“DESPERATE NEEDS FOR GOD’S CHURCH”
PHILIPPIANS 4:19
INTRO: Sometimes we hear people say, “I need this” or “I need that.” But so
often what we say we need is simply what we want. What many ought
to be saying is, “I want this” or “I want that.” There is a big difference
between needs and wants.
God has promised to supply our needs. Many folks say, “I pray and
ask God to supply my needs and He doesn’t answer my prayers.” The
reason these prayers are unanswered is because many of the things
that people pray for deal with their wants not with their needs. God
has promised to provide for our needs not our wants.
We, as a Church, have certain needs. The Lord has promised to
supply all our needs. Paul wrote in our text—“But my God shall
supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
What does God’s Word mean by these words? It means that God is
infinite and through Jesus Christ, we His followers, are given every
required blessing of grace, providence, and glory. WHAT DO WE
NEED FROM GOD AS A CHURCH? WE NEED…
(1) BIBLE CONVINCING
PSALM 119:105—“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my
path.”
A. WE NEED THE BIBLE TO INSPIRE US. We sing and preach about the
Lord like He means everything to us, but often we live our lives as if He
doesn’t mean anything to us at all! Friends, before we will be effective in
convincing others to come to know the Lord, the Church needs to be
thoroughly convinced that everyone needs HIM! When God’s people become
thoroughly convinced that everyone needs the Lord Jesus Christ in their
hearts, then they will become effective witnesses for the Lord. We need the
Bible to inspire us to do so.
B. WE NEED THE BIBLE TO IGNITE US. When Christians genuinely get on
fire for the Lord, they will begin to attract lost people into the house of God.
Fire always attracts people! And a Church on fire for God spiritually will
draw people. People will come from everywhere to see what is going on. We
they attend and see God’s people on fire, then that same fire will ignite their
hearts. Satan knows that the best way to make the Church ineffective is to
fill it with discouraged and disinterested people. God has promised to
supply all our needs! And one of the great needs of the Church today is to
be thoroughly convinced that the whole world needs this salvation we
possess and enjoy!
ILLUS: Someone has said that THE CHURCH is like the engine of an airplane
in flight…
· IT CANNOT BACK UP.
· IT DARE NOT STAND STILL.
· IF IT LOSES MOMENTUM AND FORWARD DRIVE, THEN IT CRASHES.
The CHURCH today needs that momentum of being thoroughly convinced
that this lost world needs the Lord! God’s desire is to attract a lost world to
Himself, and He has chosen to do this through His Church. But He cannot
do this through a Church full of people who are discouraged and
disinterested. We need to let the Bible inspire us so that we will be ignited
for the Lord. Ephesians 5:19-20 tells us we are to be—“Speaking to
yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making
melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God
and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” This passage of
Scripture tells us that Church should be upbeat and exciting, not dull and
sad! God’s Church should be known for excitement, not deadness. But the
truth of the matter is that when some people think of the Church, they
think of death.
ILLUS: Speaking of death in the church reminds me of a minister that went to
his church office on Monday morning and discovered a dead mule in
the churchyard. He telephoned the police. Since there did not appear
to be any foul play, the police referred the minister to the Health
Department. They explained, “Since there was no health threat, you’ll
need to call the Sanitation Department.” When the minister called the
Sanitation Department, the Manager said, “I can’t pick up the dead
mule without the authorization from the mayor.” The minister was not
too eager to call the mayor, who possessed a very bad temper and was
always extremely unpleasant and hard to deal with, but, eventually, he
called the mayor. The mayor did not disappoint the minister. The
mayor immediately began to rant and rave. After his continued rant at
the minister, the mayor finally said, “why did you call me anyway?
Isn’t it the job of the church to bury the dead?” The minister paused
for a brief prayer, and asked the Lord to direct his response. The Lord
led him to the words he was seeking, “Well, yes, mayor, it is my job to
bury the dead. But I always like to notify the next of kin first before
burying them!”
Satan wants every Church in America to be a dead church. God wants to
supply what the Church needs today. And the Church today needs
convincing. When we become convinced we will convince others! I truly
believe God’s method for Church growth is for people to catch on fire
spiritually and then set others on fire. If we don’t do it God’s way, we will
surely fail! We need Bible convincing so the Jesus we sing and preach
about is reflected in our daily lives!
We need BIBLE CONVINCING and we need…
(2) BIBLE CONVICTIONS
PHILIPPIANS 1:27-29—“Only let your conversation be as it becometh the
gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent,
I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one
mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; And in nothing
terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of
perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God. For unto you it is
given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to
suffer for his sake.”
A. NO COMPROMISE. For the Church to grow it must grow the right way.
Today we tend to measure success by numbers. But friends, drawing a
crowd is not evidence of success. God wants us to draw men unto Him,
but He does not want us to compromise His Word to do it! Many Churches
today do not know the difference between:
· REJOICING IN THE LORD AND DANCING IN THE FLESH.
· REJOICING IN THE LORD AND REJOICING IN TALENT.
ILLUS: I love good gospel singing, but I am convinced that many times people
leave these events talking about how great someone performed instead
of whom they sang about.
We are living in an age where many are throwing aside biblical convictions
so they can grow. Friends, I still believe what this Bible teaches and I find it
really hard to believe what is taking place in many so-called Churches
today! What are some of the ways the Church today has compromised?
Many cannot set the world on fire because they are not on fire. The Church
today has compromised in reaching the lost? How?
· WE HAVE COMPROMISED THE WORD OF GOD THROUGH OUR STANDARDS. Many years ago Churches had standards. God was special to them and they were SO CONVINCED He was special that they had BIBLE CONVICTIONS. Today, many Churches have no BIBLE CONVICTIONS. Rather than using God’s way of catching on fire so we can catch others on fire many have decided to compromise God’s Word. There are certain things we believe based on what this Bible teaches. We had better not compromise God’s Word! God has promised He would supply what we need! I truly believe that every Church needs some good Bible convictions that distinguish us from the world! If there is no difference between the Church and the world, then why bother to have Church?
B. NO COWARDICE. Philippians 1:29 says—“For unto you it is given in the
behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake.”
To stand up for our conviction and to not compromise we must have
courage. Sometimes living for the Lord means that we will have to suffer
for Him. It is not always easy being a Christian. But the rewards far
outweigh the suffering. Paul said in Romans 8:18—“For I reckon that the
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory
which shall be revealed in us.” If the glory that is to be revealed be the
enjoyment of God himself, then the sufferings of this life, which, when
compared with eternity, are but as for a moment, are not worthy to be put
in competition with this glory which shall be revealed in us. (CLARKE’S
COMMENTARY NT, VOLUME 6A ROMANS – COLOSSIANS by Adam Clarke. The Master Christian Library Version
5. Copyright 1997. AGES Software. Albany, OR).
We need BIBLE CONVINCING and BIBLE CONVICTIONS and also we need…
(3) BIBLE COMPASSION
MATTHEW 9:36—“But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with
compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered
abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.”
A. WHAT DOES COMPASSION SEE? The Bible tells us here—“But when he
saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them…”. Jesus saw
their distress. He saw their destination without HIM. Friend, let me ask
you, what do you see when you see the multitude? I truly believe that God
wants to speak to us today through His Word about our need for
compassion. The question is, Are we willing to listen? If we are going to be
effective as a Church, then we must be a COMPASSIONATE CHURCH!
I think most of us agree that we are living in a not so compassionate world.
Why? I believe it is because this is a hard-hearted society.
ILLUS: On national television in 2008, they showed a bunch of high school
girls that called a girl into a private room and beat her almost to death.
The girls videotaped the whole thing. As you watched this, it was
hard to believe that one human could treat another human this way.
The hard-heartedness of our society is seen every day on TV:
· BEATINGS.
· MUGGINGS.
· RAPINGS.
· ROBBERYS.
· MURDERS.
We live in a society where we have gotten used to violence and bloodshed.
Oh, how different than the compassion of the Lord Jesus and to the
compassion He calls us to show others. What compassion Jesus had for
the lost! The Lord stood on the hillside overlooking Jerusalem, and I think
He had tears in His eyes as He said—“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that
killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often
would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her
chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matthew 23:37).
B. WHY DOES COMPASSION SERVE? I want you to note the words in the
last part of Matthew 9:36—“…he was moved with compassion on them,
because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no
shepherd.” Friends, one of the great needs of the Church today is for
Christians to realize that their lost family, friends, and loved ones are going
to a Christ-less eternity if they do not accept the Lord Jesus as their
Saviour. There they will discover:
· HELL IS REAL.
· HELL IS HOT.
· HELL IS FOREVER.
Compassion serves because compassion cannot live with the thought of people spending eternity in hell. When we keep our mouths shut and do not share Christ with others this is the greatest lack of compassion that we can possibly have!
We need BIBLE CONVINCING, BIBLE CONVICTIONS, BIBLE COMPASSION, and we need…
(4) BIBLE COMBAT
2 TIMOTHY 2:3-4—“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of
Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the
affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to
be a soldier.”
1 TIMOTHY 6:12—“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life,
whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good
profession before many witnesses.”
A. REMEMBER YOUR RESPONSIBILITY. When you ask a military man if he
has been in combat, you mean, I know you have been properly trained. I
know you wear the uniform. But have you actually been in combat. Have
you been involved in war? Our Churches are filled with people that have
been trained for the battle. They have been to seminar after seminar. They
wear the uniform that shows they belong to God’s camp. But sadly, many
have never been in the battle. The Church today needs some men and
women who are willing to battle.
B. REFUSE TO RETREAT. Friends, when the Lord saved us we entered into
the battle for Him. 1 Timothy 6:12 tells us to—“Fight the good fight of
faith…”. As Christians who have accepted the Lord, we should say:
· I LOVE THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.