[0:00] This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alpharetta, Georgia. This is the next message in our series on the book of John, entitled, Jesus is God.
[0:14] Open your Bibles, if you would, to the book of Philippians in chapter number one. Philippians in chapter number one, if you'd take the word of God, Philippians in chapter number one. We'll take our study from there in Philippians chapter number one this morning.
[0:28] And allow me to say it is a great privilege to be here, to be preaching in this pulpit. At the same time, it makes me super, super nervous. And I don't know what it is about it.
[0:40] One thing, I've had the privilege to work with Brother Austin for many years. And it's been such a blessing. But, you know, we're on different levels. He's like super tall and I'm like super short.
[0:52] And so in Argentina, you know, I mean, this pulpit, look at that. I mean, you can barely see my head sticking out of here. And so I'm going to have to like stand over to the side here. Am I on, guys? Turn on your mic. I can read that. Good.
[1:04] It's on. It says on, brother. Turn on. Power's on. All right. Good. I'll be standing behind the pulpit for a little while this morning. And Philippians chapter number one.
[1:15] Let's start right there. And we'll go into it in just a second. As you saw in the video, I have four daughters. The Lord has blessed our family. We have four precious daughters and we have one boy on the way.
[1:27] And so we're very thankful for what the Lord's done. My daughter just had a birthday yesterday and she turned seven years old. So thank the Lord to priority mail. I was able to send seven dollars for my daughter.
[1:40] First time she's ever got seven dollars. So she was super happy. I'm just really scared when she gets older. You know what I'm saying? I mean, this is not. But hey, I'm on, guys. Good. All right. So I'm thankful for my family.
[1:52] My other daughter, she has a birthday this week coming up. So we usually run both of the birthday parties together. And I'm looking forward to getting back up there with my family on tomorrow to be with my family once again.
[2:03] And then Lord willing, we will be back down here in a couple of months to be together as a family to visit the church. Philippians chapter number one. You know the book of Philippians. Four chapters. Wonderful book.
[2:14] One of the wonderful books that Paul wrote. One of the four epistles that he wrote from the jail. In other words, Paul, when he was preaching the word of God, he many times he was put in jail. And when he was put in jail, he looked back and he began to think of these people when he where he started a church act.
[2:29] And I think it's very interesting. It's very encouraging because when he writes this book, he's in a jail cell. In other words, he's in a dark area. They don't give him good bread and they don't give him the best luxury.
[2:40] They don't even give him a cover. I mean, he's just probably in a horrible condition. But when he writes this letter, he's not looking down and thinking, man, I wish you guys would help me out. I mean, I wish you guys would do things for me.
[2:51] He's not complaining in the book of Philippians. In fact, throughout the book, he talks of joy. Rejoice in the Lord always. And again, I say rejoice in Philippians 4.4. And he talks about all these wonderful things. And he uses this bad experience in his life to encourage the other Christians.
[3:06] And we want to focus this morning on Philippians chapter number one. And as we come to just a short passage in Philippians chapter number one, Paul begins to speak to us. And I want you to think about it this morning as he begins to show us something so special.
[3:18] The reason that you and I are here upon this earth. And then I look up here one second. Have you ever thought about why you're here in this church? Have you ever thought about why you're in the city or why you're in the state?
[3:29] Have you ever thought about why you're really here in life? I believe with all my heart that we're in these last days. And in other words, that the Lord Jesus Christ is soon going to come back. At one time, the United States was the only country that stood and backed up Israel.
[3:43] And now we're almost turning our back against Israel. And with a lot of things that are happening today, I believe with all my heart that the Lord Jesus Christ is coming back soon. We have just a short amount of time to do what we need to do before the Lord comes back.
[3:56] And in this time before the Lord comes back, I do believe the devil's not trying to kill, in other words, just stab somebody and throw them out in the street. But to the Christians, I believe he's trying to destroy us.
[4:06] Have you seen, I've seen so many people in our churches in Argentina that they get discouraged and then they quit coming to church. Or they get mad at somebody in church or jealousy or whatever happens and they quit coming to church.
[4:19] And it's almost like the devil's sitting over there and he's saying, I got this one, one, buddy. Because they're saved and they're on the way to heaven. But because they get discouraged and their mind begins to play games, they just quit on God.
[4:30] And you know, in this last time, we're beginning to quit on God and things are beginning to happen. And Paul, under the inspiration of God, he points us back to a very important passage here.
[4:41] And he begins to show us the real reason that you and I are here. So Christian, the only thing I'm asking this morning, and the only thing that I want you to take out of this survey this morning, is one question that only you can ask and then we'll see some simple principles from the Word of God.
[4:54] Why are you here? Philippians chapter number one, verse number 19. Now as he writes from the jail cell, look what he says in verse number 19. The Bible says this, For I know that this shall turn to my salvation through your prayer, look at it, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
[5:09] Very interestingly, the Bible says, Paul says, I'm going to get out of this place. Because of two different reasons. One, because of your prayer, and two, because of the Lord Jesus Christ. In other words, we can't just sit back and say, well, the Lord will take care of everything.
[5:23] Paul says, God's going to take care of me, but also because of your prayer. You see, Christians, you and I have a part. It would be nice to sit back and say, well, Lord, fill up this church, or Lord, bless this, or Lord, do this.
[5:33] But the Lord says, I'll do my part, why don't you do your part? You see, we're supposed to be praying. We're supposed to be doing our area, and God will do the rest. Check it out in verse number 20. Look what he says here. According to my earnest expectation and my hope, that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but that with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ, help me out the last part here, so now also Christ shall be, what does it say?
[5:57] Here, help me. So now also Christ shall be, what does it say? Magnified in my body, whether it be by life or by death. Number one, the first thing, the first principle that we're going to see, the reason that you and I are here, if you want to underline it right here, the Bible says to magnify him.
[6:12] You and I, as Christians, are to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ in our lives. What does it mean to magnify him? It means to show forth. In other words, it means that your testimony, my testimony, is to resemble and to show forth that others can look at us and say, boy, there's something different about him or her.
[6:29] I don't know how it works around here, but I know we've been in a lot of places in Argentina, and when we talk to people and we've invited them to our church, there's been many people, maybe this has happened to you, but we've heard so many people, family, I've got a lot of family members who do this, but there's so many people who say, man, I'm not going to that church.
[6:45] Well, how come? They say, you know what? My next door neighbor goes to your church and he acts like a stinking devil. I think, man, you know what? For the bad testimony that somebody has, you know who gets all the blame?
[6:58] The Lord. You know, I'm sure it's happened around here. We've seen some people and we invite them back to church and they say, have you ever heard this one? Man, I ain't going to church filled with a bunch of hypocrites. Have you ever heard that before? Or, man, I mean, people really, they don't want to come or they don't want to know anything about the Lord.
[7:11] And you know why? It's our fault. And Paul says, as he's down there and as he's speaking to these people and encouraging these people, he says, you know why you're here? It's to magnify Jesus Christ in your life.
[7:23] Whether it be by life or whether it be by death, we are to magnify him. We're to show forth that others can look at us. You remember over there in Matthew chapter number five, verse number 13, that we're the salt of the earth, right? In verse number 14, he says that we're the light of the world.
[7:35] Listen to this in Matthew 5, 16, it says, let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your father, which is in heaven. In other words, we're supposed to live in such a way that our life resembles and our life shines forth that other people can look at us and say there's something different about him or her.
[7:56] Years back, my, my in-laws, they went to Argentina to visit us. And as they went over to Argentina, I remember my father-in-law, he, he didn't understand any Spanish and our next neighbor, one day we were outside in the back and our next, my next door neighbor, man, he, I don't know, he began to yell like a wild man.
[8:11] Of course, he was yelling in Spanish. And so my father-in-law had no idea what he did. Man, he was kicking things and he was screaming. He was saying all kinds of wonderful words that, you know, need, need to be censored. And my father-in-law, he had no idea what he was saying.
[8:22] And so he looked at me and he said, what in the world? And I said, ah, don't worry about it. He must be mad at his dad, at his dog. I didn't want to say, you know, his wife. I mean, goodnight, the guy was cussing out his wife and the family and everything else.
[8:33] The guy was, I mean, he was acting like a wild man. Listen, you know, a lot of times we Christians, we're, we're one thing at church, but we're another thing in our, in our job force. We're one thing at church and man, hey, it's awful easy to come into church and we hear good music and we hear the preaching of Pastor Gardner and we hear all these wonderful things and we say, praise the Lord.
[8:52] That's wonderful. That's good. But listen, you know, Christianity is not something we just do on Sundays and Thursdays. It's a way we should live, right? It's something that, I mean, it's 24 hours a day.
[9:03] And the Bible says we are here to magnify Jesus Christ in our lives. Let me ask you, you don't have to answer, but are you magnifying him? Can other people look at you the, the way that you talk or the way that you act, the way that you treat your family?
[9:18] Are things different in your life? Can they look at you and say something about him or her magnifies the Lord Jesus Christ? They're different. The Bible says over in first Corinthians chapter number 10, verse number 31, Paul says, for whether I eat or I drink or whatsoever I do, do it all the glory of God.
[9:33] Very interesting. He says, if you're going to eat something or you're going to drink something, it's almost like you say, man, I don't have time to make a big old list. So anything else that you're going to do, make sure it's all to the glory of God.
[9:45] Listen, everything that you and I do from eating to drinking to living to talking to walking, everything we do must show that we are children of the King.
[9:56] We're to magnify him in our lives. We're to show forth. Now, now leave your place here in the book of Philippians. Go with me very quickly to the book of second Timothy in chapter number two. Second Timothy in chapter number two, very quickly.
[10:08] And I want to show you one other thing. We're going to return here back over to Philippians chapter one, but I want to take a moment just to go over to flip to second Timothy chapter number two. And I want to show you one other thing. This time, Paul is speaking once again under the inspiration of God.
[10:19] But this time he's not talking to the church in Philippi. He's talking to his son, Timothy, his son in the faith. And as he talks to him this time, he's going to tell him something important that all of us know, something we need to think about.
[10:32] Now, listen, I need you to follow me. The reason that you're here, the reason that I'm here. A lot of people think that we're almost here by accident or coincident or it's just by pure chance or happiness or serendipity or whatever it may be.
[10:46] I'm just here because that's where I'm floating out in life right now. We don't really have a meaning in our life, but the Lord shows us we do have a meaning in our life. We're here to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ in our life.
[10:58] But over in the book of second Timothy in chapter number two, it begins to show us a different aspect. And I want you to see this second Timothy chapter number two, verse number one. Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
[11:10] Verse number two. And the things that thou has heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also. Now, take a second here. The Bible says, Paul, he's speaking to Timothy, he said, Timothy, I've received something from the Lord.
[11:25] And those things that I've received from the Lord and that I've been taught by other people, Timothy, I've given them to you. And the things that you've heard of me among many witnesses in that big congregation or wherever it was. The same commit thou.
[11:35] So it goes from Paul, what Paul received from Paul to Timothy. And now he says, Timothy, I want you to give them not to anybody, but to faithful men who will not just put it in their pocket and keep it rather who will give it to somebody else.
[11:45] Listen, so in other words, we're talking about four or five generations. Easy right here. Listen, we're talking about now Paul's talking about we must multiply ourselves. First, you and I as Christian, it is our goal.
[11:56] It is our responsibility. The reason you're here is to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, listen, now we're here to multiply ourselves. We're here to tell other people. Paul says, it's got to pass on from one generation to the next generation.
[12:07] You know, we've been back to the United States for just a couple of months now, and it has surprised me in a large way. How many going to Walmart? Walmart, you see ladies that are dressed like Muslims.
[12:20] So many American. I mean, we're not talking about people just came over from North Africa or something. Americans that have converted to Islam. Do you know, they say that within so many years, the way they are multiplying themselves, reproducing themselves, within so many years of their converts and of their children, of everything else, they say, listen, that the United States of America will be a Muslim nation.
[12:43] Man, I don't know about you, but that makes me nervous. Something's not right. We need more Christians. We need more people. But listen, you know, we cannot, there will not be more Christians unless you and I take up our responsibility, put it on us and say, you know what?
[12:56] I am here to magnify him, but I'm also here to multiply myself. When was the last time we used our mouth to talk to somebody about Jesus? When was the last time that we invited somebody? When was the last time we strove and we prayed, God, help me multiply myself?
[13:10] All of us can invite somebody. All of us. You know, say statistically less than 2% of good Christian churches, less than 2% of the people in our churches have ever won somebody to the Lord Jesus Christ.
[13:23] You know, I pray that's not, that wouldn't be our, the situation. But statistically speaking over all the churches, faithful people speaking, less than 2%. That means if there's a hundred, there's only two of us that have ever won.
[13:38] I hope that's not right with us. But you know what? We're in a rough situation. We're in a bad situation. Listen, Christian, I need you to help me here. You have a reason that you're here.
[13:48] In this church? Yes. But in this life, very much so. It's not coincidental. God has a purpose for your life. God has something special for your life. But you must realize it. Whereas the devil's playing with our mind, we're thinking we're here for money, or we're here for our family, or we're here for our friends, or we're here for whatever reason.
[14:05] Listen, we are here for a specific purpose. Number one, we are here to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ. Help me out now. Number one, what are we here for? To what? Number one, what are we here for? Help me. Magnify the Lord Jesus Christ.
[14:17] Whether it be by life or death, Paul says. But I am here to magnify. But number two, listen, we're also here, what are we here for? To number two, for what? To what? Multiply. To what? Multiply. Multiply. Play a little game with me.
[14:29] Horses reproduce what? You don't have to look scared. This isn't a class. This is an evolution theory, number 101. Horses reproduce what? Right. And cows reproduce what?
[14:40] And fish reproduce what? And monkeys reproduce what? My in-law. No. And monkeys, monkeys. Yeah, you all know. I hope this isn't on, right? You know what? We all know the story. Hey, we all know that everything reproduces after its own kind.
[14:54] Listen, do you know you and I as Christians are supposed to spiritually reproduce ourselves? And when other people, Lord. How is it going to be that our country hears about the gospel?
[15:04] And how is it going to be that our future generations and our children and their children, how is it going to be or is it going to be cut off right there and nobody else will be Christian in so many years? We're supposed to multiply ourselves.
[15:16] The Bible says in the Great Commission of Matthew 28, of Mark 16, of Luke 24, and over in John chapter number 20. And the Bible says in all those, in Matthew chapter number 28, it says that we are to go, in verse number 19, to go and to baptize them, or go and to teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe whatsoever things I've commanded you.
[15:36] So we're to go and we're to teach them, and we're to go and baptize, we're to go to teach them again. We're to multiply ourselves so that other people can hear about the gospel. Years back, we have a family in our church in Argentina, and this family is just a wonderful family, Rosa and Hernan.
[15:53] And they're a wonderful couple. In fact, their story goes, his testimony, a great man, the Lord's used him in a wonderful way, and his testimony is, we picked up their children for the bus route.
[16:05] And according to his testimony, her testimony, they were having a rough time, they didn't want to continue on, and his wife went into the bathroom to commit suicide. I think she tried it twice. He was going to literally kill his wife.
[16:17] They wanted to end it all. His story, his testimony goes that he went in, and he got a hold of his, it was a Sunday morning, his kids always went, and he didn't want anything to do at church. The story went that he got a hold of his wife's hand, and as a last resort, he brought her to church.
[16:31] Let's see if we can get this thing figured out. And he came to church, and he heard the gospel, and he got saved. Things began to happen in their lives, they began to grow, and God began to work in their lives. And wonderful things began to happen. And they were bringing so many people to church.
[16:42] It was one of those families that, what a blessing. I mean, they were bringing so many people into church. And one day, my wife asked Rosa, how in the world are you bringing so many people to church?
[16:54] I mean, we're not talking about just a couple neighbors here and there. We're talking about, they brought people, they brought a lot of people to church. And so my wife asked Rosa, she said, how in the world are you bringing so many people? And listen to what she said. I mean, this is a brand new Christian.
[17:05] Real sincere and honest answer. She said, well, what I do, she told my wife, what I do is I go out there, and I tell them that today is my birthday. And I tell them that I'm going to have a birthday party, and we're going to have cake.
[17:17] And I tell them to meet me at such and such hour. And at that time, the church bus goes by, they get on, and we take them to church. And then they're hearing the gospel. And my wife said, well, don't they realize that when they get to church, it's not exactly a party?
[17:30] She said, yeah, but by that time, they're hearing the gospel. I'm thinking, you know what, I didn't have the goal of the pattern. I didn't have the heart to say, you shouldn't lie. I mean, I thought, this is too good to be true. I mean, hey, God bless all your lying.
[17:41] Keep it up, praise the Lord. I mean, it was great. I mean, she was doing wonderful. I thought, how in the world are you going to lie to all these people? I mean, she was lying like a fiend. I mean, she was going at it, man. And she was bringing all the people. I thought, what a wonderful thing.
[17:52] You know, just last year in 2010, we started the Berean Baptist Church. And Hernan is now the pastor of the Berean Baptist Church. Do you know when we started that church from Lighthouse Baptist Church, they took 50 to 60 people out of that church that lived on the south end of the city to start that church.
[18:06] Do you know the majority of all the people that went with them and that are now members of the church, you know the majority of them? They personally won them to the Lord. What a blessing. They started the church from nothing.
[18:18] All of them, almost all of them, they won or brought to the church. The Lord was great. I thought, man, what a blessing. Listen, you know why? Because they were in such trouble. Their marriage wasn't working.
[18:30] Their life wasn't working. Nothing was working. They got saved. They began to serve the Lord. And all of a sudden they thought, man, this is just too good to be true. I got to tell other people. They started telling other people and other people got...
[18:42] Listen, they simply realized that they have a goal and a purpose in life. Christian, do you realize that God has something for you in life? Listen, generally speaking, we are all to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ.
[18:55] We're all to multiply ourselves. When was the last time you told somebody, talked to somebody about the Lord Jesus Christ? When was the last time we prayed, Lord, please allow me to bring somebody.
[19:06] Please allow me to win somebody. When was the last time? Now go with me very quickly to the book of Philippians chapter 1 one more time. Philippians chapter 1, we'll return to our passage, which is our base where we're out of.
[19:18] In Philippians chapter 1, we see that Paul, under the inspiration of God, he shares with us that we are here to magnify the Lord Jesus Christ. In 2 Timothy chapter 2, we see that we are here to multiply ourselves, but we're going to see one other thing here, and I want you to see this.
[19:32] Philippians chapter number 1, and let's begin with verse number 21. Look at it. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Verse number 22. But if I live in the flesh, this is the fruit of my labor.
[19:42] Yet what I shall choose, I want not. For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better. Stop one second here. Very interesting how he says it here.
[19:53] I live in a Catholic society. The Catholics believe once they die, they'll go to purgatory, they'll be there for so many years or decades or whatever it is to pay off their sin, and then they'll go on to heaven or wherever.
[20:04] But the Bible says in a wonderful way, as it does in 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse number 8, that you and I, once we leave this world, if you're a Christian, if you accept Jesus Christ, once you leave this world, your last day up on this earth is your first day in heaven.
[20:17] Amen? I mean, we don't have to wait. There's no soul sleep. There's no, you'll come back as an animal, you'll do something else, or you'll wake up on the other side of the suns of the Egyptians believe it, or nothing else. The Bible says that when we leave here, we are present there.
[20:29] Amen? I mean, what a wonderful concept. And listen, Paul says, I'm stuck between two things here. I would love just to get on out of here. I mean, wouldn't it be wonderful to be with our Lord? No more health problems.
[20:40] No more bills. Praise the Lord. I mean, no more locking your keys in the car like some idiots do, you know? I mean, wouldn't it be wonderful? I mean, you just wouldn't have any more problems. Be with the Lord. That would be great. But look what he says here in verse number 24.
[20:53] Nevertheless, to abide in the flesh, I need you to look at this part, to abide in the flesh is more needful for who? Look at it. Nevertheless, to abide in the flesh is more needful for who?
[21:07] You. If we took down the time, verse number 25, it says, and to continue with you. Verse number 26, the very last part, for me by my coming to, you. And Paul says, you, it's all about you and you and you.
[21:19] Listen, Christians, I need, let's go back and remember this. Listen, we have a reason that we're here upon this earth. Number one, can you remember? Number one, we're to magnify Lord Jesus. Why are we here? Number one, to what? Magnify.
[21:30] Number one, why are we here for? To what? Magnify Lord Jesus Christ in our lives. Our testimonies are to show forth the way that we talk, the way that we live, the way that we treat our family. Everything we do is to magnify as the sun beams through and the moon has no power in and of itself.
[21:45] But when the sun gets it, it shines forth the moon, the greater light and the dark and all the stars just because it receives from the sun. And you and I are to have that testimony received from Lord Jesus Christ to shine, to magnify him.
[21:57] But number two, we are also here to multiply ourselves. Why are we here? Number two, to what? What are we here for? Help me out. What are we here for? Number two, to what? Multiply. Multiply ourselves. To go out and to tell other people about Jesus Christ.
[22:10] To go out and to be our example so that future generations can hear about the gospel. But listen, number three, we're here to minister. To minister? That's a fancy word for serve.
[22:22] Paul says, man, I would love to get on out of here to be with the Lord Jesus Christ. But you know what? It's more needful for you. For you. For you. For you. For you. Paul says, I am here to serve you.
[22:34] Paul says, it's not all about me. In fact, he was in this prison cell and he was having a hard time, but he doesn't talk about his hard situation and begins to talk and serve and encourage and help them.
[22:45] You know, Christians, we are here. Listen, can I tell you this? I imagine if I asked you how many want to serve the Lord Jesus Christ, I imagine everybody would say, I do. But listen, can I tell you something? It's impossible. Listen, listen, listen. It's impossible to serve the Lord without serving others.
[22:59] You know the hardest thing in church is? Getting along with others. Man. I mean, it's hard. We have an international church. The Lighthouse Baptist Church in La Plata.
[23:12] It's like an international church because we have the university city. And so many people have come over from Paraguay and from Uruguay and from Bolivia and from Peru and from all different kinds of countries. Even over in Europe. And we have all these different nationalities.
[23:22] And I think, what a blessing. An international church. But then when we have a fellowship, everybody brings something to eat. And then all of a sudden, all the Peruvians grab and they go over here and eat their stuff. And all the Argentines go over and they eat their meat.
[23:35] And all the Paraguayans, they eat their chifa. And all the Bolivians, they go over and eat their rice. And everybody goes in. And I'm looking. I say, guys, get along. Come on. And it aggravates the fire. I mean, we're all in our little bitty groups and we're all in it.
[23:47] Listen, you know what? It's so hard just to get along with everybody. It's so hard. You know, don't look at me like you're all perfect. I mean, you have your halo sitting up there, right?
[23:57] Hold on by those two little horns, right? I mean, you're not so perfect. You're not fooling me. But you know what? So many times we go back. Did you see what she was wearing today? Come on. He didn't even greet me today.
[24:09] What a jerk. I mean, we sometimes have a rough time getting along with other people. Listen, but if we want to serve the Lord, we have to serve others. And the Bible says, you know what?
[24:20] But we are here to minister. We are here to serve the Lord by way of serving others. Hey, Christians, let me ask you this. When was the last time you picked up the telephone and called somebody who hasn't come here lately and just said, hey, brother, praying for you.
[24:36] Love you, man. When was the last time you used your phone to text somebody? When was the last time you knocked on somebody's door? When was the last time you wrote a letter? When was the last time you gave a gift? When was the last time that you did something to try to be a blessing to serve other people?
[24:50] You see, it's awful hard as a Christian. We like to fight it all really good. But the Bible says we are here to minister to other people, to serve other people. The body of Christ, the body of Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12.
[25:02] There's a bunch of members. We're all different, but we are in one body. Sometimes, man, the hand begins to fight the head. And the eyes begin to fight the nose. And the feet begin to fight the eye.
[25:14] And the Bible says it's not going to work out. Take your time with me. The first John chapter number four, very quickly. First John chapter number four. You see, Paul ministered to others. And Paul showed us that he ministered to the churches of Jerusalem, of Antioch.
[25:25] He ministered to family. He ministered to new Christians. He ministered to friends. He ministered to all kinds of different people. First John chapter number four. First John chapter number four. Now, the Bible shares with us, and Christian, this is maybe basic principles.
[25:38] And you all know it just as well as I do. Or maybe even better. But there's a reason that we're here. Listen, and if the devil, listen, I believe the devil's battlefield is our minds. Man, can we get discouraged.
[25:50] Have you ever been discouraged one time and you thought, man, everybody hates me. I mean, there's nothing even wrong. But you're all of a sudden thinking of this big old monster or whatever else, you know. I mean, my daughter, I have four daughters. And they always think there's a monster in their room for crying out loud.
[26:03] And I go in there and I check everything. I say, monster's not on the bed. Monster's not on the closet. But can you leave your door open? Come on, you know. I'm thinking, get over you. But you know what? We form all these monsters in our minds.
[26:14] And all these people, what they're going to do. And all these weird things. You know what? It's not even true. But listen, but the devil's working awful hard at discouraging Christians. Throwing us down.
[26:25] And making us forget or get our eyes on something else. But listen, this is what I want to say. Return your eyes and get back on focus. And realize that God has a simple purpose in your life. You're here to magnify Him.
[26:38] It's not that hard. We're here to multiply ourselves. We're here to minister to other people. Look at what 1 John chapter 4 verse number 9 says. 1 John chapter 4 verse number 9. He that loved, excuse me, verse 4 verse number 9.
[26:51] And this was manifested, the love of God toward us. Because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world. Stop one second. Look up here. We all know the story that Jesus Christ was sent into the world.
[27:03] Everybody knows John 3 verse 16. Everybody knows the story of Matthew 2 and Luke 2, the great Christmas story. Everybody knows the story. We all know it. Look, look, look. We all know that Jesus Christ came into this world.
[27:15] But it doesn't stop there. You know why? Because life doesn't stop at salvation. Life begins at salvation. Things begin to happen. And that's when God begins. So look what it says here.
[27:26] We all know that manifested the love of God toward us. Because that God sent His only begotten Son into the world. Look at it. That we might live through who? That we might live through who?
[27:37] For the money. Amen? That we might live for the sports. That we might live for the fun. That we might live through Him.
[27:49] You see, look. Life's not about me. Life's about Jesus Christ and what I can do for Him. Life's not about you. And many times we're all focused in our life. And when we're all focused, boy, we can get all focused.
[28:01] And all of a sudden when we're cropping or when we're mowing or something, when we get all focused, we go way the opposite way. And as Christians, we get all focused. And we do not serve the way we could serve or do what we could do.
[28:13] And the Lord says, get on focus, guys. Get on focus this morning. Get on focus by simply realizing you and I are here to magnify Him. You and I are here to multiply ourselves so that others can know you and I are here to minister.
[28:27] Because it's all about Him. When we started our church in the first church in Argentina, the Lighthouse Baptist Church, there was a, we found an old storefront.
[28:38] And then this old storefront used to be an old paint building. And so we went in there and it was abandoned for seven, eight years. And so we went in there and cleaned it up. At the time it was my wife and I and we had two daughters. And so when we went in there, we started cleaning it up.
[28:50] And I even tried to hire some people to come and paint and to help and all this stuff. And two months after that we got there, we started the first service. And we went out and passed out all kinds of thousands of brochures and everything.
[29:00] Brother Austin brought over a group. And we tried to have a big old first service. I remember, you know, as Brother Austin, he was there and he would preach the first services. He stayed for about a week and a half. And the last thing he said before he left, listen to this.
[29:11] He said, now Jeff, don't get discouraged. I thought, what in the world kind of words are those, man? Where are you supposed to help me in some way? He walked out and like three-fourths of the church walked out. I mean, it wasn't a church.
[29:22] Yeah, but everybody, I mean, there was like nobody. Sometimes I would just be looking. In fact, I remember, this might sound really silly to you, but I remember when I finally, I did everything in church. I led the singing.
[29:32] I mean, that's pretty bad when I lead singing. I led the singing. I did the prayer. I did the preaching. I did the invitation. I did the offering. I said, let's pray. And then I went down. I mean, I did everything in church. There was nobody else. And I remember the first time that I looked down and there was a man in the service.
[29:44] And I felt like he was spiritually mature enough. And I looked down and I said, Hugo, would you lead us in prayer? Man, my chest was popping out. I thought, we have a man in this church, praise the Lord. I mean, it was awesome. I was thinking, praise the Lord. We're finally getting somewhere.
[29:55] Now we can do something. One of the first men in our church was Basilio. Basilio is this older gentleman who has mental problems, but he also has a lot of health problems. He's taking a lot of medication.
[30:06] And one of his health problems is he has a paralyzed leg. And Basilio, he would always come and he lived right in front, a little bit of catty quarter over from the church. And every time he would see me open the door, Basilio, he would come on over.
[30:17] And everybody knew when Basilio was coming because they could hear him. Basilio would always drag his leg. And Basilio would come across the street and he'd go, hola, pastor. Hey, ¿cómo estás, Basilio?
[30:28] Bien, pastor. Adelante, Basilio. He'd say, gracias, pastor. He'd walk right in there. And here goes Basilio. Man, open it Sunday morning. Here comes Basilio. Across the street.
[30:39] Hola, pastor. Hey, Basilio, ¿cómo estás? Bien, pastor. Walk right in. See you later, Basilio. After church, you leave. Wednesday night, you do the same thing. You walk on. Hey, Basilio.
[30:49] First one, always to church. Basilio. Man, what a wonderful guy. And then Friday night, we'd have youth night. Here comes Basilio. Hola, pastor. Hey, Basilio, ¿cómo estás?
[30:59] Bien, pastor. He had a real low voice. He said, good, Basilio. He said, I said, we're having youth night. Can I come, pastor? I would say, sure, Basilio. I mean, a little bit different. He was like 104. Everybody else was 13.
[31:10] But sure, come on in, Basilio. That would be great. So Basilio walks in. Hola. Sit down. I mean, this is a wonderful guy. We, Saturday morning, we go out and pass out tracks. And here comes Basilio. Hola, pastor.
[31:22] Hey, Basilio, we're going to pass out tracks. Okay, pastor. I give him the tracks. He walked down the street. Hola. Hola. Hola. I mean, he walked out. He didn't make it too far.
[31:33] Man, he was great. Saturday evening, man. We'd have ladies night. We'd have the ladies fellowship. The ladies meeting. Here comes Basilio across the street. Hola, pastor.
[31:43] Hey, Basilio. Como estas? Bien, Basilio. Tonight we're having the ladies meeting. Can I stay, Basilio? Not tonight. Go home. I say, okay, pastor. I mean, he's just a great guy.
[31:54] I mean, repeated over and over and over. In the first services, we didn't have that many people at all in our church. And so I remember, man, I would preach and get involved and begin to serve the Lord and use your life in a wonderful way.
[32:05] And I remember after some of the first services, he would come right down the middle, Basilio. I'd finish preaching. He'd come right down the middle. Hola, pastor. Hey, Basilio. Can I do something, pastor?
[32:16] I say, um, sure, Basilio. Here's all the song books. Why don't you go and you put them all on the chairs and then you pick them up after the service. He'd say, okay, pastor. And he'd walk around.
[32:27] You know, in my mind, I was thinking, what a wonderful guy. But, you know, he lacks a little bit. He can't do it. But what a sweet old fella. You know what? Many times you and I, we would look and we'd say, wow, what a good old guy that Basilio was.
[32:41] And he was. But listen, that simple Basilio understood a lot more than you and I, spiritually speaking. Basilio said, I am here to serve the Lord Jesus Christ.
[32:51] Nothing more, nothing else. Christians, let me ask you. What are you here for? Are you here for, you know, we have to get up in the economy? Or are we here for, we have to have a better family?
[33:02] Are we here? Hey, there's nothing wrong with any of those things. We need all those things. But listen, do you really realize that the Lord Jesus Christ has a purpose and a goal in your life? Do you realize that he wants you to magnify him?
[33:14] How you doing? Do you realize you're to multiply yourselves? That you're ministering to him? We must get back on focus. And as we get back on focus, we'll begin to serve the Lord in the way that we shouldn't serve him.
[33:26] Father, I thank you and I pray that you would help us. This morning, Lord, bless the service. And Lord, do a work that only you can do to minister to work in the hearts and lives of these precious people.
[33:37] Lord, this church has been so kind to my family and I. Lord, they've been wonderful praying for us and helping us, Lord, in good times and bad times. Lord, thank you for them. But Lord, help all of us individually think and reflect and say, Father, may I not be satisfied where I'm at?
[33:54] May I say, Lord, help me refocus this morning. Help me look and help me think. Heads bowed and eyes are closed. In a moment, we're going to begin to sing. But before we do, with the heads bowed and eyes closed, let me ask you a question.
[34:06] Nobody looking around. Are you truly in where the Lord wants you to be? Are you focused this morning? Do you realize that you're supposed to magnify him?
[34:16] How are we doing at our work? How are we doing in our life? Are our families what they should be? Are we really magnifying him or are we just kind of floating through? Are we multiplying ourselves?
[34:27] I mean, are we ministering to other people? Are we really realizing that life's about the Lord Jesus Christ? Are we kind of off focus this morning? The only thing I want to ask you this morning is, will you get back on focus?
[34:41] Will you get back to the basics? Will you get back with me and say, Lord, please help me? The altar is open. If the precious Holy Spirit, the Word of God and the Spirit of God has spoken to your heart, why don't you get out?
[34:54] Why don't you come down? Why don't you pray? Or maybe in your seat. Why don't you say, Lord, please help me to get back on focus? But maybe you're here this morning and you really are not sure yourself that you know that you're going to go to heaven.
[35:08] As the piano begins to play, let me ask you. If he did come back today or if you did die today, are you sure that you'll go to heaven? You know, if you're not sure, why don't you talk to Pastor Trent?
[35:19] Why don't you talk to one of these men? Why don't you talk to one of these ladies? Why don't you talk to somebody and say, you know what? I need to know. I need to be positive. I want to know. And you, Christian, jump back on focus this morning.
[35:30] Lord bless Pastor Trent as he concludes. And help us as we stand, we sing, we think, we meditate. Lord, may we leave this morning. All of us will leave making a decision.
[35:42] The decision whether to listen, to heed, or just ignore. Help us make the right decision this morning. Help us make the decision, Lord, that we will get back on focus. We will realize that there's a purpose we're here and that we're going to fulfill that purpose.
[35:57] Thank you, Lord, for your goodness. You have been listening to Austin Gardner, pastor of Vision Baptist Church. For contact information, location, service times, or more audio and video recordings, log on to www.visionbaptist.com.