WESTSIDE BAPTIST CHURCH
PASTOR: TERRY VAUGHAN
SERMON TITLE: GO
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:16-18 KJV
TEXT VERSE: Matthew 21:28-31 “But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, son, go work to day in my vineyard. He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went.” Isn’t it wonderful to know that when you have true repentance toward God, it’ll change the direction of your life? A lot of people say they’ve turned things over to the Lord and then they want to hang on to the old life. When you have true repentance towards God it will change the direction you’re headed in. “And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not. Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They unto him, the first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the Publicans and the Harlots go into the kingdom of God before you.”
This message is short tonight and I’m going to preach to you tonight on “GO”. That’s a small word but it has a whole lot of significance to it. There’s a lot of Christians when you say the word “go”, they stop. This church needs to move on. We need to quit worrying about whose not here, what’s happened in the past; we need to concentrate on what’s happening right now. We need to ask God to unite us in unity of the Holy Spirit and just Go. Go where? We’re going to cover that in a minute. God shows me things that will help our church. That’s why God annoints and ordains Pastors for churches. God uses them to lead the church.
John 3:14 “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the son of man be lifted up.” We need to lift up Jesus tonight in the congregation. We need to lift up Jesus tonight in our family life. We need to lift up Jesus to our co-worker and friends. Paul said I preach Christ and him crucified. We don’t need to sugar coat anything or add to what saith the Lord. We need to lift him up. He said in his word that if he be lifted up he will draw all men unto him.
In Matthew 10:32-33 “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.” I want to encourage us tonight to lift up the name of Jesus Christ. We need to confess to men and women, boys and girls that Jesus Christ is the way. He’s the very hope of eternal life. He’s the very reason for our being. We need to uplift the name of Jesus tonight and we need to do that by going and not stopping and not waiting on someone else. We need to go when the Lord says go.
I’ve got one little strict part I want to say here and then we’ll get over in the other. There’s a lot of churches in the land and in Marietta, Georgia and we love them as long as their following the Lord and their preaching the true word of God. We’ll love those people and we’ll support them. But I want to tell you just because you see a church with a lot of people in it and their shouting and praising, it does not mean that their in the will of God and you’re out of the will of God. You can jump and dance all you want to but if you get close to the Lord and you get that motion to go and you go where he says and you’re out working and laboring for the Lord, being persecuted and sweat coming down your brow....there isn’t going to be a whole lot of time for dancing and praising. When we get home we’re going to do some dancing there. But while we’re here we have to work. I said that about those churches because there’s a whole lot of churches like that but their not in that “GO” mode. I can not emphasize it enough that out in the field is where the lost are. We get our strength here, our wisdom here, our knowledge, our love, our comfort, our mercy, our forgiveness and God gets us prepared and he sends us out in the field. And we have to Go.
NUMBER ONE: Whose got to Go? Turn to Isaiah 6:8 “Also I heard the voice of the Lord saying, whom shall I send and who will go for us? Then said I, here am I, send me.” In verse 9 The Lord said this “Go and tell this people.” Which one of us will go? The ones that are willing to go. There’s a lot of Christians in the world today that are willing to get everything from God but their not willing to give any of it away. We need to say Lord, here am I, send me. I’m ready and I’m willing. You say, it’s the preachers job to go. No it isn’t. Is it the Deacons job to go? No it isn’t. It’s every Christians job to go. It’s why we’re here. To tell others about Christ. You and I both know it, that there’s a whole lot of Christians today that aren’t in the Go mode. They want Christ to do this and that for them, forgive them of their sins and they don’t mind getting prepared to do the work of the Lord but when it comes time to doing it, there’s not a lot of Christians doing it. We’ve should of already been going. We’re running behind right now.
NUMBER TWO: Why should we go? Mark 16:15-16 “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” We can’t save anybody. All we can do is share the gospel. It’s up to them to accept it or not. They’ll either accept it and be saved or reject it and be damned. But it’s our job to share the gospel. Those people need to know that they need to make a choice. There’s people out there right now that don’t realize if they died lost they’d bust hell wide open. Until we share it with them, they won’t know. That’s why we need to go. We don’t need to call our family members and tell them to come to Westside and you’ll have a good time. We need to tell them that they need to come and hear the word of God because we don’t want them to die and go to hell. We need to be concerned about their souls.
Matthew 28:19 “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” It’s not being taught and it’s not being preached. You say preacher, the churches out there are growing. Yes they are, some of them are, the ones that are doing the will of God are. But look around you people, how many lost people do you see around you here tonight? I’m being literal. If we had 500 people here and they were all lost, it would please me more than anything. I’d be a happy camper. But if it takes us going out there and sharing it, that’s what we’ll do. I don’t care if I have to hold up a sign that says the end is near. Somebody will see it going down the road and maybe the holy spirit will get in their heart. People get out there and picket things they don’t like, they ought to picket about Jesus coming back. The Holy Spirit would use that. Our families, friends and community are dying and going to hell.
NUMBER THREE: Where shall we go? Luke 14:23 “And the Lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house might be filled.” That’s our commission as Christians to go out. We need to go and compel them and witness to them. He don’t limit us to where we can go. He wants you to go everywhere.
Matthew 10:5-7 “These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go preach, saying, The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.” I heard of a preacher who went to Wal-mart every Friday night and he’d be on the sidewalk with his Bible and he preached the gospel in spirit and in truth. They’d call the law, he’d get bail and he’d be back the next Friday night. I have a lot of respect for somebody that isn’t afraid to share the gospel. You know why a lot of people don’t have any money? Because they don’t share the gospel. You know why people don’t have places to live? Because they don’t share the gospel. The Bible says seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you. I don’t want to be rich in this world but I want to be rich in the Spirit and in the Lord Jesus Christ. He will supply our needs. People don’t get tithing. They say it don’t say 10% in the new testament but in the old testament. That’s true but the new testament says this: Let every man lay up and store that, that God has given him. (Keep it until the ready time). it says that God loves a cheerful giver. Gods house should not suffer. But most people give God what is left over instead of what’s out front. If you give God your left overs, he’ll give you his left overs. If that’s how you respect him, that’s how he’s going to treat you. We have to put him first.
NUMBER FOUR: When should we go? I’m not talking about Monday or Friday because I think we should go all the time. But the significance is found in 2 Corinthians 6:2 “For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold now is the accepted time; behold now is the day of salvation.” The Bible says we’re not promised tomorrow. People keep putting things off until tomorrow. We have to quit waiting on this old world and start acting right now. Time is running out. But while we’re here we need to share the gospel. The Bible says that Sunday is the Sabbath day. That means it’s a day of rest from the world. But Monday through Saturday we’re supposed to go out and labor in the field.
NUMBER FIVE: What’s going to be the result of our going? Look around you? Ed here has been with me since they called me to Pastor. We’ve seen a lot saved and a lot baptized. Look at that tree behind you. It’s full of leaves with our members names on it. How many do you see here tonight? It’s not that way because we’re not preaching the gospel. People have a hankering to go back to their old life and their old ways. I believe a lot of people who says they have the Lord and that’s all their doing is saying it. They don’t really believe it. Don’t worry about how many members we have. Worry about how many lost people we have coming in.
James 5:20 “Let him know, that he which coverteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.”
You can save a soul from hell just by sharing the gospel. It could be your mom or daddy. Friend, co worker, classmate. Somebody needs to intervene. We need to go.
Psalms 126:6 “He that goeth forth and weepeth, (that means being concerned about what you’re going forth for) bearing precious seed,( that’s the precious word of God) shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him.”
LET US PRAY: Father, How ashamed I am that I have spent my life idly. Wasting precious time that is quickly coming to an end knowing there are lost souls out there. Father because of great mercy toward me you have saved me and I can live with you eternally but there are some that will not. Give me a bigger burden for the lost souls out in the field, the world so that I can get busy reaching out to them before it’s ever lasting and too late. One day the trumpet will blow and you will say, “Son, go get my children.” I thank you that I will be one of them but there will be many that won’t get to come. They’ll spend eternity in the lake of fire which burns forever and ever. You have already given me what I need to witness to the lost and it is I that must get out there and do it. Father, help me in this so that when I finish this prayer I can shout up to heaven, “Here am I, Lord, send me.” In Jesus name I pray. Amen
