Gifts That Guide Us to Tomorrow V, The Gifts of Sheparding Care

In the flood of information that you all received this week, I wonder how many of you picked up on the story I think that broke on Wednesday about a Times Mirror poll that captured the attitude in America toward immigrants, poor, the unemployed, and minorities. I don't know how many of you picked up on that. It was a major story. It was on all the network newscasts and editorials were going rampant the next day. About 5,000 respondents indicated very clearly that they were becoming more cynical and less compassionate than seven years ago. And as one commentator said, actually the person who conducted the study, it's not a pretty picture. It's mostly discouraging about the national mood. Attitudes toward these individuals have all hardened somewhat during the past seven years, despite the so-called rise in economic prosperity. What is this really all about? And there was a lot of responding going on in the media. Well, certainly it's saying to me that intolerance is on the rise once again, that the cycle of hatred that has so plagued America is probably just about to go into a new phase. And what it is certainly not saying is what I just read a moment ago from the lips of Jesus in Matthew 25. I want to go back to that passage. I want to remind you of the setting of those words. Jesus is very aware that in just a few short days he's going to be taken up to a hilltop and a huge cross erected and that his wrists are going to be driven through with spikes and his feet as well under this cross. And he was going to hang there and die for the sins of the world. He knew that this was his last opportunity before his death to speak to his disciples. And so he gave this his last sermon. How many the last thing someone says before they die is usually very important. And what he does in this passage, just to reflect on it again, is he paints what's called a prophetic scene of something that's yet to come. What's called the great judgment seat of God. And all the people of the world are gathered before the throne of God. And then he very carefully and specifically describes what happens to that group of people. They are broken into two distinct subsections. Some are called sheep and some are called goats. And the sheep have God's approval and are carried on with eternal life and glory with God. And the goats have God's disapproval and are sent away to what the Bible describes as eternal punishment. This is not the stuff of which bedtime stories are made for our little ones. This is eternally serious material. What's the basis of that approval? It's not, you know, what makes a goat and what makes a sheep? It's not how much money you made, how successful you were. It's not if your kids went to the right colleges and had the right degrees behind their names. It's not if you had good church attendance records and the right tradition. It doesn't matter where you were baptized. God says simply this, it's your love for me and your trust in me as demonstrated tangibly by your love for the least of these, his brethren. Jesus said you remember me when I was hungry and thirsty and alone and sick and in prison. But some of you never remembered me. And you remember the disciples were tortured back. Well, when did we see you in prison or hungry or naked or thirsty or alone? We don't remember that, Lord. And Jesus said, when you saw the least of these and you responded, you did it to me. The sign of the saved is love for God's people. I want to say that again. The sign that you're truly saved is love for God's people, particularly the little people. God has a peculiar passion, doesn't he? For the downcast, the downtrodden, the hurting, the sick, the brokenhearted. And if you really belong to him, you will share that passion. One of the things that you need to examine about your life is what do you think about those who don't have much? Because the heart of God is always toward the hurting. Brennan Manning in his wonderful little book called The Lion and the Lamb, The Relentless Tenderness of Christ, tells of a friend of his who overheard his father and a friend in a conversation. The friend of Brennan's is one of eight children. He was in the kitchen and his father, who is now elderly, was conversing with a friend. The friend asked the father, of all of your children, who is your favorite? Now imagine if you're that son and you're in the kitchen and you overheard that question, what would you do? He'd lean forward. He wants to hear the answer. And he goes something like this. Well, the old father sat back and thought, and he said, well, my favorite of my eight children? Well, my favorite would have to be Benjamin. You see, Benjamin's had some marital problems lately, and his wife left him, and he's got the kids there alone. Yeah, I would have to. No, no, it wouldn't be Benjamin. It'd have to be Tommy. You see, Tommy, he's in the military, and we worry about him. And he stays some far away, and we wonder if he has any friends there. No, it wouldn't be Tommy. It'd have to be Beverly. You see, Beverly and her husband went into debt over a house, and now they've got a mortgage that they can't meet. And now she's had to take a second job, and things are really good. No, it wouldn't be Beverly. And it would have to be. And as the conversation went on, it really was a monologue, the father named every one of his eight children, one at a time. And as he spoke the name, he spoke the pain that that child had, all eight of them. And then Brennan Manning makes the point in his book, when the father thinks of his children, he thinks of their hurts. And folks, I want you to know, when the Heavenly Father thinks of you, his children, he thinks of our hurts. And we all have them. We all have them. Now, as most of you know, today's message is about shepherding, the spiritual gift. We're in the middle of a series on spiritual gifts that guide us to tomorrow. And the gift of shepherding is very unique. It's interesting that in this passage, the Lord even refers to sheep and to goats. What is the definition, Kelly, please, of shepherding? What is that gift? Well, it's the divine enablement to care for and meet the needs of people in love, thereby guiding them on towards spiritual maturity in Christ's likeness. That's what it means to have a shepherd's heart and the gift of shepherding. Now, anyone with a sense of discernment can look around this church and realize we have a whole lot of people that need shepherded. And it doesn't take a lot of wisdom to figure out that if just the elders and the pastors are the shepherds of this flock, we've got a big problem. We can't possibly shepherd all the hundreds upon hundreds of people who call this their home. Because we all have needs for shepherding, for feeding and meeting and loving, the things that shepherds do. And it's okay to say, the Lord is my shepherd. I don't even know that. That's an appropriate statement. Yes, the Lord is my shepherd. But how many of you also know that there's a time when you need an earthly shepherd to come alongside of you and in the flesh to give you comfort, to give you assurance, to give you encouragement, to feed you some of the stuff of life? You know, when you face a job change, when you're trying to sort through a catastrophe like the plane crash, when the family seems to be melting down, when your financial stresses are mounting up, when physical problems don't go away, when spiritual growth seems difficult, you need a shepherd. You need somebody there to help you along the way. And how do you do that in a church like North Way? I mean, how do we all find a shepherd? It can't be me or Scott or Jeff or Grant or Gene. There's not enough of us to go around. Now, this question is a bit rhetorical for those of you who've been here a while. You know what I'm going to say. How do we shepherd a congregation like this? We shepherd one another. One another. We all become shepherds to one another. And not just shepherds at random, but shepherds within the context of smaller little flocks or small groups. We call them here North Way community groups. You see, from the earliest days of the church, the Bible says in Acts chapter two, they met all together in the temple and what? House to house. Right from the beginning, the church knew it wasn't good enough just to gather in the temple and meeting, praise and worship, but they met in house to house. Not by default, but by design. The early believers knew that there was no way they could shepherd one another if it was just a big gathering. So they met in these smaller groups. You know, the Bible says 33 times to do some things with one another. 33 different one another's. Pray for one another. Forgive one another. Care for another. Honor one another. Encourage one another. Rejoice with one another. Mourn with one another. And you know what I'm discovering? That consistent contact with certain individuals helps me to learn how to do all those things. But if I'm just randomly encountering people, I don't ever get down that line very far because usually it's too superficial. But the early church didn't just do it because it was a practical necessity. They did it because they saw that Jesus Christ himself had a small group. Does that get lost on us from time to time? Does it get lost in you that the son of God had a small group? He had a whole group. And they were a bunch of turkeys, if I read my Bible correctly. I mean, he had a lot to put up with. And it's very clear that Jesus was committed to them. In fact, we could say without a shadow of a doubt, Jesus vet the farm of his mission on those 12 men, one of whom later betrayed him. He believed in small groups. He believed that the mission would not be accomplished just by his preaching, just by gathering on the mountainside and proclaiming it. He believed it would only be accomplished by a commitment to a small band of people. Church, help me now. I need some help here. Why is it then, with the clear testimony of Scripture, with the clear model of the life of Jesus, why is it then, help me, that we Bible-toting, enlightened, Spirit-filled, mobile-phoned, multiple-card Christians so often choose to not be involved in a small group? What reasonable excuse can we offer to God? If I were to ask you to raise your hand and say, how many of you want to be like Jesus? Most of you who are walking with us for some time would say, I do. Some of you are still checking this out. If I were to say, how many of you would like North Way to have the same dynamic and power as the New Testament Church? Most of you would say, yes, yes. And I would say, now how many of you want to be part of a small group to make that happen? And hands just remain strangely folded. Help me with this. Why is it? And I know some of you have tried this, and maybe it's bombed. And when I say, well, are you in a small group? And I hear like the Mountain Dew commercial. Done it, been there, tried it. That's probably not quite enough. You see, it doesn't say try it once, and if it doesn't go, just drop out. It says, this is the way life changes, transformation, glory to glory, whatever you want to call it. This is the way it happens. This is God's design. And as a result, I have to tell you, there are many, many times I stand up here, and I look way in the back, and I look in the middle, and in our new sanctuary, I mean, it's even going to be more imposing as I look and see hundreds and hundreds of people who are, as Jesus said, like sheep without a shepherd, discouraged and wandering. And you know what I can chronicle with great detail over the last 13 years? People at North Way who fall out of shepherding groups, out of home groups and community groups, who fall away from group connectedness, eventually fall away from the church, and many times drift away from the Lord. Now, I'm not saying that they're not going to be saved. I'm just saying that they are going to miss God's plan and purpose in their lives. Because the Bible says it's not an option, it's how God designed things to be. And this has so impacted me. I think here at North Way, we are full, I mean, we're full of good intentions, but not always the right follow through. It reminds me of a story I heard just a couple weeks ago about a fellow who got on a train somewhere in Kentucky, and he needed to get off that train in Chattanooga. So he asked the porter, he says, what time does this train go through Chattanooga? The porter says, 2 a.m. Well, the fellow looks right at the porter and says, you've got to get me off this train at 2 in the morning. I'll be dead asleep, but you've got to wake me up. Do whatever it takes to get me off this train, because I've got the most important appointment of my life at 8 a.m. in Chattanooga. You've got to get me off this train. Well, the next morning, the passenger wakes up in Atlanta. And he jumps up out of his chair, and he finds the porter, and he grabs him by the lapels, and he chews him up one side and down the other, and then storms off the train in a rage, leaving the poor porter just standing there shaking his head. And a friend of the porter comes up and says, you know, I've never seen a man as angry as that one. The porter scratched his head and tilted his hat and said, well, if you think he was angry, you should have seen the one I put off the train in Chattanooga at 2 in the morning. Good intentions are fine, but church, it takes a sense of doing what's right. I want to tell you what really concerns me this morning is what I bear pastorally for many of you. I don't know why this is. You know, I have to say, because of Roy Thompson and Jack and Doug and hundreds of you who've helped with our building, I don't wake up at night thinking about the building. I wake up at night from time to time thinking about what's going to happen when some of us stand before the Lord. What are we going to hear? What's he going to say? I have a sense that some of us are going to pull out a laundry list of excuses as to why we didn't care for one another. Lord, I was so busy. I tried so hard to do so many things, and I had so many problems, and I needed my relaxation, and I had to make ends meet, and I had to have my kids in ten different activities. And I think all of our excuses are going to seem awfully inadequate on that day. I know this congregation fairly well, and I doubt seriously if many of you will leave here today and go and encounter a hungry or thirsty or naked or lonely or imprisoned person. I mean, it just doesn't happen that way. Some of us send money to ministries and missionaries hoping that we can maybe ameliorate our guilt about this and somehow vicariously participate in the meeting of needs. We do that, but every one of us recognizes that's not exactly what Jesus is saying here. And we wonder, is what we're doing good enough? And we all are convinced that we're going to be among the sheep, not the goats. And some of you are thinking, J.R., you're taking this so literally. I mean, maybe Jesus left some room for interpretation. And I want to say now the very point of the message is I believe that he did. Here's how I want to wed these two concepts, these two ideas, of this eternal moment of God evaluating our lives and our actions and this issue of shepherding. God's been pounding this into my heart for two weeks. See, what really matters to God in this life, dear ones, what really matters to him, what brings approval for this life and eternity, in one word, is love. 1 Corinthians 13 says it really clearly. Faith is important. Can't please God without that. And hope, oh my goodness, hope gives life wings. But love, it's the greatest of virtues. Love is not just something we do in word or in creed, but in truth and in deed. Love for God and trust in him as demonstrated by love for one another. So how do we do what Jesus said here in Matthew 25? Do we all sell everything and go to India and come alongside of Mother Teresa? And that wouldn't probably be a bad thing for some of us to do. But I don't think that's what Jesus is saying. I think that the Lord would say to us today here at North Way, he would say, learn to love in a better way. Learn to love as I did. Learn love of a better kind. Right here where you live. And you learn it in two ways. You learn it by spontaneously being aware of the needs that you see, number one. But more importantly, you learn love of a better kind by learning to share your life with a small group of people who are growing together in this thing called love. That's how you learn it. Where are these people that Jesus describes? Well, they're out there. I mean, there's needy people. But you know what? It's not just the kind of need that we think of in terms of those who are poor or homeless or whatever, which we never see out here. But you know what? I think that Jesus also wants us to put the glasses on that help us to see that profane person next to us as one of these. He's one of the least of these. I was at a recent football game for our school. My son's school, I should say. I guess it's mine. I own about a third of it, I think. And one of the parents started going on and on and on, cursing. First of all, the coach, because his kid wasn't playing much. Then the referees, because they were blowing the game in his mind. He was going on and on. I mean, it was coarse. It was ugly. And I find something in me wanting to recoil from that and slide down the bleachers, you know, and just, all right, let this guy go. But God wouldn't let me do that. And I turned to him, and I said, You're pretty unhappy, aren't you? He said, You're blankety-blank right. And I didn't pull out the Bible and said, You know, one of these days, you're going to give an account for every careless word. I was thinking that at first. But I said to him, Well, you know, maybe I should turn around, and I bet things will turn around. And it was amazing how that one little expression, I mean, it was not profound. He turned, his whole attitude just started to spin a little bit. And I know that at some point I'm going to be able to go back to him and build a bridge. And now I'm praying for this guy. I'm sure he's a nice person. Then you see, God showed me he's one of the least of these. In spirit. And he's loved. But we also see those people. We don't have to go out there to see them. Folks go everywhere in this body, in this auditorium. Twice today, this auditorium will be relatively full of people who are in need. There are hungry people here spiritually. There are thirsty, dried-up people here in their souls. There are lonely people throughout this auditorium today. There are people who are clothed in something other than the robes of God's righteousness. There are people here who are imprisoned in addiction and bondage to some kind of thing other than what God would provide for them. And the Lord flooded my mind these last days with the possibility that what he really wants us to learn to do is a better kind of love just by reaching out to the people around us. Because when we extend love to that neighbor, that person, that one next to us, we are extending love to him. And it's love of a better kind than I'm used to giving. And when we fail, when we withdraw, when we just pass in the hall and say, I don't care how you're feeling, I'm getting in my car first. We fail to extend love. When we say, I don't want to be part of your group, I don't need your problems, we fail to love Christ. See, the Spirit of the Lord is saying today, look around you and purpose to learn that kind of love so that that day that you'll stand before him, you can say, Lord, I don't remember seeing you at North Way. I mean, there were great times of this and that, but I don't know you. And he'll say, when you did it to the least of these, you did it to me. Where do I begin with this? Well, follow Jesus' example. I mean, be open. You may be going down the hall to coffee this morning. God's going to intersect you with someone that just needs some little thing from you. Some little interest, some little expression. But more important, discover a small group where in the context of consistent contact, you can learn how to love people. How do you love the Lord? You know what, church? It isn't... I was talking to Susie about this. The charismatic movement and the worship life that we've all so enjoyed, one of the great weaknesses of that movement was it never translated into acts of love to people the way it could have. And I think now God is saying, yes, I want worship and I want your heart to be lifted, but I also want you to show your love by demonstrating it to people that I put in your path, people all around you. Because Jesus said, when you do that, when you gather in groups, I'm there, Matthew 18, 20, in the midst of you. You know what I've discovered when I'm with my small group? When I look at those people and listen to them as if that was Jesus Christ talking, I have a whole new attitude about what they're going through. One of the men in my group is battling a life-threatening disease. And when I listen to him, I listen to him as, what if that were Jesus there? And I try to get inside of him and feel with him. And many times I'll walk away and find that he's encouraged me with his faith. One of the other guys in my group has been dealing with a big decision about his future and his career. And as I try to tune in there and try to just be a shepherd to him, I've discovered something in me is getting stirred up and wanting to know more clearly how to hear God and how to walk with someone who's facing a tough decision. Dear ones, do you see the need? Do you see the need for us to not just be thinking about, well, the poor way out there around the world, but those right around us, the hungry, thirsty, lonely, in prison, and naked ones who need us to love them? In a consistent way. Let me end with this now. You say, well, gee, we haven't even gotten to the three points yet. Let me just talk about the simple way that we do this. Small groups, you see, they're not a better way to do church. Small groups, they're about a way to show a better kind of love. How can we do it? Number one, a better kind of love is very simple to do. The ultimate kind, the eternal kind of love that is from God and pleases God is not complicated and difficult. Notice this passage doesn't say, I was sick and you built me a hospital. Or I was hungry and you created a welfare program. There's no bureaucracy here. It is just simple acts of kindness and love. I was sick and you cared for me. I was hungry and you fed me. You see, in those small groups, you will learn that little acts mean a great deal. You call someone in your group and when they hear your call, that encouragement blesses them. You take a meal over to someone, a worn out mom or someone that's been bedridden for a reason or whatever, and what an encouragement that is. It helps them along the way. Or you stop in to visit somebody who can't get out of their house and you lift their spirits. Or you pray over one who's been imprisoned by a problem. These little acts, every one of you can do them, church. You don't need anointed some special way. You don't need to be ordained. You don't need a car or a parking spot. You just need to go and do it. These aren't heavy duty budget busting programs. They're simple acts of kindness. But they are always noticed by God. That's what I want you to see. Jesus always sees them every single time even if no one else ever acknowledges you. You know, St. Francis of Assisi was sort of a hero of mine because of the way he modeled his commitment. He said these words, which some of you I know have heard. He said, Preach always, if you must, these words. And one of his students, one who looked to him to mentor him in his growth into ministry, and he wanted to be a great preacher. He said to Assisi, Let me follow you and learn how to preach. And Assisi said, Fine. So they left the Abbey one afternoon and headed into the village. And this little student, young student, was questioning him and asking this about his preaching and how do you do this and where do you go for that. And finally Assisi turned and said, Just wait and watch and you'll learn how I do it. And so they got into the little village and they stopped. And the first thing Assisi did was to visit a butcher whose child was very ill and they prayed for him. And then they went on down the street and they stopped in the home of a woman whose husband had recently died and they comforted her. And then they went down to the side street and found a little homeless orphan that they gave some food to and walked her to a shelter where someone could care for her. And on street after street and corner after corner, every stop, they were always kind and sensitive, always being sincerely concerned and interested in that person. Well, at the end of this little journey, the student turned to him as they were leaving the village and he said, You know, that was wonderful. I'm sure it was good and significant. But you never preached. And that's why I wanted to go with you. And Assisi turned and looked at him and he said, Every stop we made, we preached a sermon. Every kind word we offered was a message from Christ. It's simple. You can do this. Hebrews 6.10. The Bible says this. Listen, this is what the Lord says His promise to you in His word. God is not unjust. He will not forget your work and love that you have shown Him as you've helped His people and continue to help them. So number one, it's simple. Number two, a better kind of love is significant. Never forget that, loved one. As you go around the circle of your small group, if you're part of one, each one of those people represents Christ in what you do of kindness and listening and caring and providing. For them, you do for you. How often do you think of your home group that way? How many times have you been in that home group and you look at that person and you say, Gee, I'm so tired of that person. I so wish that they'd wear something different. I wish they'd get there on time. And we go down the list. Try this just one time this week in your home group. Look at that person as Christ. And see if it affects your attitude. I tried that this week. And I have to tell you, you know the biggest change that happened to me? I listen more and talk less. You don't have to do much for that group, but it can be very, very significant. Last week, I was out in the hallway in between the services, just ready to come in here to Jim Ryan and speak again. And I heard this loud, kind of bold, Pastor Jay! And from way down the hall, I stopped, turned around. And a man that I knew had been in the hospital for weeks with an injury and was recuperating and having difficulty, I'd sent him a card about two weeks before that. And he came up to me and he said, I just want you to know how much that card meant to me, to know that you were praying. And you know what happened? I just was overwhelmed at how, I was embarrassed how little an act that was, but how much that meant to him. It was significant. And dear ones, it will be significant for you as well. A small act of kindness, it's significant. Remember, you know, we think that we have to do big things. No, little things. You know, Jesus is marvelous to me in that at this point in his ministry, you know, Jesus could have kind of called his shots. He could have ridden around the hillside in the gardens of Galilee in a white-stretched limo with gold wheels, you know, and a big J on the door. I mean, once you hit the seven on the mount and do a few hot miracles, you were in demand back then. But you don't see that. You see him always making time to do the little things for the little people and always being with his group of twelve. I don't know why we think it has to be different. It's significant. Dear ones, we're never more God-like than when we relate to those in need, when we're forgiving our enemies, when we're helping the hurting. And sometimes these people are right here in front of us. I need to close. Time's about gone. The third thing I just want to touch on is this. Your little acts, they're simple, they're significant, but a better kind of love is always sincere. Does it strike you as interesting that the disciples didn't even know that they had done these things? And I have learned this, and I don't mean this, don't put any wrong spin on this, but I am discovering that many times, maybe you've found this too, the people who are really making a big difference in the kingdom of God are people who don't think they're making much difference at all. Have you noticed that? It's not usually the more visible, you know, up-front people that really knock me out. It's oftentimes just the people who don't even know what they did. I remember Jack Hayford years ago when I was a student in seminary, I watched him teach, and I said, I'd really like to be like that, and I sat under his ministry. But the most impactful thing he ever did for me was one day he invited me into his home. And that little act of kindness, relief, it changed my perceptions. It blessed me. God's ways are not our ways. He judges the worth and value of what we do on a totally different scale as the song that we sang earlier. And when we wonder, Lord, when did we do that for you? When did we care for you and clothe you and feed you and visit you? And he'll say, let me tell you when you did it, when you made time. It's a better kind of love. And some of you say, I want to be real honest here, Jay, this is hard for me. Folks, as I end the message, I happen to know that many of you are feeling like, well, you know, you just don't understand how busy my life is. And I suppose I could say that I really probably don't. But I know how busy mine is. And I know that if I don't make time, I will find my life fleeting by, racing toward its end with the possibility that I never really learned to love. And you know what? I want to say this as I end. Our building is going to be a great blessing. It's going to be a marvelous testimony to God, to your faithfulness, to your hard work. But if love doesn't permeate the people of that building, it'll be a hollow shell. It'll never become what God wanted it to be. And I know that God wants your love to fill that place. Jesus says you've got to learn love for the least. You've got to open up your circle of friends. You know something? Push me on it just a little bit. I love my family, and I love my close friends. I mean fairly well, I think. I try. But you open up that circle just a bit, and I start putting, and I don't even know where they come from, some qualifiers on my love. Well, you better be, you know, stable, and you better be deserving, and you better be this, and you better, and I don't even know where it comes from. What about you? How about your circle of love? I mean, after your family and friends, what kind of qualifiers do you put on your small group? You better be white. You better be black. You better be liberal. You better be conservative. You better be pro-life. You better be rich. You better be educated. You better live in the right community. You better have good kids. And dear ones, that's not the kind of love that I read about in the Bible. That's not the kind of love. Jesus loved recklessly and with abandon everyone that crossed his path, even the twelve, most of whom were not worthy of his love. And so I say, Lord, fill us with your love, a better kind of love. Let us be shepherds to one another, not just so that we can say, well, I did what I was supposed to do, but so that we can hear on that final day, when I was sick, when I was hungry and thirsty, when I was in prison, you came to me. And we'll say, Lord, when did we see you? And we'll say, when you did it for the least of these, you did it for me. Let's stand.