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If This Was My Last Sermon what would I say to you?
Many of you grew up in church. You have listened to hundreds if not thousands of sermons. The plan of salvation has been preached to you and many of you have taught others God’s plan.
However, you can grow up in the church and still not have given yourself to Jesus.
I was one of those who accepted the truth of the gospel and did all that was expected of me. If you ask those who knew me they would have told you I was a Christian.
I taught Sunday School as a young teen. During my last two years in high school, I preached the evening services. In my twenties, while still in the army, I was asked to pastor a small Christian Church in Lumberton, NC.
I preached Jesus Christ as the one and only Savior. I believed the Scripture with my head and determined to do what was right. God blessed and the church grew.
However, something was missing. One Sunday as I prayed alone at the front of the church, God spoke to my heart.
You see, I was trying to do all the right things, but I had never surrendered my heart and mind to Jesus. I had failed to make Him Lord of my life and commit myself to following Him.
As you listen to this message, I want you to consider your relationship with Jesus. Is He Lord of your life? Are you committed to following Him not just physically but spiritually?
If This Were My Last Sermon what message would I give?
This message, like many of my articles and published prayers, came to me when I woke up during the night. Sometimes, as I pray before going back to sleep, I believe that God guides my thoughts.
This thought came to me one of those nights. What would I preach if this were my last message to those God chose to hear it?
Over the last few decades, God has allowed me the privilege to minister in many different capacities. I pastured three different churches, cared for foster children, worked at New Mexico Boys Ranch, served as a deacon, and was President of La Mesa Christian School.
Carol and I have spent most of the last few years writing articles for our website. Each article is a challenge because we want to reach people with a message that will help them be better disciples.
None of us know when we will be called home. Scripture tells us that life is but a vapor. Although we are created to be eternal beings our time in this life is very short.
So, what would I say if this were my last message?
First, I want to tell you that God Knows you!
Think about this for a minute.
God knows you personally. He knows you from beginning to end. Your Creator knows everything about you. He knows what you thought when you woke up and He knows what is on your mind right now.
Speaking to the prophet Jeremiah, He says He knew him before He knit him together in his mother’s womb. His life was planned out by God. God knew when he would stray from Him and when he would come back.
Listen to what God says in Jeremiah 1:5 NKJV.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you;
I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”
Our Great and Wonderful God knows us in the same way He knew Jeremiah.
When He created you, He knew you and had a plan for you.
Yes, YOU!
He knew what you would do, the ways you would fail, and the ways you would succeed when He formed you in your mother’s womb.
He knows you, just like Jesus knew Peter would deny Him three times before the cock crowed. There is nothing about you He does not know.
He knows your sins.
Our Lord knows when you fail to obey His Word. He knows when you do not show love to others. God knows every sin you have committed and will commit. The Lord knows what you are going to think, what you are going to say, and what you will do.
Regardless of how good you think you are, the Scripture makes it clear that you are guilty of sin.
In Romans 3:23 Paul tells us “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
Hopefully, you have memorized this Scripture and are using it as you witness to others about our Lord Jesus.
Today
However, since I am speaking to you today, I want to point out that this Scripture applies to us. It applies to you and me as much as to the lost souls in the world around us.
We have all sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.
Paul goes on in Romans 6:23 NKJV and tells us, “For the wages of sin is death.“
So, if God knows us and He knows every sin we commit, we should expect death as our righteous payment. I believe that we should keep this truth in mind all the time.
This Scripture is true for all of us. It is true for those in church and those we consider evil doers or lost.
Thankfully, God had Paul put a “but” in the verse. It continues, “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
We do not want to receive what we deserve, because we deserve death.
The idea that we are good is contrary to Scripture.
Remember the rich young ruler?
Sin is not just a problem in the world around us. It is a real problem in our lives. It is in the lives of every single one of us!
None of us like to think of ourselves as a sinner. We want to think of ourselves as, “good people.” And we are by the world’s standards, but God’s standards are higher.
Let’s look at this narrative of Jesus and this upstanding young ruler found in Matthew 19:16-22 NKJV
In the 16th verse, he asked Jesus, “Good Teacher, what good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?”
Jesus answers with a question. So He said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments.”
Like we often do, he asks Jesus, “Which ones?” In other words, “Do I have to do more than I am already doing?
Jesus lists the sins they were already taught,”‘You shall not murder,’ ‘You shall not commit adultery,’ ‘You shall not steal,’ ‘You shall not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”
In the 20th verse, the young man replies, “All these things I have kept from my youth. What do I still lack?”
This young ruler was a devout follower of the Law. He had obeyed the letter of the Law, but God required more of him.
The same is true of us today. We cannot please God by just doing the letter of the Law. God wants us to be fully committed to Him and His Kingdom.
Note the young man knew that something was missing.
Being honest with ourselves is the first step in committing ourselves to following Jesus.
If we spend time in prayer and listening, the Holy Spirit will show us where we need to come closer to following Jesus. The Holy Spirit may have already convicted you and shown you how you are to change. If so, do it!
Jesus knew there were things in the rich young ruler’s life that he had not turned over to God. He may have never missed synagogue, always paid his tithes, and given gifts to the poor. Yet he had not given himself completely to God.
The same is true of many Christians today. They have confessed Jesus to be their Lord and Savior, they attend all church services, and they may even teach or preach. Outwardly they seem to be following Jesus, and yet something is missing.
As we look into our lives, we need to see ourselves as God sees us. We need to see how we relate to Jesus. Are we walking with Him? Do we do life the way Jesus would?
Do we ask ourselves continuously, what would Jesus do, before we act?
In the 21st verse, Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
Second, if this is my last sermon, I want to plead with you not to be like the rich young ruler.
Don’t decide Jesus is asking too much. Following Jesus brings far greater rewards than anything the world has to offer.
The older I get the more I look to the wonders of Heaven. However, Heaven is still in the future.
What about now?
You can be full of love, joy, and peace right now in this life. When you truly follow Jesus your peace and joy come from Him.
Stop worrying about things and receive peace and happiness.
In the 22nd verse, we find that “when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.
Real and lasting joy comes from following Jesus. Money and possessions have no value beyond this life. Real lasting joy can not be gained through owning things.
You have heard the saying, “Money can’t buy happiness.” It is so true, but money can care for orphans, feed the hungry, and send out missionaries.
If God has blessed you with wealth use it to reach the lost and help the poor.
Most of us spend way too much on our pleasures and things that have no spiritual value.
I often hear people say, “I earned it.” The question should be, “Why did God bless you with so much? How does He want you to use it to help others to come to Him?”
God has a plan for you, young or old!
Jesus knows you. God knows you and He knows all your sinful thoughts and deeds. He knows your sins and still loves you. God not only loves you, but He sent His Son to die for your wickedness.
God’s plan for you starts before you are born, but the choice is yours to follow it or not.
First, He offers you the gift of eternal life with Him through His Son Jesus.
Once you have accepted His gift of salvation through Jesus His Son, His Holy Spirit comes to reside inside you. The Holy Spirit will guide you into His perfect will if you will allow it.
You are a very important part of God’s eternal plan.
Following His plan will not always be easy!
God chose us for a very hard job! We are His chosen tool to reach the lost world we live in. People will not always believe the truth of the Good News we bring. They may even treat us harshly, throw us in prison, or even kill us.
However, God has revealed His plan through Jesus. In the following Scripture, we are given our marching orders.
In Matthew 28:19-20 NKJV Jesus tells us as believers to, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
It is much easier to come to church and say that it is the preacher’s job to win the lost.
I have heard this all my life and it is still a lie that Satan uses in the churches today. It is time for us to look at God’s Word and listen to the Holy Spirit.
Reaching the lost within and without the church is our job. Each of us is called by God to be a witness to the lost souls around us and throughout the world.
You can not say that you love Jesus if you are not willing to do what He commands us to do.
Jesus says in John 14:15 NKJV, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
Think about it, Jesus says, “If you love Me.” This is the question we need to answer every day of our lives. Do we love Jesus or the world?
Finally, let’s put it all together.
If this was my last sermon I would want you to understand these three things.
God knows you.
He knows you better than you know yourself. Our Almighty God knows the great potential He put in you before your first breath.
He loves you and wants you to join with Him to fulfill His plan.
He knew you would sin and He provided a Savior.
God knew what He was creating and He knew that you would sin. His plan for you included His Son dying on the cross for your sins.
Almighty God decided to give you the choice of choosing His way or Satan’s way.
He gives you a choice to be for Him or against Him. Those are the only two choices.
One undeniable fact is that God knows if your faith is real or if you are just doing what you think is right.
God has a plan for you.
If you choose Jesus as your personal Savior and commit yourself to follow Him in all things, He promises you a reward.
Part of that reward is the joy you find in serving Him.
Jesus does not need you in the sense that you can give Him anything. However, you are needed to witness to a lost and dying world.
You will have life to the fullest. You will be able to feel joy when everything around you is falling apart. Following Jesus will change your view of the world. You will start to see how you can be a part of His great plan.
A great part of that joy will come from sharing the Good News with others.
Jesus showed us how to give of ourselves.
Conclusion
Today, where do you stand?
If this was your last day on earth what would you change?
What value would all your possessions be?
You can still make changes in your life and you can still seek God’s plan for you!
What would your last message be?