I hear the bells are ringing loud and clear You
can't help but love this time of year It's Christmas
time and something in the air There's a little
bit of heaven everywhere Thank you. Thank you.
So also, because I can only hear about 60 % of
my saying, I may speak about 40 % longer today
to make sure I get it all in. I'm not going to
do that. Who buzzed me? Somebody buzzed me? Okay.
Anyway. All right. So have you heard of the saying,
Johnny, come lately? The original saying, by
the way, was Johnny newcom. The combination word
newcom. And it's an old English saying. from
over 200 years ago, became extremely popular
just over 200 years ago. It's kind of controversial.
It first appeared in 1808 in a series of satirical,
politicized cartoons. So newspaper was huge then,
all over Europe, really, and even the world.
And these cartoons were published in the newspaper,
and then they were so contentious. of sailors
in the West Indies that the cartoonist was later
convicted of libel. Now that probably wouldn't
happen today, but the cartoons were so impactful
and they were so rude about sailors who were
Johnny Newcomb, meaning they had come to the
regions that they were in and they were not part
of winning. The war, they were not part of the
military victory, and they would come in there,
and they were basically just partying all the
time, drinking it up, and not being very good
sailors. So after the libel case, other satirists
took up the torch and made follow -up pieces
to kind of vindicate the guy who was being persecuted
for his cartoons. And in 1812, a man named William
Elms, which you don't need to remember that name,
but some people do, obviously, created the etchings.
which was just that, cartoons following the same
idea of sailors who were not responsible for
past victories but were getting all kind of credit
for it and authority because of it. So the term
rose in popularity in continued publications,
but the cartoons then changed from political
to just comical, and they poked a lot of fun
at youthful sailors in general, specifically
the ones spending more time carousing and drinking
than doing their duty. for crown and country.
Some notable ones include Thomas Rowlandson's
The Military Adventures of Johnny Newcomb, there's
that saying, which was published in 1815, and
a poem by Alfred Burton in 1818, and John Milford's
illustrated poem The Adventures of Johnny Newcomb,
which came out in 1819, which actually satirized
the original stuff. In 1839 then, so now we're
less than 200 years ago, in a novel, The Adventures
of Harry Franco, which is a pretty famous novel,
a character says, but it's Johnny come lately,
ain't it you? Thus changing the idiom for all
history. And now in England and the United States
of America, it's no longer Johnny Newcomb, that's
gone. It's been gone since 1840, 41, and everybody
says Johnny come lately. So a Johnny come lately
person then is a person who gets the benefits,
of those who went before, shows up on the scene,
thinks they know a lot, maybe thinks that they're
better even than the other people, and then sort
of turns out to be not that. They don't really
have the knowledge or don't really have what
they're pretending to have. So I want you to
bear that in mind then as we look at this text
today, and we're going to look at the text specifically
as it relates to us and Christianity and new
Christians in particular. And so grab your Bibles,
if you would, maybe give a little hoot or holler,
amen. Got to be about 40 % louder today than
normal. As we go to Luke chapter one. Amen. Thank
you. I heard you. I did. I heard you. Okay. Good
stuff. All right. So Luke chapter one, beginning
in verse 46, it's just 11 verses. It'll go by
fairly quickly. And I think the sermon will go
by a little quickly today, but the points are
poignant. They really affected me. And so I pray
that they will affect you too. Verse 46, it says
this, And Mary said, My soul exalts the Lord.
So this is the occasion. Mary is now visiting
Elizabeth. Now you remember from last week's
sermon, we heard the angel Gabriel, and he kind
of like said that she could know that God was
going to, in part, know that God was going to
do what he was saying he was going to do because
of what God was already doing in Elizabeth's
life. And so by this time, Elizabeth is six months
pregnant after having been and she was probably
not necessarily completely past child -rearing
age, but her husband was past child -producing
age, generally speaking, as was acceptable at
that time. And so they were both pretty old.
It was old for her to be having a baby, but not
impossible. But it was pretty unheard of for
him to be having a son. And so Mary goes to visit
her, and Mary said, after Elizabeth says, the
baby jumped in my womb, wow, you're the mother
of the Son of God, and she's just like... dotes
on Mary how awesome it is that God's doing what
he's doing through Mary. Mary said, my soul exalts
the Lord. To exalt something is to put up the
Lord. To put the Lord up in the air as he is
the only God. He is sovereign. He is powerful.
He is mighty. He's the only one able. I submit
to only God. When I was at Pizza Hut many years
ago, during my last semester there, my last six
months there, the manager came in and she pulled
me in the walk -in because I had done something.
that she considered to be an atrocity. And she
was cussing me out in the walk -in. Our walk
-in had glass doors on it, which faced the kitchen.
And so if you can imagine working in the kitchen
that day, it was like this. It was quiet. And
then you open the walk -in and there's the manager
going, spewing cuss words at the area manager,
spewing cuss words at me. And then they quickly
shut the door. They get what they need, quickly
shut the door. It would go away from it. And
then they open the door again, right? And so
it wasn't done privately. It was done very publicly,
even though it was done in the walk -in. And
ultimately, I just kind of stood there and I
was a Christian at that time. And she said, you
know what your problem is? And I said, well,
no, not actually, because I'm trying to figure
out why you're yelling at me over something that
I felt was the right thing to do. I said, but
I suppose you're going to tell me. And she said,
your problem is you're not afraid of me. And
in that moment, I discovered something about
myself as a young Christian. And that was that
I had lost my fear of people and the things that
people do. Now, I'm not saying that's necessarily
a good thing. And I have been afraid at times
since then. It was not necessarily a permanent
thing. But in that moment, she was right. I was
not afraid. And Mary is saying, my soul exalts
the Lord. Only God. Only God could do this. Only
God is the one. And that's what it means to exalt
the Lord. To lose touch, if you will, with the
ramifications of the events of your life in light
of God's love. That he is what he is. And my
spirit has rejoiced, she says, in God my Savior.
The word there, Savior, is awesome because she
realizes that the baby that is being born in
her, that has been conceived in her, that she
will get birth to, is her Savior. That is an
incredible thought to realize that you're carrying
the baby who will save your soul. And it's present
tense. Verse 48. For he has had regard for the
humble state of his bond slave. God had regard.
for the state of Mary. And a bond slave, as I
mentioned last week, is somebody who had committed
themselves. They could be free, but they choose
not to be free. And she chose to be a servant
of God, and God has had regard for her state.
For behold, from this time on, all generations
will count me blessed. And is that not true?
Every generation since the generation of Mary
has known this name without fail. And we know
it, and we propagate it throughout the earth.
Not that she is part of the Trinity or not that
she saves people or not that she is a priest
or priestess or anything like that, but that
she was the human being that God used to bring
the Son of God into the world. Verse 48 then
says, I want you to see those two words there.
They are huge little words. Sometimes you're
reading a scripture and you run into a word and
you kind of might, that's like in another book,
you might just kind of glance over it. But I
want you to see these words. They are two small
little words that are huge. Has done, past tense,
has done. The mighty one has done great things
for me. Would God yet do great things for her?
Sure, but he had already done great things. And
she said, and holy. is his name. And when you
see that word holy in scripture, I want you to
think of like completely different in a way that
only God is different. And so when we say we
want to be holy, we want to be different from
the world around us. You cannot be holy if you
are the same as the world around you, because
holy means different, okay? So if you're the
same as the world around you, you cannot be holy.
We want to be different from the world around
us, but in a way that God is different. So you
can be different. There are people that go, I'm
going to be different, right? I noticed this
some years back when people started kind of joining
the goth movement. I'm going to be different.
I'm going to be goth so I can be different, right?
And then somebody said, well, there's 12 million
goth in America. Well, that's not very different,
right? You're not really being different. You're
trying to insult the people around you a little
bit by being different and kind of make friction
or whatever. But the reality is you're not different.
You're joining a very large group. God is not
like that. God is one. He is three in one, but
he is one. And when we join him and become holy,
it makes us different from the world. And we
become different like other Christians are different
if they're also doing the same thing. So it said,
for the mighty one has done great things for
me and holy is his name. And his mercy is upon
generation and generation toward those who fear
him. See, God had already been doing this. The
fact that Jesus is coming then is not a new thing.
It seems like a new thing, right? But the truth
is God had been giving prophecy, teaching the
salvation would be through a way that God would
make. All the way back. This is not really a
new thing in that regards. It's new in their
day because they finally get to see it, but it's
been waited for. God has already been doing this.
His mercy, God's mercy has already been upon
generation and generation toward those who fear
him. He has done mighty deeds. There it is. There's
those two words again. Has done. He has done
mighty deeds with his arm. He has, now we've
shrinked it down to one, has, there it is, past
tense. He has scattered those who were proud
in the thoughts of their heart. So she's saying,
when people think they're all that in a bag of
chips, God busts their bag of chips wide open.
And so you'd be aware that when you start to
think that you're arriving and you're somehow
getting up, even in your family, if you're a
husband, you're getting up over your wife or
your kids, you're going to be in charge, or you're
a mother, you're over top of your kids, your
grandkids, right? Or you're in your ministry
and it's going well, or you're called to be a
pastor or a deacon or a Sunday school teacher.
You'd be aware that if you start to think of
yourself as all that in a bag of chips, God's
going to scatter your chips. Because God has
always been a one who scattered those who were
proud in the thoughts of their heart. 52, he
has brought down rulers from their thrones. See,
it progressed like this throughout history, that
the kings who ruled in their day had absolute
authority. Absolute authority. And now you can
watch, you can see this really well in the book
of Daniel, where Daniel has the vision of the
great statue. You watch as the authority of kings
dissolved away. And the truth is, in the United
States of America, we don't have a king, per
se. We have a president. And the president has
limited authority. And so even his executive
orders, which are enacted on basically immediately,
can be then challenged in court, can be dismissed
by the Congress. So there aren't any kings like
the kings once were. It used to be in feudal
Europe that if a duke had a subject in their
kingdom and a man and a woman wanted to get married,
this is near and true. near and dear to some
of us, right? If a man and a woman wanted to
get married, that the Duke had first right to
sleep with the woman before she could get married.
That was the law. And so if he didn't want to,
he didn't have to. But if a man and woman petitioned
to be married, they had to petition to be married.
If they petitioned to be married and they wanted
to get married, then the Duke had first right
to sleep with the woman before she could marry
and sleep with her husband. That's the kind of
authority that used to exist in monarchical reign.
Now, the reason that was like that was because
supposedly they were ordained of God to be the
duke, right? That is messed up Christianity.
That's not godly Christianity. That's not anything
that's in the Bible. But that's what people sometimes
do when the thoughts of their own minds start
to think they know how they want it to go. God
scattered those who were proud in their thoughts,
and he brought down rulers from their thrones,
and he has exalted those who are humble. And
so if you're willing to recognize you need God
to do something for you, if you need God and
you need Jesus Christ, then you'd better humbly
come for that, because what if God decides to
say no? You say, well, God never says no. They
said he doesn't say no. God never says no when
the question is genuinely asked. When the question
is humbly entreating him for salvation, if you
ask God genuinely for salvation through Jesus
Christ, he will not fail to spare you. He will
not fail to send you to heaven instead of hell.
That will happen. For God doesn't send anyone
to hell. He allows people to go to hell who either
A, don't want to go to heaven, or B, who will
not humbly come to him and receive the free gift
of salvation that he has already willingly paid
for. God exalted, past tense, he has exalted
those who were humble. He has filled the hungry
with good things. He has sent away the rich empty
-handed. Notice these are all past tense. And
the tense that's used here is in the past and
ongoing through the present into the future.
So it's continuing to happen this way today.
A couple of verses left. He was given help. He
has given help. Has given, past tense, help.
Given help to Israel, his servant. in remembrance
of his mercy. God did not help Israel, his servant,
because they were good. You look at the Old Testament,
they did all kinds of wrong things, right? They
do things right for a while and then drift into
the wrong. And yet God continued to give them
help. We looked at that a lot in the book of
Judges where they would sin against God and then
they would be oppressed because of the sin that
they had. And then they would cry out to God,
like, God, we can't survive if you don't help
us. We humbly come to you. Please, God, we beg
you, help us. And then God would help them, not
because they deserved it, but because he was
God. And that's what she's saying. He has given
help to Israel, his servant, in remembrance of
his mercy. And then 55 says, as he spoke to our
fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever,
it has always been that way. And God has always
been making it clear. The effort is not new.
56 simply says, and Mary stayed with her for
about three months and then returned to her home.
So this song, if you will, this teaching. is
packed with, we could literally spend six months
of breaking down each one of those little phrases.
But there were a few things in here in particular
that God really brought to mind to me to bring
today. And the first one you already kind of
got a hint of, and that is that God is already
working. God is already working. Faith is this,
the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction
of things not seen. That's Hebrews 11, 1 and
2. 2 actually says, for by it the men of God.
gained approval. See, we believe God, we trust
God, we know God, and we can do so willingly
because God has already been doing. If you arrive
in the moment in time and you begin to say to
yourself, I don't know if God's doing anything,
that's called doubt and you really shouldn't
think that you have anything. Because God is
always working. We'll get to that in a second.
God is always working. God is already working
on the plan. So the moment at which I walk forward
down the aisle of East Toledo Baptist Church
and stood in front of a room of people, which
I could never do, and profess the name of Christ
and request baptism and ask to join the church,
all of which I could never have done in my flesh.
If somebody had come to me and said, I'll give
you a million dollars if you stand in front of
East Toledo Baptist Church, I would have worked
up to it and probably got there, but it would
have taken a lot. That is not something I could
have done. This sermon that I'm preaching to
you now is not something I could have done as
an unsaved person. The first sermon I ever preached
was written out word for word, text, every word
written out on the front and back of note cards.
And I stood up and read those note cards, not
preaching like I'm preaching now, not able to
look anybody in the eye, not believing barely
what I was saying, right? God is already working.
And when I did those early steps of faith, God
had been working on me getting saved, me transforming
into who he was making me into for decades. The
faint memories I have of going to Sunday school
for five months when I was five years old. The
young man who was 12 years old in my neighborhood
who shared the gospel with me and I mocked him
and persecuted him. When I went to the Lucas
County Fair and a Lutheran man shared the gospel
with me and I was ready to accept Christ and
maybe I even did. But they thought you had to
kneel to pray, that you're not allowed to stand
to pray, the people at that tent did. And so
he was trying to lead me back into the tent and
kneel on cardboard so I could pray to accept
Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. And he said,
you've got to do this right now. You've got to
do it right now or you might lose it. And my
brother was trying to drag me out to go with
my parents who were saying if I didn't come right
now, I was in trouble. And I gave in to my brother
and left there and left that prayer and left
that man who was sharing Christ and either never
became a Christian or never grew at all. Because
I was responding. I did believe in faith, but
I wasn't doing anything. God is working already.
So the hardship that you're currently facing
today, God foresaw the hardship. The blessing
that you're currently receiving today, God foresaw
the blessing. And he was already at work on the
resolution before you ever became aware of the
problem or before you ever became aware of the
need. And so really it's about us. submitting
to the work that God's already doing. And we
join him in doing that work. That's the key.
So when life gets really hard and difficult all
of a sudden, you don't stop going to worship.
You don't stop praising God. You don't stop sharing
the gospel. All of a sudden, wow, I can't believe
God let this happen. I'm going to stick a pin
in my faith and walk away for a couple of weeks.
No, that's not how it works. Instead, in that
moment, you have to say, God is already working.
I am going to join God in the work that he's
doing. I do that by praise. I do it by service.
I do it by sharing the gospel. This is the great
work of God, that souls are still getting saved
today. God yearns for one thing, and that is
a right relationship with mankind. He already
paid the tab. It's like if you showed up at the
restaurant and you're debating, you're looking
at the menu and you're debating, like, I think
I'll have a salad today. I've been trying to
eat healthy. But I got to get about a pound of
meat on the salad because that's what really
makes it taste good. But that's not really healthy.
But it does sound good. It's $13 .99. And if
you walked up to the table and the waitress said,
what would you like to eat? And you said, I'll
take the $13 .99 salad that's full of meat because
I'm trying to eat healthy. And she said, okay.
And she did a little spin around and set it down
on the table in front of you. There it is. Like
as if she already knew what you were going to
order. God already knows what you're going to
order. God's already in the kitchen cooking it
up. He's got it all planned. You're debating
on what to pick off the menu and the cook is
already prepared and it's already on the way
to the table. And as long as you stay there and
debate, the arrival of the food remains because
he's waiting for you to say, I'll take the salad.
He's waiting for you to humbly become part of
the team. Faith is this. It's the channel that
we open to be saved. We believe in things that
we don't yet have, and yet we know that God wants
them for us, has promised them for us, and therefore
we get them. You open the channel. It's like
a giant straw the size of your head, and you
slip it over your head, and it goes all the way
to the throne of God, and there is the Holy Spirit
poured down into you every day, and more than
you can possibly ever hope for. Faith is the
assurance of things hoped for, the conviction
of things not seen. For by it, the men of old
gained approval. And then a little later in that
chapter, just a few verses later, it says, and
without faith, it is impossible to please God.
It is impossible to please him. For he who comes
to God must believe that he is, that God is,
and that he is a rewarder of those who seek him.
God is already at work. And every time you black
him out, every time you redact him from the file
that tells the story of your current conviction,
Every time you do that, you're trying to cut
off the channel between you and God. That's how
your sin throws up a barrier. And as a saved
person, that should not be possible. We lie sometimes,
but we don't become a liar. The truth is we should
never lie because God is already at work. And
the moment that we lie, we're not doing the work
of God. We're doing the opposite of what God
would have us to do. So we're declining the good
things that God is offering us. Are you ready
today to stop declining? The work that God is
already doing in your life. God is already working,
Mary is basically saying. So God's sovereignty
is unquestionable. God is in control. He is completely
in control. He made it all from the beginning.
You know who knows how to read DNA? Well, God
does because he's the one who wrote it, right?
I might go try to read Spanish and I'm like,
you know, 8 % proficient or something. But if
I wrote the DNA myself from scratch, made up
the characters and put it all together, then
I would be able to read it. And mankind is struggling
to adapt to the science that God built into creation.
And he was there. In fact, Jesus was there and
nothing was made except that which was made through
him. Why? Because God's sovereignty is unquestionable.
He's got it under control. When I was at Great
Lakes and toward the very end, I had about, I
had really about a year worth of college left
to finish my Bible college degree, and that was
at 12 to 15 hours a semester. And that was going
to be hard because God had moved us back to Perrysburg.
We were living down here in Perrysburg. And let
me tell you, that 126 miles sometimes became
like a trip to the dentist, like an hour and
a half, two hour long trip to the dentist. It
was hard. There were times where I would get
out of the car and I would go in the living room.
Sherry was already in bed sleeping. I was getting
home at two o 'clock in the morning or whatever.
And I would put the key in a lock, would open
the door. Sometimes I would leave my keys in
the door and I would literally crawl into the
apartment and fall asleep on the floor just inside
the door. But I believed that God was already
doing the work. He was preparing me for the ministry.
He was preparing me for what he was going to
do. And it was only a couple of times. A couple
of times at 4 or 5 o 'clock in the morning, she
would get up and she'd go looking for me, find
me sleeping on the floor, and she would help
me get up off the floor and get me to bed. because
I had driven the two hours after sitting in the
three -hour class, after driving the two hours,
after working an eight -hour day, and I was done.
I was spent, but I was trusting in God to do
something. And you're like, well, that doesn't
make any sense. And the truth is, it probably
doesn't make any sense. And then when I realized
that God was doing it, I began to trust him.
I shifted my life around, and I made a priority
of the Bible college, as I had done at the first,
and it became God's work. At which time they
came on and they said, well, we know you're going
to have to be here sometimes until really late,
so we'll give you a free dorm room for a year.
So if you're here late, you can just sleep here,
get up and go to class in the morning, and then
drive home. Now, I didn't really want to do that
because I didn't want to be away from home, and
so I never put anything in there. I never even
left my toothbrush there. There was a blanket,
which was left from the person before me, and
a half a roll of toilet paper, which I used up
in two semesters. That tells you how many times
I went to the bathroom there. But they gave me
a free dorm room. And then they never gave me
a key. And then I broke into the dorm because
they told me I could because they couldn't find
the key. And so then I proceeded to, every time
I went to stay in my dorm room, break into the
dorm room. And in a year, they never gave me
a key. But that's one of the nice things about
being an apartment complex maintenance guy from
way back is you can break into places. And so
I did that. I remember the first night, 3 o 'clock
in the morning, looking at my trunk going, how
am I going to break into this dorm room? And
finding pieces. And I found a little gap gauge
set, which I probably had. I actually got it.
Ron's not here today, probably not feeling well.
But anyway, I got it from Ron's house because
we renovated Ron's house, and there was a little
gap gauge set there, and I just spin it open
with little metal gap gauges, and I used that
to pop the lock on the window and reach inside
and open the door, and that's how I got in. The
point is, God already foresaw all that, and God
is in charge. When it come to the end of that
semester, of that first semester, I really had
two semesters left. and they gave me the dorm
room, and they said, I don't know how you're
going to get your degree from here. So you have
a class. You have to take Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,
Thursday, 9 a .m. You have to be there every
time, 9 a .m. I'm like, I can't be here four
days a week. I'll be away from my family. I can't
do that. I have a new son. I can't do that. And
they said, well, if you can't take that class,
you can't get your degree. And I said, well,
I know God's going to make a way. Somehow God's
going to make a way. He said, search every college.
I searched every Christian college, probably.
You know, because I was looking at those early
days of online classes. I was thinking I might
take it online. I probably searched a thousand
Christian colleges, and nobody offered the class
that was necessary. And I'm praying, and God
was telling me, I'm going to make it work. I'm
going to make it work. And I was, okay. So I
went back on campus the next, and I didn't sign
up for the class. It was four days a week. And
I go back on campus the next time on that. It
was the beginning of the semester with the other
classes I had signed up for, and the professor
came and got me, and he said, I owe you an apology.
You told me God was going to work it out. I said,
what are you talking about? First he pulled me
in his office. I thought I was in trouble. Then
I got in there and he said, I owe you an apology.
I said, what are you talking about? And he said,
when the professors came together, so 23 professors
teach that class, and about 19 of them showed
up for the meeting, and he said two -thirds of
them came in with one thought on their mind that
they were going to restructure the class and
get it down to two days a week. And you told
me that God was going to take care of it, and
I didn't believe you. God is sovereign. If he
gives you a job to do, he'll see you through.
He'll provide the resources. He'll make it work
out. And you say, but I look back at my life,
and it hasn't always worked out. It hasn't always
been. The truth is, it has always worked out.
You're still here. You have an opportunity if
you haven't already. Except Jesus Christ is your
Lord and Savior. You're hearing the gospel clearly
preached. It's being explained to you. You're
getting the word of God. You are exactly where
God wants you to be right now in this moment.
It has worked out. God is sovereign. His sovereignty
is unquestionable. And then that brings us to
the third point. And it is a pair of D's. It's
one danger and one diligence. One danger and
one diligence. I don't often alliterate. I almost
did this one because I just like that so much.
One danger and one diligence. So here's what
happens. You become a Christian, a follower of
God, or maybe a churchgoer. Some people become
a churchgoer and they don't actually accept Jesus
Christ as Lord and Savior. And you begin to think
a certain sort of way, enjoying the blessings
of that. You've come on the scene. Just so you
know, just side note, the chairs that you're
sitting in here were provided by a miracle of
God. The carpet in this room was provided by
a miracle of God. I'll tell you the story if
you want it, but there's no less than a miracle.
This building, a miracle of God. The electricity
that's running the lights right now, a miracle
of God. The water that's in the bathroom for
you to wash your hands or flush the urinal or
whatever, a miracle. So you're coming into this
after all of those miracles were already done.
The fact that I'm standing here preaching today,
a miracle of God. There are people in this room
today that say that their being here, they know
for a fact. A miracle of God, okay? So we're
coming on the scene after God has already been
working, doing some amazing things, all the things
that he's done in your life to bring you to this
moment, right? So we get there and we start to
think that we know the answer to certain difficult
questions. I know how this is going to turn out.
I know what God's going to do. I know what that
verse means. I know what scripture says about
this topic. Maybe even we're a little baffled
when we see others who don't quite get it, when
there's something they don't understand. They
don't know how to forgive. Holly and I had a
conversation with a member of the youth group
on Tuesday, and he was explaining to me how he
was working on forgiving, and Holly and I were
trying to explain to him that's not how that
actually works. And at the end of the conversation,
he walked away, and he was sure in himself that
he understood how it works, and we know how it
works as a survival. We weren't able to convince
him. That's fine. Can't do anything about it.
But he's a Johnny -come -lately. He's on the
scene thinking he knows how that works, and it's
not. The Bible says, and the Bible is right.
Maybe even we're behind a little bit, baffled
why someone else doesn't understand what we clearly
know. We've decided, essentially, that we are
suddenly qualified. And that is problematic,
because you are not qualified. Because you are
not qualified, it is problematic for you to decide
that you are qualified. In 1 Corinthians 4, 7,
really the chapter 4 there, I won't go there
and read it right now for the interest of time,
but basically Paul is reminding the Corinthians
that they did not do it. You didn't do it. If
you got everything that you got from God, why
do you act as if you didn't get it from God?
If your salvation was provided to you by a Savior
who died on a cross, why would you act today
as if yesterday you saved yourself somehow? Or
that you did something right or good and that
you deserve something? Why would you look at
God and say, I did what I was supposed to do,
God. Now you do what you're supposed to do, God.
How did you shake your finger at the God of the
universe? How could you do that? It was because
you start to think that you did something. And
the truth is you are doing things. God makes
you able to miraculously intervene, to share
the gospel, to be kind, to be gracious, to serve,
to give. You are doing things. But the things
that you are doing, first two points of the sermon,
right? They are part of the work that God was
already doing. I came home from work and from
the office and I was running a little late and
my beautiful wife was in the kitchen and she
also had worked a hard day and she was making
me dinner. And I went and I put my coat up and
I put my bag up and I put my gloves where I hoped
I would find them again later and all those kinds
of things. And I went in the kitchen and I started
helping out however I could. Now, there were
things about the way that she was making dinner
would not have been the way I would have made
the dinner. We don't cook the same. We're not
the same person when it comes to cooking in the
kitchen. We do use a lot of the same spices and
have a lot of the same flavors, but there are
things that were different. Do you think that
I went over there and took over the stove and
said, okay, now you're cooking these, but you're
cooking them different than I would cook them.
So we're just going to pitch these out and put
on some more. Or we're going to back this down
to a low heat, cook it for another 15 minutes.
You can go rest. I'll take care of it. I'll make
dinner because you're not making it the way I
want to make it. Is that how we would do it?
No, that's not what you do. When you join the
effort that's already underway, you think of
how you can be useful, how you can plug in and
just make it the way it's going, right? You're
taking care of this. Let me help you take care
of this, right? Or if you can't plug into making
dinner, then you get your butt out of the way
and let them do it and go take the garbage out.
or wash a few dishes, or pick up the living room
or something, some other useful thing that's
part of the overall process while the other person
is there doing the work that they're doing. You
don't go in and take over the work that's being
done. If I walked over there right now and took
Josh's crochet and started crocheting for him,
you know how many stitches I could put in? Zero.
If Josh taught me four or five hours, I would
still never deign to go over and take over his
crochet and do it for him because he's awesome
at that, and I'll probably never be like that.
Right? And you're sitting in this room thinking
you've got gifts. And you do. You've got abilities.
And you do. You spend time in spiritual disciplines.
And that's true. But you ain't God. I'm not God.
God has been working at this since he said, let
there be. And we're going to show up now at this
late date as a Johnny come lately and say, well,
God, let me tell you how it should be. You don't
know how it should be. You won't know. If God
shows you his mind, and that's what it says,
1 Corinthians 2, that we learn the mind of Christ
and you begin to follow him, when you do, you
will begin to get a window into a complicated
existence that is so much more than you can even
begin to fathom. You're going to go, as Ergen
Kanner used to say in his class down at Liberty,
he used to say, the more I know, the more I know
that I don't know anything. And that's what God
is going to show you. He is at work. He is sovereign.
And the fact is, you didn't do it. And then at
the same time, and this is a great blessing,
in Psalms 127 it says this, it is vain for you
to rise up early, to retire late, to eat the
bread of painful labors, for he gives to his
beloved even in his sleep. And this is the truth.
If you are a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and if you stop working, Stop serving, stop doing,
stop giving anything in the kingdom. And you
just keep recognizing him as God and Jesus as
your Lord and Savior, but don't do anything.
You will still inherit heaven. Now you're going
to miss out on a lot of great opportunities to
be part of the work. You may not see it, your
family, loved ones, souls in your neighborhood,
whatever, saved. You may not be able to share
the gospel and have that great feeling that,
hey, that person just became a celestial being.
It's going to heaven for an eternity because
God used me. But don't say because I shared,
because it isn't. Right? There's nobody on this
earth who ever got saved by another person sharing
that God couldn't use somebody else. You've already
missed, if you're a Christian, you've probably
already missed more opportunities to save the
guy that's saying, what must I do to be saved?
Then you know. God is saving people. It's vain
for us to think that our efforts, if we just
try a little harder, if we just do a little better,
if we push a little more, that we're going to
make the kingdom of God collectively all that
much better. God is in charge. The cook is already
cooking. The order is already in. It's already
on the way. Jesus is coming again. And when He
comes again, our main job... is to be grateful,
to be welcoming, to be humble. And if you become
a Johnny -come -lately and think that you've
got it all together, you're the better looking,
better, stronger, more capable, you know, you
can tell. Let me answer that for you. If that
becomes you, then when Jesus comes again, what
if he comes in a form of somebody who doesn't
quite seem to have it all together on the surface?
And you're going to walk up to Jesus and say,
let me tell you, Jesus, clearly you need to fix
this, this, and this about you. I can see that
right now. And how many preachers will stand
up and do that? How many Sunday school teachers
are trying to fix everybody? How many mothers
and fathers and brothers and cousins and sons
want to tell their family how they should live?
The reality is you may be preaching what the
Bible says to somebody who's already saved and
they're not getting it. They're in the midst
of their struggle. They're still kind of sloppy,
kind of bearing the smoke of their past life.
But they're saved. And you've become a Johnny
-come -lately telling them what they must do
and what they must be as if you had saved them.
Or you had saved yourself or you had somehow
arrived by some grand choice of your own. No,
those things are not fact. The fact is God did
it. And when you go to them, you go to them in
love and kindness and mercy and show grace. And
yes, I am not saying that we should overlook
sin where the Bible says it's sin. But what I
am saying is you have joined a mission that is
already underway. Jesus was healing on the Sabbath
and they began to persecute him for that reason.
It says in John. Don't hold me to that one because
I didn't put the reference down. For this reason,
the Jews were persecuting Jesus because he was
doing these things on a Sabbath and he answered
them and said, my father is working until now
and I myself am working. Boy, if you could say
that, if I could say that, we would be getting
it right. My father has been working until now.
So you will find me working. I may not get it
always right. I do have to rest. I have to manage
my nutrition. I have to take care of my body.
I have to cleanse my mind, focus on the pure.
I have to do the right things to be used of God
the way I want to be. But the bottom line is,
my father is working until now, and I myself
am working as part of that effort. You joined
a mission already underway. You have become one
very important but very small part. Let's be
realistic about who we are. The greatest evangelist
who's out there right now, who every city they
go to draws a crowd of 20 ,000, is a tiny part
of the effort of what God is doing. At best.
And the reality is, may not be part at all. Depends
on the message. I know some that preach what
sounds like an evangelistic message. It sounds
like the gospel, but if you listen closely, it
isn't the gospel. And they draw 20 ,000 people.
And some of the people that are in the audience
that are listening to them are getting saved
because they're getting it from the Bible, getting
it from the Holy Spirit. God is saving them,
using that person to save them. And at the end
of the road, they will find themselves wanting
because they're not preaching the gospel. They're
not preaching what the Bible says. They have
not preached the sovereignty of God. So we have
become one very important but very small part
of his effort. We have no greater importance
nor lesser importance than another. Assuming
you are found faithful with that which God has
given you to do. Ephesians 4 says this, Therefore
I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk
in a manner worthy of the calling with which
you have been called. This is Ephesians 4, verse
1. Now too, with all humility and gentleness,
with patience, showing tolerance for one another
in love. What are we supposed to be doing in
the church? What kind of church are we supposed
to be doing? That's what we're supposed to be
showing, tolerance for one another and love.
Being diligent to preserve the unity. Here's
what's most important, that we are unified in
the Lord. If I am with God, you may not like
a lot of things about me, but you can't be against
me. Because if you are against me, you will be
against God, because I am with God. That's the
math of it. Verse 4 says, There is one body,
one spirit, just as also you were called in one
hope of your calling. down to six, says, one
God, one Father, who is over all and through
all and in all. But to each one of us, grace
was given according to the measure of Christ's
gift. Verse eight now, therefore it says, when
he ascended on high, he led captive, a host of
captives, and he gave gifts to men. See, God's
been doing this all along. Verse 11 says, and
he gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some
as evangelists, some as pastors and teachers
for the equipping of the saints, for the work
of the service. to build the building up of the
body of Christ until we all attain to the unity
of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of
God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature
which belongs to the fullness of Christ. Notice,
it's a process we're working to attain that place.
As a result, we are no longer to be like children
tossed here and there by waves and carried about
by every wind of doctrine. Let me be real clear.
You know what a wind of doctrine is? It's an
idea that you think is right. You read the scripture.
You think you got it. I nailed this now. I know
this now. And then you go and act on it. Now,
sometimes it's right. And you should. When it's
clear in scripture and God is convicting you
of it, you should do that. But sometimes people
pick one out. I had a guy in my room at Super
Summer when I went two summers ago. And he had
a doctrine that he was hammering home. And he
kept talking to me about it here and there and
whatever. And it was just wrong. It was the wrong
doctrine. He wasn't right. Now, he wasn't. He
wasn't wrong because the words didn't say it,
but he was wrong because he found one place where
the words said it, and there were five other
places that refined that to make us understand
what it actually meant. And he was just on that
one. He was on that one wind of doctrine. He
was following it, and he was pushing on me and
everybody else who would listen. And we could
be like that if we were a Johnny -come -lately.
As a result, we are no longer children tossed
here and there by waves and carried about by
every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of man,
by craftiness and deceitful scheming. No, just
no. 15, but speaking the truth in love, we are
to grow up in all aspects into him who is the
head. Submit yourself to Jesus Christ is what
he's saying. He says, even Christ. And verse
16 then says, from whom the whole body being
fitted and held together by what every joint
supplies. In other words, each one of us doing
what we're called to, which is different probably
from each other one of us. according to the proper
working of each individual part, causing the
growth of the body for the building up of itself
in love. The thing that God is doing is too mighty.
It is too much to be contained in the life of
one individual, even for a moment, even at the
moment of your salvation. Do you know that it
is highly likely that at the exact same moment,
to the minute that you got saved, somebody else
somewhere got saved? It's almost certain because
people are getting saved across the world and
there are billions of people in the world. The
odds are good that somebody got saved at the
same exact moment that you did. But if it was,
if the gospel, if kingdom work could be contained
in one moment, it would surely be in that moment
when your soul was saved, made eternal, and you
became a celestial being who are given a calling
and work to do in the kingdom. Surely that would
be enough. But then somewhere else at the same
moment, surely that would be enough. And if there
were five people, if there was ever a moment
where a thousand got saved all in the same moment,
well, there was, wasn't there? It was Pentecost.
That was thousands. All got saved. That would
surely be enough, right? That was all the work
of what God was doing at that time, right? No.
The work of God is far too much to be contained
in the lives of one person. And when you look
down on others or distance yourself because you
think, quote, you know better or you know enough
or because they won't listen anyway, then you
have assumed the role of God. And let us not
kid ourselves. When we play God, we have actually
taken on the tactics of Satan, who from the beginning
thought he could be like God and tempted man
to do the same thing. Your eyes should not be
looking at somebody else and saying, I don't
think they're quite there. Here's the reality.
If they're still on earth, they're not quite
there. If you want to find weaknesses, you'll
find them. You can find them in me. I've got
plenty. If you want, I'll list some of them for
you. Then you can save yourself the trouble.
But if you want to be a Johnny -come -lately
looking at me and saying, as long as I'm better
than Pastor Dan, I'll make it in, guess what?
That's not the way it works. You're not going
to make it in or do better, have a better life,
more prosperous, more success, or save more people
because you're better than me. That's not how
that works. Jesus Christ is Lord. Jesus is the
one who died, created it all, and then when there
was no mediator, came. And now we get saved by
the name of Jesus because there is no other name
given among men under heaven by which we must
be saved. His is the holy and mighty name. He
is the holy and mighty God. And we are at best
allowed, if we come humbly, allowed to join in
what he is trying to do. By no means am I suggesting
that we should look the other way, ignoring actions
in the lives of believers that are clearly sin,
according to scripture and according to conviction.
Just the opposite. Hauling back these believers
from the brink of disaster is part of the great
work of God that we are called to as the church.
And there are processes by which we do that.
But one of those processes is not sitting back
and kind of chuckling to yourself and seeing
how they're paying for the price of their sin.
Oh, see, I knew that was sin if they did that.
God, yeah, God's sovereign and he's punishing
them for what he did. That's not part of the
process. That's not part of that. I'm going to
go over here and talk to Bob about what Sally
did because I need to be comforted in my feelings
because, you know, Sally hurt me. So I'm going
to make her pay. That's not part of the process.
I'm going to walk away, not talk to anybody.
I'm not going to say a word. Nobody knows like
I know. I know better than anybody else how this
should be done. I'm the only one. And I'm not
going to help anybody learn it. And I'm just
going to sit back and let them all struggle and
fail. That's not part of the process. God didn't
do it, and God has the rights. He knows he is
sovereign. He has the power. And when there was
nobody who could clean up their own mess, when
there was nobody who could stop their mouth from
spewing venom, when there was nobody who could
stop their will from deciding to try to be like
him outside the gospel, he came in the flesh.
He took on flesh, lived a sinless life, and then
died a sinner's death. And he was crucified.
And in the midst of his crucifixion, for crying
out loud, while he was literally suffocating
and bleeding out at the same time, he cried,
forgive them for they know not what they do.
But a Johnny come lately will say, well, I'm
in. God did this in me. What God's doing in me
is mighty. I've got the right things to say.
I'm going to say, I'm going to tell you. I'm
going to know better than you. And if you won't
listen to me, I'm just going to let you go. You'll
figure it out. You'll find out as you start to
pay for your mistakes. That's not it. That is
not what God has called us to. But when we became
part of the kingdom, all old things passed away.
Your history. That's a tough one. How do I let
my history go in favor of following the Lord?
Your family culture. That's a tough one. This
is the way we do things. This is how we think.
This is how we act. This is how we make the potatoes
around here. Right? Whatever. That all passed
away. It says all old things passed away. Personal
opinions, pet peeves. Oh, I hate it when he does
that. I hate it when they do that. All old things
passed. Bad habits. Irritation over the habits
of others that we do not agree with. Feelings
about music choices, hobbies, sports, customs
of dress, and more. These things were meant to
be set aside so that we could be fixated on the
mission, so that we can love one another. Can't
we see that allowing our differences to divide
us makes us less? And to accomplish the mission
that God has given us, we cannot allow our differences
to make us less. Rather, whatever difference
that God has woven into the tapestry that He
has chosen to use, those things should be opportunities
to unite us. And if they can't be, then they
should go away. If you have a hobby, a recreation,
a talent, a skill, an acting experience, and
it cannot be used for the glory of God, then
you should let it go. There is no time for that
because our God is already working and we are
joining him in the work that he is doing and
we don't have time to be busy doing some other
form of work. That brings us to our conclusion.
Fear the Lord. Fear the Lord and be found faithful.
But never become today's expert. Never become
the only one speaking. Or the one who's speaking
loudest? Because if you're the only one speaking
and the one who's speaking loudest, you're just
wrong. You say, no, that can't be because I'll
be talking about being honest or I'll be talking
about being good or I'll be talking about working
hard. And that's a message that God is delivering,
right? You think God is like 24 hours a day convicting
people to do the specific things that you want
them to do? Or to not do the specific things
that you don't want them to do? All conviction
about sin has a purpose, right? What is the purpose?
To lead to Jesus Christ. And so God says, you've
sinned. They feel like they need to confess.
They feel a burden. I'm convicted. The Holy Spirit
convicts all men of their sin. That's true. And
then... While they're being convicted and what
they need to hear is about the love of Jesus
and the salvation that's available. They're being
convicted of their sin. Like, I really need to
do something. What can I do? I'm stuck in a place
where I don't feel like there's anything I can
do to get past the wrongs that I have done. What
can I do? And you come right in there and say,
yeah, you're such a liar. You lied to me. You
lied to me five times. I know you lied to me.
And they're going, what can I do? What can I
do? And you're going, you're just a liar. You're
stuck a liar. You've got to stop lying. Stop
lying. That's what you've got to do. And they're
like, but I tried that. It doesn't work. What
can I do? And you're like, oh, and by the way,
you didn't show up on time. That's my pet peeve.
I hate it when you don't show up on time. That
drives me. I can't control my schedule. I don't
know what to do. I'm hopeless. I'm stuck. I can't
break out. How can I be a better person? I tried.
I tried self -help. I went to the groups. I watched
the videos. I called the people who know. I did
all of these things. What can I do? And you're
like, you're no good. You're late. You're dirty.
You're scummy. You're wrong. Did Johnny come
lately? You were all those things. And the truth
is, you are all those things in your flesh. You're
only better now because you encountered the living
Christ and he lifted you up out of the pit of
muck. And if that's how you got better, then
when you come into somebody's life and they're
screwing it up, the very first thing out of your
mouth is there is a name. There is a name given
among heaven, among men, under heaven, by which
we must be saved. And it is Jesus Christ. Start
there. Don't start by telling them how to be
better or do better, not in the church or in
the world. Start with Jesus. Because if by some
chance they're at that moment of conviction and
they're ready to latch on and in their heart
is a question, what must I do to be saved? You
telling them how screwed up they are is not going
to solve that problem. You pointing them to a
self -help group or counselor, not going to solve
that problem. You bringing them to Jesus. solves
the problem, even though they may still continue
to do some of the things that they shouldn't
do. Weeks, years, or their whole life. But ultimately,
the work that God has always been doing will
get done. Try to be blunt but kind, practical
but humble, speaking the gospel in the context
that they can understand it. but not in your
own creativity or for your own purposes. God
has been at this forever, and we are blessed
to join him in it. We join in the effort to invite
a world that is lost and dying and going to hell
to a Savior who has been resurrected and now
stands at the right hand of the Father. It is
said that we will do even greater things than
Jesus did in his lifetime. And looking at the
condition of our world, plagued in its own sin,
enraptured by temptation, we can see that the
work of the gospel of freeing souls is perhaps
a much greater work. When you share that Jesus,
that person, ask them to get saved, you will
be literally going to war against their social
media experience, against their family breaking,
against their lost loved ones experience, against
their lost jobs experience. You will literally
be bringing Jesus into the battle that he is
going to win. against everything that they've
been through. That's a pretty big work. But it's
not a work that you're going to do. It's a work
that Jesus is going to do. The enemy had two
millennia, that's 2 ,000 years, to perfect his
tactics. This is yet another reason why if we
come into this effort hoping for more modern
tactics, we can do it better, use electronics
better, get the word out better with electronics,
we're hoping that they're going to win the day,
we will be outmatched. Because when someone was
thinking about inventing the internet, there's
a very good chance they were consulting the devil
on how to do it. This is yet another reason why
if we come into the effort... hoping for modern
tactics to win the day, we will be outmatched.
At the same time, traditional tactics were equally
effective or ineffective in the primary day of
their application. We say, well, we're going
to sing only from the hymnal or only certain
kinds of music, right? Or we're not going to
text. We're not going to have a social media
presence. I'm not saying you have to do those
things. What I'm saying is... You can't rebel
against the modern tactics nor adopt the modern
tactics solely because the tactics themselves,
outside application by God, the Father, and his
Son, Jesus Christ, are worthless. They mean nothing.
And so if you are a rebel against modern tactics
and talking about the old ways, you're missing
the boat. And if you are a rebel against the
old ways and say, we've got to adapt, we've got
to become new, you're also missing the abode.
The answer is not going back to the old ways
or better application of the new ways. The answer
is joining God in what he is doing, however he
has led us to do it. You say this, who? Me? No,
not me.