Let me illustrate:
• We know some Christians who are always winning people to the Lord. Why? Because they are always looking for an opportunity to win someone to Christ.
• We know some people every time there is a church dispute; you can rest assured they are in the middle of it every time. Why? They are always looking for an opportunity to be involved in such things.
Yes, one of the rules in life is that we generally receive what we are looking for.
In the book of Acts the New Testament church they were always looking for an opportunity to carry out THE GREAT COMMISSION
WHAT IS THE GREAT COMMISSION?
The great commission is in Matthew 28:19–20 “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
We must not forget this is what God has placed the church on earth to do.
In the book of Acts as the New Testament church carried this out; He also told them what they would be facing.
Look at Acts 28: 26-27, we read, “Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.”
As this New Testament church carried this gospel out they were characterized as a church that turned the world upside down with the gospel.
What a wonderful reputation this church had.
Illus: Just like your face or your thumbprint, your reputation is how people identify you.
This New Testament church had the reputation of spreading the gospel wherever they went.
It is because of this God placed them here in the scripture as example for us to follow.
While many churches have forgotten THEIR MISSISION this New Testament church NEVER FORGOT THEIR MISSION.
It makes me sad to say this but MANY (Not a few) MANY churches today have FORGOTTEN why God placed the church here on planet earth.
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger said one morning he stopped at the Dunkin’s donut shop (I do not need to tell you why I stopped there.)
While eating a couple of donuts at this donut shop I heard two men talking about their churches they attended.
• One was telling the other his church just bought an expensive pipe organ that cost almost a hundred thousand dollars.
• The other man was not going to be out done so he said his church just bought a very large chandelier for the foyer of their church that almost cost seventy-five thousands.
As I set there they continued to talk and brag about their big luxurious church buildings, budgets and the high society people who attended their churches.
But NOT one time did one talk about:
• Missions
• Word of God
• Holy Spirit
• Prayer
• Preaching and teaching of God’s Word
• Evangelism
NOT ONE TIME!!!
WHY WERE THESE THINGS OVERLOOKED IN THEIR CONVERSATION WHEN TALKING ABOUT THEIR CHURCHES?
Because many of the churches today has forgotten THE PURPOSE of the church.
The ULTIMATE PURPOSE of the church is to carry out the GREAT COMMISSION OF REACHING SOULS FOR THE LORD.
In our churches today:
• We have Christians who have been saved for years but they have never personally led anyone to the Lord. NOT ONE!!!
• Even worst then that I know of preachers who have preached for years but they cannot remember the last time they led someone to the Lord if ever.
God placed the church here today to reach every man, woman and boy and girl with the gospel. And those they cannot reach in other countries they send missionaries to reach them.
We here at the First Baptist could have this conversation with other churches and brag about the facilities God has blessed us with.
• But God has not put this church here to BRAG ABOUT FACILITIES but to BRAG ABOUT THIS WONDERFUL SAVIOR!
• God’s purpose for this church is to REACH THE LOST WITH THE GOSPEL.
This New Testament church in the book of Acts never FORGOT why God placed them here.
While we Christians are thrilled about the gospel, ACCORDING TO ACTS 28:26-27 we are dealing with people that are spiritually BLIND AND DEAF TO THE GOSPEL.
This makes our job as soul winning a difficult!
Illus: The reason this makes soul winning difficult because…
• This would be like trying to sale a blind man a pair of glasses.
• This would be like trying to sale a pair of shoes to a man who has lost his legs.
• This would be like buying a deaf man a radio so he could listen to some music.
Again the reason it is difficult to reach them with the gospel because they are blind and deaf to the gospel.
Talking about difficulty…
Illus: Makes me think of the red neck that walked into an electronic store and said to the salesmen: "I want to buy that TV."
• The salesperson shook his head and said, "No, we don't sell to red necks."
• So the red neck left and came back the next day and said: "I still want to buy that TV."
• Again the salesman said: "I told you yesterday we don't sell to red necks!"
• So he left again and came back the third day and said: "I want to buy that tv."
• But the salesman still said: "No, we don't sell to red necks."
• The red neck said why want you sell me that tv?
• The salesman answered: "Because that is not a tv that is a microwave.”
The lost world is BLIND AND DEAF to the things of God which makes soul winning to be very difficult.
They have no idea what they are missing by not coming to the Lord Jesus.
Illus: Makes me think there are certain foods for years I would not eat. But one day I decided to taste them and have not quit eating them since.
The lost world is BLIND AND DUMB to the things of God.
The lost world today is not running TO God, they are running FROM God as fast as they can run.
The lost world is BLIND AND DEAF to the things of God and this makes our mission almost next to impossible.
But nevertheless we must make every effort to reach them because…
I. THERE IS A DEBT TO BE PAID
According to the Word of God, every Christian is a DEBTOR TO THE LOST WORLD.
There are people in our society who recognize they have debts but they refuse to pay them.
• We call these people DEAD BEATS.
• They owe and they know they owe but they refuse to pay their debts.
Illus: One man said I have the best debts in the world! Every single one of them is Outstanding!
Illus: Reminds me of President Obama had a meeting with the President of China to discuss our large nation’s debt with Xi Jinping.
He arrives at the Chinese presidential mansion with Joe Biden, but they find there is work going on in the garden and lots of mud everywhere.
So they had to roll up their trouser legs and step carefully to enter.
They sit down to wait for President Xi, but Biden notices they still have their trousers rolled up.
So he whispers: "Mr. President, take down your trousers."
Obama looks horrified. "We owe him THAT MUCH!!!"
But every child of God who have been saved by the grace of God we have a debt to those who have not yet been save to share the gospel with them.
Illus: Suppose a man is about to face the electric chair. But the governor graciously pardons him.
• The governor calls you to be the one to deliver the pardon to set the man free.
• The governor ask you, "Do you understand what you are to do?"
• You assure him that you understand fully. You take the pardon and place it in your pocket.
• Soon you find yourself busy doing a number of things and you forget to take the pardon to the man who is about to be executed.
• The next morning you pick up the newspaper and you read that that man was executed.
• How would you feel?
• You would feel terrible because you know you would be the blame for that man's death!
Illus: Hell is full of people and the only reason they are there is because they were graciously pardon by the Lord Jesus and Christians who were supposed to share the gospel with them did not carry it out.
The blood of the lost will be on their hand because they got so involved in selfish things they did not take time to share the gospel with them.
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger said every time he sees a person he knew listed in the obituary column the first thing that crosses his mind - he asks himself, “DID I TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE OPPORTUNITIES I HAD TO WITNESS TO THAT PERSON BEFORE HE/SHE DIED!”
We have a spiritual debt to pay to the Lost.
The apostle Paul recognizes that debt…
Look at Rom. 1:14 16, Paul said, “I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise. So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”
We have a lot of debt beat Christians who are not paying this spiritual debt that they owe to the lost.
They have loved ones; friends, neighbors and co-workers will die and go to a devil’s hell because they did not pay their spiritual debt.
Notice, the apostle Paul recognizes this debt. He said, “I am debtor…”
Paul said, “I am a debtor to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.”
THERE IS A DEBT TO BE PAID
But notice something else Paul stated:
II. THERE IS A DUTY TO BE PERFORMED
Paul said, “I am ready”.
That is, I recognize that I have a spiritual debt to the lost, and “I am ready to pay that debt”.
• I will not keep finding excuses to keep from paying this debt - “I AM READY!”
• I will not selfishly use all my time on myself, I owe this debt and “I AM READY!”
I want to ask you today are you ready…
• There is a debt to be paid
• THERE IS A DUTY TO BE PERFORMED,
And we need to quit stalling and perform it.
In this physical world we pay our bills with money.
Illus; We call it various things such as: Cash, Coin, Bread, Bucks, Currency, Dough, Green, Loot, and Moolah.
But regardless what we call it we know we have bills to pay and we pay them.
But in the spiritual world we pay our debt by giving out the gospel to a lost world.
Many who are not paying this debt excuse themselves by saying, I WILL DO IT NEXT WEEK!
Illus: They remind you of those who tell BILL COLLECTOR the check is in the mail and the mail never gets there.
When it comes to reaching the lost many have been saying this for year…I WILL DO IT NEXT WEEK!
But while they are stalling to pay their debt souls are dying and going to a Christ less eternity.
I. There is a debt to be paid
II. THERE IS A DUTY TO BE PERFORMED,
Also, notice-
III. THERE IS A DIRECTION TO BE PURSUED
It is important that we know that we are DEBTORS, but also who we owe this DEBT!
Paul tells us, he said, “I am a debtor to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.”
Every human on the face of the earth fits into one of these categories. And we owe every one of them the gospel.
This is not a:
• Annual debt,
• Monthly debt,
• Weekly debt,
• This is a DAILY DEBT that we owe to mankind.
This debt is to every lost soul on this earth.
One of the shameful thing in this nation we have WHITE CHURCHES and BLACK CHURCHES.
WHY IS IT SHAMEFUL?
It is not because of a language problem that we have WHITE AND BLACK CHURCHES; it is because of a RACE PROBLEM!!!
Humor: You would think the way the church is today there is going to be a WHITE HEAVEN and a BLACK HEAVEN.
But this is not so!!!
Did you know the fact is the only difference between a WHITE PERSON and a BLACK PERSON is because genetically the more melanin you produce, the darker your eyes, hair and skin will be.
For example we see some people who have no color in their skin, we call them albinos.
The reason they have white skin, white hair and blue eyes is because they have no MELANIN in their body.
• Because of this MELANIN in our skin this has caused people to be RACIST.
• We are told the most SEGREGATED HOUR OF THE WEEK IS 11 O’clock Sunday morning.
But among Christians we are to love everyone and regardless of skin color, hair color or eye color.
THIS GOSPEL IS FOR WHOSOEVER!
Because in heaven the only ones who are going to be there is the family of God.
Notice that Paul, in an effort to reach the lost, he said he would pursue this matter in this fashion; to the “Jew first, and also to the Greek”
Christians should want to see the whole lost world saved. But our concern for lost souls should start with our own family and friends.
Paul was a Jew, and he knew that soul winning should start with his own people first.
Notice, he said, “Jew first” and then he will broaden the circle to reach others.
When a person first gets saved, he should draw an imaginary circle around himself:
1) He should include every family member in that circle. He should live a godly life in front of them because they know him better than anyone else. He should witness not only with his godly life but also in word. Let them know he is praying for their salvation
2) Then he should draw another imaginary circle around that circle, and include every friend of his in that circle
3) Then he needs to draw another imaginary circle around that circle, and include all his neighbors
4) Then he should draw another circle around those three circles, for people that he comes into contact with in the normal course of business dealings
5) Then he should draw a circle around those four circles, and include those who live in other countries
And while he cannot go to these in foreign countries personally, he can…
(1)pray for these people to come to know Christ,
(2)he can help send missionaries so they can hear what they must do to be saved from God’s Word.
Let me say two things about missions:
(1)First about Foreign missions
There are churches that brag about their foreign missions program. But sad to say some of these SAME churches do a great job in foreign mission BUT they are NOT winning souls at home. Charity starts at home, but it does not stay at home. It reaches around the world.
(2) Let me say this about home missions…
A Church should be very concern about their church if souls are not being saved.
There are churches today who cannot remember the last time they had a baptism service.
The purpose of the church is to reach souls for the Lord in foreign missions and home missions.
We should be looking for opportunities when the opportunity is there; we need to take advantage of it.
Illus: We sometimes hear of a church moving into a new community. They build a church building for people to worship in, and in no time it is packed to capacity.
That is, they are like fishermen that just found a fishing hole where the fish are biting.
Paul found such a fishing hole. He said in verses 30-31, “And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.”
Paul spent two years, because there was an open door to him. He said in verse 31, “…no man forbidding him.”
He also went to other places where the door was closed, and he would move on to other locations because there was no opportunity there to win anyone to Christ.
Once we have done everything we know to do to reach a person for Christ, and all of our efforts have been in vain, THEN WHAT DO WE DO?
The Word of God tells us what to do in situations like this.
For example, after Paul started with HIS OWN PEOPLE, FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS, he then turned to the GENTILES.
Look at Acts 28:28, we read, “Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles,
Salvation was first brought to the Jews. But the Word of God says these people:
• Did not want to hear about it anymore
• Did not want to see what they must do to be saved
So Paul then directed his attention to the Gentiles.
And notice what he said of them, “…they will hear it.”
Illus: Christians need to learn what every good fisherman already knows. That is, if the fish won’t bite in one place, move on to where they are hungry and will bite.
The devil has been very effective in getting some Christians tied up for years with a lost person that does not want to HEAR or SEE what God has for them.
Listen, after witnessing to the lost, if they do not receive the witness of God’s Word, there comes a time when you need to move on, and concentrate on someone who has not had a chance to hear the gospel yet.
• I am not saying that you should totally give up on them.
• What I am saying, is this, why should they be given thousands of opportunities to be saved, when others have never had one opportunity to be saved?
It is true that you might win someone to Christ if you spend years of your resources trying. But if you spent the same resources (time, money, and prayers) dealing with people who want to HEAR and SEE what God has for them, you might have won a dozen or more to Christ.
Illus: When you are driving and you come to a “Dead End”, you do not just stay there; you try and find another road that will lead you to your destination.
The same thing is true in witnessing; if you come to a dead end, ask God to show where you can go to find a sinner who is looking for salvation.
Conclusion:
What are you looking for?
People generally find what they are looking for!!!
The Bible says, “He that winneth souls is wise”.
Today’s church has forgotten their mission. We need to return to being like the New Testament church that looked for ways to carry out the GREAT COMMISSION.
I. THERE IS A DEBT TO BE PAID.
II. THERE IS A DUTY TO BE PERFORMED,
III. THERE IS A DIRECTION TO BE PURSUED
2:58
Lord, Lay Some Soul Upon My Heart
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Sep 7, 2018
