The Most Important Thing
WWDWWD • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 6 viewsNotes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Introduction
I did a poll on Facebook this week asking what is the most important function of the church. I basically listed the 5 functions of the church in the poll. All of them are important, but one, according to scripture is the most important. Here are the results of my Facebook poll.
Christians fellowship, praise and worship, Bible study, and ministry are all important, and we are commanded to do these things as a church. However, that is not our primary function as a church and as believers.
If we were saved for fellowship then we would be taken to Heaven where fellowship is perfect. If we were saved for praise and worship we would be taken to Heaven where praise and worship is unhindered and perfect. If we were saved for the sake of teaching and training and knowledge and wisdom we should be taken to Heaven where knowledge is perfect.
MacArthur, John. “Reaching the World.” Grace to You, January 14, 1990, https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/80-66/reaching-the-world.
Our primary function is found in .
16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated.
17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful.
18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
1. Our primary function as a church is to make disciples.
Our primary function as a church is to make disciples.
Our primary function, or job, is to make disciples. Yet, as our primary function, it is the one that most neglected.
In the 21st Century American Church, the Great Commission has become the Great Omission.
Let’s be honest. We do not like making disciples. If we offered evangelism training, it would not be well attended. If we ask our people to come and go out and make visits once a month. We might have two or three people show up.
We have bought in to the lie from Satan that we are not to hound people with the Gospel of Jesus.
It is a private matter and we don’t need to be pushy when it comes to the Gospel. We even have a hard time inviting people to church and Bible Study because we don’t want to be pushy.
Church, disciple making should be our top priority because it was Jesus’ top priority.
10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
If we were saved for fellowship then we would be taken to Heaven where fellowship is perfect. If we were saved for praise and worship we would be taken to Heaven where praise and worship is unhindered and perfect. If we were saved for the sake of teaching and training and knowledge and wisdom we should be taken to Heaven where knowledge is perfect. The reason we are left here is in order that we might make disciples of all the nations. That is our God given priority as a church.
MacArthur, John. “Reaching the World.” Grace to You, January 14, 1990, https://www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/80-66/reaching-the-world.
Based upon this passage as well , we are commanded to make disciples.
So the question is how? How do we accomplish this primary job as a church family and as individual members?
2. How do we accomplish our primary function?
A. Be Available. (vs. 16)
16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated.
Notice that Jesus said show up somewhere and that is where the disciples went.
For effective disciple-making to happen, God’s people have to show up to do the job.
The greatest ability of a disciple is to be available to Jesus!
We must be available to share the Gospel.
We must be available to learn how to share the Gospel.
We must be available to invite people to hear the Gospel.
We must be available to open our pocketbooks so that the Gospel can go forth to the uttermost parts of the world.
Just as the Prophet Isaiah answered God’s call, so should we have that same availability to do the most important job that we are called to do.
8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
Am I available to Jesus to fulfill His greatest mission, to make disciples?
B. Be a true worshiper. (vs. 17-18a)
B. Be a true worshiper. (vs. 17-18a)
17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful.
18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
Notice that there were those in this group of disciples who worshipped Jesus, and there were those who were doubtful.
Why were they doubtful?
Some suggest that they had not seen the resurrected Jesus, they just heard the stories from those who have seen Him.
This is their first glimpse of the resurrected Jesus. They had never seen a man who conquered death. That was their doubt.
Their doubt was erased by the words of Jesus.
Genuine worshipers acknowledge and have strong relationship with Jesus.
Genuine worshipers are consumed in all areas of their being by love for Jesus.
37 And He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
Making disciples is an outflow of genuine worship.
Am I a genuine worshiper of Jesus?
C. Have an attitude of submission. (vs. 18b)
18 “And when they had examined me, they were willing to release me because there was no ground for putting me to death.
18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
We who are Christians have a hard time giving Jesus His rightful position in our lives.
We do not submit our lives to Jesus being Lord of us.
We are ok with Him being Savior.
We are ok with Him being our Friend.
We are ok with Him helping us out.
We are not ok with Him being Lord.
You cannot be an effective disciple maker without you living a life of submission before Jesus.
Jesus says all authority has been given to me.
That means Jesus has authority to give us this greatest command.
He has authority because of His deity.
He has authority because of His death and resurrection.
Out of that authority, Jesus calls us to be about of His mission of saving mankind from the eternal consequences of their sin.
Am I submitting my life to the authority of Jesus?
D. Be obedient. (vs. 19-20a)
D. Be obedient. (vs. 19-20a)
19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
We are to be obedient to the command of the Great Commission.
Catch this, Jesus has the authority to command this obedience from us. He also gives us the power to be obedient to this vital command.
Verse 19 is a 3 part command .
It is a 3 part command.
It is a 3 part command.
Go
The greek word here gives a description that Disciple-Making is to be a part of our everyday life.
In other words, as we go about and live our daily lives, we are to be making disciples.
Baptize
Why Baptism?
Baptism is an act of obedience by the new disciple.
It is an obedient act of publically professing Jesus as Savior and Lord.
Teach
This is something that decades past we failed to do.
We were able to convert people to Christ. But we did not teach them to be disciples.
The disciple-making process involves teaching the new Christian how to be a strong disciple of Jesus, so that they can be obedient to the Great Commission.
Am I being obedient to Jesus by being a total disciple-maker?
E. Rely on Jesus’ power! (vs. 20b)
E. Rely on Jesus! (vs. 28b)
20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
Jesus promises to be with us through the Holy Spirit so that we can make disciples in His power not ours.
If we try to accomplish Jesus’ mission in our own power, we will fail.
If we try to accomplish anything that God calls us to do in our own power, we will fail in that as well.
Am I using the power of the Holy Spirit, given to me by Jesus, to make disciples of all nations?
Conclusion
Church it is time to make the Great Ommission the Great Commission again.