Here is an account by Eva Hart of the sinking of the Titanic:
Survivor Eva Hart remembers the night, April 15, 1912, on which the Titanic plunged 12,000 feet to the Atlantic floor, some two hours and forty minutes after an iceberg tore a 300-foot gash in her starboard side: "I saw all the horror of its sinking, and I heard, even more dreadful, the cries of drowning people." Although twenty life-boats and rafts were launched - too few and only partly filled - most of the passengers ended up struggling in the icy seas while those in the boats waited a safe distance away. Lifeboat No. 14 did row back to the scene after the unsinkable ship slipped from sight at 2:20 A.M. Alone, it chased cries in the darkness, seeking and saving a precious few. Incredibly, no other boat joined it. Some were already overloaded, but in virtually every other boat, those already saved rowed their half-filled boats aimlessly in the night, listening to the cries of the lost. Each feared a crush of unknown swimmers would cling to their craft, eventually swamping it. "I came to seek and to save the lost," our Savior said. And he commissioned us to do the same. But we face a large obstacle: fear. While people drown in the treacherous waters around us, we are tempted to stay dry and make certain no one rocks the boat. Yet the boat is not ours, and "our" safety came only at the expense of the One who overcame fear with love - and saved us. (James D. Smith III, Leadership, Vol. 9, No. 2)
A rather disturbing account; yet an account that may help capture the reality that we’re to share of God… It is the distinction between a religious response to life and the response of those in relationship with Christ.
Last week, we discussed the religious leaders of Jesus’ time that were offended, threatened, afraid and wanted to stay safe.
• With Jesus there is room for everyone in God’s mercy;
• He’s called us not to wait a safe distance away, but like boat #14, to follow after the cries of people in the darkness.
• It’s a profound truth to discover how much lost people matter to God, but it’s equally life-changing to discover that he uses us to help them find God.
> God chooses to use people just like you and me to help lost loves find Him.
It’s an exciting proposition: His very words by which he called his first disciples… ‘I will make you ‘Fishers of Men’—Wow! Talk about career advancement! It can also be a challenging proposition.
• Many if not most of us desire to do His work, but also feel discomfort about it.
• Perhaps we’re so overwhelmed with the reality of so many people being lost apart from God that we ignore it.
• Perhaps we fear the minefield of misconceptions that we’re likely to step on.
• Perhaps we just feel awkward talking about God and spiritual matters.
It’s a process of ‘becoming’…He will take us from where we are and lead us to where we’d like to be. It is life changing.
This morning, PRIME THE PUMP! God’s word gives us an encounter in the Book of Acts that has often been used as an example. This spoke to me in fresh ways when I went back to it.
“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet. 29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” 30 Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. 31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 33 In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.” 34 The eunuch asked Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.” Acts 8:26-35
What can we learn from this?
We can help lost lives find God as we grow in…
1. CARE & COMPASSION FOR PEOPLE
People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
• Philip was a man willing to care about people; we discover this in tracing his calling and first ministry.
• Acts 6:1-6 expresses concern that some of the widows were getting overlooked in the distribution of food, so the 12 apostles, (the original disciples of Jesus) gathered all the other followers, the followers were instructed to choose 7 men who were good, full of the spirit and full of wisdom; Philip was one of those seven.
• He was a man who could care about people.
• We may tend to think that the fundamental qualities of those who lead others to God are qualities like persuasiveness and natural authority…but the most fundamental quality of all is care and compassion for people.
• “For god so LOVED the world that he GAVE…” There’s the starting point of all that God wants to work at through…love that gives.
• God knows how arrogant and autonomous our hearts can be.
• But he knows the power of love…giving…kindness
• When we face the minefield of misconceptions, kindness will build the bridge.
• Our outreaches provoke so much openness and interest.
• We can do the same anywhere; we can have a heart like Philips when he cared for widows…when we offer a cup of coffee to a colleague, offer to wash a neighbor’s car while washing our own; take interest in a friend’s affairs and take time to listen
2. SENSITIVITY TO THE HOLY SPIRIT’S LEADING
Verse 26 begins by describing Philip being directed by an angel of the Lord.
The verse doesn’t refer to a white, winged figure, but being spoken to by a messenger of God.
GOD WAS ACTIVE IN THIS PROCESS;
Interestingly, he wasn’t told ‘why’…yet in verse 27 he started out.
HE FOLLOWED THE LORD’S LEADING.
SO OFTEN WE THINK WE’RE SUPPOSE TO SIMPLY GO OUT AND HELP LOST LIVES FIND GOD ON OUR OWN..AND WE FEEL LOST IN THE PROCESS.
WHAT WE NEED IN ORDER TO REAPPROACH THIS PROCESS IS TO KNOW THAT WE ARE PARTNERS WITH THE SPIRIT OF GOD WHO IS CONSTANTLY AT WORK.
This is the dynamic that we see throughout the Book of Acts.
• The power of God isn’t described in terms of getting parking spaces…
• It is leading them… they possess boldness…there are signs and wonders and these always take place in public.
• The power of God is most active in reaching the lost.
• I’ve never prayed about any other area and received such a clear response.
• If this year, each of us let three people know that they matter to God… and how Christ makes a personal relationship possible… hundreds of lives could enter eternity.
3. CONFIDENCE IN PEOPLE’S NEED AND GOD’S PROVISION
Philip is ready to go; he’s not held back by fears or uncertainty.
This is perhaps the greatest area of growth needed for many of us.
There are two fears that can underlie our timidity:
1. We won’t know enough or be able to answer difficult questions.
Perhaps a particular need led you to God and you know others that have difficulties that you’re not prepared to take up.
Take time to look deeper at the solid basis for your faith…Don’t be afraid of common questions…but don’t wait…God will shine through you even now.
As Hudson Taylor says, “When does a candle begin to shine? When it’s half burned up? No, as soon as it’s lit!”
2. We tend to think that others don’t need God like we do.
We can be deceived or intimidated by their appearance or success.
Here’s where we see the unwavering confidence of Philip:
In verse 27, there’s a description of the man that Philip was to engage. He was, “an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, Queen of the Ethiopians.”
We learn here that this kingdom in central Africa was ruled for centuries by female sovereigns whose common title was ‘Candace’, which is equal to the title ‘Pharaoh’ in Egypt.
Here’s a guy who’s waited tables for widows, who’s now talking to the secretary of treasury!
Philip was confident…respectful but not intimidated. He knew that this man needed God like anyone else.
We can be far too affected by people’s appearance. We need to recognize, like Philip, that in our humanity and spiritual condition, we are all the same…deep down; we are lost apart from God.
Particularly, we are reminded of this in response to the tragic death of Princess Diana. So many angles in the story were taken up…who’s at fault? What about the relationship? What was the monarchy’s response? All the funeral arrangements.
> In the heart of God, He is most concerned with the 3 lives that were lost and the 3 destinies that were determined. No sensationalism or sentimentality will change that.
I don’t know if Princess Diana had found God, but I know that she needed Him like anyone else… the woman inside needed to know that she could be forgiven and loved unconditionally.
WE CAN BE CONFIDENT OF THIS: EVERY LIFE NEEDS GOD AND HIS PROVISION PROVIDES FOR EVERY LIFE WHO WILL RECEIVE IT.
4. CONNECTING WITH THE PERSONAL QUEST AND QUESTIONS OF OTHERS
First, Philip got close enough to the man to take notice of the man’s interest; and ask a question which opened up an invitation.
Granted, this man was a long ways along his journey to know God.
Philip met the man where he was at in his quest and asked the right questions to help him find God.
Regardless of where someone may be at, QUESTIONS CATALYZE THE QUEST
They can help a person grasp their search.
They may vary depending upon the individual and their context in life.
• John Watson—inner city teens—identity, justice, hope
• Those in their 20’s, what would they like God to be like, Jesus?
• Young families—concerns for their children
• If very successful in their career, what does ‘success’ mean to them, what do they really want in their lives?
• If in their later years, how do they feel about death?
Philip joining this man’s quest led to sharing the ultimate answer.
In verse 25, Philip began with that very passage of script and told him the good news about Jesus.
5. FOCUS ON THE GOOD NEWS OF CHRIST
The Good News we have to share may have many facets, but only one face—Christ.
…One fact…God has come…died for our sins. If we give him our life, allow him to be our savior and leader, then we’ll be reconciled with God and gain eternal life.
Closing story –
A group of women in Washington D.C. wanted to show God’s love to a special group of people. They wanted to communicate in ways that could be understood. These women had heard of a group of babies who were destined to live and die in hospitals, rarely held and loved. These were babies with AIDS whose families had abandoned them. These AIDS babies did not get much attention because the nurses were very busy. They began to cry silently but shed tears. No one had responded to their crying out loud so they stopped doing it but would shed real tears. These women took a number of these babies home and cared for them even though they knew that the children would die by their second birthdays. They would respond to the silent tears when they saw them and would hold and rock the babies often. After a while, the AIDS babies began to cry out loud again. They had been spoken to in the only way that they understood.
>> Will you hear the silent cries around you?
