5th Saturday

The Gospel and the Extent of Grace Thereof

We all acknowledge that we have been given by God a Great Commission. We are to teach all nations, baptize, and disciple them to observe all that Christ has commanded and He will be with us unto the end of the world.

How are we doing on our mission? Successful...faithful... fruitful. It is a reasonable expectation that our ministries and churches are fruitful.

Prop. If we are faithful and not fruitful, why not?

If you were faithful to plant a garden every year and yet reaped no fruit would it be reasonable to be satisfied with faithfulness to keep planting?

There was a man in Oregon (Central Point) and when the church had dwindled down to just him, he still was faithful for years and would go sit in the building by himself every Sunday morning for an hour. He wouldn’t sell the building to us because we were Calvinists and ultimately sold it to the Lutherans. Not fruitful.

If you were faithful to plant a garden every year and yet reaped no fruit would it be reasonable to be satisfied with faithfulness to keep planting?

There are numerous answers to this question. I am going to attempt to tackle one.

A reasonable conclusion may be that you need to sow your seed somewhere else.

Let’s look at the confession for some insight.

The promise of Christ the means of calling the elect

A. importance of clarity of the gospel - “I have sometimes thought when I have heard addresses from some revival brethren who had kept on saying time after time, ‘Believe, believe, believe,’ that I should like to have known for myself what is was we were to believe in order to our salvation. There is, I fear a great deal of vagueness and crudeness about this matter.” Spurgeon

B.

C. The gospel is the lure.

1. We used to tell people who asked what we caught them on - Green frogs (with a straight face)

2. Put the gospel in front of their nose.

3. This excludes snagging!

4. Parable of the sower - but what if there is no seed being sown?

D. But our society says that the season is closed, no fishing. Like the sturgeon season open until 100 sturgeon are speared and then a horn sounds and it is done. Like Christmas and Easter season is open and then afterward, closed.

E. Some churches we would prefer that they not export the gospel

Easy to get discouraged with unfruitful evangelism - it would be different if we were fruitful - John the Baptist (who we aren’t) preached in the wilderness and multitudes came to hear him.

2. How shall they hear without a preacher?

Parable of the sower - but what if there is no seed being sown?

“God fits the man for the place and the place for the man; there is an hour for the voice and a voice for the hour” Spurgeon

Easy to get discouraged with unfruitful evangelism - it would be different if we were fruitful - John the Baptist (who we aren’t) preached in the wilderness and multitudes came to hear him.

3. God gives the increase to men or nations according to His sovereign pleasure - we are laborers together with God we are God’s husbandry.

Where is he giving the increase? Maybe we should sow there.

A. Harvest priority

Church is rapidly growing in the Southern Hemisphere for the first time in history.

Unreached people groups - that is worth exploring - not building on another man’s foundation - where Christ isn’t named.

I have looked into planting a church - Grayling - factory 1500 people - 3 Baptist churches

Disciples toiled all night - cast to the other side of the boat - “Lord of the Harvest”

B. WE CAN’T ALWAYS CATCH FISH WHERE WE WANT TO CATCH FISH!

We fish in Deadstream swamp - and it is as remote as it sounds - we like to fish there because nobody else is there.

Growing up we fished in a place where you had to drag your boat on the ice for a mile and when you hit open water jump in. And we were happy to do it because we caught fish and believe it or not there weren’t crowds.

We can be like kids at the Easter Egg hunt who can only find the eggs laying in the grass out in the open.

, He didn’t say go back and hit them again.

Examples: Wayne Camp, Cecil Fayard, Forrest Keener, Paul Brown, Tom Compere 75 men studying theology - reaped more fruit in weeks than years

If I commissioned you to drill oil, there is oil over there but that is work. I prefer to drill here but no oil yet.

Internationally being from America is our Jewish synagogue to gain audience.

C. Part of leadership or being a guide is putting people on fish in productive waters

D. Third world countries may have stony ground hearers but nice to have a change from wayside hearers

4. Requires the Spirit of God “without which no other...” there are no magic formulas.

Conclusion

In our efforts for fruitfulness - maybe look to sow somewhere else

Sow the right seed, with the sower, in the right place, with Holy Spirit increase

Fish with the right lure, with the right equipment, in the right place.

Suggestion consider that our commission is not just to Jerusalem.