PEOPLE MATTER

PEOPLE MATTER Matthew 18:12-14 May 7, 2006 Given by: Pastor Rich Bersett [Index of Past Messages] Introduction For two weeks now we’ve had this child standing in our midst. Jesus invited him to come forward so He could use him as an illustration. I want you to think of him still standing there as we consider the next couple verses in Matthew 18. So far Jesus has taught two major lessons using the child as an exhibit: First, He said in verse 4, if you want to be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven you have to humble yourself like a child and practice the kind of simple, honest, uncomplicated faith that comes so naturally to children. Secondly, He taught in verse 5 that anyone who welcomes children like this one welcomes Him—Jesus. Conversely, if anyone causes such a child to sin or lose faith, he faces a very unpleasant judgment from God. Then in verse 10, He goes even further, insisting that no one should even look down on one of these little ones. That is, to give little or no consideration to the little ones is to dishonor God the Father, who thinks so much of them. Their angels in heaven are continually in the presence of God. But it isn’t just little people who matter to God. Everyone matters to God! That is a most amazing truth, isn’t it? The great writer, G.K. Chesterton, put it this way: All men matter. You matter. I matter. It’s the hardest thing in theology to believe. Please understand this morning that as a human being created by God in His image and likeness, given the awesome position of caretaker and steward of all the rest of creation, made a little lower than the angels, you are very special and important to God! Don’t let the liars tell you you’re dust in the wind, just a drop of water in an endless stream, a mere cog in the wheel of a meaningless universe, dumb-luck descendants of apes and amoebas. You matter. God the Creator and ruler of the universe deliberately placed you at the top of the so-called food chain. He declared in no uncertain terms that men and women are the princes and princesses of His created order—co-regents with Him. You matter, because you matter to God. He created you from nothing, He redeemed you from sinfulness; He wrested you from the powers of darkness, bled and died for your salvation, and now He calls you His children. The Text This brings us to the parable Jesus taught in verses 12-14. It’s a simple story to illustrate the extreme value of people in God’s estimation. What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? Not many of us, if any at all, know much about shepherds and sheep the Palestinian Jews to whom Jesus was speaking certainly did. Shepherds knew their sheep well. It was not inconceivable that a shepherd could know every one of a flock of one hundred sheep. When even one sheep went missing the shepherd noticed. The shepherd was also painfully aware of the dangers a lost sheep would face. Separated from the flock and the shepherd’s protection for just one night would virtually assure that the sheep would be dead by morning light. It was perfectly natural for the caring shepherd to corral the 99 on the hill and leave them to find the lost sheep. And if he finds it, I tell you the truth, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. All of the hundred sheep were loved by the shepherd. But we’re left with the definite impression that what made this one sheep special to the shepherd was it’s “lostness”; it was not a “favorite” of the shepherd or really any more valuable than the other sheep. Any lost sheep would command the same search and rescue response from the shepherd. It is when one of the flock is endangered or hurting that it is singled out for special attention. I would venture to say that every teenager in the metro-east is as precious and valuable to the community as the next teenager. Bt last week an awful lot of attention was given to 17-year old Ashley Reeves. Why? Because she is better or more lovable than other girls her age? No, because she was missing; because when she was found we learned she was the victim of a horrible crime. So it is that Larry the Lost Lamb gets all the attention while the other 99 are momentarily upstaged. There is a message here. Those who are in need command the attention of the shepherd. Those who are in danger of destruction, or, according to Luke, those who are lost and as yet unrepentant. But the story isn’t really about shepherds and sheep, is it? Verse 14 crystallizes the point for us. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should be lost. One more time—who are the “little ones” in the context of Matthew 18? Verses 1-5 tell us they are the little children. Verses 6-9 indicate they are those who are young or new in their faith in Christ. And now in the parable it is clear that Jesus moves to a broader application of the term “little ones.” The term now applies to lost people or wayward people. The category of “little ones” is expanding exponentially. Now look again at verse 14 and you’ll see an even broader application of “little ones.” The language of verse 14 is remarkably similar to that of 2 Peter 3:9 where we are told God is not wanting any one to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. There it is! God’s desire is that everyone would be rescued from their impending destruction. We’re all God’s beloved, wayward sheep! 1 Peter 2 says we all were like sheep going astray. The only distinction that remains in the parable is that the 99 are safe and unworried about. If you are a Christian—you trust in Christ for your salvation—you are among the safe flock. The lost sheep represents individuals who have been part of the flock, but are wandering. There is no commentary here on whether the wandering sheep represents saved people who are backsliding but are still saved—in which case, where is the danger, really? Or if they have really “left” the flock and returned to a genuine lost state, or if the lost sheep somehow represents lost people who were never really were part of the flock. In any case, we’re left wondering why he’s wandering! One thing is clear. The shepherd, who most definitely is a picture of God, loves the sheep and is concerned about the danger it is in. So He seeks the sheep in order to save it from impending destruction. Jesus said, The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost. (Luke 19:10) That same verse should appear here in Matthew 18:11—in case you were wondering where verse 11 went. You might find it hiding in a parenthesis or footnote, because that line is not found in some of the earliest manuscripts of Matthew’s gospel. God, like the shepherd, out of love and concern for lost ones seeks and saves them. . .“if he should happen to find” the sheep—that’s how the subjunctive mood of the verb in verse 13 should be translated. This parable is so realistic! Not every lost sheep gets saved, even though the Good Shepherd lovingly pursues them. Many remain unsaved by the shepherd because they continue to run and to stiff arm Him. As far as the Good Shepherd is concerned, He is not willing that any of the little ones should be lost. The Parable’s Meaning and Application Why did Jesus tell this parable? To emphasize the two points He has been making: one, God holds little ones in high esteem, values them greatly and deeply desires them to be safe within His fold. Two, if God esteems and values little ones, we as children already safe in His fold ought to value them in similar fashion. Again, whom does He love and desire to save? Little ones, from children to wet-behind-the-ears disciples to the wayward and lost to actually everyone. God lovingly pursues sinful human beings who have spurned Him, rebelled against Him and run from Him all their lives. To the stubborn, resistant and obstinate He holds out His open hand, inviting any who will to respond and be saved. Listen church, if we love the Lord, we will love the people He loves. If we want to please the Lord we will want to reach out to those to whom He reaches out. I have four exhortations. 1. The Church Must Prioritize People We are not about programs or policies or property, we are about people—seeking them, teaching them, ministering to them, praying for them, loving them—all with a view to getting them into God’s fold through Christ. I want us all to go to heaven, but we must not go alone. What we cannot do, what we must not do is to get so focused on peripheries as a church that we forget or subordinate our main purpose—to be a winsome light to people who are in darkness. In the closing chapter of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn, Huck and his friend Tom Sawyer are hatching a plot to liberate old Jim, a runaway slave whom Tom's uncle has imprisoned in a cabin. Tom's imagination runs riot as he makes a long list of all the equipment that they will need for the elaborate rescue operation. It will be comparable to some of the great escapes in history, he speculates. It could take years and years, perhaps even a lifetime to carry through. Meanwhile, what about poor old Jim, chained to his bed in the dark lonely cabin, without food and drink? He seems to be forgotten. He is only a prop in the drama. The rescue operation itself has become more important than the person to be rescued. We cannot be so pre-occupied with details that we forget what we’re here for. The problem is, lost people don’t know how to find God and the saved are so busy planning and playing and procrastinating they forget to look for them. If we are to be the church that the Good Shepherd wants us to be, we will have to prioritize people. 2. Use Relationships to Build Bridges of Witness to People One thing is for sure—if we are to be serious about the mission that consumes God we must get serious about befriending lost people. If the only people you ever talk to are Christians, and the same is true of them, tell me who is going to talk to the unsaved? You don’t know any non-Christians? Get out there and meet some! Spread a little salt and light around! It’s true, if you’re a Christian just a few short years, all your unsaved friends have peeled away and all your friends are now believers. What are you going to do? Wage war against that tendency! Take a few chances. Introduce yourself to a few people. What are you afraid of—that someone isn’t going to like you? What’s more important to a child of God: an opportunity to influence a lost person for Christ or the fear of rejection? A missing hell and going to heaven or your fear of a bruised ego? Imagine walking through heaven and bumping into old friends and having them say to you, “Thanks for taking the time with me. Thanks for telling me about Jesus. If it hadn’t been for you I don’t think I’d be here!” Now, imagine walking through heaven and meeting no old friends. 3. Make it a Continual Habit to Invite People to Meetings When’s the last time you invited someone to attend on Sunday morning with you? Why? “I’m afraid they won’t like it!” “I mean I like the worship and Word—it’s helpful for me, but I just can’t see my friend getting anything out of it.” How dare we limit the Spirit and the Word of God! You don’t think God can touch the human heart through the teaching of God’s Word empowered by His divine Spirit? Home Depot is a huge company, and one of their strongest emphases with their employees is to cultivate relationships. They deliberately do not number their aisles, so no employee could ever just say, “Screwdrivers? Aisle 4”. Their employees are told to personally take you to where you need to go. Tell me, does anyone in your life owe you a word of thanks for personally taking them to worship or Life Group? And what about when they do come? 4. Love Visitors Intentionally There are a few things that will disillusion invitees to meetings. Not being warmly greeted is one of them. You as a part of MECF should never, ever see a visitor to Celebration and say to yourself, “Someone else will take care of them—I’m busy talking to my friends here.” No! It doesn’t cost you anything to walk over, smile in Jesus’ name and welcome someone. It may be the thing that persuades them to come back again—maybe hear the gospel a second time and respond in faith. And that is triply important when it comes to Life Group meetings. What a golden opportunity to visit meaningfully with a new acquaintance—maybe form a lifelong friendship! We’ve come full circle. The point of our passage in Matthew 18 is to love people like God loves them. If you will love others you must take risks. C. S. Lewis said To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one. Wrap it carefully with hobbies and little luxuries. Lock it up safe in the casket of your selfishness. But in the casket it will change. It will not be broken. It will become unbreakable, impenetrable and irredeemable. The only place outside of heaven where you can be perfectly safe from the dangers of love is hell. Who are the ones we are called to extend risky love to? The “Little Ones” – the children God allows into our lives. Some time ago I read a touching story. A reporter was covering that conflict in the middle of Sarajevo, and he saw a little girl shot by a sniper. The reporter threw down his pad and pencil, and stopped being a reporter for a few minutes. He rushed to the man who was holding the child, and helped them both into his car. As the reporter stepped on the accelerator, racing to the hospital, the man holding the bleeding child said, "Hurry, my friend, my child is still alive." A moment or two later, "Hurry, my friend, my child is still breathing." A moment later, "Hurry, my friend, my child is still warm." Finally, "Hurry. Oh, God, my child is getting cold." When they got to the hospital, the little girl was dead. As the two men were in the lavatory, washing the blood off their hands and their clothes, the man turned to the reporter and said, "This is a terrible task for me. I must go tell her father that his child is dead. He will be heartbroken." The reporter was amazed. He looked at the grieving man and said, "I thought she was your child." The man looked back and said, "No, but aren't they all our children?"     [Back to Top]