The Invitation - Pastor Sam Simoes - July 05, 2026

Pastor Sam Simoes message for Sunday July 05, 2026. 

Welcome to the Northwest Church of the Nazarene podcast, where we share the heart of our church’s mission: discovering and engaging in a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ through inspired worship and intentional ministry. Each episode brings you sermons, insights, and messages that challenge and encourage spiritual growth. Whether you are part of our diverse, multicultural church family, or listening in for the first time, you’ll find a community that loves Jesus and welcomes everyone with open arms. Join us online at nwnaz.org or in person in Columbus Ohio, as we journey together toward a deeper, more meaningful relationship with Jesus and each other. 

Transcript

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Every Sunday at Northwest Church of the Nazarene in Columbus, Ohio, a congregation is challenged to grow spiritually. This podcast shares the sermons, insights, and messages that encourage our congregation to mature spiritually.

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Amen. Amen. Our greatest hope is not in our nation. And our nation has sometimes made us feel that he needs Jesus. And that's why we're here. So we can bring Jesus not only to our nation, but to our neighbors and to those who need him. And today we want to celebrate Jesus. And even though we are celebrating the 250th anniversary, our focus is on what God has called us to do. And today's title for the message is the invitation. We always like a good invitation, an invitation for a wedding, or invitation for a party, an invitation for a barbecue, or an invitation for someone's birthday. And every time we have this invitation, we anticipate this time that we are going and enjoying this time with our friends or with our family members. And an invitation is something that is very special. I remember one of the most uh special invitations I had. I was a teenager, I think I was in 10th grade, and I had a friend who a few years before I made, I may, I made, I became a good friend of his, one of his best friends, and he be he became one of my best friends, but I never met his father. And he would have a guy dropping him off every day at school on a black car, and then he would come in and I was like, Is that your father? He goes, No. And one day he sat down and said, All right, Sam, can you keep a secret? I was like, Well, yeah, I'm a Christian. He goes, My father is the minister of defense of our nation. Now I lived in Portugal, and then that's where I was. And then I said, because I was very much into politics, so I said his name. He goes, Yes, I can see you have the same last name as him. And he goes, Yes, but I don't want anyone in the school to know because of security and security reasons. But the guy that dropped me off is my driver. And I said, All right, so we we talked about different things, but I never mentioned that his father was a minister of defense. And he invited me to his birthday. And that was a big invitation because the minister of defense lived in this fort right beside the beach, and I have known this fort and I have been around it, but never inside it. And he invited me for that. I was so excited, and I went and asked my parents. I said, Can I go to my friend's party? And my parents, like, I don't know them. You cannot. I was like, oh, I cannot tell my parents who the friends are. And I was like, in this predicament, I was invited to this party, and I was not able to say who. And I said, Let me talk back to my friends. So I went back to the next day and I said, I would love to go to your party, but I'm gonna have to tell my parents who your parents are, because that's the first question they asked is if it's gonna be safe, it's gonna be a good place. And he said, Well, I'm impressed you haven't told your parents. I was like, Well, you asked me to keep a secret. I I thought it included my parents. He goes, No, no, you can't tell your parents, and and if you can bring your sister to it, that'll be wonderful. Now, my sister was good looking, so I knew I knew what he was trying to do. And and I said, All right, so I went to my parents and I said, All right, my friend's parents are so and so, and they were like, Oh, okay, well, I think it's gonna be a safe place because it's secure, but yeah, uh, you can go, and that is fine. So I went to my friend and said, I can go to my party. My sister wants to go as well. She has no idea who your dad is, so don't worry about it. And he said, Oh, but my father may bring some of his friends. Is that okay with you? And I said, Sure. So I went to his party, and I I got it, uh, I bought a gift, and my sister had a gift for him, and we went over there and there was security, and they asked me, um, what's your name? And I said, My name, and they looked at Alyssa and said, Yeah, you come on in. So went in and I saw him, gave him a hug, and said, Happy birthday. He goes, Come and meet my friends. Now, the friends of his father were his colleagues. So here's the prime minister, here's the president, here's the so-and-so, here's the so-and-so, here's I got to meet the entire cabinet of the Portuguese government at that time, and then in a surprise for me, I met two of the people from the opposite party. I thought, wait a minute, weren't you supposed to not like them? And I was like, no, we're supposed to have different ideas, we're supposed to have different perspectives on how to run the country, but we are friends with different perspectives. And I learned something is that because we have because we have different perspectives doesn't mean that we cannot be friends and love people. So I had a wonderful time and and played basketball with them, and we we had a wonderful time. And I still remember that's been one of the most special invitations I had because was something that I did not expect, but I anticipated, and and now I received more than what I anticipated. Today we're going to be talking about an invitation, but an invitation from Jesus. An invitation that Jesus has made that makes a difference not only in our lives, but in the lives of those surrounding us. This past year we've been talking about how we want to move our church into belonging. And then we are saying, okay, now that we are able to make people belong, we want to learn and move the church toward disciple, discipleship, toward discipling others, toward embracing others. We've been speaking about identifying someone in our lives that we can disciple. This is not a project that we just get someone saved and then go and find someone else to get saved. That's not what we're talking about. We're talking about discipling, investing in someone. And when they do accept Jesus Christ, we help them in growing their faith. We help them in being a part of what God is doing, not only in their lives, but we bring them into being a part of our family. And that is the direction we're going. So when I'm preaching, I am not preaching that we can feel good about our faith, that we can feel good about Jesus, that we can feel good about our needs and God will answer our prayers, but I am preaching that I may equip you to minister to others, to disciple others, as I am discipling that you too will disciple, because that is the great commission. To go and make disciples. That is the commission. We go and make disciples. So as we prepare to do that, we're going to be looking into chapter 11, not bankruptcy, but just chapter 11 of Matthew. And Matthew chapter 11 starts with uh John the Baptist and and Jesus. Then John the Baptist sends his uh followers and says, Go and find Jesus, speak with Jesus, and and figure out if he is truly the Messiah. Well, they go and they really don't know how to figure that out. So Jesus tells them, you know, I've been doing all this, and yet some of them struggle in believing that Jesus was truly the Messiah. And yet we find them to come before Jesus, but their anticipation is to learn, know, and receive what Jesus has for them. So John sends his disciples, and then Jesus speaks to them, and he speaks about the state of the things, on how the country is going, and how that area is going, and how the society is going. And when we meet other people, we we tend to talk about that, to look at how the country is going, the things that are upsetting us, the things that are hurting us, the things that we may sometimes be fearful of. And we see what is going on around, and we tend to be burdened and heavy laden with all the things that are happening in our nation. And yes, even though we're celebrating 250 years, we're celebrating a country that is not perfect, a country that does not have the best leadership, that is my opinion, and a country that does not always have the best senators and the best congressmen and the best president and the best leaders. But the Bible is not asking us to support and to approve, is asking us to pray for our leaders. And as we pray for our leaders, as we pray for those who are leading, we also are charged to bring the kingdom of God that we are a part of into our nation, into the midst of our communities, to our neighbors. So today we're going to see how Jesus does that, speaking about the things that are happening in the world and yet what he is about to do. And spoiler alert, it's an invitation. I know I'm spoiling it. But if you'd stand with me and open the word of the Lord today in the book of Matthew, chapter 11, we're gonna read verses 16 to 19, then we're gonna skip uh to verses 25 to 30. So uh chapter 11, verse 16, that says the word of the Lord. To what can I compare this generation? They are like children sitting in the marketplaces calling out to others. We played the pipe for you and you did not dance. We sang and urge and you did not mourn. For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they said, He has a demon. The son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Here's the glutton and the drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners. But wisdom is proved right by their deeds. Then we're gonna skip to verse 25. And at that time Jesus said, I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things for the wise and learned, and reveal them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you are pleased to do. All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal. Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am a gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Father in heaven, I pray that you would speak to us today. I pray that you allow us to recognize what you are doing. I pray that you would transform us. Father, we don't want to hear the word and let it pass by. We want to confront the word, be challenged, be changed, being renewed, being uplifted, being encouraged by your word. But today, Father, as we hear what you have for us, may it not be my words, but your words being professed into our hearts that our lives may be transformed. And we pray and we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you. You may be seated. We find in this passage that Jesus is explaining to them what is happening around and how much of a burden people are going through, and how heavy it is, and yet how no one is happy either with John or with Jesus. There's nothing they can do to make people happy. But Jesus saying, I'm not trying to have people happy with me. I am trying to come and I have a mission, and his mission is to teach us to make disciples. That was Jesus' mission. Wasn't just to die on the cross that we may have eternal life. He was to die on the cross that we may have eternal life, and those that come after us can have that same eternal life. That we are responsible to take the word of God, the good news, the gospel, to others. So Jesus has come and he speaks about the things that are happening, and then he makes an invitation. Now, this is an invitation and not an obligation. I know so many Christians who feel that they have to do this. I have to read the word of God because it's what good Christians do. I have to go to church, I have to be a part of this, I have to speak the truth, I have to do this, I have and it's an obligation, almost like a chore. And then they don't have joy in the relationship with Jesus because the relationship with Jesus is a chore, it's something that they just have to do it. I just have to do it because if I don't do it, I just don't feel good about myself. But Jesus did not tell them to do something, He tell He invited them to come. Come. One word, come. And this invitation is something that changes people because He's not asking them to do something, and then you have earned the invitation. Apply for this, and then you may be able to enter. Then he prays. And when he prays, he says, Come, all you who are weary, all you who are laboring, all you who are heavy, and I will give you rest. For many years, uh the front access, the front door of our nation was New York City and Ellis Island. And the first thing that people got to see as the symbol of America or the United States was the Statue of Liberty. And when they saw that statue, they have heard about that statue before they left. And people said, When you see the statue, you know you have arrived. And the statue has an inscription. Now many don't know about this inscription, but that inscription is a most welcoming inscription. That inscription says, Give me your tired and your poor. It doesn't say, give me your best educated, give me your most wealthy, give me the very best you got. It says, give me your tired and poor. This welcoming is a welcoming to those who needed a new opportunity. It's a welcoming to those who wanted to get a new life. And in the beginning of our country, there was a lot of land that needed work. There was a lot of cities that needed labor, a lot, a lot of area to be taken care of. And this invitation by the Statue of Liberty was an invitation for people to be a part of something greater than themselves. It wasn't just a nation with a beautiful land, it wasn't just a nation with a wonderful constitution. What was greater than themselves is the first word on the name of our nation, united. It's the unity that when they are a part of this, they can work together. And this is what we as a church sometimes forget to do, to welcome. Because Jesus says come, but we as a church, we say welcome. The church is made to welcome just so others get to see Jesus. So when we welcome the poor and the the tired, those who are suffering, we are bringing them rest. Not ourselves, we cannot make someone rest, but we can bring Jesus Christ who can. We cannot unburden, but we can bring Jesus Christ who can. Because they're looking for what we have, peace. They're looking for what we have, love, they're looking for what we have, assurance, they're looking for what we have, grace, because much has been given, much should be given out. They're looking for what we have. So the the word is not saying that you come and then take care of yourself. Come and I will give you rest. It's not come and then you work out your rest, is the presence of Jesus that changes. But it says something else too. When he speaks about coming and having rest, he also says in verse 29, take my yoke upon you and learn from me. And then he says something very interesting. He says, For I am gentle and humble in your art, and you find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. So we unload our burden. Now many of us may be struggling with burdens. The burden of sin, the burden of unexpected situations, the burden of a diagnosis, the burden of an unknown future, the burden of an unknown uh situation, the burden of pain, the burden of unforgiveness, the burden of children uh going in the wrong direction, the burden of parents' health. There's so many burdens that we are heavy with, and burdens that are taking us down, making us tired. And the word of God tells us that Jesus spoke to them and said, Take my yoke. And the first time I read this, I was like, that makes no sense. And here's the reason why it makes no sense because. If my yoke is heavy, I'm gonna be honest, I don't want the yoke, I don't want mine, I don't want his, I don't want anyone's yoke. I don't want the yoke, and then I start realizing you know, we're talking about the word of God, and God's talking about during that time everyone saw the yoke as something that that that oxen have. And oxen do not have a choice, do they? Their purpose is to carry the yoke, so they'll have a yoke whether they want it or not. And whether I want it or not, I will have a yoke, I will have a burden. Whether I want it or not, I will have it, because that's part of life. But I can do is I can choose to have the yoke of the world and the expectations and the weight and all the things that the world is expecting, it's pushing, is is warranting on us, or we can have the yoke of Jesus, who is saying it's light. But the problem is the yoke of the world, I get to pick where I go. I get to choose the direction I go. Yes, it is heavy, yes, it is overwhelming, yes, it is tiring, but I get to pick where I go and the consequences of where I go. But the yoke that I'm sharing with Jesus, he is the one that's taking the lead. That's why it's light. He is the one that's taking the direction, that is why it is light. Because it's his yoke, not mine. Praise God. It's not my yoke that I'm carrying, it's his. Because he taken away my burdens and made it light. But a world is so heavy with sin, it's so heavy with despair. And when they see us walking around with a smile because our yoke is not ours, like how were you able to live a life where the where the heaviness and the burden doesn't seem like it's affecting you? And that's when we're able to say, it is Jesus, it is not me. I wish it was me that I had a formula to get rid of the burden. But Jesus says, Give me your burdens, and I will share my yoke. I'll take your yoke and you'll have mine. But that means that we're gonna be tied to him. I like how Ovid, the philosopher, says, Before you run in double harness, look well to over the other horse. Because we're gonna be tied to someone. We're gonna be tied to something. We look well. Is that taking us in the right direction? So when we look into Jesus, when we look at Jesus, and this heavy, heavy burden is like when we take a very heavy backpack. When I went to school, fourth grade, my teacher wanted us to take all the books every day. And my backpack was heavy. I went through two different backpacks that year. My mom wasn't happy with me because, like, you destroy your backpack. Saying, Mom, it's heavy, it's not made to be having all these books, but that teacher, and then I may have complained a little bit about the teacher, but but that heaviness, but every time my dad would take me to school, he goes, son, let me take your backpack and the weight just lifted. And my dad took my backpack. We went to school, and that journey, which was the same journey I did every day, did not change. It's just the heaviness of that journey. That's what Jesus is saying. We are still going on the same journey, we're still going together, but let me take your backpack, let me take your burden, and we unload this burden for 250 years. This country has been asking what kind of country do we want to be? But my challenge for us as people of God, as children of God, as kingdom dwellers of God is what kind of people do we want to be to a broken world? Do we want to be those that can lift their burdens, bring solace to their lives, and bring hope, as we just saw that video? Bring hope because our hope is not in a nation, it's not in leadership, our hope is in Jesus Christ, and that's when we will see God work in and through us. So, what are we to do? We see that it's an invitation, not an obligation. We have seen that we unload our burden. So, what are we to do? Well, the word is come. We can't point to someone, give directions to someone if you don't know where that place is. If someone stops and asks you for directions and you don't know where it is, you cannot tell them how to get there. And you cannot tell people about Jesus and about being in the presence of Jesus if you have not come. So the first thing we have to do is come before him, with him, to join him, to be a part of him, to unload our burdens, to have his yoke, and then we can tell others about his yoke, about him. So the first thing we have to do, we have to come. And when we come, we not only come, but we also learn, we walk, we invite. And the word, the original word, was come, all of you who are, and the word is copos. And copos is labor, and that's why some some uh scriptures have the word labor, uh others is you who are in trouble, and some and some translations have the word trouble, and then you have the word weariness, which is also copus, uh, which some translations have weary. But regardless of the translation, that word is not just translated easily into English, but that word meant something that we toil, something that is that is hard. It's not just uh an easy task, it's the opposite of an easy task. So when Jesus invited the disciples to be on the boat, and these some of them were were sailors and they were very they were professionals, master salesmen, uh sailors, master sailors, or sailing people. I don't know. I I think I got the right word, sailors? Yeah, uh they're fishermen, so they knew boats, they knew storms. So they are in the boat, and Jesus tells them to go to the other side, and a storm comes in, and they work very heavily, taking the water out of the boat, trying to keep the the rudder um you know in place, and they try to do everything they could, and the word that the scripture uses for their labor, for their work, for their weariness is copus. It's the same word. So when we think about working hard so to survive, to not sink, and working and that toiling and that and that labor to be able to survive, that's the word that's using. So when Jesus says, Come, all of you who are doing that kind of work, and how many of us are working just to survive, are working just so we don't go underwater, just working just so and we keep going and going and going and working hard, and we are so tired, but we just don't have time to be tired. And that's what Jesus is saying. If you are doing that, come because I want to give you rest, and rest transforms, rest changes. Jesus came and says, Come. And now we welcome, we bring people into coming into his presence. We are maybe the only Jesus they will ever see. But when we tell them about Jesus, when we share, and we don't have to to have like a five-point and a poem, we don't have to preach at people, we can't just share of his love. So we come and Jesus will give us rest, and we become the carriers of the invitation. So we come and also we take his yoke. Jesus encouraged them to take his yoke, and he will trade his yoke with our shame, with our sin, with our unresolved expectations, with our sadness, with our mourning, and he'll trade everything that we have that is bringing us weight for his yoke, for his presence, for his love. No, it doesn't mean that life's gonna be easier, it doesn't mean that we're gonna have everything we've ever desired, or everything's gonna be a bed of roses. By the contrary, it means that we may face even more difficult situations than we have in the past. But what it also means is that we are not alone. What it means is that the weight is not all on us. What it means is that our yoke is his. What it means is that he is there, what it means is that he will not leave us, and there's the last words that Jesus spoke to the disciples. And I will be with you, he will be with us, but he has lit that candle, he has lit that fire in our lives, and it's not just so we can give light, it's just so we can light other candles as well with his light. And this is what discipleship means. This is what we mean by saying to go and make disciples, is by sharing the light with others that their candle will too sparkle and will light the path and the way for others. So Jesus ascended into heaven, and the disciples were able to light that light in other people's lives 2,000 years ago, and someone lit that light in our lives, someone shared about Jesus to us, and that's what we are called to do. So today we have an opportunity, we have a glorious choice to say, Lord, I'm heavy. Lord, I don't know if I can take this anymore. I don't know how much further I can go. And I know you said come, but I just don't know how to. If there's a burden in your life right now, that you know that Jesus is not sharing, if there is a weight in your soul right now that you know that Jesus is not taking care of, if there is a burden that is weighing you and you are thinking, maybe I am not worthy, I don't matter, I don't know if Jesus wants me. Today we have an opportunity to say, God, I I want to come. I want to be. I want to feel your presence. Because once we do that, he will take that burden, he will take that weight and replace it with himself, with his yoke, which is much lighter, which is beautiful, which is divine. I do have a challenge for you this week. You have people in your life who are very heavy, burdened, and are struggling. And many times you you have tried to give an encouraging word or even inviting them to church or inviting them to a small group. But this week I'm challenging you to ask them, how can I pray for you? Because once they share, if they are feeling comfortable to do so, they are sharing their burden with you. And they're sharing their burden to Jesus who will take that. And you can use that as an opportunity to say, you know what? I'm gonna pray that God will lift that from you. I'm gonna pray that Jesus will address the situation in your life. I'm gonna pray that God will heal, that God will lift, that God will bring peace. But ask him, how can I pray for you? Because once you ask that, you are sharing your burden. Like Jesus is sharing our burden. Saying, share that with me. Let us do this together. Will you stand with me? I'll ask to ask the worship team to come forward. As I said earlier, the altars are open, and if you want to come and pray and ask the Lord to lift, you are welcome to do so. But I'm gonna challenge today, if there is something in your life that you need to let go, if there is a burden, if there is a weight in your life that Jesus is not taking care of, give it to him. Allow him to give you his yoke, to take your yoke. And if there's an area that Jesus is not controlling, give it to him. Don't don't hold it because it's not yours to hold, it's the enemy's. So let Jesus give you himself. Father, we thank you. We thank you for each and every single person that's here, and we pray that if there is someone in great need of you, someone who's who's going through challenges and difficulties, and they're realizing, you know what, I just want rest. I just want a respite, I just want a hand. May you touch them in a powerful way. Father, today we pray that you'd anoint us with your presence. And as we go to the one person that we are trying to disciple or trying to minister to, as we go to even strangers and saying, you know, how can I pray for you? May we be agents of Jesus in the world, ambassadors, sharing each other's burdens, lifting each other's burdens, encouraging one another, that we will continue to lead your kingdom to Jesus Christ, leading our communities, leading our neighbors, our friends, our family into an encounter with you. And we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.

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As it is known in our community, Northwest Church is committed to discovering and engaging in a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ, with inspired worship and intentional ministry. People from all walks of life are welcome and received as family members. Our family is diverse, multicultural, and although not perfect, in love with Jesus. Join us online at nwnat.org or by visiting us at Columbus, Ohio. God bless you.