Expanding the Kingdom - Vern Martin 6-9-2024

Returning in Christ's name. There's a blessing to be here this weekend. I

didn't I wasn't able to take in everything that was shared, but certainly was

blessed to be here. And I just wanted to thank everyone that put effort

into coming and making a possibility. There's a lot of work that kind of

goes in behind the scenes, and thank you for that expanding the kingdom.

Thinking a little bit about that kind of just a couple of thoughts came to

mind. One of them was, as I listened to what we heard already,

thinking about the the glorious Kingdom of God and the tremendous advantages that can

be had by being part of that, why would we why would we want

to keep that just to ourselves. Why wouldn't we want to see that expanded

and see other people be able to experience that as well? And so I

trusted we we all want to see that happen. We want to just think

a little bit tonight about maybe some ways that that that could that could we

could help make that happen. We know God's kingdom will expand if God is

able to to take his kingdom in the direction he wants it. To go

regardless of the choices that we make, but we have the privilege of being

part of that if if we desire. Just a few thoughts and and most

of these things were touched on already this weekend, but just the thought that

there are only two kingdoms and everything that that I see and the things I

don't see, basically they fit in one kingdom or the other. And that's

kind of sobering think about even the everyday choices, the common things tomorrow morning

will probably all go back to work, life, whatever. And even in

those things, we are building God's kingdom or we're helping the other side.

And I don't think God would have us just paralyzed with fear and agonizing over

every little decision we make. But it is something to think about that we

are building one kingdom or the other. And then I think a brother Mayland

touched on the fact yesterday about the fact there will be a conflict when we

expand a kingdom. We see that in earthly kingdoms, and one tries to

expand, there's a conflict, And there's going to be conflict when we try

to expand God's kingdom. And I think sometimes at least for myself. I

have been kind of conditioned to the idea that if I am involved in conflict,

I'm doing something wrong and something is wrong with my approach or whatever.

But I think we need to Obviously you think about being gracious and so forth,

but there will be conflict with the opposing side when we try to expand

God's kingdom. And I think Brother Malin touched on these things. But does

the level of conflict in my life does it say anything about how motivated I

am in expanding God's kingdom? And also who I find myself in conflict with

as far as people or whatever. Is that an indication of which kingdom I'm

building? Just some thust came to my mind, But I'd just like to

think about kind of some general principles tonight. I certainly don't feel I see

a lot of people out there that would be more qualified to be up here

talking about kingdom expansion than I feel I am. I am not consider myself

young, and I have not been real involved in some kind of a mission

effort or so forth. But I just want to share some things that came

to mind as I prepared for this, and hopefully it can be a blessing.

I like to just share four attitudes or four things that I believe will

hinder kingdom expansion, and then we'd like to look at some positive things.

The first one I have a negative is activity without obedience. And you probably

know where I'm going with this. But in Matthew seven, there at the

end of the Sermon on the Mountain, Jesus talks about a group of people

that are going to appear before him, and they're gonna He says, not

everyone that saith unto me, Lord Lord, so entered in the Kingdom of

heaven. But he that doeth the will of my Father, which is in

heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord Lord, I

be not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name cast out devils,

and in thy name done many wonderful works. Then well I profess them to

them. I never knew you. So we see that there are people that

thought they were doing I would say, kingdom expansion and and impressive works there.

But because they were not obedient to to Christ, our King, it

was to no avail. And Christ is going to say, I don't I

don't even know you. And so the Bible asks another place, what is

a man profited if he gained the whole world and lose his own soul?

And I'd like to apply that concept to this here, that what are we

profited if we expand the kingdom but lose our own soul? Or like was

brought out as well, maybe our families are those closests. So let's not

make the mistake of substituting obedience with with a lot of activities. Second thing,

negative thing that will hamper kingdom expansion is this this I just have a

title who is the greatest? And we see the disciples in Jesus ministry here

they argued and and stressed about these different times trying to determine who was going

to be the most important and in this kingdom that that Jesus was saying he

was bringing. And we can read about that and kind of look, at

least I looked down on that, and what was the matter with them?

But but I'm honest with myself, it's it's something that's that can be alive

and well in my heart. And this kind of this, this trying to

determine what what is the most noticeable in God's kingdom, what will bring the

most glory, what what is the most important, and trying to maneuver myself

to being in that spot, and that is not not what the Kingdom of

God is all about. Jesus called a little child under him and sent him

in the midst of them, and said, verily, as saying to you,

except to be converted and become a little children, you shall not enter

into the Kingdom of heaven. Who's over there. For Shoa Humbo himself is

this little child, the same his greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. The

third thing I have is question of what shall this man do? And that's

taken from the account there at the end of John where Jesus appeared to his

disciples when they went fishing, and after he had rose rose again, and

he's telling Peter, you're going to suffer for me, and you're going He's

given him kind of what is going to happen in the future. You're going

to be called to to feed my sheep and and and work for me.

And and Peter turns around and sees John there, and he says, what's

this man gonna do? And I can I can relate to that. I

think it's a question we probably all have at times. God does not divide

kingdom responsibilities up equally, at least to how how it looks to us.

And sometimes it seems may seem like we are once again called to go out

in the cold and and do a job, and someone else gets to stay

in the warm house, and it just doesn't seem like it's equal or fair,

and we want to ask, well, what is what is this person

going to have to do? And so forth, and so it's just not

a that's not should not be our focus other people and and trying to have

everything be fair. Jesus answered to Peter, if I will that he tarry

till I come, what is that to the follow thou me? The last

one I have negative attitude is a is a US versus them mentality. I

wasn't quit sure what determined has, but it's taken from the account there Luke

nine, verse forty nine. John is talking to Jesus. He said,

Master, we saw one casting out devils in nine am We forbade him because

he followed not us. Jesus said, unto him, forbid him not for

he that is not against us, is for us. And God's kingdom is

probably more diverse than than it ever was and I'm not sure, but even

even among Mennonite people or whatever, there's there's some there's diversity, and I

think it does call for discretion on on how to relate to all that.

But but let's not let's not make a mistake of thinking that kingdom expansion,

God's Kingdom has to fit exactly into my my box or my viewpoint of of

what is what is God's kingdom. God, God's Kingdom is is bigger than

that. And I don't say that to be careless, and there's there's a

ditch on the other side, but I think you know what I mean that

that everything has to be done through our what what I think is God's God's

Kingdom, and it's not conducive to kingdom expansion. I don't think it's now.

I just like to look at some some positive things that in thinking about

kingdom expansion. And here again there's just a it's a big subject. There's

there's probably a lot of things I'm not going to cover. But the first

thing I thought about is we need to be knowledgeable about about the kingdom,

about God's Kingdom, personally knowledgeable. And we've we've heard a lot of good

things this weekend I liked. I can't say his name now, the man

I had the devotions this afternoon talking about making it personal in our lives and

how it can't just be some tune that we sing over and over and has

been we've kind of memorized, and and that's all we know. In the

Great Commission Matthew twenty eight nineteen through twenty go you therefore and teach all nations,

baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of

the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I've commanded you,

And lo, I'm with you always, even under the end of the world.

The word teach is what stands out to me in those verses. And

I have never taught school, but from what I've heard and observed, the

best teachers are those that personally are knowledgeable about what they teach. They understand

it. They maybe work the problems out at home, and they understand why,

and they can teach it that way. They don't just turn to the

teacher's manual and say, well, this is what it says, and they

understand it themselves. Just thought of an example. We did not have a

big room school teacher last year, and and a lot of people from local

church there to step forward and helped, and it was a real blessing.

But at one point in the in the year, the one person that was

filling in teaching, they just they did not understand I think it was al

for the upper grades. They just they didn't have the time they had stepped

in in the middle of the year. They didn't understand it. And so

we actually ended up ordering some DVDs for the upper graders to watch to to

learn this algebra. I think it was and it wasn't the person's fault that

was teaching. I'm not being critical at all, but I just kind of

think that maybe figuratively, this is how I can be sometimes with with God's

Kingdom and and and how I relate to people. We can we can we

can just say here, watch these DVDs or read this book, or do

this, and because we don't even really understand it ourselves, and I don't

think that's going to be a very good way to promote God's kingdom if we

do not even understand why, why why the King asked us to do these

things, why God asked them, and and how we go about and doing

them and and so forth. Just a couple familiar versus two Timothy two fifteen.

Study to show thy self approved and to God a workman, and need

if not to be a shamed rightly dividing the word of truth and the work

Versu Hebrews there forsaking out the settling of yourselves together. There's just a lot

of different ways that we can put effort in to being knowledgeable about God's Kingdom.

And I don't think we ever plateau out where we where we know everything

and we we there's always there's probably always room to grow. Second thing I

have in relating to spending God's Kingdom is we to have a vision and this

has been brought out different times already this weekend, but you have a vision

of of what what what God would really have us to do? Just to

quote I saw. Vision is the art of seeing things invisible, and I

think I think of that in kingdom work. You know, you know,

there's just we need to make a living and we have bails, the pain

and all these things are going on, and that's what we really see.

But behind all that is a whole lot more And I think maybe that's what

Jesus was talking about there, and John Forver thirty five say you not there.

We have four months and then come with harvest. Behold, I say

to you, lift up your eyes and look in the fields, for they

are white already to harvest. They were on the road to Jerusalem. I

believe it was they met the woman at the well, the disciples. They

went to get food. They were tired. They were probably thinking about getting

to Jerusalem, the disciples, and you're on this trip, and Jesus is

challenging them to lift up their eyes beyond that and see what is actually taking

place. And we see that in Jesus' life, he didn't get sidetracked.

He was a hit of human body. I believe he got tired. He

couldn't be everywhere at once, but he kept that view, that vision of

what God's plan was. And we need to have that as well. It's

not enough to simply not waste God's resources. You see that in the parable

of the talents, the man there that that thought, well, if I

just bury that talent and give it back to the Lord when he returns,

that'll be good enough. That that is not good enough. We need to

have a vision of what God would really have us do with the things He's

given us and expand it. And then a third one, choose a good

part. I just termed it that. And in Luke chapter ten, there's

various things in there, but it's the story of the good Samaritan, and

I'm not gonna take the time to read that. You know that, I'd

just like to I just like to point out the fact that, you know,

when I when I read over the story, I used to think that

the priests and Levite were very cold hearted individuals that just didn't care about people,

and that that may have been the case. But the someone pointed out

to me that they they may have just been in a dilemma about what was

most important. They were possibly on the way to the temple to perform some

kind of religious duty. It's probably important to get there on time. They

had the whole idea of being ceremonially clean, not not messing with a dead

body, and so they they had to keep going and keep going on with

the program, and they just let the man lay in the ditch because we

had to get to the temple and serve God. And and I think in

kingdom work sometimes we just need a wisdom to choose what is what is the

most important, what should we really focus on? And it's not always what

we might think it is or are just carrying on with some kind of a

program, but it's it's taking time for the people that God brings into our

lives. So I think it's not gonna happen at convenience. I think we

all we all know how that is. So often when something, a situation,

hopefully not this intense, comes into our life and it's not a convenience,

but we need to we need to take that time when it when it

comes. And then at the end of the chapter, kind of along the

same lines, we see that account of Jesus being at the house of Mary

and Martha, and Mary is all says she's tumbered about with serving. You

just kind of get the picture of how they would have been, all stowed

up, probably trying to make things nice for this important teacher for Jesus.

And Mary is just sitting at Jesus' feet listening. She's not helping and Martha's

Jesus can't tell her to come help me. And in Jesus' words, Martha

and Martha that are careful in troubled about many things, but one thing is

needful, and Mary has chosen that good part which should not be taken away

from her. So sometimes I think to simply sit at the feet of Jesus

and learn is the most important, instead of being all all stewed up about

maybe some other other details that can even be good things, important things.

But sometimes to simply just take that time to said that the feet of Jesus

is expanding the kingdom. I believe. Then. Fourthly, the thought of

being labors together. It's not a it's not a project, that's just ours

alone. Some verses in one Corinthians five or three. He's gonna read Versus

five through ten. Who then is Paul, who is a police but ministers

by whom you believe, even as the Lord gave to every man, I

have a planet a police water, but God gave the increase. So then

neither he that planteth anything, neither he that watered, but God that giveth

the increase. And he that planted and he that watereth are one. And

every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor, For we

are labors together with God. Here, God's husband, year, God's building

stuff. There, Kingdom expansion is a joint effort. It's not just my

project. And it's very human at least for me to want this project to

be mine. I will plant it, I will water it, I will

harvest it, and you have your project. But I think in kingdom works

so often God calls us to work jointly with others, especially in thinking about

the church and the gifts that He's He's given and we don't have it all

of ourselves, and we need to be humble and and there's there's kind of

some risk involved sometimes, and you let someone else help you out on a

project because they might not do it the way that I think it should be

done. But that's okay because this is God's this is God's field. It's

not our field. We will receive our own reward, but it's God's project,

and so we do it together. Thinking about agriculture, gardening or whatever,

you know, what is more important the planting, the watering, or

the harvest or they all are. You don't have one without the other.

And so we can't think that what I am doing is the most important part.

It's a joint effort. And to think also, just thinking about the

Kingdom of God is being related to agriculture or whatever. It takes patience and

kingdom work, you know, gardening or whatever. It takes weeks, months

or whatever to you you have the harvest. And I think that that's how

it is in the Kingdom of God. We need to be patient. And

the last one I have zero point five thinking about expanding the kingdom is be

a good example of the kingdom. I just want to turn back to Second

Chronicles, chapter nine. This is the count where Queen of Sheba came to

visit King Solomon. And I think if an earthly kingdom ever represented was a

good example of God's kingdom, it was probably the time of King Saul,

a man at least before he apostasized. We could just we could look at

all the blessings and the magnificence of his kingdom. And the Queen a Shiva

heard about this, and she came to visit him and ask him questions.

She'd heard about his wisdom, and I'd just like to read her testimony in

verses five through eight, Second Chronicles nine. And she said to the king,

it is it was a true report which I heard in the mine own

land of thine acts and of thy wisdom, howbeit I believe not their words

till I came and mine eyes had seen it. And behold, the one

half of the greatness of thy wisdom was not told me, for thou exceedest

the fame I heard. Happy are thy men? Happy are these thy servants

which stand continually before thee and hear thy wisdom. Blessed be the Lord,

thy God, which delighteth in THEE, to sent me on his throne to

be king for the Lord thy God. Because thy God loved Israel to establish

him forever. Therefore he made he the king over them to do judgment and

justice just the verse. They're happy, are thy servants? These these people

were happy to be there serving in King Solomon's kingdom, and I think they

realized it was bigger than just King Solomon. It was God's kingdom, and

it was just you know, how are we doing? How do what kind

of a example do we leave to those around about about the God's kingdom?

Is it? Is it a joy to be there? Or or is it

is it drudgery? Is their strife? Is their turmoil? I think sometimes

if we would do a better job talking to myself of being happy in God's

kingdom and getting along and having that peace and love there, if we wouldn't

be a little more appealing, and people would hear about this and they would

want to come and they check it out and they'd see it it's even better

than what they've heard. And that might be a little bit idealistic, but

just it was just a challenge to me to think about that. Well.

I like to close with two things. The first one is a it's not

really a palm, but it was on a CAM newsletter sometime ago and I

really liked it. We lost it and my wife called them and they sent

it to me, and I just want to read it. And then I

want to close with some verses in the second Peter. The poem is titled

only one, My Child. I have often heard your question, and this

message is my answer. Hear me. Well, you're concerned about the hungry

world, the millions who are starving, and you asked, what can only

one do? Feed one? You grieve for all the unborn children murdered every

day, and you ask what can only one do? Save one? You're

haunted by the homeless souls who wander city streets, and you ask what can

only one do? Shelter one. You wead for those who stop or pain,

disease, and hopelessness, and you ask what can only one do?

Comfort one? Your heart aches for the lonely one, the imprisoned, the

abuse, and you ask what can only one do? Love one? Remember

this, my child. Two thousand years ago, the world was filled,

just as it is today, with those in need. One, the helpless

and the hopeless cried out to me for mercy. I sent a savior.

Hope began with only one. I like to close with verses from two Peter

Chapter one. Start reading verse four, Read through verse eleven, whereby are

given unto us exceeding great and precious promises, that by these you might be

partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world

through lust. And besides this giving all diligence. Add to your faith,

virtue into virtue, knowledge and to knowledge, temperance into temperance, to patience

and to patience, godliness into godliness, brotherly kindness into brotherly kindness, charity.

For if these things be in you and abound, they make you that

ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

But he that lacks if these things, is blind and cannot see afar

off, and have forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore,

the rather brethren give diligence to make your calling an election. Sure for

if you do these things, ye shall never fall, for so an entrance

shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Savior,

Jesus Christ. Thank you for your attention.