THEME: TOUCH SOMEONE FOR JESUS
TOPIC: BE AN OUTWARD PERSON
TEXT: MATTHEW 25:34-46
INTRODUCTION
In appreciating the experience of salvation and the central point of the bible passage we read above, one very important point to note is that no one can genuinely show true love except he is connected to the true source of Love which is God –1 John 4:8. We cannot give what we do not have. The quality of love we demonstrate is a function of what motivates us into doing what we do.
If you are not born-again, it is difficult to do anything that is good without any ulterior motive or personal benefits. You need to be filled with the Holy Spirit to enable you connect to the true source of love which will produce fruits as highlighted in Galatians 5:22-23.
WHAT WE HAVE TO DO
The heart of man is desperately wicked and there are innate tendencies to shy away from doing good Jer. 17:9, Mark 7:21. Although, people practise love by giving, but it could be seen as discriminatory because they tend to limit it to the people they know or towards massaging their ego – self-gratification. What can we do to be able to demonstrate the kind of Love Jesus expects from us:
i. We must be Born Again. Accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and personal Saviour. John 3:16-17, Acts 4:12.
ii. Be baptised with the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:38.
iii. Manifest the fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22-23.
iv. Stay connected to Christ. By doing this, our efforts will generate fruits which will abide. John 15:5-13.
IMPLICATIONS OF THE ABOVE
i. The Tree and the Branches – John 15:5. The branches produce fruits because it is directly connected to the tree. That is different in the case of Mistletoe, though it feed and grow on the tree but does not produced fruits because it does not have a real connection with the tree.
ii. Iron sharpener Iron, Prov. 27:17.
iii. You cannot give what you do not have. For us to show love to others by bringing them to Christ, we must first of all receive Christ and allow Christ to be formed in us. Gal. 4:19.
iv. Fruits don’t come by struggling.
THE NATURE OF MAN
Man is considered a combination of Spirit, Soul and Body. 1 Thes. 5:23. breaking it down to a broad category, Man is both Physical and Spiritual Being. Their needs can be categorised into Physical, Emotional, Psychological, Material and Spiritual.
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15-20.The great commission. We are to deliver the gospel to everyone, everywhere as we have received from the Lord.
Matt.4:23-25: Jesus Christ was going through all of the villages, teaching, proclaiming the gospel, and healing every kind of disease and sickness.
Having been saved and accepted into the fold, we are to emulate Jesus Christ by extending same gesture to people. This gesture covers both physical and spiritual aspect of human needs.
Galatians 6:2: “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ”. Outward person fulfil purpose.
Isaiah 58:10-12: “If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul; then shall thy light rise in obscurity, and the noon day: And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters fall not. And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the beach, The restorer of paths to dwell in”.
The text above is a testimony to the fact that our effort to meet other people’s needs will guarantee a greater benefit to us. Your sphere of influence will grow when you focus on others to satisfy their needs.
James 2:15-17: “If a brother or sister be naked, and destitute of daily food, And one of you say unto them, Depart in peace, be ye warmed and filled; notwithstanding ye give them not those things which are needful to the body; what doth it profit? Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone”.
As contained in the verse above, it is counter-productive when we meet someone’s spiritual need and neglect to satisfy his/her physical need which is within our capacity.
Philippians 2:4: “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others”.
The amount of problems of others we accept to solve will determine the measure of resources and inspiration God will give to us. A case study of King Solomon, 1 Kings 3:3-12. It means that the way God will lead you when focusing on yourself will differ from when you focus on others.
CONCLUSION
A TALE OF TWO SEAS: While the Sea of Galilee receives its water from River Jordan and flows out, the Dead Sea takes water from River Jordan and holds it. It does not release it or allow it to flow out. The result is amazing and worthy of note, Sea of Galilee is rich in aquatic life and vegetation while Dead Sea has no trace of aquatic life. Funny enough, the Sea of Galilee is North of Dead Sea and both of them receive their water from River Jordan. Life is not just about getting, it’s about giving.
John 3:16. We all need to be like the Sea of Galilee.
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