Rob Morgan - 40 Days of Purpose: We are Made for Fellowship

We are Made for Fellowship

A Pocket Paper

from

The Donelson Fellowship

______________

Robert J. Morgan

May 9, 2004

We’re in the middle of our studies on the Purpose-Driven Life, and the thesis of these sermons is that God had made us on purpose for a purpose; and in fact, there are five great purposes for which we’re made. We looked at the first one last week. We’re made to worship God and to bring Him pleasure. Today we’re coming to the second great purpose. We’re made to fellowship with Christians and to bring pleasure to one another.

I’ve said many times over the years that there are days and nights when I come to church weary and worried and tired; and just the sight of some of you—my brothers and sisters in Christ—refreshes me. I looked up the word “refresh” in the dictionary; it means to restore strength and animation to, to freshen up, to restore, to replenish. And that’s one of the reasons God made us and one of our purposes in life—to be part of a family and to refresh and restore one another.

I looked up this word “refresh” and found that it occurs 18 times in the Bible. I’d like to lead us through a few of these passages because they are so encouraging and motivating to me.

· Genesis 18:3-5. In this passage, Abraham is sitting in the door of his tent during the heat of the day, and three men pass by. Abraham rose and ran to them, and this is what he said: “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. And I will bring a morsel of bread that you may refresh your hearts.” Do you remember in Genesis 12, God had told Abraham, “I will bless you and I will make you a blessing”? I think Abraham lived with the awareness that he was blessed by God to be a blessing to others, to be someone who brought refreshment to fellow pilgrims. We need to think the same about ourselves.

· 1 Samuel 16:23. This is a difficult passage, but in essence, it tells us that King Saul suffered from depression, but David had the ability to sing and play for him and to bring refreshment to his heart. The passage says: “And so it was, whenever the spirit from God was upon Saul, that David would take a harp and play it with his hand. Then Saul would become refreshed and well, and the distressing spirit would depart from him.” Every one of us occasionally suffers from discouragement, depression, or anxious care. How often someone has come alongside me and refreshed me in such times.

· Proverbs 11:25 in the NIV says: “A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.”

· Acts 3:19 tells us that our ability to be refreshed depends on our own spiritual condition. Peter said, “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord.”

· Romans 15:32 is Paul’s personal message to the Romans regarding his projected trip to see them. He said that he longed “…to come to you with joy by the will of God and…be refreshed together with you.”

· 1 Corinthians 16:17-18: “I am glad about the coming of Stephnas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, for what was lacking on your part they supplied. For they refreshed my spirit and yours.

· 2 Corinthians 7:13 is about Paul’s troubleshooter, Titus: “Therefore we have been comforted in your comfort. And we rejoiced exceedingly more for the joy of Titus, because his spirit has been refreshed by you all.”

· 2 Timothy 1:16 is a beautiful tribute: “The Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain.”

· Philemon 7 and 20 are my favorites, and this will be our primary text today…

“I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints, that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgement of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus. For we have great joy and consolation in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed by you, brother…. Yes, brother, let me have joy from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in the Lord.

We are made and placed on this earth to build others up, to refresh them, and to be a part of the family of believers known as the church. So today I’d like to speak on the subject: “How to be a refreshing person.” That is, how do we refresh others? The secrets are found right here in this paragraph.

Philemon was a wealthy landowner whose servant Onesimus had robbed him and run away. As the story unfolds we find that Onesimus had arrived in Rome where he had met the Apostle Paul and been converted. Paul was now sending Onesimus back to Philemon with this letter. I’m not going to get into the Onesimus part of the story today. I’m just intrigued with the way that Paul describes Philemon when he writes to him, and there are several characteristics and character qualities to notice.

Jesus in our Hearts

First, to be refreshing we’ve got to have Jesus in our hearts. Notice verse 4: I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus.

Why was this man refreshing to others? He had love toward Jesus Christ and he had faith toward Jesus Christ. He had love and faith toward Jesus Christ. Now let’s think about that for a moment.

He loved Jesus. Now here’s what I think. When someone genuinely loves Jesus and develops a lifetime of fellowship with him, it affects that person’s countenance. It shows on their face. It gives softness to the face that refreshes others.

This passage also says about Philemon that he had faith toward Jesus Christ. Now here’s what I think. When someone genuinely trusts Jesus and develops a lifetime of confidence in Him, it shows up on their face. It gives strength to the face that inspires confidence in others.

If we had Philemon as a member of our church, I think we’d see on his face a softness and a strength that would be refreshing to us. His very presence would refresh us because of what we could read on his face. His love for Jesus would give him a soft expression and his faith in Christ would give him an expression of strength.

Proverbs 15:30 says, “A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones.”

I read recently about a doctor named Rosenow—I think it was Dr. (Edward) Rosenow—who devoted his life to medical research. He once was asked what led him to this as his life's task, and he told this story. He grew up on an isolated farm in Northern Wisconsin, and as a boy he had an unforgettable experience when his brother became dangerously ill. The nearest doctor was sent for, and when he came to the house, Dr. Rosenow, then only a boy, followed the doctor into his brother’s room, and hid behind a sofa to observe. What he saw determined his career. The doctor poured out medicine to give to the patient, and then he turned and said to his parents, "Have no fear, he is going to get well." The light that came into his parents’ faces was wonderful to behold, and so deeply impressed him that then and there the boy behind the sofa determined that he would do something that would cause light to appear in people's faces.

I think Philemon wanted to light up the faces of others, and it was his love and faith in Jesus Christ that did it. If you want to be refreshing, others need to see it in your face and that requires love and faith in Jesus Christ.

Others in our Hearts

Second, we’ve got to have others in our hearts—love and faith toward all the saints. Notice these verses again: I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints.

Love and faith toward all the saints. Here was a man who loved the church and he believed in the church. In fact, he hosted the church. Verse 2 tells us that the local church in that community met in his house.

Steven Mosley is a Christian writer who tells a story about this in one of his books. Back in 1972, Campus Crusade had a huge conference in Dallas called Explo 72. It was sort of the pinnacle of the Jesus Movement, and some of my friends were there though I didn’t go. But Steven Mosley went with about 50 college kids from Illinois. Afterward, they boarded their old yellow used school bus to drive home. They broke down in Tulsa. Most of the kids bought tickets with Greyhound and headed home, but Steven and four others stayed to try to get the bus fixed. They spent almost all their money, but the old bus just wouldn’t run.

On Sunday night, they were standing around on the hot asphalt, not certain what to do. They were a motley looking crew—long haired Jesus hippies with torn jeans. But they noticed a little Baptist church across the street, and, not knowing what else to do, they crossed over and entered as people were arriving for the evening service. As it turned out, the people of the church were eager to help, especially a man named John Reed who had a friend who was a mechanic. “Why, we’ll have ‘er runnin’ in no time,” he said. “Ralph can fix most anything.”

John and Evelyn Reed put all the kids up in their house, fed them, and the next day the men worked on the bus. By Tuesday morning they were ready to roll. Evenlyn fed them a huge breakfast of biscuits and scrambled eggs, and they loaded up and started off with their bus. They only made it two blocks when it broke down again.

Back they went to the Reed’s. This time, the bus took two days fix, but the Reeds remained gracious, and on Wednesday night everyone went to prayer meeting together. Thursday morning they pulled out again. This time they made it a mile before they had to call John Reed. “Well, I’ll be,” he said, “How far did you all get this time?”

Here they all came again, piling into the Reeds house while more work was done on the bus. Friday morning they started out again. This time they made it to the outskirts of Tulsa before breaking down. Back they came to the Reeds’ house. They finally made a permanent exit on Saturday.

I want to read you what Steven Mosley said about that experience: “One guy in our group was black. The neighbors could not quite conceal their distress that someone like him was sleeping in their midst. But John told me quietly he was proud to be sheltering the young man. We had popped uninvited out of a war-protesting, drug-and-sex-infested university environment into their Okie land of country music and the flag. We had absolutely nothing in common except Jesus. But that was enough. Mom and Papa Reed always treated us as a blessing-- extra toothbrushes, sleeping bags, dirty socks and all.”

That’s what it means to be in a family—to be in a church family and to have one another in our hearts.

The Lost in Our Hearts

We have Jesus in our hearts, we have one another in our hearts, and third, we have the lost in our hearts. Look at verse 6: ...that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

The NIV says: I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.

Jesus said, “They will know you are Christians by your love.” When the world around us sees us loving each other, being in a family for which we were made, it will impress them with the reality of Jesus Christ.

Recently I read a new biography of Charles Spurgeon, the famous British preacher of the Victorian era. When he was a teenager—before he became a Christian—he attended agricultural college in Maidstone, England, with the idea of becoming a farmer. The next year, he dropped out and enrolled in another school in Newmarket to study Latin and Greek. He was trying to find his purpose in life. It was at the Newmarket school that he met someone who had a long-lasting impact on him. It was this person’s influence that eventually paved the way, as it were, for him to become a Christian and a minister and a theologian. It wasn’t the headmaster of the school. It wasn’t a teacher or professor. It wasn’t a classmate or friend. It was the school’s cook, an elderly woman named Mary King. She invited young Charles to church and he started attending her church, and it was from talks with her that he learned biblical truths he had never known before. Years later, when Mary King retired to Ipswich, Spurgeon—then a world-famous pastor—supplemented her income from his own pocket.

I wish I could meet Mary King. She understood evangelism and she understood the body of Christ—and she had a lost boy in her heart.

Joy in our Hearts

Finally, if we’re going to be refreshing to others, we’ve got to have joy and consolation in our hearts. Verse 7 says: For we have great joy and consolation in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed by you, brother. And verse 20 says: Yes, brother, let me have joy from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in the Lord.

This is such an interesting phrase. Has anyone ever said anything like that to you? Has anyone ever come up to you and said, “Brother, let me have joy from you in the Lord”? Notice that phrase: Brother, let me have joy. Let me have joy from you. Make me happy!”

Now in the context, Paul is wanting Philemon to forgive his slave Onesimus, and, in fact, to stop treating him like a slave and to accept him as a brother. Onesimus was now a Christian. He had fled away as a slave, but now he was returning as a brother. Look at verses 15ff: For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave—a beloved brother.

Now, Philemon, if you will forget all about being a master and treat Onesimus like the brother that he now is in the family of God you will make me happy. You will let me have joy from you in the Lord. You will refresh my heart.

When we do what God calls us to do and we obey the Scriptures, the joy of our lives overflows to others and it refreshes the hearts of the saints.

I read an article recently that reported on a survey which said that people who live in the same house as someone exhibiting signs of depression die 7 years sooner than the average. Not the depressed person—but those living in the same house as the depressed person. It’s hard to live in the same house with someone suffering from depression. But how wonderful it is to live with those whose hearts overflow with the joy of Jesus. It brightens our lives.

And that’s what’s so special about the church of Jesus Christ. We aren’t perfect; but we have love and faith toward Jesus Christ in our hearts and on our faces; we have a love for one another in our hearts; we have the lost in our hearts, and we have the joy, joy, joy, joy down in our hearts. Down in our hearts to stay.

And people like that refresh others.

Someone sent me an e-mail that said: I had a “drug” problem when I was a young person and a teenager. I was “drug” to church on Sunday morning. I was “drug” to church on Sunday night. I was “drug” to church on Wednesday night. I was “drug” to Sunday School every week. I was “drug” to Vacation Bible School. I was “drug” to the family altar to read the Bible and pray. I was “drug” to the woodshed when I disobeyed my parents. Those “drugs” are still in my veins, and I don’t think I’ll ever kick the habit.

Well, I don’t ever want to kick the habit of church. The Psalmist said, “I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord.” I often need to be refreshed, and I want to refresh others. Let’s get a good dose of Jesus in our heart. Let’s get one another in our hearts. Let’s get the lost in our hearts. And let’s get the joy of Jesus down in our hearts. And let’s never kick the habit!