2007-09-09 Sermon Title: The kind of men Christ needs
Mon, 09/17/2007 - 17:34 — hpcbc
Sermon 9/9/07
Sermon Title: The kind of men Christ needs
講題：耶穌所需要的人
Sermon Text: John 15:16
講道經文；約翰福音十五章十六節
Scripture Reading: Acts 26:13-16; 19
讀經：使徒行傳卄六章：13-16; 19
A church is a term used to describe a group of persons professing Jesus as Lord, meeting to worship him, and actively enlisting others to follow him. The English word church is the translation of the Greek word ekklesia which basically means “called out”
Christians perceived themselves as a group of persons called out by God in Jesus Christ for a special purpose (Ephesians 2:19). The church is also a new creation of God with the purpose of bearing witness to the redeeming power of Jesus Christ. The church exists with the urgency of spreading the Gospel to the world because Jesus Christ will soon return and bring judgment to the world. How can the church accomplish that mission? The church depends on an army of volunteers who are committed to its cause.William Booth founded the Salvation Army in 1865 in England with the goal of liberating the world from the evil grip of sin and death. Every Christian is a soldier of the cross. To be an effective army the church needs leaders and some organization. Every church that I know of is calling for persons to be volunteers in various gospel ministries. But why is it that workers are so difficult to find? What exactly is the kind of men Jesus needs?
Many of you are in your Junior or Senior year of college, some of you are writing your dissertation or at the final stage of your graduate program. Beyond that finish line you are looking for jobs. You know that there are many qualified candidates out there for every job opening. What are the things the companies are looking for in your CV? Are they looking for a degree from a well known university, an above 3.5 GPA and a good character reference? Those are basic requirements, and every candidate has those things. There are other things like leadership quality, motivation, level of commitments to the philosophy and goals of the company among others. Unfortunately the trend of the job market leans more to the employer’s choice.
In the church let us look into the Bible and find out what kind of men Jesus needs. First of all, Jesus has chosen us for a purpose. Jesus said in John 15:16, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that would last.” And according to God’s Grace we are given different spiritual gifts, “So in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gift, according to different grace given us.” (Romans 12:5-6). From these two verses we know that Jesus is the one who chooses us first. And he also calls every one he has chosen to bear fruit or to win others to Christ. What kind of men Jesus is looking for to accomplish that purpose? His first criteria is certainly not IQ or special talents, because he knows exactly what gifts he has given believers and he would not ask for more than he has given. He is not looking for good men because there is no good man. Good Christian characters are the fruit of the Holy Spiritthat is developed in a regenerated life. There are good examples in the Bible. In the Old Testament we have the example of Moses. He was called to be a leader to lead the Israelite out of the bondage of slavery in Egypt. He had never been a leader before and naturally he hesitated. Moses said to the Lord, “O Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.” He recognized his inadequacies but the Lord said to him, “Who gave man his mouth? Who makes him deaf or mute? Who gives him sight or makes him blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.” (Ex. 4: 10-12) God did not accept that as an excuse not to serve him. He provided him with the necessary skill and lent him the credibility by miracles before Pharaoh.
In the New Testament when Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus, he told Paul, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen of me and what I will show you. I will rescue you from your own people and from the gentiles.” (Acts 26:15-17) Paul had a problem when he confessed Christ and received the commission. Both his own people and the gentiles became his opponents. But Jesus promised protection with his commission. Both Moses and Paul had accepted a challenge far greater than they thought they could handle, but the one who called them had provided the means for them to accomplish their jobs they were sent. Those who serve the Lord must prepare to hear some complains. Moses endured murmurings from the Israelites and humbly brought the problems before the Lord (Ex. 15-16). Paul talked about his persecutions and suffering in 2 Corinthians 11:23-30. The Lord said to him, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2Co. 12:9) and he said, “That is why for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” (2Co. 12:10) There is no complains from Moses or Paul in hardship and suffering from wrongful treatments. In total obedience they trusted in the Lord. Total obedience and trust are the qualities that the Lord wants of his servants. Sometimes people will challenge the leadership of the Lord’s servants. Moses’ leadership was challenged by his own people, even his brother Aaron and his sister Miriam. But he did not take it personally, he only faithfully follow they Lord until a job is well done. The Bible said, Now Moses was a very humble man, more than anyone else on the face of the earth. (Numbers 12:3) and the Lord said to Aaron and Miriam, “He (Moses) is faithful in all my house.” (Numbers 12:7) Paul too, had given the best to his Lord and he said in his final days, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2Timothy 4:7)
These are the kind of men the Lord looking for:1) He is one who would stand up to be counted as a leader when the Lord calls. It is not that he has led before or that he had all the necessary skills to lead, but he trusted in the Lord. 2) When the Lord calls him to lead, he is not afraid to accept any challenge because he knows the Lord will not make a mistake. 3) When the Lord calls him to serve, he is going to do the best for the Lord. He knows mediocrity is not acceptable in the sight of the Lord. It is worth mentioning that when Moses told the Lord that he felt inadequate because he was not eloquent in speech, he was reassured that was not a problem for the Lord. But when Moses said, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it.” The Bibles said the Lord’s anger burned against Moses. Would you want to be the kind of servant the Lord is looking for? I would like to ask you to take a moment to look at the decision insert, mark in the appropriate places and drop into the box at the back after the service.
