Continuing Pastor Kyle's message, So, as Believers and disciples of Jesus Christ, we have been transformed from perishing to thriving with spiritual discernment and God’s wisdom that we could not understand before when we were in our lost and dying state of the fallen spirit, yet we need to be seeking God’s wisdom daily, growing in faith, disciplining minds in the truth of the Bible in order to keep grabbing those “right” Gospel lifelines and live it out in thought, word and action. Then, we can confidently say, as King David wrote in Psalm 23:1-4 “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.” There are natural consequences to sin, and they are not to be ever taken lightly. Jesus was nailed to the Cross and died for every one of them. Christians are to loath inequity and repent of all sin as dishonoring disobedience to our just and holy God. We are constantly learning and maturing in our Christian walk as we listen to godly wisdom, take the teachings of the Bible and implement them into our life, and this saves ourselves so much agony.
1 Corinthians 1:26-31 “For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption — that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.” God takes ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things for their community in Christ and for the advancement of the kingdom of God.
1 Corinthians 2:1-5 “And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.”
The Apostle Paul decided to now nothing in planting the Christian church in Corinth, except Jesus Christ and Him crucified, intentionally so that the people’s faith would not rest in the wisdom of men, but rest in the power of God. Paul tells us in Romans 12:2, “do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Our lives should be evidence of this also. Only through the Gospel truth of the Cross can the ordinary become extraordinary. The Bible is full of ordinary people created by God doing exceptionally righteous and remarkable accomplishments in kingdom work, and that gives us great hope. In serving the Lord, we can take the areas where we lack that are discovered, and use that knowledge to adjust and correct ourselves to be the best “me” that we can be.
It is only through the counterintuitive nature of Divine wisdom and the Gospel truth of the Cross of Jesus Christ that ordinary folks like you and I become extraordinary for God, by the power of God, and being used by God every single day to accomplish God’s purposes in this world. The biggest influence that you will ever make in someone’s life will never happen from being popular, famous, having the most friends on Facebook or in posts that you make. The biggest influence that you will ever make in someone else’s life is in your own home; they are a gift from God and your first priority, your main ministry and the place where you are going to make the biggest impact. Make a difference in your own nuclear family home with the people that care and love you. The second biggest influence in ministry is found in the body of Christ through the church Worship, Bible Studies, Outreaches, Evangelism, Fellowship and Missions projects.
John 3:31-36 “He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure. The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
Imagine what God can do when you surrender your whole heart and soul to Him. Sometimes, you may not feel like you are going anywhere, but God says that you are on your way up. God wants to use little old you and I to extend that spiritual lifeline to our perishing friends and family, but many are self-conscious and afraid to share their faith. We do not want to push away the people that we are trying to love into the kingdom of God. The Gospel is the way to salvation and eternal life, and you have the wisdom of the Cross to reach people around you. Everyone you know, who has not made that decision to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord is perishing as the wrath of God for their sins remains on them. The God-rejecting, lost and dying, worldly people are living by worldly wisdom at best, grasping for anything that feels satisfying in the moment because the authority of God, the Cross of Christ and the Word of Holy Scripture offends them. But some people need to be offended for their sin and rebellion.
1 Peter 3:14-16 “But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you are blessed.
And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled.” But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed.”
If we over-popularize the Gospel by leaving out the hard-to-hear guilt of sin portion that leads the sinner to the realization that they need a Savior, then we may unintentionally dilute the message and lack the conviction of sin necessary for repentance and cause a false faith and salvation. Never do that! Jesus is about salvation and stability of life; not ease of life. Hold firm to the truth of the complete gospel but reach the seeking listener at their level, life on life, to reach them where they are at for understanding and an informed choice. Love God, live out the Gospel as Christ Followers and Bible-believing Children of the Kingdom of God, and love the sinner, not the sin. Pray for Divine appointments by the Lord with those that the Holy Spirit has prepared their hearts in advance for speaking the truth in love; asking God to bring them to us, show them to us and give us the boldness to engage with them with the light of Christ. When someone you know comes into your heart and mind, contact them and ask with care, “I was thinking about you. How are you? What’s going on in your life?” It is exactly what those who are perishing in your life need right now.
In Christ, Brian
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