You Must Go!

Appreciate brother Rick for introducing my sermon in Sunday school this morning. He gave a little background that will help. And we're going to jump right into the verse, very familiar verse. I I choose a different verse for our theme for missions conference each year and I don't know that I I've used this one and so I I just felt led to the Lord to do it this year and to preach the message from it this morning. Mark sixteen fifteen and he said that as Jesus said unto them, them that that would be his disciples.

Jesus said unto them, go you into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Also, on John twenty twenty one, if you can look up on the screen for that if you wish, then said Jesus to them again, peace be unto you as my father has sent me, so send I you. Who is Jesus talking to? When he says, as the father sent me, so send I you. When Jesus says, go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, who is Jesus talking to?

Well, context, he's talking directly to his disciples. His disciples being the founders and leaders of his church of which we are members today. How did we become members? We when we heard the gospel of Jesus Christ and trusted in Jesus alone to be the Lord and savior of our life, We became part of the members of the body of Christ. So when Christ declares to his disciples that they have a responsibility to spread the good news of salvation to a lost world.

He is also talking to Missouri Avenue Baptist Church. Jesus is also talking to you, Christian, As well as they. The same burden they were given to carry is the same one that we must carry also. The good news. To carry to a world that needs him.

The same mission they were given is ours to carry out today. The same privilege they were afforded as ambassadors of the king to the lost world of their day is the same privilege we have today. And what an awesome privilege it is to be the ambassadors of Jesus Christ Amen. To this world. Amen.

I have said many times if the only reason Jesus saved you was to take you to heaven, why aren't you there? Well, you're not there yet because we have a job to do where? I'm here. We have a job to do here. Because there are many out there that need him.

Amen. They need to hear about him. They need to hear the good news of the gospel. They need to be taught and discipled that they in turn will tell tell others that our God would be glorified. Amen.

This church is not exempt and neither are its members. We are sent to the people of our day as they, the disciples were sent to the people of theirs. So, what exactly has Missouri Avenue Baptist Church been tasked with doing by our king, Lord, and savior. Well, what is the verse say in Mark sixteen fifteen? It says, go.

Go you into all the world. The command is, the imperative is to go. The word go means to traverse, travel, journey, depart. It implies a willful planned action taken with a definite goal in mind. Not just going haphazardly, not just it is purposeful.

Like when you go to the store, you don't just go to the store because well I don't have anything else to do. I think I'll just walk to this place where there's a bunch of stuff on the shelves. No, you have a purpose in going to the store. You're going there to buy something in most cases. Going to work.

You don't just show up there because, well, I just happen to feel like going to this place today. No, you go there to work. You go with a purpose and an intent. You go on vacation with a purpose and an intent. Nations go to war with a purpose and an intent.

God has called us to go, to go with a purpose and an intent. We can't just wait for them to come to us. If you'll notice, they're not flooding in the doors. They're flooding in the doors of the movie theaters. They're flooding in the doors of the taverns and the restaurants and the stores, they're all now open on Sundays but they're not flooding in the doors, I'm afraid of the church.

We're going to reach them, we must be willing to what? To go. With a purpose and a plan. To go and do what? Again, there is an intent to our going.

To go and preach the gospel, to preach the gospel that people might be saved and our God glorified. Preach means to proclaim or herald like a town crier standing in the middle of the town. We don't have those anymore obviously. We have television and cellphones and all kinds of different things. Back in the day, you'd have a town crier.

Had had an to make. Stand out in the middle of the town square. All around. So, everybody can hear. We are to go into Herald to proclaim the gospel that others may hear the good news of Jesus Christ.

There are some that have promoted in past years what they call lifestyle evangelism. That sounds good and part of it's true. If you're preaching and proclaiming the gospel but you're not living the gospel. If you're not living like a Christian to the glory of God, then it is going to hinder the message that you preach but it's not enough to live the gospel. You must what?

Proclaim. Proclaim. The gospel. To others around you. That's what that word means.

Luke fourteen twenty three and the Lord said unto the servant, go out in the highways and hedges and what? Them to come in that my house may be filled. Compel them. Go. Talk to your neighbors.

Talk to your coworkers. Talk to your friends. Tell them of Jesus. Tell them invite them to come to church that they may hear the word of God, that their lives may be changed. Tell them what God did in your life and how important he is to you.

Compel them to come in. Compel them to come to Jesus. Romans ten thirteen and fourteen, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him of whom they have not believed? How does shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard?

And how shall they hear without a what? Preacher. Without a preacher. Now, is it talking about the pastor of the church? No, the word preacher means proclaimer.

God has called me to preach to you Sundays and Wednesdays and other opportunities in this place. I am the pastor of this church but God has called you to be a preacher to your family. God has called you to be a preacher to your neighbor. Amen. To your coworkers.

For they need to hear the gospel too. And many of them will never enter the doors of this building. Or will never cause pass with this pastor. We must be proclaimers of the good news. Amen.

The good news, that is the gospel. It means good tidings. Have you ever been bursting at the seams to tell someone about some good news? I remember I was playing tennis with my son David who's now at college last year and he had been taking the SATs and the ACTs and he needed to get a certain score to get this scholarship to Bob Jones where he wanted to go. And he and we needed the scholarship and he had just missed it the first time by about that much.

And so he went and he took the test again and I was playing tennis with him and he got a text on his phone and he stopped and he checked the text and he had got not only that but about a 100 points higher than he had to get and and he was excited and it didn't take and by the way, my son, David, doesn't get all that excited if you know David and he was excited. He was bursting at the seams to tell me how he did. Has that ever been you? Maybe it was, she said, yes. Or maybe it is, we're going to have a baby.

Whatever the good news it was that you were bursting at the seams to tell, that's how we need to be with the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is what? Good news. Amen. It's good news that everybody needs to hear and if it's good news to you and Jesus has changed your life, then, you should want to tell it.

To others who need him too. That is the gospel. Missions is all about spreading the good news. The good news that Jesus has come, paid the price for your sin, risen from the dead, and offer salvation, forgiveness, and everlasting life to all. Who will believe.

You take away the gospel and you do not have missions, at least not biblical missions. Matthew nine thirty five, Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. What was he preaching? The gospel. Luke four eighteen, the spirit of the Lord is upon me because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor, has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.

Acts eight verse 25 and they when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord returned to Jerusalem, preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans. In Acts twenty twenty four, Paul said, but none of these things move me neither count on my life dear unto myself that I may finish my course with joy, the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus to testify the gospel of Jesus Christ. Romans one sixteen, for I am not ashamed of the gospel. For it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Missions is about the what?

The gospel. And without the gospel, it is not biblical missions. It's not just about feeding the poor. It's just not, it's not just about educating the ignorant. It's not just about building homes for the homeless or or planting crops for the starving or bringing medical aid to the sick.

All of these are laudable activities and activities which missionaries may include as part of their ministry to the needy around them but without the gospel, it falls short of biblical missions. An atheist can feed the poor. An atheist can educate the ignorant, build homes, plant crops, bring medical aid, but only a child of God. Can share the good news of Jesus Christ. Amen.

That can save the human soul and change their eternity. That is biblical missions. That is the privilege that we have to spread that good news, to spread it to our neighbors, to spread it to our family, to spread it to the uttermost parts of the world by going or giving or praying. It's important. More important than anything else you can do.

The Bible tells us that God's wrath get the next verse here. God's wrath is upon the sinner. He that believeth on the son hath everlasting life. He that believeth not the son shall not see life but the what? The wrath of God abideth on him.

The word abideth means this, it remaineth which means it already what? It already is upon the sinner and the only way to escape God's wrath is through the blood of Jesus Christ. The only way through faith in his name. What is the gospel? The gospel is this, the good news starts with bad news.

There is wrath. There is judgement coming to the sinner. And for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. God loves you. For God so what?

Love the world that he gave his only begotten son. He loves you so much. He sent his son to die for your what? For your dirty, rotten, terrible sins, to die for you, to take your place but God commended or demonstrated his love for us, for you, and that while we were yet sinners, unlovable. God loved us.

Jesus what? And Jesus died for us. What is the gospel? First Corinthians fifteen one through four. Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which pre which preached unto you which also you have received and wherein you stand by which also you are saved.

If you if you keep in memory what I preached in you unless you have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all, that which also I received, how the Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures, a risen savior can change your life and eternity forever. For he died for you. He is risen for you. He ascended up to heaven where he intercedes in behalf of all of those who come to him by faith but in order to come to him by faith, you must hear the what?

You must hear the gospel. For the wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. He that believeth on him, that is Jesus, is not condemned but he that believeth not is condemned already because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten son of God. If you will but humble yourself and repent and trust Christ by faith to be your Lord and savior.

The Bible says, you will be born again by his spirit into the family of God. And receive the gift of what? Everlasting life. Not by works of righteousness we have done but according to his what? His mercy, he saved us.

By grace, through faith, we are saved. And that not of ourselves. It is the gift of God, not of works. Lest any man should boast. In Romans 10 tells us that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, the Lord Jesus shall believe in thine heart that God has raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

You shall be saved. Your neighbor shall be saved. The person on the other side of the world shall be saved. There is no sinner too great that Jesus cannot save them. Unless they reject.

Is offer salvation. Let that not be you. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Go you into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. To whom are we to preach it?

Where are we to preach it? All the world, every part, not limited to any one location for God so loved the world. To all nations and all peoples, we will have all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth and the times of this ignorance God winked up and now commanded what? Whom? All men everywhere to repent.

That's you. We're to preach the gospel to every creature. For the Lord is not willing that any should perish. But that all should come to repentance. Are you here today and have never repented before God of your sin and trusted in his remedy in his son, in his sacrifice, in his power, to forgive your sins, and to save your soul.

If you're here this morning and you've never made that decision, then you remain, abide in the wrath of God but today, you can change that. You can come to Jesus. You can be saved and forgiven and begin a new life in Jesus Christ. As we close the service in a moment, if that's you, I pray you'll come. But I also this morning will also plead with you That you would take part in the command of Jesus Christ.

In this mission that God has given us, who know Christ as savior, that we would take an active part. And purpose in our hearts to reach the world for Jesus Christ. To reach your neighbor, to reach your friend, to reach your coworker, to reach the people in China, and the people in England, and the people in Uruguay. With the gospel of Jesus Christ that they too might know the savior that you know. To pray for our missionaries that we support.

To give that they might be able to continue to go. And to take the gospel with a purpose to your neighbor, your friend, your coworker, that they might know Jesus too. What is your plan today? Not what is my plan or what is the church's plan? But I ask you today, what is your plan?

Christian, for doing your part to reach others for Jesus Christ. To reach the lost around the world. What is your plan? Would you give? Would you pray?

Maybe God would call you to go. And what is your plan for reaching those around you that need Jesus? Are you just going to rub shoulders and pass them every day? Without a word. I don't call that a plan.

Take a track. Two, ten, twenty, hundred. I've got plenty. And begin to give them to the waitress or waiter that waits on you at the restaurant. Or the person at McDonald's that hands you the latte out the window.

To the neighbor that needs Jesus, to the coworker that you see every day. What is your plan? I pray that you would purpose with me that we might have a plan. As a church and as individuals to reach the world. For Jesus Christ.

Dear heavenly father, thank you Lord. For the wonderful privilege that you have given us today to know you, To know the gospel of Jesus Christ. To be saved. To be part of your family. What a joy it is to fellowship here today with brothers and sisters in Christ to lift up the name of Jesus, our savior, to proclaim the good news of the gospel.

And Lord, to talk about the importance of reaching others for Jesus Christ. Lord, I pray that you would give us a burden. I pray that you would give us a zeal. I pray that you would give us a plan and help us to carry it out. Reach those who need Jesus with the gospel this year.

To do a better job than last year. Lord, thank you for the opportunities you have given us. For this day, for this year, Lord, that you've given us. Lord, may we not let it pass us by. Let us preach the word of God while there is time.

For that time is drawing short. And people need the Lord. Lord, I pray if there's one here today that as we give this hymn of invitation, that they would come if they do not know you as savior. I pray Lord, as the Holy Spirit works in their heart that they might come. And be saved today For we love them but not as much as you do.

You gave your life for them. We know that you care for them. I pray they would come today. As we sing this hymn. In Jesus name.