Are you a Visionary or a Vision Vandal
Gladstone Baptist Church – 30/1/05 am
This morning is a special time in the life of our church – we are inducting our church board. Right at the outset, I want to stress to you that the people you will see up in front of you this morning are not a special class of Christian. They are not super spiritual. They do not hold a Heavenly Gold Card or have any greater position in God’s kingdom than do you or I.
But they do hold an important office in our church by the mere fact that they are leaders. Writes to Timothy in 1 Tim 3:1 – “To aspire to leadership is an honorable ambition.” When I look out among you now, I see many leaders sitting among you. What constitutes a leader???
The great military leader Bernard Montgomery said “Leadership is the capacity and will to rally men and women to a common purpose, and the character which inspires confidence.”
J. Oswald Sanders has written “Leadership is influence, the ability of one person to influence others to follow his or her lead”
Many of you are leaders – leaders of ministries, leaders of families, leaders of children. You lead by example and in some cases by authority. I don’t think that there is a Christian alive that is not in some way a leader. Every single adult, in this church is a leader because others younger than you are looking at you to see how you respond; how you live your life; how you minister and serve. You have influence over others and lead them in either positive or negative ways. We all need to be leaders in some way, but I acknowledge that there are leaders and there are leaders of leaders.
John R. Mott who is a great leader in student circles around the world says that a “leader is a man who knows the road, who can keep ahead, and who pulls others after him.”
While school has just started back and most ministries are dusting off the cobwebs and oiling the cogs in an attempt to get some momentum happening. Our board members have been working for several months already trying to refine our vision. They have been mapping out the path for their ministry areas and planning how it is that they can motivate or pull others after them.
What you received as you came in this morning is our church’s vision document. It sets out for you on one piece of paper, what the vision of our church is and some of the steps that we are going to collectively take to try to reach the goals. Last week I asked you what our vision statement for our church was … And everyone answered in unison … “Being the family of God and Bringing others into the family of God”
Over all – that is our vision. To be a family of God and do all that God would have his family do. What does God want his family to do? - to worship, to have fellowship, to become disciples, to ministry and to evangelise the world.
The other part of our vision says that we don’t just want to be family focussed, but we also want to be outward focussed. We want to be bringing others into our family to enjoy all the benefits of our family. That is our vision “Being the family of God and bringing others into the family of God.” But how are we going to do that? How are the leaders of KOGs going to contribute to that goal? How are the Ladies in the Ladies Bible Study going to contribute to our vision? How are the people involved in the maintenance of this church going to contribute to that end? The answers to those questions are on this piece of paper. Each ministry has set out what its goals and initiatives are for this year which will help it contribute to our overall Church vision – “Being the Family of God and bringing others into the family of God.”
The board members we are inducting today have had a large role in helping ministries formulate these visions and goals. But they haven’t done it by themselves. It has been a long process of seeking God’s will for their ministry area and listening to his voice. In most cases, many of those involved in various ministries have been included in the process of reviewing the goals for 2005 and collectively I think we have a wonderful vision of where God wants to take us as a church.
I want to thank God today that he has placed in this church visionaries. A visionary from the Christian perspective “is a person who sees what can be done for God and has a passion to do it.” We need visionaries in this church – People who will dream big. People who don’t focus on the difficulty of the task or the obstacles standing in the way, but gaze off into the distant to what God could do if only we give our lives to Him. As you read this vision document some of you will hopefully get excited about the potential God has brought together in this place. As you read this vision document, some of you might sit and wonder at God’s graciousness and His might. As you read this vision document, some of you may actually get inspired to get involved and lend your weight to the effort begun. People in this category are visionaries and I want you on my team!!!
But some of you may read it and put it down. You may shake your head and think that this is just another impossible pipe dream. You may discount it on the basis of not having enough people to pull it off or money to make it happen. You may reject it because it doesn’t fit in with what your picture of a good church looks like. People like this are not visionaries. People like this are vision vandals and to be truthful, I’d rather not have you on my team!!!
There are 2 types of people in this church – visionaries or vision vandals. Which camp do you belong to.
This morning I want to spend some moments talking about some visionaries and some vision vandals in the Bible and look at the effects of each of them. I want to challenge you this morning to go home and read this vision document and get excited about it. I want you to get inspired and to get so excited about our vision for this place that you commit to doing everything in your power to help bring it about. Because I think our vision is good because it is God given and honors Him.
If you’ve got your Bible there, I invite you to open it up to Numbers 13:26. The people of Israel had been led out of Egypt by Moses. God was leading them home to the land of Abraham that God had promised them as their birthright and their home. Unfortunatly they had been away from this land for 400 years and in the mean time many others had settled in the land. But that was okay. God had told them that He would make it all happen Back in Ex 3:16 … ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jaco said: I have watched over you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt. And I have promised to bring you up out of your misery in Egypt into the land of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites—a land flowing with milk and honey.’
Now here were the people of Israel, on the edge of the wilderness, ready to enter the land. And God told Moses to pick out 12 leaders – one from each tribe to go and spy out the land they were about to enter. So these 12 leaders went out and were gone for 40 days. They were supposed to come back and share their vision of what might be. We pick the story up in vs 26 on their return…
They [the 12 leaders] came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 They gave Moses this account: “We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. [They had collected some of the pomegranates, some figs and a bunch of grapes that was so big they had to carry it on a pole between 2 men. The land was all that God had promised and more. It had such potential. Such possibilities.] 28 But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there. [They were a race of Giants] 29 The Amalekites live in the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan.”
30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.”
31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.” 32 And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, “The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. 33 We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them.”
14 That night all the people of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. 2 All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, “If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this desert! 3 Why is the LORD bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?” 4 And they said to each other, “We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”
In this group of 12, there were 2 visionaries and 10 vision vandals. The all saw the land and the potential of it. They were all impressed by what they saw and were excited, but only 2 of them grasped the vision that God was presenting to them. Only 2 picked up the vision and said we can do it. The other 10 let their fears and human concerns get in the way of God’s plan.
I want to challenge you today, that you have a choice of being a visionary or a vision vandal. You can be like Caleb or Joshua or you can choose to be like the other 10.
Let’s quickly look at the Characteristics of Vision Vandals.
a. They are pessimistic.
When the 12 returned from spying out the land, they carried fruit from the land. They acknowledged that the land was one flowing with milk and honey. It was all they ever dreamed of and more. But notice that one word in V28 defines their outlook “But” Don’t you just hate it when someone is telling you something, and then they insert the word, "nevertheless, however, or but". In spite of all the positives, they choose to focus not on the good, but on the bad. “The optimist sees the doughnut, The pessimist sees the hole.” When you read some of the visions that are on this piece of paper – I wonder whether you will focus on the good or on the bad. Visionaries will get excited about the good things.
b. They are phobic.
A Vision vandal is not only pessimistic, but is also phobic. They live a life that is governed by fear rather than by faith. The 10 were scared … "the people are strong.............. the cities have walls .........."we saw big giants there. .........the land is controlled by the ’kites, the ’tites, the’sites, the ’rites, and the ’nites.” They were paralyzed by fear and fear does the some to vision vandals today. It prevents us from serving God. But God never intented us to be fearful, He intends us to see his vision and have courage. 2 Tim 1:17 – “God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” Visionaries believe that, Vision vandals don’t. We all have fears regarding change and things that are new. There are always risks when we aim for something – there is the risk of failure which for some is a huge stumbling block. I encourage you not to fear failure or any other issue that you might see in this vision document.
c. They are powerless. V31-33
......."We be not able to go up against the people for they are stronger than we. Literally: We do not have the power! In this regard, they were 100% right. They did not have the power, but that is not really the issue. What is more important than the power is the promise – God had promised them that he would give them the land. God has promised to build his church and we have a vision that God will build this church both spiritually and physically. Vision Vandals focus on their own power, Visionaries focus on God’s power.
John Hagaii has said "Attempt something so impossible that unless God is in it, it is doomed to failure." What a wonderful visionary he was. Can you echo his words this morning or do you feel powerless.
d. They are problematic.
The 10 leaders who refused to see the vision had a dramatic impact on the people gathered around. Remember that these men were chosen – 1 from each tribe because they were already leaders. They were respected and honored in their tribes. They were probably heros to some. You can imagine the impact of their words on those who listened to them. Vision vandals usual undermine the vision being cast for all those around them. Joshua 14:8 says that the words of these vision vandals made the heart of the people to melt. Where there was some hope, the vision vandals destroyed it and what resulted was weeping (vs1), grumbling (vs 2) and rebellion (vs 4) against Moses and God.
Their complaining soon rose to the point to where they were ready to appoint a captain over them to lead them back to Egypt. With God if we’re not moving forward, we’ll soon be going backwards !
These are some of the characteristics of Vision Vandals. Does this describe you today? There were 10 of them that day, but there were 2 that were visionaries. What do they look like?
Characteristics of Visionaries.
a. They live committed to the principles of God.
A visionary has at his very heart the vision of God, and his word. He is first, and foremost committed to the principles of God, and when one is committed to the principles of God he will always be in the advance mode. Caleb was a man who is said to have followed the Lord fully. He is referred to by the Lord as my servant! (14:24) Joshua was like until Caleb. It is said of him in Num 32:12 that he wholly followed the Lord.
b. Their lives are controlled by the presence of God.
What enabled Caleb to be committed to the Lord? How was he able to stand up and say let’s go up when all the others were saying we can’t do it ! The secret lies within the fact that he had another spirit with him. That spirit was the Spirit of almighty God. The Spirit of God will give us courage to stand up, speak up, and get up!
It has been said............" If you have only the word of God you will dry up. If you have only the Spirit of God you will blow up. But if you have both you will grow up’. Caleb and Joshua were men with both. They heard the word believed it, followed it, and they had the presence of God !
c. They lay claim to the promises of God 13:30
Caleb had heard the promises of God. This was their land. It had their name on it. Caleb was determined to lay claim to it. Num 14:8 If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. A visionary perceives the promises of God, and is driven by them.
d. They leave conquering to the power of God. 14:8-9
What about the giants Caleb ? What about the enemies with the fortified cities ? Num 14:9 “do not rebel against the LORD. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the LORD is with us. Do not be afraid of them.”
Caleb was committed to following the Lord, and leaving the conquering up to him. Are we willing to do the same? You know why we can’t whip the giants in our lives? It’s because we won’t let him. We won’t let him because we refuse to believe his word, and refuse to obey him.
These are the marks of Visionaries. Does this describe you?
Consequences Of Not Being Visionary.
They forfeited the promised land.
The 10 unbelieving spies were killed on the spot.
Num 14:36-38 So the men Moses had sent to explore the land, who returned and made the whole community grumble against him by spreading a bad report about it— these men responsible for spreading the bad report about the land were struck down and died of a plague before the LORD. Of the men who went to explore the land, only Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh survived.
And of all that came out of Egypt none would set one foot inside the promised land except Joshua, Caleb, and those under 20 years of age. I wonder what we’re forfeiting as a result of our unbelief ? What are we losing out on because of our unwillingness to change? What are we missing out on as a church because we’re just willing to sit back, and play it safe? When we fail to catch the vision of God, and follow his will we are missing out on all that God has planned for us.
When we choose to be a vision vandal for what ever reason, we forfeit the blessings of God, and never achieve all that God has for us. These people died in the wilderness and never experienced what God has planned and prepared for them. I don’t want to be like this and I don’t think you do either if the truth be known.
This morning I want to challenge you as individuals, and we as the church of the living God to become visionaries! Let’s not live in the past! Let’s not be scared of the giants and the other obstacles ahead of us this year. Let’s look and not see walls but let’s see God!
A group of pilgrims landed on the shores of America about 350 years ago. With great vision and courage they had come to settle in the new land. In the first year they established a town. In the second, they elected a town council. In the third, the government proposed building a road 5 miles westward into the wilderness. But in the fourth year the people tried to impeach the town council because they thought such a road into the forest was a waste of public funds. Somehow these forward-looking people had lost their vision. Once able to see across oceans, they now could not look 5 miles into the wilderness.
Have you lost sight of God’s vision for this church – I encourage you to work to regain it. Talk to people who are excited about the year. Talk to our board members. Read our vision document.
Our vision for our church is “being the family of God and bringing others into the family of God. “How are we going to do this? Read it for yourself on our vision document and become excited.
We are going to post some copies up on the wall in the foyer and I encourage you to glance over it regularly. See how we are going against our goals. See how you can help out. Keep our vision in focus and ask God to help you be a visionary in this church not a vision vandal.
