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Thank you very much; it's an honor to be here. Let's pray together. Father I ask that you
would now grant that the eyes of our hearts would see, and that the taste buds of our
souls would savor the supreme value of Jesus Christ. And that being so confident and so
satisfied in Him, we would have the courage to lay down our lives, to take the gospel
to the unreached peoples of the world, no matter what it costs. And so make Yourself
beautiful in our eyes. A steadfast love of the Lord is better than life, better than
life. I pray that every life in this room would feel that, really believe it, drive
it down into the marrow of our bones: that You are more to be desired than life. I pray
this in Jesus name, Amen.
Standing beside the tomb of Lazarus, Jesus said to Martha, "I am the resurrection and
the life, he who believes in me though he die, yet shall he live, and he who believes
in me lives, shall never die." Do you believe that? You will never die! Never! You won't
die! Jesus said so. He who lives and believes in me, will never die. Or chapter 6; that
was chapter 11. Chapter 6: I am the bread of life, whoever comes to me will not hunger,
and whoever believes in me will never thirst. This is the true bread that comes down from
heaven. Which if one eats he will never die. Have you eaten? If you have eaten of the bread
of Christ, if you have come to Christ who died for you, and rose again and lives triumphant
if you have come to eat as the satisfaction of your souls, you'll never die. He said so.
You will never be dead. Or chapter 8, he who keeps my word will never taste death. Ever.
This is the root of love and courage that can finish the great commission at the cost
of our lives. Paul said, one of my favorite passages in life, Philippians 1, it is my
eager expectation and hope that I might not at all be ashamed but for now as always Christ
would be magnified in my body whether by life or by death, for to me to live is Christ and
to die is gain. Gain. Not death. It is not gain to be dead. When you die you will not
be dead. Whether by life, or by death, for to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.
To live in the flesh means fruitful labor for me, which I shall choose, I do not know.
My desire is to depart and to be with Christ. For that is far better. So you wont be dead
when you die, you will be far better. The steadfast love of the Lord is better than
life. No Christian dies. Ever. Death has become, not a room into which you walk, not a dark
field, it has become a door and the door is paper-thin so micro thin it has no dimension.
You go through it without a millisecond in it. There will be no moment of death. You
move from life to life with nothing in between. You do not give your godly one up to see the
pit, nor let your holy one see destruction. You show me the path of life. In your presence
is fullness of joy at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. That's what's on the
other side of this thing called dying. Pleasures forevermore. There's nobody in this room who
could offer me anything better. In fact, there's no one in this room or in this world who can
even conceive of anything better than fullness of joy and pleasures at his right hand, forever.
There's nothing fuller than full and there's nothing longer than forever. So if you come
to me and say I have a better deal for you than following Jesus, I would say go ahead,
try, and then you would say... and I would say, no comparison. Because there isn't anything
fuller than full and there isn't anything longer than forever. And that's what I get
in joy, in his presence the one who loved me and gave himself for me and rose triumphant
over the grave and reigns as a king in heaven and will come again to make the world his
own you can't improve upon it. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3 don't boast in men all things
are yours whether Paul or ____ or _____ the world or life or death. Or things present
or things to come all things are yours you are Christ's and Christ is God's. Death is
yours liberty students. Death is yours. It's your servant. It stands ready like an ugly
handmaiden with a rough hand to lead you into everlasting pleasures. You will never die.
You will spend now in fellowship with Jesus and then on the other side intensified fellowship
with Jesus, growing in joy forever and ever. You cannot, and you will not, die. Here's
the point: believing that, down into the marrow of your bones, which a lot of you do not,
I can tell, and you know, that you're scared of little things, let alone, dying.
But if God would be pleased to use your time at Liberty, and this little piece of it right
now to drive that truth down into the marrow of your bones, it will become the root from
which grows up a kind of radical love that will carry you into the face of opposition
at the risk of your life, to bring Christ to the unreached peoples of the world. Confidence
in fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore, in the presence of Jesus, on the other side
of this so called dying is the root of love that is willing to lay down its life for the
sake of the nations. This confidence that you cannot die but only have increased pleasures
produces martyrs who die in love, not martyrs who kill in hate. And that's what I'm after.
If you have a bible I invite you to turn to Hebrews chapter 10. I'm going to spend the
rest of our time in Hebrews. And I'm going to try to prove from Hebrews the point that
being totally, deeply, fully satisfied in the reward of pleasures at his right hand,
and fullness of joy forever, being deeply satisfied in Christ as your supreme treasure
forever is the motive power to lay down your life in love for the good of the nations.
That's what I'm going to try to prove, and it's a very controversial statement because
if you're studying philosophy you will know that there have been historical, wise philosophers
who have said, "That is a defective motivation...you ought not do what's right for reward, you
should do what's right because its right." That is an atheist talking. Right for rights
sake is an atheistic statement. Right for Gods sake is a biblical statement. And when
you analyze to the root what "for Gods sake" means, it doesn't mean doing him a favor.
It means doing yourself a favor for His glory. You get the joy, he gets the credit. When
you do right. That's what we're going to try to prove because it's very controversial.
So there are four or five passages. It's amazing what you see in Hebrews, and I invite you
to look first at 10:32: "Recall the former days when after you were enlightened and you
endured a hard struggle with sufferings." So this is, they were converted, and as baby
Christians they endured a hard struggle, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction,
and sometimes being partners with those so treated. If you got a picture of that on the
platform this morning, right? We're not in prison. Sayeed is in prison. Says this, right
here, verse 33, sometimes being partners with those so treated... what happened when they
partnered, verse 34, you had compassion on those in prison and you joyfully accepted
the plundering of your property. So what happened when they identified with the prisoners is
that they got labeled as that kind of person and people plundered their property, or confiscated
their property. That's what happens when you do compassion. That's what happens when you
identify with the right. You might lose your property. Somebody might scribble, 'go home
Christian' on the wall of your dorm room, or they might steal from you or they might
malign you, or they might kill you.
That's what happens in the cause of the mission. And did you notice that unbelievable word
in verse 34... joyfully. You had compassion on those in prison and you joyfully accepted
the plundering of your property. Now this is what I'm after here; I'm after miracles.
This is a miracle. None of you is like this, in yourself. This is a miracle, somebody strips
off everything you've got, rips off your car, rips off your iPhone, rips off everything
you've got and instead of seething with anger, you rejoice. That's a miracle. That is crazy.
How can that be? And the answer is in verse 34, at the end. Since you knew that you yourselves
had a better possession and an abiding one. Does that sound familiar? Better and abiding.
Full and forever. In your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
You have a better possession. You have an abiding forever possession. What is an iPhone?
What's a car? What's a life? You will never die; you will only have better, and abiding.
That's where the joy came from, that's where the compassion came from. That's where the
visit to the prison came from. And that's where it will come from today or it wont be
Christian. These people didn't go to the prison and joyfully accept the plundering of their
property out of raw duty. It's the right thing to do, that's what you're supposed to do;
it says so in the book. That's not what the text says. The text says they joyfully did
it because they knew they had a better possession and an abiding one. So that's text number
one from Hebrews, here's number two. Chapter 11 verse 24...By faith Moses, when he was
grown up refused to be called pharaohs daughter. I'm sorry, refused to be called the son. That
was a good thing not to be called Pharaoh's daughter. That's another sermon, invite me
back, I'll preach that one. Ok, lets try this again. By faith Moses, when he was grown up
refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated
with the people of God. This is craziness again right; this is just utter counterintuitive...choosing
rather to be mistreated with the people of God, than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures
of sin. Fleeting. The whole world lives for pleasure, right? The only difference is theirs
is fleeting, ours is forever. That's not the only difference. Ours is Jesus. So he checks
out and weighs in the balance all that Egypt could offer him, all that serving with a people
under their approach of Christ could offer him and he chooses the reproaches of Jesus.
Why? Verse 26, he considered the reproach of Christ, greater wealth. How are you doing?
Is being made fun of part of your treasure? If you love. He considered the reproach of
Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt. How? For he was looking to the reward!
That's where it came from. The thesis of this message is if this reward, pleasures at your
right hand, joy forevermore, goes down into the marrow of your bones so that you know
instead of being dead I will be with Christ forever. Joy forever. That will become the
root of all your love of the people of God and the nations of the world, so that you
can embrace reproaches for the Christ and call them my wealth. This is just utterly
different from the world.
That's number two, here's number three. Verse 35, chapter 11, women receive back their dead
by resurrection. Oh yes, I believe in miracles of that kind too. And then, middle of verse
35, some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to
a better life. Oh, where'd that come from? Where did that courage come from? No, I'm
not going to renounce Him! I'm not going to renounce Him to get out of jail. I would rather
rise to a better life, a better abiding joy. If you don't have that, you will cave. Keep
going. Verse 36, others suffered mocking and flogging and even chains and imprisonment.
They were ***, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about
in skins of sheep and goats destitute, afflicted, mistreated, of whom the world was not worthy.
What does that mean? Of whom the world was not worthy. They're wearing skins and living
in caves. Of whom the world was not worthy. That means, they were a gift to the world,
and the world didn't deserve the gift. So that's what I want you to be. I want you to
be a gift to the world. And the world doesn't deserve you, it doesn't deserve you. You don't
go to the world, to the Muslim world, the Hindu world, the Buddhist world or the atheistic
world or the secular world. You don't go to the world because they deserved to have you
come. You go because Jesus went and because going there will lead you a full and abiding
reward in the presence of Christ. Chapter 12, verses 1 and 2, this may be the most important
one of all. I have two more. Therefore, chapter 12 of Hebrews, verses 1 and 2, therefore since
we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses let us also lay aside every weight and sin
which cling so closely and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us looking
to Jesus. Were looking to Jesus, the founder, and the perfector of our faith, who, for the
joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame and is seated at the right
hand throne of God.
Now the reason this may be the most important is because up until now I can imagine, thought
its hard, somebody saying the motivation that you're commending, namely looking to the reward
as a sustaining and motivation power for love is simply low and defective. It's a low motivation.
To move through persecution and through death into the presence of Jesus and experience
His fullness of joy and pleasures forevermore. That motivation for enduring this is low.
If you are thinking that, you are on the brink of blasphemy, because of verse two of Hebrews
12. Because you are about to say, Jesus Christ the Lord of the universe had a base low and
defective motivation on the cross. And he didn't. Here's his motivation: for the joy
that was set before him. Therefore God has given him the name which is above every name
that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ
is Lord to the glory of God the father. That therefore at the beginning of verse 9 in Philippians
2 is based on he was obedient unto death even death on a cross he knew that. He knew that
was coming. Rising triumphant over death gathering millions and millions of people from every
tongue and tribe and nation, surrounded by them praising him forever triumphant over
all these enemies he knew that was coming and that hope stayed his hand and kept him
on the cross. He despised shame for the joy that was set before him. He looked at shame
and he said, "I despise you." Make my day shame. I put no stock in you. You don't govern
me shame. I embrace you, I own you. Strip me, kill me, bloody me, curse me, you mean
nothing to me. I have a reward coming beyond Sunday. For the joy that was set before him
he endured the cross despising the shame and was seated. So if Jesus was motivated to be
and stay on the cross for the joy that was set before him, you should be too. It is not
a low motivation; it is the highest motivation to want to be in the presence of God, in the
fullness joy taking as many with you as you can, is the highest of motivations. One more,
chapter 13 verse 12 to 14, so Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the
people through his own blood. Therefore, let us go to him, outside the camp and bare the
reproach that he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek a city that is
to come.
So Liberty students, Jesus suffered outside the gate to sanctify you that is to make you
his own, to set you apart as a uniquely precious, holy possession of his own. It's why he died.
And now he says, join me because to do that I had to go outside the gate to the cross
and suffer and that's the way my mission will be completed. You know, among the unreached
peoples that are yet to be engaged and to be reached, most of them don't want you to
come. And if you don't have this mindset, that will be enough reason not to go. But
if you have this mindset, he will say well the Great Commission didn't say go make disciples
of all the nations except the ones that don't want you to come. All is all. You go to the
peoples, all of them. In there outside the camp they're in the hard places, they're behind
the hard cultures, they're behind hard languages, and they're behind hard attitudes towards
the west. Satan of the west. And we are called to go, so what's left to be done is the hardest
thing. You know, there are some wonderful mission stories about arriving there and through
it redemptive analogies of the whole tribe gets converted and you're a hero. That's a
rare story. A wonderful story, true story, but a rare story. God has a people among all
the peoples of the world and we go to call them out. Call them out. And it will cost
us our lives; it will cost many of you your lives. I don't know, I mean you're a very
young school, I don't know whether you have a list of martyrs yet. But one day there'll
be a wall; there'll be a wall here. And the pictures will be there. They went. We did
for the soldiers in the First and Second World War. Most churches, old churches have plaques
and their names are listed and they will be listed in churches, they'll be listed in schools.
And that's why I'm here; I want to recruit martyrs who die in love, not martyrs who kill
in hate. And I think that kind of love comes, I know it comes, from being satisfied in Jesus,
so deeply that you know you can't die. So look at, finally, verse 14, here's the ground
of going outside the camp and baring reproach with Jesus. For here we have no lasting city,
but we seek a city that is to come. The reason we are willing to go outside the camp and
suffer is because this world is not our home. We seek a city that is to come. Now here's,
I want to end on this because I know the kind of school I'm talking to here, and I love
what I see. Ninety percent of you, ninety five percent of you are here growing in knowledge
and skills that will enable you to serve this city, called the city of man. The city of
the world: this one. We have no lasting city. That non-lasting city is Lynchburg, its America,
it's the workplace. It won't last. And if anybody were to take my message about loving
our everlasting reward to mean you just skip the city and go to that, you've totally missed
the point. My point has been this: all the students at Liberty aiming to pour your life
into the city of man for her good, for her everlasting good will serve her better if
you love the other city more. If you love the city that is to come, the Lord that is
to come more than this city, you will serve this city better. You'll be able to be so
different from this city, so able to lay down your life for the good, the everlasting good
of this city that you will go to the hardest places on the planet and the hardest peoples
on the planet in order to make plain the value of that other city, and that other King.
Lets pray. Father in heaven, I ask now that these passages from Hebrews, John 11, and
John 6, and John 8 and 1 Corinthians 3, and Psalm 16 would be like a double edged sword
that penetrates into the hearts of everyone in this room for the sake of finishing the
Great Commission in the hardest places, among the hardest peoples of the world no matter
what it costs, because the steadfast love of the Lord in better than life. I ask this
in Jesus' name. Amen.