Good To Great For Jesus

Summary: A look at the rich young ruler, based on Jim Collins book, Good to Great. What must a person do to move from a Good to Great Christian?

GOOD TO GREAT

MATTHEW 19:16-22

Intro: Best-selling author, Jim Collins is caused quite a stir with his book, Good to Great.

 In this book he reports the results of over ten years of research of the financial results of every company on the Fortune 500 list from 1965 until 1995. The object was to sort through all of these companies and find those who stood out from the crowd, who at some point in their history their fortunes had skyrocketed, and stayed there, not just a flash in the pan. 

They started with a universe of companies, and after reviewing the data; there were still almost 1,500 companies. With some of the criteria for “greatness” being that a company had to have a fifteen-year record of performing at or below the general stock market, then have a transition then for the next fifteen years outperform the stock market average three times. 

With all their standards, they narrowed the search to eleven companies. With these eleven companies identified, they then read every article that had been written about these companies in the last thirty years, interviewed past and present employees and officers, in-depth analysis of thirty years of financial information, and many other methods to determine, 

“What caused them to change from ordinary, at best, to great companies?” 

In fact, some of the companies were on the verge of bankruptcy when their transition to greatness began. The results of their quest have resulted in a book documenting their findings that has sold almost a million copies. 

It has caused me to begin to think what makes a “great Christian?” I learned this week that Thom Rainer, from Southern Seminary in Lexington, Kentucky is using the same format to write a book on good to great churches. But, for our purposes today, lets look at the story we know as, “The Rich Young Ruler,” and look at some the things that cause a person to move from good to great, or in this case, KEPT him from moving from good to great.

1. His aim v.16

There are many valuable insights in Collins’ book, let me quote one for you: “Good is the enemy of great. 

And that is one of the key reasons why we have so little that becomes great. We don’t have great schools, principally because we have good schools. We don’t have great government, principally because we have good government. Few people attain great lives, in large part because it is just so easy to settle for a good life.” 

While Collins proves this of companies, the Bible and life experience prove it of people. Notice the young man’s aim in verse six, “eternal life.” More importantly notice how he wanted to get there. “What good thing shall I do?” He wanted a great thing in eternal life, but he was only willing to do a good thing to get there. Now remember this was before Christ’s death on the cross, when salvation was provided as a gift of God’s grace, so the idea of “doing something” was a common teaching, as it still is today outside of Christianity, but this young man only wanted to be good. 

I want you to think for a moment, how often do you use the word “great.” When you describe a restaurant, is it good food or great food? When you talk about your job, is it good, or is it great. When you talk about your spouse, are they good, or are they great? Your children, good or great? Your church, good or great? 

Now let’s get serious; your prayer life, good or great? Your church attendance, good or great? Your witnessing, good or great? Your relationship with God, good or great? You say, “Well, its just a word, what difference does it make?” Can you imagine Tony the Tiger trying to sell Frosted Flakes while roaring, “There GOOOOOD!” a few moments ago we sang one of my favorite hymns, “How GOOD thou art.” Now, if He is a great God, doesn’t he deserve people who are striving to be great, not good? So, are so many content with good?

II. His approach v.18

Jesus tells him in verse seventeen to, “keep the commandments.” Notice the young man’s response in verse eighteen, “Which?” Jesus said “commandmentS,” plural, not singular. If your employer hands you the company handbook and says, “Keep the rules,” would you say, “Which ones?” of course not, you know that he means for you to obey all the rules. This young man wanted to know which of the commandments were really important, which ones were really necessary, and which ones he could ignore, or only keep occasionally. In other words, like Collins said, “Good is the enemy of great.” He just wanted to get by. Have you ever said, “God, you are a great God, so, I want to be a great Christian. 

I want to be a great witness, I want my prayers to be great, I want to be a great deacon, I want to be a great teacher?” most of us are content with “good.” Most of us are like the young man and only want to know “Which?”

III. His attitude v.20

Notice another problem this young man had. When confronted with the standards for greatness, he says, “I have already done that.” The Bible doesn’t say it, but bear with me just one moment as I ponder. I believe this young man’s statement that he had kept all of those commandments. Jesus certainly didn’t call him a liar or correct him for making such a bold statement. Here is where I believe the young man’s problem comes from. I believe while Jesus is making this list, the young man is standing there keeping score in his head, and thinking, well I am better than Fred at that one, and better than George at that one, and so on. The young man thinks he is great on his own. Go back to his original statement, “What must I do?” He doesn’t ask what Christ can do for him; he wants to know what he can do. One of the characteristics that the researchers found in the great companies was that there was a point where they said to themselves, “Something has to change. These are the things we are doing wrong or poorly and to be great, we must change.” 

The researchers called it, “Confronting the brutal facts.” Today, I challenge you to confront the brutal facts, are you great for Jesus?

IV. His assessment v.22

God showed me something in this passage that I had never noticed before. Look at verse sixteen, and then look at verse twenty-two. See it? He wanted to do something GOOD, but he had GREAT possessions. If God had blessed him with great possessions, why was he only willing to do something good to inherit great eternal life? The young man compared the costs of greatness with God and greatness with his bank account and seceded it just wasn’t worth it. In the book Good to Great, the great companies are compared to other companies in their same industry. One of the great companies had taken some major risks and made some huge changes in the way they did business before becoming great. The CEO of one of their competitors said we just couldn’t afford to make those kinds of changes. His company was mired in poor performance, making very little money, but he couldn’t afford to change? No, he wouldn’t change. The question this morning is will you?

Where is the Fire?

Summary: What happened to the fire?

ON FIRE FOR GOD

Text: Leviticus 6: 12 &13

What does the dictionary say about fire?

Fire----The active principle of burning, characterized by the heat and light of combustion.

A. strong feeling; excitement

B. to make explode by ingiting

C. to become excited or aroused

On Fire

#1 burning

#2 greatly excited

1. We have even probably prayed to be on fire for God.

2. We are said to be baptized with the Holy Ghost and Fire.

3. Now days when I look at the churches in our world------similar to the comercial that said where’s the beef------I ask myself, "Where’s the Fire?”

4. After Moses had been in the land of Median for 40 years, God spoke to him in the fire in a burning bush.

5. It was in the fire that God spoke.

6. I know-----We want to stop right here and be reminded that not only did God speak in fire, but also thunder, and be sure that we know He spoke in a still small voice.

7. There is one record of a still small voice in the Bible.

There are 19 times that talk about thunder of any kind in the Bible.

But fire is used 549 times.

8. God likes the fire:

It heats you up

It makes you move

Sin is burned up in the fire

Sickness is burned up in the fire

Disease is burned up in the fire

Purification takes place in the fire

9. It’s the Holy Ghost and Fire and it’s keeping me alive.

10. The extinct ingredient in the church today is the fire.

11. In Leviticus 10:12, Moses told Aaron and his sons to take the offerings of the Lord made by fire and eat them without leaven, beside the alter; because it was most holy.

12. In the 16th chapter, the Lord commanded Aaron to bring the sin offering and take a censer full of burning coals of fire from the alter before the Lord and put incense upon the fire before the Lord.

13. And all through the Bible you will fine this----but these days it seems like we have LOST the FIRE!

14. And right away many would remind me that I am referring to the Old Testament.

15. Matthew 3:11 says----He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire.

Mark 9:49 says--------for everyone shall be salted with fire.

Luke 3:16 says--------he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire (just like

Matthew)

Acts 2:3 said----------cloven tongues like as fire sat upon each of them.

16. Hebrews 1:7 says-------He makes his ministers a flame of fire.

17. Who are the ministers?

a. In 1st Corinthians 4:1 Paul said we are the ministers of Christ.

b. In the 3rd chapter and the 6th verse he said----who hath also made us able ministers of

the new testiment.

c. In the 6th chapter and the 4th verse he said-----But in all things approving ourselves as the

ministers of God.

18. To the church of Laodicea in Revelation 3: 15&16 the Lord said-----I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spit you out of my mouth.

19. Cold won’t work----Lukewarm won’t work----God wants our fire burning.

20. The only way we can stay hot is to be ignited by the fire from God on the alter.

Let’s Pray Together this morning for a FIRE from Heaven and to be ignited once again to burn brightly for Jesus as well as for those in our world to see and be drawn to it!

Freedom is Never Free

As we begin this morning, lets remember the Birthday of America cant be celebrated unless we remember the COST of what countless others have had to pay to ensure our privilege of living in the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave! 

Over the next few days, we no doubt, will take for granted those Freedoms as we enjoy a day off of work, eat food off the grill and watch fireworks. We will find it hard to honor the fact that lots of HARD WORK, SACRIFICE and even death have all been a part of securing and enjoying what we call FREEDOM

In our Spiritual lives… its really no different. 

SIN had us in SLAVERY. We were CAPTIVES and were condemned to DIE and be separated from GOD and HEAVEN for ALL of Eternity.

Jesus PAID THE PRICE for our FREEDOM from Death.

Forgiveness always costs something.

When God said, "I forgive you of your sin," then it cost God something.

Because before the forgiveness there had to be the suffering & pain & agony at Gethsemane.

Before the forgiveness there had to be the death on the cross & the burial & the resurrection.

That price had to be paid. The ledger had to be clear before forgiveness could become a reality. But now that it has been paid it’s available to all.

Isn’t that also true of our freedom? The price has been paid. It is available to all in this great land.

That is why we rejoice at the Declaration of Independence. That is why we rejoice in the Statue of Liberty. Because freedom is available to all of us, regardless of where we live in this great nation.

Freedom is never free. It always costs someone something. Freedom is something that is valuable!

It is so valuable that men have been willing to give their lives in exchange for their own freedom the freedom of their families and that of their countrymen! Freedom of religion, freedom of the Press, freedom of Speech.

Today many are giving their lives for the freedom from terror! Freedom is a costly thing! It costs! There is always a price to be paid. Freedom is never free!

In the same term, Forgiveness is never free.

It always costs something. Forgiveness is valuable. It is so valuable that countless men and women have given there lives for the faith.

Stephen was stoned; James was executed under Herod Agrippa,

Matthew traveled to Ethiopia and was pinned to the ground and beheaded!

Jesus brother James was reported to have been stoned, cast down from the top of the temple, and still alive, smashed in the head with a fuller’s club.

Matthias was stoned; Andrew was crucified on an X shaped cross.

Tradition tells us that Mark was dragged to pieces by the people of Alexandria.

Peter was crucified upside-down. 

Paul lost his head, 

Jude and Bartholomew were crucified.

Thomas was run thru with spears and thrown into an oven. 

Luke was hung from an olive tree 

John was exiled. (these martyrs were found in “Foxe’s Book of Martyrs”)

Forgiveness is valuable beyond measure! God considered it so valuable that he gave his very own life as a provision for it!

He gave it as a ransom for many! He demonstrated His love for us in that even while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

There is always a price that must be paid. For forgiveness is never free

Right now we need to remember the price & to thank God for our freedom & for our forgiveness.

And we dedicate ourselves to keep on paying the price so that freedom might be enjoyed for generations to come.

So what does it PRACTICALLY look like to PAY THE PRICE for our FREEDOM?

1. THANKS and WORSHIP Psalm 103: 1-5  1 Thess 5:18
2. DEVOTION - let the dead bury the dead. Leave it all to follow Jesus. No turning back Matt 8: 18-22   Romans 6:4
3. SERVICE - To Peter… do you love me? Feed My Sheep.   

John 21:15-17 JAMES… I will show you my faith by what I do   James 2:14-26

1. SELF SACRIFICE - No greater love than a friend who lays down his life for a brother John 15:13
2. ROMANS 12

We also should dedicate ourselves anew to accept the provision that has been made for our forgiveness. He died for it!

Today, God’s forgiveness is available to you.

He offers it to you through Jesus Christ His Son. He challenges you to look once more at the cross & realize that the price has been paid for your sins & for mine.

He invites you to come & know Him as Lord & Savior & to receive His forgiveness as His gift.

Walk The Talk

Sermon Text: Philippians 2:12-18 [ESV]

Introduction:

When you were young, what was your parent’s constant request for you to make them happy? If you had siblings, I can almost tell you what it was in ALL of your houses when you were growing up… I know this because it was what I wanted as a parent when our children were growing up…

What I wanted most was for our children to get along with one another, and listen to and obey their mother and me. That was it… it was really simple. This is because I knew that if they could get along, there would be peace in the house and what Michelle and I wanted to get done would get done much easier if there was peace in the house. Get along with one another and listen to what we teach you and ask you to do… it was really simple!

And here in this passage Paul is painting that same picture, but this is NOT Paul’s desire for the church, this is Paul relaying God’s desire for His church. It is God’s desire that believers get along with each other so that there is peace in the house… peace in the fellowship. And it is also God’s desire that we listen to and obey His Word… and having peace in the fellowship leads to us being able to submit in obedience to Him.

The book of Philippians is describing how Paul challenged these Philippian believers to “Walk the Talk” or live out their faith in Christ so that it is readily evident in their lives! 

Today we are going to look at several more verses that play to that same sentiment and even give us teaching on how we can live out what God desires.

Let’s read Phil 2:12-18 and see what Paul is saying…

12Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. 14Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

There was once a little boy who was in a play at church and he forgot his lines. His mother had sat in the front row to prompt him in case this happened. When her son forgot his line he looked helplessly at her and she gestured to him and silently formed the words of his line with her lips, but it did not help.

The young man’s memory was blank. Finally, she leaned forward and whispered the line to him, "I am the light of the world." Instantly the little boy smiled and with great feeling and a loud clear voice said, "My mom is the light of the world!!”

Now as believers we know that JESUS is the true light of the world, but as His followers we are ALL called to let His light shine in this world so that others will see Him, and accept Him as Savior and Lord of their life. 

This is exactly what Paul was telling the believers in our passage this morning, and in the first 2 verses of our passage, Paul gives a gentle warning to these believers to be the light God has called them to be…

Paul’s Cautions the Philippian Believers (v.12-13)

12Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

In v.12 we find Paul actually giving the Philippian church a complement in that they were Christian in their living, no matter who was present. They have ‘always obeyed’ meaning obeyed God’s commandments and God’s calling in their lives! They were faithful in that obedience and it was something they held fast to and did not waiver in…

There are many believers today, who LIVE OUT THEIR FAITH in public and when others are around, but when they are alone or when they are in a place where they are not known, their faith takes a back seat. The one thing we must realize about living for Christ is that it is a 24/7 thing, we cannot live FOR Christ one moment and then the next put Him on the shelf… The Christian life requires a full time commitment and these believers had it and Paul recognized that commitment in their lifestyle!

Then Paul utters a statement that many have taken out of context and tried to tie it to the believers salvation experience. Paul says, ‘work out your salvation with fear and trembling…’ which many have taken to mean that we are the ones who can affect salvation and we are the ones who are in control of retaining that salvation…

First we have to understand that Paul would have NEVER preached such heresy. Paul’s statement would have never gone against the Gospel and the words of Jesus… I want us to ALL understand what Paul WAS saying, but first I want us to all understand what Paul was NOT saying! 

He was NOT saying that we could work to earn our salvation… and Paul was NOT saying that we could work to RETAIN our salvation! That goes against every teaching in Scripture that teaches us about receiving Christ as our Savior!

What Paul WAS saying here was directed to those who were already saved. This letter was written to the church in Philippi and Paul was speaking to who he believed were maturing believers and followers of Jesus Christ… so we can know from elimination that Paul was NOT saying that these people could actually work to gain their salvation!

Second, we can know that Paul was not speaking about retaining salvation… many interpret the ‘…in fear and trembling…’ part of this verse to mean we need to fear falling away from God, but that is NOT what Paul is saying.

What Paul IS trying to say to these believers is that it is UP to them to LIVE OUT THEIR FAITH! 

They must make the voluntary choice to obey God! They must make the voluntary choice to follow God’s calling! It is NOT going to happen on its own! Paul is telling them that LIVING OUT YOUR FAITH has to be YOUR choice and has to be put into action by YOUR decisions!

But we are human so how can we do this? Paul has just detailed how Christ was fully human in His service to God, but understands that NONE of us are Jesus and we cannot ever think we could do what He did, but because of God’s Holy Spirit that indwells each believer, it can be done! Look at v.13 with me… [show v.13 here]

In these 2 verses we find Paul gently cautioning these believers to live their faith out loud and to be a shining example of Jesus to the world around them.

He challenged them to be this shining example at ALL times and NOT just when someone was around to watch, but even when NO one was watching. He challenged them to live out their faith… but to do so in full submission to God and fully understanding God’s role in them living out their life for God. God is our power source and the rock we anchor our souls to… without Him we could NOT live out our faith!

Paul understood that living out our faith could cause problems if it was not accomplished thru allowing God to shine thru us, and so Paul takes time to reveal to these believers one negative example and one very good example of how one lives out their faith…

Paul’s Continuing Instruction on Christlike Living (v.14-16)

14Do all things without grumbling or questioning, 15that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, 16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.

v.14 is very short and very much TO THE POINT! Paul knows the human condition and human nature! What Paul is saying here is that if you are to live out your faith so that the world can see it, and others come to know Jesus Christ thru your example… then DON’T GO THERE!

Grumbling, complaining and questioning the authority of those whom God has placed over you will bring about nothing more than division and strife within the body and this will reveal itself to the world around you and will not be the example they need to see…

Now I want you to fully understand that Paul is NOT saying that you blindly follow or blindly obey the leaders placed above them, but what he is saying is that if you disagree, and we will always have disagreement in our walk because we are all different and see things from different perspectives… if we disagree we are not to do it in a public manner or in such a way that it disrupts the unity of the body.

The word Paul uses for ‘grumbling’ here is the Greek word Gongoosmon which is a secret complaining… an in the shadows type of bickering that causes dissention and distrust and cast doubt on the unity of the fellowship and from the outside, casts a bad light on the church itself.

There is NOTHING more damaging to the fellowship of a church than a disgruntled and complaining member or members… whether that grumbling is done in secret or in open rebellion… This type of behavior and attitude establishes an ‘us against them’ mentality and destroys any unity that does exist.

This is totally the opposite of what Jesus prayed for the church… we are meant to be UNIFIED under the banner of Christ and any grumbling and complaining is leads to discord which in turn leads to a damaged witness. So what Paul is telling the Philippian believers here in this verse is … DON’T GO THERE!

In v.15 Paul explains WHY they don’t need to ‘go there’ and it is to keep them pure and blameless. Now Paul uses v.15 to share with his readers that when they are grumbling and complaining… they cannot be the light to the world that Christ has called them to be… so they are to NOT grumble!

And this goes for us today, just as importantly as it did for the believers in Philippi… we can disagree with each other, but it needs to be done in a loving and Christ-like manner where we are not grumbling or complaining in a manner that destroys the fellowship of the church. What Paul is saying here is that this only breeds discontent and discord in the body and that is a definite breakdown of what Christ desires the church to be…

But Paul does not only focus here on the negative… he also gives them a positive action that they can perform that will enable them to LIVE OUT LOUD their faith in Christ! Paul tells them in v.16 [read v.16 here]

16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.

Paul wants the believers to be the light of Christ in the world they are living in by living OUT their faith… first he tells them what NOT to do, but in v.16 he gives them a specific instruction on what they ARE to do… and that is “…hold fast to the word of life...” which is a reference to the word of God… which is an indirect reference to Christ Himself!

David wrote in Ps 119:110

11I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

David understood that holding fast to the word of life would lead him down the right path and that he would find success in his walk with God if he would hold fast to God’s Word. Here Paul is encouraging these believers to do the same… and this should be encouragement to ALL of us here this morning to do just that as well…

Hold fast to the word of life so that you can LIVE OUT LOUD that faith you profess in Christ! Hold fast to the word of life so that when you are living your life out loud, you will have a solid foundation from which to live it… Stay in tune with God by staying IN His word… by holding fast to His word!

So Paul cautions these believers to remain faithful and to be intentional in their actions that reveal their Christian life… to Walk their Talk! To live their lives in such a manner that there can be absolutely NO doubt in about who they serve! Paul also cautions them that this can only be done by leaning on and trusting in Jesus as He is our source of strength and power in living out our faith.

But Paul also continued his instruction by warning them about a particular action that can destroy the unity and witness of the church, and that is a grumbling and complaining attitude and spirit… Paul tells them not to go that route!

But finally in this passage Paul commends the Philippian believers for their great faith…

Paul Commends the Philippian Believer’s Faith (v.17-18)

17Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all. 18Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.

Paul knew his outcome may not be what he wanted it to be and that he may NOT ever get out of prison but could eventually face death. But Paul wanted the believers in Philippi to know that he saw their tremendous faith!

You see here was the man who had started their church… he was mocked by fellow preachers, he was imprisoned by the religious leaders of the day and he was ridiculed by the Roman way of life…as we saw in Athens in Paul’s Mars Hill sermon where they scoffed at his faith in God and the coming resurrection…

Paul knew that this news had to be disconcerting to them, but Paul had seen time and time again where this fellowship had ministered to him and had grown in their faith even through all the troubles that Satan had cast their way! He was impressed by their spiritual maturity and ever growing faith…

Paul told them even IF I am poured out as a drink offering… even IF I do see death from this prison cell I know that YOU will go on… I know that God is working in you in a mighty way! And Paul went on to say, don’t worry about me… don’t fret over my potential demise… but rejoice with me in that we have seen the kingdom grow through all of this…

The message Paul was getting across to these believers was that God was in control, and even though things may look bleak, and even though you may NOT see a way out… God is in control and when you have faith in Him and place your faith in Him and ACTIVELY live your life for Him… there is call for nothing other than rejoicing because God will honor those who honor Him!

Conclusion:

If we are going to honor God we must first be intentional about living FOR Him! If we are going to WALK the TALK as Paul is challenging us to do, we have to make up in our minds and begin to make decisions that lead us down a path of righteous living… we have to make the decision to NOT be a stumbling block to the unity of the church and we have to make the decision to hold fast to God’s word, and God is going to provide the blessing!

Today life may be covering some of you up… you may feel as if you are drowning in your despair and problems… and in your trials and troubles! I am here to tell you that Paul understands where you are… He was there too! But how did he handle these trials? He placed himself in God’s hand and lived his faith out loud in spite of his situation and God honored him and blessed his work!

Today I challenge you to do the same thing… if the world is raining down trouble on your head, do what Paul said to do… dig in, make the choice to serve Jesus, and begin to live out your faith in spite of what the world is throwing your way… hold fast to God’s word and don’t poison the well by grumbling or complaining and God is going to bless you!

His blessings will come in HIS timing and will be HIS blessings… but He will lift you up, but you have to make that decision to live out your faith! Are you willing to do that today?