How? - Part 1

God has got a plan for the planet. He has got a plan for our lives, He has got a plan for the Church – the big, big Church; every, single person who knows Christ personally – and then He has got a very specific plan for this church. And are you ready? And He has one for me and one for you that you are an irreplaceable part in what He really wants to do in a world that appears to be going downhill very, very quickly.

We asked the big question: Why? Why are we here? Why did God make us? Why is there the Church? Why this church? Why this time in history? In fact, why did Jesus come?

And I am going to suggest that Jesus came as the Savior and the Messiah of the world to bring life and to bring rescue and, yes, to forgive people for their sins. But you have a four-fold agenda that He had. Number one, He came to explain God.

In John 1 we learned that no man has seen God at any time but Jesus has explained Him. Jesus said, “If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father.”

The second thing Jesus did is He brought the kingdom.

And He said, “I want to come and dwell in you and I want you to live with Me and bring My kingdom, little pockets of heaven, on all these hurting places on earth.”

The third thing He did is He came to make disciples. And that is just a follower. He said to the early ones, “Follow Me and I will make you a fisher of men.” He didn’t come to bring people who would agree with Him intellectually, He didn’t come to start a new religion, He came – the King and the Creator – God the Second Person of the Trinity – He came to make followers who those of us who would realign all that we are, all that we have, our agenda and say, “I am going to follow You in Your steps. I am going to live the way You lived on the earth by the power of the Holy Spirit so that Your kingdom would come on earth just as it is in heaven.”

The fourth reason that Jesus came was to surrender His life. He said, “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto,” or, “to serve but He came to give His life a ransom for many.”

I tried to summarize it. The Church and you, exist to complete Jesus’ mission in our unique sphere of influence in this unique time in history.

In other words, when you really just ask the big “why” question is God created all that there is, He loves deeply, and Jesus launched a mission so that when He walked around and everything He did in His human body, we are now called – what? The body of Christ.

So we said your job at home, your apartment, at work, when you workout, when you go get coffee, when you drop off dry cleaning, when you discipline your kids – your job is to explain God.

Your life is to explain God. You are to usher in the kingdom. Little pockets of heaven. You are to make disciples and you are to willfully choose to surrender your life and die like I am to die and become a Romans 12 Christian and offer my life as a living sacrifice so free flowing, the Spirit of God could use you and in the process, give you an abiding joy that no amount of money or success could ever attain.

Here is our question for today: How? How do you pull it off? Let’s step back from our biblical, supernatural mindset or even your relationship. How could a Man, though fully God, not travel more than thirty or fifty miles, no satellite, no technology, no printing press; eighty percent of the population He is trying to reach is illiterate. How in the world, how in the world in the first century, His followers turned the world completely upside down?

By 313 A.D. there were sixty million people in the Roman Empire; thirty-three million. Over half of all the people in the Roman Empire were followers of Jesus.

How did He do it? How did He pull that off? What was His strategy? We know what He came to do and why He came but how did He do it?
And then how does He do it today?

Open your notes and let’s look at His strategy. As we look at His strategy, I am going to ask you to turn to Luke chapter 8. And what I want you to get is His strategy. The first seven chapters of Luke, we now get how Jesus’ childhood, He is born, He has launched His ministry, He has been tempted, things are really beginning to roll.

And so now what we see in Luke chapter 8 is the beginning of a strategy. I am not going to teach the whole chapter. What I want you to see is the big pieces of: how did He actually pull this off? I am going to suggest the first thing He does, He taught the multitudes. His strategy was to get thousands and thousands and thousands of people to listen to this message, this truth of God’s Word about who He was and about the kingdom.

We pick up the story, “And it came about soon afterwards that He began going about from one city and village to another proclaiming and preaching the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and sicknesses: Mary, who was also called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out.”

Notice verse 4, “And when a great multitude were coming together and those from various cities were journeying to Him, He spoke by way of a parable.” So to get it in your mind, think of a U2 or some great band and they are doing – it’s Chicago, okay? Then it’s LA and then it’s city to city to city. He is on a tour of cities and there are these huge events. He has been teaching, we learned earlier, in the synagogues. He has healed some people, He has cast out some demons, there is a buzz and He is the hottest thing going. And so now He is going on a circuit. And when He comes, thousands of people are showing up on hillsides. You got it?

So He teaches a parable and let’s follow and let’s read His first sermon here. It says, “‘A sower went out to seed and as he sowed, some fell by the road. It was trampled underfoot, and the birds of the air devoured it. Other seed fell on rocky soil, and soon it grew up and it withered away because it had no moisture. And other seed fell among the thorns and the thorns grew up and it choked it out. And other seed fell on the good ground and it grew up and it produced a crop a hundred times great.’ As He said these things, He would call out, ‘He who has ears to hear, let him hear.’”

That was His message. I don’t know about you, but I would be thinking, Whoa…man, what in the world is He talking about?

In fact, the second thing Jesus did is He spoke to the multitudes, but He equipped a small group. Did you remember that the disciples were with Him? And there were some women and they will be pivotal in the gospel going all around the world because no one cared about women. They were subhuman in the day and Jesus is doing very radical things.

Now, as we pick up the story, notice verse 9, “And His disciples began to question Him as to what this parable might be.” My point is, He teaches the multitudes and then He creates a small group because He wants to explain, not just: “This is what the truth is,” He is now going to help them understand: “This is how to live the truth out.”

So let’s follow along. “And He said, ‘To you it is granted to know the mysteries of,’” – what? The same thing, “the kingdom of God, but to the rest in parables, in order that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand. Now this is the parable,” He is explaining it now. “The seed is the Word of God. And the ones beside the road who heard God’s Word; then the devil came in and he takes it, away the Word from their heart, so they can’t believe and be saved. Those on the rocky soil are those who hear and they receive the Word of God and His truth with great joy, but they have no firm root; and they believe for a little while but in a time of temptation they fall away.”

Verse 14, “And the seed which fell among the thorns, these are the ones who have heard and they go on their way and they are choked by the worries and the riches and the pleasures of this life, and they bring no fruit to maturity. And the seed in the good ground, these are the ones who have heard the Word in an honest and good heart, they hold it fast and they bear fruit with perseverance.”

So in a small group, they hear the truth, now He is explaining what it means. Now He is going to apply it. He says, “For,” that’s always a reason, “for nothing is hidden that shall not become evident, nor there is any secret that shall not be known and come to light.”

He uses His little picture here. He says, “No one lights a lamp covers it with a container or puts it under the bed, he puts it on a lampstand in order that those who come may see.”

Truth all through Scripture is a light, Jesus is the light of the world. He says, “I am bringing God’s Word.” God’s Word falls onto four kinds of human hearts. Three people don’t respond very well, one person out of the four will respond with a good and honest heart and actually believe and trust and act on the truth. Their lives radically change.

Some people hear, blow it off. Some people, “Oh yeah! This is really, really great!” until they see the cost or temptation. And some people get distracted by money – the deceitfulness of riches – and just stuff.

And so He says to them, “I am the light of the world,” and what they don’t know yet is God is going to clearly reveal to them who He is and they will become the light of the world and He says God will place you in ways that everyone will see and understand, just like in a dark room, you light a lamp, you don’t put it where people can’t see it. It’s to illuminate the room.

He goes on in His explanation. Here’s a warning: “Therefore, be careful how you listen, for whoever has, to him more is given, and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has is taken away.”

Quick explanation, what He is saying is: lots of people hear. When Jesus says, “Hear,” He means if you really hear, you hear with the purpose in your heart to apply. Some people hear and say, “Oh, that’s interesting.” He says, “If you respond to the light or the truth,” when God speaks to you, when He whispers, Apologize to your wife. When He whispers, You know that person in the other cubicle? He is really hurting. I want you to reach out and help him. When He whispers, You may not normally do this and maybe they are going to rip you off, but I want you to give some money to that homeless person. When He whispers, You know what? I know you’re busy but I want you to facilitate a small group. I want you just to invite four or five of your friends. When He whispers and you respond, you get more light, more truth.

When you stiff arm God, He begins to reduce the light that you get. That’s why there are people that their Christian, their Christian experience is nothing more than duty and obligation, behavior modification, and sin management. There’s no supernatural power. There’s no joy. There’s no sense of expectation – God working.

It is because God spoke and God spoke and God spoke and God spoke and they began to get where they don’t even hear. And then now and then, because He is so kind, He breaks in, maybe like today, and He goes, whoo. And you go, You know what? You take a step and then exciting things happen.

Notice He says to these disciples, This isn’t about performance, it’s about relationship. And so He answered them and after He said this there was a report that came and said, “Jesus! Jesus! There are thousands of people out there. You are with this small group right here. Your mother and your brothers are here, they came to see you, but they can’t get through the crowds.”

The assumption is Jesus is going to say, “Whoa! Mothers and family are the most important relationship ever. Let me pause, guys. I’ll be right back.” But that’s not what He says. What does it say? Look at your Bible.

“He answered them, ‘My mother and my brothers are those who hear the Word of God and do it.’ Now it came about one of those days that He got into a boat and He said to His disciples, ‘Let us go to the other side.’” Okay, pause. I want you to guess His strategy.

He has developed a baseline, He has recruited the disciples, now the strategy is: How do we turn the world upside down? He teaches the multitudes, throngs of people. They hear the truth and the truth is the Word of God.

So what does He teach them? The truth about the kingdom. The truth about who He is. The truth about being a follower. And the truth about the price tag of surrender, but the joy and resurrection that will follow.

Then He gets a small group and He explains to them, “This is what I am doing. This is how I am doing it. This is how it applies to you. Here’s what is going to happen later.” They have the secrets of the kingdom. They hold each other accountable, they get supported, they mess up, they get hugged, they get loved, they get rebuked now and then.

And pretty soon they are becoming more and more agents of the kingdom. So here’s the issue. He is saying some really bold things. If you are going to follow Him, you know what you have to do? You’ve got to be able to trust His Word. Fair?

If He says, Go talk to that other employee, or He says, Go apologize to someone, or, I want you to relocate. You’re going to say, Wait a second! But that is what He is asking these guys to do. So what He does is He wants them to know that, I am not just the One who brings God’s Word. My Word, from God, you can trust one hundred percent of the time. Now, for some of you, you will be mildly frustrated because I am not going to teach the rest of the chapter. Your assignment is to read it, the rest, today – chapter 8. But let me tell you what is going to happen. And notice, I read the first part, Jesus said they have just experienced this: Word, seed, Messiah, family relationship isn’t blood. Family relationship is if you take God’s Word and you apply it.

The next thing He says, Okay, four scenarios. Let’s go to the other side, you’ll find professional fishermen in a storm. They are convinced they are drowning. They are absolutely hopeless. He speaks to the storm and they winds and the waves, whoo, and the moment He does it, look in your text, you can read ahead and listen to me at the same time. What do they say? “Who is this man?” What is He doing? He is revealing who God is.

Scenario number two. When they get to the other side, they are on a shore and there’s a demoniac. It’s a person who is filled with a legion of demons. It’s an impossible situation. People can’t hold him in chains. He cuts himself. He is a wild man. And when he rushes out, because Jesus spoke to him, he says, “Oh, Son of the Most High God, don’t torment me!” So the demons know who He really is.

And no one, the text makes it very clear, no one, at any time can control this person. Jesus takes the demons, casts them out of him into a herd of pigs, and the man is clothed in his right mind. It’s the picture of the kingdom. He is forgiven. He is delivered. He is loved. He is restored.

And then he says, “Can I get in the boat with you?” And Jesus said, “No. Go to where you are from and tell them the great things that God has done for you.” He gets back in the boat.

So, okay, I am a disciple, right? I am in on all of this. I am watching, watching, watching. Waves. A little bit later, Jesus doing something and if I’m James, “Peter, who do you think this Dude is? You know, the stories, I thought He was the Messiah but, man, that stuff. That calming the wind?”

And then, the next one, they lived in a very supernatural world, all kind of demonic activity. The demons listen to Him. He didn’t rant, He didn’t rave, He just spoke, poof! Now they get in the boat and when they land there is a man named Jarius and he is the head of a synagogue. He said, “Please, please, please come. My daughter is dying. Please.” And he is putting his life on the line, his reputation, like God wants some of you to do and wants me to do.

See, to openly say that I am a follower of Jesus, if you are a synagogue ruler, he is going to get booted because the Pharisees have said, “Anyone who thinks He is the Messiah or messes with this Guy, you’re out.” But you know something? If your daughter is dying, you don’t care what people think, like a lot of us.

You lose your job, you lose your house, your kid is in ICU, your marriage is falling apart, you know what? All of a sudden, you don’t care what people think. God, if there is a God, I need help. And so He comes.

And Jesus is on His way to help him and on the way, it’s like, again, the crowds are swelling. Think of the biggest event you have ever seen. Maybe some of these conventions lately, swarms of people. Or if you have ever been on a subway in New York City. Or, better, if you have ever been on the subway in Hong Kong, right?

People are packed everywhere and He stops, “Who touched Me?” And the guys are going, like, Who isn’t? He said, “No, I felt virtue. I felt power go out of Me.” And so there is a clearing and a woman comes and falls at His feet and says, “It’s me.” And the woman had an issue of blood and the text makes it clear she spent all of her money. It’s a female issue so it’s very, this is a risky thing to do. She, all the doctors can’t help her, she is completely broke, she is desperate. But she believes. “I have seen, I have heard, I have watched.” She responds. She touches Him. Whoo. She is healed.

And what does He say? “Daughter, your faith,” because that’s the agenda. She believes. “Your faith has made you well. Go in peace.”

Well, by now, the crowds are swelling and - storm, demons, woman healed. He gets to the house and they said, “Hey, forget it. It’s too late. You blew it. She died. In fact, she has been dead for a while.” And Jesus, audaciously says, “No, actually, she is just asleep.” They start laughing. They start mocking Him. “Who does this guy think He is?” He says, “Just everybody stay here, okay? Mom, Dad, you two. Peter, John, James, you’re going to need to realize who I really am. You guys can come up too.”

The little girl, about twelve years old, what does He do? Does He touch her? “Little girl, I say to you, ‘Arise.’” Whoo. She rises from the dead. James, Peter, and John go, “Ooh.” You know what they learned? I can trust Him.