Sound Doctrine

Guest (Male): Today on Sound Doctrine.

Jeff Johnson: You become a disciple to disciple others. We're not talking about the mission field. We're talking about right here, right now. Remember, we've been bought with a price. The Bible says we are not our own. We were saved, not for ourselves, not to just go to heaven. We were saved for a purpose and a reason. And that reason is we were called to go and tell somebody else. Before the Lord comes back for us, he's saying, "I've sent you now, and I've called you to go tell somebody. Be bold, be brave. Ask me for my spirit. I will give you of my spirit so you can tell somebody."

Guest (Male): Glad you could join us for another edition of Sound Doctrine with Pastor Jeff Johnson. We'll be finishing up Romans Chapter 10 today. As you think back on the evangelists that God has greatly used, Billy Graham and Dwight L. Moody probably come to mind. These men led millions of people to Christ. But what if I was to tell you that God wants you to be an evangelist too? And by his strength and resources, you can be very effective at it. Whether it's at work, in the neighborhood, or at home, here's Pastor Jeff with part two of "Me, an Evangelist?"

Jeff Johnson: Faith believes. That's it. Over in Hebrews, jot this down, Hebrews Chapter 4 Verse 2. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them, talking about the Old Testament. But the word preached did not profit them. Why? Not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. Faith is to take what you hear and believe it. If you don't believe it, then it's not going to do you any good. You might be here this morning and you hear this good news and you go, "Yeah, but that's nice, good for you. I'm glad you had it. And I'm out of here." As soon as this is over, I'm out of here. It's not going to be mixed with faith. Nothing's going to happen. It's not going to change your life one iota. But that was your choice.

Faith receives. Faith passes it on. Remember on the Emmaus road, those two guys that were bummed out after Jesus was crucified? They were walking along just being very negative. They couldn't believe this had happened. They thought he was the Messiah. They're totally depressed. But then all of a sudden, through God's word, testimony, it's interesting, their hearts—the Lord came to them, caused fire to burn within their hearts. They immediately went to Jerusalem after they heard and received from the Lord and they told the disciples. From there, they told others that he is risen. He's alive.

Through testimony, through preaching, many came to know the Lord. In the book of Acts, the good news went from Peter to the Gentiles. It went to Philip, to the eunuch, and the eunuch went home to Ethiopia. There was a huge revival in Ethiopia. It just goes on and on and on to those who have ears to hear. The Lord gave the word and great was the company of those who published it. Great is the company of them that publish the word, that make it known, that help others to understand.

Over in Daniel Chapter 11 in Verse 32, it says this: "But the people that do know their God shall be strong and do great exploits." To know your God, you will be strong and you personally will do great exploits. That's God's promise to us this morning. We just need to share it.

Now, Romans 10 Verse 18. But Paul says, "But I say, have they not all heard? Yes, truly, their sound went to all the earth and their words unto the ends of the world." They heard through nature. We read Psalm 19 this morning. The firmament showeth his handiwork. Day unto day uttereth his speech. You look up into the heaven and you can see that there's a creator and he's shouting to this world, "I live. I'm organized. I did this. I'm alive." People are being witnessed to constantly by nature all around them.

Then through preaching, I love Colossians where it says in Colossians Chapter 1 Verse 23, "If you continue in the faith, grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you have heard and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven." Paul said, "I am made a minister." I mean, I have beheld the power of God to tell the whole world about himself. In his day, the whole world heard the gospel. We're losing ground every day that we live on this planet right now. So many are being born so quickly and we're losing ground.

Much of the world has not heard. So we got our work cut out, right? There's many on your job site, at your school, and your neighborhood. They haven't heard. They don't know and they're everywhere. The Lord says, "I want you to let them know." Now, to those who have heard, they're without excuse. You've heard the old saying, if you read your Bible, you're liable. You read your Bible, you're liable. You've heard it. Some of you might be in a backslidden condition. You're messing around and yet you know better. You've read the Bible, you know what God thinks about what you're doing and what's going on in your life.

You just sit there and you just keep coming to church and you're just hardening yourself every single time you come in here and don't repent and get it right. You're hardening yourself more and more. Listen to the word of the Lord. He holds you accountable for what you know. These should have received, but they didn't, is what Paul's saying. Notice Verse 19 of Romans 10. He says, "But I say, did not Israel know? First, Moses said, 'I will provoke you to jealousy by them that are no people, they're nobodies, and by a foolish nation will I anger you.'"

God's plan never was hidden. It was never secluded. It was always out in the open. In fact, over in Luke Chapter 20 Verse 15, he's telling a parable of the wicked husbandman. He had to leave for a vacation and he left certain servants behind to make sure. He wrote them a letter and said, "Would you go and get the fruit?" One servant went to get the fruit and the guys that were taking care of the property killed him. They said, "You're not going to get any fruit. We're taking this fruit. We did it. It's ours now." He sent another servant to go try to get it. They beat the first one up, they beat the second one up really bad. Finally, the husbandman said, "I'm going to send my own son then, get their attention. I'll send my son, get their attention." He sent his son and they killed him. They beat him and then they killed him.

They cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. Why? They were jealous. They were full of anger and hatred, that bitterness of jealousy. Remember over in Chapter 9 of Romans, the Lord's saying to the Israelites, "I have chosen you. Chosen you to represent me." Then in Chapter 10, he talks about how he's revealed his presence to them. He's revealed himself over and over to them.

Now in this chapter, he's saying, "Now I'm going to provoke you. I'm going to get you one way or another. But right now, I'm going to use a nobody people, Gentiles, to really bum you out. I'm going to love them and they're going to love me, and you're going to be jealous. You're going to be angry." Why? Because we love God. We have an excitement about our God. He is my God. And I love him and he loves me and I want people to know that.

That bums some people out. I know when we go to Israel, the Jews get shook up. They hate Christians. They go, "What are you doing? That's our God and that's our Messiah. Well, maybe not him, but we're waiting for our Messiah. What are you talking about the Messiah's come and you've received him?" They get so angry. Our tour guide is Israeli and he gets angry. He gets in the flesh and yet God's dealing with him. It's always those that yelp the loudest that got hit with the rock. Throw a rock into a bunch of dogs and the one that yelps got hit. You know when somebody's getting hit, they get angry. They get upset. And the Lord's dealing with them. That's all right.

What is it they get upset about? Our relationship with him. They can't handle that you have an intimate relationship and you talk like he's your buddy or something, like you're walking with God. Then they watch you and they go, "What are you so happy about? The whole world's going to hell in a handbasket. What are you so happy about?" The Lord, man, he's awesome. The guy's weird. Then the freedom that we have, the freedom we share. We don't have to wear a suit and a tie and a briefcase. We don't have to go door to door. Even though we do go door to door, we don't have to.

They have fun that do it. But we're not under the law and people, even Jehovah's Witnesses, they get jealous. They get angry. "What do you mean you don't have to put in your timecard?" No, I'm going to heaven. Jesus paid it all. We've got such liberty. We are experiencing his grace. Let's continue to be witnesses of his grace, of his joy, of the relationship that continues to be that strong witness to many.

Verse 20, "But Isaiah is very bold." Romans 10:20, Isaiah's very bold and he says this, "I was found of them that sought me not. I was made manifest unto them that asked not after me." This is out of Isaiah 65 Verse 1, a direct quote. The seeker is that one who comes to the end of himself, but not seeking, not asking. That was me. I wasn't seeking, I wasn't asking. I was lost with a big L. We know that so we go, "Hey, you know what? He found me. I didn't find it or find him. Who of us were searching for God when God found us?" No, none of us. We were blaspheming. We were doing our own thing. He sought us.

I love the story of the Russian revival because it's such a classic. Not seeking, just lost people. They came, all of a sudden communism is no more, and that which they believed in, that which they looked to as God, is gone and they had a void. They were scrambling. Many came and gave them the gospel and they received it and they got so excited. Many were getting saved. They had ears to hear. They were open and they heard from the preacher and they received the gift.

Then they wanted us to go into their schools. They opened the doors of their schools and said, "Bring your Bible into our schools and teach us ethics and teach us morality. We want to hear about your God and what he has to say about these things because we have none." They embraced it. And yet I'm kind of confused because we're over there in the schools in Russia, communist Russia—well, it's not communist, but they're still run by communists—and yet in our country, we can't do that. We can't go on to campus and tell them about God's love and share with them God's morals and ethics. No, not here.

Our schools are bankrupt when it comes to morals and ethics. Why? Because they're not listening to God's word. Faith comes by hearing and that of the word of the Lord. No wonder we're so bummed out in this country. We're not hearing good news. We're just bathed in a bunch of dirty water, bad news, constantly. It's not a matter of seeking. It's a matter of hearing, receiving, going, and having others receive. That's what it is a matter of.

Finally, Verse 21, "But to Israel, he said, 'All day long I have stretched forth my hands unto a disobedient and gainsaying people.'" This is out of Isaiah 65 Verse 2, direct quote. God's undying love, his arms are outstretched, his hands are out in front. What a sight. This is what Christianity is all about. Religion is man reaching out to God, trying to get there, doing his work trip. That's religion. Relationship is God is reaching down to sinful man. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for me. He died for you.

He reaches down to you this morning and says, "I love you. Come to me. Rededicate your life to me." To a people who killed their prophets. He sent the prophets to tell them good news and they killed them. They stoned them. "We don't want to hear it." That's why he's saying here, here is God's reason for rejecting them. He says they were a disobedient and obstinate people.

There's many today who won't hear, who will not believe, who are disobedient and obstinate. And yet the Lord says in John's Gospel in Chapter 3, he makes it very clear. He says in Verse 36, "He that believes on the son will have everlasting life." It's a life that begins in the now, not just later on. It's now. And he that believes not the son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. God's wrath will continue to go with you even as you leave this place today. You can't run away from it. You can't get away from it unless you believe in the son.

The wrath is then removed. Once you believe, once you receive, once you trust in, rely upon, cling to, adhere to, that's what the word believe means, to Jesus. You're not appointed unto wrath anymore. You're appointed unto salvation. God's sweet grace comes upon your life and his liberty and his joy and his peace and the fruit and the understanding that you know God comes into your life. It's incredible.

But let me share this with you in John 10. He says, "There are other sheep I have which are not of this fold," talking about the Jews. "Them also I must bring and they shall hear my voice." They're going to have ears to hear. And there shall be one fold and one shepherd, one family. There are those who will take heed, those who will listen, who will call upon the name of the Lord, who will be saved.

These are the ones we need to go to. Now, if somebody shuts the door on you, if somebody tells you to shut up or whatever, you just walk away. But there's a lot of people that will not say that. They need to hear what we have to share. There is not a good enough excuse to not come and receive what God has given in his son when you really get down to thinking about it. Especially as the Holy Spirit has been poured out upon all men all over the whole world to convict the world of sin.

God's on our side. He's preparing their hearts to receive what we have to give to them. They're just waiting for somebody to come and tell them. They've been convicted. They're convicted. They don't have to tell them about how they're a sinner and this and that. They know it. They're just waiting for the good news. God knows your situation this morning. Once you come, once you call upon him, he will save you. He will use you right where he found you, the neighborhood, the job, whatever. He'll use you right there once you confess.

There is the thing. Isaiah confessed his sin there in Isaiah 6 Verse 8. When he did that, he heard God say, "Well, who's going to go for us? Who shall I send?" Isaiah answered that question by saying, "I'll go, send me." We need to answer this question as Christians this morning. If you—now listen to this question—if you are his disciple, then why aren't you discipling others? Because that's what being a disciple is all about. You become a disciple to disciple others.

"Yeah, but Jeff, I'm not called to the mission field." We're not talking about the mission field. We're talking about right here, right now. Remember, we've been bought with a price. The Bible says we are not our own. We were saved, not for ourselves, not to just go to heaven. We were saved for a purpose and a reason. And that reason is we were called to go and tell somebody else. Before the Lord comes back for us, he's saying, "I've sent you now, and I've called you to go tell somebody. Be bold, be brave. Ask me for my spirit. I will give you of my spirit so you can tell somebody."

The Lord says, "I've called you and I've ordained you and I've sent you to bear much fruit, and that your fruit would be lasting fruit." That means you're going to share with those that are going to steady on with the gospel. You're going to tell others about God's love, about God's grace. His truth is going to liberate not only you, and not only is it going to cleanse you, but those that you share with. His power will come upon them and heal them and give them that forgiveness of sin which will flow from Jesus to you to others.

There's the pass it on thing. It came from him to my heart and then to others. It's just a multiplication process. Can you imagine if every single one of us spent next week praying about who we're going to bring to church and we all brought somebody? We couldn't get in here. Wouldn't that be exciting? And we're all sitting there with somebody praying like crazy. You talk about really getting your prayer life back. It's when you reach out and invite somebody, then you start really praying. Now God, save them, do a work.

His last word wasn't to go and I thought this is interesting. Somebody has said his last command needs to be our first concern. What is his last command? Well, we know over in Revelation Chapter 3 Verse 19, he says, "Hey," and he's talking to Christians there. "As many as I rebuke and chasten, I say, 'Repent.'" He's talking to Christians to repent. The first thing we need to do is just repent of our laziness and our slothfulness and not doing what he's called us to do and not being those that are saying, "Here am I, send me."

As we do that, God's going to come and he's going to do a work. The word that he shared there is "repent." In Matthew 4:17, you know the first thing that Jesus did when he was here, his first message? It was "repent." From the first message to the last, it's just all about turning towards God and letting him show himself strong towards us. To those that have ears to hear, he says, "I'll send you." Remember when Jesus went off into the mountain to pray for what? For his disciples, who he was going to choose. He chose twelve.

After choosing his twelve, he sent the twelve to go to preach the word of God. He sent them. That's over in Luke 9 Verse 1 and 2. In Luke 10 Verse 1, he then chose 70 more and he sent them. In 1 Corinthians 15:6, it says that over 500 saw him resurrected and were excited and heard him speak. Heard what he said, "Go in Jerusalem, in that upper room." Then finally when you get to Jerusalem in the upper room in Acts 1:15, you see that only 120 made it there. Guys, you're the 120. Think about that. To hear this message this morning, you're the 120. Now how many will say, "I'm an evangelist?" And how many will say, "Here am I, send me?" That's got to be answered by all of us, doesn't it?

Guest (Male): The calling is clear. We're to be evangelists for Christ. We hope you'll accept the challenge and start spreading the good news as you have opportunity. Today on Sound Doctrine, we completed Romans Chapter 10, as Pastor Jeff Johnson delivered part two of a message called "Me, an Evangelist?" If you enjoyed today's message from Pastor Jeff Johnson from the magnificent book of Romans, I'd like to remind you that you can hear it again on several different venues. First, you can go online to sounddoctorinradio.org, where you can hear today's study as well as make a donation to this radio outreach. That's at sounddoctorinradio.org. You can also listen at oneplace.com and also through the Sound Doctrine Radio podcast app. And of course, speaking of podcasts, Sound Doctrine can be heard wherever you enjoy podcasts, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Be sure to join us again next time we meet for another encouraging and challenging study with Pastor Jeff in the book of Romans. That's here on Sound Doctrine, a presentation of Calvary Chapel Downey.