“But the Pharisees and
their scribes were complaining to His disciples, ‘Why do you eat and drink with
tax collectors and sinners?’ Jesus replied to them, ‘The healthy do not need a
doctor, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to
repentance.’” Luke 5:30-32
How often do
you see a doctor when you are well? How often do you see a councilor when you
are in your right mind? Do you frequently call up a lawyer or a bail bondsman?
Unless you have a friend that is one of these things, you would probably keep
your interaction to the absolute minimum. How much time do you spend with the
Lost? Are all your friends members of your church? How much time do you spend
telling people that believe in Christ about Christ?
Now we know
that Jesus spoke at synagogues from time to time, but where did he speak and
perform his miracles most often? Always at church, or with his church friends
right? No. No he was in the streets and on hillsides. He spoke to the people
that were not at church the most. Look at his chosen disciples, how many of
them were leaders of the synagogues? Yeah, so if we are going to be Christ-like
where do we have to be? With the people.
Now then we
get to the question of what people and which people. Well for each of us we
have come from different places and walks of life. Our past shapes how we learn
God to be. The walk that we walk with Christ shows us what God can do. Those of
us that found God while locked in a cell can see how God can use a place like
that to His Glory. Those of us that were saved from a drug overdose can see how
God can use that to His Glory.
Those little
wake up calls in life are when we see God for who he is. I’m not talking about
every earth shattering event in your life. I’m talking about every day in life.
The music you listen to, the hobbies that you have, and the books you read are
all things that you can use to establish relationships with people. We are
given a charge by God to be his ambassadors. Before people will listen to us
about God they really have to be seeking or have a vested interest in hearing
our story.
“How come
you are always smiling and happy? You’re in Jail shouldn’t you act like it?”
Not when you know that God has control of the situation and it will end exactly
as he wishes it to end. “Come on man, you listen to Heavy Metal and dress like
that and you go to Church? You don’t actually believe that crap they preach on
Sunday do you?” God uses us all. Judge not or you will be judged. You will be
measured by the same measure you put to others. God uses all.
I grew up
listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd, AC/DC, Bad Company among many other things listed
as Classic Rock. I also listened to Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Metallica,
Megadeth which eventually lead me to KoRn, Staind, P.O.D., Type O Negative and many other bands of that era. Why do I bring this up? Well for one of my
first examples of Christians going to where Christ is needed. The Whosoevers is
an organization that are set to influence those that they have influence with
to share what God has done in their lives and what God can do in theirs.
The lead
guitarist of KoRn, Brian Welch, better known as Head, gave his life to Christ
quit drugs and actually ended up quitting the band to play music for Christ.
P.O.D. was actually a Christian band, but very few actually knew it. The name
of the band is Payable On Death. These people are involved with this movement
that is growing.
They hold
concerts and worship services to talk to people that would not come to church.
They are taking the word of God to these people. They are a great example of
going to the sick. They are not the only ones. Missionaries I do not discredit
what you are doing, you are doing what God has called us to do as well. You are
bringing the word of God to people that would not be reached otherwise. It is
because of you that people are becoming educated to Christ.
The second
group that I wish to speak about are those that do Prison Ministry. These
people walk into environments that most would be scared to go to. They are
casting seed and water to people that life would say are in the worst situation
that one can be in. I would disagree with that statement, but many that find
themselves in this place see it as a low point in their life. Sometimes the
lowest parts of their lives.
You are
going into places to shed light upon these lost souls that have little hope. So
many people in these places turn to the Word of God when they would not touch
it otherwise. There are many of these people that will not step foot in church
once they get back out, but there are those that will try and hold onto the
Word to keep them from going back down the roads that they have walked down
before. Then there are those that God will fully change. Again, the sick in
need of medicine that is the Truth of the Word of God.
Now I
recently watched a sermon by Steven Furtick, the pastor for Elevation Church.
He had a quote in his sermon that really rang true with me, “Truth registers
best on the other side of complexity.” Only after you have crossed the chasm do
we really know how hard the chasm was to cross. So you know best how God works
only through what God has done in your life. You get a good idea with close
friends and family going through hard times, but nothing substitutes life
experience.
If you have
not been addicted to drugs or alcohol you have a good idea how hard it can be
to break free from that addiction, but you don’t know. If you haven’t been
through jail, you can imagine what it’s like, but you don’t Know. There is
power in that knowledge. God will use what we have been through to get his
greatest glory out of us. So how were you sick?
Was it sex?
Was it alcohol? Was it abuse? Was it addiction? Was it disbelief? Was it anger?
Now who can benefit most from hearing your words? People that are like you were
might be a good place to start. Could it be the people that you were going through
this stuff with? How about your own family? Now that you have been shown the
Grace of God, who can you share that with? What talents do you have and how can
you use them for God? That’s what God calls us to do. Use what we can to share
his story and his glory.
What has he
done for you? Are you healthy now, or do you still struggle with things? I don’t
care if you have been raised in church all your life and have been a Christian
all your life. There is something that you have had to struggle with in your
relationship with God.
You have a story to tell. If you have a story of addiction, abuse or
personal weakness you should check out a local Celebrate Recovery to visit and
see what people have to say. You will be encouraged, and even more you might be
able to encourage others.
You have a
talent, how can you use it for God? Talk to your friends, family, or your
church to see if there is something going on. Is there an outreach that another
church in the area is doing that you feel called to participate in? It’s not
your church, but that’s part of our problem. We are all part of God’s body. You
feel the calling to do something and someone else is involved with it, get
involved.
We can busy
ourselves to the point that we cannot listen to what God might want for us. You
have too many obligations at your Church to do what God is telling you to do…
you might want to check in on that. The message is simple, how can you glorify
God? Where can you be a doctor? Where can you be a friend to those in need?
Where are the sick that you are called to help? What can you do to share the
God of your life with others?
What can you
do to love others and show them God’s Grace?
Secondly, be
careful who you judge for you cannot see their heart. Which of these would you
think are Christians or closest to God?
An open
heart ready to do God’s work is one of the greatest things in the world. Open
your heart to glorify God and ask yourself then God what can you do to Glorify
God and tell the story of how God has been influential in your life.
“Vision without action
is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action
can change the world.” Joel A. Barker
No comments:
Post a Comment