How Will They Hear?

As we set personal goals, I’d like to invite you to make a few goals around the mission of the church.  We don’t exist as a platform to make individuals happy.  Our church exists to give glory to God by changing people, families, neighborhoods and cities with the Gospel of Jesus.

1.  The Need Around Us Is Incredible

A.  Fact – People Who Have Not Called on Jesus Are Not Saved

“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ” (John 14:6, ESV)

-          Jesus is the way, the only  way

-          No one comes to the Father except through Him

  • No exceptions
  • No good intentions
  • Its either Jesus or Nothing

You have to have a Romans 10:9 experience

If you want to know if you belong to God and if you are going to heaven, you have to have a Romans 10:9 experience …

“…because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”  (Romans 10:9, ESV)

-          That needs to be the statement of everyone in your life

-          Your kids, neighbors & friends

-          If it’s not … that shows you the work that is left to do.

B.  Demographics of the Need

  • The Northwest is in the least-church part of the nation
  • Church attendance across denominational lines has suffered a five-year decline and has sunk to its lowest level in two decades, according to research by the Barna Research Group of Glendale, California.
    • "From the early '80s to the early '90s, there has been a definite change.  Not only has attendance gone down but it is a graying culture, a graying congregation."
  • Less than 9% of the people in our area have a saving relationship with Jesus.
    • That’s less than 1 out of 10
  • Let me give you a visual image of this.  Imagine going to a Mariner’s game at Safeco field.  There are 40,000 people attending. 
    • If you pull out one high school population, or 3,500 people, that’s how many have faith in Jesus.
    • The rest will be going to Hell…that’s 36,500 people.
  • That means on our block with 30 homes, maybe three families have a relationship with Jesus.

2.  CGS Exists to Bring Jesus to people

A.  Mission Statement

“CGS exists to help spiritual wanderers become authentic followers of Jesus.”

This is just a re-statement of a command that stretches through the whole Bible knows as the “Great Commission”

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” ” (Matthew 28:18–20, ESV)

B.  Specific Ways CGS Pursues Its Mission

#1 Weekly Worship Services

#2 Small Groups

#3 Children’s Programs

-          Best VBS in the area

-          MOPS

-          Weekly lessons for kids

#4 “Belong Before You Believe” Activities

-          Gung Fu

-          Airsoft

-          Bibles & Bits

#5 Age & Gender Specific Ministries

-          Youth

-          Seniors (West of 50’s)

-          Men & Women’s

#6 Mentoring & New Leader Training

 

That’s what we do as a church … but there’s an odd tension I’m sensing.

Many people think “THE CHURCH” is on mission for Jesus … so I don’t have to be.

That’s totally confused thinking.

- YOU ARE THE CHURCH.

If you are not on mission for Jesus, then we aren’t.

  • Don’t let church programs be a substitute for your individual commitment to Jesus.
  • When young William Carey, the acknowledged founder of the modern missionary movement, first applied to his church board to be sent to India, he received a classic reply. “Young man,” said one of the older church leaders, “when God chooses to save the heathen of India, he will do so without your help.” Fortunately, Carey knew better than that. He knew that when God determines that something is to happen he also determines the means to make it happen, and, in this case, the first step to the evangelization of India was the pioneer work of William Carey. Carey persevered, and the rest, as they say, is history.  (story from J.M. Boice’s Commentary on Romans)

3.  There Are Two Groups Here

Group 1 – Those Who Need to Hear the Word of Christ

Group 2 – Those Who Need to Be Sent

Group 1 – Those Who Need to Hear the Word of Christ

You’re here today for a lot of reasons.

-          Pressured by someone

-          Religious guilt

-          Habit

Story- Single Mom watching a horror movie.  Got the creeps, couldn’t sleep, and couldn’t shake it.  Went to church just to be with some people and heard the Gospel.

-          We live in a demon haunted world.

  • Demons around us
  • Demons inside

A.   Your Only Hope is to Call on Christ

v.13- For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

You might not realize it yet, but your life is pointing you to Jesus.

Processes towards belief.

You might be -10, -5, -1…

Do you have fewer doubts today?

Are you maybe one step closer to seeing who Jesus really is?

B.  To Call on Christ You Have to Believe in Jesus

- Facts & Information

The late Ray Stedman, who was a good friend and former pastor of the Peninsula Bible Church in California, knew Harry A. Ironside when he was pastor of the Moody Church in Chicago. He remembered Ironside describing a visit to Chicago by the flamboyant evangelist Gypsy Smith. Gypsy Smith got his name because he really did have a gypsy background, and he told many fascinating stories about growing up in a gypsy camp. On this occasion the message was made up almost entirely of these stories. At the end of the meeting, Gypsy Smith gave an altar call, and hundreds of people surged forward. Ironside used to say that he wondered what they were coming forward for. “Perhaps,” he said, “they wanted to become gypsies.”

- Personal assent to or agreement with that content

- Trust / Dependence

 

C.  To Believe, You Have to Hear

Preaching is actually the Word of Christ.

v.17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

- This is a restatement of v.14  

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? ” (Romans 10:14)

Faith inspiring Hearing comes from preaching (v.14)

Faith inspiring Hearing comes from the Word of Christ (v.17)

 

- Sunday worship

My preaching

- Small Community

Small groups, mentoring

- Personal “hearing”

Daily times with God

If your faith is growing cold ask yourself … am I giving myself every opportunity I can to hear Him?

D.  To Hear, There Must be a Preacher

 ... that’s where the other group comes in.

Many of you are nodding and thinking “Yep, that’s exactly what THEY need.”  You’re hoping and praying that they’ve been riveted to their seats, filled with the Spirit and led to repentance.

In this next part, they’re praying that you’re riveted to your seat, filled with the Spirit and lead to repentance as well … because nothing I just mentioned will happen

Group 2 – Those Who Need to Be Sent

-          They won’t hear unless someone preaches

-          There is no preaching unless someone is sent.

A.   Pastoral / Preaching Leaders

For CGS

For Church Plants

B.  Every Member as a Preacher / Sent One

  • Vocational & Occasional

C.  The Reason We Do This Is Love

Story– Penn Gillett “How Much Do You Have to Hate someone …”

  • Tell Story of man giving him the bible

 

Practical Suggestions
– Business “How’s your year going?”

*Financially good, family-wise, pretty well; spiritually, great!”

– Current Events, like bus accident

“How could God let that happen?”

I don’t know, but I have to have faith that He’s good.

– Hobby’s &Spare Time

What did you do this weekend?

Ran sound board for church.  Watched 15 1-3 year olds, etc.

LITTLE League Dads

Sitting next to each other, don’t want to be there necessarily, but good in long run.

Talk, get to know each other.

Invite to Airsoft.

New Christian with Friends out on Saturday Night

I’d better get home by 2 or 3, I need to be in church.

Invite with, or explain why you go.

High Schoo, friend says, “You have such a good head on your shoulders.”

You never get messed up like the rest of us.

“I have some help

Story- Brittney transferred schools

            You’re different

            In a good way … we want to be like you

D.  Emotion / Love

Jesus cried out, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not! ” (Matthew 23:37, ESV)

E.  This is True Beauty

“how beautiful”

Story of Olive Shell in Cameroon

Beautiful feet are not soft, manicured, painted, well-tanned feet. Beautiful feet are like the dirty, worn, wrinkled, leathery, scarred feet from many miles of trekking into remote places with good news that could not be heard any other way. So the first point of quoting Isaiah 52:7 is this: bringers of good news are precious people – people of whom the world is not worthy – beautiful for their worn out bodies in the service of king Jesus.. - John Piper