[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. Then the last verse, verses 13 or 14 and 15, he was moved by an appraisal.
[0:13] He realized that God loved folks enough to die for them. That's what verse 14 is saying. It says, for the love of Christ's constraint. They're not moved by stuff.
[0:26] They're moved because Christ Jesus went to a cross and shed His blood and died for white folks, black folks, brown folks, red folks, polka dots.
[0:36] God's got any of them. God died for them. And they're moved because of that. They're constrained by that. That word constrained means impaled, and that's them.
[0:48] You can see it in their eyes. You can see it in Trent's heart. And it moves him when he sees the Indian people or anybody without God.
[0:58] So Calvary is constrained in love. Then, for the love of Christ's constraint, it's us because we just judged that if one died for all, then we're all dead. Folks like God are dead.
[1:10] You all know that, right? You all hear it all the time, but I'm telling you, they're really dead. They're not a spark of life anywhere that you can fan to make them get life.
[1:20] They're dead. And somebody does not carry the gospel and takes a voice to them to give them the gospel. In Africa, where Brother Shoemaker is at, they're going to die without God.
[1:34] And they're going to go to hell without God. That's what verse 14 is talking about. Trent is moved by that. He knows they're lost. Look at verse 15. And that he died for all.
[1:46] That they which should live should not live, should henceforth not live unto themselves, but unto him. What God gives me is give back to God. I'm not supposed to live for myself, but I'm supposed to live what God will let me do.
[2:01] The young man that got called to the mission field at the summit back in January 12th, he was in church that I was at Tuesday night. And I got him up there. I said, Trevor, give us the word testimony of what God's done.
[2:14] So he testified and cried about how God called him to the mission field. And when it got done, I looked out there and I said, I bet some of y'all think this young kid 13 years old is wasting his life.
[2:25] They didn't nod their head, yeah, but I know some of them felt like that. This guy's wasting his life. Can I give you a clue? He's not. He's not. He's taking what God has given.
[2:35] God saved him. He's taking his life and investing it for the things of God. I think he's doing the greatest thing that ever has been. Trent, Steph, I love you.
[2:47] Really, really do. I bet more to my family than he'll ever know. When I had something, I had some health issues and Jim couldn't be there. This man and his wife drove to my house, sit there with me that morning until the phone rang and everything was okay.
[3:04] That's him. And I thank God for it. Pastor. Please open your Bibles to Mark 6, verses 30. And in this story, we see that God provides.
[3:14] It's actually one of the... There's only two miracles recorded in all four Gospels. The first one is the resurrection. The second one is the feeding of the 5,000. And in this story in Mark 6, verses 30 through 44, the story, we see Jesus and his disciples are coming off a set of pretty busy days.
[3:30] And they were seeking out a place for some rest. It was so bad that they had no time to eat because they were ministering to so many people. So Jesus and his disciples set out in a ship to find a private place.
[3:42] But when the multitude saw him leaving, they followed him. And in verse 34, if you look at it, for lack of time, we won't read all of it. But the Bible says, and Jesus, when he came out, he saw much people and he was moved with compassion toward them.
[3:56] Because they were as sheep with not having a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things. Here we see Jesus ready for some rest. And his disciples obviously needed some downtime.
[4:07] They hadn't had anything to eat. But when Christ looked out at the multitudes and he saw the thousands and thousands of people, he was moved with compassion. And this wasn't just any compassion, but a compassion that moved him to action.
[4:20] It was after Jesus saw their spiritual state that he began to teach them many things in verse 34. Our Lord is a God who just doesn't sympathize. Rather, he does something about it.
[4:31] And he gets the job done. And it was after a long while that Jesus stopped. He was stopped by his disciples because the day was, according to the Bible, was far spent. And these disciples wanted Jesus just to send these people on their way.
[4:43] It was the closing time. The disciples were at the point where they realized that they had came to this place for rest and nourishment of their own bodies. But yet they were ministering to thousands. And enough was enough.
[4:54] Time to send them home, Jesus. But Jesus, being loving and compassionate, will not send them away hungry. And he said these interesting words to his disciples. He answered them in verse 37. He said unto them, Give ye them to eat.
[5:07] Modern terms. Give them something to eat, disciples. So right here we see the problem. Jesus and his disciples had over 5,000 people to feed. And what were they going to do?
[5:17] They were in a desert. They had limited resources. When Jesus told them to give something to eat, their response was a quick and smart aleck comment. And they said unto him, Shall we go and buy 200 penny worth of bread and give them to eat?
[5:30] Could you imagine after all their servicing and their service and their ministering, the disciples, no wonder they were a little on the edge. I can imagine what's going through their minds. Lord, you brought us to this place to rest so we could get something to eat.
[5:43] And here this time we've spent the entire day serving others. And now when it's time to eat, you give us this impossible problem. You tell us to feed 5,000 people.
[5:54] We don't have enough money. And even if we did, it's late at night. The day is spent. And what store is going to be open at this time of the evening? And what store is going to have enough food for over 5,000 people?
[6:04] The problems that the disciples faced must have been extremely frustrating at that time. But what they got to see God do must increase their faith greatly. You see, here's the crux of the message.
[6:16] Jesus Christ, God, He provides. Jesus responds to their smart aleck comment by asking Him this question. How many loaves have ye? Go and see. You know how the story ends. In another account, there was a boy that had five loaves and two fishes.
[6:29] And Jesus blessed the food and He broke it and He fed 5,000. And there was enough food. Yet there's enough food for each disciple to have his own basket of food. But one of the things that I wonder when I hear this story when Jesus asked for the loaves.
[6:46] Was Christ not there in the beginning of creation? And did He not create all things? Was He not there? Jesus Christ, was He not there when the children of Israel were wandering through the wilderness and caused manna to come down from the sky?
[6:57] Why did He ask the disciples for the loaves? He didn't need those loaves. He didn't need the fish. But rather, He chose for His disciples to play a part in accomplishing His will.
[7:08] He could have done it by Himself, but rather He wanted some obedient disciples to carry about and display His love and compassion for some lost people. And it was after those disciples made their smart aleck comment, and Jesus asked another question, how many loaves?
[7:22] And in doing so, they found out the answer. Let God provide in the way that only He can. And it was like their attitude changed. Now, you might wonder, why am I preaching this message at a blessing service for Trent?
[7:35] Well, I'll tell you why. It's been seven years since I've been observing Trent and his work, and several of those years I had the privilege to work side by side. And I've seen an attitude in Trent, just like I see in His disciples at the end, at the end when I read this story.
[7:49] Feed 5,000 people? It's impossible for me to do. So, nevertheless, Lord, here are the loaves that You asked for. I'm expecting You to provide. What? 1.1 billion people in India and virtually no good Bible churches?
[8:03] No church planning, no missionary training missionaries over India. What? We need a church in Alpharetta? What? Let's make a documentary to raise awareness for more church planning missionaries. Lord, I can't do anything, but nonetheless, Lord, here's a little what I have.
[8:18] I'm expecting You to provide. That's the testimony of Trent. He's just taking what He has and what He's given, and He's given it to the Lord, and God has done miraculous things. Man, I want to serve like that.
[8:30] I want to do, I want to take whatever I have, and I just want to give it to the Lord, and I want to watch and provide. Don't you? When the church was getting started and before we ever started the church, Jake and Trent and Chris kind of hung out at Chris' house.
[8:46] He owned a house or had a house, and they were there. So I've asked Jake to come, and he'll preach right now, and then right after him, Chris will. I think they've been friends a long time, and we just want them to know how much we love them tonight.
[8:58] Turn your Bibles, please. 1 Corinthians chapter 7. For all the reasons that all those people in the video said they were sorry and they were sad they couldn't be here, I am happy that I can be here for those reasons.
[9:11] Trent has been a great friend to me since I've known him. I've known Trent for 10 years this year. Hard to believe, but I've just been so privileged to know him during this time and to see God just do great things through him.
[9:23] 1 Corinthians 7. Let's read real quick verses 28 through 31. But, and if thou hast not sinned, and if a virgin marries, she hath not sinned.
[9:34] Nevertheless, such shall have trouble in the flesh, but I spare you. But this I say, brethren, the time is short. It remaineth that both they that have wives be as though they had none, and they that weep as though they wept not, and they that rejoice as though they rejoice not, and they that buy as though they possess not, and they that use this world as not abusing it, for the fashion of this world passeth away.
[10:00] You know, in this passage here in 1 Corinthians, Paul is dealing with this idea that was kind of floating around in the Corinthian church that marriage was a bad thing. And there was these people in the church that were saying, marriage is a bad thing and it's better not to get married.
[10:13] Well, naturally, all the single people in the church, and especially the people that were engaged and about to be married, they were slightly worried by that. And they thought, well, if I get married, is that going to make me a second-class Christian for the rest of my life?
[10:24] And Paul affirms to them that marriage is a good thing, that marriage is a gift from God, he says. And in verse 28, he says, if you get married, it's not a sin. Those guys are telling you to get married, it's not a sin. Let me tell you, you get married, it's not a sin.
[10:35] But Paul is telling them something here in verses 29 through 31. And what he tells them is, if you're still stressing about this question, whether or not I'm going to get married, if you're still stressing about your social status, if you're still stressing about what your status is in this world, you are missing out on what's really important.
[10:51] You're missing the real important truth. You're missing out on the thing that really should determine the way we look at ourselves. And look what Paul says in verse 29. This I say, brethren, but this I say, brethren, in other words, what I just said, that's not really the most important thing.
[11:05] But this I say, brethren, the time is short. Now, I'll be real honest. I read that and I thought, I think Paul was wrong there. Paul said the time is short, but it's been 2,000 years.
[11:16] So I don't know about what's short in your book, but 2,000 years is not short in my book. So Paul says the time is short. What does he mean by that? Well, what Paul means by that is this age that we are serving God in right now, this is it.
[11:27] This is the last thing before Jesus Christ is coming back here and setting up his kingdom. This is the last thing. This is the last time where we as men have a chance to glorify God on this earth. And Paul says, hey, man, the curtain is about to fall.
[11:40] This is the last stage. This is the final thing. Christ is returning. The resurrection of Christ initiated this last period, and the winding down process has already begun. You know what this world is like?
[11:51] This world is like an airplane that both of its engines are in flames, are on fire, and it's going down, and it's going down fast, and it's just a matter of time until we hit. And you'll be really crazy when a plane's going down if you're on it, for you to sit back in your chair and say, you know what?
[12:05] I think I'd like to take up French. I think I'd like to learn French. Paul's point is you don't start a big project or a big plan, or you don't make big long-term plans when you know that the time is short.
[12:16] And Paul says something has happened. In the resurrection of Christ, something has happened, and it alters the way we look at the future. Now, how exactly does it alter? See what Paul says in verse 31.
[12:27] For the fashion of this world, it's passing away. This world that you can see and feel and touch and experience and live in and work in and make money in and spend money in, this world is passing away.
[12:39] It is wearing out. It is winding down. And so what does Paul say? How should we live in this? Look what he says in verse 29. Time is short. It remaineth that both they that have wives be as though they didn't, and they that weep as though they wept not, and they that rejoice as though they rejoice not, and they that buy as though they possess not.
[13:00] Let me ask you, is Paul against buying things and possessing things? No. Is he against marrying? No. He just said in the verse above, it's a good thing to get married. Okay? Is he against weeping and rejoicing? I don't think so, because in Romans 12 he says, weep with those that weep and rejoice with those that do rejoice.
[13:13] So what does Paul mean here when he says, do this as if you weren't doing it? What he is saying is that our decisions and our lifestyle as Christians are not determined primarily by such things.
[13:27] Now if you take an unbeliever, a lost person, and you were to diagram, you try to add up the factors in their life that kind of lead to their decisions. You know, you might say their mood, what they feel like, their money, their family, their opportunities, and those are the things that Paul's talking about here, but none of those things can be primary and controlling for the believer, for the Christian.
[13:50] It is illegitimate for me to make decisions based primarily on what's best for my family. Primarily. Paul's not outlawing that consideration. Paul elsewhere tells people, if you're a father, you're a husband, you have a responsibility.
[14:03] But what he says is, if you're a Christian, if you're a believer, you will do some things that don't make a lot of sense to somebody if their primary goal in life is to be a good dad or to be a good husband. That's what he means by as if not.
[14:15] He says there is a lifestyle that says, yes, I am a husband. Yes, I am a father. Yes, I am a businessman. Yes, I'm someone that has possessions. Yes, I'm someone that lives in America. Yes, I'm someone that has rights, but I live as if I didn't.
[14:28] And can I tell you tonight that that is exactly why we exalt tonight in God's work in Trent's life? Because he lives a life as if not. Can I tell you, I know a lot of people, I know a lot of missionaries, and I know a lot of people that aren't missionaries, but I don't know a non-missionary who lives more like a missionary than Trent.
[14:49] And that's exciting to me. Because what we see here is that this person that Paul is talking about, he says you've got to live as if you were not. That means that we're going to do some things in our life that don't make sense. That's what Brother Jim was talking about.
[14:59] We do some things that don't make sense to outsiders. You know, I'm a father now, and I don't know if you've, I'm sure any other parent has had this experience. But you know when you take your baby in to go get a vaccination, and you know that look they give you?
[15:12] Like, what's wrong with you? You don't want to know why the baby can't understand, why the baby's so angry at you, why the baby looks so hurt? Because they don't even, they can't understand, they don't have a factor in their brain.
[15:22] Because the only factors in their world are, do what makes me happy, eat when I'm hungry, sleep when I'm tired. That's the only factors that control all of their decisions. And yet here you are doing something that is obviously hurting.
[15:33] They don't have a way to understand it. And that is the way the world looks at our decisions. When they see the decisions that someone like Trent makes in his life, they say, it's like you don't care about your family.
[15:44] It's like you don't care about money. It's like you don't care about your job. It's like you don't care about the privileges and the opportunities of living in this country. Trent lives in America.
[15:55] He has a wonderful family. He has many gifts and abilities. And any outsider, any unbeliever in this world will look at Trent and say, he deserves to enjoy his life and live it however he wants.
[16:05] And yet Paul says there are some people who live as if not. They live as if not. You say, how can you do that? How does a person do that? How does that happen in Trent's life? Well, the reason that that can happen is because we serve a God.
[16:19] We serve Jesus Christ, who is the as if not God. He was in the form of God. He thought it not robbery to be equal with God. But he made himself of no reputation.
[16:30] And he lived a life on this earth as if he was not God. But he was God. But he lived as if not God. He gave up all the rights that were a part of his title as the Son of God.
[16:40] And he lived a life as if he was not God. And he died on a cross as if he was not God because of his love for us. And when you catch that, it will reshape the whole way you look at your life and you say, yes, I have this.
[16:51] Yes, I have these freedoms. Yes, I have these opportunities. Yes, I have this money. Yes, I have these possessions. Yes, I have these rights. But I can live an as if not life because of the way he lived for me. So, Trent, may God bless you.
[17:03] And may he make the light of his dawning kingdom shine ever brighter into and through your life. I love you, man. If there's somebody you don't want to follow after, it's usually Jake Talby.
[17:14] Open your Bibles to the book of John in chapter 10. Just give you something to think about today. And consider as you're looking at the life of John the Baptist in John chapter 10. And Trent, I love you.
[17:26] I don't know. Dad said they lived at the house. He kind of spent time at the house. And I don't know if kind of actually equals eating all the groceries, sleeping in all the beds, spending literally every waking hour at my house.
[17:39] So, I would say that's a fair statement. He spent a lot of time with us. And two men that I love with all of my heart are Jake Talby and Trent Cornwell. Walked in here with a friend of mine, Seth, and I was pointing out all the missionaries.
[17:50] And I missed a few. We have Keith Shoemaker to Burkina Faso over here. And we've got, I don't even know. Vision is a place where it's almost uncomfortable to not be a missionary.
[18:01] You know what I mean? And it's like, okay, this is just strange. And it kind of ties in with what I want to say to you tonight. Because here's a, I don't know of a more uncomfortable place to not be a missionary. But I don't know of a more passage that more speaks to exactly what Trent is than John chapter 10.
[18:16] And you start verse 39. The reason you start verse 39 is I love what he says here. There's some comedy here because Jesus has just said, there's no way that anybody can ever be taken out of my hand.
[18:27] And he starts verse 39. He says, therefore sought again to take him. They sought again to take him. But he escaped out of their hand. I love that part. It's like, hey, nobody can take you out of my hand. But guess what? I'm going to escape out of these guys' hands who didn't ever want to kill me.
[18:39] I'm saying I'm the shepherd. I'm saying I'm God. I'm saying that I am the Messiah. There's nobody. There's none like me. I am Jesus. I am God. And he says all that. And he says, then he escaped out of their hands.
[18:51] They were trying to kill him. And then I love verse 40. It says, and went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized. And there he abode. So John's sitting there.
[19:02] He says, hey, I'm going back to the land of John. And this next verse, if there's anybody in the world that I know of that this next verse could go on their tombstone, it would be Trent Cornwell. It says, and many resorted unto him and said, John did no miracle.
[19:16] But all that John spake of this man were true. And Trent, if there's anything I can say about you, it's that. You may not be on the mission field. You may not be in India where your heart is. You may not be in Peru.
[19:27] You may not be in Bolivia. But I'm telling you, if there's anything anybody would say about him is this. What he says about the man Jesus Christ is true. This is a man consumed with that has a passion for doing what God's called him to do in his life.
[19:41] He lives. He breathes and eats and walks and talks almost as if he was a guy whose heart is on the mission field. And I'm just thankful I get to know him. I love what it says about him there. It says, you know, he goes away to where John the Baptist baptized.
[19:53] And we see how many came to him, believed on him there. And I love what it says about John. He didn't do any miracles. He didn't do any miracles. He wasn't like Peter and John who took a lame man and helped him to walk.
[20:04] That's not what he did. He didn't do all that. Not much can be said about John and his miraculous being, but one thing can be said about him. What he said about Jesus was true. He was consumed with Jesus.
[20:16] He had one message. It was Jesus. He had one passion. It was Jesus. He had one desire. It was Jesus. And Trent, I'm proud to call you my friend because I know very few people in the world that have the passion for Jesus as you do.
[20:29] The passion for missions is a passion for Jesus. You say the gospel of Jesus has to be preached around the world. You can call Trent any time of the day, any time of the night. And his passion for Jesus is a passion that makes a difference.
[20:41] I love what it says about him in this passage. It says he didn't do anything. He didn't do any miracles. But what he said about Jesus was true. And I wrote here in my notes how amazing would it be if that could be said about me as well.
[20:52] What I want to be said about me is not that he was passionate about Peru. What I want him to say about me is exactly what they said about John. What he said about Jesus was true. You say, what else did John the Baptist say?
[21:03] It doesn't really matter because he had a message that mattered. And that message was Jesus. So they don't say where he was at or what he was or where he went or what his hobbies were. But they had one message to proclaim.
[21:14] And he proclaimed it faithfully and he proclaimed it with everything he had. He said, I will speak of Jesus. I will speak of Jesus. And John the Baptist has not been mentioned since John chapter 5 and verse 36.
[21:26] But his influence lives on. His influence lives on. It doesn't matter where he's at. It doesn't matter who he is. He hadn't been mentioned in five chapters of the Bible. But his influence lives on because he had the influence that mattered.
[21:38] And that was the influence to say, look to Jesus. Look to Jesus. No witness could ask for a better epitaph. All that John said about Jesus was true. John's litmus test of his life was what happens after he's gone.
[21:53] And the answer is this. After John's gone, they will remember his message. And many will come to Jesus still. Thanks, Trent, for being that kind of a guy.
[22:04] And can I just encourage you guys to walk away saying the same thing. I want to be a man that preaches, speaks, proclaims he who matters, which is Jesus Christ. Well, I wanted you to know that we love and respect the guys that stay.
[22:17] Many of you are stayers. You're senders. You're going to live here. This is where God's put us. And we're going to send other guys out. And I don't want to honor others any more than we would honor Trent, who works so hard at our church.
[22:29] Let me explain. In just a second, Brother Tony Howell will come and preach. But let me explain to you just real briefly the blessing service. The idea of the blessing service is something I learned in Peru.
[22:40] I've told you this over and over to those that attend all the time. But I actually got a message today. I'm coming to the blessing service, but I have absolutely no idea what that means. So what that means is we take the opportunity to share something that's more valuable than money.
[22:55] One of the things that happened in Peru way back in 1988 and 1989, whenever they would have a birthday, they would fix some food. Sometimes it would only be finger foods. There wouldn't be much food. And there wouldn't be gifts.
[23:06] And there wouldn't be things they could do because it was a really bad time economically. They did something that I've never, ever forgotten. It will always be a part of my life. They would come into a room and they would stop and say, today's your day.
[23:18] And we're going to tell you how much we love you. And so then they would just take one at a time and say, I love you. This is why I love you. I love you. This is why I love you. And it would go on forever. And I remember going home thinking if it was a gift, it would be in the toilet or be in the trash or it would be gone or be rotted.
[23:34] Something would be wrong with it. I'd never forget that day. So I want this to be a night that Trent Cornwell knows that we at Vision Baptist Church love him. And I want him to know that we care.
[23:45] And so, Brother Tony, if you'll come and preach the last message for this evening. We as Christians, when we come up to people and we see them, one of the things I like, Brother Chris, about being Baptist. And, you know, if we don't know a guy's name when we come up to them, what do we call him?
[23:59] We say, hello. I'm sorry, hello. Yeah, take your Bibles and turn to 2 Corinthians chapter 8. And we're going to very quickly look at verses 16 through 19. 2 Corinthians chapter 8, verses 16 through 19.
[24:10] I'm honored, Miss Stephanie, Brother Trent, to be here. Remember, Miss Stephanie, we were looking back and everybody makes fun of my wedding pictures. But there is a bright spot in all my wedding pictures. And that's this wee little flower girl that has grown up to be a mighty woman of God.
[24:26] And a great help to her husband. I don't have the most insight into relationships, but I've got to humbly say that when you and Trent got married, I'm amazed that you've made it this long.
[24:40] And if you know their temperaments, there was a few times that I just stood to attention because the fireworks were so real, I just started singing the Star Spangled Battery Band. But I started thinking about you guys, and I started thinking about you, Trent.
[24:54] And it's really an odd portion of Scripture, but I'd like to just give you my heart on this thing. And just say, Pastor Gardner, how honored I am that you let me be a part of this.
[25:05] He says in 2 Corinthians 8, verse 16. But thanks be to God, which put the same earnest care into the heart of Titus for you. For indeed, he accepted the exhortation, but being more forward of his own accord, he went unto you.
[25:18] And we say with him, and I want you to underline the next two words. And you say with him, the brother. And I thought about this gentleman.
[25:41] And we've got an offering, everybody knows 2 Corinthians. We've been around enough missions conference to know that it's dealing with giving monies for the missions conference, and giving money to the churches, and wanting to help, and wanting to be a blessing.
[25:53] And they've got this money, this grace, is a monetary gift that they're taking to this church. And they say to take this gift, Titus is going to go, Paul is going to go. And he says, there's this guy, this brother.
[26:06] And this brother is going to go too. This brother may not be the one that is there. He may not be the one that is named. But the brother, the brother is going to be a part of this thing. And I started thinking about, well, Brother Sam, just that simple thought, the brother.
[26:20] And I thought about these things. And to me, they parallel Trent and Stephanie's life just so readily. The brother, number one, was unnamed, but not unknown. He says right here, he says, and we have sent with him the brother.
[26:33] He's going to take this grace, this gift, this money, this monetary blessing. And they're going to get this gift. And we're going to get to the church. But this brother is going to be the one. He's going to go with them. He's going to minister with them.
[26:44] The brother is going to go. The brother is not going to be named. But he has such a reputation that when you use just the expression, the brother. That the church there at Corinth, they knew who they were talking about. You and I may be in speculation tonight.
[26:56] Commentators may be in speculation tonight. But the church at Corinth, when they said, you know, the brother is going to be going with them. He knew exactly who they're talking about. And Trent, you have never sought a name for yourself.
[27:07] You many times are going to be unnamed. If it wasn't for your name on the email, the one that volunteers to do the blog, the one that volunteers to do the traveling, the one that volunteers to do the work in the background.
[27:22] Many times you and Miss Stephanie, y'all may be unnamed. But I want to humbly say as a testimony, and I think all the guys in here could say amen to this. Sometimes you may be unnamed, but you will never be unknown.
[27:34] You're a brother that helps to build other people's names, other people's ministries, other people's lives. There's nothing that you will step away from. There's nothing that you won't step into. Sometimes you scare me. But you don't step away or step back from anything.
[27:47] You are the brother that maybe the name's not given, but people know all about him. They know what he does. They know what he stands for. It doesn't matter who gets the applause. It matters that the job gets accomplished, and your whole life has been given to make sure that the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is given to the world.
[28:04] This brother was unnamed, but he wasn't unknown. Jesus told him, didn't he? He said in Matthew 20, verses 25 through 28, But Jesus called them unto him and said, You know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.
[28:20] But it shall not be so among you. But whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister. And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant. Even as a son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
[28:34] You may be unnamed, but you're not unknown. People all over the world have your name upon their lips, your name in their hearts. Because what you have done for so many years, so consistently, so sacrificially, if Brother Jim Roberts did not have mentioned, driving up there, being in his house, there's so many things that you and Stephanie do that nobody else is going to know about.
[28:53] But I want to humbly say this. There is a God in heaven whose eyes go to and fro upon all the earth. And we preachers get stuck with, he beholds the evil. But I want to give you the other part of that verse. He also beholds the good. Amen?
[29:04] And though you may be unnamed or maybe even unnoticed, I want you to understand, there's rejoicing, and there's crown, and there's reward in heaven. Because of the brother that does for everybody else, even when it hurts him, even when it's to the detriment of his family, even when people don't understand, there is the brother that can go unnamed, but he's not unnoticed.
[29:25] The second thing I wrote down was the brother that's worthy to be praised, but he's not prideful. It says here in verse 18, And we have sent with him the brother whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches.
[29:36] He was known. He was known for having a heart for souls. He was known for preaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. When he stopped off at every church, there was one message that he was preached. Not that he had one sermon, but there's one message that he would preach, and that would be the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ, taking the hope of Jesus Christ everywhere he went.
[29:56] A guy with a burden for souls. A guy whose field was the world. Whatever church, whatever place he stopped off, he had that message, Miss Stephanie, that he was going to give them. He was a guy that was worthy of praise, but he was not a guy that was full of pride.
[30:09] He had one passion, one focus, one message, and that was Christ and Him crucified. He was worthy to be praised, but he wasn't prideful. And tonight we had to set aside a service just to give you some of the duty and some of the glory that's due to your ministry and to your service.
[30:24] And I hope you never get prideful. I hope you never get arrogant. I hope you never get so big-headed that we can't all stand being around you because we can't get in a verbal argument with you because none of us can keep up with your mouth. But you're worthy to be praised in the right spirit tonight.
[30:37] You're worthy to be praised. You're worthy to be honored. And I know that there's young people. I know that there's men. I know that there's missionaries. I know that there's people. I know they're all over the world. And they say, I know that guy. I know the message that he brings.
[30:48] I know where he stands. I know what he stands for. He's worthy to be praised, but he's not prideful. Number three, he says, this brother's a leader, but not a lord. He said that in verse 19, and not that only, he was not only the brother that was known.
[31:00] He's not only the brother that has a reputation. He's not only the brother that has this message that he preaches in all the churches. But understand this, if that wasn't good enough for you, this also is about the brother, the churches chose him.
[31:12] They trusted him. I guess Brother Austin, maybe he went through the course of B-Do, Serve, Train, because he had the character level where they could trust him with what was going on. He was a leader, but not a lord.
[31:23] He was one that was strong enough. See, a leader that's strong enough to help without feeling like it hindered his power. A leader that was strong enough to follow and still know that he's a leader.
[31:37] He was a leader that had, and I wrote this down and I thought of you. He's a leader that has a backbone of steel and still maintains a heart of flesh. He's a leader that will stand when other people would run away, but he doesn't lord it over anybody.
[31:50] Some people in studying this have thought this brother, the brother, they thought his name was, maybe it was Barnabas, or Apollos, or Silas, or Mark, or Luke. But there, if you've got your Bible and you underlined the words, the brother, go to your margin now, and just go ahead and put his name there, because his name is Trent Cornwell.
[32:10] He's the one that doesn't seek the recognition of others, but will give his total life in making sure that other people's lives are built up. He can be trusted with a message. He can be trusted with anything. He's a man that can be trusted. A brother who lives unnamed, but not unnoticed.
[32:22] A brother who lives worthy of praise, but not prideful. A brother who is a great leader, but not a lord. Trent, we thank you for being that brother, to deliver the message and help us to deliver the message of the Lord Jesus Christ into all the world.
[32:35] People may remember a name. They may hold on to a name. Some names may be different. But I'm glad it's not just because we're Baptists and we can't remember your name. I'm glad when we leave tonight, the folks are going to hug your neck, and they're going to say something sort of like this, because, well, we're Baptists.
[32:51] They're going to say, I love you, brother. And I wonder if that didn't come from the guy in 2 Corinthians. 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.