| As we look at the way society seems to be going, there is no doubt that we are in need of a true savior. The world is trying all the different ways to fill the voids in their lives. I believe that society is searching for someone or something to fill this void, to erase the emptiness that can’t get filled. Religion has bound us in the rigors of right and wrong. Jesus is dealing with the issues of life and death. Jesus is one who walks with us down our road, with all the triumphs and heartaches, to guide us; not only to point us in the right direction, but to walk down that path with us. His path leads us to victory and to be just like Him. In this walk Jesus calls us to a higher calling, maybe even one we can’t yet see or believe for… yet.
The challenge for today’s Christian is not to walk by sight, but to walk by faith (2 Cor. 5:7) “For we walk by faith, not by sight“. After all, we are to be men and women of faith. So the goal of this is to show that we are to be calling those things which are not as though they are, (Rom. 4:17). WE must also remember as the Word says in Gal.5: 6 “but faith works through love“. Meaning that if we have the God kind of love, we will believe for people not against them. We must recognize that God says that judgment will start in the house of God (1Pet.4: 17). I believe that as long as we are looking at the world and its problems it helps us to ignore the areas that we struggle in. Often we judge ourselves by our intentions and everyone else by their actions. All things that are exposed, are made manifest by the light….in YOU! “What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside“. (1 Cor. 5:12-13a) If we judge the world, we will judge their sin and we have no right to do that. (Matt.7:1-2 & John 3:17-18). In Eph.5: 11-14: it says that we are to expose sin “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore, He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light“. This means that we are to expose sin with the light of the Glory of God in us. We do not expose them by what we see or perceive in our opinion realm. (Matt 5:16) “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven”. It has always been easier to judge by our mind (usually unrenewed or unchallenged) and with words of judgment or opinion. A brother in the Lord once said to me, that the Lord told him, that religion always works from the outside in; whereas God always works from the inside out. He changes our heart with His presence and His Word, and then He works His way outward until His Word changes our very desires. Religion looks at the sin and judges your level of spirituality by what you exhibit on the outside. We also judge people by what our church tells us or allows; such as their list of do’s and don’ts. They usually tell people to live a life that they can’t maintain themselves. It seems to me that the more we criticize others the farther from a Christ like nature we are. “What Would Jesus Do?” We must ask ourselves the question “What Would Jesus Do….in me?” The world needs to see this same Jesus, who is alive and active as a light, a hope to the world through YOU. He’s the same Jesus that heals the sick, sets at liberty those that are captive, binds up the broken hearted, raises the dead, through YOU! (Luke 4:18) Oh, how much God loves the world. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…” (John 3:16a). The world will turn to or reject the Jesus in you. The Jesus that comes from you spending time in the Word of God (being taught by the Holy Spirit) and building an intimate relationship with Jesus and the Father. “And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling and my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God”. (1 Cor.2:1-5) We are to be Jesus’ hand stretched out to a world of need. We are not to be influenced by their sin, but allow the pure light (Matt.5:16, 2 Cor.4:4-6, 2 Pet.1:19) and simplicity of the gospel (Rom.12:8, 2 Cor.1:12) to flood their hearts. This is only built at the feet of Jesus, by the Holy Spirit teaching and illuminating the Word to us. We will then take this out into a world of darkness and allow the light of God to influence a world of sin. Let the Holy Spirit do His job as a convictor. We must remember that the focus of the ministry of Christ was SERVANTHOOD, He was a servant to all. (Matt. 20: 26-28) “Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. ”And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave; just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” When we spend time in His presence and His Word we build a “Jesus” atmosphere. Then we take this atmosphere out into the world and allow Jesus (the atmosphere) to teach, heal, help and restore hope through us. We must remember that Jesus served a new way of life to the world, which He called “The Gospel or good news”. Jesus worked in the world, but He didn’t let the world work in Him. He was a light in a dark place. “The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned. From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:16-17) and in Luke he said “To give knowledge of salvation to His people by the remission of their sins, through the tender mercy of our God, With which the Dayspring from on high has visited us; to give light to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace“. (Luke 1:77-79) We are to be a hope and a possibilityWe must always remember we are to be a hope and a possibility in a hopeless society. We are to be a light(the Glory of God) in a dark and sinful world. There is a place for believing God for our needs, but you have to come to a place where you will listen to Him, minister to Him, Love Him, allow Him to talk more than you talk. You need to listen, more than you want Him to listen to your needs. there will come out of His light that will pierce your darkness. There will be more deliverance received in His presence than anywhere else. What you are doing is building a relationship that contains a “Jesus Atmosphere”, in you. Out of this atmosphere you will walk into the world and transfer His supernatural ability to a world that so desperately needs Jesus. The real Jesus, The same one of the Bible, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” (Heb.13: 8) We are called here to teach the Word of God without religious traditions, which chokes the life out of Word of God (Mk.7:13). We believe that the Word of God gives us the understanding (a foundation) on how God’s kingdom principles (or His Will: Eph.5: 17)work, and sitting at His feet gives us the confidence that He will do what He says He will do (2 Cor.1:20). The answer to the question “can we really help?” is not dependent on God but YOU and your willingness to mature in His presence with great commitment and compassion for a world in desperate need. My goal in this teaching is to get people who have a true heart for God to feel the need of the world, then minister to the world out of their relationship with the Lord, rather than their religion or criticism. The call is to love Him, talk to Him, fellowship with Him, study His Word, then the answer to the question “can we really help?” is YES! Yes, you can transfer the Life & love of Christ to a world that needs it and desires it. If this teaching has helped or challenged you, pray the following over your life and then thank God continually for helping you make the changes to maturity. In the Name of Jesus Amen Pastor Randy Mattern |
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