Sermon Tone Analysis

11-13-05

Dallas Baptist Church

Pastor Jerry Branch

Made for Mission…Evangelism

Week 6

 

 

Sermon Transcript

 

These past many, many days we've been in this 40 Days of Purpose.

Have these days gone by as fast as it seems?

Over these days, we've been looked at God's 5 purposes for our lives.

We discovered several things…

First, that life is preparation for what?

For eternity.

Life is preparation for eternity.

And we’ve found out that there are 4--four things, we’ll be doing \\           in heaven forever.

\\           And God wants us to practice these here on earth.

*First is worship*, which is “to know and love God.”

The *Second is to fellowship*, to learn to love each other.

The *Third is discipleship*, learning to become like Christ.

And the *Fourth is service*, *or Ministry*…using my SHAPE, \\           my Spiritual Gifts, My Heat, My Abilities, \\           My Personality, and My Experiences for God in serving Him.

Now, we come to the fifth purpose, and this is the ONLY purpose \\           we can ONLY do here on earth.

*/You and I were made for a mission.

/*

*VIDEO CLIP:*  Made for Mission

In John 17, verse 18, Jesus said, Just as You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.

John 17:18 (HCSB)

 

"/In the same way that you gave Me a mission in the world, I give them a mission in the world/."

"I/n the world/."

Last week we talked about how we each need \\           */to be part of the ministry in the church./*

But that’s NOT where we stop…we also need a mission in the world.

In other words, we need a */ministry to believers/* (in the church) \\           and */we need a mission to unbelievers/*.

(reaching out to the world)

 

So today we're going to look at the ‘common mission’ \\           we all share together with every believer.

In John 20:21, Jesus said, Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you!

Just as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

John 20:21 (HCSB) \\ \\

"/As the/ /Father has sent me, I am sending you/."

What are we being sent to do?  \\ What is our mission?

Paul is real specific in Acts 20:24, where he says, \\           But I count my life of no value to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of God’s grace.

\\             Acts 20:24 (HCSB) \\ \\

"/the most important thing is to complete my mission, the work the Lord Jesus gave me/” –  which is: “/to tell people the good news/ /about God's grace/.”

In your outline, then, OUR fifth purpose is *to share the Good News*.

So, once I know that God is in control, \\           once I know that God made me to love me, \\           once I know that my life isn't an accident, \\           once I know that life has a purpose, \\           all the things we've been talking about, \\           God expects me to share that with other people.

There's a word for this, and just like all these other words we’ve looked at every week, it too, is often misunderstood.

*It is the word "evangelism.”

* \\ One thing Christians and non-Christians have in common is that \\           neither of them like that word \\           because it makes you think of the dudes on TV \\           with really big hair who shout real loud about the Bible on TV \\           and end up saying, /[loud, Southern accent] /"Send me your money!"  \\ \\ But that's not what evangelism is at all, nor is that an evangelist.

/Evangelism/ is just the Greek word for “good news.”

That's all it means.

And so the Bible says that once I know the Good News,

that God loves me, has a purpose and plan for my life \\           and all the things we've talked about, \\           God wants me to pass it on, sharing the Good News with others.

So, where am I supposed to share it?

Let’s look at Acts 1:8: \\ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8 (HCSB)

 

 "/You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth/."

Now, when Jesus told this to his followers, do you know where they were?

They were in Jerusalem.

So what’s the point?

\\ First, Jesus is saying, I want you to start at home.

Start first with the people closest to you, \\                    right there in your own city, your own community.

Then Jesus says go out to Judea and Samaria, \\                    that's like the county next door, \\                    and Samaritans were different culturally and different racially.

\\           So that means, go to people nearby, \\                    but these people are different from you.”

And then Jesus says, “Go to the ends of the earth.

\\           I want you to go reach everybody else.”

I want you to notice 2 things here…First…Jesus doesn't say, \\           “You will be my defense attorney.”

\\           He doesn't say, “You will be my prosecutor.”

\\           He didn't say, “You will be my salesman.”

Folks…YOU DO NOT have to defend God.  \\           All God wants you to do is He wants you to be a witness.

So what is a witness?

\\ A witness is somebody who just tells what they have seen.

\\           I saw this, and then I saw this; and this is what happened.

You see, you are the expert on your life.

And NO ONE is a better witness on your life than you are.

So God says, “I just want you to tell other people what's happened to you,        what's happened in your life.”

And He says, I don’t want you to do this just in the church, but I want you to      go out all over the place; \\           go to the people closest to you, \\           go to your families and friends, your co-workers…

But also go to the people who are near, but different, \\           and go to everybody else.

And the second thing, is that Jesus doesn’t say, “Go FIRST to your Jerusalem, and THEN go to your Samaria, and THEN go to your Judea, and THEN go to the ends of the earth.

Jesus does NOT use the word ‘then’ at all… \\           which means we are to go about this ‘simultaneously’… \\           each one is just as important as the next.

Now…Look at the next verse.

Eph 3:11 says, \\ */"This was God's plan for all of history which He carried out through Christ Jesus, our Lord."/*

\\           Here's the amazing part: God has chosen us to complete the mission.

The mission that Jesus Christ started when He came to earth, \\                    He says, “I want you to finish it.”

There’s a story that says, \\           “God is in heaven and an angel comes up and God says, "My plan is       to give the Good News to my children on earth and ask them to share         it."

And the angel says,  "What if they don't?

What is plan B?"

          And God says, "There is no plan B."

 

Folks…we're God’s PLAN.

Being on mission is the greatest privilege we're ever given.

So, how do you get on God's agenda and let God use you \\           and bless you so that you can be completing your mission?

There are *three things.*

First, In order to to complete my God-given mission,

          I must share *with those in my* world.

\\ I must share with those in my world.

In the Gospel of Luke, chapter 8, there's a man whom Jesus healed.

After Jesus healed him, the guy wanted to go with Jesus, \\           but Jesus said, "No."

In Luke 8:39 Jesus said to the man… \\           "/’Go back home and tell people how much God has done for you.’

\\           So that man went all over town telling how much \\           Jesus had done for him/.”

The man went "/back home/."

That’s also where our mission starts…Right at home… \\           that’s in our own neighborhoods, and right here in our community.

The Bible says \\           And off he went, proclaiming throughout the town all that Jesus had done for him.

Luke 8:39 (HCSB)

 

This guy literally went all over town.

Folks…that's what God wants us to do.

HE wants us to go to our friends, our family, \\           our coworkers, our neighbors, anybody who crosses your path, \\           the person who delivers the paper, \\           who person who helps you with your groceries, \\           the clerk at the gas station.