James Meehan - The Invitation That Changes Everything

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Well, hello, and welcome to Switch. My name is James, and I get the incredible privilege of being a youth pastor here at Life.Church. And right now, this is the official kickoff of the fall semester. And as one of your pastors, I want you to know how much it means to me that you are here for this message, that you, hopefully, chose to invite somebody with you, or maybe that you are the person watching this message because somebody invited you. I absolutely believe that life is better with Jesus, not simply because life gets easier, because usually it doesn’t, but because Jesus, and only Jesus, has the power to transform us from the inside out, into the people that we were born to be.

So tonight, and every week, my goal is to help you know Jesus, to help you build amazing friendships, and to help you devote your whole life to Jesus and His mission. At Switch, we say it like this, that our mission is to lead people to become fully devoted followers of Christ. So for this first night, we’re gonna talk about what it means to become a fully devoted follower of Christ, why it matters, and how we can help others do the same. So make sure that you are taking notes and following along, because I’m telling you, the more you lean in during this time, the better discussions you’ll have later, and the more effectively you’ll be able to apply the truth of this message to your life. So if you ready to dive in, can I hear you say «I’m ready»?

Recently, my older sister sent a text to our family announcing that her son, Isaiah, was turning 12, and that we were all invited to come play paintball to celebrate him. So you better believe I responded by saying, I am so in. And so a few weeks ago, with family and friends, we showed up, we played some paintball, we ate cupcakes, we sang Happy Birthday, and we celebrated my nephew. Now, before we started blasting each other with paintballs, we had to pick teams. And Isaiah, the birthday boy, was one of the captains. And you better believe that boy is smart and he picked me first. And I’m really glad that he did because I would’ve felt really bad demolishing him on his birthday.

And so you already know that when the game started, we went out and dominated the other team. We had fun, we celebrated, and we made memories. But imagine, if after my sister made the announcement, after she invited us to join them, my response was to not show up, to stay home, to miss out on all the fun, the memories, and the celebration. The result, I would’ve lost out on a great time playing paintball. I would’ve lost out on getting to celebrate with my nephew. And my nephew wouldn’t have had me, his favorite uncle, obviously, on his team. And I wouldn’t have gotten to see family that I hadn’t seen in a while.

I tell you this story because as awesome as a paintball birthday party may be 2000 years ago, Jesus, the Son of God and Savior King of the world, stepped onto the stage of history, and He made an announcement, an announcement that changed everything. He said, repent for the kingdom of heaven has come near. He extended an invitation for anyone and everyone to join their lives to His, to become a part of His kingdom and be transformed in the process. And now it’s up to us to respond. Will we step into the calling and the purpose that we have been created for? Or will we miss out on the life we were born to live?

Jesus made an announcement, He extended an invitation, and now it’s our turn to offer a response. That right there is the map for where we’re going. We’re gonna walk through a few verses in Matthew 4 where we see Jesus announce the good news of God’s kingdom, invite a few ordinary people like you and me to follow Him, and we’ll see their response to it all. In Matthew 4:17, we read this, that «From that time Jesus began to preach». Jesus began to preach. Who is Jesus? He is the Son of God and Savior King who died and rose again to rescue us from sin. He wasn’t just some guy who lived a long time ago, did a few cool things and told people to love each other, He is the son of God, He is God in human form.

The creator of everything left heaven and entered history to make Himself known to us and to do for us what we could never do for ourselves. He is the Savior King of the world. The Christ, that’s not Jesus' last name, it’s actually His title. The Messiah, that’s who he is. That’s what those titles mean. He is the guy that everybody was waiting for, the chosen one, the promised rescuer, the original superhero who was destined to crush the devil, overcome death, and deliver us from sin. But the way that Jesus would go about doing all of that is very different from what people expected. Like, they thought He was gonna show up as this conquering king decked out in military gear with an army at His back, ready to overthrow Rome and conquer the rest of Israel’s enemies.

But God’s plan is different and His plan is better. Instead of bringing violence, Jesus chose sacrifice. He laid down His life on the cross and He rose from the dead so that by His mercy and His grace, we could be rescued from sin. Our relationship with God could be fixed and our place in His kingdom could be restored. That’s why everything we do here at Switch is all about Jesus, the son of God and Savior King who died and rose again to rescue us from sin. When He speaks, we listen. Where He goes, we follow because His words, His action, His life have brought more freedom, joy, goodness, and love into the world than anyone else. And it doesn’t even come close. That’s who Jesus is. And this is the announcement that He made.

Continuing on with verse 17, it says that Jesus began to preach. He said, «Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand». «Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand». That word «repent,» it simply means to turn away from what is wrong and to turn toward what is right. It’s like you were going one way, you were doing one thing, but now it’s time to change, to turn around, to change your life. Why? Because God’s kingdom, the kingdom of heaven, is at hand. That means it has come near. What Jesus is saying is that a new and better kingdom has arrived, and there is a new and better king sitting on the throne. That’s why the gospel is good news, because Jesus announced that there is something new and better. And this new and better thing is for everyone. Everyone has been invited in.

And so Jesus takes the announcement and makes it an invitation. In verses 18 and 19, right after the announcement, Jesus is walking by the Sea of Galilee, where He sees two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew, his brother. They’re casting a net into the sea because they are fishermen. And Jesus says to them, He invites them, «Follow me and I will make you fishers of men». «Follow me,» Jesus says, «and I will make you fishers of men». This is the invitation. This is how Jesus makes it clear that the big and amazing announcement of God’s kingdom isn’t just something we’re supposed to know about, it’s something that we’re meant to be a part of. And when we choose to follow Jesus, because He is so good and so kind, we become more with Him than we ever could be on our own. He makes us more like Him.

Now, I grew up in and around church, but the good news of Jesus did not become personal to me until God used my mom to take that big announcement and make it personal. You see, after I graduated high school, I was living on my own about six hours from my family, and I was not doing well. Things had just ended between my girlfriend and I. I did not have a job. I had no college plans. And I was pretty much just going through the motions because of how little motivation I had to do anything. And it was then that my mom called me and said, James, I think it’s time for you to come home.

Now, at the time I thought that made sense because I didn’t really have anything else going on. But now as I look back, it is clear to me that was the lifeline I needed, that God used that invitation to bring me home to my family, but even more significantly, to bring me home to Him. You see, it wasn’t too long after that that I started going to church with my family. I started volunteering with them. And then on one fateful Saturday night church service, I finally responded to the invitation to follow Jesus. I let go of my own way of doing things. I decided to trust that Jesus knows better than I do. And now 11 years later, I can tell you with confidence, that there is nothing better than choosing to follow Jesus, because there is nobody better than Jesus. He is good and He is strong, He is wise and He is kind, He rules with power and humility.

And not only does He know better than we do, He wants us to be the very best we can be and He’s willing to help us do that. Jesus made an announcement, He offered an invitation, but it’s up to us to respond. And in verse 20, we see the response of Simon and his brother, Andrew. It says that immediately, right away, they left their nets and followed Him. They repented, they turned their lives around and over to Jesus. And what’s amazing about all of this is that Jesus kept His promise. He said, «I will make you fishers of men». And these two brothers became disciples, students of Jesus.

And over the course of three years, Jesus trained them to do for others what He had done for them. And Jesus transformed them into more than they ever could have become on their own. And and this is what Jesus is offering you today. He’s inviting you to follow Him, to become like Him, to become a person of courage and wisdom, strength and compassion, so that you can do the kinds of things that are impossible for you now but will be possible in the future. So what will your response be? As your pastor, what I’m asking you to do is to commit, to become a fully devoted follower of Christ and lead others to do the same. Decide today to make living for Jesus your mission.

So what does that look like? How do we do that? If you’re taking notes, I want you to write these two things down. The first thing that I want you to do is commit to worship at church every week. That means you’d be here at Switch every Wednesday night and every weekend because this is one of the simplest and most powerful ways that we actually show our devotion to Jesus and we grow in our faith. We make time to put Him first, to gather with His people. And and what’s really cool is how good doing this actually is for you. Like regular church attendance has been shown to improve mental health, to strengthen relationships, reduce stress, increase happiness, produce a greater sense of purpose and meaning. Worshiping Jesus is good to do, and it is good for you.

That’s the first thing that I want you to do. The second thing I want you to do is to talk about Jesus every day, because Jesus is not a secret. That phrase, Jesus is not a secret, comes from a high school Switch student named Alyssa. And she said those words to a room full of Jesus followers when she was given the chance to encourage and challenge them to be more committed to the mission of Jesus. But what’s so sad is how many of us keep our faith hidden. And maybe it’s because we don’t wanna be pushy, we don’t wanna be that one weird Christian person, maybe we’re afraid that we’ll say something wrong or it won’t sound right, or maybe it’s because you’re worried that because of choices you have made, people won’t take you seriously. Whatever it is, Jesus is not a secret.

So maybe for you, it is time to bring your faith out of hiding and into the light because you have been called by God to be a light in the world. And right now, possibly more than ever, people need the light of Jesus to bring hope and healing to their brokenness. That’s why it matters that you choose to talk about Jesus every day. And when you do, I promise you, you will get better at it. Like you may not be great now, but your confidence will grow. And even though it feels terrifying now, it will start to become more natural. And if you’re not sure where to start or what to do first, you are in luck, because you’re here at Switch, and there is no better place to practice talking about Jesus than here.

Then after you leave here, tell your parents what you learned and why you want to make being at church and talking to people about Jesus a priority, That is practice. From there, start with some of your friends who are Christians. Talk to them about who Jesus is and how He’s changed your life. Then ask God to give you the courage to tell your friends who aren’t Christians so that you can have the courage and the opportunity to talk to them about Jesus. This is what we’ve been called to. So commit to becoming a fully devoted follower of Christ and leading others to do the same. That’s why Switch exists, for you to know Jesus and grow in your relationship with Him, and for us to work together to help others experience the life and freedom that is found in His name.

So Lord Jesus, we come before you right now, so grateful that you made an announcement, that you invited us to be a part of your good plans for the world. And I pray that all of us would respond by saying yes to you and your invitation. God, give us the wisdom to know what is right and the courage to do it. Help us commit to you first and foremost, and to always be on the lookout for ways that we can serve others and invite them closer to you. God, give us what we need so that we can be who you’ve made us to be. We love you, We worship you, and it’s in your name we pray, amen.