I want to begin a three-part series today that I'm going to call,
What Kind of Church Do We Want to Be?
And that's what it focuses on.
What kind of church do we want to be going forward?
When you lose a pastor, especially a good pastor,
and one that's been there a long time, one of the caliber of Fred Stone,
I know we'd be just lying to ourselves to tell ourselves it doesn't make us real nervous, right?
We get an anxious feeling because what's the next guy coming in going to be like?
And where is he going to take us?
And how is the church going to change?
And what's it going to look like?
And all those kind of things.
And a lot of times we worry about, well, who's going to take care of this
or who's going to take care of that?
And how are things going to fall in place in the absence of a pastor?
Because you realize I'm pretty much just a preacher, right?
I live over in Greer, and I'm here one day a week.
And Brian and the other staff members, Jeff and others,
are carrying the load for the pastoral ministry.
But one of the things that happens when pastors leave, it's a good thing.
It causes those who are in secondary roles to pick up their game.
I mean, it means that deacons have got to pick up their game.
It means the Sunday school teachers have got to pick up their game
because a lot of times when a guy's been there a long time,
we just kind of get used to that guy kind of carrying the ball and doing everything, right?
And so one of the things that happens is it makes people step up.
And I hope you're doing that today,
that you're not just leaving to the Sunday school teachers,
to the deacons, to the staff that you're saying,
boy, what can I do to advance the cause of the kingdom of Christ
here at First Baptist Church of Pickens?
There's another thing, too, though, that happens.
Churches begin to wonder, well, where are we going from here?
And what kind of church do we want to be?
And I want to tell you, whether you've lost a pastor or you have a pastor,
that's always a good question from time to time to ask yourself,
what do we want to be as a church?
So I've taken it upon myself.
I didn't consult with the deacons, the personnel committee, or even the staff.
I've taken it upon myself.
I've invited in two experts to give us some advice about where do we go from here.
And I know some of you are thinking, boy, that guy has overshot the runway now.
I mean, how did he go spend money?
It's not going to cost you a thing, so don't get all anxious and all worried and fretful.
The two I'm inviting in are the Apostle Paul,
who would know more how to start a church
and what a church ought to look like than the Apostle Paul.
And the other is James, the first pastor of the church of Jerusalem.
So we're going to see what these two guys have got to say over the next three weeks
about what kind of church should we be.
This is not an all-inclusive message.
It's not everything.
This whole series won't be all-inclusive
about here's everything you need to be as a church.
But I'm going to mention just three things
that I think are right toward the top
of what we ought to be as a church.
So if you have your Bibles, turn with me to 1 Thessalonians 3.
1 Thessalonians 3.
And let me just set up this passage for you
so you'll understand what we're about to read.
Paul is on his second missionary journey.
Okay?
He's taking his second missionary journey.
He's going to the city of Philippi.
You know, the book of Philippians was written to that church in Philippi.
You read about it in the book of Acts.
When he gets to Philippi, a lot of people come on board
and they trust Christ as Savior.
But it's not without great suffering on Paul's part.
He's beaten, put in jail.
Even there, he wins a Philippian jailer and his family to Christ.
But ultimately, he has to flee because of persecution.
When he leaves there, he goes to another neighboring town
by the name of Thessalonica.
And there in Thessalonica on the Sabbath,
the Bible says he goes and he preaches.
And he does that three consecutive Sabbaths,
three consecutive Saturdays.
He's there in the Sabbath.
He's there in the synagogue.
And he's preaching the Word of God.
He's giving them the gospel of the Lord Jesus.
And many people hear that and they believe and become Christians.
He develops in a short period of time
a real strong relationship with these people.
Only there are three weeks.
They come to him after the third week and they say,
Paul, for your safety, you've got to get out of Dodge.
And so he takes the next flat out
and he's on his way to another place, right?
At their insistence, he leaves.
He gets to the next spot, though,
and he still has these Thessalonians on his mind.
And he's wondering,
what's become of these young believers
who had come into the church?
They don't have a pastor.
What are they going to do?
How are they going to make it?
How are they going to survive?
And so he's wondering about their spiritual future.
And so he wants to go back.
And he even tries to go back.
But the words he uses in 1 Thessalonians are these.
Satan hinders him in going.
He tries numerous times,
but every time Satan blocked his ability to go back.
So I want you to read in chapter 3 and verse 1 with me
what he now does.
Look at chapter 3 and verse 1.
Therefore, when we could no longer stand it,
we thought it was better to be left alone in Athens.
Now you understand,
persecution is always not far away from the door of Paul.
That's what he means when he says,
I thought even though it was dangerous,
it'd be better to be left alone.
And he sends Timothy back to get a report
on what's happening with these people in Thessalonica.
Look at verse 5.
For this reason, when I could stand it no longer,
I also sent to find out about your faith,
fearing that the tempter had tempted you
and that our labor might be for nothing.
Now what's he got in mind?
What's he fearful of?
Why is he so anxious?
You would readily understand without me even telling you
why he would be anxious in the circumstances I've outlined.
These are young believers.
He's done everything he can in the three weeks
to disciple them and give them the information that they need.
But they were like us.
Do you always get things right the first time?
Do you ever have to be reminded of anything?
And so Paul has said to them some things,
even about the second coming of Jesus,
they kind of get mixed up about.
We're going to see that at a later time.
But they were confused about some things.
And so he worries that in the absence of somebody
to preach the scripture to them
and to preach the truth to them,
they're going to just fall apart.
That's a natural concern, right?
So what does he do?
He sends Timothy back to check on them.
Look, if you will, at chapter 3 and verse 6,
and we read the report of Timothy from 6 through 10.
Now, Timothy has come to us from you
and brought us good news about your faith and love.
So look up for a minute.
Not bad news.
Timothy gets back and says,
Paul, relax.
It's good.
I mean, they're growing in love.
They're growing in faith.
It's good.
And that you always have good memories of us
wanting to see us as also we want to see you.
They miss you as bad as you miss them.
Therefore, brothers,
in all our distress and persecution,
we were encouraged about you through your faith.
For now we live if you stand firm in the Lord.
How can we thank God for you
in return for all the joy we experience
because of you before our God?
As we pray earnestly night and day
to see you face to face
and to complete what is lacking in your faith.
Boy, I cannot wait to get back with you
and all the things that you need bolstering up in.
I'm going to do that.
I can't wait for that day.
I'm praying for that day.
I anticipate that day.
And then he gives them this prayer.
And let me just tell you before we read it,
this is going to be our focus for the next three sermons.
Just these three verses, okay?
We'll bring in some other verses,
but these are the primary verses we're going to look at.
And it's a prayer.
And because we're reading it this morning, guess what?
It's a written prayer.
It's one he prayed, no doubt, verbally,
but it's a written prayer.
Now, I just want to help you
where you're thinking about that for a minute.
When I was a kid coming along,
I'm 69 years old.
When I was a kid,
and I don't think this mentality prevails today,
but when I was a kid,
if you grew up in a conservative church,
the conservative church had a kind of way
of looking down at prayers that were read.
Do you all remember that?
I can remember hearing people say,
well, you know, they just read that prayer.
They didn't mean it.
It wasn't from the heart.
They read that.
How many of you ever wrote a love letter?
Anybody here?
None of you are romantic at all.
You all have written love letters, right?
You started about third grade, right?
Sent that little note,
you love me if you ask,
check the box, you know?
Did you mean what you wrote?
Of course you did, right?
So that's just foggy thinking to think
because I write something,
and I don't mean it, you know?
That's a foolish notion.
In fact, what it reflects to me is this.
You've had a chance to think about it.
And I don't know about you,
when I start writing things,
sometimes I'll write it,
and I think, yeah, that's not it,
and I'll scratch it out,
or I'll tear it up,
and I'll start over, right?
We hit the delete key,
and we do it again.
And so Paul has the opportunity to think,
what am I going to say to these Thessalonians?
What is the prayer I really want to pray
for these Thessalonians?
This is a written prayer,
and so I've got to tell you,
to me it must be really important.
It's what he thought about
and concluded.
It's what I want to say.
So look at verse 11.
Now may our God and Father Himself
and our Lord Jesus
direct our way to you.
Let me come to you
as I've said I want to
and as you want me to.
Verse 12, and here's the heart of it.
And may the Lord cause you to increase.
What does it mean to increase?
Get more, right?
And may the Lord cause you to increase
and overflow.
You know what it is to overflow?
You start pouring something into a container
and you get to the top
and it just spills over.
There's more than even you can anticipate.
And may the Lord cause you to increase
and overflow with love
one for another.
Now, a lot of you say,
well preacher, that's us here at First Pickens.
We got it down, right?
We are having a love fest.
We just love each other.
Boy, we love one another.
We love everybody whose name is on our roll, right?
We just love, love, love, love, love each other.
We're good to go.
Boy, wait a second.
That's not where he ends.
He says,
and for everyone
just as we also do for you.
Hmm.
Okay, we'll do that.
That would mean we would love
the First Presbyterian Church, right?
We're okay with that.
Presbyterians are good people.
We'll okay love the Methodist people
behind us here, right?
We'll love them too.
We'll love the Pentecostals
and the Church of God.
Okay, we're good.
We'll love the Mormons.
We'll love Jehovah's Witness.
We'll love the Charismatics.
We'll love the Catholics.
We'll even love the Jews.
We'll love the Muslims.
We'll love the Mormons.
We'll love the Jehovah's Witnesses.
We'll love the folks who frequent the bars
and never come to church.
We'll love those who stand in the streets
and say,
I'm an atheist
and I hate your God
and don't even believe He exists.
You see,
everybody's everybody.
That includes
people from Pickens,
right?
I don't know what you call
people from Pickens.
I said in the first
service,
the first service,
Picanites,
and then Tim came and said,
well,
actually they're Pekingese.
It means you love
all the people from Pickens
who grew up in Pickens.
They're born and bred here.
It also means you love
those from out of town.
You love them from Greenville,
from Greer,
from Travers Rest,
and from Anderson,
and from North Carolina,
and from Virginia,
and yes,
Yankees.
You love even Yankees.
And that's what he's praying,
right?
He says,
I pray you will love
everyone in the church
and everyone else.
Everyone outside
the church as well.
And notice what he says.
Verse 13.
May He make your hearts
blameless in holiness
before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus
with all His saints.
Amen.
Now there are three things
he prays for.
He prays for them to
begin to love
in an increasing fashion
and for that love
to overflow
and to love everybody
including those in
and out of the church.
For them to be blameless
in holiness
before our God.
That's what we'll look at
next week.
And to be ready
for the coming
of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And we'll look at that
two weeks
from today.
Now here's the big question.
He's had a chance
to think about this
and to know
what it is
he wants to say
in this prayer
what he's asking God
to do in their lives
and what he's wanting
them to be.
And it becomes apparent
the first order
of business is
that they love
one another
and love everyone else
and you have to ask
why do you think
that was the top priority
in his prayer
for this church
at Thessalonica.
I want to share with you
three reasons
real quickly
and then I want to share
with you
some ways
in which we do
what it is
he's asking us to do.
I believe
he prays what he prays
because Jesus said
so clearly
that love
is the mark
the badge
of someone
who is a disciple.
Right before his death
in John 13
34 and 35
you know what Jesus said?
He looked at his
disciples
and this is what he said
I give you
a new commandment
that you love
one another
even
as I have loved you.
He tells them how to love
as I have loved you
I want you to love others.
And then he says this
this is how they will know
that you're my disciples
by your love
for one another.
So what you can quickly see
is this love
is the badge
of discipleship.
It's the telltale indicator.
It's the sign
of somebody
who's a believer.
Let me ask you
how do you know
somebody's a believer?
Some folks
think the way
you let them
know you're a believer
is you get a tattoo
on your arm
it's got John 3.16
and I want to tell you
something
if you've got a tattoo
of John 3.16
or anything else
that don't bother me
in the least
because some folks
will use that
as an opportunity
to be a witness
for the Lord
but understand this
having the tattoo
doesn't make you
a believer.
Do you understand that?
It's not a real sign
that you're a believer.
It's okay to have a tattoo
if you want a tattoo
put whatever
what you want
on your arm
but understand this
it doesn't translate
into you being
automatically a Christian
any more
than having a bumper sticker
that says
honk if you love Jesus
right?
You can get that
on a bumper sticker
but that don't make you
a believer
you could have
bought the car
from somebody
who had put
the bumper sticker
on the car
right?
And so
none of those things
some of you
I'm sure today
are wearing gold earrings
or a necklace
that has a cross
around it
or a cross on it
and there's nothing
wrong with that
because it says to people
man I believe in the cross
and the cross is important
it's the centerpiece
of my life
but I don't tell you something
having the necklace
having the earrings
doesn't make you a Christian
Jesus says
the way you'll know
somebody's a Christian
is because they have love
one for another
it's by how you love
now I want to ask you something
have you ever been
in a department store
in a neighborhood
you're walking
you meet somebody
and you spend
four, five, six minutes
with them in conversation
maybe not even that long
and you walk away
you didn't talk about
anything theological
but you walk away from
and you say to yourself this
I just bet you
they were a Christian
you ever had that happen?
we all have right?
again that's yes and no
y'all gonna get that down
before I leave here
you know
so
we've all had that experience
what was it
about them
that made you reach
that conclusion
did you say
I saw the tattoo
I saw the bumper sticker
on his car
I saw the
the necklace
around their neck
no
it was always this
it was something
about their attitude
something about
how they treated you
something about
how they responded
they were so helpful
they were so kind
they were so patient
they were so loving
you just thought to yourself
that guy
has got
and it was because
of their love
the very thing
that Jesus said
he said
you'll know
that they're believers
because of how they love
one another
there's a second reason
from Paul's experience
he knew this
a church that doesn't love
the way Jesus loved
it's all for naught
now
like I said in the first service
I'll say it again now
I know I'm gonna offend somebody
and this is a bigger crowd
so I know I'm gonna offend somebody here
I don't intend to do that
I'm just trying to be honest with you
okay
why would anybody
ever name a church
car rent
I know in this many people
in the room
somebody here has belonged
to a car rent
at some point in time
I have preached
in several car rents
car rent number one
car rent number two
in another place
you just wonder
is your car rent number three
and four
because they couldn't get along
with each other either
but
why would you name a church
car rent
it's like
did you not have a copy
of the bible
I mean
this is
a hot mess
of a church
I mean
they're just
a mess
and Paul writes to him
and says
man I can't believe
what I'm hearing about you
and I believe it's true
you're divided
and you're fighting
among yourselves
and there's dissension
in the church
and there's a guy
who's sleeping
with his father's wife
are you crazy
what's going on
and you're suing one another
taking each other to court
and you get upset
over the Lord's Supper
and there's all kinds
of problems
about the spirit of God
and how he works
in your life
so much so
that between chapter 12
which is about the gifts
of the spirit
and chapter 14
which is about tongues
he sandwiches in
chapter 13
that says
you can have all the gifts
in the world
but if you don't have love
it's useless
right
you're just like a
loud set of symbols
or a gong
it means absolutely
nothing
unless you have
love
now I want to tell you something
I've seen churches
that try to build ministries
around somebody
who's a great great great
preacher
or musicians
who are great great great
musicians
but I want to tell you
something
antagonism
and division
and dissension
and lack of love
always trumps all that
you can have
every bit of that
but unless you have
love in a church
unless people know
that first church
of Pickens
boy I'll tell you
this about them
their preacher
may not be much
that guy they got
for the interim
their music's okay
but I'm going to tell you
something friend
they do love people
if you will be known
as a church
that loves
I mean really loves
well people will be
the path
to your door
so I think
that's one of the reasons
Paul said what he did
there's a third reason
and it's the most obvious
of all probably
how can we represent
Jesus
and not epitomize
love
because he did
John said
this of God
he said
God is love
I've been here now
about 15 or 16 weeks
I'm not sure
but about 13 of those weeks
the first 13 of those weeks
you know if you were here
I preached just about
every message
around a narrative
of Jesus
and I did that
with purpose
because I wanted you
to see
boy
Jesus is a loving Savior
he loves harlots
he loves the lowly
he loves the down and outers
he loves the publicans
he loves every manner
of sinner
he's helpful
he's compassionate
he's healing
he's raising the dead
he's doing all these miracles
I'm going to tell you something
Jesus is the epitome
of love
how crazy is it
for us to think
that we can go into the world
and declare to the world
there's this God
who you've never seen
who is invisible
who exists
who sent his son
who you've never seen
and he came
and he lived
and he died on the cross
and he rose from the dead
and he gives you
eternal life
and he loves you
and then be angry
with the world
have you ever seen churches
that you get the feeling
when you listen
to what they say
and what they do
and how they flesh out
their ministry
boy they are angry
with the world
you know more
for what they're against
than what they're for
have you ever seen that
Jesus says
I want to tell you something
or Paul says
if you want to be the church
that God would have you to be
then by all means
you've got to
be a church
that increases
in love
and overflows
with love
now let me ask you
is that
who first pickings is
well I hope it is
I really hope it is
because that's the first step
in becoming a great church
you are increasing
in love
and you absolutely
exude love
and overflow
in love
now some of you say
well we're working on it
but how do we do that
you got a sheet of paper
and a pencil
I'm going to give you
five quick ideas
and I'm done
you ready
here's five things
you need to do
if you want to be a church
that overflows
in love
and is increasing
in love
and the first thing
you may not like
you ready
you got to get over yourself
you just got to get over
yourself
you say preacher
what in the world
you mean
look with me
to Philippians chapter 2
and verse 3 and 4
turn there real quickly
Philippians
just a few pages
to your left
Philippians chapter 2
verse 3 and 4
Paul is telling us
how Jesus lived
and this is what he says
do nothing out of rivalry
or conceit
but in humility
consider others
as more important
than yourselves
everyone should look out
not only for his own interest
but also for the interest
of others
now I want to tell you something
that's the way kingdom people live
but I want to warn you
about something
that's the opposite
of how people of this world live
people of this world
the biggest difference
between you and them
outwardly
as we look at your life
should be this
we should recognize quickly
that guy is a kingdom person
and so
he's thinking of others
before he thinks of himself
and I want to tell you something
that's sacrificial
that requires real humility
not fake humility
to put others ahead of yourself
but the way the world
looks at situations is this
it's me first
I take care of me first
I may take care of others later
but I got to take care of me
in fact I see commercials
I tell my wife yesterday
we were watching television
I saw a commercial
where they actually justified
that kind of mentality
it's me first
I need to take care of me
humility
is not thinking
lowly of yourself
it's not thinking
less of yourself
it's thinking of yourself
less
you see the difference
in those two ideas
it's not thinking
less of myself
that I think
poor me
how bad I am
it's just not thinking
about me
it's just not being
really concerned
so much
about me
now I'm going to
tip you off on something
if you haven't already noticed it
we're pretty self-centered
creatures
you know that
by nature
I mean
we all have this
tendency to
focus more on
our problems
than we do
other people's
problems
I'm pastoring
at Brushy Creek
years ago
there was a man
in our church
in his early 70's
he develops
what they
fearful
is cancer
he has to go in
for an operation
I'm sitting there
with his wife
in the waiting room
they do the procedure
they come out
wasn't going long
just struck a note
of fear in me
because he wasn't
in there very long
at all
and the surgeon
comes out
and he says
I've got to tell you
some bad news
he kneels down there
in front of the guy's wife
and he says
your husband
has a cancer
that's just inoperable
we got in there
and it spreads
metastasized
and he's not going
to live long
I'm real
real sorry
he pats her on the knee
asks if she's anything
she can do
she looks just
dumbfounded
and he walks out
as soon as he gets out
she turns to me
and she says to me
these are almost
her exact words
what am I going
to do
when he's gone
how am I going
to make it
who's going
to take care of me
what's my life
going to be like
when he's gone
you know what
I couldn't help
but think
he's the guy
with cancer
you're going
to be the one
living
your life's going
on
he's getting ready
from the earthly
perspective
getting ready
to end
have you ever
noticed how
when tragedies
occur so often times
we don't even
realize we do it
we make it
about us
we become
the center
of the universe
and they become
almost secondary
how does this
impact my life
not how does it
impact his life
you might think
if she really loved him
she'd be thinking
and I know she did
she's just self-absorbed
but she might be thinking
how am I going to help him
through this difficult time
well he's facing
some dark days ahead
he's facing
a real message here
when he wakes up
that no one wants
to get
that you're dying
but instead
right now in the moment
she's consumed in herself
can I ask you something
is that kind of indicative
of your life
your problems matter
so much
that other people
just don't matter
as much
so
first thing you need
to do is
get over yourself
second thing you need
to do is
empathize
begin seeing others
and their hurts
and needs
before you do
your own
now turn with me
quickly to 1 Corinthians
chapter 12
look at 1 Corinthians
chapter 12
and verse 26
so if one member
suffers
all the members
suffer with it
if one member
is honored
all the members
rejoice with it
you know what he's saying
he's saying
when you're in the body
of Christ
and you feel for others
the way you should
and you're not
putting yourself first
it's always about you
you've gotten over
yourself
and you learn
how to empathize
with others
when they rejoice
guess what
you get happy
with them
and when they're sad
and they're broken
and their heart aches
man your heart aches
right along
with them
because
you put yourself
in their shoes
that's what it means
to empathize
I take myself
out of my life
and I insert myself
into somebody
else's life
I'm going to tell you
when you begin
to do that
well you'll begin
to feel for people
and love people
in a way
you never have before
here's the tragedy
most times
we see people
with needs
who are hurting
and we just go
oh that's bad
that's bad
boy
I wish I could
do something
about that
and we just
walk right on
I'm pastor
of Western Avenue
Baptist Church
when this happened
I'm about
34 years of age
there was a lady
in our church
who was chronically
going in and out
of the hospital
all the time
and she wasn't
sick a whole lot
of times
she just loved
doctors and hospitals
and so she's about
45 miles away
and I got to go see her
and it's been
one of the most
horrendous weeks
in my life
to that point
in time as a pastor
so I'm just
wore slap out
I've slept very little
this week
and I'm in my car
and I'm driving
to Winston-Salem
and I can remember
the conversation
it's been many many
years ago
about half a lifetime
ago
and yeah I remember
very distinctly
I'm having a pity party
have any of y'all
ever done that
I'm the only
invited guest
and I'm just
wallowing in it
I'm just thinking
poor me
I'm so tired
I'm hungry
I haven't slept
they're just running
me ragged
I'm going over
to see somebody
who I need
the bed worse
than they need it
and I'm riding
over there
and I pull up
into the parking lot
and I have to park
two floors up
and that's an
aggravation
and I get out
and I'm walking
a long way
to the hospital
big huge hospital
in Winston-Salem
and I get to the
back door of the hospital
and it's got these
electric doors
you know
and I'm in a hurry
because I just want
to get in there
and see her
and get out of there
bless the Lord Jesus
and I'm just
I'm just getting in
and getting out
and just doing my job
right
and just as I start
in that door
and the electric door
opens
there's a lady
with a kid
in a wheelchair
and she's pushing him out
and I just nearly
run right over
the top of him
so I did like
any of you
I stop
I apologize
and I back up
and I just get out
of there
and wait
and she pushes
this little boy out
she's about my wife's age
and the little boy
is about the age
of my little boy
about seven years of age
and he's sitting
in this wheelchair
and he's got
hospital gown on
but a baseball cap
one of these
plastic baseball caps
and you can't help
but notice
all his hair is gone
and he's got those
marks that indicate
he's a radiation
treatment patient
and so
I just stand back
and she pushes him out
and they go out here
to that divider
and there's a little wall
and she sits on the wall
and he's there in sunshine
and they're just out
soaking up sunshine
and I stand there
for about 30 seconds
and watch that lady
I remember
just big tears
just pouring down
my face
and I thought
you big baby
you're complaining
about this
and about that
and how hard you got it
you don't know
what trouble is
that's trouble
or can you put yourself
in that mama's shoes
she's sitting there
saying nice things
and smiling
and trying to cheer up her boy
but on the inside
can you imagine
the turmoil
and the heartache
and the hurt
and the fear
and the anxiety
that's going on
inside that lady
and that's what
empathy looks like
it's when you don't
just see it
when you stop long enough
to just insert yourself
in their place
and I'm going to tell you
something
every one of you
got friends right now
who've got cancer
they got a heart problem
they don't have money
a lot of us in this room
most of us in this room
you may have had
this experience
at some time
where you didn't know
where your next check
was coming from
your next meal
was coming from
how you're going to pay
the rent
at the end of the month
but most of us
get through life
without that
it may have happened
once or twice
but most of us
we live free of that
but I'm going to tell you
something
there's some folk
out there
they live that way
every day of their lives
there are folk out there
who have prescriptions
this morning
that they need
to have fill
but they can't get them
filled because
they don't have
the money to do it
they're making choices
about do I do this
or do I do that
and that's something
a lot of us
we just don't know
anything about that
and that's the beginning
of love
if you want to have love
that increases
and overflows
you've got to get
the place you can
empathize with people
you see them
and you live
in their shoes
for just a few minutes
until you can get
your head around
here's what I need to do
here's the third thing
I think you can do
if you want to increase
in love
and overflow in love
and that's to pray
for one another
James
remember I mentioned James
we're going to look at it
more closely next week
but James in chapter 5
and verse 16 says
pray for one another
do that continually
and look up and listen
I don't want to beat up
on anybody this morning
but you know so often
what we take that to mean
that in Sunday school
we hear about somebody
who's sick
and we say yeah
I'll pray for them
oh yeah I'll pray for them
a lot of times
we never give it
another thought
we say sometimes
when we say
I pray for you
it just means
you crossed my mind
I thought about you
but I didn't really
pray for you
and even how we pray
when James says that
he didn't mean just
to let them pass
through your mind
to allow their name
to fall for your lips
okay I mentioned them
I'm done with that
you know how I think
he meant for us
to pray
that we stop
and put ourselves
in the shoes
and right now
well I got a lot of
friends that have cancer
I'm getting older
and a lot of my friends
are getting older
and they're getting sick
I mean close friends
to me
and I'm going to tell you
every night when I pray
and in the morning
when I pray
I try to think
what's it like to be
and I won't call their name
but this particular person
what's it like
to be their wife
what's it like
to have to go get
chemotherapy
and radiation
what's it like
to be so sick
you think you're going to die
and then you're fearful
you might
what's it like
to be like
what's it like
to see your spouse
slipping away
from you
what's it like
and to pray
from that perspective
God
give them peace
let them think
of something
other than their cancer
or their problem
or their sickness
or whatever it is
that's wrong in their life
they got problems
with their children
or their marriage
is falling apart
God just let them
get free of that
for a few minutes
would you do that
would you intervene
somehow
and help them
I'm going to tell you
if you'll begin
to do that
more folks
will begin to notice
the first baptist
picking the boy
those folks
they don't just say
they pray for
they really pray for you
they really love you
they're growing
in their life
and they're abounding
in their life
which leads me
to the fourth thing
and this is something
I really like
it's pretty simple
you ready
do something
I want you to listen
as I read
1 John chapter 3
and verse 17
listen to what
John says
1 John chapter 3
and verse 17
if anyone has
this world's goods
and sees his brother
in need
but shuts off
his compassion
from him
how can God's love
reside in him
boy
I don't know
how you'd make it
any clearer than that
Bob Goff
remember that book
I mentioned
four, five, six weeks ago
Bob Goff
I'm telling you that
again so you can
write it down
Bob Goff
Love Does
is the book he authored
I told you about
that book several weeks ago
one gentleman
in the crowd came
and said to me
the following
he said
I bought that book
I'm not a reader
I want to tell you something
I finished it in two days
he said
one of the greatest books
I've ever read
if you haven't read it
you ought to get that book
I'm telling you
you'll laugh
you'll cry
it's a great
great great read
Love Does
and the whole basis
of it is this
that love is not
something you look at
somebody and say
with goo goo eyes
when you love somebody
you act
love is an action
it's not a thought
it's not a suggestion
it's not a word
it's not a proposal
it's an action
you love
folk by doing
so do something
go cut somebody's grass
if you love them
take them a meal
this afternoon
if you love them
pay their light bill
if you love them
take care of that
prescription for them
if you love them
keep their kids
and give them a night
on the town
if you love them
you understand what I'm saying
that's what real love
looks like
it acts
it does something
the church
every day
it exists
has tons
of opportunities
to show the world
to demonstrate
the world
that we love them
but can I tell you something
we just seldom
take those opportunities
we let them come
and we let them go
instead of seizing
the moment
and I'm going to tell you something
every time I see the church
be the church
boy my head swells
with pride
and every time I see
the church
not be the church
as a pastor
it always broke my heart
I'm preaching revival
about 23
or 24 years ago
best I can remember
in a community
a number of miles
from Greer
the guy who calls me
and asks me to preach
I've never met
pretty unusual
I got a few invitations
like that
but usually there were guys
that I knew
guys like Fred
would say
would you come over
and would you preach for me
this guy that I'd never met
didn't know his name
didn't know anything about it
he calls me out of the blue
and he says
I've heard about you
could you come and preach
I said yeah
he gives me the dates
I'm going to be there
Sunday night
through a Wednesday
so I go and I preach
I preach Sunday night
Monday Tuesday
and when Wednesday comes
I get there
and he comes over to me
and sits down
and he says
tells me he's enjoyed it
and he says
could you go with me
to supper tonight
after this is over
I said I'd be glad to
so when it was over
his wife couldn't be there
that night
and he and I
go to supper
in this little fish camp
we're sitting there
we're ordering our meal
and we're just waiting
on the waitress
to bring our food
it's kind of awkward
it's just real
unusually silent
and he says
has anybody told you
about me
my situation
I said no
I felt a little bit odd
I said no
I don't know
what you're talking about
he says you don't know
anything about my situation
at all
no
he says you're probably
the only preacher
in South Carolina
who doesn't
I want to tell you something
I really didn't
I didn't know him
from Adam
other than I'd met him
for those three days
he says
can I tell you my story
I'd be glad to
to listen
he tells me
short as I can make it
a few years back
a couple years back
from when this happened
years ago
he said
I got a 19 year old daughter
she just got out
of high school
she's dating
our youth minister
and
she suddenly
begins to develop
these health problems
my wife
asked her
what's going on
she just
evades it
leads us down
this rabbit trail
but she's not
changing in size
any
that we can tell
she's camouflaging
it with her clothes
and one Saturday night
she's so deathly ill
we think it must be
a gallbladder
appendicitis
so at 3 in the morning
when we can't
manage it anymore
we rush her to
the hospital
local hospital
we get there
and she's back
there just a few
minutes
and this doctor
comes out
and he says
pastor can I
talk with you
he says yes sir
and he sits down
he says I don't
know how to tell
you this
he said but your
daughter is about
8 months pregnant
and she's in labor
and she's going to
have this baby
tonight
he said me and my
wife look at each
other and we cannot
believe what we're
hearing
and I'm going to
tell you I've sat
across from a lot
of people
pretty good about
telling me
telling when people
are telling me the
truth and they're
telling me a lie
I've done this so
long
I can look in his
face and just tell
I don't understand
that but he's telling
me the absolute
truth
he says we're
grief stricken
he said we're just
in shock the baby's
born a few hours
later
it's a Saturday
night so I haven't
been to bed all
night long
I've been up with
my daughter now I
have a baby about
8 in the morning
I show up at church
and the clothes I
worn to the hospital
the church service
begins but I tell
the guy I'm going
to take charge and
I just got something
I got to tell the
congregation he
stands up and he
tells the congregation
just what I told you
and he says I want to
tell you I didn't know
about this I'm
embarrassed about this
but I understand if
you want me to
resign
he said we haven't
tried to hide anything
from you but I'm
just I'm finding this
out for myself and I'm
tired and I can't do
this this morning
so there's not going
to be any preaching
brother so and so
is going to come
and he's going to
lead us in a song
or two you're going
to pray and then
you're going home
but if you want me
to resign I'm not
going to be here you
can talk openly about
it among yourselves
and I'm going to leave
and go back to the
hospital be with my
wife and daughter
he walks out the
door he goes to
the hospital he stays
till about 3 3 30 in
the afternoon he gets
in his car and he and
his wife are going
home they're just dead
tired he says when I
get to the pastoral
I start turning in
the driveway and as
I turn in the driveway
I look and they're
under our carport it
looks like the whole
church has gone to
Walmart and they
bought out everything
Walmart had to sell
on babies he says the
carport is just packed
from top to bottom with
things that baby could
use he said I can't
tell you how I felt in
my heart I'm going to
tell you I sat there
listening and I just
began to cry I mean
I'm emotional I just
began to cry you know
why I cried not for the
hardship he endured I
cried because I thought
to myself what a
beautiful picture of
what the church ought to
be that's when the
church acts like the
church right I've seen
it so many times be so
judgmental and we
want to just preach to
people and beat up on
people and tell them
how you shouldn't have
done this and you
shouldn't have done
that when many of us
ourselves have found
ourselves in sin's path
boy we need the mercy
and the grace of God
bestowed on us and
thank God he showed us
mercy but why is it we're
so slow sometimes to show
mercy and grace to other
people it's a beautiful
thing when the church
acts like the church
it's a sad thing when
the church doesn't seize
the opportunity it's been
given to be the church
there's one last thing
and I close with this
if you want to love to
increase in your life and
in your church and to
overflow begin forgiving
people who have hurt you
now Brian has not had a
single conversation with
me and I had dinner with
Fred Stone about 10 days
ago or nine days ago
Fred has not said a
single word to me I
don't know if anybody
in this church has had a
riff with anybody else
that's the honest truth
before God but I want
to tell you something in
a church this size it
would seem almost
impossible to me that
you could be members
here for a long long
long time and somebody
not get crosswise with
somebody else and I'm
asking you if you want
love to abound to
forgive them
right now today to make
a choice that going
forward I'm forgiving
them I'm going to live
as though that never
happened I'm going to
put it out of my life
and some of you are
thinking already I know
what you're thinking
because I've been where
you are you don't know
what they did you don't
know how inexcusable
their action against me
was and boy I get that
because I'm going to
tell you I've had some
folk do some pretty mean
stuff to me through the
years hard to get by
hard just to get past
that I don't tell you
something they nailed
Jesus to the cross and
as they're nailed him to
the cross the first words
out of his mouth were
these father forgive them
for they know not what
they do I think that
prayer included pilot who
like a coward found him
guilty when he should have
found him innocent I think
it included the Jewish
leaders of that mob who
made false accusations
knowing they weren't
true I think it applied to
the Roman soldiers who
brutally drove those spikes
through his hands and I
think it included all those
folk out there for whom he
had done good who failed to
stand in his behalf even the
disciples who betrayed him
and who denied ever even
knowing him and I'm going to
say to you if Jesus can
forgive us that what's anybody
ever done to you you can't
forgive remember Joseph in the
Old Testament chapter 45 his
brothers you know how bad his
brothers disliked him they
wanted him dead they threw him
into a cistern we're going to
kill him later to make a few
bucks and to allow their
conscience to be a little at
ease they sold him to slave
traders he ends up in prison
because of a lie that
Potiphar's wife told about it
all that because of what these
brothers did and yet when they
come years later in need of
help you know what he does
instead of turning them away or
being angry with them he
literally literally drives all
the Egyptians out of the room
and reaches out and embraces
them and hugs them and even
says this don't blame yourself
you didn't put me here God put me
here he did everything in his
power to restore a broken
relationship and I'm going to
tell you something when your love
grows and when you abound in love
that's exactly what every one of
us need to do we need to come to
the place that we forgive others
even inexcusable hurts in our life
so let me ask you have you ever
done that can you think of somebody
right now at First Baptist Pickens or
somebody in your family or somebody at
work and you say you know I have
trouble loving them because they did
this to me right here would you let
it go today would you just let that
go you say I can't yeah you can you
got a choice I want to tell you
something they don't even hold the
keys to that you do you're the only
one who can forgive them you're the
only one who can let it go so would
you do that this morning we're going to
have a hymn of invitation and Brian's
going to sing it lead us in it but if
the Lord's spoken to your heart and
there's something you need to deal
with God about would you just get up
out of your seat right now and just
come and you can just stand here at
the front or kneel or you can do it
right there at your chair if you don't
want to come forward just maybe be
seated again follow their stand just
say I got some business I got to take
care of God I haven't been loving the
way I need to love let's stand this
Brian leads us
you