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Why do Christians have no trouble talking with great excitement about sports, movies, vacations, sales at the mall… but those same people never talk about Jesus? Lots of excuses can be given, but it’s time to stop pretending and admit that we are just not excited enough about Jesus to share Him with anyone. The church doesn’t have a missions problem, it has a heart problem, and until we get serious and ask God to break our hearts, we will never fulfill our part in the Great Commission.
When you consider the odds that were stacked against the mission of the early church, it is literally nothing short of miraculous that it ever succeeded at all. Jesus sent a handful of trembling followers into a hostile world to proclaim an unbelievable story to people who hated them. On their own, these weak, broken followers had no chance whatsoever of accomplishing this task. How, then, were they able to carry out this mission with such astonishing power, and what must we learn from them?
As the church today, we have become professionals at gathering. We spend millions on massive buildings, hi-tech sound and video productions, even pyrotechnics in some cases! We have become experts at putting on performances that rival Disney and Hollywood, all in an effort to meet the ever-growing demands of our members so they’ll be happy and keep coming back. In so doing, we have completely missed the heartbeat of God and have entertained ourselves into irrelevance.
Who could ever imagine sending an innocent person to be beaten and put to death in the place of a violent murderer? Nothing about that would be fair! Yet that is exactly what Jesus did. He died on the cross even though He was innocent, and Barabbas was set free even though he was guilty. Barabbas is a picture of us all — guilty before God and facing His judgement. But Jesus stepped in and became our substitute, paying our debt and setting us free!
Jesus enters Jerusalem a few days before His crucifixion and examines the spiritual condition of the people. What He finds is a nation bustling with outward displays of religious activity, but beneath the surface, there is nothing but dead religion. He curses a fruitless fig tree as a sign of judgement against them, and then He throws the corrupt money changers out of the Temple for defiling His Father’s house. If Jesus were to examine our lives today, would He see a cold, dead heart beneath the outward religious appearance, or would He find fruit growing for His glory?
As Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey, the crowds threw their coats on the road before Him and shouted, “Hosanna! Blessed is the King of Israel!” They wanted a king who would rule their nation, but they didn’t want a King who would rule their hearts. When they realized that Jesus was not the kind of savior they wanted, they turned on Him and shouted, “Crucify Him!” What kind of savior are you looking for? One who will give you everything you want, or one who will reign in your heart?
Have you ever had a task before you that you dreaded so much, you tried to find ways to delay it or to keep from having to do it at all? Maybe it was a difficult exam, a dentist appointment, or a meeting with your boss. But none of those events come close to the crushing pressure that Jesus faced as He made His way to the cross. So then, what caused Him to pick up the pace and walk boldly towards Jerusalem, straight into the suffering that awaited Him, and what can we learn from His example?
We are constantly bombarded with advertising designed to make us discontent with what we have so that we will always feel compelled to pursue something more. This can easily send us on a never-ending quest for happiness and fulfillment; always thinking, “I’ll be happy when…” or “I’d be happier if…” In stark contrast to this, the Bible calls us to live a life of contentment, but is that even possible? Today’s message reveals the secret of being content, even in a world that isn’t.
A child who awakens in a dark room in the middle of the night is often gripped with fear, yet all it takes to comfort him is the presence of his father or mother. The same darkness is still there, but the child’s heart is now at rest simply because he is not alone. As we walk through the dark seasons of life, we are easily filled with fear. The one thing that will bring true peace and comfort into those situations is knowing that Jesus has promised to always be with us to the very end of the world!
Just a quick glance at the headlines reminds us that we live in a world filled with trouble. Terrorism, wars, toppling governments, economic instability — it’s enough to make us want to run and hide. But even though we live in a world of fear, we do not have to live in fear! The Bible reminds us that God is in complete control of all things, and that nothing happens in the world at large or in our own lives that is outside of His providence. Knowing this truth will bring us peace even in the most troubling times of life.
Have you ever said, “If I had a chance to live my life over, I’d live it so much better!” But why is it that we don’t go ahead and make those changes now with the one life we do have? The Bible tells us how to invest our life wisely so we don’t reach the end and realize we wasted it. Jesus has entrusted each of us with different “talents” and one day He will return to see how we invested them. Will we hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” or will He rebuke us for the way we managed what He gave us?
God sends so many blessings into our lives, but there is always a danger that those very blessings will be the things that draw our hearts away from Him. Because of this, the Bible warns us to never treasure anything more than we treasure God. We can become so consumed by our treasures that we refuse to let them go, and as a result, we will miss God’s mission for our life. Are you investing the blessings God gives you for His kingdom, or are you using them all for your own benefit?
