The Basics of Life
The Global Church
Rom. 10:12–15
1.
As important as the local church is, we must
understand that as much as God wants us (our church) to reach the people in our
community,
a.
His plan of redemption does not stop at the city
limits.
b.
Listen again to what the Lord Jesus Christ told
us:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with
you always, even to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28: 19-20
c.
Who was Jesus speaking to? The disciples, yes, but also ALL OF US – THE
CHURCH
d.
In other words, God’s plan is for every
Christian, and every church, to reach out to every city, village, and nation
around the globe!
e.
We are planted in Wilmington NC, but our city is
only a small part of the greater world that God has called us to transform
through His gospel.
2.
In other words, our vision as a church must
encompass the entire globe!
a.
We can trace this calling all the back to the garden…
Back to the
Beginning:
3.
After the fall of man in the Garden, God made a
statement to Satan:
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and
between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise
His heel.” Genesis 4:15
a.
This was, in effect, a promise that God was
going to enact a plan that would redeem mankind from the effects of that
original sin.
4.
Further, God gave a promise to Abraham:
I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless
you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless
those who bless you, and him who curses you I will curse, and in you all the
families of the earth shall be blessed. Gen. 12:2–3
5.
The blessing that God promised Abraham (the same
promise that God spoke of in the Garden), worked itself out through Abraham’s descendants:
a.
First, the Jewish nation (Isaac, Jacob, twelve
tribes), and ultimately, that blessing centered upon one Israelite in
particular, Jesus of Nazareth.
b.
And even though the promise came through one nation, the blessing has
always been intended for all nations.
c.
In other words:
God’s plan for the church is a GLOBAL PLAN.
…and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
6.
How is it that “all the families” will be
blessed? By doing what Jesus told us to do:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…”
Having a Global
Vision
7.
I don't know about you, but it’s easy to not think
about people in other nations, they’re so far away, they’re so different, they
speak strange languages…
a.
And we might think, “how can I have an impact on
people in other countries?”
b.
In one sense this is true; our resources and our
manpower are limited.
c.
But that doesn't mean we can completely disregard
those people, or those nations, because of the fact that there are millions,
perhaps billions who have not heard about Jesus.
8.
According to the Joshua Project, 42% of the
world’s population have never heard the gospel, never heard about Jesus Christ
– 3 Billion people
a.
Greatest concentration is the 10/40 Window that
number is 63%, 2.9 Billion (almost all of the unreached are in this group)
In our church
alone…
9.
Even in our own town: In our town the message of
Jesus is everywhere;
a.
There are churches on every corner, 5 radio
stations preaching the gospel, you can’t drive in to town without seeing at
least three billboards telling you about Jesus!
b.
Yet every week, even in our small church, people
walk in who have never heard that God loves them, and that He wants to redeem
them to Himself through a relationship with Jesus Christ.
c.
And if that’s the case here in Wilmington, then
FOR SURE there must be many people worldwide who have not heard the gospel.
Paul – the Great
Missionary
10. The
Apostle Paul spent the last 30 years of his life spreading the gospel to around
the known world; It was his passion:
And so I have made it my aim to preach the gospel, not
where Christ was named, lest I should build on another man’s foundation, but as
it is written: “To whom He was not announced, they shall see; And those who
have not heard shall understand.” Acts
15:20-21
11. Paul
was quoting Isaiah 52:15, a beautiful prophetic passage that God gave about the
restoration of the nation of Israel to the Lord,
a.
Yet at verse 10 the focus shifts, God goes on to
include ALL NATIONS in this prophecy
The LORD has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all
the nations, and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
(Isa. 52:10)
b.
And God specifically says that He would send ministers
to spread this good news:
How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him
who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good
things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!” Isa. 52:7
12. Paul
cited this same passage in chapter 10 of Romans, posing a rhetorical question:
”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? And how are they to preach
unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those
who preach the good news!” Rom. 10:13–15
13. Quest
#1 - What is Paul telling us? Paul is
saying that God’s plan of redemption is directed at all humanity, but people
have to hear the message in order to respond to it.
a.
In other words, someone has to go and tell these
people who have not heard!
14. Quest
#2 - Why was Paul writing this to the church at Rome?
a.
Because Paul understood that every Christian,
and every church, are called to be involved in spreading the gospel around the
world!
b.
No one is off the hook; No one’s sitting on the
bench; No one can say "not my job."
c.
Paul wanted to light a fire in that church so
that they would have a heart, and a vision for not only reaching their city,
d.
but that they would also have a heart and a
vision for reaching the world with
the gospel message.
15. I
love what Paul was doing here; He was taking the word of the Lord, and applying
it directly to his own life, God’s word became his marching orders!
a.
Which is exactly what we’re supposed to do!
b.
So… if we apply the word of God here in Romans,
and in Isaiah, to our lives personally, and to our church specifically, what
does that look like?
c.
Should we all become missionaries?
d.
No. But we
all have a part to play, and its really very simple: We either GO, or we SEND.
“And how are they to hear without someone preaching?
And how are they to preach unless they are sent?”
e.
The question we should be asking ourselves isn’t
“do I have a role in spreading the gospel around the world,” but rather…
f.
“What is my role? Do I GO or do I SEND?”
Will You Go?
(awkward factor just rose…)
Have you asked?
16. There’s
no question, Paul was a “GO” guy… God
told him to go, and he went!
a.
My question to you: Have you ever asked God “do you want me to
go?”
b.
I believe that many are called, but they never
go, because they’ve never even ASKED God.
Why don't we ask?
17. Some
are comfortable right where they’re at:
a.
Look, I’m sure there were Christians in the
early church that were in “spectator mode” (Maybe that's why Paul was
“encouraging” the church at Rome!).
b.
Perhaps they had become too focused on their
personal lives: I’ve got a family / job / bills / business to run… etc
18. Some
are afraid of what the answer might be:
a.
I know it’s a little risky, because if you ask
God what He wants you to do, He may answer that prayer! He might send you to Africa!
b.
He may give you an assignment! That assignment
might disrupt your life.
c.
I should probably warn you, if you ask God for direction,
for your marching orders… He WILL answer that prayer!
d.
He will very likely call you to do something
outside of your comfort zone, and outside of your natural abilities!
e.
But it’ll be OK!
He’ll equip you and empower you for whatever He calls you to!
19. Some
don’t realize that God will actually use them!
a.
They look at people in the bible and think,
“Well, yes, that was Paul, he was special...” Really?
b.
They were the “super-hero’s” of the church; They
had a special anointing and a special calling.
c.
They think “ministry is for the professionals.”
NOT TRUE!
i. Remember
two weeks ago: We’re ALL called to ministry;
I promoted you all to “professionals of ministry!
d.
But I want to remind you that each and every one
of these people were just like you and I.
e.
They were normal, everyday people, from all
walks of life, who were redeemed by Christ, and filled with the Holy Spirit,
and they OBEYED THE CALL.
20. I
believe an honest assessment, if we wanted one, of the difference between someone
who makes a significant impact on the kingdom, verses someone who doesn’t…
a.
It’s not talent, or intelligence, or strength…
b.
Is simply that the person who makes a difference is willing to seek God for direction,
and then obey Him with complete abandon.
c.
They are willing to seek God for their calling,
when they receive it they step out in faith, trusting that God will equip and
empower them for the call.
21. That’s
how my family ended up here: One day I
decided to pray to God “tell me what you want me to do, and I’ll do it…”
a.
(IF YOU’RE CALLED - What do you do next???)
i. Pray
– Next Step
ii. Learn
– start looking, immerse, join missions team
iii. Obey
-
b.
I think of Chelsea and her team young people going
to Malaysia - bunch of >25 year-olds in a Muslim country!
c.
What did Jesus promise us?
But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has
come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea
and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
Acts 1:8
d.
Yes it will be scary, it will be challenging,
but you will never be more fulfilled than being right in the center of where
God has called you.
Are you to send?
22. Maybe
you’re not called to go, but there is still a critical role that you can
fulfill.
a.
The Apostle John wrote a letter to a Christian
man named Gaius who had been helping missionaries as they travelled to spread
the gospel.
It is a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for
these brothers, strangers as they are, who testified to your love before the
church. You will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of
God. For they have gone out for the sake of the name, accepting nothing from
the Gentiles. Therefore we ought to support people like these, that we may be
fellow workers for the truth. 3 John 5–8
23. Look
at what John told Gaius it was “a faithful thing you do in all your efforts for
these brothers”
a.
Translated “you’re fulfilling your duty to the
gospel by sacrificing and helping these missionary”
b.
He said: “You
will do well to send them on their journey in a manner worthy of God”
i. Translated: “Give them money and provisions”
c.
He said
“we ought to support people like these” (i.e., missionaries), and that
in supporting them we are actually “fellow workers for the truth.”
24. In
other words, even if you aren’t called to go to the jungles of Thailand, or to
Morocco, you can be faithful to the mission Christ has given us, simply by
being willing to support the people who are called to go.
a.
What does that look like?
25. #1
Prayer – We can make a huge impact by
praying for our missionaries.
In 1727, Count Zinzendorf, a young and wealthy German
nobleman, committed his estate in Germany to twenty-four-hour-a-day prayer
ministry. He renamed his estate Herrnhut, which means “the watch of the Lord.”
About 300 persecuted believers moved from Bohemia to Zinzendorf’s estate,
forming the Herrnhut community. They
committed to pray in hourly shifts around the clock, all day and night, every
day, taking inspiration from Leviticus 6:13, “The fire must be kept burning; it
must not go out.” This prayer meeting continued non-stop for the next hundred
years. From the prayer room at Herrnhut came a missionary zeal that has hardly
been surpassed in Protestant history. By 1776, over two hundred missionaries
had been sent out from this small community at Herrnhut.
a.
And don’t just pray, write them and tell them
you’re praying, ask them what you can pray for.
b.
And look, it’s beyond easy – you can email them
from your PHONE!
26. #2
Relationship – Imagine you’re in a foreign country, far from your family and
friends, do you think it might get a little lonely?
a.
Wouldn’t it be a huge blessing and encouragement
to have someone back home emailing or Skyping you?
b.
Our missions team does this!
27. #3
Give – Immigration rules in almost all countries do not allow missionaries to
work in that country. So they need our
support, and not just a little gift now and then.
a.
We have the ability to set up a monthly gift, it
automatically deducts from our account, goes right to them, how cool is that?
b.
One Starbucks a week, $25 a month, would make a
huge difference in supporting a missionary, allowing them to do what what God
has called them to do – share Christ in a foreign land.’
28. I
believe in putting my money where my encouragement is: My wife and I personally support three
missionaries – and trust me it is a sacrifice, but I believe that it’s
something God calls us to do.
a.
And I also believe that we will see and eternal
reward for what we are willing to do in this area…
Seeing the Finish
Line
“This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed
throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will
come” Matt. 24:14
29. At
some point in time in the future, the last people group will be reached, the
last village will be visited, the last person that God knows will
a.
and then BOOM! The Rapture of the church:
...in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the
last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised
incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1 Cor 15:52
b.
Think about that for a second. Wouldn’t it be awesome to be that person that
shares the gospel with the last saint to be saved before the rapture?
30. Saints,
history is moving toward a specific and glorious end.
a.
There is no doubt about whether or not the church
will fulfill its mission,
b.
Why? Because Jesus is the head, and He told us
that the gates of Hell would not prevail against His church and its mission.
c.
FACT: The promise God made to Abraham will come
to pass, the gospel will be preached in every corner of the globe, it’s only a matter
of time.
d.
Time that I believe we can hasten by being
faithful to the calling God ahs given us. (Don’t you feel sometimes like you
wish Jesus would come back? Then what
are you doing about it?)
31. The
Apostle John was actually allowed to see the fulfillment of this promise that
God made to Abraham:
After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude
that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and
languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white
robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice,
“Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” Rev.
7:9–10
32. Christians,
this is where we are headed. As distant and unfamiliar as the churches in India,
Africa, China, and Papua New Guinea may seem, our future is directly tied to
theirs…
a.
When Jesus returns to reclaim this world as its
rightful King, we will find ourselves praising God alongside Christians from every
age, and from every nation.
b.
God is sending His people out into the world to
preach the gospel and to proclaim His healing, and He will not wrap up human
history until this has been accomplished.
c.
Prayerfully consider this morning - what role
has God called you to play? And whatever
it is, JUST DO IT!
Copyright © 2014 Clay Ritter.
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