Participants:
Series Code: DPM
Program Code: DPM000024A
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00:05 Heavenly Father, as we go through the series this weekend,
00:10 and as we open up Your Word, we believe there is power 00:12 in the Scriptures. 00:14 You have promised, Lord, that when Your Word is preached, 00:17 or read and studied, that it never comes back to You void. 00:21 And so we ask just now that our ears might hear 00:24 what the Spirit wishes to say to the churches today. 00:28 We pray that we might understand Your Word. 00:30 And most of all, Lord, if there is some hurting person 00:34 in our life that You want us to reach out to, 00:37 then we give You permission to bring their names to our mind 00:41 over these next few days. 00:43 This we ask in Jesus' name. Amen. 00:48 I had the privilege of living just outside the city of 00:51 Pittsburgh for about seven years of our ministry. 00:55 Now when you live so close to a large metropolitan area 00:59 like Pittsburgh, you tend to take advantage of the 01:02 cultural activities that you find there. 01:05 So there were times that Marquita and I would visit 01:08 one of the many museums in the downtown area. 01:11 Or when we were able, we would go and spend a day 01:15 at the Pittsburgh zoo. 01:17 And when we had some extra money in the budget, 01:19 we might even go listen to the symphony orchestra play. 01:23 But I remember one day something happened to me 01:27 in downtown Pittsburgh that I will never forget. 01:31 It happened like this. 01:33 I had been out visiting all day long. 01:36 Serving as a pastor there, I had made some appointments 01:39 to do some visits all through the afternoon 01:41 and even up till the evening time. 01:44 But part way through the day my cell phone rang. 01:47 And it turned out the appointment I had 01:50 for the evening had canceled on me. 01:52 And I realized I have a whole evening free. 01:55 And let me tell you, in pastoral ministry 01:57 that doesn't always happen. 01:59 So I decided to call my wife on the phone, 02:02 and I said, "Honey, listen, my appointment 02:05 for tonight canceled on me. 02:06 What do you want to do?" 02:08 And so we decided to make it a date night. 02:12 Now how many people here know what a date night is? 02:13 Let me see your hands. 02:15 Well, every couple needs to have a date night. 02:18 That's when a husband and wife put everything else aside, 02:22 including kids when possible, and they go out on a date 02:25 just like they did before they were married. 02:28 So Marquita and I decided, that night was going to be 02:31 our date night. 02:33 And we decided that we were going to go to one of those 02:36 special restaurants in downtown Pittsburgh. 02:39 Now you know what I mean when I say, special? 02:42 Yeah, expensive. 02:44 It's one of those fancy places you can only go to 02:47 once or twice a year on a special occasion. 02:50 So this was going to be our special occasion. 02:54 So when I finished my last visit late in the afternoon 02:57 I jumped in the car and I rushed home. 03:00 Marquita and I got all dressed up and ready 03:03 for our special evening together. 03:06 We each took turns hopping into the shower, 03:08 she put on some sweet smelling perfume, 03:11 and I put on some manly smelling cologne. 03:14 You now, us pastors and wives, we like romance too, you know. 03:18 Somebody ought to say amen. 03:20 I remember, after we got all ready, we jumped in the car. 03:23 And we started driving up interstate 79 03:27 into the downtown Pittsburgh area. 03:29 Got off at the Fifth Avenue exit and we began to meander 03:34 our way through the heavy traffic there. 03:36 Now I don't know if you've ever been to the Pittsburgh area, 03:39 but if you have, it's not an easy place to drive. 03:43 See, Pittsburgh, unlike other cities, is not made like a grid 03:48 to where if you miss a turn, you just go up the road 03:50 and you turn around. 03:52 Pittsburgh was built on the end of three different rivers. 03:56 The Monongahela, the Allegheny, and the Ohio River. 04:00 And there are many bridges there. 04:02 So if you happen to miss a turn, it might be quite a while 04:06 before you're able to turn around again 04:08 and go in the other direction. 04:10 Even in Pittsburgh you can see the building you want to go to, 04:14 but how to get there, that's another story. 04:18 Well, fortunately for Marquita and I that night, 04:21 we were able to find this restaurant 04:23 without much of a problem. 04:25 But then our next problem, though, was the parking. 04:29 Fortunately, we found a spot just two or three blocks 04:32 away from the restaurant. 04:33 And so I backed the car in, opened my door and got out, 04:39 walked to the other side and opened the door for Marquita. 04:42 And then I took her by the hand and we started walking 04:46 down the sidewalk for our romantic evening together. 04:50 But no sooner had we started walking down that sidewalk, 04:53 and there he was. 04:55 I could see him just standing there. 04:58 It was as though he knew I was coming. 05:02 He was standing there holding out his hands 05:04 begging for money. 05:08 He was a bum. A beggar. 05:10 Some people would have called him a vagabond. 05:13 And you see, he had perfectly positioned himself 05:16 right near the entrance to this restaurant 05:19 because he figured anybody who goes here to have a bite to eat 05:23 must be somebody who has money. 05:26 Well as soon as I saw him, 05:28 I immediately became uncomfortable. 05:31 I thought, "Oh man, I can't give this guy any money. 05:34 I'm already going to spend enough at this restaurant. 05:36 What do I say? What do I do?" 05:39 And all sorts of options ran through my mind. 05:42 I thought, should I ignore him? 05:45 Should I act like he's not there? 05:47 Maybe I should just walk by him. 05:49 Or maybe I should cross to the other side of the street, 05:52 go by, and when I'm past him then I'll cross back over 05:55 and go inside the restaurant. 05:58 And so, what I decided to do is, as I crossed his path 06:02 I turned my head away from him and I acted like 06:05 I was talking to my wife. 06:08 And I completely ignored him as though he never even existed. 06:15 And then I went into the restaurant 06:17 and I had my expensive meal. 06:21 By the end of my meal, I had begun to feel guilty 06:25 about what I had done. 06:27 And when our meal was over and we went back out to the car, 06:30 I went to see if the man was still there, 06:33 but he was gone. 06:34 And I never saw him again. 06:39 As we drove home that night, it was with a heavy heart. 06:42 Because I began to ask myself, what's wrong with me? 06:46 Why couldn't I talk to this man? 06:49 Why couldn't I even look at him? 06:51 What was it inside of me that made me want to ignore the 06:55 hurting person that God had put right in front of my eyes? 07:01 Have you ever had an experience like that? 07:04 Because chances are, if we're honest, we all have. 07:08 Because every day you and I live and work around hurting people. 07:13 And I wonder how many opportunities we've missed 07:16 to be able to reach out to others with the hands of Jesus 07:20 in mercy and in compassion? 07:23 Every day we cross the paths of people who need mercy. 07:27 Now that may include the beggar on the street. 07:30 But it can also be the person in your workplace 07:33 maybe who's going through a divorce. 07:35 Or the person in my neighborhood who is dealing with sickness. 07:39 Or maybe the person in your school who just doesn't have 07:43 any friends. 07:45 You know, Jesus told a parable that illustrates this 07:48 in a very powerful way. 07:50 It illustrates how much Jesus wants us to be reaching out 07:54 to the hurting people of this world. 07:58 I want to invite you to turn with me to a story that 08:00 Jesus told about 2000 years ago. 08:03 I want you to take your Bibles and turn with me to the 08:06 book of Matthew chapter 25. 08:10 We want to take our Bibles and we're going to spend our time 08:13 this evening in the book of Matthew chapter 25, 08:17 and we're going to begin taking a look at verse 31. 08:22 Now I'll be reading from the New King James Version. 08:24 You're welcome to use whatever version 08:26 that you're comfortable with. 08:28 Now if you have these subtitles in your Bible, 08:31 can you tell me what is this parable called? 08:34 Do you know? 08:35 Yeah, it's the parable of the sheep and the goats. 08:39 And it may be that you have read this parable many times. 08:43 But tonight, I want to invite you to look at it 08:46 from a different perspective. 08:48 I want you to try to picture everything Jesus 08:51 describes in this story. 08:53 Because even though in a sense Jesus is speaking symbolically, 08:58 the things that He teaches are so powerful 09:01 of what He wants His people and His church to be doing today. 09:06 So let's take a look at Matthew chapter 25, 09:09 and I want to begin by reading verses 31 to 33. 09:14 I want you to picture this in your mind. 09:18 The Bible says, and this is Jesus speaking, 09:22 "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, 09:25 and all the holy angels come with Him, 09:28 then He will sit on the throne of His glory." 09:31 And all the nations..." 09:34 How many of the nations? 09:35 "All the nations will be gathered before Him, 09:38 and He will separate them one from another, 09:42 as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 09:45 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, 09:49 but the goats on the left." 09:53 Now I want to pause here for a second. 09:54 We don't want to look over this parable too quickly 09:57 that we miss the point. 09:59 In this passage Jesus is describing what event? 10:04 Can you tell me? 10:05 Yeah, it's the judgment and the second coming 10:08 all wrapped up in one. 10:10 And one of the points that Jesus is making 10:13 is that before He comes back to this earth 10:17 He will have divided the world into how many groups of people? 10:21 That's right. Just two. 10:23 You're either saved or you're lost. 10:27 You've either followed Jesus with all your heart 10:30 or you haven't. 10:31 And each group is symbolized as either being a sheep 10:35 on the right hand or a goat on the left. 10:40 Now isn't it interesting that in this world we love to 10:44 divide people into all sorts of categories. 10:47 We divide people according to their racial status, 10:51 according to their financial status, 10:53 we divide people according to their religious status, 10:56 or even by the languages that they speak. 10:59 I mean, if you've ever filled out a job application 11:02 or taken a survey, you can be divided into so many 11:05 different categories you could develop schizophrenia. 11:09 But here in this story, Jesus says every person 11:13 that has ever lived, every person that's ever been 11:16 born of a woman and walked the face of this earth 11:19 is going to be divided into just two groups of people. 11:23 I'm either going to be a sheep on the right hand 11:26 or I'm going to be a goat on the left. 11:30 Now obviously Jesus is speaking symbolically here. 11:32 Jesus didn't come to save sheep and goats, 11:35 He came to save people. 11:38 Now when you think about it, what do you know about sheep? 11:41 If you've ever grown up on a farm or raised animals, 11:44 the mentality of sheep and goats are very different. 11:49 Sheep, on one hand, are very gentle and docile creatures. 11:53 They are very trusting. 11:55 They are very willing to follow their master 11:58 or follow the shepherd wherever he goes. 12:01 People love sheep. 12:04 On the other hand, however, goats have a totally different 12:09 mentality, don't they? 12:11 They are not cooperative. 12:13 They are not quite as willing to follow the leader. 12:16 And if you take your eyes off them and bend over, 12:20 they have a very nasty habit that is called, butting. 12:23 So obviously the sheep are meant to represent 12:26 those who have humbled themselves to follow Jesus 12:29 of a meek and a quiet spirit. 12:31 The goats are meant to represent those who have chosen 12:35 to go their own way and they have rejected Christ 12:37 and His character. 12:40 So now Jesus has come. 12:42 He's divided the world into two groups; sheep and goats. 12:47 But here is the major question. 12:50 How does Jesus decide who is a sheep and who is a goat? 12:57 What is Jesus looking for to determine if someone has 13:00 truly chosen to follow Him? 13:03 In fact, the real question we want to analyze is, 13:06 in this parable what is the difference, 13:10 what is the main difference between the sheep and the goats? 13:17 Now see, all of us would like to chime in and say, 13:19 "Oh yea, I know what true religion is. 13:21 Jesus is looking to see who sits in the pew 13:23 and goes to church every week." 13:25 Or, "Jesus is looking to see who's got the 28 fundamental 13:29 doctrines memorized." 13:30 Or, "Jesus is looking to see who is faithful 13:33 in their tithes and offerings." 13:35 And all those may be good things, but the truth is 13:38 you can fake all those things without having 13:41 a real relationship with Jesus. 13:43 Just because I sit in a pew doesn't mean that I've given Him 13:46 my entire heart. 13:48 Just because I've intellectually memorized 13:50 28 doctrines doesn't mean I have a real relationship with Him. 13:54 And just because I throw some money at the church 13:57 doesn't necessarily mean I've submitted my heart to Him. 14:00 So what we need to do is look a little deeper in this passage 14:04 and find out what is the difference between 14:08 the sheep and the goats in this story. 14:11 What is Jesus looking for in the lives of the sheep, 14:15 which would be you and me? 14:17 So what I want us to do is instead of throwing our 14:20 own opinions out there of what a true Christian, 14:22 or a true sheep, would be, I'm going to read to you 14:26 the rest of this parable. 14:28 And I want to see if you can pick out from the words of Jesus 14:32 what is the difference, what is the one characteristic 14:35 of the sheep that really stand out in this story. 14:39 Now I'm going to read verses 34 through 40 14:42 all the way through. 14:44 Matthew 25:34 14:48 The Bible says, and Jesus continues, 14:51 "Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 14:56 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared 15:01 for you from the foundation of the world.'" 15:04 Why did they get to inherit the kingdom? 15:07 What's so special about those sheep on the right hand? 15:11 Verse 35 answers the question. 15:14 "For I was hungry and you gave Me food; 15:18 I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; 15:21 I was a stranger and you took Me in; 15:24 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; 15:29 I was in prison and you came to Me." 15:33 And then in verse 37, the righteous have no idea 15:36 what He's talking about. 15:37 Because the parable continues, "Then the righteous 15:40 will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You 15:45 hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 15:50 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, 15:53 or naked and clothe You? 15:56 When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?'" 16:01 And then the whole point is in verse 40. 16:03 Jesus says, "And the King will answer and say to them, 16:09 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it 16:13 to one of the least of these, My brethren, you did it to Me.'" 16:20 Did you catch what Jesus is saying here? 16:23 What is it that makes the sheep different from the goats? 16:28 It basically comes down to how we treat other people. 16:33 You see, the sheep here are constantly described 16:36 as looking out for the hurting people of this world 16:39 and trying to reach out to them. 16:42 Throughout their lives they've been trying to be the 16:45 hands and the feet of Jesus, looking for opportunities 16:49 to minister to others in acts of mercy and compassion. 16:54 In fact, in this parable the sheep had been intentionally 16:58 trying to reach out to a group of people 17:01 that Jesus specifically calls, 17:04 "the least of these, My brethren." 17:07 Not because they're least in God's eyes, 17:09 but because they're least in the world's eyes. 17:12 You see, those are the ones who are disenfranchised 17:15 in this world. 17:17 The ones who are abandoned, 17:19 the ones who have been neglected by this world. 17:21 And Jesus says His people, His church, are going to have the 17:25 character of Christ in them so much 17:28 that they're going to be seeking to minister to them 17:31 in acts of mercy and compassion. 17:34 See, what makes the sheep different 17:37 is, you can look at them and you can see they emanate 17:41 the love and the character of Jesus Christ. 17:45 And see, the reason this is important for us today 17:48 is it's showing us how to be a missionary in the real world. 17:53 You see, it's one thing to say, "Oh yes, we need to follow 17:55 Jesus as our Savior," but the truth is, 17:58 Jesus doesn't walk this earth in a visible bodily form 18:01 like He did 2000 years ago. 18:03 The only way people are going to get a picture of Jesus today, 18:07 a picture of Jesus in the real world, 18:09 is if they see Him through you and I. 18:12 The way we talk to other people, 18:14 the way we treat them. 18:16 The way we reach out to the hurting people 18:19 that are all around us. 18:22 And the interesting thing is, this is a parable 18:25 that is specifically directed at God's end time church. 18:30 Did you know that? 18:31 Because in chapter 25 Jesus tells three parables. 18:35 And all three of them have to do with His people 18:39 living in the last days. 18:41 When you get a chance, read all of chapter 25. 18:44 The first parable is the parable of the ten virgins 18:47 where Jesus is telling His church to be ready 18:50 for when He comes. 18:51 The second parable is the parable of the talents 18:55 where Jesus is telling His people to be 18:57 actively using their gifts to minister to others 19:01 while they're waiting for Jesus to come. 19:04 And then parable number three, the one about the sheep 19:07 and the goats, Jesus is actually showing us 19:11 who He wants us to be reaching out to. 19:14 "The least of these, My brethren." 19:19 Now let's take some time to go through each of these specific 19:22 groups one by one that Jesus happens to mention. 19:26 Now if you go to verse 35, could you tell me 19:30 who are the first two groups that Jesus mentions 19:33 in that particular verse? 19:35 Yeah, He talks about the hungry and the thirsty. 19:39 Or we could say, the poor and the suffering. 19:42 So that makes me as a Christian ask myself, 19:46 how do I treat the poor and the suffering around me? 19:50 How do I treat those who don't have what I have? 19:54 That maybe can't buy their clothes from the Gap 19:57 or Abercrombie and Fitch. 19:59 How do I treat people who maybe don't make 20:01 the amount of money that I do, can't live in the kind of house 20:04 or drive the car that I do. 20:07 Do I reach out to them in love and mercy? 20:10 Do I choose to be their friend? 20:12 Or do I kind of keep my distance and come across 20:15 with a, "holier than thou," attitude? 20:19 I remember when I pastored in Pennsylvania, 20:22 just again outside of Pittsburgh. 20:25 I met a young man who taught me a lesson I'll never forget. 20:29 This man's name was Michael Brock. 20:31 Michael was in his early 20's, and I actually met him 20:36 while playing basketball with another church member. 20:39 This church member had invited me over to his home, 20:42 and you know, we were shooting some hoops. 20:44 And his friend, Mike, came over. 20:47 Well Mike was a really nice guy. 20:48 And after a while we got a chance to talk to each other. 20:52 And I learned that at one time in his life Mike used to 20:55 go to church, and he just kind of fell away for a while. 20:59 Well eventually Mike and I ended up having Bible studies. 21:02 And Mike rededicated his life to Jesus, 21:05 he was baptized, and he became a member of the 21:08 Seventh-day Adventist Church right there 21:10 in Washington, Pennsylvania just outside of Pittsburgh. 21:15 Well, one of the things that Mike loved to do 21:18 is Mike loved baseball. 21:21 And of course, living near Pittsburgh 21:23 guess who his favorite team was. 21:26 The Pittsburgh Pirates. 21:28 Nothing much to root for then. 21:30 Don't tell him I said that. 21:31 Because they were in last place when I lived there. 21:33 They're doing much better now. 21:35 But one of Mike's traditions was to always go to the 21:39 first home game of the season up there at PNC Park. 21:43 And there were times when Mike invited me to go. 21:47 Now I wasn't much for paying high prices for tickets 21:50 at sporting events, but since the Pirates were basically 21:54 a last place team, their tickets didn't cost very much. 21:57 So I would go to the games with Mike 22:00 just as an opportunity to just really connect with him 22:03 as my brother in Christ. 22:05 Well when I went to PNC Park, there's something that I noticed 22:09 at the end of every game. 22:12 When the game is concluded and all the people are flooding 22:16 out of the stadium, you have to go across the 22:19 Roberto Clemente Bridge in order to get to 22:23 the train station. 22:24 Because, you see, in Pittsburgh, not too different from 22:27 St. Louis where I live, but in Pittsburgh 22:30 people don't want to drive downtown to the stadium 22:33 because the traffic is horrible and the parking 22:35 is very expensive. 22:37 So what they do is they will park at a station 22:41 just outside of Pittsburgh, then they'll pay a couple of dollars 22:44 to hop on the Metro, or the train. 22:47 And the Metro will take them right within a couple of blocks 22:51 of the stadium. 22:52 So once the game is over, in order for people to get 22:56 back to the train station they have got to go across 23:00 this Roberto Clemente Bridge. 23:02 There's no two ways about it. 23:05 Well, guess who would position themselves along that bridge 23:09 after every single Pirates game? 23:13 That's right. 23:15 All the bums, the beggars, the vagabonds. 23:19 Many of them would position themselves, 23:21 they're holding out their hands. 23:23 Or maybe playing one of their instruments like a violin 23:26 and keeping their case open so that when you pass by 23:30 hopefully somebody would drop a couple of dollars 23:33 inside that open case. 23:35 Because they knew people coming from the ball game 23:37 were people who probably had cash in their pocket. 23:42 You know, when I saw them, 23:44 I didn't want to have anything to do with them. 23:47 I went across that bridge as fast as I could. 23:50 I didn't want to talk to them, I didn't want to see them, 23:53 because I had already assumed the negative about them. 23:56 They'll just use the money on beer and booze, 23:58 and who knows what else. 24:00 They're where they are because of the 24:01 choices they made in life. 24:03 I didn't want to interact with them at all. 24:06 But you know what Michael Brock did? 24:10 Every single time Michael would stop at the first person 24:15 whose path he crossed, he would just get out a couple of dollars 24:18 from his wallet and he would give it to them. 24:21 But that's not what impressed me. 24:23 What impressed me is he then stopped, 24:26 he looked at them in the eyes, and he flashed the biggest 24:30 Christian smile, and he said a few kind and 24:34 encouraging words to them. 24:36 And he said, "God bless you, sir. 24:39 God bless you." 24:41 I looked at Mike, and then I looked at myself. 24:46 And I saw the difference. 24:48 Here I am suppose to be a mature Christian pastor 24:52 running away from the scene, ignoring all the hurting people 24:55 that God put right in front of my eyes. 24:58 And here is Michael Brock, the new Christian, 25:01 reaching out his hands in mercy and compassion, 25:04 simply to speak a few kind and encouraging words 25:08 and interact with them. 25:10 And my heart was broken. 25:12 And I couldn't help but say, "Oh God, 25:16 help me to be a little bit more like Mike. 25:19 Or better yet, Lord, help me to be like Jesus." 25:25 Because that's who Mike was being an example of. 25:29 Now I know someone might say, 25:31 "So you give them a couple of bucks. 25:33 Is it really going to change their life?" 25:36 Probably not. 25:38 I don't usually give people money. 25:39 I like to give them something to eat when I can. 25:42 But you know what was impressed on my mind? 25:46 You know, a lot of times we think, "Oh, God put that 25:49 beggar there so that I can make a difference in their life." 25:53 But did you ever think that maybe, just maybe 25:56 it's the other way around? 25:58 That maybe God put that beggar there to make a difference 26:01 in my life. 26:03 That maybe God put that beggar there to help me realize 26:06 that I need to have a little bit more of God's 26:08 character in my life. 26:10 That maybe I don't have as much mercy and compassion 26:13 as I thought I had. 26:15 Maybe God put that beggar there to help me realize 26:19 I need to humble myself before Jesus and say, "Lord, 26:22 help me love people the way that You do. 26:25 Help me to have Your character in my life." 26:29 When you look at it that way, it changes the entire way 26:33 that you think. 26:35 What about you and I? 26:37 What about the hurting people God puts across 26:40 our path every day? 26:43 People who need a little love. 26:45 People who just need some mercy and compassion. 26:49 Now that may not necessarily mean the beggar on the street, 26:52 though it certainly would include him, 26:55 but what about the people we work with in the office? 26:58 What about the people we live with in our neighborhood? 27:01 What about the people that we go to school with? 27:04 Are our eyes open for those hurting people 27:07 to reach out to them? 27:09 Or am I simply focused on my own life and my own world? 27:16 Jesus goes on, He mentions another group. 27:19 Now if you go to verse 35, what's the next group of people 27:23 Jesus mentions right after the hungry and the thirsty? 27:27 Yeah, He talks about the stranger. 27:30 Now a stranger doesn't necessarily mean somebody 27:33 you've never met before. 27:35 A stranger can be somebody you see on a regular basis. 27:38 They're just someone who has no friend. 27:42 Oh, you know who I mean. 27:44 What about that stranger in your workplace? 27:47 Oh, everybody knows his name. 27:49 But he's the guy that nobody else wants to work with. 27:53 He's mean, he's nasty, he's a difficult person. 27:57 And nobody wants to have a project with him. 27:59 He's the guy everybody talks about around the water cooler 28:03 when they have a break. 28:04 And when the gang goes out for lunch, 28:07 nobody ever invites him along. 28:10 But did you ever think that maybe God puts you in that 28:13 workplace to be a missionary to him? 28:16 That God called you to that office to have the opportunity 28:20 to reach out to that person in mercy and love and compassion. 28:24 Because while the world may turn away from him, 28:28 while it may be the world that neglects or abandons him, 28:31 God's people are to be different. 28:34 His church is to be different. 28:36 If truly we are to be the missionaries of Jesus, 28:39 if we are to be His hands and feet, 28:42 if I'm supposed to be a picture of Jesus in the real world, 28:46 that means God has called me to reach out to that person 28:50 to become his friend. 28:52 Because chances are, when people are mean and nasty, 28:58 it's usually because they're hiding some deep hurt inside. 29:02 And when we show mercy and compassion, 29:05 it provides for them a healing of their wound. 29:11 What about that stranger in your neighborhood? 29:14 You know, the lady that lives across the street. 29:17 Nobody likes her. 29:18 Her words are ugly, 29:20 she never has anything good to say about anybody, 29:23 she complains about all the neighbors, all the children. 29:25 She's even talked about you. 29:28 When children walk across her yard, they veil their face 29:32 so they don't have to look in her eyes. 29:34 I mean, they can feel the coldness emanating 29:37 from her house and it puts a chill on their spine. 29:41 But yet, you notice that when you're celebrating Thanksgiving 29:46 over the holidays, and your family is gathered around 29:49 the Thanksgiving table, you happen to look out the window 29:53 and you notice there's never any cars parked in her driveway. 29:59 No one goes to see her, and she doesn't go to see anybody else. 30:03 And you realize she's alone. 30:06 She's neglected. 30:08 She's been abandoned by this world. 30:10 That's why she's mean. 30:12 That's why she's nasty. 30:14 That's why she's a crabby old lady. 30:16 Because nobody ever bothered to care. 30:19 And perhaps God placed you in that neighborhood 30:22 to be His missionary. 30:24 That God purposely placed you in a house that's 30:27 right across from her so you have a chance to 30:29 offer to be her friend, to spend time with her. 30:33 To be able to break through that crusty surface 30:36 through acts of mercy and compassion. 30:39 That's what God calls His people to do. 30:43 Or what about the stranger in your school? 30:46 You know, that girl that sits in the lunch room all by herself, 30:50 and nobody ever sits with her. 30:52 It's not cool to be her friend. 30:55 Maybe she wears hand-me-down clothes. 30:58 Maybe her hair is never kept. 31:00 Maybe her skin is a different color, 31:02 or maybe she speaks a different language. 31:04 And people don't want to be seen sitting with her 31:07 because they think, "Well, that might ruin my reputation." 31:10 But did you ever think God called you to that school 31:13 to be His missionary? 31:15 That God is looking for young people who will 31:16 march down to that lunchroom and say, 31:18 "I don't care what other people think. 31:20 This person needs a friend." 31:22 And you have the chance to show mercy and compassion, 31:25 to reach out to someone who is hurting, 31:27 to show them what Jesus looks like in the real world. 31:31 That's the kind of church God is looking for today. 31:34 That's the kind of people whom God wants to 31:37 create inside with His character. 31:40 You say, "But Pastor David, you know, 31:42 that's not an easy thing to do. 31:43 I don't like difficult people." 31:45 Well, guess what. 31:46 I don't like difficult people either. 31:48 I mean, I'll be honest. 31:50 On some of my weak days, and there's a lot of them, 31:53 because we all have a human nature, 31:55 some days I might be walking down the hallway of a church 31:58 and I see a certain person coming my way, 32:01 you know what, I'm making a detour to the bathroom. 32:04 And I don't even have to go. 32:05 Why? Because I know what's going to 32:07 come out of their mouth. 32:09 It's just going to be a slew of criticism and complaints 32:12 and negative words. 32:14 And you know what? On some of my weak 32:16 spiritual days, there are times when I just 32:18 don't want to hear it. 32:20 You ever feel like that? 32:23 But I also realize, God puts those 32:25 negative people in my life. 32:28 Because it's a chance for me to show mercy and compassion. 32:32 It's a chance for God to take my crusty soul 32:36 and begin to create in me His own 32:39 merciful and loving character. 32:43 You know, to illustrate this I want to tell you a true story 32:47 that I wish had never happened. 32:49 I wish I could say this story wasn't true. 32:52 But it's something that's just burned in my mind forever. 32:56 When I lived in Lincoln, Nebraska 32:59 and I worked for Christian Record Services, 33:02 I remember there was a particular barber shop 33:05 where I would go to get my hair cut. 33:08 And on this particular day I had an appointment 33:10 and I was a few minutes early. 33:12 Now in most barber shops when you're waiting your turn 33:16 there's usually a lot of magazines you can pick up 33:18 and read them until the barber is ready. 33:20 And so that's what I was doing. 33:22 But I noticed that the two guys who were getting their 33:25 hair cut, they were having a conversation. 33:28 And they were actually having a conversation about religion. 33:32 And that intrigued me. 33:33 In fact, I heard one guy say to the other guy, 33:37 "Do you know Jesus Christ as your Savior?" 33:40 Well I tell you, that got my attention. 33:42 I hear a lot of things talked about in a barber shop, 33:44 but I ain't never heard anybody ask that question. 33:47 So even though my eyes are looking down at the magazine, 33:50 I'm listening to every word that's going on here. 33:54 And I remember the guy answered him as quick 33:56 as a flash, "Why, yes I have, I have accepted Jesus Christ 33:59 as my Savior." 34:01 And then as they began to talk about other things, 34:05 I heard this man say something that just made my heart drop. 34:09 I forget exactly what they were talking about, 34:13 but I remember distinctly something he said. 34:16 I remember he looked at the guy and he said, 34:18 "You know, the only people who ever gave me any trouble 34:23 were Seventh-day Adventists." 34:26 And my mouth just dropped. 34:29 Now you could hear a pin drop because 34:30 I want to hear what this guy has to say. 34:34 And he went on to tell the story about his wife 34:37 who was a former Seventh-day Adventist. 34:40 She had grown up in the church and just for whatever reason 34:43 she fell away, as what sometimes happens. 34:46 Well, she was a nurse who was working at a local hospital. 34:49 And in that same hospital were other Adventist ladies 34:52 who were also nurses. 34:54 And when they found out that she used to go to church, 34:58 to the Adventist church, they tried to win her back to Jesus. 35:01 And I mean, that's a good thing. 35:03 But when she didn't respond the way that they wanted her to, 35:07 or when she didn't respond fast enough, 35:10 they basically said to her, "Well, I guess if you want to 35:12 bow down to the beast, I guess that's your problem." 35:15 And of course, she took that story back to her husband 35:19 who had a Catholic background. 35:21 And then everything he ever heard or saw of Adventists, 35:25 because of that experience he looked at them 35:27 through negative glasses. 35:29 And as I heard this story, and I'm sitting there... 35:32 And they didn't know I was a Seventh-day Adventist. 35:34 And to be honest with you, I'm glad that they didn't know 35:37 at that point because I was ashamed of what I heard. 35:40 And it was as though the Holy Spirit prompted me and said, 35:43 "David, go talk to him." 35:46 And then I argued with God. I mean, silently. 35:48 I'm like, "What do You mean, 'Go talk to him'? 35:49 What do You want me to say?" 35:51 "David..." 35:52 And it was impressed on me, "Go apologize and 35:54 tell him you're sorry." 35:56 "Me? For what? 35:57 I didn't do it. 35:59 How am I going to have this conversation with him, Lord? 36:01 All these people will hear what I'm saying." 36:04 You know, and so I kind of delayed and I'm silently 36:08 going back and forth with God in my mind. 36:10 And so once his haircut was over and he walked out the door, 36:15 now I'm between a rock and a hard place. 36:17 The barber is calling for me to come to the chair, 36:20 this guy is going out the door, and God says, "Go apologize." 36:23 And so finally I said, "Umm, one second, I'll be right back." 36:28 And I ran out to the guy in the parking lot 36:30 and I said, "Sir, sir. 36:32 Umm, I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry." 36:38 And of course, he looked at me like, "For what? 36:40 What are you sorry for?" 36:42 And I said, "Well, sir, you see, I'm a Seventh-day Adventist. 36:47 And I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry that 36:49 someone from my church treated you like that. 36:52 I just want you to know we're not all like that." 36:56 And I remember the man stopped, and he put out his hand 37:00 to shake my hand. 37:02 He said, "I appreciate that." 37:03 And he said, "I know. 37:05 I've met some wonderful Seventh-day Adventists. 37:08 And I now that there's bears in every church." 37:11 And what he meant is, "I know there's difficult people 37:13 in every church. 37:15 But thank you for coming out and saying so." 37:19 That was an uncomfortable moment for me. 37:22 I hope in some way that helped to heal a little bit of the 37:25 wound that was in that man's heart and in his wife's heart. 37:29 But there were two lessons it ingrained in my mind, 37:32 that experience. 37:34 And one of those lessons is this: 37:35 Number one, if people don't see Jesus in us, 37:40 then when it comes to our message 37:42 nobody is listening. 37:45 I want to say it again. 37:47 If people don't see the love and mercy and compassion 37:51 of Jesus in our heart, then when it comes to our message, 37:55 no matter how many verses I can quote, 37:57 no matter how eloquent I am, unless they see Jesus in me, 38:01 nobody is listening to a word that I say. 38:06 They're looking for a picture of Jesus in the real world. 38:12 The second thing it said to me is this: 38:16 Having the truth doesn't give me the right to act like the devil. 38:22 Just because I may know truth, 38:24 just because we go very much by what the Bible says, 38:27 that doesn't give me the right to have a, "holier than thou," 38:29 attitude to think that I am better than anyone else. 38:32 Having the truth doesn't give me the right 38:34 to act like the devil. 38:36 People are looking to see Jesus in me. 38:42 The next group of people that Jesus mentions, 38:45 He talks about right there in verse 36, 38:48 now He talks about the naked. 38:51 You say, "Now how are we suppose to apply that one? 38:52 Ain't often you see a naked person running down the street." 38:55 Well, look at it this way. 38:57 What about people who can't wear the things that we do? 39:01 People on welfare. 39:03 People on food stamps. 39:05 Maybe people who have to go to the mission store 39:07 to get their clothes. 39:09 What is my attitude towards them? 39:12 Do I somehow have an air of superiority that 39:15 I think myself better because I can afford nicer things? 39:20 See, the Bible says I shouldn't show favoritism. 39:23 That I need to be the friend of the poor 39:26 as much as I may be the friend of the rich, 39:29 even though they can't give me anything in return. 39:32 Because that's what Jesus would do. 39:34 That's being His missionary. 39:37 Another group of people Jesus mentions here at the end, 39:40 He talks about the sick. 39:42 Now I've got to say something here. 39:44 The sick can be some of the most neglected people in the world. 39:48 Did you know that? 39:49 Hospitals and nursing homes are always full. 39:54 When you think about it, it's a beautiful ministry for 39:57 a husband and a wife team to be able to do. 40:00 Now sometimes I go to churches and they'll say to me, 40:03 "Oh, we've got a wonderful ministry for the sick." 40:07 And I'm like, "Really? Tell me about it." 40:09 "Oh, well it's our pastor. 40:12 He visits every one of them." 40:14 Now I'm going to say something that may 40:16 ruffle your feathers a little bit. 40:18 But did you know, it's not the pastor's job 40:22 to visit the sick. 40:24 Did you know that? 40:25 "What are you talking about?" 40:27 You will not find one verse in the Scripture that says 40:30 it's the pastor's job to visit the sick. 40:33 The Bible says the pastor's job is to train and equip 40:37 members to do ministry. 40:39 Not to do the ministry for them, but to train them 40:42 how to reach out to others. 40:44 Because when you're reading the New Testament, 40:46 it constantly says that New Testament Christians, 40:49 they're supposed to nurture one another, 40:52 take care of one another, watch out for one another. 40:56 And last time I looked up in the dictionary, 40:58 "one another," doesn't mean one person. 41:01 "One another," means everyone. 41:04 Now if the pastor does visit, he does so, not because 41:07 he's the pastor, but because he too is a 41:10 disciple of Jesus Christ. 41:13 See, we've gotten ourselves into this framework. 41:16 I know when I was a pastor, many times I'd be the last one 41:19 to find out someone, you know, is in the hospital. 41:22 And it always amazed me that even when I would go to visit, 41:25 it was like if a hundred people visited them 41:28 but I didn't, it's like it didn't count. 41:32 And we treat the pastor's visit like it's holier than 41:35 every other visit there is. 41:37 Or sometimes it's the other way around. 41:40 That sometimes I go to visit someone and I find out 41:43 I'm the only one who went to visit them. 41:45 And there's like thirty people in the church who know them. 41:48 And I go back to the church and say, 41:50 "Hey, how come you all didn't visit brother so and so? 41:52 You've known him for like 50 years, more than I did." 41:55 "Oh you see, pastor, you know, we're kind of busy. 41:57 And you know, we live far away." 42:00 And I'm like, "Well, you know, there's a really neat invention 42:03 that Alexander Graham Bell invented 42:05 100 something years ago. 42:07 It's called, the telephone." 42:09 Even if you can't go visit someone personally, 42:11 pick up the phone and say, "Brother so and so, 42:14 sister so and so, I just want you to know 42:16 I'm praying for you." 42:17 Have a verse of Scripture and a Bible promise to read them. 42:20 And that's as good as any visit. 42:23 See, God calls us to reach out to others. 42:26 Because He knows when we minister to others, 42:28 our own character is then changed. 42:32 That's how Jesus creates this character in us. 42:36 By using us to reach out to others. 42:40 And then lastly, here at the end of the verse in verse 36, 42:45 the last group that Jesus mentioned as part of the 42:49 "least of these, My brethren," is those in prison. 42:54 Now you may say, "Well, pastor, I'm not cut out 42:56 for prison ministry." 42:57 You know, and that's understandable. 42:59 I do know the few times as a pastor I used to sit at the 43:03 Waynesburg, Pennsylvania maximum security prison 43:09 sometimes visiting guys in the "hole". 43:12 You say, "The 'hole.' What's that?" 43:13 The hole is what they would call solitary confinement. 43:17 You walk down this very long hallway which looks like 43:21 it leads to nothing and you visit guys between a glass 43:24 who apparently their behavior is so bad 43:27 they have to be in solitary confinement. 43:29 They can't be with anybody else. 43:31 And it's times when I would talk with them 43:34 and have Bible studies with them. 43:36 You know, at first our mindset, right away we want to 43:39 assume, "Well, these guys are just no good. 43:41 They're never change." 43:44 But you know what I found out? 43:45 In almost every single case, almost all of them came 43:51 from broken homes. 43:52 Homes where either mom or dad were gone, 43:55 or there was alcohol, or there was drugs, 43:57 or there was total dysfunction. 43:59 And they had absolutely no role model. 44:02 Nobody to teach them values and morals. 44:06 Now I know that's hard for you and me to comprehend 44:09 because many of us may have grown up in Christian homes. 44:12 We know even know what that looks like. 44:15 And then when they would read the stories of the Bible 44:18 and Jesus, I mean, they were dumbfounded. 44:22 They would ask me questions that you would think 44:25 baby Christians would ask because they had never 44:28 seen these stories before. 44:30 And I saw some of them changed. 44:33 Not to use religion as a crutch, but because now for the 44:36 first time they were seeing a picture of Jesus 44:40 in the real world. 44:43 You say, "Well, pastor, I'm just not going to go to a prison." 44:47 That's okay. 44:49 But what about the rebel in your life? 44:52 What about the kid in your neighborhood? 44:54 Or that girl in your family who is like a rebel without a cause? 44:57 Or maybe they're a rebel with a cause. 44:59 Someone who just doesn't like to follow the rules. 45:02 They're a troublemaker and they like to do their own thing, 45:05 and people just avoid them. 45:08 Is it possible that God has called you 45:11 to be a missionary to them? 45:14 That God has called you to be the one to reach out 45:16 in mercy and compassion. 45:18 That's what it means to be a missionary for Jesus. 45:23 You see, my friends, what we have to understand 45:25 is God has a calling upon every one of your lives. 45:29 You see, normally we say, 45:30 "Oh, well, you know, pastors receive calls." 45:33 You know, like if a pastor was to come to this church, 45:35 we would say, oh, he received a call to Springfield, 45:39 or St. Louis, or wherever. 45:42 Pastors aren't the only ones who receive calls. 45:45 Every follower of Jesus receives a call. 45:49 You think you work where you do by chance? 45:52 No. Because God called you there to be His missionary. 45:56 You think you live in the neighborhood you do because 45:59 you got a good price on the home, 46:01 or it's close to your office? 46:02 No. God called you there to be His missionary. 46:06 You might be the only Adventist or the only 46:08 Christian on that block. 46:10 You think you go to the school where you go to 46:12 simply because it's in the right district 46:14 or you got a scholarship? 46:16 No. God called you there to be His missionary. 46:20 Whether you're five or ninety-five, 46:22 God calls us to be His missionary. 46:26 Are we looking to reach out to the hurting people, 46:30 whoever they are, that come across our life every day? 46:34 What would it be like, church, if we looked for one person 46:38 every day, one hurting person that we could somehow 46:42 encourage or reach out to? 46:46 You see, often you hear people say, 46:48 "Oh, I can't wait to get to heaven so I can touch 46:51 the face of Jesus and thank Him for saving me." 46:55 Well, I've got news for you. 46:57 You don't have to wait till you get to heaven 46:59 to touch the face of Jesus. 47:01 If you want to touch the face of Jesus today, 47:04 then reach out to the poor and the suffering 47:06 that are around you. 47:07 If you want to touch the face of Jesus today, 47:10 then hold the hand of someone who needs a friend. 47:13 If you want to touch the face of Jesus today, 47:16 then spend time with someone who's been 47:18 neglected in this world. 47:20 You see, I touch the face of Jesus by reaching out 47:23 to the hurting ones that are around me. 47:26 What has God called you to do for others? 47:31 I want to end with this story. 47:35 When I was a kid, I noticed that my dad 47:38 had made friends with a guy named Arthur. 47:43 Now Arthur was different than everyone else. 47:46 He lived in a town that was about 30 minutes from us. 47:49 I'm not even actually sure how my dad met him, because 47:52 he went to a different church. 47:55 But Arthur, he didn't have a lot of social skills. 48:00 He didn't make friends easily. 48:02 It was hard for him to keep a job. 48:06 He kind of wore hand-me-down clothes, 48:08 and you know, sometimes Arthur smelled a little bit. 48:13 And that's why people really didn't spend 48:15 a lot of time around him. 48:16 They just avoided Arthur. 48:19 Sometimes his speech was even a little bit slurred. 48:23 And I remember that my dad always tried to be his friend. 48:28 Whenever Arthur would call on the phone, my dad would always 48:31 stop whatever he was doing and just talk with Arthur. 48:34 When he was down or discouraged, my dad would just encourage him 48:38 and just share some promises from the Bible 48:40 and pray with him on the phone. 48:43 Over the holidays, Dad would always drive to Arthur's house. 48:47 If he needed some basic necessities, 48:49 he would get it for Arthur. 48:51 And believe me, we weren't rich folks. 48:53 But if it was some basic necessities, 48:55 Dad would try to provide it. 48:58 And then on Christmas, he always brought Arthur 49:01 to our house to share the Christmas meal. 49:04 And there was always a present under the tree for Arthur. 49:09 In fact, whenever I would unwrap my toys 49:10 and they needed to be put together, 49:12 Dad would give it to Arthur to put together. 49:14 Because if there was one thing Arthur was good at, 49:16 he was good as a mechanical person. 49:18 He could fix things. 49:20 And so, Dad let him fix my toys so he could feel 49:24 like he was part of the family, 49:25 like he was doing something worthwhile. 49:29 Well, fast forward 30 years. 49:31 And Arthur is in the hospital dying of kidney failure. 49:36 And when Arthur realized that his life was about to end, 49:40 you know who he called to be by his side? 49:43 It wasn't the pastor of the church. 49:46 Now there was nothing wrong with the pastor. 49:48 But he called my dad to be by his side. 49:52 And my dad went to him. 49:54 He encourage Arthur to just keep looking to Jesus, 49:56 to have that assurance of salvation. 49:59 And he prayed with Arthur. 50:02 Arthur eventually did die. 50:05 Arthur didn't have a lot of friends. 50:08 But there's one thing I do know. 50:10 Arthur knew there was a God who loved him and cared for him 50:14 because he experienced that love through my father. 50:18 He saw Jesus in the way that my father treated him. 50:22 I've never forgotten that. 50:25 Today, church, is there an Arthur somewhere in your life? 50:30 Somebody that doesn't have a lot of friends. 50:33 Somebody that just needs a little love, 50:36 a little mercy, and a little compassion. 50:40 Are you willing to reach out to them and say, 50:42 "Lord, if You can use me to be a missionary, 50:46 here I am. 50:48 I'm not perfect, Lord. 50:50 I've got my issues. 50:51 I don't got everything in the Bible memorized. 50:54 But, Lord, if there is an Arthur who needs a Christian 50:57 as a friend, then, Lord, I'm just saying, here I am. 51:02 You can use me. 51:03 Bring that Arthur across my path 51:07 and I will reach out to him." 51:09 Today, are you willing to touch the face of Jesus? 51:13 Are you willing to be the picture of Jesus 51:15 in the real world by reaching out to someone 51:19 who is hurting? 51:21 Would you pray with me? 51:23 Heavenly Father, Lord, when we see this powerful 51:28 parable that You've told about how You want Your 51:32 sheep to just emanate Your character, 51:35 Lord, we realize our hearts are hard. 51:38 It's not natural for us human beings to have 51:40 mercy and compassion. 51:42 And so, today we're asking You, Lord, to create 51:44 that character trait in us. 51:47 We're asking You to transform our hearts and minds 51:50 so that we might have a character with more love, 51:52 with more mercy, and with more compassion. 51:56 And Lord, if there is an Arthur somewhere in our life, 51:59 open our eyes, show us who he is, 52:02 that we might be able to reach out to them 52:05 and become their friend. 52:07 Help us to be Your church, to be Your hands, 52:11 in this lost and dying world. 52:13 We ask and pray in Jesus' name. Amen. 52:19 Hi, this is David Klinedinst. 52:22 I hope you've been blessed by the presentation today. 52:25 If you would like more information about our ministry, 52:28 or about our other seminars and presentations, 52:31 visit our websites at... 52:40 If you'd like to make a donation to keep these sermons on the air 52:44 you can contact us at... |
Revised 2020-01-21