5 Things God Uses to Grow Your Faith Week 5: Personal Ministry

Transcription

1 5 Things God Uses to Grow Your Faith Week 5: Personal Ministry One of the most fascinating things about the Bible is that when you read the New Testament you see that people are invited to connect with God through faith. not through ritual or tradition not through moralism, doing good Faith; Having confidence in God. We come to God through an act of faith. There was a 400 year gap between the writing of the Old and New Testaments. The theme of the Old Testament is that man broke his relationship with God in the very area that the New Testament addresses: the issue of trust. God, we don t trust you. We don t think you have our best interest in mind. We think you re holding out on us. When Jesus came along he said you re going to repair this the same way it was broken. Through trust. Your faith, your trust in God is extremely important to God. When we talk about growing in our relationship with God we re talking about growing our faith. In this series we re looking at some common things God uses to grow our faith: 1. Practical teaching 2. Providential relationships 3. Private disciplines 4. Personal Ministry 5. Pivotal circumstances This list isn t in the Bible. We ve just found these to be true. Today We re Talking About Personal Ministry If you ve been a Christian for very long and you were to tell your story about growing in your faith, very likely you would tell about a time when someone presented an opportunity to you to do something, to meet a need. You couldn t get if off your mind. You felt an internal nudge to get involved. I really felt drawn to this need. It wasn t guilt I just felt God was nudging me to get involved. But you probably had some other thoughts, too. I don t feel equipped. I was nervous, I thought I might be embarrassed.

2 But as you got involved you began to see God do amazing things, and that became part of your faith story. So today I want to talk about that dynamic: the tension and fear we all experience. Some of you may be feeling that tension right now. You re in a tug-of-war right now over something you keep being drawn back to. God seems to keep bringing back to your mind a need to a certain group of people a ministry in this church a ministry that s outside of this church What I want you to understand is this: The issue isn t simply that this is a need to be met. The bigger issue may be that God wants to take you out of your comfort zone to stretch and build your faith. He s inviting you outside of what s comfortable Outside of your experience. This is a faith issue. One of the best examples of this in the Bible is also one of the most familiar accounts in the Bible. It s found in Matthew 14: It s the account of Jesus feeding the In the middle of this account there is a statement that Jesus makes to his disciples that relates to each of us as it relates to this issue of getting outside of our comfort zone and serving God in a way that makes us very uncomfortable. Let s read the scripture account. Verse 13 When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. What had happened? John the Baptist was beheaded. Jesus is saddened by this for several reasons. He loved John as a friend. John was his cousin. More than this, John was a herald proclaiming the coming of God s Messiah: Jesus himself So Jesus looks for a quiet place to pray, to mourn. He is taken by boat across the lake to a remote place. But the people following Jesus have their own plans. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on foot from the towns. The crowd walks around the edge of the lake until they find him. This is a very long trek made by a lot of needy people.

3 14 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. Even in the midst of his mourning Jesus continues caring for those who came to him. 15 As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, This is a remote place, and it s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food. The crowd has walked half a day to find Jesus. He s been healing them. They re in a very remote place, no roadside cafes around. The disciples are getting anxious and probably hungry themselves. This where the story gets really rich as it relates to your experience. 16 Jesus replied, They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat. I know we re out in the middle of nowhere. I know they re hungry. But guys, they don t need to go anywhere. You feed them. This is the tension that, if you re not facing it now, you will face at some point. And it is so exciting. It s that tension that you sense there is a need. Your heart goes out to the need. You hear of an opportunity to do something. And as you sense this need you kind of feel God nudging you saying, You meet it. Your reaction might be like mine sometime is: God, I wasn t talking about me meeting that need. I m going to pray that you speak to somebody else about meeting that need. God, I know we need help with our VBS program next week but... I know our children s ministry could use some help this fall but God, I know I m always hearing how we need workers for our Upward program but I see all of these improvements going on to our facility and I know they need help but But God says, I want you to do it. And you reply, But God, I m just a prayer warrior. That s because when you try to imagine yourself in those settings you get uncomfortable. I m not trained. I don t have time. But there will come a time when you can t get away from God s nudging because you know he is saying, I want you to be involved. The disciples did just what we do. They started making excuses.

4 17 We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish, they answered. We re not prepared. We re not equipped. You ve got the wrong guy. 18 Bring them here to me, he said. So they do. They knew he was going to say something. And what he said to them is what he says to all of us. Just bring me what you have. But God, I didn t finish college. I just went two years. Then bring me those two years. But God, I hardly know the Bible. Well, just bring me what you know. But God, I don t have much time. Well, just bring me the time you have. But God, what if they ask me questions and I don t know the answers? Well, just bring me the answers you have. God, I don t have much experience. Well, just bring me the experience you have. But God, I m just so afraid. Well then, bring me that fear. Just bring me what you have. 19 And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. Jesus hands back to them what they just gave to him. And this is something I want you to see and get. Once Jesus handed them the bread and fish they did what they knew how to do. Because that s all they could do. They didn t know how to feed 5000 people who didn t have any food. But they knew how to turn and serve the food they already had. They simply did what they knew how to do.

5 and the disciples gave them to the people. They did what they knew how to do trusting that Jesus was going to do something unusual. They did what they knew how to do trusting that Jesus would do what only Jesus could do. Whenever you feel that nudging to meet a need but you re nervous and uncomfortable you simply do what you know how to do. And trust your heavenly Father to do what only he can do. That tension you feel is your confidence in God being stretched. Your faith muscle is being stretched so it can grow. God is working on your faith. And what s a stake isn t simply the need you see. In fact, that may not be the issue at all. The issue is that God wants to do something in you. And what s a stake is the size and capacity of your faith. If you look anywhere in the world and throughout history and find amazing work that people have done to impact their world for God if you investigate those accounts you will find this principle at work every time. And you ll also find that those people are the ones who give God all the credit. God, I ll do what I can do. But you ll have to do the rest. That is the story of every major movement of God in the world. This is the way God works. And in the process our faith muscle is stretched. And God says, Yes, and you would have missed out on all of this if you would have said I can t. 20 They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 21 The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children. The disciples didn t walk away from this thinking they were so hot. Wow! We should start a business! They said, We didn t do that. Jesus wasn t doing this miracle simply to do another miracle. Jesus had a very specific reason for this moment. He knew he was going to hand over this entire ministry to these disciples. And he knew that if their faith and confidence wasn t strong it may not work. All of this is to teach the disciples to trust him, and to trust him more. So as soon as Lesson 101 is over, he sends them to Lesson 201.

6 22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. These two stories are connected. Can you imagine Jesus trying to dismiss the crowd? all of the healings the feeding miracle 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, Here s another lesson in and of itself. 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. Here s Lesson 201. These guys are used to being in a boat. They re rowing like crazy, and the wind is blowing against them. And they re not making any progress. And this is something they ARE good at. 25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. It s a ghost, they said, and cried out in fear. What were they? They were terrified. One of the things that I think gives the Bible credibility is that the guys who wrote this made themselves look really, really bad. These disciples are superheroes of the faith. But they write this with honesty. If this stuff is just made up and if you re writing about yourself you don t make yourself out to be a wimp. You make yourself out to be a person of great faith. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: Take courage! It is I. Don t be afraid. And it s right here that Peter has tremendous insight. Peter s thinking, He knew we couldn t do this. You knew this all along. It s a test.

7 Peter knew that he could do anything Jesus asks us to do, if we just do what we can do. So he tests his theory. Listen what happens. 28 Lord, if it s you, Peter replied, tell me to come to you on the water. This is so important. Peter does not have a good idea at this point. He could have just jumped out of the boat in the middle of the lake. But that wouldn t have been faith. It would have been impulsiveness. Maybe even stupidity. A lot of people do this. They say, I m going to do great things for Jesus, and they just jump in. But that s not the lesson. Peter understood the lesson is that whenever the Savior asks me to do something that I m incapable of doing things outside of my comfort zone things that I might feel embarrassed to do whenever he invites me to something that s bigger than my capabilities if I simply do what I know to do He does what only He can do. So Peter says, Jesus you invite me. Peter understood that Jesus is the one who has to extend the invitation. Because if he asks, I know he can do what only he can do. 29 Come, he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. Peter did what he knew how to do. He got out of the boat and started walking. He didn t know how to walk on water, but he did know how to walk. Folks, this is the Christian experience to a great degree. I dare you to pray what Peter prayed: Lord, please invite me out of my comfort zone. God I want you to use me in your kingdom work. But I m not trying to come up with an idea. I want the assurance that you are inviting me. And then, God, I m going to do what I know how to do. And I m trusting you that you will do what only you can do.

8 For some of you, he is inviting you right now. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, Lord, save me! He was reminded of what he couldn t do. He was afraid. 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. You of little faith, he said, why did you doubt? This is all about faith. Jesus said, Why did you begin to doubt? Doubt who? Jesus. I don t think he was chastising Peter. I mean, the other disciples were still in the boat. I think he was proud of Peter. 32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, Truly you are the Son of God. Truly We suspected it before with the whole bread and fish thing but we re all in now. This principle is so big. If you have benefited from any ministry here at FFMC you ve experienced this. People have gotten out of the boat and trusted God. They have done what they know how to do, and let God do what only He can do.