April 21, 2024
Vision Sunday
Matthew 7:24-27
Every week we usually have full sermon notes for our Sunday Morning Services but knowing that people like to read the notes ahead of time and considering the fact we don’t want to give anything away until it’s time, I want to apologize in advance for the abbreviated notes this week. If you would like the full sermon notes once the service is over, we will be glad to provide them early next week. But for this week I just want to share with you a little out of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.
“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”
Jesus has a mission and a vision for the church. It's the same mission for everyone who makes up the church no matter where on this planet you live. His vision and mission for the church is to live out the Great Commandment and the Great Commission. Exactly how to carry this out is where the vision we are laying out this morning comes into play. Vision just helps us to focus on the mission. It’s like going to the optometrist and getting new glasses. The new glasses don’t change the reality that you find yourself in, but rather it just makes it clearer. The vision that we will be sharing this morning will do just that. It will help us all see how we can carry out the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. While we will be looking at quite a few scriptures this morning, I want most of our time to be spent in Matthew 7.
The Vision is only for His Followers.
Jesus closes out His sermon by making sure He addresses those who were in attendance. He makes it clear He is not merely looking for students, or well-wishers, those who hang on, or anything else ― He is looking for followers. A follower is someone who does more than just listen, more than just study, and even more than just agrees with what He said. A follower is wise, and their wisdom comes from obedience to the teachings of Jesus. The mission that Jesus has for the church and the vision He has given to this church can only be carried out by those who are followers of Jesus. Those who have not made Jesus the Lord of their lives and have not followed Him in obedience do not have a place in this vision. The good news is that your status with Jesus can change in a moment's notice. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. It’s at that moment that by grace through faith you are saved. This vision is now for you and how you will love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Love your neighbor as yourself and go and make disciples of all nations.
The Vision’s Foundation must be in Christ.
Jesus calls His followers wise because they are the ones who have built their lives upon a solid foundation and that solid foundation is only in Him. Jesus is the firm foundation and obedience is how we build something that will sustain the storms of life upon that foundation. If a vision that a church casts to its members does not have Jesus as the centerpiece. It is not a vision statement at all. Without Jesus the mission cannot be carried out and our purpose becomes more and more fuzzy. A vision for the church and its people must be just like scripture. It has to be all about the Gospel, it all has to point to Jesus. Its foundation must be solid.
The Vision must Impact all People.
Jesus speaks of two foundations. One is solid and is in reference to Christ and the other foundation is described as shifting sands and that is a life that is based on anything else outside of Jesus. But do you notice that no matter what foundation the houses were built upon, they both have the same trials? One stood because its foundation was solid and was built on solid truth. However the other failed because it was built on worldly ideas and principles. A vision will impact both people. For those who are followers of Christ that have a firm foundation it will encourage them to continue to build and comfort them during the storms that life brings. For those who do not have a firm foundation it will call them to become a follower to see what a life built upon the Rock looks like. Without the walls of the church and outside the walls of the church, It’s a vision that will impact the world.
The Vision must Involve Connections.
When we look at the mission Jesus has for the church it involves connecting with people. You cannot love your neighbor without connecting with your neighbor. You cannot make disciples without connecting with others. Without saying anything more, connections are a vital part of any vision the church is called to.
While there is much more to say about the vision that God has given this church, I’ll just have to leave it here and hope you will listen to the sermon to fill in the missing pieces.
