Just Keep Preaching - February 11, 2018 sermon

By Pastor Greg...

In 1952, a young man named Jim Elliot left for the country of Ecuador, South America.  He, and several other young men, planned to take the message of Jesus deep into the jungle area around Quichua (Kee-chew-wah).  One tribe, the Waodani (Wah-o-dah-nee), lived deep in the jungle.  And they were quite violent.  They lived with a code of revenge and had killed many people in the area, including several workers from a nearby oil company.  Oddly, Jim Elliot, Pete Flemming, Nate Saint, and 2 others decided to reach these violent people, and set up camp along a river near their village.  These young missionary men spent two days making contact with the Waodani and, because of the gifts they gave, began to show some success.  But on January 8, 1956, all five of these men were killed in a raid by these savage people, and not one Waodani was led to the Lord. 

This could have been just another one of those stories where people fail to reach others in the name of Jesus, But, that’s not the end of this story.  Jim’s wife, Elizabeth Elliot, his sister, Rachael, and another woman reattempted to build a relationship with the same people who had murdered the original missionaries.  Instead of revenge, they showed grace.  And this time there was success.  A few years later, Steve Saint even befriended the very man who had killed his father, Nate.  He and Mincaye (Min-kay) ministered side-by-side to the tribal people near Quito, Ecuador.   Lives were changed where it seemed there was no hope.

We need to remember that as long as there is still time, there is always hope.

The fifth and sixth trumpet from the book of Revelation reveal the truth about humanity.  Even though Satan and his demons make life miserable, people still do not turn to God.  They didn’t turn to God during times of peace, they rejected God’s Son when He walked the earth, and they still reject the Lord when Satan kills 1/3 humanity.  Truly, the heart of Man is like stone; it will not be broken or bent.  People simply will not humble themselves and give their life to the Lord.  And if God can’t convince people to place their trust in Him, what chance does a servant of God have?

Do you think John was heartbroken?

I wouldn’t blame him if he was; that’s how I feel from time to time. 

Think about John’s life for a moment.  He was one of the apostles who walked with Jesus.  He watched the Lord heal the sick, feed the hungry, rescue the outcast, and love the sinner.  However, despite all the miracles of Jesus, John witnessed a large number of people stop following the Lord (John 6:66).  It must have been frustrating for John.  He knew Jesus as the Son of God; he walked with the Messiah, but many refused to believe (John 1:11).  John ministered for nearly 60 years; he too healed the sick and helped the lame walk again… all in the name of Jesus.  Yet he watched every other apostle become a martyr; they were killed because of their faith.  And now, here he was, a prisoner on an island; forced by Rome to work the mines because of his faith.  Do you think he had moments of discouragement?  Do you think he ever spent time wondering if all the sacrifices he made were worth the heartache?  And if that were not enough, God demonstrates just how stubborn people truly are through these End Time events.  People simply will not turn to God – not during times of peace, not during suffering, and not during war. 

God gives John a glimpse into the future, and it is not pretty.  And apparently John was becoming discouraged.  After all, remember that he had the heart of an evangelist.  His desire was to see people turn to Christ and be saved.  But if God’s revelations were true, the salvation of humanity seemed hopeless.  It’s no wonder that John became discouraged and was ready to quit.

Apparently, the Lord saw the discouragement in John’s heart.  So, during an interlude between the sixth and the seventh trumpets, John is given a vision that applies to him, not End Time events.  Chapter 10 of Revelation is a message for John, but I think it is also a message for anyone who becomes discouraged about reaching people who do not know Jesus.

Revelation 10:1-11.  Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, surrounded by a cloud, with a rainbow over his head. His face shone like the sun, and his feet were like pillars of fire. ² And in his hand was a small scroll that had been opened. He stood with his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land. ³ And he gave a great shout like the roar of a lion. And when he shouted, the seven thunders answered.

⁴ When the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write. But I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Keep secret what the seven thunders said, and do not write it down.”

⁵ Then the angel I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand toward heaven. ⁶ He swore an oath in the name of the one who lives forever and ever, who created the heavens and everything in them, the earth and everything in it, and the sea and everything in it. He said, “There will be no more delay. ⁷ When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God’s mysterious plan will be fulfilled. It will happen just as he announced it to his servants the prophets.”

⁸ Then the voice from heaven spoke to me again: “Go and take the open scroll from the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land.”

⁹ So I went to the angel and told him to give me the small scroll. “Yes, take it and eat it,” he said. “It will be sweet as honey in your mouth, but it will turn sour in your stomach!” ¹⁰ So I took the small scroll from the hand of the angel, and I ate it! It was sweet in my mouth, but when I swallowed it, it turned sour in my stomach.

¹¹ Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.”

This lesson reminds me of the parable Jesus tells in Matthew 24.  In that chapter, the Savior is also talking about End Time events.  Speaking to His disciples, Jesus encourages them to stay focused and alert.  They are to keep serving and caring for others up to the very end (Matthew 24:46).  A believer is to keep watch and be ready all the time, “for the Son of Man will come when least expected” (Matthew 24:44).

It can be discouraging for the Christian who keeps praying for someone, but never sees a change.  It can be frustrating to invite people to church, but no one seems to come.  The message we have is "sweet," yet the anguish we feel for those who do not respond is "bitterness" in our soul.  However, ...

We are not to quit; we cannot give up.  Even yet, there will be some who give glory to God (Revelation 11:13).  And we will talk about that next week.  But the message God gives John is the same message He has for you and me.  Never stop praying; never stop inviting.  It's not over until Christ returns.  Until the day the Lord returns, we must be faithful - caring for the people of this world and talking to them about Jesus.

There still might be one more person who is saved.

“So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless” (1 Corinthians 15:58).