The Call of Jesus
Welcome to this lesson called "Send Out Workers".
This is from chapter 8 in my book "The Call of Jesus"
and video no. 8 in this series about the call of Jesus.
We have now looked at how the harvest is ready
and the harvest is plentiful, as Jesus is saying.
The harvest is ripe. The harvest is not the problem.
No, there is a great harvest that is waiting for all of us.
The problem is not the harvest. The problem is the workers.
You and me.
So, the harvest is not the problem.
The workers are the problem.
And the answer to that problem, one of those is - pray.
Pray. Not pray for the harvest to come in, as many people are doing,
but pray for the workers to go out.
And this is what we are going to look at in this chapter, in this video.
So, let's start with reading what Jesus is saying in Luke 10:2.
"The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.
Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field."
So yes, we really need to start to ask, or, pray, as we see here.
To pray, to ask, to beg. These are some of the words Jesus is using.
These are very strong words: pray, ask,
but we actually see the word, almost beg, like beg,
beg, beg the Lord of the harvest to send out workers.
Jesus has commanded us to pray. And it's important that we pray.
There are many people who pray every day.
There are many people who, for example, pray the Lord's prayer.
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name,
Your Kingdom come and Your will be done
or earth as it is in heaven.
Out of Matthew 6.
And it's good to pray that prayer.
But you know, that was not the only prayer Jesus has commanded us to pray.
He has not only said that we should pray the Lord's prayer there.
He has also said that we should pray God to send out workers.
Like Jesus is saying.
But how many do, actually, pray that prayer?
If I now go to the church and ask: How many pray the Lord's prayer?
Almost everyone would lift up their hands.
But if I ask: But how many pray this prayer Jesus has commanded us here
to pray God to send out workers. Almost no one would lift up their hands.
And that is the problem.
Because what Jesus is saying here is as much the truth as what He said
when it comes to Lord's prayer.
But, what does it mean when we pray God to send out workers?
I want to look a little at the word: "send out".
I want to start with reading from my book.
"There are several interesting things about what Jesus is saying here in Luke 10:2.
The first interesting thing is that the Bible translates one of Jesus' words,
'to send.' But, the Greek word 'ekballo' could also mean 'to drive out.'
The word 'ekballo' is the same word used when referring to driving out a demon.
One of the first places in the Bible you see this word 'ekballo' used
is in Matthew 10 where Jesus commands us to drive out demons.
Matthew 10:7-8 states: As you go, proclaim the message:
'The kingdom of heaven has come near.' Heal the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out (ekballo) demons.
Freely you have received; freely give."
So, what we see here is that the word "send" - "ekballo"
could also be translated "drive out".
And I believe it's saying so much more about what it is. Why?
Because a demon doesn't want to go.
A demon doesn't want to go.
So, a demon needs to be driven out of a person.
The same way, we as believers, we just don't want to go out in the harvest.
We don't want to go out and talk about Jesus.
We don't want to, so we need, often, to be driven out.
And this is what it is.
And if you start to pray, to beg, to ask God to drive out believers
out in the harvest, send them, drive them out,
He is going to answer it. He is going to answer it.
And right now, in this time we are living in, there is a virus
that has been spreading all over and people are in panic all over the world
because of this coronavirus, but I want to introduce you to another virus,
a virus that is not going to bring fear, but a virus that is going to bring hope,
that's going to bring life. And that virus is called Luke 10:2b.
The virus is called Luke 10:2b.
And I want to read about that from my book here.
"Some years ago, I heard about the virus that was spreading all over the world.
This virus was called the 'Luke 10:2b' virus.
This 'virus' started back in 2002 when two young people started to pray
out of Luke 10:2b.
But, in order to remember to pray this prayer, these two young boys set their watch
to beep every day at 10:02 in the morning and 10:02 in the evening.
So when the clock would beep, they would remember these words
in Luke 10:2 so they would pray to God to send out workers to the harvest.
We can see that God has answered their prayers
because we are now seeing many people all over the world going out to the harvest,
and we are seeing more and more people praying the same prayer."
Hallelujah!
And I have also seen this again and again.
When I started to pray: God, send out workers!
Send out workers to the harvest! Send out workers to the harvest!
I started to see God answer that prayer.
The last year we, me, The Last Reformation,
the people I'm working with, we have seen thousands of workers
being sent out to the harvest.
We need to pray this.
We need to start to pray for workers to the harvest.
So, let's spread this "virus". Take your watch, take your alarm clock,
take your telephone and set it on 10:02.
And then every morning 10:02 and every evening 10:02,
when you hear that alarm clock,
you'll remember what Jesus is saying in Luke 10:2.
What will happen if you do this? First, you'll remember,
you will keep your focus sharp, and you will start to pray:
God, send out workers, drive out workers, drive out workers.
And you will experience how He will answer your prayer.
Second, you will also experience how He will send you out.
Why? Because if you set your alarm clock every day and it: beep, beep...
And you are thinking of the workers and you are praying God:
send out workers, send out workers,
after a short time you will feel something stirring up in you.
You will also need to go out.
You will also need to start to open your mouth and share about Jesus.
It will help to pray this. It will help to keep your focus sharp.
It will help you, but it will also drive you out yourself.
Let's read some more from my book here.
"Prayer is also important for us because it transforms us.
When you start to pray out of Luke 10:2, you will start to experience
how this prayer will actually create something within you.
After praying this prayer for just a short time,
you will understand that it is truly on God's heart to see people saved.
We see this in Luke 15:4-7, when Jesus talks about leaving
the ninety-nine sheep to go out to find the one sheep that was lost."
So, here we see, when we pray, it will stir something up in us.
But it will also give us the right heart,
like Jesus left the 99 to find that one sheep that was lost.
When you start to pray: God, send out workers, send out workers
to the harvest, send out workers, I ask You, the harvest is ready,
the harvest is plentiful, the workers are few,
when you start to pray that, God will answer that prayer
and that prayer will stir something up inside of you.
You know, it's time to pray biblical.
It's time to pray according to the Word.
For years we have been praying for revival like
revival is something that just comes by itself.
Like, suddenly, the harvest just comes through the door.
But Jesus has not, one place, said that we should pray for the harvest to come in.
Has He?
No. But He has asked us to pray for the workers to go out.
Why? Because harvest cannot come in to the barn.
Harvest cannot move. We have to go out to it.
And I'm going to tell more about that later.
So, it's wrong if you pray for the revival like
it is something that just comes totally by itself, from God.
No, we need to go out in the harvest.
And there I'm not only talking about going out on the street.
I'm talking about your neighbors, your friends, your family, your coworkers,
people in your neighborhood.
It is so important this truth about the harvest that is ready,
and pray God to send out workers. Why?
Because Satan has been trying so much to keep us away from this.
So, we need to start to pray, pray according to God's Word.
Not just say a lot of words, but pray in faith according to God's words.
And I want to read more from my book here.
"To pray for a revival as if it is totally up to God to do it is not a biblical prayer.
Are you aware that we can pray wrong?
If we pray for things that are not biblical, we will not see any results.
James 4:3 talks about this by stating: 'When you pray, you do not receive,
because you pray with wrong motives, that you may spend it on your pleasures.'
Matthew 6:7 states: 'And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans,
for they think they will be heard because of their many words."
Yes, this is so true. We can pray wrong
and we can just pray a lot of words and think that
if we just repeat the prayer and pray a lot of words
we would be heard. No, we need to pray from our hearts.
Many years ago I was praying the Lord's prayer like
just words, words, words, words... My heart was not in it.
And I know, as I said, many people are praying that today.
They are just praying words.
We need to pray biblical and we need to pray from our heart.
We need to pray according to God's will.
A good example is what we saw here with Jesus.
Pray the Lord of the harvest to send workers.
This is a biblical prayer and this is a prayer according to God's will.
And if you pray that from your heart, you know that you've already received
what you prayed for.
I can come with and example of a bad prayer,
that is not according to God's word.
Some years ago, I remember, we led a new person to Christ,
who had no Christian background. She was very new in the faith.
Short time after she came to faith she came to me very excited.
She said: Torben, Torben, I have an idea. I have an idea.
And I was very excited to listen to her idea.
I have an idea. I really believe it was God's, she said.
And I was like: Okay, let me hear.
Who is the one who's creating all the problems in the world?
Satan.
What if we can get all Christians to come together and pray for Satan,
that Satan might get saved. If Satan would get saved
we would not have those problems anymore.
She was so sweet when she said that.
And I couldn't stop laughing.
Her heart was good, her intention was good,
but to pray for Satan to get saved is waste of time. Why?
It's not a biblical prayer. God is not going to answer it. Why?
Because it goes against His word.
Another prayer that is not biblical:
Oh God, God I pray for my city that they would get saved.
Or, God I pray that You will send people to our church.
Now I'm provoking you a little,
but where do you find those prayers, like, if we just pray
people would get saved automatically.
It almost sounds in those prayers like it's God who's keeping back.
Like God doesn't want people to get saved.
God wants people to get saved.
So much that He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross.
God sent His Son to die for every man out there.
The harvest is plentiful.
Workers are the problem.
Not God, in that sense.
I don't say that you cannot pray for your city. I don't say that it's not okay
to pray for people. You can pray for people that they may open their hearts
to receive, and you can pray that God will draw people.
But, if you pray like you don't need to do anything else,
or like they will come into the church by themselves
or suddenly give their lives to God by themselves,
then you are praying a wrong prayer.
It's unbiblical.
And this is how many people have been praying in churches for years.
Oh God, send people like this, to get saved.
Do you know, faith comes by hearing the Word of God.
And we need somebody to preach.
Paul is very, very clear: We need people to be sent out.
Paul is saying that in Romans 10:13. And I will read here.
"Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord Jesus will be saved.
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in?
And how can they believe in the one they have not yet heard?
And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
And how can someone preach unless they are sent?"
Can you see it? This is so clear.
We need to pray God to send out workers. Why?
Because when people are sent they can preach,
and when they preach other people can hear,
and they can come to faith, and they can get saved.
People don't come to faith without hearing.
We can pray for our cities, but a more biblical prayer...
is pray God to send out workers.
So, let's start to pray that.
Let's every morning, when you wake up, the alarm clock,
and every evening, or during the day, when you think of it,
pray this: Oh God, I pray for those people out there.
God, I pray for people in our cities, that You will send out workers to our city.
God, I pray for my neighbor that You will send out workers.
God, I pray for my family that You will send out workers,
to preach the gospel, so they can hear it, so they can believe,
so they can get saved.
Set your alarm clock. Set your alarm clock. Do that.
To 10.02, as a reminder to you, about this, about what Jesus is saying,
to remind you to pray, but also keep your focus sharp
and get a new heart for the people out there.
And God will answer this prayer.
And then, please, spread this "virus".
This "virus" you are commanded to spread.
You are allowed to spread.
Spread this "virus" to everyone out there
and let's see a prayer movement, where people start to pray biblical,
pray according to God's Word,
because then we know He answers and give us what we prayed for.
And I have testimony after testimony, after testimony, of that.
But I will start to pray now. Let me pray.
God, I pray for everyone who is seeing this.
God, I pray that You will stir something up in their hearts.
And God I pray that You will put this on their hearts,
that they, together with me, may pray, God.
God, send out workers, God.
God, we pray that You will send out workers to our city.
God, we pray that You will send out workers to our country, God.
God, send out workers. Drive out workers from our churches, God.
God, take the people from our churches, and we pray, God,
that You will drive them out, God. Drive them out in the harvest, God.
The harvest that is ready, the harvest that is plentiful, God.
The harvest is not the problem. The problem is the workers,
and workers are few. So God, we pray...
we stand together and we pray that You will drive out workers
to the harvest, God.
And we will see that the harvest is ready and plentiful, as You have said.
Hallelujah!
Pray this. Keep praying this. Stand together with me.
Pray this every morning and every evening, during the day,
and see how it's going to transform your life.
Until next time, share this video and spread the "virus"
to millions of people out there. Spread it as much as you can.
And then we will see more workers go out,
find the person of peace, as we are going to talk about later,
go into the households, healing the sick, casting out demons,
and we will see a move of God like we have never ever seen before.
God bless you! See you next time! Bye-bye!
The Call of Jesus