THERE IS JOY IN TEACHING THE LOST                                                                          February 2, 2008

        Central Church, Ocala, FL—Westley Pollard

Introduction:

1.    During the years I have served as an elder I have been blessed with many opportunities to teach the gospel to the lost. This is the greatest work on earth. Teaching the lost, changing people’s lives, and changing their destiny is what teaching the gospel is all about.

2.    All men will not obey the gospel. There are two kinds of people in the world: honest and dishonest. Jesus said those with an honest and good heart are those that “hear and obey His word,” Luke 8:15. It is not God’s will that any man perish, 2 Peter 3:9.

3.    There is joy in teaching the lost and here are three reasons why:

The Lesson:

I.     It brings joy to heaven.

A.  Luke 15:1-7. Jesus says, “Rejoice with me because I found my sheep which was lost.” Jesus further says, “I tell you that there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner that repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”

B. Luke 15:8-9. There is joy with the angels of God. How can a Christian study these verses and not see that God wants us to be a part of His work that brings not only joy to Him but also to the angels in heaven?

C. I remember November 3, 1985 when I was seeking to know the truth. I wanted to find the truth, not mere religion. I prayed to God for help to find His truth. I promised Him that when I found it I would teach it to others.

1.   In March of 1986, I found it and obeyed it! I had many questions about the Bible. My cousin, Leonard Joubert, was already a Christian. I called him and asked him to come to my home, because he said he had found the truth. For every question I asked him he gave me “book, chapter, and verse.”

2.   After I obeyed the gospel, I continued to study and came to Mark 1:17. Jesus told His disciples, “I will make you fishers of men.” About seven months later our preacher, Max Dawson, asked for two men to go with him to a Bible study. I volunteered my cousin, Leonard, and myself, even though Leonard said he wanted someone else to go. Max told us that he was going to be “Paul,” Leonard was going to be “Timothy,” and I was going to be “Titus.” We got to the study and Titus forgot who he was! On that night two souls obeyed the gospel. After that occasion my life would never be the same!

3.   Fishing as a young boy was a thrill in my life. When my dad told his sons we were going fishing, there was no sleeping for me. I would be so excited about just catching the big one. Eventually, the boy became a man and the man a sinner who still enjoyed fishing.

a. One day while fishing for flounder in the same spot I had fished in every year, I raised my line and I thought I was hung. I had fished there for years and never got hung in that spot! After minutes of pulling on the line, I gave one big final pull (intending on breaking the line) and that flounder took off. Some help came and we got the fish into the net. I was a happy fisherman!

b. Later that day, I thought back to what happened. I asked myself, “Why did I believe I was hung in the spot I had never been hung in before?” Minutes later it hit me like a ton of bricks. The lesson was I didn’t trust in my bait to attract the fish!

c. The real lesson—the spiritual lesson—for me was that I needed to trust in God’s word to do its job, Hebrews 4:12. This passage teaches that the word of God is alive and active. It will always do what God wants it to do. I am not against new ideas, nor am I against technology, but remember, the power is in the gospel, Romans 1:16.

D. In Hosea 4:6, God said His people perished because of a lack of knowledge.

1.   You cannot obey what you do not know! God’s people in the Old Testament were destroyed spiritually because they refused to know God’s word.

2.   The same is true for us. If we do not know and obey God’s word, we will be destroyed!

E. This gospel is for all people! In John 4:9, the woman at the well was surprised that Jesus talked to her. Jesus talked to her concerning salvation.

1.   In John 4:27, when the disciples saw Jesus talking to the woman, they marveled because the Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans.

2.   Our job is to open our mouths, open the Bible, so that we can open people’s minds, so that we can open their understanding, turning them back to God, Acts 26:15-18.

F.  In Nehemiah 8:2, Ezra brought the law of God before the people so that “all could hear and understand it.”

1.   Nehemiah 8:5 says, “Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people.” When he opened God’s book, the people stood up.

2.   In Nehemiah 8:8, we see the job of teachers. They read from the scriptures “distinctly,” and “gave the sense of it,” causing Israel to “understand the reading.”  

G. When we do our job as teachers, it brings joy to heaven!

II.      It brings joy to the saved.

A.  In Acts 8:5, Philip went down to the city of Samaria; the Bible tells us there was “great joy” in that city.

1.   The people had great joy because a counterfeit had been discovered.

2.    It does not matter how long error has been taught, it is still error, Acts 8:9-12.

B. In Acts 8:39, the eunuch was taught the gospel, and after being taught, he was baptized into Christ. When he came up out of the water, he went on his way “rejoicing.”

1.   In Luke 10:20, Jesus told His people to rejoice because their names “were written in heaven.”

2.   The eunuch rejoiced because he knew that since he had obeyed the words of Jesus, his name was written in heaven.

C. Follow the new convert! Do you remember John 4 (the woman at the well)?

1.    In John 4:28-30, the woman left her waterpot, went into the city and told the men, “come and see.” John 8:30 tells us they left the city and came to Jesus. This one person was responsible for many coming to hear Jesus!

2.   We need to open our mouths and invite men. John 4:39-42 tells us the people believed because they heard the words of Jesus themselves. They knew He was the Savior of the world because of His teachings!

D. When we do our job as teachers, it brings joy to the saved!

III.      It brings joy to the teacher.

A.  Look at the master teacher as He fished for Zacchaeus, Luke 19:5-6. Zacchaeus received Jesus “joyfully.” In verse 7, the religious leaders murmured because He ate with sinners. In verse 8, Zacchaeus had a penitent heart

1.   Here is Jesus (the teacher) and Zacchaeus (a lost soul who has repented). Jesus tells him “salvation has come to your house,” Luke 19:9.

2.   Jesus found fulfillment concerning His mission as He taught this man, Luke 19:10.

B. My wife Judy and I for eleven years had Monday night Bible studies in our home.

1.   People have asked, “How many souls have been saved as a result of those studies?” I tell them, “I don’t know, but heaven does.”

2.   Paul summed up the joy of a teacher in Philippians 4:1. These people were a joy and crown to Paul. They respected the truth that Paul had delivered to them. Paul, by the gospel, changed the destiny of these souls, Philippians 3:20.

C. When we do our job as teachers, it brings joy to us!

Conclusion:

1.    Do you want your citizenship to be in heaven?

2.    Suppose I told you I had three things to offer you today. Which one is the most important to you: whole life insurance, term life insurance, or eternal life insurance? The Bible is the policy, Jesus is the premium, and you just need to obey it and be saved!