Sunday,
October 26, 2014 pm
Perspectives Concerning
Reaching the Lost
Having just finished our
fall gospel meeting, we now resume our normal routine.
But that doesn’t mean the work of this meeting is over.
Seed has been planted.
Perhaps it needs watering, both in our own lives and in the lives
of our friends and others who came to this meeting.
Furthermore, the message is still available at our website,
www.roseavenue.org
So see can be further planted.
My point here is that
as we remind ourselves of our need to focus on reaching the lost, let us
use efforts such as this for as much good as possible.
Tonight, we want to address
another aspect of personal evangelism.
There are many who rely too much on their own abilities (or lack
thereof) to keep them from doing anything.
While we do need to develop skills and “talents” that will
enhance our chance of success, (as well as realize our limitations) we
also need to remember God’s part.
It is with that in mind that tonight we want to discuss some
perspectives we need to keep in mind as we try to reach the lost.
I.
Realize God’s Part
a.
What often keeps most of us
from doing more to reach the lost is our focus on ourselves. Mainly, we
look at our own shortcomings and dwell on them. We say, “I have
never been good talking to people about this”, “People don’t want the
gospel anymore”, “Door knocking won’t work”, “I just don’t know enough”,
“I’m afraid of rejection”, etc.
b.
But we must never forget,
IT IS NOT ABOUT ME! In fact, if I am trying my best, God
doesn’t hold me accountable for the results. He just wants to see me put
forth the effort!
c.
1 Corinthians 3:5-7 points
this out clearly.
Even Paul with his degree of success (and failure) acknowledged who was
ultimately responsible – God! He gives the increase
Acts 14:27, as Paul and Barnabas complete their missionary journey
together, they come to Antioch and when they had gathered the church
together they, “reported all that God had done with them, and that He
had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.”
In the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25) the reason the one talent man
was condemned was not that he tried and failed, but that he failed to
try. In vs. 26 he was called a “wicked and lazy servant” and
chastised because he didn’t even put the money in a bank.
We must never forget that He gives the increase.
d.
He opens the doors, etc.
The idea of an open door is opportunity. Paul notes that God was
the one who presented the opportunities and He was the one as they
sought more. It was up to him (and others) to walk through that door.
Note again Acts 14:27 which says that God “had opened the door of faith
to the Gentiles.”
1 Corinthians 16:9 speaks of a great and effectual door that had been
opened for Paul.
Revelation 3:7-8,
Philadelphia is commended for taking advantage of the open door set
before them by the Lord.
e.
While we certainly have a
part in reaching the lost, let us never forget God’s bigger part in it.
II.
The power of the Seed
a.
God has provided us with
the only offensive weapon we need to confront the enemy and teach the
lost – His word.
Hebrews 4:12 describes it as living and powerful,
Romans 1:16 refers to it as “the power of God unto salvation.”
1 Thess. 1:5 speaks of how the gospel came to these brethren, not in
word only, “but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much
assurance”
We must never underestimate the power of the word.
b.
One way the word is
described is as seed!
Luke 8:11 in describing the Parable of the Sower, Jesus began by saying,
“The seed is the word of God.” It is what we are to plant.
Have you ever given consideration to the power of a small seed? It
begins with just a germ of life. But when planted and watered, the
outer core withers away and the “germ” begins to produce what will
become a plant that will produce fruit which will include many more
seeds that can produce the same fruit over and over. That is how
the word of God is described – we plant it in a heart and let it
germinate. – learn to trust God in this.
c.
OUR JOB is to plant that
seed and water it.
d.
There are also many other
lessons to consider when we think of the seed.
1) Seed cannot do its job if it is not planted.
2) We reap in proportion to how much we sow.
More seed means more fruit (2 Cor. 9:6)
3) As we sow the seed (broadcasting it) not all will be receptive
(consider the different soils).
More in a few minutes
e.
Is the seed still in the
barn? Haggai 2:19 says, “Is the seed still in the barn? As yet the
vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have not yielded
fruit. But from this day I will bless you.’ ””
Could it be that we are not
winning more souls because we are not planting enough seed?
f.
We need to take our
understanding of God’s word OUTSIDE of the building if we are to grow.
Mark 16:15, “GO into all the world and preach the gospel…”
III.
The Power of Prayer
a.
How many of us truly
believe that God can present us with opportunities to reach the lost?
How many of us actually ask Him to do that? How many of us really
MEAN IT?
b.
Matthew 9:36–38, “But
when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them,
because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd.
Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the
laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out
laborers into His harvest.”” Jesus told His disciples to pray for
opportunities.
c.
Paul prayed and asked
others to pray for him for opportunities - Colossians 4:3 speaks of Paul
requesting prayers so that “God would open unto us a door for the
word, to speak the mystery of Christ”
Ephesians 6:19 Paul requests that prayers be made for him that he might
speak with boldness.
d.
Since God is the one who
will give the increase and it is His word, we need to go to Him.
We are continually told to pray for things we need and that are
according to His will.
1 John 5:14-15 – He hears when we ask according to His will. Can
anyone deny that opportunities to reach the lost (and for us to prepare
for that work) are His will?
Matthew 7:7 says, “Ask and it will
be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened
to you.” Jesus proceeds by noting that God knows how to give
us what we need and He will.
e.
James 5:16 says, “The
effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.”
IV.
Preparation
a.
While it is clear that God
wants the lost to be saved and that His part gives the increase, He
still is looking for us to do our part.
b.
I firmly believe that if
one is genuinely looking for the truth, God will provide the
opportunity. The book of
Acts records many examples of this – Cornelius, the Eunuch, Paul, etc.
They desired to please God and had good and honest hearts.
BUT, in EVERY case, the gospel was preached by a man to them.
Men were sent!
c.
They were PREPARED to go.
Are we? If one is
searching for the truth, can God use us?
He can only use us if we are prepared to go. God is not
going to force anyone to do what they do not want to do. Reaching
the lost is something that takes preparation.
d.
There are many who would
love to see the borders of the Lord’s kingdom broadened both locally and
abroad. And most will even stand behind and support those who are
doing the work that is getting done. BUT is that enough? How
much are we willing to do about it ourselves? When God is looking
for someone, will I volunteer? (cf. Isa. 6:8)
e.
In Matthew 9:37-38 Jesus
noted that while the harvest is plentiful, the laborers are few.
f.
How many of us are making
preparations toward this end?
Are we learning more of God’s word so that we can adequately give a
defense of our hope? (1 Pet. 3:15)
What type of a life are we living? Are we purifying ourselves so
that we can be useful to Him? (Matthew 5:14-16,) How much do
we care about others – specifically the lost?
g.
When we pray to God and He
opens a door for us, are we prepared to walk through it?
Paul was! God answered many of his prayers and opened doors for him.
Nehemiah was! Nehemiah 2 demonstrates how Nehemiah was prepared to
answer the king when he inquired about building the walls.
V.
Don’t take failure personal
a.
A major hindrance to doing
more to reach the lost is fear of rejection and failure. We all
want to be successful and do not want to have to face continued failure.
I am here to give you assurance: don’t worry about what might happen,
you ARE going to fail and you WILL be rejected! Not all the time
and as you keep working at it you will see more and more success, BUT
you WILL fail and be rejected from time to time.
b.
But realize that while the
gospel is for all, not everyone will receive it. It is not
personal!
c.
In the Parable of the
Sower, (Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23) perhaps the main point that Jesus was
trying to make was the fact that not all are going to accept the truth.
In fact, only 1 in 4 seed described made it to good ground.
d.
Jesus told His apostles,
men to whom He gave special powers and authority, “You will be hated
by all for My name’s sake.” (Matt. 10:22)
He later reminded them, “if the world hates you, you know that it
hated Me before it hated you.” (John 15:18)
e.
2 Thessalonians 3:2 where
Paul asks the brethren to pray for them, he asks not only that the word
of the Lord would run swiftly but also, “that we may be delivered
from unreasonable and wicked men; for not all have faith.”
f.
Brethren, DON’T take
rejection personal, even if the action is directed against you, if you
did what you were supposed to do, it is God and our Lord they are
rejecting.
YOU and I just need to care about the planting and watering. That’s it.
Let the chips fall where they may and let God take care of everything
else. All is not always lost – sometimes another will reap what
you have sown (and you may not know about it)
And thus we have some
perspectives we need to keep in mind as we give consideration
to reaching the lost. There are other things to think about, but
these are some key thoughts that will help us get going if we really DO
want to reach the lost.
It close with this thought:
Much of the preparations needed to engage in personal evangelism is
about attitudes more than methods. When we develop the proper
attitudes, the methods will come and take care of themselves.
Don’t make reaching the lost about you – make it about God and His will.
When you keep that in mind you can say as Paul did,
“I can do all things through
Christ who strengthens me.” (Phil. 4:13).