Where Are We Going?

The speaker shares his personal journey of becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ and emphasizes the importance of building one's life on a solid foundation. He discusses various teachings from the book of Matthew, highlighting the instructions Jesus gave to his disciples. The speaker encourages the church to be proactive in sharing the gospel and not be deterred by rejection or opposition. He emphasizes the need for vision, planning, and determination to make a difference in the world. The speaker concludes by reminding the audience of Jesus's invitation to find rest in him and urges them to have a burden for the lost and broken. of Scripture. We're in Matthew chapter 7 today, verses 24-29. We've taken one more week's break from Ecclesiastes. We'll jump back in to Ecclesiastes next week, and then in a few weeks we'll have that book finished. We're taking one more break for this week, and we're in Matthew chapter 7, verses 24-29, of course, the words of the Lord Jesus Christ before us today. This is God's Word. Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash. When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Please be seated. Lord, I pray as a sinner who appreciates your salvation more than he can say, and I pray today that you would give me the words and the attitude to bring to you in public what you've given me in private, and I praise your mighty name as I do it. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray these things. Amen. I began my personal Christian journey in 1968. Now, for some of you, that's going to be ancient history. For some of you, you can remember that year in high school. That's where I'm at. 1968 for me was 10th grade, sophomore, Still, Ohio, and it was a big deal to be in 10th grade in Still, Ohio at that time, because junior high ran from 7th to 9th, and so you were a junior high kid, but the minute you went into 10th grade, you were a high school kid, so it was like a big deal. And so, God prepared me more than I expected, and through a sequence of events in my life, I was led to move my relationship with Jesus from, yes, I go to church every week, to having a real and personal relationship with Jesus Christ. How did I do that? A close friend of mine in 1968 advised me to proceed in the following way. Read one or more of the Gospels, but don't read it for deep conclusions, although that came later. Read it like a novel. My mission was not to gather deep insights. My mission was to read, understand, and become engaged in exactly what Jesus had to say. And what you're going to hear that I'm quoting from Scripture, just like that Scripture we just saw, the majority of it is red letter, in your red letter edition. In other words, nearly all of this is what Jesus said himself. There were many specific teachings there, of course, but I wanted to really get as close to him as I could through understanding his specific words and overall message. Specifically, I wanted to know what Jesus asked of his disciples. I reasoned that if I could determine from studying Scripture what Jesus asked of the original twelve disciples, I could learn exactly what Jesus is asking of us today. I asked my Christian friend how to go about getting into a personal relationship with Jesus. At the time, that totally baffled me. I was always, yeah, I go to church. I got my card, I'm a member, that was my involvement with Christianity. The friend told me to read the Bible as directed, and if I reached a point where I truly felt it, I should go to a private place, get on my knees, and pray the sinner's prayer. I did exactly that. After I had thoroughly studied Matthew and perhaps a third of Mark, I did get on my knees in a private place and prayed. The main thrust of what I knew at that time was that I am by nature a rugged individualist, well acquainted with thinking and standing on my own two feet. I realized through studying Scripture and learning from the words of Jesus, that approach to life was not enough. I asked Jesus for forgiveness of my sins. I asked him to be my personal Lord and Savior, and I told him that I knew I just could not do my life alone without Jesus. At that moment, as I was on my knees, alone in my bedroom, I felt the presence of Jesus in an amazing way that I will never doubt. It was like Jesus had his hand on my shoulder and accepted me as his disciple. That is why when people ask me today, do you know Jesus? My answer is a resounding yes. What did I learn from Scripture that I studied at that time? Lately, I was concerned about the situation our church faces today. One night recently, I woke up about 3 o'clock in the morning. I went and found my first dad's King James Bible, which I brought with me, that I studied in 1968. I looked at the pages which I had underlined, circled, bracketed, and otherwise made a great effort to understand and internalize. I'm going to show you right now what I'm talking about. I have two columns here in Matthew. This is the Bible. I read this thing like a lawyer, man. I was going to figure out what this guy had to say, and I did. I got two columns here that have written in the margin above it, instructions for disciples. Now, the Scripture you've already heard, I'm going to read again for emphasis. This is going to be King James. I love the poetry. He says, Therefore, whosoever heareth these things of mine and doeth them, I will liken unto him a wise man which buildeth house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock. And everyone that heareth these things of mine and doeth them not shall be likened to a foolish man which buildeth his house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it. And it came to pass, and this is not Jesus talking, but it's some remarks about what he just said. And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these things, the people were astonished by his doctrine. For he taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes. Now, you know what he's talking about in here when they're saying he wasn't like the scribes. You've been to Sunday school and somebody's always trying to stay with it, you know. And the fact is, when Jesus spoke in this fashion, he wasn't talking to some guy with an opinion. He wasn't talking about some guy who's going to give you a dry teaching about the Old Testament or whatever. This is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, live and in person. This is one of the key teachings in the Bible. Jesus is telling us in no uncertain terms that there is a right way and a wrong way to live your life. With the house as the allegory for your life, Jesus tells us to be very careful about what foundation to build our lives upon. If we build wisely, we will have a successful life, no matter what problems or challenges we encounter. That is the house that stands through the storm. If we build on a poor foundation, guess what? Our lives will be washed away in the storm's torrent because it just can't stand up to the storm's fury. This is a sobering and serious warning from Jesus Christ, the Son of God, for us to be responsible with our lives, build on a rock and not the sand. Next we have Matthew 10 chapter 1. Now we're into the instructions for disciples. When he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits to cast them out and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. Jesus is telling us that when we are accepted as disciples of Jesus Christ, we are empowered to meet any challenge thrown at us. This may be literal, as it is here in Scripture, or it may be figurative. But we should never doubt our abilities as disciples of Jesus Christ, because in those situations where we're acting on his behalf, we are acting in the name and person of Jesus Christ. So you should never feel like, oh, I'm not up to the task, or I can't do that. Yes, you can. Matthew 10, 5-7. These twelve Jesus sent forth and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles and into any city of the Samaritans, enter ye not. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. We may not have areas in Nampanee that are Samaritan or Gentiles in the historical sense that Jesus is referring to here. But Nampanee is an area that has had the gospel of Jesus Christ preached for many generations. There are doubtless some people in Nampanee that have never heard of Jesus Christ. What everyone who is uncommitted to Jesus Christ needs is one more opportunity to hear the story and have the invitation. If we go out and go after these lost sheep, we are in a very real sense seeking to reclaim the lost sheep of Israel. This is exactly obeying the direction of Jesus. Matthew 10, 8. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils. Freely ye have received, freely give. We may or may not encounter more colorful aspects of spiritual life, but I do know that as a dedicated disciple of Jesus Christ, we will all be protected from danger, evil, and all manner of negativity that the evil one may arouse to oppose us. As Jesus says, we are freely received, salvation of the blood of Jesus Christ, and he commands us to give and pass on that same invitation to others. Matthew 10, 9 and 10. Provide neither gold nor silver nor brass in your process, nor script for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves, for the workman is worthy of his meat. Jesus makes it very clear that disciples that he sends out are not expected to rely on money to do their work. When he sent out the original disciples, he specifically told them to keep it simple and rely on God to supply everything they We are in the position of having little or no budget. That does not prevent us from taking the gospel to people, talking with them, leaving door hangers, Bibles, or anything else the Lord leads us to share. And again he said, freely ye have received, freely give. Matthew 10, 11-15. And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, inquire who in it is worthy, and there abide till ye go hence. And when ye come into an house, salute it. And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you. And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake the dust off your feet. Verily I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment for that city. Whenever people think about evangelism and outreach, we act like being rejected is a big deal. We think that if people don't like what we have to say, or if they just reject it or laugh at us, then we are fools. We think it is a big problem for us. In fact, the only people for whom rejection of the gospel is a problem is, guess who? The people that are rejecting the gospel. And Jesus says it will not go well for them in the long run. Matthew 10, 16-18. Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. Be ye therefore wise as serpents and harmless as doves. But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues. And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake for a testimony against them the Gentiles. And he is dealing here with the idea of what will other Christians think if we hit the streets. Will they think we are some kind of zealots? Will they disagree with our theology? Will this get us in some kind of trouble? So long as we are kindly and just delivering the good news, we should never worry about these considerations. I would rather obey Jesus and be called anything than hear the call of Jesus and just not answer. Matthew 10, 19-20. But when they deliver you up, take no thought about what ye shall speak, for it shall be given to you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. Jesus promises us that when we need to speak to critics, God through the Holy Spirit will make it clear to us what to say. And with that going on, it will not be us speaking but the Holy Spirit of the Lord God Almighty. That is enough assurance for me and puts that issue to rest. Matthew 10, 24-25. The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his Lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master and the servant as his Lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? Now Beelzebub is one name of the evil one. Baal is another. Satan is another. It is the same force of evil. Never doubt, never doubt that we will encounter followers of the devil. Some people that we already know fall into this camp. I am speaking in the abstract here. I do not have a list or other indication who is up to no good. But any thinking person seeing what is going on in the world today will have no doubt that evil exists. As the great clergyman Edmund Burke said, the only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing. I am far more inclined to do something good than do nothing and watch evil triumph. Coming to the end of the scripture line here, Matthew 10, 26-33. Fear them not therefore, for there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed and hidden that shall not be known. What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light. And what you hear in the air, that preach ye upon housetops. And very, very humbly, I am telling you right now, I heard this in the dark and I am here today in the daylight telling you what I heard. And I got no desire to have a preaching career. I got no desire to have people think the way I do or do what I tell them or anything else. I got up at three o'clock in the morning and I was beside myself. God says, get your dad's Bible on and tell you what you need to know. And this is what came back. And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on the ground without your father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not, therefore ye are more value than many sparrows. Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him I also will deny before my father which is in heaven. And this is where I'm coming to the crux of what I came here to say. All of this isn't scripture. And I just showed it to you. It's not like I went out back and cooked this up and thought I'd come in and lay it on you. No. We need to quit being neutral. There's a war going on. And we need to do everything we can to fight for every soul we can assist in rectifying their salvation. We need to get off the line and get in the game. If this church is going to close, replant, or continue in some way, shape, or form, like God's will be done. I am convinced, however, that we are on a cusp. A particular, perhaps even a peculiar moment in history. If the church is closing, as far as I'm concerned, we're at the Alamo. The people who fought and died at the Alamo have the great state of Texas to look at today and they can say, that's what we stood for. Our time came, we made a decision, we fought and made a difference. Are we going to fight and make a difference or are we going to just lay down and disappear into time with no reason to remember our church or what this church stood for? The only thing we lack right now is vision, a plan, and determination to carry it out. And I try not to inflict people with my personal history any more than I have to, but this is necessary. My grandma Hinton was a truly unique and amazing person. Her full name was Alpha Lee South and she married my granddad Hinton and so she ended up Alpha Lee South Hinton. Alpha Lee was a very quiet, very soft-spoken woman, possessed a dignity that required no one to point it out. She led by example, by showing you the way to go rather than pitching a lecture, or even less characteristically, a scolding. But if she had an opinion about anything, she spoke up, but it was always in a kindly way that sought to offer guidance to improve things, never to tear down her criticize. And if Grandma Hinton spoke up, you were always wise to listen carefully because she would teach you to be a better person. Grandma was always a source of ongoing positivity and she constantly taught me on several themes. One was how real God and Jesus are and how important it is to live the way Jesus taught. A second theme was the limitless nature that everyone has that was given to us by God. She wore a little glass ball attached to her watch and I brought it and this is it. If anyone wants to look at it, it's in my pocket. But in that little glass ball is a mustard seed and on the other side, in tiny print, that you can still read, it says, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, nothing shall be impossible unto you. And that's Matthew 17, 20. And nothing ever was impossible to Grandma Hinton. I could still hear her say in her still, calm voice, Mike, you can do anything if you put your mind to it. Whenever I became doubtful about my ability to do anything, she rolled out that sermon and got me back on track. Right now today, we need to roll that scripture out and get back on track. In conclusion, Matthew 11, 28-30, Jesus says, come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. I say to Grace Point Church, let us abandon thoughts of failure. Let us abandon concern about money and considering a list of unsure alternatives for the future. No matter what the future holds, Jesus has promised us rest for our souls. I also believe that along with instructions for disciples, Jesus gave us all the reassurance we need to get going. Let's decide, let's focus, let's go after the lost sheep of Israel that Jesus commands us to do. Praise God. Let's pray together, shall we? Heavenly Father, we thank you for this message you've given us today. We thank you for our brother with the burden to give it to us. We thank you, Father, by your Holy Spirit that you move amongst your people. We thank you, Father, that in this time and this moment, the season that arrives, you brought us together as your family to serve you. Father, give us a burden for the lost. Give us a burden for the broken and the brokenhearted. Give us a burden for those who need to hear the truth of your word. Father, set them free by the power of your gospel, we pray. So we thank you for this church. We thank you for the people you have brought together. We thank you, Father, that you move amongst us. We praise you and we give you glory and commit our lives to you again this day. We pray this all in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Thank you, brother. Appreciate you. My pleasure. My honor. Thank you.