“Whose Job Is It?” By Tom Hanson October 17th,
2010 John 4:23 …the Father seeketh such to worship Him. Pastor Davis once said that being a pastor is no big thing, it’s a whole lot of little things. Falling away from God is no big thing either, well, it is a big thing, but it’s a whole lot of little things. We can burn our conscience by doing a little something, and then shrugging it off, and then do a little something more… Do you want to be soaring with eagles or searing with devils? Turning back to God is a lifetime commitment. We have to take it day by day. Sufficient unto the day are the evils thereof. There are a lot of people who aren’t with us today because of physical accidents. Those sort of things can happen spiritually, too. Satan is a murderer; he will kill you spiritually. He will tell you, “Go ahead, that doesn’t really matter…” Turning back to God requires us to know where He is. Being able to turn to God requires knowing where to find Him. It becomes not so much “Where am I?” but “Where is God?” The Bible is our GPS—“God’s Positioning for the Soul,” if you will—and we can use the Word of God to locate salvation and spiritual safety for our lives. A physical GPS works on a locator signal installed inside the device that connects with a satellite coordinating system that will direct you from where you are to where you program the GPS to send you. Directions are displayed on the screen for you to follow and success depends on following those directions exactly. God’s Word is no different. He has given us a clear set of directions to follow that will enable us to save ourselves from this untoward generation and spend eternity with Him in paradise. Turning back to God is easy, but it requires us to understand that we are wanted, valued, and desired by Jesus. God wants us to come to Him—we are welcomed and encouraged to come to Him. Matthew 11:28-30 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden… In this passage, “heavy” means “overburdened with religious ceremony.” Jesus wants to take the unnecessary man-made religiousness out of our hair, so to speak—He wants us to know that He “gets it”—that people have become disillusioned with their religions and all the trappings that interfere with pure worship and relationship with Jesus Himself. Turning back to God starts with us turning to Jesus for a fresh start with Him. Anything that interferes with your relationship with God, get rid of it. Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, because it’s crowded with obstacles. Turning back to God may require some assistance. God thinks more of us than we think of ourselves, sometimes. It’s God’s job to turn us back to Him, but it’s also the pastor’s job. God sends people our way to help turn back to ground. He sends “boots on the ground”—His servants. No one cares more than God about finding lost souls. Matthew 18:11-14 For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost… God sent people in the past to help people turn back to Him. In Luke, we see that God saw that this need was real and urgent, so He sent a man named John: Luke
1:13-17 …And
many of the children of
In Acts 26, we see how God directed Paul to serve Him to turn us, the Gentiles, back to God. Acts 26:15-18 …the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light… We don’t have to worry that we’re alone. The pastors today in this ministry: Jeremiah 3:15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart… We have people looking out for us that are called by God. Romans 10:14-16 …how shall they hear without a preacher?... Not everybody obeys the Gospel. We definitely do get reinforcements. 1 Corinthians 1:21 …it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. Turning back to God requires our own efforts. Yes, we are in a fleshly body that lusts against the Spirit of God—Galatians 5 and Romans 7 tell us that‑‑but God commands us to put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh. Crucifying the flesh simply means just saying no to the lusts of the flesh. It is simple, just say no and mean it. God will provide the strength because greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world. 1 John 4:4 … greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world. Galatians 5:24-25 …that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts… Put on the Lord Jesus and walk in the spirit. To use a football analogy, just run the ball; don’t pass it, it may get intercepted. Just keep working your way down the field. In conclusion, let us remember the thief on the cross—the one that repented. If anyone had a case that looked hopeless, it was his situation, but he turned to Jesus and asked Jesus to remember him, and Jesus did (Luke 23:39-43). Luke
23:42
…Verily I say
unto thee, To day shalt thou be with Me in paradise. Jesus also told Peter that, the night Jesus was taken, “before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.” (Matthew 26:34) Peter insisted that he would never do that, but he did. When Peter realized that he had, he wept bitterly (Matthew 26:75). Do we have the capability to weep bitterly when we find ourselves in sin? Jesus didn’t turn away Peter when Peter denied Him three times, and Jesus won’t turn you away when you find yourself needing to turn back to God. A broken and a contrite heart He will not despise. Psalms 51:17 a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. In the story of Cain and Abel (Genesis 4), Abel’s sacrifice was accepted by God, but Cain’s wasn’t. The Lord spoke to Cain, and said, “If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.” We can find ourselves in a similar situation very easily, but we have a choice whether to turn back to God or turn to the sin that lies at the door. Whose job is it? It’s God’s job, it’s the pastor’s job, it’s your job, it’s my job. Turning back to God is everyone’s job. Sermon notes by Pete Shepherd |
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