REACHING PEOPLE FOR JESUS STRATEGY by George E. Crumbly
MATTHEW 28: 18-20
Reaching People for Jesus Strategy
April 17, 2005 AM
Sheridan, Arkansas
George E. Crumbly
MATTHEW 28
INTRO:
I am so glad that I went to the REACH Conference Tuesday at Little Rock First Church. It gave me a “SECOND” wind. If you will get a bulletin you will see some of the statistics that we started off with. I wanted to share them with you. Please get one & look over these numbers. I would love to go over them all with you this morning, but time does not permit that. (You can check & see if these numbers may be obtainable thru the Church of the Nazarene Sunday School ministries)
We did go over all 16 of them Wednesday night during our prayer meeting. The one that I want each of us to concentrate on this morning is:
“Number 6”: “90% of our members will never share their faith with anyone during their lifetime.”
Isn’t that sad? But I believe that!! 1 out of 10 people will share their faith in Christ to someone!! Other words 9 out of the 10 will not tell anyone about Jesus. (This could very well create some problems for the 9 on Judgment Day!!)
When I read this I immediately thought about the 10 lepers….Jesus healed ALL 10….HE HEALED ALL 10 LEPERS11 Yet only 1 came back & wanted to follow Him. It hasn’t gotten any better today.
MATTHEW 28: verses 18-20
-- This verse of scripture the Lord gave His church….Takes away the old adage: “What do I do now that I am saved?” What do I do?
RE-READ verse 18-20
-- We are to be about the Lord’s work. You don’t wait until you have joined a church or gotten involved in a church (This is the reason people today won’t get involved or committed to a church-they think this scripture will then apply to them)
-- Folks…If you are saved this morning….this scripture applies to you. As a Christian…….Not as a Church BUT AS A CHRISTIAN. This scripture this morning is the “Great Commission”……Is the Lord Himself telling you & me to GO & MAKE DISCIPLES….
-- I mentioned this Wednesday night, God wants to use YOU!! You don’t run & call the preacher every time God tries to use you. If you are a Christian this morning then YOU have the responsibility to lead the lost to Christ. (IF YOU DO NOT KNOW HOW THEN PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE HERE UNTIL YOU DO KNOW HOW)
-- It is not difficult. You just share with folks what God has done for you…You share with folks what God has done to you….
--A former pastor (now involved in the Sunday School Ministries) was our leader Tuesday for the REACH conference. He left a church running over 1200 people to take this Sunday school strategy to the church. This strategy is to get the 90% involved in God’s work. Two reasons why they need to get involved:
1.) It is their responsibility and they will be judged one day…and
2.) People are dying and heading to a burning hell…….
TURN TO MATTHEW 25
I want us to know this morning that WE AS CHRISTIANS ARE RESPONSIBLE - There is NO EXCUSE!! God calls EACH of us to SERVE. WE SERVE where He puts us until He puts us somewhere else… I love this scripture….
MATTHEW 25: verses 31-33
-- Here we have the Judgment of ALL nations. Here the saved & the lost stand before God. He then separates the SHEEP from the GOATS….Just like the parable of the “Wheat & the Tares”.
Verses 34-36
** Hungry & gave me meat: Not just physical meat…but Spiritual. What ever we
undertake here? It has GOT TO BE BIBLICAL….
** Thirsty & gave me drink: People today are thirsty….Try to quench that thirst with
the things of the world….not able to quench your thirst. Jesus is the “Living Water”
that if you drink, you won’t thirst anymore!! You will give up the things of the world.
** Stranger & took me in: The REACH Strategy attempts to get the church to build
bridges of friendships….How can we be a church & not want to have anything to do
with people?
** Naked & clothed me: God wants to use the church to meet the needs of people. They
don’t necessarily have to be a Christian or a member of the church…He wants to meet
their need.
** Sick & visited me: What’s wrong with the MAJORITY of this world today? They are
Spiritually sick. They are like the DS said last night at the revival in HS Village, folks
today are trying to “Manage Sin”. The only thing you can do with sin? Forsake it!!
** In Prison & came unto me: Folks today living in sin are in prison. They are bound,
unable to be what God created them to be. (Israelites in Egypt-bound no good to God)
Verses 37-39
-- When did we do this to YOU God??
Verse 40
-- Why can’t the church today SEE how important it is to be DOING God’s work today?
These (10%) of the church didn’t stop to see if they were ministering to Jesus…they
just did what God called them to do…NO QUESTIONS asked.
-- The church today is God’s HANDS….God’s FEET…God’s VOICE…People out there
today are in sad shape…in need of Jesus…I believe the world needs God more today
than ever before.
-- How does God feed the hungry? Cloth the naked? Visit the sick & imprisoned? Give
meat to the hungry? Give drink to the thirsty?
YOU & ME that’s how…YOU & ME the church!
-- If we aren’t about the Fathers business, SHARING our Faith in Christ (maybe we don’t
have any Faith to share?) then we could very well end up like the GOATS….
Verses 41-45
-- Where are we this morning? We can’t just turn our head & look the other way thinking that when we turn around everything will be “HUNKY-DORY”
God is expecting YOU & ME to Share our Faith with the lost….look at these statistics and do some serious thinking….GOD IS SERIOUS ABOUT HIS WORK…Are we?
Verse 46
CONCLUSION:
God is SERIOUS about eternity. There is Heaven and then there is Hell. (Pastor friend of mine leaving this afternoon & going to Louisiana to do a memorial service for his sister on Tuesday.) He doesn’t think she was ready to leave. Her life ended suddenly.
Are we ready to leave.
