Sermon Tone Analysis

*Abounding In The Lord’s Work*

Matthew 9:35-38

October 26,2008

\\ This morning we’ll take a short diversion from our studies in John, but we can’t change everything can we?

Our diversion into the book of Matthew’s gospel still begins with some words of wisdom from Henry Blackaby.

This reading is from the September 5th in Experiencing God Day-by-Day.

It is entitled* “**Freely Give”*

You have received free of charge; give free of charge.

— Matthew 10:8b

There is no room for misers in God's kingdom.

When we begin to struggle in giving what we have to others, we have forgotten where we received our possessions.

Every good thing we have ever received has come from God (James 1:17).

All that we have acquired has been dependent upon His grace (1 Cor.

4:7).

Job accurately summarized our condition: “Naked I came from my mother's womb, And naked shall I return there.

The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21).

We easily assume a sense of ownership of our possessions, as if they were things we earned ourselves, thereby giving us a right to them.

Jesus reminds us to be prepared to give our possessions as freely and joyfully as we received them.

It should be a pleasure for us to give what we have to others (2 Cor.

9:7).

We ought to be a conduit through whom the Lord can pour His blessings, knowing we will disperse them to everyone around us.

Sometimes we claim we are trying to be good stewards of our resources when actually we are being selfish.

If you struggle to give freely to others, you have become more attached to the gift than to the Giver.

The account of the rich young ruler shows the tragedy of becoming too attached to worldly treasures (Luke 8:18–24).

Meditate on all that your Lord has given to you (John 3:16).

Resolve to express your gratitude to Him through your giving.

If you read my article in the Courier a couple of weeks ago, you may remember that I stated God’s goal for us is to conform us to the image of Christ (Rom 8:29)..

So Christ would be our example of the supreme giver.

And this morning’s passage in Matthew chapter 9 is such an example.

So, please turn to Matthew chapter 9 and follow along as I read verses 35 through 38: /"Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching and preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.

When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.

Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field’"/

 Here is one of the most characteristic things Jesus ever said.

When he and the orthodox religious leaders of his day looked on the crowd of ordinary men and women, they saw them in quite different ways.

The Pharisees saw the common people as chaff to be destroyed and burned up; Jesus saw them as a harvest to be reaped and to be saved.

The Pharisees in their pride looked for the destruction of sinners; Jesus in love abounding died for the salvation of sinners.

Before I continue talking about “Abounding” in the Lord’s work, let me define abounding as it is not a term often used today.

Abound is defined in the dictionary as “being plentiful; to be fully supplied.

“Fish abound in the sea”; “Saskatchewan abounds in resources.”

It is from the Latin root – abundare – that we get our word abundance.

\\ \\ But here also is one of the great Christian truths and one of the supreme Christian challenges.

That abundant harvest Jesus speaks of will never be reaped unless there are reapers to reap it.

It is one of the blazing truths of Christian faith and life that Jesus Christ needs us.

When he was upon this earth, his voice could reach so few.

He was never outside Palestine, and there was a world which was waiting.

He still wants men to hear the good news of the gospel, but they will never hear unless we will tell them.

He wants all people to hear the good news; but they will never hear it unless there are those who are prepared to cross the seas and the mountains and bring the good news to them.

Two Sundays ago I read you the newsletter we received from David and Vanessa Mehrer.

They’ve gone to the Ukraine to share the good news of Christ in a country which was long closed to missionaries.

But the harvest is white in the Ukraine and the doors are open.

How will they hear if people like David and Vanessa don’t go?

Romans 10:14-15 says: /How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed?

And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard?

And how shall they hear without a preacher?

And how shall they preach unless they are sent?

As it is written: "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!"

/Are you praying for those in the harvest field?

Nor is prayer enough.

A man might say, "I will pray for the coming of Christ's Kingdom every day."

But in this, as in so many things, prayer without works is dead.

(James 2:26) Martin Luther had a friend who felt about the Christian faith as he did.

The friend was also a monk.

They came to an agreement.

Luther would go down into the dust and heat of the battle for the Reformation in the world; the friend would stay in the monastery and uphold Luther's hands in prayer.

So they began that way.

Then, one night, the friend had a dream.

He saw a vast field of corn as big as the world; and one solitary man was seeking to reap it--an impossible and a heartbreaking task.

Then he caught a glimpse of the reaper's face; and the reaper was Martin Luther; and Luther's friend saw the truth in a flash.

"I must leave my prayers," he said, "and get to work."

And so he left his pious solitude, and went down to the world to labor in the harvest.

It is the dream of Christ that every man abound in the work of the Lord.

That means each of us should be a missionary and a reaper.

There are those who cannot do other than pray, for life has laid them helpless, and their prayers are indeed the strength of the laborers.

But that is not the way for most of us, for those of us who have strength of body and health of mind.

Not even the giving of our money is enough.

If the harvest of men is ever to be reaped, then every one of us must be a reaper, for there is someone whom each one of us could--and must--bring to God. /"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord"/ (1 Cor.

15:58).

The Lord cares deeply for people who are physically and spiritually needy, and He knows that many people are ready to respond to His love for them.

In order to reach these people with His love, the Lord desires that we join with Him in the work of His harvest field.

He calls us to /"go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you…"/ (Matt.

28:19-20).

Jesus Himself was (and is) devoted to such work.

He shared with His twelve disciples that His /"food...is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work" /(John 4:34).

He made this statement in the midst of ministry in Samaria, as He led a Samaritan woman and the people of her town to faith in God.

Indeed, the heart of His work was to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10), and to this end He preached, taught, healed, encouraged and met all sorts of spiritual and physical needs.

He /"did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many"/ (Matt.

20:28).

He lived and died to help others come to know God.

It is not surprising, therefore, that He draws our attention to the harvest and the work to be done.

We are His hands, His feet and His voice – His instruments to reach the lost and to build up the saved.

And the need for His work through us seems as urgent as ever.

Like many others, you may sense we are living in a most significant hour.

The world is changing, and troubles and pressures are mounting on more and more people.

There are growing indications that time is short, and as God’s people we must make the most of every opportunity.

Jesus’ statement recorded in John 4:35 seems as relevant as ever: /"Do you not say, ‘Four months more and then the harvest’?

I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields!

They are ripe for harvest.’"

/Statistically, people who are suffering dramatic changes in their lives are more receptive to the gospel than those who are comfortable and see no need for help.

But, truth be told, we all need help, don’t we?

Think of the people in your very own family who need the Lord, or think of those in your community, in your country, or in other nations.

And think of believers who are in need of encouragement and help that you can offer.

What would the Lord have you do today and in the days ahead to share His love with them, both in word and in deed?

And remember, a cup of cold water in His name (Matt 10:42; Mk 9:41) is a worthy show of His love.

Do that for your neighbor enough times and they will certainly want what you have that they don’t.