Untitled Sermon (13)

Every encounter you have creates an opportunity to engage, learn and even share your faith. When you are serious and sensitive to the move of God, you recognize these moments as providential and therefore you refuse to miss them.

As believers we cannot go through life oblivious to the needs and concerns of hurting humanity.

When you are spiritual, you begin to realize that God has uniquely positioned you to be a light in a dark world.

God puts you in that place often to be the word of optimism in the mist of pessimism; to be an encourager when others are discouraged.

When you are a child of God, you are often called to things that others would pass by.

Many of you today can testify that there were moments when you picked up the phone and called someone and asked are you ok, because I felt something in my spirit about you.. This is something you got honest, because it comes with your relationship with Jesus, and if you are to be like Christ, it will require a keen sensitivity to the needs of others that may never show up on the radar because it’s not about you but about others.

I’m preaching this word today because there are moments in all of our lives that you just can’t miss.

There are moments divinely ordained by God to position you for the blessing of the Lord. Not only for the individual blessing that comes upon you, but it is for the blessing that God wants to push through you.

God will put youin a specific place at a specific time in order that his will might manifest in your life. Your being here today is not by accident, the people you are sitting around is not by accident. Everything that God does happen with great intentionality.

Today, I’m gonna help put in perspective how moments come and how they should never be missed by studying a familiar text on “The Good Samaritan.”

Text Transition

It is a story about a man who finds himself asking Jesus an interesting question.

The man who ask the question is a lawyer.

Biblical research teaches us that he is more than like a scribe or of the party of a sect of Pharisees.

It was customary to ask questions of those viewed as rabbis—Jesus was viewed as a teacher. It was common. The teacher welcomed these type inquiries when they were given respectfully.

“What must I do to inherent eternal life?”

Jesus begins to say what does the law of Moses say?

The man is schooled in the law and begins to say,

“You must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Jesus says “And your right, do this and you’ll live.”

And that when it shifts,because now his questioning shifts to entrapment towards Jesus. Well then Jesus, Who then is my neighbor?

Understand: you are dealing with a context where the Jews felt that they exclusively thought they were the only ones going to heaven because the Gentiles were not even worthy of this type relationship with Christ.

So then, Who is my neighbor? Are you telling me there is something more than I’ve been taught?

5. And Jesus gives a parable say…. (Let me explain)

6. There was a man who was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho.

7. He took this road (THE JERICHO ROAD). (v.30)

a. Jerusalem 2500ft above sea level; Jericho (850ft below sea level).

b. Can you Imagine? environmental changes and difficult of journey

c. 18 miles long…. (climate—rainy to desert)

d. It was treachous road — burglars and robbers would wait knowing people traveling this road would have money going and merchandise coming back (opportunity); It was a blood road (rough part of town).

8. Bible declares that he is robbed; stripped; wounded; and left for dead.

9. Jesus goes on to say:

§ that there was a priest who saw him lying there & walked by on the other side.

§ There was a levite who saw him and walked by.

§ But a certain Samaritan(you’ve been taught the good Samaritan) who saw him, went to him, ministered to his wound, bandaged him up, took him to a hotel, paid a bill, told the inn-keeper to take care of whatever he needs, and if he runs up the bill I’ll come back and take care of it.

10. Found him in one place, but he ends up in another. Sounds like somebody here today.

a. That how the Lord found you

§ stripped on the side of road, broken busted and disguisted, BUT the Lord picked you up, cleaned you up, brought you to a place of reconciliation, and here you today restored like never before.

When God does this, it’s not just for you. But he does it so that you might be compassionate when you see the need for it to happen in somebody else’s life. Consequently, the word comes to us today, “If You See Something (don’t just walk by like everybody else), God’s called you to Do Something.” (1.25)

You will encounter people who are

I. WOUNDED IN A STATE OF CRISIS

luke 10:30 - this man has been wounded on the side of the road.

His situation is acute.

He needs help right now….

It’s so acute that he doesn’t need delay.

1. Sometimes what you are going through is SO ACUTE that WHAT YOU NEED CAN’T WAIT FOR TOMORROW… (need right now)

There are many people in this place today …………. don’t have the luxury of delay. They don’t have the luxury of you telling them let me check on it; we have a 7 day process

You be amazed at the amount of people sitting here who have been wounded; hurt; scared by circumstances.

And we’re good at covering it up. We know how to hide our

hurt behind hallelujah;

pain behind our praise

But fact is there are very acute realities in this place today.

People who are

Some are bleeding while leading.

Some are wounded while worshipping.

Some are scared while serving.

BUT they’ve learned how to pull their faith together and believe that God can still do a miracle in their life

Just because people look like they have it all together, doesn’t mean that you are not sitting next to someone bleeding.

2. Be Committed Beyond Church

31 “By chance a priest came along. But when he saw the man lying there, he crossed to the other side of the road and passed him by. 32 A Temple assistant walked over and looked at him lying there, but he also passed by on the other side.

§ What does Jesus teach us in this text about moments we can’t miss? We must be willing to move people beyond their commitment to a religious gathering.

§ If you are not, careful, you can be a professional church person and an amateur Christian (about a committment that transcend this)

§ Jesus teaches that we can’t miss these moments

§ Moments that move people beyond their commitment to a religious gathering (religious gatherings have their place)

§ If you are not, careful, you can be a professional church person BUT an amateur Christian (about a committment that transcend this)

§ It’s about having a level of commitment that transcends this place

Text:  Jerico Road was the LINK between People and The Temple

A. What We Learn In Here Should Be Portable Out There

Text: This man was on a road an got robbed by people who meant him no good.

A. It’s really a lesson to us: because at first glance they appear insensitive.

B. Context: PRIEST(represents religious establishment) + LEVITE(law)

C. Contextually: If the man was half-dead, they had to verify it, which meant they would have to touch him (examine him). If they were to touch him and he was dead, they would have violated their Levitical law.

D. Leviticus 21:1 (NLT2) 1 The LORD said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the priests, the descendants of Aaron. “A priest must not make himself ceremonially unclean by touching the dead body of a relative.—therefore, it’s probable that they acted that way because they didn’t want to be in violation of a religious rule

A. Any rule that creates a wage between relationship is a bad rule

a. If your religion forces you to violate true relationships over religion, who truly have missed what God want you to do.

b. Many people miss opportunity to minister to people because you are so religious that you refuse to engage in relationship

c. Sometimes people are cripple not so much by what has happen to them, but because of how people have responded to what happened..

d. I can handle the thieves who left me (sociologically; economically; theologically)

e. BUT I can’t handle the church folk (see me hurting.. ignore)

II. You gotta be Willing To Show Compassion

3 “Then a despised Samaritan came along, and when he saw the man, he felt compassion for him.

· What does the Samaritan man do when he sees the traveler in a state of crisis? He extends compassion.

· 📷📷You’ll never understand compassion, until you’ve been the recipient of compassion.

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COMPASSION (GOD HAS SHOWN SO MUCH)

A. GOD tells Moses Exo 3:7 I’ve heard the cry of my people in Egypt (Compassion)

B. Ezekiel (prophet) Eze 16:6 declare the people that when you were born & left for dead, I saw you kicking in your blood, and God said Live (compassion)

C. David said Psalms 40 I waited patiently on the Lord and he inclined to me, heard my cry, brought me out of the horrible pit, out of the miry clay, set my feet upon a rock, established my going, put a new song in my mouth (compassion)

D. John John 3:16 for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever upon him should not perish but have everlasting life (compassion)

E. Paul Romans 5:8 while we were yet sinners, Christ died for the ungodly

· It’s very probable that the Samaritan is showing compassion b/c he knows what compassion really is (1.33)

1. When you see ministry, Don’t turn away from ministry, turn to it

· The work of ministry is not always pleasant and pretty, but the work of ministry is what you should turn to.

· When we encounter people on the side of the road it’s time the time to JUDGE WHY THEY’RE there BUT time to ACTIVATE PLANS for how to help them

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A. This man’s life is about to be changed because someone is concerned about meeting him where he is.

📷 📷

· 100-200 church will close this week (6,000-10,000/yr)

· Pace will accelerate unless congregation make drastic changes

B. Thomas Rainer (President and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources and Author of Autopsy of a Deceased Church says “Gone are the days when church attendance was a societal norm. For most of our American history, cultural and technological change was gradual, sufficiently paced for churches to lag only 5 to 10 years. Now churches are lagging 20 to 30 years as the speed of change increases dramatically. As a result, to may people, the church seems irrelevant.” — GOD IS CONSISTENT IN HIS CHARACTER BUT HIS METHOD

a. Savior —

b. HEALER —

C. Church is guilty boxing God’s in to METHODS In (yesterday)

D. The Business World understand that change is Inevitable

a. ILLUS

i. McDonald’s sell Big Mack (VEHICLE)

ii. Music

· Vinyl Records, Cassette Tapes, Walkman, CD players, MP3 players, WIRELESS EVERYTHING

· STILL MUSIC — DIFFERENT VEHICLE

E. WE’RE NOT THE WORLD??

F. Matthew 5:14–15 (NKJV):14 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. — Note that the light is in the world; the city is in the world, and the candlestick is in the home. The same is true of believers: believers occupy some place in the world. Wherever that place is, they are to let their light shine.

G. MINISTRY IS TOUGH….. CHANGE & ADAPTATION IS CONSTANT

H. Religious Establishment thought WORLDLY

a. Healed on the Sabbath (WORDLY—But He DID IT)

b. Sit with sinners /tax collectors

c. Allow sinful woman to wipe his feet with tears / anoint them oil

I. RIGID TRADITION IS THE ENEMY TO CHANGE

· DREAMS DIE

· INGENUITY IS IMPEDED

· VISION VANISHES — WHERE THERE IS NO VISION… PEOPLE PERISH

J. DO YOU BELIEVE GOD PUT YOU IN. OVERFLOW JUST FOR YOU

K. WE SHOULD DEMONSTRATE THE LOVE OF CHRIST WHEN NO ONE ELSE WILL

L. AND IF YOU DON’T, THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES— Matthew 25:41-43 (NLT2) 41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons. 42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink. 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’

2. People need your empathy not your excuses

A. “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” –Theodore Roosevelt — For some people, your life can be the only bible they’ll ever read. So my hope is that what they read about the word of God, when they encounter you makes them feel better.

B. If you overlook a problem, you become a problem— Acts 1:8 (NLT2) 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses all around the world

C. If this man is going to get help, he has to encounter someone with EMPATHY

§ Empathy is a direct result of experiences..

§ The reason God allowed you and I to go through the things in life that we have gone through is that we might be able to empathize with those who are in bad spots.

D. DO YOU REMEMBER THE TIME WHEN YOU WERE BROKE??? (2 kinds of broke)

a. 2 Things Happened

i. You saw the good in people

ii. You saw the bad in people (judged you)….

b. BECAUSE of YOUR EXPERIENCE, it qualifies you to be a better minister to someone else.

E. You know what it would Look Like?

§ If an elder woman who had teenage pregnancy

§ RATHER than sit back “it’s just a shame..” (1.45)

§ Illustration: College Teen

III. Witness Of Sustainable Change (what God has called us to do..)

· What makes authentic and contagious Christianity so effective? It provides sustainable solutions, not shallow seasonal solutions.

· The church is guilty of creating a culture of sound bites

o see the man on side of the road bleeding

§ “Pray for you” — (sound bite)

§ Lords gonna do… Keep hold on (sound bite)

§ Bless you

· The man didn’t need a sound bite. He needed sustainable change in his life. When you see people hurting, you gotta be committed to helping them so that they become better than when you found them.

1. Care continues beyond the crisis (notice this)

· Scripture give a lot on how to help those in need

A. The man not only needs help, but he’s wounded

a. Theologian declares the oil and wine poured in him was the Gospel (allegory of the Gospel).

b. He poured in his wound oil and win. You can assume if he’s pouring win, it going to be uncomfortable (hurt), but like the gospel, it may hurt temporarily, but it’s temporary inconvenience for permanent improvement.

c. If you can handle the initial ouch, you may get permanent fix from the word.

B. There are 4 Lessons found in this passage:

1) Care — He didn’t leave him where he was… He took the time to be concerned about the man’s condition — 34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them.

i. Question: Do you care enough to read just your agenda

ii. In the Day of Face book: when was the last face-to-face conversation where you ask them how you doing?

2) Covering — he didn’t leave him…. He bandage him up and took him to an inn found him lodging.—34 Going over to him, the Samaritan soothed his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. — That way he was no longer exposed and vulnerable to repeated offenses

3) Connection — he took him & told the people to contact him if he needed anything else. Stayed in relationship with the man. — 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’

i. We are connected by our humanity

1. (Regardless of our ethnicity, color, denomination

4) Change — means there was sustainable change. The man’s outcome was changed as a result. Then he put the man on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. 35 The next day he handed the innkeeper two silver coins, telling him, ‘Take care of this man. If his bill runs higher than this, I’ll pay you the next time I’m here.’

2. God shows us mercy to teach us how to give mercy

· Jesus explains this story to demonstrate the mercy of the Lord.

· The only reason we’re here is because we’re recipients of something we don’t deserve

· God looks beyond our faults and supplied our needs

a. Illustration.

· There was a guy named Bill and he had tattoos and piercings all over his body. He was right out of college with torn jeans, wow hair, and different color hair.

· He walked into church from college late one day, and began looking for a seat, just as the preacher began his sermon. Bill walked in slowly looking for a seat.

· By this time the ushers were already seated. So now Bill is slowly looking; everyone’s looking a Bill; and the environment became kind of awkward b/c there were no more seats. Bill just kept on walking, and it became uncomfortable. By now the preacher’s looking like what's about to happen. But Bill just kept on walking. Then when he got close he was almost to the pulpit, The preachers trying to preach; he's looking; wandering what going on.

· All of a sudden, an 85yo elder in back of the church (w/3-piece suit) got up started and started walking behind Bill. He walked with his cane slowly. Everybody got a little calm b/c sure that something is about to happen, everything's all right be able to going to go and deal with this situation right.

· And then the unthinkable happened. Bill sat down on the stairs of the pulpit. He sat out right there in people just looked at him. No one moved everyone is looking but they knew it would be OK because by this time the elder is getting close to him.

· The elder walks up behind Bill, and then to their shock he just sat down right next to Bill and looked up and said come on pastor… finished preaching. Because he recognized that I used to be Billie.

· The pastor stopped his sermon and said to the congregation, ‘What I'm about to preach, you'll never remember. But what you just saw, you'll never forget.”

b. Be careful how you treat people, how you handle people, because you never know what kind of witness message you’re send out.

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