Sunday Words of Encouragement January 20, 2019

We had a good Sunday School lesson this morning titled In My Defense. Our teacher noted how Paul was defending himself and his ministry in the letter to the Corinthians. Chapter 9 covers the importance of battling the flesh by submitting to the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 encourage the believers to run the race to win. Do be successful we must each be determined, dedicated, and deliberate.

Service started with good worship songs and a word of wisdom from one of our faithful members. Pastor continued his sermon in his Forward series. He reminded us of last week’s point that there is no true blessing without submission to God’s Will. Then he noted that during Jesus time of ministry God’s kingdom was advancing – going forward.

As in many countries, many American churches have plateaued or are declining.
There is a key factor we must remember in order to be a growing church.
We can’t just play at church; we must be the church.
We must have a burden to reach the lost, the unsaved.
We all get busy with our lives and when we wake up in the morning and start thinking of our to do list, how often do we include reaching the lost on that list?

Matthew 13:44-50 tells the parables of hidden treasure, the pearl and the net. Do we treat the kingdom of God as a hidden treasure of great value and do we recognize that this is what really matters in our lives and the lives of people?

Point: We must recapture a burden for the lost that matches God's burden.

The whole Bible is about salvation. We see in our world a growing number of ‘nones’ those who have no faith or religion. As a church, our burden for the lost should push us to do whatever it takes.
How do we reach them? Hope isn't enough to get it done.
In another letter Paul writes: Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. Romans 10:1-4.
In our own county there may only be 15-18 percent of the population who are true born-again believers. It is likely that there is a higher percentage who are addicted to alcohol or drugs.
When the lost are saved, the result is life-change.
What do we need to do?
1. Pray for a burden about the lost; Get in tune with God's heart for the lost.
2. Make the lost your/our priority.
3. Go out and be the church.
Are we serving or looking to be served? Do we give or take?

I like this song reminding us that no one is Unreachable.

Verses for Today:
Romans 10:1-4(NIV)
10 Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. 2 For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. 3 Since they did not know the righteousness of God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. 4 Christ is the culmination of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.

God I pray that you help me keep this burden in the forefront of my mind each day.