“The Laborers Are Few” is a sermon that instructs us to pray and ask the Lord to send laborers into His harvest, teaching people how to be saved.

Key verses:
Matthew 9:37-38

Matthew chapter nine this morning, Matthew chapter nine. Eventually, we’ll be looking at verses 19 through 38. But we advertised for some weeks now that this would be Matthew 9:38 Day. So, we’re going to be focusing primarily on verses 37 and 38. We’ll read that in just a moment.

But why are churches, and we’re not the only one, why are churches focusing on Matthew 9:38 today? Well, because of what it says here in verses 37-38.

Matthew 9:37: “Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;”

Matthew 9:38: “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.”

I call your attention to verse 37:

Matthew 9:37: “Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;”

There’s plenty of work to do and plenty of harvest to reap, but not enough people to do the work. That’s what the Lord is saying. We’re going to talk about why that is, and we’re going to share with you a good bit about it here in the next few minutes.

The Need to Change Lives

I’ve given my testimony many times, in many places, over the last few decades, and I’m not going to go into the whole story at this time. I’ve done that here many times before. I want to say briefly that I was a lost man. I was on my way to Hell. I knew I was on my way to Hell. I didn’t know what to do about it. I genuinely didn’t. I had read the Bible enough to know that I was lost. I’d read about Jesus. I liked Jesus. I had respect for Jesus, but I did not know Jesus.

One Sunday evening, after a church service in a church very much like this one, the pastor sat down with me, opened the Bible, and showed me how I could know Jesus, how I could trust Him, and be saved. I did trust Jesus. He did save me, and that changed absolutely everything in my life. Why am I telling you that? Because I am not a great exception. Every person in this world who hasn’t been saved needs to be saved. If folks would turn their hearts to the Lord and trust the Lord, it will change their lives tremendously. Jesus said:

Matthew 24:5: “For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.”

Matthew 24:6: “And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.”

Matthew 24:7: “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”

Matthew 24:8: “All these are the beginning of sorrows.”

We live in a time of wars and rumors of wars and pestilences and famines and earthquakes. We live in all of that, but the end is not yet. In 1970, Gordon Jensen wrote a song with these lyrics, and we’ve sung it here before, not as a congregational, but it’s been sung here before. The lyrics are like this, “Years of time have come and gone since I first heard it said, how Jesus would come again someday. If back then it seemed so real, then I can’t help but feel how much closer His coming is today. Signs of the times are everywhere. There’s a brand new feeling in the world, in the air. Keep your eyes upon the eastern skies, lift up your head redemption draweth nigh. Wars and strife on every hand and violence fills our land, still some people doubt He’ll ever come again, but the Word of God is true. He’ll redeem His chosen few. Don’t lose hope. Soon Christ Jesus will descend.”

More than half a century has passed since Gordon Jensen wrote those words. I can’t stand here and tell you the world’s gotten a lot better. In that time there were things going on 50 or 60 years ago that looked like it was the end of the world, but it wasn’t. We’re 50 years later. Are we at the end? Probably not yet. But the world certainly seems to be spinning faster and faster towards Hell.

Ezekiel 37. We’re not going to turn there, but Ezekiel 37 was written more than 2,600 years ago. Can you imagine that? More than 2,600 years ago. The entire chapter of Ezekiel 37 is about the restoration of the nation of Israel. The people of Israel long ago were scattered all over the world, and many of them are still all over the world. The two countries that have the largest population of people of Israel are Israel, which shouldn’t surprise you, and the United States. But there are people of Jewish descent, Israeli descent, all over the planet, literally all over the planet. And God is calling them home. Ezekiel 37:21 says:

Ezekiel 37:21: “And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the heathen, whither they be gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land:”

God promised that 2,600 years ago. He says, “I’m going to take them from all over the world, and I’m going to bring them into their own land.” Why? Because He promised to give them that land. When? 4,000 years ago. He promised to give them that land, and He said, “I’m going to bring them back.” Well, didn’t that happen already in 1948? To a large degree, yes. But that’s not its total fulfillment. That’s Ezekiel 37.

In Ezekiel 38, the prophet Ezekiel told of a time in the future when many nations would unite against the people of Israel, particularly against the city of Jerusalem, with the intention of eliminating them. If you’ve been paying attention to the news, you may have heard some people in this country gathering together in groups, at universities, and in other places chanting “From the river to the sea.” What are they saying when they’re saying, “from the river to the sea”? Well, they’re saying from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, we’re going to drive the people of Israel out. What they mean is, we’re going to drive them into the sea. And what they’re saying is, we are going to destroy them from the face of the Earth so that not one is left. That’s what they mean by that.

Now, there are a lot of, and I thank God it’s not the majority, I don’t believe it is, but a lot of young people in our country who have bought into a wrong idea, and they think when they’re saying that that they’re giving a shout for freedom. That’s not a shout for freedom, it’s a shout for destruction.

Destruction and freedom are two different things. The first six verses of Ezekiel 38 give us a list of countries that will form a league of nations to attack Israel. In verses one to four, the nation and government of Russia are described there unquestionably. Verse five, Persia. Persia, in the 1930s, began a movement to change its name. It took longer than I actually thought. I did some research on it. It took from the 1930s until 1979 when Persia was officially recognized as the Republic of Iran. So, when you read the prophecies of Persia, think Iran.

Ethiopia and Libya are listed. They have not changed their name since Ezekiel’s time. In verse six, Gomer is mentioned. Gomer appears to be Eastern Germany. Now, you’re going to say, “Well, I don’t see the Germans linking up with the Russians and the Iranians.” By the way, if you don’t know that Russia and Iran have already formed a league, you’re not paying attention. “What do you mean already formed a league?” Well, they are sending weapons to each other. I think that’s interesting, but for a long time, Russia was sending weapons to Iran, and now Iran is sending weapons back to Russia. They are supporting each other in their plans for nuclear armament. They’re supporting each other in other ways. They formed a league. Germany’s not part of that league. No, it is not. It is not. I want to be clear about that. But the population of Germany is changing, and I don’t know what’s going to happen in the near future. I couldn’t possibly predict, but it is mentioned in this list.

Also, in verse six is Togarmah. Togarmah today would be southern Turkey. So, this league of nations doesn’t appear to be complete as we sit here today, but it does seem to be forming, and a pledge of mutual support is among many of these countries.

The Lost Do Not Know God

So, what are we going to do? What can we do? Well, those are broad questions, and broad questions have a broad range of answers. But there are certain things we can know and certain things we can do right now.

I want to get an idea across to you. I knew a fellow back when I was training for the ministry, and I haven’t heard from him in the last couple of weeks. Well, I say in the last week. He is up in North Carolina. He’s an evangelist. He and I were in ministerial school together, and he had a briefcase. A lot of us carried briefcases in those days. You don’t see very many people doing that anymore. But he had a briefcase, and on his briefcase, it said in letters large enough to read without any issue, “Men are lost.” Then he had business cards that he would give out, and the business cards had printed on them, “Men are lost.” Do you know why he did that? Because men are lost. People are lost.

So, why is it that we have wars and strife on every hand, as Gordon Jensen wrote? Why does violence fill our land? Why do people have all of this strife and animosity and hatred and anger towards each other? James 4:1 gives us the answer to that. Where do wars and fightings among you come from? That’s what James is asking:

James 4:1: “From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members?”

What is he saying? Wars and fightings come from the lust-filled hearts of people. People who do not know God. “Oh, some of these people are religious.” I didn’t say they weren’t religious. I said they do not know God. Being religious and knowing God are two different things. “Well, you’re talking about wars. What about crime and violence in our own society?” Well, it’s there, isn’t it? Where does that come from? Jesus said:

Matthew 15:19: “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:”

What is the root cause of all this? Isaiah 59:2, God says your iniquities. In other words, for your sins:

Isaiah 59:2: “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.”

He didn’t say He cannot hear, he said He won’t hear if your wicked heart stands in the way.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn was a writer and philosopher who grew up in the Soviet Union. He lived to be about 90 years of age. The subject of most of his writing had to do with life in the Soviet Union and his philosophical viewpoints. I’ve read some of his writings. I certainly have not read all of it. Do I agree with everything he had to say? No. I do not, but that doesn’t mean he was wrong about everything either.

So, I want to share with you just a couple of excerpts from a speech he gave after he had received an international award for his writing, and here’s what it says. He received many awards, by the way. Solzhenitsyn said, “And if I were called upon to identify briefly the principal trait of the entire 20th century, hereto, I would be unable to find anything more precise and pithy than to repeat once again: Men have forgotten God. The failings of human consciousness deprived of its divine dimension have been a determining factor in all the major crimes of this century.”

Now, he’s talking about the 20th century. So, we’re living in the 21st century, right? Did you know? I hope you did. But did you know that the 20th century, as far as we’re able to determine from all recorded history, was the bloodiest century in the history of the planet? What do you mean by that? I mean, more people were killed by other people than in any other century. When you look back over history, and look at all the wars and battles that have happened all the time that man has walked this Earth, that’s quite a statement. Solzhenitsyn said the reason for all that is men have forgotten God. He was saying that the root cause of the major crime of the 20th century is just that.

Again, in the same speech, Solzhenitsyn said, “We were witnesses to the devastation of the world being imposed or voluntarily undergone the entire 20th century is being sucked into the vortex of atheism and self-destruction. This plunge into the abyss has aspects that are unquestionably global dependent, neither on political systems nor on levels of economic and cultural development, nor yet on national peculiarities.” What is he saying there? He’s saying that it is not politics, it is not economic systems, it is not the failure or success of economic systems, it is not culture, it is not the ethnicity of any people group, that is at the core of the evil in the world today, but it is atheism. It is denying God. It is turning against God. It is rebellion against God. Atheism poisons everything it touches. Atheism corrupts politics, economic policies, practices, culture, and individual hearts. Again, Jesus said:

Matthew 15:19: “For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:”

Men are lost. That’s the problem, folks. People are lost. Paul describes it in Ephesians 2:12. He says:

Ephesians 2:12: “That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world:”

That’s the problem. Without Christ, there’s no hope, and without God in the world, you leave God out of your life, and you wonder why you have problems. Jesus also gave us the answer to all this when He said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” I want you to think about that simple statement, but profound.

Matthew 28:18: “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.”

Matthew 28:19: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”

Notice He didn’t say “in the names,” plural. He said “in the name,” singular, “of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.”

Matthew 28:19: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:”

Matthew 28:20: “Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

We’re supposed to go and teach people. What are we supposed to teach them? The Gospel of Christ. We’ll say more about that in a moment. And then we’re supposed to baptize them after they’ve received the Gospel of Christ. and then we’re supposed to teach them everything that Jesus taught. All of it, all of it. Why? So that they might live a godly life.

And then He said, “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” That’s Matthew 28:18 to 20. He’s saying, “I’ll be with you. You go. I’ll go with you. I’ll be with you.” How far? “To the end of the world.”

The World Needs Light

This lost world needs light. You need light. Two times in my life, I’ve been in total darkness. I’ve been in darkness a lot, and I know what you’re thinking. “We kind of thought you were in the dark.” But the fact of the matter is two times I’ve been in total darkness. One time, I was in the state of Tennessee, and we were in a cave. We were told, and I didn’t try to measure it, but we were told that we were one mile underground in the cave. Now, there was a whole group of us there, and we stayed closely together. If you’re ever in a cave, you need to do that. You need to be in a group, not by yourself, and you need to stay close together and tied to each other if you can.

We had flashlights and went into a room of the cave. Inside this room, there was a large pool of water, and we sat around the edge of the pool. Then we turned all the flashlights out and folks, it was just like being blind. You could not see anything. You could not look down and see your own hand. You couldn’t see anything. That’s total darkness as we sat there, a group of us.

I talk to people about this is what it’s like to be lost. This is what it’s like to be separate from God. This is what it’s like to be separate from God for eternity. This is what it’s like to be in Hell minus the flames, of course, but in total darkness. There were other people in the room, but you couldn’t see them. You couldn’t, as I already said, see yourself. You couldn’t see anything. “What did you do?” Well, like any reasonable person, we turned the lights back on. What did we need? We needed light.

The other time I was in total darkness was down in the Florida Keys. Again, we were with a group of people, about 60 of us, and we went out on a mangrove island. While we were out there, we should have come back from the island sooner, but we didn’t. While we were out there, the sun went down, and the mangrove was so thick that there was no light, and again, it was total darkness. You couldn’t see anybody. I’ll tell you how dark it was.

There was a young lady in the group you couldn’t see. There’s 60 of us. You can’t see the other people. A young lady said, “My foot is caught under something.” I said, “Where are you?” She said, “Well, I’m right here.” I said, “Well, I’ll try to find you and help you.” I took a step to try to find her, and she was free. “What are you saying?” I was the reason her foot was caught. I was standing on it, but I couldn’t see her. I didn’t know she was there. That’s how dark it was.

“Didn’t you have any flashlights?” Yes. There were 60 of us. We had three flashlights: one at the front of the line, one at the end of the line, and one in the middle. It’s not enough light. “What’d you do?” Well, they’re all still out there. Do you think I left the others out there? No. We all made it back. We all made it back.

But I tell you that to tell you it is a case of total darkness. Our world is lost. Our world is lost in total darkness. Our world needs light. Jesus said this:

John 8:12: “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”

In the next chapter, He said:

John 9:5: “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

This world needs light. John, the Apostle, wrote of Jesus:

John 1:4: “In him was life; and the life was the light of men.”

John 1:5: “And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.”

Three verses later, John also says of Jesus:

John 1:9: “That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.”

So, Jesus is the Light that lost men need. This lost world needs light. This lost world needs truth. Jesus said:

John 8:32: “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

John 14:6: “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

This lost world needs light. This lost world needs truth. This lost world is dead in trespasses and sins. People need light. They need life.

John 11:25: “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:”

John 11:26: “And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?”

Do you believe that? “What are you saying?” I’m saying this world needs to know Jesus.

Thy Faith Made Thee Whole

I want you to take a look at our text this morning, Matthew chapter nine. Look, if you will, at verse 18. Matthew 9:18 says:

Matthew 9:18: “While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshipped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.”

Now, Mark tells us that the man came to Jesus. He didn’t know that his daughter was dead. But while he was talking to Jesus, people came and told him that it was too late, not to bother Jesus anymore, she already died.

Matthew didn’t get it wrong. Verse 19:

Matthew 9:19: “And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples.”

So, this grieving father has lost his daughter. I’m going to say that the loss of a child is perhaps the greatest of human grief. I’m thankful that I’ve not yet had that grief. I hope not to, but there are so many people I know who have. I will tell you they may go on with their life, and most of the time, they do, but there is never a time when they quote, get over it, end quote. That does not happen. I believe it’s probably the deepest grief a human being feels.

So, the man did the right thing. He came to Jesus. And when he came to Jesus, Jesus responded immediately. In verse 19:

Matthew 9:19: “And Jesus arose, and followed him, and so did his disciples.”

There’s no hesitation there. As soon as He was asked, He came. In verses 20 to 22, there is an interruption on the way:

Matthew 9:20: “And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment:”

Can you imagine that she’d had this bleeding problem for 12 years? Luke tells us she had gone to many physicians and had spent everything she had. They couldn’t help her. Now, I’m not against physicians. I have a high respect for physicians. But there are some things they can do, many things they could do. It’s a better way of saying it. But there are some things they can’t do. In this case, they weren’t able to help. Again, verse 20:

Matthew 9:20: “And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment:”

There was a crowd all around Jesus. She couldn’t really get to Him, but she said, “If I can just touch the hem of His robe.” She had that much faith.

Matthew 9:21: “For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.”

Matthew 9:22: “But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.”

Now, that’s an interruption while He’s going to help this man who has lost his daughter. Those things are going to come in your life. Jesus didn’t stop His mission. He didn’t say, “Well, I’m sorry, I’m not going to be able to help you today. I’m busy with this lady.” He didn’t say that. He took time to help her, and then He went on. The key thing in that story, verses 20-22, is that Jesus healed this woman because she had faith in Him. She trusted in Him. He was her only hope. He was her only chance at living.

The Promise of Life

In verse 23, Jesus promises life:

Matthew 9:23: “And when Jesus came into the ruler’s house, and saw the minstrels and the people making a noise,”

Matthew 9:24: “He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.”

Now, you would think that would be the best news they had heard that day. They’re all mourning and crying and carrying on because this little girl and other writers tell us she was 12 years old. This little girl had died. And Jesus said, “Don’t worry, she’s not dead, just sleeping.” You think everybody would say, “Well, praise God. Jesus is here. Isn’t that wonderful? He’s going to take care of it.” You’d think that’s what they’d say, but that’s not what they did. Look at it again, verse 24:

Matthew 9:24: “He said unto them, Give place: for the maid is not dead, but sleepeth. And they laughed him to scorn.”

They laughed at Him. Do you know what they’re thinking? “What do you think you’re going to do? She’s dead. You come in here telling us she’s not dead, just sleeping? Wow, what do you think you’re going to do?”

It’s just 180 degrees opposite of that woman who touched the hem of His garment. She said, “If I can just get close to Him, if I can just touch Him, I’ll be healed.” And she did, and He did. Now, He’s there, and He is the answer to the need of that hour. He is the giver of life, and He says, “Don’t be concerned.”

“Why make ye this ado and weep?” The other writer tells us. She is not dead. The young girl is not dead but sleeping. And they what? They laughed at Him. People laugh at Jesus today. They do. They mock, and they make fun of Him. They make movies blaspheming Jesus. People speak against Him. They reject Him. They always have. This world is lost. Jesus promises life. The world laughs at Him. Look at verse 25:

Matthew 9:25: “But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose.”

“But when the people were put forth,” – what that means is He told his disciples to get them all out of the house, and they did. Why? They weren’t there with faith. They weren’t there to be of help. They weren’t there to do anything. They just mocked Jesus. He put them out. Remember, they rejected Him:

Matthew 9:25: “But when the people were put forth, he went in, and took her by the hand, and the maid arose.”

Again, we’re told. He said to her, “Talitha, cumi.” Being interpreted, “Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.” And He took her by the hand, and she rose up. He told them to give her something to eat. She was about 12 years of age. Exactly what was needed. Jesus is the way. Jesus is the truth. Jesus is the life. What did that young girl need? She needed Jesus. What did her father do? He came to Jesus. This world needs Jesus. They don’t need the mockery of Jesus. They don’t need people rejecting Jesus. They don’t need plays and movies and jokes and things made about Jesus. They need the real thing.

Christ, Our Redeemer

Verse 27, “And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David.” Stop right there. When they said, “Thou Son of David,” do you know what they’re doing? They’re proclaiming Him to be their Messiah, their Savior, the one who would come as prophesied to be the Son of David.

Lots of people were descendants of David. Mary was a descendant of David. Joseph was a descendant of David. Many people are descendants of David. They’re not saying this in a general sense, “Well, you’re one of those countless descendants of David.” They’re not saying that. They said, “You are the Son of David, who was prophesied to come. We believe in you.” That’s what they’re saying. “We believe you are the Messiah. We believe that you are the Savior.”

Matthew 9:27: “And when Jesus departed thence, two blind men followed him, crying, and saying, Thou Son of David, have mercy on us.”

Matthew 9:28: “And when he was come into the house, the blind men came to him: and Jesus saith unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They said unto him, Yea, Lord.”

Jesus said, “Do you believe I’m able to do this? Do you believe I am the resurrection and the life?”

John 11:25: “He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:”

John 11:26: “And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?”

Do you believe that? What are they saying here? What is Jesus saying here? “Believe ye that I am able to do this?” They said unto him, “Yea, Lord.”

Matthew 9:29: “Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.”

What? “According to your faith,” – as you have believed. That’s how it’s going to be. Now, look, what He’s not saying is this, “You are so strong of will and you’re thinking so positively, your positive energy, that you give forth by your strong will is going to make it happen.” That’s not what He’s saying at all, and it’s not even close. You know what He’s saying? “You don’t have the energy. You don’t have the strength. You don’t have the power to make this happen, but I do. I do, and I will.”

Matthew 9:29: “Then touched he their eyes, saying, According to your faith be it unto you.”

Matthew 9:30: “And their eyes were opened; and Jesus straitly charged them, saying, See that no man know it.”

Now, we’ll talk about that another time. That has great significance. Did they do that? No, they didn’t. Verse 31:

Matthew 9:31: “But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country.”

Matthew 9:32: “As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.”

These fellas just left. They went out telling everybody what Jesus did for them. You know what He wants you to do? If He’s done something for you, if He’s saved your soul, if you put your faith in Him, and He’s redeemed you and given you a new life, He wants you to go and tell everybody. Why? So He’ll save their soul and redeem them and give them a new life. That’s why.

Believe It or Not

Because this world is lost and it’s groping in darkness and it’s on its way to Hell, and if they don’t turn to God, and they don’t turn to God through Jesus Christ, they are going to be in Hell forever. That’s why. “Oh, man, I didn’t know you were one of those preachers that preach Hell.” Well, it’s about time you did know.

The situation with these storms is serious. I cannot overemphasize how serious it is. You know what’s even more serious? Spending eternity in Hell. I’m not making light of storm damage and victims. I’m saying there’s something even worse, as bad as that is.

Matthew 9:31: “But they, when they were departed, spread abroad his fame in all that country.”

Matthew 9:32: “As they went out [they’re leaving], behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.”

Now, when we say dumb today, we mean somebody stupid. They don’t know anything. That is not what this means at all. It’s not what it means. It means he wasn’t able to speak. He wasn’t able to speak because he was possessed by the devil.

Verse 33, “And when the devil was cast out,” – who did that? Jesus. “Now, preacher, you already said you believe people go to Hell.” I do. “But you don’t believe that people are possessed by demon spirits.” I do. “Why?” The Bible says so. That’s why.

Matthew 9:33: “And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel.”

We never saw anything like this. We’ve never seen it in Israel before. The Messiah is supposed to come to Israel. This must be Him, and they were right. They were right—no man ever spoke like this man. No man ever did the things that He did. “Oh, preacher, I’ve heard of other people healing people.” Sure, you have, but not like Jesus. “I’ve even heard of raising the dead.” Okay. Have you ever heard of anybody going to a cemetery and calling them up out of the grave? No. You haven’t, have you? “Well, maybe I did hear about that somewhere.” Well. I didn’t. Maybe you did. I never heard of it.

But let’s go a step further. Have you ever seen somebody who was dead get up and walk out of the grave on their own? No, you haven’t, have you? Jesus did. Verse 33 again:

Matthew 9:33: “And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel.”

Matthew 9:34: “But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.”

Do you know what they’re doing? They’re saying, “No, we won’t give Him credit for anything. We’re not going to let anybody turn to Him. We’re not going to let anybody give Him credit.” Why? They hated Jesus. There are people today who hate Jesus. It’s why they mock Him. They make fun of Him. You can go and tell them how He’s answered my prayer, He’s saved my soul, He’s turned my life around, and they won’t believe it because they don’t want to believe it. They’ve chosen not to believe it.

This particular group of men, and they were all men who said He cast out devils through the prince of devils, they didn’t want to acknowledge who He was because they didn’t want Him to ruin their plans. They had plans. They had things set up just the way they wanted them. Things were progressing nicely, and they wanted to go on that way.

Jesus coming on the scene kind of changed all of that, and they’re not going to have it. They’re not going to have it. They have position. They have power. They have authority. They’ve got a good gig going, as they would say today. They’re not going to let Him change it. The religious people followed them and listened to them. They’re not going to have them go listen to Him, not going to have it.

Gospel of the Kingdom

But notice the answer that’s in verse 35, “And Jesus went about all the cities and villages,” – and what did He do when He went to these cities and villages? Teaching in their synagogues. Teaching in their synagogues. What did He teach? He said, “Go ye and teach all nations.” What did He teach? Well, look at it. Verse 35:

Matthew 9:35: “And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.”

What does that mean, “the gospel of the kingdom”? The word “gospel” means good news. The gospel, the good news, is defined to us in 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul says this:

1 Corinthians 15:3: “How that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;”

1 Corinthians 15:4: “And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:”

Do you remember on that night in Bethlehem when shepherds were in the field, and angels appeared there, and what did they say? “Fear not, for behold we bring you glad tidings,” or good tidings, “of great joy.” What is good tidings or glad tidings, that’s good news. What does the word “gospel” mean? It means good news. And what did they say was the good news?

Luke 2:11: “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour which is Christ” – Messiah, the Savior, the Son of David, the one Redeemer who is promised to come ever since the days of the Garden of Eden. He is here.

Luke 2:11: “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour which is Christ the Lord.”

That’s the Gospel. What is the Gospel of the kingdom that Jesus preached? That the Savior has come. “You mean He went around telling people, ‘You’ve been looking for the Messiah, you’ve been looking for the Savior, I’m here.’” That’s exactly what He did. Verse 35 again:

Matthew 9:35: “And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people.”

Notice, did He heal people? Yes, of every sickness and every disease. Yes, but before He did that, He did what? He preached the Gospel. Why? Because that’s the greater need. He didn’t ignore their physical needs. He took care of their physical needs, but before He took care of their physical needs, He took care of their deepest needs, their greatest need, which is their spiritual need. Verse 36:

Matthew 9:36: “But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd.”

What does He mean? He looks out on a crowd of thousands and thousands of people. He has compassion for them because they are sheep with no shepherd. What’s another way of saying that? They are lost.

I hear much preaching today where people say, “Well, you got to understand, people are broken.” I don’t argue that people are broken, but it’s worse than being broken. People are lost. They are broken. We’re not just broken; we’re lost. That’s the big problem. They were as sheep, having no shepherd. Sheep want to follow. They want to follow the flock, and the flock wants to follow the shepherd. If they have no shepherd, they don’t know where to go. They just wander because they are lost.

When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion. He loved them. He cared about them because they fainted and were scattered abroad as sheep having no shepherd.

Take the Gospel to the Lost

Then, verse 37, where we started this morning:

Matthew 9:37: “Then saith he unto his disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few;”

He’s saying there are lost souls everywhere. They need somebody to show them the light. There are lost souls everywhere. They need somebody to show them the truth. There are lost souls everywhere. They need somebody to bring them to Jesus.

Laborers are few. There are not enough people going and taking the Gospel to this lost world. There are children who need to be saved. There are teenagers who need to be saved. There are adults who need to be saved. There are people in their middle years who need to be saved. There are elderly people who need to be saved. But there are not enough people who will go and tell them how to be saved.

I told you at the beginning of the message, I knew I was lost. I didn’t know what to do about it. I needed somebody to tell me how to come to know Jesus. I needed somebody to tell me.

Verse 38, what the Lord tells us to do, and why many churches have declared long before we knew about the storms that were coming, they declared this Matthew 9:38 Day, where everybody would pray. Therefore, we need to pray, folks. We always need to pray, but we need to pray more than ever. There are things beyond human control. There are things that are happening and deteriorating in our country and all over the planet. We’ve always needed prayer. We’ve always needed God. But we need prayer. We need God more than ever.

Matthew 9:38: “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.”

We need laborers. We need workers. We need people who will take the Gospel to the lost. We need people who will take the Gospel to folks who are bound for Hell and show them the way to the life of the Lord. Now, somebody might be thinking, “Well, I’ll pray, but I can’t go.” Well, that’s understandable, and not everybody can go into all the world. Not everybody has the ability to travel the planet giving the Gospel, but you can pray. He said:

Matthew 9:38: “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.”

A preacher I knew, a fairly well-known preacher, I had the privilege of knowing him, had a younger preacher come to him, and he asked whether he should take an opportunity to preach in a certain area. It wasn’t an area of high prestige, shall we say. “What do you mean by that?” I mean, it wasn’t to be the pastor of a large church in some major American city. It wasn’t like that. It was to go and preach in some remote area where you wouldn’t get any notoriety. You wouldn’t get any fame. You probably never get much money. You wouldn’t get much recognition.

The old preacher looked at the young preacher, who said, “What do you think? Do you think I should go to that remote area and preach there?” Do you know what the old preacher said? He just asked him a simple question. He said, “Is there a Hell?” And the young preacher said, “Maybe you didn’t understand my question. I’m asking you whether I should go to preach in this remote area when I could possibly do better over in a major city.” The old preacher said, “Is there a Hell?” And the young preacher went away. The old preacher thought, “Well, that was a lost cause.” But later on, he found out that the young preacher did go where God was calling him to go because he realized there is a Hell. Jesus said:

Matthew 9:38: “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.”

Here Am I, Send Me

Pray that He will send out laborers to take the Gospel to this lost world. Now, you can volunteer to be one of those. You ought to be one of those. I ought to be one of those. I have spent my life since I got saved over 50 years ago, I spent my life telling people about Jesus and how to be saved, but I haven’t done it enough. “What do you mean, ‘you haven’t done enough’?” I mean, there are still people that are not saved, that’s what I mean. There are still people who’ve not heard. Pray to the Lord God to send people to take the gospel of Jesus Christ to this lost world. Some will not pray because they’re afraid that the Lord might ask them to go.

Now, I’m going to tell you something. If God asks you to do something, He’ll equip you to do it. He will. There’s an old saying. It’s not a Bible verse. It’s an old saying, and it’s true. God does not called the qualified, He qualifies the called. You and I need to take the Gospel to the lost. Then we must pray and ask God to send other people also.

I preach this Gospel here in many of the United States, not all of them, and in a number of other countries, but I haven’t done enough. I haven’t done enough. “How many people have you given the Gospel to?” I don’t know, thousands. How do you know it’s in the thousands? Well, it’s really simple. On one occasion, they told me I was speaking to 4,000 people, so that puts it in thousands by itself, not including the fact that I talked to groups in city after city and situation after situation. Again, in many places in the US and in other countries, I had given the Gospel again and again. So, it has to be in the thousands. That’s not enough, not enough.

We need to pray according to the example in Isaiah 6:8. We sang it a while ago, but here’s where that song came from:

Isaiah 6:8: “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.”

Let me be the one. People of this world are on their way to Hell. There’s only one way for them to be saved. There’s only one person who can save them. They must believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. The primary purpose of a church is to preach the Gospel. Now, every other activity of the church, and we have other activities, but every other activity of the church is to support the main goal. And what is the main goal? To preach the Gospel. Because as Paul wrote in Romans 10:13-14:

Romans 10:13: “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:14: “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?”

“As it is written, how beautiful are the feet of them that preach the Gospel of peace.” There’s nothing more beautiful than that. Pray for other people to go and tell the lost about the Savior. You pray.

Will Rice stood in this pulpit, and he said, “You can do more than pray after you prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you prayed.” He’s right. Pray for others to go and tell the lost about the Savior. Pray for these missionaries on the walls back here. Pray for more missionaries. Pray for people who want to go and spread the Gospel and see souls saved, and lives changed forever. Be one who tells the lost about the Savior.

“Well, preacher, I can’t. I can’t do it. I can’t talk to people. I can’t.” I can’t either. I have to ask God to help me every time I tell you there are things you can do. You can. You can leave a track. You can give a track to somebody. What’s a track? That’s those little pamphlets on the rack as you go out the doors right here, immediately on your right. There are lots of them there. “Well, I don’t want to take them all.” Take them all. They don’t do any good sitting there in the rack. “Well, what if I take them all?” We’ve got more. What if we use them up? We’ll get more.

You can write a letter to somebody. “People don’t write letters anymore.” Well, you can write a card to somebody. Tell them how to be saved. Send somebody an email or text message. Tell them how to be saved. However you communicate, through social media, or how you do it. Tell somebody how to be saved. You can use a telephone. Tell somebody how to be saved. “Have you ever done that?” I have. I’d tell you about it, but we don’t have time. Pray ye the Lord of the harvest.

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We’re going to do the invitation a little bit differently today. If you need somebody to pray with you or need a word of counsel, I want you to come. But if you don’t need somebody to pray with you and don’t need a word of counsel, here’s what I want you to do. I want you to stay in your place, but I want you to pray. I don’t want you to leave this building without praying and asking the Lord to send laborers into His harvest, people who will go with an express message, an express mission of telling people how to be saved.

Father, thank you so much for blessing us. Thank you so much for using us. Now, bless us and help us as we go to prayer, and we go to pray for those who are lost, and we pray for laborers to go with the Gospel message to those who are lost that they might be saved.

Heads are bowed, and eyes are closed. We’re going to sing a hymn of invitation. As we do, I want you to pray. Set aside everything else, and just pray and say, “Lord, send laborers into the harvest. Send preachers, send missionaries, send ordinary people like me to tell others how to be saved. Help me to be a messenger for you.”

We’re going to stand. We’ll sing the song. If you want to come, you need to come, come on up, but if not, then right where you are, you pray. “I can’t sing and pray at the same time.” Well, if you can’t, then just pray. You pray and ask God to send Gospel messengers into this lost world. Father, bless and move in this invitation time. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.

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