WEBVTT 00:00:00.441 --> 00:00:05.331 Would you take your Bible and go to the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 9? 00:00:05.331 --> 00:00:15.019 And in just a moment I'll be reading the text that's printed in your worship guide Matthew, chapter 9, verses 35 through 38. 00:00:15.019 --> 00:00:28.748 And as we continue in our series, these first four messages have called us to a greater awareness of God's mission and our participation with God in that mission. 00:00:28.748 --> 00:00:38.194 We've been humbled by the promises of Jesus himself that his mission to build his church cannot be stopped. 00:00:38.194 --> 00:00:47.454 Not even the power of hell can prevent Jesus Christ from doing what he's doing in our midst this morning. 00:00:47.454 --> 00:00:50.484 He's building his church. 00:00:50.484 --> 00:00:56.173 His kingdom is coming on earth as it is in heaven. 00:00:56.173 --> 00:01:08.831 We are now transitioning from going deeper in our understanding of God's mission and our participation in it God's heart to build his church and to the end of the age. 00:01:08.831 --> 00:01:16.472 But now we're going to transition into understanding more deeply our part in accomplishing that mission. 00:01:16.472 --> 00:01:21.490 God has a mission and he has a church to accomplish the mission. 00:01:21.490 --> 00:01:25.631 They say that those who fail to plan plan to fail. 00:01:25.631 --> 00:01:29.376 God has not planned to fail, because he has a plan. 00:01:29.376 --> 00:01:30.941 And here's the plan it's us. 00:01:30.941 --> 00:01:55.831 We are his church and his plan is to use us as the means through which he will build his church and see his kingdom expand over the face of the earth until his glory shines brighter than the sun. 00:01:55.831 --> 00:02:07.730 And so this morning we are going to continue now in our series by listening to Jesus Invite us to join him in the mission. 00:02:07.730 --> 00:02:13.752 With that in view, I direct your attention now to Matthew, chapter 9, beginning of verse 35. 00:02:13.752 --> 00:02:16.243 Let us hear the word of God. 00:02:16.243 --> 00:02:29.171 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 00:02:29.171 --> 00:02:37.673 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 00:02:37.673 --> 00:02:46.772 Then he said to his disciples the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. 00:02:46.772 --> 00:02:57.114 Therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 00:02:57.114 --> 00:02:58.663 That is God's word. 00:02:58.663 --> 00:03:04.171 May he has blessing to his reading and preaching by the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit. 00:03:04.171 --> 00:03:04.681 Amen. 00:03:06.001 --> 00:03:08.408 I don't know a lot about farming. 00:03:08.408 --> 00:03:10.445 I mean, to be honest, I shouldn't. 00:03:10.445 --> 00:03:22.719 I grew up in the concrete jungle of Philadelphia, pennsylvania, so I don't know a lot about farming, a lot of the agricultural illustrations of the kingdom of God and even the scripture that we're looking at this morning. 00:03:22.719 --> 00:03:24.848 It takes a little work for me to get it. 00:03:24.848 --> 00:03:25.924 I'm a city boy. 00:03:25.924 --> 00:03:32.782 I still remember going to my first honest to goodness, county fair Rachel, my wife. 00:03:32.782 --> 00:03:35.330 On the other hand, she did not grow up in the city. 00:03:35.330 --> 00:03:38.027 She's very acquainted with rural areas. 00:03:38.027 --> 00:03:42.532 In fact she worked on a farm in the summers up in Woodstock, connecticut. 00:03:42.532 --> 00:03:52.651 So Rachel decided that she wanted our family to experience what she experienced and we took a trip because we're very, very young to see the county fair up in Woodstock, connecticut. 00:03:52.651 --> 00:03:55.306 My mind was blown. 00:03:55.306 --> 00:04:06.991 I mean, you go to the county fair and people walk around listening to country music, eating smoked turkey legs and watching cows give birth to baby calves all at the same time. 00:04:06.991 --> 00:04:16.432 I mean, people at the county fair are more excited about John Deere tractor equipment than I am about the Philadelphia Eagles football team. 00:04:16.432 --> 00:04:23.170 Suffice it to say I fell out of place and I was learning a whole lot about the agricultural world. 00:04:23.170 --> 00:04:27.105 But when I look at this text I don't know. 00:04:27.125 --> 00:04:30.591 Need to know a lot about farming to understand what the word harvest? 00:04:30.591 --> 00:04:32.879 What does that mean? 00:04:32.879 --> 00:04:36.387 When Jesus said the harvest is plentiful? 00:04:36.387 --> 00:04:42.547 That makes sense to this city boy and I'm sure it makes sense to you. 00:04:42.547 --> 00:04:50.833 Harvest is the time of year in the farming community when you go out and gather the crops. 00:04:50.833 --> 00:04:58.632 And Jesus wants us to understand that there are a lot of crops to gather. 00:04:58.632 --> 00:05:05.791 Jesus wants us to realize, church, that we are living in the days of harvest. 00:05:05.791 --> 00:05:22.697 The Father sent Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit to live and die and rise from the dead to secure for himself a great harvest of souls from every people, tribe, tongue and nation. 00:05:22.697 --> 00:05:29.812 And Jesus says now is the time to go and gather that harvest. 00:05:29.812 --> 00:05:35.168 Church, we are living in the days of harvest. 00:05:36.370 --> 00:05:39.194 In Matthew, chapter nine, verse 35 to 38. 00:05:39.194 --> 00:05:48.603 We are being led by Jesus to see our world through his eyes, and here's what he sees. 00:05:48.603 --> 00:06:05.406 He not only sees a world in general, he sees our world, he sees your world, he sees your city, he sees San Jose, he sees Fremont, he sees Union City, he sees the entire Bay area. 00:06:05.406 --> 00:06:09.088 This way, he sees a harvest. 00:06:09.088 --> 00:06:19.494 In other words, jesus sees a lot of people ripe for turning from their sins and putting their faith and trust in Jesus Christ. 00:06:19.494 --> 00:06:33.055 Jesus sees a lot of people ripe for entering into the kingdom of God and flourishing as created human beings under the rain and rule of Christ. 00:06:33.055 --> 00:06:50.507 Jesus sees a lot of people, not a few people, a lot of people, a lot of men, a lot of women, young and old, from various backgrounds and walks of life, all turning to Jesus and saying you are Lord. 00:06:50.507 --> 00:06:56.430 Jesus says the harvest is plentiful. 00:06:56.430 --> 00:07:25.096 This means that there are plenty of people where you live, plenty of people where you work, plenty of people where you go to school who right now, although they are not following Jesus, although they are not at the present moment, joining our voices and singing all creatures of our God and King, but one day, soon, they will, because the harvest is plentiful. 00:07:25.096 --> 00:07:35.120 So Jesus wants us to see our world, our city, your neighborhood, our parish through his eyes. 00:07:35.120 --> 00:07:39.394 And here's what he sees he sees a harvest. 00:07:39.394 --> 00:07:50.384 Now, what we also invite to see Jesus doing in this text is inviting us to see our part in gathering the harvest. 00:07:50.384 --> 00:08:09.365 In fact, this text is honestly all about Jesus inviting his disciples and, ultimately, inviting his church to join him in participating in the mission tasks that are necessary to gather the harvest. 00:08:10.408 --> 00:08:15.365 Matthew, chapter 9, verses 35 to 38, is a transition text in this gospel. 00:08:15.365 --> 00:08:26.384 If you are familiar with the gospel of Matthew and its layout, you are aware that Matthew chapter 4 through 9, have emphasized what Jesus has been doing in his public ministry. 00:08:26.384 --> 00:08:37.365 Matthew, chapter 4 through 9, present to us what Jesus has been doing as one who has been sent on mission by the Father in the power of the Holy Spirit. 00:08:37.365 --> 00:08:47.100 But now, here in chapter 9, verse 35, we find Jesus preparing to send his disciples to do the very same things. 00:08:47.100 --> 00:09:14.097 Jesus sends them like the Father sent him, and this ultimately culminates in the final words of this gospel, where not only the 12 apostles are sent to do what Jesus was doing, but the whole church is sent to the whole world to make disciples of the nations and to baptize them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, with Jesus's powerful presence going with them. 00:09:15.327 --> 00:09:17.835 The question is how do we do that? 00:09:17.835 --> 00:09:25.339 How do we join Jesus in this great invitation to gather this great harvest? 00:09:25.339 --> 00:09:30.172 The answer is simple, yet profound, just like Jesus did. 00:09:30.172 --> 00:09:31.971 Did you hear that? 00:09:31.971 --> 00:09:35.835 The answer is simple and yet profound. 00:09:35.835 --> 00:09:40.384 How do we do what's necessary to gather the harvest? 00:09:40.384 --> 00:09:42.953 How do we do the mission? 00:09:42.953 --> 00:09:47.716 The answer is just like Jesus did. 00:09:47.716 --> 00:09:56.599 Now, there are certainly elements to Jesus' mission that were not meant to be repeated, because only Jesus was qualified to do them. 00:09:56.599 --> 00:10:03.197 Only Jesus could live a perfect life in obedience to God's law, to be our righteousness. 00:10:03.197 --> 00:10:12.119 Only Jesus could die a substitutionary death on the cross to absorb the wrath of God and pay the penalty for our sins. 00:10:12.119 --> 00:10:28.700 Only Jesus could rise from the dead, securing our justification, ascending to the right hand of the Father and sending the Holy Spirit to dwell within us and to empower us and to gift us until he returns. 00:10:29.404 --> 00:10:43.514 However, aside from the unique elements of Christ's mission, wrapped up in His perfect life, sin, atoning death, and glorious resurrection and ascension, everything else about Jesus were supposed to be like Him. 00:10:43.514 --> 00:10:47.384 We are supposed to be like Jesus. 00:10:47.384 --> 00:10:53.356 Jesus wants His disciples to do what he does. 00:10:53.356 --> 00:11:08.384 The students are to be like their teacher, as Jesus, the master missionary, is doing His earthly work as one empowered by the Spirit sent from the Father. 00:11:08.384 --> 00:11:17.325 He's not only doing the work the Father sent Him to do, he's providing an example for His disciples to follow in His steps. 00:11:17.325 --> 00:11:19.048 You realize this right. 00:11:19.048 --> 00:11:21.676 Jesus wants you to be like Him. 00:11:21.676 --> 00:11:29.384 In fact, pastor Bob spoke on this last Sunday about the church being formed in godliness. 00:11:29.384 --> 00:11:31.272 We are to be. 00:11:31.272 --> 00:11:34.365 We live our lives wholly to God and wholly as God. 00:11:34.365 --> 00:11:37.244 We are called to be like Jesus. 00:11:37.244 --> 00:11:42.345 We would say that the goal of the Christian life is to be more like Christ. 00:11:42.345 --> 00:11:43.929 That's the fruit of the Spirit. 00:11:43.929 --> 00:11:53.336 But we're not only to be like Jesus in His character, we're also to follow His example in His conduct. 00:11:53.336 --> 00:12:04.384 This is why Peter said in his first epistle, 1 Peter 2, verse 21, christ has left us an example so that you might follow in His steps. 00:12:04.384 --> 00:12:06.753 That word example means a pattern to trace. 00:12:08.067 --> 00:12:11.669 When I was a young kid, I was really into drawing, but, to be honest, I wasn't quite good at it. 00:12:11.669 --> 00:12:15.384 And so I had another brother who was really good at drawing and I wouldn't be as good as him. 00:12:15.384 --> 00:12:23.303 So I came up with this really cool trick I would take a blank piece of paper, I would put it over top of a comic book cover, I would shine a light on it and I would what? 00:12:23.303 --> 00:12:27.384 I'd trace it and I'd say look, mom, spiderman. 00:12:27.384 --> 00:12:40.855 She knew she applauded it, but she realized that if I was going to produce a quality picture at that stage of my life, with my artistic talents or lack thereof, tracing was necessary. 00:12:42.267 --> 00:12:47.118 Christ has left us an example, a pattern to trace. 00:12:47.118 --> 00:12:48.710 Church, we will fail. 00:12:48.710 --> 00:12:51.332 I don't want to discourage you, but let me just get this out of the way. 00:12:51.332 --> 00:12:56.475 We will fail at the mission terribly if we wing it. 00:12:56.475 --> 00:13:04.384 We will fail at the mission tremendously if we try to draw freestyle. 00:13:04.384 --> 00:13:18.299 But the good news is this Christ has left us an example, and we are to trace the pattern and follow his steps. 00:13:18.299 --> 00:13:27.115 Let me make this clear, especially for those who are more in tune to different theories of Jesus and his life and his death. 00:13:27.115 --> 00:13:34.332 Jesus is more than an example, but he is not less than an example. 00:13:34.332 --> 00:13:42.172 Jesus wants us to be like him, not only in our character, but also in our conduct. 00:13:42.172 --> 00:13:56.172 And so here in this text, jesus is not only inviting the 12 disciples to be like him and do what he does, he's also inviting us to be like him and to do what he does. 00:13:56.172 --> 00:14:07.432 In particular, jesus is calling us to join him in doing the missional work that is necessary to bring in the harvest. 00:14:08.205 --> 00:14:11.452 So I often like to summarize my sermons in a sentence. 00:14:11.452 --> 00:14:12.596 Oh, you heard it, didn't you? 00:14:12.596 --> 00:14:12.916 Thank you. 00:14:12.916 --> 00:14:22.552 I like to summarize my sermons in a sentence, and so here's the big idea, the one sentence and if we were in Fremont, you'd see this on the screen. 00:14:22.552 --> 00:14:32.672 But here's the one sentence Faithfulness to the mission requires joining Jesus in doing what it takes to bring in the harvest. 00:14:33.725 --> 00:14:44.197 Faithfulness to the mission requires joining Jesus in doing what it takes to bring in the harvest. 00:14:44.197 --> 00:15:10.615 So if we are gonna join Jesus in gathering the harvest here in San Jose as a new church plant, if we are gonna join Jesus and continuing to gather in the harvest in other places throughout the Bay, then I wanna suggest from this text that what we need to do is be shaped by the elements of Christ's missional example. 00:15:10.615 --> 00:15:20.732 And so I wanna suggest to you three elements of Christ's missional example that are to shape us if we were to be faithful and fruitful in mission. 00:15:20.732 --> 00:15:24.625 And here's the good news for you Everyone likes to hear this Out. 00:15:24.625 --> 00:15:27.789 Of these three points, I'm only gonna preach one of them today. 00:15:27.789 --> 00:15:43.576 You get the other two next week and, for those of you who aren't able to be with us in Fremont next week, all of these sermons in this series are being archived on the Redeemer Fremont podcast, which can be found on Spotify and other places on YouTube. 00:15:43.576 --> 00:15:46.953 You can keep following along with these if you would like. 00:15:46.953 --> 00:15:54.533 But I wanna suggest from this text that we need to be shaped by three elements of Christ's missional example. 00:15:54.533 --> 00:15:59.514 Let me give you all three of them now and then we'll just deal with the first one this morning. 00:15:59.904 --> 00:16:03.855 In verse 35, we need to be shaped by Jesus' rhythm of mission. 00:16:03.855 --> 00:16:09.254 In verse 36, we need to be shaped by Jesus' reason for mission. 00:16:09.254 --> 00:16:15.815 And in verses 37 and 38, we need to be shaped by Jesus' reality of the mission. 00:16:15.815 --> 00:16:20.076 So the rhythm, the reason and the reality of mission. 00:16:20.076 --> 00:16:26.938 So first we need to be shaped by Jesus' rhythm of mission, verse 35,. 00:16:27.085 --> 00:16:40.336 And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 00:16:40.336 --> 00:16:51.950 If we're gonna join Jesus in gathering the harvest here in St Jose and beyond, throughout the Bay, then we need to be shaped by what Jesus did in this single verse to bring in the harvest everywhere he went. 00:16:51.950 --> 00:16:55.171 How did Jesus gather his people? 00:16:55.171 --> 00:17:16.585 Verse 35 tells us what he did in every city and in every village, without exception Three primary activities teaching in their synagogue, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. 00:17:16.585 --> 00:17:26.037 Jesus taught the scriptures, proclaimed the good news of the gospel and healed all sorts of human brokenness. 00:17:26.037 --> 00:17:30.613 And the grammatical tense of the word went, indicates that this was a continuous action. 00:17:30.613 --> 00:17:41.633 This is what he did over and over again, everywhere he went teaching, proclaiming healing, teaching, proclaiming healing, teaching, proclaiming healing. 00:17:41.633 --> 00:17:43.230 I call this his missional rhythm. 00:17:43.230 --> 00:17:51.952 This was the lifestyle of Christ during his incarnational ministry. 00:17:51.952 --> 00:18:03.996 Everywhere he went, every place he resided, you would find Jesus doing these three missional activities teaching, proclaiming and healing. 00:18:03.996 --> 00:18:09.932 In other words, teaching, proclaiming and healing were a part of his ordinary habitus. 00:18:09.932 --> 00:18:22.913 Wherever he is, whoever he's with Jesus is also faithfully doing these three things teaching, proclaiming healing, teaching, proclaiming healing. 00:18:22.913 --> 00:18:23.627 Can you say it with me? 00:18:23.627 --> 00:18:26.413 Teaching, proclaiming healing. 00:18:27.845 --> 00:18:37.210 To further argue that this was indeed his missional rhythm, matthew wants us to know, at the very beginning of his earthly ministry, that this is what he started out doing. 00:18:37.210 --> 00:18:43.453 If you have your Bible, this isn't in your worship guide, but flip back to Matthew, chapter four, verse 23. 00:18:43.453 --> 00:19:00.585 At the beginning of his public ministry this is what we read and he went throughout all Galilee See if this sounds familiar Teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. 00:19:00.585 --> 00:19:02.532 No, this is not a typo. 00:19:02.532 --> 00:19:16.904 This is Matthew making a crystal clear that, as he observed the life of Jesus as he observed the ministry of Jesus for three and a half years leading up to his sacrifice on the cross. 00:19:16.904 --> 00:19:23.836 This is what you would see Jesus doing everywhere he went teaching, proclaiming, healing. 00:19:25.628 --> 00:19:28.384 This was truly Christ's missional rhythm. 00:19:28.384 --> 00:19:37.352 His lifestyle or to use the phrase that's popularized, that's been popularized in a recent book I really like this was his common rule. 00:19:37.352 --> 00:19:39.625 This was his rule of life. 00:19:39.625 --> 00:19:46.843 Jesus organized his life around these three primary activities. 00:19:46.843 --> 00:19:48.550 There were other things that he did. 00:19:48.550 --> 00:19:50.111 There were other places that he went. 00:19:50.111 --> 00:19:56.612 He always personalized things to the individual, as you read through the examples of his ministry in the gospels. 00:19:56.612 --> 00:20:12.675 But if you were to broadly characterize what Jesus was doing everywhere he was going, he was teaching, he was proclaiming and he was healing it's almost like it's almost like it's a soundtrack to his life and mission. 00:20:12.675 --> 00:20:21.416 I mean, this is just what was always going on teaching, proclaiming healing, teaching, proclaiming healing. 00:20:22.887 --> 00:20:32.154 In the gospel of Matthew, we are given an account of the tremendous impact Jesus had during his incarnational ministry. 00:20:32.154 --> 00:20:38.752 But what he did was pretty simple and pretty repetitive, and it's this. 00:20:38.752 --> 00:20:41.065 You could preach this part of the sermon now. 00:20:41.065 --> 00:20:46.305 You've heard me say it enough teaching, proclaiming and healing. 00:20:46.305 --> 00:20:55.441 This was his missional rhythm, and this was the means through which he gathered the harvest. 00:20:55.441 --> 00:21:10.424 So let me do this, let me take some time to tease out these categories what's involved in teaching in the synagogue and what was involved in proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and what was involved in healing every disease and every affliction. 00:21:10.424 --> 00:21:15.596 And how does that translate to us as we see him later sending his disciples out to do the same? 00:21:16.989 --> 00:21:21.634 Let's first look at teaching Teaching in their synagogues. 00:21:21.634 --> 00:21:27.265 The synagogue was the center of liturgical life for the religious Jew. 00:21:27.265 --> 00:21:34.856 It was where faithful Jews gathered together in their local communities for worship and fellowship and spiritual formation. 00:21:34.856 --> 00:21:44.464 Among the regular disciplines where the public reading of Scripture and the teaching of Scripture and they didn't have these fancy worship guides that are nice and folder for us. 00:21:44.464 --> 00:21:51.892 They had scrolls and they rolled them out and they would read the scrolls and then they would expound upon them. 00:21:53.936 --> 00:21:59.028 And so why is entering the synagogue part of Jesus' missional rhythm? 00:21:59.028 --> 00:22:00.598 It's very simple. 00:22:00.598 --> 00:22:13.740 Jesus wanted the religious people, the people who were familiar with the Bible, to understand what it was really all about. 00:22:13.740 --> 00:22:32.605 Jesus wanted people who were familiar with the Scriptures, who had a value of the Scriptures, to know what the central message of the Scriptures were really all about, namely that all the Scriptures were about Him. 00:22:32.605 --> 00:22:41.846 You may recall that at the beginning of Christ's ministry, luke records Jesus' missional rhythm as he taught in the synagogue. 00:22:41.846 --> 00:22:45.233 And we read in Luke, chapter four, verses 16 through 21,. 00:22:45.253 --> 00:23:00.055 And he came to Nazareth where he had been brought up, and as was his custom, his rhythm, as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day and he stood up to read and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. 00:23:00.055 --> 00:23:10.125 He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, quote the spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. 00:23:10.125 --> 00:23:21.606 He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set out liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor. 00:23:21.606 --> 00:23:41.744 And he rolled up the scroll I love this and give it back to the attendant and sat down and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him and he began to say to them today, this scripture has been fulfilled. 00:23:41.744 --> 00:23:47.115 In your hearing there were no microphones, but that is an epic mic drop. 00:23:47.798 --> 00:23:55.805 He reads one of the most well known, possibly memorized, scriptures in Isaiah's prophecy what the Messiah would come and do. 00:23:55.805 --> 00:24:04.734 That the Messiah would come and proclaim good news that would heal hurts, restore what's broken on the count of sin to redeem his people. 00:24:04.734 --> 00:24:10.318 And Jesus, after reading that scripture, says he's going to redeem him to redeem his people. 00:24:10.318 --> 00:24:15.858 And Jesus, after reading that scripture, says that's what I'm here to do. 00:24:15.858 --> 00:24:39.445 Jesus taught over and over again that all of the Bible points to him that he is the one who was sent by the father and the power of the spirit to proclaim the good news of the kingdom, to set sinners free from their captivity to sin and to restore the damaging effects of the curse. 00:24:39.815 --> 00:24:45.347 Jesus' missional rhythm prioritized helping people understand God's word. 00:24:45.347 --> 00:24:52.624 God's word had rules, but it wasn't about keeping the rules. 00:24:52.624 --> 00:24:54.949 It was about need. 00:24:54.949 --> 00:24:57.222 It was about needing a savior to be right with God. 00:24:57.222 --> 00:25:10.345 Jesus's missional rhythm involved finding the people in the city that were acquainted with the scriptures but didn't understand that they all ultimately pointed to him and the free grace of God. 00:25:10.345 --> 00:25:24.000 He worked hard to help religious people see that the Bible isn't about what they need to do to get God to accept them, but what God has done through Christ to make them acceptable. 00:25:24.000 --> 00:25:26.286 That's the gospel. 00:25:26.286 --> 00:25:37.807 And so, as we join Jesus in this missional rhythm of teaching, we also find ourselves with the great responsibility to find the people around us. 00:25:37.807 --> 00:25:39.238 They're here. 00:25:39.238 --> 00:25:51.799 Who, who, who are familiar with the Bible, who are acquainted with the scriptures, who have some type of religious experience, going to church, regardless of the denomination, regardless of it, even preaches the gospel. 00:25:51.799 --> 00:25:53.422 There are people in the bay. 00:25:53.422 --> 00:25:56.403 This is not a completely secularized area. 00:25:56.403 --> 00:26:04.526 Let me tell you that there are people all over the bay that have an acquaintance with Jesus, that have an acquaintance with the scriptures, and guess what? 00:26:04.526 --> 00:26:08.465 They need to know that the Bible is not a book of do's and don'ts. 00:26:08.465 --> 00:26:33.124 The Bible is a book about God's free grace that's offered to us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and we're here to help people understand the central message of all of scripture, that is, all of scripture that makes us wise unto salvation, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. 00:26:34.755 --> 00:26:35.436 My friend Chris. 00:26:35.436 --> 00:26:52.703 When I first met him, he was a very successful middle aged white collar Roman Catholic man who, after years of living the high life and a very successful business, lost almost all of it by becoming entrenched deeply in a life of addiction. 00:26:52.703 --> 00:27:02.806 In fact, he lost his wife, he lost his kids, he lost his job, he lost his self respect and, because of too many DUIs, he lost his driver's license. 00:27:02.806 --> 00:27:11.846 Well, just so happened, because he lost his driver's license, he found himself on a public bus that drove past our church just about every day. 00:27:11.846 --> 00:27:15.295 And there was something in Chris's heart that said you know what? 00:27:15.295 --> 00:27:18.321 You know what I need to get my life together, I need a little religion. 00:27:19.714 --> 00:27:29.326 So one Sunday, not invited by a single soul, chris walked into the doors of our church and participated in our Sunday morning worship gathering. 00:27:29.326 --> 00:27:32.914 Afterwards he came up to me and he was very quick to tell me his story. 00:27:32.914 --> 00:27:36.880 With tears in his eyes, he said I need help, I need religion. 00:27:36.880 --> 00:27:38.387 I knew in my head he needed. 00:27:38.387 --> 00:27:39.919 He didn't need religion, he needed Jesus. 00:27:39.919 --> 00:27:45.337 And so I asked Chris if he would agree to start meeting with me once a week over coffee and we do a. 00:27:45.337 --> 00:27:47.285 We do a bottle study through the Gospel of Mark. 00:27:47.285 --> 00:27:51.967 And so we started meeting once a week, gospel of Mark, cup of coffee. 00:27:52.616 --> 00:28:13.944 And then I still remember the day that you could see the light bulb go on, the day he thought the Bible was all about him, the day that he went from seeing the Bible is all about him and how he was condemned under the weight of God's judgment, never able to meet God's expectations, and that's all he saw the Bible as. 00:28:13.944 --> 00:28:41.367 But that day, for the first time, he saw the Bible not only as a book of rules and laws which are in there, which we're not capable of fulfilling, but seeing Jesus as the one who perfectly fulfilled it for him, who lived the life that Chris couldn't live and then die the death that Chris deserved to die so that he could be forgiven all his sin and come from all his shame and have his life transformed by not rules, not religion, but Jesus. 00:28:41.367 --> 00:28:50.846 I still remember Chris on his baptism Sunday standing before the church and saying I want to Roman Catholic Church my whole life. 00:28:50.846 --> 00:28:58.661 But I never understood that this book, that this book was all about Jesus. 00:28:58.661 --> 00:29:38.863 There are people like Chris where you live, where you work, where you drop off your kids for school, where you go to school, right around the diameter of this church building People like Chris who are familiar with the Bible, who aren't intimidated by religious conversation but have never understood that the ultimate message of the Bible is not what we need to do to get God to accept us, but what God has done to make us acceptable to Christ. 00:29:38.863 --> 00:29:49.614 So we join this rhythm and we live our lives to teach those who are familiar that the Bible is all about Jesus. 00:29:49.614 --> 00:29:51.138 That's teaching. 00:29:51.138 --> 00:29:56.180 Now there's proclaiming, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom. 00:29:57.829 --> 00:30:06.376 Jesus wanted people in religious places to hear the gospel and people who would not gather in religious places to hear the gospel too. 00:30:06.376 --> 00:30:18.893 Back in chapter 4, verse 23, at the beginning of Christ's public ministry, matthew makes it clear that the proclaiming and the healing didn't take place in the synagogue but out in the streets. 00:30:18.893 --> 00:30:28.779 Teaching happened in the synagogue with the religious people, but the proclaiming and the healing were happening out in the streets among the irreligious crowd. 00:30:28.779 --> 00:30:40.579 See, jesus wanted everyone to know, in every city and in every village and every town, the good news of the kingdom that if they wouldn't come to church, he was going to go to them. 00:30:40.579 --> 00:30:45.359 He would go out in the streets and share it. 00:30:45.359 --> 00:30:55.732 The word proclaim better translated to announce, see an announcement to make that even though you're not in the synagogue, you can get into the kingdom of God. 00:30:55.732 --> 00:31:00.480 You don't have to be inside the synagogue to get inside the kingdom of God. 00:31:00.480 --> 00:31:10.700 Jesus went through the city, announcing that he alone was the way in, that the way into the kingdom of God was not through the front door of the synagogue. 00:31:10.700 --> 00:31:13.698 The way into the kingdom of God was through him. 00:31:13.698 --> 00:31:15.914 He was the door. 00:31:15.914 --> 00:31:22.059 So Jesus went through the city announcing that he was the way in. 00:31:22.059 --> 00:31:33.881 Whether you were a religious insider or an irreligious outsider, jesus wanted you to know the good news that you could be a part of God's everlasting kingdom. 00:31:33.881 --> 00:31:36.696 And there was truly good news of proclaim. 00:31:37.381 --> 00:31:45.201 And time does not suffice for me to go into the whole, into an entire explanation and application of the gospel of the kingdom of God. 00:31:45.201 --> 00:32:13.402 Big idea all over Matthew's gospel, but the gospel of the kingdom, in short, is this it's the good news that Jesus was sent, in fulfillment of the scriptures, to be the means of redeeming people, places and all of creation from the damaging and damning effects of sin until once again flourish together under his saving reign, now and forever. 00:32:13.402 --> 00:32:15.095 Oh, that is a mouthful. 00:32:15.095 --> 00:32:40.471 The gospel of the kingdom is the good news that Jesus was sent in fulfillment of the scriptures, to be the means of redeeming people, places and all of creation from the damaging and damning effects of sin, that we might flourish together under his saving reign, both now and forever. 00:32:40.471 --> 00:32:50.476 So Jesus came to redeem people, places and creation, which one of those words is very intentionally selected. 00:32:50.476 --> 00:32:56.136 Like Bob, I care about words and these words are important to understand. 00:32:57.109 --> 00:33:04.694 Jesus was sent to live and die and rise to redeem a people and to reconcile them to God and one another, his church. 00:33:04.694 --> 00:33:15.637 Jesus was also sent to live and die to redeem places and entire societies and nations, to restore peace and justice under his reign. 00:33:15.637 --> 00:33:25.397 Jesus was sent to live and die to redeem all of creation, to affect the renewal of all things, to make all things new. 00:33:25.397 --> 00:33:29.780 In fact, he's getting the world ready for a new heavens and a new earth. 00:33:29.780 --> 00:33:33.538 He's the creator, he cares about creation, he sustains it. 00:33:33.538 --> 00:33:35.835 He will redeem it all and it's groaning. 00:33:35.835 --> 00:33:46.498 Until he does, there will be a new heavens and a new earth where God's redeemed will dwell on the presence of God and one another forever and ever. 00:33:46.498 --> 00:33:48.555 In other words, there's a lot of good news. 00:33:50.230 --> 00:33:51.273 There's a lot of good news. 00:33:51.273 --> 00:33:54.776 This is the good news that Jesus is proclaiming. 00:33:54.776 --> 00:33:59.638 The gospel of the kingdom of God is here because the King has come. 00:33:59.638 --> 00:34:02.134 The redeeming King has come. 00:34:02.134 --> 00:34:13.039 He's come to do everything that's necessary to save a people, to renew the whole earth and to bring creation out from underneath the curse of the fall. 00:34:13.039 --> 00:34:14.461 He's gonna do it. 00:34:14.461 --> 00:34:16.356 He's in the process of doing it. 00:34:16.356 --> 00:34:21.936 He has secured it through his life, death and resurrection and we are in the process now of watching it happening. 00:34:21.936 --> 00:34:23.454 Your proof it's happening. 00:34:23.454 --> 00:34:25.452 He's redeemed you. 00:34:25.452 --> 00:34:27.414 He's brought us together. 00:34:27.414 --> 00:34:29.335 He's transforming the world. 00:34:29.675 --> 00:34:35.461 Let me tell you something there are people out there who would say the world is the worst it's ever been. 00:34:35.461 --> 00:34:37.554 I would say otherwise. 00:34:37.554 --> 00:34:46.181 There are more Christians on planet earth today than there have ever been in the history of humanity. 00:34:46.181 --> 00:34:51.922 Why Jesus church is being built and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it. 00:34:51.922 --> 00:34:56.976 Oh, there's so much more to say there. 00:34:56.976 --> 00:34:59.793 So what's Jesus doing? 00:34:59.793 --> 00:35:04.298 In proclaiming, he's saying there's a whole lot of bad news out there, but I got good news for you. 00:35:04.298 --> 00:35:07.376 I'm here to make it all right again. 00:35:07.376 --> 00:35:09.896 I am here to redeem a people. 00:35:09.896 --> 00:35:12.077 I'm here to redeem places. 00:35:12.077 --> 00:35:16.358 I'm here to redeem all of creation, the entire cosmos. 00:35:16.358 --> 00:35:27.157 He has secured it and we are in the process of watching it happen, and one day he will return and finish it all at the consummation. 00:35:29.690 --> 00:35:35.702 There is always good news, because Jesus Christ is Lord. 00:35:35.929 --> 00:35:37.876 What do you call, proclaiming this. 00:35:39.289 --> 00:35:39.891 It's evangelism. 00:35:39.891 --> 00:35:42.119 It's evangelism. 00:35:42.119 --> 00:35:47.909 Oh, that's a word that's fallen hard times in the church today, hasn't it Evangelism? 00:35:47.909 --> 00:35:49.396 It's actually gospelizing. 00:35:49.396 --> 00:36:00.721 It's talking out loud about the good news of all that Jesus Christ has made possible, is making possible through his life, death, resurrection and return. 00:36:00.721 --> 00:36:05.860 Oh, the world is a dark place, but Jesus is light. 00:36:05.860 --> 00:36:10.177 The world is a broken place, but Jesus is a healer. 00:36:10.177 --> 00:36:15.039 The world suffers and bondage, but Jesus is a redeemer. 00:36:15.039 --> 00:36:31.983 My brothers and sisters, do not get sucked in to all of the sound bites on this news channel and this news channel and that news channel Jesus Christ is Lord and that, my friends, is the best news ever. 00:36:31.983 --> 00:36:33.534 And what do we do? 00:36:33.534 --> 00:36:35.311 We announce it. 00:36:35.311 --> 00:36:39.637 We tell our co-worker whose heart's broken over that divorce. 00:36:39.637 --> 00:36:44.773 I know that's hard, but I got good news for you Jesus is a redeemer. 00:36:44.773 --> 00:37:00.059 We sit down with our loved one who's battling the throes of addiction and they can't seem to overcome their enslavement to the sin of overindulgence, and we can come alongside them and say we know this is hard. 00:37:00.059 --> 00:37:06.012 I know this is hard, but I've got good news for you Jesus is a deliverer. 00:37:06.012 --> 00:37:15.838 You take whatever bad news is out there and church, we have good news to come alongside it, because Jesus Christ is Lord. 00:37:17.170 --> 00:37:22.780 Jesus saves, church, jesus saves, and we should proclaim it. 00:37:22.780 --> 00:37:47.590 If we believe it, then we proclaim it, and my prayer and I was praying this even as we were singing that song on we Are your Church, build your Kingdom here that we would be renewed by the Spirit in our boldness to not just believe it but to say it, just say it Jesus saves. 00:37:47.590 --> 00:37:55.369 When's the last time you told someone that Jesus saves? 00:37:55.369 --> 00:37:56.914 Jesus will save you from your sin. 00:37:56.914 --> 00:38:03.474 Jesus will cover your shame, jesus will remove your guilt. 00:38:03.474 --> 00:38:10.079 Jesus will change your life and we are His witnesses. 00:38:10.079 --> 00:38:15.500 As he's changed us, he can change others. 00:38:15.500 --> 00:38:29.699 And so we enter into this rhythm of teaching, proclaiming and finally and I'm way out of time healing, healing every disease and every affliction. 00:38:29.699 --> 00:38:39.679 Through healing, jesus was showing each and every city and village that he was the cure for the pervasive brokenness that exists in the world. 00:38:39.679 --> 00:38:49.617 There wasn't a kind of brokenness that Jesus wasn't able to heal, and Matthew is giving us these little vignettes in chapter 8. 00:38:49.657 --> 00:38:58.418 He cleanses the leper, he heals a Roman centurion's servant, he cures Peter's mother-in-law's fever, he casts out a bunch of demons and heals a bunch of sick people. 00:38:58.418 --> 00:38:59.994 That's just packed in chapter 8. 00:38:59.994 --> 00:39:03.197 In chapter 9, he raises a little girl from the dead. 00:39:03.197 --> 00:39:05.675 He cures a woman who had been sick for 12 years. 00:39:05.675 --> 00:39:07.159 Not a single doctor could help her. 00:39:07.159 --> 00:39:11.438 He gives sight to two blind men and gives a mute man his voice back. 00:39:11.438 --> 00:39:13.454 What's all this declaring? 00:39:13.454 --> 00:39:24.818 It's declaring this that Jesus has the power to overcome all the damaging effects of sin in the fall, that he overcomes birth defects, diseases, demons and even death. 00:39:24.818 --> 00:39:30.297 One can stop the healing power of Jesus. 00:39:30.297 --> 00:39:40.438 So all of this demonstrates that Jesus has the power and the authority to fix what's broken in this fallen world. 00:39:40.438 --> 00:39:46.239 He not only proclaimed this with His words, he demonstrated this with His deeds. 00:39:50.010 --> 00:39:51.474 Jesus' healing ministry is complex. 00:39:51.474 --> 00:40:04.817 I believe it's an aspect of the life and ministry of Jesus that's often misunderstood, and I don't want to pretend that I have it completely understood either, but I do understand this. 00:40:04.817 --> 00:40:05.592 It has layers. 00:40:05.592 --> 00:40:12.112 One layer is it did authenticate Him as the true Messiah, the fulfillment of Old Testament Scripture. 00:40:12.112 --> 00:40:26.356 Another layer is it revealed the compassionate heart of God that he cares for human beings in the mire of their sin and in the suffering of fallenness, and he does something about it. 00:40:26.356 --> 00:40:32.742 But there's also another layer, another layer that we often forget another layer that we don't often talk about. 00:40:32.742 --> 00:40:48.623 It was a foretaste of what's to come, that all these little healings, all these little miracles are previews of what is to come when Jesus returns and makes all things new. 00:40:48.623 --> 00:40:58.943 And so how do we enter into the missional rhythm of Jesus' healing ministry? 00:40:58.943 --> 00:41:32.057 Don't worry, I'm not going to freak anyone out, but I will say this the church has been called to not just proclaim the gospel with our words, but to demonstrate the power of the gospel with our deeds, and in doing so, we show the compassionate heart of God and we give foretaste of the age to come by alleviating hurts, by caring for ills, for entering into brokenness and being the hands and feet of Jesus to care for those who are hurting. 00:41:34.369 --> 00:41:36.715 This is a rhetorical question, but how many of you shop at Costco? 00:41:36.715 --> 00:41:40.693 Everybody, amen, amen. 00:41:40.693 --> 00:41:42.217 I see that hand, I see that hand, right. 00:41:42.217 --> 00:41:44.492 What do kids? 00:41:44.492 --> 00:41:47.039 Well, okay, what does everyone know about Costco? 00:41:47.039 --> 00:41:50.376 The most Samples, right, kendra samples. 00:41:50.376 --> 00:41:57.262 You go into Costco and there are these little booths and they're set up with these toothpick forests, right? 00:41:57.262 --> 00:41:58.815 You just have a little tiny taste. 00:41:58.815 --> 00:42:01.376 And what's the purpose of the sample? 00:42:01.376 --> 00:42:08.275 The purpose of the sample is to give you just enough to make you want it all To have a little taste. 00:42:08.275 --> 00:42:16.836 That makes you want to do the foolish thing and buy a 50 pound bag of something and half of it goes bad in your freezer, right? 00:42:16.836 --> 00:42:19.454 Can I get a witness, or am I the only one? 00:42:22.251 --> 00:42:47.836 The church, through our deeds of mercy, through our acts of compassion, through entering into the brokenness of St Jose, through entering into the brokenness of the Bay and all the hurts that are around us and they're obvious, they're everywhere as we lean into them and begin to alleviate and serve them in Jesus' name, we are giving fortice of the age to come. 00:42:47.836 --> 00:42:53.478 Many of you know that Jenny Bixby works and serves at Martha's kitchen. 00:42:53.478 --> 00:43:02.829 They serve right here in St Jose and they are reflecting the compassionate heart of God for those suffering from food insecurities Like this. 00:43:02.829 --> 00:43:09.300 Last year, 2.5 million meals were served in this city. 00:43:09.300 --> 00:43:11.344 You know what that tells me. 00:43:11.344 --> 00:43:25.358 If there are that many meals that need to be served, there are many, many needy people in this city and hunger is probably just one of the needs, and we all know, followers of Jesus, what the ultimate need is. 00:43:25.358 --> 00:43:29.699 And so what is Martha's kitchen doing? 00:43:29.699 --> 00:43:35.378 What many other Christian non-profits are doing all around the Bay area in St Jose and beyond. 00:43:35.378 --> 00:43:47.159 They're reflecting the compassionate, healing heart of Jesus and they are giving fortice of the age to come, when there's coming a time when no one will ever hunger again. 00:43:48.969 --> 00:43:57.393 We need God to lead us in paths of mercy and justice here in St Jose and beyond, and I'm looking forward to the day. 00:43:57.393 --> 00:43:59.739 I've been talking about this with the pastors. 00:43:59.739 --> 00:44:13.860 I'm looking forward to the day where Christian non-profits and Christian local churches are not competing with one another to serve their cities, but they're working together Because you know what the church does a really good job, by the grace of God, at teaching and proclaiming. 00:44:13.860 --> 00:44:26.259 And these mercy ministries, these paratroops, do a great job of doing the healing ministry and, rather than them being separate, I think there needs to be more partnership as they come together and serve the people and the places in Jesus' name. 00:44:26.259 --> 00:44:43.902 So we are praying that God would unite our church plant with Christian non-profits that are doing good deeds in Jesus' name, that we could join in this rhythm with them, reveal the compassionate heart of God and give fortice of the future in the present. 00:44:44.851 --> 00:44:46.016 Well, I am way out of time. 00:44:46.016 --> 00:44:57.778 Seeing Jesus in the harvest looks like being shaped by this missional rhythm Teaching, proclaiming healing. 00:44:57.778 --> 00:45:28.742 If we want to be faithful and fruitful here in St Jose, if we want to be faithful and fruitful throughout the Bay, if you only faithful and fruitful in Fremont and Union City and beyond, if you want to be faithful and fruitful in Milpitas, if you only faithful and fruitful wherever you are, wherever you live, wherever you work, then it requires entering into this missional rhythm teaching, proclaiming healing. 00:45:28.742 --> 00:45:36.822 And this is the means through which the harvest will be gathered. 00:45:36.822 --> 00:45:40.414 Would you do one more thing before I close? 00:45:40.414 --> 00:45:47.378 Would you prepare your heart for the rest of this text? 00:45:47.420 --> 00:46:08.362 Next Sunday, would you pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers who will teach, proclaim and heal in St Jose and beyond in Jesus' name? 00:46:08.362 --> 00:46:16.219 Would you pray honestly Because, my brothers and sisters, I believe the words of Jesus and I know you do too. 00:46:16.219 --> 00:46:24.019 The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. 00:46:24.019 --> 00:46:37.184 Pray that Jesus would send out laborers to teach, proclaim and heal in His name. 00:46:37.184 --> 00:46:58.994 And I want to add one more addendum to that request Pray for your heart to be ready to be one of them, that you would teach, that you would proclaim, that you would be a means of healing in Jesus' name, amen, let's pray. 00:47:00.592 --> 00:47:14.030 Father in heaven, thank you for this word from your word and thank you for the patience of my brothers and sisters as I've labored a little long here, and I ask that you take this good deposit of your word and make it fruitful in the hearts of my brothers and sisters. 00:47:14.030 --> 00:47:42.766 Lord, with the net results of this word from your word, be becoming more amazed at Jesus, that we would be more amazed at His teaching and His proclaiming and His healing, and that we would be humbled and honored to be invited to join Him in this good work. 00:47:42.766 --> 00:47:49.990 That we'd be more amazed that Jesus has, through His life, death and resurrection, already secured the harvest. 00:47:49.990 --> 00:48:13.684 And all that needs to happen now is for the church to go as your sent ones and enter into this rhythm and be the means through which you accomplish your will in the Bay as it is in heaven. 00:48:13.684 --> 00:48:15.697 In Jesus' name we pray. 00:48:15.697 --> 00:48:17.744 Amen, amen.