1 00:00:00,840 --> 00:00:03,560 All right, why don't you take out your Bibles and turn to John 2 00:00:03,560 --> 00:00:06,720 chapter 4. If you did not bring a Bible 3 00:00:06,720 --> 00:00:09,400 with you, we have some under the seats in front of you. 4 00:00:09,400 --> 00:00:13,800 It's page 889 if you're using that black hardcover Bible, John 5 00:00:13,800 --> 00:00:18,240 chapter 4. So let me start with a story 6 00:00:18,240 --> 00:00:21,920 this morning. In 2014, my wife and I were at a 7 00:00:21,920 --> 00:00:26,760 leadership conference and we were participating at a time of 8 00:00:26,760 --> 00:00:29,040 corporate prayer. So there were probably about 150 9 00:00:29,040 --> 00:00:33,080 or so pastors and our wives all praying together in a in a room. 10 00:00:33,680 --> 00:00:38,200 And during prayer, I had a thought fly into my mind that 11 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:42,480 felt like it was from God. I felt like he said that I was 12 00:00:42,480 --> 00:00:45,840 supposed to hand off the church, that I was currently pastoring 13 00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:49,960 Clear River Church in Lafayette, IN, and that my wife and I were 14 00:00:49,960 --> 00:00:51,720 supposed to plant another church. 15 00:00:52,200 --> 00:00:55,240 Now that was news to me because I had not been thinking in that 16 00:00:55,240 --> 00:00:57,960 direction when I was thinking about my life and my future. 17 00:00:57,960 --> 00:01:02,000 We were very situated in Indiana, but it felt very clear. 18 00:01:02,000 --> 00:01:04,720 So I did what I normally do. If I feel like God is speaking 19 00:01:04,720 --> 00:01:06,520 something to me, I write it down in my journal. 20 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:09,640 That way I can test it, I can pray over it, I can share it 21 00:01:09,640 --> 00:01:13,840 with other people. And so I sat down, I wrote this 22 00:01:13,840 --> 00:01:16,560 out in my journal. I stood back up to get back into 23 00:01:16,560 --> 00:01:17,960 prayer with everybody in the room. 24 00:01:18,320 --> 00:01:21,080 And as soon as I stood up, someone from across the room 25 00:01:21,080 --> 00:01:24,400 said, I feel like the Lord is saying that one of our pastors 26 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:27,640 here is supposed to hand off his church and plant another church. 27 00:01:28,480 --> 00:01:31,440 And so it's one of those things I was like, oh boy, here we go. 28 00:01:31,840 --> 00:01:36,480 I think this is you, Lord. We took about a year after that 29 00:01:36,560 --> 00:01:40,080 to pray and seek counsel from other people who we trusted. 30 00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:43,120 And over the course of that year, the picture began to 31 00:01:43,120 --> 00:01:45,840 crystallize and my wife had some clarity that we were supposed to 32 00:01:45,840 --> 00:01:49,200 move to Florida to plant a church and particularly in a 33 00:01:49,200 --> 00:01:53,720 university city. So in June of 2015, we planned a 34 00:01:53,720 --> 00:01:55,840 little visit. We flew into Tampa. 35 00:01:55,840 --> 00:02:00,600 We were going to visit Tampa, Gainesville, and Tallahassee and 36 00:02:00,600 --> 00:02:02,440 just praying. God lead us. 37 00:02:02,440 --> 00:02:06,440 Where do you want us? While we were before we had 38 00:02:06,440 --> 00:02:09,280 come, I had been done a little bit of research on churches in 39 00:02:09,280 --> 00:02:13,640 the various cities and I bumped into Greenhouse Church, which 40 00:02:13,640 --> 00:02:15,840 many of you know, Greenhouse Church, large prominent church 41 00:02:15,840 --> 00:02:18,040 in town. They actually owned this campus 42 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:20,880 that we currently that we currently meet in. 43 00:02:21,840 --> 00:02:24,120 And back in 2015, they were still meeting here. 44 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:26,360 And so I looked them up. I reached out to some of their 45 00:02:26,360 --> 00:02:28,000 pastors. I said, hey, we're thinking 46 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:29,360 about church planting in Gainesville. 47 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:32,320 Can we meet up? So they were the pastors, Mike 48 00:02:32,320 --> 00:02:35,000 and Robbie were very gracious to spend some time with me and 49 00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:38,600 Sarah and talk with us. And it was actually right there, 50 00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:43,440 right where that stroller is. My wife and myself, Pastor Mike 51 00:02:43,440 --> 00:02:46,000 Pats and Pastor Robbie Johnson, we're all standing there. 52 00:02:46,560 --> 00:02:50,840 And I asked Mike and Robbie, I said, hey, Vita Springs is 53 00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:53,360 similar in a lot of ways to Greenhouse Church. 54 00:02:53,800 --> 00:02:57,480 Do you think there's room for another church like Greenhouse 55 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:00,960 here in Gainesville? And I will never forget this, 56 00:03:00,960 --> 00:03:03,560 Mike. Pat started waving his hand over 57 00:03:03,560 --> 00:03:07,640 an imaginary field of wheat. And he said, the fields are 58 00:03:07,640 --> 00:03:11,360 white for harvest. The fields are white for 59 00:03:11,360 --> 00:03:14,400 harvest. And that, for me, in that 60 00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:19,360 moment, felt like a clear call from God that this is where I 61 00:03:19,360 --> 00:03:21,560 want you to move. This is where I want you to 62 00:03:21,560 --> 00:03:25,520 plant. So we went back to Indiana and 63 00:03:25,520 --> 00:03:30,160 one year later 52 people moved from Indiana and Illinois here 64 00:03:30,160 --> 00:03:33,960 to Gainesville, FL to plant what is now Vita Springs Church. 65 00:03:34,280 --> 00:03:37,480 And this is a cool little thing, kind of like a little wink from 66 00:03:37,480 --> 00:03:40,040 God. I had that conversation with 67 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:44,200 Mike and Robbie on June 3rd, OK of 2015. 68 00:03:44,520 --> 00:03:48,760 On June 3rd of 2018, we had our very first service here in this 69 00:03:48,760 --> 00:03:50,520 room. And so that just felt like 70 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:53,040 another confirmation. God is behind this. 71 00:03:53,040 --> 00:03:55,160 We're doing the right thing and He's leading us. 72 00:03:56,200 --> 00:03:57,640 But I will never forget that word. 73 00:03:57,640 --> 00:04:02,040 The fields are white for harvest. 10 years later, Mike 74 00:04:02,040 --> 00:04:06,040 was right. Those 52 people have turned into 75 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:10,040 around 300 people at Vita Springs Church over the past 76 00:04:10,520 --> 00:04:13,360 nine years. We've baptized 106 people. 77 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:16,839 We've had many people who have grown in their love for God and 78 00:04:16,839 --> 00:04:19,640 their love for other people who have matured in their faith. 79 00:04:20,320 --> 00:04:24,720 Many have experienced the truth and the love and the power and 80 00:04:24,720 --> 00:04:28,640 the goodness of God and are now extending God's truth and love 81 00:04:28,640 --> 00:04:31,960 and power to other people. And so today I want to look, 82 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:34,160 we're actually as we're preaching through John, we're 83 00:04:34,160 --> 00:04:38,680 coming up to where Mike got that phrase from in John chapter 4. 84 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:40,160 So this is a really fun text for me. 85 00:04:40,160 --> 00:04:42,880 This has very deep meaning for me personally. 86 00:04:43,360 --> 00:04:46,720 Let me recap where we've been in John four, and then we'll dive 87 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:53,080 into verse 31 through verse 42. Gordon preached the last couple 88 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:55,000 weeks on the first parts of John 4. 89 00:04:55,400 --> 00:04:59,680 We're reading about an encounter that Jesus has with a Samaritan 90 00:04:59,680 --> 00:05:04,600 woman at a water well outside a village in Samaria called Sicar. 91 00:05:05,360 --> 00:05:09,480 Jesus had travelled to this area intentionally. 92 00:05:09,480 --> 00:05:12,840 This was a really kind of a forbidden area if you were a Jew 93 00:05:13,160 --> 00:05:15,360 because the Samaritans were half breeds. 94 00:05:15,360 --> 00:05:19,320 They were Jews who intermarried with the Assyrians who were not 95 00:05:19,320 --> 00:05:21,000 followers of the God of the Bible. 96 00:05:21,840 --> 00:05:24,960 And so he goes to this area so that he can meet her. 97 00:05:25,520 --> 00:05:27,520 He has this encounter with her at the well. 98 00:05:27,840 --> 00:05:32,400 He tells her about the living water that He offers and only He 99 00:05:32,400 --> 00:05:37,040 offers that will ultimately satisfy her deepest thirst, 100 00:05:37,040 --> 00:05:41,760 which is her soul thirst. He reveals to her that He is the 101 00:05:41,760 --> 00:05:44,280 Christ, the long-awaited Messiah King. 102 00:05:44,800 --> 00:05:48,360 She is deeply impacted by this conversation that she has with 103 00:05:48,440 --> 00:05:53,320 Jesus and she goes back into the village to tell the other people 104 00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:56,320 about him. If you look at verse 29, she 105 00:05:56,320 --> 00:06:00,800 says come see a man who told me all that I ever did. 106 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:05,280 Can this be the Christ, right? She is just blown away. 107 00:06:05,280 --> 00:06:08,280 Jesus has read her mail. Jesus has offered her this 108 00:06:08,280 --> 00:06:12,480 amazing offer of life in him. And verse 30 says they went out 109 00:06:12,480 --> 00:06:14,200 of the town and were coming to him. 110 00:06:14,200 --> 00:06:17,080 So these people, because of this woman's testimony, now we're 111 00:06:17,080 --> 00:06:20,520 coming out to the well to come meet Jesus. 112 00:06:21,960 --> 00:06:25,280 Meanwhile, Jesus's disciples had been in town and they're getting 113 00:06:25,440 --> 00:06:28,760 some food for him. They come back and they catch 114 00:06:28,760 --> 00:06:31,680 the tail end of this conversation. 115 00:06:32,680 --> 00:06:36,800 Now John the the apostle John who wrote the Gospel of John, is 116 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:42,400 recording a conversation that Jesus had with his disciples in 117 00:06:42,400 --> 00:06:44,840 the wake of this encounter with the woman at the well. 118 00:06:45,680 --> 00:06:52,120 And in this he teaches them what fuels him and also what their 119 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:55,160 job is. And by way of extension, we 120 00:06:55,160 --> 00:06:58,400 learn what our job is, what our purpose is. 121 00:06:59,120 --> 00:07:00,600 So that's where we're going today. 122 00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:07,240 Let me give us a brief moment of quiet before we read the Bible. 123 00:07:08,240 --> 00:07:11,000 And I want you to take just a few moments to clear your head 124 00:07:11,720 --> 00:07:16,320 and declutter your heart. We come in to church with lots 125 00:07:16,320 --> 00:07:19,440 of noise. And so let's take a moment 126 00:07:19,440 --> 00:07:22,160 before we hear from God to just quiet the noise. 127 00:07:23,000 --> 00:07:26,160 Some of you have come in with troubles, with sorrows, with 128 00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:28,840 anxieties, and I want to encourage you to just lay all of 129 00:07:28,840 --> 00:07:34,840 that down before Jesus's feet and expect him to speak to you 130 00:07:34,840 --> 00:07:37,560 now and to minister to you. So I'm going to give us a moment 131 00:07:37,560 --> 00:07:39,560 of silence and then I'll read the text for us. 132 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:08,160 John chapter 4 starting in verse 31 says Meanwhile the disciples 133 00:08:08,400 --> 00:08:16,080 were urging him saying Rabbi eat, but he said to them, I have 134 00:08:16,080 --> 00:08:19,080 food to eat that you do not know about. 135 00:08:19,880 --> 00:08:22,320 So the disciples said to one another, has anyone brought him 136 00:08:22,320 --> 00:08:28,240 something to eat? Jesus said to them, My food is 137 00:08:28,240 --> 00:08:33,480 to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work. 138 00:08:34,320 --> 00:08:36,280 Do you not say there are yet four months? 139 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:40,039 Then comes the harvest. Look, I tell you, lift up your 140 00:08:40,039 --> 00:08:45,640 eyes and see that the fields are white for harvest already. 141 00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:49,400 The one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for 142 00:08:49,400 --> 00:08:53,440 eternal life, so that the sower and the Reaper may rejoice 143 00:08:53,440 --> 00:08:58,640 together, for here the saying holds true. 1 sows and another 144 00:08:58,640 --> 00:09:01,480 reaps. I sent you to reap that for 145 00:09:01,480 --> 00:09:04,920 which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you 146 00:09:04,920 --> 00:09:09,440 have entered into their labor. Many Samaritans from the town 147 00:09:09,440 --> 00:09:12,320 from that town believed in him because of the woman's 148 00:09:12,320 --> 00:09:15,080 testimony. He told me all that I ever did. 149 00:09:15,600 --> 00:09:18,760 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with 150 00:09:18,760 --> 00:09:24,000 them and he stayed there 2 days. And many more believe because of 151 00:09:24,000 --> 00:09:27,720 his word they said to the woman. It is no longer because of what 152 00:09:27,720 --> 00:09:31,960 you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and we 153 00:09:31,960 --> 00:09:37,360 know that this is indeed the Savior of the world. 154 00:09:37,880 --> 00:09:43,720 Let's pray, Jesus, we thank you that you are the Savior of the 155 00:09:43,720 --> 00:09:49,320 world, that you came to bring us water that quenches our soul 156 00:09:49,320 --> 00:09:54,440 thirst, that you came to offer us food that really nourishes us 157 00:09:55,000 --> 00:09:57,720 not just physically but spiritually for eternity. 158 00:09:58,240 --> 00:10:01,320 And we pray that you would teach us and that you would grow us up 159 00:10:01,600 --> 00:10:04,480 as disciples of Jesus. Today, as we look to your words, 160 00:10:04,960 --> 00:10:08,080 have your way among us. Jesus, we love you, we rely on 161 00:10:08,080 --> 00:10:10,000 you, and we pray all these things in your name. 162 00:10:10,960 --> 00:10:16,440 Amen. OK, so just like Jesus did in 163 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:20,320 the earlier part of the story with water, where he uses a 164 00:10:20,320 --> 00:10:25,880 common physical substance of life to make a spiritual point, 165 00:10:26,080 --> 00:10:29,240 he does the exact same thing now with his disciples. 166 00:10:29,240 --> 00:10:34,200 He uses this conversation about food to illustrate a spiritual 167 00:10:34,400 --> 00:10:37,800 point for his disciples. So verse 31 says, meanwhile the 168 00:10:37,800 --> 00:10:42,520 disciples were urging him to eat, saying Rabbi, eat. 169 00:10:42,880 --> 00:10:47,480 So they had hiked at this point for around 30 miles from 170 00:10:47,480 --> 00:10:50,960 Jerusalem to Cycar. So this is a a long hike. 171 00:10:50,960 --> 00:10:54,560 It's a hot day. Jesus is weary, Jesus is hungry. 172 00:10:54,560 --> 00:10:58,680 They stop at a well to get some water and the disciples go into 173 00:10:58,680 --> 00:11:02,640 town to get some Chick-fil-A for Jesus and and if you ask me, he 174 00:11:02,640 --> 00:11:05,280 has it with he has a spicy chicken sandwich with extra 175 00:11:05,280 --> 00:11:08,280 Pickles and Buffalo sauce because that's the right way to 176 00:11:08,280 --> 00:11:11,560 order your Chick-fil-A. So he needs nourishment. 177 00:11:11,600 --> 00:11:15,560 His disciples go to get him some food and they come back with 178 00:11:16,520 --> 00:11:23,080 food verse 32 but he said to them, I have food to eat that 179 00:11:23,080 --> 00:11:27,800 you do not know about. I have food to eat that you do 180 00:11:27,800 --> 00:11:30,640 not know about. So the disciples said to one 181 00:11:30,640 --> 00:11:32,680 another, has anyone brought him something to eat? 182 00:11:34,120 --> 00:11:36,600 So Jesus does what Jesus does, right? 183 00:11:36,600 --> 00:11:41,440 This is very Jesus. He gets all spiritual, right? 184 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:45,040 He gets all mysterious, like he's this sage now and he's 185 00:11:45,040 --> 00:11:49,440 trying to teach them something uses this using this idea of 186 00:11:49,440 --> 00:11:51,960 food. And the disciples are just like 187 00:11:51,960 --> 00:11:53,680 the disciples. They're kind of dense 188 00:11:53,680 --> 00:11:56,200 spiritually. And so they're just confused. 189 00:11:56,200 --> 00:11:59,360 What are you talking about? You have food, we've walked for 190 00:11:59,360 --> 00:12:01,640 30 miles and not a Publix insight. 191 00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:03,240 Did you smuggle some granola bars? 192 00:12:03,240 --> 00:12:05,280 Like where did you get this food from? 193 00:12:05,280 --> 00:12:08,400 They're just not on the same page as him trying to 194 00:12:08,400 --> 00:12:13,040 understand. And so Jesus clarifies verse 34. 195 00:12:13,040 --> 00:12:18,600 He said to them, my food is to do the will of him who sent me 196 00:12:19,120 --> 00:12:24,520 and to accomplish his work. So Jesus is saying to them, he 197 00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:29,960 says what satisfies me ultimately, what nourishes me 198 00:12:29,960 --> 00:12:35,520 ultimately is not physical food, but it is to do the will and the 199 00:12:35,520 --> 00:12:40,160 work of my Father in heaven. That's what fuels me. 200 00:12:40,160 --> 00:12:44,880 That's what satisfies me, obedience to my heavenly Father 201 00:12:45,280 --> 00:12:48,520 doing his will. That is fuel for me. 202 00:12:49,280 --> 00:12:52,400 So there's an important, important principle here for us 203 00:12:52,720 --> 00:12:57,960 as followers of Jesus, like Jesus, for us to be spiritually 204 00:12:58,320 --> 00:13:02,960 satisfied and healthy, we have to be doing the will of God. 205 00:13:03,680 --> 00:13:06,760 We have to be seeking his will and doing his will. 206 00:13:06,960 --> 00:13:09,640 We're supposed to be accomplishing the work of the 207 00:13:09,640 --> 00:13:14,480 Father. It's fuel for our souls and we 208 00:13:14,480 --> 00:13:17,560 need the right fuel, right? For the thing to run right, you 209 00:13:17,560 --> 00:13:20,720 need the right fuel. If any of you ever gone to gas 210 00:13:20,720 --> 00:13:25,600 station and you have an unleaded vehicle, but you grab the green 211 00:13:25,600 --> 00:13:29,240 nozzle, which is diesel, and put diesel fuel in your unleaded 212 00:13:29,240 --> 00:13:32,560 vehicle, anybody ever do that before anybody willing to admit 213 00:13:32,560 --> 00:13:35,680 it? I know some of you have. 214 00:13:35,680 --> 00:13:37,720 I've almost done that before, right? 215 00:13:37,720 --> 00:13:41,120 It's a little tricky, but you don't put diesel in an unleaded 216 00:13:41,120 --> 00:13:42,840 car. It doesn't run on that. 217 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:45,400 If you put diesel fuel in your unleaded engine, it's going to 218 00:13:45,400 --> 00:13:48,080 gunk up all your stuff. And I don't know anything about 219 00:13:48,080 --> 00:13:49,640 cars. That's why I just call it stuff. 220 00:13:50,120 --> 00:13:52,320 All the stuff inside it's, it's going to make a mess. 221 00:13:52,320 --> 00:13:57,400 You need the right fuel so that the vehicle can run properly. 222 00:13:58,400 --> 00:14:01,040 Or those of you who have children, you know, when you go 223 00:14:01,040 --> 00:14:03,640 to maybe you go to grandma and grandpa's house for the weekend 224 00:14:04,240 --> 00:14:06,560 and there's no food rules anymore. 225 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:10,360 And all of a sudden your kids are just acting bonkers off the 226 00:14:10,360 --> 00:14:12,640 wall. And you're like, what in the 227 00:14:12,640 --> 00:14:15,600 world happened to you? What did you eat for breakfast? 228 00:14:16,000 --> 00:14:18,840 And usually the answer is something like Skittles, 229 00:14:19,400 --> 00:14:24,640 Twizzlers, Lucky Charms, but only the marshmallows, right? 230 00:14:24,640 --> 00:14:27,840 It's like, no wonder you're off the wall because you don't have 231 00:14:27,840 --> 00:14:31,080 the right fuel in you. You're not running properly. 232 00:14:32,640 --> 00:14:36,440 See, the world says the world has all kinds of ideas for us to 233 00:14:36,440 --> 00:14:42,480 how to be satisfied, right? If you achieve this level of 234 00:14:42,480 --> 00:14:49,360 education and prestige, then you will be satisfied, right? 235 00:14:49,360 --> 00:14:54,680 If you attain this level of income, if you live in this kind 236 00:14:54,680 --> 00:14:59,800 of neighborhood, if your lot is this big, if you drive a certain 237 00:14:59,800 --> 00:15:04,720 kind of car, if you dress in a certain kind of way, right? 238 00:15:04,720 --> 00:15:08,680 If you are dating or married to this kind of person or that kind 239 00:15:08,680 --> 00:15:13,200 of person, that is going to be what brings you satisfaction. 240 00:15:13,560 --> 00:15:16,800 If you're successful, if you have good ABS, if people respect 241 00:15:16,800 --> 00:15:19,680 you, if you have lots of sexual encounters, that's what's going 242 00:15:19,680 --> 00:15:22,240 to satisfy you. That's what the world tells us. 243 00:15:23,240 --> 00:15:26,560 But that's not the right fuel. That's not what we're made to 244 00:15:27,040 --> 00:15:31,440 drive on. And so just like parents have to 245 00:15:31,440 --> 00:15:34,680 teach their kids to eat healthy food, that's going to fuel you, 246 00:15:34,680 --> 00:15:37,440 right? Jesus is teaching his disciples 247 00:15:37,440 --> 00:15:40,160 and he's he's teaching us how to be healthy. 248 00:15:40,680 --> 00:15:44,120 What fuels you properly spiritually? 249 00:15:47,400 --> 00:15:53,600 So what is the will of God? OK, What is the will of God? 250 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:56,880 What is the work of God? If Jesus says that's my food, 251 00:15:57,640 --> 00:16:00,640 right, then we want to know what is the will of God and the work 252 00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:03,120 of God. So usually when we think about 253 00:16:03,120 --> 00:16:07,360 the will of God, we think individually and specifically. 254 00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:09,160 OK? What I mean by that is I'm 255 00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:10,560 trying to figure out the will of God. 256 00:16:10,560 --> 00:16:12,200 OK, God, what do you want me to major in? 257 00:16:12,440 --> 00:16:13,960 Right? College students, what do you 258 00:16:13,960 --> 00:16:16,200 want me to major in? I want to know your will for my 259 00:16:16,200 --> 00:16:17,480 life. It's very individuals, very 260 00:16:17,480 --> 00:16:19,280 specific. Maybe you graduate. 261 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:22,000 What job do you want me to take? Lord, I have these three offers. 262 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:24,760 What's your will? Who should I marry? 263 00:16:24,760 --> 00:16:27,400 How many kids should I have? Where should I live? 264 00:16:27,600 --> 00:16:29,440 When do you want me to retire? Right. 265 00:16:29,440 --> 00:16:32,720 They're usually decisions about our life when we're thinking 266 00:16:32,720 --> 00:16:35,440 about the will of God. But Jesus answers this question 267 00:16:35,440 --> 00:16:37,760 not individually. And specifically when he's 268 00:16:37,760 --> 00:16:39,280 talking about the will of God, he's talking. 269 00:16:39,280 --> 00:16:43,880 He answers this corporately, and he answers this broadly. 270 00:16:44,080 --> 00:16:47,720 OK, so 30,000 foot view, bigger picture. 271 00:16:49,080 --> 00:16:53,200 And he uses a farming illustration to answer this 272 00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:55,000 question. What is the will of God and what 273 00:16:55,000 --> 00:16:58,080 is the work of the Father? So let me read verses 35 through 274 00:16:58,080 --> 00:17:00,640 38, summarize it, and then I'll come back and kind of work 275 00:17:00,640 --> 00:17:04,280 through it. So he says, do you not say there 276 00:17:04,280 --> 00:17:07,160 are yet four months? Then comes the harvest. 277 00:17:08,040 --> 00:17:10,720 So that's a common saying among the farmers of the region. 278 00:17:10,960 --> 00:17:12,680 There's four months and then comes the harvest. 279 00:17:13,280 --> 00:17:17,319 Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes and see that the fields are 280 00:17:17,319 --> 00:17:22,040 white for harvest already. The one who reaps is receiving 281 00:17:22,040 --> 00:17:26,079 wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that the sower 282 00:17:26,079 --> 00:17:30,600 and Reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true. 283 00:17:30,760 --> 00:17:36,040 1 sows and another reaps. I sent you to reap that for 284 00:17:36,040 --> 00:17:39,480 which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you 285 00:17:39,480 --> 00:17:46,760 have entered into their labor. So what he's saying here is the 286 00:17:46,760 --> 00:17:52,040 will of God and the work of God that nourishes the souls of 287 00:17:52,040 --> 00:17:55,960 God's people is the work of sowing and reaping. 288 00:17:57,040 --> 00:17:59,000 OK. It's the work of sowing or 289 00:17:59,080 --> 00:18:02,760 scattering seeds and reaping, which is what? 290 00:18:03,360 --> 00:18:07,120 Bringing in the harvest, right? That's what satisfies. 291 00:18:07,120 --> 00:18:10,200 So what does that mean when we're talking about Christian 292 00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:15,360 things and spiritual things? Well, sowing is sharing the 293 00:18:15,360 --> 00:18:18,920 gospel, right? We're sharing the truth of 294 00:18:18,920 --> 00:18:22,640 Jesus, the the gospel message with other people. 295 00:18:22,960 --> 00:18:26,240 This message that Jesus alone saves, right? 296 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:29,640 That's sowing. Jesus offers you eternal life. 297 00:18:29,640 --> 00:18:31,600 This is what he just did with the woman at the well. 298 00:18:31,960 --> 00:18:35,320 He said you want to be satisfied on the way, right? 299 00:18:35,320 --> 00:18:38,800 He was sowing truth, gospel truth into her life. 300 00:18:39,640 --> 00:18:43,840 Reaping, harvesting would be helping people put their trust 301 00:18:43,840 --> 00:18:46,680 in Jesus as Savior and Lord, right? 302 00:18:46,680 --> 00:18:48,680 If you want to be crude about it, you might say sealing the 303 00:18:48,680 --> 00:18:53,280 deal, right, Getting them to trust in Jesus, not that you can 304 00:18:53,280 --> 00:18:56,000 personally get them to do that, but it's helping them in that 305 00:18:56,160 --> 00:19:00,040 process where they would come in as his harvest. 306 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:04,200 This is why Jesus came. This is why Jesus came. 307 00:19:04,200 --> 00:19:06,040 Listen to what he says in Luke 1910. 308 00:19:06,040 --> 00:19:10,680 It says for the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost. 309 00:19:11,600 --> 00:19:14,800 So this is Jesus's primary mission, right? 310 00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:18,200 There's all these lost people in the world, people who don't know 311 00:19:18,200 --> 00:19:20,600 God. They don't understand that God 312 00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:23,920 is mighty, that God is holy, that God reigns and rules over 313 00:19:23,920 --> 00:19:26,680 all, a sovereign king, and that we are sinful. 314 00:19:26,680 --> 00:19:29,120 We are broken. We are like, we're like lost 315 00:19:29,120 --> 00:19:31,920 sheep wandering around, doomed for destruction. 316 00:19:32,560 --> 00:19:35,600 Jesus came into the world as the Good Shepherd to share this 317 00:19:35,600 --> 00:19:38,840 message that he is the Savior, He is the Messiah. 318 00:19:38,840 --> 00:19:43,320 He came to gather in the lost sheep of Israel and of the whole 319 00:19:43,320 --> 00:19:47,240 world. He came to seek and save the 320 00:19:47,240 --> 00:19:50,960 lost. And I will add to that. 321 00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:57,240 This is what Jesus loves to do. This is what He loves to do. 322 00:19:58,520 --> 00:20:04,280 In Ezekiel 1832, God says is I have no pleasure in the death of 323 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:09,520 anyone, so turn and live. It's like, you know, you want to 324 00:20:09,520 --> 00:20:12,520 know what gives my heart joy and pleasure? 325 00:20:12,640 --> 00:20:16,760 When people recognize their sinful condition and they repent 326 00:20:16,760 --> 00:20:20,400 of their sin, they turn away from that and they turn to Jesus 327 00:20:20,560 --> 00:20:22,920 for forgiveness and eternal life. 328 00:20:23,400 --> 00:20:27,920 That's what God loves. That's what Jesus loves to do. 329 00:20:28,920 --> 00:20:36,160 Now, let me go on a little theological kind of jog here and 330 00:20:36,160 --> 00:20:37,640 I think this will make sense. You'll understand why I'm 331 00:20:37,640 --> 00:20:41,600 talking about this. So we believe in predestination, 332 00:20:42,080 --> 00:20:46,400 OK, which means God preordains whom he will save. 333 00:20:47,120 --> 00:20:49,560 The term commonly used for that is election. 334 00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:52,720 And, and those are dirty words in some Christian circles, OK? 335 00:20:53,080 --> 00:20:55,000 And so I recognize this. That's why I want to talk about 336 00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:58,600 this briefly because I just, I just told you Jesus loves to 337 00:20:58,600 --> 00:21:01,160 save. He loves, He came to save 338 00:21:01,160 --> 00:21:04,080 people. So just because we believe in 339 00:21:04,080 --> 00:21:07,000 election and predestination, that does not mean that God is 340 00:21:07,000 --> 00:21:10,680 stingy with his salvation. Let me read a couple passages 341 00:21:10,680 --> 00:21:13,040 for you that get at this and these are in consecutive 342 00:21:13,040 --> 00:21:17,680 chapters in the Bible. This is Ephesians chapter 1 and 343 00:21:17,680 --> 00:21:20,440 then chapter 2 and these will be up on the screen for you. 344 00:21:22,760 --> 00:21:25,880 So Paul writes, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus 345 00:21:25,880 --> 00:21:29,200 Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual 346 00:21:29,200 --> 00:21:34,160 blessing in the heavenly places, even as He chose us in Him 347 00:21:34,640 --> 00:21:37,960 before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy 348 00:21:37,960 --> 00:21:40,920 and blameless before Him in love. 349 00:21:41,040 --> 00:21:46,760 He predestined us for adoption to Himself as sons through Jesus 350 00:21:46,760 --> 00:21:50,800 Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of 351 00:21:50,800 --> 00:21:54,520 His glorious grace with which He has blessed us in the beloved. 352 00:21:54,520 --> 00:21:56,840 Some of the clearest verses in all of Scripture about 353 00:21:57,080 --> 00:22:00,520 predestination and election. But then look where Paul goes in 354 00:22:00,520 --> 00:22:04,320 chapter 2. Remember I said he God loves to 355 00:22:04,320 --> 00:22:07,840 save. It is God's joy to save, says. 356 00:22:07,840 --> 00:22:12,760 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with 357 00:22:12,760 --> 00:22:17,200 which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, 358 00:22:17,440 --> 00:22:20,240 made us alive together with Christ. 359 00:22:20,400 --> 00:22:25,240 By grace you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated 360 00:22:25,240 --> 00:22:28,880 us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that 361 00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:33,280 in the coming ages He might show the we get this immeasurable 362 00:22:33,480 --> 00:22:40,360 riches of His grace and kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. 363 00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:46,440 He loves to save. The fact that he would save any 364 00:22:47,360 --> 00:22:49,520 is amazing. It's amazing. 365 00:22:49,520 --> 00:22:53,320 The fact that he would come for any of us sinners is just 366 00:22:53,520 --> 00:22:57,760 boggles the mind that a holy God would come for wretched people 367 00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:00,080 like us, to rescue us, to die for us. 368 00:23:01,160 --> 00:23:03,280 But it's not just that he comes for a few. 369 00:23:04,240 --> 00:23:08,080 He loves to save. He will save a great multitude. 370 00:23:08,080 --> 00:23:11,480 That no one can number is what John says to us in the Book of 371 00:23:11,480 --> 00:23:13,640 Revelation. Imagine on that day we're all 372 00:23:13,640 --> 00:23:16,720 worshiping together in heaven, and you're looking out on all of 373 00:23:16,720 --> 00:23:19,320 the Christians, all the people who put their trust in Jesus. 374 00:23:19,520 --> 00:23:24,040 And it is just a sea of people, a multitude that no one can 375 00:23:24,040 --> 00:23:26,360 number. And every single one of them is 376 00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:30,040 a story of God's mercy and grace, His saving power. 377 00:23:32,000 --> 00:23:36,800 God's election is not at odds with His love to save sinners. 378 00:23:37,280 --> 00:23:40,400 It is a display of His love towards sinners. 379 00:23:42,280 --> 00:23:50,360 Now His electing saving purposes are carried out in this world by 380 00:23:50,360 --> 00:23:53,840 willing servants. If that is how God ordained it 381 00:23:54,040 --> 00:24:01,760 to be, that we would work hard to sow and to reap and to sow 382 00:24:01,760 --> 00:24:04,880 and to reap, to scatter seeds of the gospel and then to help 383 00:24:04,880 --> 00:24:08,880 people come into his Kingdom, that's the work that he has for 384 00:24:08,880 --> 00:24:10,880 us. So let's look back at these 385 00:24:10,880 --> 00:24:14,400 verses again. He says, do you not say verse 386 00:24:14,400 --> 00:24:18,560 35, there are yet four months and then comes the harvest. 387 00:24:18,880 --> 00:24:21,520 So again, this is a common quote among farmers. 388 00:24:21,800 --> 00:24:25,760 We planted seeds and now there's no crop, right? 389 00:24:25,760 --> 00:24:28,200 It's not time yet. So you just sit around and wait 390 00:24:28,200 --> 00:24:30,160 for four, for four months, right? 391 00:24:30,160 --> 00:24:31,880 That's what farmers do. They just do nothing for four 392 00:24:31,880 --> 00:24:33,760 months, right? And if you who were raised on a 393 00:24:33,760 --> 00:24:35,120 farm, you're like, absolutely not. 394 00:24:35,120 --> 00:24:38,400 There's like lots of work to do. But that's the idea, right? 395 00:24:38,400 --> 00:24:41,680 Like it's not time yet. It's not time for harvest yet. 396 00:24:41,680 --> 00:24:44,960 And we do this all the time. If you've been in that spot 397 00:24:44,960 --> 00:24:48,760 where you feel like God is nudging you to share the gospel 398 00:24:48,760 --> 00:24:54,280 with someone and then you can like that, make 15 excuses why 399 00:24:54,280 --> 00:24:56,960 it's not time. Why four months and then the 400 00:24:56,960 --> 00:24:59,440 harvest, right? Well, they're too old, they're 401 00:24:59,440 --> 00:25:02,320 too young, they're too rich, they're too poor, they're too 402 00:25:02,320 --> 00:25:04,560 smart, they're not smart enough, right? 403 00:25:04,560 --> 00:25:06,680 They're too successful, they're too cool. 404 00:25:07,440 --> 00:25:08,720 They're not going to believe it, right? 405 00:25:08,720 --> 00:25:11,320 It's like your mind and the enemy behind that can just 406 00:25:11,680 --> 00:25:14,640 paralyze you with this. It's just not time yet. 407 00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:17,880 But look at what Jesus says. He says, this is what you say. 408 00:25:17,880 --> 00:25:21,840 You say it's not time yet. And then he says, but look, I 409 00:25:21,840 --> 00:25:27,320 tell you, lift up your eyes and see that the fields are white 410 00:25:27,520 --> 00:25:30,560 for harvest. He says, you say it's not time, 411 00:25:30,560 --> 00:25:33,920 but I say it's time, it's time. Look around you. 412 00:25:34,760 --> 00:25:40,720 And I imagine the Samaritan woman who has gone down to the 413 00:25:40,720 --> 00:25:43,360 village and has told all the people about Jesus. 414 00:25:43,360 --> 00:25:45,360 And now she has turned around, she's coming back. 415 00:25:45,640 --> 00:25:49,320 And behind her is a whole pile of people from SYCAR coming 416 00:25:49,440 --> 00:25:51,240 toward him. And Jesus says, lift your eyes 417 00:25:51,240 --> 00:25:53,200 up. Look, you see the harvest. 418 00:25:53,760 --> 00:25:56,120 They're believing they're coming. 419 00:25:56,360 --> 00:26:00,360 They want to know me. The fields are white. 420 00:26:01,040 --> 00:26:03,080 It's time to bring in the harvest. 421 00:26:03,600 --> 00:26:07,840 He's talking about wheat, right? When wheat is ripe, the seeds 422 00:26:07,840 --> 00:26:11,800 turn this white color, right? He might say the bananas are 423 00:26:11,800 --> 00:26:14,640 yellow, right? The apples are red, the oranges 424 00:26:14,640 --> 00:26:18,160 are orange, right? It's time, it's time to bring 425 00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:21,520 them in. And he goes on in verses 36 and 426 00:26:21,520 --> 00:26:25,680 37, he says already the one who reaps, so the Reaper is the 427 00:26:25,680 --> 00:26:32,000 harvester is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life 428 00:26:32,280 --> 00:26:36,640 so that the sower and Reaper may rejoice together. 429 00:26:36,640 --> 00:26:40,920 For here the saying holds true. 1 sows and another reaps. 430 00:26:41,320 --> 00:26:44,920 So it seems like what Jesus is saying here is John the Baptist 431 00:26:44,920 --> 00:26:48,080 was the sower, right? He came before Jesus saying 432 00:26:48,080 --> 00:26:50,320 repent, right? The Messiah is coming. 433 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:52,840 Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. 434 00:26:52,840 --> 00:26:55,360 He's like here he is he's he's been sowing. 435 00:26:55,680 --> 00:26:58,280 Jesus is the Reaper and he's like, look, I'm already getting 436 00:26:58,280 --> 00:27:02,000 paid right it the people are coming in, harvest is coming in. 437 00:27:02,160 --> 00:27:06,400 The Jews and Samaritans are believing and then look at what 438 00:27:06,400 --> 00:27:10,000 he does in verse 38. And this is where it hits US 439 00:27:10,000 --> 00:27:15,320 home. He says, I sent you to reap that 440 00:27:15,320 --> 00:27:20,640 for which you did not labor. Others have labored and you have 441 00:27:20,640 --> 00:27:28,560 entered into their labor. Jesus is including his disciples 442 00:27:28,840 --> 00:27:31,560 in his work of sowing and reaping. 443 00:27:32,760 --> 00:27:37,440 He's saying this isn't just for me to do, this is for us to do. 444 00:27:38,680 --> 00:27:41,000 This isn't just what nourishes my soul. 445 00:27:41,000 --> 00:27:45,200 This isn't just what fuels me. This is what fuels us. 446 00:27:45,200 --> 00:27:50,080 This is what fuels my church, my disciples, right? 447 00:27:50,080 --> 00:27:57,600 The others have labored. He's talking about the prophets, 448 00:27:58,200 --> 00:27:59,480 right? The ones who've come before, 449 00:27:59,560 --> 00:28:01,160 calling God's people to repentance. 450 00:28:01,160 --> 00:28:03,240 The others, for centuries, they're doing this. 451 00:28:03,240 --> 00:28:06,040 They're calling Israel to repent, predicting the coming of 452 00:28:06,040 --> 00:28:09,520 the Messiah, and he says you have entered into their labor. 453 00:28:10,360 --> 00:28:13,880 They were sewing, and now you come and you're carrying the 454 00:28:13,880 --> 00:28:19,680 torch in doing God's will and accomplishing his work. 455 00:28:22,640 --> 00:28:25,840 So let me try to just drive this home for us in a few different 456 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:29,320 ways as we think about our lives in 2025. 457 00:28:29,320 --> 00:28:34,520 What does this mean for us? Well, first the fields were 458 00:28:34,520 --> 00:28:38,200 white for harvest and you have to understand they are still 459 00:28:38,200 --> 00:28:41,760 white for harvest. It is so tempting for us to 460 00:28:41,760 --> 00:28:44,680 think, oh, this was back then. Oh, this is because Jesus walked 461 00:28:44,680 --> 00:28:47,160 on planet Earth. It's not like that anymore. 462 00:28:47,320 --> 00:28:50,320 We live in dark days. It's too hard. 463 00:28:50,520 --> 00:28:52,520 You know what? In every generation they say the 464 00:28:52,520 --> 00:28:56,600 same thing. All cultures crazy and politics 465 00:28:56,600 --> 00:28:59,000 are crazy and people are not open to this stuff. 466 00:28:59,000 --> 00:29:01,560 Every generation makes excuses for why. 467 00:29:01,560 --> 00:29:03,120 Four months and then the harvest. 468 00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:08,080 But Jesus is telling us, no, it's now, it's here, it's now 469 00:29:08,840 --> 00:29:11,320 Jesus is still at work in this world. 470 00:29:11,320 --> 00:29:15,760 He's doing his father's work among us in Gainesville in 2025. 471 00:29:16,640 --> 00:29:18,920 You know, sometimes his work is more visible. 472 00:29:19,560 --> 00:29:22,840 And we call that revival, by the way, when the work of God and 473 00:29:22,840 --> 00:29:24,520 sowing and reaping is more visible. 474 00:29:24,960 --> 00:29:28,760 And sometimes it's less visible. But understand, he's always at 475 00:29:28,760 --> 00:29:31,800 work. Some statistics for you. 476 00:29:33,320 --> 00:29:38,040 Right now, globally speaking, Christianity is growing at a 477 00:29:38,040 --> 00:29:41,080 faster rate than world population growth. 478 00:29:41,880 --> 00:29:45,360 OK, so that's a good thing. That means we're not just 479 00:29:45,360 --> 00:29:49,040 replacing ourselves, but we're actually gaining some ground. 480 00:29:49,480 --> 00:29:54,200 OK. In 2024, global Christianity 481 00:29:54,200 --> 00:29:58,680 grew by around 1%. While popular, the population 482 00:29:58,680 --> 00:30:01,080 grew by about .9%. OK. 483 00:30:01,200 --> 00:30:03,760 And when you stretch that out over like 678 billion people, 484 00:30:03,760 --> 00:30:05,000 whatever we have, that's a lot of people. 485 00:30:05,080 --> 00:30:06,800 That little difference is a lot of people. 486 00:30:08,080 --> 00:30:14,120 It's moving fastest in Africa, specifically sub-Saharan Africa, 487 00:30:14,560 --> 00:30:19,840 Latin America, and Vita Springs Church because there are babies 488 00:30:19,840 --> 00:30:22,080 popping out everywhere around here. 489 00:30:22,480 --> 00:30:25,120 Every time I come to church, I hear about another person who's 490 00:30:25,120 --> 00:30:27,600 pregnant. So we are doing our part in 491 00:30:27,600 --> 00:30:29,240 populating the world with Christians. 492 00:30:32,240 --> 00:30:34,320 Right now. There are somewhere around, it's 493 00:30:34,320 --> 00:30:38,240 hard to estimate, but 2.3 to 2.4 billion Christians in the world. 494 00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:41,720 By 2050, there will be 3 billion Christians in the world. 495 00:30:42,400 --> 00:30:45,080 A lot of that growth is actually going to happen in Nigeria. 496 00:30:45,520 --> 00:30:47,760 It is Christianity is exploding in Nigeria. 497 00:30:49,120 --> 00:30:51,240 And you might say, what about the United States of America? 498 00:30:51,240 --> 00:30:54,400 I mean, surely in the United States of America, Christianity 499 00:30:54,400 --> 00:30:58,080 is in decline. Well, Barna Group did a study 500 00:30:58,080 --> 00:31:04,560 actually this year in 2025, and they found that 66% of US adults 501 00:31:04,840 --> 00:31:08,000 say they have made a personal commitment to Jesus that is 502 00:31:08,000 --> 00:31:10,160 still important in their life today. 503 00:31:10,480 --> 00:31:14,640 That is up from 54% just three years ago. 504 00:31:15,520 --> 00:31:20,720 So from 54% to 66% in three years is substantial. 505 00:31:21,280 --> 00:31:23,680 You know who's fueling that trend and growth? 506 00:31:25,400 --> 00:31:27,520 Well, yes, Jesus Christ. But I was thinking more 507 00:31:27,880 --> 00:31:33,400 statistically, millennials and Gen. 508 00:31:33,400 --> 00:31:39,440 Z, and in particular young men, it has never been like that 509 00:31:39,440 --> 00:31:42,680 before. There is a hunger in the next 510 00:31:42,680 --> 00:31:46,920 generation to know who Jesus is. There is a hunger in the young 511 00:31:46,920 --> 00:31:49,720 men of the next generation to know who Jesus is. 512 00:31:50,120 --> 00:31:54,200 That is very encouraging for me. It ought to be very encouraging 513 00:31:54,200 --> 00:31:57,160 for you as well that Jesus is on the move. 514 00:31:59,640 --> 00:32:02,680 The fields are white. You know, This is why we're in a 515 00:32:02,680 --> 00:32:06,600 university city, because we wanted to come to a town where 516 00:32:07,240 --> 00:32:11,000 18 to 25, there's a lot of 18 to 25 year olds who are making 517 00:32:11,000 --> 00:32:14,360 decisions that will impact the rest of their life. 518 00:32:14,840 --> 00:32:16,760 Who do I marry? What am I going to believe and 519 00:32:16,760 --> 00:32:19,400 what am I going to do with my life, right? 520 00:32:19,400 --> 00:32:23,280 We want to meet young adults right in that matrix and present 521 00:32:23,400 --> 00:32:26,760 Jesus and the gospel to them so that he becomes the center of 522 00:32:26,760 --> 00:32:29,320 their universe. Not money, not success, not 523 00:32:29,320 --> 00:32:32,720 publications, not respect, but Jesus becomes the center of 524 00:32:32,720 --> 00:32:35,040 their life and they go on for the rest of their days and they 525 00:32:35,040 --> 00:32:38,560 live with him at the center that they would then give their life 526 00:32:38,560 --> 00:32:42,640 to sowing and reaping. We have a wonderful opportunity 527 00:32:42,640 --> 00:32:47,240 just three miles down the road with 75,000 college students 528 00:32:47,240 --> 00:32:57,040 between UF and Santa Fe. The fields are white and so we 529 00:32:57,040 --> 00:33:00,240 need more laborers. We need more laborers. 530 00:33:00,240 --> 00:33:02,720 We need more sowers. We need more reapers. 531 00:33:03,360 --> 00:33:06,040 Listen to Matthew Chapter 9 verses 36 to 38. 532 00:33:06,040 --> 00:33:07,320 This will be up on the screen for you. 533 00:33:07,320 --> 00:33:12,280 He said when he Jesus saw the crowds, He had compassion for 534 00:33:12,280 --> 00:33:16,280 them because they were harassed and helpless like sheep without 535 00:33:16,280 --> 00:33:18,720 a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 536 00:33:18,720 --> 00:33:22,640 the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. 537 00:33:23,040 --> 00:33:27,560 Therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out 538 00:33:27,560 --> 00:33:32,640 laborers into His harvest. He's saying there's so much work 539 00:33:32,640 --> 00:33:36,240 to do and we don't have enough people to do all the work that 540 00:33:36,240 --> 00:33:39,280 needs to be done. So pray to your Father that He 541 00:33:39,280 --> 00:33:43,880 would raise up more laborers who will help in this work of sowing 542 00:33:43,880 --> 00:33:48,120 and reaping. We need people who are willing 543 00:33:48,120 --> 00:33:53,360 to prioritize the Father's work over their own personal worldly 544 00:33:53,360 --> 00:33:56,880 ambitions. Bigger bank account, nicer car, 545 00:33:56,880 --> 00:34:00,760 more square footage, bigger boat, bigger vacations, better 546 00:34:00,760 --> 00:34:04,640 vacations. We need people who are willing 547 00:34:04,640 --> 00:34:10,480 to give their time, their prayer, their energy, their 548 00:34:10,480 --> 00:34:14,159 money for this work of sowing and reaping. 549 00:34:15,080 --> 00:34:17,320 We need more people. We need to be praying that God 550 00:34:17,320 --> 00:34:20,920 would raise up more people who are willing to go whenever, 551 00:34:21,000 --> 00:34:24,080 wherever, to whomever when God calls. 552 00:34:25,840 --> 00:34:30,880 We need people who are willing to be brave, full of compassion 553 00:34:30,880 --> 00:34:35,560 and love, who are willing to take a risk to share Jesus with 554 00:34:35,560 --> 00:34:39,199 people who they know and love. Remember talking to one of our 555 00:34:39,199 --> 00:34:40,520 college students. He was telling me, he said, I 556 00:34:40,520 --> 00:34:43,080 came home, I live with a guy who's not a follower of Jesus. 557 00:34:43,080 --> 00:34:46,800 I came home one day and he was sitting in his room and I just 558 00:34:46,800 --> 00:34:49,760 knew, like, I felt like God was saying, you got to go tell him 559 00:34:49,760 --> 00:34:52,840 about Jesus right now. As I said, what did you do? 560 00:34:53,040 --> 00:34:55,239 He said, I walked in his room. I sat down in his bed and said, 561 00:34:55,239 --> 00:34:57,480 hey, can you tell me about that? Can I tell you about Jesus? 562 00:34:58,080 --> 00:35:00,960 And he said, the guy gave me kind of a sideways look, like he 563 00:35:00,960 --> 00:35:03,440 wanted to say no, but he didn't have the nerve to say no. 564 00:35:04,280 --> 00:35:07,560 And so I told him about Jesus. I said, how did he react? 565 00:35:07,560 --> 00:35:09,040 He said I don't think he liked it very much. 566 00:35:09,760 --> 00:35:13,040 I said, well, good job, good job doing it right. 567 00:35:13,040 --> 00:35:17,120 Just courage, bravery, willingness to share the 568 00:35:17,120 --> 00:35:22,560 message. We need more people who see 569 00:35:22,560 --> 00:35:29,760 clearly how devastating it is that apart from faith in Jesus, 570 00:35:30,280 --> 00:35:34,240 people will suffer apart from God in hell for eternity. 571 00:35:35,680 --> 00:35:38,240 We need eyes to see that That is spiritual reality. 572 00:35:38,240 --> 00:35:40,440 That is bedrock biblical reality. 573 00:35:41,360 --> 00:35:44,520 But we are so good at just blinding ourselves and numbing 574 00:35:44,520 --> 00:35:48,840 ourselves to that reality. Had a conversation with one of 575 00:35:48,840 --> 00:35:51,280 our leaders a couple weeks ago and he was sitting on my couch 576 00:35:52,160 --> 00:35:56,800 weeping because he's so distraught about the reality of 577 00:35:56,800 --> 00:35:59,680 hell and that there are a lot of people who are going to end up 578 00:35:59,680 --> 00:36:02,840 there. And I was, I was moved. 579 00:36:02,840 --> 00:36:06,400 I thought, I'm glad I'm it's hard to carry that burden, but 580 00:36:06,400 --> 00:36:07,960 I'm glad that you see it clearly. 581 00:36:12,120 --> 00:36:14,960 Jim Elliott, who was a missionary to the Warani tribe 582 00:36:14,960 --> 00:36:17,640 in Ecuador, he was actually killed by a member of the Warani 583 00:36:17,640 --> 00:36:23,000 tribe. He's famous for this saying. 584 00:36:23,000 --> 00:36:29,080 He said, he said, listen up. He said he is no fool who gives 585 00:36:29,080 --> 00:36:32,720 what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. 586 00:36:33,920 --> 00:36:36,880 He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep. 587 00:36:36,920 --> 00:36:40,960 All the worldly stuff, you can't take that with you to gain what 588 00:36:40,960 --> 00:36:43,000 he cannot lose. Eternal life. 589 00:36:46,160 --> 00:36:48,760 You know, we had 106 people baptized here over the past nine 590 00:36:48,760 --> 00:36:52,800 years because 52 people were willing to leave comfort, leave 591 00:36:52,800 --> 00:36:56,400 family, leave friends in Indiana and move 900 miles South to 592 00:36:56,400 --> 00:36:59,960 plant Vita Springs Church. Now, they're not heroes. 593 00:37:00,040 --> 00:37:04,720 Don't make them heroes. They're willing laborers, OK? 594 00:37:05,320 --> 00:37:08,360 We all are simply called to be willing laborers. 595 00:37:08,360 --> 00:37:10,440 Whatever he would call, whatever he would ask. 596 00:37:10,960 --> 00:37:13,280 I have some friends who used to be a part of the Springs Church. 597 00:37:13,280 --> 00:37:17,320 They're moving to Morocco this summer, which has less than 1% 598 00:37:17,320 --> 00:37:20,880 Christian influence in Morocco, and they're moving there like 599 00:37:21,160 --> 00:37:23,760 not going for a month or a couple months or even a couple 600 00:37:23,760 --> 00:37:25,200 years. They're like, we are like 601 00:37:25,800 --> 00:37:28,640 selling everything, like we're going all in and we're just 602 00:37:28,640 --> 00:37:30,760 there until God does something else. 603 00:37:31,240 --> 00:37:33,240 By the way, if you want to support them, let me know 604 00:37:33,240 --> 00:37:35,240 because they're raising support right now. 605 00:37:36,360 --> 00:37:39,360 They're not heroes. They're just willing laborers. 606 00:37:40,560 --> 00:37:44,000 Jesus says pray that God would raise up more laborers for the 607 00:37:44,000 --> 00:37:44,560 harvest. Why? 608 00:37:44,560 --> 00:37:47,680 Because the fields are white. Because God's at work in the 609 00:37:47,680 --> 00:37:53,800 world, participating in the Father's work of sowing and 610 00:37:53,800 --> 00:37:59,360 reaping nourishes our souls. You get a thrill out of it. 611 00:38:00,360 --> 00:38:02,800 Have you ever, have you ever been a part of helping lead 612 00:38:02,800 --> 00:38:07,480 someone to faith in Jesus? It is exhilarating when God uses 613 00:38:07,480 --> 00:38:10,600 you, whether it's in a big way or a small way to help that 614 00:38:10,600 --> 00:38:14,560 person come to faith. You might say, but I don't 615 00:38:14,560 --> 00:38:16,160 preach, right? I'm not a preacher. 616 00:38:16,160 --> 00:38:17,240 I don't want to be a preacher. That's fine. 617 00:38:17,240 --> 00:38:20,520 You don't have to be a preacher to help lead people to faith in 618 00:38:20,600 --> 00:38:22,760 Jesus. Different people play different 619 00:38:22,760 --> 00:38:25,320 parts in that process over different times. 620 00:38:25,440 --> 00:38:28,240 The body, we are the body of Christ, many different parts, 621 00:38:28,240 --> 00:38:31,280 and we all work together to do God's work. 622 00:38:31,280 --> 00:38:34,960 Some days you're the mouth and you're sharing Jesus with 623 00:38:34,960 --> 00:38:37,920 another person. Some days you're the hands and 624 00:38:37,920 --> 00:38:40,520 you're just serving people with the love of Christ. 625 00:38:40,520 --> 00:38:43,120 Some days you're the heart and you're the one that's behind the 626 00:38:43,120 --> 00:38:46,600 scenes praying for those people. Some days you're the arms and 627 00:38:46,600 --> 00:38:48,800 you're just embracing and comforting. 628 00:38:48,800 --> 00:38:51,080 Some days you're the feet and you're going. 629 00:38:51,680 --> 00:38:54,760 We're all a part of the body. We have our roles that we play. 630 00:38:55,240 --> 00:38:59,440 You might be just one link in the chain that Jesus uses to 631 00:38:59,440 --> 00:39:03,280 draw someone to himself, and you don't even realize you're a link 632 00:39:03,280 --> 00:39:05,960 in that chain. I remember a girl named, her 633 00:39:05,960 --> 00:39:09,640 name was Heather Phillips. She was in several of my classes 634 00:39:09,640 --> 00:39:12,480 when I was in high school. She was a Christian. 635 00:39:12,840 --> 00:39:15,640 I knew it because she wore a cross and she always had a Bible 636 00:39:15,640 --> 00:39:18,240 on the top of all of her stack of books that she would carry 637 00:39:18,240 --> 00:39:21,560 around. She was the kindest, sweetest, 638 00:39:21,680 --> 00:39:24,840 most respectful woman in our class in the high school. 639 00:39:25,120 --> 00:39:28,200 She never opened her mouth and told me distinctly about Jesus, 640 00:39:28,480 --> 00:39:34,040 but you know what? God used her to help me become a 641 00:39:34,040 --> 00:39:37,240 follower of Jesus. I think about her witness, her 642 00:39:37,240 --> 00:39:40,920 godliness, the kind of radiance in her, and I knew that she 643 00:39:40,920 --> 00:39:43,240 loved Jesus. That had an effect on me. 644 00:39:43,720 --> 00:39:46,440 I respected her even though I didn't believe what she 645 00:39:46,440 --> 00:39:48,680 believed. That was a link in the chain 646 00:39:48,880 --> 00:39:50,720 that God used to draw me to faith. 647 00:39:50,720 --> 00:39:54,680 You have no idea what link you are in the chain that is drawing 648 00:39:54,680 --> 00:39:58,920 that person to salvation. So are you participating? 649 00:40:00,440 --> 00:40:02,640 Are you participating? Are you aware that you're 650 00:40:02,640 --> 00:40:06,400 supposed to be participating? Christianity is a team sport. 651 00:40:06,920 --> 00:40:08,080 That's the way that it's supposed to be. 652 00:40:08,080 --> 00:40:11,720 Not the pastors do all the work and the members just, yeah, good 653 00:40:11,720 --> 00:40:13,560 job. I'm so happy to be a part of 654 00:40:13,560 --> 00:40:15,760 this team. No, there's no bench warmers. 655 00:40:15,760 --> 00:40:22,160 We all play. And as we do it, our soul is 656 00:40:22,440 --> 00:40:26,560 nourished. Let's finish up these verses. 657 00:40:28,800 --> 00:40:32,840 We see the results of sowing and reaping. 658 00:40:33,720 --> 00:40:37,520 Verse 39 Let me get a drink here. 659 00:40:41,280 --> 00:40:45,360 Verse 39, it says many Samaritans for that from that 660 00:40:45,360 --> 00:40:50,480 town believed in him because of the woman's testimony and here 661 00:40:50,480 --> 00:40:53,280 is her testimony. He told me all that I ever did 662 00:40:54,080 --> 00:40:55,200 right. He knew me. 663 00:40:55,520 --> 00:40:57,640 He knew that I had had five ex husbands. 664 00:40:57,640 --> 00:41:00,080 He knew that I was being sexually immoral with the man 665 00:41:00,080 --> 00:41:03,280 that I'm living with, and he still offered himself to me, and 666 00:41:03,280 --> 00:41:07,320 he forgave me and he saved me. He knows me and he set me free. 667 00:41:07,400 --> 00:41:10,560 That's her testimony. Verse 40. 668 00:41:10,560 --> 00:41:13,720 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with 669 00:41:13,720 --> 00:41:16,040 them, and he stayed there two days. 670 00:41:16,400 --> 00:41:21,280 And many more believed because of his word they said to the 671 00:41:21,280 --> 00:41:22,800 woman. It is no longer because of what 672 00:41:22,800 --> 00:41:26,120 you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and we 673 00:41:26,120 --> 00:41:30,280 know that this is indeed the Savior of the world. 674 00:41:31,720 --> 00:41:35,920 So wonderful story. This woman at the well, she 675 00:41:35,920 --> 00:41:41,560 starts as the harvest. She very quickly becomes the 676 00:41:41,560 --> 00:41:47,320 sower and the Reaper. You see that Jesus saves her. 677 00:41:47,400 --> 00:41:50,520 Jesus opens her eyes and now she goes and she cannot keep her 678 00:41:50,520 --> 00:41:53,520 mouth shut. And now she's sewing and then 679 00:41:53,520 --> 00:42:00,000 God's using her to bring in more her testimony, her story of who 680 00:42:00,000 --> 00:42:03,960 Jesus is to her and what he has done for her has drawn this city 681 00:42:03,960 --> 00:42:07,440 to Jesus. They now, because of her story, 682 00:42:07,440 --> 00:42:10,400 encounter him. And that must happen for 683 00:42:10,400 --> 00:42:13,440 everyone to be saved. You must encounter Jesus for 684 00:42:13,440 --> 00:42:16,120 yourself. You can't get saved through 685 00:42:16,120 --> 00:42:19,720 somebody else by proxy. You've ultimately got to come to 686 00:42:19,720 --> 00:42:22,560 Jesus yourself. And that's exactly what they do 687 00:42:22,680 --> 00:42:26,480 is that they hear His words for themselves and now they're 688 00:42:26,480 --> 00:42:29,600 convinced and they believe that he is the Messiah. 689 00:42:30,920 --> 00:42:37,120 Jesus establishes by going into Samaritan territory that he's 690 00:42:37,120 --> 00:42:41,240 not only the Savior of the Jews, but He is the Savior just like 691 00:42:41,240 --> 00:42:45,400 they say of the world. He's come for all who would 692 00:42:45,640 --> 00:42:48,880 believe. Couple closing thoughts and then 693 00:42:48,880 --> 00:42:55,000 we're going to worship together. I love, I love the practicality 694 00:42:55,000 --> 00:43:00,120 of this story because we see the woman just can't keep her mouth 695 00:43:00,160 --> 00:43:04,040 shut and there's like fruit right away, right? 696 00:43:04,040 --> 00:43:09,360 Her story, her personal story is a tool that God uses to draw 697 00:43:09,400 --> 00:43:12,840 people into himself. Personal testimonies are 698 00:43:12,840 --> 00:43:18,160 powerful tools that God uses to draw people to Jesus. 699 00:43:19,400 --> 00:43:21,560 Because, you know, everybody wants what's good, right? 700 00:43:22,280 --> 00:43:24,320 You want what's good. I want what's good restaurant. 701 00:43:24,320 --> 00:43:25,680 I don't want to go to a junkie restaurant. 702 00:43:25,680 --> 00:43:26,800 I want to go to a good restaurant. 703 00:43:27,080 --> 00:43:29,600 If I'm buying something on Amazon, it's like I want what's 704 00:43:29,600 --> 00:43:31,360 good. This is why somebody invented 705 00:43:31,360 --> 00:43:33,880 reviews. I'm looking at the five stars. 706 00:43:33,880 --> 00:43:36,360 I'm like, OK, that looks good. I want, I want what's good. 707 00:43:36,680 --> 00:43:38,440 It's true for spiritual truth too. 708 00:43:39,360 --> 00:43:41,560 You realize that you got what's good. 709 00:43:42,280 --> 00:43:46,040 You've got Jesus, you've got the gospel, you've got what's good. 710 00:43:48,480 --> 00:43:51,680 You've met him, you know him, he's forgiven you, you've been 711 00:43:51,680 --> 00:43:54,120 set free by him, you've been given eternal life. 712 00:43:54,400 --> 00:43:59,200 You've got what's good. Your personal story, you can 713 00:43:59,200 --> 00:44:02,640 think of it kind of like an online review, right? 714 00:44:02,640 --> 00:44:06,640 Where you are just simply telling the merits of the one 715 00:44:06,640 --> 00:44:10,600 who rescued you. So I want to encourage all of 716 00:44:10,600 --> 00:44:12,520 you again, be very, very practical now. 717 00:44:12,720 --> 00:44:16,920 I want to encourage all of you to get good at sharing your 718 00:44:16,920 --> 00:44:22,680 personal testimony of salvation, who Jesus is, and how He saved 719 00:44:22,680 --> 00:44:23,720 you. OK? 720 00:44:23,720 --> 00:44:26,600 Just figure out how to tell that story. 721 00:44:27,160 --> 00:44:30,280 And I always encourage people to have different versions of their 722 00:44:30,280 --> 00:44:33,560 story. Have a 30 minute version so that 723 00:44:33,560 --> 00:44:37,160 when you're sitting at dinner with someone and it comes up, 724 00:44:37,160 --> 00:44:40,360 spiritual things come up or you bring them up over the course of 725 00:44:40,360 --> 00:44:44,520 dinner, you can share with them who Jesus is and how He saved 726 00:44:44,520 --> 00:44:46,080 you and what that is meant for your life. 727 00:44:46,880 --> 00:44:49,920 Have a three minute version so that when you're waiting in line 728 00:44:49,920 --> 00:44:52,400 at Chipotle and the person behind you, you get into a 729 00:44:52,400 --> 00:44:54,480 conversation with them. You can share it with them in 730 00:44:54,480 --> 00:44:59,720 line at Chipotle. Have a 32nd version so that when 731 00:44:59,720 --> 00:45:03,720 you're in the elevator going up to the 12th floor with someone, 732 00:45:03,720 --> 00:45:06,640 you can share it with them. And I would encourage you 2 to 733 00:45:06,640 --> 00:45:09,680 have a three second version. I was actually recently 734 00:45:09,680 --> 00:45:12,200 listening to a a sermon from an old pastor of mine and he was 735 00:45:12,200 --> 00:45:15,240 telling a story about his son who is a grade school teacher in 736 00:45:15,240 --> 00:45:17,280 Iowa. And you know, he he's a 737 00:45:17,280 --> 00:45:18,480 Christian. He's open about it at the 738 00:45:18,480 --> 00:45:21,360 school. And when the kids ask him why 739 00:45:21,360 --> 00:45:25,880 he's a Christian, he says to them, life is just better with 740 00:45:26,000 --> 00:45:28,600 Jesus. That that's a three second 741 00:45:28,600 --> 00:45:32,040 testimony right there. Life is just better with Jesus, 742 00:45:32,520 --> 00:45:33,880 right? It piques their interest. 743 00:45:35,600 --> 00:45:37,240 Learn to share your personal story. 744 00:45:37,240 --> 00:45:40,160 Well, we're actually going to have some handouts in the back. 745 00:45:40,160 --> 00:45:43,040 There's going to be a little table in the back as you go out 746 00:45:43,040 --> 00:45:45,520 the door. It's a very helpful article with 747 00:45:45,520 --> 00:45:49,280 some practical principles to help you think through how to 748 00:45:49,280 --> 00:45:52,320 share your personal testimony well with other people. 749 00:45:52,760 --> 00:45:55,480 OK, there's 100 copies, first come, first serve. 750 00:45:55,720 --> 00:45:59,960 Grab them on your way out. And then finally, as I close 751 00:46:00,840 --> 00:46:07,120 understand, Jesus is calling us into his work of sowing and 752 00:46:07,120 --> 00:46:09,960 reaping. He's calling you individually. 753 00:46:09,960 --> 00:46:13,320 He's calling us corporately. The question is, will you 754 00:46:13,320 --> 00:46:16,200 participate? Will you participate? 755 00:46:16,520 --> 00:46:18,760 Will you give yourself to that call? 756 00:46:18,760 --> 00:46:20,920 Will you give your life? Will you give your energy to 757 00:46:20,920 --> 00:46:24,760 that? And my prayer for us is that we 758 00:46:24,760 --> 00:46:27,920 would answer that with a resounding yes, just like in the 759 00:46:27,920 --> 00:46:31,880 story in Isaiah chapter 6, the Angel takes the coal and touches 760 00:46:31,880 --> 00:46:34,240 his lips. God says, who's going to go? 761 00:46:34,560 --> 00:46:37,320 Who's going to go? And Isaiah, here I am. 762 00:46:37,320 --> 00:46:39,280 Send me. I'm willing. 763 00:46:39,280 --> 00:46:44,240 I'm willing to be a laborer. I pray that individually, as a 764 00:46:44,240 --> 00:46:49,000 man or woman who has experienced the grace of God, that you would 765 00:46:49,000 --> 00:46:53,960 be full of love and full of courage to tell others what he's 766 00:46:53,960 --> 00:46:57,680 done for you. And I pray that as a church, we 767 00:46:57,680 --> 00:47:01,600 would always be willing to do whatever God would ask, to go 768 00:47:01,680 --> 00:47:06,120 wherever, whenever, to whomever, that we would be quick to obey, 769 00:47:07,400 --> 00:47:10,800 to invite others to come and meet the Savior of the world.