MORE TO THIS
LIFE: Intentionality and context 9-24-23
INTRODUCTION
God is doing
a new thing!
There has
got to be more to this life!
Identity -
who are we
Integrity -
internal and external
Intentionality
Intentionality
and evangelism
Intentionality,
evangelism, and you
Intentionality
and the vulnerable
Rescue the
Perishing
By Fanny
Crosby (1869)
Rescue the
perishing,
Care for the
dying,
Snatch them
in pity from sin and the grave;
Weep o’er
the erring one, lift up the fallen,
Tell them of
Jesus the mighty to save.
Refrain:
Rescue the
perishing,
Care for the
dying;
Jesus is
merciful,
Jesus will
save.
“Older
people are the fastest-growing age demographic in the Western world, but
when it comes to church evangelism and outreach, they’re often overlooked.
We have so
much to learn from our elders, all of whom have enormous amounts of life
experience and wisdom, and who deserve our respect, love and care. My heart
aches when this precious generation gets overlooked and marginalized,
especially as older adults are the fastest-growing age demographic in the
Western world.
Today, there
are 12 million over-65s in the UK – that’s 19 per cent of the population - and
that figure is set to rise. In the US,
older adults are expected to outnumber children by 2034.”
PIppa
Cramer, “We urgently need to reach older adults with the gospel”, Premier
Christianity, June 8, 2023
I. THE LOST
A. God has a
heart for lost things
“Now the tax
collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the
Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and
eats with them.” Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a
hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the
open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds
it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his
friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost
sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven
over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not
need to repent.
“Or suppose
a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Doesn’t she light a lamp, sweep the
house and search carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls
her friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my
lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of
the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
Jesus
continued: “There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his
father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property
between them. “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had,
set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.
After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country,
and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of
that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his
stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants
have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back
to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against
you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your
hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father. “But while he was still a
long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran
to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. “The son said to him,
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to
be called your son.’ “But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the
best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring
the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son
of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began
to celebrate. “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the
house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked
him what was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father
has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ “The
older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and
pleaded with him. But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been
slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a
young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who
has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened
calf for him!’ “ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and
everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this
brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ””
Luke 15:1-32 NIV
B. Jesus was
sent to save the lost
“For the Son
of Man came to seek and to save the lost.””
Luke 19:10 NIV
C. We need to
find that which is lost
Freddie
Fritz shared these thoughts in a sermon.
“Throughout
history, believers have had this heart for the lost. John Knox, for example,
reflected Paul’s sorrow for his people when he said, "O God! Give me
Scotland or I die!"
David
Brainerd, the great missionary to the North American Indians in the early years
of the 18th century, died at the tender age of 29 while attempting to minister
to them amid many difficulties and trials. He wrote of his feelings for the
unconverted American Indians in these memorable words, "I dream of lost
souls. I care not what sufferings I undergo, as long as I see lost souls
saved."”
(From a
sermon by Freddy Fritz, "Responding to the Rejection of the Gospel")
II. AND DYING
“For the
message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who
are being saved it is the power of God.”
1
Corinthians 1:18 NIV
Fred Markes
tells this story . . .
I read a
story of a man that got saved as a young, adult. He was so excited about Christ
for the first couple of weeks, he told everybody the difference Jesus had made
in his life. One Sunday night he was at his church and they sang this song,
"Rescue the perishing, care for the dying, snatch them in pity from sin
and the grave, weep over the erring one, bring them to Jesus, tell the poor
sinner that Jesus can save." He heard that song and he got so excited that
as soon as the service was over he rushed up to the pastor, and said,
"Pastor, I'm ready."
The pastor
said, "Ready for what?"
He said,
"Man, I'm ready to go rescue the perishing--let's do it!"
The pastor
looked at him and said, "Well, that's not something we really do, that's
just a song we sing."
It wounded
that man's spirit for many years until he realized that the normal Christian
life is to be excited about rescuing the perishing.
(From a
sermon by Fred Markes, Do I Have A Burden For The Lost?, 8/30/2011)
“The message
of the cross seems foolish to those who are lost and dying. But it is God’s
power to us who are being saved.”
1
Corinthians 1:18 NIRV (New International Reader’s Version)
A. Spiritual
death
B. Physical
death also
III. OUR EFFORTS
“But do not
forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand
years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his
promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not
wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”
2 Peter 3:8-9 NIV
A. Reach out to
the vulnerable
B. Risk our
comfort
C. Rescue the
perishing
In 2000, 12%
of the US population were over 65. In 2021,
16.8% of the US population is over 65.
(2000 info
from US Census, 2023 info from Americanhealthrankings.org)
“The older
population increased by 50.9 million, from 4.9 million (or 4.7% of the total US
population) in 1920 to 55.8 million(16.8%) in 2020.”
Census.gov
Livonia.gov
18.2% under
18
21.2% over
65
90.6% people
living in the same home as 1 year ago
Worldpopulationreview.com
Growth rate
-.96% (-897)
Growth rate
since 2020 -2.85% (-2,716)
76,613
adults in Livonia
19,338
adults in Livonia are seniors
64.1 age
dependency ratio
33.8 old age
dependency ratio
30.3 child
dependency ratio
Average
household size 2.45
3,315
veterans over the age of 65 (5,178 total)
Current
population 92,690
2029
population estimate 87,419
2021 was the
shift in population density (2010-2019 -.15%/year , 2020 -.35%, 2021 -.95%)
point2homes.com
Average age
45.3 years
Households
with children 9,237 (-2.3%)
Households
with children 24.66%
Households without
children 75.34%
City-data.com
Median
resident age 46.4 years
MI median
resident age 39.8
Biggestuscities.com
Livonia
growth 2020-2021 -6.1%
The peak
population of Livonia was in 1990, when its population was 100,864. In 1990,
Livonia was the 200th largest city in the US; now its fallen to the 353rd
largest city in the US. Livonia is currently 6.4% smaller than it was in 1990. Livonia has
shrunk 6.1% since the year 2000. Livonia, Michigan's growth is extremely below
average. 98% of similarly sized cities are growing faster since 2000.
“According
to the U.S. Census Bureau, there will be more people over age 65 than children
by 2035. This swell in the aging population is what some are calling the “grey
tsunami.” But I think Jesus would call it the white harvest. In the coming
years, onr in every five residents in the U.S. will be elderly.”
Shelia
Dougal, 3 Ways We Can Bring the Gospel to the Elderly, Eric.com, February 2,
2019.
“There’s a
mission field in our own streets: in lonely apartments and quiet care
facilities. These men and women have not been forgotten by God. Let’s be his
hands and his feet to them: visiting, befriending, learning, and proclaiming.”
Katy Morgan,
3 Reasons to
Visit an Elderly Person Soon, TheGospelCoalition.org, February
20, 2020.
CONCLUSION
The lost. The dying. Our efforts. What will
you do?
Dr. Larry
Petton tells the story of . . .
Fanny
Crosby, the blind hymn writer, wrote so many hymns we love to sing. When she
was up in years, she visited the Macaulay Rescue Mission in NYC. She stood
before a crowd of homeless, drug-addicted, alcoholic men. She said, “is there a
young man here who doesn’t have a mother?” One young man timidly raised his
hand. He explained that his mother died when he was very young.
Fanny Crosby
asked the young man to come to the front. She gave him a big hug and kissed him
on the cheek. It touched her heart so much that she went home that night and
wrote these words, “Rescue the perishing, care for the dying, snatch them in pity
from sin and the grave, weep o’er the erring one, lift up the fallen, tell them
of Jesus the Mighty to save.”
Years later,
Ira Sankey was singing for D.L. Moody in St. Louis. He rose to sing that song,
but before he sang, he told that story. As he told the story, a middle-aged man
jumped up and shouted, “It was me! I’m the young man she wrote about. She
kissed me. I could never get away from that moment.”
As a result
of one simple kiss.....a young man came to Christ and his entire life was
changed!
What will
you do?
INVITATION
It is our
custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word. You may want
to follow Jesus. You may want
to proclaim your faith. You may want
to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things). Perhaps you
want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of
the Holy Spirit. Possibly, if
you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to
become a member of Kenwood Church. If you have
been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come
forward now. If you would
like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God
is doing in your life.
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