Sunday at Martin Luther Church with Boldwill Hungwe Time to re-strategise and work Watchword for the day: (2Co 5:10)For all of us must appear before Christ, to be judged by him. We will each receive what we deserve, according to everything we have done, good or bad, in our bodily life. Epistle Message (Rom 8:18)I consider that what we suffer at this present time cannot be compared at all with the glory that is going to be revealed to us. (Rom 8:19)All of creation waits with eager longing for God to reveal his children. (Rom 8:20)For creation was condemned to lose its purpose, not of its own will, but because God willed it to be so. Yet there was the hope (Rom 8:21)that creation itself would one day be set free from its slavery to decay and would share the glorious freedom of the children of God. (Rom 8:22)For we know that up to the present time all of creation groans with pain, like the pain of childbirth. (Rom 8:23)But it is not just creation alone which groans; we who have the Spirit as the first of Gods gifts also groan within ourselves as we wait for God to make us his children and set our whole being free. (Rom 8:24)For it was by hope that we were saved; but if we see what we hope for, then it is not really hope. For who of us hopes for something we see? (Rom 8:25)But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. Gospel Text (Mat 25:31)When the Son of Man comes as King and all the angels with him, he will sit on his royal throne, (Mat 25:32)and the people of all the nations will be gathered before him. Then he will divide them into two groups, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. (Mat 25:33)He will put the righteous people at his right and the others at his left. (Mat 25:34)Then the King will say to the people on his right, Come, you that are blessed by my Father! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world. (Mat 25:35)I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you received me in your homes, (Mat 25:36)naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me, in prison and you visited me. (Mat 25:37)The righteous will then answer him, When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? (Mat 25:38)When did we ever see you a stranger and welcome you in our homes, or naked and clothe you? (Mat 25:39)When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you? (Mat 25:40)The King will reply, I tell you, whenever you did this for one of the least important of these followers of mine, you did it for me! (Mat 25:41)Then he will say to those on his left, Away from me, you that are under Gods curse! Away to the eternal fire which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels! (Mat 25:42)I was hungry but you would not feed me, thirsty but you would not give me a drink; (Mat 25:43)I was a stranger but you would not welcome me in your homes, naked but you would not clothe me; I was sick and in prison but you would not take care of me. (Mat 25:44)Then they will answer him, When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and we would not help you? (Mat 25:45)The King will reply, I tell you, whenever you refused to help one of these least important ones, you refused to help me. (Mat 25:46)These, then, will be sent off to eternal punishment, but the righteous will go to eternal life. Sermon Text: 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 (2Co 5:1)For we know that when this tent we live in---our body here on earth---is torn down, God will have a house in heaven for us to live in, a home he himself has made, which will last forever. (2Co 5:2)And now we sigh, so great is our desire that our home which comes from heaven should be put on over us; (2Co 5:3)by being clothed with it we shall not be without a body. (2Co 5:4)While we live in this earthly tent, we groan with a feeling of oppression; it is not that we want to get rid of our earthly body, but that we want to have the heavenly one put on over us, so that what is mortal will be transformed by life. (2Co 5:5)God is the one who has prepared us for this change, and he gave us his Spirit as the guarantee of all that he has in store for us. (2Co 5:6)So we are always full of courage. We know that as long as we are at home in the body we are away from the Lords home. (2Co 5:7)For our life is a matter of faith, not of sight. (2Co 5:8)We are full of courage and would much prefer to leave our home in the body and be at home with the Lord. (2Co 5:9)More than anything else, however, we want to please him, whether in our home here or there. (2Co 5:10)For all of us must appear before Christ, to be judged by him. We will each receive what we deserve, according to everything we have done, good or bad, in our bodily life. Sermon by Boldwill Hungwe Time to re-strategise and work We are living in a complex world, where the mission of the church is under pressure to reinvigorate itself in the face of challenges. Paul faced some of the challenges when he established a church in Corinth. He faced factionalism in the church and was accused of being weak and unattractive. Corinth was like a melting pot consisting of intellectual Greeks who were so proud of their philosophical traditions, Roman patrons, the social elite, Gentiles and a large number of converted slaves. It was a major city for trading. In fact, life in Corinth is similar to the life that we are leading today. A complex world. How do you discover your calling and preach about God in such a complex society? Paul is saying, have a look at my strategy. Paul’s missionary calling was to plant a church in the major cities of his day. He saw an opportunity in Corinth because of the hive of activity there. There were travelling salesmen and sailors he wanted to use to spread the Gospel as they went away. He knew that if you can convince an influential person about the message of Christ, you have convinced the entire community. In other words Paul was a strategist. This is one thing that is lacking in the modern day church today. We just do things anyhow and the world is posing questions each day. The world is asking you: who is this God you are talking about? The subject of the book of Corinthians is Ministry: the church’s work or service to the world. This is the central theme Paul deals with in the epistle and our watch word (Vs. 10):. (2Co 5:10)For all of us must appear before Christ, to be judged by him. We will each receive what we deserve, according to everything we have done, good or bad, in our bodily life. Three features mark Paul’s experience in the ministry [Tribulation, Hope and Triumph]. Like Paul, the world wants to know your story about your work in the midst of challenges. This reminds me of Susan Boyle’ story bit.ly/1v66wYq This brings me to the critical question of this sermon: what is your role in the body of Christ? Tell the world your story. A lot of people are so confused about their role in the church. They think ministry is only about coming to church on Sunday. When we leave church on a Sunday, we forget that God’s work has just begun. We forget that church is just like a gas station to refuel and carry on with work. Colossians 3:17 ‘’whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus....’’ [The key words here are: whatever, word and deed]. What is to work in the ministry or body of Christ? Let’s take a look at this word called WORK because that’s where the answer is. How do you define work? Work is not your job but your calling. The very purpose why God created you, that is your work. You may be an accountant, a CEO of a bank that will not stop you from using your position in the ministry. God puts you there for a reason. The word work is similar to a Greek word (Katergazomai: which means to produce something or accomplish). In other words what most people define as work is not work at all, but they are just simply BUSY people. Here is the critical point: Corinthians 5: 10 we will be judged by Christ for the works we do here on earth. That means, we should be more concerned about working (accomplishing or producing something) here on earth than going to heaven. If you are into business or any kind of work let God help you to reach your highest potential. Let him bless you so that you can be a blessing to others. Ask God to bless you so much that you will build a clinic in your village. Use your gift even at your work place. Sometimes you do not need to preach to your boss. Your actions are more important than even the posters you put on the wall. Let them admire your work ethic and like salt lure them to Christ so that by the time they discover that you are a Christian it will be too late. We need to have dominion; which means we need to influence, govern, rule/control, execute judgment, impact our workplaces, our country with God’s nature, principles, enforce his laws, values, morals, precepts, nature of authority. There are God ordained rules, standards and principles we have to enforce. For example, integrity, honesty, commitment, humility, accountability, faithfulness, truthfulness, trustworthiness, good attitude and behaviour, and diligence. Please do not lower the bar. We will be judged according to the activities we do in word and deed. Go ahead and take the influential positions on behalf of God. He gave you work as an accountant, teacher etc to set an example. We need to operate on a different set of values. There is no excuse for being unproductive. Harland Sanders founded KFC at the age of 65 On the contrary, when you are 65 it is time when society tells you bluntly that you are too old and you gladly accept that by jumping queues in banks and other public places. Think of it; my father did his first degree aged 56. One of the signs that you are not doing the work God assigned you is that the calling burns inside of you if you do not take action. According to Jeremiah your calling is like a fire in your bones and you cannot keep your mouth shut even in the face of discouragement [Jer 20:9]. (Jer 20:9) But when I say, I will forget the LORD and no longer speak in his name, then your message is like a fire burning deep within me. I try my best to hold it in, but can no longer keep it back. What are the dangers of not pursuing your calling? 1) You miss the opportunity; as simple as that 2) Another painful part: You will watch someone else do it 3) You will lose professional opportunity 4) You will lose money that was supposed to change you, your family and community 5) Society will remain underdeveloped and like a cemetery bury your talents, songs or books that were supposed to be written. 6) In the end God will judge you according to your work and deeds. When is the right time to pursue your calling? The answer is: as soon as you get out of that door. In fact, when the fear of not doing it is greater than the fear of doing it. You need to worry about the consequences of not getting started. When you leave that church door today go and start that business. Go and compose that song. Go and write that book and change our communities. We need to be industrious and motivated workers and like Paul and Susan Doyle have a persevering spirit especially when the work is difficult and tedious. Be on guard against being unproductive. Faithfully fulfil your responsibilities of providing for your needs and those of others. (Ecc 12:13)After all this, there is only one thing to say: Have reverence for God, and obey his commands, because this is all that we were created for. (Ecc 12:14)God is going to judge everything we do, whether good or bad, even things done in secret. AMEN
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 08:31:23 +0000
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