Latest / Providence Baptist Church - Sermons / Redeeming the Time – Part 2
Transcript
- 0:00These next two things are means of doing that.
- 0:06Okay?
- 0:06So, redeem the time for knowing Christ.
- 0:10You know, college students, a lot of you are just now figuring out what a lot of you believe.
- 0:14Was this what my parents taught me?
- 0:15Is this what I believe?
- 0:17It's a great time to grow.
- 0:18So, redeem that kairos to really know Christ.
- 0:23But number two, redeem the time for growing in relationship with God's people.
- 0:29In other words, the church.
- 0:31The covenant fellowship of believers.
- 0:34The Bible has some really great metaphors for the church.
- 0:37It's called a body.
- 0:39In 1 Corinthians 12.
- 0:40So, to be a part of a body means to belong to a living, functioning, you know, community.
- 0:47A flock, which can sound degrading because you don't ever want to be compared to a sheep.
- 0:53But, belonging to a flock means belonging to a community dependent on Christ for food and protection and direction.
- 1:02A temple, Ephesians 2.
- 1:04To be a stone in His temple means to belong to a worshiping community.
- 1:10And then a household, a family.
- 1:11That's 1 Timothy 3.15.
- 1:13Like we have a common fatherhood.
- 1:15And we will be together for eternity.
- 1:19So, this is a rehearsal for what is to come.
- 1:23So, understand.
- 1:25I don't think most of us in here would be guilty of this.
- 1:29Maybe at some point in our lives we were.
- 1:30But there's a lot of people who say, yeah, I love Christ.
- 1:34I'm all about Jesus.
- 1:35But I can't stand the church.
- 1:38You've heard people say that before.
- 1:40Me and Jesus.
- 1:41That's like all I need.
- 1:43The last place, I think.
- 1:45Yeah, no.
- 1:45Just kidding.
- 1:48Just write it down or log it away in your head.
- 1:51I had to preach on it yesterday at this wedding.
- 1:54Ephesians 5.
- 1:55It talks about the love that Christ has for His church.
- 2:00And it gives us an example.
- 2:02It says, husbands, love your wives just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her.
- 2:10So, then it goes down in verse 29.
- 2:13Christ loves His church.
- 2:15He nourishes and cherishes His church.
- 2:17Because we are members of His body.
- 2:21So, you can observe that.
- 2:22Christ loves His church and died for it.
- 2:25He cares for the purity of His church.
- 2:28And He is one with His church.
- 2:29So much so that if you attack the church, you're attacking Christ.
- 2:34Any good done to the church is a good done to Christ.
- 2:39So, the church, in one of those images, is called the Bride of Christ.
- 2:43So, how many of you husbands would get it on if someone called your wife ugly and deplorable?
- 2:51Jesus could take some people to the cleaners if He wanted to.
- 2:55Don't insult His bride.
- 2:57If you love Christ, then you will love what Christ loves.
- 3:01Christ loves His church.
- 3:03With all its problems, He loves His church.
- 3:05And He died for the sake of His bride, the church.
- 3:10And so, we are to redeem the time by growing in relationship with God's people.
- 3:17Amazingly, for some reason, God has determined that so much of what we need as believers comes through.
- 3:26This is just His design.
- 3:28It comes through the fellowship of the body.
- 3:31We need our brothers and sisters.
- 3:34There are rich deposits of Christ in every single believer.
- 3:39That's 2 Corinthians 4-7.
- 3:42The treasure of treasures is hidden inside the believer.
- 3:45Christ takes up residence inside the believer.
- 3:49And if that's true, there are things that we can learn about God and know Him by,
- 3:55by getting to know the body of Christ better.
- 3:58By getting to know and understand our brothers and sisters better.
- 4:01And God has designed for us not to face all the crud and trials of this world alone.
- 4:09But to be there for one another.
- 4:11To help each other along as we go.
- 4:14But we've been saved.
- 4:17We belong to the body.
- 4:19We belong to Jesus.
- 4:21Jesus suffered and died, it says in the Scripture.
- 4:25The church of God.
- 4:26That He had pained with His own blood.
- 4:29He died for His wife, the church.
- 4:31And so, I pray that as time goes by, we are known here, first and foremost, we are known.
- 4:42I won't mess with other churches.
- 4:43I'm just going to really talk about ours.
- 4:45Like, I hope we are known as a people who love God, who worship Him with fear and reverence and joy,
- 4:53in spirit and in truth.
- 4:54So, what are one of the first things people talk about when they're asked about their church?
- 5:02What pops out of their mouth?
- 5:04Will it be something other than Christ?
- 5:10What is the gathering component of a local church?
- 5:14That's a good litmus test.
- 5:16Why do certain churches gather and why does ours gather?
- 5:19And often you'll see an age demographic.
- 5:24We like being with old people, so we're with old people.
- 5:26We like being with young people, so we're with a bunch of young people.
- 5:29It could be affinity-driven.
- 5:34There's a bunch of singles at this church.
- 5:36There's a bunch of married people at this church.
- 5:38But more than likely, it's program-driven.
- 5:43This church has a great children's ministry.
- 5:45This church has a great youth ministry.
- 5:47This church has incredible music.
- 5:50And that's what people talk about, right?
- 5:52When you ask them about their church,
- 5:53Oh, we just love our music.
- 5:55We just love our worship service.
- 5:57We have both a traditional and a contemporary service,
- 6:00so we can fit everybody in.
- 6:02And that just feeds the consumer mindset the opposite of what Christ would have us do,
- 6:09which is to unite around Him, right?
- 6:14I heard on a local Christian radio station several years ago,
- 6:17and it's not a bad station.
- 6:18I won't hate on it.
- 6:19It's not a bad station at all.
- 6:21But for 20 minutes, I had people call in and explain,
- 6:24answer the question,
- 6:24How do you do church?
- 6:27But that whole time, no one said,
- 6:31What does Jesus say about the church?
- 6:32Isn't He the head of the church?
- 6:33Didn't He die for the church?
- 6:36That was the whole point.
- 6:39And a lot of well-meaning people just sort of missed that.
- 6:41So what is our church going to be known for?
- 6:45We do a lot of good things here.
- 6:46We're about a lot of good things.
- 6:49So these aren't bad things when I say this,
- 6:51but we don't want to be known as the homeschool church.
- 6:56We plan on homeschooling our kids, Lord willing.
- 6:59So you know I'm not hating on that,
- 7:01but we don't want to be known for that.
- 7:03We don't want to be known as a church
- 7:05that each family has to have X number of kids.
- 7:10We don't want to be known for that either.
- 7:12We do want to be known for the fact that we love children.
- 7:14But is Christ the gathering component of our church,
- 7:19or does it become something else?
- 7:21Here's how you know.
- 7:22If that one component is removed,
- 7:25sometimes that church falls apart.
- 7:27There's nothing else there.
- 7:28If it's a pastor personality or a certain style of music,
- 7:32it just vanishes.
- 7:33When that is gone, that church falls apart.
- 7:35And that happens with a lot of megachurches out there,
- 7:39with a cool pastor.
- 7:41When he's gone, like, no one knows what to do
- 7:43because they haven't been functioning.
- 7:45But I pray that our church is known for its love for Christ
- 7:50and love for one another
- 7:51and not allow good things to become the main thing.
- 7:56So the Scripture teaches us that we have unity already in Christ.
- 8:01We don't have to create unity.
- 8:03We don't have to make it up out of thin air
- 8:05and unify over some, you know, worldly thing
- 8:07like this ministry or that program or this style of music.
- 8:12We are united in Christ.
- 8:16And so we need each other in discipleship.
- 8:20We need each other for accountability and discipline,
- 8:24encouragement and prayer and leadership.
- 8:26I could go on and on.
- 8:27So that's why this is really more of a bigger thing,
- 8:30but you'll just have to maybe talk to me later
- 8:33if you can handle any more.
- 8:35But we're all gifted, too.
- 8:38When you are saved, you are given gifts by the Holy Spirit.
- 8:41We just read that, which is so cool.
- 8:43You are given gifts.
- 8:45And just because you can't stand up here and do something,
- 8:47it doesn't matter.
- 8:48There are tons of ways that you can serve the body
- 8:52that are special and that have eternal value.
- 8:56So, quick word to students, you know,
- 8:58campus ministries are amazing.
- 8:59I was a part of one, campus outreach,
- 9:02for a little over three years.
- 9:04Loved it.
- 9:04It's not in North Georgia anymore, unfortunately.
- 9:07But understand, as cool as campus ministries are,
- 9:11they don't replace the church.
- 9:13They just don't.
- 9:15And a good one, in fact, will point you to the church.
- 9:17They'll say, we're just here to kind of help serve the body.
- 9:20And we see sort of a movement in that now,
- 9:21which I'm thankful for.
- 9:23So just to kind of remember,
- 9:25just come and be a part of a fellowship.
- 9:27We hope it's here, but it's not.
- 9:28There's some other healthy churches out there.
- 9:32And then lastly,
- 9:33whew, man, maybe a few more minutes here.
- 9:37That water looks really good to me right now.
- 9:39But lastly, number three,
- 9:43to redeem the time,
- 9:45to redeem the Kairos,
- 9:48redeem it for obedience to God's mission.
- 9:50Obedience to God's mission.
- 9:54We are called by Jesus in Matthew 28
- 9:59to go and to make disciples of all nations.
- 10:03And what is the goal of that?
- 10:06Read in Revelation.
- 10:08The large myriad of myriad and thousands of thousands
- 10:12from every nation, tribe, and tongue
- 10:14worshiping Christ at His throne
- 10:16at the end of time.
- 10:18And that's only going to happen if we go.
- 10:21Most of the men who heard Jesus say that
- 10:23didn't even make it out of Judea.
- 10:25So we know that that wasn't the plan.
- 10:28It was meant for the disciples that they made
- 10:30to continue that good work,
- 10:32to go to the ends of the earth.
- 10:35And so Paul says,
- 10:38walk in wisdom toward outsiders,
- 10:40making the best use of the time.
- 10:42That's Colossians 4, same word.
- 10:44Walk in wisdom toward outsiders.
- 10:46So we all have neighbors,
- 10:50coworkers, family members
- 10:52that are still walking in darkness.
- 10:55And it's hard.
- 10:56It hurts to watch.
- 10:58But we have the message.
- 11:00We can't save them,
- 11:01but we know the one who can.
- 11:04All right?
- 11:05And students,
- 11:06you will never have,
- 11:08probably most of you,
- 11:10some of you going to the army
- 11:11may have as much opportunity,
- 11:13but you'll never have as many chances
- 11:16to connect with unbelievers as you do now.
- 11:19Like just the relationships,
- 11:20it's just a sea of relationships,
- 11:22of needy people.
- 11:23It's that depressed guy
- 11:26that never leaves his room,
- 11:27who just plays video games
- 11:29and sits on his phone
- 11:30because he's scared to go
- 11:31and like face the world.
- 11:33Right?
- 11:34It's that person
- 11:36in the gym
- 11:38just trying to always exercise
- 11:40like crazy
- 11:41because they want people
- 11:42to give them glory
- 11:44for how they look.
- 11:46It's that girl
- 11:46that spends two hours
- 11:48putting makeup on
- 11:49because she's afraid
- 11:50to go out
- 11:50and afraid that people
- 11:52will think that she's unattractive.
- 11:54She's being evaluated
- 11:55by the people
- 11:56that are around her.
- 11:58And a special heart
- 11:59for these guys,
- 12:00the ones who just got hammered
- 12:01and partied
- 12:01and went crazy.
- 12:02They need the Lord too.
- 12:04You've got to find ways
- 12:05to get them through their life
- 12:06safely, of course.
- 12:09And so,
- 12:10redeem the time.
- 12:12Make the best use of it.
- 12:14The scripture says,
- 12:14rescue those
- 12:15who are being taken away to death.
- 12:19Hold back
- 12:20those who are stumbling
- 12:21to slaughter.
- 12:24Understand that
- 12:25as we bear witness to Christ,
- 12:29he's going to use you
- 12:30to reach those
- 12:31who are around you.
- 12:33And in closing,
- 12:35a couple things.
- 12:38I thought it was worth mentioning.
- 12:39There's some good clips
- 12:40on YouTube
- 12:41if you want to go watch this.
- 12:43I thought,
- 12:43wouldn't that be a shocker
- 12:44if I played a video here
- 12:45on Sunday morning?
- 12:47I've done that here
- 12:48in probably 100 years.
- 12:50But,
- 12:51the movie,
- 12:53Schindler's List,
- 12:54is a movie
- 12:54I just can't watch.
- 12:55Like,
- 12:56I watched it a long time ago.
- 12:58I can't turn it back on.
- 13:00But,
- 13:01it's about
- 13:01the Nazi death camps,
- 13:03the Holocaust.
- 13:05A true story,
- 13:06though,
- 13:06of a German
- 13:07named
- 13:07Oskar Schindler.
- 13:09And he was
- 13:10broken
- 13:11over what
- 13:12Germany was doing.
- 13:14And he
- 13:15took it personally
- 13:17to, like,
- 13:18work.
- 13:18And he ended up
- 13:19saving about
- 13:19the lives
- 13:20of 1,100 Jews
- 13:21from the Nazi
- 13:22death camps.
- 13:24And at the very
- 13:25end of the movie,
- 13:26this is what you can
- 13:26actually go and watch.
- 13:27It's,
- 13:29after all his
- 13:29sacrifice,
- 13:30all the stuff he did,
- 13:31all his labor,
- 13:33he's there
- 13:33with all those
- 13:34people that
- 13:35he was able
- 13:39to deliver
- 13:40and save.
- 13:41And he's with
- 13:42his really close
- 13:43Jewish friend,
- 13:44Stern.
- 13:45And,
- 13:46he's looking around
- 13:47at all of them.
- 13:48He says,
- 13:48he looks at his body
- 13:49and says,
- 13:49I could have gotten
- 13:50more out.
- 13:51I could have
- 13:53gotten more out.
- 13:54If I had just
- 13:54done this,
- 13:56I could have
- 13:56done more.
- 13:57And his friend
- 13:57is so gracious.
- 13:58He's like,
- 13:59look,
- 13:59you did so much.
- 14:00There will be
- 14:01generations of
- 14:02people because
- 14:03of what you did.
- 14:05And he looks
- 14:06at his car
- 14:06and he goes,
- 14:07what about this
- 14:07car?
- 14:09This car could
- 14:10have been 10
- 14:10more people.
- 14:11Why did I keep
- 14:12this car?
- 14:14And then he said,
- 14:15I had so much
- 14:16money.
- 14:17If I just had
- 14:17a little bit
- 14:18more money,
- 14:18I could have
- 14:19gotten more
- 14:20people out.
- 14:22And he says,
- 14:23I wasted
- 14:23so much money.
- 14:26And he just
- 14:26breaks down
- 14:27crying unconsolably
- 14:29like in front
- 14:29of all these
- 14:30people.
- 14:31And his friend
- 14:32picks him up
- 14:32and he's like,
- 14:33hey,
- 14:33you did this.
- 14:34Look at their
- 14:34faces.
- 14:35Like,
- 14:35they're here.
- 14:37He pulls
- 14:38off his Nazi
- 14:38party pen.
- 14:39Like,
- 14:39this is gold.
- 14:41And he gives
- 14:41it to him.
- 14:42Like,
- 14:42this could be
- 14:42two more
- 14:42people.
- 14:43Use this
- 14:44to get
- 14:45them out.
- 14:47But he was
- 14:47so,
- 14:48you know,
- 14:48as you know,
- 14:48in that time,
- 14:49Germans were
- 14:49taught not to
- 14:50show emotion,
- 14:51but he just
- 14:51loses it.
- 14:52And he kept
- 14:53just saying,
- 14:54I haven't done
- 14:54enough.
- 14:55I didn't do
- 14:55enough.
- 14:57And I'm not
- 14:58trying to
- 14:59produce some
- 15:00form of
- 15:00ungodly
- 15:01guilt on
- 15:03you,
- 15:03ungodly
- 15:04conviction.
- 15:05ungodly
- 15:06but none
- 15:06of us
- 15:07want to
- 15:07get to
- 15:08the
- 15:08finish
- 15:08line
- 15:09before
- 15:09the
- 15:09throne
- 15:10and
- 15:10just
- 15:10say,
- 15:10look at
- 15:11all my
- 15:12stuff.
- 15:13And look at
- 15:14all my
- 15:14possessions.
- 15:15You'll just
- 15:16say,
- 15:17why didn't I
- 15:17do more?
- 15:20Sort of a,
- 15:21I think John
- 15:22Piper calls it a
- 15:23heavenly regret.
- 15:25So not a
- 15:26sinful regret,
- 15:26a heavenly
- 15:27regret of like,
- 15:28ah,
- 15:28like,
- 15:29if I knew
- 15:30that this was
- 15:30where things
- 15:31were going,
- 15:31like,
- 15:31I just
- 15:32would not
- 15:32have
- 15:32squandered
- 15:33so much.
- 15:35But Jesus
- 15:35says,
- 15:36do not lay
- 15:37for yourselves
- 15:38treasures on
- 15:39the earth
- 15:39where moth
- 15:40and dust
- 15:40destroy
- 15:41and where
- 15:42thieves break
- 15:42in and steal,
- 15:43but lay up
- 15:43for yourselves
- 15:44treasures that
- 15:45are in heaven.
- 15:46That is the
- 15:47goal.
- 15:48But then he
- 15:49says,
- 15:49where your
- 15:49treasure is,
- 15:50there your
- 15:50heart's going
- 15:51to be also.
- 15:52You're going
- 15:53to see it
- 15:53on display.
- 15:55So,
- 15:57as I said
- 15:57last week
- 15:58from that one
- 15:58missionary,
- 16:00he said,
- 16:00only one
- 16:01life,
- 16:01and it
- 16:02will soon
- 16:02be passed
- 16:03and only
- 16:04what's done
- 16:04for Christ
- 16:05will last.
- 16:07And then
- 16:07lastly,
- 16:08in application
- 16:09of this,
- 16:10we can rest
- 16:11bringing it
- 16:12all into
- 16:12Christ,
- 16:13okay?
- 16:14We see
- 16:15in the
- 16:15Gospels
- 16:15that Jesus
- 16:16was very
- 16:17aware of
- 16:17the providential
- 16:18time that
- 16:19he was here
- 16:19on earth.
- 16:20He was
- 16:21aware of
- 16:21the Kairos.
- 16:22He said,
- 16:23there were
- 16:23times that
- 16:23people wanted
- 16:24to kill
- 16:24him and
- 16:24he said,
- 16:25my hour
- 16:25has not
- 16:26yet come.
- 16:27My Kairos,
- 16:28my time
- 16:28has not
- 16:29yet come.
- 16:30And then
- 16:32eventually,
- 16:33when he
- 16:35had died
- 16:36and breathed
- 16:37his last,
- 16:38he said,
- 16:38it is
- 16:39finished.
- 16:40It is
- 16:40done.
- 16:42And like
- 16:42this one
- 16:43verse in
- 16:43John 17
- 16:44is one
- 16:45that I,
- 16:45man,
- 16:46I really
- 16:46hope on
- 16:46my deathbed,
- 16:48if I make it
- 16:48to a deathbed
- 16:49and don't
- 16:49die in some
- 16:50crazy other
- 16:50way,
- 16:52that I think
- 16:53this verse
- 16:53haunts me
- 16:54just about
- 16:55more than
- 16:55any.
- 16:55But Jesus
- 16:57says,
- 16:57Father,
- 16:58he's praying
- 16:58like the
- 16:59hour has
- 16:59come,
- 17:00glorify your
- 17:00son,
- 17:01the son
- 17:01may glorify
- 17:02you,
- 17:04having
- 17:04accomplished
- 17:05the work
- 17:06that you
- 17:07gave me
- 17:07to do.
- 17:08He was
- 17:09done so
- 17:09he could
- 17:09go and
- 17:10rest,
- 17:12right?
- 17:13So even
- 17:14though we
- 17:15have squandered
- 17:16so much
- 17:16time,
- 17:17ridiculous
- 17:18things that
- 17:18we do
- 17:19with our
- 17:19time,
- 17:19me too,
- 17:21our cell
- 17:22phones don't
- 17:22help.
- 17:23So if
- 17:24you drop
- 17:24it in
- 17:25the
- 17:25commode,
- 17:25just rejoice
- 17:26for the
- 17:2630 minutes
- 17:27that you're
- 17:27going to
- 17:28have before
- 17:28you fix
- 17:28it with
- 17:29rice.
- 17:31The good
- 17:32news is
- 17:32that all
- 17:33the time
- 17:33we've
- 17:33wasted is
- 17:35not going
- 17:36to bear
- 17:36witness against
- 17:37us on
- 17:37the judgment
- 17:38day if
- 17:38we have
- 17:38Christ,
- 17:39because he
- 17:40was faithful.
- 17:41He saved
- 17:42us.
- 17:43We don't
- 17:44have to pay
- 17:44him back
- 17:45for what
- 17:45he did,
- 17:46but if we
- 17:47do belong
- 17:48to Christ,
- 17:48it's going
- 17:49to create
- 17:49a holy
- 17:51desire in
- 17:51us to
- 17:52want,
- 17:52to redeem
- 17:53the time
- 17:53for eternity.
- 17:55We're going
- 17:55to desire
- 17:55that.
- 17:56Make the
- 17:57best use
- 17:58of the
- 17:58time and
- 17:59strive for
- 17:59that daily.
- 18:02It's not
- 18:03about the
- 18:03here and
- 18:03now.
- 18:04So just
- 18:05prepare
- 18:05yourself
- 18:06for the
- 18:07bigger picture,
- 18:08for us
- 18:08going to
- 18:09be in
- 18:10the Father's
- 18:11presence
- 18:11forever.
- 18:14I'll stop
- 18:15there.
- 18:17Yeah.
- 18:18So much
- 18:19more to say
- 18:20on all that.
- 18:20Each one of
- 18:21those could
- 18:21be its own
- 18:22thing,
- 18:23but let's
- 18:24pray together
- 18:24and then
- 18:25we'll respond
- 18:25in song.
- 18:26Let's pray
- 18:26together and
- 18:29respond in song.