A Mission, A Vision, And A Passion
2 Corinthians 511 Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men; but we are made manifest unto God; and I trust also are made manifest in your consciences.12. For we commend not ourselves again unto you, but give you occasion to glory on our behalf, that ye may have somewhat to answer them which glory in appearance, and not in heart.
13 For whether we be beside ourselves, it is to God: or whether we be sober, it is for your cause.
14 For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:
15 And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.
16. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
A Mission
What we need here is a mission - a purpose - something to aim for. Let's see . . . we persuade men . . . the love of Christ constraineth us . . . the ministry of reconciliation . . . ambassadors for Christ. It looks like we may be onto something.
Mt 22:9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
Mt 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Mr 16:15 . . . Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
Lu 14:23 . . . Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.
Joh 20:21 . . . as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.
Mr 13:10 And the gospel must first be published among all nations.
Ps 96:3 Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people.
By George, we have a mission! That means we are all missionaries!
Do you know what your mission is? Do you know why you are here?
The church of today reminds me of people sitting on the beach soaking up the sun. We look good, but it's only skin deep.
Are you satisfied with your Christian walk? If not, it's time to do something about it.
It is our mission to persuade men. Men are persuaded every day. They are persuaded by billboards, by advertisements, by high pressure salesmen, by cult members. It is time that the church took back the primary position of persuasion. We have the truth!
If we truly have Jesus in us, then the love of Christ should constrain us to win the lost. His love must work through us. We are his hands . . . his feet . . . his voice in this world of men.
It's time to stop living for ourselves and live unto Him. There is too much self-consumption in the church. We are here for a purpose. Have you found your purpose? If not, keep looking. If you have, then get busy.
We have been given the ministry of reconciliation. We are to reconcile men to God - to show them the way to peace - to relationship with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
Do you know what you are? You are an ambassador! An ambassador for Christ. You are God's representative in this world. Are you representing Him? Are your interests His interests? Are you making a good representation for Him?
You represent all that is good - forgiveness, holiness, wholeness, healing, power. These are all qualities of God which should manifest in us.
Let me say this emphatically - You have a mission in this world. GET TO WORK!
A Vision
We have a mission. Now what we need is a vision.
Close your eyes! Now envision with me:
Every seat in this church filled - standing room only
Sinners crowded around these altars crying out for mercy
Sunday school classes filled to capacity and volunteers waiting in the wings to teach
Finances to cover every need - offering plates spilling over with cash
People lining the streets to get into the building
Outreach teams going out every week with the gospel
The Lighthouse overflowing with teens and families on fire for God
Picture yourself witnessing and leading others to Christ
Can you see those things? I want you to get these things firmly embedded in your minds. I want you to remember these mental pictures every day until they start happening.
Medical researchers tell us that what we can see in our minds we can do. If you get a firm vision of something, you subconscious mind will work to make it happen. Baseball players have found that seeing the ball hit the bat and envisioning that ball going over the fence will help to make it happen more often.
Our problem is that we are short sighted. Years ago, I pastored a church in a small town. The second year I was there, I decided we needed to set a projected budget to aim for in the coming year. So I figured up what we had spent the previous year and set a goal. Now get this - the church had taken in and spent about $47,000 that year. So I proposed a budget of $50,000 for the coming year. (Not extremely visionary.) When I shared this goal with the congregation, pandemonium set in. You'd have thought I asked for a million dollars.
You see, these people thought of $50,000 as a fortune. (That's about 1/3 of our budget here.) They had never seen that much money before and never would have thought they had spent that much. Finally, I convinced them that they had spent almost that much the previous year, and so they got on board. Our budget that year far exceeded our goal. In fact, it was easy once people had gotten a vision of what could be done.
Get a vision! See it happening! Stop looking at the waves and start looking at the Lord. Look forward! Make it happen! We believe we can do great things for God. I believe we can change our community and our world. But the key is, do you believe it? Can you see it. If not, it'll never happen.
A Passion
Now, once you have a vision, you need the passion to get it done. I am so tired of limp and lifeless attempts by the church of Jesus Christ. If you believe it, if you really believe it, then give it all you've got. Don't give God your leftovers anymore. God deserves your best.
Jesus was passionate about souls and he proved it on a cross. Paul was passionate about souls and he showed it by his lifestyle.
He pressed on in spite of opposition; he preached in the face of persecution; he forsook all the world for Christ and for souls.
He even said:
Ro 9:3 For I could wish that myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh:
Moses said:
Ex 32:32 Yet now, if thou wilt forgive their sin--; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.
Paul advised all believers:
1Co 10:31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
Col 3:17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.
Col 3:23 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
I am ashamed of the church of Jesus Christ today. People are leaving the faith because they don't see any passion. They don't see others sold out for the gospel. They see a lot of pampered saints self-satisfied with their blessing and giving little or nothing for the cause of Christ. And they look and see Communists, and Muslims, and Jehovah's Witnesses, and Mormons sacrifice for the cause.
Aren't you tired of sitting on the fence watching the parade? Don't be content with reading great reports - Make great reports!
It's time to LIVE IT OR LEAVE IT!
1999 may be our last chance. I'm not certain what the new millennium will bring, but I know that the prophesied events are lining up according to scripture, and we now have the capability to completely destroy ourselves. One way or another time is running out.