Gospel Partners

(I believe the outline and much of the sermonic material for this message came from Dr. James Merritt. Gratitude is thus given to Dr. Merritt, a great preaching mentor for many, including myself.)

1. There was a church secretary who took a most unusual phone call. The caller asked if he could speak to "the Head Hog." Well, she quickly defended the dignity of her pastor, and with an irate tone said, "I want you to know that our pastor is held in the very highest esteem around here, and we address him as Rev. H. C. Herald. Currently Rev. Herald is not available to speak with you."

2. The man then responded, "Well, I am sorry. I just learned about our new building program and my CPA recommended that I donate $1 million to provide a good tax shelter for me." The secretary quickly responded, "Wait just a minute, I believe I see the fat pig coming down the hall right now."

3. Influence is a marvelous thing. Dale Carnegie wrote a best-selling book, in fact, one of the best-selling books of all time, and it was titled How to Win Friends and Influence People. Now the truth is, every single person has influence over somebody. The question is not whether or not you are going to be a person of influence; the question is, How many people do you intend to influence, and how broad do you want your influence to be?

4. I want to tell you today how you can broaden your influence and have an impact across this nation and around this world, in places you will never go, and on people you will never meet. It is by becoming a partner in the gospel. I am preaching today from the book of Philippians, chapter 1.

5. Let me give you the background of the passage we're going to study today. Paul had decided to make the world his parish. After he met the Lord Jesus Christ, he took three missionary journeys, going to regions of the world that had never heard the gospel, and preaching the Lord Jesus and planting churches.

6. On his second missionary journey he went to a city called Philippi. There he planted a church. After he left this city, the people there did something very unusual. They kept up with Paul for ten years. One full decade they would follow him and find him, and they would send him encouraging letters and financial support for his ministry.

7. It has been eleven years since Paul was in Philippi. Now he is in Rome under house arrest. The Philippians have sent Epaphroditus, one of their members, to Rome which was a 700 mile trip that took several months, with some encouraging notes and a financial gift for this sainted apostle.

8. Paul is excited. Paul is humbled. Paul is grateful for their tremendous prayer and love and support, and out of that excited gratitude he writes this letter to them. In essence, Philippians is a thank you note for their involvement in his life.

9. He begins this letter by thanking God for them, and in the midst of this opening greeting he makes a tremendous statement:

Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. 4 I always pray for you, and I make my requests with a heart full of joy 5 because you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now. (vv.3-5) NLT

Now there's a phrase I want you to underscore in v.5, which is “my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ” some of your bibles have “fellowship in the gospel." The New International Version translates this verse this way: "Because of your partnership in the gospel." The Amplified Version says, "I thank [my God] for your fellowship—your sympathetic cooperation and contributions and partnership—in advancing the Good News (the gospel)…"

10. Paul was excited about the principle of partnership. That word partnership is the Greek word koinonia which means "close fellowship. Paul was excited because he was not in the battle alone. Others had joined with him. He was saying in effect, "I thank God that we have been preaching the gospel together."

11. He goes on to say in v.7, "Just as it is right for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart, inasmuch as both in my chains and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, you are all partakers with me of grace."

He calls them "partakers with me of grace." That is, he was saying to them, the grace of God I have received, you have been a part of; the grace of God that I have given away, you have also been a part of. There is a principle that the Philippians learned that I want you to learn, and that is, you can stay right here in Icard, NC, you can stay right where you are in your home, never walk out of your house, never pull out of your driveway, and yet you can have an impact all over this country and in other parts of the world. You can have an influence on people you will never ever meet, and in places you will never ever go.

12. In order to show you how important this is, think about this. For most of us in this building, after our grandchildren, or particularly our great grandchildren are born, it will be as if we never even lived on this planet. If I were to ask most of you in this building who were your great grandparents, you couldn't tell us. You don't even know what they looked like. There is no emotional tie to them whatsoever.

13. I have a grandfather who was a half-breed Cherokee Indian. But I don't even know what he looked like, or even his name. I know he died in an automobile accident in Mississippi and that he was an alcoholic. I have no emotional tie to him at all. Of course I don’t have a clue who his father was.

14. The only thing that can live on long after you and I are gone, is our influence. That is all. Nothing else will live on. Your picture will not hang on the wall of your great grandchildren, or their children, or their grandchildren. But memory, impact, and influence can live on long after we're gone.

15. But that leads me to the key point of what I want you to hear today, and that is this: Our influence, after we leave this earth, depends on our investment while on this earth. There are two things we can invest in that can make an eternal difference. One is our family, and the other is the kingdom of God.

16. Now the great thing about influence is this: Influence has nothing to do with your ability, nothing to do with your intelligence, nothing to do with your skills or your aptitude. You may right now be one of those people who are trapped working in a job you don't even like. Well, did you know you can still have an impact for the kingdom of God that will last long after you're gone.

17. The fact is, everyone has an opportunity to be a partner in a ministry greater than they are; that can impact people they will never know, and go to places they will never see. With every opportunity comes a responsibility. You not only have an opportunity to be a partner in the gospel, you have a responsibility.

18. Let me ask you this pointed question. Who in heaven you have never met, will be grateful for the part that you played in their life, and in their coming to know Jesus Christ?

19. God does not have favorites. But He does have intimates. These are people who walk with Him, and work for Him in spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ.

20. Now you are either a partner or a watcher. What is the difference? Partners share in victories, watchers only see victories.

21. I've got great news for all of you. If you are a child you can be a partner in the gospel. If you are a teenager you can be a partner in the gospel. If you are a senior adult you can be a partner in the gospel. One of the ways you can be a partner right here in this church is through the ministry of T-Net International.

v T-Net International is an independent Christian organization devoted to training churches to obey the last command of our Lord Jesus Christ, “to make disciples.” Our purpose statement says we are “returning the church to its disciple making roots, worldwide.

v I say “our” because God has not only called our church to T-Net’s purpose, to be a disciple making church, but He has also called me to join the T-Net staff and thus be a trainer and consultant to churches across this country and around the world. In one sense of the word, if you are a member of this church, you are a partner in the gospel of Jesus Christ, along with T-Net.

v Most of you know that I returned from our bi-annual T-Net Board and Staff meeting in Dallas, Texas just a week ago. I am so very excited over our new Vision Plan to reach our world with the gospel of Jesus Christ, but more than that, to make disciples of every nation. I would love to share that with you but our President Bob Gilliam has asked that I refrain a few weeks. He wants that privilege when he comes to our church next month.

v Remember I told you that one way you can be a gospel partner is by joining me in the disciple making ministry of T-Net. Let me share with you just a few of the things God is doing through the ministry of T-Net.

1. We are working with churches from Monks Corner, SC to Toronto, Canada. We have recently started International Training Centers in Kazakhstan, India, and Bangalore.

2. We have plans to begin additional International Centers in 2001 in the Countries of Ghana, West Africa, Tibet, Romania, Trinidad and the Philippines. We are also working to get into Hong Kong.

3. In the past year we have increased the number of churches being trained as disciple making churches from 68 to 313. In the coming year, we expect to more than double this number. In the next fifteen years we are believing God for 67,000 trained disciple making churches in the U.S., over two million pastors trained Internationally.

Let me make even more personal than that. And this is how you can really become a gospel partner with us. On February 23 – March 4, 2001, four members of FBI, including myself, hope to be a part of the Ghana, West Africa T-Net Training Center. Listen to this, while we are there, we will will be a part of the training of 80 Ghana Pastors who in turn will train 10 additional Pastors and their churches each. In so doing, we will impact 880 churches across Ghana and approximately 160,000 church members in Ghana, West Africa. I think that is a phenomenal opportunity for the Kingdom of God!

One last thing, please be in prayer as we are nearing the date set for our first Icard T-Net Center, September 6 – 9, of this year. That’s only a few weeks away. We need immediate gospel partners who might volunteer in some way on one or more of those days.

One thing I do believe with all of my heart is this: God has His hand on this ministry, and I believe it's so for these reasons: We share the gospel without compromise; we minister with integrity; and the bottom line for us is not just the bottom line. The bottom line for us is more than reaching souls for Christ, but total obedience to the Great Commission Commandment, “to make disciples of every nation.”

23. Now how can you be a partner in this ministry, and why should you be a partner? Well, let me answer the how first. There are two things you can do for this ministry, and I put them in order. Number one, you can pray. Whether you ever give any money to this ministry or not, there is no reason why you would not want to pray for God to bless this wonderful ministry. Incidentally, if you say I'll either pray or give, keep your money, send the prayer. Prayer can do things that only God can do, and God can do anything. God will provide the money, but we need to provide the prayer.

24. Secondly, of course, you can give. You can give financially and be a financial partner in this ministry with T-Net. That means every life that is touched, every marriage that is healed, every soul that is saved, every adulterer, alcoholic, homosexual, or drug addict that is delivered, you will have had a part as a partner in that ministry.

25. Now why should you do it? Well, let me give you three reasons:

1. Jesus is the only Master that can take a person to heaven.

2. The gospel is the only message that carries with it the hope of salvation.

3. Disciple Making is the only ministry that can have an eternal impact. That is exactly what T-Net is all about.

26. What is true for the world is true for those of you here right now. Jesus is the only Master that can allow you to go to heaven. The Gospel, which is that Jesus died, He was buried, and He was raised from the dead for our justification, is the only message of hope that can give you eternal life. Disciple Making is the only ministry that we can carry out that will bring souls into the kingdom of God and have an eternal impact. So I want to ask you today, would you be a partner in the gospel of Jesus Christ?

27. I didn’t preach this message to collect an offering, although I would like to. Instead I want to remind you of some simple ways you can indeed become a gospel partner with me and the ministry of T-Net International.

First, take your FBI Communication Card and turn it over to the back side.

Second, if you are willing to make a commitment to be a prayer partner for me, and for the 3 others heading to Ghana, West Africa, next year, then in the response box just write the word “Prayer” or anything you would like to say, so long as it is clear you are becoming a gospel partner through prayer.

Third, and only do this if you know you are able right now to do this. If you would like to be a giving partner and support our ministry with T-Net financially let me tell you two ways you can do that. I am looking for those who are able to be 5-52 supporters. This is a plan where you can become a partner with me and T-Net by contributing at least $5.00 a week for 52 weeks a year. Now many of you can pledge more and give more. But some of you are thinking, I would like to be a financial partner, but I can’t give through the 5-52 plan. Then let me suggest this, a 10-12 plan. Very simply you are trusting God to enable you to be a gospel partner each month by contributing $10 each month for 12 months each year. Some of you may want to give a one-time gift.

That’s enough about that, except to say, please remember that you can to both. You can be a praying partner as well as a giving partner. But if you have to choose just one, please pray.

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