Talking Jesus: Missing Pieces and Real Purpose

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Talking Jesus: Missing Pieces and Real Purpose

John 4, Matthew 9, Colossians 4

May 4th, 2025

Society can only exist without God for so long before a critical mass of people longing for identity and purpose intersect with a critical mass of people who have found identity and purpose in a relationship with Christ. These intersections change the course of history.

Matthew 9:35-38 (NIV) 35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” 

4 Truths from Matthew 9 

• Crowds of people live without the shepherd covering of Jesus.

• A lack of Jesus covering results in harassment and helplessness.

• Uncovered crowds are ripe and ready for what Jesus offers.

• Jesus ready crowds need more Jesus talking people. 

People are missing pieces. Missing pieces is frustrating and defeating. 

• A person can know something is missing without knowing what is missing. 

• A person can know what’s missing without knowing where to find what’s missing.

People can tell you that they… 

• Are sad and depressed

• Are bound up and held back

• Are helpless to find a way forward 

• Want to be free and favored

Here’s the hope…

1. People are missing pieces. 

2. Jesus is the missing piece. 

“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” Luke 4:18-19 (NIV)

Jesus identifies Himself as…

• Good news to the poor

• Freedom for the prisoner & oppressed

• Sight to the blind

• The Lord’s favor

The crowds might not know Jesus by name and reputation but they do know what’s missing from their lives…

• Hope

• Freedom

• Wholeness

• Favor

Few Followers of Jesus would argue that we are living in a time of spiritual void yet too few perceive they have a personal role in this harvest opportunity. Jesus is looking to match this unprecedented harvest with an unprecedented number of Jesus talkers! 

There is a finite number of people who can talk Jesus to a crowd. There is an infinite number of people who can talk Jesus to a person. The key to embracing the role of an Everyday Evangelist is seeing the person apart from the crowd and believing that God is orchestrating an intersection. 

Divine Appointment: The divine “intersection” of a Jesus Talker and a person in the crowd. 

John 4:31-35 (NIV) 31 Meanwhile his disciples urged him, “Rabbi, eat something. 32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.” 33 Then his disciples said to each other, “Could someone have brought him food?” 34 “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. 35 Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. 

1. People are missing pieces. Missing pieces is frustrating and defeating. 

2. Jesus is the missing piece. 

3. Jesus’ work is the missing piece to our Real Purpose.

There is no way to oversell a fresh relationship with Jesus as the catalyst for our real purpose. 

There is a reason that many people are reluctant to fearful of talking Jesus – Satan doesn’t want Jesus’ work finished or His followers full. 

How do we live out our commission and call as Everyday Evangelists?

• Embrace talking Jesus is your Real Purpose. 

• Focus on freshness. 

• Ask God for divine appointments. 

• Believe that people are more ready for Jesus than you realize. 

• Trust the Holy Spirit in the encounter

Acts 4:13 (NIV) When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.

Colossians 4:3-6 (NIV) 3 And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. 4 Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. 5 Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.