Rev. David Holwick G The Church You've Longed For, #1
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
February 18, 2007
1 John 4:7-12
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I. Love is what it's all about.
A. Last week was a general sermon on love by our Area Minister.
1) This week we want to get into specifics.
2) Without genuine love, churches die. And should.
B. Get love right.
1) Love originates with God.
a) Gift of salvation in Jesus is the proof.
b) He loves us before we love him.
2) Those who know God are able to love others.
a) Agape love is God's love made visible.
b) The world needs to see more of it!
c) The church needs to show more of it.
II. Churches can be lousy at love.
A. Where we often fall short:
1) We are too busy to notice others.
2) We are too self-centered to care about others.
3) We think someone else will help.
4) We think problems will solve themselves.
5) We are often judgmental and critical instead of supportive. [1]
B. The world wonders why we can't be more like Jesus.
1) His way of dealing with people has always astounded the
world.
2) What makes him different?
III. How Jesus loved people.
A. He noticed people's pain.
1) He cared about their basic needs.
a) When those who followed him were hungry, he noticed.
b) Then he did something about it. Mark 6:34-37
2) Other examples:
a) Woman with internal bleeding. Mark 5:25-34
b) Lepers and disabled. Matthew 8:2-3
B. He accepted people everyone else rejected.
1) Notorious examples:
a) Woman who washed his feet with her hair. Luke 7:37-39
b) The woman caught in adultery. John 8
c) Tax collectors (Zacchaeus) and prostitutes. Luke 19:2-8
1> How would we react if the employees of the local
strip club showed up on Sunday?
2> Of course, we wouldn't drive them out of church.
3> But would we welcome them as warmly as we would a
more typical neighbor? I don't think so.
2) However, Jesus did not accept them "as they were."
a) In each case, they repented when they met Jesus.
b) Jesus was open to everyone, but expected conversion
of everyone. John 8:11
C. He accepted good people who failed him.
1) Note Peter's denial, but also his restoration.
D. He cared even when it was socially uncomfortable.
1) Many of his healings happened on a forbidden day (Sabbath).
2) He healed foreigners and infidels.
IV. How our church should be like Jesus.
A. Notice when others are hurting.
1) Many Christians are too isolated to be able to reach out.
a) People in church are often masters at this.
b) Image and reputation are everything.
c) We separate ourselves from others by adding layers of
protection so that the "real us" is never seen.
d) We may make small talk and speak superficially because
we are afraid of getting involved with others.
e) One lady conducted an experiment.
1> To everyone who asked her, while passing the
hallways, "How are you?", she replied, "Lousy!"
2> Some didn't even hear what she said.
3> Some said, "I'm sorry to hear that" but no one
asked her why she was feeling badly.
2) Fine-tune your "compassion antennae."
a) Can you read their feelings below the surface?
1> Who among us is lonely?
2> Who is wounded?
3> Who is lost?
b) Some of our members are good at this.
Last month a member noticed that a regular attender
had stopped coming.
She knew this person was having a rough time.
There were financial problems, and grief over the loss
of a young son.
After she missed for two Sundays, the member called
her.
No answer, or return call.
She called again.
Then she went to her house.
No one was home so she left a note.
Francis Thompson once wrote a famous poem about "The
Hound of Heaven," about how God wouldn't let him
go but sought after him.
This member is the Ledgewood Hound!
And God blessed her efforts - this week she received
a beautiful letter from the woman.
It explained how she was feeling so low and was even
bitter toward God, but she appreciated the member's
concern.
[On this Sunday, she was back in church!] #66607
3) We cannot care for people if we don't realize they need it.
a) Find out what is going on in people's lives.
B. Take the initiative to do something about their problems.
1) Don't assume someone else will do it.
a) It is natural to run to the pastor or some other
professional (though I am not that professional).
b) There is always someone else.
c) But Someone Else is no longer available.
A local church recently announced in their bulletin:
Our church is deeply saddened by the passing of an
irreplaceable member, Someone Else.
For all these years he did far more than any other church
member.
Whenever leadership was mentioned, Someone Else was looked
to for inspiration and achievement.
Whenever there was a job to do, a class to teach, or a
meeting to attend, everybody always turned to
Someone Else.
It was common knowledge that Someone Else was among the
largest contributors to the church.
Whenever there was a financial need, everyone just assumed
that Someone Else would make up the difference.
Although we are grieved by the loss of Someone Else, his
death comes as no big surprise.
He was far too overworked and continually stretched too
thin.
In fact, we may have contributed to his death by expecting
too much out of Someone Else.
He left a wonderful example to follow, but it appears there
is nobody willing to fill the shoes of Someone Else.
I shudder to think what will happen to our church since we
can no longer depend on Someone Else.
#34155
2) You actually have the ability to make a difference for
someone.
a) Start doing something for them.
b) Don't wait for them to come to you.
C. Take time to be compassionate.
1) A Presbyterian church which reached out to a cancer patient.
The man wasn't a church-goer, or even a believer.
He had advanced cancer and was hugely bitter.
He had valid reasons - he had run through their savings and
they were about to lose their house.
The church visited him and started working on his basic
needs.
A realtor in the church found a cheaper home for his family
to live in.
In the end, the man died.
He never gave his heart to Christ.
But he did acknowledge that their concern was genuine.
We are not compassionate because it "works."
We are compassionate because Jesus was.
If it was good enough for him, it's good enough for us.
#1871
2) The best compassion is when you don't feel compassionate.
Several years ago, youth evangelist Ken Owens described an
evening in his life.
Ken was scheduled to speak to a large group of young people
and he was running late when he pulled into a
full-service gas station for fuel.
A little guy came out from the office.
He had a ski cap pulled down low, his face was covered with
acne, his hair was greasy, and his pants were so large
he had to keep pulling them up.
The guy spoke poorly and slowly.
It seemed to take forever for him to pump the gas.
When Ken gave him his credit card, it took several minutes
before he came back to say they didn't accept that card.
Ken gave him another card only to learn after several more
minutes that that one didn't work either.
Finally in desperation, Ken asked, "Do you still take
cash?"
The little fellow then took several more minutes to make
change and return it.
Ken was so furious when he left that he backed up and spun
his back tires on the station's "ding ding" hose!
A few blocks away, the Holy Spirit began to convict Ken
about his impatience and rudeness to the attendant.
He drove back up but the little guy was too scared to come
out of the office!
Finally, Ken cajoled him out and said to him, "I'm really
sorry for the way I treated you."
The man pushed back his ski cap and said, "That's okay,
mister. Everybody treats me that way."
There are a lot of people who might say, "Everybody treats
me that way."
In a cold, lonely, impersonal world, those who take time
to care for others are the exception, not the rule.
#6985
D. Broaden our idea of who is "acceptable" in our church.
1) Caring churches don't just love the people they have.
2) They reach out to love the people who haven't found us yet.
a) Jesus' parable of the wedding banquet.
1> The respectable people turned the invitation down.
2> So the master ordered, seek high and low and fill
up my house!
b) God wants this house filled up, too.
1> Seek out the hurting people you know, and invite
them to be a part of our fellowship.
2> Then love them the way you want Jesus to love you.
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
[1] Material for this section was derived from the sermon "Becoming A
Caring Church, part 1" by Rev. David Shook of the Church of Rodondo
Hills, Rodondo Beach, California. It is Kerux Sermon #24782.
# 1871 "Dealing With the Real Problems of Life," by Van Campbell of
Homer, Louisiana; Leadership Magazine, January 1984, page 55.
# 6985 "Everybody Treats Me That Way," by Rev. Dean Scott, Kerux Sermon
#19529.
#34155 "Someone Else, The Best Worker," by Rev. Don Robinson, Kerux
Sermon #17954.
#66607 "The Church Hound," by Rev. David Holwick, from his personal
experience at Ledgewood Baptist Church, New Jersey.
These and 30,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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