All In pt 4: Commissioned
All In • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 2 viewsJesus calls us to salvation for one purpose.. He wants us to follow Him ... to do things His way... to dedicate our lives to Him, so that He can send us out into the world. He sent His Holy Spirit to guide us in our work, but we must choose to follow Him... If we want to go "ALL IN" for Jesus, the we MUST live the commission He has given us!
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Several months ago, God gave me a vision of a work… It’s something that we are still praying about the details of how it will come to be… Along with that work, God spoke to me about what the Church really is…
That is this: “The Church is a group of people whose lives have been salvaged by Christ from the wreckage created by this broken world!”
Christ salvaged our life! Do you understand that?!
Jesus didn’t just die on the cross for our sins… He did it to break the chains of sin in our lives completely!
He reclaimed us… He rebuilt us… and He has repurposed us for HIS Kingdom!
Do you understand that?!?!
God has saved you!
And He did it for a purpose…
Through Jesus… God has invited you (and I) into His family… into His kingdom… all so that He can send us out into the world....
Why?!?
— To invite others into the family!
That is our purpose!
When Jesus called the disciples, He told them He would make them “fishers of men”.
That call, that purpose, that invitation… wasn’t just for the 12!
Maybe up to this point, you have had the thought in the back of your mind like so many others do, that “Only pastors and church staff are meant to do the work of evangelism.” After all, they are the ones “called” to the work… (They’re the ones paid to do it)
BUT… If we believe that Mt 16:24 is meant for all of us, then we MUST accept that the work of the Kingdom is meant for ALL of us!
God has called each and every Follower of Jesus to live on mission!
I want you to see something here…
57 As they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.”
58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
59 He said to another man, “Follow me.” But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Then, right ofter this encounter, Jesus does something amazing…
1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.
2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.
3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.
Before Jesus ever sent out the 12, He sent out 72 “others”…
That’s significant!!!
What does the term “apostle” mean? (anybody)
According to the Lexham Bible Dictionary: “Apostle” means “someone sent as an authorized agent by Jesus or the Christian community”
“Apostle” literally means “An envoy of Jesus Christ commissioned directly by Him...”
We have been commissioned by Christ!
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
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.”
Being given a commission means being authorized and assigned to perform a specific task.
The Apostle Paul says: Rom 12:6
6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith;
We are meant to use them for the purposes of God…
Look at Mt 16:24
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
Jesus has called us to DENY OURSELVES…
— to set aside everything that comes between us and others… AND… between us and Him…
(cross ill.)
To PICK UP OUR CROSS…
Are you seeing what our cross is?!?
Our Cross — the Cross we bear — is the same Cross Christ bore…
It is to put our relationship with God and with others over EVERYTHING else!
AND… FOLLOW HIM!!!
WHERE?!?!?!
Into “living out” the Great Commission…
You do realize that the Great Commission is exactly what Jesus came and did, right?
Mt 28:18-20 tells us to GO… to TEACH… and to BAPTIZE…
That means not only sharing the gospel, but teaching how it is “lived out” in our daily lives…
The problem is that far too many people have claimed the Commission but failed to invest in the Mission!
They seem to want the recognition without the contribution!
But that’s not how it works!
We cannot receive the Commission without investing in the transaction…
It’s either “All In” or nothing!
But … understand… Living on mission means a lot of things, the least of which is that we WILL face opposition…
We Will Encounter Hardship.
We talked about this a little bit in week 2…
John 16:33 (NIV)
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Jesus calls us to take up our cross and follow Him… He promises that it will be a tough road… that we will encounter people, in this world — both inside and outside the church — who don’t want to do things the way God says…
There are many people in the Church… who call themselves Christians… who refuse to do anything more than give a little money!
And then only to those activities they “like” or “relate to” or can “control”…
They will judge us… They will criticize us… They will accuse us of wrongdoing — of being judgmental, hateful, ignorant…
Look at Mt 10:16-18
16 “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
17 Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues.
18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.
Jesus didn’t sugar coat it! He says, “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves”.... Wow!!!
This is crazy!!!
Does that mean we are going to be devoured by the world around us??!?
NO!!!!!
It means that the world will try…
People don’t like a message that challenges their current lifestyle.
That is the whole reason so many came against Jesus...
Look at what Jesus tells the “others” here:
18 On my account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.
They will be whipped and beaten… They will be battered and bruised… They will be rejected and abused… BUT THAT’S NOT THE END!!!
It is an opportunity to tell the rulers and unbelievers about Him!
How often is this on the front of our minds?
How often are we actively looking for opportunities to tell people about Jesus?
How often are we allowing God to turn our negative situations into a positive testimony?
You see… sharing the Gospel doesn’t happen on a street corner… with a big billboard… in fact, that’s super ineffective in our culture…
It happens when we actively invest in a relationship we are currently building… having a real conversation… ABOUT THE GOSPEL!!!
It’s not easy, but… We are not sent alone…
We Have An Advocate.
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.”
Jesus promises that we will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on us.
THEN… we will be sent out.
Jesus is telling those disciples… who were afraid… who were unsure… who didn’t know if they didn’t know if they could carry His message onto the world around them… “Don’t worry, I will send the Holy Spirit to help you.”
BUT… We only receive the Holy Spirit when we decide to go “All In”....
Look at Acts 1:13-14
13 When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.
14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
and then in Acts 2:1-2
1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.
2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.
The disciples were all together… doing what Jesus told them to do… united in prayer… when the Holy Spirit came…
God’s Spirit lives within us when we decide to follow Jesus COMPLETELY!!!!
Let me ask you: “What is the Holy Spirit’s role in our lives?”
26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
The Greek word used for the Holy Spirit is “peradetos”. It means, “one who helps, consoles, encourages,...”
“Peradetos - one who helps, consoles, encourages,...”
The Holy Spirit gives us comfort, and works on our behalf… Sometimes giving us the words we need to speak into the circumstances we face.
Think about this for a minute…
If we have a comforter within us, then we CAN leave our comfort zones and embark on the commission Jesus has given us!
We have no excuse!
God promises to give us what we need to do the work of the Kingdom here on the earth!
If we will just move our feet!
(Joke — man on the house during a flood)
God won’t move a parked car!
Some of us have been seated, refusing to get up and move, expecting God to move for us…
We have a role in the process!
9 In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.
God expects us to move!
21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”
God does not tell us not to make plans. BUT… He does direct our steps as we begin pursuing those plans!
God cannot tell us what He wants us to do, if we are doing nothing!
We have to move…
He promises that when we do, the Holy Spirit will guide us along the way to the people who need to hear the message of Christ — not only by our words, but by our actions!
It All Comes Down To Love.
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Jesus didn’t expect His disciples to be great communicators…
Instead, He says that it is the love they have for one another that will prove the point.
Being “All In” means being heartbroken on behalf of the Gospel, for the culture and world around us!
Let me tell you: “If we are heartbroken for the things that break God’s heart, then we will be postured to ‘love one another’ AND those we encounter who are far from God.”
God’s people, loving one another, is what draws people to Christ!
Being “All In” isn’t fancy or flashy… It is the Love of one person to another.
Love requires movement.
It requires that we do something… that we are active…
James tells us — “faith without works is dead,” God tells us — “Love without action is Dead.” Love without action is nothing but words…
The earliest disciples… the apostles… knew what this meant.
They looked past the minor issues and decided to focus on the big stuff.
We ALL serve the same God!
We ALL want to follow Jesus…
We ALL want to see the world accept Him…
So, How can we waste time being divided and apathetic?
Jesus has invited us to be a part of the story… His Story!
He has called us to actively participate in spreading the Gospel… in praying for the sick… and in seeing people redeemed!
He has given us the Holy Spirit to comfort us… to guide us… to aide us in our journey…
We have all we need to be successful.
All we have to do is step out in faith!!!
All we have to do is answer His Call!!!
Jesus is standing at the door… He is knocking… He is asking us to come and “Follow Him”…
Will you join me today in answering that call?
Will stand with me today and declare that “I am ALL IN… in my home… in our church… in our community…”
Will you stand with me today and proclaim that “Jesus is my Lord. He is my All in All. I give it all to you, Jesus! I will step out in faith… I will proclaim Your message… and I WIlL NOT allow ANYTHING to come between You and me or me and others!”
Let’s pray…