Mission Possible pt 15
Notes
Transcript
Our mission — your mission — should we choose to accept it....
Our mission — your mission — should we choose to accept it....
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Fulfilling the “Great Commission” requires that Christians bear “good fruit”, amen?
If we … as Christians… as “Kingdom Children”… as “Disciples of Christ”… are going to fulfill the Great Commission and bear “Good Fruit” in our lives… , then we must choose to walk the path of life.
Think about it…
We are called:
— “The Salt of the Earth”
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.
— “The Light of the World”
14 “You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid.
— “a Royal Priesthood”
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.
THEREFORE… (my favorite word in scripture!)
We must choose!
We must choose to walk the path of Life!
We cannot be the “salt of the earth” — bringing God’s seasoning of Hope, Peace, Love, and Joy to people’s lives …
We cannot be the “Light” in this dark world, if we do not choose to walk Christ’s path!
God’s Word tells us to “Be Holy because God is Holy”
16 for it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
We cannot “Be Holy”… we cannot “Be Salt”… we cannot “Be Light”… if we do not CHOOSE the path of life!
We need to understand that today…
Last week, Pastor Keven talked about being “all about the One”… We cannot be all about the one… if we are not all about The One!!!
We cannot fulfill our mission to carry the Gospel into “all the earth,” if we do not choose to walk the path of Life!
The truth is, we cannot “leave the 99 for the sake of the 1” — We cannot even BE about The ONE! — We cannot claim to be about the Kingdom… If we do not choose life!
Look at:
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot.
16 “No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lampstand, so that those who enter may see the light.
God has given us a seemingly impossible mission, amen?
How many of you think it is easy to share the gospel with complete strangers?
How many many of you think it is “Easy” to live as His Children… to live in Holiness?
To live free from sin?
Seems impossible at times, doesn’t it?
Remember… God is the God of impossibilities!
BUT… We cannot share His message… We cannot share the Gospel… We cannot live as His Children… if we do not choose His Life!
19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live,
20 loving the Lord your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him; for that means life to you and length of days, so that you may live in the land that the Lord swore to give to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.
Moses left no room for doubt… A choice must be made!
Life, or death?
24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
25 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.
or
26 “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.
We must make a choice! We cannot “sit on the fence”… and look for the “comfortable route”...
15 “I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot.
16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
Jesus calls us to make a choice!
13 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it.
14 For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
We only have two actual choices in life:
The way of the world, which leads to destruction.
Christ’s way, which leads to life!
The World’s way… the Wide Gate… is easy.
It requires nothing of us.
“There is plenty of room on it [the wide road] for diversity of opinion, and laxity of morals.” — John Stott
It is a road marked by superficial morals, selfishness, hypocrisy, religion, false ambition, censorship — it’s all about me… my feelings… my ideas… my beliefs… my desires…
It is a road of tolerance and permissiveness. (Stott)
That is why it is so easy to walk! The wide road requires nothing of us… it requires no change… no commitment… and has no strings attached!
BUT… it is a road that leads to destruction!
13 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it.
Let me tell you...
God’s people — God’s TRUE Children — have always been a minority in this world!
Here’s why…
14 For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
Why is it hard?
Because… It restricts us to what God reveals in His Word to be true and good.
It doesn’t allow us to walk outside of the revealed Word of God!
The Narrow Road says, “Nothing else matters… not political correctness… not political and social agendas… not “social justice”, as the world describes it… ONLY GOD’S WORD MATTERS!”
“We can walk on the broad way and keep our ‘baggage’ of sin and worldliness. But if we enter the narrow way, we must give up these things.” — Warren Weirsbe
This ain’t Burger King… You can’t have it “Your way, Right away!”
Yet, that is exactly what the world tells us Christianity is all about…
In His autobiography, C.S. Lewis tells of how at 13 years old, he began to “broaden his mind”…
Look at what he says:
“‘I was soon (in the famous words) altering “I believe” to “one does feel”. And oh, the relief of it!… From the tyrannous noon of revelation I passed into the cool evening twilight of Higher Thought, where there was nothing to be obeyed, and nothing to be believed except what was either comforting or exciting.’”
Sounds a whole lot like what many people in this world believe, doesn’t it?
Look at Weirsbe again:
“We can walk on the broad way and keep our ‘baggage’ of sin and worldliness. But if we enter the narrow way, we must give up these things.” — Warren Weirsbe
Let me tell you: The best things in life aren’t free… and aren’t easy!
God’s “revealed truth” imposes limitations on us… on what we MUST believe, and on HOW we MUST behave…
It is easy to walk the “wide road”… all we have to do is follow “worldly thinking”… and that requires very little of us.
But God calls us to a “New Life” … to a “New Path”… to a “New Way” of thinking and living…
2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Can I tell you this?
There are a lot of Christians in this world, who think they are on the “narrow path”… who believe that they have found the “narrow gate”… they will even tell you they have!
Yet, how they walk… what they teach… the attitudes they live by… convey a different truth…
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
16 You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?
17 In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20 Thus you will know them by their fruits.
You do realize that there can be “false teachers” in the Church, right?
In fact, Jesus’s words here tell us that is true… I don’t think even the people in Christ’s time would deny that, but…
Have you ever thought that Jesus might be challenging our own thinking?
Could this be a warning to be sure that the things we teach are not “false”?
So often, we can easily find ourselves teaching — or believing — what I call “grandma’s teaching” -- those things we have always heard or been told about scripture -- but how often does that not align itself with scriptural truth?!
One of my “pet-peeve” statements that has come out of Christians lately is this:
“The most Christ-like thing we can do is…”
Why?
Because what follows it is usually not biblical… In fact, it is usually not even the example Christ gave us!
But… people say that, because it is comfortable to think that way… It “tolerates” the ideas of the world, and allows us to “feel” relevant… to “feel” like we are bearing fruit!
Let me tell you: That is the way the Pharisees thought!
God calls us to leave everything behind — the sin… the selfish ambition… the covetousness… the comfort… even family and friends — and to enter into the narrow gate!
26 “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.
27 Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.
Let me ask you this:
“Did your profession of faith in Christ cost you anything?” (Weirsbe)
If not… it wasn’t a true profession of faith.
It sounds harsh, but it’s true… Putting your Faith in Christ is costly. It costs us the world!
There are many “Christians” — many people — who “trust” Jesus, who never leave the wide road.
“They have an easy Christianity that makes no demands of them” — Weirsbe
That is not what Christ called us to! Christ called us to Life! To action! To adventure! To purpose!
That kind of Christianity — the Christianity that demands nothing of us — leads to destruction! Not Life!
This is why Jesus tells us to:
24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able.
This is why the “Rich Young Ruler” went away sad… this is why he “missed out” on the promise… because the demands of the “narrow road” were to heavy!
We cannot have the world… and Jesus too!
Let me tell you… The world does not want us to walk the narrow road… It does not want us to find the narrow gate…
But Jesus does!
9 I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
(altar call, of sorts)
You can trust God… He will not deny you the gate.
11 For surely I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.