1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:03,360 Our series is about leadership and today our title is 2 00:00:03,360 –> 00:00:06,740 that leaders ask for great sacrifice 3 00:00:06,740 –> 00:00:09,140 for the sake of greater joy. 4 00:00:09,140 –> 00:00:11,800 Leaders ask for great sacrifice, 5 00:00:11,800 –> 00:00:15,780 and they do it for the sake of greater joy. 6 00:00:15,780 –> 00:00:17,379 That was true of Elijah 7 00:00:17,379 –> 00:00:19,680 as we will see in the story today. 8 00:00:19,680 –> 00:00:22,580 It should be true of every leader. 9 00:00:22,580 –> 00:00:25,320 Every leader should ask for great sacrifice 10 00:00:25,320 –> 00:00:27,940 for the sake of greater joy. 11 00:00:27,940 –> 00:00:29,299 And if you look through history, 12 00:00:29,420 –> 00:00:31,180 you will find that that is the pattern 13 00:00:31,180 –> 00:00:33,639 of great and strong leadership, 14 00:00:33,639 –> 00:00:37,380 it is of course supremely true of Jesus Christ 15 00:00:37,380 –> 00:00:39,720 that more than any other, 16 00:00:39,720 –> 00:00:42,820 he asks for great sacrifice 17 00:00:42,820 –> 00:00:46,959 for the sake of greater joy. 18 00:00:47,799 –> 00:00:48,959 Now we pick up the story 19 00:00:48,959 –> 00:00:50,900 where Elijah is at Cherith, 20 00:00:50,900 –> 00:00:53,400 a remote place where God hides him 21 00:00:53,400 –> 00:00:55,439 and feeds him and leads him. 22 00:00:55,439 –> 00:00:58,020 We ended last time in verse six 23 00:00:58,080 –> 00:01:03,080 where we read that Elijah drank from the brook. 24 00:01:03,419 –> 00:01:05,160 Now what a marvelous picture that is 25 00:01:05,160 –> 00:01:06,860 if we pause there just for a moment. 26 00:01:06,860 –> 00:01:08,300 Here is this man of God 27 00:01:08,300 –> 00:01:11,019 and he trusts God and he obeys God 28 00:01:11,019 –> 00:01:13,900 and God is providing for him. 29 00:01:13,900 –> 00:01:17,300 There’s a brook and we’re told 30 00:01:17,300 –> 00:01:20,339 that Elijah drank from it. 31 00:01:20,339 –> 00:01:24,300 And when he did, he must have said thank you, Lord 32 00:01:24,300 –> 00:01:26,739 here we are in a dry time 33 00:01:27,180 –> 00:01:29,739 and you are providing for me through a brook 34 00:01:29,739 –> 00:01:33,059 and you provide for me every day. 35 00:01:34,779 –> 00:01:36,220 But now look at verse seven. 36 00:01:37,300 –> 00:01:42,000 After a while, the brook dried up 37 00:01:42,000 –> 00:01:45,699 because there was no rain in the land. 38 00:01:46,699 –> 00:01:50,419 So God had used this brook to sustain Elijah 39 00:01:50,419 –> 00:01:53,019 and now the very means that God had used 40 00:01:53,139 –> 00:01:58,019 to provide for his servant begins to dry up. 41 00:01:58,019 –> 00:02:01,820 And straight away many of us will resonate 42 00:02:01,820 –> 00:02:04,860 with the position Elijah is in here. 43 00:02:04,860 –> 00:02:09,539 God has provided for you a stream of income. 44 00:02:09,539 –> 00:02:11,479 God has provided that stream 45 00:02:11,479 –> 00:02:14,740 through a certain form of work. 46 00:02:15,699 –> 00:02:18,220 But now things are changing. 47 00:02:18,220 –> 00:02:19,580 The work you have done, 48 00:02:19,580 –> 00:02:22,020 the business that you have pursued 49 00:02:22,020 –> 00:02:24,619 that has been your brook, it’s drying up. 50 00:02:24,619 –> 00:02:27,660 What was working before is not working for you now 51 00:02:27,660 –> 00:02:28,619 in the same way. 52 00:02:28,619 –> 00:02:30,940 And it becomes obvious that in some way 53 00:02:30,940 –> 00:02:33,300 you have to move on. 54 00:02:34,500 –> 00:02:36,380 Others of you are not there yet, 55 00:02:36,380 –> 00:02:40,179 but you can see that there is less water, as it were, 56 00:02:40,179 –> 00:02:42,699 running in the brook than there used to be. 57 00:02:42,699 –> 00:02:44,820 You wonder what the future will hold for you. 58 00:02:44,820 –> 00:02:47,740 How long is this going to be able to sustain me? 59 00:02:47,740 –> 00:02:48,580 And you say, 60 00:02:48,580 –> 00:02:51,779 now what happens if this brook dries up all together? 61 00:02:51,779 –> 00:02:55,899 This is speaking directly into scores and scores of lives 62 00:02:55,899 –> 00:02:58,419 in our congregation today. 63 00:02:59,539 –> 00:03:02,899 Elijah must have expected this. 64 00:03:02,899 –> 00:03:04,580 Remember he had told the king, 65 00:03:04,580 –> 00:03:07,979 there will be no rain in the land. 66 00:03:08,899 –> 00:03:10,080 And if there is no rain, 67 00:03:10,080 –> 00:03:12,940 obviously, at some point, the brook will dry up. 68 00:03:12,940 –> 00:03:15,380 And the drying brook is evidence, therefore, 69 00:03:15,380 –> 00:03:18,479 that God keeps His promise. 70 00:03:18,479 –> 00:03:22,119 In this case, God is keeping His promise of judgment, 71 00:03:22,119 –> 00:03:24,279 but the God who keeps His promises of judgment 72 00:03:24,279 –> 00:03:27,199 is also the God who keeps His promises of mercy. 73 00:03:28,119 –> 00:03:33,119 And the same hand that is holding back the rain over Israel 74 00:03:33,259 –> 00:03:36,880 will very soon be pouring out a fresh provision 75 00:03:36,880 –> 00:03:39,080 for Elijah the servant of God 76 00:03:39,080 –> 00:03:43,479 through the flour and through the oil. 77 00:03:44,360 –> 00:03:46,559 Now follow the story with me in verse eight. 78 00:03:46,679 –> 00:03:49,520 When the brook dries up, God tells Elijah to move on. 79 00:03:49,520 –> 00:03:51,759 The word of the Lord came to him. 80 00:03:51,759 –> 00:03:54,399 Arise and go to Zarephath 81 00:03:54,399 –> 00:03:57,440 which belongs to Sidon and dwell there. 82 00:03:58,320 –> 00:04:02,580 Behold I have commanded a widow to feed you. 83 00:04:04,199 –> 00:04:06,800 And so what we learned here is that God has more 84 00:04:06,800 –> 00:04:09,440 than one way of supplying what you need. 85 00:04:09,440 –> 00:04:13,220 That is a wonderful truth for us to hold on to today. 86 00:04:13,220 –> 00:04:16,079 God has more than one way of supplying 87 00:04:16,640 –> 00:04:18,059 what you need. 88 00:04:18,059 –> 00:04:20,579 When one way dries up, 89 00:04:20,579 –> 00:04:23,899 God is able to provide another. 90 00:04:23,899 –> 00:04:27,260 And so what we must learn here is to trust 91 00:04:27,260 –> 00:04:29,899 the God who provides, 92 00:04:29,899 –> 00:04:34,279 not the particular means of supply. 93 00:04:34,279 –> 00:04:37,100 Because the God who provides never changes 94 00:04:37,100 –> 00:04:40,899 and he never fails, the means of supply will change 95 00:04:40,899 –> 00:04:44,359 in the course of your life. 96 00:04:44,359 –> 00:04:47,559 If you see you have a steady, stable job, 97 00:04:47,559 –> 00:04:50,440 a steady source of family income, 98 00:04:50,440 –> 00:04:51,799 and that’s been the pattern of life 99 00:04:51,799 –> 00:04:55,059 for 5, 10, 20 or more years, 100 00:04:55,059 –> 00:04:57,399 it is very easy to get the idea 101 00:04:57,399 –> 00:05:00,279 that it is the job that provides for you. 102 00:05:00,279 –> 00:05:04,000 No, the job is God’s means of supply. 103 00:05:04,000 –> 00:05:05,959 It is God who provides for you. 104 00:05:05,959 –> 00:05:08,760 He may have done this for 5, 10, 20, 25 years 105 00:05:08,760 –> 00:05:10,279 through this particular job, 106 00:05:10,279 –> 00:05:12,619 but if the job dries up he will provide for you 107 00:05:12,619 –> 00:05:13,459 in another way. 108 00:05:13,500 –> 00:05:17,119 That’s a wonderful principle to hold on to. 109 00:05:17,119 –> 00:05:19,420 And it’s not only in relation to money. 110 00:05:20,500 –> 00:05:21,420 You see you may say, 111 00:05:21,420 –> 00:05:23,480 well you know God is providing for me in my life 112 00:05:23,480 –> 00:05:24,359 in wonderful ways. 113 00:05:24,359 –> 00:05:27,559 He provides for me in my life group. 114 00:05:27,559 –> 00:05:29,160 I find such support there, 115 00:05:29,160 –> 00:05:31,000 I have made a friend here, 116 00:05:31,000 –> 00:05:32,559 and that friend mentors me 117 00:05:32,559 –> 00:05:34,679 and has been a source of growth 118 00:05:34,679 –> 00:05:35,559 in my Christian life. 119 00:05:35,559 –> 00:05:37,480 I see that God has provided for me 120 00:05:37,480 –> 00:05:38,480 through that person. 121 00:05:38,480 –> 00:05:40,359 I see God has provided for me here 122 00:05:40,359 –> 00:05:42,559 through a church in which I am being fed 123 00:05:42,660 –> 00:05:43,859 and so forth and so on. 124 00:05:43,859 –> 00:05:46,559 And you list the means by which God supplies. 125 00:05:46,559 –> 00:05:48,179 But here’s the reality, 126 00:05:48,179 –> 00:05:50,100 your life will change. 127 00:05:51,380 –> 00:05:54,619 And the means of supply will be different 128 00:05:54,619 –> 00:05:56,519 at different points in your life. 129 00:05:57,500 –> 00:05:59,500 What you need to hold on to 130 00:05:59,500 –> 00:06:01,480 is not the means of supply, 131 00:06:01,480 –> 00:06:03,420 but the God who provides. 132 00:06:03,420 –> 00:06:05,700 It’s very important. 133 00:06:05,700 –> 00:06:07,579 And it’s important for this reason 134 00:06:07,579 –> 00:06:09,700 that if you cling 135 00:06:09,820 –> 00:06:12,880 to how God has blessed you in the past, 136 00:06:12,880 –> 00:06:16,059 you may miss how he will bless you in the future. 137 00:06:17,000 –> 00:06:18,480 There’s no use, Elijah, 138 00:06:18,480 –> 00:06:20,179 getting all sentimental about Chereth, 139 00:06:20,179 –> 00:06:21,760 oh, this is such a wonderful place 140 00:06:21,760 –> 00:06:23,839 where you’ve supplied for me through the brook. 141 00:06:23,839 –> 00:06:25,380 The brook’s not running there now, 142 00:06:25,380 –> 00:06:28,019 and God says, you gotta move on. 143 00:06:28,019 –> 00:06:30,320 And I’m gonna supply for you in another place 144 00:06:30,320 –> 00:06:31,480 and in another way that’s 145 00:06:31,480 –> 00:06:33,399 beyond anything that you’ve experienced before. 146 00:06:33,399 –> 00:06:35,079 It’s gonna be very different. 147 00:06:35,899 –> 00:06:39,200 But I’m calling you to walk with me 148 00:06:39,200 –> 00:06:41,339 in faith and in obedience. 149 00:06:41,339 –> 00:06:42,700 So understand this, 150 00:06:42,700 –> 00:06:46,579 to cling to the means by which God has blessed you 151 00:06:46,579 –> 00:06:50,100 in the past may very well be to miss 152 00:06:50,100 –> 00:06:52,540 how he will bless you in the future, 153 00:06:52,540 –> 00:06:56,339 very important principle from the story for us today. 154 00:06:56,339 –> 00:06:58,839 So God says to Elijah, in effect, 155 00:06:58,839 –> 00:07:01,420 the brook that was such a blessing to you in the past 156 00:07:01,420 –> 00:07:04,559 that this Chereth that you cherish 157 00:07:04,559 –> 00:07:07,179 it’s not what I have for you now. 158 00:07:07,179 –> 00:07:08,720 I am drying it up, 159 00:07:08,720 –> 00:07:11,959 but as you continue to walk with me 160 00:07:11,959 –> 00:07:13,540 in faith and obedience, Elijah, 161 00:07:13,540 –> 00:07:16,260 there is blessing, there is ministry. 162 00:07:16,260 –> 00:07:18,459 There is provision for you 163 00:07:18,459 –> 00:07:20,720 in a place where you would least expect it. 164 00:07:20,720 –> 00:07:22,959 And now get up and go to Zarephath. 165 00:07:25,239 –> 00:07:28,200 So let’s follow the story, verse 10. 166 00:07:28,200 –> 00:07:31,880 He arose and he went to Zarephath, 167 00:07:32,799 –> 00:07:36,920 and when he came to the gate of the city, 168 00:07:36,920 –> 00:07:41,600 behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. 169 00:07:43,079 –> 00:07:47,059 Now here is a woman who is in desperate poverty. 170 00:07:48,239 –> 00:07:50,100 She’s outside the city. 171 00:07:50,100 –> 00:07:51,880 He meets her at the city gate. 172 00:07:52,760 –> 00:07:55,079 Assume from that that she was gathering sticks 173 00:07:55,079 –> 00:07:56,299 from the city dump 174 00:07:56,299 –> 00:07:59,380 that would have been outside the gates. 175 00:08:00,380 –> 00:08:03,320 And Elijah asks this woman for a drink 176 00:08:03,320 –> 00:08:05,100 and as the woman, verse 11, 177 00:08:05,100 –> 00:08:08,420 turns to go and get him the drink that he asks for, 178 00:08:08,420 –> 00:08:11,399 Elijah says, and bring me some bread. 179 00:08:12,660 –> 00:08:14,420 And the woman says, verse 12, 180 00:08:14,420 –> 00:08:18,980 as the Lord your God lives, 181 00:08:18,980 –> 00:08:21,140 by the way, just to pause there for a moment, 182 00:08:21,140 –> 00:08:25,399 notice that the Lord, your God, 183 00:08:25,399 –> 00:08:27,859 she doesn’t say our God, 184 00:08:27,859 –> 00:08:29,220 she says the Lord your God. 185 00:08:30,040 –> 00:08:31,579 She moves to a different position by the end of the chapter 186 00:08:31,579 –> 00:08:32,599 which we’ll see next week. 187 00:08:32,599 –> 00:08:35,799 But at this point, she describes the living God 188 00:08:35,799 –> 00:08:38,619 as Elijah’s God, not hers. 189 00:08:39,479 –> 00:08:41,940 I take it from that, 190 00:08:41,940 –> 00:08:46,059 that at this point, she was not yet a believer. 191 00:08:46,059 –> 00:08:48,960 She knows who the God of Israel is, 192 00:08:48,960 –> 00:08:51,640 she has heard of the fame of the Lord, 193 00:08:51,640 –> 00:08:53,479 but at this point in the story, 194 00:08:53,479 –> 00:08:58,479 God is Elijah’s God, your God, not hers. 195 00:09:00,179 –> 00:09:03,539 But she says, as the Lord, your God, lives, 196 00:09:03,539 –> 00:09:08,539 I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour 197 00:09:09,359 –> 00:09:14,200 in a jar and a little oil in a jug. 198 00:09:14,780 –> 00:09:17,979 So here she is, she’s gathering sticks to make a fire 199 00:09:17,979 –> 00:09:20,919 and she’s making a fire in order to make bread 200 00:09:20,919 –> 00:09:23,099 and she’s making bread out of the last 201 00:09:23,099 –> 00:09:24,799 of these ingredients that she has 202 00:09:24,799 –> 00:09:27,700 and therefore expects that it will be her last meal. 203 00:09:27,780 –> 00:09:31,859 It is a tragic picture of need. 204 00:09:33,580 –> 00:09:36,679 Then we have the astonishing words of verse 13. 205 00:09:37,859 –> 00:09:41,239 Elijah said to her, do not fear, 206 00:09:42,440 –> 00:09:47,440 go and do as you have said but first, 207 00:09:47,460 –> 00:09:52,359 make me a little cake of it and bring it to me 208 00:09:52,359 –> 00:09:56,440 and afterward make something for yourself and for your son. 209 00:09:58,260 –> 00:10:02,119 So by any standards, Elijah, at this moment, 210 00:10:02,119 –> 00:10:05,539 asks for an astonishing sacrifice. 211 00:10:06,719 –> 00:10:08,340 Got enough to make one cake 212 00:10:08,340 –> 00:10:10,559 and I expect it will be my last meal 213 00:10:10,559 –> 00:10:12,280 and Elijah says, now don’t be afraid, 214 00:10:12,280 –> 00:10:13,359 you can go and do what you say 215 00:10:13,359 –> 00:10:14,840 but first I want you to make something 216 00:10:14,840 –> 00:10:17,799 out of that minimal amount that you have 217 00:10:17,799 –> 00:10:18,799 and give it to me. 218 00:10:20,200 –> 00:10:21,260 Can you imagine it? 219 00:10:22,200 –> 00:10:24,340 Astonishing, invasive. 220 00:10:25,340 –> 00:10:28,820 Now, remember Elijah was a prophet 221 00:10:29,820 –> 00:10:32,539 and what this means is that as a prophet 222 00:10:32,539 –> 00:10:36,059 he spoke the word of God. 223 00:10:36,059 –> 00:10:39,539 What the prophet says, God says 224 00:10:39,539 –> 00:10:41,619 and so the word of the Lord comes 225 00:10:41,619 –> 00:10:43,260 to this woman through Elijah. 226 00:10:43,260 –> 00:10:47,940 It is God who is calling her to make a great sacrifice 227 00:10:49,380 –> 00:10:51,659 but then I want you to notice that 228 00:10:51,659 –> 00:10:54,280 Elijah, speaking the word of God, 229 00:10:55,140 –> 00:10:57,479 gives her a great promise 230 00:10:57,479 –> 00:10:59,840 for thus verse 14 says the Lord, 231 00:10:59,840 –> 00:11:01,539 the God of Israel, 232 00:11:01,539 –> 00:11:05,599 the jar of flower shall not be spent 233 00:11:05,599 –> 00:11:09,280 and the jug of oil shall not be empty 234 00:11:09,280 –> 00:11:14,280 until the day that Lord sends rain on the earth. 235 00:11:16,080 –> 00:11:21,080 So there is this astonishing call for great sacrifice 236 00:11:21,479 –> 00:11:23,979 but it is for the sake of greater joy 237 00:11:24,020 –> 00:11:26,659 because there is an amazing promise 238 00:11:26,659 –> 00:11:28,080 that is tied to it. 239 00:11:29,500 –> 00:11:31,940 Now alarm bells will be going off in some minds, 240 00:11:31,940 –> 00:11:33,059 I am sure, and someone say, 241 00:11:33,059 –> 00:11:34,520 whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a minute, 242 00:11:34,520 –> 00:11:36,299 is this health and wealth or what? 243 00:11:36,299 –> 00:11:37,520 Not a bit of it. 244 00:11:37,520 –> 00:11:39,599 You will never hear that from this pulpit. 245 00:11:41,580 –> 00:11:44,280 Let me tell you why it’s not health and wealth. 246 00:11:44,280 –> 00:11:47,739 God never promised wealth to this woman. 247 00:11:49,580 –> 00:11:50,880 The promise was not, 248 00:11:51,119 –> 00:11:55,979 bake me a cake and I’ll give you a bread factory. 249 00:11:55,979 –> 00:11:57,200 That’s health and wealth. 250 00:11:59,159 –> 00:12:00,520 God wants you rich. 251 00:12:01,520 –> 00:12:02,880 There’s none of that here. 252 00:12:04,039 –> 00:12:06,780 The promise was, and it’s a very important promise 253 00:12:06,780 –> 00:12:08,780 for every one of us to receive. 254 00:12:08,780 –> 00:12:12,559 Bake me a cake and the jar of flour will not be empty 255 00:12:12,559 –> 00:12:15,140 and the jug of oil will not run dry. 256 00:12:16,599 –> 00:12:20,440 It’s not that the jar and the jug will be overflowing, 257 00:12:20,440 –> 00:12:23,479 it’s that there will always be enough in the bottom. 258 00:12:25,239 –> 00:12:26,500 That’s the promise. 259 00:12:27,440 –> 00:12:32,179 The promise is this, God will provide what you need 260 00:12:32,179 –> 00:12:35,640 as you need it, as you walk with him 261 00:12:35,640 –> 00:12:39,200 in faith and in obedience, and that is a promise 262 00:12:39,200 –> 00:12:42,559 that every Christian desperately needs to understand 263 00:12:42,559 –> 00:12:44,880 and to hold and to live on. 264 00:12:45,760 –> 00:12:48,000 And it’s right here in the story of Elijah. 265 00:12:48,039 –> 00:12:51,940 Leaders ask for great sacrifice for the sake 266 00:12:51,940 –> 00:12:54,080 of greater joy. 267 00:12:55,460 –> 00:12:58,140 Elijah makes an astonishing ask, 268 00:12:58,140 –> 00:13:00,739 gives an amazing promise, 269 00:13:00,739 –> 00:13:04,020 and these are the very words of God. 270 00:13:05,820 –> 00:13:10,820 Now, Elijah is a type of Jesus Christ here, 271 00:13:13,479 –> 00:13:15,700 let me explain what that means. 272 00:13:15,739 –> 00:13:20,619 Then what that means, Elijah pictures for us 273 00:13:20,619 –> 00:13:25,099 what Jesus Christ would do when he came, 274 00:13:26,119 –> 00:13:27,500 and think about the parallels, 275 00:13:27,500 –> 00:13:29,599 think about how Elijah, as it were, 276 00:13:29,599 –> 00:13:32,739 shines a light on Jesus. 277 00:13:33,640 –> 00:13:36,799 Christ came to people in great need 278 00:13:36,799 –> 00:13:40,640 just like Elijah came to this woman in great need. 279 00:13:40,640 –> 00:13:44,239 Here we are, and what defines us most fundamentally 280 00:13:45,239 –> 00:13:49,260 is whatever our particular situations in life right now, 281 00:13:49,260 –> 00:13:52,599 every one of us like this woman is on the way to death, 282 00:13:52,599 –> 00:13:53,820 every one of us. 283 00:13:55,219 –> 00:13:57,840 Most of us are a lot further away from death 284 00:13:57,840 –> 00:14:00,520 than she was when Elijah arrived on the scene, 285 00:14:00,520 –> 00:14:02,140 but we’re exactly on the same path, 286 00:14:02,140 –> 00:14:04,119 we have exactly the same position. 287 00:14:04,119 –> 00:14:08,080 Every one of us here today is on the way to death, 288 00:14:08,080 –> 00:14:10,520 we’re in exactly the same situation 289 00:14:10,520 –> 00:14:12,919 of need as that poor widow. 290 00:14:12,919 –> 00:14:16,820 Second, when Christ comes into the situation 291 00:14:16,820 –> 00:14:20,299 of great need, he calls for great sacrifice. 292 00:14:22,020 –> 00:14:25,159 Mark 8 in verse 34 you know these words of Jesus. 293 00:14:25,159 –> 00:14:30,159 He says, if anyone would come after me, 294 00:14:30,419 –> 00:14:35,440 let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 295 00:14:36,820 –> 00:14:37,979 That’s what Jesus said. 296 00:14:39,260 –> 00:14:42,739 It’s easy for us 2,000 or more years later to say 297 00:14:42,760 –> 00:14:44,719 well of course that must be for the really seriously 298 00:14:44,719 –> 00:14:45,960 committed and so forth people 299 00:14:45,960 –> 00:14:47,900 like Peter and James and John, no. 300 00:14:50,200 –> 00:14:53,080 The Bible says Jesus called the crowd to him. 301 00:14:54,179 –> 00:14:55,739 People that were trying to make up their minds 302 00:14:55,739 –> 00:14:58,599 whether to become Christians, he called them to them. 303 00:14:59,760 –> 00:15:03,880 And together with his disciples Jesus said to them, 304 00:15:03,880 –> 00:15:05,520 Mark 8 in 34. 305 00:15:06,859 –> 00:15:09,580 If anyone, while you’re thinking about 306 00:15:09,580 –> 00:15:11,979 whether you’re going to be my follower for real. 307 00:15:12,859 –> 00:15:14,239 Let me tell you what it involves, 308 00:15:14,239 –> 00:15:17,979 if anyone would come after me, here’s what it is. 309 00:15:17,979 –> 00:15:21,820 Let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 310 00:15:21,820 –> 00:15:26,359 Jesus does not put a life of sacrifice in the small print. 311 00:15:26,359 –> 00:15:30,299 Jesus puts the life of sacrifice in the headline, 312 00:15:30,299 –> 00:15:31,940 said you got to know that if you follow me 313 00:15:31,940 –> 00:15:35,900 this is what it is, understand that. 314 00:15:37,219 –> 00:15:40,880 Following Christ can never be a slice of your life. 315 00:15:42,940 –> 00:15:45,780 You follow Christ, it is your life. 316 00:15:45,780 –> 00:15:48,960 Let a man deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 317 00:15:51,799 –> 00:15:53,880 So Christ comes into the situation of great need 318 00:15:53,880 –> 00:15:55,239 and what does he do? 319 00:15:55,239 –> 00:15:57,580 He calls for great sacrifice. 320 00:15:57,580 –> 00:15:58,820 And then what else does he do? 321 00:15:58,820 –> 00:16:01,159 He promises greater joy. 322 00:16:02,619 –> 00:16:06,500 The very next verse, for whoever, Mark 8 35, 323 00:16:06,500 –> 00:16:08,919 would save his life will lose it. 324 00:16:09,799 –> 00:16:11,659 Try and live your life. 325 00:16:11,719 –> 00:16:14,219 It just slips through your fingers and it’s gone. 326 00:16:15,159 –> 00:16:17,200 Whoever would save his life will lose it, 327 00:16:17,200 –> 00:16:21,039 but whoever loses his life for my sake 328 00:16:21,039 –> 00:16:22,960 and the gospels will save it. 329 00:16:22,960 –> 00:16:24,219 That’s what Jesus said. 330 00:16:24,219 –> 00:16:28,080 You lose your life, you give it away, you lay it down 331 00:16:28,080 –> 00:16:32,239 for my sake and for the gospels you will save your life. 332 00:16:33,500 –> 00:16:35,280 And that’s what it means to follow. 333 00:16:35,280 –> 00:16:38,739 So here’s Christ and he comes and he comes to great need 334 00:16:38,760 –> 00:16:40,799 and he calls for great sacrifice 335 00:16:40,799 –> 00:16:44,280 and he promises greater joy. 336 00:16:47,000 –> 00:16:48,479 Folks, I have been really moved 337 00:16:48,479 –> 00:16:52,280 by reading the story of Adeniron Judson. 338 00:16:52,280 –> 00:16:53,659 Some of you will have read his story, 339 00:16:53,659 –> 00:16:55,900 if not, it’s powerful stuff. 340 00:16:56,820 –> 00:17:01,820 The great American missionary to Burma born in 1788. 341 00:17:01,859 –> 00:17:06,660 Adeniron Judson fell in love with 342 00:17:09,660 –> 00:17:12,099 a girl by the name of Ann Hasseltine 343 00:17:13,479 –> 00:17:16,300 and he wrote to her father 344 00:17:17,199 –> 00:17:21,400 asking for his consent to their marriage, 345 00:17:21,400 –> 00:17:23,099 knowing that what that meant would be 346 00:17:23,099 –> 00:17:24,839 that together they would be embarking 347 00:17:24,839 –> 00:17:27,800 on a missionary life in Burma, 348 00:17:27,800 –> 00:17:29,420 which at that point was unreached 349 00:17:29,520 –> 00:17:32,339 with the gospel and was full of danger. 350 00:17:33,339 –> 00:17:36,660 I want to read to you the letter that Judson wrote 351 00:17:36,660 –> 00:17:39,260 to his future father-in-law 352 00:17:39,260 –> 00:17:41,459 as he asked for this man’s consent 353 00:17:41,459 –> 00:17:44,359 for the daughter’s hand in marriage, 354 00:17:44,359 –> 00:17:47,140 and this should run deep with every father 355 00:17:47,140 –> 00:17:48,319 in the congregation. 356 00:17:50,500 –> 00:17:53,219 I have now to ask, he says, 357 00:17:54,079 –> 00:17:58,479 whether you can consent to part with your daughter 358 00:17:59,140 –> 00:18:00,199 by early next spring 359 00:18:00,199 –> 00:18:02,900 and to see her no more in this world. 360 00:18:04,599 –> 00:18:07,959 Whether you can consent to her departure 361 00:18:07,959 –> 00:18:10,280 and her subjection to the hardships 362 00:18:10,280 –> 00:18:12,300 and sufferings of a missionary life, 363 00:18:14,000 –> 00:18:16,640 whether you can consent to her exposure 364 00:18:16,640 –> 00:18:19,000 to the dangers of the ocean, 365 00:18:19,000 –> 00:18:22,280 to every kind of want and distress, 366 00:18:22,280 –> 00:18:26,439 to degradation, insult, persecutions, 367 00:18:26,439 –> 00:18:29,140 and perhaps, a violent death. 368 00:18:30,339 –> 00:18:33,020 Can you, sir, consent to all this 369 00:18:33,020 –> 00:18:37,160 for the sake of him who left his Heavenly home 370 00:18:37,160 –> 00:18:40,540 and died for her and for you, 371 00:18:40,540 –> 00:18:43,040 for the sake of perishing immortal souls 372 00:18:43,040 –> 00:18:45,959 and for the sake of the glory of God? 373 00:18:45,959 –> 00:18:49,180 Can you consent to all this in the hope 374 00:18:49,180 –> 00:18:53,199 of soon meeting your daughter in a world of glory 375 00:18:53,199 –> 00:18:55,520 with the crown of righteousness 376 00:18:55,520 –> 00:18:58,579 brightened with the acclamations of praise, 377 00:18:58,579 –> 00:19:02,459 which shall redound to her savior from heathen saved 378 00:19:02,459 –> 00:19:06,739 through her means from eternal woe and from despair? 379 00:19:08,680 –> 00:19:11,300 What would you have said in response to that letter? 380 00:19:14,020 –> 00:19:16,739 God gave to me two wonderful sons. 381 00:19:18,859 –> 00:19:23,859 And now, as of three weeks ago, I have a granddaughter. 382 00:19:24,260 –> 00:19:25,199 Ah, thank you. 383 00:19:26,959 –> 00:19:30,020 What a joy. 384 00:19:33,099 –> 00:19:36,140 What if God, in 20 years’ time, were to bring 385 00:19:36,140 –> 00:19:40,219 a 21st century Aden iron judson into her life? 386 00:19:42,800 –> 00:19:47,439 Would I say, yes, yes. 387 00:19:47,780 –> 00:19:48,900 I hope I would. 388 00:19:51,079 –> 00:19:51,939 What about you? 389 00:19:55,280 –> 00:19:57,959 Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously said, 390 00:19:57,959 –> 00:20:00,780 when Christ calls a man, 391 00:20:00,780 –> 00:20:04,880 he bids him to come and die. 392 00:20:04,880 –> 00:20:06,199 And he’s taking that, of course, 393 00:20:06,199 –> 00:20:08,199 directly from the words of Jesus that we quoted. 394 00:20:08,199 –> 00:20:10,339 If anyone would come after me, Jesus says, 395 00:20:10,339 –> 00:20:13,280 he must take up his cross and follow me. 396 00:20:13,739 –> 00:20:16,199 He says, he will take up his cross and follow me. 397 00:20:16,199 –> 00:20:19,579 What is taking up the cross mean? 398 00:20:19,579 –> 00:20:21,619 Taking up the cross means 399 00:20:21,619 –> 00:20:25,520 that you consider yourself already dead. 400 00:20:26,640 –> 00:20:28,280 That’s what it means. 401 00:20:28,280 –> 00:20:31,319 A guy who is carrying the cross 402 00:20:31,319 –> 00:20:33,160 is not simply carrying a heavy load, 403 00:20:33,160 –> 00:20:35,979 he is on the way to his execution. 404 00:20:35,979 –> 00:20:37,560 He’s got one hour left to live. 405 00:20:37,560 –> 00:20:41,040 He considers himself already dead. 406 00:20:41,839 –> 00:20:43,900 And friend that is at 407 00:20:43,900 –> 00:20:47,020 the very heart of what it means to be a Christian. 408 00:20:47,020 –> 00:20:49,119 Colossians chapter 3, 409 00:20:49,119 –> 00:20:50,839 you died. 410 00:20:50,839 –> 00:20:53,239 That’s the starting point of being a Christian. 411 00:20:53,239 –> 00:20:58,180 And your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 412 00:20:58,180 –> 00:21:01,560 And if you count yourself dead already, 413 00:21:01,560 –> 00:21:04,959 truly then all that you have has 414 00:21:04,959 –> 00:21:07,119 already been released because 415 00:21:07,119 –> 00:21:10,099 that’s what happens when a person dies. 416 00:21:10,099 –> 00:21:13,119 The owner died and all that you once 417 00:21:13,119 –> 00:21:15,579 owned is now in the hands of God 418 00:21:15,579 –> 00:21:18,680 and it has already passed from you 419 00:21:18,680 –> 00:21:20,300 and you live with that knowledge. 420 00:21:20,300 –> 00:21:22,060 It is not mine. 421 00:21:22,060 –> 00:21:24,400 I died. 422 00:21:24,400 –> 00:21:27,599 If you count yourself dead already, 423 00:21:27,599 –> 00:21:29,459 you will no longer be asking, 424 00:21:29,459 –> 00:21:32,560 what am I going to do with my life? 425 00:21:32,760 –> 00:21:35,060 A Christian is a person who has 426 00:21:35,060 –> 00:21:38,760 given debt up already, I died. 427 00:21:39,380 –> 00:21:40,560 The Christian is a person who is 428 00:21:40,560 –> 00:21:42,760 asking a new question, which is, 429 00:21:42,760 –> 00:21:44,859 what does Jesus Christ want 430 00:21:44,859 –> 00:21:46,760 me to do with my life and what is 431 00:21:46,760 –> 00:21:48,160 the single most useful thing 432 00:21:48,160 –> 00:21:50,500 that I can now do for Him? 433 00:21:50,500 –> 00:21:53,819 What is the best that I can do for my God? 434 00:21:53,819 –> 00:21:57,319 That is a totally different question 435 00:21:57,319 –> 00:21:59,780 and it will lead to a totally different life. 436 00:21:59,780 –> 00:22:03,000 What is the best 437 00:22:03,000 –> 00:22:08,540 that you can do for your God? 438 00:22:08,540 –> 00:22:11,780 God may allow you to earn twice, 439 00:22:11,780 –> 00:22:14,400 three times, four times the amount 440 00:22:14,400 –> 00:22:16,920 that other people in this congregation earn 441 00:22:16,920 –> 00:22:18,760 and then to give half, three-quarters 442 00:22:18,760 –> 00:22:20,880 or more than that away 443 00:22:20,880 –> 00:22:22,599 for the advance of the gospel. 444 00:22:22,599 –> 00:22:24,000 That would be the best you could do. 445 00:22:24,000 –> 00:22:25,979 That would be fantastic. 446 00:22:25,979 –> 00:22:27,560 And think what could be accomplished 447 00:22:27,560 –> 00:22:32,560 through that in ten years of ministry. 448 00:22:34,660 –> 00:22:37,079 God may call others of you 449 00:22:37,099 –> 00:22:42,099 to live on half of what you were living before 450 00:22:42,839 –> 00:22:47,839 and to show what it means to be content 451 00:22:47,839 –> 00:22:52,839 and to love Christ in a simpler lifestyle 452 00:22:54,099 –> 00:22:58,000 and think of the power of that testimony 453 00:22:58,000 –> 00:23:03,000 in this suffocatingly materialistic culture. 454 00:23:03,800 –> 00:23:08,060 The best you can do for your God 455 00:23:08,060 –> 00:23:12,800 may be for some of us to move to Southeast Asia 456 00:23:14,260 –> 00:23:16,959 and for you to use your professional expertise 457 00:23:16,959 –> 00:23:21,959 as a teacher, as a medic or as a business person 458 00:23:23,319 –> 00:23:25,959 to build a platform from which churches 459 00:23:25,959 –> 00:23:29,599 may be planted among 250 million 460 00:23:29,599 –> 00:23:32,900 Malay speaking Muslims, 250 million. 461 00:23:34,880 –> 00:23:37,260 Our team left just Friday 462 00:23:38,660 –> 00:23:42,199 to meet with Asian church leaders that are there today 463 00:23:42,199 –> 00:23:44,839 to identify what the Orchard can do 464 00:23:44,839 –> 00:23:47,579 to bring the Gospel to communities of people 465 00:23:47,579 –> 00:23:52,479 among 250 million Malay-speaking Muslims 466 00:23:52,479 –> 00:23:56,199 who desperately need to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. 467 00:23:56,199 –> 00:23:59,280 Asians must plant the church 468 00:23:59,280 –> 00:24:00,760 but what we’ve been asked to do 469 00:24:00,760 –> 00:24:05,079 is to be able to send people with professional expertise 470 00:24:05,079 –> 00:24:07,020 who can build platforms from which 471 00:24:07,020 –> 00:24:10,079 the church will be built in a very hostile culture. 472 00:24:12,339 –> 00:24:17,060 And when they come back, we will be beginning to pray 473 00:24:17,060 –> 00:24:20,040 to look for folks in this congregation 474 00:24:20,040 –> 00:24:22,260 who will go and will serve for a year. 475 00:24:22,260 –> 00:24:23,459 We’ll serve for two years. 476 00:24:23,459 –> 00:24:26,400 We’ll build these platforms so churches will be planted. 477 00:24:26,420 –> 00:24:30,180 And friends this is not travel experiences for Christians. 478 00:24:31,900 –> 00:24:33,459 It could mean you becoming 479 00:24:33,459 –> 00:24:36,880 the orchard’s first missionary martyr. 480 00:24:39,160 –> 00:24:41,680 But if you count yourself dead already, 481 00:24:41,680 –> 00:24:43,060 that will not deter you. 482 00:24:45,280 –> 00:24:50,280 Leaders ask, they ask for great sacrifices. 483 00:24:50,280 –> 00:24:55,260 Every father is placed by God 484 00:24:56,560 –> 00:25:00,079 in a position of leadership responsibility in his family. 485 00:25:01,979 –> 00:25:05,359 So what are you asking of your son dad? 486 00:25:06,560 –> 00:25:07,859 What are you calling him to? 487 00:25:07,859 –> 00:25:10,239 What is the vision of life you’re modeled for him? 488 00:25:10,239 –> 00:25:13,099 What are the commitments you’re asking of your daughter? 489 00:25:14,939 –> 00:25:16,959 The default pattern in our culture 490 00:25:17,000 –> 00:25:20,219 has so often become that we as parents 491 00:25:20,219 –> 00:25:22,800 ask our children what they want 492 00:25:22,800 –> 00:25:24,920 and then see that the definition of a good parent 493 00:25:24,920 –> 00:25:28,160 is to give them what they want, 494 00:25:28,160 –> 00:25:29,800 to give them what they ask, 495 00:25:29,800 –> 00:25:31,880 that’s completely the wrong way around. 496 00:25:33,479 –> 00:25:34,839 If your approach to parenting 497 00:25:34,839 –> 00:25:36,839 is to ask your children what they want, 498 00:25:36,839 –> 00:25:38,920 you are not leading. 499 00:25:38,920 –> 00:25:40,579 Leaders ask. 500 00:25:40,579 –> 00:25:42,280 They make the ask. 501 00:25:42,280 –> 00:25:43,660 So what are you asking of your son? 502 00:25:43,660 –> 00:25:45,300 What are you calling him to? 503 00:25:45,339 –> 00:25:47,020 What are you modeling for him? 504 00:25:47,020 –> 00:25:49,579 How are you showing him what a life 505 00:25:49,579 –> 00:25:52,239 that takes up the crosses looks like 506 00:25:52,239 –> 00:25:54,819 so he will have something to admire 507 00:25:54,819 –> 00:25:56,500 and something to follow and say 508 00:25:56,500 –> 00:25:59,219 I see something in Dad that arises 509 00:25:59,219 –> 00:26:00,780 so much from a love of Jesus, 510 00:26:00,780 –> 00:26:03,439 that it’s real and I want something that’s real. 511 00:26:03,439 –> 00:26:05,260 Our kids are desperately looking 512 00:26:05,260 –> 00:26:06,579 for something that is real. 513 00:26:09,819 –> 00:26:11,979 And then what promise are you speaking 514 00:26:11,979 –> 00:26:14,979 into your son or your daughter’s life. 515 00:26:14,979 –> 00:26:18,079 Did you hear that in Adenairon Judson’s letter 516 00:26:18,079 –> 00:26:19,780 to his future father-in-law. 517 00:26:19,780 –> 00:26:23,239 Can you consent to see her no more in this world? 518 00:26:23,239 –> 00:26:25,359 That is an amazing sacrifice, 519 00:26:25,359 –> 00:26:27,300 but did you hear the promise? 520 00:26:27,300 –> 00:26:29,219 But next time you see her, 521 00:26:30,219 –> 00:26:33,660 to see her with a crown of glory on her head. 522 00:26:34,699 –> 00:26:35,939 Can you consent to that? 523 00:26:38,819 –> 00:26:40,920 Leaders call for a great sacrifice 524 00:26:40,920 –> 00:26:44,300 for the sake of greater joy. 525 00:26:45,680 –> 00:26:50,400 Guys, that shows I’ve been in America 16 years. 526 00:26:50,400 –> 00:26:51,300 I’m sorry. 527 00:26:55,339 –> 00:26:57,579 16 years ago you asked me 528 00:26:59,140 –> 00:27:00,979 to come halfway around the world 529 00:27:02,300 –> 00:27:04,719 in order to give leadership to this congregation, 530 00:27:06,520 –> 00:27:09,339 and it continues to be my great privilege 531 00:27:10,500 –> 00:27:13,579 to be entrusted with that calling by you. 532 00:27:15,900 –> 00:27:19,739 But, if you ask someone to lead, 533 00:27:19,739 –> 00:27:22,780 you have to expect them to ask. 534 00:27:24,560 –> 00:27:27,099 To lead you means that I must, 535 00:27:28,000 –> 00:27:31,260 if I am a leader worthy of the name at all, 536 00:27:32,319 –> 00:27:35,319 ask you for great sacrifices, 537 00:27:37,099 –> 00:27:40,439 lead by example in making them myself 538 00:27:41,060 –> 00:27:46,060 and hold before you great promises 539 00:27:47,140 –> 00:27:50,300 of infinitely greater joy. 540 00:27:51,800 –> 00:27:54,780 Let me make three asks of you today. 541 00:27:57,560 –> 00:28:00,060 The first is an ask to serve. 542 00:28:02,099 –> 00:28:03,640 You say you do not want the church 543 00:28:03,640 –> 00:28:05,800 to be like a consumerist mall. 544 00:28:05,800 –> 00:28:07,640 God save us from that. 545 00:28:08,079 –> 00:28:11,239 You want it to be a functioning body. 546 00:28:12,339 –> 00:28:14,400 What will you do? 547 00:28:15,640 –> 00:28:17,239 How are you going to serve? 548 00:28:18,780 –> 00:28:21,160 I ask you to serve. 549 00:28:22,800 –> 00:28:24,319 And I ask you to serve in the way 550 00:28:24,319 –> 00:28:26,260 that will be the best possible thing, 551 00:28:26,260 –> 00:28:27,680 the largest possible thing, 552 00:28:27,680 –> 00:28:29,380 the greatest possible contribution 553 00:28:29,380 –> 00:28:31,699 that you could make to the life 554 00:28:31,699 –> 00:28:34,000 of the body of Christ and the advance 555 00:28:34,000 –> 00:28:35,760 of the gospel here and around the world. 556 00:28:35,839 –> 00:28:38,099 And for someone that may mean Southeast Asia. 557 00:28:39,199 –> 00:28:41,160 For someone it’s a Sunday school class. 558 00:28:42,040 –> 00:28:44,859 But for everyone, it’s something. 559 00:28:47,880 –> 00:28:50,140 Second, I want to ask you to give. 560 00:28:51,800 –> 00:28:54,420 Many in our congregation have established 561 00:28:54,420 –> 00:28:57,280 a regular pattern of giving 562 00:28:57,280 –> 00:29:01,640 as a defining mark of obedience to Christ. 563 00:29:01,640 –> 00:29:02,560 What about you? 564 00:29:03,439 –> 00:29:04,619 Have you done that? 565 00:29:06,599 –> 00:29:08,760 Elijah’s words, by the way, to the widow 566 00:29:08,760 –> 00:29:11,979 hold the key to faithful giving. 567 00:29:11,979 –> 00:29:13,380 Notice it in verse 13. 568 00:29:13,380 –> 00:29:14,800 Very important to grasp this. 569 00:29:14,800 –> 00:29:16,280 Very practical. 570 00:29:16,280 –> 00:29:18,040 Do not fear, that’s where it begins, 571 00:29:18,040 –> 00:29:20,640 you gotta have faith in order to give. 572 00:29:20,640 –> 00:29:22,439 You gotta have faith. 573 00:29:22,439 –> 00:29:25,140 So do not fear, go and do as you have said, 574 00:29:25,140 –> 00:29:29,160 but first, make me a little cake 575 00:29:30,079 –> 00:29:32,079 and bring it to me, and afterwards 576 00:29:32,079 –> 00:29:34,619 make something for yourself and for your son. 577 00:29:35,619 –> 00:29:37,599 And friends, very simply the only way to give 578 00:29:37,599 –> 00:29:40,520 when things are tight is to give 579 00:29:40,520 –> 00:29:43,920 what God is asking of you first. 580 00:29:45,000 –> 00:29:49,319 In other words, set aside what you will give first, 581 00:29:49,319 –> 00:29:54,319 then work out what it will take for you to live on the rest. 582 00:29:55,719 –> 00:29:58,260 I try to encourage couples who come for counseling 583 00:29:58,260 –> 00:30:00,939 for marriage, when I have that opportunity to do that 584 00:30:00,939 –> 00:30:02,839 from the first month they’re married. 585 00:30:03,680 –> 00:30:05,660 So Karin and I have done, 586 00:30:05,660 –> 00:30:08,319 we have a very simple way of doing it. 587 00:30:08,319 –> 00:30:11,219 We have two bank accounts. 588 00:30:11,219 –> 00:30:13,260 One is for living, 589 00:30:13,260 –> 00:30:15,359 and the other is for giving. 590 00:30:16,719 –> 00:30:21,719 And as soon as my salary comes into the account for living, 591 00:30:25,339 –> 00:30:28,280 a significant percentage of it pops out 592 00:30:28,280 –> 00:30:30,699 into the account for giving. 593 00:30:31,660 –> 00:30:35,500 And then from there, it flows into ministry, 594 00:30:35,500 –> 00:30:39,180 mainly overwhelmingly through the orchard, 595 00:30:39,180 –> 00:30:41,599 because the local church always comes first. 596 00:30:42,459 –> 00:30:44,939 And then in some other areas of ministry 597 00:30:44,939 –> 00:30:48,239 to which we are also deeply committed. 598 00:30:49,780 –> 00:30:52,859 We began when we were married saying 599 00:30:52,859 –> 00:30:56,099 that percentage should be 10%. 600 00:30:56,099 –> 00:30:57,619 The moment is much more, 601 00:30:58,300 –> 00:31:01,160 but it’s never less. 602 00:31:01,160 –> 00:31:02,780 That account, the giving account, 603 00:31:02,780 –> 00:31:05,060 gets cleaned out every year. 604 00:31:06,619 –> 00:31:08,579 And once a dollar is in that account, 605 00:31:08,579 –> 00:31:10,920 it is sacred to the Lord. 606 00:31:10,920 –> 00:31:12,599 It never comes backwards. 607 00:31:14,199 –> 00:31:19,199 Now you don’t have to have two accounts to do this. 608 00:31:19,219 –> 00:31:20,979 Some of you are much brighter than me 609 00:31:20,979 –> 00:31:22,839 and can work it out from one account. 610 00:31:24,479 –> 00:31:27,520 But I am urging you to have a plan for giving. 611 00:31:28,540 –> 00:31:33,079 And to set what that percentage is going to be 612 00:31:33,079 –> 00:31:35,000 for this year and for a husband and a wife 613 00:31:35,000 –> 00:31:36,160 to sit down and to say, 614 00:31:36,160 –> 00:31:37,800 Oh God, this is what you’re giving to us. 615 00:31:37,800 –> 00:31:40,060 What are we going to commit to releasing 616 00:31:40,060 –> 00:31:42,000 right from the beginning, off the top? 617 00:31:43,959 –> 00:31:45,319 So when we came to this country 618 00:31:45,319 –> 00:31:47,520 and found out what we would be living on 619 00:31:47,520 –> 00:31:50,119 we said, okay there’s our giving off the top. 620 00:31:50,119 –> 00:31:51,839 The second thing is we made a commitment 621 00:31:51,839 –> 00:31:54,640 we would go back to England and see our family. 622 00:31:54,640 –> 00:31:56,319 So that’s gonna cost quite a lot of money 623 00:31:56,319 –> 00:31:57,560 with four airfares. 624 00:31:58,000 –> 00:32:00,400 So here’s number one, here’s number two, 625 00:32:00,400 –> 00:32:01,819 now here’s what we live off. 626 00:32:03,040 –> 00:32:05,739 Because these things were commitments, in that order. 627 00:32:06,959 –> 00:32:10,199 And so what can we afford to do living off this? 628 00:32:12,260 –> 00:32:14,859 You will never establish a regular pattern 629 00:32:14,859 –> 00:32:16,699 of obedience to God, unless you start 630 00:32:16,699 –> 00:32:19,079 with the principle of Elijah, 631 00:32:19,079 –> 00:32:22,199 here in 1 Kings chapter 17 verse 13, 632 00:32:22,199 –> 00:32:24,859 but first make me a cake. 633 00:32:24,859 –> 00:32:26,780 And the women’s gonna be saying, 634 00:32:26,939 –> 00:32:29,579 how can I possibly do that? 635 00:32:29,579 –> 00:32:31,540 If you try to give out of what is left 636 00:32:31,540 –> 00:32:33,099 at the end of the month or have a look 637 00:32:33,099 –> 00:32:34,939 at what’s happened at the end of the year 638 00:32:34,939 –> 00:32:36,140 and so forth and so on, 639 00:32:37,699 –> 00:32:40,140 you will never do what God is calling you to do. 640 00:32:43,260 –> 00:32:44,900 And faithfulness in giving, folks, 641 00:32:44,900 –> 00:32:47,719 is going to mean some very tough questions. 642 00:32:49,459 –> 00:32:53,420 Does what we give reflect a life commitment 643 00:32:53,420 –> 00:32:56,619 of our family to make the gospel run 644 00:32:56,619 –> 00:32:58,439 here and around the world, really? 645 00:33:00,060 –> 00:33:02,780 You know, you say to your kids, God first. 646 00:33:04,339 –> 00:33:06,479 Does what we give as a family, 647 00:33:06,479 –> 00:33:07,900 does what we give as a couple, 648 00:33:07,900 –> 00:33:09,579 does what I give as an individual, 649 00:33:09,579 –> 00:33:10,939 whichever that is for you, 650 00:33:10,939 –> 00:33:13,719 does it reflect a life commitment 651 00:33:15,000 –> 00:33:17,619 to make the gospel run here and around the world? 652 00:33:17,619 –> 00:33:19,500 Because if that is not the first commitment 653 00:33:19,500 –> 00:33:20,959 of your life, what is? 654 00:33:23,819 –> 00:33:26,760 Can you really say that your first financial commitment 655 00:33:26,760 –> 00:33:29,140 in good times and in bad is to give to God 656 00:33:29,140 –> 00:33:32,400 a significant portion of what he has given 657 00:33:32,400 –> 00:33:34,939 to you to be used in his great purpose 658 00:33:34,939 –> 00:33:38,859 of the advance of the gospel around the world? 659 00:33:38,859 –> 00:33:40,780 And till the day when you’re there in heaven 660 00:33:40,780 –> 00:33:42,699 with the crown of glory, and you say, 661 00:33:42,699 –> 00:33:44,339 that was the very best thing I did 662 00:33:44,339 –> 00:33:48,060 in all of my life, was why I contributed 663 00:33:48,060 –> 00:33:49,180 to the advance of the gospel 664 00:33:49,180 –> 00:33:51,540 and how I engaged in the advance of the gospel. 665 00:33:54,260 –> 00:33:57,219 Friends, this is not difficult for a person to do 666 00:33:57,219 –> 00:33:59,119 if you have taken up the cross 667 00:33:59,119 –> 00:34:01,599 and counted yourself dead already. 668 00:34:01,599 –> 00:34:04,400 This is certainly not difficult to do 669 00:34:04,400 –> 00:34:06,619 for a person who has heard the promise 670 00:34:06,619 –> 00:34:11,260 that losing your life is the way to keep it. 671 00:34:13,139 –> 00:34:14,679 And then I urge you with this, 672 00:34:14,679 –> 00:34:19,679 because perhaps many of us have got into a position 673 00:34:20,120 –> 00:34:22,520 where we are so straightened financially 674 00:34:22,560 –> 00:34:24,179 because of decisions that we make 675 00:34:24,179 –> 00:34:26,399 that we have lost so much of the liberty 676 00:34:26,399 –> 00:34:28,340 that God intended us to have, 677 00:34:30,159 –> 00:34:33,340 every time you make a financial commitment, 678 00:34:33,340 –> 00:34:37,300 ask yourself what would this mean for my giving to God? 679 00:34:37,300 –> 00:34:38,879 Ask yourself that question. 680 00:34:39,840 –> 00:34:41,679 If I make this financial commitment 681 00:34:41,679 –> 00:34:45,080 what would it mean for my giving to God? 682 00:34:45,080 –> 00:34:48,219 If buying a new house would make it impossible 683 00:34:48,219 –> 00:34:50,199 for you to give 10% of your income, 684 00:34:50,199 –> 00:34:51,919 why would you buy that house? 685 00:34:53,520 –> 00:34:56,179 If your daughter going to a particular college 686 00:34:56,179 –> 00:34:57,639 would make it impossible for you 687 00:34:57,639 –> 00:34:59,699 to honor God in tithing your income, 688 00:34:59,699 –> 00:35:01,800 why would your daughter want to go to that college 689 00:35:01,800 –> 00:35:04,320 if she knew that that was what it meant? 690 00:35:06,879 –> 00:35:08,860 If an investment that you could make 691 00:35:08,860 –> 00:35:11,239 could not be released, 692 00:35:12,239 –> 00:35:16,260 were it that God himself were to move you to do so, 693 00:35:16,260 –> 00:35:18,459 why would you put yourself in that position? 694 00:35:18,899 –> 00:35:23,899 If honoring God with your money means, friend, 695 00:35:24,500 –> 00:35:29,000 selling your house and moving to something smaller, 696 00:35:30,620 –> 00:35:34,699 do it, and tell your children why you are doing it. 697 00:35:34,699 –> 00:35:38,219 Son, we’ve got to honor God first, 698 00:35:38,219 –> 00:35:40,959 and we’ve been believing beyond our means. 699 00:35:40,959 –> 00:35:47,120 Son, you will teach your child more in that move 700 00:35:48,439 –> 00:35:50,159 to trade the American Dream 701 00:35:50,159 –> 00:35:53,739 for a life of serving Jesus Christ than in all your talk. 702 00:35:57,739 –> 00:36:00,479 Christ says whoever saves his life will lose it, 703 00:36:00,479 –> 00:36:03,320 and as long as you pursue the American Dream, 704 00:36:03,479 –> 00:36:04,919 you are losing your life. 705 00:36:04,919 –> 00:36:05,820 It is slipping away. 706 00:36:05,820 –> 00:36:08,300 It’s like sand going through your fingers. 707 00:36:10,959 –> 00:36:12,820 And already you may be in a position 708 00:36:12,820 –> 00:36:15,000 where there were things that you could have done 709 00:36:15,000 –> 00:36:16,860 and you can’t do them now. 710 00:36:18,979 –> 00:36:20,379 And now you’re in a position 711 00:36:20,379 –> 00:36:23,020 where God is speaking into your life. 712 00:36:23,360 –> 00:36:24,320 A few years from now 713 00:36:24,320 –> 00:36:26,919 you may not be able to do what you can do now. 714 00:36:29,879 –> 00:36:32,699 Don’t drift through life, my friend, 715 00:36:32,699 –> 00:36:38,340 and slide into old age a lukewarm Christian. 716 00:36:38,860 –> 00:36:40,719 That’s losing your life. 717 00:36:41,580 –> 00:36:44,719 Ask us today is simply an ask to pray. 718 00:36:45,919 –> 00:36:47,300 And it comes from a heart 719 00:36:48,080 –> 00:36:51,260 that is increasingly burdened 720 00:36:51,260 –> 00:36:56,620 and increasingly desiring of a greater joy 721 00:36:58,239 –> 00:37:04,159 and a fuller walk with Christ for all of us. 722 00:37:06,239 –> 00:37:07,879 You know, the great missionary William Carey 723 00:37:08,679 –> 00:37:11,320 used to say expect great things from God 724 00:37:11,320 –> 00:37:13,320 and attempt great things for God. 725 00:37:15,800 –> 00:37:18,159 What a terrible thing it would be for an individual 726 00:37:18,159 –> 00:37:20,639 or for a church to stand in the presence of God 727 00:37:20,639 –> 00:37:23,860 on the last day and have James 4,2 quoted to us. 728 00:37:25,320 –> 00:37:27,439 You have not because you ask not. 729 00:37:29,139 –> 00:37:33,439 You do not have because you do not ask. 730 00:37:35,239 –> 00:37:37,719 And I will tell you what is keeping me away 731 00:37:38,399 –> 00:37:43,399 at night, I love this church as I hope you do. 732 00:37:47,280 –> 00:37:51,239 And I’m asking the question what will it take 733 00:37:51,239 –> 00:37:55,320 for this church to leverage its full potential 734 00:37:55,320 –> 00:37:57,479 for the advance of the gospel around the world? 735 00:37:57,479 –> 00:37:58,479 That’s the question. 736 00:37:59,600 –> 00:38:04,600 What will it take for this church to leverage 737 00:38:04,879 –> 00:38:07,939 its full potential for the advance 738 00:38:07,939 –> 00:38:11,300 of the gospel here and around the world? 739 00:38:11,300 –> 00:38:12,959 And my answer begins here. 740 00:38:14,340 –> 00:38:17,620 It will take a movement of the Holy Spirit 741 00:38:17,620 –> 00:38:20,800 to raise the spiritual temperature in all of our lives. 742 00:38:20,800 –> 00:38:22,040 That’s what it will take. 743 00:38:23,340 –> 00:38:28,340 And I ask you to join me in praying for that, risky prayer. 744 00:38:31,379 –> 00:38:33,939 The Bible tells us that a church can be hot. 745 00:38:34,780 –> 00:38:36,760 That a church can be cold. 746 00:38:37,840 –> 00:38:41,340 And that a church can be somewhere in between, lukewarm. 747 00:38:43,060 –> 00:38:45,439 There is such a thing as spiritual temperature, 748 00:38:45,439 –> 00:38:46,959 how do you measure it? 749 00:38:46,959 –> 00:38:50,040 It is a reflection of the commitment, 750 00:38:50,040 –> 00:38:52,679 the sacrifice, the faith, the prayer, the vision, 751 00:38:52,679 –> 00:38:56,020 the passion of God’s people in that community. 752 00:38:56,020 –> 00:38:57,699 That’s spiritual temperature. 753 00:38:59,600 –> 00:39:02,219 Great things have happened in this last year, my friends. 754 00:39:02,219 –> 00:39:04,080 So much has been accomplished 755 00:39:04,080 –> 00:39:05,620 for the advance of the gospel. 756 00:39:05,620 –> 00:39:07,739 But so much more is still to be done. 757 00:39:10,580 –> 00:39:13,340 And I am asking God to lay it on the heart 758 00:39:13,340 –> 00:39:15,379 of every member of this church 759 00:39:15,379 –> 00:39:17,739 who is not yet giving a significant portion 760 00:39:17,739 –> 00:39:20,080 of their income, to begin honoring Christ 761 00:39:20,080 –> 00:39:21,739 by doing so this year. 762 00:39:22,860 –> 00:39:24,379 Will you pray for that with me? 763 00:39:26,340 –> 00:39:27,419 So my last word is this. 764 00:39:27,419 –> 00:39:29,879 Put yourself in the shoes of the widow of Zarephat. 765 00:39:29,879 –> 00:39:31,820 She hears the call to sacrifice. 766 00:39:32,340 –> 00:39:35,340 She hears the great promise of God’s provision. 767 00:39:35,340 –> 00:39:36,540 The challenge is simple. 768 00:39:36,540 –> 00:39:39,020 Does she believe the promise of God or not? 769 00:39:40,000 –> 00:39:41,639 She looks at the jar and the jug. 770 00:39:41,639 –> 00:39:43,600 She looks at the promise of God. 771 00:39:43,600 –> 00:39:44,479 Jar and the jug. 772 00:39:44,479 –> 00:39:45,500 The promise of God. 773 00:39:45,500 –> 00:39:46,340 Jar and the jug. 774 00:39:46,340 –> 00:39:47,439 Promise of God. 775 00:39:48,979 –> 00:39:50,459 Which is she going to trust? 776 00:39:53,179 –> 00:39:56,179 She stakes everything on the promise of God. 777 00:39:57,320 –> 00:39:59,800 And the jar of flour does not fail. 778 00:39:59,820 –> 00:40:04,000 And the jug of oil does not run dry. 779 00:40:06,280 –> 00:40:08,479 What a tragedy, if this woman had said to Elijah, 780 00:40:08,479 –> 00:40:11,280 you know, I’d really like to help you but I just can’t. 781 00:40:12,620 –> 00:40:17,340 Nobody dies wishing they had given Christ less. 782 00:40:18,719 –> 00:40:19,560 Nobody. 783 00:40:22,520 –> 00:40:24,679 I end with this, if you wonder what happened 784 00:40:24,679 –> 00:40:27,840 after Adeniren Judson’s letter. 785 00:40:27,840 –> 00:40:31,719 Well, Anne Haseltine’s father must have said yes 786 00:40:31,719 –> 00:40:33,199 because she became his wife. 787 00:40:35,219 –> 00:40:37,500 And Anne must have said yes. 788 00:40:37,500 –> 00:40:39,959 When I read the letter to the father-in-law, 789 00:40:39,959 –> 00:40:42,260 I wonder what his proposal to Anne was like. 790 00:40:43,219 –> 00:40:44,060 Can you imagine? 791 00:40:45,820 –> 00:40:49,040 And they went together, newly married couple off to Burma. 792 00:40:50,479 –> 00:40:53,659 Judson himself was imprisoned, he was tortured, 793 00:40:53,659 –> 00:40:57,219 he was marched barefoot across the country. 794 00:40:57,219 –> 00:41:01,100 He was suspended for periods upside down by his ankles. 795 00:41:03,179 –> 00:41:06,419 And through his ministry, the church was established 796 00:41:06,419 –> 00:41:10,340 in Burma and flourishes today. 797 00:41:13,020 –> 00:41:15,620 Anne had her own remarkable ministry, 798 00:41:15,620 –> 00:41:19,239 her own life story is compelling reading. 799 00:41:20,439 –> 00:41:22,219 Woman of extraordinary courage, 800 00:41:23,060 –> 00:41:27,540 she did become ill and she died 801 00:41:27,540 –> 00:41:31,179 after just 14 years of marriage. 802 00:41:32,899 –> 00:41:37,320 That was 186 years ago. 803 00:41:39,620 –> 00:41:44,620 And she has been wearing the Crown of Glory ever since. 804 00:41:47,739 –> 00:41:48,580 Pray with me. 805 00:41:49,360 –> 00:41:54,580 Lord, please teach us what it means to lose our lives 806 00:41:54,580 –> 00:41:57,899 for your sake and for the Gospels. 807 00:41:59,340 –> 00:42:04,219 And in doing so, to find them and to keep them 808 00:42:04,219 –> 00:42:09,879 for everlasting life. 809 00:42:09,879 –> 00:42:11,179 In Jesus’ name, Amen.