Being built up... (11)

Called to preach...

As a teenager, I really wanted to know what I would become when I grew up. At camp or youth retreats, speakers would share about the call of God.

I remember one time in particular, that the youth speaker asked if there were any young people that felt the call of God on their lives. Several young people raised their hands. At this, he asked them to come forward so that he could pray for them.

I wanted to be used of God. I wanted to be called by God, and yet I couldn’t say that He had spoken to me. During my first year of Bible College, it was mandatory for us to share a devotional in our class. I got up and shared. Even though I thought that I had a lot to share, it seemed like beach sand slipping through my fingers. I’m guessing that I was done in a couple of minutes, and I thought, “This public speaking just isn’t for me.”

Yet, the urgency of the call just wouldn’t go away. I must have been 17 when a neighbour was killed in an accident. I just couldn’t bear the thought that somebody that I knew, possibly didn’t know Christ.

Not everybody has a call to vocational ministry, to simplify this, we might call this our job, but

Each of us, has been called to preach...

With God’s help, that’s what we are going to talk about today. Let’s read

Ephesians 3:1–9 NLT

1 When I think of all this, I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus for the benefit of you Gentiles … 2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles. 3 As I briefly wrote earlier, God himself revealed his mysterious plan to me. 4 As you read what I have written, you will understand my insight into this plan regarding Christ. 5 God did not reveal it to previous generations, but now by his Spirit he has revealed it to his holy apostles and prophets. 6 And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus. 7 By God’s grace and mighty power, I have been given the privilege of serving him by spreading this Good News. 8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ. 9 I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning.

As the Apostle Paul starts this section, he begins with...

When I think of all this...

We have so much to be thankful for because of what Christ has done. In particular, for us today, because of what Jesus has done,

We have access to God…through Christ

Hebrews 4:15–16 NIV

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Because Jesus has torn down the wall of separation between Jews and Gentiles, we have access to God the Father, and much more than that

We become His children...

John 1:10–12 NASB95

10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,

I just want to take a quick pause and deal with a popular misconception.

We are all God’s children...

If this is true, Jesus wasted His time going to the cross. If it’s true that we are all God’s children and everybody goes to heaven, there would have been no reason for Jesus to be born of Mary when she was a virgin, suffer under Pontius Pilate, and die a criminal’s death on the cross.

Humans are

Created in the image of God...

Genesis 1:26–27 NLT

26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” 27 So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

When God made humans, He created us to be in fellowship, relationship, and constant continual communication with Him. All of this changed when sin entered the world.

Instead of having fellowship with God, sin brought shame, and with shame came distance between humans and God. Instead of being children of God, humans became spiritually dead and unable to break down the wall between us and God.

We are born in sin and shaped in iniquity, without hope and without God...

Ephesians 2:4–5 NLT

4 But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5 that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)

The transaction that changes everything for us is God’s grace that is available to each of us.

How can we access this grace?

By Faith!

We can’t buy it. We can’t earn it. We aren’t automatically born children of God...

John 1:12–13 NLT

12 But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. 13 They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.

Jesus used the word,

Born again...

For each of us, we have a birthday. When we’re young, we like people knowing how old we are. When we reach a certain age, we prefer that nobody knows how old we are. Then when we get much older, we like having birthdays because we are still here.

But at what point do we become born again?

Reborn...

I could be wrong, but I think it was Billy Graham that made this term popular.

This happens when we believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins. This is when we are brought from spiritual death to life.

Something that I find very sad, is that we can live our whole lives and not know that Jesus didn’t come to make us better people. He came to make spiritually dead people live.

Each one of us are born physically alive, but spiritually dead. Nobody is better than anybody else.

Ephesians 2:8–9 NIV

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

We can’t earn God’s grace, if we could, it wouldn’t be grace.

Romans 6:23 NIV

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Because of the gift of God,

We have been given a special responsibility...

to extend God’s grace to others.

Ephesians 3:2 NLT

2 assuming, by the way, that you know God gave me the special responsibility of extending his grace to you Gentiles.

Paul had a special responsibility to extend God’s grace to the Gentiles. He took it very seriously. In fact, he was even willing to risk life and limb to accomplish this.

Paul didn’t have the modern amenities of life that we have. If we look back at the last 150 years, we have technologically advanced more than everyone who lived before us. Yes, we build upon the achievements of all who have come before us, but let’s look at some of the technology, good or bad, that we have that Paul didn’t: planes, trains, and automobiles, TV’s, computers, internet, cell phones, tablets, and the list can go on and on.

Paul may have had a donkey, but he could sail from one place to another, or in many cases, he had two feet and a heart beat.

God gave him a special responsibility to share God’s grace to people that had never heard it.

What about us?

Pastor, I could never do that… I can’t talk. I’m too shy! People will never listen. I’m not smart enough. I don’t come from a respectable family. I’m not in the in crowd...

When we run out of excuses for why we can’t tell others about God’s grace,

Let’s look for reasons for why we can...

One reason we can’t is because we might be afraid.

2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV

7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

When we extend God’s grace to others, it includes our words, but it includes much more than our words, It includes

our actions and our attitudes

We can make bold claims with our tongues, but nothing speaks more clearly to someone that when we show love by what we do.

We can say to someone keep warm and well fed, but if we do nothing to ensure that this happens, what good is it?

God’s plan was hidden for generations...

Do you want to know what the mystery is?

Maybe you like suspense thrillers, cliff-hangers, God’s plan has been unveiled.

Ephesians 3:6 NLT

6 And this is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus.

Everybody who believes the Good News that Jesus has died for them, will inherit eternal life. This doesn’t mean that you pray a simple prayer and keep living just as you did.

You take on

Galatians 2:20 NIV

20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Maybe there are certain things that you have inherited: Family heirlooms, coin collections, something of your parents that meant a lot to you.

Here’s what we inherit in Christ,

1 Peter 1:3–9 NIV

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Because of the hope we have in Christ,

We are called to preach...

Colossians 4:5–6 NLT

5 Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.

Our words don’t mean very much if we are hypocrites. There is an old saying, “You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people, all of the time.

We have a call on our lives and that is to be holy.

1 Peter 1:16 NIV

16 for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

If we go back to Colossians 4, Paul is talking about the importance of how we live. Our speech carries a lot more weight if we walk the walk.

But when we speak, we are called to be full of grace… So often, we see others that are different than we are, and the temptation is to act like it, and yet God is calling us to love and compassion. We aren’t called to change peoples hearts, God can handle that Himself. God calls us to show others the grace that He has shown us.

Paul saw it as a privilege to share the gospel.

Ephesians 3:8 NLT

8 Though I am the least deserving of all God’s people, he graciously gave me the privilege of telling the Gentiles about the endless treasures available to them in Christ.

God wants to give you the privilege to share the treasures that you have received in Christ. Even though, because of His great love, we should feel obligated to tell others about Jesus, God has given us the privilege to do this.

Maybe you don’t feel like you deserve God’s grace, Maybe you feel unworthy to tell others of what God has done in your life.

He has made you worthy by the blood of Christ.

At singing group, some of us were talking about singing about the blood of Jesus.

How does this connect with someone who never grew up in the church. It sounds gruesome.

Phrases like”

Are you washed in the blood?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus...

It may seem grotesque, but if we remove the cross from our beliefs, we remove God’s ability to cleanse us from the penalty of sin.

1 Corinthians 1:23–24 NIV

23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

The price that Jesus paid for our sins, the things that we have done to displease God. It cost Jesus His very life.He died in our place. Jesus took the penalty for our sins so that we could be made right with God.

It seems gruesome, because it was. It’s foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is the power of God and the wisdom of God to those who believe.

Let’s take this message of hope wherever we go!

Let’s pray!