No One Left Behind

Luke 14:12-24, John 1:10-12, Rom.1:16-17

Go out into the highways and byways. Give the people something of your new
vision. You may possess a small light, but uncover it, let it shine, use it in order to
bring more light and understanding to the hearts and minds of men and women.
Give them not hell but hope and courage; preach the kindness and the everlasting
love of God John Murray

Memory Verse:
And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and
compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. - Luke 14:23

In John 14:12-24, the Lord Jesus shared a parable with his disciples about a certain
man who had made a great supper and had sent out invitation unto so many
people, but a lot of the invitees gave one excuse or the other. Each man seem to
have a better place to be than the supper. Some could not attend because they just
got married, while some could not because of business.
Like the man sent out invitation for the great supper, God has sent a general
invitation unto mankind by giving His most precious and only begotten Son.
According to John 3:16, God gave His only begotten son to the world, that whoever
believe in Him may have everlasting life. The Gospel Message is an open invitation,
and just as some men did not honour the invitation to the great supper, some are
yet to accept God's invitation.
We are the vessel and agent that Jesus counts on to fulfil this Commission. In
carrying out this mission we have the attitude of Jesus who prayed for his disciple to
remain constant and would-be disciples to encounter Gods saving and sustaining
power. We must also learn from the attitude of the American soldiers who always
ensure that everyone that is part of a mission is never left behind under no
circumstance, we also must ensure that no one in or sphere of influence, in our
community in respective of age, gender, political orientation and religious
inclination is never left untouched with the gospel of our Lord Jesus. Romans 10:12-
15,

I. THE NECESSITY OF GODS INVITATION.

Romans 8:32, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:17, John 4:35

The man of God, Morris Cerullo shared of how he saw a vision where multitude were
walking on a very board road, laughing and enjoying the walk not knowing that at
the end of the road was a big pit of inferno, but it was too late to return because of
the pressure of the people behind them. Each time people fall into the inferno they
make terrible noise, but those on the road cannot hear.
God's invitation is to Salvation. The Lord does not want any man to perish but that
all may be saved. And by giving his son, God laid all benefits on the banquet table
for us, for in giving His Son, God gave his all, and by accepting Jesus as saviour, we
are blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places, we are blessed with all
'Soteria' package, nothing missing. We also enjoy total deliverance from the curse of
the law. The curse of the law can be classified into three classes which are: sickness,
poverty and death. But thank God for the freedom we receive in salvation.
Go ye implies a commandment, it is a must, we just have to preach. As Christs
representative and ambassador on earth, we must go out of the way to save the
lost at all cost. Jesus gave authority to us as believers, and we have what it takes to
save the lost, for in Mark 16:17 that signs will follow them that believed as they go
out to preach. Our duty is to preach, and it is God's own to confirm his word.
Let us not bother ourselves with the how, but we should hold on to his word and
know that he will fulfill his part.
II. THE PRIORITY OF THE COMMISSION
1. The fact of hell. Revelation 20:15
If men understand that heaven is real, so is hell, they will believe the Gospel
message. If they know that the Spirit world is real, they sure will live their lives to
avoid the unbearable pain and anguish that the departed souls in hell experience.
God does not want any man to perish, and that is why God will have you and I
compel the lost to come to the feast (salvation), for the table needs to be full.

2. Jesus is the only way. John 14:6

Jesus is not one of the ways, He is the 'Only Way' that leads unto God. We need to
tell the world that there are no two ways to God, the only way is Jesus, he is also the
truth and the life.
The temple in the Old Testament is structured in a way that a door leads to each
compartment, and each door has its name. The door to the outer court is called 'The
Way', while the door to the Holy place is called 'The Truth' and the door to the
Hollies of Hollies is called the 'The Life'. In john 14:6, Jesus was calling the disciples'
attention to this temple description and how He is the only way to God because it is
by Him we can come to the Father, we come into the most Holy place.
By his death on Calvary's cross, He paved way for us, no sacrifice is needed besides
accepting the sacrifice of His life on the cross, by giving His life, He gave us free
access unto God. If only the unsaved can see the light of this message they will
repent, but that depends on you and I, and that's why the Lord will have us go out
and Compel men to be saved. Employ every possible means.

3. Eternal separation from God. Revelation 21:8, II Peter 3:9

in salvation we receive eternal life, Zoe, this is life transforming substance from
God, it is Life imparting gift. But when a man does not receive the free gift of
salvation, he cannot enjoy Zoe, rather he will have to face the second death, which
is eternal separation from God.
Let's preach the Gospel, let us compel the lost to come to the father that men may
be saved from eternal damnation. The Father does not want any man to perish but
that all may come to repentance.

III. THE PRACTICE AND LESSONS FROM THE BANQUET

Luke 14:12-24, John 17:10-12, 20-24

The word Compel in verse 23 of Luke 14, is from the Greek word 'Anagkazo', it
means to employ every means possible in bringing the lost home. The fact you have
preached once and no one responded does not mean you should not preach again,
you have to go again, like the servant went again, but this time you might need to
compel.
Just as men rejected the invitation because they were busy, men have failed to
accept the Gospel truth because they don't understand. Truth is the simplicity of the
gospel message, this is foolishness to the world. No one has excuse for not
receiving Christ, neither do we have excuse not to bring people to the feast.
It is normal for people to make excuses, especially when they don't know what's in
store for them. But we as believers must be bold to show the world that the Gospel
is the only means, while Jesus is the only way. Never be ashamed to tell men about
the Gospel, for the gift of grace await every man that come to God for salvation.
Ephesians 2:8.
Let us not be ashamed to preach the gospel, the unbelievers are not ashamed of
their shameful product, neither should we be ashamed of the gospel, there are
multitude that need to be saved, the harvest indeed is great, let us go out and save
them out of fire. It's time we bring the gospel out of the dark into the light, it's time
we stand up to declare the truth. We can't afford to be passive about the gospel, the
harvest is great.
Believers must not desist from sharing the gospel and reaching out into tough
places and difficult situations. As we reach our community, we will become involved
in all manner of problems, we will have to deal with people who struggle with every
kind of sin, addiction and heartbreak into the church with them. They will be
vulnerable, they will sometimes sin in big and blatant ways, and they may well
wander off for a time. But we must ensure that people are made to see the savior
who is able to keep them in their journey to become like Christ. Barely noticed.

As Jesus earthly ministry draw to a close, He prayed to the Father about his disciples
and would-be disciples, so also, we cannot underestimate the role of prayer in this
reconciliation assignment given to us by God. The disciple could have wandered and
should have been lost, but he cared for them, and he protected them to the end.
(Romans 1:8-12, Ephesians 1:15-19). He knew his mission, and he carried it to the
very end. Jesus attended to both the physical and spiritual needs of people. He was
able to reach the poor and the rich, the healthy and the sick, priest and sinners with
the message of repentance. By this, Jesus set the pace of compassion for all
believers.
As Christians, we are charged with caring for one another and sinners alike. We are
filled with joy, comfort and security when we affirm and insist that we will not leave
even one person behind. We will guard them, we will guide them, we will pursue
them, we will pray for them, and we will love and pursue them to the very end. No
man will be left behind.
The invitation is not based on class, level of education, financial status and so on, it
is open for all who will come. The church should be open for all kind and sorts of
individual. We must be prepared to welcome all sort of dysfunction they come with,
knowing fully well that Jesus is the savior, baptizer, healer, and sanctifier and that
he will make everything and every situation of their life perfect.