Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction:

(Turn to .

Encouraging to see our church family come together…)

Is there something lost people are missing out on?

Is there something many Christians are missing out on?

ILL: Let’s Make a Deal! (From Wikipedia) The format of Let's Make a Deal involves selected members of the studio audience, referred to as "traders," making deals with the host.

In most cases, a trader will be offered something of value and given a choice of whether to keep it or exchange it for a different item.

The program's defining game mechanism is that the other item is hidden from the trader until that choice is made.

The trader thus does not know if he or she is getting something of greater value or a prize that is referred to as a "zonk," an item purposely chosen to be of little or no value to the trader.

In our text, Jesus is going to play “Let’s Make a Deal” with a rich young ruler that came to Him.

Stand and read this account from Luke 18:18-30.

ILL: At the game show, “Let’s Make a Deal,” the contestants are exuberant and excited to play the game! (Pictures of contestants…)

1.

You Were Created for More

Jesus was making a deal with the rich young ruler— “Sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.

I have a world of adventure ahead for you.

I want you to be a partner in the mission of building a Heavenly kingdom.

Your greatest fulfilment, your greatest purpose will be fulfilled.

All you need to do is put down what I have already given you, and I will give you unimaginable treasures.”

The Holy Bible: King James Version.

(2009).

(Electronic Edition of the 1900 Authorized Version., ).

Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

Was his response a very excited one?

No, he left sorrowing because he chose the wrong door—he chose the prize that wasn’t.

The call to follow Jesus should be something Christians desire to answer, but many often walk away sorrowing.

The more we have, the harder it is to follow Christ.

Perhaps that is why people many turn to Christ when they have nothing left to lose.

Like others shown in and other passages, when Jesus asked them to follow Him, they began to give excuses rather than “deny themselves and take up their cross and follow Him.

Our excuses are rooted deeply in one word: CONTROL.

If we are going to let the Lord change our lives and write the story of our lives, we must sign over our rights to let Him do so.

Our excuses are rooted deeply in one word: CONTROL.

If we are going to let the Lord change our lives and write the story of our lives, we must sign over our rights to let Him do so.

Like the game show, we are invited to make a deal.

Unlike the game show, we know exactly what the choice is.

Our invitation is to follow Christ and discover a new purpose and mission in life!

Proposition: Make the deal—Say, “Yes,” to Christ’s invitation!

1.

You Were Created for More

ILL: Belle in “Beauty and the Beast.”

The story opens with Belle traveling through her town knowing she is different than everyone else.

She was educated, beautiful, and creative.

She had dreams to be and do more.

She lived a life like Henry David Thoreau described when he said, “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.”

Belle expresses her desire by singing, “I want much more than this provincial life.”

ILL: Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote “Alas for those that never sing, But die with all their song in them.”

Guess what—you were created for more than just living on earth!

God created you and made you a new creation in Him for much more!

expresses Jabez’s desire for God to deliver him from the norm—He wanted God to do something through his life!

Let me remind you that as a child of God, there is no difference, not division, no section of your life that is secular while another part is sacred.

You are not created to do anything secular—ALL of your LIFE belongs to the LORD!

God invites to be a part.

Are you?

God invites you to be and do more for His kingdom.

Are you following Him?

God has definitively and positively created you for His Divine purpose—for you to be a part of the unfolding story of God’s plan to make all things new and to introduce the world to His kingdom.

We are His children, and we are made for more!

"God offers us an amazing opportunity to join in this sacred work.

We have the great privilege of being the hands and feet of Christ in a hostile and hurting world, and there are countless ways to participate.

We can work with joy in the face of difficulty, speak the truth in a place of deceit, choose integrity when corruption is the norm, offer comfort in a time of grief, challenge injustice to protect its victims, and offer forgiveness in the midst of brokenness.

God invites us to mentor a young person who needs a role model, visit with a lonely senior citizen, provide food to the hungry and water the thirsty, welcome an immigrant family, comfort the sick and afflicted, bring the good news of the gospel to someone who's never heard it, comfort a coworker going through a crisis, or pray for those in need, who happen to live ten thousand miles away.

These are sacred things, privileged things, kingdom things. . .

.We were made for more."

(Unfinished, p. 115)

2.

You Have a Divine Calling

“…Follow me.”

We see this invitation repeated many times.

We cannot follow God with a U-Haul full of earthly things and desires driving behind us!

Paul recognized this calling when he testified in .

"I am only one, but I am one; I cannot do everything, But I can do something; What I can do I ought to do, And what I ought to do By God's grace I will do."

--Edward Everett Hale

I remind you to think of the Great Commission in .

Is there a footnote stating that you or anyone else is exempt from participating?

Your life, your career, your paths in life are the GO of the Great Commission—they are the paths and places you are to serve the Lord and share Christ with others—they are not a means unto themselves.

Often, I am asked, “Pastor, how do I find God’s direction for my life?”

Let me give you some Bible guidelines.

First, Commit to the Destination.

The rich young ruler said he wanted to follow Jesus, but he wasn’t committed to Jesus and where Jesus was leading Him.

Have you found out that distractions come in life?

We can get sidetracked very easily!

I’ve met many people over the years, and I am saddened when I hear things like, “I know God wanted me to serve Him as a missionary, but I got distracted doing _____.”

Think of Abraham.

God asked Abraham to sacrifice his only son as a test of his faith.

Identify what your “Isaac” is—the thing that you value most.

Today, lay your “Isaac” on the altar, trusting God for where He is leading you.

Second, Pray.

We pray because we communicate with God.

His Spirit confirms His work and direction in our lives.

When you pray, you agree that God is the Father.

You agree with His plan.

“Thy kingdom come”

You ask for His help.

“Give us this day...”

Third, Prepare.

Get into the Bible!

Psalm describes the exciting and blessed life we all desire, and the root of it is our “...delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night.”

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The Bible will order your steps according to the plan He has in action.

Life is a difficult thing.

If you think you can live life successfully without reading, studying, and meditating on the Bible regularly, you are terribly mistaken.

Share life with other Christians.

They will guide you and encourage you in God’s truth from their own lives and experiences.

ILL: An old African proverb says, “If you want to run fast, run alone.

If you want to run far, run together.”