Stand Up For Jesus’ Work

Our theme for 2002 here at Warners Chapel is “Stand Up For Jesus.”  What does that mean?  It means we are willing to stand up and be counted as His followers.  We are willing to stand up and defend Jesus as the Son of God.  But standing up for Jesus as the Son of God means we must also stand up for His work as God’s Son.  Jesus came into the world with a mission to accomplish.  He summarized that mission in Luke 19:10 thus: “For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.”  One part of saving the lost involved His death on the cross, shedding His blood as atonement for our sins.  Without His blood there would be no salvation from sin possible today.  But there was more required.

Saving that which was lost also involves teaching the gospel message. Jesus said on one occasion “No man can come to me, except the Father which has sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.  It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father cometh unto me” (John 6:44,45).  Notice God draws people to Jesus but the drawing takes place through teaching as was prophesied by the prophets.  Note carefully what Jesus is saying, hearing without learning does not benefit the hearer.  This person will not be drawn to God. What about the one who does not hear?

This is where we must stand up.  The Lord gave the responsibility of teaching the gospel message that draws men and women to Jesus.  That is what the great commission recorded in Matthew 29:18-20 and Mark 16:15, 16 is about.  It began with them and it continues with us.  If we are to stand up for Jesus as God’s Son, we must also stand up for Him as Savior.  To stand up for Jesus as Savior, we must tell others about Him so they can learn.  Paul addressed it this way in Romans: “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.  How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in him whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?” (Romans 10:13,14).  The preacher here is not a specially trained pulpit preacher, but it is one who carrying the message of salvation in Christ.

Remember the inspired words of Peter: “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name given among men whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).  We have the charge to carry that name to the lost of the world.  If we are to truly “Stand Up For Jesus” we must take that name to the world.

—Denny