Speaker

Dwight K. Nelson

Dwight Nelson served as lead pastor of the Pioneer Memorial Church on the campus of Andrews University from 1983 to 2023. During his time at Pioneer he spoke on the “New Perceptions” telecast, taught at the theological seminary and has written books, including The Chosen. He and his wife, Karen, are blessed with two married children and 2 granddaughters.

Offering

Part 3 of a 3 Part Series
Saturday, March 09, 2013

More In This Series

“Tattoos on the Heart:
A Case for Apocalyptic Compassion”—3

www.pmchurch.tv

□ Luke 15:1 ,2

  • “‘This man welcomes immoral people and enjoys their company over a meal!’” (v 2 The Voice)

□ Luke 19:1-10

  • “‘For the Son of Man came to seek and to liberate the lost.” (v 10 The Voice)

□  Luke 5:17-26

  • Desire of Ages: “ . . . this paralytic had lost all hope of recovery. His disease was the result of a life of sin, and his sufferings were embittered by remorse. . . . The Pharisees regarded [his] affliction as an evidence of divine displeasure, and they held themselves aloof from the sick and the needy. Yet often these very ones who exalted themselves as holy were more guilty than the sufferers they condemned.” (267)
  • Gregory Boyle: “Compassion isn’t just about feeling the pain of others; it’s about bringing them in toward yourself. If we love what God loves, then, in compassion, margins get . ‘Be compassionate as God is compassionate,’ means the dismantling of barriers that exclude. . . . The focus of the story [Luke 5:17-26] is, understandably, the healing of the paralytic. But there is something more significant than that happening here. They’re ripping the roof off the place, and those are being let in.” (Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion 75)
  • That was the mission of Jesus—and that is the mission of those who : margins get erased, and those outside get let in.

□  Three prayers you can pray to love the lost back to Jesus (Luke 15:20)

  • Prayer #1—Ask God to open your to see the one in need.
    •   Luke 15:20—“The father looked off in the distance and the young man returning.”

  Matthew 9:36 The Message: “When [Jesus] out over the crowds his heart broke. So confused and aimless they were, like sheep with no shepherd.” ​

  • Prayer #2—Ask God to open your to love the one in need.

  Luke 15:20—“He felt for his son.”

  Luke 6:36 The Voice: “‘So imitate God and be truly , the way your Father is.’”

  Gregory Boyle: “God is compassionate, loving kindness. All we’re asked to do is to be in the world who God is. Certainly compassion was the wallpaper of Jesus’ soul, the contour of his heart, it was who he was. I heard someone say once, ‘Just assume the answer to every question is .’” (Tattoos on the Heart 62)

  •   Prayer #3—Ask God to open your to hold the one in need.
    •   Luke 15:20—“He enfolded him in an , and kissed him.”
    •   When Jesus lepers, the news sent shock waves through the community of the untouchables as well as the circles of the respectables—because conveys a solidarity that words can never prove.

  Ellen White: “The strongest argument in favor of Christianity is a loving and lovable Christian.” (Last Day Events 191)
 

Just like Jesus 

Offering for July 12, 2025

World Budget – Digital Strategy for Mission

We thank God for the growth of the Seventh-day Adventist Church since Global Mission began some three decades ago. We’ve reached many new people groups and entered new countries. We’ve planted thousands of new churches. We’ve seen literally millions of people find hope and salvation in Jesus.

Of course, many mission challenges remain. But that’s nothing new! When the good news about Jesus spread from Jerusalem some 2,000 years ago, it happened because the disciples came together and prayed together. Then the Holy Spirit gave power to those gathered in the upper room and they responded to God by saying, “I will go.”

Today, the Adventist church is supporting hundreds of missionaries around the world, who face many obstacles to preach the gospel. How do we even begin to reach people who don’t believe in God and have never seen a Bible? How do you begin to reach people who are rich and increased with goods and feel they have need of nothing? Or preach to people who live in refugee camps in very poor conditions?

In the face of such huge mission challenges, some see walls, but we see opportunities. Many see a lack of funds, but we see the Source of all funds. Many see our weakness, but we see His strength. God is inviting you to participate with Him in His mission of salvation here on earth.

Who is willing to support our global outreach with your special offering? Better yet, who will say, “I will go?” 

North American Division Stewardship Ministries

VBS at Niles Westside Church

Keepers of the Kingdom - Standing Strong in Today's Battle for Truth. July 14-18, from 9 - 11:45 AM at Niles Westside Adventist Church (1105 Grant St, Niles) for kids in Pre-K (age 4) - 6th grade. Please register early online at www.nileswestside.org. Email nileswestsidevbs@gmail.com or call 269-683-5998 with questions.