Mission: Living Intentionally with the Gospel Before Us

This podcast is a ministry of Grant Parkway Baptist Church, helping people know, enjoy, and glorify God.

For more information about Grant Parkway, visit GrantProquay.org.

We so desire to run after you to be about your purpose and your plan in our lives.

We want to follow hard after you, Lord.

One magnificent obsession.

Wow.

We so want that in our lives.

And we so can't do that without you.

So we uh we come here as people who have been redeemed, who are broken and yet are loved.

And we ask that you would meet us.

Oh, Jesus, just meet us.

Encourage us in your spirit.

Holy Spirit, we know you're always with us, but would you would you speak to us in a new way this morning?

Would you teach us in a new way?

In Jesus' name I pray.

Amen.

Y'all may be seated.

As Wade said, my name is Chad Cunningham.

I am not a pastor here at Grand Parkway, I just play one on TV.

And yes, um, ladies, um, my wife can attest that I was dumb enough to suggest that on Valentine's Day that we should watch the Daytona 500.

You think that went over very well?

No, probably not.

Yes, on any given Sunday, I am uh sitting where you are.

I am uh starting my week off, um, anticipating what God is going to teach me so that I might follow hard after him.

And when Neil asked me to preach, oh man, I was, I think, back in in March, I said, man, absolutely love to.

I had no idea what he wanted me to preach on until he called me a couple months ago and said, Hey, we're going through this, we're gonna go through a series in the summer on our core values.

And he asked me to uh to preach on um in our series on missions, which is the current series we're in, and focused specifically on living with intent or living intentionally.

And so I loved the opportunity because this is this is one of those areas that I'm so passionate about is taking theology and and hopefully putting it in a in a in a way that you can apply it to your life.

And um that's what this church has been to us as we have um recently moved.

It's been almost two years now, and and uh it is so amazing to have this opportunity.

So last week Neil started out our our series on missions and uh um that that broad context, and so he asked me this morning to speak not on missions per se, but on living missionally.

Living intentionally and specifically with the gospel ever before us.

What does that look like?

So this morning I want to I want to unpack this core value for you, if you will, in several ways.

Number one, I just want to define what in the world we mean by intentionally.

I had to trace that down.

So I want to do that.

What do we mean?

Then I want to ask the question, what does it look like?

I want to just dig into a real powerful biblical example of what living intentionally will look like.

From there, I want to make some observational questions with you about uh that.

And then what makes, what difference does this make to you?

And then hopefully I'll uh tie a nice bow on that and and uh ask some questions that uh you'll be uh uh thinking about this today and the rest of the week.

Does that sound good?

I've had my coffee and I'm ready to go.

Neil had a month to prepare for you to get back in the pulpit.

I've had four months.

So here we go.

Um what do we mean when we say our one of our core values here at Grand Parkway is to live intentionally with the gospel ever before us.

Well, so I had to look through that, the dictionary, figure out what intentional that word looks like.

Um and as I'm as I say that word, you should be driven to another word, which is purpose.

It refers to what one plans to do or to achieve.

Intention means at its core idea, a course of action on purpose to follow.

So, first, intentionality as we unpack this signifies a strong or it implies a strong deliberateness, like I intend to plant a garden.

Now, I don't recommend doing that in the heat of Houston, but there you go.

Um but but you have a purpose.

It's not merely just a conviction, just not a thought.

Second, purpose implies a goal.

And a goal might be to set your eyes on something high or something to achieve.

Umber of years ago, I set a goal out for myself to run a half marathon.

And so that you know, it's a goal.

I was purposefully focusing on that particular task.

But it implies that that goal can actually be reached.

So purpose, goal, intentionality, it brings with us also this concept of firmness.

Having the mind and the will on a specific purpose.

It's a deliberate course of action.

Okay, so if we say as the body of Christ that we are uh believers in Jesus Christ, we have been translated from the dominion of darkness.

There's nothing we could do to earn Jesus Christ's salvation.

He gives it to us.

We are there, and we say, Thank you, Jesus.

Nothing I can do for it.

That should translate into a different purpose for us.

So for us, specifically, as we drill it down into Grand Parkway, it means to have our minds and our wills on a specific purpose, and that's not a self-centered purpose, mind you, it is one that is God-centered or gospel-centered.

So living intentionally is having our minds and our will, that's the combination of what you're thinking and how your heart is being stirred, set on a deliberate, spirit-led course of action, which is with the gospel ever before you.

Because we know that the gospel changes everything.

Past, present, and the future.

Living intentionally isn't flippant, nor is it frustrating for the Christian.

It's not letting go and letting God, nor is it working harder and harder.

Could you be a better person?

It's about placing your faith in the object of who your faith is in, and that is God.

That in the fact that He can and He will make what is impossible possible.

So this mindset changes who we are, what we see, how we respond, and then how we persevere.

And we'll come back to that one.

Let me illustrate it for you this way.

Think of yourselves in uh think of a boat.

Okay?

So some of you have uh entered into a relationship with Jesus Christ, um, knowing that's not something that you can do on your own.

You've been you're jumping in the boat and you have just plopped your keister down in it, and you're just you're just going.

Current's taking you.

You know you're in, you know you can't lose it.

God's going to take care of you.

But you're just kind of wherever the current's taking you, you're there.

On the other hand, there's others who have made that, have been translated into the kingdom of light, and you're in that boat, and man, you saw a set of oars in there, and you're just and then you're looking at the dude going, why is he not doing this?

As you're going round and around him.

No, that's not what we're talking about.

Both of you need to stop, hoist the sail, and point the rudder to the north.

That's what intentional living is about.

It's not about more activity, it's not about more doing this to get God to love you more.

And it's also not you just sitting around allowing yourself to be taken wherever the current's taking you.

Because that creates lots of problems.

Because then you're like, well, why'd I get here?

You see, our purpose, Grand Parkway, is to glorify God by knowing and enjoying Him.

And that means living with a clear purpose on purpose.

It means no matter what it is that's going on around you or in you, the circumstances, whatever it is, normal, crazy life, death, hardship, joy, whatever it is, that you are emboldened with the mind and the heart to act and live within the reality that God is I am, and that he will do what he says he's gonna do.

Because he says, I will never leave you, and I will never forsake you.

He says, I will be with you.

He says, I will send you my helper.

He says, I am faithful and just to forgive.

So, what does it look like?

Let's jump into the word.

Turn in your Bibles to the Old Testament book of Numbers.

The Old Testament book of Numbers, chapter 13.

Numbers 13 · chapter mention

Chapter 13 and 14.

That's where we're going to spend a lot of our time this morning as we look at what does this look like?

What kind of an example do we have of this point of living intentionally with purpose on purpose?

Numbers 13 and 14.

Um I love this story.

This is an incredible reconnaissance story.

One of the best ones that I've ever seen, okay?

So here it is.

I'm not going to read all the chapters I'm going to be in and out and some of the verses, but here's what's happening.

If you remember, this is when the Israelites are poised to go into the promised land.

God has pulled them out of slavery, he has shown him his presence, and they're at the brink of the promised land.

And so God tells Moses, okay, go spy out the land.

Pick one person from each tribe, send them out.

Okay, so you got twelve guys, you've got one mission.

They're supposed to spend 40 days going out and checking out this land.

What does it look like?

The Bible says in verse 18 of chapter 13.

He wants them to see what the land is like, whether the people who live there are strong or weak, whether there are few or many.

How many?

How is the land which they live?

Is it good or bad?

And how are the cities in which they are?

What are they like?

Are they open or are they fortified?

And how is the land?

Is it fat or lean?

Are there trees or not?

So that is their focus.

Twelve guys, one mission, focus on the land seed blessing.

Oh, that's something we've heard before.

What does it look like?

And so they were supposed to bring this report.

Okay?

So let's look at the report.

Uh jump down to verse 23 and uh 13, Numbers 13, uh, actually 25.

And when they returned, the spies spent their forty days.

They went up through the south, into the promised land, up to the top, and then came back down.

And they brought, on their way back, they they they brought some different fruits, and they cut down a uh one thing, one little uh not little actually, it was a big cluster of grapes.

It was so big, they actually had two guys having to carry it.

The bounty was beautiful.

So here was their report, verse 25.

And when they returned from spying on the land, at the end of the forty days, they proceeded to come to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation of Israel in the wilderness.

And they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land.

Thus they told them, and said, We went into the land where you sent us, and certainly it does flow with milk and honey, and this is its fruit.

Nevertheless, the people who live there are strong.

The cities are fortified and very large, and moreover, we saw the descendants of Anak.

Oh my goodness, these are the giants of old, big guys, very powerful cities, strong, it's good.

Hmm.

So that was the ten.

Well, then what happens?

Verse 30.

Then Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, Hey man, let's go up, let's let's by all means take possession of it.

We can sh and for we shall surely overcome it.

But the other men were like, no, man.

They went up and said, We're not able to go up against the people, for they are too strong for us.

So they in turn gave out a bad report.

Verse 32.

So they gave out the sons of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, The land through which we have gone in spying out is a land devours in its in uh in its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in the land and in it are men of great size.

We became like grasshoppers in our own sight and in their sight.

And so that with this report, the entire congregation is just like, oh my gosh, they're weeping, they're freaking out.

They're not believing.

Then Moses and Aaron in verse 5 of 14, they fell on their faces in the presence of all the assemblies of the congregation of the sons of Israel, and uh Joshua, the son of Nun, and Caleb, they keep who spied out, they spoke to all the congregations of the sons of Israel, saying, The land in which we pass through to spy out is exceedingly good land.

And if the Lord is pleased with us, he will bring us into the land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey.

Only don't rebel against the Lord, and do not fear the people of the Lord, for they shall be your prey.

Their protection has been removed from them.

The Lord is with us.

Do not fear.

But all the congregation said to stone them with stones.

Then the glory of the Lord appeared in the tent of meeting to all the sons of Israel.

Do you see the picture here?

You should be asking yourselves the question, what in the world?

Twelve guys, one mission, ten of them say, okay, it's this way.

Two of them say it's another way.

People listen to the ten.

Oh, wait a minute.

Who are these people?

Where'd they just come from?

The land of Egypt.

What did God just do in front of them?

They saw his Moses' rod turn to a snake, they saw water turn to blood, they saw the plagues, they saw fire from heaven from heaven, they even experienced the reality of the angel of death.

In fact, as soon as they were going out, they came to that, the Red Sea, and man, what happened?

God parted that Red Sea.

Those guys, they're walking down in the middle of it on dry land.

They're looking on one side, seeing Shammu over here, on the other side, they're seeing Nemo and Dory.

Are you kidding me?

These are the people who are saying, wait a minute.

These people are too big.

They're too strong.

But what did Caleb say?

Completely different story.

Can we get over the idea that seeing is believing?

Can you stop saying, Lord, if you just show me what to do, or if you just tell me what to do, or if you do it this way, I'll do this.

The Bible says in John 20 that blessed are those who do not see and yet believe.

They saw it all.

When was the last time you saw the sea part?

Oh my gosh.

And yet they still didn't.

They were looking at the land, going, huh?

Unbelievable.

The contrast is absolutely clear.

One is characterized by a misunderstanding of a Christian's strength.

What did they say?

Oh, wait a minute.

We're not able to go up against the people, for they are too strong for us.

Absolutely, that's the whole point.

God is the one who's going to do this, not you.

They're characterized by a misunderstanding of Christian strength.

They're characterized by fear, and they want to go back to the comfort of bondage in the past.

The other is characterized by purposeful faith.

A faith rooted in God's character.

What difference does this make, believers?

What if Caleb saw the same things as the other ten during that recognition?

But lived out his faith differently.

Was he delusional?

Israelites still had to put their armor on and go up against these people, his tribe included.

What made Caleb, who saw the same things, experience the same thing as his brothers, those forty days?

What made him come to a different conclusion?

God provides the answer.

Look in verse 14, starting in 20.

This is outstanding.

After Moses has interceded for the people because their grumblings and crying, here we go.

We're going to pick it up.

So the Lord said, Okay, I have pardoned them according to your word, but indeed, as I live, all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord.

Surely all the men who have seen my glory and my signs which I have performed in Egypt in the wilderness yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not listened to my voice, shall by no means see the land which I swore to their fathers, nor shall any of those who spur me see it.

But, I love butts in the Bible, but my servant Caleb, because he has, watch it, had a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land which he has entered, and his descendants shall take the possession.

Do you see that, believers?

Did you see it?

He fulfilled, purposed.

This is what you don't see in the Hebrew context here, is that he fulfilled, he purposed to walk behind Jehovah.

The gospel ever before him.

Walking behind Jehovah.

That is your example.

This is Caleb.

This is a man just like you, a normal person who's yet trying to follow God and saying, This is what I believe about you.

I've seen you move, I've seen you promise, this is what's going to happen.

You are good, your character is there, and yet I have to look at this in a different way.

He was practically living out.

Absolutely sound theology.

He saw things differently and acted on things differently because he was living in the shadow of God.

Okay, what difference does it make?

I've got three things for you.

Caleb's decision, number one, Caleb's decision to live purposely changed his perspective.

Having seen and experienced the same things during his reconnaissance mission as his friends, Caleb did not let fear, the past, or the past dictate how he viewed life.

What he knew about God resulted in a will-based choice to action.

He's like, this is who God is.

I see this.

I still know who God is, but if God's who he is, he's going to be with us.

He's already promised this to the people.

He even said, guess what?

God is going to take away the protection of these people living in a land.

Oh, by the way, the only way these people have that land is because God is allowing them to have that land.

And he's saying, wait, I'm going to take it away and I'm going to give it to you.

His perspective changed because he was living with the gospel ever before him.

If the Lord is pleased with us, then he will bring us into the land and give it to us.

Their protection has been removed.

Secondly, against all corporate pressure, even to the point of being killed, when was the last time you testified and somebody said, I'm going to start stoning you?

I haven't done that yet.

But even to that point, he publicly spoke the honest truth about the character of God.

You see, what you know about God and his truth has to change how you see and act on things.

You should give a different testimony because you're living missionally.

And often the hardest testimony is to remind one of your fellow Christians they're not living on purpose.

They're living selfishly.

They're seeing things from their own eyes and their own strength.

And you're saying, no, I know this is hard.

But God says he's going to be with you.

Live in that.

Don't go back to the past.

Don't move in fear.

Move in the reality that God is going to be with you and do what he says he's going to do.

Live that out.

Thirdly, living on purpose enabled Caleb's to persevere in life through God's power and strength.

What happened to Caleb?

Here's the rest of the story.

Joshua.

Turn in Joshua chapter 14.

Joshua 14 · chapter mention

This is the rest of the story.

This is so exciting.

And I believe this is probably one of the most critical points that you can take away today.

Joshua chapter 14, starting in verse 6.

Joshua 14 · chapter mention

Then the sons of Judah drew near to Joshua.

And Caleb came before him.

He says, You know the word which the Lord spoke to Moses, to the man of God concerning you, and me and Cades Barnea.

I was forty years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me from Cades Barnea to spy out the land, and I brought word back to him as it was in my heart.

The dude was forty when he had to do this.

Should be encouraging to us all.

Nevertheless, verse 8, my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people melt with fear, but I followed the Lord my God fully.

There it is.

Purposeful.

He walked in the shadow of the gospel.

So Moses swore on that day, saying, Sure, the land in which your foot has trodden shall be an inheritance to you and your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God fully.

And now, behold, the Lord has let me live, just as he spoke, these forty-five years, from the time the Lord spoke the word to Moses, when Israel walked in the wilderness, and now, behold, I am eighty five years old today.

I am still as strong today as I was in the day of Moses sent me, and my strength was then as so my strength is now, and for war and for going out and coming in.

Now give me this hill.

Don't miss this.

Caleb, in his testimony of God's truth, he still had to live with all those people for 45 years.

Are you kidding me?

Grumblers.

Perseverance, beloved, is what we need.

What do you think Caleb felt like?

Oh my goodness.

When are we ever going to get to where we're supposed to be?

I've trusted the Lord, it's been crazy.

And he still, by walking in the shadow of God, he ultimately gets what God told him he would.

I don't know about you, my brothers and sisters, but sometimes walking and living on purpose is incredibly difficult.

Persevering in the faith can only happen, can only make sense when you're living on purpose.

When you have the right perspective.

Living in the shadow of God.

Living intentionally means not just seeing things with the gospel lens, but acting on the character of God, that he has changed everything.

It does not mean that you don't have to step out into a hostile land.

Caleb did that.

It doesn't mean that your circumstances aren't going to be daunting or troubling.

It doesn't mean that you're going to experience the milk and honey immediately.

Caleb exemplifies what we need to hear most.

Sometimes you have to wait.

I don't like waiting.

Sometimes you have to wait.

And waiting only makes sense.

When you're living with the gospel ever before you.

Living on purpose or with purpose on purpose, beloved, enables you to live in the reality that there is nothing in front of you, seen or unseen, that God cannot handle.

So what might he be saying to you today?

Here's a couple questions I'll ask you.

The broadest one is the one that you should be thinking of, that we all should be asking ourselves, who are you more like?

The ten?

Who are like blah?

Oh my gosh, the guys are big.

Everything's strong, it's still good, but I want to go back there.

It's kind of comfortable back there.

I don't want to go up there.

Is that you?

Or are you like Caleb and Joshua?

So you know what?

That's some good land.

I'm liking those grapes and those pomegranates.

Some good-looking hill country.

And yeah, those guys are big.

But you know what?

God has taken their favor from them.

And he's given that land to us.

Are you like Caleb?

Are you living on purpose?

See, some of us need to get out of that self-centered place in the boat where we're just kind of going around and we're not really going with any purpose.

And hoist the sail.

Set that rudder on your true north.

Others of you just need to stop rowing.

Stop trying so hard.

Stop it.

Hoist the sail.

Point the boat towards your true north and follow God that way.

That is living purposefully on purpose.

Second question.

What would it be like if what you're doing now, that you're thinking about this, that what you're doing now, your stewardship while you're on earth, that when you stand before Jesus, not in condemnation, we know we're going to be with him, but when you take everything that you have done, and we are standing before our Lord, and we put that pile of stuff in front of him, and it's going to be a pile of sticks, and with the flick of his power, it goes up.

And whatever is left, you pick up and you hand it to Jesus.

And that is your reward.

What if the reason the Bible says that there is Jesus will wipe all the tears is that when you give him what you think you were supposed supposed to do, that there was nothing to offer.

Because you weren't living on purpose.

You thought you were, you thought you were doing the things, you thought you were doing this and that, but at the end of the time, when it comes down, the the offering, the jewel that you have to offer Christ, and maybe he's saying, you know what?

I still love you.

You're still my child.

But as we live purposefully on purpose, more of that will become an awesome, worshipful jewel when we see Jesus.

What if that is how we look?

Beloved, this is what we are going to do.

We will do this someday.

We will stand before Him and we will have to account for what we've done.

This scares me.

I don't know about, not in a bad way, but I'm like, oh my gosh, I want what I'm doing to make a difference.

And if we're not living purposefully, intentionally, in the shadow of God, my we're going to be going the wrong way.

And you're going to be focusing on the things that ultimately don't matter.

All right, let me meddle just a little bit more, if you let me go.

One more question.

What would happen?

This is for you parents.

This has kind of been an epidemic.

Well, maybe that's too strong in our neighborhood.

Like everybody's moving.

Everybody's like, oh, I don't want to be in this school district.

I don't want to go here.

I want to go live here so that I can put my kids here and so they can do this, and so that they can go to this college, and if it's got the right sign or the right color, they've got to have the right thing and everything is perfect, but they're uprooting everything.

What would happen if that's not the purpose of your parenting your child?

What if the purpose is helping your child understand the joy of learning not going to the right college or not getting the highest grade here or the best resume to get into college?

Maybe you're staring at the land of college tuition, you're going, oh my goodness.

Yeah, I get that.

But has God already told you he's going to take care of you?

Absolutely, he has.

So why are you all worried about it?

You're trying to make everything work in a certain way rather than just saying, my son, daughter, I love you.

This is what learning is about.

Go wherever God's called you to go.

And let that be okay.

See, if you're not living on purpose with the gospel before you, you're going to live in a self-centered purpose and say, This is what I've got to do for my kid, dun, dun, dun, dun, and you're going to be like, they're going to be done with college and they're going to be like, maybe that's not going to happen, but you see how living on purpose might change how you act.

I have no idea where you are today, what you're going through.

With a group this large, there's bound to be lots of waiting, lots of uncertainty, perhaps fear, hurt, probably a whole lot of pain.

But what God wants you to know is that if you live intentionally with the gospel ever before you, things will look differently as you live trusting Him.

He will give you the strength to go up and to live through.

Beloved, look at the land differently because you're living on mission.

Stand to your feet.

Let me offer a blessing over you.

Hold out your hands.

The God who said, I am the way, the truth, and the life.

The God who said, I will be with you.

The God who said, I will send you a helper.

The God who said, I will keep you and never forsake you.

That God is worthy of your purposeful living.

Now go and do likewise in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Amen.