It's time to give up our 'rights' for the sake of the Gospel

Why is it we Americans are so obsessed with comfort? I'm guessing the main reason is that's all most of us have ever known. We were born in the most prosperous nation in history.

Most of us have electricity, running water and a roof  over our heads. We have air conditioning in our houses, cars, work places and churches, and heat when the weather turns cold.

We can drive up to a fast-food restaurant and purchase food, but don't make us wait more than a couple of minutes or we'll get upset. We have stores like Walmart and Sam's Club where we can purchase bags, jars and boxes of food so large we could feed everyone living on our street, but we store it in our pantry and keep it for ourselves.

We can watch every sporting event and movie with the push of a button on a remote control that operates our 42-inch or 80-inch TV. If we want to feel spiritual, we can turn the TV or radio to a Christian station and then move on from there.

We drive our cars, trucks and motorcycles everywhere, because our roads are very smooth. OK, there are pot holes, but have you ever driven on roads in Third World nations? You would appreciate our pot holes after that experience. We drive around and around parking lots wasting precious fuel until someone finally backs out of a parking spot close to the store's front doors. Don't make us park in the back where we have to actually walk 100 yards to the store or we'll pout.

Good grief. We are one spoiled nation. Granted, not everyone in the U.S. have all of these luxuries, but the majority of Americans do. Why did God bless us with so much? Was it because He was worried that we would be like most of the world and not have timers on our coffee makers so we would have fresh coffee as we wake up in the mornings, or because we deserve to have plenty of water to thoroughly soak our manicured lawns? For some reason I don't think that's it.

I think God had something else in mind. Do you think it could be to carry out the Great Commission Jesus gives us in Matthew 28:18-20. Most Christians are very familiar with those verses, and most can quote them verbatim. That's nice, but does it really matter if we accurately quote scripture, but rarely, if ever, do what God says? It's about as effective as having water in the desert, but never drinking it.

How can people who say they are followers of Jesus with resources to help others not do anything to help their neighbor who is a single mother, works two jobs, and still struggles to make ends meet? Or, has an elderly neighbor who needs a ride to the grocery store, but we're too busy watching a football game to sacrifice 30 minutes of our day to help?

How can true followers of Christ see needs in countries like Haiti, Nigeria or Pakistan and not donate $100 to bring life-giving water when they have thousands in a savings account?

How can true followers of Christ not give to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to unreached people groups? Are we content to say, "Well, they were born in the wrong country, so going to Hell is just part of it?" The overwhelming actions, or non-actions, of Christians in our nation would lead one to surmise that.

There are many Christians in the U.S. who help their families, neighbors and homeless, and many give to help those in other nations and to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to unreached people groups. And, many U.S. Christians do travel to Third World nations for mission trips. Unfortunately, they are the minority.

What would happen if the majority of Christians in our nation stopped putting our comforts first and started putting others first? What if the majority of American Christians started fulfilling the Great Commission by going and making disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit?  

Pastor Jeff Burnett preached a very powerful and convicting message this past Sunday at Harvest Church about this issue. His key point came from the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 9 where Paul gave up some of his rights to win the lost. Read that chapter for yourself and meditate on it.

What rights could you give up for the sake of the Gospel? We are all about our rights here in the U.S. What if we laid some of those rights down for the sake of the Gospel ... for the sake of lost souls? Does it bother you that nearly 3 billion people are on their way to Hell because they have never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ? It should.

Does it bother you that 80% of the world's population lives off of less than $10 a day? Does it bother you that 22,000 children die every day because of starvation, lack of fresh drinking water and curable diseases? Or, that 2.2 million children die annually because they are not immunized? Are you concerned about the 1.9 billion children in the world without safe water, adequate shelter or health services? Did you know that 1.6 billion people live without electricity?

Those are just a handful of stats that show we have a lot of work to do. The numbers can be overwhelming, but they're not numbers, they are real people. If every Christian did something, we could reach those billions of people with the love and compassion of Jesus Christ.

If the love of Christ is truly in us, then His love compels us to respond, to act, to proclaim His Gospel to the lost.

We think we have the right to be comfortable. What if we laid that right down and traveled to a Third World country and lived in an uncomfortable environment, even if it's for a week? What if we stopped spending so much money on things for our "rights" to be comfortable and entertained, and instead used that money to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ to unreached people groups around the world?

What if we gave up our "rights" to be lazy and self-absorbed and spent time on the weekends helping the homeless, our elderly neighbors or single mothers, doing something for those who can't do for themselves? What if everyone who claimed to be a Christian truly followed Jesus and carried out the Great Commission? Our city, state, nation and world would be much better places. 

People will say, "But I worked hard to make the money I have." Yes you have, and that's great. But God didn't allow us to be born in the U.S. and gave us our talents and abilities to make money to be selfish with it. He could have caused you, me, and everyone else in the U.S. to be born in northern India, northern Africa, Haiti, or to a tribe in the Amazon Rain Forest. But no, He allowed us to be born in the richest nation in the history of mankind.

Let's don't sit on these blessings. Let's start using them to spread the glory of God throughout the world. The Great Commission is not just for pastors or ministry leaders. It's for every person who is a follower of Jesus. I believe we cannot be true followers of Jesus if we are not fulfilling the Great Commission. I don't see how we can be saved if we say we love Jesus, but our actions show otherwise.

If we are followers of Jesus, then He lives inside of us through the Holy Spirit, and His love will compel us to love others, to feed the poor, to preach the Gospel to the unreached, and to give money to advance His kingdom.

Think about it. Pray about it. Do it.

I also encourage you to click here and listen to the podcast of Pastor Jeff Burnett's messaged titled "Heart for Missions." It's dated 10-13-2013.