Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Don't Have Ugly Feet Part 3


As we finished the series, we talked about the importance of the assignment for all of us.  Sometimes we think that only certain people are gifted in spreading the Gospel, but if that was true, Jesus wouldn’t tell ALL of us to do it.  Living a Christ-like life can be just as powerful as sitting down and sharing with someone.  After joking last week about the grocery store being a great opportunity to share the Gospel, I was at the store buying curtain rods. There was a lady in front of me seemed to have miscalculated and did not have enough money to pay for what she had gotten.  I decided to say God bless you and pay for the rest of her purchase (just a few bucks).  I later heard her talking to a friend about what had happened.  No one who is a believer in Christ is exempt from this assignment—we are to spread the Good News.  

Many people feel that they need to hear from God before they step out and speak into someone’s life. The reality is that you already HAVE heard from him – Matthew 28:18-20 and Mark 16:15 show this. We don’t need a special prompting, because the task has already been assigned! We should always be on “green light” and being open to the Spirit if there is a “red light.”  We should “go always and listen to the Spirit for when it’s time to stop.”  (Acts 16:6 shows the Apostles doing this and obeying the “no” of the Spirit.  When we do what the Word says, we are being led by the Spirit.  Sometimes we think we are waiting for the perfect timing. There is no such thing (in the natural, anyway). Ecclesiastes 11:4 says that he who considers the wind will never sow and he who studies the clouds will never reap. The Word shows us that, when we step out of our comfort zone and do what we know we should, God will then direct us to do even more amazing things.

 A great example is in Acts 8 with Philip. He is traveling along and preaching the Word and seeing signs and wonders. There was no specific direction to do so. He was simply doing what he knew he was supposed to be doing. Many are being saved and healed.  Miraculous signs draw people, but the Word of God changes people.  Then, in verse 26, God gives him a specific instruction to go speak to an Ethiopian man sitting on the side of the road, reading. It turns out that man was reading a scroll of Isaiah 53 and did not understand it. When Philip explains it, the man is saved and baptized. You see, when God leads you to someone, that someone is looking for what you will share. He always leads you to success. Understand that, even if the exchange you have does not appear to have led anywhere, if God directed you and you were obedient, it was successful.  God sends you to success and victory.  We can be confident if we are following God’s leading.

 Jesus further demonstrates the process in Matthew 10. He sends His disciples out with this direction – firstly, where to go and not to go (again, setting them up for success). Next He told them what to say – that the Kingdom of heaven was near (though now we are in it). Lastly, He told them to heal, help and set people free. But, the important thing was the three words He preceded the instructions with – “As you go…”  Now, the disciples were setting out on a purpose given by Him. So are you. We all have a purpose and plan that God has for our lives. Some of us are in full-time ministry. Most are not. Either way, as we go, we should remember to do these things. We should not get so focused on our own lives that we forget that God is concerned with ministering to others.

 Jesus demonstrates this for us. His purpose was to go to the cross. Along the way, He was led to minister to and heal many people. He did not let His purpose distract Him from the things to do along the way, but He still kept focused on His purpose.  Understand that, as Jesus Christ, He could have ministered to every single person who crossed His path. But that was not His purpose here on earth. He stayed focused on His purpose, yet was moved by the Spirit to minister to certain people. That is what we need to do as well.  We need to continually look at the people around us as Jesus did – as those who NEED the love of the Gospel. Remember, it’s not all about you.  It is not our responsibility to reach everyone, but it is our responsibility to reach someone.

 

To listen to the entire sermon go to http://ahwatukeechurch.com/ and click on online media.  To learn more about Living Word Ahwatukee, visit http://ahwatukeechurch.com/.