Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.
No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.

2 Timothy 2:3-4

Don’t forget your mission: Sharing the gospel with others is a work that all believers are to be involved with, but the world the flesh and the devil all have you entangled with worry instead.

In the Disney movie Tangled, you have the story of a girl that is quarantined in the kingdom of Corona and as of the date of this posting, we have people everywhere “sheltering in place” due to the virus known as Corona.

The only thing that anyone can think about or wants to talk about for the past week has been the Coronavirus Covid19 and the lack of toilet paper!

Coronavirus is a serious virus that can have deadly implications if someone in one to the risk groups should contract it, but what a respiratory virus has to do with a run on toilet paper I do not know.

I want to talk to you today about

a much more serious disease, but unlike the coronavirus, this disease has a known cure.

If you are a born again believer, you have been given not only the ability but the obligation to administer the cure for this disease to all those that are affected.

The disease is sin

This disease as a 100% mortality rate, and it is a disease that every single human being suffers from.

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Romans 5:12

We have all sinned and violated Gods standard

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

Romans 3:23

We all deserve death due to our sin

For the wages of sin is death;

Romans 6:23a

The gospel is the cure

but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 6:23b

Christ died for us

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 5:8

Just need to accept the cure

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 3:16

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 10:9-10

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The ministry of reconciliation

Once you accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Saviour, the Bible teaches us that our primary job is to share the good news with others and show them how they too can be reconciled to God.

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

2 Corinthians 5:17-21

Christians are supposed to be involved in the ministry of reconciliation

As Christians we are supposed to be involved in the ministry of reconciliation, we are supposed to be witness to the power of God

The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.
All thy works shall praise thee, O LORD; and thy saints shall bless thee.
They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power;
To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.

Psalms 145:9-12

We have been commanded to witness

And in that day shall ye say, Praise the LORD, call upon his name, declare his doings among the people, make mention that his name is exalted.
5, Sing unto the LORD; for he hath done excellent things: this is known in all the earth.

Isiah 12:4-5

Witnessing is a task for every Christian

O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy;

Psalms 107:1-2

But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

1 Peter 2:9

The problem with Christians

The problem with most Christians in today’s society is that they have given in to the spirit of fear.

Fear is defined as an attitude of anxiety or distress caused by concern over a threat to one’s future. Of all people, Christians should not have any anxiety about their future.

Christians are fearful of all sorts of things, following is a small sample:

• Fear of old age (Ecclesiastes 12:1-7)
• Fear of the storms of life (Matthew 8:23-26)
• Fear of their own thoughts and imagination (Job 4:13-15)
• Fear of death (Psalms 55:4-5)
• The biggest fear of them all is the fear of other people (Psalms 27:1-4)

The Bible teaches us not to be full of care and worry

Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7

We are not supposed to be worried about everything, instead, we are supposed to take those cares and worries to the Lord, he is the only one who can solve them for us.

Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

1 Peter 5:7

I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

Psalms 34:4

Listening to Christians this week and seeing all of the social media posts from Christians this week, proves out and makes quite evident, that Christians have given in to the fear and have completely forgotten all about their mission.

What to do in times like these

So what is a Christian to do in times like these, or really in all times whether they are like these times or not?

• Don’t allow yourself to get entangled, but keep focused on your mission (2 Timothy 1:7-9)
• Remember that the Lord is looking out for you (Romans 8:28)
• Remember that nothing can separate a Christian for the love of God (Romans 8:35-39)

Have you been as worried about lost souls these past few weeks as you have been about who may or may not get this virus?

We have been given the ministry of reconciliation. Who have you been working with to get reconciled with the Lord?

Stop allowing the world to keep you worried about things that you can’t control and instead start finding ways to accomplish what you can do.

Find ways to speak about the Lord and his saving power.

Our hope at Irvington Bible Baptist Church is that this podcast provided some encouragement and has helped you to develop a closer relationship with the LORD Jesus Christ.