MELVIN NEWLAND, MINISTER RIDGE CHAPEL, KANSAS, OK
(Powerpoints used with this message are available at no charge. Just email me at mnewland@sstelco.com and request #429.)
TEXT: Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:57-62
ILL. This happened in 1968 in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War to a village that was in the path of a large advance by the Viet Cong army. The Viet Cong sent infiltrators ahead to scare villagers into either abandoning their villages or surrendering without offering any resistance.
One such village experienced what they believe to have been a miracle of Divine protection. Under cover of darkness a Viet Cong infiltrator came to the village & warned, “Tomorrow is your day. So if you’re going to get out of this village get out now.”
Most of the villagers were Christians, & they considered themselves a Christian village. So they met together & decided that they would not abandon their village. The whole village agreed that they would turn to Jesus in prayer. Fervently they sang & prayed.
Then at dusk they could see Viet Cong soldiers moving toward the edge of the village, but somehow the Lord filled their hearts with peace & they continued to sing. Then the shooting began. But almost as soon as the shooting started it stopped.
All night the villagers prayed & sang! Then in the morning it was obvious that the enemy was gone. Several days later some of the Viet Cong were captured & brought to the village as prisoners.
When village leaders asked them what had happened, they replied, “As we began to shoot at you, your village was suddenly surrounded by guards dressed in shining white. But when we shot at them they wouldn’t fall. They just increased in brightness & advanced toward us. So we ran away.” (Contributed by Ian Johnson to Sermon Central)
SUM. I don't know how to explain what happened. But remember this story, because I have another one that I want to tell you at the end of this message.
A. Turn with me to Matthew 7:21-23. As you know, this is part of the Sermon on the Mount. And in it Jesus says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
"Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, & in your name drive out demons & perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”
B. Now what do we learn from this passage of Scripture?
1. First of all, we learn that just saying the right words & sounding good won’t get us into heaven.
Folks, we’re living in a day when a lot of people know all the right words. But Jesus clearly says, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven…”
2. Secondly, being busy & doing good things won’t get us into heaven, either. Jesus says, “Then I will tell them plainly, I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!”
3. So, if saying the right words & doing lots of good things won’t get us into heaven, then what will? Well, listen to vs. 21 & hear what Jesus says. “…only he who does the will of my Father in heaven.”
And in Luke 6:46 Jesus asks, “Why do you call me, Lord, Lord,’ & do not do what I say?” Notice this, in both Matthew & Luke, Jesus speaks of these people as saying to Him, “Lord, Lord.”
Now in the language of that day, whenever there is a doubling of a word such as “Lord, Lord,” or the use of a double imperative like when Jesus would say, “Verily, verily,” or “Truly, truly I say unto you,” the reason is to provide emphasis. In other words, “I really mean this.”
So when they said to Jesus, “Lord, Lord," they were saying, “Jesus, you really are my Lord.” But by His response Jesus is saying, “You may pledge allegiance to me with your lips, but the way you live makes it obvious I’m not your Lord at all.”
I. WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR JESUS TO BE LORD OF MY LIFE?
A. Now if it is that important, just what does it mean for Jesus to be Lord of my life?
Well, It means that He calls the shots, I don’t. That is pretty simple, isn’t it? It means that He sets the course for my life. It’s not for me to debate or argue with Him about it. He is Lord, & it means that He gets the last word, period.
ILL. In his book, ”Experiencing God,” Dr. Henry Blackaby wrote, “Many of us want God to speak to us & give us an assignment. However, we are not interested in making any major adjustments in our lives. Every time God spoke to people in the Bible about something He wanted to do through them, major adjustments were always necessary. They had to adjust their lives to God.
“And once the adjustments were made (in obedience), God accomplished His purposes through those He called…” Now listen to this last line: “So what you do reveals what you believe about God, regardless of what you say.”
B. The Bible says that Jesus must be Lord of these 4 areas:
#1, Jesus is to be Lord of our hearts. 1 Peter 3:15 says, “But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.”
#2, Jesus is to be Lord of our homes. Ephesians 5:22 & 25 says, “Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord… Husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church...
Eph. 6:1 & 4 says, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right… Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead bring them up in the training & instruction of the Lord.” He is to be Lord of our homes.
#3, He is to be Lord of our jobs. Ephesians 6:5,7-8 says, “Slaves (or employees), obey your earthly masters (or employers) with respect &…sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ…
"Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not man, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does…”
And Colossians 3:23 says, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.”
Sure, I know that sometimes it is hard to respect your boss or your job. But don’t forget, you’re serving God first. You’re His servant, His representative in that place.
#4, Jesus is to be Lord of our money & possessions, too. Jesus knew what He was talking about when He said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:21)
ILL. Billy Graham said, “A checkbook is a theological document. It tells who & what you worship.”
II. HOW DO I MAKE SURE THAT JESUS IS LORD OF MY LIFE?
Well, if all this is true, then “How do I make sure that Jesus is Lord of my life?” That’s easy. We just tear up our agenda, & follow His.
A. Now turn to Luke 9:57-62. These verses contain some of the most interesting teachings about Lordship in the Bible. In them we meet 3 men who call Jesus “Lord” but then follow their own agenda. They say, “Jesus, you’re my Lord.” But then they go on & do their own thing.
Look at the first man in vs's 57-58. “As they were walking along the road, a man said to Him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ Jesus replied, ‘Foxes have holes & birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.’
The Bible does not record his response. He had told Jesus, “I’ll follow you wherever you go, Lord.” But when Jesus told him, “There are no perks with this job, & it’s not going to be easy,” I think his response was, “Oh, oh,” & he fades out of the scene, never to be heard from again.
Man #2 is found in vs. 59. “He said to another man, ‘Follow me.’ But the man replied, ‘Lord, first let me go & bury my father.’” Now this man’s response is pretty clear. He is saying, “Okay, but…”
Most Bible scholars agree, from the language construction, that this guy’s dad wasn’t even dead yet. So he was saying, “Lord, I want to follow you. But let me wait until my dad dies, & I get my inheritance.
“Then I’ll have plenty of money & I can follow you & we can do great things for the kingdom of God.” He also disappears from the pages of Scripture.
Then there is Man #3. Vs. 61 tells us, “Still another said, ‘I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back & say goodbye to my family.’” This guy is saying, “I will follow you, but there are a few things I have to take care of at home first.”
Bible scholars suggest that this man wanted to make sure that all his herds & flocks, everything at home, would be cared for as usual so that he wouldn’t be without income while he was following the Lord.
But in vs. 62, “Jesus replied, ‘No one who puts his hand to the plow & looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
ILL. In her book, “God is No Fool,” Lois Cheney tells this modern-day parable: “Once a man said, ‘If I had some extra money, I’d give it to God, but I just have enough to support myself & my family.’
“And the same man said, ‘If I had some extra time, I’d give it to God, but every minute is taken up with my job, my responsibilities, my family - every single minute.’
“And the same man said, ‘If I had a talent I’d give it to God, but I have no lovely voice or any special skill. I can’t think cleverly or quickly, & I’d never be able to lead a group the way I would like to.’
“And God was touched. So He gave that man money, time, & a glorious talent. And then God waited, & waited, & waited…. Finally, God shrugged His shoulders, & took all those things back from the man – the money, the time, & the glorious talent.
“After a while, the man sighed & said, ‘If I only had some of that money back, I’d give it to God. If I only had some of that time, I’d give it to God. If I could only rediscover that glorious talent, I’d give it to God, too.’ And God said, ‘Oh, shut up.’
CONCL. You see, if we put Him first in the use of our money & possessions, then we’re more likely to put Him first in the other areas, too – in our hearts & homes, our jobs, & in every facet of our daily lives.
And when that happens, I’m convinced that we’ll be amazed at how God will work through us.
ILL. Karen was expecting another child. So she tried to prepare little 3-yr-old Michael for the birth of his baby sister, asking him to sing every night to his sister in “mommy’s tummy.”
Michael sang what he had heard his mother sing to him. “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray. You’ll never know dear how much I love you. Please don’t take my sunshine away.”
Then, during the delivery of the baby, complications developed. After many hours of labor, Michael’s little sister was born. But she was in very serious condition. So she was rushed to a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in another hospital in Knoxville, TN.
Instead of getting better, the little girl continued to decline. The pediatric specialist told Karen & her husband, “There is very little hope. Be prepared for the worst.” The parents contacted a local cemetery about a burial plot.
Meanwhile Michael begged his parents to let him see his sister. “I want to sing to her,” he said. But kids were never allowed in Intensive Care.
By the second week of her stay in Intensive Care, Michael’s sister looked like she wouldn’t make it through the week. So Karen decided to take Michael to see his sister whether the hospital liked it or not. If Michael didn’t see her right away, he might never get to see her at all.
Karen dressed him in a scrub suit & marched him into ICU. Seeing them, the head nurse demanded that Karen take Michael out of ICU. The mother instinct rose up strong in Karen & she replied, “He’s not leaving until he sees his sister!” Karen took Michael to his sister’s bedside.
After a few moments of looking at his sister all connected to tubes, 3-yr-old Michael began to sing. “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray. You’ll never know dear how much I love you. Please don’t take my sunshine away.”
Instantly the baby seemed to respond. Her pulse slowed & became steady. “Sing it again, Michael!” said Karen. “You are my sunshine, my only sunshine. You make me happy when skies are gray. You’ll never know dear how much I love you. Please don’t take my sunshine away.”
The strained breathing of his sister became as smooth as a kitten’s purr. The head nurse stood transfixed with tears in her eyes. Michael sang that chorus again & again. And the next day - the very next day - Michael’s little sister was well enough to go home.
Women’s Day Magazine called it “The miracle of the Brother’s Song”. The medical staff just called in a miracle. Karen called it a miracle of God’s love. (Contributed to Sermon Central by Johnny Creasong)
INVITATION
