Jan 22

Jan 22 Urgency of the Gospel

Take a moment and grab an index card or a small piece of paper.

I want you to write down the name of an individual who led you to Christ or who has mentored you in your walk with Christ.

I have learned that writing things down helps in remembering and visualizing what needs to be done or remembered. It aids in prioritizing and giving focus on those things.

We’ll come back to the index card in a moment. For now keep them in front of you.

A few Sundays ago Pastor Bob spoke on Esther 8 and in that he mentioned something that has stuck with me.

In Esther 8 it reads

“At once the royal secretaries were summoned—on the twenty-third day of the third month, the month of Sivan. They wrote out all Mordecai’s orders to the Jews, and to the satraps, governors and nobles of the 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush. These orders were written in the script of each province and the language of each people and also to the Jews in their own script and language. Mordecai wrote in the name of King Xerxes, sealed the dispatches with the king’s signet ring, and sent them by mounted couriers, who rode fast horses especially bred for the king.”

Pastor Bob mentioned the urgency of the message that was being sent out and he related this to the urgency of the gospel in our lives. He spoke on the similarities between the two and that just as Mordecai helped in issuing a new decree that aided in rescuing the Jews, there is a new decree for us today as well. The gospel message is our new decree. We no longer follow the decree of sin and death, but now have a decree to live in Christ and enjoy freedom in Him. There is a joy to be found in the future promise of Jesus’ return.

The word urgency has really stood out to me in all of this. The word itself prompts the idea of moving quickly or the idea of something carrying the weight of being important and of value.

We see this in society all over the place. When we order something and need it quickly we put a rush on it. We pay the extra cost and have it shipped overnight. If we send a message and don’t receive a response quick enough we can “react” to that message in order for that person to receive a notification again. Don’t feel like going inside to a fast food place? Easy, we go through the drive-thru, and if it isn’t fast enough we complain because we didn’t receive our greasy fries and overcooked burger as quickly as we would have liked it.

But I want to suggest another perspective to this word urgency. It is the idea that urgency does not always warrant speed, but it is to be more precise and accurate in its delivery.

“Urgency does not always warrant speed, but it is to be more precise and accurate in its delivery.”

Notice in Esther 8 that the message was being sent to 127 provinces stretching from India to Cush (that is approximately 2,682 miles!). It had to be scripted to each language including to the Jews and their language. The message was sent on mounted couriers riding horses specifically bred for their speed.

It was not an overnight process. It would have taken a while, maybe days or weeks or months, to have the messages scripted and then sent out and delivered. There was no time to waste. The lives of an entire ethnic people hung in the balance.

This reminded me of a very familiar passage, several in fact. The first is in Matthew. It says this

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

We see the Great Commission is given to the 12 disciples by Christ himself. There is an urgency. Christ tells them with all the authority to go and make disciples of all nations. That is a little more than 127 provinces and a lot fewer couriers than there would have been in Esther 8.

The disciples had a message to take out to the world. We see in Acts that they were to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the rest of the world. After all the disciples had experienced and witnessed up to that point I believe they understood the gravity of that command. They didn’t just settle in and call it quits after Christ left. I believe there is no coincidence that the book of Acts follows the four Gospels. There was a movement. The couriers went out with the message of a Messiah who was born, who died, and who was raised on the third day and defeated death to save the entire world.

It was a message that was so urgent that nothing would stand in their way to deliver. I am reminded of Paul’s suffering found in 2 Corinthians 11 in which he states

I have worked much harder, been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea, I have been constantly on the move. I have been in danger from rivers, in danger from bandits, in danger from my fellow Jews, in danger from Gentiles; in danger in the city, in danger in the country, in danger at sea; and in danger from false believers. I have labored and toiled and have often gone without sleep; I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked. Besides everything else, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I do not feel weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not inwardly burn?

I doubt any of us have had to endure such things. Very few have had to gone as far as giving their lives for the message of the Gospel. Though we do not face such hardships and persecution, the urgency of the Gospel still stands.

“Though we do not face such hardships and persecution, the urgency of the Gospel still stands.”

What are we to do with this command of making disciples?

Discipleship does not just happen. It does not occur by simply scrolling through Facebook and trying to peek into someone’s life or simply saying “Hello!” to someone, asking how they are doing all the while continuing to walk away. We need to be intentional about cultivating deep, honest relationships in which we do spiritual good to other Christians. While we can have discipleship relationships anywhere, the most natural place for them to develop is in the community of the local church. In Jerusalem, if you would. In the church, Christians are commanded to meet together regularly, spur each other on in Christ-likeness, and protect each other against sin (Heb. 3:12-13; 10:24-25).

The discipleship relationships that spring out of this type of committed community should be both structured and spontaneous. When we study the life of Jesus in the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), we see that he spent time formally teaching his disciples (Mt. 5-7; Mk. 10:1) such as we do during Sunday morning worship, and small groups, while also allowing them to observe his obedience to God as they did life together (Jn 4:27; Lk. 22:39-56).

In the same way, some of our relationships should be structured. Maybe two friends decide to read a chapter from the Gospel of John and then discuss it over coffee or a workout at the gym. Maybe two couples do a date night together once a month and talk about what the Bible says about marriage. Maybe a godly older woman has a younger woman over to their home on an afternoon to pray and study a Christian biography. Maybe men spend time together once or twice a month and enjoy a meal together while studying the Word.

Regardless of the format, some of our discipleship should involve scheduled times of reading, praying, confessing, encouraging, and challenging each other to become more like Christ.

Discipleship can also be spontaneous. Maybe friends go to a movie together and then grab ice cream afterward to compare the movie’s message and what the Bible may have to say about that topic or subject matter. Maybe a grandfather and his grandson sit on the porch and watch the sunset while reflecting on God’s glory being displayed. Maybe you invite visitors from church over for lunch and ask everyone how they came to know Christ.

Discipleship is always Christ-centered and Christ-focused. It has a purpose and prioritizes what is most important in our lives - Jesus Christ.

We always need to be intentional, but we don’t always need to be structured. In fact, Deuteronomy 6 shows us that discipleship happens “when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” (v. 7). Every moment presents an opportunity to discuss who God is and what he’s doing. Since we are always following Jesus, we always have the opportunity to help others follow him as well. I’m reminded of 1 Corinthians 10:31 and Colossians 3:23 which tell us to do ALL things for His glory.

Discipleship does not happen overnight. It takes time. We must learn how to carry the message of the Gospel. The message itself does not change, but the method of delivery may vary from person to person. Just as the couriers in Esther who had to take the edict of the king to different nations of different languages, we must take the message of our King in the same manner. What may hit home for me, may not work for someone else.

“Regardless of the format, some of our discipleship should involve scheduled times of reading, praying, confessing, encouraging, and challenging each other to become more like Christ.”

Now, take hold of that index card in front of you.

That person is specific to you. They carried the message of the Gospel and shared it with you. It resonated with you and you responded to it. It took time. It didn’t happen overnight. Maybe that person befriended you. You may have bonded over shared interests. Maybe it was someone who worked alongside you. Might have been a fellow student. Perhaps a family member who was changed by the same message and it challenged you as well.

Whatever the case may have been. There was urgency.

There was the weight of importance and value to the words they spoke and the way they lived their lives. The message was deliberate and precise. It spoke to something in your life that made you realize something needed to change and you couldn’t do it on your own. You needed a Savior.

The question now stands. What will you do with that message? The urgency has not changed. Though we may sit comfortably in the life we have, there are others who still need to hear the message of hope, the new decree that was given that can save the world from the sin in it and renew it by reconciling it back to its Creator.

Who will it be to write your name on that index card?