Part One of Two Messages - 7/01/2015
Last week at church, there was a lot of noise, with restless kids. I found myself concerned about those who were interested in a more 'normal' church experience. My desire was for them to keep coming and assist in our efforts to reach out to the hurting people in our Bribie Community.
After we had packed up, a few of us gathered outside. Delphine returned after dropping someone home and remarked, "I thought you were in a circle praying. I’m sorry for all the distraction with the kids’ noise. I think we should pray for the children and for our group, for God to bless our humble efforts to share the love of Jesus."
We all held hands, and Delphine prayed for some of us with special needs, seeking encouragement, wisdom, and power from God as we all strive to share His love here on Bribie.
A couple of days later, I woke up at 3 o’clock in the morning. I lay half awake and half asleep for the next hour and got out of bed at 4. I pondered about a young preacher in a small church like ours who was having a dream. He prayed, "Lord, please send people who need You to our church." In the dream, the people came. They were engaging in various activities, shocking the young preacher. In his dream, he called out, "Get out of here! This is God’s house!" And they left. He heard God say, "Didn’t you want Me to bring needy people to your church?"
Katoomba - older people, set in their ways, resistant to change, averse to stress, just wanting comfort in their little holy club church. Delphine and I, being younger, had a heart for hurting people in the community. Thus, we welcomed schizophrenics, homosexuals, and hippies into the church. The general churchgoers were not entirely pleased with this.
Then came business - various distractions, and now, in our older age, we still have a heart for the hurting and lost. However, there's only so much energy left in one set of bones.
Delphine and I want to be an encouragement to you, and we are very thankful for the encouragement you have provided to us.
How do you encourage us?
The Bible verse that serves as a mission statement for our little church is found on page 1150, Matthew 28:19,20. "Go – make disciples – baptising – teaching them what? – to observe (Paul Smith = lawyer – to observe means to obey as in ‘observe the laws of Australia = obey’) and the promise is “Lo I am with you always even to the end of the age.” We want Jesus to be with us, so if we do these things, He will be with us.
While we often know what we should be doing, it can be stressful and not always comfortable. There's an old saying, ‘The Holy Spirit comforts the afflicted but afflicts the comfortable.’
Consider Sarah, who serves as an inspiration by helping and encouraging people. A couple of comments to ponder:
Have you experienced that? Are we ready to put our hands up to help? Are we prepared to sacrifice to help?
In a church operating out of a slum in South America, some people work half a week and volunteer for the church without charge for the other half. Their efforts focus on helping the hurting to come to church, find Jesus, and experience peace.
A True Story: Bringing Them In
Let me share a true story.
Bobby, cold, wet, and miserable, sold papers on the street corner. As he endured his hardship, he heard a song emanating from the church. The lyrics resonated with Bobby:
"Bring them in, bring them in,Bring them in from the fields of sin;Bring them in, bring them in,Bring the sinful ones to Jesus."
Wondering to himself, Bobby questioned, “I wonder if they mean it? I wonder if they honestly mean what they’re singing in that song about bringing them in? It sure looks like a good warm place to be brought to, and I’d like to know mighty well who this Jesus is they’re singing about. Say, I wonder if they could mean people like my dad? I wonder if they could help him?”
The congregation heartily sang the entire five verses of the hymn, a cheery song for a cold wet night. Bobby listened intently:
"Bring them in, bring them in,All who are lost in the ways of sin;None too vile and none too frail,Bring the helpless ones to Jesus."
Bobby thought, “They must mean it or else they wouldn’t be singing it. Seeing the landlord’s turned us out, and there ain’t any place for my dad, just the pub – he might get to be a man again if he’d half a chance. In a place like this, he could get a start again – I’m going to give it a try.” So, he hurried down the street to get his dad.
The sermon concluded, the closing prayer was said, and people were preparing to leave. Suddenly, the door swung open, revealing a ragged, cold, rain-soaked boy dragging along the almost helpless figure of a man, much worse for wear due to liquor.
“What’s up? What’s up, son?” asked one of the men severely. “I think you’ve got the wrong place, my boy.”
Bobby, with all his strength, tried to brace his drunken dad. He took a quick look around the room, shook his head decidedly, and said, “No, it’s the same place all right; but say, you ain’t going away and closing it up, are you? – ‘cause I’ve brought him in, as you said to.”
A Message for Soft Hearts
The people quickly cleared a path and headed for the door. The preacher, intrigued, cautiously approached, asking, “What’s this? Brought who in?”
“All of you – in singing, you said to bring them in, the people who don’t count, who ain’t walking straight. Anyhow, that’s the way it sounded, and so I just brought him along like you said, to meet that Jesus who you said in the song would fix him up. Ain’t it straight – that there song?” The boy looked pleadingly into the faces of the remaining people.
“You people,” Bobby pleaded, tears in his eyes. “This is my dad, and somehow he got on the wrong track. Ma tried to set him right until she got tired and died, and then my sister Liz tried until she got hurt – and went to the hospital – Pa wasn’t himself when he did it – and then just I’ve been trying, but it ain’t no kind of use. There ain’t no place now for him to stay to get a start, and there ain’t nobody that cares. Then I heard you people singing to bring them in – folks like him, and somebody who lives here would take them in hand – Jesus was the name, wasn’t it – say, don’t he live here?”
More of the church people walked to the door; it was high time to go. Nobody was helping, and Bobby couldn’t hold his drunken dad up any longer, so he dropped to the floor. “Tain’t no use, Bob,” his dad said, “yer pa can’t help it – nobody cares. Let’s go back to Pete’s and get another drink – that’ll make it all right.”
Bobby helped him up again; someone in the church held the door open, and Bobby and his dad staggered back out into the cold night.
Friends, today’s message isn’t for every person in a typical church. It’s not for those with hardened hearts. It’s not for those who believe their church is the friendliest in town, yet visitors come and go unnoticed. It’s a special sermon for those with soft, feeling hearts of flesh, as the Bible says.
If I were to give the sermon a title, maybe I’d call it, “Do they really mean it?”
DICK G. - How much did he really care?
TROY - How much did we really care? Did we do enough?
I ask myself this question. We all need to.
I think of Raquel. She started coming to our church in Sydney. A drug addict – a prostitute to pay for her drug habit. Twenty years of age.
A Heartfelt Message for the Hurting
One week, Raquel was asked to speak at the start of the church and again in the Discipling Class for new Christians. She was genuinely excited about being there, adorned in her new green dress and earrings she had bought just a few days earlier to look 'pretty' at church. She eagerly participated, serving drinks at lunchtime, displaying an outgoing nature, and expressing a sincere desire to be helpful and accepted. Raquel was determined to straighten out her life. She shared her newfound happiness with neighbors in the block of flats where she lived, proudly declaring her commitment to attending church. I dropped her home after the service, and the following day, around midday, we called to bring her home to stay with us for a while.
I knocked on the door. No answer. The door was unlocked, and as I walked in, there she was, lifeless on the couch. It seemed the drug dealer, fearing she might report him for her newfound dedication to church, had given her an overdose, and she tragically lost her life.
I had never conducted a funeral before, but because I knew Raquel, her mother asked if I would do it for the family. After the funeral, she requested that we use the flowers at the church we attended, representing Raquel – a beautiful young flower of just 20 summers who is no longer with us in this life.
This message, friends, is dedicated to the thousands of Raquel’s who are hurting today. People who put on a good front but are hurting inside.
How much do we really care? This question pierces deep into my heart today. Did I accept Raquel? Did I try enough to make her feel at home? How much do I care? How much do you care?
Lessons from Two Stories
Here's another story for reflection. The church was packed, and the sermon was powerful. Let's turn to the verses he preached on. Page 1241 in your Bibles, John 13:35, "By this, all will know that you are My disciples if you have love for one another." Then the preacher turned to Matthew 25:31-34 (p1144), stating that when Jesus comes back again, He will separate the sheep from the goats. In these verses, Jesus determines who are the sheep (to receive eternal life) and who are the goats (who don't receive eternal life).
(A) = v 35-36 “for I was hungry and you gave Me food, etc…”
The righteous answer – v 37-39
And the King’s answer - v 40
Please close your books and give me your attention. The remaining verses talk about church people who didn’t really care about the welfare of ordinary people in the community.
The minister concluded his sermon by praying that each person in his congregation would truly sacrifice to help the hurting, sad, and lonely folk in this world and thus be among the righteous who would receive eternal life.
The people left the church that night, and one lady was heard saying, “That was a wonderful sermon.” She walked to the bus stop, boarded the bus, and sat down. The seats were soon filled, and a poor old lady with tattered clothes got on. The kind conductor asked the church lady to move up a little so the old lady could sit down too. “There’s no room here,” said the churchgoer. “These side seats are only meant for two people.” She spread herself rather more broadly on the seat, thinking, “Who would want to be squeezed up against someone in such shabby clothes – why, you might catch something.” Then, to avoid embarrassment, she buried her head in her church bulletin, making a mental note to attend the midweek Bible class on “The Meaning of the Cross” regularly each Wednesday.
Years ago, Gandhi said, “We would all be Christians if it weren’t for the Christians.”
Two other men left the church, and one was heard saying, “Darn good sermon that fellow preaches.” Then he invited the other, “Look, my missus is out, come over for a bite to eat.” Once home, they put their feet up, lit up a cigarette, poured a drink, and relaxed while discussing a shady business deal they were planning.
Years ago, Gandhi said, “We would all be Christians if it weren’t for the Christians.”
Embracing the Challenge
Lily, a prostitute, also attended the church that night. She arrived late and slipped away early, running several blocks in the rain to her friend’s place. Climbing up three flights of narrow stairs to a dirty door, she knocked and walked in. On the bed lay an old lady suffering from an incurable disease. Beside the bed sat the old woman’s friend. Lily put her arms around the friend and said, “You look so tired. Go and get yourself some food and a bath and some sleep. I’ll stay by the bed tonight.”
“Are you sure you don’t mind?” asked the other. “She’s been troublesome tonight,” looking down at the old lady suffering there.
“Of course, I don’t mind,” said Lily. “I like her,” and she stooped down and kissed the old lady’s forehead, settling down by her bedside for another night’s vigil so her friend could get a little rest.
Friends, you know as well as I do that what was true of the people in that church is true in other churches. God bless you, Lily, for living up to the light you have. But, in the mercy of God, there is still hope for the woman on the bus, the men in the house – and for you and me in this church.
I’d like to conclude today’s message by challenging you with a few lines from the old hymn titled, “Hark! The voice of Jesus calling!”
“Hark! The voice of Jesus calling, “Who will go and work today? Who will answer, gladly saying, “Here am I, O Lord, send me”? While the souls of men are dying, and the Master calls for you, Let none hear you idly saying, “There is nothing I can do!” Gladly take the task He gives you, let His work your pleasure be; Answer quickly when He calleth “Here am I, O Lord, send me.”
Who will take on this challenge? As we Stand and Pray, who will put your hand up with me and accept the challenge, “Here am I, O Lord, send me.”
PRAY
Thank You,
Ray Archer
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