Being a Follower

Doubt and Trust

Today I want to share the first of three “sermons” that I brought at church. The audio is pulled from our live stream, so please excuse any sound issues.

This is from July 21, 2024. The pastor was out so I filled in. Remember I said I’m an evangelist, not a pastor? This is an example. I’m not trying to steer the flock in a certain direction, but more speaking to individuals about doubt and turning our backs on God. More of a challenge to trust Him. I pray it is edifying to you.

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No Partial Message

As promised, pulling at the thread we started yesterday, let’s talk about the FULL Gospel. Paul had declared, as the King James puts it, all the counsel of God. Are we also sharing the full message? Do we say “God Loves You!” and smile as we walk on? There is absolutely no salvation in that statement.

Do we say, “Jesus can forgive you” as we continue on our journey? Again, not the Gospel.

Do we say, “God loves you” to someone obviously suffering in sin? This can potentially give the impression that God doesn’t care about their sin; that He loves them just the way they are. Yes, this is true, but He doesn’t want to LEAVE them like that.

Remember, the Gospel is the fact that Jesus DIED for us! Why? Because we deserve death, not love. But He loves us anyway; even though we are His enemies.

Now how do we communicate this? The older I get and the more I witness to people, I realize how important this verse is…

Matthew 7:3-5 NIRV - “You look at the bit of sawdust in your friend’s eye. But you pay no attention to the piece of wood in your own eye. How can you say to your friend, ‘Let me take the bit of sawdust out of your eye’? How can you say this while there is a piece of wood in your own eye? You pretender! First take the piece of wood out of your own eye. Then you will be able to see clearly to take the bit of sawdust out of your friend’s eye.

To put this even simpler, I might see the sin in someone else’s life, but what right have I to point it out when I’m not willing to remove the even larger sin in my own life? If I am obviously not living a Christian life, then why would anyone want to believe what I have to say about sin and the punishment for it?

Do you remember as a child one of the worst things a parent could say to you was, “Do as I say; not as I do.” This is so very hypocritical! Don’t be that way to your neighbor! Don’t live one way while you pretend to live another. It’s living the life of a hypocrite to say to someone not to do something while you are doing it yourself, or something even worse!

Let me ask you something serious. Is adultery wrong? Then why do you watch pornography? Remember that Jesus said if you look with lust then you have committed adultery in your heart. This was something God had to give me the strength to get past. I’m not proud of the way lust was a part of my life and my thoughts, but thank God I’m not that way any more!

I don’t even want to sing songs that glorify it. Two songs are old favorites, but I have stopped listening to them because I realized they were poisoning my mind. George Jones’ song Her Name Is and Bobby Bare’s Tequila Shelia. It may not be a sin to you to listen to them, but to me it is. They glorify adultery and I want no part of them any more.

Be On Guard

I want to share all four of these verses -

Acts 20:28-32 NIRV - Keep watch over yourselves. Keep watch over all the believers. The Holy Spirit has made you leaders over them. Be shepherds of God’s church. He bought it with his own blood. I know that after I leave, wild wolves will come in among you. They won’t spare any of the sheep. Even men from your own people will rise up and twist the truth. They want to get the believers to follow them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning you. Night and day I warned each of you with tears. Now I trust God to take care of you. I commit you to the message about his grace. It can build you up. Then you will share in what God plans to give all his people.

There is so very much in this passage we need to unpack! First, those that you have helped lead to Christ are now disciples of Christ. But we can’t watch over them forever. It is up to them to find a church and grow and learn. Now if you are the leader of a small group or even a pastor of a church, this obviously doesn’t apply to you, but to the majority of people sharing the Gospel, you won’t be there tomorrow to help them.

I think about the role of evangelist as opposed to a pastor. A pastor is there to lead the flock day after day and week after week. Your local pastor fits this role, but someone like Billy Graham was an evangelist. He would go and share the Gospel and help people see the truth. He didn’t stop in every city and start a church and help them grow; he trusted that they would find a local flock to be a part of.

Two roles to play - different, yet similar. I consider myself to be an evangelist. I have had a few opportunities to “preach” and if God wants, I will do more. I don’t, however, feel led to be a pastor of a flock.

But the bottom line here is that Paul couldn’t keep speaking to them day after day. We all have a date with death. I wanted to help my kids and I am proud to say that I helped Vanessa raise two fine boys. But there comes a time you stop making their decisions for them.

It is the same with making disciples. Make sure you are in the will of God so you can make the right impressions and help them grow, then they have to go on their own to their own flock.

There is a local pastor that I have tremendous respect for. He is having health problems and it is hard for him to speak. He knows now better than at any time before how important it is to say what God tells you to say while you still can! Don’t do like me and realize years later that you wasted so much time.

Brother Clyde - if you’re reading or listening - I love you brother and pray for you often. Let me know if I can ever help out.

More Preaching

That finishes up the Sunday School lesson. Since we’re on the topic of preaching, though, I will point out that last week I shared three ‘sermons’ that I brought. I put them on YouTube and they are available on my channel. Since I am now publishing this as a podcast, I will be sharing the audio of them very soon.

A Challenge for Us

What’s the takeaway here? Let Jesus sweep your house clean from top to bottom! Give Him full control of your life and let Him rearrange in whatever way He decides. Remember that He is the Creator and He knows best for us!

Once you have done this you will be in a better position to share about sin. Remember, it’s not just that Jesus loves you, or Jesus died for you, but that you are going to hell for your very sins if you don’t trust Him and repent! That is the Gospel message! What good is a salvation message if you don’t know what you are being saved from?

Get some gospel tracts - get something catchy. I love to carry the Million Dollar Bills from Living Waters Ministry. They are eye catching and people generally enjoy receiving them. The message on the back is very blunt though, so it gets the message across with no pretty words or pretense.

Make sure you have read the back of them too! Make sure you know what they say and why they say it. You can then use the same approach to talk to someone about Jesus.

I also highly recommend the Way of the Master series from Living Waters. They can be found on YouTube as well and is a great training course on how to boldly speak up for Jesus. Though I’m not a pastor, if I were I would likely be using it to train my flock to witness effectively.

Until next time, be Blessed and strive to do His will."Almost New" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jimmylogan.substack.com

Commit

Today, I’d like to share notes from our recent Sunday School lesson titled Commit. The tagline of the lesson is Believers must resolve to faithfully serve Jesus all their days. Note that this means it is not a part time job. This Christianity thing - making Jesus Lord - in an ETERNAL commitment, and this scares some people.

Remember, when we allow Jesus to take control, He is supposed to have ALL control. This reminds me of the verse about driving out a spirit and sweeping the house.

Matthew 12:43-45 NIRV - “What happens when an evil spirit comes out of a person? It goes through dry areas looking for a place to rest. But it doesn’t find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives there, it finds the house empty. The house has been swept clean and put in order. Then the evil spirit goes and takes with it seven other spirits more evil than itself. They go in and live there. That person is worse off than before. That is how it will be with the evil people of today.”

You see, some people want Jesus to clean their house, but then they don’t let Him fill it up. Jesus wants to do more than just sweep and clean the house. He wants to tear down walls, add windows, and rebuild you entirely.

So, continuing this analogy, some people will let Him in and have fellowship with Him, but they don’t want to allow Him full access. Have you heard anyone tell you, “keep your religion to yourself?” Or, “keep your Bible to yourself?” To someone that puts God in a closet and only brings Him out when He is needed, they will never hear those words. But someone that lets Jesus have COMPLETE control in the ETERNAL commitment! Now that’s the goal!

Opposition

The writer mentions those who serve in the military must show bravery and commitment during periods of warfare. As Christians, we are constantly in a state of spiritual warfare.

While the writer notes that “behind all opposition lies the schemes of Satan,” I don’t take this to mean there is a demon behind every rock. If you go back to Genesis 3 you’ll see that opposition to God is the original sin. When the serpent tempted Eve, it didn’t do so by loud boasting, but by planting a seed of doubt! If the enemy can cause people to doubt, he can stand back and watch! Man will let their evil, human nature take over.

Hold Nothing Back

I want to share part of the passage.

Acts 20:18-21 NIRV - When they arrived, he spoke to them. “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you,” he said. “From the first day I came into Asia Minor, I served the Lord with tears and without pride. I served him when I was greatly tested. I was tested by the evil plans of the Jews who disagreed with me. You know that nothing has kept me from preaching whatever would help you. I have taught you in public and from house to house. I have told both Jews and Greeks that they must turn away from their sins to God. They must have faith in our Lord Jesus.

In the King James Version, verse 20 reads - And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house.

Paul says that he held nothing back! The word translated as ‘profitable’ is from the Greek sumpherō soom-fer'-o, which means to contribute or collect; be better for, bring together, be good. In other words, whatever would help you to grow. I pray that I can be the same in that I hold nothing back that I learn or discover, but that’s a conversation for another day. In Paul’s case it means everything said and shared was for THEIR benefit, not his.

What love to show to fellow man! Boldly sharing not just the Gospel itself, but instruction and correction as well. I think it is safe to say that even though he wasn’t there, Paul took the Great Commission seriously!

Remember in Matthew, our Lord says to make disciples and teach the things that He taught. I have specific things in mind about this topic which I promise, Lord willing, to share later, but for now just look at it this way. If Jesus said it, did it or taught it, then it is important! If the Gospel writers recorded it, then it is important for us today - including sharing it with other believers.

Publicly and house to house, I believe Paul’s message was the same. There is no hidden knowledge; no secret society or handshake - the Gospel message of Jesus Christ is for everyone - Jews, Greeks, Gentiles. And the rest of the teachings are as well.

If Jesus said it, did it or taught it, then it is important!

Not Shunned

I’ll leave you with one more passage today.

Acts 20:26-27 NIRV - So I tell you today that I am not guilty if any of you don’t believe. I haven’t let anyone keep me from telling you everything God wants you to do.

Paul was not guilty of leaving anyone with the excuse that they had not been told. Can you say that? I must admit, I can’t say this. I do strive to find opportunities to share, but I seem to end the day thinking I could have done more.

As I was writing these notes, I was sitting at an outside table at a local restaurant. I had given several tracts that day, including two while making the notes. Should I have done more? COULD I have done more?

Tomorrow

We’ll pick up this thread tomorrow and discuss practical steps we can take. Until then, be Blessed and strive to do His will.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jimmylogan.substack.com

Announcement

A quick break from the usual format: from this post onward, I will include an audio file. This will also be available as a podcast on Apple, Spotify, and other platforms.

I personally consume the bulk of my content via podcasts while working, driving, etc. and I think others may be the same. I also feel led to expand the reach of this blog, and a podcast seems like the natural progression.

That being said, please let me know if you would like me to republish older posts as audio as well! Happy to do so. For those that are hearing these as audio only, you are welcome to come to the post page and leave your comments.

Samaria

Back to the study group lessons, September 15, 2024 is Your Church’s Samaria. Remember we are looking at Acts 1:8 - But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. Then you will tell people about me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria. And you will even tell other people about me from one end of the earth to the other.

So this time we are looking at Samaria. I’d like to start with paraphrasing the story that the writer leads with. Pay close attention to this and see if you can relate. He starts with his history as a pastor’s son and the importance of missions, with an emphasis on ALL people need Jesus. He would always invite his closest friends.

But there was one family out on the edge of town he refers to as the Thirsty Family. No way he would ever invite them! They were dirty, smelly and obviously poor. There was one boy about his age that soaked up Bible verses and drills like a sponge! He ends with this quote -

The Thirsty family was not like anyone else in our church, and Ralph Thirsty was not like me or my friends. Our children's teachers had to make concerted efforts to reach out to the Thirsty kids. Today I'm sorry I didn't make the same effort.

Has something similar happened to you? I am ashamed to admit this, but it has to me. We tend to gravitate to those that we want to spend time with. Those people need Jesus too, but what about the kid that’s picked last? Or that doesn’t wear the right shoes? Or may not have running water at home to shower? Again, I am ashamed that when I called myself a Christian in middle and high school that I let ANYONE go uninvited to church or even to Jesus.

Cultural History

As a brief background, the Samaritans are part of Hebrew culture. For instance, Jesus met the woman at Jacob’s well in Samaria. They trace their lineage back to Jacob, just like the Jews. Following the Assyrian conquest in 722 B.C., the Samaritans intermarried with the invaders and incorporated some of their religious practices. In contrast, the ‘traditional’ Jews who returned from captivity did not intermarry and thus viewed themselves as more faithful to God’s ways.

I propose that we could look at it as a denominational difference. I happen to go to a Southern Baptist church, but I am no more or less saved than someone at a Methodist or Assembly of God or any title you want to throw out. At least as long as that someone is a blood bought believer in Jesus Christ. We can have differences of opinion on eschatology or women pastors, but as long as we trust in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ to pay for our sins, we are still brothers and sisters in Christ.

Now to be sure there are others that will claim the title of Christianity but preach a false gospel. Think of the Mormons and their works based, or Muslims and their allegiance to their Messiah. You could even say the Jewish people today that reject Christ. Do we ignore them because they are different? Or do we take the Gospel to them as well? Are they not God’s creation too, for whom Jesus died?

Here’s a quick test. Do you believe the truth? Does it agree with what they believe? If not, then they need to hear the truth. Period. Then they can make their own decision. Don’t assume the individuals in these religions have rejected the truth; they may be living the only thing they’ve ever been told.

Intentional

And lastly on this lesson about Samaria (or as a substitute ‘other denominations’) the writer says that “Jesus was intentional in His approach to reach the Samaritans.” Jesus went out of His way to travel through the area. This should be a lesson to us. In this modern day, we are minutes by car from people we may never normally come into contact with. Is God calling you to be a witness there?

And remember to personalize the message, like Jesus did. Keep this in mind as you talk to people. As long as you don’t compromise the message - the Gospel - you can use different techniques and conversation.

This applies to more than just witnessing and conversions. It also applies to discipleship, something we are called to take part in. Remember, everyone is at a different stage of their spiritual growth.

Until next time, be Blessed and strive to do His will!

"Almost New" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jimmylogan.substack.com