Good morning. I was thinking as we were singing, oh, this is nice. I want to just settle in here and listen to the speaker. Oh, it's me. My wife wishes she could be here. We're having some family issues at the moment and our son needed some additional help and said, hey, you know, we're going to do what we can. So she's with him right now up in Schenectady. And I'll be going up there tomorrow and get her and bring you back down here. And we'll be in this area for about a week and then we'll be back up to Schenectady again. That'll be my fifth time up there in a few weeks. So back and forth, back and forth. Before I forget, because I always do, there are some handouts there in the back table if you're interested in all and finding out more about Ethnos 360. looking for an opportunity to serve in some way, short-term mission trips, volunteering, various things. Please help yourself while it's back there. And the verses that we read this morning, I'm going to turn all this stuff on here. You might think, oh, I'm waiting to hear him talk about, explain that one. Or what about that? You probably won't get that. I think my take on this is maybe a little different here. So if I missed your favorite part or didn't explain something, you know, I've always wanted someone to explain that one. That's probably why I left it out. So I have a question for you. Would you like to have seen Jesus face to face and sat under his teaching? I'm not sure I would have liked that. I'm afraid that I would have naturally gravitated to either the Pharisees or the scribes. I mean, I wonder, would I recognize Jesus for who he is? What would I have done about it? In that era, would I have been rich or poor? Would it have made a difference? Well, throughout history, the rich had more opportunities available to them, heard more things. We have a story in the Gospels of a young man who found himself in that situation. As far as you know, he was not a Pharisee, a Sadducee, scribe, tax collector, or zealot. He had not been caught in some compromising situation. He was a young man who apparently inherited a great deal of wealth at a young age. And from what we can read, we can assume he'd been instructed in the scriptures and at a heart inclined toward God. As Jesus's notoriety and popularity grew, We're guessing he heard a lot about Jesus, and then an opportunity presented itself. Okay, on, bottom, top, bottom. Okay, let's try that again. Okay, not off, but on. Oops. Where are we at here? Okay. Mark 10.17. Maybe what I'll just do is say next. And I'll let you guys do the slides. Okay. Mark 10.17. Next. There we go. As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. Good teacher, he asked, what must I do to inherit eternal life? Now, first thing I want you to notice is this man ran up to Jesus, which is not something that rich ordinarily do, right? They expect you to come to them, you come to their office, you know, you wait on them. Obviously, this person had been looking for Jesus and didn't want to miss this opportunity. He had heard about Jesus, and I think he had believed what he'd heard. He believed Jesus had truth, and he wanted to know that truth. And he was serious about eternal life. And he knew he needed to know God's perspective, not his own. And I thought, well, was this question, like many of the other questions posed to Jesus during his ministry, And I had to answer to myself, no, it wasn't. So many others tried to catch Jesus in something that they could trap him in and turn the crowds against him. Now, he wasn't challenging Jesus. In fact, he fell on his knees in humility, honoring Jesus. Now throughout the gospels, many people address Jesus as teacher, master, rabbi. This man went further. He was the only one, you can look through the gospels, he's the only one who called Jesus good teacher. This man was sincere. Next. Mark 10, 18, why do you call me good? Jesus answered, no one is good except God alone. Now Jesus' response is interesting. Have you ever pondered it? I do not believe Jesus was challenging the use of the word good. Good was a very appropriate word. I believe Jesus trying to get the man to think. What was it in Jesus that made that word appropriate? Jesus wanted the man to connect the dots. Jesus stated clearly, only God is good. Therefore, if Jesus is also good, What could you conclude about Jesus? If the man could realize who he was really talking to, he would stand a better chance of being able to understand what was going to be behind Jesus's answer and being able to follow through in response. Well, whether the man had a chance to stop and think about that or not, we don't know. And Jesus continued his answer with a list from the Ten Commandments. Next. Mark 10, 19. You know the commandments, do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, do not defraud, honor your father and mother. You wonder why Jesus gave a man that list? I mean, he knew better than anyone that following the law could never earn eternal life. In fact, Jesus was asked another time about, okay, I need to know, what work is it I need to do in order to be saved? And how did Jesus answer? In John 6, 28 and 29, Jesus replied that the only appropriate work is to believe. So what was Jesus doing here in this conversation? Jesus was challenging his thinking and in doing so, Quite honestly, Jesus was challenging the entire mindset of the Jews and the prevailing culture. Now, when the young ruler heard the list, I don't know if that encouraged or discouraged him. I mean, if he felt he was already doing his best to observe all these instructions, Jesus's answer might've been encouraging. Or he might've thought, hey, wait a minute. I've been obeying those laws, and so far it hasn't given me any assurance, or I wouldn't have asked the question. Next, in Mark 10.20, teacher, he declared, all these I have kept since I was a boy. You know, whatever was going through his mind at that moment, he declared, where are we at here? We need to be on the next one. Sorry, I've got, either I've not been saying the words or, yeah, I've not been saying the words. Whatever was going through his mind at the moment, he declared he had been trying to keep those commandments since he was a boy. Now, in Matthew's account of this same meeting, he writes that the young man then asked, what was it he still lacked? which makes me think that in his heart, he knew keeping the commandments was not enough. And the thing is, we know for certain that Jesus knew this man's heart. Jesus could sense his desire to know the truth, the desire to be certain, and the desire to please God. But the man was still bound by his own culture, and probably by his own desire for comfort. What about us? How often, if ever, do we think about how we might be bound by our own culture? How much are we bound by our own desire for comfort? To get rid of any of those things that might be unpleasant. Anything that might cause us doubt or like, will we have enough to pay this or to do that? We just want everything to go smoothly. Do we critically examine each purpose or each expectation or each interaction in light of scripture, in light of what God wants in this world? Or do we just go about acting and behaving all the way our Christian friends around us are acting and behaving because it's what we do? Next. In Mark 10, 21, we read that Jesus looked at him and loved him. So Jesus went further because the battle wasn't over. Jesus was still sowing truth into this young man, and there was more that needed to be confronted. Now, if you will notice, Jesus left out one of the 10 commandments in the previous list he had given to the young ruler. Anybody catch it? The commandment about covening. At least one commentator feels that the coveting was the main issue in this young ruler's life. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. But in the conversation, Jesus is now going to challenge him to go all in. Finishing the rest of verse 21, one thing you lack, he said, Go, sell everything you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." Well, Jesus told the young man to sell all his possessions, give everything to the poor, which would result in him having treasure in heaven, as opposed to having treasure on earth. But he didn't stop there. There was more to this invitation. He also said the young ruler could come along with Jesus. Okay, let's back up. Just giving away all you own does not earn one a place in heaven. Jesus knew that. No one can work their way to heaven. So what was Jesus doing? Jesus was offering this young man a chance to grow in understanding and faith. He was actually offering him an opportunity to be one of his disciples, and to eventually earn or hear about the way of salvation. Far more of an opportunity this man had asked for. Now the conversation with the young man finishes with verse 22. At this, the young man's face fell. He went away sad because he had great wealth. Now hearing what Jesus said, this young man became sad and went away, says because he had great wealth. Obviously, this implies he wasn't willing to give up that wealth. Does that mean he wasn't saved? Well, my guess is he wasn't, at least not at this point. Gotta ask yourself, how many of the other disciples you think were saved at this point in the ministry? And I think maybe none of them. They were on a journey. There was a lot they didn't understand, at least not yet. that the disciples didn't understand either is obvious from what the response to what Jesus said next. Next. Mark 10, 23 to 26. Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, how hard it is for the rich to enter kingdom of God. Look at this next sentence. The disciples were amazed at his words. Why would they have been amazed? It's their culture. Jesus said again, children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. The disciples were even more amazed and said to each other, well, then who then can be saved? You know, when Jesus said it was easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God, what was the disciples' response? Then who can be saved? Does this indicate despair on their part? Well, see, it was a common belief in the Jews' culture that material blessing was a sign of God's favor on a life. Jesus had a lot of correctional teaching to do. And we know that the Holy Spirit had to continue that correctional teaching even after the resurrection. I doubt that Nicodemus was saved when he heard what we've referred to as John 3.16. Yes, he was saved eventually, but I'm guessing it took a while. I wondered if this rich young ruler eventually understood what Jesus was talking about and got saved in the early days after the resurrection or after the day of Pentecost. We know that all the disciples except for Judas Iscariot were saved eventually, but like it is for all of us, it was a process. And I thank God he doesn't give up on us in the middle of the process. Think about the parable of the pearl of great price. Giving away all you have to secure the most valuable thing in the world? Obviously Jesus was not talking about trading our earthly goods for salvation. No, that parable and this story of the rich young ruler both challenge us to consider what we would do if we were given the chance or the opportunity to be a part of the greatest thing heaven could offer us. Now, as Christians, we've already been given the gift of eternal life, bought by the blood of Christ. So salvation isn't the issue, not for us. The issue is the degree of commitment. Jesus was giving the rich young ruler more than he asked for. I'll tell you which is better, to be a fan of a team or to be on the team. Jesus was giving him a chance to become one of his disciples, to be on the team that was gonna turn the world upside down. Next, in verse 21, we're right here. Jesus' answer, one thing you lack implies that, look, you want to be perfect, mature, complete, which is what that means. That is, if you want to be all in and set aside all other distractions and join with him. Now, although disciples thinking was still fuzzy in a lot of areas, and they were still bound by the same culture as the rich young ruler, they caught the implication of being all in. On behalf of all the disciples, in verse 27 of chapter 19 of Matthew's version of this encounter, Peter exclaimed, we've left everything to follow you. What then will there be for us? So back in Mark 10, verses 29 to 31, next. All right. Jesus sought to assure the suddenly worried disciples by telling them, look, God will care for them in this life, and they'll have eternal life in the age to come. But even then, after saying that, he ended it with, many who are first will be last, and many who are last will be first, which I'm sure left the disciples shaking their heads again. We thought we were with you, and then he ended on that. Excuse me. Are you all in? It's a question those who follow Jesus need to answer. Jesus gave other examples of the necessity of being all in. We know that following Jesus can cost a lot. Following Jesus very closely can cost you a lot more. And it's as true now as it was then. To the rich young ruler, It meant giving up a comfortable life. That's what his riches were going to give him, a comfortable life. He wasn't willing to do that. He had great wealth, but he wasn't willing to give up in order to be all in. You know, the pivotal factor for each one of us can be different. Wealth is just example, one example of something the Lord might be asking you to give up. It could be a great education. Could be a great job, great reputation, great family life. I remember reading biographies of Christians in previous centuries who gave up all of those things to serve the Lord full-time. I don't think God sees decades and centuries the same way we do. I think, oh yes, yeah, I read some of those biographies too, but that was a different time. God doesn't act the same way today. I don't know about that. We've been given so, so very much in this country. Unfortunately, so much of it we spend on ourselves. Back then, many gave up great wealth, great education, great power or fame. And just like I believe that God hasn't changed, that the word of God hasn't changed, the opportunity that God is offering his people has not changed. How close, how close do you want to be to Jesus? How involved do you want to be in the way he is working in this world? How closely do you want to be identified with him? He might ask you, what are you willing to give up? His spirit will pump out your soul in some way. And it isn't the same for everyone. And what he asks us to do doesn't look the same for everyone. You know what? His promise to each of us is the same. And everyone who has left houses, or brothers or sisters, or father or mother, or children, or fields or farms, for my sake, will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. My wife became a believer when she was about five. I didn't become a believer until after I graduated from Rutgers at 22. Wanting to be all in, to do whatever Jesus was leading us towards, we both took steps towards that. Now we had no idea where that would lead us, but we know we knew who we were following. We wanted to join a team that would bring the life-saving message of the gospel to people groups who had never heard it. For 16 years, we served the school for missionaries' children, followed by 10 years in administration for all of New Tribes Mission in Papua New Guinea, which was followed by 11 years in administration for New Tribes Mission USA here in the US. In the middle of that time, in 2017, New Tribes Mission changed its name to Ethnos 360, and in 2020, I volunteered to add to my ministry, which no one else was able, willing to do, to take over the leadership of the homes of Ethnos 360. I was able to step down from my position as Chief Administrative Officer of Ethnos 360 USA and concentrate on the ministry at the homes, retirement community, just last December. You might say, wait a minute, you're talking about reaching tribes overseas, you know, give it all in. What has that to do with the retirement community? Fair question. We have a retirement community because in the 1940s, 50s, 60s, 70s, and even into the early 80s, missionaries went to the field as fast as they could with the encouragement of local churches, sometimes with hardly enough financial support to live on, let alone safer retirement. I can remember in the early 80s, it's like you didn't dare mention the idea that you were saving for retirement to a church because they thought, you have enough money already if you can save for retirement. It wasn't something you did. Realizing that many of these missionaries would eventually return permanently to the United States, our mission leadership decided to build a retirement community to provide affordable and efficient housing for ethnicity personnel to at least retain their dignity. the whole team from beginning to end. We've taken it upon ourselves to provide a nurturing and caring environment, attempt to meet both the physical and spiritual needs of our residents within staff, facility, and state licensing capabilities. Majority of our residents are in their 70s, 80s, and 90s. Now, two years ago, right after I started the position of the director of the homes, I did a little research. And I discovered that, not including staff, just including our retired mission, lived on the property. Our 130 plus missionaries at that time represented over 5,000 man years of active missionary service, averaging over 39 years per missionary. 5,000 man years from those 130 residents. Well, to help you understand what it is, I'd like to show you a quick presentation to give you an idea of our ministry at the homes of Ethnos 360. So, looks like we're there. And we'll be coming back to the message here. We work at the homes here, a community for retired missionaries of Ethnos 360. Just hold it there. Well-maintained, very inviting. Okay. Yep. Next. Got it. We've got 102 private residences for retirees. We also have 10 single-family homes for staff, maintenance buildings. Next. A facility in the middle of the property for those needing extra care, an RV court, and landscape grounds and property. Next. The 102 residents for retirees are built in side-by-side duplexes. Next. And most of those duplexes are on cul-de-sacs. Next, most of them have two bedrooms, laundry area, living room, bathroom, kitchen, dining room, screening porch, and a covered carport. Next, sometimes your neighbors are people you served with on the field. Next, there's plenty of shade, which is really nice in Florida in the summer. Next, when taking walks, there's plenty of landscaping for beauty. Next, many flowers and trees bloom year round. Next, our chapel was the last section to be built in our main facility. Next, our chapel comfortably seats over 400 people. Next, our industrial kitchen is registered with the Florida Department of Health. Next, we have 18 private rooms for those who can live independently. Next, and another eight rooms registered as an assisted living facility. Next, there's a large lounge for sitting with a fireplace. Next, there it is. Next, tables for work projects and a pool table. The smaller lounge, next, connected with the ALF, works well for sing-alongs. Next, and birthday parties. Next, and for playing games. Next, we even have a screen in Gazebo for events during the fall, winter, and spring. Next, we have an exercise room. Next, a no-judgment zone, which doesn't get as much use as it should. We have a library. Good. We have a nurse's station. And we have a beauty parlor. There are offices for administration. And our chapel is where we have our prayer services. We encourage our elderly residents, next, to walk as much as possible. And we provide extra care for those needed, such as taking residents to doctor's appointments and shopping with them if they wish. Next. Far end of the property is our RV court next to our maintenance buildings. Next. One of which contains a clubhouse with showers, laundry machines, a stove and refrigerators for our snowbirds. Next. We couldn't exist. We wouldn't be able to exist without our snowbirds who come from all over the country. Some stay for a week and some stay for four months. Next, some paint, some help with outdoor fixtures, and some do electrical work. Next, we always seem to have a lot of projects going on. Next, some of which are extensive. Next, and some of which don't require any particular training. Next, we use mechanics. Next, seamstresses, those experienced with concrete, and lots of general laborers. One of our big projects was building a back gate for the back of the property, primarily used for exiting and not for entering. Throughout the winter, we have special days of fun, like our country game day. Next, we play shuffleboard. Next, ping pong, cornhole, and horseshoes, and other games. We also have a staff, annual staff slash volunteer picnic at a local park. Next, and an annual volunteer appreciation night. We have other visitors, too, from time to time. But as long as you keep your eyes posted, you watch where you walk and watch where you fish, the vultures won't get you. Next. Next, many residents ride around the property on their bicycles or just take a daily walk. In joinery the scenery and the palm trees. We have our own website for those interested in learning more and possibly coming down to volunteer for a bit. Now you say you went through all that. Yes because I'm actually as much as I'm looking for people to go overseas and work in tribes we also need volunteers. We probably have less than half the staff we need. It's not a very sought-after position to work in the U.S. It's not a very sought-after position by churches to want to support missionaries who work in the U.S. So the only way we keep functioning every year is by all those volunteers who come on down. They bring their RV, sit up in our RV court. We've got complete hookups for everything. And you know what? Not a lot I can do today, but I can help. two-thirds of our yearly work done during the three and four months of the winter when all of our snowbirds come down. So if you've ever thought about that, and actually you might not want to come to Florida like during August and October, there's these nasty things called hurricanes that show up, but January, February, March, great time to come. So come on down. After telling his disciples, and we can go to the next slide right there, thank you. After telling his disciples how difficult it will be to live the Christian life in this world, Jesus gives some more of those all in statements that I referred to earlier. And then talks about the team in a way never expressed before. Matthew 10, 37, 42. Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. I'm sure they didn't understand that. Anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. And anyone who does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it. And whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me. Anyone who receives a prophet because he's a prophet will receive a prophet's reward. And you gotta wonder, what are they thinking here? What is he getting to? And anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man's reward. And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he's my disciple, I tell the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward. There's a lot of different parts of the team, and they're all needed. The number of missionaries being sent by this country has been decreasing rapidly in the last 10 years. Yeah, we can blame a lot of things on the baby boomer generation. but they're not getting replaced. There's not many from the generations that follow them that want to go overseas. There's some, praise the Lord, but they're less and less all the time. Those willing to work here and be full-time ministry, less and less all the time. I mentioned this during the Sunday school class, but there's not that many Christian parents anymore who say to their children, man, I hope at least one or two of you want to enter into full-time service. as a missionary or as a pastor. It's just not common. What's common among Christian parents is, look, you know, I want you to walk the straight and narrow. I want you to get good grades in school and buckle down so you can go to a good college and get a great education and have a good job when you get out. It kind of sounds to me like maybe the parents of the rich young ruler want to make sure their kids had a comfortable life. Nothing wrong with being comfortable. Nothing wrong with being rich. Jesus and the disciples depended upon some women with means to support their ministry while they were here, when they were doing their ministry for those three years and afterwards. But if God's calling you to something else or calling your children, don't hold them back. Don't hold yourself back. God promises to reward every act of service. He remembers and rewards everyone. He's calling members to join his team here and be all in. I want to thank you for being part of our team. You too will share the rewards of the church playing efforts that Susan and I have supported. In the 39 years that Susan and I have been members of New Tribes Mission and then Ethnos 360, We've had no salary. Now that's not a plea for help or a point of begging or bragging. It's just simply a fact. We have depended upon the Lord to give us what we need when we needed it. He did that faithfully in a number of ways. And one of the ways was through the sacrificial giving of this church. Your gifts and prayers have provided for our needs. and help to sustain us through our own trials, discouragements, and times of rejoicing. But the point is, I say that because what he's done for us, he'll do for everyone who trusts him for it. He'll do it for others, he'll do it for you. If God has ever prompted you about going all in, full time, don't rationalize it. Don't say, OK, after when the time is right. Because if he's prompting you, there's a reason. Don't be afraid to go all in. Parents, don't be afraid for your children to go all in. Yeah, it might mean you won't get to see them as much. You might not get to see your grandchildren as much. Could they have any better life? Church, don't be afraid for some of your people here that say maybe, I'm thinking about going all in. Say, yeah, but man, we need you here. I've heard that from churches too. Yeah, God, take one of those people, they don't do much. But don't take them because we need them here. I don't think that's the way the team is supposed to work. Now, I don't want you to mistake this for a farewell speech. We're not done. We're still going on. But we never know when the Lord will call any of us home. Therefore, we want to take the opportunity to say, as Paul said to the church in Corinth, in 2 Corinthians 1.11, and I've got this from the Bible in basic English, you, at the same time, helping together by your prayer for us. so that what has been given to us through a number of persons, praise may go up to God for us from all of them. Please think God has so many things to do here in this area. And if you're staying here, be involved in every bit of it, sharing the gospel, being a part of building up the body of Christ here, but at the same time challenging each other and challenging others as to who it is God might be prompting to leave here and go elsewhere because the work's not done. Remember at the end of the age, what does he say about the church? The bride hath made herself ready. I ask you, how does the bride make herself ready? She's clothed in the righteousness of Christ, that's not it. Can't do anything to make herself worthy. Well, Jesus gave one command to the church when he left. The bride, go into all the world, preaching the gospel, baptizing them, teaching them all that I have taught you. That's how the bride makes herself ready. It's how the church finishes the job. through the power of God. Again, we thank you. If you want to know more about any of it, be glad to tell you. I'd be glad to share it with you. And we thank you. And if you dislike anything I had to say to you, it's my wife's fault because she's not here. Let's pray. Lord, I thank you so much that your offers to us, your offers to your church have never changed. Lord, there are so many things that you're wanting to do through us, but first in us. We thank you for that. We thank you for your faithfulness to always, always reward acts of service, to always be there with every, every grace, everything that's needed for us to do what you want us to do. Lord, again, thank you for this church. I pray that you just continue to guide them, bless them, use them to be a light in a hill. a lamp set on a lamp stand for all to see in this area. And Lord, I pray especially that you will raise up two or three more people from this church in the next five years to enter into full-time service as a pastor or missionary, Lord, not afraid to follow you. Lord, we love you and we praise you and we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.