Multiply - Taking the Next Step in Following Jesus | Dr. Andy Brown

Description:
You were created to make a difference — and as a follower of Jesus, you are called to live a life that multiplies.

In this message from Luke 10, we see how the life of Jesus moves outward: from one life, to twelve, to seventy-two, to thousands, and eventually to the ends of the earth. Following Jesus means more than believing privately; it means taking the next step, following through in obedience, and allowing God to multiply your faith, fruit, influence, obedience, and legacy.

#JesusChrist #ChristianSermon #Luke10 #Discipleship #Faith #Gospel #FollowJesus #ChristianLiving #BibleTeaching #livesent 
 
Multiply Taking the next step toward growth

Subscribe to see our latest sermons: https://www.youtube.com/@HeisForUs

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

All of us here want to make a difference. Maybe that difference is in your own life, or maybe you can look at society and hope that there will be a difference, or maybe that difference is somewhere in close to you. But all of us, I would imagine, all of us desire to make a difference. And the reason why you want to make a difference is because listen carefully. This is who you were designed to be. But not only were you designed to be a difference maker, this is your destiny as a follower of Jesus Christ. Now that's pretty strong words, isn't it? You're designed to be a difference maker because you are made in the image of God. And that means that you can have a personal relationship with Him through His Son, Jesus Christ. So that's who you're designed to be, but it's also your destiny. The Bible says that God has prepared for you good works that He intends you to walk in. In other words, you get to live a whole life making a difference. So not only are you designed to do this, but you're also destined to do this. And if you're going to make a difference in this world, then here's where it starts. It starts by following Jesus. And if you follow Jesus, then that means that you will take his life as your very own. It means that you will take his ways as your ways. You will pattern your life not just after his teachings, but after who he is. And one thing that we know about Jesus that I want to talk to you about today, the life of Jesus is a life that multiplies. The life of Jesus is a life that multiplies. And so if you and I want to make a difference, we have to follow Jesus. And if we're following Jesus, then it means that our life is multiplying. Let me show you this. Take your Bible and go with me to the Gospel of Luke. Luke chapter 2, and we're not going to be here long, so just go here and then we're going to flip around. I want to show you how Jesus multiplied. In Luke chapter 2, you'll make it over there, and you'll notice that in Luke 2, this is that story of the birth of Jesus. So God sent his Son, the eternal Son of the Father, now in flesh appearing, Jesus Christ. The most incredible life imaginable. And Luke chapter 2 tells us that Jesus, one person, came. That one person came to save every man, woman, boy, and girl who by faith trust in him. But what was what were his methods? What did he do? Well, let's just follow the narrative just for a moment. In Luke chapter 3, there's John the Baptist preparing the way. In Luke chapter 4, Jesus is healing and he's preaching in the synagogues. But what did Jesus do in chapter 5? In Luke chapter 5, one person enlists the help of twelve others. So this one life multiplies. And the next number we see is 12. Well, let's keep going. Luke chapter 5, and then skip on back to Luke chapter 9. Here he is calling the 12 together. But look in Luke chapter 10. After this, the Lord appointed 72. So 1, 12, 72. Let's keep going. Go on to the gospel to not the gospel. Go to the book of Acts. Look at what happens next. After Jesus goes to the cross, after he's resurrected, on the day of Pentecost, after the Holy Spirit comes down. Acts chapter 1 tells the story of, look at verse 15, 120. So are you following the numbers? Listen, we're not doing math this morning, okay? Otherwise I wouldn't pass the test. But it's just numbers. 1, 12, 72, 120. Now here's where it gets really fun. Go with me to Luke chapter, Luke chapter 2, and Acts chapter 2 and verse 41. So those who received his word were baptized, and they were added that day 3,000 souls. 1, 12, 72, 120, 3,000. Now skip to chapter 4 of Acts and verse 4. And many of those who had heard the word believed. And the number of just the men now, just the men, not the women, so it's more than this number, the number of men came to be about 5,000. And of course, by the time we get to the end of the book of Acts, we see the gospel spread to the furthest regions of the earth. And that same gospel that began in Jerusalem, the day that Jesus was crucified, the day that Jesus rose from the dead, the day that Jesus sent out those and multiplied, that same gospel reaches us. And so if we're going to walk with Jesus, if we're going to follow him, then that means that we must live a life that multiplies. So again, those numbers 1, and then 12, 72, 120, 3,000, and then 5,000 people. And I just look here, even this morning. Could you just imagine what would happen if all of a sudden God got a hold of First Baptist Church and First Baptist Church here in Stockville, Mississippi began to multiply? Could you just imagine? For example, we just watched this beautiful video with this lady singing this song. That one video, just in our context, has already been seen a thousand times. Isn't that incredible? So that one video multiplies times a thousand. What I want to talk to you about today is I want to talk to you about this theme. Listen carefully. Multiply. Taking the next step toward growth. The reason that I want us to do this is I want us to focus in on following Jesus. And understand that if we're going to follow Jesus faithfully, then that faithful following Jesus looks like multiplying your impact. Now remember this: you are destined to make a difference. You are designed to make a difference. And the way that you make a difference is you follow Jesus. And if you're following Jesus, then that means that your life will multiply. Go with me to Luke chapter 10. That's where we're going to be today. Luke chapter 10. We're going to dig in just a little bit to Luke 10. We're going to look at the first 16 verses. And there again, I can't overstate this enough. Notice the pattern. Jesus has in Luke chapter 9. Remember, he sent out the 12, and then he is had the transfiguration. And he has, in what my old Bible used to say growing up, he is exacting discipleship. He is showing individuals exactly what it means to follow him, not haphazardly, but by taking up a cross and following him, denying their self expectations or whatever God provides. That's what it means to follow Jesus. And Luke chapter 9, you remember, right after Luke chapter 9, the end of it, at verse 57, there are individuals who come to Jesus, and these individuals say that I want to follow you, but Jesus looks at them and says, No, you don't. You really don't want to follow me. That's really not what you want to do. And we catch up with a story at Luke chapter 10. After this, the Lord appointed 72 others and sent them on ahead of him, but two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way. Behold, I'm sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no money bag, no knapsack, no sandals, greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter first, say, Peace be to this house. And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, your peace will return to you. And remain in that same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it, and say to them, The kingdom of God has come near to you. But whenever you enter a town and they don't receive you, go into its streets and say, Even the dust of your town that clings to your feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless, know this that the kingdom of God has come near. I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. Woe to you, Cortesan. Woe to you, Beth Sida. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it will be more bearable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades. The one who hears you hears me. And the one who rejects you rejects me. And the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me. And so we're talking about multiplication this morning, and we need to deal with something right away before we get going. After the first service, I had one of our uh members of the finance team. Uh, they came to me and they said, I need to see your Bible. Luke chapter 10 and verse 1. What's it say? And my Bible says 72, and her Bible said 70. She was so concerned about the numbers, and that's why she's on our finance team. She wanted to make clear this text variant. Now, there is a text variant here. My Bible says 72, your Bible may say 70. The message is still intact. Matter of fact, all the modern translations have these footnotes in the bottom, just like my Bible does. And the reason that we put footnotes in the Bible is to let all those who are critics know that we don't have anything to hide. We are confident that 100% of that message is there. But Jesus here is multiplying. And if we want to be followers of Jesus who faithfully follow him, that means that our life will make a difference. And our life making a difference means that our life will multiply. And so what I want to do is I want to talk to you today from this passage, just uh three steps that will convince us how we can live a life that multiplies. Number one, write this down. If you want to multiply your impact, number one, you have to be willing to take the next step. That is, you have to be willing to pattern your life after Jesus. You see, Christianity is a movement, it's a movement to be advanced all over the world. And this is why I'm so grateful to be right here where we are in Starbill, Mississippi. Because realistically, we are an anomaly in the middle of Mississippi as well as we are an anomaly in a lot of other places. Because we have a secular institution next door to us that is an institution of influence that gets to influence the next generation. And they have processes of recruitment where they bring in people from all over the world to this little corner of God's earth called Start from Mississippi. You know what that means for us? It means for us as a church, we have to be compelling and clear about how we present the gospel in a way that's innovative, not like some other churches, maybe that are close to us. We have a higher responsibility to make the gospel, to present the gospel as clearly, listen carefully, as compelling and as quickly to as many people as possible. Because God's desire for us, as He has set us right here in this time and in this place, is for us to clearly communicate the gospel for the next generation, for a generation that's upcoming, for a generation that is going to be filled full of influencers, that is going to be influenced by whatever teaching, whatever practice, whatever habits are developed during this pivotal time. And it's not just the students that I'm talking about, it's the professors. It's the professors that our institution draws, top-tier professors who are experts in their field. And you and I, as a church, as First Baptist Church here in Startville, Mississippi, we have an opportunity to influence the next generation. And the question is, will we be faithful? And I look at our church, for example, and I think about how innovative we must be. One of the things that I pray often for myself, and I would invite you to join with me. I pray the end of the book of Ephesians and the end of the book of Colossians every time. I say, Lord, let me present the gospel clearly. Let me preach the mystery and give me more opportunity. Every time I leave this setting in this service, I go back to my study after I've had an opportunity to see you, and I get on my knees. And it's a practice that I've had ever since I was in Oxford, Georgia. I have to be very careful. I was in Oxford, Georgia, as a pastor. I get on my knees and I say, Lord, thank you for the opportunity to preach the gospel. Lord, help me be more clear. And let me have more opportunity. And I have seen just in the course, already in the life of our church, we're seeing that. Many of you, you feel this as you come in, and uh it's a challenge to park some Sundays or most Sundays, and that's a blessing. I've been in churches where there wasn't a challenge to park. Here it's a challenge to park. And our service right here today, uh, if you were to come into this service as a guest, this can be very intimidating. Look at the way God is growing our numbers. What's he doing? He's multiplying the impact that he wants us to have. Now, listen, we present the gospel compellingly, we present the gospel with innovation, but we don't compromise the truth. We confess that the greatest truth comes, or the greatest truth in this world comes by you knowing the forgiveness that's available through Jesus Christ. We're not talking about compromise. We're talking about uh a culturally appropriate retelling of the gospel of Jesus Christ according to the scriptures. That's what we're doing. Every time I stand and I preach, what do I do? You should see in my process the way that I develop a sermon. And I am so blessed to be able to have you in my life. Because when I think about preaching, I'm thinking about you. I'm thinking about how can the people that are here in the room get the message that God wants them to have. How can we uh contemporize these truths so that people can live it in their daily lives? And my outline begins, it's sort of very wooden, it's very descriptive, and then I go the next step, and you you compel me to go the next step because I'm thinking of you when I prepare the messages. I'm thinking about the call that God has upon me to present the gospel clearly, compellingly, irresistibly, and as quickly as possible to as many people as possible. Why is that? Because God did not call us to just simply come here and gather and as I've said before, sit, soak, and sour. No. He wants this movement that didn't start in starville and won't end in starville. For us to take seriously this truth, to be willing to take the next step. And that next step is for us to realize that God desires for our lives to multiply. He desires for us to go with him. And did you notice this, for example? Jesus, he's not really concerned with those who decide not to go with him. In Luke chapter 9 at verse 57, if you remember, there were some that were going and someone said, I'm going to follow you wherever you go, and then Jesus says, No, you won't. And then another person says, Uh, let me first go and bury my father. After Jesus says, Follow me. And then Jesus says, You leave the dead to bury their dead. And then there's another guy that comes and he says, Lord, uh, let me go say farewell to those who are at home. And then Jesus says, No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is worthy or fit for the kingdom of heaven. And so the next verse says, after this. In other words, the mission of God keeps advancing. The mission of God keeps advancing. We are part of a movement to advance, not some institution to maintain. There's no maintenance mentality prayerfully in your life, in my life, in our church. It's not about maintaining anything, it's about advancing a movement. And that movement that God wants to advance starts right here. That movement that God wants to advance begins in my heart, in your heart, for you and I to realize that there is more work for us to do. If we're going to faithfully follow Jesus, then that means that we must pattern ourselves after his way of living. And one of the ways that he consistently lived, and it's demonstrable just through the numbers, Jesus multiplies. The movement of God multiplies. And there again, I remember going, and I've shared this story before, but I remember going over to Jerusalem, and I remember seeing the empty tomb of Jesus. And there was a British evangelist who was there, and he could hardly stand. He had osteoporosis and he had a little fisherman's cap, and he had a cane and a little members-only jacket. I'll never forget that. And he stood, he stood outside the tomb of Jesus, and with his British accent that I won't try because you'll make fun of me. It doesn't sound right when a southern guy does it, but anyway, he says, You traveled all the way across the pond to see an empty tomb. And now that you've seen, go and tell. And that's the story of Christianity. Jesus Christ has made a difference in my life. I believe that he has risen from the dead. I believe that he offers forgiveness. I believe that he offers a relationship with him that truly satisfies. I believe that there is a forever awaiting every man, woman, boy, and girl. I believe in Jesus. He has made the difference in my life. We have that testimony, like the blind man says, I don't know about all of this stuff, but one thing I know here's where I once was, and here's where I am now. And here's what we know. Because we're followers of Jesus. Jesus doesn't just desire to stop the salvation with me. He desires to carry that salvation to the ends of the earth. And the way that Jesus desires to carry this message to the ends of the earth, listen to this. He entrusts his message with you. He entrusts his message with us. And I think about my own life. There's sometimes I think, Lord, somebody else ought to preach, really. There are so many other better men that are preachers than me, but I have so much confidence as I think about that. The next voice I hear is the voice of Adrian Rogers, who surely could preach better than I could. But he used to say this there are a thousand better preachers than me, but nobody has a better message than me. And no one has a better message than you have. And for whatever reason, and I'm still trying to figure out, God who could, if he wanted to, he could send a message in the sky. He could do that. As the sun comes up tomorrow, he could send a message, repent and believe. But he doesn't do that. Instead, you get up, your feet hit the floor, you go make your coffee, you prepare for your day. And God wants to fulfill an eternal purpose through your life. And this is where we start. If we want our life, if we want our life to multiply, then first we have to be willing to take the next step. And notice this, don't miss this. I love this. Jesus, in chapter 10 and verse 1, he says, He sent them ahead of him. He's not going to lead you anywhere where he himself doesn't intend to come. And then let's keep pressing into this. He says, every town and place, look at the end of verse 1, where he himself was about to go. One day Jesus is going to come to Startville, Mississippi. Physically. He's going to come and he's going to declare every inch of this place is mine. Do you live that way? As you go into your classroom, as you go into your place of employment, as you go into your house, do you live with the understanding that Jesus Christ is coming? The reality of his coming. He is going to take that holy foot and place it on this earth. Again, Jesus Christ is coming. And so wherever he calls us to go, we go as if he himself is already coming. And he is. We are ambassadors of his cause, ambassadors of his purpose, sent with a mission. By the way, that's the reason we talk in this church about living sent. What does that mean? It means that our identity is wrapped up in who he is. And who is he? He is a saving God who is right now, who has saved me, and who is saving me, and he is preparing this world for his coming. Just as John the Baptist prepared the way for the first coming of Jesus, so Jesus Christ uses my life and your life as John the Baptist to prepare the world for his second coming. We go into the world with a message to proclaim. The message that We proclaim is the king is here and the king is coming. Both of those things. We have to be willing to take the first step. Secondly, we have to be willing to follow through. And this is where it gets really challenging. Otherwise, we're just like those individuals that say, you know, I think this whole idea of following Jesus, that really sounds good. And we keep waiting and we keep waiting and we keep waiting. What are you waiting for? We have to be willing to follow through. We have to be willing to not only take the next step, but we have to be willing to follow through with whatever God tells us to do. And this is the reality. Look at verse 2. He said, The harvest is plentiful, but the labors are few. Now, what does this tell us? It tells us that there is more work than any one of us can do in a lifetime. More work for any one of us to do in a lifetime. Matter of fact, the majority of us, according to Jesus in Luke chapter 10 and verse 2, the majority of us are not working. The majority of us are not following. The majority of us are thinking about following. The majority of us are sitting on the sidelines, throwing rocks at those who are following. Being critical of those, as we looked at last week, like the man in the arena, those that at least if they fail, at least they fail by daring greatly. Most of us are sitting on the sidelines, but Jesus is calling us to go through with following Him. To actually do what He's called us to do. And He says this He says, the harvest is plentiful, the labors are few. Pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out those laborers into the harvest. So you see, this is all automatically something different. Something that's that breaks sort of the mold of our common experience. Jesus has more for you to do. And I pray that you think about your life like this. And students, I pray that you think about your major like this. It's just not to be an engineer. It's to be a follower of Jesus who is an engineer. It's to be a follower of Jesus who is a chemist. It's to be a follower of Jesus who is a scientist. It's to be a follower of Jesus who is a veterinarian. It's to be a follower of Jesus who is a pastor. It's to be a follower of Jesus who's a husband. A follower of Jesus who's a father. A follower of Jesus first. And that reorients the rest of every reality that we have, because as we're going to see just in this passage, following Jesus is going to come with a cost. Jesus is preparing his followers. He says, notice what he says in verse 3. I'm sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. And you're thinking, nope, no, thank you. I don't know much about wolves or lambs, but I know that usually one eats the other and the other one doesn't. And so Jesus says, here's what you can expect by following me. You're actually going to have to do something. You're actually going to have to follow through with it. Move beyond this idea and move into this reality. Be willing to follow through. I'm sending you out with as lambs in the midst of wolves. In other words, he says, prepare for suffering. And verse 4, he says, carry no money bag, no knapsack, no sandal, and greet no one on the road. In other words, he says, I'm going to provide everything that you need, as you trust in me. I'm going to direct your path. And notice what he says: Whatever house you enter, first say peace. And if if a son of peace, there's no guarantee at verse 6 that there will be a son of peace. And if there's a son of peace, then the peace, your peace will rest upon him, but if not, it'll return back to you. Remain in that house, eating and drinking what they provide. The laborer deserves his wages. Don't go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Now look at verse 9. And by the way, verse 8, if any of you have ever traveled in a context where you have to go village to village, that's a challenging verse to eat what's put before you in some of these places. He says, Heal the sick. Say to them, the kingdom of God has come near you. In other words, there is a confrontation that happens when you and I faithfully follow Jesus. Our whole life as salt and light goes into the world and gives light to the darkness and gives salt to places that are open wounds in some cases. Sometimes salt burns. Sometimes the life that God has called you to to make a difference, that's going to mean confrontation for you. There's cost. It often will feel like an interruption when you and I go. And we say to our friends that we won't do as they do, or we won't go there. We can't go there. The reason we can is because we're following Jesus. And Jesus wouldn't go there, and so I can't go there. And listen to what it says. It says that when we go, we are to heal the sick. We are to uh say to them, the kingdom of God has come upon you. You know what this tells me? It tells me that as we're following through with our following Jesus, then this is really what the world needs. Even though they reject it, they rejected him. We can expect them to reject us. But this is really what the world needs. This is good news that you and I uh that you and I proclaim to every person. And this good news is really what the world needs, regardless of if they accept it or not. After all, what are we supposed to seek? Are we supposed to seek the rewards? Are we supposed to seek the harvest? No, we're simply supposed to be laborers in the harvest. Jesus is the Lord of the harvest. We are simply the laborers. Now we deserve our wages, and God has an eternity for those who are faithful, where he will look at us and he will say, Well done, good and faithful servant. And we expect that. But in the way, we're just simply following Jesus. And this following Jesus, again, the message that we proclaim is good for every person. Because what's what's the uh what's at stake here? As we go into the world and we proclaim this message of hope, forgiveness, justice, reconciliation, peace. The alternative is if you don't receive this message, then there is an eternal judgment waiting for you. And so prayerfully, we will look at the world that we live in. We will look in this city that we live in, we will look in this university town that we get to influence, and we will see that eternity really is coming to bear with what we do or what we don't do. Because Jesus Christ is coming, and until then, he has entrusted his mission with you. And part of that mission is for you to be an influencer, is for you to multiply, is for you to be a difference maker. And that difference comes by following Jesus, and following Jesus means that you will live a life that multiplies. Notice, he says, I tell you that it would be more bearable if they reject you. And then he uses this Old Testament story of judgment, where literally fire came down from heaven and consumed those who were there. He says, It will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. Where is Sodom and Gomorrah? It's in the bottom of the dead sea today. And Jesus says, Woe to you, Korazen. Woe to you, Bethsaida. And let me say this: whenever we're reading the Bible and the Bible, Jesus says, woe, we better pay attention and know why it is that he's saying woe. And the reason that he's saying is because he wants us to understand that the lives of people matter by what we do or what we don't do. Oh, First Baptist Church, we are in a season of growth. And it is so encouraging to look and see our church grow. And as we continue to multiply, I know there are challenges that are going to come, but the reason why we face those challenges right away is because we want to multiply. We want more people to have their lives transformed by the life-changing message that we proclaim as well as arrange our lives around. And it is challenging, but listen whatever decisions we make in these next few years as a church are not just consequential for the life of our church. It's consequential for the lives of people in our community. And so our obligation before God, because eternity matters, is to align everything we do with following Jesus. And here's the message that I'm diligently trying to present from this passage. If we align ourselves with Jesus, then that means that we will multiply. That means, since you and I are destined and designed to be, to make a difference in this world, that means that what we do will have consequences, not just in the lives of a next generation, but in the lives of someone for eternity. You're going to be a multiplier. If you want to live a life that multiplies, first you have to be willing to take the next step. Second, you have to be willing to follow through. And here's the most important one, number three. You have to start with you. Notice this passage. Luke 10, 16. Notice the personal aspect of this. Jesus, remember who he is. He's the one that wants to live his life in and through you. Who are you? You belong to Jesus. Jesus belongs to you. The desire that God has is for his life through the power of the Spirit to be lived in your life. You see, there's no such thing as an insignificant follower of Jesus. There's just a faithful follower of Jesus and one who's standing on the sidelines. Here's the truth. Jesus says, the one who hears you hears me. Do you hear listen closely? Do you see that? You see his life lived through you, through the power of the Holy Spirit? Jesus says, the one who hears you hears me. And the one who rejects you rejects me. And the one who rejects me rejects the one who sent me. Listen carefully. Here's really the secret for our church to multiply faithful following Jesus in this community. Are you ready? It starts with your personal, intimate relationship with God. Before you can seek to multiply, God has to do the greatest work in your own life. God wants to multiply you. He wants to have factors in your life. And I've got just a few that I want to show you here. Five or six of them that I want to show you here. Factors that God will use that will show you that He intends to multiply in you. So what does God multiply in you? First, He wants to multiply your faith. Write these down. Romans 10, 17. God wants to multiply the faith inside of you. What's the Bible say? Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ. God wants you to grow in your faith. He wants you to grow in the way that you know Him, follow Him, trust Him, believe in Him. God wants to multiply the faith that you have right now. He wants you to grow. Second, He wants to multiply your fruit. John chapter 15 and verse 5. Jesus says, I'm the vine, you're the branches. There again, this life of God inside of our own lives right now. And this is what it means to be a follower of Jesus. This is what it means to be a Christian. It means that you are united to God through Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. He says, I am the vine, you're the branches. Whoever it is that abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. God wants to multiply the fruitfulness of your life. Next, God wants to multiply the fellowship that we have. We love, 1 John 4.19 says, because He first loved us. And the more we love one another, the more we have this camaraderie together as a church, the more we will see God multiplying in our life. The next one is your influence. God wants to multiply your influence. Matthew chapter 5, verse 14 through 16. This is speaking of realities that are yours through Jesus Christ. He says this, you are the light of the world. Don't look to someone else. You and where are you? You know where you are. You know where you serve, in your family where it's difficult, at your workplace where it's hard, in your class where it's challenging. He says, right there where you are. Jesus says, I know where you are, and you, wherever you are, are the light of the world. And he says this. Here's how bright your light is. It's like a city set on a hill. And that city set on a hill cannot be hidden. He says, Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand. And the life that God wants you to live is to live a life that gives light to all that are in the house and around you. And then he says, in the same way, let your light so shine before others that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. You are a person of influence wherever you are. You are a person of peace wherever you are. Why is that? Because you follow Jesus. That position that you have that God orchestrated for you and put you right in that place, those situations in your life, that's not accidental. God has you right where he wants you to be. God has you right where if you're walking with him in obedience, God has you right there specifically. God cannot do it better than to do it through you. And this is what leads us to the next thing to say. God wants to multiply your obedience. The reason that you are who you are, the reason that you are where you are, is so that you can let others see that light that God has in you, pouring through you, so that you will then take those thoughts captive and place it under the obedience of Christ. You are already, God is already multiplying your influence. Now he wants to multiply your obedience so that you can do what he says. Listen to what Matthew 13 says. As for what was sown on good soul, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. God wants you to hear the word and understand it. Do it. He said, He indeed is the one who bears fruit. And then look at the multiplication. In one case, a hundredfold. In another case, sixty, in another case, thirty. God wants to multiply your obedience, not to just be a hearer of the word, but a doer only. James says, if you're a hearer of the word and not a doer, you're like a man who looks at his face and sees that his face is dirty and walks away and does nothing about it. God wants to multiply your obedience. And lastly, he wants to multiply your legacy. What's the legacy that you get to leave behind? Your money to your children? Your property? Your influence? This is a word that the Apostle Paul told Timothy, but listen to it. He said, What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrusted to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also. In other words, we are to go and make disciples. The legacy that we leave, a lasting legacy that we leave, is a legacy that follows Jesus. And let me just say this every other legacy will be turned to ashes. Every other legacy, no matter if they erect a statue, they can tear statues down. If they name a building, they can rename it. If they set whatever they do, somebody can change it. Any legacy outside of following Jesus will turn to ashes. Here's a sentence for you to remember. God multiplies our faith, the fruit of our lives, our fellowship, influence, obedience, and the legacy that you and I leave for others. You see, it's impossible for you and I to be a faithful follower of Jesus Christ and keep things to ourselves. For God to not multiply his presence, for God to not multiply who he intends us to be, for God not to multiply who he is through our lives, never so that we can say, my goodness, look at what God has done through me, so that others can testify and give glory to our Father who's in heaven. You see, here's my prayer for our church. Here's my prayer for you. Is that you and I, together, with all of our hearts set focused on Jesus, who, after all, in Luke 9.51, which everything follows after this, Luke 9.51 says he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And as we follow Jesus, that's where we're going. We're going to a cross. We're going to a resurrection. We're going to heaven that he has prepared for us. And my prayer for us as we continue to grow, that we would focus on a deep, abiding life that God implants within us. And then what God does in us, let God's work in us flow freely to everyone that we see. And let me say this if you're not a follower of Jesus Christ, then that's the first step. The first step in living a life that multiplies is you surrendering your whole life to Him. Asking Him to forgive you of your sins. Asking Him to save you. Not based upon what you can do, but based upon what He Himself has done for you on the cross. He has forgiven your sins, but you have to receive Him. For some of you, prayerfully, what that means is that you will go not just think about Jesus and say, Well, I'll get around to that. But you'll actually follow through and become a faithful follower of Jesus. And for the rest of us, it means that we have to take multiplication seriously if we're going to be called Jesus people.