[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, we're going to have a question or two, and then we'll have a preacher.
[0:10] So let's have that first question. How can I find comfort when an unsaved one, loved one, has died? Well, I don't know that you can.
[0:24] All you can do is know this. I guess the only comfort I would find would be my Uncle Frank, my dad's next-to-the-youngest brother, was a notorious alcoholic and very wild liver.
[0:41] I grew up all of my life knowing that Uncle Frank called about once a month on a collect phone call. Back in the old days, when you had telephones that hung on the wall, and you answered them, and you could get a collect phone call.
[0:53] And so, you know, we would answer the phone. We was excited to hear the phone ring, and we'd answer the phone. And Uncle Frank would always call and collect calls from Frank. And Dad said, no, we never accept those calls, and you're not to talk to your Uncle Frank when he calls.
[1:07] I don't want to pay the bill. He'd get married at night and divorce the next day, for real. Just a crazy guy. And I loved him. He was like one of my favorite uncles. I don't know what drinking does to you, but, man, he was a sweet guy when he was sober.
[1:21] And so he used to drive me around. So when we were grown, Ben and I were already married, I witnessed to him a lot. I tried to tell him about Jesus, explain the gospel to him. I don't know that he ever got saved.
[1:32] I highly doubt that he got saved. And the only comfort I found was I had tried the best I could to share the gospel, and he'd chosen not to trust Christ as his Savior. And, you know, there's a lot of people in our families that are going to die without Christ.
[1:49] And if I were you, I would do everything in my power to witness to him while you can. I'm sure every minister can tell you the story, but Victor Ocampo was sitting in my office in Ariequipa back in 1989, and Victor was a new Christian.
[2:03] He was coming to our church, and I was explaining heaven, and I was explaining hell, and I was explaining salvation, and these guys had never, ever heard the gospel.
[2:13] And I made the comment, you know, your own family has died without Christ, and they're in hell. And Victor, a little bit angry, said, well, why did it take you so long, and why didn't you get down here? Why did my grandmother have to die and go to hell?
[2:25] And I had absolutely no words. I never tried to tell somebody, well, maybe they went to heaven. I just say if they didn't trust Christ, they didn't go to heaven, and so there's not a lot of comfort. Hell's a horrible place.
[2:37] And I think it ought to break our hearts. Next question. How should a Christian deal with feelings of guilt regarding past sins, whether pre or post salvation?
[2:50] I'm actually preparing a study on that for you. It will be available within the year. I mean literally. Not this year, but within 365 days, Lord willing. God is not in the guilt business.
[3:07] Okay, so look this way just a second. God is not in the guilt business. I grew up with a God that I don't even know. I grew up with a God through a prism of preachers, Southern Baptist, Independent Baptist preachers, revivalists.
[3:23] I grew up with this God that loved me to live guilty. I grew up with preachers threatening me. I grew up with never being able to live up to it, and so I think most of us have.
[3:35] So let me explain something to you. When you got saved, when you got saved, every sin you've ever committed, past and present and future, was all taken care of.
[3:45] I have people say to me, I understand how my past sins got saved, because when I accepted Christ, He forgave me for my past sins. And I say, well, He didn't die when you got saved. You didn't catch that.
[3:59] He didn't die when you got saved. He died a long time before you got saved. So if His death took care of your sins in the past, they were future sins when He took care of them.
[4:11] There's teaching in Hebrews chapter 7, which I won't go into, about Levi being in the loins of Abraham when he paid tithes. And so I would just say to you that in Christ, our sins are forgiven.
[4:26] You don't have to feel guilt. You don't have to feel guilt. That doesn't mean there shouldn't be responsibility. You know, if you did something wrong, you should bear the responsibility. If you were, while you were, before you got saved, if you killed somebody.
[4:42] It's not like you get saved, you say, well, now I don't even have to think about that. Well, you're going to think about that. But guilt is a different question. And guilt is, I am guilty, but Jesus took my guilt.
[4:53] I am guilty, but Jesus took my guilt. And I am not under condemnation. Romans chapter 8, verse 1 says, there is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus. And then he goes on to say, walk not through the flesh, but after the Spirit.
[5:06] However, you always, I was brought up to think, I'm in the flesh now, now I'm in the Spirit. Now I'm in the flesh, now I'm in the Spirit. That's not biblical. According to Romans chapter 8, if you're in the flesh, you're not saved.
[5:18] According to Romans chapter 8, when you got saved, you're in the Spirit, period. Two families, Spirit and flesh, and I'm in the Spirit family. If you're in the Spirit family, your sins have been taken care of by Jesus Christ.
[5:29] In John chapter 5, and verse 24, the Bible says, Verily, verily, I said, you that heareth my word, believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death and alive. Shall not come into condemnation.
[5:41] Condemnation is one of them guilt words. So all of my guilt was placed on Jesus. Now I am responsible. After I'm saved, if I were to go out here and get drunk, drive down the road and hurt somebody, I'm not forgiven here on this earth for that.
[5:56] I would, it doesn't affect my salvation, but you are responsible, and there are consequences. But guilt is something I can't fix. Guilt is something I can't get rid of, and so somebody wants me to feel guilty, that'd be the devil.
[6:10] You need to feel conviction. You need to feel bad about your sin. You need to feel bad enough that you run to the cross. Do you remember, in Exodus, you found the books of the, the tablets, the testimony, the book of the testimony, is in the ark, under the mercy seat.
[6:28] And the mercy seat's above that, and the blood's applied to the mercy seat, and he said, I will meet with you in the mercy seat. He doesn't meet with me in the guilt seat. He meets with me in the mercy seat.
[6:40] In Colossians chapter 2, my sins and all that was against me were nailed to the tree. So here's what I would say to you. You're always going to have to repeat Bible truth to yourself.
[6:52] You have to repeat Bible truth to yourself. Because you can know all the Bible facts, but then you'll get discouraged, you'll get depressed, somebody will say something, your test, your own conscience will say something to you.
[7:03] And your conscience will make you feel bad, so you have to repeat Bible truth. You have to repeat Bible truth. You have to remember, the Bible says something, I have to say that, and believe that, and not believe what everybody else says.
[7:15] Because you could easily, you could easily begin to feel guilty for something you've already been forgiven for. So then you'll just repeat, no, this is what the Word of God says, and that helps you.
[7:26] If you failed, you know how much your Father loves you? He loved you while you were yet a sinner. Romans chapter 5 and verse 8, but God committed His love toward you while you were yet sinners.
[7:37] Christ died for you. That's what the Bible says about it. 1 John chapter 4, maybe verse 9, something like that. The Bible says we love Him because He first loved us. And so salvation's a beautiful thing.
[7:49] It's God taking all of my guilt and all of my sin and all of my failure and all of my mess and putting it on Jesus and turning to me and saying, I'm going to take your junk out of your book, put it in Jesus' book.
[8:00] I'm going to take His righteousness out of His book, put it in your book. And so in the eyes of God, I'm forgiven. Now that doesn't forgive me for down here. If you're driving down the road, you're doing 100 miles an hour and a cop pulls you over, you can't look at him and say, hey, look, buddy, no condemnation for me.
[8:12] He'll say, maybe no condemnation, but speeding tickets, yes. Amen. You earned it. You're getting it. So I would just say to you, don't listen to the lie.
[8:22] Learn to believe Bible truth. You've got to have a whole new way of thinking. That's why you need Romans chapter 12. It says, be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
[8:35] So you can't think like people on earth. You've got to think, what's the Bible say? And the Bible gives you hope in Jesus and what he did on the cross at Calvary. One more question, brother.
[8:46] I'd be glad to talk to you about that more if somebody has a personal issue there. I've been hurt and burned by church in the past. How can I overcome this or renew a passion for church and a desire to attend church?
[8:56] Well, my first answer is, it's not a church issue. It's a Jesus issue. Okay? So I'm in love with Jesus. And since I'm in love with Jesus, I'm going to do what he wants me to do even if people burn me.
[9:12] Churches have people in them. I'll just go ahead and warn you, you're probably going to get burned again. As long as there are people in churches, as long as people are pastors, as long as people are deacons and Sunday school teachers and disciples, you're going to get burned.
[9:26] I would hope that vision is trying to help you with that. I would hope that you could come to our church and say, I'm loved here. I'm not judged. I hope that you would do that for other people.
[9:36] I hope you'd come into church and say, this isn't like the judgmental churches I've been a part of. Those judgmental churches are based on a false understanding of righteousness.
[9:47] When you build righteousness by rules, then you build Pharisees. When you build righteousness by what I do and what I don't do, then I can condemn you for what you do and what you don't do.
[9:59] But when you come in and all of us and realize, hey man, I'm just a bum saved by the grace of God. I don't deserve it. And I don't have any right to be saved except for the great mercy of God. And I can look at you with that same mercy.
[10:12] And so, here's what I think personally and what would be a driving factor in my life. I consider how many people have been burned by pastors. I have a more negative attitude about pastors than I do churches.
[10:24] Just to be blunt and honest with you. I am a pastor, so I think I have a right to be aggravated with pastors. And so many times I think pastors have hurt so many people. I think so many people haven't heard the truth because a pastor was misguided, misdirected, didn't understand the Bible, didn't understand.
[10:40] I spent many years hurting people because it's what I hurt all of my life. And I played the rules game and the morals game and the separation game and the I'm one better than you game.
[10:54] And so, I would say to you, here's what I decided. I can't do anything about other churches. I can't do anything about other Christians. And I can't do anything about other pastors. I can love people.
[11:06] I met with a pastor this week who came to visit us from Maryland. He met Ben Johnson and wanted to know about Vision Baptist Church because this is an unusual church. So when he mischairs out of it and all that, so he wanted to meet with us and he came and we had lunch and we were talking about our ministry.
[11:22] And I told him, I said, I know good and well I can't do a program as good as most can. I know I can't preach as well as most can. But there's one thing I can do better than almost anybody. I can love people. I can love people.
[11:33] And you can bring in a better TV player. We can put a TV player up here and bring in great preachers, but he can't love you, but I can. So here's what I'd like to challenge you to. You know how we're going to get over this bad church thing? I want you to start loving people.
[11:46] Let's turn this place, it is this kind of place already, but let's just make it about ten times better. Let's just turn it into a place where when folks come in they know, I'm accepted. I'm accepted. They don't judge me, they don't look down on me, they don't criticize me, they love me.
[12:00] Now we don't love sin. No? We don't love sin. We don't love doing wrong, but we love people. And if we do that, then other people will want to come to church like that. I think people want to go to church where the Bible's taught.
[12:11] I think people want to go to church where people love Jesus and people love people, and I think that'll get people over some of the bad issues. So, you can't really move forward in your personal life until you forgive.
[12:26] And we've all been done wrong. I'm sure you heard the story, you know, about the guy that goes to see the psychologist, and you know, he was a murderer, and a child molester, and all these things, and he sees a psychologist, and the psychologist digs into his past and finds out all of the reasons he was like he was, and come to find out his mother locked him in a closet when he was a child, and somebody else did something else to him, and when he gets through with all the psychologists, he says, they make me feel real good.
[12:55] I know I've killed people. I know I've abused kids, and I know I've done a lot of stuff wrong, but one thing about it, ain't none of it my fault. Well, that's ridiculous, isn't it? The truth is, I can't ever think like that.
[13:07] But here's what I can think. I can forgive people. You have been done wrong. But as long as you walk around with a chip on your shoulder, as long as you walk around a little bit uneasy, a little bit angry, a little bit aggravated, you're still going to act just like them.
[13:23] And I hate to say this, but when you hate somebody, you actually start imitating them. It may be a mirror image, it may be the opposite of it, but you can be just like them without trying to be.
[13:34] So let's look at Jesus. Let's love Jesus. If they brought a woman to him, take it in adultery, his answer would be, hey woman, don't do that anymore. Where are you accusers? Now go and sin no more. Sweet, wonderful, kind.
[13:47] Matthew chapter 9, he's on his way with a rich man, a ruler, excuse me, a ruler of the synagogue. He's on his way with him till his child and a woman who's nasty with a bad disease for 12 years touches his garment.
[14:00] He takes the time to heal. He gets to blind people, you recall. He gets to, he gets to a demon-possessed guy who can't talk. He heals everybody in the town. That's who we are. Let's just love people. As a church, love people.
[14:11] They come in the door. I don't care what color they are. I don't care if they're an illegal alien here in our church. They swam the river. Swam the river. They got across that river somehow.
[14:22] And they're here in America. Love them. And I don't care if they come in here and, you know, they got tattoos on top of tattoos and earrings on top of earrings. And they got the big old lip thing like they do someplace in Africa.
[14:35] Just love them. We just love people. Amen? We love Jesus. And you can't live. If you love Jesus, you're going to love people. He's a people lover. And so let's do that. And I think it'll help us to get over it and help them.
[14:46] Let's just love people. Amen? All right. Let's have another question. Okay. We got several, so we're going to change the order of service so I can get through them all. What you got? I don't know what it says about that.
[15:01] That's a joke. You're supposed to laugh. Thank you, Ty. I appreciate that. Courtesy. Chuckle. What does the Bible say about controlling your temper? Well, let me see. What does it say about being out angry?
[15:12] Be angry and sin not. What's the Bible say about controlling your temper? You know, the term controlling your temper. How about go to Ephesians chapter 5.
[15:23] Let's see. Maybe it's 4. Let me look real quick. And let me make sure where I am before I tell you. Let's see.
[15:33] Somebody, one of you smart people tell me, be angry and sin not. Is Ephesians chapter? 4.26. Ephesians 4.26. So I would say to you, there are right times to be angry and there are wrong times to be angry.
[15:49] We ought to be angry. Jesus got angry. So if you were, if you were to try to act like we should never get angry, then you'd be making a major mistake. You live in a politically correct world that is totally biblically incorrect.
[16:04] We ought to get angry. We ought to get angry about sin. I mean, you know, mothers against drunk driving. What do you think about that? I think they're great. Get mad about it. Well, why shouldn't there be drunk drivers? We ought to get angry about that.
[16:16] I don't need to get angry about that in church, but Jesus himself got angry and went into the temple. And he overturned the tables and he used a whip and he, you know, you would have said that was wrong.
[16:26] He wasn't wrong. He was doing the right thing. He said, my house should be called a house of prayer. So there's a right time and a right way to be angry. But I would say the majority of us don't really have to deal with that.
[16:38] I don't need to be getting angry with, obviously, with my wife. I don't need to be, I don't ever need to lose control. I don't think I ever ought to lose, I'm not saying I don't. I'm saying I don't think I should ever lose control.
[16:50] When you lose control, that's wrong. Better is he that controls his spirit instead of in Proverbs. Somebody find it, Jeff. Better is he that controls his spirit that dominates the city or that conquers the city.
[17:04] John Pearson, Proverbs what? 25, 28. Thank you, Pastor Bo Carpenter. That is a 21-year-old pastor that's smarter than a 60-year-old. Are you smarter than a 60-year-old?
[17:14] Yes, you are. And look at that. He that had no rule over his own spirit is like a city that's broken down and without walls. You're not trying to hang around angry people.
[17:26] We're not supposed to hang around angry people according to the book of Proverbs. He that had no rule over his own spirit. But, you know, it's not just about anger. Some guys, man, they just can't quit crying. I'm like, good night.
[17:37] Get a grip. Why do you always have to cry? Why do you always have to be mad? Why do you always have to be moody? Why are you always down? You know, why do you let your emotions control you?
[17:47] That's really what that verse is about. He that had no rule over his own spirit is like a city that's broken down and without walls. There's other verses that you could throw in there. So, I would just challenge every one of you.
[18:00] We ought to be in control. Lost people are out of control. We're in control. The Holy Spirit gives us control and helps us control it. I ought to be a fairly even-tempered person.
[18:14] That's a word they used to use. I don't know if it's used anymore. Even-tempered. Kind of like the guy you see today is kind of going to be like the guy you see tomorrow which is going to be like the guy you see the next day. I worked with a man in one of the churches that I worked for who was the highest level of excitement you could ever imagine.
[18:31] I've never known anybody more excited, more pumped up, than him. I've never known anybody that was worse than him. I mean, at one time I helped him unload like 30 bags of garbage and it just he was discouraged and depressed so he couldn't even carry out the garbage and then one day he woke up and he decided I'm going to be back in control and so we unloaded his garbage but I was in control with him helping me get his garbage out.
[18:54] He taught me how to go solo and he taught me how to do so many of those things and one day I show up and I said let's go and he was discouraged. I said I don't know why you get discouraged. On the mission field guys can't control their spirit.
[19:05] They get upset. Women are famous for it often. Don't do it. Let's get control. How about the next question? What's the Bible say about eating disorder? You know what I saw?
[19:16] You know, I'm a sight reader and I saw what does the Bible say about eating dinosaurs and I was going to say it's really not a problem. I'm a sight reader I don't sound words out and I thought that said dinosaurs like who in the world?
[19:33] Bulimia anorexia however you say that anorexia and gluttony what's the Bible say about it? Bible verse Bible verse we're not to be gluttons we can get a verse on that in Proverbs I don't know if anybody's ever had much you know that's kind of a new thing where you want to throw up your food and don't eat.
[19:56] Let me just say this again it's about being in control and I don't know if I can give you a Bible verse Corinthians I can get some help here Corinthians he said all things are lawful but I'll not be brought under the power of any that's not 1 Corinthians 10 I'm not sure what chapter they give me that if you would there Jeffrey or somebody I'll not be brought under the power of anything and I would just say to all of us as Christians you are supposed to be in charge you rule your passions you rule your habits you rule sir 1 Corinthians 6 12 would you show that right quick 1 Corinthians chapter 6 and verse 12 so all things are lawful but I will not be brought under the power all things are lawful but all things aren't expedient all things are lawful but I'll not be brought under the power of any and so honestly a lot of what you would call anorexia and bulimia and gluttony would be you got a problem with yourself you know you're hating yourself you feel bad about yourself you're not pleased with the way you're made so can I get
[21:05] Psalm 139 and you can look for the verse right quick back there Jeff will help you real quick Psalm 139 you know what you are fearfully and wonderfully made you are fearfully and wonderfully made what verse is that 12-14 Psalm 139 listen to this real quick if I could help you I have always dealt with feeling insecure about my appearance big head short legs you name it when I was skinny when I'm fat it doesn't matter I've always felt insecure about that and that's the devil playing with us you listen to what I'm going to tell you you are right like you are some of you girls you know the other day I saw I came through on a blog the average woman in America is 5 foot 4 and weighs 135 pounds the Victoria's Secret model is 5'10 and weighs 112 and that's who you want to be like 5'10 and 112 you know what that means she doesn't eat she
[22:13] I mean she's like walking death we got a word for her in Spanish she's a huh moribunda that means like walking dead she's like walking she can play on that I've never seen it but it's one about the zombies that's about where she is and you know honestly you just need to accept the way God made you you gotta accept the way God made you and you know what God God God loves you just like you are and part of what brings about our problems is we don't realize what verse 14 says I will praise thee for I am fearfully and wonderfully made marvelous out of our works and that my soul knoweth right well and you know a person with some of those diseases is thinking one extra ounce makes me less desirable you are desirable to God in your filthy condition lost much less after that and so maybe your skin color is not the color you would have chosen or you know like I didn't even know it until I was here at vision and one of the men was a political consultant that used to come to church here and he told me one day you don't look good in that suit your orange skin doesn't go with that color and I said I'll go home and I said
[23:24] Betty I said I'm orange I didn't even know I mean I already knew I had a big head and short legs now I'm orange I'm going to quit eating that's when I started gaining more weight just joking but here's the deal you know what your nose is just the right nose for you and your height and your color and your hair and all of that you're just the way the Lord made you and don't let the devil play games with you your father's happy with you when you look at your baby when your baby is born you love your baby my daddy said when they saw me he said I was the ugliest baby he had ever seen I've been warped ever since it ain't my fault but the truth is you know you love your child you love your child what do you think your father does to you the heavenly father loves you you are fearfully and wonderfully made so I would tell you my answer what's the Bible say I need a long time to put together a Bible study that I think could made you you haven't accepted who
[24:32] God made you so we have short man complex you know little guys they want to fight with everybody because they're so little they've got to prove they're not little you know then we're mad about skin color we're mad about birth defects whatever don't do that just accept the way God made you and be proud that you're his he loves you and you belong well I think I got some experience with that I have four adult children and I want to strangle them most days you know can I just say this to all of you if you don't let go of them they'll let go of you and they'll leave and the best thing you can do is turn them over to God sad but true I left home at 17 and went to college I was too good a boy to leave home angry my brother decided to run away from home when we were smaller and
[25:35] I beat him up locked him in the house and wouldn't let him leave went upstairs and said he's trying to run away we don't run away but when I was 17 I got a chance to go to college and I chose the one I got accepted in lots of them and I chose the one that was the furthest away that I wanted to go to you say why so I wouldn't have to come home only a couple of times a year and so here's what I would say to you raise your children the best way you can and start letting go when they're two so at two you give them this little bit of stuff to do pick up your toy one toy and throw it in the basket and you kind of let them learn to do that when they're five or six you give them a tad more responsibility when they're ten you give them a little more responsibility sometimes because we live in this perverted world we live in you can't leave your dog in the car without somebody calling the cops and so you guys are like overly protective so you know your kid's going to grow up so let your kid grow up give your kid a chance know that your child's going to be out on their own
[26:43] I would when Chris got married our oldest son when he got married I was so excited for him to me after getting married is the greatest thing and so on his wedding night he was out of his mind happy like every kid is boy I don't know about girls as much but I know guys man they're really excited and I was almost as excited as him because I thought if it's as good for him to have a woman like his mother as it has been for me life is just about to take off on a stinking rocket for him and so I wanted my kids around us and so when Chris got 15 or 16 he got a tad rebellious against his mother boys sometimes if they got a lot of man in them they don't do well with a woman telling them what to do because they kind of got this thing like I don't want a woman telling me what he was 6 foot 1 and 185 pounds bet he's a lot shorter than that and a lot lighter a lot lighter 200 pounds lighter amen and
[28:01] I told her I said let me handle him you have a problem talk to me let me handle him let me deal with him because it was really my mother that drove me away from home my dad was a lot more even tempered a lot more so I challenge you here's the deal God is going to take care of your kids do the best you can but you have to trust God sooner or later so just start trusting little by little and can I just say this adult kids can be more fun than small kids I can sit at a table and have theological discussions I can sit at a table and talk about ministry this afternoon my son David and I had this major discussion and we're talking and he said I need to know where you stand on this dad because you and I are both going to be dealing with this person and so I told him he goes man I'm relieved he said I was afraid you was going to tell him something different than what I was going to tell him and I said well buddy I think if I told what you were saying I would have been wrong he said
[29:01] I know but I didn't know what you would say and we had a great talk FaceTime I'm looking at his ugly mug he's still laying in a bed he's telling me about a man who's going to do something for God and he's excited he's looking about it that's a great feeling there was a preacher the guy that ordained me he told me one time when Chris was little and I was telling him the greatest thing that happened after getting married was being a dad and I was telling him how much fun it was to have a four year old kid and he said if you think four is good way late if you think eight is good well to fifteen and he said it's better all with my adult children open talking discussing and I would challenge you to work on that yes sir when did disciples get saved before they became apostles amen alright that was easy move on we don't know you know at least two of them were already following
[30:09] John maybe more were following John I don't know when they got saved but basically in the new testament if you check the book the the Matthew Luke and John the gospels you're going to find that being a disciple was getting saved unless you're talking about the 12 apostles when you became a disciple the day you decided I'll hate my mama I'll hate my brother I'll take a stand for Jesus and you love Jesus and you took that stand so the word disciples the first word used for us in the Bible in the New Testament chapter until you get to Antioch you won't get Christian that's a name they applied to us the disciples were people that decided to turn their back on the world and turn to Jesus and so becoming a disciple was getting saved not for the 12 they were already disciples and then named apostles next one why did you start vision when the need is so great outside the
[31:10] United States that's a setup is that a staff member question I have the biggest burden for the world that you can possibly imagine I really do it's an everyday all the time I think about all the time all the people around the world that need the gospel I think about China and I think about India and I think about Indonesia and I think about South America and I think about Africa and I think about all those places I spend hours every week dealing with mysteries so why did I start vision so you'll know where I stand and what's going on here's why I started vision I really wanted a training center I didn't necessarily want a church I wanted somewhere I could bring young men and train them to take the gospel to the world and we were training guys in Peru but it was difficult for everybody to move to Peru and live in Peru I think the situation there was a little bit more ideal but if you weren't going to go to
[32:14] Latin America it was hard for you to spend a couple of years with me and to get to know the ministry and learn the ministry Jeff Bush is one of the early ones that started with me Mark Coffey would be the earliest one that you know that worked with me and spent years alongside of me and I was training them and helping them learn how to do the ministry how to start multiple churches how to train men and how to disciple men and two years before I came home in about 2003 Aaron Bayshore and five or six other guys met together in Ohio and planned my life for me they wrote me a nine page letter and said if you really want to impact the world you should move to America you should take a church you should be a pastor so students could come to you so you could train them so you could spend time with them and help them go overseas and I got angry with them and I told them look you're bunch of little punks I'm a grown man you don't need to write my life story two years later I was back in
[33:14] America pretty much doing what they recommended they were pretty smart guys and pretty wise I thought and here's why the captain of world evangelism everywhere is the pastor the most important person in world evangelism is the pastor the second most important group is the church it's where people are born and bred and trained most American pastors are on an ego trip how big can I get my church how much money can I make how famous can I get how fun can I make my services and they have totally lost sight of what Jesus wanted them to do in the beginning when Jesus started the church it's his church not my church and not your church he said I have all power and have all authority and I want you to go and teach make disciples in other words I want you to baptize in the name of the father son and holy ghost and I want you to train them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you and I looked around America and very few churches are great about giving money they give money but they don't give young people they give money but they don't give their children and so the unusual kids are going to do something have to go off to one of our colleges and when they go to that college the director of that college will do everything he can to keep them in
[34:27] America he doesn't do it on purpose he doesn't do it to be negative he does it subconsciously saying boy we need churches in America when there are churches on every that we love leave on a regular basis as we train them and get rid of them and it hurts every time what if they would give money what if they give time what if they set an example what if they would help get people outside the country and so honestly if I weren't pastoring a church like vision I would go back to the mission field tomorrow I think it would take me less than a year to raise my support and I could go back to the mission field but I believe this church you are more important to the cause of world evangelism than anything else you know going on anywhere you not me you not just because you give a million dollars money has never been the major problem in world evangelism we've always been able to get money we haven't been able to get men and this church you have let people come through here our first song leader is now in
[35:39] Thailand our second song leader is on his way to China our third song leader is on his way to China our fourth song leader wants to go to India and you just keep giving it's frustrating because as soon as your kids fall in love with some of these people they leave but had been in the church in the New Testament who was so on fire for Jesus it would have never been about how big a building could you get would have never been about how cool the service was all the junk going on today and all the church growth stuff and everything goes on every big conference in America is anti Bible in the New Testament Acts chapter 13 boy that made a pastor Barnabas and the next main guy saw they left they stood up after three years and said that's it guys got to get to the world leaving you three guys we've trained we're gone we're out to go do something else that's the New Testament way you didn't find church growth things you found get the gospel to the world and so
[36:42] I really believe with all my heart that I am the key to world evangelism is the local church the key you are important not the missionaries they're our soldiers we're the incubator we're the incubator we bring them in we warm them up we're the greenhouse we get them prepared we give them tools we let them do stuff and when a guy like Bo Carpenter can go out and start a church he's young and doesn't know you're giving you're loving all these missionaries you're being willing to give you know we
[37:59] I was concerned about faith promise I'm still concerned I'll always be concerned but today faith promise offering almost got covered for the month we almost got caught up for last month you are great giving people what can I tell you you are what I wanted to see and I'm not what I think you need as a pastor I don't think I'm anywhere near what I ought to be as a pastor but I will tell you this you are making a difference you are making a difference you sit here in the states and you say I don't see how we're making a difference you make a difference in China you make a difference in India you make a difference all over the world and otherwise I wouldn't be here I really did not come home because I didn't like it I didn't come home because I couldn't do it there I came home because I believed that a place like vision would make so much difference around the world if I could I have pastors meetings and I would get pastors together and I help them understand the burden but pastors don't want to hear about that New
[39:03] Testament it was no no no none of that let's get the gospel to the world next question now that everybody's mad at me in your opinion is the woman with the bleeding issue the mother of the girl Jesus raised from the dead in Matthew 9 I don't think so I don't know I don't think she did a lot in world evangelism next question I don't have any idea what can people do to be involved in world evangelism if they aren't a pastor preacher who set these questions up Robert you type these up that's your question I can tell by the guilty look on your face y'all can swap that one I just ran it long enough get one it's not Robert's question is that Robert's question what do you think is our church's greatest weakness better put what is the number one thing we can do better I think we ought to do more to reach our area if anything I think what Canon does as he leads the visitation
[40:04] I think what I fail at is I don't get as involved in that because I let other things take up my time I think that Lord willing I will be here this Saturday and I think I should be more out knocking doors and inviting people and I shouldn't let my schedule push me to where I don't do that and I think probably the greatest weakness you know I really wish this church had at least the number of African Americans as the percentage represents in this area I wish this church had as many Indians as many Koreans and as many Hispanics at least the percentage I wish they could come in and get a sample of the whole world if you ever go to a California church you ain't never been in a church like that a California church is like everybody is there I mean I rejoice when we have 15 or 20 nationalities they have 15 or 20 in the bathroom and the rest of them are still in church there's 100 in the church I love a
[41:05] California church so I would just say let's reach our community let's do more to get the gospel to our community and I think that would be it get more more in discipleship outside of that if I could say this to you I don't think you're helping enough well I think foundations we ought to work that harder you ought to get with John on that I know that John meets morning evening and night with people but I don't think you ought to do it alone I think that there are men in this room and you sell yourself short you are men of God you love Jesus you know the Bible you care about souls you have been faithful to church you are a big giver but you are not sharing any of that and if you could just get with some other people pick a young even some of the missionaries and I love it if a brand new guy that comes into our church that's a young fellow headed towards doing something for God and I wish he could go to eat with you once a month take him out and buy him a dry hot a
[42:17] McDonald's don't go to Starbucks cost too much there but at McDonald's I think you can buy one pretty cheap just sit there and talk to him share your life with him everything I but man I remember them you know I was three and they looked like they were they had been around since since you you know that three year old you young ladies think you're young but the kids don't think you're that young they think you're pretty old and y'all taught me y'all taught me people just like you so if I had my dream come true here it comes Chuck Micah Tony Steve Ty Brett you guys would be all you'd be saying hey let's go sit down together you say well I don't have any deep
[43:22] Bible lesson to teach you you can teach you Bible you can teach about being a man you can teach about being a husband you can teach about paying his bills you can teach about being solid you been around buddy you are the rock of a church he needs that you teach about facing adversity so I don't have a big lesson to teach I don't want you to teach him a lesson I want you to be his friend we learn from you and so if I had my choice that's what I would say I'll give you one more we'll save Robert's questions for next week I have a church is you been members here they think about you so many of the guys that come through here they think about you and if you would stay in touch with them you could make a difference
[44:34] I have this unreal relationship with the missionaries that you know. But you could have it too. You're not going to replace me.
[44:46] I mean, I'm the old guy who did the mission work before and I'm a pastor today. But they'd love you in a way they would never love me. And it would be a great blessing to them. It would be a great blessing to them.
[44:59] And Jeff can sit back there and say, I don't know what I'd give them, but good night, look at the boys he's raised. He raised great men. So if he's sitting down with the missionary, all he's got to do is just be Jeff.
[45:11] He said, what do I got to do? I don't know, how about being you? You've done pretty good being you up to now. And you do a good job of that. And you've turned out great children and you're serving God.
[45:23] Man, I wish you'd get more involved like that. If I had my druthers, that's a word from Tennessee. Anybody ever heard of druthers? You're a hick, aren't you, buddy? All right.
[45:34] Let's do this. Let's take an offering. How about that? This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alfredo, 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.