Reaching people and making them devoted followers of Jesus Christ.

NEW YEAR

“Good News to Everyone, Everywhere”

By Pastor Delbert Young

Life Gate Ministries

204 North Main Street, LaFayette, GA 30728

706-638-7620,

This coming Thursday will begin a new year. We all begin again a new and exciting 365-day trip around the sun. I guarantee you that our trip will be full of adventures at Life Gate as we go through the joys of life together.

I want to talk to you today about the people YOU intend to reach for the kingdom this coming year.

(TLT) Mark 16:15 And then he told them, Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone, everywhere.

Jesus said he wanted us to tell the Good News to EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE. In other words, there should be no one whom you know that you haven’t told the Good News.

THE CARDS: As I talk today, I want you to be thinking about people that God has put into your life that needs to come into the kingdom. As I talk and the Lord puts someone on your heart, write his or her name on both cards.

At the end of the service, I will invite you to come and light one candle representing your desire to be a light which will help lead them into the kingdom.

Place one card in the container to be prayed for here every day and on Sunday. Take the other card with you.

I ASK YOU TO WRITE THEIR NAMES because something supernatural happens when you write your vision.

Habakkuk 2:2 And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.

THE LORD WANTS YOU TO ENVISION THEIR ENTRANCE into the kingdom. The Lord wants us to not only write their names and pray. He wants us to take it another step and vision in the supernatural their coming into the kingdom. In your heart see yourself talking about Jesus to them and inviting them to church. See them coming. See them praising and singing to the Lord. See them loving God and loving people.

(TLB) And the Lord said to me, "Write my answer on a billboard, large and clear, so that anyone can read it at a glance

Make the card that you will keep a billboard. Put it in a place that you pass every day. I plan on hanging my card on my rearview mirror. I know that will work for me because Jack, my grandson made me a little paper rat with a wire (pipe cleaner) tail. It has his name written on it. I hung it on my mirror. Every day I think and pray for Jack. There is a place that you have where you can put your names and think and pray for them every day. Your place may be on your mirror where you shave or put on makeup. It may be on your computer screen or lunch box. You know where it is, but make it like a billboard.

(Message) And then GOD answered: "Write this. Write what you see. Write it out in big block letters so that it can be read on the run.”

The enemy wants us busy and running. We go so fast in life that we forget one of the most important things that we are all to do. That is to talk to EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE about Jesus. If we will write their names, get a vision for them, put their names someplace prominent that we see every day, even on the run we will remember them. If we don’t write them, we will fall back into complacency and we will not tell EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE.

JESUS SAID GO INTO ALL THE WORLD AND PREACH THE GOOD NEWS TO EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE. The King James’ Version says,

Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

The word gospel means GOOD NEWS, but when we think ‘gospel,’ we tend to think something religious. Maybe we are supposed to preach to people the Bible which many of us cannot and will not do. What we are to do is much simpler than that.

God’s message is a message of GOOD NEWS. What would GOOD NEWS be to someone who was sick? What would GOOD NEWS be to someone having financial problems? We are to tell people the solution to their problems is Jesus Christ. It’s not in religion. It is in a relationship with Jesus Christ.

THERE'S A WHOLE WORLD OUT THERE that has never felt the life-changing power of Jesus Christ. People are hurting. People are lonely. People are in pain. They don't know what real love is. The only way we're going to really shake this region is for every single one of us to do our part and share God's GOOD NEWS of love and mercy and forgiveness.

(TLB) 2 Corinthians 5:20 We are Christ's ambassadors. God is using us to speak to you: we beg you, as though Christ himself were here pleading with you, receive the love he offers you - be reconciled to God.

Someplace along the way you must become responsible to share the love that Christ offers to family and friends. An ambassador is responsible to represent their leader. We represent Jesus. You must take responsibility. God has no arms to love and hug people except your arms. God has no voice to encourage and uplift those people except your voice. The only smile that God has here on this earth is your smile. You've got to write that letter that you know you need to write to some of those people. You’ve got to make that phone call. You’ve got to visit that neighbor. You’ve got to talk to that friend at school or work.

SOME THINK THAT PEOPLE CANNOT GET SAVED UNLESS you condemn them and dangle them over the fires of hell to scare the "hell" of out them. Judy says that if scaring people worked that all I would need to do is get people to ride in the car with me.

WE NEVER SEE JESUS POINT OUT THE FAULTS of those he was trying to reach. I never saw him shaming and belittling them. I never saw him dangling them over hell. He always shared the GOOD NEWS concerning what people needed.

There is an interesting statement that Joseph made.

Genesis 50:20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.

Jesus would take what the enemy meant to harm people and use that same issue to bring people into the kingdom. He did this over and over again. Jesus told people the GOOD NEWS. He told hurting people that God loved them and wanted to bless them. He didn’t dangle them over hell with their problem. He used their problem to share with them the GOOD NEWS.

Remember the woman at the well? She had led a rough life. She had been married five times and was living with another man.

(TLT) John 4:18 “for you have had five husbands, and you aren't even married to the man you're living with now.”

She was an outcast to religion and society, but not to Jesus. That woman would not be accepted in many churches of our day and she certainly could never have a ministry. Jesus never condemned her. He was kind to her. He didn’t dangle her over hell. He didn’t even make her pray a sinner’s prayer. His kindness led her to repentance.

I’m sure that you know some people like that. Jesus is asking you, “Please go and do all you can to bring those people into the kingdom this year. Write their names. Envision your telling them about the living water that quenches all thirsts. Envision their entrance as they worship in spirit and truth having a ministry. Just as that woman at the well came in, your loved ones will come in too.

SOME OF US KNOW PEOPLE WHO ARE SICK and do not serve Jesus. Jesus used healing as a tool to bring people into his kingdom. An example is Peter’s mother-in-law.

Matthew 8:14 And when Jesus was come into Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever.

Matthew 8:15 And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them.

How many here today truly believe that Jesus has healed you physically? Then you have the faith to believe that he will heal your loved ones. We pray for people every service at Life Gate Church.

JOKE: A man was having trouble training his dog. He came across a Charismatic evangelist who said he would train the dog. The man left the dog and returned the next day. The evangelist proceeded to give a demonstration. He threw a stick and said, “Fetch.” The dog took of and returned with the stick. He said, “Sit” and the dog immediately sat. The owner was excited and said, “Let me try.” He said, “Heal” (meaning follow me). The dog stood on his back legs, placed his paw on the man’s head, and said, “I command you sickness to leave him.”

Healing really is a witnessing tool. People would come and listen to Jesus teach just so they would be prayed for when he was done. Why do thousands go to Benny Henn meetings? It’s not for teaching. You need to use that tool. Write their names and envision your telling them the GOOD NEWS that God will heal them if they will go to church. “But what if he doesn’t heal them?” That’s not our deal.

It’s interesting that the same context that tells us to preach the GOOD NEWS to everyone, everywhere also tells us to lay hands on the sick.

Mark 16:18  . . . they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Write their names and envision you telling them the GOOD NEWS of God’s healing. Envision them healed. Tell your sick loved ones that if he or she will go to church with you that God will heal them. Use what the enemy meant for harm to bring them into the kingdom.

SOME OF YOU HAVE CHILDREN that are not serving the Lord and giving you fits. You know families that are having difficulties with their children. We are told the story of a well-off Greek woman who had a daughter that was driving her crazy.

Mark 7:26 The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.

Some of you know people that you are certain have a demon-possessed child. Isn’t it amazing that when a demon is tormenting a child that the parents are the ones tormented?

People come to a place of frustration with children and can’t pray for them. If you will write the child’s name on your cards, someone will pray for them nearly every day. Maybe you can’t pray for them because of frustration, but I can or Pastor Lance can.

Let me tell you a true story from this past year. A mother and father had a child that was driving them crazy. The child had left home. The parent’s hearts were broken. They wrote the child’s name on one of these cards. A few days later things began to change. The child is now home, working, and serving the Lord. The child even gives monetarily to the kingdom.

If you have a problem child or grandchild, or know a family that does then write the name on your cards. Envision your telling them the GOOD NEWS. Envision the child serving the Lord. Tell them the GOOD NEWS that God will help their child. Envision them serving the Lord. Invite them to church. We have a first-class youth ministry at Life Gate. It is led by some of the best people that I know. That Greek woman in Mark 7 came into the kingdom because Jesus helped her daughter. Take what the enemy meant for harm and make it a tool to bring people into the kingdom.

THERE IS ANOTHER TYPE PERSON that I want to make certain we include on our lists. I remember Nicodemus. He was an extremely religious person who had his own “Sunday school” class, but had never been born again. In fact, he didn’t understand being born again.

John 3:10  "You are Israel's teacher," said Jesus, "and do you not understand these things?”

My point is that being religious does not mean that a person is where he or she needs to be. There are many very religious people. They are good people, but have been taken in by a religious system’s doctrine. We all probably know at least one Nicodemus whose name we may want to place on our lists. Your Nicodemus can come to the cross of Christ.

John 19:39 He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.

John 19:40 Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen . . .

God will bring that person that you care about to the cross. Write their names on your cards. Envision your telling them the GOOD NEWS about the kingdom of God. Envision their coming into the kingdom. Tell them the good news. God will bring them in just as he brought in Nicodemus. Take what the enemy meant for harm and use it as a kingdom tool.

SOME OF YOU KNOW PEOPLE WITH SHATTERED DREAMS and broken hearts, but do not serve the Lord. Perhaps a business failed, or maybe someone suffered a divorce. Perhaps someone lost his or her job. There was a time when the apostle Peter’s dreams were shattered. Peter had once totally sold out to Jesus.

Matthew 19:27 Peter answered him, "We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?"

However, when Jesus was crucified it seemed all hope was gone for Peter’s dreams.

Maybe you know people who think their dreams are shatter and feel there is no future. They are depressed and likely angry with God. At one time they may have been right in there active with Jesus. Now they are off in the shadows cussing.

Write the names of those with shattered dreams and broken hearts on your cards. Envision your telling them the GOOD NEWS about how God will resurrect dreams. Envision their dream resurrected. Tell them the GOOD NEWS. Invite them to church to receive new hope and love. This coming year the resurrection of dreams will be a major emphasis at Life Gate

PERHAPS YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO HAS LOST A LOVED ONE. Jesus reached out for those experiencing that loss. I remember the woman in the Bible who had lost both her husband and her son to death.

Luke 7:12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her.

Luke 7:13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her . . .

Jesus showed us that the loss of a loved one is a moment to reach out to people and bring them into the kingdom. Jesus did this several times. He did this with the woman mentioned previously, with the death of Jairus’ daughter, and with Lazarus.

How do we minister to people in this type grief? One way is to resurrect the person. My dad died in 1999. He and I were opposite personalities. Dad was always telling me to “Slow down and smell the roses.” Not long ago, I was conversing with my wife via instant message on the Internet. I was sharing my heart with her in typed words about my day’s events. For some reason, I was communicating to her about my run, run personality and about how I needed to slow down. My wife quoted my dad saying, and I quote her, “As someone famous once said, ‘Delbert Ray, you need to slow down and smell the roses.’”

My point is that we can resurrect the dead person in the grieving person’s heart. As my wife wrote that to me and I read it, suddenly there was my dad raised from the dead talking to me.

Maybe you know people who have lost their dear loved ones. Maybe they blame God for not showing up, as did Mary and Martha. Call Lazarus forth. Write their names on your cards. Envision your telling them the GOOD NEWS that God will resurrect that person in their hearts every time they need him. Envision them happy and coming into the kingdom of joy.

I want to encourage you to go all out for Jesus this coming year and speak to EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE. Thursday will begin a new year. We are here on this earth for only a short time. We need to make every year count. Jesus asked us to tell EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE about the GOOD NEWS. We are ambassadors of Christ. You are his loving and hugging arms, his smiling face, and his comforting voice. We are responsible to get the job done. Write the names of the people you desire to tell the good news. Keep those names before you. You need to reach out to the outcasts, to the sick, to people having problems with their children, to religious, to people with broken dreams, and people hurting from the loss of loved one. We need to take the GOOD NEWS TO EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE.