Matthew 9:35-38 - Reach People

We have had a great 2024 as a church.

We’ve grown and changed quite a bit

But when we start getting comfortable, then we start becoming complacent.

Going back to our church planting roots.

We wanted to start a church that people wanted to be at.

Where people feel like they miss out when they’re not here.

We started with a small get-together with our friends in our living room where we just started praying and dreaming.

One of our questions we asked Larry “How do we get leaders without purging them from other churches?”

Larry Riley: “The same thing Jesus did. You make them.”

We started revisiting the same restaurants, barbershop, building relationships and attempting to reach people in hopes to grow them in the faith.

We simply wanted our friends and family members to know Jesus and we wanted to keep making friends to introduce them to Jesus.

Jesus modeled this throughout the gospels as He called His disciples to follow Him 1-by-1.

This is what we’re all about. One more person.

What do we want to do in 2025?

Big Idea: Reach People

Stand to read

Matthew 9:35–38 ESV

35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Leader: This is God’s Word.

Everyone: Thanks be to God.

Context

Jesus’s public ministry was in full swing and His fame had been growing throughout the region, as word on His miracles were beginning to spread.

Jesus is modeling His mission—Reach people.

Jesus had been teaching and training His disciples to prepare them to be sent out on mission to proclaim the kingdom of God.

Matthew 9:35 ESV

35 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.

Jesus went to where the people were.

Big cities, small villages.

Jesus wasn’t looking for a class of people with status or report.

Jesus was looking for people who needed the good news that God’s Kingdom was coming.

He was looking for destitute, hopeless, empty people.

Leading up to this moment, He had healed people who couldn’t walk or see, those possessed by demons, and even raised the dead.

He’s not drawing people who think they have it together, but those who don’t.

This shows the motive for His mission.

The heart of Jesus’s mission is the core of His very heart—compassions.

Matthew 9:36 ESV

36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

They were harassed and helpless by the darkness in their lives.

They lived in sin.

There wasn’t a moment where they didn’t feel sin’s effect somewhere in their lives.

Gospel presentation

Tone 4

Perhaps you’re here and that’s your story now.

“I feel helpless. I feel there’s no hope for me. No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to get it together.”

Jesus looked at you with compassion.

You’re the kind of person He came for.

Jesus came to bring you hope of eternal life in Him.

He died on the cross so that you wouldn’t have to pay the penalty for your sins, which is eternity separated from God’s love.

Jesus’s died instead of you.

Then Jesus rose three days later so that you can be saved and raised with Him.

The Bible says that those who trust in Jesus for salvation will be forgiven of their sins and have a right relationship with God again.

If you’re not a Christian, what a greater way to start 2025 than surrendering your life to Jesus and being made new.

The gospel has the power to save the most unlikely of people.

Church, if you want to reach people,

We have to see people like Jesus sees them.

When Jesus saw people, He was driven to compassion.

He knew their pasts, their addictions, their sins.

Yet, His soul was stirred to compassion for them.

While we were at the Ronald McDonald house, I was in a very rough place.

I was angry because I didn’t want to be there and I had all these frustrations I felt like I couldn’t voice.

But then I looked around and saw all the other parents and their children.

One day there was a little boy named Marcus, who was nonverbal, but made clicking sounds when he wanted to communicate.

He also had this cool device where he could short hand write on it and it would translate it out loud for us to hear.

I talked with his mom and one of the frequent questions asked, “How long have you been here?”

They had been there off/on for 5 years.

This boy may have been 7.

After talking with Marcus’s mom, my attitude changed toward being at the Ronald McDonald house, because the people there were going through much worse than me.

Jesus changes the way we see people because we have to recognize that they are experiencing the brokenness of the world, many without the hope of Jesus.

It’s too common that we avoid people because we don’t understand them or think they’ll never change.

We need to see people like Jesus sees people—With compassion that drives us toward people.

Matthew 9:37 ESV

37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;

The harvest is plentiful

There are so many people in your life that feel hopeless, harassed, and helpless.

They don’t know the love of God.

They may say they believe in a higher power, but they don’t know the love of Christ that is found in Jesus.

The laborers are few

There are so many people who need the good news that there is hope for eternal life, and that are not that many people telling them!

Are you laboring for people?

Does it bother you that there may be people you know that would die and go to hell for eternity because they are lost without Jesus?

Do you feel compassion for people who do not hope in Christ?

Tone 6-7

Jesus draws them to this metaphor: “Look at all this work. This opportunity. These people!”

We need more people who love God’s Word and have been changed by the gospel to be bold enough to share their love for Jesus.

We need more people to lead and serve in the various roles of the church

Welcome team, set up team, Kid’s ministry, tech.

We need more people to invite the people in their lives to church.

Don’t you want to get in on this?

Jesus tells them that this requires an act of God!

Matthew 9:38 ESV

38 therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

We need more people to share the hope of Jesus, and we need God to send them and raise them up!

God do it here! Do it again! Do it now!

Tone 4-5 and Pause.

Church, if we’re going to reach people,

We have to pray.

If we’re are going to see a work of God in our community we need prayer and people.

We need the Spirit of God to move and we need more people to share the hope of Jesus to the lost and dying world.

We cannot do anything to move someone’s soul to God.

This is something we need God to do.

Jesus said that we are to pray earnestly. Pray like we actually need God to move.

Last night I was talking with Hilary outside of our bedroom, and Silas was in there and started saying “Dad. Dad. Dad.” What?! “Can you come here?” In a minute.”

“Dad. Dad. Dad.”

This is what it looks like to pray earnestly.

“God, please save my friend Jake.” God, move in His life. Draw Him to you. Help Him to see you. God, please show yourself to HIm.”

We need the Holy Spirit to awaken people and bring them to a saving knowledge of Him.

Prayer Prompts

Give me an awareness for people who don’t know Jesus

Pray for someone specifically that you know doesn’t truly know Jesus.

Help me to be a bold laborer for the Harvest

“Lord, raise up workers for the harvest…even me.”

We want God to use us to grow His kingdom.

This mean that each of us have a next step to take toward Jesus to share the gospel with the world.

Where to we begin?

Take the Next Step

Start a text

“I’m praying for you”/”How can I pray for you specifically?”

Pray to be used.

“God, give me the conversations. Give me the words.”

Make this a reoccurring habit.

Pray for wisdom, discernment.

Pray to be bothered by the condition of lost people you know and love.

I love that Bill identified that his next step was to encourage the church by simply doing announcements.

Commit to reach.