For the Sake of the Gospel
Notes
Transcript
What will you do for the sake of the Gospel?
That question deserves some serious consideration.
If you are a Christian, it is because somebody or several “somebody”s shared the gospel with you, and you received it and believed it. Somewhere along the line, you heard the truth about God’s love for you, that in His great mercy, His sent His Son Jesus to pay for your sins on the cross. In believing, you received new life, eternal life, in Christ.
The Bible tells us that God is the initiator of our conversion. It all starts with Him. 1 John 4:19
We love because he first loved us.
One of the ways God initiates our salvation is to send out messengers, proclaimers of the Word, to those who need to hear it.
It is an odd way to bring people into His Kingdom isn’t it? The kingdoms of this world are almost always established by force. His is by Word of Mouth. But then again, what better way than to build faith than to hear and witness the transformation that it brings - especially from those you trust?
The one who receives God’s grace can’t help but to share it with others. The personal testimony of Christians helps others hear of His love.
God also calls and equips certain messengers for the role of clearly articulating and teaching what has been revealed to us by God, to invite people to make a decision, as well as to strengthen, encourage and guide the Church.
Ephesians 4:11–13 (NRSV)
The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.
We are all messengers - whether we share our story with others, invite people to come and see what Jesus is doing, or we have been set aside for a specific calling within the Church - all those who follow Jesus have a charge to keep.
Charles Wesley, the brother of John Wesley and the author of many of the songs in our hymnal, penned the lyrics to the song “A Charge to Keep I Have” (#456) and the first verse goes like this:
“A charge to keep I have, a God to glorify, a never dying soul to save, and fit it for the sky.” (meaning eternal life)
The scripture verse the song is based on is Leviticus 8:35 where Moses’ brother Aaron and his sons are ordained as priests, consecrated for holy work by the Lord.
You shall remain at the entrance of the tent of meeting day and night for seven days, keeping the Lord’s charge so that you do not die; for so I am commanded.”
Wesley drew his inspiration from Mathew Henry’s Commentary on Leviticus where Henry writes:
“We have every one of us a charge to keep, an eternal God to glorify, an immortal soul to provide for, needful duty to be done, our generation to serve; and it must be our daily care to keep this charge, for it is the charge of the Lord our Master, who will shortly call us to an account about it, and it is our peril if we neglect it. Keep it ‘that ye die not’; it is death, eternal death, to betray the truth we are charged with.”
God has entrusted you with a valuable treasure - one that you are to share with others. Think about it - there are souls who will come to know Jesus because you shared your faith with them. You may have been the one person or one of many that finally broke through and brought light into darkness.
This charge is found throughout the Bible.
Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!
And you will say in that day: “Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted. “Sing praises to the Lord, for he has done gloriously; let this be made known in all the earth.
And we have the example of Jesus. He arrives and what does he do? He preaches the gospel.
But He said to them, “Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth.”
Jesus then trains his disciples and sends them out to do the same. He sent them out in pairs - to go and preach, cast out demons and heal - pointing people to the Kingdom of God.
After his death and resurrection, all of us received the great commission to go and tell the gospel to everyone everywhere.
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
This is the charge we have to keep.
What will you do for the sake of the Gospel?
How far will you go?
What personal sacrifice will you undertake in order to share the Good News?
The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, teaches us that to keep this charge is to surrender everything. And his life is living proof of what he is teaching.
In his commentary on today’s passage in 1 Corinthians 9, Richard Hayes notes:
First Corinthians The Apostolic Model: Paul’s Renunciation of Rights (9:15–23)
everything that Paul does is aimed at winning as many people as possible to the gospel. He will adapt his behavior (not his message!) in whatever way necessary to achieve that end
Let’s take a moment and look at what this meant for Paul.
Before meeting Jesus, Paul was a highly educated and respected Pharisee, zealous for adherence to God’s law and Jewish traditions.
After encountering the risen Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus - the trajectory of his life changed. Pharisees did not associate with Gentiles (non-Jews) and would never go into their homes. Pharisees observed strict rituals when it came to cleanliness - so they avoided the sick, the diseased, and the non-Jews. Pharisees held a very strict view of the Sabbath and what constituted work - that is why some Pharisees got upset with Jesus because they considered his healing of a blind man on Sabbath work - violating God’s command.
For the sake of the gospel, Paul became the apostle to the Gentiles. He understood that Jesus died for all and that the law of Christ superseded all other laws.
Paul became the master of adaptation. He would basically ask himself, “What do I need to do in order for this person in front of me to hear and receive the gospel?”
Paul knew that in Christ he was free. He was not burdened by strict adherence to Jewish laws, his salvation was not dependent on his ability to remain faithful in all matters and situations, and he knew the whole world was in God’s hands - so he didn’t need to try to appease the gods like the Gentiles did with their superstitions. But he would set aside his freedom if it meant that someone would receive Christ.
For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them.
If Paul was around observant Jews, he would participate in the Jewish rituals in order to keep the peace and earn the right to be heard.
There is an example in the 21st chapter of Acts. Paul is speaking to the leaders of the Church in Jerusalem - including James. He is sharing with them the great success he is having in reaching the Gentiles. They all rejoice, but they also share with Paul what some of the Jews were saying about him.
They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to reject Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to live according to our customs.
To keep the peace and keep the mission moving forward, listen to what the Church decided:
What about this? Without a doubt, they will hear that you have arrived. You must therefore do what we tell you. Four men among us have made a solemn promise. Take them with you, go through the purification ritual with them, and pay the cost of having their heads shaved. Everyone will know there is nothing to those reports about you but that you too live a life in keeping with the Law.
Paul could have insisted that as one following Christ, he did not have to follow this particular ritual of purification. But he didn’t claim this right - for the sake of the gospel, he became a servant to all.
What does that look like today?
For the sake of the gospel, what sacrifices are we willing to give?
Maybe we sacrifice our comfort in order to go and serve in an uncomfortable environment.
I recall all the times Krista and I served as chaperones at Youth Rallies - that is not something I really enjoy doing, but for the sake of the gospel…
Or there was the time I went to party at the home of some fellow church members and there was beer and wine available. Now I have the freedom to partake of alcohol - God’s Word speaks against drunkenness - not moderation. But there was another member there as well, he was new to the church and I knew his story. I knew that he struggled with alcohol - so when the host asked us what we would like to drink, I said “water please” - you could see the relief on the face of the new guy - he asked for the same.
I could have drunk whatever I wanted, but for the sake of the gospel, I did not want to put a stumbling block in front of this new believer.
What examples can you think of?
What sacrifice would it take for you to share your story with another person?
What sacrifice would it take to invite your neighbor or a friend to come to church with you next Sunday? Maybe you even offer to pick them up?
1 Corinthians 9:22 (ESV)
I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.
What will you do for the sake of the Gospel?
Let us pray.
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