[0:00] This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alfred, Georgia. It is our prayer that you will be blessed by the preaching of God's Word. Alright, if you have your Bibles, go ahead and turn to Acts chapter 9.
[0:10] Acts chapter 9. Before we get started, I want to tell you a little story. I want to tell you a story about my reputation as a kid. My reputation as a kid was this of a kid that had an active imagination.
[0:23] When I was a little boy, my mom and dad would say, that boy has the biggest imagination. And as I got older, it became, he tells stories. And then when I became a little bit older, it's, Jason's just a liar.
[0:38] Jason can't tell the truth. He just lies. He makes everything up. He doesn't ever tell the truth. And I don't know, at some point that began to drive me crazy, because every time my dad, every time something would happen, and I would say something, my dad would go, Son, are you sure?
[0:57] And I go, yeah, yeah, dad, yeah, that's true. You're positive. He said, yeah, yeah, dad. Shoot, he said, are you really, really positive? Dad, I'm telling you, it's the truth.
[1:09] And I've spent my whole life trying to live that down. My absolute whole life trying to, trying to get over those things, trying to, where people would not, where people would not say about me, it has driven me crazy.
[1:21] When anybody, Secky guesses me, it drives me insane. Then this week, Brother Austin visited one of my very best friends in the whole world, last week with Chris Way.
[1:35] Brother Austin comes in, and the first thing he says to me is, Chris Way says you're a liar. Chris Way says you can't tell the truth. Your reputation follows you around.
[1:48] No matter how old you are, no matter what way, it might have been I told one story one time, I think that I've got that reputation unfairly. But, that's the truth.
[1:58] That's probably not the best story to tell, right before I'm about to preach. But tonight I want to talk about your reputation. Your reputation as a Christian. Your reputation as a church. Your reputation as a body of believers.
[2:12] What are you going to be known for? How are the missionaries going to think of you? What is my family going to think of this church? What are the other families in this community going to think?
[2:25] Today we went out, we went out today and we had a little scavenger hunt, and we decided, Justin Mize and Ben Thomas and myself, we decided we were going to, I made up a little survey that we were going to talk.
[2:38] We were going to ask people three questions that we could talk to them. We were going to ask, one, what was their nationality? Two, what was their religion? And three, do they have a church home somewhere? And that's how we got to talk to people.
[2:49] And we came up to this, we went to turn around behind a store, and there was a Chinese guy sitting on a milk crate smoking a cigarette. And we went out to talk to him, and he spoke perfect English, but he didn't understand a word we were saying.
[3:02] He didn't understand a word we were saying, but we handed him a track, and I hope that we impacted him for Jesus. I hope that he takes that track, and I hope that maybe he looks at the map on the back of that track, and maybe at some point he comes here.
[3:16] Hope that he remembers us tonight when he's laying in bed. What are you known for? You know the country of South Africa, it's known for something. It's not known for anything good. Much like me being known as a liar, South Africa really doesn't have a good reputation.
[3:30] It's known for its crime rate. It's known for its rape rate. It's known for its racism. It's known for the way they treat women. It's known for all the wickedness that lives inside that country.
[3:44] All the idolatry. All the idol worshippers. All the things. That's what it's known for. So my question is, what should we be known for?
[3:57] What should we be known for? And I think we should be known for loving people. I think we should be known for loving people like Christ loved people. What I want to be known for is I don't want to be known as a good preacher.
[4:08] I don't want to be known as a great missionary. I don't want to be known as anything, but I want somebody to at least say, He loves people. He loves Jesus, and He loves people.
[4:19] I want to love people because I love Jesus. And I believe this is Jesus' commandment for us to love people. For us to treat people like He has treated people. In Acts, we find a story of a woman that loved people.
[4:35] If you would go ahead and look with me at verse number 36. And it was known that she loved people. Let's look right there. It says, Now there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha, which by interpretation is called Dorcas.
[4:49] This woman was full of good works and alms deed, which she did. And it came to pass in those days that she was very sick and died. Who, when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper chamber and for so much as Lydia was nigh to Joppa.
[5:05] And the disciples heard that Peter was there. They sent unto him. And two men desiring him that they would not delay to come to them. Then Peter arose and went with them.
[5:17] When he was come, they brought him into an upper chamber. And all the widows stood by and weeping and showing the coats and the garments which Dorcas had made while she was with him.
[5:27] But Peter put them all forth and kneeled down and prayed and turning him to the body and said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes and when she saw Peter, she sat up and he gave her his hand and lifted her up.
[5:45] And when he had called the saints and the widows, presented her alive. And it was known throughout all Joppa. And many believed in the Lord. You see, here's the story of a lady and I think, I think Dorcas, Tabitha, was a lady that didn't have to get asked.
[6:03] You know, as a missionary, what happens many times as a missionary is we get asked a lot of times, brother, do you need anything? I'm a missionary. I always need something. But chances are, if you ask me if I need something, I'm going to say, no, I don't need it.
[6:19] I don't need that. But you know, it means something to me when somebody pulls it out of their pocket and gives it to me without asking if they need it. If somebody sends it to me without asking, it means something. It means something to me because I didn't have to ask for it.
[6:32] It shows me that you have a heart of a giver. And I think Dorcas was much like that. I could see Dorcas seeing a man that doesn't have a jacket and it's cold outside. And she goes to her house and she pulls the blankets off her bed and she makes the man a jacket and takes it to him.
[6:49] You see, Dorcas was a person that loved people. She had a reputation for loving people. What is our reputation? Do we love people?
[7:01] Does the world of the lost see Jesus in us? You know, in South Africa they have these women and they're some of the sweetest women in the world.
[7:13] They call them the mamas. And they're like the spiritual building blocks of the church. And there's this one woman into there and her name is Mama Johnson.
[7:25] And when I was in South Africa a few years ago, Mama Johnson had brought and had taken in babies, infants, and was raising them as her own children.
[7:39] Mama Johnson is known in the townships, in the township, that if you're hungry, come see her and she'll give you something to eat. She's known because she loves people.
[7:52] And you know what? I believe that her whole family is now believers because they see the love of Christ in her. That's what Dorcas was.
[8:03] She was loved. Now where did Dorcas' love come from? Where does our love for people come from? Where does that come from? And I think, believe, that comes from being a believer, being a disciple of Jesus Christ.
[8:16] Let's look right there at verse number 36. It says, it says, it says, now there was a Joppa, a certain disciple named Tabitha.
[8:27] She was a disciple. If we have Jesus in us, it should come natural. Loving people in the heart. We've experienced Jesus. He loves us. He loves us.
[8:38] Why does she do this? Because she wants others to see Christ. Why would we go to South Africa? Why would Brother Austin spend 20 years as a missionary? Why would he spend all the money on this great activity?
[8:51] Why would he do these things? Because he wants this church to be known as a church that loves Christ and loves people. He wants that to be interpreted. He wants people to see that.
[9:03] Where did she learn to love people? From being a disciple of Jesus Christ. She learned to love people from Jesus Christ. She loved them.
[9:15] She didn't have to ask. The second thing I see is that she was missed. She was very loved also. You know, at the end of your life, chances are there's not going to be a whole lot of people at your funeral.
[9:27] There's not going to be a whole lot of stuff, but she had people that were missing her. You see that the people that she took care of and the people that she worked with, they loved her. They took and they washed her body.
[9:41] And they laid her in an upper room. You know, back in those days, and I've been to a couple third world countries and being a missionary, I've studied society and a lot of times dead people, they're not washed, they're just put straight in the ground or they just wait for the train to, for the truck to come by and they toss the body and it takes it down and it buries them.
[10:02] But somebody loved her. Somebody took care of her because she loved people. She was missed. Dorcas was missed. That's another thing.
[10:12] You see that Dorcas was missed. You see that she was missed by the people that she worked with. You see that she was missed by those that she helped. And she was missed because she was needed. You see, Peter thought that it was necessary to come down and to help them.
[10:28] When they saw, when they saw it was needed, are you needed around here? Dorcas was needed. She was missed because she was needed. Are you needed? Are you needed around here?
[10:43] Are you going to be missed? If vision was to close down, would people miss you? Or would nobody know because of the impact? You had no impact.
[10:54] Dorcas had impact. She had impact. Because of Dorcas, let's look down in verse number 42 and it says, And it was known throughout all Joppa and many believed in the Lord.
[11:10] Because of Dorcas, many came to know Christ. Christ. You know, her reputation went ahead of her.
[11:23] And then her story, her testimony, followed her. And many became saved. Many trusted Christ because she loved people. And that's the opportunity that we have.
[11:35] That's the opportunity that we can have is we can have an opportunity for many to be saved. Thank you so much. Colossians chapter 1.
[11:47] We've been talking about missions this week. We've been coming out here for the last three nights talking about missions, having a missions conference and the question is what is all this about? I mean, what are all these pictures about?
[11:59] What are the flags about? The parade last night? What is all this about? And I think Paul gives us a clue here in Colossians chapter 1. Read with me in verse number 3. We give thanks to God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ praying always for you.
[12:16] Go to verse 7. Colossians 1 verse 7. As you also learned of Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is for you a faithful minister of Christ.
[12:30] Now, I've been here at Vision for the last year and a half and you guys strike me as being a very sharp congregation. If you could take people from Missouri out of the equation, it would be a very, very sharp...
[12:40] I'm just joking, Jeff. So I think... Are you picking up one? I'm looking here at the text. If you are, then help me. Look at verse number 9. For this cause, we also, since the day we heard of it, do not cease to pray for who?
[12:54] Okay, maybe I misjudged you all. Let's try it again. We heard, do not cease to pray for? You. Thank you. Go to verse number 24. Who now rejoice in my sufferings, what is it?
[13:08] For you. Everybody say, for you. For you. Very good. Alright, go down to verse number 25. Wherefore I am made a minister according to the dispensation of God which is given to me.
[13:18] What? For you. Very good. Go to chapter 2, verse 1. For I would that ye knew what great conflict I have. What? For you. For you. Ministry and missions is for people.
[13:32] Ministry and missions is for people. Brother Jason just talked about that. Do you want to be known as a person that loves God and loves people? That loves God and serves God and loves and serves people?
[13:46] Notice here in verse number 3 of chapter 1, Paul says, I give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. And what is he thanking them? What is he thanking God for? What is he thanking Christ for?
[13:56] Well, because in verse number 3, verse 4, he says, because I've heard of people that have come to faith in Christ. In verse 4, because I've heard of people that now have a love to all the saints.
[14:09] Verse number 5, because I've heard of people who at one time were lost in their trespasses and sins and drowning in their hopelessness, but now these people have a hope for heaven.
[14:19] And I thank God for the work of the gospel in people. Verse number 7, he says, as you also learned of Epaphras, our dear fellow servant who is for you a faithful minister of Christ.
[14:33] Paul says, this guy, he is a servant of Christ. He is Christ's servant for you. Brother Bo, as you go there to Cobb County, we believe that God's going to use you as you walk humbly before Him.
[14:45] We pray that He does, but as you go to Cobb County, you minister there, you're not building a great ministry, you're building people. You're not lifting up your name, but you're loving people. And that goes for every one of us that are in the ministry.
[14:56] We're going there, I'm going to Argentina, for people. In verse number 9, Paul says, I've been praying, and I'm praying for people that will be filled with knowledge, people that will be filled with wisdom, people that will be filled with understanding, that you people would walk worthy of the Lord, that you people would be filled with every good work, that you people would be increasing in the knowledge of God.
[15:17] Ministry and missions is about people. In verse number 24, he talks about the suffering for you. In verse 1 of chapter 2, he talks about the conflict that I have for you.
[15:28] Paul is saying that the ministry that I have and all these horrible things that I've experienced that I'm riding from a prison cell and the suffering that is needed to take place to push back the darkness in the dark world where Christ is not known, I am experiencing that suffering and that conflict for people.
[15:48] In verse number 25, he says, I have been made a minister of the gospel for you, for people. Missions is about people. The country of this week that you guys have been looking at is the country of Zambia.
[16:05] Zambia has right now 11,862,740 people. That is not a number.
[16:17] That is people. That's little ladies going down the street. That's young men playing soccer on the soccer field. That's little boys and little girls sitting in school taking a math class.
[16:29] That's a young man. That's a father that's going to work. That's a young woman. That is a mother who's down at the market. Those are people. The pictures back here on this wall is more than a picture of a man and his family.
[16:42] Those pictures represent a family that is going to communities. Those pictures represent communities in cities that are filled with people that need the gospel. Missions is about people.
[16:55] We went to Argentina a year ago a year and a month ago and we got to Argentina. I've never been out of the country. The furthest away I've been from home is Florida which is almost like a foreign country to me. Because I'm from Western North Carolina we a bunch of hicks and rednecks down up there.
[17:08] And so I go finally for the first time fly down to Argentina for the first time we get there and guess what I found? I found people. People just like me.
[17:20] People who get up men that get up in the morning and go to work just like I've done. People like women that get up and take care of their children just like my wife does. People who sit down and enjoy a meal and laugh and have fun together just like we do.
[17:36] People that have joy and people that have hardship just like we do. People that need Jesus. We had got off the train we were heading back to the Bible college there in La Plata and we came upon an accident.
[17:49] Jeff was with us and he began to ask questions what's going on here. This guy was riding a moped with his three children on the back. They came to this intersection. This car hit them ran completely over top of them and killed the family.
[18:04] And we're walking away I took my wife's hand we're walking away and I'm thinking you know somebody's got to go back home to that wife somebody's got to go back home to that mother tell them that the husband that she's loved all this time is not coming home.
[18:16] Those babies that she has given birth to she'll never see them again. Even more tragic than that the possibility of that man really being truly a Christian and a believer in Christ was very slim.
[18:30] And as we walked away from that accident and I was holding my wife's hand at that very if this is true right here and he is say amen if this is true and that man was lost at that very moment that we were walking away from that accident that man was waking up to the realization that everything that he had been taught and everything that he had believed in his life was a lie.
[18:55] Mary never heard one of his prayers. The saints not one time heard his prayers. Didn't matter how many candles he lit how many times he went through the rosary how many times he went to confession at the church those things did not matter and he was waking up to the realization it was all a lie.
[19:17] Me and my wife kept walking and from that day 13 months ago every morning when I've got up and sit down to eat breakfast and read my Bible in the morning that man's been screaming in hell.
[19:35] Every day when I sit down with my children and we sit down at the dinner table and I picked up the glass of water that was sitting before me and I drank that glass of water every day for the last 13 months that man has done nothing day and night but scream out for just one drop of water to cool his tongue.
[19:54] Tonight when I go home and I get ready for bed and as I lay my head down on the pillow and I go and drift off into sleep that man is still screaming in hell because people go to hell.
[20:10] But on a hill far away stood an old rugged cross and upon that cross the Lord of Glory the Lamb of God the Eternal Son died and who did He die for?
[20:25] He died for people. Look back at Colossians chapter 1 verse 21 He says And you that were sometimes alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works yet now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death to present you holy and unblameable and unreprovable in His sight Jesus died that people might be reconciled to God that people might be saved that people's lives might be transformed that their destinies might be changed through the preaching of the Word of God and He has looked at His people the church and said you go to all people you go to all people because I died for all people and you take this message to all and you preach this message to all and Paul says in verse number 28 whom we preach talking about Christ we preach warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we might present every man perfect in Christ Jesus what are we here for tonight?
[21:18] We're here for people because ministry and missions is about people let's look across the page at Philippians chapter number 4 and I want to show you tonight a promise for a church that would be all about world evangelism look at what the Bible says in Philippians chapter number 4 verses 19 and 20 the Bible says my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus now unto God and our Father be glory forever and ever Amen I want to tell you the story of a church that gave and sacrificed for missions time and time again they sent funds to take care of men who were making it and they were making it possible for churches to be planned all across the world they were giving they were giving their people sending their people to take the gospel to make it possible for missions to continue forward and you want I don't want to brag on visions but that kind of sounds a little bit like our church you've given you've prayed you've sent the people from this church to go all across the world you know what
[22:21] I want us to know tonight that God's going to supply our need you know we can think you know we're giving and giving and giving but you know what we can trust God that He's going to take care of us in everything He's going to provide for our church He's going to provide for us individually and I'm really not asking for you tonight to give more but I'm asking you to trust God and that's what this is going to be about that you will trust God saying listen I know that God is going to take care of my needs so I'm going to give sacrificially I'm going to give selflessly to the cause of world evangelism look at what look at what happens in this chapter I want you to look at verse number 15 Paul when he left they gave money to take care of his needs it says now you Philippians know also then the beginning of the gospel when I depart from Macedonia it says no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving but ye only this was a church they gave and we're going to talk about in verse number 16 they gave again they were just a giving people and verse and as you look down there they gave one of their men they sent one of their men to go and help Paul in the gospel verse number 18 Epaphroditus they send that beloved brother to go and to take those things to Paul and look at what it says then in that verse it says a sacrifice acceptable well pleasing to God they had been sacrificing to see the gospel take on the world to see people reached you want vision sacrifice but we can know that God's going to provide everything we need individually and for our church the first thing
[23:40] I want you to write down is my God shall supply all your need just this verse really my God shall supply all your need this church they've been giving giving sacrificially but God's the one who's going to supply for them you know as we give money we can really never out give God in the book of Luke chapter number 6 in verse 38 Paul says given it shall be given unto you good measure pressed down shaken together and running over shall men give into your bosom for with the same measure that you meet with all it shall be measured to you again the idea here isn't that we give to get it's not saying you give ten dollars and God's giving you a hundred but he said as you give God's going to take care of you and as you give God's going to provide and as you give he is going to give back to you because he sees a faithful steward and this is an awesome promise for us that as we give we know that God's going to take care but you know what it's a little more than that but as we give people God's going to send more people who will step up into the ministry I want you to look at Acts chapter number 13 and this is an amazing verse because in the church at Antioch two men started really one man went there first off Barnabas went to the church at Antioch and he was there and he's preaching and he's teaching and discipling people and he goes and gets Saul and Saul comes over there and Saul is helping him and preaching and teaching and then in chapter number 13
[24:48] God's going to send these two men out Saul and Barnabas and they're going to go out and they're going to be the first missionaries but look at what it says in Acts 13 verse 1 it says now there were in the church those Antioch certain prophets and teachers as Barnabas I want you to count here we got Barnabas and Simeon that was called Niger and Lucius of Cyrene and Manan which had been brought up with Herod the Tetrarch and Saul now we have five men there five guys they didn't run a burger company but there were five men in the church preaching and teaching and when the Holy Spirit sends out Barnabas and Saul there's three men left there are more people than they would they started with more leaders than they would start with so as our church is giving you know you guys have been through song leaders down in Cobb County we don't know very much but Matt's already left he was with us for about eight months and now he's on deputation go Morocco and you know the people there at Vision Baptist in Cobb County they grew to love Matt and Julie and the Watsons they were great friends and Josh and Jonah Matt and Julie discipled them and helped them grow and take the next steps in their Christian life and we already know a little bit about send some people out they weren't necessarily sent from our church we kind of borrowed them from y'all but you know what as we send people
[25:51] God's going to send some more people and God will provide and I want you to see how much God's going to provide or how God provides the measure with which he provides look at the next part of that verse look at what it says it says that he's going to provide all our need he says my God shall supply all your need and then look at what it says according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus think about that for a moment according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus we ask okay how much is God able to supply how much does God own let me ask you that how much does God own he kind of owns everything doesn't he so I think God is able to provide all of our needs he says listen as we're giving as we're sacrificing as we're giving people God can supply according to his riches his riches are far more than we can imagine and we can trust God that he is able to provide we may sacrifice all but God supplies a hundred times more than we can imagine look at Mark chapter number 10 verses 28 through 3 the disciples Peter comes to Jesus and he asks him a question he's going to say listen Jesus we've left everything and what are we going to have and we followed you look at what
[26:56] Jesus says to him he says in verse number 28 he says then Peter began to say to him lo we have left all and have followed thee and Jesus answered and said verily I say unto you there is no man that hath left house or brethren or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands for my sake in the gospel he says you haven't left anything but he shall receive a hundredfold now in this time houses and brethren and sisters and mothers and children and lands with persecutions and in the world to come eternal life he says listen Jesus says you you're looking at me and saying you've left everything but he says I'm telling you you haven't left anything you're not going to have a hundred times over that God isn't going to take care of you so that I want to ask you tonight I want to ask you to give but to trust God and more than anything else give trusting God knowing that no matter how much we sacrifice no matter how much we would give people and send people from this church that God can provide and how can he provide according to his riches and glory how are you giving today are you giving full of fear or you give him full of faith knowing that God's able to provide knowing that as we seek first the kingdom all these things shall be added unto us are we giving grudgingly or gladly knowing that our God he is worthy of all praise of any sacrifice that we would make knowing that you know what we can never give more than he's going to supply our needs are we giving knowing that God will take care of you or are you wondering maybe not giving because you're not sure God can meet you the needs you know what I
[28:21] I'm sure you can ask many people that have seen God come through and I just want you to look at this verse though tonight and trust God seeing that he is able he is able beyond your wildest dreams to provide everything we need says I'll supply your needs we'll give we'll give sacrificially but we can know that our God shall supply Arnie according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus I want to talk to you just a few minutes and I will get you out by about 810 which is about an hour and a half which is what we've been doing the services I want to talk to you as a church I want to talk to you about me and you and the Lord Jesus and I want to show you in the Bible where the church fits because somehow we could easily get the idea that these missionaries are very important and that's doing sending missionaries is the great thing and you might not know exactly where we fit but we are a church a local church a group of believers that join together to do something very big in Matthew chapter 16 and verse 18 Jesus said I will build my church and I'd like to remind you just how important a local church is I'd like to remind you that when Jesus decided that he would work in the world he decided to do it through a local church he decided to do it through a band of brothers who would join together in faith in him believing that Jesus had died on the cross believing that he had been buried and rose again and believing all that Ed just said about him in that song that we would be baptized in his name we would join together and organize ourselves to carry out the gospel message of Jesus
[30:07] Christ and to take it to the world just so you know the word church or churches is found in your Bible at least 114 times in the New Testament the book of Acts is written about God's working in his church the book of Romans through 2nd Corinthians is nine letters to the churches 1st Timothy 2nd Timothy and Titus are letters written to church leaders in the Bible when the Bible talks about the church and the first time the word church is ever mentioned in the Bible it was Jesus talking in Matthew 16 18 and he said upon this rock I'll build my church I will build my church the only other gospel mention of the word church is Matthew 18 17 and that's where they got instructions on how to discipline each other and to stay together working like a family and so I just want you to realize he placed great value on the church he empowered and authorized the church to do his work he told the church to wait together until they were endued with power from on high after the Holy Ghost came on him he commanded the church to take the gospel message to the world in
[31:20] Matthew chapter 28 18 through 20 and 18 he said I am God he said I I'm Jesus all authorities given to me and here's what I want to say to you go teach all nations baptize them and teach them to observe whatsoever things I've commanded you Mark's Luke John and Acts he repeats the Great Commission to the church and he tells the church about taking the gospel to the world of one man said people who don't believe in missions have not read the New Testament right from the beginning Jesus said the field is the world the early church took him at his word and they went east west north and south failure on the part of our churches to do the best we can in ministry the ministry left us is a shameful failure so I just want you to know tonight that we are his church when he decided that he would go about getting the gospel to the world he didn't start a mission agency he didn't start a Bible college he didn't start a parachurch group started a church he's the head of the church the church is his body it's about him but us in him doing what he wants us to do to get the gospel to the world there's nothing wrong with mission boards mission agencies nothing wrong with any of the other groups but if you want the New Testament the bare bones New Testament here's what you're gonna find church church church church guess where I am church church in the building never has been a building never will be a building church is a group of people gathered together the word church means congregation the word church means assembly and so as a church we're gathered together here to take the gospel around the world I just like to say to you that pastoring a church and world evangelism are very it's a very hard thing to do it's a very fine line because faith promise takes money out of the church and its ministries so when we get money we're sacrificing often I wish I had an office that was not quite as accessible and not quite as available had a tad more privacy often I wish we had air conditioners that ran well regularly often I wish we had all the comforts of a church building of a building but if I were doing what Jesus wanted to do and you were doing what Jesus won't do we'd probably take that million dollars to give it away to get people to hear the gospel and that's what you've done because that's getting a hold of what he wanted done million dollars go a long ways towards our building but a million dollars is going a lot further towards building buildings and over I forget how many countries represented last night 20 something countries and 21 families out of our own church and all the other guys that we're supporting missions robs our church of our best workers but if you want the truth the church had a job to do all along and that was to send the gospel to the world and so we send out our best we're just doing what he wants training men takes away time from pastoring the people that God gives you so instead of being at everybody's birthday party instead of being at everybody's whatever going on in their house you're training men that's the dilemma of a church and world evangelism biblically I tell the people to follow Christ and not me because
[35:04] I'm not sure that I am what I ought to be or that I am what they ought to follow I talk about the world and I tell talk about people and ask them not to forget their responsibility no one man or church can possibly impact the world that's what most people tend to think but God called me to be a pastor not a missionary I love missions with all of my heart but we when I came back to Alpharetta the Star Vision Baptist Church I knew that I was taking what I believe to be the right step for my life and the highest calling a sender a pastor a church a man trader and when we talk about this money and we talk about all these people that we train and all that we do let's let me tell you you don't know my heart if you don't know me well but I live eat drink and sleep about Indians that are going to hell that's the truth I dream about it at night often I dream about people in
[36:08] China that never heard I dream about Indonesia I dream about Peru I dream about I had a dream the other night and I was fighting with Philip Basham he wouldn't get in the car so we could go out somewhere where we had to be to do some preaching and somebody was offering him some free computer programs and I kept saying get in the car we can get them off the internet he was like these are free I got to get them and I woke up I thought thank God I'm not in Thailand he's not here amen that's a joke semi-joke but let's place the responsibility where it belongs on the local church the men that God will call out and train in and through a church it's where it belongs people think that what I dream about doing and what the Bible teaches can't be done but it has been and it will be an early church named Antioch evangelized the entire known world before the internet before I left London and we were getting on the airplane to fly back here it's a nine hour and five minute flight back counting the time they had on each it's really about eight hours and a half maybe and we're standing in line and I told Betty well here we go eight hours in the tube but it sure is better than three months in a boat like Columbus did sure is better than two or three weeks after they figured out how to get across quicker eight hours later I was in Atlanta Georgia eight and a half hours whatever it is I've traveled around the world and I've seen that God can do great things but I but you can't tell me it can't be done the Apostle Paul lived it believe breathed it and that the church did there's nothing in the world or the church except the church's disobedience to render the evangelization of the world in this generation an impossibility the Great Commission is not an option to be considered but a command to be obeyed Christ's last command should be our first concern if you found a cure for cancer would it be inconceivable to hide it from the rest of mankind how much more inconceivable to keep silent the cure from the eternal wages of death we have the truth we have the truth Nate Saint died in Ecuador with Jim
[38:49] Elliot he was the pilot of the plane that took him in he said people who do not know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries they forget that they too are expending their lives and when the bubble has burst they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted people ask you you go to Vision Baptist Baptist Church you still meet in a rented building you don't have a wall on the that side of your auditorium ladies every week go to the bathroom to stand in line forever you ever notice the poor ladies they got three bathrooms and 500 ladies standing there wondering when they can get in and you I mean it's just some uncomfortable stuff but you're doing it because you've caught on to something the God of heaven has something bigger for us to do the spirit of Christ is the spirit of missions the nearer we get to him the more intensely missionary we become as long as our millions destitute of the Word of God and knowledge of Jesus Christ it will be impossible for me to devote time and energy to those who have both I want to get the gospel to the world I want to get the gospel to the world I just want to say to you tonight it's the church I did not step down to become the pastor of this church I do not I do miss the mission field I never go without thinking man I'd like to be here I'd like to be back on the cutting edge I'd like to be back out there where it's all getting done I'd rather be that guy with nothing and trying to get something done but I believe with all my heart God sent me back to Vision Baptist Church I don't believe this church is an accident I know we're very different I know that this is an odd church I know there are no other churches around here like us but I thank
[41:02] God for that except I want them to become like us we we we're excited about all the nationalities I am anyway we're excited about giving money away we're excited about getting the gospel you obviously excited about it you wouldn't quit keep doing it I don't know why y'all give so much if you ain't excited about it you must be excited about it I don't know why you keep coming if you don't like fact that people are different around here we got all colors all shapes and all sizes and we like it your church and I'd like to remind you you're a church you're here to get the gospel around the world the mark of a great church is not its seating capacity but its sending capacity this church sins like nobody's business to gather into Christ the souls he died to save is the one object for which the church exists whatever be the cause here's a solemn fact a church purchased by the blood of the Son of God to be his messenger to a dying world for the greater part has failed entirely to understand and fulfill her calling how certainly and speedily the evangelization of the world could be accomplished if it were not for the failure of the church in doing the part that has been assigned her by God I just want to end tonight by saying this to you we're taking a faith promise this is serious business it is why we exist we exist to carry the glory of God and the gospel of Jesus to the world and tonight and tonight and tonight in Dahlia in China one of our men was is already getting up and he will step out and try to carry the gospel to some people and over in Thailand one of the men that led to singing in this church will get up he's finishing up his language studies to carry the gospel and in South Africa and in London and in Spain and in South America people that are members of our church that we never see we don't fellowship with they come by every now and then they're carrying the gospel of Jesus Christ money that you give that could go to buy us more comfortable chairs and a nicer building and a fellowship hall and you wouldn't have to tear down everything we do we're going to have a supper tonight you had to put all the tables up and tear all the tables down both over at Cobb County man they got a whole building you just walk in there and it's enough seating for the majority probably all of us could get in that building couldn't we yeah they got it all set up I just like I mean I went over there and dreamed I said
[43:43] Lord if we could just move that building to Alpharetta amen it's all worth it the fact that we're even able to go to to Cobb County and see a church started all worth it I hope you take it seriously the fact that there's a church at Trinity Hill that this church has had great influence in getting started our people went there every Sunday afternoon for a long time and they give money till today to get that church going leaders of our church spent hours and hours over there with Pastor Ronald we're just about ready to start another church in Cartersville with another Spanish church we are going to do all in our power to get the gospel so don't you ever feel like you're less than our missionaries and don't you ever feel like we're not in the battle if you're not in the battle it's because you're not in the battle you should go to bed tonight and say I am giving like crazy I am praying like crazy I'm staying in touch with missionaries I'm discipling people I'm training young people I'm involved in the ministry every one of these young missionaries that come through here you have untold effect on them you can help them teach them and train them we're the church the blood-bought church of Jesus Christ on mission from our founder don't you ever forget it father in heaven I love you and I thank you so much for the privilege of talking to your people and I pray that they would take seriously the privilege and responsibility we have and I pray your name will be glorified I give you praise for all in Jesus name amen this message was recorded at vision baptist church in alfred georgia for more information log on to www.visionbaptist.com where you can find our service times location contact information and more audio and video recordings you you