ORDINARY PEOPLE DOING AN EXTRA ORDINARY JOB

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“ORDINARY PEOPLE DOING AN EXTRAORDINARY JOB”
MATTHEW 10: 2-6

Intro:
I hope everyone has enjoyed this weekend. Our purpose in coming together in this setting is to get away from all the hustle and bustle of everyday life, and spend time with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
However, we also had a secondary reason for coming here. We wanted to think about ways in which we might work together more effectively. In the Lord’s Church, for whatever reason, we have a hard time working as one. This weekend, we are attempting to remove the walls which keep us from accomplishing more for the Kingdom.
If you will, I want to ask you to look at Matthew 10: 7. There Christ is speaking to his newly called disciples, and he instructs them saying: “And as ye go, preach, saying, the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” The command is to go and preach. What I need you to see is that Christ here is addressing this group as a whole, and not them as individuals. They are all to go and preach. They are to work together to carry out this very important mission.
This weekend, we have heard three lessons from Stephen, John, and Wayne describing the character of three of the apostles. The amazing thing is that they were each assigned the same task, but they were all very different individuals.
One of the most common reasons given for why we don’t accomplish more in the church today is that we are all too different to get anything done. We are often overheard saying: “I just cannot work with that person.” This morning, as we come to the final hours of our 2nd annual recharge, I want to tie our three lessons into a bow for you. I want to suggest to you that if the twelve apostles could work together despite their differences, then we can and should learn to labor alongside one another today.
What I would like to do is share with you the reasons why they should not have been able to coexist together, and then point out what it was that enabled them to stand as one.

I. THE APOSTLES: WHY IT SHOULDN’T HAVE WORKED, AND WHY IT DID

1. First, owing to their backgrounds, they should not have worked together.
A. They were fishermen, Preachers, Government Employees, Fanatical Jewish Nationalist, and Laborers.
B. Their past occupations should have dictated that they could not possibly work successfully together.
C. Keep in mind that these different jobs would have necessitated differing educational levels as well.
2. However, it wasn’t just their backgrounds that could have prevented success, they each had different temperaments.
A. John 18: 10 there were those who were loyal.
B. John 1: 41there were those who were evangelistically minded.
C. Luke 9: 51-56 there were those who were zealous.
D. John 20: 28 there were those who were skeptical.
E. Matt 9: 9 there were those who were looking for a change.
F. Matt 26: 14-16 there were even those who were sneaky and conniving.
3. Despite all these differences, the twelve apostles worked together to achieve some amazing results.
A. Acts 2: 41 because of their efforts, 3,000 sols were saved.
B. Acts 6: 1-7 because of their efforts needs were met.
C. Rom 15: 25-26 because of their efforts, the household of faith expanded.
4. How did they do it?
A. Acts 1: 14, 2: 1 they accomplished great things because they were, “all in one accord.”
B. Their differences didn’t matter, because their bond was stronger.

II. US: WHY WE HAVE TROUBLE WORKING AND WHAT SHOULD HELP US

1. As With the apostles, we are from vastly different backgrounds.
A. We come from different occupations.
B. We come from different educational backgrounds.
C. We were born in different generations.
D. Not to mention the fact that some of our number were not raised in the church.
2. Let’s Acknowledge the fact that we all also bring different temperaments to the congregational table.
A. There are some of us who are..well..opinionated.
B. There are others of us who are content to allow others to make all the descisions.
C. Some of us are laid-back, while others are “uptight.”
3. With all these differences, how can we possibly hope to work together?
A. Ephesians 4: 4-6 we must be united!
B. If there is one body, spirit, hope, Lord, faith, baptism, God and Father, then those who believe in this oneness must be united as one as well!