Monday, November 17, 2014
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So who cares about the weather in Afghanistan, or Germany, or the Middle East, or Asia? Well...if you've got a soldier there, you care. All of the sudden you want to know what's going on, the news about that place is very important to you. You know, when you know and love someone, you're following all the news very closely from the part of the world that is now their home. It's amazing how your interests, how your involvement changes when you have a soldier of your own.
I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "A Soldier of Your Own."
Our word for today from the Word of God comes from Philippians 1, and we're reading the words of Paul; one of God's greatest warriors. We'll begin reading at verse 3. Now remember, this is written from prison, "I thank my God every time I remember you, and all my prayers for all of you. I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel, from the first day until now." Now verse 7, "It is right for me to feel this way about all of you since I have you in my heart whether I'm in chains or defending and confirming the Gospel. All of you share in God's grace with me."
Paul's great human source of strength in prison seems to be his brothers and sisters at the church in Philippi. In a sense, those Christians had attached themselves to a frontline warrior named Paul. They gave him prayer support. They gave him financial support. They gave him affection, encouragement, they cared about his work, they cared about his health, and they took an interest in the places he went. They had a soldier of their own! Do you?
See I believe God wants to lay on the heart of every believer, one of his frontline soldiers. So that you have someone for whom you feel some personal responsibility: missions, missionaries, who are reaching some corner of a lost world. And all of that that you hear about in missions messages and that's just a concept to you of missions and the great commission and going and making disciples of all nations, that all comes to life when you allow God to make you a personal partner with one of His warriors. What did Paul say? "I always pray with Joy because of your partnership in the Gospel." Who would call YOU a partner with them in the Gospel? See then it's not just pictures and missionary letters, and some detached general concern.
My wife and I have friends who are in various parts of the world representing Christ. We pray intensely for them. I think our kids grew up knowing the meaning of missions because missions had names for them. They were guests in our house. Those are the letters that we read in that stack of mail. We write letters to them.
See, each of us needs a deeply personal attachment to the cause of telling a dying world about Jesus. The Great Commission with a name on it. That's what happens when you partner with a missionary. That's what it means to know that you have someone like a Paul that's a missionary, that's on the frontlines. And if you are a Paul, if you are that missionary; you know what it means to have someone like those Philippian Christians. It's a source of strength when you need it most. I cannot tell you how much it has meant to us personally. In critical moments in ministry, in intense battles, in what seemed impossible situations, to know that there are people who said, "Ron, we pray for you every day." It is the greatest gift you could give me; it's the greatest gift you can give to anyone in God's work.
So, would you take some initiative to find a Paul that you could get involved with? God wants to do a divine matchup between a missionary who needs you and a missionary you need. You know what, we wake up to a part of the world when we have someone there that we love, when we have a soldier there. The Lord of the Harvest wants to give you a stake in some corner of this lost world because you've got a soldier of your own.