WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.500 I want to thank you first of all though for what you do to support what we do at North Greenville University. 00:00:07.500 --> 00:00:21.500 I hope you're aware that North Greenville University is one of your three South Carolina Baptist Convention Universities along with Anderson University, Charleston Southern University and North Greenville University. 00:00:21.500 --> 00:00:45.560 I just want to thank you for what you do to pray for us, for your giving through the cooperative program which helps support our work on the campus there in Tigerville, South Carolina as we seek to minister to these emerging generations and raise up transformational leaders for church and society. 00:00:45.780 --> 00:00:47.659 I cannot thank you enough for that. 00:00:47.659 --> 00:00:59.339 By the way, my wife and I and our family were also recipients of your prayer and your giving as we served as your International Mission Board missionaries in the country of Ecuador. 00:00:59.780 --> 00:01:01.140 So we thank you for that. 00:01:01.219 --> 00:01:03.399 You helped educate our kids while we were there. 00:01:03.679 --> 00:01:09.219 You provided a house for us, a car for us, a salary for us and you will never know what that means. 00:01:09.219 --> 00:01:17.000 So we are indebted to you both as former missionaries and now teaching on the campus of North Greenville University. 00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:18.920 Keep on praying for us. 00:01:19.420 --> 00:01:23.480 If you have your Bibles with you this morning, I want us to turn to a text. 00:01:23.560 --> 00:01:26.519 It's a bit of a lengthy one, but I do want to read it. 00:01:26.799 --> 00:01:29.840 It's found in Acts chapter 17. 00:01:30.480 --> 00:01:37.900 So if you have your copy of God's Word with you this morning, I'm going to begin reading with verse 16 in Acts chapter 17. 00:01:38.359 --> 00:01:42.219 You follow along in your copy of God's Word as I read. 00:01:43.079 --> 00:01:45.299 Verse 16 of Acts chapter 17. 00:01:45.299 --> 00:01:54.459 Now, while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. 00:01:55.120 --> 00:02:03.859 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and devout persons and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. 00:02:04.519 --> 00:02:09.139 Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. 00:02:09.139 --> 00:02:13.939 And some said, what does this babbler wish to say? 00:02:14.719 --> 00:02:23.519 Others said, he seems to be a preacher of foreign gods because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. 00:02:24.719 --> 00:02:27.899 And they took him and they brought him to the Areopagus saying, 00:02:28.459 --> 00:02:35.139 may we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting, for you are bringing some strange things to our ears. 00:02:35.579 --> 00:02:38.099 We wish to know, therefore, what these things mean. 00:02:38.099 --> 00:02:45.699 Now, all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling and hearing something new. 00:02:46.120 --> 00:02:49.939 So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus said, 00:02:49.939 --> 00:02:53.579 Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 00:02:54.520 --> 00:03:00.000 For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, 00:03:01.139 --> 00:03:03.060 To the unknown God. 00:03:04.199 --> 00:03:08.900 What, therefore, you worship as unknown, this I now proclaim to you. 00:03:08.900 --> 00:03:15.879 The God who made the world and everything in it, being the Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, 00:03:16.120 --> 00:03:20.300 nor is he served by human hands as though he needed anything, 00:03:20.879 --> 00:03:26.379 since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. 00:03:26.379 --> 00:03:32.039 And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, 00:03:32.439 --> 00:03:36.840 having determined their allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 00:03:37.000 --> 00:03:41.780 that they should seek God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him, 00:03:42.240 --> 00:03:44.719 yet he is not far from each one of us. 00:03:45.120 --> 00:03:48.740 For in him we live and move and have our being, 00:03:49.280 --> 00:03:51.379 as even some of your own poets have said, 00:03:51.379 --> 00:03:53.620 For we are indeed his offspring. 00:03:54.719 --> 00:03:56.120 Being then God's offspring, 00:03:56.719 --> 00:04:01.139 we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, 00:04:01.519 --> 00:04:04.799 an image formed by the art and imagination of man. 00:04:05.359 --> 00:04:07.500 The times of ignorance got overlooked, 00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:12.099 but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 00:04:12.560 --> 00:04:17.159 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness 00:04:17.159 --> 00:04:19.939 by a man whom he has appointed, 00:04:19.939 --> 00:04:27.079 and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead. 00:04:27.459 --> 00:04:28.360 Would you pray with me? 00:04:29.160 --> 00:04:31.719 Heavenly Father, we are grateful this morning for your word. 00:04:32.600 --> 00:04:35.139 We pray now that that which we have read, 00:04:35.819 --> 00:04:38.319 written in pen and ink, 00:04:39.220 --> 00:04:43.600 might become in these moments truly a living word for us 00:04:43.600 --> 00:04:46.659 as your Holy Spirit becomes our teacher. 00:04:46.660 --> 00:04:49.260 Father, we commit this time to you, 00:04:49.439 --> 00:04:53.040 and we ask you to speak your truth into our hearts, 00:04:53.220 --> 00:04:55.400 and we ask this in Jesus' name. 00:04:56.500 --> 00:04:56.900 Amen. 00:04:58.180 --> 00:05:02.840 Okay, this morning I want to ask you to think about something. 00:05:03.260 --> 00:05:04.480 I want to ask you a question. 00:05:05.660 --> 00:05:07.140 What do you see? 00:05:07.800 --> 00:05:12.140 What do you see when you look around you? 00:05:12.139 --> 00:05:16.459 What do you see when you drive through the town of Pickens? 00:05:16.839 --> 00:05:18.839 What do you see when you go to Easley? 00:05:19.399 --> 00:05:22.800 What do you see when you head toward Anderson or Clemson? 00:05:23.219 --> 00:05:26.939 What do you see when you travel down toward Greenville? 00:05:27.379 --> 00:05:31.139 What do you see when you look at the communities and the neighborhoods 00:05:31.139 --> 00:05:36.519 that are scattered across this part of upstate South Carolina? 00:05:36.919 --> 00:05:38.199 Do you see homes? 00:05:39.159 --> 00:05:40.740 Do you see businesses? 00:05:40.740 --> 00:05:42.939 Do you see schools? 00:05:43.939 --> 00:05:45.319 Do you see churches? 00:05:46.199 --> 00:05:48.379 Do you see traffic? 00:05:49.420 --> 00:05:52.100 Oh boy, don't get me started on that. 00:05:53.160 --> 00:05:55.400 Do you see people going to work? 00:05:56.600 --> 00:05:57.879 Raising their families? 00:05:59.180 --> 00:06:01.240 Going about their daily lives? 00:06:02.040 --> 00:06:03.620 What do you see, really? 00:06:03.620 --> 00:06:10.100 I want to say to you this morning that one of the most important things that can happen 00:06:10.100 --> 00:06:21.500 in the life of a church is for us to begin seeing our community the way that God sees it. 00:06:21.500 --> 00:06:26.060 Because if we only see neighborhoods, you know what? 00:06:26.959 --> 00:06:28.620 We'll just live in our neighborhoods. 00:06:29.139 --> 00:06:34.519 If we only see businesses, we'll just simply work in our businesses. 00:06:34.519 --> 00:06:41.159 If we only see schools, we'll just simply send our children to school. 00:06:41.160 --> 00:06:54.320 But if we can begin to look at the people around us as a mission field, then church, everything changes. 00:06:54.319 --> 00:07:05.879 So this morning, I want you to see and understand that God has not just placed Pickens First Baptist Church and you in the town of Pickens. 00:07:06.420 --> 00:07:15.560 God has placed Pickens First Baptist Church and you right squarely in the middle of a mission field. 00:07:15.560 --> 00:07:30.079 I want you to see this morning as we especially focus on one group of people who are becoming increasingly visible in the upstate of South Carolina. 00:07:30.759 --> 00:07:41.779 And they are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, more popularly known as the Mormons. 00:07:41.779 --> 00:07:46.339 Now, by the way, if you encounter some of them, don't ask if they're a Mormon. 00:07:46.859 --> 00:07:48.639 That term has gone out of vogue. 00:07:48.739 --> 00:07:50.019 They don't like it anymore. 00:07:50.519 --> 00:07:58.799 They need to be referred to as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 00:08:00.000 --> 00:08:05.219 These people are not part of a statistical table. 00:08:06.219 --> 00:08:10.459 They are not part of a religious system. 00:08:10.459 --> 00:08:17.159 Church members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints are people. 00:08:17.919 --> 00:08:19.659 They are people who live here. 00:08:20.259 --> 00:08:22.180 They are people who work here. 00:08:22.839 --> 00:08:25.459 They are people whose children attend school here. 00:08:26.039 --> 00:08:35.960 They are people you may encounter in the grocery store or at work or in your neighborhood or maybe even at your door. 00:08:35.960 --> 00:08:40.740 As Latter-day Saint missionaries come to your house. 00:08:40.920 --> 00:08:47.940 These are people who need to hear the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 00:08:48.100 --> 00:09:01.200 So we're going to look at Acts chapter 17 today because the Apostle Paul shows us exactly what it looks like when we begin to see our communities the way God sees them. 00:09:01.200 --> 00:09:09.920 I have five things I want to share with you this morning very rapidly, very quickly, but I want you to follow along and perhaps even jot these things down in your Bible. 00:09:10.080 --> 00:09:12.100 Here's the first thing I want you to see. 00:09:13.400 --> 00:09:25.240 We must, as a church, as evangelical Christians, we must begin to see our context, our neighborhoods as a mission field. 00:09:25.240 --> 00:09:29.000 Look at Acts chapter 17 again, verse 16. 00:09:29.840 --> 00:09:30.159 It says, 00:09:30.320 --> 00:09:39.159 Now while Paul was waiting for them in Athens, his spirit was provoked within him because he saw that the city was full of idols. 00:09:39.560 --> 00:09:41.639 He saw something. 00:09:42.720 --> 00:09:43.539 Do you see that? 00:09:43.820 --> 00:09:45.919 He saw something. 00:09:46.519 --> 00:09:51.139 Now let me tell you something about Athens, and I've been blessed to go there on a couple of different occasions. 00:09:51.419 --> 00:09:53.840 Even today, it is a remarkable city. 00:09:53.840 --> 00:09:57.139 In Paul's day, it was intellectually sophisticated. 00:09:57.720 --> 00:09:59.860 It was culturally influential. 00:10:00.720 --> 00:10:07.200 It was filled with history, philosophy, art, religion, learning. 00:10:07.800 --> 00:10:13.080 Paul saw all that, but he saw something underneath all of that. 00:10:13.680 --> 00:10:17.300 He saw a city full of idols. 00:10:18.060 --> 00:10:23.139 He saw people following a false religion. 00:10:23.139 --> 00:10:26.559 And I want you to notice something else that's very important. 00:10:27.559 --> 00:10:33.080 Paul did not look at Athens and say, oh my goodness, what a terrible place. 00:10:33.919 --> 00:10:38.379 He did not say, oh my goodness, these people are beyond hope. 00:10:38.699 --> 00:10:40.559 He didn't withdraw from the city. 00:10:41.559 --> 00:10:43.799 He didn't simply complain about the culture. 00:10:43.799 --> 00:10:49.099 He saw a mission field. 00:10:49.099 --> 00:10:56.579 And this is what we must learn to do when we look at our own cities and towns and communities. 00:10:57.219 --> 00:11:04.899 When you look at the upstate, do you see a mission field? 00:11:04.899 --> 00:11:09.379 I want to tell you, we are blessed to live where we live in this part of the country, right? 00:11:09.740 --> 00:11:11.399 It is a beautiful part of the country. 00:11:12.000 --> 00:11:14.259 We have strong families here. 00:11:14.439 --> 00:11:16.959 We have good churches here. 00:11:17.120 --> 00:11:22.100 We have communities that still have a strong Christian influence here. 00:11:22.100 --> 00:11:31.980 But we must never, ever confuse the presence of the church with the presence of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the hearts of people. 00:11:32.800 --> 00:11:40.379 And we must never assume that just because people seem to be religious that they know Jesus. 00:11:41.379 --> 00:11:45.600 That is why Acts chapter 17 is so critically important. 00:11:45.600 --> 00:11:49.300 Athens was not an irreligious city. 00:11:49.680 --> 00:11:52.460 It was a very religious city. 00:11:52.580 --> 00:11:53.600 Deeply religious. 00:11:54.279 --> 00:11:58.500 The problem wasn't that people believed nothing about God. 00:11:58.580 --> 00:12:02.019 The problem was they believed many things about God. 00:12:02.139 --> 00:12:06.420 But they did not know the true God of Scripture. 00:12:07.340 --> 00:12:12.580 That ought to make us think carefully, church, about our own mission field. 00:12:12.580 --> 00:12:18.920 Because I can promise you, there are people all around you today who are religious. 00:12:19.360 --> 00:12:24.320 There are people all around you who talk about God, who talk about Jesus. 00:12:24.620 --> 00:12:26.100 There are people who pray. 00:12:26.560 --> 00:12:28.720 There are people who read religious books. 00:12:29.139 --> 00:12:32.520 There are people who sincerely want to please God. 00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:37.680 And yet sincerity is not the same thing as knowing Christ. 00:12:37.679 --> 00:12:43.079 And that is why we're focusing this morning particularly on our Latter-day Saint friends and neighbors. 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:45.599 Because they do all of those things. 00:12:46.179 --> 00:12:47.139 All of them. 00:12:49.299 --> 00:12:50.679 And they are growing. 00:12:52.339 --> 00:12:56.479 And this is not something that's happening far away. 00:12:57.179 --> 00:12:58.759 It's happening right here. 00:12:58.759 --> 00:13:04.259 In fact, according to the Latter-day Saint Church's own current statistics, 00:13:05.539 --> 00:13:11.200 there are almost 50,000 Latter-day Saints living in South Carolina, 00:13:11.639 --> 00:13:15.299 meeting in more than 90 congregations. 00:13:15.299 --> 00:13:23.639 Did you know that in the 50 United States over the last 10 years, 00:13:24.019 --> 00:13:28.659 the LDS Church has grown in 49 of those 50 states? 00:13:28.740 --> 00:13:30.740 The only exception being the state of California. 00:13:33.620 --> 00:13:35.419 And their missionary presence. 00:13:36.679 --> 00:13:41.059 Do you know how many Latter-day Saint missionaries there are around the world today? 00:13:42.059 --> 00:13:43.799 Anybody want to take a wild guess? 00:13:43.799 --> 00:13:48.099 This past month, 00:13:48.679 --> 00:13:52.399 the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially published that they have more than, 00:13:52.500 --> 00:13:58.299 listen, 90,000 full-time missionaries. 00:13:58.359 --> 00:13:59.740 Do you know how many we have a Southern Baptist? 00:14:00.699 --> 00:14:04.699 About 3,500 international and about that number North American. 00:14:05.539 --> 00:14:07.279 They have 90,000. 00:14:07.279 --> 00:14:15.980 It is the largest missionary force in the world. 00:14:16.779 --> 00:14:18.839 Now, there are no definite statistics. 00:14:19.000 --> 00:14:24.980 The Church doesn't publish actual numbers of the number of Latter-day Saint missionaries here in South Carolina, 00:14:24.980 --> 00:14:31.079 but it is estimated to be somewhere between 300 and 400 of them right here in South Carolina. 00:14:31.080 --> 00:14:33.180 That should mean something to us. 00:14:36.540 --> 00:14:38.460 Not because we should be afraid. 00:14:39.759 --> 00:14:42.120 Not because we should become angry. 00:14:43.280 --> 00:14:47.360 Not because we need to start some kind of religious battle. 00:14:47.360 --> 00:14:58.220 But because there are Latter-day Saints who are actively seeking to share their understanding of the gospel 00:14:58.220 --> 00:15:01.340 with the people in our communities. 00:15:01.700 --> 00:15:03.259 And Church, we need to ask ourselves, 00:15:03.259 --> 00:15:07.460 Are we going to be willing to share the New Testament gospel, 00:15:08.220 --> 00:15:09.519 the biblical gospel, 00:15:10.120 --> 00:15:11.740 with them 00:15:11.740 --> 00:15:13.620 when they come our way? 00:15:15.419 --> 00:15:17.200 You may be aware 00:15:17.200 --> 00:15:21.179 that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints 00:15:21.179 --> 00:15:23.200 is in the process of building 00:15:23.200 --> 00:15:24.480 a temple 00:15:24.480 --> 00:15:25.799 in Greenville. 00:15:26.340 --> 00:15:28.139 The temple is the locus. 00:15:28.139 --> 00:15:29.159 It is the center 00:15:29.159 --> 00:15:32.279 of Latter-day Saint belief and practice. 00:15:32.279 --> 00:15:34.439 This will be the second temple built 00:15:34.439 --> 00:15:35.639 in South Carolina. 00:15:35.720 --> 00:15:37.120 The other one is in Columbia. 00:15:38.519 --> 00:15:39.819 It's going to be built 00:15:39.819 --> 00:15:43.120 right in one of the strategic areas of Greenville, 00:15:43.480 --> 00:15:45.839 right around Interstate 385 00:15:45.839 --> 00:15:47.079 and Roper Mountain Road. 00:15:47.600 --> 00:15:49.779 I've seen the artist's rendering of the temple. 00:15:49.939 --> 00:15:52.039 It is going to tower over that landscape. 00:15:54.319 --> 00:15:54.879 Now, 00:15:55.480 --> 00:15:57.179 I understand Pickens 00:15:57.179 --> 00:15:59.120 is not Greenville, 00:16:00.120 --> 00:16:02.019 but this isn't about Greenville. 00:16:02.279 --> 00:16:04.659 This is about the upstate. 00:16:05.899 --> 00:16:08.519 Greenville is just the very visible 00:16:08.519 --> 00:16:10.399 reminder 00:16:10.399 --> 00:16:12.259 that something is happening 00:16:12.259 --> 00:16:13.579 in our region. 00:16:13.980 --> 00:16:15.500 So when you drive through Greenville 00:16:15.500 --> 00:16:17.339 in a year and a half or so 00:16:17.339 --> 00:16:18.959 and you see that temple, 00:16:20.019 --> 00:16:21.720 please don't just see a building. 00:16:23.079 --> 00:16:23.559 See 00:16:23.559 --> 00:16:24.860 people. 00:16:24.860 --> 00:16:27.320 people who live in the upstate, 00:16:27.639 --> 00:16:28.860 people who have families, 00:16:29.279 --> 00:16:30.740 people who have hopes and fears 00:16:30.740 --> 00:16:31.600 just like you do, 00:16:31.919 --> 00:16:33.240 people who want to know God, 00:16:33.560 --> 00:16:34.800 people who need the gospel. 00:16:35.080 --> 00:16:36.340 So when you see that temple, 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:37.279 I want you to think, 00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:37.659 God, 00:16:37.960 --> 00:16:39.639 you have put a mission field 00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:41.100 right in my 00:16:41.100 --> 00:16:42.100 backyard. 00:16:44.560 --> 00:16:45.659 That's the first thing 00:16:45.659 --> 00:16:47.360 we must understand. 00:16:47.500 --> 00:16:48.860 We must begin to see our context 00:16:49.379 --> 00:16:50.879 as a mission field. 00:16:50.879 --> 00:16:51.799 The second thing, 00:16:53.439 --> 00:16:54.279 we have to let 00:16:54.279 --> 00:16:55.580 what we see 00:16:55.580 --> 00:16:58.279 burden us. 00:16:59.240 --> 00:17:00.200 We have to let 00:17:00.200 --> 00:17:01.259 what we see 00:17:01.259 --> 00:17:03.000 affect us. 00:17:03.580 --> 00:17:04.339 Verse 16 00:17:04.339 --> 00:17:05.640 of Acts chapter 17, 00:17:05.819 --> 00:17:06.880 when Paul walked through Athens, 00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:07.380 it says, 00:17:07.960 --> 00:17:09.380 His spirit was 00:17:09.380 --> 00:17:11.259 provoked 00:17:11.259 --> 00:17:12.940 within him 00:17:12.940 --> 00:17:15.019 as he saw 00:17:15.019 --> 00:17:16.700 that the city was full of idols, 00:17:16.839 --> 00:17:17.920 full of false worship. 00:17:17.920 --> 00:17:19.880 What Paul saw 00:17:19.880 --> 00:17:20.680 affected him. 00:17:21.480 --> 00:17:22.800 His spirit was provoked. 00:17:22.880 --> 00:17:23.660 He was troubled. 00:17:24.720 --> 00:17:25.300 He was 00:17:25.300 --> 00:17:25.920 burdened. 00:17:27.779 --> 00:17:28.560 He did not just 00:17:28.560 --> 00:17:29.920 simply walk through Athens, 00:17:30.320 --> 00:17:31.440 see the false religion, 00:17:31.600 --> 00:17:32.440 shake his head, 00:17:32.900 --> 00:17:33.860 say how bad it was, 00:17:33.900 --> 00:17:34.500 and then go on 00:17:34.500 --> 00:17:35.279 with his life. 00:17:36.140 --> 00:17:37.220 What he saw 00:17:37.220 --> 00:17:37.920 got inside 00:17:38.779 --> 00:17:40.180 of him. 00:17:41.300 --> 00:17:42.140 That is where 00:17:42.140 --> 00:17:43.060 missionary vision 00:17:43.060 --> 00:17:43.840 begins. 00:17:44.460 --> 00:17:45.600 Not with anger. 00:17:46.600 --> 00:17:47.480 Not with a sense 00:17:47.480 --> 00:17:48.220 of superiority. 00:17:49.339 --> 00:17:50.559 Not with a desire 00:17:50.559 --> 00:17:51.559 to win an argument. 00:17:52.700 --> 00:17:54.000 But with a burden 00:17:54.000 --> 00:17:55.599 for people. 00:17:57.099 --> 00:17:57.640 You know, 00:17:57.720 --> 00:17:58.400 I can't help 00:17:58.400 --> 00:17:59.700 wonder sometimes 00:17:59.700 --> 00:18:01.240 if one of the reasons 00:18:01.240 --> 00:18:02.279 we don't engage 00:18:02.279 --> 00:18:03.460 more of the people 00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:04.440 around us 00:18:04.440 --> 00:18:05.559 with the gospel 00:18:05.559 --> 00:18:06.319 is because 00:18:06.319 --> 00:18:07.680 we've never stopped 00:18:07.680 --> 00:18:08.559 long enough 00:18:08.559 --> 00:18:09.839 to see them 00:18:09.839 --> 00:18:10.940 as God 00:18:10.940 --> 00:18:12.319 sees them. 00:18:13.940 --> 00:18:14.960 What do you see 00:18:14.960 --> 00:18:15.759 when you see that 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:17.400 Latter-day Saint missionary 00:18:17.400 --> 00:18:19.000 riding his bicycle 00:18:19.000 --> 00:18:19.819 through the neighborhood? 00:18:20.220 --> 00:18:20.980 What do you see 00:18:20.980 --> 00:18:21.480 when you see 00:18:21.480 --> 00:18:22.740 that sister missionary 00:18:22.740 --> 00:18:24.220 walking through 00:18:24.220 --> 00:18:25.420 your neighborhood? 00:18:25.759 --> 00:18:26.539 What do you see 00:18:26.539 --> 00:18:27.220 when you see 00:18:27.220 --> 00:18:27.799 that temple 00:18:27.799 --> 00:18:28.460 being built? 00:18:28.660 --> 00:18:29.539 Oh, we can see 00:18:29.539 --> 00:18:30.379 the signs, 00:18:31.339 --> 00:18:32.460 but do we see 00:18:32.460 --> 00:18:33.059 the person? 00:18:33.779 --> 00:18:34.599 Do we feel 00:18:34.599 --> 00:18:35.220 the burden? 00:18:36.220 --> 00:18:37.059 Do we wonder 00:18:37.059 --> 00:18:38.379 what he believes? 00:18:38.380 --> 00:18:41.300 what she believes? 00:18:41.840 --> 00:18:42.920 Do we wonder 00:18:42.920 --> 00:18:44.920 what they believe 00:18:44.920 --> 00:18:47.480 Jesus has done 00:18:47.480 --> 00:18:47.900 for them? 00:18:47.960 --> 00:18:48.640 Do we wonder 00:18:48.640 --> 00:18:49.860 whether they really 00:18:49.860 --> 00:18:51.160 understand the gospel 00:18:51.160 --> 00:18:51.700 of grace? 00:18:51.800 --> 00:18:52.360 Do we wonder 00:18:52.360 --> 00:18:53.400 what would happen 00:18:53.400 --> 00:18:53.840 to them 00:18:53.840 --> 00:18:55.260 if they died tonight? 00:18:56.840 --> 00:18:57.720 See, Paul's heart 00:18:57.720 --> 00:18:58.480 was troubled 00:18:58.480 --> 00:18:59.580 because he knew 00:18:59.580 --> 00:19:00.580 that behind 00:19:00.580 --> 00:19:02.760 all of those idols 00:19:02.760 --> 00:19:04.340 there were people 00:19:04.340 --> 00:19:05.640 who were desperately 00:19:05.640 --> 00:19:07.760 searching after God, 00:19:07.759 --> 00:19:09.400 but they did not 00:19:09.400 --> 00:19:11.039 know him. 00:19:12.879 --> 00:19:13.920 Do you imagine? 00:19:14.039 --> 00:19:14.460 Do you think 00:19:14.460 --> 00:19:15.259 maybe that's what 00:19:15.259 --> 00:19:16.379 God's wanting to do 00:19:16.379 --> 00:19:17.440 in our hearts today? 00:19:17.859 --> 00:19:19.460 To give us that burden? 00:19:19.579 --> 00:19:20.480 To give us that 00:19:20.480 --> 00:19:23.339 feeling of being 00:19:23.339 --> 00:19:24.680 provoked in our spirit? 00:19:24.879 --> 00:19:25.660 Perhaps God 00:19:25.660 --> 00:19:26.940 wants to take something 00:19:26.940 --> 00:19:28.420 that we have simply 00:19:28.420 --> 00:19:29.379 noticed 00:19:29.380 --> 00:19:32.220 and turn it into 00:19:32.220 --> 00:19:32.680 something 00:19:32.680 --> 00:19:35.180 we really care about. 00:19:35.660 --> 00:19:36.500 We're really 00:19:36.500 --> 00:19:37.500 burdened about. 00:19:38.760 --> 00:19:39.120 You see, 00:19:39.640 --> 00:19:40.980 there's a huge 00:19:40.980 --> 00:19:41.660 difference between 00:19:41.660 --> 00:19:42.320 just saying, 00:19:42.400 --> 00:19:42.880 you know what, 00:19:43.120 --> 00:19:43.600 there are more 00:19:43.600 --> 00:19:44.380 Latter-day Saints 00:19:44.380 --> 00:19:45.080 around here than 00:19:45.080 --> 00:19:46.080 I've ever seen before. 00:19:46.500 --> 00:19:47.260 There's a difference 00:19:47.260 --> 00:19:48.280 between saying that 00:19:48.280 --> 00:19:48.780 and saying, 00:19:49.200 --> 00:19:49.420 you know, 00:19:49.480 --> 00:19:50.240 there's a whole lot 00:19:50.240 --> 00:19:51.120 more people around 00:19:51.120 --> 00:19:51.740 here today 00:19:51.740 --> 00:19:53.960 who need Jesus 00:19:53.960 --> 00:19:55.560 than I've ever 00:19:55.560 --> 00:19:56.260 seen before. 00:19:56.259 --> 00:19:58.099 One is merely 00:19:58.099 --> 00:19:58.940 an observation. 00:20:00.160 --> 00:20:01.559 The other is a burden. 00:20:02.779 --> 00:20:04.019 The first produces 00:20:04.019 --> 00:20:04.879 mindfulness. 00:20:06.299 --> 00:20:08.019 The second produces 00:20:08.019 --> 00:20:09.500 mission. 00:20:11.440 --> 00:20:11.920 So, 00:20:12.299 --> 00:20:13.640 we have to let 00:20:13.640 --> 00:20:14.140 what we see 00:20:14.140 --> 00:20:14.779 burden us. 00:20:15.180 --> 00:20:15.779 Number one, 00:20:16.359 --> 00:20:16.900 we have to see 00:20:16.900 --> 00:20:17.480 our context 00:20:17.480 --> 00:20:18.140 as a mission field. 00:20:18.220 --> 00:20:18.660 Number two, 00:20:18.859 --> 00:20:19.539 we have to let 00:20:19.539 --> 00:20:20.039 what we see 00:20:20.039 --> 00:20:20.500 burden us. 00:20:20.579 --> 00:20:21.200 Number three, 00:20:22.079 --> 00:20:23.000 we then have to 00:20:23.000 --> 00:20:23.960 move toward 00:20:23.960 --> 00:20:25.160 people. 00:20:25.160 --> 00:20:26.620 Notice what 00:20:26.620 --> 00:20:27.620 Paul does 00:20:27.620 --> 00:20:28.640 with his burden. 00:20:29.600 --> 00:20:30.320 It doesn't just 00:20:30.320 --> 00:20:31.500 stay within him. 00:20:32.100 --> 00:20:33.460 Verse 17 says, 00:20:34.040 --> 00:20:36.360 so he reasoned 00:20:36.360 --> 00:20:37.060 in the synagogue 00:20:37.060 --> 00:20:38.759 with the Jews 00:20:38.759 --> 00:20:40.259 and the devout 00:20:40.259 --> 00:20:40.880 persons 00:20:40.880 --> 00:20:41.840 and in the 00:20:41.840 --> 00:20:42.300 marketplace 00:20:42.300 --> 00:20:43.540 every day 00:20:43.540 --> 00:20:45.019 with those 00:20:45.019 --> 00:20:45.660 who happened 00:20:45.660 --> 00:20:46.580 to be there. 00:20:47.840 --> 00:20:48.660 Paul took 00:20:48.660 --> 00:20:49.259 his burden 00:20:49.259 --> 00:20:51.940 and he moved 00:20:51.940 --> 00:20:53.640 toward people. 00:20:53.640 --> 00:20:54.720 He went 00:20:54.720 --> 00:20:55.360 where the people 00:20:55.360 --> 00:20:55.700 were. 00:20:55.820 --> 00:20:56.680 He talked 00:20:56.680 --> 00:20:57.800 with people. 00:20:58.860 --> 00:21:00.000 He listened 00:21:00.000 --> 00:21:01.280 to people. 00:21:01.980 --> 00:21:02.940 He engaged 00:21:02.940 --> 00:21:03.500 people. 00:21:03.700 --> 00:21:04.360 And I want you 00:21:04.360 --> 00:21:04.960 to notice 00:21:04.960 --> 00:21:06.180 those two little 00:21:06.180 --> 00:21:06.780 words, 00:21:07.500 --> 00:21:09.580 every day. 00:21:10.700 --> 00:21:13.259 Every day. 00:21:14.420 --> 00:21:14.840 You see, 00:21:15.020 --> 00:21:15.620 Paul did not 00:21:15.620 --> 00:21:16.880 treat evangelism 00:21:16.880 --> 00:21:18.120 as an occasional 00:21:18.120 --> 00:21:18.600 event. 00:21:18.599 --> 00:21:20.240 He treated 00:21:20.240 --> 00:21:21.159 ordinary, 00:21:21.679 --> 00:21:24.059 everyday life, 00:21:24.159 --> 00:21:24.959 wherever he 00:21:24.959 --> 00:21:25.659 was, 00:21:26.159 --> 00:21:27.179 as an opportunity 00:21:27.179 --> 00:21:28.500 to have a 00:21:28.500 --> 00:21:30.139 gospel conversation 00:21:30.139 --> 00:21:31.679 with somebody. 00:21:32.399 --> 00:21:33.459 The marketplace 00:21:33.459 --> 00:21:35.139 became a mission 00:21:35.139 --> 00:21:35.519 field. 00:21:36.279 --> 00:21:36.980 The synagogue 00:21:36.980 --> 00:21:38.980 became a mission 00:21:38.980 --> 00:21:39.359 field. 00:21:40.059 --> 00:21:41.240 The streets 00:21:41.240 --> 00:21:43.719 became mission 00:21:43.719 --> 00:21:44.939 fields. 00:21:44.940 --> 00:21:46.080 the places 00:21:46.080 --> 00:21:47.000 where people 00:21:47.000 --> 00:21:47.900 lived their 00:21:47.900 --> 00:21:49.180 ordinary lives 00:21:49.180 --> 00:21:50.420 became places 00:21:50.420 --> 00:21:51.720 where Paul 00:21:51.720 --> 00:21:53.420 talked about 00:21:53.420 --> 00:21:54.759 Jesus. 00:21:56.039 --> 00:21:56.779 Church, 00:21:58.380 --> 00:22:00.100 mission 00:22:00.100 --> 00:22:02.059 is not 00:22:02.059 --> 00:22:03.019 something we 00:22:03.019 --> 00:22:03.940 do somewhere 00:22:03.940 --> 00:22:04.580 else. 00:22:06.019 --> 00:22:07.120 Mission is 00:22:07.120 --> 00:22:08.240 something we 00:22:08.240 --> 00:22:08.940 do right 00:22:09.680 --> 00:22:10.299 here. 00:22:10.380 --> 00:22:10.580 You don't 00:22:10.580 --> 00:22:10.940 have to get 00:22:10.940 --> 00:22:11.500 on an airplane. 00:22:12.759 --> 00:22:13.539 You don't 00:22:13.539 --> 00:22:14.140 have to learn 00:22:14.140 --> 00:22:15.140 another language. 00:22:16.280 --> 00:22:17.060 You do 00:22:17.060 --> 00:22:17.580 not have 00:22:17.580 --> 00:22:18.060 to go 00:22:18.060 --> 00:22:19.520 to another 00:22:19.520 --> 00:22:20.820 country. 00:22:21.740 --> 00:22:22.460 You may 00:22:22.460 --> 00:22:23.000 simply need 00:22:23.000 --> 00:22:23.320 to talk 00:22:23.320 --> 00:22:23.600 to your 00:22:23.600 --> 00:22:23.900 neighbor, 00:22:24.840 --> 00:22:25.620 your 00:22:25.620 --> 00:22:26.300 co-worker. 00:22:28.200 --> 00:22:28.500 Maybe 00:22:28.500 --> 00:22:29.360 there's a 00:22:29.360 --> 00:22:29.780 Latter-day 00:22:29.780 --> 00:22:30.460 saint family 00:22:30.460 --> 00:22:31.140 living near 00:22:31.140 --> 00:22:31.480 you. 00:22:32.500 --> 00:22:32.960 Maybe you 00:22:32.960 --> 00:22:33.460 work with 00:22:33.460 --> 00:22:34.120 someone who's 00:22:34.120 --> 00:22:34.640 a Latter-day 00:22:34.640 --> 00:22:34.960 saint. 00:22:35.860 --> 00:22:36.620 Maybe your 00:22:36.620 --> 00:22:37.480 child has 00:22:37.480 --> 00:22:38.380 a classmate 00:22:38.380 --> 00:22:39.960 whose family 00:22:39.960 --> 00:22:41.280 is Latter-day 00:22:41.280 --> 00:22:41.580 saint. 00:22:41.740 --> 00:22:42.220 Maybe you 00:22:42.220 --> 00:22:43.420 meet a 00:22:43.420 --> 00:22:44.100 Latter-day 00:22:44.100 --> 00:22:44.560 saint 00:22:44.560 --> 00:22:45.720 missionary. 00:22:49.060 --> 00:22:49.720 Maybe 00:22:49.720 --> 00:22:51.900 the first 00:22:51.900 --> 00:22:53.320 step you 00:22:53.320 --> 00:22:53.720 need to 00:22:53.720 --> 00:22:55.039 take is 00:22:55.039 --> 00:22:55.440 not to 00:22:55.440 --> 00:22:55.800 give them 00:22:55.800 --> 00:22:56.600 an evangelistic 00:22:56.600 --> 00:22:57.019 tract. 00:22:58.120 --> 00:22:58.680 Maybe it's 00:22:58.680 --> 00:22:59.460 not to ask 00:22:59.460 --> 00:23:00.440 them if 00:23:00.440 --> 00:23:01.180 they're saved. 00:23:01.900 --> 00:23:02.720 Maybe it 00:23:02.720 --> 00:23:03.400 is simply 00:23:03.400 --> 00:23:04.920 to become 00:23:04.920 --> 00:23:05.700 their 00:23:05.700 --> 00:23:06.600 friend. 00:23:07.600 --> 00:23:08.300 Maybe the 00:23:08.300 --> 00:23:09.060 first step 00:23:09.060 --> 00:23:10.380 is to ask 00:23:10.380 --> 00:23:11.259 them questions 00:23:11.259 --> 00:23:12.519 questions and 00:23:12.519 --> 00:23:13.359 then just 00:23:13.359 --> 00:23:14.960 listen to 00:23:14.960 --> 00:23:15.359 them. 00:23:16.660 --> 00:23:17.339 Hey, would 00:23:17.339 --> 00:23:17.900 you tell me 00:23:17.900 --> 00:23:18.420 about your 00:23:18.420 --> 00:23:18.879 faith? 00:23:19.940 --> 00:23:20.319 Would you 00:23:20.319 --> 00:23:20.900 tell me what 00:23:20.900 --> 00:23:21.799 Jesus means 00:23:21.799 --> 00:23:22.359 to you? 00:23:23.480 --> 00:23:24.220 I wonder, 00:23:24.839 --> 00:23:25.379 what do you 00:23:25.379 --> 00:23:26.140 believe happens 00:23:26.140 --> 00:23:26.879 when somebody 00:23:26.879 --> 00:23:27.519 dies? 00:23:28.259 --> 00:23:28.759 How do you 00:23:28.759 --> 00:23:29.319 know that you're 00:23:29.319 --> 00:23:29.779 right with 00:23:29.779 --> 00:23:30.140 God? 00:23:30.900 --> 00:23:31.619 What do you 00:23:31.619 --> 00:23:32.299 believe Jesus 00:23:32.299 --> 00:23:33.359 actually accomplished 00:23:33.359 --> 00:23:34.180 on the cross? 00:23:34.180 --> 00:23:36.200 those are not 00:23:36.200 --> 00:23:37.440 hostile questions, 00:23:37.620 --> 00:23:37.900 church. 00:23:38.460 --> 00:23:39.120 Those are 00:23:39.120 --> 00:23:39.759 loving 00:23:39.759 --> 00:23:40.820 questions. 00:23:40.920 --> 00:23:41.140 I'm going to 00:23:41.140 --> 00:23:41.720 let you in on a 00:23:41.720 --> 00:23:42.200 secret this 00:23:42.200 --> 00:23:42.779 morning, okay? 00:23:43.500 --> 00:23:43.840 It's just 00:23:43.840 --> 00:23:44.279 between you and 00:23:44.279 --> 00:23:44.680 me so don't 00:23:44.680 --> 00:23:45.259 tell anybody. 00:23:45.960 --> 00:23:46.200 All right? 00:23:46.259 --> 00:23:46.799 Our secret 00:23:46.799 --> 00:23:47.320 this morning. 00:23:47.380 --> 00:23:47.700 You ready? 00:23:49.640 --> 00:23:50.600 Sometimes the 00:23:50.600 --> 00:23:52.960 best evangelistic 00:23:52.960 --> 00:23:54.820 conversation you 00:23:54.820 --> 00:23:56.039 can have with a 00:23:56.039 --> 00:23:57.340 Latter-day saint is 00:23:57.340 --> 00:23:58.200 for that Latter-day 00:23:58.200 --> 00:23:59.240 saint to realize, 00:23:59.799 --> 00:24:00.320 oh my goodness, 00:24:00.420 --> 00:24:00.860 you know what? 00:24:00.859 --> 00:24:01.619 This person I'm 00:24:01.619 --> 00:24:03.539 talking to actually 00:24:03.539 --> 00:24:05.459 wants to understand 00:24:05.459 --> 00:24:07.559 what I believe. 00:24:09.319 --> 00:24:10.479 Talk to them. 00:24:10.939 --> 00:24:12.159 Move toward them. 00:24:12.500 --> 00:24:13.659 Be friends with 00:24:13.659 --> 00:24:14.019 them. 00:24:14.519 --> 00:24:15.579 Love them. 00:24:16.899 --> 00:24:17.859 That's the third 00:24:17.859 --> 00:24:18.179 thing. 00:24:19.279 --> 00:24:19.939 Number one, I 00:24:19.939 --> 00:24:20.399 must see my 00:24:20.399 --> 00:24:21.119 context as a 00:24:21.119 --> 00:24:21.539 mission field. 00:24:21.619 --> 00:24:22.419 Number two, I 00:24:22.419 --> 00:24:23.019 must let what I 00:24:23.019 --> 00:24:23.759 see burden me. 00:24:24.000 --> 00:24:24.699 Number three, I 00:24:24.699 --> 00:24:25.379 must move toward 00:24:25.379 --> 00:24:25.899 people. 00:24:26.519 --> 00:24:28.559 Number four, I 00:24:28.559 --> 00:24:30.279 must begin to 00:24:30.279 --> 00:24:32.240 understand the 00:24:32.240 --> 00:24:33.779 people I'm 00:24:33.779 --> 00:24:34.940 trying to reach. 00:24:35.379 --> 00:24:35.879 I've got to 00:24:35.879 --> 00:24:36.579 understand the 00:24:36.579 --> 00:24:37.039 people I'm 00:24:37.039 --> 00:24:37.879 trying to reach. 00:24:39.000 --> 00:24:40.079 See, Paul didn't 00:24:40.079 --> 00:24:40.839 just walk into 00:24:40.839 --> 00:24:42.480 Athens and start 00:24:42.480 --> 00:24:43.079 shouting. 00:24:44.240 --> 00:24:45.039 He didn't just 00:24:45.039 --> 00:24:45.920 walk into Athens 00:24:45.920 --> 00:24:46.720 and start telling 00:24:46.720 --> 00:24:47.839 people how wrong 00:24:47.839 --> 00:24:48.420 they were. 00:24:49.160 --> 00:24:49.660 No. 00:24:50.119 --> 00:24:51.180 He paid attention. 00:24:52.180 --> 00:24:52.839 He observed 00:24:52.839 --> 00:24:53.639 their culture. 00:24:54.139 --> 00:24:55.519 The text says he 00:24:55.519 --> 00:24:56.319 had listened to 00:24:56.319 --> 00:24:57.220 their philosophers. 00:24:58.019 --> 00:24:59.039 He had understood 00:24:59.039 --> 00:24:59.839 some of their 00:24:59.839 --> 00:25:00.539 poets. 00:25:01.959 --> 00:25:03.720 He understood the 00:25:03.720 --> 00:25:04.839 people he was 00:25:04.839 --> 00:25:06.179 trying to reach 00:25:06.179 --> 00:25:07.279 and once he 00:25:07.279 --> 00:25:08.259 understood them, 00:25:08.480 --> 00:25:09.480 then he was able 00:25:09.480 --> 00:25:10.799 to find a point of 00:25:10.799 --> 00:25:12.000 connection for the 00:25:12.000 --> 00:25:12.339 gospel. 00:25:12.480 --> 00:25:13.480 Look at verse 22. 00:25:14.480 --> 00:25:15.399 Men of Athens, 00:25:16.279 --> 00:25:18.199 I perceive in 00:25:18.199 --> 00:25:20.199 every way that you 00:25:20.199 --> 00:25:22.500 are very religious. 00:25:23.500 --> 00:25:24.459 I need to tell you 00:25:24.459 --> 00:25:26.000 something about 00:25:26.000 --> 00:25:26.899 Latter-day Saints. 00:25:26.900 --> 00:25:29.480 they are some of 00:25:29.480 --> 00:25:31.180 the most sincerely 00:25:31.180 --> 00:25:33.860 religious people 00:25:33.860 --> 00:25:35.280 you will ever meet. 00:25:35.280 --> 00:25:36.380 And they are some 00:25:36.380 --> 00:25:38.340 of the nicest people 00:25:38.340 --> 00:25:40.960 you will ever meet. 00:25:41.460 --> 00:25:43.080 They want to please 00:25:43.080 --> 00:25:43.460 God. 00:25:43.980 --> 00:25:45.519 They want to follow 00:25:45.519 --> 00:25:46.000 Jesus. 00:25:46.240 --> 00:25:47.580 I can promise you 00:25:47.580 --> 00:25:48.640 they are not 00:25:48.640 --> 00:25:50.280 knowingly following 00:25:50.920 --> 00:25:53.060 a false religion. 00:25:53.059 --> 00:25:53.179 religion. 00:25:54.179 --> 00:25:55.480 They regard the 00:25:55.480 --> 00:25:57.659 Bible along with 00:25:57.659 --> 00:25:58.460 the Book of Mormon 00:25:58.460 --> 00:25:59.159 and a couple of 00:25:59.159 --> 00:26:01.099 other texts as the 00:26:01.099 --> 00:26:01.919 Word of God. 00:26:02.519 --> 00:26:03.679 They use a lot of 00:26:03.679 --> 00:26:04.599 the same vocabulary 00:26:04.599 --> 00:26:05.460 we use. 00:26:05.819 --> 00:26:06.759 They talk openly 00:26:06.759 --> 00:26:08.559 and sincerely about 00:26:08.559 --> 00:26:09.980 God, Jesus, 00:26:10.460 --> 00:26:11.579 salvation, the 00:26:11.579 --> 00:26:13.099 atonement, repentance, 00:26:13.639 --> 00:26:15.099 grace, faith, the 00:26:15.099 --> 00:26:16.279 gospel, and eternal 00:26:16.279 --> 00:26:16.799 life. 00:26:16.799 --> 00:26:18.639 Now those words 00:26:18.639 --> 00:26:19.619 mean something 00:26:19.619 --> 00:26:21.019 radically different 00:26:21.019 --> 00:26:23.019 than what we 00:26:23.019 --> 00:26:23.879 understand them to 00:26:23.879 --> 00:26:24.819 be in that LDS 00:26:24.819 --> 00:26:25.599 context. 00:26:25.859 --> 00:26:26.899 But they use that 00:26:26.899 --> 00:26:27.519 vocabulary. 00:26:28.039 --> 00:26:28.899 They want to 00:26:28.899 --> 00:26:29.539 please God. 00:26:29.639 --> 00:26:30.899 They want to know 00:26:30.899 --> 00:26:31.180 God. 00:26:31.259 --> 00:26:31.599 They are just 00:26:31.599 --> 00:26:32.740 following a false 00:26:32.740 --> 00:26:33.480 religion. 00:26:34.019 --> 00:26:34.779 That is why we 00:26:34.779 --> 00:26:35.480 need to ask 00:26:35.480 --> 00:26:36.220 Latter-day Saints 00:26:36.220 --> 00:26:37.039 questions. 00:26:37.700 --> 00:26:38.180 And then we need 00:26:38.180 --> 00:26:39.059 to listen to them. 00:26:40.779 --> 00:26:42.079 Not argue with 00:26:42.079 --> 00:26:42.240 them. 00:26:43.399 --> 00:26:44.480 Not debate 00:26:44.480 --> 00:26:45.019 with them. 00:26:45.019 --> 00:26:45.099 them. 00:26:45.799 --> 00:26:47.480 Just start by 00:26:47.480 --> 00:26:48.799 listening to them 00:26:48.799 --> 00:26:49.619 so that you can 00:26:49.619 --> 00:26:50.279 understand. 00:26:51.099 --> 00:26:51.599 I'm going to make 00:26:51.599 --> 00:26:52.259 you a promise this 00:26:52.259 --> 00:26:52.519 morning. 00:26:53.839 --> 00:26:54.579 This is true whether 00:26:54.579 --> 00:26:55.099 you're dealing with 00:26:55.099 --> 00:26:55.920 a Latter-day Saint or 00:26:55.920 --> 00:26:56.680 anybody else. 00:26:57.799 --> 00:26:58.839 You will never 00:26:58.839 --> 00:27:00.900 effectively be able 00:27:00.900 --> 00:27:01.960 to share the gospel 00:27:01.960 --> 00:27:04.180 with people that you 00:27:04.180 --> 00:27:05.400 have already decided 00:27:05.400 --> 00:27:06.400 you know and 00:27:06.400 --> 00:27:08.180 understand without 00:27:08.180 --> 00:27:09.259 ever having listened 00:27:09.259 --> 00:27:09.720 to them. 00:27:11.259 --> 00:27:12.240 That's a promise. 00:27:13.200 --> 00:27:13.660 I'm going to say 00:27:13.660 --> 00:27:13.960 it again. 00:27:14.079 --> 00:27:14.700 You will never 00:27:14.700 --> 00:27:15.779 effectively share 00:27:15.779 --> 00:27:16.980 the gospel with 00:27:16.980 --> 00:27:18.340 people that you 00:27:18.340 --> 00:27:19.440 have already decided 00:27:19.440 --> 00:27:20.580 you understand and 00:27:20.580 --> 00:27:21.580 know without ever 00:27:21.580 --> 00:27:23.380 having listened to 00:27:23.380 --> 00:27:23.720 them. 00:27:24.559 --> 00:27:25.559 Paul was effective 00:27:25.559 --> 00:27:27.519 because he understood 00:27:27.519 --> 00:27:28.620 the people he was 00:27:28.620 --> 00:27:29.420 trying to reach. 00:27:29.700 --> 00:27:30.480 He took what he 00:27:30.480 --> 00:27:31.299 learned as he 00:27:31.299 --> 00:27:32.240 listened to them 00:27:32.240 --> 00:27:33.519 and then he was 00:27:33.519 --> 00:27:34.819 able to use it as 00:27:34.819 --> 00:27:36.840 a bridge to share 00:27:36.840 --> 00:27:37.440 the gospel. 00:27:37.779 --> 00:27:38.420 That's why I could 00:27:38.420 --> 00:27:39.440 say in verse 23 00:27:39.440 --> 00:27:40.340 and this is my 00:27:40.340 --> 00:27:41.080 favorite verse in 00:27:41.080 --> 00:27:41.720 this text. 00:27:42.160 --> 00:27:43.559 Verse 23 Paul says 00:27:43.559 --> 00:27:44.919 as I observed the 00:27:44.919 --> 00:27:45.639 objects of your 00:27:45.639 --> 00:27:47.200 worship I found an 00:27:47.200 --> 00:27:47.799 altar with the 00:27:47.799 --> 00:27:50.119 inscription to the 00:27:50.119 --> 00:27:50.940 unknown God. 00:27:51.940 --> 00:27:53.000 But what you 00:27:53.000 --> 00:27:54.259 worship as unknown 00:27:54.259 --> 00:27:57.419 I can now proclaim 00:27:57.419 --> 00:27:59.240 to you. 00:27:59.779 --> 00:28:00.440 Do you understand 00:28:00.440 --> 00:28:00.639 church? 00:28:00.720 --> 00:28:01.799 This is what we get 00:28:01.799 --> 00:28:02.500 to do. 00:28:03.019 --> 00:28:04.559 As we understand the 00:28:04.559 --> 00:28:05.599 people we're trying to 00:28:05.599 --> 00:28:07.000 reach we can begin to 00:28:07.000 --> 00:28:07.819 say to them we 00:28:07.819 --> 00:28:08.799 understand what you're 00:28:08.799 --> 00:28:09.519 looking for. 00:28:09.639 --> 00:28:10.679 We understand what 00:28:10.680 --> 00:28:11.600 you're searching for 00:28:11.600 --> 00:28:13.279 we can now tell you 00:28:13.279 --> 00:28:14.920 exactly what that is. 00:28:15.539 --> 00:28:17.600 It is the Lord Jesus 00:28:17.600 --> 00:28:19.500 Christ. 00:28:21.220 --> 00:28:22.259 Paul took what he'd 00:28:22.259 --> 00:28:24.200 learned about the 00:28:24.200 --> 00:28:25.539 Athenians worldview and 00:28:25.539 --> 00:28:26.500 he used it to build a 00:28:26.500 --> 00:28:27.880 bridge to the gospel and 00:28:27.880 --> 00:28:28.860 that is essential if we're 00:28:28.860 --> 00:28:30.019 going to reach Latter-day 00:28:30.019 --> 00:28:30.440 Saints. 00:28:30.700 --> 00:28:32.100 We should never approach 00:28:32.100 --> 00:28:34.000 them with caricatures. 00:28:35.100 --> 00:28:36.240 We should know what they 00:28:36.240 --> 00:28:37.019 actually believe. 00:28:37.100 --> 00:28:37.700 We should ask them 00:28:37.700 --> 00:28:38.519 questions and we should 00:28:38.519 --> 00:28:39.259 listen carefully. 00:28:39.259 --> 00:28:40.640 Now we don't compromise 00:28:40.640 --> 00:28:41.720 the truth of what we 00:28:41.720 --> 00:28:43.660 believe but we need to 00:28:43.660 --> 00:28:44.680 understand the people 00:28:44.680 --> 00:28:45.799 we're trying to reach 00:28:45.799 --> 00:28:47.019 with the gospel. 00:28:47.859 --> 00:28:48.859 I want to tell you you 00:28:48.859 --> 00:28:50.099 do not have to be afraid 00:28:50.099 --> 00:28:53.220 of a conversation with a 00:28:53.220 --> 00:28:53.920 Latter-day Saint. 00:28:54.379 --> 00:28:55.359 You don't need to be 00:28:55.359 --> 00:28:56.279 afraid of questions. 00:28:57.019 --> 00:28:57.680 You don't need to be 00:28:57.680 --> 00:28:58.599 afraid of their religious 00:28:58.599 --> 00:28:59.119 background. 00:29:00.000 --> 00:29:01.279 All you've got to do is 00:29:01.279 --> 00:29:02.700 listen to them carefully, 00:29:03.079 --> 00:29:05.079 love them genuinely and 00:29:05.079 --> 00:29:06.259 then open this book and 00:29:07.000 --> 00:29:09.240 tell them about the 00:29:09.259 --> 00:29:11.099 Jesus and the difference 00:29:11.099 --> 00:29:13.079 he's made in your life. 00:29:14.599 --> 00:29:17.680 Okay, number one, we have 00:29:17.680 --> 00:29:19.039 to see our context as a 00:29:19.039 --> 00:29:19.539 mission field. 00:29:20.480 --> 00:29:23.019 Number two, we have to let 00:29:23.019 --> 00:29:24.140 what we see burden us. 00:29:24.420 --> 00:29:25.279 Number three, we have to 00:29:25.279 --> 00:29:26.059 move toward people. 00:29:26.400 --> 00:29:27.180 Number four, we have to 00:29:27.180 --> 00:29:28.140 understand the people we're 00:29:28.140 --> 00:29:29.379 moving toward and wanting 00:29:29.379 --> 00:29:29.879 to reach. 00:29:30.119 --> 00:29:32.839 And number five, we must 00:29:32.839 --> 00:29:34.680 proclaim Christ. 00:29:35.680 --> 00:29:37.259 This is where Paul ultimately 00:29:37.259 --> 00:29:38.400 takes the conversation. 00:29:38.619 --> 00:29:39.740 He doesn't simply tell the 00:29:39.740 --> 00:29:40.900 Athenians to become better 00:29:40.900 --> 00:29:41.379 people. 00:29:41.599 --> 00:29:43.099 He doesn't tell them to 00:29:43.099 --> 00:29:44.480 become more religious or to 00:29:44.480 --> 00:29:45.920 add Jesus to everything else 00:29:45.920 --> 00:29:46.579 they were doing. 00:29:47.140 --> 00:29:48.920 He opens the scriptures and 00:29:48.920 --> 00:29:50.140 he tells them about God, 00:29:50.259 --> 00:29:51.759 creation, humanity, repentance, 00:29:51.879 --> 00:29:52.460 the resurrection. 00:29:52.879 --> 00:29:55.259 His goal was not to tear down 00:29:55.259 --> 00:29:56.740 their false religion. 00:29:57.599 --> 00:29:59.460 His goal was to introduce them 00:29:59.460 --> 00:29:59.960 to Jesus. 00:30:00.180 --> 00:30:01.480 And that must be our goal too 00:30:01.480 --> 00:30:02.559 because if we're going to reach 00:30:02.559 --> 00:30:05.000 our LDS neighbors, coworkers, 00:30:05.639 --> 00:30:07.559 our goal is not to defeat them 00:30:07.559 --> 00:30:08.220 in an argument. 00:30:08.919 --> 00:30:10.460 It is not to try to embarrass 00:30:10.460 --> 00:30:12.419 them about their beliefs. 00:30:13.099 --> 00:30:14.940 Our goal is not to collect some 00:30:14.940 --> 00:30:16.659 kind of theological victory. 00:30:17.379 --> 00:30:19.200 Our goal is to help them see 00:30:19.200 --> 00:30:22.659 Jesus as he is revealed in the 00:30:22.659 --> 00:30:23.039 scriptures. 00:30:23.639 --> 00:30:25.139 That means we need to talk about 00:30:25.139 --> 00:30:27.099 the Jesus of the Bible. 00:30:27.980 --> 00:30:29.779 A Jesus who is not merely a 00:30:29.779 --> 00:30:32.420 spirit child who became exalted, 00:30:33.019 --> 00:30:34.859 but the Jesus who is the 00:30:34.859 --> 00:30:36.899 eternal Son of God. 00:30:37.039 --> 00:30:38.819 The Jesus who is truly God and 00:30:38.819 --> 00:30:39.460 truly man. 00:30:39.759 --> 00:30:41.079 The Jesus who came into this 00:30:41.079 --> 00:30:42.920 world to save sinners 00:30:42.920 --> 00:30:43.500 completely. 00:30:43.799 --> 00:30:45.180 The Jesus who offered himself 00:30:45.180 --> 00:30:46.099 once for all. 00:30:46.359 --> 00:30:47.539 The Jesus who doesn't need 00:30:47.539 --> 00:30:50.139 another priest to mediate his 00:30:50.139 --> 00:30:50.700 sacrifice. 00:30:51.240 --> 00:30:52.680 The Jesus who doesn't need 00:30:52.680 --> 00:30:55.059 another temple sacrifice added 00:30:55.059 --> 00:30:56.299 to his finished work. 00:30:56.680 --> 00:30:58.379 The Jesus who is our great 00:30:58.379 --> 00:30:59.759 high priest who is the 00:30:59.759 --> 00:31:02.160 one mediator between God and 00:31:02.160 --> 00:31:02.519 man. 00:31:02.740 --> 00:31:03.980 The Jesus who died. 00:31:04.259 --> 00:31:05.700 The Jesus who rose again. 00:31:06.019 --> 00:31:07.960 The Jesus who was resurrected. 00:31:08.180 --> 00:31:09.759 Who reigns and who will come 00:31:09.759 --> 00:31:10.180 again. 00:31:10.539 --> 00:31:12.599 That is what we must proclaim. 00:31:12.900 --> 00:31:14.839 That salvation is found in 00:31:14.839 --> 00:31:15.759 Christ alone. 00:31:16.579 --> 00:31:18.559 Through grace alone. 00:31:19.039 --> 00:31:20.279 By faith alone. 00:31:20.619 --> 00:31:22.559 That is the Jesus we proclaim. 00:31:22.819 --> 00:31:24.640 Paul never once said to the 00:31:24.640 --> 00:31:25.859 Athenians, listen to me, 00:31:26.119 --> 00:31:27.240 you are wrong. 00:31:27.240 --> 00:31:28.960 He never said that. 00:31:29.680 --> 00:31:31.759 He said, let me tell you who 00:31:31.759 --> 00:31:34.000 God really is. 00:31:34.720 --> 00:31:35.920 I understand what you're 00:31:35.920 --> 00:31:36.579 searching for. 00:31:36.839 --> 00:31:37.940 I've got the answer. 00:31:38.299 --> 00:31:40.059 What you worship is unknown. 00:31:40.519 --> 00:31:43.160 I can now proclaim to you. 00:31:43.160 --> 00:31:49.620 You see church, pick in South Carolina 00:31:49.620 --> 00:31:52.900 is not merely where you live. 00:31:53.759 --> 00:31:55.920 It is the mission field God has 00:31:55.920 --> 00:31:57.840 placed before you. 00:31:58.600 --> 00:32:00.960 So when you see that LDS missionary 00:32:00.960 --> 00:32:03.160 walking down the street, don't 00:32:03.160 --> 00:32:04.519 think, oh my goodness, I hope she 00:32:04.519 --> 00:32:05.620 doesn't come to my house. 00:32:06.160 --> 00:32:08.300 I hope he doesn't knock on my door. 00:32:08.299 --> 00:32:12.480 Instead, start thinking, God, maybe 00:32:12.480 --> 00:32:14.599 you're going to answer my prayer 00:32:14.599 --> 00:32:17.299 and give me an opportunity to be a 00:32:17.299 --> 00:32:20.399 missionary in my own backyard. 00:32:20.980 --> 00:32:22.359 See, the question is not whether God 00:32:22.359 --> 00:32:23.539 has given you a mission field. 00:32:23.619 --> 00:32:24.259 He has. 00:32:25.319 --> 00:32:27.680 The question is whether you're going 00:32:27.680 --> 00:32:28.359 to see it. 00:32:30.279 --> 00:32:31.500 Open your eyes. 00:32:31.500 --> 00:32:34.740 See the people. 00:32:36.140 --> 00:32:37.680 Let God give you his heart, his 00:32:37.680 --> 00:32:39.259 burden for them. 00:32:39.579 --> 00:32:40.720 Move toward them. 00:32:41.119 --> 00:32:41.720 Love them. 00:32:42.200 --> 00:32:43.059 Listen to them. 00:32:45.079 --> 00:32:49.480 Simply tell them about Jesus. 00:32:50.319 --> 00:32:52.079 Because the mission field church is 00:32:52.079 --> 00:32:53.200 not somewhere else. 00:32:53.759 --> 00:32:56.740 It is right here in your own 00:32:56.740 --> 00:32:57.079 backyard. 00:32:58.140 --> 00:33:00.240 This past Wednesday, I was seated at 00:33:00.240 --> 00:33:02.099 my desk in my office on North 00:33:02.099 --> 00:33:03.079 Greenville University campus. 00:33:04.359 --> 00:33:05.599 And a couple of students came to 00:33:05.599 --> 00:33:05.900 my door. 00:33:06.000 --> 00:33:06.579 They were out of breath. 00:33:06.660 --> 00:33:08.120 They said, Dr. McQuite, there are 00:33:08.120 --> 00:33:09.720 two Latter-day Saint missionaries 00:33:09.720 --> 00:33:11.740 out in front of this building. 00:33:12.779 --> 00:33:14.059 Now, do you know what I was doing 00:33:14.059 --> 00:33:15.259 when they came and told me that I 00:33:15.259 --> 00:33:16.359 was working on this message? 00:33:17.019 --> 00:33:18.259 I was working on this message. 00:33:18.339 --> 00:33:19.180 I thought, well, I can't sit here 00:33:19.180 --> 00:33:20.740 and keep working on this message. 00:33:21.180 --> 00:33:22.940 I've got to do what this message 00:33:22.940 --> 00:33:23.599 says, right? 00:33:23.720 --> 00:33:26.200 So I went out, engaged with them, 00:33:26.259 --> 00:33:27.779 had a wonderful conversation with 00:33:27.779 --> 00:33:28.059 them. 00:33:28.299 --> 00:33:30.000 So proud of some of my students who 00:33:30.000 --> 00:33:31.160 came alongside of them. 00:33:31.259 --> 00:33:32.599 In fact, my wife Ruth this past 00:33:32.599 --> 00:33:34.680 Friday saw three of my students 00:33:34.680 --> 00:33:36.660 and these two missionaries that 00:33:36.660 --> 00:33:38.140 they had met on our campus and 00:33:38.140 --> 00:33:39.279 they had taken them out to lunch. 00:33:39.400 --> 00:33:40.859 Building relationships with them. 00:33:41.299 --> 00:33:42.140 Loving on them. 00:33:42.539 --> 00:33:45.380 I invited Friday, I invited, I 00:33:45.380 --> 00:33:47.099 mean Wednesday, I invited these two 00:33:47.099 --> 00:33:48.579 sister missionaries, they're 00:33:48.579 --> 00:33:51.319 female, somewhere between 19 and 20 00:33:51.319 --> 00:33:53.259 years of age, see if they would come 00:33:53.259 --> 00:33:54.059 to my house for dinner. 00:33:54.380 --> 00:33:55.819 They're coming tonight. 00:33:55.819 --> 00:34:00.460 So you can be praying about that. 00:34:01.779 --> 00:34:04.720 I won't tell you their names just 00:34:04.720 --> 00:34:06.720 because I'll keep that, I don't want to 00:34:06.720 --> 00:34:07.759 get that out in the open. 00:34:08.019 --> 00:34:09.279 But pray for them. 00:34:10.079 --> 00:34:11.159 They're going to be at my house 00:34:11.159 --> 00:34:13.579 tonight along with several other of 00:34:13.579 --> 00:34:14.699 my students. 00:34:15.759 --> 00:34:17.679 For a time, we're just going to, we're 00:34:17.679 --> 00:34:19.079 not going to try to debate with them, 00:34:19.159 --> 00:34:20.360 we're not going to try to argue with 00:34:20.360 --> 00:34:21.460 them, we're not going to try to win 00:34:21.460 --> 00:34:23.260 some theological argument with them. 00:34:23.579 --> 00:34:24.800 We're going to love them. 00:34:26.240 --> 00:34:27.599 We're going to listen to them. 00:34:28.960 --> 00:34:30.380 And we're going to let them see 00:34:30.380 --> 00:34:32.639 Jesus in us. 00:34:33.480 --> 00:34:36.480 You can do the same thing. 00:34:37.400 --> 00:34:38.720 Because the mission field is not 00:34:38.720 --> 00:34:39.480 somewhere else. 00:34:39.960 --> 00:34:42.720 It is right here in your own 00:34:42.720 --> 00:34:44.039 backyard. 00:34:46.760 --> 00:34:48.559 Heavenly Father, thank you for your 00:34:48.559 --> 00:34:48.880 word. 00:34:48.880 --> 00:34:51.760 Thank you for how it encourages us 00:34:51.760 --> 00:34:52.260 at times. 00:34:52.800 --> 00:34:54.820 Thank you for how it challenges us 00:34:54.820 --> 00:34:55.280 at times. 00:34:55.400 --> 00:34:58.340 Thank you for how it convicts us 00:34:58.340 --> 00:34:59.800 at times. 00:35:01.340 --> 00:35:03.039 And Lord, what we've said this morning 00:35:03.039 --> 00:35:06.200 about Latter-day Saints would apply 00:35:06.200 --> 00:35:10.660 to anybody in our community who does 00:35:10.660 --> 00:35:11.340 not know you. 00:35:12.740 --> 00:35:15.140 Help us to see, Father, that the 00:35:15.140 --> 00:35:16.340 mission field is right here in our 00:35:16.340 --> 00:35:16.780 own backyard. 00:35:16.780 --> 00:35:18.380 And as we come to this time of 00:35:18.380 --> 00:35:22.820 invitation and commitment, Lord, if 00:35:22.820 --> 00:35:23.960 there are decisions that need to be 00:35:23.960 --> 00:35:26.760 made of any sort, I pray that your 00:35:26.760 --> 00:35:29.080 people would bow their hearts and 00:35:29.080 --> 00:35:30.380 their knees before you and say, Lord, 00:35:30.440 --> 00:35:31.240 I'll be that missionary. 00:35:32.160 --> 00:35:33.580 I'll make a difference here in my 00:35:33.580 --> 00:35:33.980 community. 00:35:34.160 --> 00:35:35.660 I'll see it as a mission field. 00:35:35.740 --> 00:35:37.040 I'll be burdened by what I see. 00:35:37.260 --> 00:35:38.560 I'll move toward people. 00:35:38.700 --> 00:35:40.120 I'll try to understand them and I 00:35:40.120 --> 00:35:41.460 will share Jesus with them. 00:35:42.300 --> 00:35:43.620 God, may this be the prayer of each 00:35:43.619 --> 00:35:47.339 of our hearts, we pray in Jesus' name. 00:35:48.299 --> 00:35:48.639 Amen.