Have you ever felt so compelled to do something that you didn’t care about the details of the matter? Have you ever wanted a job so bad that you didn’t care what the pay was? Have you ever been so convinced that God wanted you to do something that you did it without weighing the options?
Almost 2 years ago now, I did something totally crazy. I mean it was the biggest thing I had ever done. It didn’t make a whole lot of sense. I had a wife and two kids. I had two cars. I had a house. I had a good stable job. I was living the American dream. The only thing I didn’t have was a white picket fence. There are not real comfortable to sit on anyway.
God grabbed me by the shirt and said, “I want you to preach.” It was as unmistakable as the fact that I’m standing here today. It was as close to the audible voice of God as I have ever heard. I have never heard the audible voice of God, but this was as close as I have come. I had sensed the call before, but I had ignored it. It must have been obvious to others.
The father of a former pastor of mine had told me on several occasions that I would preach, and to call him when I got my first church. If I have ever a man of God it was Glenn Robinson. I would always say something like, “No, God has called me to be a good layman.” I used to dread him saying that. I guess because deep down, I knew he was right. I am just sad that I wasn’t able to call him, as he passed away about three years ago.
It’s not to my credit that I answered God’s call. This isn’t something I set out in life to do. I didn’t ever say, “When I grow up, I’m going to be a pastor.” I think that the only job more unappealing to me was that of an undertaker. I would have rather done anything else.
The thing is, I can’t do anything else. It’s not that I’m not qualified to do anything else. Well I’m qualified to do whatever it is that a history degree qualifies one to do. It’s that I can’t not do it and still have a right relationship with God. God has called me to do this and that’s all I can do. J. B. Chapman, a founder of the Church of the Nazarene, once said, “If you can do anything but preach and still make it to Heaven, then do it.” I sincerely believe that I would have turned my back on God, if I hadn’t answered his call to preach. I had to come to a point where I could lay aside my own desires about what I wanted to do with my life, and fully surrender it to God. I had an instinct to care for my family, but I had to put them in God’s hands and allow him to take of them. I had to put all of my trust in God. I had to trust God that he would take care of my family. I had to fully rely on God.
I know a man. His son was one of my best friends during high school. This man attended the Bible College and Seminary. He was preparing for the ministry. I mean why else would you attend those places. He never finished. He never sought to preach. He was one of the most unsettled people I have ever met. You could tell he was always uneasy. He just seemed to be drifting through life without any direction or purpose. He had a good job, and he provided for his family. He just seemed to be off center. It is as though he was fighting the call of God on his life. He was faithful in his attendance at church. He was a very kind and helpful person. He was a great addition to the church softball team. But he wasn’t where he needed to be in relation to where God wanted him to be.
God has placed a call on our lives. Each one of has a call. If we are a follower of Jesus, then we have a call. It may not be a call to preach. It may not be a call to be a missionary to Africa. But God has called us. Some of us make great Sunday school teachers. Some of us sing great. At one church I attended they asked me to sing so low. The wanted me to sing so low that no one else could hear.
Each of us has something that God has called us to do for his Kingdom. Whatever it is, it is win people to the Kingdom. Whatever we do for God is solely and completely to bring people into a relationship with Jesus. We aren’t here to do anything else. We aren’t here to pat each other on the back. We aren’t here to show how well we sing. We aren’t here to impress people with our knowledge of the Bible. We aren’t here to build a gigantic church building. We aren’t here to socialize. We aren’t here to raise money. We aren’t here to stroke our own ego. In the structure of the Church of the Nazarene, I’m the president and CEO of the corporation. But I’m not here so I can run around and say that I’m a CEO. We are here to bring people into the Kingdom of God. Someone once put it this way, “Our job is to depopulate Hell.” Anything short of that is total failure. We have to put aside our desires on what we think is best, and rely on God and what he thinks is best. Our mission is not of human origin. It originated in the throne room of Heaven. Our will must be submitted to God, or it won’t work.
I watched Joey the other day try to pull a necklace off the floor. The problem is that somehow it was laying with a chair leg in the middle of it. I tried to show him how to get it by lifting up the chair, but he would have none of it. He simply tried to pull at it. His frustration grew. Eventually he got it, but the chair fell over.
When we try with all our might to do this thing called Church our own way, it leads to frustration. When we stop and listen to God, then we can accomplish so much more for his Kingdom.
The Apostle Paul talked about his sacred calling. Paul said that he had no room to brag about his role as a preacher of the Good News. He said that God had called him and there was nothing he could do about it. In fact, he said he would be in big trouble if he didn’t preach the Good News. Paul went on to say that if he had chosen to preach, he would deserve to be paid for it, but he chose to offer it free of charge.
Paul did something very important. He laid aside his own inclinations and desires because God called him to preach. He refused to abuse the rights he had as an apostle. Paul was completely sold on the idea that he was participating in a God thing. Paul realized that the reward of preaching was helping people know Jesus. Paul was dedicated to the mission God had called him to do. Former dean of MNU, Donald Metz said, “Spiritual dedication takes priority over spiritual liberty.” Paul was at liberty to demand things. He could have commanded a large salary or plush accommodations, but he chose to preach for the joy of preaching.
Let’s look at what Paul wrote about this. Turn to I Corinthians 9.
Read I Corinthians 9:16-23.
When I was asked to formulate a “philosophy of ministry” for a class, I came straight to this passage. At the time I focused mainly on the last half of verse 22, but there is a great deal of power in verse 19 as well. Even though he was free, he chose to be a servant to those who did not know Jesus. He says that he has made himself a servant “that I might win more of them.” His goal is to win more people to Christ.
Paul offers a powerful example of a proper attitude. He was willing to declare any rights he had null and void because they may hinder the advancement of the Good News. He freely chose the role of a servant to others in order that the Good News would be spread in the most efficient manner possible. His goal was to depopulate Hell, and he was willing to do what it took to make that happen.
Paul knew what his mission was. He also knew his audience. He knew that Jews were wrapped up in the Law. He confronted them with the Good News in terms of the Law. He was free from the restrictions of the Law, but he submitted himself to those restrictions in order to build up his credibility with the Jews. In doing so, it was easier for him to share Jesus with them. If he had flaunted the Law, he would have failed in trying to reach that group of people. If he invited some Jewish friends over, he wasn’t about to serve them ham. Paul was quite upfront with people that he wasn’t bound by the Law, but he saw that it was necessary to submit to the Law to gain a hearing among the Jewish population.
At the other end of the spectrum were the Gentiles. They didn’t have the Law. Many didn’t understand the Law, if they even knew it existed. Paul wasn’t some anarchist radical who denied the Law’s existence. He in fact states that he is still under the law of Christ. To have strictly followed the ceremonial law would have caused confusion among those who were unfamiliar with the law.
Paul refused to burn bridges when it came to the opportunity to minister. He wasn’t willing to write off any group of people. He met people where they were. He understood his audience. He knew that by flaunting the law, he would alienate the Jews, and he knew that by strict, unnecessary observance of the law he would alienate the Gentiles. He refused to allow anybody to be written off.
Verse 22 offers the basis of Paul’s philosophy of ministry. He writes, “I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.” This is Paul’s driving motivation.
Paul is not some sort of chameleon, changing his colors to match the group his with at the time. We live in a skeptical age. We see politician tell one group one thing and the next group something totally different. This was not how Paul operated. He was upfront with everything he did. He told the Jews that he was not bound by the Law. He told the Gentiles that he was under the law of Christ. He wasn’t doing other than what he said he was doing. He did all of this for the sake of the gospel. His driving motivation was the salvation of people. He was full throttle to depopulate Hell.
Apollo 13 is one of my favorite movies. It’s the true story of a space flight gone wrong. A few days into the mission to the moon, there is an explosion on the rocket. All of the engineers at NASA work overtime to make sure that the crew is able to return home safely. They stay at the headquarters 24 hours a day. They work on little sleep. Their nerves are frazzled. They do whatever it takes to get the men home. Early on in the crisis, Gene Krantz, the mission director, hollers, “Failure is not an option.” Later in the movie, when things are looking grim, he proclaims, “NASA has never lost a man in space, and we’re not going to on my watch.” His driving force, and everyone at NASA, was to save those three astronauts. Numerous times it appeared that the spacecraft would drift off into outer space. The engineers squeezed every ounce of power out of the ship. They worked their tails off to make sure they would return safely. Someone said that this could be the worst day in NASA’s history, but Krantz shot back, “Gentlemen, I think this will be our finest hour.” Every member of the team took to heart Gene Krantz’s words, “Failure is not an option.”
I say to you today, “Failure is not an option.” We cannot fail in our mission to win people to Christ. We have a sacred calling. That is to bring people to Christ. To not do it, is to fail. This can be our finest hour. “Failure is not an option.”
We need to learn how to relate to people on their level. We need to take Christ to them in a way that they will understand. The Church is rapidly losing ground in the world today. A lot of traditional methods of ministry are useless in the 21st century.
We are doing things as a church to reach people. People relate to a fun safe environment for their children. That is what FW Friends is all about. It is a way to reach kids where they are. That’s what the Easter Egg Hunt is all about. People understand Easter egg hunts. This is something we are doing to meet people right where they are. We aren’t telling them, “Hey, you have to learn our lingo and ways before you can join us.” We are telling them that we are people with hopes and dreams like them. We love our kids. The only difference between them and us is that we have met Jesus, and we have a relationship with them.
Paul was willing to be inconvenienced in order to win someone to Jesus. Are we willing to be inconvenienced to win someone to Jesus? Are we willing to give up something to make sure someone else know Jesus?
Donald Metz also said, “Saving souls [is] more important than personal liberty.” What is important is not our comfort or satisfaction. What is important? People knowing Jesus is what is most important. I don’t like to stand on my head, but I am willing to do it if it brings people to Jesus. Are you willing to be uncomfortable to win people to Jesus? Are you willing to sacrifice to win people to Jesus?
Our love for Jesus and others should compel us to share Jesus. Let’s sing that song Your Love Compels Me.
