A RELAY RACE

I Cor. 3:11-15

II Timothy 4:6-8

Sunday Morning Sermon

October 18, 1998

34th Anniversary Services

Fair Avenue Baptist Church

Wednesday afternoon I began to prepare to preach this morning in the event that Bro. Blakely could preach because of his health.  And sure enough, when Mrs. Blakely called yesterday morning and said that he was not going to be able to preach, I was glad that I was ready.

I want you to know that I was going to preach a sugar message this morning so everyone would like me. I didn’t want my self-esteem messed up because someone didn’t like me.

But since I’m not known for trying to impress people, there’s no sense in me doing so this morning.  We don’t have enough time for me to try and impress anyone.

Let’s read I Cor. 3:11-15 and II Tim. 4:6-8

Here in II Tim. 4:6-8 we see where the Apostle Paul said, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course...”

He didn’t say, “I have finished my race.”  He said, “I have finished my course.”

The course was part of the race that he ran, but it was not the complete race. 

It was a course, not the race.

Now back to I Cor. 3:11-15

V. 13           “Every man’s work”

V. 14           “If any man’s work”

V. 15           “If any man’s work”

These verses tells us that all of us have a WORK to do.

We have a work that must be done in accordance with the Word of God.

Now with that in mind, let’s turn to II John 8,

“...but that we receive a full reward.”

Three thoughts:

1.       Each of us has a course to run

2.       Each of us has a work to do

3.       Each of us depend upon others to receive our full reward

LISTEN, everyone of us is dependent on the other if we are to receive our full reward.

For example:

Those who preceded us have not received their full reward yet, and those who follow us will not receive their full rewards.

Turn to Rev. 14:13

“...and their works do follow them”

WATCH IT!  WATCH IT!

Everyone has a course, a PART of the race to run...

Everybody has a work to do...

Everybody is going to receive rewards dependent upon what others do and so our full reward depends upon what those who precede us do.

Let me repeat that:

Everybody is going to receive rewards dependent upon what others do and so our full reward depends upon what those who precede us do.

With this morning being the 34th Anniversary of our Church, I want to preach about A RELAY RACE - A Christian Relay Race.

Listen carefully this morning and I want to take these first 34 years and tie them to the next 34 years.

Now, the preacher at a funeral so often says, “Don’t weep for our beloved brother, for he has gone on to his reward.”

Now, that sound good, but that’s just not Biblical.

People who die do not go to their rewards, they may go to Heaven, but they do not receive their rewards yet.

Rev. 22:12 says that Jesus is coming back with those rewards to give every according as his WORK shall be.

“And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.”

After the rapture, at the Judgment Seat of Christ, that’s when those rewards are going to be handed out.

Then and only then will we get our rewards.

We will not receive our rewards until the LORD comes back after us.

And that is why our saved loved ones in Heaven have not yet received their rewards.

The Books have not been closed out.

Rev. 20:11-12 teaches us that there are books kept in Heaven. 

Those books are a record of every person ever born, lived and died, and everything you’ve ever done.

If you are saved, those books will record everything you have done for God.

If you are lost, those same books will record everything you have done for the devil, and your degree in hell will be determined by what is recorded in those books.

HEY, if I were you and I was going to hell, I’d live as good a life as I could live, I’d do as much as I could.

I’d even tithe if I were you, to keep from going to the hottest part of Hell, but you’re still going to hell because your works cannot pay for your sins.

Those books are recording everything that you and I have ever done and will ever do.

We must understand that what we do for God, what sort it is, not what size, but what we do for God will determine whether or not we receive rewards in Heaven, and how many we receive.

Now, wait a minute, Billy Sunday, the great evangelist, can’t receive all his rewards yet because his influence is still being felt.

D.L. Moody, the great preacher, he can’t receive all his rewards yet because his influence is still being felt.

Charles Spurgeon, the great Baptist preacher from London, England, he can’t receive all his rewards yet because his influence is still being felt.

John R. Rice, the great evangelist from right here in Cooke County, can’t receive all his rewards.

Lester Roloff, a great man of God, can’t receive all his rewards.

Yes, all of these great men of God will someday receive their full reward - BUT - not until the Judgment Seat of Christ when the books are finally closed.

People in Heaven do not have all their rewards yet and they will have degrees of rewards.

And the same is true of those in hell.  They have not been judged because all their works and the effects of those works upon men have not yet been finished.

LISTEN, there are some people who do damage to the cause of Christ and who are causing others to go to Hell.

As a result they will get a little deeper and burn hotter because they have done so much damage to the cause of Christ, to the Bible, to the Church, and Christian families.

And you mark it down, the pornographers, the Hugh Hefners, the Larry Flynts; they will rack up a greater part in Hell because they are doing the works which are sending people to hell.

Listen to me, if you are lost and on your way to hell, you better start fearing a Holy God, a God that will not put up with sin, and you mark it down my dear friend, if you don’t get right with God, there will be a hotter spot in hell for you.

The people in Heaven will have degrees of reward and the people in hell will have degrees of punishment.

At the Judgment Seat of Christ I will be rewarded,

At the Judgment Seat of Christ you will be rewarded.

And our friends and loved one who have proceeded us will be rewarded.

And the ones who follow us will be rewarded.

If you love your momma and your momma is in heaven, LISTEN TO ME,

YOU OWE AN OBLIGATION TO YOUR MOMMA TO KEEP GOING FOR GOD AND KEEP DOING RIGHT, so she can receive her full reward.

It’s not right for your momma to give her life for you and to love you and to teach you...

...to teach you that your Bible is true,

...to teach you that going to church is right,

...to teach you that being holy is right,

and for you to find yourself, wasting your life living for the devil, and stealing rewards from your momma.

Don’t you understand that you are STEALING from your momma, you are stealing that which belongs to her?

If your daddy is in Heaven today, then you owe it to your daddy to keep going forward for the Lord Jesus Christ.

You owe it to your daddy to keep doing right.

WHY?  Because your daddy hasn’t received all his rewards yet, because you are still alive, and his grandchildren are alive, and maybe even some grandchildren.

AND YOU OWE SOMETHING TO YOUR MOMMA,

AND YOU OWE SOMETHING TO YOUR DADDY TO DO RIGHT!

It’s like a relay race.  Have you ever watched a relay race?  There are four guys on the track and one takes off and runs, he’s called the first leg, then he hands the baton to the next guy, the second leg, and he runs and hands it to the next guy, the third leg, and he hands it to the last guy, whose is called the anchor man, who brings it on home to the finish line.

HEY, that’s exactly what we’re doing.

Years ago my daddy handed me a Bible, a King James Bible.

He told me it was the Word of God and I believe it.

Then I had children and I handed them a Bible, a King James Bible, and I told them it was the Word of God.

Now, one day Richard will hand it to his son or daughter,

Rachael will hand it to her son or daughter,

And they will say, “Your great-grandfather believed in this Bible, the Word of God,

your grandfather believed in this Bible, the Word of God,

and I believe it is the Word of God.”

And they will hand it to the next generation.

It’s all part of the race, the Christian race.

Heb. 12:1, “...let us run with patience the race that is set before us.”

Each of us has a course to run in that race, each of us is running a part of the relay.

This morning I want to give you some things that this church, the men in this church, some things we absolutely must hand to the next generation.

IF WE ALL ARE TO RECEIVE A FULL REWARD,

IF WE ALL ARE TO BUILD A FOUNDATION ON JESUS Christ,

THEN THERE ARE CERTAIN THINGS THAT SHOULD NOT CHANGE,

THAT MUST NOT CHANGE,

AND WILL NOT CHANGE AS LONG AS I AM PASTOR.

You won’t ever see a relay race where one guy just stops and says, “Well, I don’t like this baton, I believe I’ll get another one.”

NO, it’s the same baton that was handed to him when the race started and it’s same baton that he has to hand to the next guy, and so forth.

Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve got to do our part.

If our mommas are to receive their full reward,

If our daddys are to receive their full reward,

If Billy Sunday is to receive his full reward,

If D.L. Moody is to receive his full reward,

If John R. Rice is to receive his full reward,

If Billy Melton is to receive his full reward,

If Ben Young is to receive his full reward,

If Cecil Willis is to receive his full reward,

WE’VE GOT TO KEEP THE RELAY RACE GOING!

There are several things we must hand to the generation, to keep the relay race going.

1.     THE SAME GOSPEL

When my dad is dead and gone,

When Bro. Blakely is dead and gone,

I must hand the same gospel to the next generation,

The same gospel my daddy handed to me is the one I am supposed to hand to the next generation,

And the next generation is supposed to hand it to the next generation and so forth.

We are a part of the race for eternal life.  NOT TO GAIN ETERNAL LIFE, but to be sure that the next generation gets the same gospel that you and I got,

and that’s the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It’s not baptism,

It’s not joining the church,

It’s not communion,

It is the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ applied to our sins that saves us.

And we’ve got to hand the next generation the same gospel.

WE HAVE NO RIGHT in this relay race to hand anything to the next generation EXCEPT the same gospel that was handed to us.

“Preacher, surely there’s no problem with that, is there?”

OH, you want to bet your little booties.

There are people all over our country and in this city who are telling us that if we don’t live right, we’re not saved.

HEY, our salvation is not based on how we live - it’s not based on our works.

If that be the case, everyone is this room, and I mean everyone including this preacher, we are going to hell.

Now, some of you may smell a little better,

Some of you may dress a little nicer,

BUT we still have dirty, rotten, stinking flesh,

And we do wrong,

And God changes the soul, not the body.

AND YOU AND I OUGHT TO SHOUT HALLELUJAH BECAUSE OUR SOULS ARE SAVED.

Hold it, don’t criticize these men for saying “Amen” if you’ll go to a football game and stand and shout and cheer for your favorite team.

There are people telling you that if you don’t live right that you’re not saved and that’s a lie straight out of the pits of hell.

You never hear a preacher get up and say, “We had ten bodies saved today.”  NO, he says, “We had ten souls saved today.”

HEY, let’s get this thing straight, when you got saved, YOU GOT SAVED!

Why don’t you settle this thing once and for all?

The Gospel is not based on baptism or living a good life - it is based on the blood of Jesus Christ.

NOW, if we are in a relay race, and if the next generation is to receive their full reward, WE MUST HAND THE SAME GOSPEL TO THE NEXT GENERATION.

1.       Same Gospel

2.     THE SAME BIBLE

As I mentioned a few minutes ago, many years ago my daddy handed me a Bible, a King James Bible.

He told me it was the Word of God and I believed it.  I believed it so much I never believed the lies of the new versions.

Then I had children and I handed them a Bible, a King James Bible, and I told them it was the Word of God.

Now, one day Richard will hand it to his son or daughter,

Rachael will hand it to her son or daughter,

And they will say, “Your great-grandfather believed in this Bible, the Word of God, the King James Version,

your grandfather believed in this Bible, the Word of God, the King James Version,

and I believe it is the Word of God.”

And my grandchildren will hand it to the next generation.

My grandchildren have no right to mess with that Book.

We are in a relay race and if our kids are to know what we know today, we’ve got to hand them the same Bible.

WE’VE GOT TO!

WE MUST!

WE’RE IN A RELAY RACE!

Let me tell you something.  America was a lot better off when we had a bunch of old countrified preachers who would get up and scream and holler and preach the Book - YES, WE WERE!

And let me tell you something else.  We don’t the first thing about revival and God meeting with us.  America hasn’t had a real nation wide revival since the American Standard Version hit the market nearly 50 years ago.

“Well, preacher, we had a revival at our church.”

OK, how many beer joints closed down?

How many porno shops shut down?

How many liquor stores closed?

Last time I checked we still had more than our share of private clubs.

Last time I checked I saw J.W. at D.W.’s adult video.

Last time I checked I saw Jerry coming out of Oak Ridge and their liquor stores.

Who are we kidding?  America hasn’t had a real revival in over 50 years.

Have you ever been to a church and the reverend gets up and reads something and you scratch your head and say, “That’s doesn’t sound right.”

Of course it doesn’t sound right, it’s not God’s Word!

All this mess with the living Bible, and the new international version, and the ASV, RSV, and XYZ versions - IT’S WRONG!

Don’t you fool with the Bible!

We are in a relay race.

We need to pass it on.

Don’t fool with it!

Ladies and gentlemen, do you realize what the Book of the Revelation says about adding to or taking away from the Word of God?

Do you realize what a dangerous thing it is to meddle with God’s Word?

Somebody says, “Do you believe in original inspiration?”

I like what Dr. Hyles says, “I believe in JOTTLE inspiration.  I believe in every jot and tittle, just like Jesus said in the New Testament.”

Hand the next generation the same gospel,

the same Bible

3.     THE SAME CHURCH

This is a local, called out body of born again baptized believers, and that’s what it ought to be!

This kind of church is what my old fashioned daddy gave to me, and I’m going to pass it on down to the next generation.

Billy Melton, Ben Young, and Cecil Willis, those men gave us a local, independent, autonomous Baptist Church, and that’s what we need to give the next generation to carry on for another 34 years.

My dad got it from his preacher back in 1960,

My dad gave it to me,

And I’m going to pass it on to the next generation.

And while I’m at it, mark it down, I’m passing on a BAPTIST church to the next generation.

I’m a Baptist from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet, and I don’t apologize for it.

You’re looking at one guy who is a Baptist and I’m going to teach my kids the same thing.

I’m sick and tired of these pussy-footing, back-scratching, ear-tickling reverends running out and taking Baptist off their sign and putting up some non-denominational church sign.

Years ago I worked for a church named Burleson Baptist Temple.  Back in the early 80’s they called a new pastor.  In the late 80’s he changed directions.  I told my wife, “One of these days he will take Baptist off the name.”

Sure enough, the name now is “The Church at Burleson.”

HEY, it’s time somebody believed something, somewhere, sometime.

I’m a Baptist,

and I’m handing it on to the next generation.

Same Gospel

Same Bible

Same Church

4.     THE SAME BLOOD

The blood of Christ cleanses you from all sin, that’s what the Bible says.

It wasn’t His death that cleansed you from your sin, it was His blood.

You better be careful listening to some of the radio preachers.  They don’t believe the Bible.  They’ve come up with some strange belief that it was the death of Christ that was important.  They aren’t handing down the same blood that was given them.

Eph. 1:7, “In whom we have redemption through his BLOOD, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.”

Col. 1:14, “In whom we have redemption through his BLOOD, even the forgiveness of sins.”

I John 1:7, “...and the BLOOD of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.”

It was the BLOOD of Christ that washed away our sins.

Don’t fool with it,

Leave it alone.

Same Gospel,

Same Book,

Same Church,

Same Blood,

5.     THE SAME HOLY SPIRIT

How about passing down the Holy Spirit?

How about the same Holy Spirit that:

          infills

          indwells

          inpowers

          teaches

          comforts

          directs

DON’T ADD ANYTHING TO IT!

Don’t you add speaking in tongues to it!

When you hand it to the next generation, don’t you add anything!

Don’t you add that you’ve got to speak in tongues or you’re not filled with the Holy Spirit.

Don’t you add that, IT’S NOT IN THE BOOK!

There is something awfully wrong and wicked in America today:

We’ve gone bonkers,

We’ve gone haywire,

We’re nuts,

People are dying and going to hell and we’re sitting around swaying, holding hands, and talking like a turkey.

In God’s dear Name,

why don’t you rise up and start a bus route,

teach a Sunday School class,

go soul winning and tell somebody how to be saved.

Don’t you fool with the Holy Spirit.

Take the Holy Spirit of the Bible and hand it to the next generation.

Same Gospel,

Same Bible,

Same Church,

Same Blood,

Same Holy Spirit.

Listen, we’re in a relay race.

And I want my predecessors to receive their full reward.

I’m talking about Billy Melton,

I’m talking about Ben Young,

I’m talking about the men who stepped out by faith and are waiting to see what we’re going to do with their dream.

I want them to receive a full reward.

And I want those of you in the next generation who follow me to receive your full reward.

In my many years of the ministry I have seen people who didn’t like this idea of relay race.

They’ve quit.

They’ve dropped the baton,

They don’t like the discipline,

They don’t like the hard work,

And some even go and join another team.

I owe it to my daddy to finish my course, to finish my race, to help him one day receive his full reward - AND SO DO YOU!

Some of you had godly mothers and godly fathers and you’ve quit.  SHAME ON YOU.

Let’s finish the race strong.

Let’s pass on to the next generation the right things.

Let’s pray.