What is your relationship to Jesus Christ? (Matthew 28:16-20)

What is your relationship to Jesus Christ? (Matthew 28:16-20) - Text about missions (Jesus' last words in Matthew --> importance of missions!) - Something more important: your relationship to Jesus! "I am with you!" (missions will cease) Living the Christian life: - Not first about going to church, reading Bible, living according to rules - A relationship with a Person: Jesus Christ, Son of God Life is made up of many relationships ... // ... but none as important as your relationship with Jesus. More important than your relationship to others: - Obey Jesus more than you obey your boss - Learn from Jesus more than you learn from your teacher - Enjoy spending time with Jesus more than your enjoy spending time with your friends - Honour Jesus more than you honour your parents - Care for Jesus more than you care for your children - Love Jesus more than you love your spouse A very personal question: What is your relationship to Jesus? (more important for you than missions) I. Have you met Jesus? (16) a. The disciples met Jesus i. An appointed time and an appointed place for the whole group ii. Earlier: very personal encounters with Jesus 1. When the disciples met Jesus, it changed their lives! a. Two fishermen named Simon and Andrew (brothers): i. Casting a net into the sea ii. "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." iii. Immediately they left their nets and followed him. --> more important than work b. Two fishermen named James and John (also brothers): i. Mending their nets with their father Zebedee ii. "He called them." iii. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. --> more important than family c. A tax collector named Matthew (or Levi) i. Sitting at the receipt of custom ii. "Follow me." iii. Leaving everything, he rose and followed him. --> more important than money and wealth "Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at table with them." (Luke 5:29) d. Bartholomew (or Nathanael) i. Possibly of noble birth (2 Sam. 3:3) ii. "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?" iii. "Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!" e. Have you had such an encounter with Jesus that changed your life? (not the case for everyone...) f. 12 "disciples" = followers, pupils, "learners" (actually 11) g. Traitor: Judas Iscariot i. Appeared to be following Jesus ii. Appeared to have a concern for the poor iii. Secretly a lover of money and a thief iv. Betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver v. "son of destruction", "a devil" h. Interested, but not committed: rich young ruler b. What is your relationship to Jesus Christ? i. Have you hand an encounter with Jesus that changed your life? ii. Have you repented of your sins and placed your faith in Christ? iii. Do you know Jesus as your Saviour, Lord, God, King, Shepherd, Friend? iv. Knowing Jesus in this way is a matter of life and death: !!! "And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life." (1 Jn 5:11-12) II. Are you worshiping Jesus? (17) "Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides for ever." (John Piper in "Let the Nations Be Glad) a. Idea: bowing down / falling on your face to show reverence and respect and honour i. Most German versions: "fell down before him" --> outward action ii. Most English versions: "worshiped" (Spanish: "adored") --> inward attitude b. Prerequisite: recognising someone's great worth and majesty - and holiness (you don't worship everyone or anyone...) c. The disciples worshiped Jesus i. Not only after resurrection: also after Jesus calms the storm (Matt. 14:33) ii. Some doubted (!) even after resurrection - but still worshiped Him - Word for "doubt" refers more to hesitation than disbelief a. Jesus' appearance: Is it really Him? b. What will He say or do to us? c. How should I behave? - We don't need to understand everything about Jesus/God in order to worship Him, indeed we will never understand Jesus/God completely ... but we can - and should - still worship Him d. The scribes and Pharisees i. Honoured God with their lips, but not with their hearts (Matt. 15:8) ii. You cannot honour God without honouring Jesus "Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him." (Jn. 5:23) e. And you? i. Worship = "ascribing worth" to something 1. Public and private 2. With your words a. In song (in church, in the car, in the shower...) b. In prayer (words to God) c. In words to other people: "God has been so good to me!" 3. With your behaviour a. Clapping your hands, kneeling in prayer... b. Paying attention to God's Word c. Sacrifices i. Tithes and offerings ii. Giving your time and energy for God's work (prayer) d. Being kind and loving to other people who are rude to you -> LIVING TO HONOUR CHRIST (show that He is worthy) III. Are you listening to Jesus? (18a) a. Jesus is speaking and wants to be heard! Who is listening to Him? b. The disciples listened to Jesus - spent three years living with Him Jesus = "the Word" (Jn. 1:1) Jesus: "The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life." (Jn. 6:63) - > It is important to listen to Jesus' words! Peter: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (Jn. 6:68) Jesus: "My sheep hear my voice ... " (Jn. 10:27) c. And you? --> Are you listening to Jesus in your life? i. Red letter Bible - Jesus speaks! ii. It is good to come to church and hear God's Word preached! iii. But do you also read God's Word on your own to hear what God has to say to you? iv. Listening also involves speaking, asking questions.... 1. Not just a prayer in the morning and that's it 2. Pray throughout the day (no matter what you are doing) a. "Thank you, God!" b. "I need courage - please help me!" c. "I need wisdom - please show me what I should do!" 3. If you continually pray to God, you will experience His help and hear his voice (not with words, but so that you understand and know what to do). IV. Are you trusting Jesus? (18b) a. Many times we might think: "I can't do that!" or "There is no hope now!" b. Jesus Christ has all authority/power! c. Daniel's vision: "I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed." (Dan. 7:13-14) d. Jesus is not just "your" Lord (or the Lord of all who have accepted Him as Lord) e. Over all people, creation, sin, illnesses, death, demons, Satan "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:9-11) f. Nothing can have greater power over you than Jesus! g. Does not mean that you will not experience difficulties in life - but Jesus is greater! Rom. 8:31-39: "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died- more than that, who was raised- who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. h. You will have difficulties in life, but you can trust and depend on Jesus in all circumstances! His authority is greater than what you may think or feel! V. Are you obeying Jesus? (19-20a) a. The disciples obeyed Jesus i. When Jesus called them and said "Follow me!" ii. When Jesus sent them out to the "lost sheep of the house of Israel" iii. When Jesus sent them out into all the world 1. Church tradition about disciples: Turkey, Greece, Italy, Egypt, Ethiopia, Persia, Russia, Armenia, India 2. Biblical record: Paul: Syria, Turkey, Greece, Italy 3. Many more missionaries in history iv. They obeyed even if it cost them their lives 1. Paul: "I am ready not only to be imprisoned but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." (Acts 21:13) - possibly beheaded under Nero 2. Others: drowned, hanged, killed with a spear, killed with arrows, flayed alive with knives, sawn in pieces, crucified (Peter: crucified upside down) "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." (Matt. 16:24-25) b. The Great Commission - for all tribes, languages, people groups i. Hudson Taylor: "The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed." ii. Jesus Christ, who has all authority, commands us to be involved in missions! iii. Every Christian can and must be involved in one way or another. iv. Not all can go as missionaries - many must stay to send and support missionaries. v. John Piper: "There are only three kinds of Christians when it comes to world missions: zealous goers, zealous senders, and disobedient." vi. What kind of a Christian are you? c. Jesus spoke on many more matters other than just missions! i. Intensification of the law (dealing not just with outward actions, but also with feelings) 1. Murder (already hatred/anger) 2. Adultery (already lust) ii. Our obedience to Jesus is an indicator of our relationship to Him: "And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him." (1 John 2:3-5) iii. Are you obeying His commandments? iv. First obey yourself, and then teach others to obey! "For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel." (Ezra 7:10) VI. Are you looking to Jesus? a. "Behold!" (KJV: lo) (NIV: surely) (NLT: be sure of this) --> command: see, look! b. Look where? To Jesus! i. Look away from other people to Jesus (message of John the Baptist): "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29) "Behold, the Lamb of God!" (John 1:36) ii. Look away from yourself to Jesus (attitude of John the Baptist): "He must increase, but I must decrease" (John 3:30) iii. Look away from your circumstances to Jesus (lesson of Peter and the waves) "But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me." Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" (Matt. 14:30-31) c. When? Always! "I am with you always, to the end of the age." d. Why? "Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other." (Isaiah 45:22) - This is how we got saved! Realising that we need God's help. - This does not change after we are saved. - All the ends of the earth must look to Jesus - including ourselves. Have you met Jesus? Are you worshiping, listening to, trusting, obeying and looking to Jesus? Jesus is the almighty Son of God, who loves you, holds your life in His hands and is the only Saviour. Your relationship with Jesus must be different - more important - than any other human relationship. If you know Jesus, then you will understand it is only your right response to worship Him, listen to Him, trust Him, obey Him and look to Him. When you look to Jesus, you seek to meet Him, you behold His beauty and worship Him, you watch His lips to receive instruction from Him, you show your trust in Him, and your dependence on Him, and as you do, you receive power to obey Him. --> Is this your relationship to Jesus?