S1: We should make every occasion, to make every occasion a
S1: great occasion, for you can never tell when someone may
S1: be measuring you for a larger place.
S2: This is Treasure Truth with pastor and author James Ford Jr.
S2: Senior pastor of Christ Bible Church in Chicago. I'm Steve Miller,
S2: and glad that you're with us today. You know, pastor,
S2: you bring out a great point. You never know who's watching.
S2: You never know who may be evaluating us and what
S2: potential opportunities they may be considering us for.
S3: I've had it happen several times in in my working life.
S3: I recall that I started working for Duquesne Light, which
S3: is the equivalent of Commonwealth Edison because I'm from Pittsburgh.
S3: Shout out to all the Pittsburgh Steelers fans. And you know,
S3: I was a fairly new believer. And when I went
S3: to the job, I decided I would represent Jesus Christ.
S3: So I wasn't a custodian. I was a Christian custodian,
S3: you know, adjective describing the noun, giving it its character.
S3: And so I did the very best job that I
S3: could do. Now, the other custodians wouldn't mop and clean
S3: and keep the place. I kept it spick and span.
S3: I used to work for ServiceMaster Corporation, and so I
S3: did the floors and had them shining, and guys would
S3: come in and walk their muddy boots over. And generally,
S3: you know, I was done with the work. I would
S3: go back and make sure that everything was cleaned up
S3: after them, and I would shake the mud off of
S3: their boots and all that kind of stuff. And, and
S3: they would look and they'd say, what? Who is this guy?
S3: What is he all about? And then, of course, I
S3: would exalt Christ. Well, I didn't know it, but the
S3: boss Bill had been watching me and I got promoted
S3: early And started working on one of the trucks, you know.
S3: And so I started cleaning the truck, and I would
S3: clean everything and straighten it up because I was a
S3: low man. And then they decided I worked so well,
S3: they were going to make me a truck driver. Now,
S3: each of these, my motivation was just to do the
S3: best for Christ. And but each time I got a
S3: promotion and a raise.
S2: It's great how those two things often go together.
S3: Oh, sometimes.
S2: Yeah. Well, that's part of what we're going to be
S2: looking at in today's broadcast. In addition to that, we'll
S2: be looking at some leadership principles and some of the
S2: mistakes that leaders may tend to make. So if you
S2: can hope you'll open your Bible and join us as
S2: we continue a message entitled takers. Here's Pastor Ford.
S1: Acts 16. Now this is the vision beginning in verse
S1: five of a man of Macedonia. Now let's just listen
S1: to this. Uh, no. Verse six. Now, when they had
S1: gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were
S1: forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia.
S1: After they were come to Mysia, they attempted to go
S1: into Bithynia, but the spirit suffered them not. And they
S1: passing by Mysia came to Troas. Verse nine. And a
S1: vision appeared to a vision appeared to a vision appeared
S1: to Paul. There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him,
S1: come over into Macedonia and help us listen to this.
S1: And after he had seen the after who? He. Who's he?
S1: Paul had seen the vision. Immediately we. Who's we? The
S1: rest of them all. Nim. Mama nim. Daddy nim. Now
S1: get this. They didn't see the vision, but they embraced it.
S1: They talk about, I don't know.
S4: He always talking about. He see a vision. I don't
S4: know if that's the direction we ought to go. I
S4: ain't feeling that.
S1: You know, in my study of the word of God. Mm.
S1: I say it often, but I'll repeat it. You know
S1: what my problem is? Moses can get the children of
S1: Israel across the Red sea. Joshua can get the children
S1: of Israel across the Jordan River. I can't get some
S1: of y'all to cross 79th Street. That's my problem. Now,
S1: here's what I want you to see. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. This. This.
S1: The introduction. Joshua grew up in the ranks. He grew
S1: up in the ranks. I don't have time to do it.
S1: I'm not going to take time. But here, here's his story.
S1: Here's his story. He started off in Egypt as a
S1: weary slave. Then he became a warrior soldier. Then he
S1: became a. He's fighting the Amalekites. He's. He's one of
S1: the leads fighting the Amalekites. Then he became a worker servant.
S1: He became Moses's right hand man. Then he became a
S1: witness to the scriptures. He went in, and only him
S1: and Caleb came back with a good report. Then he
S1: became a worshiping saint. Where was he stationed? This is
S1: a good place to be stationed as a soldier, because
S1: you're a warrior. But you need to know how to worship.
S1: You know where he was stationed. According to the scripture
S1: I give you in a moment outside the tent of
S1: Moses where Moses went to have his personal devotional time,
S1: his Bible study and prayer. And so he's standing guard.
S1: He's going to be the next in line. And he's
S1: hearing how Moses prayed, and he's seeing how Moses is
S1: writing the Torah, and he hears what Moses is asking
S1: God to do when it comes to his people. Now,
S1: in the book of Joshua, he's a wise sage. He's
S1: a developed leader. He's ready to do the will of God.
S1: Let me give it to you. This way. Here it is.
S1: We first see his humiliation. He's a weary slave. And
S1: then we see his dedication. Then we see his education.
S1: Then we see his maturation. Then we see his validation.
S1: Now we see his administration. You see the. You see
S1: what happened. You see. You see the order that it
S1: went in. And so in Exodus 1714, turn there with me.
S1: What's going on here? Exodus chapter 17. Listen to this.
S1: Listen to it. This blew me away. Hey, elder. Dixon. Hey. Hey,
S1: brother Richie. Brother Betts. All y'all elders in here. Are
S1: you preaching teachers? This is a sermon by itself. Listen
S1: to this. And the Lord said unto Moses, write this
S1: for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in
S1: the ears of the congregation. Is that what it says?
S1: I was. Look right. There had been no writing, nothing
S1: was written. Everything was oral tradition. So he says, listen,
S1: I want to start writing stuff down so people can
S1: read it. So write it in a book and rehearse
S1: it in Joshua's ear. Do you know what just happened? God,
S1: that's the first time Joshua's name is mentioned in Exodus.
S1: He's saying, here's your successor. Write it down for everybody else.
S1: Rehearse it to him. Man, he's chosen. Now what do
S1: it does? Rehearse. Write the book. And when you rehearse,
S1: tell him I'm going to wipe out the Amalekites. Oh,
S1: wait a minute. What was he, a slave and a soldier.
S1: And what's a soldier need to know? I can win
S1: the victory. So you let him know. I don't want
S1: him to be timid. I don't want him to be afraid.
S1: I want him to know he can possess his possession,
S1: its inheritance, his inheritance. And I want him to understand
S1: that the wealth of the wicked is reserved for the righteous.
S1: I want him to understand that you go out there
S1: and fight this battle. They got swords, they got shields,
S1: you got farming tools. But they don't have me. You
S1: got me. What are you afraid of? I'm bigger than anything.
S1: And everybody that's bigger than you. Man, this. This guy
S1: goes out and he does a number because he got
S1: a promise and he's a taker. Now get this. If
S1: he couldn't take the malachites, how can he take the
S1: Jebusites and the Hivites and the girgashites and the lights
S1: and the mosquito bites and the termites. How are you
S1: going to take all the ites if you can't take
S1: the Amalekites? Huh? I'm what I'm talking about. In a minute.
S1: Here it is. Here's the principle. We should make every occasion.
S1: To make every occasion a great occasion. For you can
S1: never tell when someone may be measuring you for a
S1: larger place. Let me say it again. We should make
S1: every occasion, to make every occasion a great occasion, for
S1: you never can tell when someone may be measuring you
S1: for a larger place. Okay, now let me just go
S1: on record as saying I do not agree with everything Mr.
S1: Barack Obama does. Now, I'll say that readily. And in
S1: another sermon, I'll tell you what I don't agree with,
S1: but for right now, I will respect him, I give him. Now,
S1: let me tell you something. Let me tell you something.
S1: Here's what happened. In 2004, he was elected to the
S1: US Senate for the state of Illinois. Uh, one of
S1: only two US senators. You know, every state gets two, right? Okay.
S1: And so he won. He was so excited. And it
S1: was a profound victory. It was overwhelming. Now remember where
S1: he started on 71st Street in one of our members building?
S1: I remember when he came and visited me and told
S1: me who he was and what he was trying to do.
S1: In 2004, a few months after he was elected in July,
S1: the Democratic National Convention went on and he was the
S1: keynote speaker, and he made a big splash. They went wild. Now,
S1: if you listen to what he said, he said, I
S1: wanted them to know that the, the, the newest senator
S1: and almost the youngest senator in the Senate wasn't no
S1: pushover that I was ready. And so I made this
S1: a great occasion. But he didn't know it. He thought
S1: he was making a great occasion as a senator. Those
S1: people at that National Democratic convention said, uh, that man
S1: could be the president. He could be the first African-American
S1: president of the United States of America. And that's what
S1: he became. You want to know why? Because he took
S1: every occasion to make every occasion a great occasion, just
S1: in case somebody was looking to give him a larger place.
S1: I'll never forget it. Editor Gordon was interviewing Denzel, aren't you?
S1: Aren't you glad? When? When you can know people by
S1: just one name? Denzel. Nobody says Denzel. Who? Beyonce. Beyonce who? Man. Usher.
S1: You know pink. You know, it's like. Like one name. Jesus.
S1: Nobody ever says Jesus. Who? And so here it is.
S1: Here it is now. And Ed Gordon said, uh, Denzel,
S1: tell us which was your greatest movie. And Denzel was
S1: getting ready to say. And anybody ever watch Ed Gordon?
S1: I watch him all the time. He always interrupts them
S1: before they get a chance to answer. He like some
S1: of y'all. Um, can you answer this question for me? Well,
S1: I and I think now. Well, why are you asking
S1: me when you already know? Anyway, so he says, I
S1: bet you it was a glory because that's where you
S1: won your Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. He said, oh,
S1: wait a minute. No, no, I bet you it's training
S1: day because that's where you won the Oscar for Best Actor. No, no,
S1: I bet you I know what it is. It's Malcolm X.
S1: He said, okay, what is it? I've taken my guesses.
S1: What is it? And Denzel said, none of them. He said,
S1: wait a minute. None of them. Is there one we
S1: don't know about that. You look as something that maybe
S1: catapulted you into stardom. No. Will, tell us what's your
S1: best movie? And it wrecked me when I heard it.
S1: Denzel Washington looked in the camera and said, my best
S1: movie is my next one, and gave that grin. You
S1: know that grin? Gave that grin. My next one. Hey,
S1: you don't get it. You don't get it, do you?
S1: You don't see what I'm trying to do? Why did
S1: you talk about the Amalekites? Because that boy had to
S1: be tested. And you gotta be tested if you're going
S1: to be a soldier. And if God's going to give
S1: you a larger place, you gotta be faithful in a
S1: smaller place before he gives you a larger place. And
S1: so what happens if you can't beat the Amalekites? What
S1: are you going to do with the other ice? Now
S1: get this. Here's what the scriptures say in the book
S1: of Luke. He that is faithful in little is faithful
S1: and much. Now here's how I would have wrote this.
S1: This let me tell you how I wrote it. I
S1: would have wrote it this way. He that is faithful
S1: and little shall be. But here's what God is saying
S1: if I can't trust you with a dollar, I know
S1: I can't trust you with ten. If I can't trust
S1: you with a girlfriend, I know I can't trust you
S1: with a wife. If I can't trust you to clean
S1: the apartment, why should I give you a house? You
S1: want a business? You ain't even faithful on the job.
S2: This is treasure truth with Pastor Ford. Really a helpful
S2: look at what God has entrusted into our care. And
S2: how are we managing that? Well, we're going to get
S2: back to this message called takers in just a moment.
S2: I want to let you know that Treasured Truth is
S2: a listener supported program, and that's exactly what it sounds like.
S2: Those who listen to Pastor Ford's Bible teaching, who are
S2: growing in their walk with Christ because of that, and
S2: who appreciate it and want to stand financially with it.
S2: That's how this whole thing works. So if you are benefiting,
S2: we'd love to hear about that. But also, I'd ask
S2: you to give a financial gift so we can continue
S2: to pay for production costs and airtime and everything else
S2: that it takes to make this ministry run. You can
S2: give a gift online by coming to Treasure Truth Radio
S2: org and clicking on the donate button. Again, that's at
S2: Treasure Truth radio.org. Well, we are in Joshua chapter one.
S2: As we get back to our message entitled takers. Here
S2: is Pastor Ford.
S1: I had some more statistics, but I didn't even say em.
S1: You know that that retail theft, $43 billion. The number
S1: one theft in retail is employees. Anyway, let me leave
S1: it alone. Let me leave it at all. Yeah, because
S1: it's 18 billion for the movie industry. Want to know why?
S1: Bootleg DVDs. Takers. Anyway, so what's going on here? So?
S1: So here it is. Why should I let you lead
S1: a ministry? And you don't even have come to church?
S1: David didn't know that watching his daddy's sheep was preparation
S1: for watching God's sheep. Now listen, here's what it says.
S1: Exodus 1710. So Joshua did as Moses said. Caveat follow
S1: him as he followed Christ. That's what he was doing.
S1: Here's the principle if you don't know how to lead,
S1: finish it. You heard me say it a lot. You're
S1: not fit to follow. That's right. Joshua learned how to
S1: lead under Moses, and he was ready. I showed you
S1: his process that he went through. I'm not going to
S1: go over it again. But here's the kicker. Here's the
S1: flip side. Elders, deacons, listen to me. Don't get mad.
S1: Listen to me. The flip side is this. Let me
S1: put it in the words of a counseling session I
S1: had here. It is there in the counseling session. And
S1: they're they're angry. I remember when they got married, I
S1: put two chairs out. They they practically sat in one,
S1: pulled them together. Now, after three years, I put two
S1: chairs down and they pull them apart. And so, uh,
S1: I say, what's the issue? She won't follow. I said, well,
S1: you know, the Bible says that you're the leader. You're
S1: the head you ought to follow. You ought to follow, sister.
S1: Why don't you follow it? She looked at him, not me,
S1: and said, I'm not following because he's not going anywhere.
S1: You can't follow a parked car. Now, let me just
S1: say something. Let me just say something, even if that
S1: is true. She did the right thing in the wrong way.
S1: And let me just tell some of you ladies who
S1: want to try to get your husband to counseling. The
S1: reason why a lot of men don't want to come
S1: to counseling is because of what just happened. That is,
S1: they feel that you are going to castrate them in
S1: front of another man that you think has what you
S1: want them to have, that you think they don't. Did
S1: you hear me? That's why you can't get them. Because
S1: you came home.
S4: Talking about your pastor for do this for each other.
S4: You don't call me no. You know, I heard him
S4: say he did this or that.
S1: First of all, you don't know if he's really doing
S1: all that. Second of all, I ain't Pastor Ford. Third
S1: of all, you ain't Sister Ford. Amen. But there was
S1: a point well taken. I'm not going to call her name,
S1: even though she gave me permission because she may not remember.
S1: She gave me permission because with 15 years ago. But
S1: when the sisters came up to me 15 years ago,
S1: she said, Pastor Ford, I don't mean any harm to
S1: you or your elders, but you know what you need
S1: to do. I said, what do I need to do?
S1: I almost called her name and called her name. I
S1: ain't even looking at her right now. She said, take
S1: your elders to the elders store and get a refund.
S1: That's what she said. That's what she said. Why did
S1: she feel that way? Because you can't follow a parked car. Amen. Amen.
S1: And so when you look at what's going on here,
S1: I want to tell you something. I need every elder
S1: I send on an email. I need every elder not
S1: just to read The Turnaround Church by Doctor Perry. I
S1: need them to read the top ten Mistakes Leaders make
S1: by hand. stencil. Don't worry about it. I'll send it
S1: to you. I just want to give them to you
S1: right now. Here they are. Now, I read this book
S1: as a student at Moody. I read it again as
S1: a graduate student at Trinity, but I'm reading it now
S1: again as pastor of Christ Bible Church here. Here's the
S1: ten in a nutshell. Here's the ten top mistakes leaders make.
S1: Here it is number one top down attitude. You're large
S1: and in charge. Big baller shot caller, number one stunner
S1: player player from the Himalaya. And nobody can tell you anything.
S1: Number two, putting paperwork before people work that this is
S1: all about fellowship. We are organism before we're organization. Number three,
S1: the absence of affirmation. Paul in Romans 16 told those
S1: people and get those names. Why? Because he wanted everybody
S1: to know I'm not in this by myself. Some of
S1: you who are ministering, they're not looking for money, but
S1: they are waiting to hear somebody say thank you. I
S1: appreciate you. You're doing a job well done. Here's our tendency.
S1: And let me speak for myself. Here's my tendency. The
S1: folk who are peripheral. That's where you give your time to.
S1: And attention to. But the folk who are there, you know,
S1: are going to stay there. You ignore them. When the
S1: Bible says the periphery of folk, you shouldn't put any
S1: time or treasure on them. That's what it says, teach.
S1: It says. It says, fine. Faithful. Available. Teacher. Second Timothy
S1: 222 and the things which thou hast both heard and
S1: seen in me do and the same commit thou to
S1: faithful people, who shall be able to teach others also.
S1: There it is. There it is. That's called discipleship. For
S1: those of you who may not know, here it is.
S1: Here it is. Let me just drop them real quick.
S1: Number four. Uh, mistake. Leaders make no room for mavericks.
S1: I said it on Wednesday. Sometimes we see new people
S1: as an intrusion when God sent them as an infusion. Now.
S1: Not all because some people come from other places where
S1: they got all kind of mess and they bring that
S1: mess in here. And when I hear that mess, I
S1: deal with that mess because it's mess. And we don't
S1: want to be about mess. Amen. Amen. Number five. Dictatorship
S1: and decision making. That is you. It's always got to
S1: be your way or the highway. And when we were
S1: here with Doctor Perry, I'm going to let you in
S1: on on the elder business, even though I ain't supposed to.
S1: I said to them, okay, you know, somebody say, okay,
S1: he's a dictator. Okay, then. And I and I asked
S1: them corporately and individually, somebody tell me some something that
S1: I did that violated your authority as an elder or
S1: a pastor or a bishop in this church and didn't
S1: repent of it. Whenever, whenever I did it. And so
S1: I picked on campus, pastor, I said, Pastor Avery, in
S1: front of all the elders and deacons. I said, what
S1: do they call me over at CBC three? Senior pastor,
S1: I said, what did they call you at CBC three?
S1: Campus pastor, I said, has there been anything where we
S1: have disagreed since we've been there, or a little over
S1: a year at CBC three? He said. Yeah, I said
S1: about eight things now. Of those eight things that weren't biblical,
S1: no book, chapter verse. How many times did I overrule you?
S1: He said none. I said, I never said I like
S1: my way better with doing it. Not one time. And
S1: there ain't no elder in here that can say I
S1: ever did it. Because we have elder role. And that's
S1: what I abide by, because that's our system. We're not
S1: like the other churches where the pastor is responsible for everything.
S1: We have elder rule, and I, for one, respect the
S1: God given policy.
S2: You're listening to Treasure Truth with Pastor Ford. A message
S2: entitled takers and a little insightful look at the way
S2: that Pastor Ford's church runs. By the way, if you
S2: ever want to visit Christ Bible Church of Chicago, you
S2: can find out more information about that when you come
S2: to our website. It's Treasure Truth radio.org. Look for the
S2: link that says about. You'll find out more about Pastor
S2: Ford and about the church where he serves as senior pastor.
S2: And if you just want to find out more about
S2: this program, look for the Stay Connected bar. There's a
S2: lot of really useful and helpful links right there, like
S2: to our Facebook page or Twitter feed, and also a
S2: link that will allow you to download the Moody Radio app.
S2: The app is free, and it makes it possible for
S2: you to listen to this Bible teaching and other programs
S2: produced by Moody Radio on the go. You know, whenever
S2: it fits your schedule, we'll link you to the app
S2: and a lot more when you come to Treasure Truth radio.org.
S2: And again, click on the Stay Connected bar. Well, thanks
S2: for listening today. Hope you'll make it a point to
S2: tune in next time. Thanks also to our producer, Amy
S2: Rios for Pastor Ford. I'm Steve Hiller. Treasure truth is
S2: a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.