Living for Others — Jason Robinson

Matthew chapter 22. Matthew chapter 22 and verse 36 let's start reading there teacher what is the greatest commandment in the law. Jesus replied love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

This is the first and greatest commandment and the second is like it love your neighbor as yourself all the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments as we've been seeing this week this weekend we've been talking about the church and looking at different aspects of it.

And when we look at the life of Christ we see that 50 of his life was given to knowing God and knowing the scriptures he loved God with all his heart all his soul all his strength all his mind. And many Christians nowadays in an attempt to come out of shallow Christianity focus on getting to know God and they focus on the deeper life and that's really good and I don't downplay that at all but if you look here at verse 38 there there's another a whole nother 50 that first 50 is loving God but we see in verse 38 the other 50 of Jesus' life that he gave himself to and that was loving other people loving your neighbors yourself and you know Jesus lived for God he loved God but he also lived for others.

And if if we're gonna follow Jesus it's very important that we keep the proportions the same. And unfortunately one of the things that you'll see in Christianity is you'll see a lot of people emphasizing knowing God and the deeper life and reading the scriptures and and and that's good but then you'll you'll come across you know people on the other side and they have a very shallow understanding of of God but they're into social work and they're into maybe feeding the poor and helping fatherless and the widows and there are a lot of good things that that they do but that's all they're into and they don't know God.

And so all the people they help they haven't brought them to eternal life because they don't have it themselves. They're loving people loving people loving people and not loving God. And so for every one mile of road there's two miles of ditches and we want to make sure that we stay out of either ditch and we want to have our proportions 50 loving God and 50 loving people.

And and the reason I bring that up you know is the context of what we've been discussing this weekend is to see if the Lord is wanting to raise up in this area a local church and as we talked about last night a body a mirror that people can look at and see what God is like.

And if if all that happens is you come together and sing and read the Bible and you go home and spend time at Jesus feet you would have only as a church had 50 of what Jesus did and so I want to talk about that other 50 today and I want to make it you know more practical and so I want to share my testimony in regards to the subject and I hope that you know it can encourage you.

I heard a message very similar to the one about to give when I was 19 and I had just graduated from high school I was going to college and just kind of wandering aimlessly. I had already seen through the world and already come out of drugs and many you know gross sins and such.

And I just started you know going to church but I was still I still didn't have a clear direction for my life and and I heard a message like this and it totally changed my life. And I'm just hoping if even if there's one person here today that could have ears to hear what I'm saying and apply it it can totally totally change the whole direction of your life.

Because to be honest you know I'm here and you know I've come out and visited Alan you know several times and Alan and I are really close and I see a great lack of direction in people's lives you know I I see the culture of the area affecting many people that I know I'm not even speaking about most of you don't even know here but people that Alan and I know that are in the area that at one point in time loved Jesus were passionate about Jesus.

I just see a great wandering there isn't a clear purpose a clear direction and then what ends up happening is boredom sets in and boredom you know just breeds you know like they say boredom is the devil's workshop you know and people get bored and they end up you know giving into the flesh and entertainment and sin and things like that.

And so my heart today is to share with you something that is fundamentally different than the culture that we have in America. You know the the American culture and all of its subcultures the American dream.

You know dad goes to work eight hours a day comes home takes a shower eats dinner watches TV mom goes to Walmart everybody's busy busy busy busy busy busy and each of the kids have their own friends and their own hobbies and they're busy and everybody's busy.

And basically for the most part obviously there are exceptions but for the most part people are consumed with living for themselves and they make money so they can spend it on themselves or maybe on their family.

And what they meditate on is there's a filter in their mind and everything that goes through that filter is how is this good for me. How is this gonna benefit me. How's this gonna benefit my family what am I gonna get out of it.

And it's just self self self. And then you take that culture and that's what we're raised in. And then some people out of that culture come to Christ and now they're saved and they're going to church but they haven't shed that culture and so they're just not getting drunk anymore.

And maybe they're not fornicating anymore and on drugs but they're still selfish self-centered. You know like it talks about the Old Testament. They sat down to eat and drink and they rose up to play and with many of them God wasn't pleased.

Why. Because their life was just consumed with self. And what do you want to do tonight it's Friday night. I don't know what you want to do. Let's just you know maybe we can go hang out at Bob's house.

Okay yeah it sounds cool. And it's just you know month after month just not living for other people. And what I want to share is an addiction. You know they have AA meetings and the guy gets up. You know I'm an addict.

I've been an addict for 20 years. And then what I want to share is an addiction that God gave me 20 years ago not 20 years ago 16 years ago that totally changed me. And let's look at first print first Corinthians chapter 16.

This is a good addiction. You know before before I came to Christ I was an addict. I was addicted to drugs. I was addicted to you know fornication and money and all kinds of wicked things TV inappropriate movies and such.

And I went to drug rehab when I was 17 and they through psychology and all this stuff. They said well you have an addictive personality. That's what your problem is and anything that you do. You're gonna be an addict.

And you know they're right once an addict always an addict. So when I came to Christ and I received these truths that I want to share today I got addicted to it. And then I saw this verse in the Bible.

It was like hey this is cool. This justifies my addictive personality. 1st Corinthians chapter 16 verse 15. Now I beseech you brethren you know the house of Stephanus that is the firstfruits of a Ki that they have addicted themselves to the ministry of the Saints that you submit yourselves unto such and to everyone that helps with us and labors.

So this guy Stephanus was addicted to something what it was. He addicted to serving people ministry whatever word your version uses. He was an addict. Okay. But he wasn't out in front of a gas station trying to bum two bucks so he'd go buy crack.

He was an addict. He was addicted to helping people. There's someone boom I'm gonna help them. Here's a neat boom I'm gonna meet it. This person needs Jesus. Boom I want to help them. I want to tell him about Jesus.

He was addicted to the ministry. And notice it says in verse 16 that's the person that you want to submit yourself to. You know it doesn't say submit yourself to Stephanus. He has a four-year degree in Bible theology.

No you find somebody that is addicted to helping others and that's somebody that's connected to God. That's someone you should be listening to is what he's saying. And there's a old hymn that kind of verbalizes this.

And some of you may have heard this in a message by Danny Keniston. But let me read this hymn and this kind of summarizes my addiction. Lord help me live from day to day in such a self-forgetful way that even when I kneel to pray my prayer shall be for others others.

Lord yes others. Let this my motto be that while I have lived for others I would have lived like thee. That is the addiction that if you're gonna have a New Testament church that is the addiction that the core of that church needs to get addicted to living for other people breaking away from this culture that is selfish self-seeking self-centered and restructuring your life in such a way where you're living for other people.

And this goes all the way from the oldest person here all the way to the youngest person here. It's a change of lifestyle. It's a restructuring of the whole way you spend your money you spend your time everything.

And I'm telling you it is the best life there is when you're living for other people. Jesus says it's more blessed to give than to receive. And our culture is hell bent on receiving receiving receiving.

And I make money for me and my family. And I spend time outside of the time I'm working. I spend time on entertainment for me and my family and we sit down and we eat and we drink and we rise up to play and we go to a coffee house and we sit there and we hang out.

And many people in the age group that most of you are in Christians there's just a lot of time hanging out just damn fun joking you know and and and and meanwhile there's people that don't know God in the area and there's people that need help.

There's a widow down the road and her husband left her and she's got three kids and she's working two jobs. She can't pay her electric bill. And if we were to take the amount of money we all spend on coffee today we could help her with her electric bill.

You know just giving examples here of seeing past our own little life and seeing there's this world out there people that need Jesus. You know Hebrews chapter 10 verse 24 says let us consider one another and stir up one another to love and to good works.

And so I want to give some testimonies today. And my motive in giving these testimonies is to stir you up into some good works. There's no there's no desire here for me to you know I'm not trying to bring glory to myself.

I could give you a lot more testimonies about how much of a loser I am then about some of the things that God has done in me that were of him. So I'm not trying to seek glory or anything but these are things that I want to share because they happened when I was most of your age is when I was 19 through 25 and in hopes that you will hear these and be stirred up stirred up to see eternity and to get your eyes off of the now and now and see eternity when I first came to Christ.

I was in high school and you know grew up not knowing Jesus. My parents didn't know Jesus and I was a total dopehead didn't even know how to read. I think I was still in like the eighth grade when I was in like the twelfth grade or something but they didn't fail me because they wanted me to graduate.

There's like kept pushing me through and I was in LD learning disabled class and I was in SBH severe behavior handicap class and so I was LD SBH AD ADHD and so I was a mess basically and and so I come to Christ and I don't know anything about anything.

I go to this church and and I walk out of the church after the service and they have this rack in the back and there's these gospel tracks there and I don't even really know how to read but I just knew that something had changed somebody had changed my life.

Jesus just changed me. I had peace I had joy guilt was gone and it was real and it was awesome and I wanted my friends to have it and I just knew that this piece of paper could tell them about it. I couldn't because I didn't know how to say anything but this piece of paper could I don't know what it says but it could tell them about it you know and so I you know I'm like wow this is awesome and I'm just like stacking up man I got like a stack like that high and the guys like you sure you need all those.

Yeah I need them all you know and I'm walk out of the place like a kid in a toy store and and I went to my high school and I did a bathroom pass and go to the bathroom and while I went to the bathroom I'd stick them in lockers you know just kind of slide them through the doors of the lockers all the way to the bathroom stick them all over the toilets and everything in the bathroom and then I'd go back into my room and and nobody told me to do that.

There was no you know legalistic thing like you need to be passing tracks out brother it just there was suddenly love in my heart and I had something and I wanted other people to have it and that was the way I was before I came to Christ.

Before I came to Christ when I started smoking pot I became an evangelist for pot and it was just like dude you gotta do this and I to this to this day there are probably a hundred people that are still smoking pot because of me and I say that to my shame seriously but I was an evangelist for all kinds of things without knowing that's what I was.

And so now why couldn't I do that for God. You know I had something that was way better than pot and all this other stuff. Why not tell people about it. I love my friends I care about them and if they die without Jesus they're gonna spend eternity in hell.

I know this and they don't I need to tell them but I don't know how to say anything because I don't know anything but this does and and it was there was a simplicity there and as I began to grow in the faith God just put in me the supernatural burden just a love.

I would just love people I would just go somewhere and I just would look at this person and just like I love this person and God also put in me a supernatural burden like the reality of how quick life is was just constantly on me and I had this sense of urgency that this person I know could die and they don't know Jesus.

And a couple of kids that I went to high school with you know I would witness to them and they would say no and this one guy I witnessed to him and two nights later two or three nights later he was like walking down the street and like a drunk driver hit him and he died and he rejected Christ at least the last time I talked to him a couple nights later he died and so that situation put in me this sense of urgency.

And then another kid I talked to I mean I begged him to turn from his sin and he had grown-up Christian was hardcore Christian was one of the people that convicted me before I was wholehearted and then he eventually kind of fell away and he was partying and and I remember just saying dude you got to repent you're not saved.

And he had bit into this deception of once saved always saved. And he was on coke and you know in fornication everything but yeah I'm still going to heaven because I know I got saved you know five years ago and I remember just begging him you have to repent like you're not going to heaven.

And I remember he had a cell phone and I remember he entered my phone number in and put my name and he said okay I'll call you and then I get a phone call. A few days later he was at a party they were drunk they were playing Russian roulette and he blew his head off and he's dead like he's in hell right now.

And these situations that happen began to instill in me a sense of urgency that people need Jesus and if they die without Jesus they're going to spend eternity in hell. And so I would walk around with this urgency with this burden I would be at a red light and and God would say give that person you know I'd be at a red light and I'd see in the rearview mirror car behind me and a couple kids smoking pot or something you know and give him a track.

Well Lord it's a red light. What if it turns green just give him a track. Okay and I put the car in park and get out and go to the car knock on the window hey can I give you this. And they'd be like what you know and I hand it to him and and it was like I was yielded you see like it there was something there where I didn't care what people thought.

And another time my dad's partner this old grumpy mr. Magoo guy that it was a car dealer and penny pincher and everything and nobody liked him. He's a really mean guy and I was driving down the road and God said clearly go give him a track.

You couldn't witness to this guy he was hard to even talk to and I said Lord but it's you know this guy yes give him a track. Okay I drove in there and said hey I want to give this to you and he's just like get out of here you know and okay and so I left one week later the guy died and see that was God's last you know just giving him one last chance and so I walked around in this in it and it built in me a burden to restructure my life.

I was you know 20 21 and I just had to tell people about Jesus and I would work the minimal amount that I had to so that I could go out the maximum maximum amount that I could and I would. I knew I usually had always had Saturdays off so I would take Saturday and a very very similar to the inner city here like around where Alan lives.

I was in Akron Ohio which is like where LeBron James anybody knows him. The neighborhood that I would go to is where he grew up really really bad neighborhood and I'd go door-to-door by myself the church that I went to many times nobody would show up and this is Ohio.

It's 20 degrees out it's freezing it's in the middle of the hood you could get killed there. I mean like I'm 20 year old white guy and and I would just go door-to-door and and just weep like you see a mom you know five different kids with five different dads and she's half you know hungover and it's Saturday morning at 10 o 'clock and and you know she opens the door and excuse me ma 'am do you know if you die tonight if you go to heaven and and just see people break see people come to Christ.

And one of the times that I was out I was out there and it's just a really bad area and it's a it can be really discouraging because you get rejected so much. I just remember it just dawned on me I was out there I was on the streets and I just what had so much joy and so much peace.

I was utterly fulfilled and I cannot describe it nothing that I've done drugs I've done you name it I've done it in this world and I it was like I've never experienced anything like this before like I just it hit me.

I was like 20 years old and it was like this is awesome like I'm totally addicted to this just helping people just seeing people come to Christ. I mean do you know what it's like to take somebody's hand.

Okay and there's no physical hand here on God's side but here's God and here's somebody who's depressed who's lonely who's empty who's just defeated by guilt and sin and to just introduce them to the God of the universe.

And that person comes to Christ and in you feel the presence of God come in the room and God comes in that person and washes their sin away and tears swell up in their eyes and they look at you and this permagrin suddenly comes over their face and they say I'm going to heaven when I die now do you know what it's like to lead a soul to Christ.

It's the greatest thing in the world it's the best thing I've ever experienced. I mean when Alan got saved you know I mean he's on his face just wailing you know and he's just like repenting and and you know I remember it like it was yesterday if there is nothing better than living your life for the sake of the gospel.

We talked yesterday about you know when Jesus went to that one man and said follow me and he said you know my dad died. I just want to go to the funeral and Jesus said let the dead bury the dead. But do you remember what else he told him.

But you go and preach the kingdom. I mean this is a central basic message to Christianity. And yet most Christians I know can't even remember the last time they told someone about Jesus. They can't even remember the last time they look someone in the eyes and had a burden for their soul and said sir I love you but you're deceived according to what the scripture says if you die today you'd spend eternity in hell.

Most Christians I know could they're not functioning in this basic teaching. And so my heart is to provoke this this basic Christianity that maybe some of you that have grown up didn't experience but it talks about you know in Revelation chapter 2 repent and do the first works.

The things when you first came to Christ you wanted to do when you first came to Christ you wanted to read the Bible and pray and tell people about Jesus. It's just like these basic things. And as I walked in these at 1920 21 there I was in this inner-city church and there arose a need in this church.

There was a suburban church that was coming in and picking up the inner-city kids and taking them to their suburban church and it was predominantly they were all you know inner-city black kids. And the suburban church didn't like the influence they were having on their kids and stuff.

So there was about 21 of these kids say ages 5 to 10 and this church said can you pick these kids up and take them to your church because they're not welcome in our church anymore. And so they made this announcement you know at my church and my church didn't have a bus or anything like that and they said does anybody want to do it.

And all sudden the pastor was looking at me and my hand was up. You know I don't even remember doing it was just like oh I guess I'll do it and I didn't have a bus and I had this awesome car that you know it was black with black headlight covers taillight covers limo tint on the side and a black wing.

I put all this money into this car. It was a total bling bling car and before I got saved you know and and I love this car and God said very clearly sell the car and buy a van you know and I wasn't always you know old and fat and ugly.

I was 20 years old at the time and you know I was you know fairly good-looking guy. And you know I wanted my car you know because I look cool in it and you know the thought of driving around in a van was pretty cheesy you know and and God said clearly sell the car and buy a van you know you can't fit too many kids in a two-door car.

And so I said okay Lord and I sold the car and I bought a van and my wife now who was my girlfriend then this is how we would spend our weekends. Okay you get up on Saturday and you drive into the hood and you go to all the different houses of the people that you've picked up for church the you know the kids and you remind them tomorrow Sunday you're gonna come.

Yeah I'm gonna come. And you have to find out where they're gonna be that day because they're getting moved around all the time between parents and cousins and grandmas and you find out where they're gonna be.

And we would you know spend the morning picking them up on Saturday and many of them there was they didn't have adequate meals on the weekends the only time they could eat is at school you know during the week because the school would feed them on the weekends they just wouldn't eat because the parents would spend money on drugs and such.

So we take them out to McDonald's and that was like the highlight of their week. And you know they just loved it just taking a kid to McDonald's. You know we always used to just laugh and joke about it.

You know my buddy would always you know just he loved going with me you know. Because they you know Jason you gonna take us to McDonald's. Yeah you wanna go to McDonald's buddy. Yeah let's go to McDonald's.

You know. And so we go to McDonald's and get some chicken McNuggets and ice cream and and that's like the greatest thing in the world. Ice cream. Yeah buddy why you gonna do that. Cuz I love you. Oh cuz nobody loves them.

Okay like they're just annoying. And to their parents if they're both their parents are around they're in the way. And here's somebody that loves them. Here's somebody that cares for him. And we spend the day on Saturday helping them showing them how to work.

Hey let's go to my house. We'll rake the leaves and and and yeah let's do that. And they love working hard and just being a father to the fatherless. Okay. And being helping the widows in their affliction and so that's what we spent our time doing on Saturday.

That's what we spent our time on Saturday night when we were 20 21 and our friends are hanging out and just being cool and let's go see this movie let's go to this dance club. Let's go do this. Let's go to that.

Let's go get drunk let's go smoke dope. That's what my friends were doing. My wife and I are you know in the middle of the hood on a Saturday night teaching you know these kids how to sing a hymn and then take them home Sunday morning.

Get up you know 6 the morning drive back pick them all up and you go and you pull up beep beep he doesn't come out. Beep beep doesn't come out. You knock on the front door and the door opens as you knock on it and mom's passed out right here on the floor and you know you have to walk over mom and walk over the boyfriend you know of the month and walk into the bedroom you know.

Hey buddy you coming to church you know. Oh yeah yeah yeah I'm coming help him get dressed you know. And his clothes are dirty and they're not washed and you know. And let's go to church. Yeah yeah let's go to church you know.

And do you know what that's like. There's nothing better in the world than that feeling there's nothing better in it and I just want I want you guys so much to see that. And and unfortunately statistically most people won't but hopefully one person here can get a glimpse of what I'm saying.

And if you can get two or three people that to get a glimpse of that that's church. See church isn't some holy huddle you know we're just gonna be over here and we're gonna sing some songs and we're gonna you know have our little group and the world's dying going to hell.

We're not doing anything about it. The church is people that are loving people they're caring for the world they're helping people come to Jesus. And you know there was this little boy named Daz that I used to pick up D-A-Z that was his name the cutest little five-year-old black kid you've ever seen.

And his mom would move every three months. She'd move into a house wouldn't pay rent for three months. It'd take three months for them to evict her and then she'd move again. And so I would tell her now listen when you move tell me the address you're gonna move to so I can pick Daz up there.

And she was you know strung out on crack all the time and she'd forget to tell me and it would take about two or three months. And then finally you know he wouldn't be coming to church because I didn't know where to pick him up at.

And then finally he'd be coming through the front door and I'd see him there you know pulling his mom behind him you know. And she'd be you know being dragged into the church and yeah I forgot to give you my address you know.

And he just keeps telling me I won't go see mr. church man you know. And I found out where you know here's the address you know. And this little five-year-old kid has this burden to go to church because he knows someone there loves him.

And do you know what that's like. I mean to spend your life for somebody else to waste away your life on a Friday night not doing what you want to do but loving someone whom no one else loves. And I just remember just always just driving down the road and just you know it's Friday night and everybody's all geared up to go out and live for the flesh.

And I can't wait to go see my bus kids. And I just love this Lord. I just love this. That's life. That's peace that's joy. I remember going door-to-door one time and walking up this old house and just going up this raggedy staircase up this side of this attic.

Basically they had rented out an attic like three stories up and knocking on this door and just about ready to leave that nobody even lives up here and I'll send the door open and this 88 year old guy you know sticks his head out the door and I said hey sir do you know if you die today you go to what you know and come in and I went in and sat next sat down and let me get you some coffee and his name was Rudy.

He was in World War two he'd been through the Great Depression and I just sat there and listen to this guy for like two hours. And then you know I mean I didn't really want to listen to the guy for two hours but this was the highlight of the guy's week.

Just somebody is there you know and I'd come back. Hey I'll be back here next week to visit you. And it became the highlight of his week. Somebody cares about him somebody wants to visit him and and then Rudy got real sick after you know years of visiting him and he got put in a nursing home.

No family no relatives. He just would sit in this nursing home. And I remember you know in the middle of summer on a Saturday you know how that you just want to you know you don't have to work and you just want to find something fun to do and it's nice out.

Everybody's got their convertible tops down and people are going swimming. I remember making the decision not wanting to but making the decision oh I gotta go see Rudy. And you know it can be pretty depressing walking into a nursing home on a Saturday in the middle of summer you know and you go in there and it's hot and stuffy it stinks and it's and just go sit down and hey Rudy how you doing bud you know and just listen you know to him and I'm thirsty.

They don't give me water they don't pay attention to me you know. And then go over to the nurse can I please get some water for the guy give me some ice you know and just get him that ice and see him you know reach down in the thing and he's just like thirsty and he's just been neglected you know.

And I remember buying Rudy a little tape player and I bought him the Bible on tape you know I'm just here bud cuz he couldn't read listen to the Bible and just loving him and that is what 50 of Christianity is.

And if you don't have that you're missing 50 of Christianity. What are the two greatest commands. Love God and love your neighbor in a practical way you know just like gate like not being ashamed of the gospel when you're at work being a light to people.

I'm not talking about just being a dork and like just you know like you're not working because you're like you know hey you're going to heaven when you die you know. Well here hand me my tool buddy you know forget the heaven thing.

You know you're not efficient at work because you're a Bible thumper. I'm not talking about that but I'm talking about at the appropriate time in the appropriate way saying something and not being ashamed.

When I was 1921 22 I had the privilege of leading people that I worked with to Christ and then they would come and get baptized and be a part of the church and we'd have Bible study at work before work would start and you know I was bringing people to be baptized at this was like an old-school Baptist Church and and they weren't used to having people you know get saved and get baptized.

So they had this old mildewy baptistry that was never used you know. And and so I would you know okay well I'll paint the baptistry and you know needs got there's mold all over it I gotta bleach it I gotta paint it and I gotta get there on a Saturday night and fill up with water and put the heater in it and and this is what I consumed my time with you see if it was Monday night I was going to colleges talking to kids my age and Tuesday night going out and Wednesday night you know Bible study and Thursday night going out and my job whenever it would rain on like a day like today I couldn't do work and so they would call me at about you know 6 in the morning it's raining don't come in today and I loved that.

I loved when that would happen because then it was like oh I got the day off I'm gonna go down to Kent State I'm gonna go down to Akron University and I had printed up some pretty generic tracks that were relevant to the kids of my generation at the time and so I would take the day off and go down to the college and just talk with people and pass tracks out and and instead of you know I got the day off I can go work here and make more money.

I would spend that day you know telling people about Jesus and through all of this through all of these things I became more and more addicted you see then it then it kind of progressed into. I want to have tracks that you know are colorful because you know black and white just is kind of boring.

And so I saved up and bought a computer. You know this was 15 years ago when computers are like more expensive you know and I bought a full-color printer and I was only making you know peanuts but that's where my time money and energy went.