Isa 54:2 Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes;

Intro: Did you ever live in a tent for several days? Camping is very popular. Some of you probably have tents for camping. The tent was probably invented very early on in the life of Adam and Eve, and their children. Cain was a farmer. Abel was a shepherd. Farmers settled in one area, and built houses of available materials. Shepherds were nomads. They had to constantly roam the countryside in search of grass for their sheep. They needed portable shelter, and so the tent was invented. God's Old Testament people were shepherds and nomads for thousands of years. Noah, Abraham, Isaac -- they all lived in tents. During the time of Kings David and Solomon the Israelites built cities, and more and more people lived in houses. However, there were still many shepherds, and many who lived in tents. By Jesus' time, very few Israelites lived in tents. The word "tent" is not found in the New Testament.

The tent is a symbol of the Church, and enlarging the PLACE of the tent is a way of speaking of the growth of the Church. These verses have a message for us today about WHAT WE MUST DO, HOW WE MUST DO IT, and WHAT OUR EXPECTATIONS SHOULD BE.

I. WHAT MUST WE DO? We are commanded to enlarge the PLACE of the tent.

A. To "enlarge the place of your tent," means to increase the size of the tent floor. This speaks of our home base. As far as WE are concerned, Wayside is the place of our tent. God is commanding us to try to grow, right here in Walden. Archimedes said: "Give me a lever long enough, and a solid place to stand, and I can move the world." We need a solid base before we can reach out to the world.

B. The point here is not about building larger buildings, but about getting more people inside. We have a better and larger building. Now we need people to fill it up. We have been commanded to evangelize, to win people to Christ, to make more disciples. We need to enlarge the PLACE of our tent!

C. MISSIONARY OUTREACH STARTS AT HOME. If Wayside shrinks, we will have to decrease our support for overseas missions. If Wayside grows, we can do more to send the Gospel around the world. We need to enlarge the PLACE of our tent!

D. God says, "spare not!" That means, put your heart and resources into making Wayside grow. Make it top priority. Don't be lazy about it! We need to get busy enlarging the PLACE of our tent!

II. HOW CAN WE DO IT? How can Wayside reach out? There are five things we must do:

1. As individuals, we must use our God-given opportunities. YOU AND YOU ALONE are God's missionary to your neighbors, your co-workers and your relatives. God has given you opportunities that He has given to no one else. You cannot expect other Waysiders to carry the load of outreach. It is up to each of us. NO-ONE has the opportunity to reach THOSE people but you. You are the one who must tell them the Gospel, invite them to church, hand them a brochure, befriend them in their time of need, live a Christian life before them.

2. Corporately, as a church body, we need to do the best we can here at Wayside: with our nursery, with our youth groups, with our adult Bible studies, with fellowship and friendliness, with the preaching, with our choir, and so on. We need our church members to be willing to volunteer for all kinds of ministries. We need willing workers. A church full of do nothings will go nowhere.

3. We must love one another. John 13:35 "By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." Some of you are carrying grudges against your fellow church members. Some of you are ready to leave because someone has offended you. Some of you WANT others to leave. That kind of spirit in the church will kill and bury church growth. We need love, we need patience with one another, we need forgiveness. We need a willingness to ignore affronts, and to turn the other cheek.

4. We must pray for growth. Jesus said "I will build my Church." In the final analysis, it is Jesus who must build Wayside. It is Jesus who can bring new people to town. It is Jesus who will draw them to Wayside. It is Jesus who will lead them to make Wayside their church home. If you believe in prayer, then pray for Jesus to build His church at Wayside.

5. We must WANT to grow. There are some of you who don't give a hoot whether Wayside grows or not. You don't like it when new people come to church. You get offended if someone sits where you like to sit. You don't like to make new friends. Well, is this a Christ-like attitude?

III. WHAT SHOULD WE EXPECT WITH REGARD TO CHURCH GROWTH?

Isa 54:3 For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

If we want to grow, if we reach out to our neighbors and friends, if we love and pray for each other, if we volunteer and work to make our programs the best we can, if we pray for Christ to build His church at Wayside, we should expect to grow. Amen.