Nothing is Everything :: By John Lysaught

Published on: by RR10 Category:General Articles, John Lysaught

Nothing in this world can substitute what Jesus has done for us and still does for us. In His sacrifice on the cross and His resurrection to defeat death, Jesus became our way to be with Him in eternity. Nothing else but Jesus matters. He is everything. He is the focus and will be the culmination of all events that will end this current age and into eternity.

The Roadblock.

Psalm 19:14, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.”

Life gets in the way of Jesus being everything, right? We have so many distractions pulling us in different directions each day. Rarely do we even have time to sit with our family at dinnertime, and if we do, it feels rushed to get to the next item on the agenda in our hectic lives. We have only ourselves to blame for this because we do it to ourselves. This, in turn, happens with Jesus.

We rush Him. We let the things of the world interrupt and block our walk with Jesus. Though most won’t admit this, the truth of the matter is this- we sometimes feel that Jesus is an interruption to us living our lives. Ugh, this is a punch to the gut, but it is true for a lot of us Christians.

Some brothers and sisters have put Christ to the side. They have benched Him in the game of their lives so they can get everything they want out of this world. I also speculate that Christ was never a focus in some people’s lives at all. He was never in the game, per se. The world got them hook, line, and sinker, and they were fooled into believing in some other gospel that they could have the best of both worlds, that they could serve both God and the world at the same time.

The real focus for a lot of us is on having stuff. Newer cars, bigger houses, better jobs, and the best of everything else. And you know what? When you think you are getting ahead, you realize you are falling behind again. And so, the cycle continues. The dance with the world spins round and around.

We compare ourselves against others’ lives and possessions, but we don’t call it coveting; we call it something else. We just want better and want bigger and want more. Our appetite for this world is insatiable. Like a glutton in a 24-hour all-you-can-eat buffet, we can’t stop. It becomes our habit- the ambition to increase and increase and have more and more. When this happens, Jesus is not our everything; He’s just something.

Hardships

Psalm 119:71, “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes.”

Let’s be real here: our personal known world is not full of hardships, just inconveniences. We aren’t like Christians in North Korea. Most of us think hardship is when there is no Wi-Fi connection or phone signal. The problem is we can get everything we need and anything we want with little effort or consequence. Because of this, there is not a desperate need for Jesus.

This is the crux of the matter- when we can have anything we want in this world, our spiritual needs are neglected because there is no [perceived] need for Jesus. We must be brought to the point where there is a realization that this is false. We need to be brought to a position to know nothing matters, Jesus is everything. We need to be brought to our knees.

Being brought to this point is different for each person, but the theme is similar. We must be broken before Jesus becomes everything, not just something or nothing.

Breaking to Nothing.

Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”

When I was in army basic training, the point of training was to mentally break us and then build us up. The drill sergeants broke us down through physical and mental exhaustion by physical exertion, mental stress, and lack of sleep. Like most everyone else in basic training, after the drill sergeants broke us, they built and conformed us to what they wanted us to be. Because of this, I was a different person in a lot of ways than before basic training.

Society has done this to our belief systems and world views, just not as directly as something like basic training. A little change here and a small nudge there adjusted our values and priorities away from the core doctrines of our faith. Changes and ideas were slowly introduced to us, mostly through media and education, all in an effort to incrementally lessen our fundamental doctrine beliefs and faith in Jesus or to have us question God and His teachings. And here we are today, seeing the fruits of these evil changes that began decades ago when we look back and reminisce about how things used to be because of how bad things are now.

These changes and adjustments have made society bend toward the ways of the satanic world system we live in. Just watch the news or listen to the coffee pot talk at work. Christian values are going, going… and are mostly gone now.

Sorry, I’ve digressed a little, but this is important because, unbeknownst to us, there are many of us Christians who have been affected by this, and that is why we are lukewarm in our faith. And because of this, Jesus is not everything, so sometimes we must be broken to snap us back to the reality of Him.

We each have a breaking point, a rock-bottom situation where we are brought to a fork in the road- a defining juncture, to decide which way to go. Stay with the world, or go with Christ. No more wishy-washy faith or making our own paths.

This breaking point may be a financial disaster, a divorce, the death of a child, spouse, or whatever. For me, an illness broke me. During the rock-bottom of my ordeal, the Holy Spirit told me, not asked me, told me a decision had to be made about Jesus being everything or nothing; regardless of the course and outcome of my illness, I had to choose. Thankfully, I chose Him.

Waking Up.

Psalm 25:9, “He leads the humble in justice, and He teaches the humble His way.”

Before this breaking point in my life, I did not realize the lack of depth I had in my relationship with Christ. The reliance I had on Him before my illness was, looking back, superficial and intellectual at best. This illness showed me my fundamental lack of complete trust in Him and taught me that nothing else matters, Jesus is everything. I was humbled to my core at the realization of how helpless I really was in this world.

This type of humbleness, well, it comes when there is nothing left but Jesus. It’s a hard lesson to experience. The point when there is absolutely nothing left in us is when Jesus becomes everything. The point when we look around at our lives and can attest with certainty that it is Jesus who sustains us and not man or self is life affecting humbleness.

When everything is stripped down inside, and you find you have nothing, is when Jesus becomes everything. This type of humbleness changes the core of a person and allows Jesus the ability to rebuild and shape a person how He wants, like a spiritual basic training. The breaking was painful, but the rebuilding, it’s a wonderful and ongoing change.

Concluding.

When we have nothing, Jesus becomes everything. When this realization occurs, hold on to it because when you bounce back from being broken from devastation or other hardships, it is easy to get back into the old mindset and routine you had before. I take that back- it is too easy to get back into old mindsets and routines.

Stay focused on what is important to your eternity, not what you can get out of this world. The world we live in and are surrounded by is an uphill battle for a lot of us. We will climb up and will also slide down sometimes, but keep looking up and heading up to live for and to please Jesus until we meet Him face to face.

Take care, and God bless.

johnflysaught@gmail.com

 

Joys and Challenges of Being a Guest Speaker: Part 1 :: By Paul J. Scharf

Published on: by RR10 Category:General Articles

I’ve had the privilege of speaking in many different churches—not only in these nearly five years of serving as a church ministries representative for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry but also for a number of years in which I did a great deal of pulpit supply. This includes ministering for more than 13 years with a home missions board, IMI/SOS International.

It is now my joy and privilege to be in a different church nearly every Sunday. We’ve been with some of these congregations numerous times, so they have become almost a home away from home. We feel great freedom there and don’t need to ask basic questions. But there are many other churches that we visit much less frequently. And, of course, there are always those that we encounter for the first time.

Having the opportunity to be a guest speaker in these local churches has provided me with some amazing experiences and, honestly, many of the best Sundays of worship that I’ve ever enjoyed. On several occasions, we have seen the Lord working—and blessing—in the most unexpected ways or in the most unlikely of circumstances. Sometimes, it occurs in a very small church. Often, in my current position, we have found ourselves the undeserved recipients of the goodwill built up by The Friends of Israel over its long history. What a privilege it is to be on the receiving end of the gratitude of people who have followed this ministry faithfully for much of its eight and a half decades!

I must confess that I truly enjoy so many aspects of this kind of itinerant ministry—to such an extent, in fact, that I think I would struggle if I were to return to being a local church pastor. If I were ever to do that again, I would likely seek the liberty to take at least a few outside speaking engagements every year just to sharpen my focus.

Yes, it certainly is a place of honor—and also one of tremendous trust and responsibility (see Jas. 3:1)—to be called as a guest speaker to address the gathering of God’s people. As you might imagine, however, there are also some real challenges that come along with this territory.

In these next few articles, I’d like to explore some very practical issues that accompany the assignment of being an itinerant preacher. I may well be marching in where even angels fear to tread, but I hope that I can encourage others—both those in my position as well as pastors and local church leaders—helping us all to learn some things that may be beneficial for the ministry.

As you read my thoughts on several concepts, keep in mind the following: Before I go into a local church to represent The Friends of Israel, I always ask the pastor or church leadership at least three questions:

– Does the congregation have a strong preference regarding dress in the pulpit?

– Does the congregation have a strong preference regarding Bible translations?

– Is the congregation used to having a media slide presentation (i.e., PowerPoint, Google Slides, etc.) during the sermon, and how is that system set up?

I inquire regarding these things out of a desire to be sensitive, as a guest, to the church’s particular practices and wishes, and in the hope of making the day as great a success as it can possibly be, being prepared before we enter into it.

Now, in that light, I will share some candid thoughts on the issues involved in these questions.

Dress

I will first admit that 20 years ago I would not have written this section the same way that I am writing it now. I do recognize, however, that cultural standards—and even church standards—regarding dress have changed quite significantly during that time.

I must also confess that the two models who have taught me the most regarding itinerant teaching and preaching, Dr. John Whitcomb and Dr. Rich McCarrell (who oversaw my ministry with IMI/SOS), never needed to ask anyone about dress in the pulpit. They each simply wore a coat and tie every time they preached!

This remains my default position, but especially in my current role, I think it is important that I not appear to overstep the pastor or go outside the ethos of the church congregation with regard to dress.

Increasingly, when I ask about dress standards in the pulpit, what I hear back is, “Please do not wear a coat and tie!” While I may not necessarily adhere to that philosophy personally—and do believe that we are losing something that we will likely never get back—it does not offend my conscience to preach or teach in an FOI polo shirt or button-down collar shirt. If you’re asking for less than that, however, I’m afraid I will have to draw the line: no jeans, no shorts, no Hawaiian shirts, no sandals, etc.

I am also regularly receiving another response. More and more, the pastor will tell me that he usually wears either a shirt and tie with no coat or a shirt and coat with no tie when he preaches. In that case, I always request the freedom to wear a shirt, tie and coat. This is not a conscience issue for me at all but a very pragmatic one. Frankly, I just don’t think that I look good, or all that professional, in either of the lesser combinations.

One other practical comment: There is no excuse for the preacher to go up on the platform without first shining his shoes. There are products available today that make this incredibly simple, even when traveling. You’ll be amazed at how many people will notice.

Now that we’ve settled an easy question like dress in church, you may be ready for something a little less controversial. I say this tongue in cheek—as we’ll begin next time by looking at the issue of the use of Bible versions by the visiting speaker.

***

Paul J. Scharf (M.A., M.Div., Faith Baptist Theological Seminary) is a church ministries representative for The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, based in Columbus, WI, and serving in the Midwest. For more information on his ministry, visit sermonaudio.com/pscharf or foi.org/scharf, or email pscharf@foi.org.