Untitled Sermon (5)

WHEN I THINK OF LEGACY…My mind goes back to one of my favorite Southern Miss gameday traditions…It was called the Eagle Walk.

(There are other versions…The Dog Walk through the Junction…The walk Ole Miss players take through the Grove…)

But at USM Eagle Walk is unique. When USM went to expand the stadium to add an upper deck, they had to build it over a road on campus. So literally, there is a road under the upper deck of the stadium that you can drive through at any point…its called Eagle Walk avenue. Every year the incoming Freshmen class have a huge event where they paint the street Gold.

Above the street are all these banners of Southern Miss greats. Brett Favre, Ray Guy, Reggie Collier…and on and on the list goes...

Prior to every game, the team would line up and walk down this street—thousands of fans would be lined up all the way down the road…the band would be lined up all the way down playing the fight song…and you would walk under the banners of all the Southern Miss legends...

It instilled a since of Pride and Legacy every week.

You knew that the game that you were about to play wasnt just about scoring more points than the other team, it was about honoring the legacy of those players that had gone before you to build a tradition.

AND THIS IS WHAT LEGACY SUNDAY IS ALL ABOUT…But not just for the stake of nostalgia…but for the sake of reminding ourselves what our mission is here at Heucks Retreat Baptist Church

So if you will turn in your Bible to Acts 1:6-11

The best way to honor the legacy that we have been given here at HRBC is to commit ourselves to accomplishing the same mission that this church has been aiming to accomplish since 1903—To make the name of Jesus known in ever corner of the world where He isnt—starting right here in Brookhaven—and extending to the ends of the earth.

This morning my goal is to spend some time reminding ourselves of the mission that we are called to accomplish…

Acts 1:6–11 ESV

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 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.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

In acts 1:6-11—we find four truths that help us understand the mission that we have been called to accomplish…

1) What our mission is

The mission that we have been given is to be Jesus’ witnesses…Look at verse 8...

Acts 1:8 ESV

8 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.”

The word witness is the same word that we get the word Martyr from...

The word literally means “a person who gives a testimony...”

When we think of the word witness in our culture we think of someone who swears under oath in a courtroom to offer their testimony of some event...

And this is exactly what Jesus calls us to do…He tells us that we are to be his witnesses...

What does it mean to be a witness?…it means to tell other people about who Jesus is, and what he came to do.

It means that we give testimony about how Jesus has changed our lives...

THIS IS WHERE PEOPLE START SQUIRMING… “You mean I actually have to talk to people about Jesus?” —> Yes…that is what it means…but it isnt just talking…Actions matter as well.

To be a witness we must do it in WORD and DEED....

Meaning our lives need to tell the same story that our mouths do...

We must walk like Jesus walked AND talk like Jesus talked...

So Christian—heres a question—have you been obediently following Jesus to be his witness? When people look at your life…can they tell that you follow Jesus? And…are you telling people about Jesus when the opportunity arises?

I would dare say that no one in here has arrived yet...

2) How we accomplish the mission

The power to fulfill God’s mission…to witness to the world has been given to us by God...

Acts 1:8 ESV

8 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.”

The purpose of the Spirit coming was to empower the disciples to make the name of Jesus known.

The spirit coming and indwelling believers was not just to help us in our fight against indwelling sin…

God has given us His spirit church to fulfill the Great Commission…to make disciples…to be Jesus’ witnesses to the ends of the earth...

This means that we dont have to rely on our techniques…it means that we should just do our part…and trust that God’s spirit will work through us...

So just go for it…

3) Where we go

Acts 1:8 CSB

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

Jesus tells us WHERE we go…to accomplish the mission...

Jerusalem—our homebase---This is Brookhaven...

When Jesus calls us to witness…he doesnt first call us to go overseas…he calls us to tell other people about Jesus right here in our own backyard...

This is where we struggle the most.

Matter of fact…I just want to be honest with you…This is where we need to work the hardest church...

During the interview process with the pastor search committee this summer....I asked the committee what the greatest area of weakness was in our church family…without question…every person on the committee agreed that the area where we needed to improve the most was in the area of local missions and outreach.

Church…there are people right here in Brookhaven, MS that need Jesus…and God has called us to meet that need. We have to make it our aim…everyday…to tell others about Jesus. ETERNITY IS ON THE LINE FOR PEOPLE…HEAVEN AND HELL LIE IN THE BALANCE…BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY…THE GLORY OF GOD IS AT STAKE...

IF WE WANT TO HONOR THE LEGACY OF OUR CHURCH…WE WILL DO IT ONLY WHEN WE GET SERIOUS ABOUT REACHING OUR NEIGHBORS RIGHT HERE...

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Judea…this would be like the state of MS…or people that we are pretty comfortable with reaching.

—Samaria--

Samaritans were hated by Jewish people...

Samaria was to be avoided at all costs

In the Mishnah…Jewish people were taught that they could treat Samaritans like dogs...

They were half-breads…

4) When to do it

The time to accomplish this mission is right now...

Acts 1:9–11 ESV

9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

After the accension…the disciples are all standing around staring up into the sky...

So God sends an angel to get them going...

The angels appear…and the say, “Men of Galilee, why are you just standing here…Jesus is gonna come back down from heaven just like he went up…So get to work!”

We have one just to do…to tell people in Brookhaven, in Mississippi, America, and to the ends of the earth about the good news that Jesus saves sinners.

We dont have time to waste...

Jesus is coming back soon. And our job brothers and sisters is to be about our Fathers buisness...

We must witness…we must testify…eternity is a stake...

Christian…like it or not…when Jesus saved you…He called you onto the mission field...

Your mission field may not be Egypt…it might be Enterprise...

It might be Botswana…or it might be Brookhaven...

But you are called to live on mission…telling people about the good news of Jesus in word and deed…so lets get after it.

What might God do if we started obediently living intentionally everyday telling others about Jesus?

So I want to give us 3 Next steps that will hopefully help us

Pray—Not every Christian is capable of going overseas…or even called to go overseas to share the gospel…but every Christian is capable and called to pray for the advancement of the Gospel.

Samuel Chadwich once said:

“Satan dreads nothing but prayer. His one concern is to keep the saints from praying. He fears nothing from prayerless studies, prayerless work, prayerless religion. He laughs at our toil, he mocks our wisdom, but he trembles when we pray.”

Give— One of the ways that we can participate in missions is to give.

God doesnt need our money to fulfill his mission…but we get to participate in His mission through supporting missionaries on the field financially.

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