Ambassador to the World
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We have been talking about being a follower for the last 3 weeks. We learned that Followers fish. We also learned that we are ambassadors for the Lord.
I want to talk about being an Ambassador
2 CO
20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”
MY ROLE AS AN AMBASSADOR
YOUR ROLE AS AMBASSADOR
YOUR ROLE AS AMBASSADOR
1. I represent Jesus to the world.
1. I represent Jesus to the world.
1. _____________________________________________________________________
Difference between your career and your calling… job and your vocation.
You might work in sales, in service, in administration, in medicine, in management…
You might work at Taco Bell, but you are not called to TB
You might work at West Jeff or Ochsner, but you are not called to WJ
You may work in sales, but you are not called to sales
Vocation - latin voice - your voice is your calling.
ILL - lady one time said she was an ambassador for Jesus disguised as a basketball coach.
What’s your disguise? If you are a follower of Jesus, you are called to be an ambassador for Jesus. You might be disguised as a mom, as a nurse, as a truck driver, a plant worker, a salesman… whatever, but that’s not your calling. Your calling is to be an ambassador.
9 For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus.
9 For the law was not intended for people who do what is right. It is for people who are lawless and rebellious, who are ungodly and sinful, who consider nothing sacred and defile what is holy, who kill their father or mother or commit other murders.
screen only for all of this...
1 This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus. I have been sent out to tell others about the life he has promised through faith in Christ Jesus.
He called us to be His people
He called us to be His people
to be His people
2 Tim 1
7 I am writing to all of you in Rome who are loved by God and are called to be his own holy people.
May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
He called us to be his friends
He called us to be his friends
15 I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.
He called us to be Holy
He called us to be Holy
2 I am writing to God’s church in Corinth, to you who have been called by God to be his own holy people. He made you holy by means of Christ Jesus, just as he did for all people everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours.
He called us into fellowship with Jesus
He called us into fellowship with Jesus
9 God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
He called us to be an ambassador
He called us to be an ambassador
20 So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”
21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
He called us to live in peace
He called us to live in peace
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.
He called us to be like Jesus
He called us to be like Jesus
29 For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.
He called us to suffer for him for doing good
He called us to suffer for him for doing good
21 For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.
1 Pet 2
He called us to bless those who curse you
He called us to bless those who curse you
9 Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing.
He called us to eternal life
He called us to eternal life
12 Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses.
1 Tim 6:12
He called us to share in his glory
He called us to share in his glory
14 He called you to salvation when we told you the Good News; now you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
That’s your calling, not your career, but its your calling. We are representatives of Christ. We are ambassadors.
If you are going to be an ambassador for Jesus, it’s going to affect the way you live.
Phil 1:27
27 Only one thing concerns me: Be sure that you live in a way that brings honor to the Good News of Christ. Then whether I come and visit you or am away from you, I will hear that you are standing strong with one purpose, that you work together as one for the faith of the Good News,
“Be sure that you live in a way that brings honor to the Good News of Christ.”
Walk the walk. Don’t tell people you are a follower and then follow the devil everywhere.
Everyday when we get up we need to remember, we represent Jesus.
When pastor Kathy was young, her dad would send her to school and tell her, you are the only Jesus some of these kids will see.... lot of pressure, but true.
Remember we represent Jesus.
Eph
1 As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
(NCV)
If you name the name of Jesus, you are an ambassador and we are represent Jesus one way or the other. Paul said to live a life worthy of our calling.
2. I’ve been given a mission.
2. I’ve been given a mission.
“Live a life worthy of the calling you have received.” (NIV)
Ambassadors are sent on what’s called diplomatic missions. Embassies are called permanent missions. The ambassador is on a mission… to wherever.
18 In the same way that you gave me a mission in the world,
I give them a mission in the world.
We all have a mission. The moment we receive Jesus, He gives us a mission to be ambassadors for Him to the world.
When you are on a mission, you are not there to enjoy the scenery or to build a permanant house, etc. You are there to do a mission. Our soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq are not on a sightseeing tour, they are on a mission. They were sent by our country to do a job.
We have all been give a mission too. Of all the missions in the world, ti’s the most important because it involves people’s eternal destiny. People will only be here 70 to 100 years or so, but we will live somewhere for eternity… heaven or hell.
24 I don’t care about my own life. The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me—to tell people the Good News about God’s grace.
2. _____________________________________________________________________
Paul said the most important thing to him was to complete the mission God gave him. At the end of his life, he was able to say that he had completed his race… his mission. He did what God sent him to do.
Will you and I be able to say that?
when you stand before God, saying I didn’t know I had one will not fly. You do. You have a mission.
3. I have been given authority to speak.
3. I have been given authority to speak.
“I don't care about my own life. The most important thing is that I complete my mission, the work that the Lord Jesus gave me—to tell people the Good News about God's grace.”
The devil will try to make you thik you are not worthy or able to speak for Jesus. He will often time make you believe that you should not speak for Jesus.
Jesus not only has given you a mission, but He empowers you to to complete that mission.
(NCV)
Matt 28:18-
18 Jesus drew near and said to them, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, 20 and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And I will be with you always, to the end of the age.”
This is the Great Commission. It was not just given to pastors, evangelists, elders, missionaries, but to all of us. He has given us this commission to go and speak for him.
He also said that he has all authority and he is giving that to us to go out…
Ambassadors are given power to represent the government… our country.
Plenipotentiary is a diplomatic term that means full power.
During the Revolutionary War, John Adams and Benjamin Franklin were both plenipotentiaries to both France and to England; which means they were authorized by our young government to sign treaties without it even having to be approved by congress. That’s how much power they were given. They were saying we give you the authorization to make the offer on our behalf without having to check back with us.
Today, many countries call these people ministers… minister of state, war, commerce...
A minister is someone who has been authorized to act on behalf of someone else.
Here is the cool thing… you are a minister of Jesus, and you are authorized to speak to others for him. Every believer is a minister.
4. I serve in a foreign culture.
4. I serve in a foreign culture.
3. _____________________________________________________________________
If you are a Follower of Jesus, your home is not earth. This is where your mission is, but it’s not your home. Heaven is your home and your identity is in eternity. You will only be here on your mission field for a few years, but you will spend eternity in heaven of you are a follower of Jesus.
Our ambassador to Israel doesn’t live in USA, they live in Israel… they don’t get to live in their home country while there are on their mission… nether do we. During the cold war, our ambassadors lived in communist countries who were our enemies and who were tyring to bring our country down. An ambassador not only lives in a foreign country, but in a foreign culture, a hostile culture...
You and I are ambassadors for Jesus and this world is not our home… we are just passing through.
1 peter
17 So if you call God your Father, live your time as temporary residents on earth in fear. He is the God who judges all people by what they have done, and he doesn’t play favorites.
Peter is saying don’t get comfortable here in this world… it’s only temporary. You are an ambassador and you are just passing through. During this time, we are to represnet the Lord to others.
19 They are headed for destruction. Their god is their appetite, they brag about shameful things, and they think only about this life here on earth. 20 But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.
Phil
4. _____________________________________________________________________
Someone onetime said, Christians ought to carry green cards because we are from a foreign place… heaven.
So, What am I supposed to do here on earth? Why does Jesus leave us here after we are saved? To be an Ambassador.
He leaves you here to tell somebody else. You’re going to heaven because someone told you. Have you been an ambassador to someone else?
As an Ambassador you have three responsibilities...
“If you call God your Father, live your time as temporary residents on earth…”
YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
(GW)
1. Live as an example.
1. Live as an example.
The very first thing God wants you to do when trying to help other people is to be a good example of his character qualities - love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, kindness, meekness, self control.
1 Peter
12 People who do not believe are living all around you and might say that you are doing wrong. Live such good lives that they will see the good things you do and will give glory to God on the day when Christ comes again.
“… all that other people think about is life here on earth. But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives.” (NLT)
Pete is saying we are to live the life so people will recognize that we have been with Jesus. As ambassadors, we are to set a good example.
ILL- The Ambassador to Argentina had been an ambassador to several different countries in his lifetime, stationed at different missions. Someone asked him, what it was like to be an ambassador… “What is the most difficult part of being an ambassador?”
He said, “The fact is you’re never off duty. You’re always being watched. Everywhere I go people look at me and for many people I’m the only American they know. So they look at me. If I had an eight-hour job I could go home at night. But if after work I go out to a restaurant, people are watching me.… Isn’t that the ambassador of the United States? And they see if I’m cranky to the waitress. If I’m an ugly American and I’m demanding and I’m grouchy, or if I’m egotistical or act like a prima donna… we’re always on. We’re always being watched. We’re always representing our country.”
That’s how we need to live our lives. We are always being watched by someone. You may be the only Christians someone knows or will see.
My dad with the Indian guy who came to his funeral
We need to act in a way that honors God… greet people, smile at people, be nice to people, wave at people… We are Ambassadors and we are always being watched.
How well does your life represent Jesus? Can people tell from your example what God is like? Would they say, that person has been with Jesus? Jesus must be nice because that person is nice. Jesus must be generous because that person is generous. Jesus must be patient because that person is nice. Jesus must be … because that person is.
What does your life say to the people around you about the Lord?
MY RESPONSIBILITIES
2. Share the message.
2. Share the message.
God has given you and I a message to give to others. In politics, Ambassadors are sent to negotiate peace… to sign a treaty and make peace. We are sent to help people make peace with God.
17 Anyone who is joined to Christ is a new being; the old is gone, the new has come. 18 All this is done by God, who through Christ changed us from enemies into his friends and gave us the task of making others his friends also. 19 Our message is that God was making the whole human race his friends through Christ. God did not keep an account of their sins, and he has given us the message which tells how he makes them his friends.
1. _____________________________________________________________________
2 CO
First part of the message - Jesus offers everyone a new life. We become new people. We are regenerated, not rehabilitated. We are born again and we have a new life. If you ever wished you could start over… you can.
Second - Jesus ends our war with God. Did you know you are at war with God until you make peace with him? The war takes place in our Soul where we struggle to see if God will be Lord or we will be Lord. Am I going to run my life or am I going to allow God to run my life.
Third - God wipes out all of our sin and forgives us.
2 CO 5:19-
19 God was in Christ, making peace between the world and himself. In Christ, God did not hold the world guilty of its sins. And he gave us this message of peace. 20 So we have been sent to speak for Christ. It is as if God is calling to you through us. We speak for Christ when we beg you to be at peace with God. 21 Christ had no sin, but God made him become sin so that in Christ we could become right with God.
1 We are workers together with God, so we beg you: Do not let the grace that you received from God be for nothing.
“People who do not believe are living all around you and might say you are doing wrong. So live such good lives that they will see the good things you do and will give glory to God…” (NCV)
We share the message, and we are authorized to close the salvation deal.
Set Example… Share the message...
3. We must show love.
3. We must show love.
2. _____________________________________________________________________
Because we are Ambassadors, we must show love to everyone, even when they seem unlovable and different from us. In case you are wondering why we have to show love to everyone, it’s because God show love to everyone.
Love your FRAN
We show love to others by meeting their needs.
We show love to others by meeting their needs.
When you use your life to meet the needs of other people in a practical way whether it’s taking them a meal or helping them with a project or offering them a ride or praying for them, or picking up something at the grocery or helping them with a plan or a deal. Every time you do practical help to somebody else, you serve others, you’re ministering to them, you’re showing love to meet their needs. This is what an ambassador does
ILL - one of our attenders saw someone shopping and saw that they did not have enough to buy what they needed and got them a gift card for the grocery so they could get their groceries.
8 We loved you so much that we shared with you not only God’s Good News but our own lives, too.
“Anyone who is joined to Christ becomes a new person; the old is gone… All this is done by God, who through Christ changed us from enemies into his friends and gave us the task of making others his friends also. Our message is that God was making all human beings his friends through Christ. God did not
1 thess
Fuel the Future -
We show love by giving respect to everyone.
We show love by giving respect to everyone.
As ambassadors of Jesus, we can’t be disrespectful to anyone. Why? Because Jesus values everyone. It doesn’t matter who they are, what they have done or not done, who they have done it to, they are created in the image of God.
17 Treat everyone you meet with dignity. Love your spiritual family. Revere God. Respect the government.
We have to show love to everyone. We have to respect the government, even if we did not vote for them.
As ambassadors, we are to be diplomatic, not dogmatic. Ambassadors do everything with love. We love because Jesus loved us.
We show love by building bridges.
We show love by building bridges.
Ambassadors build bridges, not tear them down.
message which tells how he makes them his friends.” (TEV)
15 But have reverence for Christ in your hearts, and honour him as Lord. Be ready at all times to answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you, 16 but do it with gentleness and respect. Keep your conscience clear, so that when you are insulted, those who speak evil of your good conduct as followers of Christ will be ashamed of what they say.
We show love by building bridges.
We show love by building bridges.
Ambassadors don’t tear down bridges, we build them by finding common ground with people. It’s not always easy, but it’s possible and it’s profitable to find common ground with those we are talking to so they can come to know Jesus.
“God was in Christ, making peace between the world and himself. In Christ, God did not hold the world guilty of its sins. And he gave us this message of peace. So we have been sent to speak for Christ. It is as if God is calling to you through us. We speak for Christ when we beg you to be at peace with God. Christ had no sin, but God made him become sin so that in Christ we could become right with God. We are workers together with God.”
1 CO
22 When I am with those whose consciences bother them easily, I don’t act as though I know it all and don’t say they are foolish; the result is that they are willing to let me help them. Yes, whatever a person is like, I try to find common ground with him so that he will let me tell him about Christ and let Christ save him. 23 I do this to get the Gospel to them and also for the blessing I myself receive when I see them come to Christ.
My goal and your goal as an ambassador of Jesus is that we build a bridge of respect and love to everybody so that Jesus Christ can walk across
YOUR REWARD
YOUR REWARD
(NCV)
:
23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for human beings. 24 Remember that the Lord will give you as a reward what he has kept for his people. For Christ is the real Master you serve.
23 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for human beings. 24 Remember that the Lord will give you as a reward what he has kept for his people. For Christ is the real Master you serve.
3. _____________________________________________________________________
Whatever you do, do it with all your heart… taco bell, gardening, making million dollar deals…
You don’t have to like your boss. You don’t work for them anyway, you work for Jesus. You want to please the Lord with your work.
I said last week that everyone is on a spiritual journey… looking for something to fill the God shaped hole in their lives. We were created for relationship with God… to live an abundant life eternally.
When we die, we will not be leaving home, we will be going home. Until then, let’s represent well.
FRAN
· _____________________________________________________
“We loved you so much that we gave you not only God's Good News but our own lives, too.” (NLT)
· _____________________________________________________
“Be ready at all times to answer anyone who asks you to explain the hope you have in you, but do it with gentleness and respect.” (TEV)
_____________________________________________________
“Whatever a person is like, I try to find common ground with him so that he will let me tell him about Christ and let Christ save him. I do this to get the Good News to them and also for the blessing I myself receive when I see them come to Christ.” (LB)
MY REWARD
“Whatever you do, always work at it with all your heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people. Remember that the Lord will give you as a reward the inheritance he has kept for his people. For Christ is the real Master you serve!” (TEV)