THE PASTOR’S POINTS
sermon ministry of
CEDAR LODGE BAPTIST CHURCH
Thomasville, NC
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October 19, 2003
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6Now Timothy has just returned, bringing the good news that your faith and love are as strong as ever. He reports that you remember our visit with joy and that you want to see us just as much as we want to see you. 7So we have been greatly comforted, dear brothers and sisters, in all of our own crushing troubles and suffering, because you have remained strong in your faith. 8It gives us new life, knowing you remain strong in the Lord.
9How we thank God for you! Because of you we have great joy in the presence of God. 10Night and day we pray earnestly for you, asking God to let us see you again to fill up anything that may still be missing in your faith.
11May God himself, our Father, and our Lord Jesus make it possible for us to come to you very soon. 12And may the Lord make your love grow and overflow to each other and to everyone else, just as our love overflows toward you. 1 Thessalonians 3:6-12 (NLT)
Last week¡¦s message focused on the heart of a pastor, and we did that which we all did to the frog in high school biology ¡V we opened up the pastor and looked inside his heart. We saw four items beating there in the heart of a good friend of mine, the evangelist/pastor/apostle named Paul. We saw:
„Ã need for co-workers to share a burden for reaching others
„Ã worry or concern for the spiritual health of the flock
„Ã prayer of gratitude and joy, hoping to bring them along in Christ
„à and benediction, that their love might grow and purify them into God¡¦s choice flock.
One thing I did not say last week is how that stuff got inside the Pastor¡¦s heart. That is because I wanted to say it this week in connection with revisiting the same passage. The need, worry, prayer and benediction in a true Pastor¡¦s heart were put there by God for the flock. They were put there so the Pastor can lead the congregation of God¡¦s people to respond appropriately to God (not the pastor) in a way that allows the church to function as the body of Christ.
Today we want to re-visit parts of that same passage; we will have another re-visit next week. We do this because there are other needful parts for us to see in this important text. We are going to look inside the heart of believers who are responding well to God on those four issues.
Here is the main point today:
Just like plants need a rich soil to grow and produce well, the church needs the right atmosphere or spirit in order to function as God¡¦s people ¡V that condition is unity in the Spirit.
Now, it is important to understand two important facts about the condition of unity in the Spirit.
„Ã Fact Number One ¡V Unity in the Spirit does not mean conformity. Conformity is where we all do exactly the same, like parts stamped by a machine, rolling off an assembly line. We are individuals, and, as such we have different personalities, likes and dislikes. Unity is when we take note of our differences and make certain we act in a way to blend together for the good of the Kingdom. It takes kindness, graciousness and humility to act like that.
„Ã Fact Number Two ¡V Unity in the Spirit is not the center of the target; it is a condition we have to work at preserving in order to get to the target. It is hard work.
3Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Ephesians 4:3
¡§Endeavouring¡¨ is a word which indicates hard labor. It is not easy to blend people together. More and more we are a ¡§melting pot¡¨ of different cultures in this world, brought together (sometimes thrown together) by a shrinking globe. People move from North to South, East to West. Families are more mobile than ever. The culture clash is more than just religions; it is generation gaps, styles, worldview, language and much more. These things can very easily divide us if we let them.
Young people, for instance, need to understand that older folks are a wealth of wisdom ¡V you can¡¦t get that wisdom by shutting-down the conversation. In the same way older people need to make room for those who are coming along. Northern-born and bred folks need to remember that Southern customs and ways are different, and not everything lives and dies on the way things are done ¡§up-there¡¨. And our Southern-born and bred need to accept the fact that God actually does love some Northerners. We all have our contribution to the Kingdom. Condescending is not humble, no matter what you hide it behind!
The question becomes, with all the differences that can separate us, how can we preserve the unity of Spirit so that we are the united church God is calling us to be? The answer is to look back to the example of Paul and the church at Thessalonica, and then apply what we see to ourselves. We keep our eyes on the target here. We will start with the outward-most ring of our target¡K
Outward Ring ¡V Your Heart is the Soil in Which God Plants His Kingdom Seed
Jesus told his followers a story about a farmer who had some good soil, some mediocre soil and some bad soil:
Behold, a sower went forth to sow;¡K.19When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart Matthew 13:19a
11Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Psalm 119:11
Everything connected with God starts in the heart. Until you give control of your heart, control of your life and future away to God, there is nothing that you can do, give, say or wish that will ever mean anything. God requires you give him your heart for His soil.
My cousin Rick shared a story with me this past week that illustrates the point. He was inducted into our High School¡¦s ¡§Hall of Sports Fame¡¨ a few weeks ago. Rick was, and still is quite an athlete. He and my brother Thom played on the 1961 basketball team that won every game including the county championship. Thom was a senior, Rick a freshman. Now, Rick didn¡¦t have a lot of playing time, but as a freshman he was waiting for his chance. During the playoffs that chance came¡Ksort of.
At a critical moment in the game there was a brief timeout. Coach Tom Bertino called out, Rick Schmidt, over here, now! Rick¡¦s heart leapt ¡V that could only mean one thing ¡V coach was putting him in the game. Who would he replace, Pete Schultz? Bill, Thom? Inside there was a tug of war ¡V Rick was dying to get in the game and compete with the older guys, and he was scared to death at the same time. When he got to the coach¡¦s side, Rick was wide-eyed and all ears to receive the important instructions of how Coach Bertino wanted him to run the team¡¦s offense.
Bertino looked at Rick and said, Schmidt, take off your shoe.
My shoe, coach?
Yeah ¡V Schultz broke a lace ¡V gimmie your shoe!
Rick¡¦s heart was sold-out to that team winning the championship, so he gave that shoelace, even though he really wanted to play. Because of that, the team was able to use the best players at the time and win the game.
The point about being part of the Kingdom of God is serving a King. Often we are so tied up over things like whether the temperature in the sanctuary is comfortable for us, or if the music suits our taste in style, or if this or that is just so¡Kwe fail to realize we are looking to be served rather than serve. My friends, as a child of God, every time you look to be served instead serving for the good of the body, you are hardening the soil God wants to use to plant His blessings. Rather, we all should be looking to pick up a towel and basin like Jesus did, ready to wash feet if that¡¦s what it takes. That¡¦s what soft soil in the heart will do.
Inner Ring ¡V Faith and Love are Fruit Which Grow in Your Heart
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Galatians 5:22
Paul was impressed when Timothy brought him news about the church in Thessalonica. He found out that their faith and love were just as strong as ever. There is the example. Before Paul was worried that Satan had stolen the seed he had planted in their hearts. Now he knew that wasn¡¦t so, and he rejoiced.
As we move toward the center of our target here we see the progression ¡V the outer ring reminds us our heart is the soil for God¡¦s kingdom seed ¡V His word. The next inner ring says that if that soil is ready to receive, it will grow and produce faith and love, fruit of the Spirit.
Now, that is good, very good! However, it is not the center, the bull¡¦s-eye. We could compare this to America¡¦s farmers. The soils of America¡¦s lands are fertile enough and ample enough to feed the entire world. Our farming techniques and capacities are astounding. We can produce whatever we want. But that only speaks of soil and fruit. It has got to go beyond that. America has long been known as the ¡§world¡¦s breadbasket¡¨. Unless the fruit gets to the hungry mouths, it rots on the ground or in a storage bin somewhere. The bulls-eye is in fulfilling the purpose for being able to bring in all the crops.
Bull¡¦s-eye ¡V Soul-Winning is God¡¦s Purpose for the Fruit
10Night and day we pray earnestly for you, asking God to let us see you again to fill up anything that may still be missing in your faith¡K. 12And may the Lord make your love grow and overflow to each other and to everyone else, just as our love overflows toward you. 1 Thessalonians 3:10, 12
The bulls-eye for which Paul is aiming is that the love and faith growing in Thessalonican hearts would evidence itself in bringing souls into the kingdom. That church had plenty of difficulties, persecution, threats of life and family that had to be faced. We have our own brand of difficulties today, economy, age and time shortages. But the bulls-eye remains. Jesus painted it for us:
18Jesus came and told his disciples, ¡§I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth. 19Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.¡¨ Matthew 28:18-20 (NLT)
Hurricane Isabel was front-page news in September 2003 as it rampaged through the Middle Atlantic States, coming ashore first in all its fury near Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, site of one of America’s most famous lighthouses.
When the storm hit Hatteras, the only road to the outside was destroyed. Oceanfront houses were swept from their cement foundations and dropped elsewhere on the island. One entire hotel was deposited like a soggy cardboard box in the middle of a street. Appliances littered the island. But the lighthouse on the tip of the island remained standing. That is a picture of what God’s people should be like. [1]
Is your life hitting the bulls-eye at all? Many of us do well to soften the soil and receive God¡¦s word, surrendering to His will in our hearts. That grows good fruit, and we become nice people. But the bulls-eye is waiting ¡V unity of the Spirit is calling. Are you interested in soul-winning? Jesus was. Are you interested in taking that fruit of the Spirit to the hungry? God is. Will you surrender your all beginning with your heart¡¦s soil?
[1] Citation: Lee Eclov, Vernon Hills, Illinois; source: "East Coast Battered and Dazed by Isabel," Chicago Tribune (9-20-03)
