Breakfast with Jesus | A Sermon on John 21:1-14

Introduction
When I think back on my life, I’ve spent a lot of time around water.  I was born in North Beach, Maryland, and lived two blocks from the Chesapeake Bay.  Some of my earliest memories are of my family walking down to the beach to swim.  I can still remember the smell of the water-soaked creosote beams of the wooden pier that extended out into the bay where people would catch fish and blue crab. 

Later we moved to Macon, Georgia where my dad ran the concession stands at Lake Tobesofkee.  Part of his business was a small marina with a dock and 2 gas pumps where boats would fill their tanks for day out on the lake.  

My dad needed something to occupy me while he ran the marina.  So he taught me how to catch brim off the dock with a cane pole by using stale bread.  I would roll up a little do ball and stick in on the hook.  It would only stay on a few seconds, but that's all you needed to catch the hundreds of small, hungry brim that congregated around the dock.

I tell you all this because today we have a lake story for our Scripture reading. 

John 21:1-14
¹ Later, Jesus appeared again to the disciples beside the Sea of Galilee.^[a] This is how it happened. ² Several of the disciples were there—Simon Peter, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin),^[b] Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples.

³ Simon Peter said, “I’m going fishing.”

“We’ll come, too,” they all said. So they went out in the boat, but they caught nothing all night.

⁴ At dawn Jesus was standing on the beach, but the disciples couldn’t see who he was. ⁵ He called out, “Fellows,^[c] have you caught any fish?”

“No,” they replied.

⁶ Then he said, “Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you’ll get some!” So they did, and they couldn’t haul in the net because there were so many fish in it.

⁷ Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, “It’s the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his tunic (for he had stripped for work), jumped into the water, and headed to shore. ⁸ The others stayed with the boat and pulled the loaded net to the shore, for they were only about a hundred yards^[d] from shore. ⁹ When they got there, they found breakfast waiting for them—fish cooking over a charcoal fire, and some bread.

¹⁰ “Bring some of the fish you’ve just caught,” Jesus said. ¹¹ So Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net to the shore. There were 153 large fish, and yet the net hadn’t torn.

¹² “Now come and have some breakfast!” Jesus said. None of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. ¹³ Then Jesus served them the bread and the fish. ¹⁴ This was the third time Jesus had appeared to his disciples since he had been raised from the dead.

A Lesson About Mission (Making Disciples)
Over the centuries, the meaning of this passage has been interpreted many ways.  But today, the Lord has given me 4 primary lessons to share with you.  

The first lesson is about what followers of Jesus are supposed to do.  Peter was a fisherman.  When Jesus first found Peter, he was in a boat & hadn’t caught any fish.  Jesus performed a miracle and Peter caught so many fish it almost sank the boat.  Then, Jesus said “Come follow me and I’ll teach you to “fish for people”.

In our story today, Jesus reenacted Peter’s calling.  Again, the Disciples are in the boat and haven’t caught anything all night.  The resurrected Christ comes along and  says, “He fellas!  Have you caught anything?”  “Nope.”  “Well, throw your nets on the other side!”   And when they do, they have miraculous success, just like they did the first time Jesus called them to follow Him and be fishers of men. 

Through this miracle, Jesus reminds the Disciples and us what we’re supposed to do.  Jesus called us to fish for people.  What are you known for?  Are you a fisherman?  Are you a lake person?  Are you a teacher, a nurse, an electrician, a mother, a father?  You may be all these and more, but if you are a follower of Jesus, you are called to invite people to follow Jesus.

Stark Methodist is known for a lot of things:  chicken stew, River of Life, Lovin’ Lunches, and so many other caring ministries.  But all these wonderful ministries are meant to be avenues for us to fulfill our true mission:  to make Disciples of Christ who worship passionately, love extravagantly, and witness boldly.

A Lesson in Dependence
Another important lesson this story teaches is a lesson in dependence.  Peter, James, and John were experienced fishermen.  But even the best fishermen can get skunked.  But when Jesus shows up, an unlucky night for the Disciples turns into a net full of abundance.  Jesus presence ensured miraculously abundance.

When it comes to the mission of the Church—to fish for people/to make disciples—we cannot do it on our own.  We need Jesus.  Walking closely with Him brings success.

Sometimes, we focus so much on what we do and how we do it.  We’re like the fishermen who master all the right fishing techniques but still come up with empty nets.  Then Jesus comes along—a carpenter, not a fisherman—and He says something really annoying like:  “throw your nets on the other side of the boat”.  (What does a carpenter know about fishing?)  But when we listen, all of a sudden our nets are so full we can’t pull them in.

If you spend more time recognizing the presence of Jesus, listening to His voice, and staying in tune with Him, then you will experience more of the miraculous abundance that comes when you  walk closely with Him.

Fellowship with the Risen Christ
But don’t think following Christ only about work.  Walking with Jesus is a joy!

And that’s why I love another aspect of this story.  It gives us a picture of Jesus and the Disciples simply enjoying breakfast together.  The Disciples have lost their way of life.  They know Jesus is still alive (they’ve already seen Him twice), but they don’t know what to do with themselves because their lives and routines have changed after the resurrection.

Isn’t that the way it feels sometimes when you lose some close to you?  You know they are alive in heaven, but you miss them and you miss living life with them. I bet the Disciples felt like that.  They know Jesus is alive, but it doesn’t feel like He’s there with them telling them what to do. 

Then Jesus comes along and they know it’s Him, and He says, “Come, eat some breakfast.”  And He reminds them that He is with them.  And He reminds them of what they’ve always done.  They enjoy life together.  They eat, they laugh, they live a joyful life together.

Oh!  What would you give to just eat some breakfast again with someone you love who’s gone?  This, in some way, is the glory of living in the Kingdom of Heaven.  It’s not just a place we go to when we die.  It’s a Kingdom we start living in now the moment we say yes to Jesus.

Jesus is with us now—walking with us, eating breakfast with us, living life with us.  And we believe in the “communion of saints”—that we are in fellowship with all the saints who have gone on to be with the Lord.  Hebrews 12:1 says we are surrounded by “a great cloud of witnesses” of the saints who’ve gone before us.  And you get the picture of a crowd of people cheering us on as we run our race of Christ.

So, this story in John 21 reminds us, we are not alone.  Jesus is with us.  The saints are with us.
And there can be joyful fellowship—even as we do the ordinary things of life, like eat breakfast.

Physical Resurrection
Finally, John's story shows us something powerful about what happens after we die.  We have physical and live in physical world.  This story is full of physical elements.  Imagine the sights and sounds of it. 

The disciples are in a boat, fishing.  Can you hear the water lapping against the hull?  Can you feel the chill on the air as the first rays of sunrise break through?  How about the smell of the charcoal fire burning on the beach as Jesus cooks fish for breakfast?  Imagine how the cool sand felt between Peter’s toes as he walked up to join Jesus.  

And Jesus and all the Disciples eat together.  Now that may seem insignificant, but it tells us that after we die, we aren’t just spirits floating around playing harps.  Jesus had a physical body—He cooked, ate, wore clothes, spoke and was heard by the people He loved.  And He knew them and they recognized Him.

If you want to know what eternal life is like, this story of the resurrected Jesus is a clue.  Jesus, resurrected, represents what we will all experience when we rise to eternal life like He did.  There will be eating, dancing, fishing, and we will have a body to experience it all.

But not a broken, corrupted body like the one we have now.  It will be perfect.  John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, believed our resurrected bodies would be real, recognizable, and physical—but no longer weak, broken, or dying.  You’ll no longer have get tired.  You’ll have ears that hear perfectly and eyes that see everything with full clarity.  We will have an increased ability to experience pleasure, beauty, and delight and live in a world more vivid because it is no longer broken. 

Closing Invitation
So, if you want to experience this glorious resurrection to eternal life promised to Christ’s followers, then I pray you will make a decision to follow Jesus.  Surrender your life to Him.

Not just part of your life—all of it.  Your plans, your identity, your future—place it in His hands.

Because this story reminds us of something very important:  Jesus isn’t just preparing a place for you someday, He’s inviting you into a relationship with Him today.

He’s standing on the shore of your life right now calling out to you: 
“Come… and have breakfast.”  Come and know Me.  Come and walk with Me.
Come and trust Me.  Come and live life with Me.

And for those of you who already follow Jesus, maybe you’ve been out in the boat for a while, working hard, doing your best.  But if you’re honest, the nets have felt empty.  Maybe you’ve been trying to do life—or even ministry—on your own strength.  This morning, Jesus is calling you back too.  Listen for His voice.  Trust His direction.  Walk closely with Him again.  Because when Jesus is there, empty nets don’t stay empty.

The same Jesus who cooked breakfast on the shore… is inviting you to walk with Him today—and dine with Him forever.

 

In Between, part 4 - Divisive Factions

Introduction
God’s 400-year official silence in between the Old and New Testaments was a pause that prepared the world for the most important Word God would ever speak—the Word made flesh, Jesus the Christ.  John 1:14, “So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.” 

We will celebrate the birth of that precious Word, Jesus, this week at Christmas.  But we have one more Sunday of Advent to go.  And so today, we will look at the last 100 years of the intertestamental period and consider the various factions that developed before Christ was born—factions that we read about in the Gospels that bitterly divided God’s people—and we will contemplate the bitter divisions in our own times as we wait for Christ to come fix our divided world.

 Isaiah 49:5-7

⁵ And now the Lord speaks—
    the one who formed me in my mother’s womb to be his servant,
    who commissioned me to bring Israel back to him.
The Lord has honored me,
    and my God has given me strength.
⁶ He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me.
    I will make you a light to the Gentiles,
    and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”

⁷ The Lord, the Redeemer
    and Holy One of Israel,
says to the one who is despised and rejected by the nations,
    to the one who is the servant of rulers:
“Kings will stand at attention when you pass by.
    Princes will also bow low
because of the Lord, the faithful one,
    the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

God's Chosen People
Israel is often called God's chosen people.  Some think this goes back Moses, because God sent Moses to deliver Israel from slavery in Egypt and lead them to the Promised Land.

God’s choice of Israel goes back even further to Abraham, because God chose Abraham and said, "Leave your homeland and go to a lad I will show you and I will make you the father of a great nation.  You won't even begin to count all your descendants.  And you will be a blessing to all the nations of the earth.  God chose Abraham because he was a man of faith who believed God, even when it seemed impossible. 

But really, God's choice goes all the way back to creation.  God chose to create people.  He didn't need people, but He chose to make people so they could enjoy the beautiful world He created and experience God's love and love Him too.    

God loves all people. He doesn't create some for destruction and some for salvation.  God created all people in hopes of sharing love.  And so, in this sense, God chose all people to be HIs people, but we are so stubborn and sinful we urn away from Him.

But God chose Abraham, because he was a man of faith, to be a blessing to all the nations and help people everywhere repent of sin and come back into a love relationship with God.  

And from Abraham, came Israel, a people who were to be a blessing. Israel was to be a kingdom of priest who brought all people back to God.  Unfortunately, Israel became puffed up by their status and blessings as God's people. They became proud and only wanted to satisfy their own selfish ambitions and build their own kingdom instead of seeing to God's mission to bring the whole world back to God.

Israel began to suffer the consequences of their selfishness and idolatry.  little by little, their kingdom eroded away until they oppressed and conquered by foreign empires.  And in their distress, they cried out for a Messiah to save them.  God said in Isaiah 49:6, I "will do more than restore the people of Israel to me.  I will make you a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”

America seems more divided today than it ever has been. We could learn a lot from the history of Israel's mistakes during the intertestamental period.  If ever there were a divided people, it was Israel by the time Jesus was born. 

Israel Between the Old and New Testaments
From the 500s BC until the birth of Christ, Jerusalem was ruled by a succession of foreign empires.  First, the Persia ruled Israel and allowed the Jews to rebuild Jerusalem and the Temple.  Then, Alexander the Great lead Greek Empire to conquer Persia and take control of Israel.  However, Alexander the Great died unexpectedly and his empire shattered into four smaller kingdoms--Macedonia, Pergamum, Ptolemaic Egypt, and Seleucid Syria. And so Israel was then ruled by Greek Egypt followed by Greek Syria.  Then the Maccabees revolted against Syria and a brutal revolution led to a brief period of independence when the corrupt Hasmonean kings ruled Israel.  Then, in 63 BC, the Roman Empire from the west marched into Jerusalem and took over. 

All these wars and devastations and instabilities gave rise to many different political and religious groups in Israel—each one believing they knew what was needed to make Israel great again.  Let's look at these various groups.

The Pharisee and the Sadducees
The Pharisees and Sadducees were both active political parties—backing different leaders and giving allegiance to various different foreign influencers through the intertestamental period.

Because the Greek Empire had been so successful in the Mediterranean world, people everywhere realized the Greeks had some really good ideas.  Therefore, people in many different countries adopted Greek ideas about government, military, philosophy, and even religion.  This process of becoming more Greek was called Hellenization.

Most people realized, if you wanted to get ahead in life and the global world, you needed to be more Greek.  The Sadducees welcomed Hellenization in Jerusalem and it helped them rise in social status.  However, the Pharisees wanted Jews to remain pure.  They didn't want any foreign cultural or religious influences seeping into Judaism.  The Pharisees were the scribes who copied the Torah.  They believed the Bible faithfulness to the Law of Moses was the way to make Israel great again.  So they set about teaching the Law on the streets and encouraged everyone to follow it perfectly.

While the Pharisees were loyal to the Torah, the Sadducees were loyal to the Temple.  They believed what everyone needed was to worship God with sacrifices in the Temple.  They were the priestly class who controlled the coveted and lucrative positions of the Temple order, including the position of High Priest.

The Pharisees believed in ressurection in the afterlife.  The Sadducees were "sad you see" because they didn't believe in ressurection.  They believed there was no life after death; this life is all you get.  So, they wanted to make the most of this life--earn all you can, gain as much power and influence, and enjoy the comforts of this life--because it's all you get.  The Pharisees, on the other hand, believed you should be willing to sacrifice your life for the sake of faithfulness to the Torah because God would reward you in the next life.

The Pharisees were seen as the party of the people, because they could be seen out in the streets teaching the Law to the common person.  On the other hand, the Sadducees the elite upper crust of society, wealthy, holding high positions, and were always in the exclusive temple.

Pharisees were very pious, trying to follow God's law perfectly.  For example, they refused to work on the Sabbath and even forbid people to have too many tacks in their sandals on the Sabbath because walk around with too many takes might be considered carrying a heavy load, which would be work.  The Sadducees, on the other hand, saw religion as a mean to get ahead.  They were often quit corrupt, using their political and religious positions for gain, selling appointments for bribes, cheating people with unfair exchanges in the temple, and getting rich off the people's tithes and offerings.

The Herodians and the Zealots
Another bitter division was between the Herodians and the Zealots.  When Rome marched into Jerusalem in 63 AD, they installed Antipater as their puppet king in Jerusalem.  When Antipater died, his son, Herod the Great, became king in 40 BC.  Herod was a ruthless and savvy king.  He murdered all his Jewish rivals including his sons, his wife, her 2 sons, her brother, her grandfather, and her mother.  This is the same Herod the Wisemen visited in Matthew chapter 2 when they were looking for the infant Jesus, which led Herod to order the murder of every baby in Bethlehem under 2 years old. 

Most people loathed Herod, but he was a savvy political leader who skillfully walked the fine line between being the political leader of Judea and a puppet king for Rome.  Herod’s rule divided Judea further between two opposing groups—the Herodians and the Zealots.

The Herodians supported Herod's rule.  Herod was not of the line of David, Israel's royal line from of old.  However, the Herodians supported Herod's dynasty as the new royal line of Israel.  They also sought to preserve Israel's autonomy by cooperating with the Roman's.  They believed rebellion against Rome was futile and would lead to Jerusalem's destruction.

The Zealots were a militant political party that opposed the Herodians.  The Zealots passion for the national and religious life of the Jewish people led them to despise Rome and even Jews who sought peace through cooperation with the Roman authorities.  The Zealots fiery nationalism meant they hated the Herodians.  They wanted to fight violently for Jewish independence.  They were even willing to resort to terrorist attacks, assassination, and killing their own people to restore David’s Kingdom, which they saw as God’s Kingdom. 

The Essenes
With all the division and strife in Israel’s broken world before Christ, many had given up on this world altogether.  Have you ever felt like that?  Have you ever felt:  "This world is just too dark, too evil.  I don’t even know how to live in this place.  I just wish I could run away to a lonely mountain and live as a hermit."  Or maybe you think, "I'm too social to be a lonely hermit.  I’ll join a commune with a bunch of other truly good people, and we’ll turn our backs on this evil world and start over and make our own good world, where there will be peace and love and happiness.” 

That was how the Essenes felt before Jesus came.  

The Essenes were the “preppers” of the ancient world.  They wanted to leave this world behind.  They realized the systems of this world were so broken, there was no hope for the world to be found in kingdoms and empires and political factions.  Even the established religious systems seemed broken beyond repair.  They rejected the Temple in Jerusalem as corrupt as well.  So they abandoned it all and moved away out into the wilderness.  They wanted to learn how to farm the land and be self-sufficient so they didn't have to depend upon markets and systems and governments of this evil world. 

We have the Essenes to thank for the preservation of the Dead Sea Scrolls.  While they were caching away food for their communities in caves in the Judean wilderness, they also saved the Holy Scriptures.  One day in 1947, a shepherd was wandering through the Judean hills.  He picked up a rock and through it into the mouth of a cave and heard something inside smash.  When he investigated, he found a clay pot with and ancient scroll inside.  It was an ancient copy of the Prophet Isaiah.  People often wonder, "How do we know if the BIble we have today hasn't changed from what was ordinally written?"  Well, in the Dead Sea Scrolls, we see many of the ancient biblical texts, over 2,000 years old, and they are the same as the texts we read in our Bible's today.  Thank you Essenes!

Many scholars also believe John the Baptist was either an Essene or deeply influenced by their religious movement.  And it seems very plausible.  John the Baptist lived in the wilderness, ate locusts and wild honey, and dress in animal skins (many similarities to the Essene's ascetic lifestyles as monks).  The 

The Essenes wanted to forget about the world.  The world could go to hell; the Essenes wanted to start over from scratch.  But by retreating from the world, the Essenes abandoned God's mission for Israel to be a light to other nations.  God doesn't want the world to go to hell.  God wants to save the world.  God did not send His Son to condemn the world, but to save it (see John 3:17).

Conclusion
This was the broken and divided world into which Jesus was born.  He came to bring light into the darkness and to show God came to save ALL people.

God’s Kingdom is not just for Jews or Jerusalem or Israel.  God’s Kingdom is for ALL nations.

And God’s Kingdom is not of this world. In other words, it doesn’t operate by the politics and principles of worldly Kingdoms.  It is not won by political maneuverings or by the might of a sword.  God’s King is a baby born in a manger and His Kingdom is won by a cross. 

It breaks my heart to look around at our broken world—divided between so many factions.  And everyone thinks their way is the only way.  And I feel great kinship with the Essenes, sometimes, and those who want to leave it all behind and move to a remote cabin in the wilderness and just forget about this broken world.  

However, God’s call for His people today is the same as it was in Isaiah 49:6,  “I will make you a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”  And Jesus said in Matthew 28:19 – “Go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” 

I believe Christ is coming again, just as He came 2,000 years ago. But when Jesus comes again in final glory, our Messiah will finally bring His Kingdom on Earth and all that is wrong will be made right.  In the meantime, in the waiting, I will do His work on earth.  I will take up my cross and follow Him.

And I hope you will too.

Come In Through the Gate

Introduction           

In Matthew 7:13-14, Jesus said, ¹³ “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. ¹⁴ But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.”  And in John 10:9 Jesus said, “I am the gate. Those who come in through me will be saved."

Looking back over my life, I am so thankful to the many people who helped me find THE GATE, Jesus Christ.  There was my Mom who took me to church as a child (and I know it wasn't always easy to take four kids to church who didn't always want to go).  There was my Grandma who instilled a deep respect for the Bible, the Word of God.  And as an angry young teenaged boy needing a father figure, there was my Karate instructor, Jeff Carmichael, who invited me to go to church with him.  As an 18-year-old getting ready to graduate high school, there was a girl named Laurie Stewart who I didn't even know, but she was my girlfriend's friend and had invited her to church; in turn, my girlfriend, Kelly (who is now my wife), invited me to that church--Wesley United Methodist Church on Harley Bridge Road in Macon, GA.  I'm so thankful to all of these people and others who invited me to come in through the doors of a church and meet with Jesus.  Each one influenced my life and the man I am today.

            Jesus told his disciples, “Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19)  And after his resurrection, Jesus commanded his followers--and us--to make disciples.  This is our mission, but how do we do it?  What are the steps? 

            Jesus demonstrated how we make disciples by the way he made his own.  Jesus started with only 12 followers.  He befriended each of them and invited them to come and be his disciples.  More and more people began to follow Jesus as people invited their friends to come meet Jesus.  Here's the pattern: 1) Start with friends (it all starts with relationships).  2) Invite people to come in through a gate.  3) Go deeper.  4) Go serve.  Today, I want to share about coming in through a gate.

Luke 5:17-20

¹⁷ One day while Jesus was teaching, some Pharisees and teachers of religious law were sitting nearby. (It seemed that these men showed up from every village in all Galilee and Judea, as well as from Jerusalem.) And the Lord’s healing power was strongly with Jesus.

¹⁸ Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a sleeping mat. They tried to take him inside to Jesus, ¹⁹ but they couldn’t reach him because of the crowd. So they went up to the roof and took off some tiles. Then they lowered the sick man on his mat down into the crowd, right in front of Jesus. ²⁰ Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the man, “Young man, your sins are forgiven.”

²¹ But the Pharisees and teachers of religious law said to themselves, “Who does he think he is? That’s blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!”

²² Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you question this in your hearts? ²³ Is it easier to say ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up and walk’? ²⁴ So I will prove to you that the Son of Man^[d] has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!”

²⁵ And immediately, as everyone watched, the man jumped up, picked up his mat, and went home praising God. ²⁶ Everyone was gripped with great wonder and awe, and they praised God, exclaiming, “We have seen amazing things today!”

Jesus Has Power!

            Jesus has amazing power.  He has the power to forgive sins and the power to heal (in the story it is the same thing).  Isn't it interesting that Jesus tells the paralyzed man, "Your sins are forgiven."  Yeah?  So what?  He can't walk, Jesus, and you're focusing on his sins?  If Jesus is focusing on forgiveness, maybe it's a clue to us all how important forgiveness is.  We worry about the looming problems of sickness, financial problems, who are we gonna date/marry, our career, our kids...  We are so wrapped up in these because we think they are the priority and Jesus says, "Your sins are forgiven."  Now we could get angry at the Son of God because he seems to misunderstand what's really most important in life, or... we could take a second look at our priorities and consider if maybe we are looking at things all wrong.  Maybe sin is the real problem.  Maybe the solution to our other problems is getting our lives back in alignment with God's will.  Maybe it's true for our friends too.  Matthew 6:33, "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need."
            Jesus says to the paralytic, "Your sins are forgiven."  This really bothers the Pharisees and teachers of religious law because only God has the power to forgive sins.  That's true.  But Jesus is God and to prove it he heals the man's paralysis as well.  I mean, anyone can say "Your sins are forgiven," but only God can tell a paralytic to stand up and walk and actually have him do it.  You see, Jesus has power!  He has the power to heal the lame and forgive sins.  He has the power of God!  And Jesus has the power to change your life.  But will you let him?  Will you come in to see Jesus?  And will you bring your friends to see Jesus so he can change their lives too? 

Key Idea
            The key idea today is in verse 18-19. “Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a sleeping mat. They tried to take him inside to Jesus, but they couldn’t reach him because of the crowd. So they went up to the roof and took off some tiles. Then they lowered the sick man on his mat down into the crowd, right in front of Jesus.”
            Whatever it takes, you’ve got to come in and see Jesus so he can change your life.  And if you're going to follow Jesus' command to make disciples, you've got to bring your friends to come in and see Jesus too. 
            The paralytic's friends were desperate to get their friend in to see Jesus.  They knew Jesus had the power to help.  Unfortunately, the door to Jesus was blocked by the crowd.  But they weren't going to let that stop them.  They climbed up on the roof and dug a hole to make a new door!  Whatever it takes, bring your friends to come see Jesus.
            At my church, we understand how hard it is to get people to come see Jesus.  As Jesus said, the road to destruction is wide and many people travel it.  But the gate to God's Kingdom is narrow and few choose to enter.  So, we try to make as many opportunities as possible--as many figurative gateways or doors for people to come in to meet Jesus.  Some of the gates we offer are:  Sunday Worship, lunch groups, Wednesday night dinner and study time, Rock Solid Children ministry, Youth, Sunday school, Bible study, the Elizabeth Circle, Chrysalis, and the Walk to Emmaus.  We also sponsor special events like vacation Bible school, Super Bowl Sunday, community Easter egg hunt, truck or treat, model train exhibit, etc.  These are all great ways for people to come in and they are excellent opportunities for the disciples of our church to bring friends to see Jesus.
            That being said, sometimes you just gotta make a new door! Like the paralytic's friends who climbed up on the roof to dig a hole and make a new door to get their friend in to see Jesus, sometime you might have to make a new door to get your friends in to see Jesus.  What could you do?  What new event, program, Sunday school class, Bible study, etc. could you help start that would get your friend or others to come in and see Jesus?


Challenge
            I'd like to repeat the challenge I made last week.  I challenge you to pick three people you can pray for, help, encourage, and mentor for the next year.  Discipleship all starts with relationships.  Pick someone to whom you can be a friend and help along.  Invite them to come in and see Jesus.  Carry them in on a mat if you have to!  Cut a whole in the roof and lower them down (not really, but create a new opportunity for them to come if you have to).  
            We can all probably think of someone who influenced us, encouraged us, invited us to church, prayed for us, or helped us along life's path.  Someone who made a real positive difference in your life.  Aren't you glad they cared enough to help you?  Why don't you "pay it forward" by helping someone else in the same way?  That's what it means to make disciples, to be fishers of men.
            In closing, I want to read a letter I wrote to thank someone who made an eternal difference in my life.  Maybe you would like to write a similar letter to someone who helped you.  You don't have to give to them; you can if you want, but just writing the letter will remind you how thankful you are and may encourage you to do the same for someone else so they can come in and see Jesus.

My Letter

Dear Children’s Church Helper,

You probably don't know me, but when I was 8-years-old, you used to help lead children's church at Pine Forest Baptist Church in Macon.  This was in the mid-80s.  Anyway, I’m sorry to say I don’t even know your name.  You see, I was just a kid and I only attended your church for a few short years.  But I do remember going to children’s church.  I didn’t really know any of the other kids, but you had a friendly smile that made me feel welcome.  I could tell you had a special joy in your heart and I’m so glad you shared it.  I wish I knew your name, because I’d really like to get in touch and let you know how much your efforts as a children’s church volunteer meant to me.

The Old Chapel of Pine Forest Baptist Church in Macon, GA

In children’s church, all the kids would gather in the old white chapel while the adults worshiped in the main sanctuary.  I’m sure it was a task to keep all the kids under control and focused, because we didn’t always want to be there.  But y’all did your best to help us have fun and learn something.  We would sing songs like: “Father Abraham” and “Do Lord, Oh Do Lord, Oh Do Remember Me” and “I’m in the Lord’s Army.”   Then, we would listen to a Bible story.  One Sunday, you told us about heaven and hell and about how Jesus came to save us from our sins so we could live with him in heaven.  You said we needed to let Jesus into our heart.  I knew I believed in Jesus and I knew I was a sinner and needed to be forgiven and to let Jesus in my heart.  But I was a shy kid and was afraid to say anything to anyone.

Y’all used to have an altar call at the end of children's church every Sunday and you would sing the old invitational songs like "Just as I Am" and "Earnestly, Tenderly, Jesus is Calling".  Well, I felt Jesus calling me to invite him into my heart during children's church in that old chapel while you were singing.  There was just something about your tenor voice and the way you seemed transported as you sang “Come home!  Come home!  Ye who are weary, come home!  Earnestly tenderly, Jesus is calling, calling Oh sinner come home!”  Even as a kid, I could feel it.

It took 3 weeks for this shy 8-year-old to get up the nerve, but I finally answered Jesus’ invitation to come home.  I walked to the front of the chapel while you sand and someone took me aside to pray to receive Christ in the good ole Baptist way.  I became a Christian that day and I’ve known ever since that one day I will be with Jesus in heaven.  And I’m so thankful I walk with him now.  Thank you for the part you played in my salvation.

You changed the course of my life.  I'm 44 now and I try to live my life for Jesus every day.  My faith in Christ carried me through some rough years as a teenager and the struggles of young adulthood.  But Jesus never let me down and led through it all.  I’ve been a Methodist minister for the last 18 years.  So, I just wanted to say thank you.  Thank you for giving yourself to the kids who attended children’s church.  There’s no telling how many eternities you altered, but I’m so thankful you altered mine. 

I hope you’re doing well and will always be willing to invite someone to church or just pray with them or tell them or show them God's love.  And whenever you have a chance, invite them to let Jesus come into their hearts.  Maybe they will, just like I did.

Sincerely, You're Brother in Christ,

Reverend Chris Mullis