I do not know about you, but I always cringe when someone says that, because I know the bad news has to be very bad when it has to be softened with some good news first.
Illus: The story is told of a lady who went to a doctor because of her obesity problem. The doctor knew how much she loved to eat, and after examining her, he said, "I have some good news and some bad news!" He continued, "The GOOD NEWS is that I am going to put you on a diet and you can eat anything you LIKE." She was smiling after hearing such good news. Then he said, "The BAD NEWS is, here is a list of the things YOU ARE GOING TO LIKE!"
Illus: A dedicated Christian man went to his pastor and said, "I have some good news and some bad news to tell you, pastor." The pastor said, "Well, hit me with the good news first." The young man said, "The good news is that my boss has promised to give me a $5,000 increase in salary next year." The pastor said, "That's great!" The young man then said, "Pastor, the bad news is that I have to be willing to relocate my job and move to another town."
Basically, the young man's boss promised that if he would be willing to go, he would receive the increase in salary. And basically this is what the Lord does.
There are four things the Lord has promised us - IF we are willing to "GO" as He commanded in THE GREAT COMMISSION. This GREAT COMMISSION is mentioned by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and each of them mention a promise to us if we are willing to "GO" as He commanded in His GREAT COMMISSION
I. HE PROMISED US HIS PRESENCE
We read in Matthew 28:19-20, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."
THE COMMAND is to "Go...teach...baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost."
THE PROMISE IS: "...lo, I AM WITH YOU ALWAY, even unto the end of the world."
Now there are many Christians who would give the impression that they are "experts" when it comes to having an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus. That is, they want you to think they have an intimate relationship with the Lord like no one else has, and if you want to know anything about having a close walk with the Lord, all you have to do is ask them how - THEY ARE EXPERTS!
Illus: These remind me of the story of the young couple who were in a movie theater. The lights went out, and when they came back on the young lady said to her boyfriend, "Was that you that kissed me when the lights went out?" He said, "No, it was not me!" She said, "It must have been that young man over there with that big smile on his face." Her boyfriend jumped up and said, "I will teach him a thing or two!" She told him, with a smile, "Sit down! You can't teach him anything!"
Well, there are many Christians today who claim they can teach others about how to have that intimate relationship with Christ, when the fact is, they cannot teach you anything because they do not have such a relationship. HOW DO WE KNOW? Because, God has promised HIS PRESENCE to those who would go and win the lost. God said to those, "...lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world."
If He made a promise to those who would go, we can safely ASSUME that there will be those who will NOT "GO," for they do not have that close relationship with the Lord.
Someone might be saying, "Well, isn't God omnipresent? Doesn't that mean that God is with everyone?" Yes, but that is not the same thing.
Illus: A married man can take his wife to church and she is there, present with all who are there, yet her husband has an intimate relationship with her that no one else has.
• She may shake hands with other men
• She may smile at other men
• She may converse with other men
But, there is a line she does not cross because of her CLOSE RELATIONSHIP with her husband. She saves all her "hugs" and "kisses" for him, and him alone!
This is the way it is with those who obey the GREAT COMMISSION, and "GO" as God has commanded them to. God has promised to be PRESENT with them IN A WAY THAT IS SPECIAL TO THEM, AND THEM ALONE. Also, if we are willing to "go,"...
II. HE PROMISES HIS PROTECTION
Look at Mark 16:15 - "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."
Again the command is to "GO." THE PROMISE is if we go, God will PROTECT us!
Mark 16:18 says, "They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover."
What a promise! God has promised HIS PROTECTION to those Christians who will "GO."
Most of you carry some kind of insurance because you never know when you might have an accident. You carry the insurance for PROTECTION against financial loss!
Illus: The story is told of the insurance man who was trying to sell insurance to an old farmer who had no college degree, but had a lot of common sense. The insurance man was trying to make it simple so he could understand, so he laid aside his polished sales pitch and said, "Everyone needs accident insurance because everyone has an accident occasionally - don't you?" The farmer shocked the insurance man when he answered, "Nope! I was injured when a horse kicked me one time - broke two ribs. Then a couple of years ago I was bitten on the leg by a rattlesnake!" The insurance man said, "Wouldn't you call those two things that happened to you, accidents?" The old farmer said, "I certainly would not! That horse meant to kick me, and that snake meant to bite me. How could you call those accidents?"
We all have things that happen to us that we do not plan to have happen to us, but did you know that if we will go as we are commanded, the Lord has given us HIS PROMISE OF PROTECTION?
Illus: We see that very promise fulfilled in the life of Paul as he was busy carrying out the GREAT COMMISSION.
Acts 28:3-6, "And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live. And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm. Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, they saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god."
Just as the young man was promised a $5,000 raise if he was willing to go, God has promised us His PRESENCE and PROTECTION, if we would go. That is not all...
III. HE PROMISED US HIS PROMISE...
In Luke 24:49, we read, "And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high."
This GREAT COMMISSION was given to disciples of Jesus to go into the "harvest fields" and "reap the harvest." The disciples were not adequate within themselves, but God promised that if they would go, they would be "...ENDUED WITH POWER FROM ON HIGH."
God's Word makes it crystal clear that the Holy Spirit would empower His disciples. "AND YE SHALL BE WITNESSES UNTO ME both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."
The promise is that we shall be "ENDUED WITH POWER FROM ON HIGH." Acts 1:8 shows us THE PROMISE and THE RESULTS of the promise.
• THE PROMISE - "...ye shall RECEIVE POWER..."
• THE RESULTS - "...ye shall BE WITNESSES UNTO ME..."
If you are not willing to go and win the lost, you do not have HIS PROMISE of being filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. You may think you do. You may have been told you do. But, according to the Word of God - IF YOU RECEIVE - YOU WILL BE WITNESSES UNTO THE LORD.
Also, if you are willing to go...
III. HE PROMISES HIS PEACE
In John 20:21-23 we read, "Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained."
We all know people who live on tranquilizers, or who cannot make it through a day unless they have a six pack. They are absolutely so miserable that they cannot stand themselves. What is the problem? You show me a person like that, and I will show you a person whose conversation is taken up 95% with himself. Listen, God never intended that people live like that! He has COMMANDED us to go to others. There is something about helping others! It does not matter how bad your problems may be, when you help others, your problems do not seem to be so bad.
Illus: A man became so depressed that he was in the brink of committing suicide. He decided he would make one more attempt to get some help, so he went to his pastor. He talked for over an hour about how life had gone sour on him, and that he had almost reached the place where he would rather die than live the way he was living. The pastor listened, and soon it was apparent that all he could think of was himself. The pastor said, "I want you to promise me that you will do something. I am going to give you a list of things to do for me this week. Next week, if you feel your problems are still severe, we will talk about them again." The pastor gave the man the list. On it were such things as:
• Visit a couple of elderly ladies who were shut-ins
• Visit a woman whose husband had left her with six children
to support
• Visit an alcoholic that no one had any use for
• Visit a certain dedicated Christian, who loved the Lord
That following week, the man who had been so depressed, carried out every assignment the pastor had given him. When Sunday came, the pastor asked about his depression. The man said, "Pastor, would you believe that I have not even had time to think about being depressed. I have been so busy trying to help the people you sent me to that I haven't had time to think about myself!"
There are all kinds of ways we can obey God's command to "GO!" Some people just need someone to listen to them.
Illus: How many times have you talked to someone, and they did about 90% of the talking, and when you got ready to leave, they thanked you for listening as they told you about their problems?
There are people who need financial assistance. You may object, "Preacher, I do not have much money to help anyone." That is no excuse. Find someone who just needs a little bit of money, and help that one.
Don't overlook THE GREATEST WAY TO HELP ANYONE - that is TO TELL OF THE SAVIOR WHO CAN MEET ALL THEIR NEEDS. Jesus promised if we would go that we would have His peace - "PEACE BE UNTO YOU!" There are people in churches across this country who do not have God's peace in their hearts! Why? Because THE PROMISE IS TO THOSE WHO WILL GO!
Conclusion:
The young man told his pastor that his boss had promised him a $5,000 raise on the year if he would go. That was great, but God has greater promises to those who will go!
I. HE PROMISES HIS PRESENCE - Matthew
II. HE PROMISES HIS PROTECTION - Mark
III. HE PROMISED US HIS PROMISE - Luke
IV. HE PROMISES HIS PEACE - John
