THE MEASURE OF OUR WORLDWIDE EVANGELISM
Please open your Bible to John 3:16 for today’s message “Worldwide Evangelism.”
My hope in presenting this series, is to give you insight on how to prepare for that special day when the Lord measures your life for eternal greatness and rewards. When I picture how Jesus will measure our lives, one of the great things I believe He will be looking for is what we did to bring people into His kingdom.
Soul winning is very dear to the heart of God. Out of all of the vast treasures of heaven, perhaps the greatest treasure will be the soul winner's crown that is reserved for those who bring lost souls to Jesus Christ. Knowing how important this is, I want to show you how to be ready when God measures your life for your part in worldwide evangelism.
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. NKJV
THE CROWN OF REJOICING
I want you to picture in your mind that heaven is a place of great moments. There is the unforgettable moment when we first see Jesus, our Lord and Savior. There is also that wonderful moment of a grand reunion with our loved ones and friends. There will be that moment when we meet the saints of the ages, and eat together at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. There is also that glorious moment when God unveils the New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven that is so dazzling in its glory and beauty that no words can describe it. These are just a few of the many priceless moments we will experience in heaven.
But there is another moment that will also be a priceless moment in eternity, and that is the moment when the Lord reveals those persons who are experiencing eternal life in His kingdom because of your prayers and witness. Paul calls these persons who have been brought to Christ through our witness, our crown of rejoicing. Paul said...
1 Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming? 12 For you are our glory and joy. NKJV
Of all the rewards and treasures of heaven, the crown of rejoicing will be one of the greatest. The crown of rejoicing is a treasure so great in its measure that God told Daniel…
Daniel 12:3 Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever. NKJV
On a clear night, you can see the brilliant stars across the night sky. Those stars are billions of miles away, and yet, they shine so brightly, we can see their light. God says those who lead others into His kingdom will shine brighter than the brightest stars in the universe.
Picture this glorious moment when you are before the Judgment Seat of Christ. The whole host of heaven; ten billion times ten billion is watching as you receive your eternal rewards.
Suddenly, from the crowd a number of people step forward and gather around you. They share how God used your prayers, your love, and your investment in God’s kingdom to turn their hearts to Jesus Christ for eternal life. The whole of heaven erupts in thunderous joy and praise. And then, Jesus our great eternal King, steps forwards and crowns you with the Soul Winner’s Crown of Joy that shines brighter than the brightest stars of heaven.
Imagine, for all eternity those you have led to Christ will rejoice with you with unspeakable joy. Why? Why will your witness be remembered for all eternity? Because the only other alternative to heaven is hell. Every person on planet earth will spend eternity somewhere; either in heaven or hell... That's why your witness and your prayers for worldwide evangelism is so important. That's why God will measure your life by your worldwide witness.
GOD'S GREATEST MESSAGE
To understand the importance of our witness, we must realize that the greatest message on earth is "God so loved the world." God’s message is a worldwide message. God's love is a worldwide love for all people… Get that picture in your mind and then listen to Revelation 7 that says…
Revelation 7:9 After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could number, of all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” NKJV
God’s salvation is a worldwide salvation for all people of every nation and language and race. Our vision, must be a worldwide vision to reach the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This worldwide vision for the gospel is so important that Jesus said...
Matthew 24:14 this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. NKJV
How many nations? All nations... all nations... and then the end will come…
You have heard me pray this scripture many times from this pulpit, because the Bible says before Jesus Christ returns, the gospel will be preached to all nations. As of this moment, we are very close to achieving the goal of reaching every nation and every people group on earth with the gospel of Jesus Christ. That single fact is a clear warning that the coming of Christ is very near. This amazing prophecy is being fulfilled in our lifetime, which means we must do our part to help reach the nations for Christ.
Again, God's plan of redemption is a worldwide plan. God's love is a worldwide love. As a follower of Jesus Christ, we must see the world as God sees it. And how does God see it?
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son...
God sees a world that desperately needs the message of salvation. And the closer we get to the end, the more desperate that need will become. Why is it so important for the whole world to hear this message? Why should we care? Listen again to John 3:16...
John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes
in Him (should not perish) but have everlasting life. NKJV
Capture the phrase, ‘should not perish.’ You don't perish in heaven; you perish in hell. There is a heaven, and there is a hell, and every person will spend eternity in one of those two places. We desperately need to grasp the terrible, eternal truth that when people step into eternity without salvation in Jesus Christ, they will go to hell. That’s why the worldwide preaching of the gospel is so important.
YOUR ETERNAL INVESTMENT IN THE GOSPEL
Worldwide evangelism is a major priority to Jesus Christ. World evangelism is so important to Jesus that in His last words to His disciples, He said...
Acts 1:8... you shall be witnesses for Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
Jesus greatly desires for every nation to hear the message of salvation. As followers of Christ, He is counting on us to do our part. Jesus paid the ultimate price of redemption, and He is counting on you and I to pay the price of making that redemption available to all people of every nation.
I sincerely believe we are very near the end of the church age as we know it. Signs are everywhere and major prophetic events are on the horizon. Our time is very short, and we must use the time we have left to reach the world. How can we be a part of world evangelism? I want to give you four ideas on how you can invest your life for worldwide evangelism.
INTERCESSION
First, one very important part of evangelism is prayer, and especially intercessory prayer.
Not all of us are called or equipped to travel to the other side of the world as missionaries, but we can pray, especially intercessory prayer. Intercessory prayer is a powerful, focused type of prayer. For example, look at Hebrews 7:25…
Hebrews 7:25 Therefore He (Jesus) is able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. NKJV
At this moment, Jesus is interceding for the lost. Just as Jesus intercedes for the lost, we must also intercede for the lost nations of the world. We may never travel to that nation, but we can pray for God to send His Spirit and the right people to reach them for Christ. Ask God to give you a worldwide heart to pray for the nations.
William Carey was a young preacher who supported himself by making shoes. He didn't have enough money to buy a map so he put together a map of the world and labeled it with the names of the countries. Then, every day as he worked on shoes, he would pray for the nations of the world. He prayed for God to send missionaries and He prayed for the missionaries that He knew. Finally, God called Him to India, and used him in India to supervise the translation of the Bible into 36 different languages.
Regardless of your abilities, and financial status, you can have a worldwide ministry through intercessory prayer. Ask God to open your heart in prayer to include all the nations of the world.
(List of nations on back of bulletin)
Pray for the lost of that nation. Pray for those who are persecuted.
Pray that the leaders of that nation will allow the gospel to be preached without hindrance.
Pray for pastors and missionaries of the nations. Pray for them to receive Bibles and training.
Pray for God to supernaturally protect the churches and believers in those nations.
Pray for God to send more missionaries into the field to preach the gospel.
Pray for the protection of those who go into dangerous areas to preach the gospel.
Pray, pray, and pray some more...
I have found that by praying for one continent each day of the week that I can pray for all the continents and the nations of the world during the week.
Since Antarctica is a continent without nations, I use that day on Sunday to pray for pastors and missionaries and whatever else God leads me to pray. But for the rest of the week, I pray for the nations of the other six continents which allows me to pray for the world each week.
God loves it when we intercede in prayer for the lost and for the nations to hear the gospel.
Ask God to place a deep hunger in your heart to pray for the nations and their salvation.
OBEDIENCE TO THE GREAT COMMISSION
Second, Jesus commands us to do our part in the great commission. Jesus said…
Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations… NKJV
How many nations? All nations… God wants people in His kingdom from all nations. That’s the goal… It is a command we are all called to obey.
About 25 years ago, a missionary team carrying the Jesus film felt led by God to carry the film in the dark jungles of the Congo. They knew the dangers, but they also knew the importance of carrying the gospel into all the world. They hired a guide who knew the language to lead them and the small team of six followed him into the jungle. After a two plus day journey, they were attacked and captured by a band of warriors. They were tied up and were to be killed one by one while the others watched.
The leader of the band demanded to know what was in the tin boxes they carried. When they told him, he demanded to be shown. So the team set up the screen and showed them the Jesus movie. None of them had ever seen a movie or a projector, so you can imagine what that was like, especially since the movie was in their language!
After the movie, the leader again demanded them to pack up their materials and then he marched them deeper into the jungle for another two days until they finally reached a small village. Then the leader again demanded they show the film to the village. What they later discovered was this village was the home of the leader and he wanted everyone to see the film. At the end of the movie, using the interpreter, the missionaries explained about salvation and asked who would like to receive Jesus into their heart. Every person in the village, including the leader and his band of warriors all stood to receive Christ. But the story doesn’t end there. The warriors now went with the missionary team to protect them and guide them to reach other villages in the area. Three people from the village went with them so they could tell others what Jesus had done in their heart. This is what God can do. We may not be able to go to other nations, but we can pray and support those who do go.
GIVING FINANCIALLY
Another very powerful way for us to take part in worldwide evangelism is by financially supporting God's work to reach the world with the gospel.
Luke 6:38 Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you." NKJV
The greatest investment you will ever make is your investment in God’s kingdom. Not if you invest, but when you invest in God’s kingdom… Ask God to show you who to pray for and who to support to reach the world for His kingdom.
If you will invest your life, your prayers, and your finances for the Gospel, God promises to reward you with rewards so great, they cannot be measured or matched by anything on earth.
Matthew 13:23 he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.” NKJV
What you invest for God’s glory has the potential to produce great fruit for God’s kingdom, and the
rewards for some are a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty…
Someone much smarter than me at math said that a hundredfold is like a 1,000%. I will take 1,000% return on my investment anytime.
In case you don’t know, in obedience to God’s word, this church tithes 10% of what we bring in for the giving of worldwide missions and evangelism. For example… we give to the following organizations for the purpose of blessing Israel and reaching people for Christ…
? Bible Literature Missionary Foundation for sending Bibles all over the world
? Ezra International to bring the Jewish people back to Israel
? First Choice Pregnancy Center
? Joshua Foundation that blesses the Jewish people living in Israel
? Open Doors Ministry to help Persecuted Believers
? Samaritan’s Purse which has a worldwide ministry to all nations for the gospel
? Shoebox Ministry
Every time you give to this church, you are making an eternal investment. And one day in eternity, you will see the results of that eternal investment.
PERSONAL WITNESS
In closing, a very vital part of evangelism is that it must be personal.
When you pray for the nations, make it personal. Ask God for wisdom on how to pray for that nation and its people.
Let your witness and your prayers for others be personal. Pray for those you personally know are lost. Pray for God to send the right person to speak to them. Pray for their hearts to be open to hear the gospel. Pray and keep on praying…
I love the story of George Muller… George Muller began praying for 5 unsaved friends. After 5 years, one of them came to Christ. After 10 years of praying, two more came to Christ. After 35 years, the fourth man came to Christ. After Muller’s death, the fifth man came to Christ after Muller had prayed for him for 50 years.
In Jesus name, ask God to give you a hunger for the worldwide salvation of the lost.
Ask God to give you worldwide love, just as God loves the world.
Ask God to give you a heart to pray and to give to reach the nations for Christ.
Imagine for all eternity those you have led to Christ will rejoice with you with unspeakable joy, because you had a part in introducing them to the Savior, Jesus Christ.
Because you prayed for them and took part in their coming to Jesus, they have eternal life and will experience the glory and wonder of all that God has in store for them in great Kingdom of Glory. The greatest blessing you could ever give to anyone is the blessing of salvation in Jesus Christ.
In Jesus name, remember the lost… and remember the nations… For God so loved the world...
