November 2 , 2003

No Better Investment!
Living Large Series Part 8
Speaker: Dave Gibbons

Mark 8:34-37
³⁴Then he called his disciples and the crowds to come over and listen. “If any of you wants to be my follower,” he told them, “you put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me. ³⁵If you try to keep your life for yourself, you will lose it. But if you give up your life, for my sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will find true life. ³⁶And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process? ³⁷ Is anything worth more than your soul?

Living Large is about ___________.

Matthew 25:42-45
“For I was hungry, and you didn't feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn't give me anything to drink. I was a stranger, and you didn't invite me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me no clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn't visit me. Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?' And he will answer, ‘I assure you, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters you were refusing to help me.'”

Luke 14:12-14 (NLT)
“When you put on a dinner, don't invite your friends, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will repay you by inviting you back. Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. Then, at the resurrection of the godly, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.”

Who are the ones that cannot pay us back?

1. The Hungry and the Homeless Poor
   “Share your food with the hungry and open your homes to the homeless poor. Give clothes to those who have nothing to wear.” Isa. 58:7
2. Orphans and the Widows
   “What God considers to be pure and genuine religion is this: to take care of orphans and widows in their suffering.” James 1:27
3. Prisoners
   “Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.” Hebrews 13:3
4. Immigrants
   “You must show love to foreigners.” Deut. 10:19
5. Sick and Afflicted
   “You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured.” Ezek. 34:4
6. The Unlovable (spouse, friend, relative)
   “Finally, all of you should be of one mind, full of sympathy toward each other, loving one another with tender hearts and humble minds. Don't repay evil for evil. Don't retaliate when people say unkind things about you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God wants you to do, and he will bless you for it.”
   I Peter 3:8-9

Brother, let me be your servant,
let me be as Christ to you.
Pray that I may have the grace to
let you be my servant, too.

We are pilgrims on a journey,
and companions on the road.
We are here to help each other
walk the mile and bear the load. 

I will hold the Christ-light for you
in the nighttime of your fear.
I will hold my hand out to you;
speak the peace you long to hear.  

Living Large is about Your Cross

I Timothy 6:18-19 (LB)—

“Tell people to use their money to do good. . . They should give happily to those in need, always being ready to share with others whatever God has given them. By doing this they will be storing up real treasure for themselves in heaven—it is the only safe investment for eternity! And they will be living a fruitful Christian life down here as well.”

Living Large is about Radically following Jesus, Mark 9:34

I John 3:18
“Our love should not just be words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action.”

James 2:15-16
“Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, and you say, ‘God bless you; stay warm and eat well!'—but then you don't give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?”

Mark 8:35
“Only those who throw away their lives for my sake and for the sake of the Good News will ever know what it means to really live.”

Ecclesiastes 11:4 (NLT)
“If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.”

Just Do It!
I John 3:18-19
Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions. It is by our actions that we know we are living the truth.”

2003 Message Archives