Walk Like a Christian (Part 2)
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Introduction:
Introduction:
I want to welcome you again this morning.
First, to those joining us online, we are so thankful for our online technology that allows you to be a part of our church family today. I also want to welcome those who may be joining us for the first time today. I hope your time with us today is encouraging and helpful, and I look forward to meeting you.
I would also say if you are new to our church today, it would be helpful for you to know that we practice a form of preaching called “Expository Preaching”.
What that means, is we believe the Bible is best taught by taking books of the Bible and then breaking them down from beginning to end, chapter by chapter, verse by verse. Our goal, to better understand not only what God’s Word says, but what it means in our lives today.
Over the past couple of years we’ve been doing that through the NT book of Acts. A book written by a First Century disciple named Luke who wrote it for a couple of reasons:
First, to give us a history of how the church started, who was there, and the circumstances that surrounded it.
Second, in a way, to give us a template on how to accomplish the mission that Jesus gave us to take the gospel to the entire world.
With that said, if you haven’t been with us I would encourage you to go online to mcf.life or to our Facebook page where you can watch previous messages.
Today however we are picking back up in Acts 20 as the Apostle Paul continues his Spirit led journey towards Jerusalem. A journey that will eventually take him to Rome.
However, as we learned last week, along the way Paul is going to make a couple of pitstops. One of those pitstops is in the city of Miletus, a pitstop that Paul took advantage of in order to spend some time with a group of people he deeply cared for. Luke puts it like this:
17 Now from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him.
Luke says Paul sends word to the elders of the church in Ephesus that he is in Miletus and would like them to come see him.
Why does Paul want them to come see him? As we discussed last week, Paul wants to give them a final goodbye. A goodbye speech that will highlight in a way, the life of Paul.
The first part of the speech is what you might call a retrospect. In other words, it’s a review or recounting of Paul’s history with the church at Ephesus.
The second part is a prospect. In other words, its Paul’s prediction of what he believes is going to happen to him in the days to come.
The third part is a testament. In other words, its Pauls words of warning for the church in Ephesus and what to be aware of in the days to come.
And finally, it ends with a blessing as Paul prays for them, encourages them, and makes his final goodbye.
But not only is this a goodbye speech that highlights the life of Paul, as we learned last week, it’s meant to be a model as well. A model of faith based on the life of the Apostle Paul.
In other words, as Paul shares these words with the church at Ephesus, his hope is that they will be inspired to live their life in the same manner.
Now, does that mean Paul thinks he has it all together or that he’s some kind of perfect Christian?
Not at all. Actually what Paul is doing here was very common in the first century as leaders often encouraged their followers to emulate their life. In fact, this isn’t the first time Paul has encouraged this. Because he actually did it with the church in Corinth when he wrote this to them concerning their walk of faith. He writes in 1 Corinthians 11:
1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.
In this one statement Paul basically says, “If you want to know what following Jesus looks like, then watch me. Follow me. Live your life like I do.”
That’s quite a statement, right? But the truth is, if you and I are deeply committed to following Jesus, that is something we should be able to say. The question though is, “Are we that deeply committed?” And another question that goes with it is, “What does it take to walk at that level of commitment?”
That’s what we talked about last week, and that’s what we are going to continue to look at today. Because as I said last week, based on what Paul says in his opening comments to the Ephesian elders, there are at least three ways Paul walks in order to emulate a life worth following, and a life that will lead other people to Jesus.
We looked at the first way last week, and we stated it like this:
1. In order to reach people for Jesus, Paul walked sacrificially.
Luke writes:
18 And when they came to him, he said to them:
“You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, 19 serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews;
In his opening statement Paul reminds the Ephesians how he first came to them, and in doing so he points out three ways he walked sacrificially.
First, he walked in humility as he made others more significant than himself.
Second, he walked in empathy as he showed genuine care and concern for the need of others.
Third, he walked in hardship as he was willing to endure persecution in order to reach people for Jesus.
And what was true for Paul must be true for us. Because if we truly want to lead people to Jesus, we must walk sacrificially through our humility, our empathy for others, and our willingness to endure hardship.
So, if you missed last weeks message, I would encourage you to go online and check it out, because today we are going to move into the next way that Paul walked in order to reach people for Jesus.
That being said, before I introduce this next step in Paul’s model, I want to begin by asking you a question that I think will help us build some framework for where we are going this morning.
Question - How many of you would say that you appreciate it when somebody is direct and honest with you?
And what I mean by that, is that they don’t beat around the bush. They just tell you how it is like it or not.
Well, that probably depends on what it is, right? Because sometimes honesty can sting.
For example, maybe at some point you were dating someone and they just came out and said, “I know you really care about me, but I’m not in love with you and I don’t think we should see each other anymore.”
Ouch! That’s not fun, that stings, right?
Or maybe you were working hard on a project at work, but once completed, it didn’t meet your boss’s expectations, and so he gave you a harsh and critical review as he pointed out everything you didn’t do right.
Or maybe you applied for a job you really wanted, but when you called or filled out the application they said, “I’m sorry, but you don’t have the skills or qualifications for the job.”
Again, not a truth we probably want to hear.
But isn’t it true while direct honesty stings, sometimes it is helpful and beneficial to our lives?
For example, maybe you were getting ready to make an important decision, and then a friend stepped in and gave you their honest opinion. An opinion that was contrary to what you were planning to do. An opinion that put you on the defense, but after consideration, saved you from making a poor decision.
Anybody?
Or maybe you were living your life in a way that wasn’t helpful or healthy, and a friend who cared about you stepped in, confronted you, and helped you recognize the truth about your poor choices. A truth that stung at first, but eventually led you to a better way of living.
I think we’ve all experienced something like that in one form or another.
The reason I ask you to consider this question of direct honesty, is because as we come back to Acts 20 today, in order to reach people for Jesus, along with living sacrificially, according to Paul it also involves an aspect of direct honesty, and I would state it like this:
2. In order to lead people to Jesus, I have to be willing to tell people the truth.
Listen to how the Apostle Paul puts it as he details out how he approached ministry in Ephesus:
20 how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house,
Notice what Paul says. He says he declared to them what was profitable. So, what does that mean? It means as Paul communicated with them he declared the “whole purpose of God” to them.
In other words, Paul spoke truth to them concerning the God of the Bible. What truth?
Well, we don’t know exactly what He said to them. But we can speculate.
Because I’m sure he told them about God’s existence. That he was the God of creation. The God that created the heavens and the earth. The God that created them.
He told them that there was none like Him. That He alone is king of kings and Lord of Lords. That He is the first and the last. The alpha and the omega.
He told them about the fall of mankind. He told them about Adam and Eve’s disobedience. He told them how it separated them from God. And as a result, how it’s separated all of us from god, because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
He told them about the promises of God. That even though we had fallen from grace, even though we were lost in our sin, even though everything seemed hopeless, that God promised He would provide a way for us to be restored.
He told them about the love of God. How in His love for us He sent His Son to save us. That God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, Jesus, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
He told them about how Jesus lived, how He died, How He rose, and how He’s now seated at the right hand of God.
He told them about the hope we now have. That while the wages of sin is death, the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus.
He told them about the new life they could now have. That through faith in Jesus, they can be a new creation. That the old can be gone and the new can come. That by His stripes we can be healed.
He told them about the plans that God had for them. Plans for their good. Plans for welfare and not for evil, plans to give them a future and a hope.
Paul declared the “Whole Purpose of God” to them. He didn’t leave anything out. He declared the truth to them.
And the fact of the matter is, if we want to lead people to Jesus, we must be willing to do the same. Because the only way people are going to know Jesus is if people like Paul and people like you and me are willing to declare it to them. We have to be willing to declare what is profitable. We have to be willing to tell them the truth.
The question then is, how does a person do that? In other words, what does it take to declare the “Whole purpose of God” to someone? Because let’s just be honest, that sounds a little intimidating. That sounds like a person has to be really knowledgable. That sounds like a person has to know a lot about the Bible.
And while I don’t want to downplay the importance of education and a knowledge of the Bible, I believe God can use anybody to reach somebody for Jesus regardless of what their level of faith or understanding is.
Let me put it like this, “I don’t believe it takes a Bible Scholar to reach somebody for Jesus.”
So, what does it take?
I’d like to suggest it takes four witnessing realities:
#1 - In order to reach somebody for Jesus, It has to have been profitable for me first.
What I mean by that, is in order to reach somebody for Jesus, you have to be somebody who has experienced the whole counsel of God.
Somebody who has come to the end of themselves and understands their desperate need for a savior.
Somebody who has experienced the promises of God in their life.
Somebody who was lost, but is now found.
Somebody who was living in hopelessness but is now living in hope.
Somebody who was dead, but is now alive.
Somebody who was in bondage, but has now been set free.
You see, in order to share the “whole purpose of God”, you have to be somebody who has already experienced it.
Somebody who can say, “No, I don’t have it all figured out. Yes, I’m still learning. But here’s what I do know”:
I know before I met Jesus, my marriage was on the brink of divorce, but now my marriage has been restored.
I know before I met Jesus, I was lost in hopelessness and despair, but now I’m living in new hope.
I know before I met Jesus, I was lost in depression, but now I’m living with a new joy.
I know before I met Jesus, I was lost in addiction, but now I’m living in freedom.
I know before I met Jesus, I had no direction for my life, but now God is going before me.
I know before I met Jesus I was looking down, but now I’m looking up. Why? Because Jesus has raised me up and He’s given me new life, new hope, new direction, new perspective, new understanding, a new plan, a new purpose, a new way of living.
You see, the only way you can affectively lead somebody to Jesus is if we’ve already experienced what is profitable. If we’ve already encountered and experienced Jesus.
And what we need to understand is that conveying what Jesus has done in your life has nothing to do with how much Bible knowledge you have or don’t have. Because in that moment you are the testimony. You are the evidence. In that moment the whole purpose of God is being displayed in and through your life.
It’s exactly what happened John 9 right after Jesus healed a blind man. A man who didn’t have Bible knowledge. A man who didn’t even know who Jesus was. A man who when asked who healed him said this:
25 He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”
The man says, “Listen, I don’t have all the answers you’re looking for, I don’t know all the theology behind what just happened, I’m not even sure if he was Lutheran, Catholic, Presbyterian, or Methodist, but what I do know is before I met Jesus, I was blind, but now I can see.”
So, I don’t know what your Bible knowledge is or isn’t, what you know or don’t know about God, but here’s what I do know, that if you’ve had an encounter with Jesus, and you’ve experienced the miracle of salvation, then you have a “before, but now story”. A story of God’s amazing Grace in your life. A story of hope. A story of how God has radically transformed your life.
And regardless of what you know or don’t know in your journey of faith, that’s a powerful story that God can use to lead somebody to Jesus. Why? Because you’ve been transformed by the purposes of God in your life.
But, if you haven’t experienced Jesus in your life, then it’s going to be difficult, if not impossible to lead somebody to Him. It has to be profitable in your life first.
Which leads us to the next witnessing reality. Because not only do you have to have experienced it:
#2 - In order to reach somebody for Jesus, I can’t be afraid to share my faith.
Look again at what Paul says to the Ephesian elders. He says when I came to you...
“…I did not shrink back from declaring to you anything that was profitable...” Acts 20:20a
What I want you to notice is not only did Paul share what was profitable, but he didn’t shrink back from sharing it.
So, what does that mean?
First, it means that regardless if people were going to like what he said or not, Paul didn’t back down from telling them the truth. He didn’t shrink back from telling them what was profitable. In other words, Paul wasn’t afraid to step on toes.
He also wasn’t afraid of resistance. Even if that resistance led to hardship. Why? Because the message he had was too important to let personal hardship detour him.
Not only that, but it also means if people rejected Paul’s words, if people walked away, if people quit listening, Paul didn’t let that get him down. Paul didn’t give up. He didn’t shrink back.
All that to say, if want to lead people to Jesus, we can’t shrink back. We have to be willing to boldly declare the truth regardless of how people may or may not respond.
The question then is, “How do you share with that kind of boldness?”
I’d suggest the following:
In order to share with boldness, I have to be spiritually empowered.
This goes back to Acts 1 when Jesus told the disciples not to do anything until they had been empowered by the Holy Spirit. Why? Because when you tell people something they don’t want to hear or they don’t agree with, people are going to push back. And in that moment your’e going to need the empowerment of the Spirit to help you to not shrink back.
We see an example of this back in Acts 4 as the early believers faced threats and persecution for telling people the truth about Jesus. But in the midst of the threats, they didn’t cower down or shrink back. Instead, they stepped up with boldness. How were they able to do that? Luke says they prayed for something specific. Look at how Luke records it back in Acts 4:
29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, 30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
Luke says in order to declare the truth with boldness, the early Christians prayed for boldness. They prayed, “God give us the boldness when the enemy tries to push us back. God give us the boldness to not shrink back. God empower us to stand strong!”
And Luke says God responded to their prayer as he filled them and empowered them with the Holy Spirit so that they could continue to speak the word of God with boldness.
Can I just tell you church, if we want to declare the truth with boldness, we need that same empowerment. We need the Holy Spirit to equip us and empower us with a spirit of boldness. A spiritually empowered boldness that propels us forward and helps us continue to speak the word of God even when we meet resistance.
Church, that’s something we need to pray for. That’s something we can’t do without. The fact of the matter is, if we want to lead people to Jesus, we need a supernatural boldness that only the Holy Spirit can give us.
Not only that;
In order to share with boldness, I have to be confident in my faith.
Why is this important? It’s important because along with boldness, confidence is what helps us to stand firm.
So, what do we need to be confident in?
For starters, we need to be Confident that God is with us. Confident that He will protect us. Confident that God will be true to His Word. Confident that regardless of what happens, God has my back.
You might ask, “Pastor, how do I get that kind of confidence?” You get it from your relationship with Jesus.
You get it as day by day you see Him at work in your life.
As day by day He fulfills His promises in your life.
As day by day he continues to transform you more and more into His image.
Not only that, but you get that confidence as you look back at the “before, but now” changes in your life. Because the fact is, when you walk with Jesus, you are building:
A history of transformation.
A history of answered prayers.
A history of God’s provision in your life.
A history of healing.
A history of deliverance.
A history of God’s goodness at work in your life.
A history that gives you a confidence to not shrink back.
The fact is, some of you need to start walking in that confidence. Because when you tell somebody the truth about Jesus, and they reject or resist it, it’s that confidence that keeps you from getting down. It’s that confidence that keeps you from doubting your own faith. It’s that confidence that allows you to stand strong.
And I’m going to tell you right now, when you stand in that kind of confidence, people will take notice.
Again, we see an example of this in Acts 4 as Peter and John are threatened by the religious leaders and they’re told they need to stop proclaiming the name of Jesus. But instead of cowering down, Peter and John stood in confidence refusing to allow the words of the religious leaders to discourage them. And Luke says the religious leaders didn’t know what to think. Luke puts it like this:
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
Luke says the confidence and boldness of a couple nobodies like Peter and John astonished the religious leaders. Blew their minds.
And what we need to understand is the confidence that Peter and John had was a result of their history with Jesus. Because look at what Peter goes on to say:
19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”
What I want you to notice is that Peter and John’s confidence comes from what? From what they’ve seen and heard. In other words, it comes from their history and their experience with Jesus.
Because they’e seen a lot. They’ve seen people raised from the dead. They’ve seen the blind receive sight. They’ve seen storms calmed. They’ve seen the lame walk. They’ve seen thousands fed. They have a supernatural history with Jesus.
And what is true for them is true for us. If you’re a Christian, you have a history with Jesus. A history that can build your confidence as you share your faith with others. As you share the miracles that God has performed in your life.
But not only do you need to walk in spiritual empowerment and relational confidence:
In order to share with boldness, I have to be compassionate.
We know this was Paul’s approach based on what we learned last week as Paul shared his faith with humility, empathy, and a willingness to endure hardship.
And again, this has to be true for us as well. Because if we want to reach people for Jesus, we have to do it in a way that draws people in instead of pushing them away.
I love how the Apostle Peter describes this kind of approach. In 1 Peter 3:
15 but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, 16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
Peter says we should always be ready to make a defense for our faith. In other words, as we share our faith, and people ask why we believe what we believe, we need to be able to explain it and tell them why we have put our faith in Jesus.
But not only that, he says we need to do it with “gentleness and respect”. Which means we need to present it without harshness and with a level of respect.
Why do we need to present it that way? Peter says so that when we are slandered or ridiculed for what we believe, we’re not the one who ends up looking like the fool.
And I think this is a challenge for a lot of Christians. As in our desire to share our faith and stand for what we believe, instead of giving a defense, we end up getting defensive.
In other words, instead of calmly declaring what we believe, we get argumentative. Instead of respectively presenting the reason for our faith, we get in a war of words and insults on Facebook.
And as a result, we end up looking like fools. And not only that, we lose our ability to speak truth to that person.. Why? Because we let our emotions get the best of us.
All that to say, in order to declare the truth with boldness, we need spiritual empowerment, confidence in our faith, and a compassionate heart for others.
This now leads us to a third witnessing reality.
#3 - In order to reach somebody for Jesus, I must be willing to declare my faith publically.
Look at how Paul puts it in Acts 20:
“…I did not shrink back from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public...” Acts 20:a
Notice what Paul says. He says he shared his faith publically. In other words, he shared it in places where their weren’t any Christians.
Which means, he shared it when he went to Walmart.
He shared it when he was sitting at the ball game or wrestling match.
He share it at his workplace.
He share it at the dance recital.
Paul shared his faith publically.
And in my opinion, this is something I think a lot of Christians struggle to do. Why? Because the fact is, it takes a lot of guts to share your faith in a world that is in constant rebellion against God.
And I think that’s why a lot of Christians tend to shy away from talking about Jesus in the public arena. Why? Honestly because we’re either ashamed or afraid.
Ashamed in that we are worried we might be associated with a certain church or a certain way of believing.
Or afraid, because if people found out I was a Christian or that I go to that church, they might start treating me differently. They might not want to be my friend anymore. I might lose my social status.
And if that’s you, there are two major problems with that:
Problem #1 - If you’re ashamed of Jesus, Jesus is going to be ashamed of you.
Jesus puts it like this:
38 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”
Jesus says, if you’re ashamed of your faith, and your afraid to make it publically known, then He will be ashamed of you as well.
I don’t know about you, but I don’t want Jesus to be ashamed of me.
Problem #2 - If you’re afraid to share your faith publically, people aren’t going to get saved.
Paul puts it like this:
14 How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
Paul says if were afraid to share our faith publically, then how will people know about Jesus. I mean if we aren’t willing to tell them, then who will.
And what a tragedy that would be if somebody we worked with, somebody we sat at the ball game with, somebody we ran into at Walmart, never came to faith because we were afraid of what they might think.
It makes me think of a true story of two couples who hung out together. One couple were Christians who kept their faith hidden, and the other couple had never put their faith in Jesus.
But through a series of events, the couple who weren’t Christians attended a church and gave their life to Christ. They were so excited about their decision that they quickly called their friends over, who they didn’t know were Christians, and shared their faith with them. Much to their surprise though, after sharing their new found faith, their friends said, “That’s so awesome because we are Christians too”.
So, the newly saved couple said to them, “So, you are Christians but you never shared your faith with us? You never warned us about the consequences of not knowing Jesus? You never told us about the promises of God and the new life that God offers us? Why not?”
The other couple looked at them and said, “We were afraid of what you might think?”
Which to that the newly saved couple said, “So, you were ok with us dying in our sin? You were ok with us being eternally separated from God?”
And how tragic that would have been.
My point is this, if we want people to know Jesus, then we need to be willing to share our faith publically regardless of what it might to do our reputation or social status.
Now, you might say, “Pastor, what does that look like?”
It’s going to look different for all of us.
For example, for some it means looking for opportunities to give hope to people. For instance, you notice a co-worker is having a bad day, so you share some encouraging words and maybe share some scripture with them.
Or maybe you’re at a ball game, and somebody tells you their marriage is struggling, so you offer to pray for them. Or maybe their dealing with some sort of illness, so you pray with them and ask God to heal them. In public pastor? Yes, in public.
Or maybe somebody at Walmart shares how their struggling to find purpose, so you invite them to church and then share how Jesus has giving you hope and purpose.
And I think for some, it starts with Baptism as you publically declare your faith. Which we are going to do on March 7th.
Like I said, it’s going to look different for each of us. But I can promise you this, if you ask God to give you opportunities to share your faith publically, He will swing the door wide open, and you might be amazed at what He brings your way. And even more amazed at how He uses you to reach people for Him.
Bottom line, We have to be willing to share our faith publically.
This leads us to a final witnessing reality:
#4 - In order to reach people for Jesus, I must be committed to spiritual growth.
Paul goes on to say:
“…I did not shrink back from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house” Acts 20:20
Notice what Paul says. He says along with public teaching, he went from house to house.
So, what does that mean? It means Paul was committed to Christian fellowship and spiritual growth. How do we know that? We know that because it was Christians who were meeting in these homes. In Acts 2 Luke describes it like this:
46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,
Luke says the practice of the early church was to attend Church together on Sunday, and then throughout the week gather together for teaching and fellowship.
Why was this important? It was important because once you put your faith in Jesus you have to start growing in that faith. A growth that doesn’t take place in isolation, but takes place alongside other believers.
And this is why Connect Groups are so important here at MCF. You might ask, “What’s a Connect Group?”
A Connect Group is an opportunity outside of Sunday morning for you to meet with 6-12 other Christians in a small group setting, either in a home or here at the church. The goal, to grow in your relationship with Jesus as you fellowship with other believers and go through a curriculum together.
In your sermon notes you have a handout with information on how to sign up for a connect group. You’ll notice there are several different focuses, times to meet, and even an opportunity for you to sign up to a host a group.
In addition to that, we are offering in person and zoom groups.
Now, let me say this. While I think the zoom groups are necessary for some, I want to challenge most of you to join an in person group. Why? Because while zoom is great, it doesn’t compare to what in person fellowship provides. And the truth is, we can’t let fear keep us from growing in our faith.
That being said, you can be assured we are encouraging groups to practice precautions when it comes to Covid. And if you’re really concerned about that, maybe that’s even good reason for you to host one so you can determine those precautions.
So, if you’re interested in growing deeper in your faith, I want to challenge you to join a connect group this morning.
In addition to Connect Groups, we are also offering a couple of opportunities in March for you to grow with others. You[ll find those opportunities on the backside of your handout. One opportunity involves a parenting class and the other a class called “Grow” that will teach you to not only grow spiritually, but how to develop a spiritual growth plan for your life.
Both classes will meet beginning March 17th on Wednesday nights from 6:30-8 and childcare will be provided.
And our hope is, by joining a Connect Group or attending one of these classes, that you will grow in a way that not only benefits you, but also your ability to share what is profitable with others.
Because at the end of the day, that’s what Jesus has called us to do. That’s what Paul has modeled for us. To become Christians who are committed not only to our own growth, but the salvation and growth of others.
So, as the worship team comes, and as we close today, my question for you is simply this, “Are you committed to doing that?”
I guess it probably depends, right?
First, it depends on whether you’ve encountered or experienced Jesus. Because that’s where it starts. It starts with your own personal transformation as you commit to make Jesus Lord of your life. As you ask Him to be the Lord and Savior of your life.
So, let me ask this, “Have you done that? Have you made Jesus Lord in your life?”
Second, it depends on whether you’re committed to telling people the truth no matter what. Because I’m going to tell you right now, while it’s a life giving message, it’s an offensive message that a lot of people don’t want to hear. But you can’t let that detour you. Because the message you have is too important to hide. And what a tragedy it would be if you were to ashamed or afraid to share it.
So, are you committed to telling people the truth, even if it costs you?
Third, it depends on your commitment to go public. Your willingness to make it known through your actions, words, and behavior that you are a Christian.
So, are you willing to do that? Are you willing to share your witness at work, at the ball game, at the store, or wherever your day takes you?
How about this, for some of you who are knew to faith, are you ready to publically declare that through baptism. To make it publically know that you follow Jesus?
Finally, it depends on your willingness to grow deeper as you join with others in your journey of faith. As you join a connect group. As you come to First Wednesday prayer or join a class in March.
So, let me ask you, are you willing to do that? Are you willing to grow deeper?
My prayer this morning is that all of us would be willing to take it up a notch in 2021. To recognize the opportunity that God has given us, and to rise to the occasion as we work together to lead our community, our county, our region, our State, and our country to Jesus.
So, if that’s where your heart is, as we close in worship, my challenge to you is to simply confirm your commitment to Jesus today. To make Him Lord. To say to Jesus today “Yes I will”.
End in Prayer after song.