June 12, 2005

Pentecost 4

Message series: Out of the Stands and Into the Game -1

I’m not a great athlete. But I have played enough to learn that when it comes to sports, it’s a lot more exciting to be a participant than a spectator. It’s a lot more rewarding to get out of the stands and into the game!

I have always loved football. From as early as I can remember, as soon as my brothers and I would get home from church on Sundays in the fall, we would turn on the TV and start watching football. But we never really made it past halftime, because then we had to go out and play ourselves. We wanted to be the ones catching the passes or throwing the ball. We wanted to be the place kicker making the winning field goal. And we would do that all afternoon, long forgetting what happened in the professional league that day. Today I usually watch until the end of the game, but as soon as it’s over, my boys and I head out to create our own action on the field. And I get more excited about my son catching a pass than someone on my favorite team.

Due to my size, I actually became more proficient in soccer than football. My brothers and I played two seasons a year in the youth leagues. We went on to play in university, and have loved the game ever since. During college, we got tickets to go to a World Cup game in Chicago – Germany vs. Belgium. What a thrill to see the spectacle and take a part of history in!

But as exciting as it was to be in the stadium watching that game, I wished I was down on the field. I’d see someone make a great cross, and wish I was there to receive it. I’d see a collision on the field and feel a bruise I once received. I observed a great play, and remembered some of the great plays our team put together at Northwestern College. I wanted to be in the action, not just watching it! Spectating never compares with the thrills of being in the middle of the action. I’d much rather get my shins bruised up on the soccer pitch than sitting in a smoky pub watching a World Cup match on TV! And I don’t think I’m the only one who feels that way.

Jesus felt that way. And we can be thankful He did! Jesus wasn’t a spectator. He didn’t stay up in the stands and cheer us on as we became so proud of ourselves for our earthly achievements. He didn’t sit there, watching us fumble around and make a mess out of our lives with sin. He didn’t just grimace as we injured ourselves and had to be carried off the field. Jesus put his uniform on, got out of the stands and into the game! He played the game for us like it has never been played, and He left it all out on the field. He made the ultimate sacrifice – He gave his life for us – so that our failures would be forgiven and we could live with Him forever!

Before our text, it says: “because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions…for it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast.” We owe everything to God because of Jesus! Our thanks, our praise, our lives! Without Him, we’d be lost forever. But with Him, we have peace and life forever!

We also have a purpose in life! Our verse today says: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” From the beginning, God has had a plan for each one of our lives. We are a product of God, something He created to be connected with Jesus, and through that connection produce “good works” that give Him honour! The good works of love that flow from our faith are simply an opportunity to show our appreciation for all that God in Christ has done for us! They aren’t for boasting! Not for our glory! For God’s! We’re simply being given the opportunity to do the good things “which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Friends, serving God with our lives and getting involved in his work are what we were created to do! Getting out of the stands and into the game is what you and I were made for!

So you all have a choice to make. You can park in your usual spot in the church parking lot, make your way to a comfortable seat in your favourite row, watch a good service, talk with your friends, and then go home. That choice makes for a nice, safe, Sunday morning experience. OR – you can throw yourself into an adventure by rolling up your sleeves, joining a team of like-minded servants, and helping build the church that God has called you to be part of!

Whoa! That’s a challenge, isn’t it! Have I made anyone uncomfortable? Why am I not scared to challenge you this way? Why do Kevin and I not feel bad about asking any of you to get involved in the ministry of the church? I mean, shouldn’t we? With how busy you already are at home, work, and family activities? Shouldn’t we feel a little guilty for heaping another burden on you? With all your other responsibilities?

All of you are serving God in whatever job or career you have. Whether you work at home, factory, or office, go to school, take care of children, or whatever else it is that you do with your life, you can do it all for God’s glory. And I pray that you keep doing it!

Some of you stand in factory lines, dig fence post holes, stock warehouses, work on maintenance teams, and help construct and refinish houses. I am sure you are very thankful for your jobs and hope you enjoy them. But as you’re going home at the end of the night, do you feel that you have found satisfaction for your souls on the factory floor?

Maybe you’re in sales. You are hardworking, love working with people, and helping connect people with things that will make their lives better, but when you arrive at home at night, does your last sale fill you with a deep inner joy? You may be grateful that your business puts food on the table and your kids through college. But does it float your emotional boat?

Maybe you’re a stay-at-home mom, or a healthcare worker, or a stockbroker, or manager, or bricklayer, or accountant who is committed to your career. You may love your job, feel stimulated or be energized by your work. Hopefully you leave your workplace each day knowing that you have honored God with your work and your love for people. But does your secular vocation offer enough meaning to satisfy the deeper needs that stir in your souls? If you’re honest, few of you would say: “This is what life is all about.”

And that is why I am not afraid to challenge you with this Bible verse. That is why Kevin and I don’t feel guilty about asking you to get involved. God has a plan to use you for his purposes in ways you have never imagined! God has given you gifts you don’t know you even have yet! Getting out of the stands and into the game of doing God’s work is something that will fill your hearts deeply! If you haven’t felt it yet, just wait till you get to feel what it’s like to touch another human being with God’s grace! All of our paid jobs, including mine, are places we can serve God, but nothing compares to doing something for another person for free! Voluntarily serving another person out of love for God!

When you experience what it’s like to teach a child about Jesus, witness your faith to one who has none, help two people at war to reconcile, serve a meal to a homeless person, deliver a flyer that brings someone to church and later to faith, I’ll bet your life will never be the same! When you “get into the game,” when you let God use you to carry out his purpose, it will beat anything else you could experience! And what a way to thank God for his service to you!

Don’t believe it? Here’s a letter a man wrote to his pastor who helped him discover that serving is far more satisfying than spectating: “Three years ago you challenged me to get involved as a volunteer. I was hesitant at first, but you wouldn’t let up. Now I can’t thank you enough. The meaning I derive, the sense of ownership I feel, the friendships I have built, the spiritual growth I’ve experienced – it’s all directly related to finding my niche in serving. I will be grateful to you for the rest of my life for inviting me into the game.”

Thanks for inviting me into the game. That’s why I don’t feel guilty about inviting you! Once you get the chance to serve God with other believers, instead of saying “I can’t believe I’m being asked to do this,” one day you will be saying: “I can’t believe I get to do this!”

In Ecclesiastes, the writer shares with us how he chased after knowledge, money, power, sensual pleasure, fame and celebrity in order to find meaning in life. But after he attained all of these things, he admits that a life filled with them is nothing but vanity. A chasing after the wind.

We were not created to chase the wind! We were created to join God on a mission! God is at work 24/7, all over the world, to bring all people to Him and to carry out his purpose in our lives. The purpose of serving Him for eternity. This planet has been badly broken. Sin has manifested itself in all of our lives with pride, selfishness, ego, hatred, and harmful pleasures. But God fixed all that brokenness by having his Son Jesus destroy the power of sin with his perfect life and death He died in our place. When God raised Christ up, He also raised us up as his forgiven children. By his completely underserved love, we have been made right again with God. And that, my friends, is a gift! We didn’t do anything to get that!

But now we can do something! We can join God on his mission! God constantly has the work gloves on. And He is calling us to roll up our sleeves and join Him with our talents, our money, our time, and our passion. God’s mission is that all people might come to faith in what Jesus did for us so that they can also serve Him for eternity! And He wants his mission to become ours! “If you’re chasing after the wind,” He tells us, “you can keep right on doing that. Or you can hook up with Me, and together we’ll transform this hurting planet!” What would it feel like to lay your head on your pillow at night and say, “You know what I did today? I teamed up with God to change the world!”?

God changed your world, alright. Instead of a life with no meaning or purpose, instead of a life that would lead to eternal pain and suffering apart from your Creator, God sent his Son as a gift to guarantee you an eternity with Him by what He did for you with his life and death! God changed your world with grace, forgiveness, and eternal life!

All so that you could serve Him – forever! This is what you and I were made for! (2 emails) People who let God lead them to where He wants them to serve find an incredible sense of satisfaction and joy. What about you? Is it time for you to get up from the grandstands, crawl over a couple of benches, suit up, and get out on the playing field? I guarantee that it’s far more exhilarating to be a participant than a spectator. Why watch others change the world when you can join them? Why let others get all the fun of sharing Jesus’ love with others? Get out of the stands and into the game! This is what you were made for! Amen.

Portions and thought content from this sermon were taken from Bill Hybel’s book: The Volunteer Revolution. Zondervan Publishing. 2004. Thanks, Bill!

 

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