BAC the Hospital
Why Do Doctors Become Doctors?
Introduction
A. If you were not here last week, you missed some very powerful statements that were led from God
B. We introduced the vision that God gave me for Bakerstown Alliance Church
C. That being BAC the Hospital
D. If you were not here last week, let me encourage you to get a copy of the tape, just fill out one of those green forms and we will make a copy for you
E. So with the BAC the Hospital Concept in mind, the question I would like us to look at today is:
F. Why Do Doctors Become Doctors?
G. Survey of 100 doctors top three answers are on the Board
H. If this were family feud the answers would look something like this
a. 7 doctors said it was for the money
b. 8 doctors said it was for the honor
c. 85 doctors said it was to save lives
I. Clearly most people become a doctor to save lives
J. Now if we are thinking in lines of becoming BAC the Hospital, what can we gain from that example?
K. I hope we even a higher % of people wanting to become a “spiritual” doctor to save lives
L. Shouldn’t that be our Goal?
M. Shouldn’t that be our passion?
N. Today we are going to look at
a. How to spot a sick person
b. How to apply first aid
c. How to get the sick to the hospital
d. How much do you care
I. How to Spot a Sick Person
A. Explanation
1. In medical terms how do you tell if someone sick
2. Well that is done through a variety of ways
3. Sometimes you have to run a series of test
4. Other times they will come to you and tell you that they are sick
5. And more often then not you can look at a person and see that they are sick
6. Now in spiritual matter when we are talking about the sick, as we learned last week, sick is another word for sinner, how do we spot a sick person, take a look how Jesus did it
7. In John 4 we have the record of Jesus and the Women at the well
a) Note, it is amazing that this event happen, she was a Samaritan and a women, two reasons most Jewish men would not talk to her
b) He got to know what her sickness was by talking to her
8. Look at Luke 5:17, notice this time the sick came to him and said that he was sick
a) This guys friends got him to Jesus, they were in sense saying he sick do something about it
9. Look at John 9:1 – Jesus saw a blind man and realized he was sick, well that is pretty plain and easy to get isn’t?
a) By just purely opening paying attention to his surroundings he found the sick
B. Application
1. Now let’s take this and apply it to our lives
2. Look, you know what is outside, countless number of people who are sick
3. They come in all shapes and sizes
4. Some of them, much like the lady at the well, may not appear to be sick at first
5. They might seem that they have it all together, but they don’t
6. Some might seek you out, because of the light that you show, they will wonder what you got that they don’t have
7. Some you will just be able to look at them and say “Boy they need Jesus”
8. Our Job, as we said last week, is to find those who need healing
9. This is not the job for just the pastor, this is not just the work of the elders, this is not just a Deaconess job
10. IT IS YOUR JOB!
C. Illustration
1. We did not say that only this group or that group is sick
2. Also notice that Jesus did not focus on one group
3. Jesus would find the sick, Greek, Jew, Samaritan, Male, Female, young, old
4. To Jesus it did not matter, if they were sick, they got treated
5. There are many people in our community that are sick
6. Our Job is to find them
7. Are we doing our job
II. How To Apply First Aid
A. Explanation
1. How many of you have ever taken a first aid course?
2. Most of you that is what I thought
3. In this first aid course you learned what to do
4. You learned the first couple of steps
5. Look, Listen and feel
6. You learned CPR
a) Remember the ABC – Airway Breathe, Compression?
7. You learned how to stabilize the person and get help
8. That is what first aid is all about
9. Many lives are saved every year because of people administering first aid
B. Application
1. Now how does the first aid concept apply dealing with spiritually sick people?
2. Very well, let me explain
3. Those of you who raised your hand for taking a first aid course are a resident medical doctor
4. Anyone’s hand up, I don’t see anyone’s, that is the point
5. We have gotten to the place were we think we have to have a not a MD, but a REV in order to tell someone about Christ
6. We have gotten so far off the course that many people spend their entire life trying to learn how to witness, how to tell someone about Christ, perfectly before ever actually doing it
7. People who are certified in first aid do not know everything, that is ok
8. To witness to people you do not have to know everything
9. In the passage that we deal with last week, Luke 5:27-32, we briefly mentioned how Matthew, also know as Levi, through a great party with all his “sick” friends
10. He did not know everything, He did not have all the answers possible, he just did what was natural, invited his friends
11. I am sick and tired of this notion that we “are not good enough” to tell someone of Jesus
12. That we don’t know enough
13. No one expects first aid people to have all the answers
14. No one will expect you to have all the answers either
C. Illustration
1. In the series finale of Sinfield, the whole gang was watching a crime be committed, they saw it, and just watched. None of them were a police officer, so they just watched.
2. It ended up that there was a law about not doing anything when a crime happens
3. So after a long court case, they all went to Jail for not doing anything
4. You know what law I want to pass, I want to pass a law that if you see a sick person and do not offer help, if you see a person who need Jesus and do not offer help, that you would be thrown in Jail!
5. I’m serious
6. How many of us deserve to be thrown in Jail because we did not help the sick?
III. How do you get the sick to the hospital?
A. Explanation
1. When someone is sick how to you get him or her to the hospital?
2. There are two simple answers:
3. The first is as fast as you can
4. Ambulance drivers will go as fast as they can
5. They will run red lights
6. They will run stop signs
7. They will exceed the posted speed limit signs
8. They will do anything to make sure that they get the sick to the hospital as fast as they can
9. The 2nd answer is:
10. Whatever way works
11. Sometimes people will walk to a hospital
12. Sometimes people will drive there car
13. Sometimes it will be ambulance
14. Sometimes helicopter
15. Taxi, train, subway, airplane, horse and buggy
16. You get the point right, whatever way works!
B. Application
1. Now lets take this and apply to BAC the Hospital
2. AS far as our first answer goes: as fast as possible
3. Do not delay any longer
4. You do not know how long the sick have to live
5. We are not guaranteed to live to the end of this sentence
6. Do what ever it takes to get someone the treatment they need
7. Jude 1:23 one of my favorite verse “Snatch others from the fire and save them”
8. Go get them out of the situation whatever it takes do it
9. If it means giving up a night a sleep, do it
10. If it means buying a meal for someone, do it
11. If it means offering to help milk someone’s cows in order that they can get there stuff done in time to go to church, do it!
12. Quit giving the excuse, I don’t have enough time
13. Quit giving the excuse, I am to busy
14. Just go and do it
C. Illustration
1. Apply our 2nd answers goes like this
2. There are someone ways for some situation that work better then others
3. Many of you have wondered what happened with September fest.
4. September fest was meant to be an outreach, meant to reach those who were sick
5. If we evaluate how effective we were on reaching the sick with that event, we realize it did not work!
6. In the three years of doing it we had one couple, who were all ready solidly committed Christians, who came and visited that were not directly tied to the group that was ministering
7. It was not effective as an out reach.
8. It is not anyone’s fault, we are not pointing fingers, but it did not work
9. Now our thanksgiving dinner is also meant to be an outreach event, meant to reach those who are sick, does it work?
10. Yes! Every year we have people there, that I know are sick
11. So November 13th we are going to do it again!
12. Now does that mean that there is not room for improvement with our thanksgiving dinner? There is always and will always be ways to improve
13. Another question, is the Thanksgiving Dinner enough?
14. Absolutely NOT!
15. Until we reach everyone in our community, we are not using enough vehicles, to bring people to the hospital
16. I challenged the Board of ministries last month with this, “What can we do to reach more people”
17. I ask you the same question “What can we do to reach more people”
18. Don’t think I have all the answers, I am one brain, maybe the smallest brain, you are creative people with brains, use them!
IV. How Much Do You Care?
A. Illustration
1. (Start the counter)
2. (Do not say anything for a couple of moments)
3. You know what that counter is? That counter is the number of people who have died without salvation since we started the counter
4. Notice it is not stopping
5. It keep going and going and going
6. As of January 2004 there were 6.339 billion people on this earth
7. Research has showed us that only 7% of the world has accepted Biblical salvation
8. That would be about 340 million, since we don’t have any way to be sure of those who are saved and those who are not, only God knows, let give people the benefit of the doubt and add 70 million to the 340 million to make it 410 million Christians
9. That leaves us with 5.989 billion non-believers
10. Now according to the CIA world fact book, 2003 edition the “morality rate” is .883% meaning that one out of every 113 people each year die
11. Using those figures the number of non-believers that will die this year is 52.9 million
12. With there being 31,536,000 seconds a year
13. The number of non believers who die each second is 1.68
14. In the time that it took me to explain all of that look at the number we are at
B. Explanation
1. That is what we are up against
2. That is why we care so much
3. It is not about making our conversion rate look good
4. It is not about adding people to our Church
5. It is all about not wanting to see those that we love die and go to hell
6. I was asked a question once. Why Must a Church Grow?
7. Yes I said must grow, the answer to that is simple:
8. If a church is doing what it should, it will grow
9. If we are reaching people with the good news, it will grow
10. Growth should be always be happening
11. This is tough to say but I have to say it, I didn’t not want to go here, but God want me to
12. I know we are comfortable here
13. I know we like are intimate setting, our close group, our circle of friends
14. That gives us no right not to reach the sick!
15. That gives us no right to ignore those who are out there who do not know Jesus
16. This church should be growing
17. If we are doing our job, we should be growing
18. I’m sorry if that offends you, but if we are reaching people, then it is logical that we would be adding people
19. I know that scare many of you
20. Maybe we will get to the point were we have too many people, great, you know what we will do then, start a daughter church
21. Then that daughter church if they are doing there job, can have a daughter and we would be the proud grand parents
22. Hopefully we would continue to do our job and we would have 20 children
23. Listen up, this is not about numbers
24. This is about people, this is about every second 1.68 people are dying without know Jesus
C. Application
1. Do you really care?
2. Does this mean anything to you?
3. If you care you will reach
4. If you care about your neighbor, coworker, family member, friend, you are going to tell them about Jesus
5. You are going to tell them what Jesus has done for you in your life
6. If you don’t do that, then you don’t care!
7. DO YOU CARE?
Conclusion
A. Here it is folks within 6miles of our church there are 20,000+ households
B. That adds up to be about 58,000 people
C. Of those 58,000 people. It might be safe to say that 45,000 of those within 6 miles of our Church do not know Jesus.
D. It would be safe then to say that 400 people within 6 miles of this church are going to die without Jesus and be sent to hell, these are your neighbors folk, these are your friends
E. That means about 7 our of 10 cars that go by this church everyday are sick
F. (Show counter again)
G. Are we going to let that continue to happen?
H. How can I help our Church become BAC the Hospital?
I. Couple areas
a. I would love if everyone would have a list of 10 people they knew personally that are sick, and that you are praying for and telling them the good news
b. Also what ways can we as a church reach more people?
c. Maybe you feel inadequately equipped, we don’t want to “equip people for 80 years” but we do need to make sure people are equipped
i. If that is you, give me a call, we will work something out formally or informally whatever it takes
J. Look at that number one more time
K. It keeps going, and going, and going…
L. Do YOU Care enough
M. Illustration
a. We all know giving blood saves lives. I am a big fan of giving blood, and I want to encourage all who can give blood to give blood.
b. Giving blood is painful, you have the needle poking you to see if you have enough Iron, then they scrub you with that iodine, then they put that tourniquet on you so they can see your vain
c. Then the fun part they shove the needle in your arm
d. Then after all is said and done, your arm feel week for a while, and usually you have a bruise
e. Now did it hurt? Yes, yes, it did.
f. Was it worth it, Yes, it saved someone life
N. When we are talking about reaching people it can hurt
O. It can cause a lot of pain
a. The pain of rejection
b. The pain of people not listening
c. The pain of trying so hard and just not getting anywhere
d. The pain of your comfort zone being erased
P. Is it worth it?
Q. Yeah! Yeah it is
R. To stop this thing even for one beet, yeah it worth it
S. (Let’s pray)
