As Pastor Kyle had already introduced, Brother
Greg and Paige, of course they don't need any
introduction to most of us here at Mamrie. As
he said, this was our home church for many years.
I suspect that none has done more probably to
impact the missions program of our church more
than Greg. Greg and Paige and their family spent
20 years there in Africa. I believe the missions
program was started in the 80s, and then this
was the first missionary family that was sent
out of Mamre to go to a foreign field, and certainly
the Lord used them and blessed them. I was privileged
to go there really in the last couple years of
their tenure there in Africa, and what a blessing
it was. We are deeply indebted to God's grace
and his servants that he has used in the life
of this church. I thank a Fellowship Baptist
this morning. He's the lead pastor. He's their
senior pastor. And they allowed him to graciously
come here. When I was thinking about missions
emphasis, I would be remiss if I did not think.
I would love for Greg to come back and speak
to us. And I think it's the message of missions,
I think. I could be wrong. I don't know exactly.
But this is something that's so very important
to the life of our church. And I don't think
anyone has more vested personal stake in it than
Greg does. And so, brother, if you would come
at this time. Well, I thought I was going to
be okay until he said all that stuff. Certainly,
thank you, Ryan, for the invitation to return
to Mamre to preach. This place stirs a lot of
emotion for me. Precious memories and wonderful
people, friends in the gospel. I should have
gotten more sleep last night, but I did not.
I always get a bit weepy when I am tired. are
newer to the church. It's a blessing to see you.
And I am a really mild -mannered guy. Wow. Okay.
So, wish you hadn't have done that. Picture this
scene with me. You're at a family reunion and
old Uncle Jim stands up. He's got a plate of
potato salad and he says, Listen up. All of the
people at this family reunion from my side, they're
the real family. And the rest of you, you're
just add -ons. Outsiders. We welcome you to the
table. We don't like you that much. Now that
would be ridiculous, wouldn't it? But for many
years, many of us have absorbed an incomplete
idea about God's plan of salvation. All my young
life, Until my dear grandmother, who was a godly
woman, died when I was at the age of 16. She
loved the Lord, and she would always tell me,
Greg, the Jews are God's chosen people. So I'm
like, okay. There's a Jewish -Israeli flag up.
Okay, great. And that was like it. I just knew
that. It was inbred in me, integrated sternly
from the early beginnings. But when we sometimes
say the Jews are God's chosen people, we stop
there. And something that I have come to understand
more in my... personal development and growth
in the Lord and study of the Word and personal
experience is that it's true. Israel is God's
chosen people. But I think we need to add an
addendum to that when we speak with something
like, but they are not God's only chosen people.
The Bible makes it very clear. That the gospel
has always been global in scope and an unalterable
idea from God's mind. The gospel sprang from
God's mind. The God who made heaven and earth
is no tribal deity. He is. The God of all creation.
And His plan of salvation reflects that universal
scope. From the very moment sin entered the world,
God already had a plan that stretched far beyond
any single nation or ethnic group. The global
message of missions is not some afterthought.
or plan B that God came up with when the Jewish
people didn't respond as expected. This has been
His intention from the beginning. And the message
of missions isn't something that we just do.
It's something that flows from the very heart
of God. It speaks to who He is. not concerned
about just one and only people group, as the
God of all creation, His plan of salvation reflects
a universal perspective. The foundation of this
global gospel was laid in the very first promise
that God made to Abraham. In Genesis chapter
12 and verse number 3, the Word of God says,
In you all the families of the earth shall be
blessed. Notice the word families. It's a Hebrew
word, mispachat. And it refers to all the clans
and family groups that make up humanity. This
wasn't a promise limited to Abraham's immediate
descendants. It was a covenant that the entire
world was in view. And when God called Abraham,
He wasn't just choosing one man. He was choosing
one man through whom He would reach all men.
And the Psalms echo this global vision repeatedly.
Psalm 67. Verses 2 through 4, there's a prayer.
That your way may be known on the earth. Your
saving power among all nations. Let the peoples
praise you, O God. Let all the peoples praise
you. Let the nations be glad and sing for you.
So the very way this psalm is structured shows
us that God's blessing flows outward like a river
from one people to all people. Isaiah gives us
perhaps the clearest picture of this global mission
in the Old Testament. In Isaiah 49 .6 we read,
I will make you as a light for the nations, that
my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.
Now, Isaiah, in his writing and transcribing
these words, uses an interesting word for nations.
Again, it's a Hebrew word, goyim. And it refers
specifically to non -Jewish people. The Gentile
dogs, if you will. So God was declaring that
His Messiah would not just be a light for Israel,
but a light that would illuminate the darkness
for every people group on planet earth. This
wasn't an expansion of the plan. This was the
plan. Even Daniel in his apocalyptic visions,
he confirmed this global scope. Daniel chapter
7 and verse 14. And to Him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom that all peoples, nations,
and languages should serve Him. His dominion
is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass
away and His kingdom one which shall not be destroyed.
The Son of Man in His coming kingdom would not
be limited by geography, ethnicity, or culture.
His kingdom would encompass every possible division
that separates humanity. The word peoples here
emphasizes ethnic groups. Nations emphasizes
political boundaries. And languages emphasizes
cultural distinction. And God's kingdom transcends
them all. Hosea gives a beautiful picture of
God's heart for those who are, quote, not my
people. In Hosea chapter 2 and verse 23, God
declares, I will say to not my people, you are
my people. And he shall say, you are my God.
This prophecy is one that... Paul later applies
to the Gentiles in Romans 9, verses 25 -26 and
shows us that God's definition of chosen has
always been broader than human definitions. God's
choosing isn't about ethnicity. It's about His
sovereign grace reaching whoever He wants, whomever
He wills. As a matter of fact, The Word of God
to Hosea here in chapter 2 and verse 23 is the
passage that God used to call my family from
Tanzania. And I love all the flags. Thank you
for that. It's wonderful. Love the globes as
well. Speaking of the global gospel. And I was
at my breakfast table. In Moshi, Tanzania, at
the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro, reading Hosea
one day, and Paige and I had had, you know, discussions
leading up to this, and I just felt like that
there was an uprooting going on in our hearts.
You know, has our time come to an end here in
Tanzania? And if so, what do I do? I mean, we've
spent so much time and energy and churches have
invested thousands of dollars and mammary hands
and trips and miles and energy and effort. But
I knew that a missionary's primary objective
is to work himself out of a job. And I was reading
Hosea, and as the passage goes, God tells Hosea,
whose wife has two children by other men, by
whoredom, adultery. Hosea is God's man, and God
says, yep, you're going to love them, you're
going to raise them, you're going to keep them.
And the first one, You're going to name Lo -Ami,
not my people. And the second child, you're going
to name Lo -Ruhamah, no mercy. Because my people
are not my people, and I'm not going to show
mercy. That's chapter 1. Chapter 2, he says,
all right, Hosea, here's the deal. You're going
to change your kids' names. What? Change their
names? He says, yeah. Ami, Lo -Ami, I want you
to drop the lo. and call that child Ami. And
Lodohama, delete the Lo, call that child Lohama.
He said, because my people were my people, then
they weren't my people, but you know what I'm
going to do? I'm going to make them my people
again. And I showed him mercy, and now I'm not
showing him mercy for a period of time, but I'm
going to show him mercy again. And it was odd.
I'd read that dozens of times before, but that
morning, I asked the Lord, Are you calling me
back to my people? Who were not my people for
all these years. I've turned into a Swahili.
And enjoy living in Tanzania. Love the people.
Love serving you. I have no idea. I have no idea
how. How would I ever go back? And when I, my
people, I love Mamrie, Kitz Hill. I shout glory
every time I see the steeple going to my daughter's
house and whatever. I mean, I just love this
place. But you guys know that I was kind of transplanted
in here from West Virginia. And I didn't realize
what a cultural divide that Ohio River provides.
And it was so distinct. I felt the call of God
was, My people, Barbersville, West Virginia.
Kyle, thank you for saying Fellowship and Huntington,
but we are in Barbersville. It's like saying
Mamrie's in Ironton. We're at Kitts Hill, brother.
We're on top of the hill. Seven and a half miles
out, 141. I've told so many people, how do you
get there? Seven and a half miles, 141, outside
of Ironton. So we're in Barbersville, right?
That's where I went to high school. I grew up.
And I was like, I have no idea. I have no idea.
How? How? How am I going to serve the Lord in
Barbersville? I mean, that's ridiculous. That's
wild. And we just began to pray about it. I went
to high school with the mayor. I said, Mayor,
something weird is going on in my heart. I feel
like there's something God wants me to do in
Barbersville. He said, well, when you get home,
we'll go to lunch and we'll see what there is.
I don't need paid or anything like that. I just
feel like there's something I need to do. And
we returned to the U .S. in May of 2017 for a
furlough. And within the first three days, we
went to a dinner with my cousin. And they knew
Fellowship supported us when we were on the mission
field in Tanzania. And my cousin's wife said,
did you hear about Pastor Jerry, who was the
pastor at Fellowship Baptist Barstow? I was like,
no. He's retiring. And we just looked at each
other over the chips and salsa. And we're like,
wow. So, long story short, I contacted somebody
at the church. Went through the application process.
Was interviewed. And God saved me out of Barbersville.
20 plus years they were not my people. But God
in His sovereignty and wisdom has made them my
people again. And we have been blessed. I've
seen many of my own family members baptized and
come into the church. This Rock Hilligan right
here, she's done alright in adapting to the Barbersville
culture as well. And when Jesus Christ stepped
onto the stage of history, He immediately shattered
narrow visions of God's kingdom. In Matthew chapter
8 and verse 11, He declared, many will come.
from the east and west, and recline at table
with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom
of heaven. Picture the scandal this must have
caused for this carpenter's son to begin to speak
about the far corners of the earth, these goyim,
these Gentiles who'd never even heard of Moses,
or... kept the law or needed to keep the law,
that they would sit at the same table as the
patriarchs. Well, the kingdom feast was not going
to be an exclusive Jewish gathering. It would
be a global celebration. And the great commission
of Matthew 28, 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,
All that I have commanded you, and behold, I
am with you always, even to the end of the age.
The word nations here is pantata ethne. All ethnic
groups. Jesus wasn't sending His disciples to
establish franchise churches. He was commissioning
them to reach every distinct people group on
earth. And John's gospel adds another crucial
dimension with Jesus' words in John chapter 10
and verse number 16. And I have other sheep that
are not of this fold. I must bring them also,
and they will listen to my voice. So there will
be one flock and one shepherd. Jesus was speaking.
to Jewish listeners about Gentile believers who
didn't even know they were His sheep. They didn't
even know it. And His mission included people
who hadn't even heard of Him yet, people who
hadn't been born. And the global scope of the
Gospel means God has sheep in every nation waiting
to hear the shepherd's voice. And the book of
Acts becomes a thrilling account of this global
vision becoming a reality. Acts 1 .8, but you
will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come
upon you. Why do we have the power? Why is He
given that power? Make me a better person? Help
me when I'm sick? This is why He gave the power.
So that we would be His witnesses in Jerusalem,
Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
Notice how this kind of unfolds like a missions
atlas. From the local, Jerusalem, to the regional,
Judea, to the uncomfortable, Samaria. Even the
impossible, the end of the earth. This wasn't
just a mission strategy. It was a prophetic outline
of how the gospel would spread across every barrier.
And then in chapter 10, Peter's encounter with
Cornelius represents a watershed moment in understanding
the global gospel. And in verses 34 and 35 of
Acts 10, Peter declares, truly, I understand
that God shows no partiality. But in every nation,
anyone who fears Him and does what is right is
acceptable to Him. Now this is revolutionary
thinking for first century Jews. And it should
be revolutionary thinking for you. And for me
too. The Greek word that Peter used when he said
God shows no partiality literally means face
receiver. Face receiver. Think about how many
people you look at and you're just like, I don't
like to look at them. Right? External appearance,
social status, or ethnic identity is showing
partiality. God doesn't do that. And Peter is
saying that God doesn't look at the face of a
person and make judgments based on what he sees
there. He doesn't see Roman and think enemy,
or Gentile and think unclean, or centurion and
think oppressor. He doesn't look at the R's and
the D's and the I's and think conservative, liberal,
libertarian. That's not how God looks at people,
but how often we're skewed in our perceptions
of people and what really matters about that
person. Here's another beautiful component of
the message of missions. It's not just that God
doesn't show partiality to people based on their
ethnicity or background. It's that God doesn't
show partiality even to his own chosen messengers.
Based on their failures and their limitations,
Peter was far from perfect. But God used him
to deliver this revolutionary message about divine
impartiality. And Paul's ministry exemplifies
this global vision in action. In Acts 13, Paul
and Barnabas cite Isaiah 49 and verse 6, declaring,
The Lord has commanded us, saying, I have made
you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring
salvation to the ends of the earth. And when
the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing
and glorifying the Word of the Lord. And as many
as were appointed to eternal life, believed.
The joy of the Gentiles wasn't just about personal
salvation. It was about finally understanding
that they were included in God's plan from the
beginning. And I'm going to tell you this. There
are... Numerous people outside of the church
who are stumbling over us. Trying to come to
Christ. And we are impeding their path because
of our partialities. Because of our indiscretions.
Because of our very words that wound. And we
must, like the Apostle Paul, know. That we should
not be ashamed of the Gospel. For it is the power
of God of salvation to everyone who believes.
The phrase to everyone is crucial because it's
not limited by ethnicity, cultural or political
background or modern thought. The Gospel is powerful
enough to save anyone and everyone who responds
in faith. of sexual orientation or political
ideology or what someone might spew even out
of their own vitriol. The gospel is powerful
enough to save anyone and everyone who responds
in faith. The Jews, it went to them first. Now,
it doesn't mean they were more important. It
just means they were the first. to receive the
promises that were always intended for all peoples.
Romans chapter 10, Paul makes the global scope
crystal clear. There is no distinction. There
is no distinction between Jew and Greek. Now,
New Testament, no distinction. The same Lord
of all, bestowing His riches on all who call
upon Him for... Read that last line with me.
Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will
be saved. Wow! What a promise! The word everyone
is Greek, pas, three simple letters, P -A -S.
And it means absolutely everyone, without exception.
God's riches aren't distributed based on ethnic
privilege. They're available to anyone who calls
upon His name. Galatians 3 .8 shows us that this
global vision was always part of Scripture's
message. The Scripture foreseeing that God would
justify all the Gentiles by faith preached the
Gospel beforehand to Abraham saying, and you
shall all the nations be blessed. Paul argues
that the gospel was actually preached to Abraham.
The global mission isn't a New Testament innovation.
It's the fulfillment of Old Testament insurances.
The book of Revelation gives us the ultimate
vision of this global gospel. Revelation 5, verse
9, the redeemed sing to the Lamb. Worthy are
you to take the scroll and to open its seals,
for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed
people from God from every tribe and language
and people and nation. Praise God! How comprehensive
in nature this message is. Tribe. Family groups.
Language. Cultural distinctions. People, ethnic
identities, and nation, political boundaries.
Every possible way that we humans divide ourselves.
Now, I'm still struggling with Michigan, amen?
Pray for me there. these divisions represent
in God's redeemed and blended family. Revelation
7. God shows the ultimate family reunion. After
this I look, behold a great multitude that no
one could number from every nation, from all
tribes and peoples and languages standing before
the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white
robes with palm branches, Palms of victory in
their hands and crying out with a loud voice,
Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the
throne and to the Lamb. Man, read that one with
me too. Salvation belongs to our God who sits
on the throne and to the Lamb. This isn't a Jewish
gathering and it's not a Western church conference.
This is the destiny of missions. This is the
family reunion where no uncle can exclude you.
No outsider label can define you. And every human
distinction dissolves in the worship of the Lamb.
The global gospel is an unalterable idea from
God's mind. unchanging truth. It's a paradox
of good news that reveals our bad nature. It
exposes the full brunt of mankind's total depravity.
If you start thinking well of yourself, open
your Bible to Romans 3. Read verses 9 -20 and
let God put you in your place one more time.
Because our sin nature, our total depravity isn't
just about individual mistakes. Oops! It's about
inherent spiritual sickness. It's a disease that
separates humanity from holy. Almighty God. This
gospel also reframes a seemingly bad narrative.
The crucifixion of Christ. What appears as a
brutal finished work on the cross is in fact
the ultimate act of love and redemption. Now
this truth can be jarring as shown by A very
personal illustration. When I was early in my
days in Tanzania, teaching through the Old Testament
from creation to Christ, and there was a young
lady who came to the Bible study. Her name, Esther
Juma 'inne. And Esther was sitting on one of
our makeshift benches that we had under the tin
roof of our church with off -cut tree lumber
just... Doing the best we could to have a place
in the shade. Let me make a point here as well.
I had someone one time when I was returning to
the U .S. And it wasn't about our church. It
was actually about fellowship where I pastor
now. And they were undergoing a renovation in
2015. And it was going to cost over a million
dollars. And he said, you're a missionary. You
go to the mission field. Do you think a church
should spend a million dollars? To help people
feel comfortable on Sunday morning? I said, well,
I don't know if I can answer that completely
and directly, but let me say this. When we have
church in Tanzania, we have choices. We could
sit out under the baking sun and we could worship
with everybody sweating bullets and miserable,
or we could find a shade tree. And we prefer
to worship comfortably in the shade. Well, we
had a shaded area that we built. Spent some money
on it. And as I was telling the story of Abraham
offering Isaac and was going through it somewhat
dramatically and when I showed Abraham raising
the knife, Esther Juma 'in had never heard that
story and her eyes got as big as saucers. Because
she did not know that God provided a ram in the
thicket to save. Isaac's life. You don't need
to know any Bible stories. You don't need to
know Moses. You don't need to know about Noah
and the ark or Daniel and the lion's den to go
to heaven. But you need to know Jesus. And this
message of Jesus' sacrifice and the initial shock
of His violence at the cross, that is what makes
salvation possible. So the Gospel. is good news
also because it excludes man's bad notions. Bad
notions that seem to be good in thought and theory
to man because they come from man. And that is
the gospel dismantles the false idea that we
can earn salvation through our own efforts. Instead,
it paints to faith in Christ's free gift of grace
as the only path. And this flies in the face
of all human religions and philosophies that
suggest we can save ourselves. Biblical Christianity,
and I'm open to correction if I'm wrong, but
you find me, any other belief system, on planet
earth, on any continent, in any village that
tells mankind you can do nothing to make God
happy. You must receive His free, unmerited favor
and grace. There is not another one. No chance
on earth, in heaven, or the depths of hell. It
is only Bible Christianity. That is the exclusive
difference. It's a radical, humbling truth that
offers hope beyond our own flawed attempts. Speaking
of flawed attempts, I tried to be done by noon,
but that emotion stuff at the beginning kind
of messed me up. If you need to go eat, if you're
that hungry, I will not be offended at all if
you leave. Order me a plate. I'll be there soon.
So what does this mean for us? There's no room
in the life of a believer for prejudice. If God
shows no partiality, neither can we. Racism,
ethnocentrism, and favoritism have no place in
the church. Now I'm going to tell you this. Doesn't
mean I don't struggle with it from time to time.
And every time I preach to people, I'm preaching
to me too. So yeah, there are times when I practice
prejudice and I have to be corrected and I come
back and I've got to stop it. There's certainly
no excuse for apathy. If God's heart beats for
the nations, ours must too. Missions is not an
elective. It's our family business. And we should
have no fear in witness. If the gospel is God's
power for salvation, we don't have to make it
attractive. We just have to share it faithfully.
But let me tell you this. And it took me a while
to learn this. And I apologize to any of you
that I offended many years ago or maybe today.
It took me a while to figure out I don't have
to be offensive. The message is offensive enough.
I can be kind. I can smile. And I can say, if
you don't believe in Jesus, you'll go to hell.
I'm sorry. I don't have to be mean about it.
Okay? We can have discourse without blowing up.
And dropping TNT everywhere we go. And there's
going to be no surprise in heaven. I think it's
so stupid. People say, well, we're going to be
surprised who's in heaven. No, nobody's going
to be surprised who's in heaven. Because when
we arrive to the throne room, we're not going
to be shocked to see faces and colors and languages
and cultures unlike our own. Because that was
always the plan. And people say, are we going
to know each other in heaven? Let me ask you
this. Do you think you're going to be dumber
or smarter in heaven? Are you going to be dumber?
No. You're probably going to be smarter in heaven.
Here's what I think. You're not just going to
know each other. You're going to know everybody.
They're like, what's up, Paul? Hey, Moses, Daniel.
How's it going? You're going to know everybody.
I mean, it's really, we're all going to be surrounding
the throne and worshiping the Lamb. Because one
day, the family reunion will come. Not in the
backyard with folding chairs and barbecue, but
around the throne of God. And there's going to
be no Uncle Jim to stand up and exclude other
people in the family. Every voice will blend
in worship. Every tribe represented. Every language
singing. Salvation belongs to our God and to
the Lamb. This is the message of missions. The
gospel is global in scope and unalterable in
its essence. It began in the mind of God. It
was fulfilled in the work of Christ. It's carried
on by the church and it will be consummated in
glory. So, church, let us live and pray and give
and go with that vision burning in our hearts.
Until the earth is filled with the knowledge
of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover
the sea. The Lord bless you. Keep you. The Lord
make His face to shine upon you and be gracious
to you. The Lord lift up His caps upon you and
give you peace. Amen, Greg. Thank you so very
much, brother. As he was speaking this morning,
my heart was rejoicing with everything you said.
I was so moved, so blessed by the preaching this
morning. I was thinking about this passage in
Ephesians 4. Junior Church, you can come in.
I know they're out there. Go ahead and bring
them in. There is one body and one spirit, just
as you were called in one hope of your calling.
One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and
Father of all who is above all and through all
and in you all. When we celebrate the ordinances
or the sacraments as we want to be called, we
think of baptism. The one joins the many in baptism.
And today we celebrate the table of the Lord
and the many become one. The same feast that
Greg was talking about, we get a foretaste even
today as we commune with the risen Christ in
the Lord's Supper. Just a foretaste of what it's
going to be when we commune with him on that
day face to face. But what excites me, and I
think about this every Lord's Day that we do
this, is the same thing that makes us want. It's
Christ. The same Lord's table in Tanzania and
Moshi and Mwanza will be celebrated somewhere
in that country, and it will be by the same Lord,
in the same faith, worshiping the same God. It's
true in Africa. It is true in Mexico. It's true
in the Philippines. It's true in Korea. It is
true in Brazil. This is God's work. And we are
brought into it by grace. Praise him. Friends,
you're here today because of grace. God has looked
with favor upon you. And you're a blessed people.
Deacons, if you would come as we prepare our
hearts to receive the Lord's table at this time.