishness set in since they used their own standard in assessing their benefits.
Ephesians 6:6-8 “Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.”
ASND “Gawin n'yo ito nang kusang-loob hindi dahil nakatingin sila para sila'y malugod, kundi dahil mga alipin kayo ni Cristo na gumagawa ng kalooban ng Dios. 7Maglingkod kayo nang may mabuting kalooban na para bang ang Panginoon mismo ang pinaglilingkuran n'yo at hindi ang tao. 8Alalahanin ninyong gagantimpalaan ng Panginoon ang bawat isa ayon sa ginawa niyang mabuti, maging alipin man siya o hindi.”
Let us start to win the favor of God by doing His will and serve Him wholeheartedly. Not looking first on His rewards to us but looking for the impact we can bring to His kingdom by being involved with the King.
Jeremiah 17:10 “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.
ASND “Pero ako, ang Panginoon, alam ko ang puso at isip ng tao. Gagantihan ko ang bawat isa ayon sa pag-uugali at mga gawa niya.”
Friends, churchmates, and co-workers in God’s vineyard. Are we deserving the blessings that God has been showing to us? Let our hearts be searched by God and let Him examine our minds today.
Are we in a way have similarities with these workers on this parable? Do we have a contract with God that when God gave that request, we will be involved to His service? Or are we like the conditional workers that we are too good on our skills, yet our hearts are too far away in His service? Or maybe we are the comfortable workers who works based on our own style and comfort without any sacrifice to God? Or are we like the idle workers that has been given a break by God in His service? The bottom line is that, we are all workers by the living God. We are now being called out in the field for harvest. Are we still influenced to serve Him? Are we ready to influence others?
Conclusion:
Illustration:
This is a story about four people named Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. There was an important job to do and Everybody was asked to do it. Everybody was sure Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it, but Nobody did it. Somebody got angry because it was Everybody's job. Everybody thought Anybody would do it, but Nobody realized that Everybody wouldn't do it. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done. – Charles Swindoll
Lahat ay sigurado na may isang tao na kayang gumawa nito. Kahit sino ay maaaring gawin ito, ngunit Walang sinuman ang gumawa. May nagalit dahil trabaho ito ng Lahat. Pero Akala ng lahat Na sinumang gagawa nito, ngunit Walang napagtanto na Lahat ay hindi ginawa ito. Natapos na ang Lahat ay sinisi ang Sinumang tao dahil Walang gumawa ng kung ano ang maaaring magawa ng Kahit sino.
Today God wants Everybody to be involved, not Somebody but Anybody could be with Him. Nobody will be refused nor rejected by God. It’s time for us to be involved.
How many among us are only informed? How many are starting to initiate things for their ministry? And how many are willing to be influenced and influence others? How many are willing to Be Involved for God? Decide our level of involvement today!
