4G - Go!

We Are All Witnesses

Intro -

Make sure to wrap up series with “g,g,g,g…ALL for the Glory of God.”

Make sure to wrap up series with “g,g,g,g…ALL for the Glory of God.”

We do these things, we gather for Him and each other, we grow in His faith, we give to Him and His service, and then we Go out into the world with Him and to Glorify Him!

But be sure of this one thing, church, we are going no matter what. We all leave this place and go into the world! The question for us today, and every day really, is that if we go, are we going into the world to glorify Him, or us?

Our vision statement speaks to that very idea. It says, “We go locally and globally to serve and share in the name of Jesus in order to show the greatness and saving power of Jesus.”

Understand, that no matter what, as we go, we all have to make the choice. We all have to decide if Christ’s command to us is the central call of our lives, or if the world’s call on us - those Gods that we often worship - money, technology, society - is too much to overcome.

We go for Him. We go to show the world what He is all about. But if we are to go, there is implied in that statement a choice. A moment when we have to decide whether we are going to go, and if so, for whose glory shall we go? Our, the worlds, or God’s?

So as we “go” - either from this place, or wherever we are - we all have to make a choice. We all have to decide if Christ’s command to us to go is the central call of our lives, or if the world’s call on us - those Gods that we often worship - money, technology, society - are those calls too much to overcome?

The Bible reminds us of that in the book of Joshua…[brief exegete…about to die…had gathered the leaders to give them advice and now was gathering all the people to lead them!]

Joshua 24:1–15 ESV

Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel. And they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. I gave him Isaac. And to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. And I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I did in the midst of it, and afterward I brought you out. “ ‘Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea. And the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. And when they cried to the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians and made the sea come upon them and cover them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. And you lived in the wilderness a long time. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan. They fought with you, and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land, and I destroyed them before you. Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel. And he sent and invited Balaam the son of Beor to curse you, but I would not listen to Balaam. Indeed, he blessed you. So I delivered you out of his hand. And you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, and the leaders of Jericho fought against you, and also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And I gave them into your hand. And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out before you, the two kings of the Amorites; it was not by your sword or by your bow. I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’ “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

Joshua 24:1–14 ESV

Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel. And they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Long ago, your fathers lived beyond the Euphrates, Terah, the father of Abraham and of Nahor; and they served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan, and made his offspring many. I gave him Isaac. And to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. And I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I did in the midst of it, and afterward I brought you out. “ ‘Then I brought your fathers out of Egypt, and you came to the sea. And the Egyptians pursued your fathers with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. And when they cried to the Lord, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians and made the sea come upon them and cover them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt. And you lived in the wilderness a long time. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan. They fought with you, and I gave them into your hand, and you took possession of their land, and I destroyed them before you. Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel. And he sent and invited Balaam the son of Beor to curse you, but I would not listen to Balaam. Indeed, he blessed you. So I delivered you out of his hand. And you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, and the leaders of Jericho fought against you, and also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And I gave them into your hand. And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out before you, the two kings of the Amorites; it was not by your sword or by your bow. I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’ “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.

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pray

[picaboutquestions]

While the question that Joshua asks in this text is “whom will you serve,” it is just as well served to ask other questions here. I say that, because the argument that is being posed by him is one of loyalty and faithfulness, not just a simple choice.

After all, that is likely why he lays out all that history! The God that gave the land to Abraham, and began the lineage of the people of God, the God that brought them to Egypt, and who brought them from bondage in Egypt! The God who delivered peoples into your hands! The God who brought you back over the Jordan and into your home! Joshua lays out the case for obedience, if not at least gratitude to the God who had delivered on all His promises.

So it isn’t just a simple choice. There is an implication here that the Jewish people, who had stopped living their lives for God - people who had become accustomed to a way of life that was far more comfortable than God had intended; a life, by the way, that is infinitely less comfortable than our own. There is an implication that they need to understand “why” they needed to choose more than “who” they needed to choose.

Joshua 24:13 ESV

I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities that you had not built, and you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards and olive orchards that you did not plant.’

After all, God has given you all that you see, so the choice to follow Him is clear! Listen, those people Joshua is speaking to have already made their choice! They are choosing to live on both sides of the fence, and if we are honest, we do that too! So really, they didn’t come there to make a choice, it has already been made! Now they have to understand it!

And so do we.

So Joshua helps us, as he did them. We all live on land on which we have not labored and cities that we have not built. We eat food that we didn’t plant. We live a life of blessing - one in which we sometimes offer up to all of our own hard work and effort. But this text reminds us that it isn’t ours! It was never ours!

Everything is God’s. So the choice isn’t who we serve, that is obvious! The questions that we need to look at are:

Why we serve, or go?

Where we go?

And, how we go?

Matthew 28:18–20 ESV

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.”

Matthew 28:18 ESV

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

So why do we go?

Matt 28:28-20

Well for one, we go because we were told to go!

During His time here on earth, there is much that Jesus told us to do. New ways to live, and to love. New ideas about all that God needs us to think about and to strive for. But standing in and amongst all of that are two moments: The greatest commandment - love God and love neighbor, and The great commission.

The moment we are given our marching orders.

Jesus looks at His people, those who claim to follow in His footsteps; not just those disciples, church, but you and me! He looks at us and reminds us that all authority is His. God speaks through the Son. As I say all the time, we must view everything through the lens of Jesus. So because Jesus has all authority we must listen and obey!

That is why we go! We go, because Jesus told us to go! We don’t go to look good in the eyes of our friends, or to garner the praise of men! We go because we have been commanded to go!

Every single one of us.

[picofpeopleincity]

I know that often we think that some are called to go and others to stay, right? How wrong we are. Wrong, not in the idea of calling - no some are in fact called to “go” further afield than others - but we are wrong in that we are all called to “go” every single day!

We “go” to the store. We “go” to work. We “go” out to eat. Every single day, we go somewhere! And as we go, church, if we are going under our own power and authority we will crash and burn eventually!

Someone will make us mad. Mistakes will be made. Troubles will come. And when it all happens, our strength and our witness about ourselves won’t be enough to overcome the tide of the trials of this life!

So we are going, but have we chosen to go with God?

Choose today, Joshua reminds us. Choose the Gods that we serve every day - our favorite shows, our social expectations, instagram feeds, those neighbors we are always trying to out do - choose them or choose to go for God.

Acts 1:8 ESV

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Not just for, either. Go with God.

You see, when you choose to go, you will recieve…[keep reading]

This little verse not only closes the door on why we go, church, it opens the doors on where we go. The second question that needs answering today.

I can’t tell you how many times I have heard arguments on both sides of the debate about where it is we are called to serve!

God calls us to serve here at home first. Some say. Others say that we should go out to those who haven’t had a chance to hear the Gospel yet. Still others take a moderate approach and say that there are some in our country who haven’t heard so we should start with them! As if the value of one person is more than the value of another because of their country.

We are all the same to God.

So whether you want to stay close or go far, God says, “Go!”

But as for Faith, and our vision, I offer this. I want us to be an church. A church that sees the value in being Christ’s witnesses here in Jerusalem - Burke county, our local area. We also see the needs that we can address regionally, in Judea and Samaria - for us this week that is the Southeast as we go to Kentucky. And not just locally and regionally, but internationally too! The very ends of the earth! Haiti and Mexico for us this year.

You see, we must honor all of God’s words here. There isn’t just one group that needs us! We are needed everywhere, and that starts where we are right now! It starts there, but church, it CANNOT stop there! We are called to keep going, to keep charging on, to keep God’s words and works alive throughout the whole earth!

So when we ask “where,” God only answers, “Yes!”

Everywhere. We are called to be His witnesses everywhere we go.

[lebronwitnesspic]

And not just witnesses to something either!

I think that we have watered down what being a witness means. We tend to think a witness just watches something. They see it happen. But the Biblical idea of witness isn’t someone who sees something, it is someone who does something!

So if we are living our lives in a Christ-like way, when we choose today to actually live for and with Christ, then we are a witness to the power of God in us! And when we don’t live our life having chosen to follow God we are a witness to the fact that we have chosen the world! If we choose today who to serve, no matter what our choice is we are all witnesses to that choice! And not only witnesses to that choice, church, our very lives will begin to reflect that choice no matter which way we choose.

[story about listening to sermon on last day riding bike at beach…bringing an aura, a peace, the Spirit with you]

If it is the world then....[expand]

Witnesses testify to what they have seen and what they know! And if we know God then we must testify to that fact! And if we don’t know and follow God, then we testify that as well, no matter what good face we try to put on it! And we don’t do that with our words! We do it with our very lives!

Joshua 24:21–24 ESV

And the people said to Joshua, “No, but we will serve the Lord.” Then Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord, to serve him.” And they said, “We are witnesses.” He said, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord, the God of Israel.” And the people said to Joshua, “The Lord our God we will serve, and his voice we will obey.”

And this isn’t something new! You see it here in our text...[talk about the text here briefly]

…but you see, just as we are witnesses to God’s glory and life, we are also witnesses to our own beliefs! If we choose to serve ourselves, our lives will witness to that fact! If we choose to give lip service to God and hold on to this life - never daring to “Go” into the world with the good news of God - then we will witness to that fact with every step of our lives whether we can see and understand it or not!

YOU SEE WE ARE ALL WITNESSES! WE ARE WITNESSES TO OUR CHOICE TO ANSWER GOD’S CALL ON OUR LIVES TO GO!

WE ARE WITNESSES AT HOME. WE ARE WITNESSES AT WORK. WE ARE WITNESSES ON THE ROAD AND IN STORES. EVERY PLACE WE GO, AND EVERYTHING WE DO - IT IS ALL DONE AS A WITNESS TO OUR CHOICE IN WHO WE ARE FOLLOWING!

[followingjesus]

You must make a choice church! And you must choose today! Choose whether you will follow the “gods” of this world - money, power, social standing, keeping up with the Jones’ - all those things that appear to bring happiness and contentment, but only lead us further from God when they become the sole focus of our lives! Choose whether you follow those things, of the God that created those things! The God that created you!

Choose today, church, whether you are going to follow the God who called you to go into your neighborhood, your town, your country - even to the ends of the earth - as a witness to His glory and power, or whether you are going to pretend that this life is all about what you are capable of!

Matthew 6:24 ESV

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

You have to choose, because God is clear. You can’t serve both.

Either God is your God or your stuff is your God. You have to choose. But understand that your life will serve as a witness to your choice - even if it seems like you haven’t chosen anything.

You see, this isn’t a choice that needs to be audibilized. This isn’t something that you can give lip service to. This is a choice that lies at the very core of our being.

Joshua 24:22–24 ESV

Then Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord, to serve him.” And they said, “We are witnesses.” He said, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord, the God of Israel.” And the people said to Joshua, “The Lord our God we will serve, and his voice we will obey.”

Joshua 24:22-2

The God who called you to “go” demands so much more than just a superficial choice. He demands that we put away all those other things. The stuff that causes us to stumble and to choose the world instead of Him. The stuff that stands in our way of knowing and loving God and neighbor. To stop “going” for it, and to “go” out into the world a witness to God’s glory and power - one that will guide the world back to Him.

That is what we are about church. We gather for Him. We grow in Him. We give to Him. And we go with Him.

And we do all of that, church, for His glory alone.

That is what we are about.

So as we go today, church. I want you to take to heart the words of this song. You see, our lives are a tiny spark. But we are the spark the will light the flame, that will set this world on fire for God! And once we light that flame in our hearts, we are called to then go out and light this whole world! To “go” in such a way as to witness to the unbelievable love of God for this world. A love that will bring everyone to God.

So take that flame - that candle if you will - and go light this world by your witness to God’s power.

[invitaiton]