Change the World In a Moment
It was likely a day as any other. The work day was over and she was looking forward to spending time at home doing the things she did each night. To look at her, you would not see anything but another woman heading home after a long day at work. You would not see the frustration or the silent resolution to stand her ground against the injustice she continued to experience.
And then it happened, the doors opened, another rider got on… and she was asked to move. Not because this new bus rider was physically handicapped or elderly… but because their skin color was white and hers was black.
In that moment, Rosa Parks made a decision, she decided that she was going to do something different… something that might change things. She was not going to move… she made no speeches on that bus, she did not scream or yell, she did not rail against the unjust Jim Crowe laws of the south… she just did not move.
Many of you know this story. Some say that act was the trigger that finally allowed for segregation to be finally addressed in our country… and it all began when one person made the decision to do the right thing. Her actions changed the world in a moment for thousands and thousands of people.
Have you ever considered that you would be used in a world changing manner?
Follow along with me as I read from Matthew.
“16Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
~ Matthew 28:16-20
~ The Great Commission
What we just read is the kind of stuff that changes the world… for the individual, for families, for cities.. forever. And you and I are called to be a part of it.
The questions is… are you a part of it… or are you standing on the sidelines. Today you can make the decision to be the person that changes the world in a moment for someone… or you can choose to do nothing… to stand on the bus off to the side and look away. My prayer is that you will decide to do something about what you hear this morning.
1. Jesus has called you to go and make disciples.
Matt 28:19 - 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in a the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
2. Jesus has called you to teach those who don’t know the truth.
Matt 28:20 - 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
3. God wants you to understand that there are consequences to the choices you make.
Mark 16:15,16 - 15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
One Sunday evening, William Booth was walking in London with his son, Bramwell, who was then 12 or 13 years old. The father surprised the son by taking him into a saloon! The place was crowded with men and women, many of them bearing on their faces the marks of vice and crime; some were drunk. The fumes of alcohol and tobacco were poisonous. "Willie," Booth said to his son, "These are our people; these are the people I want you to live for and bring to Christ." Years later, Bramwell Booth wrote, "The impression never left me."
4. God does not send you alone. God has provided the Holy Spirit.
Acts 1:8 - 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Rosa Parks was not an extraordinary woman… she was just like any one of us. But she came to the place that she could no longer accept that what was taking place was acceptable. This is what she said of that day…
"People always say that I didn’t give up my seat because I was tired, but that isn’t true. I was not tired physically, or no more tired than I usually was at the end of a working day. I was not old, although some people have an image of me as being old then. I was forty-two. No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in."
Are you ready to stop giving in to whatever keeps you from becoming a part of the Great Commission? You can be part of changing the world… and the first step is deciding to let Jesus begin a change in you. The next step is deciding to do what he asks you to do this morning…
“19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”
You may not know what that will look like, but something in your heart may be telling you that it is time to stop sitting back and time to get involved in what he is doing.
(Call to Action – Salvation, Re-dedication, for those who are ready to step into ministry.)
