John Emmons, M. Div
Licensed Professional Counselor; Nationally Certified Counselor
1025
S. Perry St, Suite C Castle Rock, Colorado, 80104 303-660-2319
Devotionals.
The following are three sermons I preached in church. You may use them as you see fit. I have put them here in my web page as they are a reflection of my thinking and passion.
I recommend that you allow the entire page to download before you try any links or anchors.
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First Devotional Galatians 2:20--Crucified With Christ |
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Second Devotional 2 Corinthians 12:9--Strength in Weakness |
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Third Devotional Nehemiah 13:23-27--Marrying "Foreign" Women |
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Fourth Devotional What must I do to be saved? |
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Fifth Devotional The Temptation of Jesus |
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Sixth Devotional Steven Gets Stoned |
First Devotional:
Crucified with Christ
Ga 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Subject: How does being crucified with Christ demonstrate in the believers life?
Compliment: It is demonstrated by the reality that the old self is dead and the newness of life brought about by Christ living in us.
Introduction:
Out of the blue a friend called me that I have not spoken to in about a year. At the moment I was feeling a little melancholic, stressed and pretty unsure how to start the day. He is one of these fiery types who starts out a lot of sentences with "God told me" which always makes me a little suspicious. I have heard too many people use that phrase to do things that are in total contradiction to the word of God. But this was different. He told me that I was on his mind and he felt I needed a call. God told him. I listened and as I listened I began to realize that I think God did tell him. He spoke of many women in his church who were planning on leaving their husbands and vice versa. He told me of church leaders all around him that were going down in flames. Crashing and burning. And it made me shudder to think of all the churches I have heard of lately that are having deep problems. Many people I have spoken to have said that they have just come from a church where a split happened, the pastor left of the board all stepped down. and I think to myself why?
I received an article the other day that asked the question of why churches die. It missed the point totally. It said that they die for an inability to meet the needs of the people. In other words, churches die because they do not meet the selfish desires of the people.
Is the church in America under an attack now that is thrilling to demons. Must be fun to watch a church self-destruct if you are a demon. If I were a demon, I would love nothing more than cause division in a church, to infiltrate the leadership, to make people not stand in the gap. And I would want to make people blame leadership, the pastor, the lack of programs without ever having them take a close look at themselves.
Churches self-destruct for many reasons and I suspect the most prevalent is not immorality, disunity or anything like that. This morning we are going to take a look at why churches really die.This morning, we are going to be examining what it means to be crucified, to no longer live but rather have Christ living inside us. We are going to take an unflinching look at that and we will see how that reality of Christ living in us is demonstrated in the church.
Sermon:
I Introduction
Patrick Henry will always be noted for saying one thing. "Give me liberty of give me death". Now I can imagine that sparked the adrenaline of his accusers. I doubt they huddled around and debated what to do next. I do not think they asked themselves what they should do at that juncture. "Hmmm...now let's see...we were gonna put him to death but Mr. henry has given us another option. Should we set him free? Lets vote." No! I can imagine after hearing those words they simply said OK and strung him up.
But that important figure in the American Revolution has said something that has been our battle song for several hundred years. Liberty and individualism has been a part of the American psyche since the Revolution. And a key to church survival is knowing how this deepest American idea has penetrated and rotted the church. What does it mean to be crucified with Christ? Are these just words we glibly speak that have no real impact. Why is it that Sunday after Sunday we come to church and leave untouched?
In this society, individualism is paramount. The attitude of individualism is totally opposite to being crucified with Christ. A strong attitude in this individualistic society is the demand for happiness.
Illus.: Self help books. What is it about the culture that has changed so much in the last 30 years? It seems to me that since the induction of pop psychology in the society, we have been more focused on our needs. I am only satisfied if I am fully actualized. If you meet my needs. It is the world's job to make me happy and I will reject anything or anyone who does not fulfill me.
Trans:We demand success, freedom and justice but fail to realize that personal integrity brings more happiness than all the self help books combined. We feel badly because we behave poorly not because of some past emotional trauma. --but the pop psychologists will not tell you that.
Illus. Dr. Laura -- stresses personal integrity and gets a lot of flack for it.
Trans: It has interested me to see how culture has influenced our views of our faith by its individualism. What is right for you is fine and what is right for me is fine. And if the two conflict, all I have to do is accept you and not judge you. that's what i say if i am in the world.
Funny how grace has slowly been redefined as a means to blend into the worlds belief that we are responsible only for ourselves. I have no obligations because after all, I am saved by grace. Morality? Ethics? phooey! that's all legalism and I am saved by grace so I can live how I want and now I can define you as a legalist if you call me on it. Sad that all that changes with many Christians is the labels. In other words, you have no business telling me how to live. sound like the world? we are crucified with Christ. We no longer have the right to assert our privilege to privacy. We live in a community that depends upon one another and holds one another accountable.
People want to be made happy rather than making themselves happy. People come to church to be fed rather than to feed. To be served rather than to serve. But happiness comes from doing what is right.
This is what is means to say "It is no longer I that live". My needs, desires, demands are put on the back burner for the sake of righteousness. What makes us so important that we feel it is right to retaliate when we have been hurt? You are crucified. You do not live--that is the old self is dead. When you find yourself getting angry, you must ask yourself If that anger is feeding the old self or the new self which is alive in Christ. If you ask yourself that, you will find your anger stopped dead in it's tracks. The old self requires happiness at any cost. The new self is alive and has Christ as its foundation rather than the world.
Trans: The church sadly resembles the world in many ways.
II World Vs. the Church
The world wants self reliance. Where does that lead? The more self reliant we are, the less we need home and church. the world has made home and church unnecessary to feed a starving people and only there to ease our guilt. They have become fun meeting places that resemble the meeting places of the world with few differences. We pray in sing and the world parties. But we have isolated ourselves so much that we are as moved as much by meeting God on Sunday morning as we are by a Rockies game. We, too, have made church unnecessary.
The church has become nothing more than a modified picture of our culture. I am here to be made happy. That's what the world says! What a slap in the face to the crucified life.
The world speaks highly of self acceptance. Self empowerment. You have heard the motto "God don't make junk" Funny how God is here to increase our self esteem. If this is all God is to you, you have totally missed the point of the crucified life. We are not here to be made happy by God either. While he does bring joy -- and great joy it is, the purpose of knowing God is not to be served by God (that is be made happy), but to serve (to obey, to live the crucified life where my needs, my feelings do not have to be observed at all times.) The next time you feel lonely, remember that you are not alone even if you feel isolated. Christ lives in you.
The world uses emotions to define who it is. There are few exceptions to the rule: when you are angry, you are not crucified. when you are angry, it is you that is alive rather than Christ in you. When was the last time you were angry? Was God violated or were you? Someone may have been sinning against God but don't use that as an excuse to justify your anger. Remember, you are crucified with Christ. If anyone had the right to be angry, he did, and he laid down his life.
The world defines itself by what it has. Funny how we use things as believers to define who we are. when asked what we do we may often mention how long we have been saved, what class we teach, what role we hold in a church. Try defining yourself as Crucified with Christ.
The world defines itself by what it does. What we do as a profession equals what I am as a person. Truth is, we are a crucified person. Next time someone asks you what you do, go ahead and tell them but remind yourself that what you really are is a crucified person.
The world defines itself by who it is with. Love and intimacy is another way of expressing who we are. I am only useful if I am in a committed relationship--or if I have children. But when someone asks you if you have children, there ought to be a small voice inside that says "my definition of who I am comes from Christ--and I am a crucified person. It is not I that live but Christ that lives in me"
Illus.: Think about how love is defined. You have a successful marriage if you have communication, intimacy, honesty. This culture has bags of that but what it lacks is the same thing that we lack. Denial of self. It is no longer I that live. My demand for happiness is replaced by an obligation, a decision to make you happy. But I get angry when my demand for acceptance and approval is not met in you. And shamefully, we approach each other this way. We approach the church this way.
Had your toes stepped on lately? Got angry? I have. And I am ashamed to say it was for the same reason that I am warning against today. In the crunches in life when we want to retaliate, get even, set the record straight, remember this: You no longer live because you have been crucified. You have lost your right to self preservation. Now, Christ lives in you.
The world defines value through youth and beauty. and again, the church has fallen prey to it. Do you go out of your way to not just say nice things to the older generation but to deeply value them? and as you get old, will you too fall prey to this deception that you have less value. Forget value for yourself. you are a crucified person. Live like it.
If you have defined yourself through the eyes of the world--and I promise, in some way, we all have, re evaluate yourself. Your definition comes from your relationship with Christ. You are crucified with Christ. You no longer live. he does. Our definition in him is non negotiable.
Trans: So much of the activity in the world--in this culture--is to promote individualism.
III Conclusion
Interesting that individualism seems to weaken the very things it seeks to uphold. By becoming more individualistic, we have become more isolated. In our isolation, we have set up things around us to assist us to deal with our isolation--like counseling. We are told that all we can depend on is us. Volumes are written to assist us through a life without Christ. Sad that the world has missed that the answer to this lies in scripture. The world is dying because it is still alive to self and dead to Christ. And it seeks new ways to become even more alive to self, and sadly, the church is a reflection of that image. Now wait a minute, we know Jesus! Then why do we live as if he does not live in us? Why do we still react when we are on the line? We are supposed to be dead to self. What's the reason behind our anger? James 4 says the reason behind our anger is our own selfishness.
We cannot be individualistic and intimate with Christ at the same time because the Bible calls us to be connected to others. We have obligations. This is why the church is so important. We are called to be a strange community. We are here to serve, not to get angry when we are hurt. Not to be defensive when things crumble around us. But to stand in the gap, to trust God that he alone will meet our needs while we strive to meet the needs of others. Not to be understood, but to understand.
Can you imagine what a church would be like if all the members thought as that? What a strange community.
This verse, the one verse we have spoken of today, is designed to be an encouragement to you. Christ lives in us. We do not have to worry any longer about our old selves being fed. That part has been crucified.
Give me liberty or give me death? I think the two are no different. If you choose liberty--as the world defines it--you have chosen isolation. When you choose that you have chosen death.
If we want this church to grow into maturity, we remember this verse. We choose death to self. We choose crucifixion. We choose to be alive to Christ.
Why do churches die? Don't blame the past problems. Don't blame the leadership. Don't look at the lack of programs. Churches fail as bodies because the parts do not look out for the whole but rather they look out for themselves. Churches die because the members are alive to self. They have bought the message of this culture which stresses individualism at all cost. And the cost is society. The cost is the family. The cost is the church. Learn what this means to die to self and be alive only to Christ.
Second Devotional:
Strength in weakness
II Cor. 12:9 My grace is sufficient for you. My power is made perfect in weakness...For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Subject: How do we find encouragement when we are weak?
Compliment: By looking into the sufficiency and strength of God's grace.
Exegetical Idea: In our frailty, we can be encouraged by looking directly to the God of grace to find strength in his power.
Intro.: On Dateline NBC this week a report was on about the associations people have with names. When we hear a name, it is easy to make a judgment call about that person. The name Damion will always be associated with evil from the movie. A waiter the other day commented on his name and how he was sick of being associated with little extra terrestrials. His name was Elliott. If you had the name Gomer, for example, you may not want to run for senate. And we struggled with names for our child that did not conjure up mean kids that I grew up with or demon children that my wife teaches. When you think of a name for a small child, there are manes that just don't fit. Thor would be a good example. Troy. Soda. Well, on Dateline, they had a number of names given that conjured up lots of pictures. A feminine name for girls was Bunny or Zha-Zha. A masculine name would be Conan, Bill or Chad. A pretty person would have the name Kim or Samantha. A handsome person would be Sam or Chad. A kind man would be Moses where a successful woman would be Jaclyn.
A friend of mine at MBI had the misfortune of being named Michael Night. Would have been good if he looked like him, but he didn't. Short, overweight, and thick square glasses.
People judge us even by our name. Fair or unfair, even before we open our mouth, we are pegged.
It seems to me that people are quick to make judgment calls for many reasons, not the least of which is to cover their own weakness. Funny how the worst critics are often those who really need a good dose of criticism.
But not only do we judge another by their facades, but we also wear them. And we use facades to cover our weakness. We use them personally and as a church to cover our weakness--as if having a weakness is a bad thing. Having a weakness is not bad--it is human, and this morning we are going to see what we need to do with our weakness. How we respond to it, why we run from it and cover it with a facade. I want you to learn to not be afraid of them but rather take the same attitude as Paul did in 2 Cor 12:9
Sermon Intro.: Last week some friends and I were at the coffee shop playing a rather interesting game. We would see people and dream up scenarios about their lives. It is pretty fun. And interesting. Simply on what a person was wearing, what they looked like, their presence and mannerisms, we made up stories of their lives. In one corner sat a distinguished gentleman with a goatee, and I assumed he was thinking about his patients and whether to medicate them or lobotomize them. Another was sure he was a hit man. We saw a couple in the corner and we all agreed they were ex flower children, had black and white pictures in their house and voted for Pat Schroeder. No question of it. Others were sad and lonely people and still others were very happy and well adjusted people.
We have all played this game. Maybe not in a coffee shop with a group of high schoolers but you have. I promise. And often when it is played, it is done unintentionally and has a cruel twist. I think it is natural to make assumptions about a person based upon appearance. I don't think it is avoidable, but what is avoidable is the tendency we often have to go the extra step about a person. Assumptions are one thing, but condemnation is quite a bit different.
I have done a lot of therapy bashing in my teaching and for good reason. I know what goes on in shrink school and I have seen a lot of people who are worse off after a session with a therapist than before. And we have come up with a good word that offers a lot of protection. The word is "Issues". When a person raises up the fact that they have an Issue with something, that signals to the listener that may go no further down that particular road with that person because of the all important Issue. It also implies that since there is an issue, that person is not responsible for their behavior in that area because of the issue. What ever the issue is, that is just a blotch in my life caused by someone else that I have no power over. It is something that will give me an excuse when I am weak. My issue takes me out of control and makes me a martyr. Funny how we have therapized the need for God right out of this culture. Paul said that God's strength is made perfect in our weakness. Perhaps the issue is conformity, conservatism and legalism. I think of Luke 13 where Jesus healed a woman on the Sabbath. The religious people were offended that such a thing could be done on the Sabbath perhaps because they had issues with doing such things on the Sabbath. See, having an issue like this means anyone who offends you is a bad person because they were not sensitive to your issue. Apparently, Jesus was not sensitive to the issues of the religious leaders of the time. But the leaders did not realize that their issues were only a cover for their weakness. Sad that they did not know that God's power is made perfect in their weakness. If you are going to be conservative, do it out of a pure heart not out of a sense of guilt because then you will be a legalist. Legalism is another cover for our weakness.
Perhaps the issue is isolation, impatience, having to wait. I think of the Israelites following Moses around in the desert. When he went up to the top of the mountain to chat with God, the Israelites got impatient and built a golden calf perhaps because they had issues with a God that could not be seen. But because of their weakness, they constructed a golden issue that would offer them protection. I wonder what the parallel is in today's churches.
I wonder if the worst thing we can do to a person is to make him a pastor. We set up a man in an almost divine position where pretty soon, he believes it. They even teach you in seminary to not get too close to the people of your church if you are its pastor because it is important to maintain the position of respect. The facade. And when it crumbles, and it always will, the pastor will fall and the people will be left wondering what he did wrong. Because the people want the facade of a healthy leadership in the church not realizing that the very process that sets up a leadership also sets it up for failure. There must be accountability but people assume that accountability is only a prayer partner rather than taking account of our weaknesses. If we put someone in isolation, they too will go to a golden calf. Of all people in a church, interdependency is likely the most important for a pastor. The Israelites saw God as nothing more than golden calf, someone to provide instantly the things they wanted so it was a small step to simply build one. We too look for a golden calf in a pastor and expect him to perform the things we don't want to do and to be the kind of person we are to afraid to be.
People sin and fall out of their own free will, but we do not help them along when we assume they must have a facade. We fall when we assume we must have a facade. And all as a cover for our weakness. But Paul says that My grace is sufficient for you. My power is made perfect in weakness...For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Perhaps the issue is anger and frustration. Funny how Christians have learned to suppress our anger and give ourselves a self righteous pat on the back--as if being angry were a sin. Remember the Bible says to not allow the sun to go down on your anger which means to not allow anger to be long term. To not allow it to fester into bitterness. I think of Mary and Martha when they had Jesus at their home. I can imagine Martha bustling about trying to make everything just so and Mary just sitting talking to Jesus. See the picture? Here's Martha doing a slow burn, perhaps trying to impress Jesus and when she finally pops, all Jesus says is that Mary was doing what was right because her priorities were right. Perhaps Martha had issues with being a good hostess, but she was not confronted for her anger, but rather her issue that made her forget what really is important. It seems that is what relying on facades do. It interferes with what really is good. In our anger, it is easy to sin because we cannot focus on the truth, but only on our issues
I think of Jesus and the Woman at the well.
Read John 4: 1-26
Here was a woman who could have claimed issues about her past husbands. Perhaps some of them were abusive. Perhaps they ran off. Who cares. She was humble enough to know that her strength was God. Funny how Jesus consistently responds to a humble heart in the Gospels and confronts those hiding behind their weakness, their issue, using some false shield, a facade. He responded enough to he broken spirit that he even revealed to her who he really was knowing that revelation would not be trampled on. He knew not to throw this pearl to the swine. And if you want to know who the swine are, they are the people who vigorously guard themselves against the truth because of their issues. If you really want to be hurt by someone, look for someone with lots of issues. Like the Pharisees. Jesus finally did reveal to them who he was and unlike the woman at the well, they killed him.
It doesn't matter what your issues are. The point of this text in 2 Cor 12:9 is that no matter what our weakness is, My grace is sufficient for you. My power is made perfect in weakness...For when I am weak, then I am strong.
How easy to hide behind things. Even a name. something as superficial as a name can brand us. In some cultures, however, a name really does mean something. A challenge given to live up to. And the name of God has profound meaning. One name, Jehovah Jereih, the Lord provides, has an amazing reality attached.
What has the lord provided? In this passage, we can learn to not be afraid of our weakness. To not run from it, to not hide from it behind a facade, or most of all, perhaps, to not call it an issue and simply brush it away.
In our weakness--and we are all weak--there is strength in looking directly to the god of grace to find strength in his power. For when we are weak, we are strong because we have our strength in a God whose name means strength, in a God who is sufficient in all things.
Third Devotional:
Marrying Foreign Women
Nehemiah--marrying foreign women--Nehemiah 13:23-27
S. How do we respond to deterrents to our faith?
C. We respond by recognition and resistance.
EI. We respond to deterrents to our faith by recognizing the sin and resisting it. When we forget who we are, we will "marry foreign women".
Intro.: A few years back I wrote a very silly letter to the Dep corporation, the makers of LA Looks hair gel. having nothing better to do that afternoon, I wrote the following letter.
As it turns out, my wife being the conservative sort she is, put the green goo in with the pink stuff to save shelf space when the two bottles were half empty. This made sort of a sickly anemic green color hat lost the brilliance of the original green goo. I couldn't imagine using pink goo in my hair and assuming that it could ever do what a green goo can do. My question is this: By mixing the two, can I cause arthritis? I had an Uncle Billy Bob who mixed unleaded and regular gas in his tractor. Every body told him not to do it but he was a stubborn old man and he'd go right on mixing anyway against everybodies advice. Sure enough, by and by he got arthritis. Until now, I never have mixed anything. When I eat fries, I drink the ketchup separately. I don't like to mix modifiers in grammar. Mixed company gives me the heevie jeevies and mixed breeds is dogs is the Devils work. Please let me know if I'm gonna get arthritis by mixing the green and pink goo.
It's scary when someone has too much time on their hands. But they responded assuring me I would not get arthritis because of their goo. We usually think very little of mixing things. Some of the best recipes have been made my mistakenly mixing things. Some of the worst disasters have been made by the same means. But who would have ever thought cheese and peanut butter would be so good? Who came up with the idea of mixing ice cream and root beer?
Industries have mixed things and come up with wonders like nylon and PVC pipe. They also came up with killer bees by mixing two varieties of kinder and gentler bees.
The movie "The Fly" gave us the creeps when a man was mixed with a fly. And Nehemiah was angry when Israel mixed itself with foreigners.
Read Neh.13:23-27.
Here we will look at the things we "intermarry", if you will, and how our faith is compromised by these things.
I have often wondered why the military stresses time so much. Being punctual. Being early. Ending things on time. Do you know what a gig line is? It is the alignment of your fly, your belt buckle and your shirt. If you are told to water the plants outside the barracks every day, and it rains, so you don't water, you could spend the rest of the day doing sit-ups. You have heard the saying there is the regular way and the military way. In the navy, a friend told me they even have a specific way you knock on an officers door when you are in boot camp. And what's up with this military time? Why is the military like this? Seem strange? You say just to enforce discipline? Why was it important to Nehemiah and Ezra? But why is discipline so important? So you don't get shot? Perhaps. What do you imagine would become of an army where total freedom was allowed? Personal choice? It may start out with a terrific philosophy, but in time it would be so watered down, the goal would be useless.
Why don't they allow officers to date enlisted personnel? I do not think it is there to maintain a hierarchy but rather to maintain clarity. What would be the distinction between officers and enlisted if there would be dating allowed? The lines would become so fuzzy that respect and obedience would give way to individualism. It isn't like masters not marrying servants, it's just that roles and duties when allowed to be mixed will be compromised. And all the other ways that the military has is designed not to keep people under the gun, but rather designed to maintain purity. There is a reason for gig lines, for military time, for spit shines and salutes. There is a reason that keeps the military from falling into compromise and the bible is in a sense, our gig line. It tells us what we need to do to maintain purity and to keep us from falling into compromise. And this is where today's rather strange and obscure text comes in.
But first some background. A brief Bible history. Adam and Eve fell, made lots of babies who made others that became pretty wicked. The flood came and Noah and his family made more babies that eventually found Abraham in the middle of some desert. God promised him that he would become a great nation and that it would lead to the promised messiah. He had Isaac, who was followed by Jacob who was again followed by Joseph who went to Egypt to live. He made babies and they became the Israelite nation. Three hundred years later, Moses led them out of Egypt, through an ocean and a desert and ended up in the promised land 40 years later. They were at first pretty peaceful and were led by a theocracy--the judges including Samson and Deborah, but the people wanted a king so the chose Saul. He was followed by David who was followed by Solomon. After Solomon, the Nation split with Israel to the North and Judah to the South. This was called the divided kingdom. Soon, Israel was destroyed and was later followed by Judah going into captivity by the Babylonians. Here, we see Daniel and the lions and the furnace. And it's here that we see Ezra and Nehemiah. They brought the captives back to Jerusalem and promptly reamed them for marrying foreign women.
Read Ezra 10:1-4
Nehemiah was not alone in his anger. But what is the problem with marrying foreign women? The problem is that it compromised the purity of the nation of Israel. Just like officers dating with enlisted personnel would compromise the clarity of their roles.
Illus.: Do you remember the uproar when Coke changed its formula? People were outraged because the took a tried and true drink, bad is it was, and changed it. Tried to improve it but complaints from people who wanted it the same made them change it back. Coke compromised the product.
Illus.: I ran straight into the ugly side of corporate purity in London Ontario. I was excited when I was last in London because I could visit the GM plant where they make locomotives not realizing that I would leave with my tail between my legs. It was a huge plant. A sunny cheerful day and I could see the guest entrance next to a heavily guarded gate that surrounded the whole plant. So I walk in, camera in hand and inform the lady at the front desk that I wanted to see the production facility. Was there a tour about to start. My first introduction into a huge corporation. She eyed me suspiciously, asked my name and where I was from and what I did. Said a few rude comments and told me to leave. And that was same message I got from the heavily armed guard at the gate who was even less polite. Point is, because of industrial sabotage, corporations keep a tight lid on their facilities. If you are moving from one company to a competing company, you are asked often to sign a paper saying you will not give away secrets. Especially true in aerospace.
Why the harshness? To maintain the purity of the product. If all corporations shared all their newest findings with competitors, I suspect it would bring down the competitive edge needed to stay sharp, to stay productive and profitable. If a company is to be the best at something, there needs to be boundaries on what its members can do and say.
The same was true with Israel. In order to be a great nation, they had to purify themselves by getting rid of their foreign wives so that the nation could be purely as God intended it to be back when he promised it to Abraham. If Israel was compromised, what would that say about the messiah? All prophecy in the Bible has its purpose set in Jesus Christ. Could you imagine an ancestry as outlined in both Matthew and Luke that had impurities, foreign people in it?
Not only does purity have importance in the military, in corporations and in Israel, but it also has relevance to us. In this church. To the people here.
I hesitate on giving this a legalistic twist. I am not saying to throw out sin assuming that will make you more faithful. Go ahead and get rid of known sin in your life, but don't equate sinlessness with faithfulness. A person who rarely sins can be very dead in their faith. But legalism assumes that sinning less means more faith. That is not where I am headed because that's not where the text is headed. What is the relevancy for us today to keep ourselves pure? To not intermarry? Don't so simplistic. That's how a racist would interpret it.
The Israelites were a people called by God. To be pure. To be set apart. To be holy. One part about that was not mixing with foreign women because those women would bring in their pagan gods and introduce pagan worship in the otherwise holy nation. Even Abraham had his baggage. He brought some foreign wives. His dad and hung around with Lot. It didn't ruin him but it did slow him down. The Jews were wanderers, consumers, and integrators with other cultures. When they came out of Egypt, they brought their foreign spouses even when God on a daily basis gave them manna, covered them with a cloud and led them with a pillar of fire. Just like us. They were, however, so concerned about dying in the wilderness, that they would not give up their baggage. Just like us. What baggage are you carrying around? Your spouse that you cannot live without? your health? Your looks or personality? Your security you have found in finances? The unbelief is terrifying. and yet God hung in there with them. And when they would not give up their pagan ways, God allowed them again to go into captivity to purify them. The parallels between Israel and the church are very real.
Perhaps this is happening here at this church. Are we going into captivity--or oblivion? Do we as a body need to purify ourselves? This church will die if we do not first die to self. To be dead enough to no longer believe in our baggage, but rather to believe totally in God alone.
What does it mean to be a chosen people? We are a chosen people. And we are locked in a captivity just like Babylon. We know the path God has given us. To forsake the world. to live as salt in the world. But just like the Israelites wanted to keep their idols, we want to keep our baggage to be what we think we need to be rather than what God has called us to be.
What is your baggage? What foreign spouse have you been carrying? We are called to be out of bondage. Just like Israel, but because of their sin, they were made slaves in Babylon. And again, they absorbed the culture of Babylon. We live in Babylon and we have absorbed the culture. That is our baggage. Our foreign spouses. And they are killing us from within.
The church is about to be carried away into captivity and we stand idly by assuming we cannot live without our baggage. We think that to be a church, we need to look like every other church in North America. But to experience God fully, we also need to leave Babylon. What is the idol that keeps you in Babylon?
The military understands purity. Clarity. Corporations do. Israel did, but we don't. We think growth is the bottom line. Throw the doors open to anyone, don't worry about purity. If this is the attitude, the church will die. Don't look at one person to pull us through. With Israel, God judged the nation because of both the leadership (menassah) and the people. Here Ezra and Nehemiah are doing that. So am I.
In the last chapter in Ezra, there is a list of those who married foreign wives. Like God's book of life, here was a list of those who were going to be cast out of the kingdom. In black and white. They refused to give up their idols. Their baggage was more important than their God. Which book are you in. and choose carefully, because God does not take mistresses.
Fourth Devotional
Romans 10:1-13
Acts 16:25-31
Pretend with me for a moment that you are driving along some road, 65 or 70 MPH, and an oncoming truck blows out a tire, veers in front of you and misses hitting you by inches. It happens in seconds and you drive away unscathed. These things are familiar to us all as we have had moments in life when we find ourselves thinking about dying and hoping we are right with God. And we are perhaps thankful at that moment that our life insurance is paid up through Jesus Christ Mutual Life or now confronting the reality that we need to get a policy as soon as possible. We might ask what we need to do to be saved.
Well, something similar happened in Acts 16 where the most important question that can be asked was asked…
There is a story in Acts 16 where Paul and some friends were in jail and there was an earthquake. It shook the doors open and the jailer in true Roman style was going to kill himself because he thought the prisoners were all going to run when Paul said that no one had escaped. Now the jailer realized his life was spared and he did not have to stab himself. But he asked Paul a very important question anyway. Perhaps faced with the moment of his demise. The Jailer asked what he must do to have eternal life, and Paul told him to believe in the name of the Lord Jesus. He did and at that moment, he was saved.
What must we do to be saved?
Mothers Day, 2000
We have all been victims of indiscriminate acts of kindness. People who do things that because of pure selflessness, we are made to feel good, to have something given to us that was not deserved, and the strange thing is, many people who do these things for us are not even saved. Am I sure? Lately, I am not so sure. I have struggled with where the line of salvation is drawn. Who really HAS received grace? I don’t know, but you can sure tell it by how they live. The question was put to me a while ago by someone who thought herself a heretic for saying it, but asked if the grace of God, if salvation extended to even those who did not ask for it. To admit that may be true would force me to stretch my theology beyond the limits of Scripture, but the question is interesting. Is there another type of salvation that we have not really understood? Or perhaps a better way of asking, is there another aspect to salvation that is not often talked about?
This is a scary question because it forces us right to the edge of heresy. I have said before and I will never move from this truth: we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. But that truth that we accept without question was not exactly what Jesus said.
Now, a bit of history here. The people who spoke to Jesus were Old Testament folks. The Old Testament did not have a well-formulated afterlife concept. If all we had was the Old Testament to define what heaven was, much of what we would know is that Heaven was where God lived, and perhaps some saints and maybe a few angels. Then, the reward that was given by god was primarily temporal rather than eternal. An eternal reward is something we see formulated by the New Testament and since revelation is progressive, we know more about God now than the people who spoke to Christ. Much of what we know of God was given to a few men who through the inspiration of God wrote the New Testament. And we, being good Protestant Evangelical Christian believer types view salvation with an emphasis on what we get after we die. In other words, we emphasize the eternal rather than the here and now, that is the temporal. But salvation starts at the moment we believe. And the moment we believe initiates a changed life.
Now, I sometimes wonder what Jesus would say to those who asked him about salvation if he were here today. A car swerves in front of you. Your life insurance is not paid and you say to Jesus, What do I need to do to be saved? I know how we would want him to answer. As a good Christian, he should say “You need to do nothing to be saved because salvation is by grace and you receive that grace by believing in me”, but I am not sure that is what he would say.
It is like a math problem. There are a lot of ways to represent a number. 75% is the same as 3/4 which equals .75. It can also be shown on a bar graph. Salvation is the same way. A saved person can be represented by grace within them just as accurately as is shown by obedience to the law which is also demonstrated by the life they lead. I could say any one of the these things about a person: They believe in the name of Jesus, they obey God and love other people, they give everything to follow. Every one of those statements about a person says the same thing. They are saved.
I wonder if there is any group of people here and in churches everywhere that by their life and by their actions demonstrates what salvation looks like?
Remember, Paul who spoke much of salvation by grace was speaking about God. Jesus was speaking AS God. And here is God answering a few very important questions. Ones that have haunted people through the centuries. The one question that drives churches to oblivion because of the division it creates. The one question that motivates philosophy, religions and humankind in general.
What must I do to be saved?
Mt 19:16 , Mk 10 : 26 Lu 18:18 Rich Young Ruler,
Lk 10:25, Good Samaritan
Acts 16:30 Paul and the Jailer
Rich Young Ruler
Love of things can overshadow obedience to God
A young guy comes up to Jesus. Actually he is likely carried on one of those fancy stretcher things carried by people less important than he was. They set him down in a place that is right in front of Jesus and he says what do I need to do to inherit eternal life? You would think Jesus would know the gospel and so he ought to say to believe in him. But he doesn’t. He says to follow some commandments. That would not fly in churches today because that is legalism, right? But the rich guy doesn’t miss a beat, says he keeps ‘em and Jesus tells him that he needs to sell everything he has and give it to a bunch of Boon’s Farm swigging poor people. Likely the same ones he cheated to get where he is. No dice. The guy went away.
Ever wonder what would happen if a poor person asked Jesus the same question. I bet they did, and I bet his answer was similar. Obey god and get rid of that which hinders because the love of anything can overshadow obedience to God. Even the love of obedience to God. HUH? Well, a minister DID ask Jesus the same question
Good Samaritan
Zeal for God does not overshadow love for a neighbor.
The Good Gang banger.
He comes up to Jesus and asks what he needs to do to receive eternal life. It was a test and Jesus knew it, so he answered him with a question. What does the law say? I can imagine it is asked with a hint of sarcasm. The minister says to love God and to love other people. Jesus tells him to Just Do It. And the minister digs himself in deeper as the crowd is snickering, well, who is my neighbor, he says…
And here we have the story of the Good Samaritan.
A homeless person was going to the liquor store to buy more Boons’ farm. On the way he passed out in a rain gutter and hit his head on the sidewalk. Since there was a likelihood that he was HIV positive, a group of men going to promisekeepers kept going, as they did not to possibly infect their families. Next a group of women going to a wedding passed him by because they were going to be the bridesmaids and did not want to stain their handmade dresses. Next a guy with a long black trenchcoat, black pants, black Docs dressed as Gothic as possible reached down, shoved the drunks money back in his tattered pocket, dragged him to a cab and took him to Denver General, prepaid his hospital bill and made sure before he left that the guy would get into rehab.
Now who was the Good Samaritan?
1. We must help a person even when he has brought his trouble on himself.
2. Anyone of any nation is our neighbor.
3. Help must be practical, in deeds, not in just feeling sorry for someone.
There are lots of Good Samaritan stories. Some guy is broken down on the side of I-25 with steam billowing out of his crummy ford Pinto with bald tires that was pulling a Chevy suburban. Traffic was backed up for miles. Stupid dope, you say, he was dumb enough to get himself into this mess, he can bloody well fix it himself. Another motorist passes by, says a fervent prayer as he speeds by glad to out of the traffic. Another guy, perhaps the answer to that prayer stops to help.
I could go on, but the point is that we are surprised by the answer to the question, what must I do to inherit eternal life? I always thought the only correct answer was to believe on the name of the Lord Jesus. Over and over Jesus talks about how we live our lives and I think the essence of what he is saying is that we live in such a way that testifies to and confirms our relationship with God.
Salvation does not begin when we die. It begins now, and the saved person lives a certain way.
It seems to me that Jesus challenges hypocrisy in the lives of people who profess a relationship with God. At least with Tax collectors and prostitutes there was no hypocrisy because there was no claimed relationship with God. This is why he could walk in to a house with some poor slob, they do something kind, and he could say, “today salvation has come to this house. Only a hopeless desperation and need of salvation.
And I cannot help but wonder what Jesus would say to the evangelical church today if he were here. I wonder if he too would challenge the strength of our stance of salvation by grace through faith juxtaposed to an unwillingness to give up that which hinders our salvation and a lack of motivation to be a good neighbor. Wondering what I am talking about? I wonder if there is a group in the church that consistently lives according to their profession of faith. The closest I have been able to come up with is the women of the church. They serve in the grunt tasks and are often not thanked and are expected to do more. Then are given mothers day once a year which is a nice way of saying, happy mothers day, here is a flower to help make up for being treated like garbage the rest of the year. Often the grunge thankless jobs go to them, and often they are taken on without complaint. Much of this in the name of women not being allowed to lead because the Bible says men are supposed to do that.
But here is a thought: Suppose men are not called to lead but to serve. We have some great examples here of guys who really do serve with setting up, breaking down, sound, fixing stuff, music, and this is what a church is called to do. Wouldn’t it be great if after a week of serving their families, women could come to church and be served by men? The men make the important decisions, get gridlocked in meetings and read scripture because they’re men, but how many churches have you seen where the prayer chain, the spiritual warfare is done by women? A few isolated verses that speak of the role of women in the church, and the church makes an entire doctrine of it. I wonder what Jesus would say. In some way, I suspect he would call for consistency.
Certainly anyone can serve in a church. Men and women. Perhaps because we are all human, the ideal may never be reached of men banding together, forming a church where others are served and never roped into the food things, the coffee things, the office things, the kid things. Unless they really want to, but never because there is not a man to do it.
So in short, this is my mothers day wish. I wish that men would appreciate the work that their wives and the other women do around the church. I wish that men could see that they do it not because they are women but because they are good Samaritans. And guys, if you want to know what you must do to inherit eternal life, you need look no further than the women of the church.
I am not making a statement here about salvation by grace. Here I am talking about how inseparable a life saved by grace is from a saved person’s works. So perhaps if a mother, a wife and a faithful grunt in a church came up to Jesus and said what she must do to inherit eternal life, he would likely say to obey God. She might say what she does without thanks, and Jesus might say “You Go Girl”.
You want to know how to inherit eternal life? Watch the women in the church and do likewise.
Fifth Devotional
Temptation of Jesus
Luke 4:1-13
Security, Prosperity and Personal Glory
Be careful what you wish for because you just might get it.
Examples--Twilight Zone, Movie “Big”, King Midas, Adam and Eve. Wishes were granted and totally destroyed them. Wishes usually origionate from our own greed rather than reliance upon the father. Jesus was offered three wishes. What did he do? What would you do?
I
Introduction
Have you ever dreamed of finding a genie in a lamp. What would you wish for. The only thing about the wishes is that they would have to benefit you and no one else. Perhaps you may want lifelong security, or maybe to be rich beyond your wildest dreams, or maybe to just be loved and respected. Could you imagine if we had a genie, then we wouldn’t need God! That is if God is only there to meet our needs. If this is shocking, remember that when we sin, we are saying that we don’t need God because we have replaced him with something else. Just like a genie. Replacing God has been a temptation since you first believed. Sometimes you do and sometimes you don’t. But it happens because we all sin.
Think back to when you first believed. Maybe that was not so long ago. Maybe it has not yet started. But usually when we first make a commitment, that promise is tested. Like trying to start a diet. You have a good day and immediately reward yourself with cheesecake. Somehow, becoming a believer is not about getting all the things we hoped for, but rather more about a lifetime of spiritual warfare, standing in truth, holding to grace.
ILLUS. Broom Hilda Cartoon (all my life I’ve been too vain...)
TRANS. Jesus was tempted to not need the Father after he made a commitment --baptism. Satan could offer much more than a genie, so in a sense, Jesus hit the jackpot.
Now we all know the story and we know how it ends. It’s just like a good Columbo mystery, we know our hero will come out a winner. Here’s Jesus in the middle of a hot desert, without food, and his body is weak and hungry. If he fails any of the temptations, all hope for humanity is lost. With Columbo, we always know who the bad guy is and that Columbo has his hands full. it always seems like the guy pulled off the perfect murder. How on earth will poor Columbo get this guy? How is Jesus going to resist the temptations. How do WE resist these temptations?
It’s no fair to say that he resisted them because he was God. Remember he was also human and although he had no sinful nature, he was susceptible to temptation just as the rest of us are. Where we often fail in the arena of temptation, he succeeded. Where we rub the magic lamp that offers security, prosperity and personal glory, he kept his eyes on the Father.
TRANS. Here is a History lesson. We’ll call Bible history 101. Ready??? The temptation can be compared to Israel. Like Christ, Israel had just been Baptized in the Red Sea and was being tested in the wilderness. Where Israel failed, Jesus stood steadfast in God to meet all his needs rather than demand that needs be met by idols--as Israel did. Israel was angry at God because he did not offer instant security, abundant prosperity and personal glory. Jesus knew all these were fully met already in God. I think Jesus was conscious of the relationship between him and Israel as all his references against Satan come from Deuteronomey.
II First
Temptation--SECURITY
TRANS. What might your first wish be from that genie? I wish that I would never want again. Not to be rich, but never poor, never hungry, never sick, never to have to worry about a bill. And not just that, I want a happy life. I want to know I will not ever be sick. I want to die in my sleep peacefully after a long life. And to be at peace with my family. In short, I want to be happy.
Illus.: Alfred Hitchcock was once quoted as saying “happiness for him would be a clear horizon”. An interesting life. Apparently, the only thing suspenseful in his life were his movies. The rest was rigidly planned. To offer security.
This is what Jesus was offered. It’s interesting that there is a strong correlation between this temptation and Adam and Eve. Eating was the method of disobedience that caused humanities fall, so it is no wonder that Satan should again use food to lure Jesus to sin.
Read text--v.1-4
In the Greek, “if” does not question that he is in fact the son of God, but rather affirms it. It could also be translated “since” you are the son of God...
ILLUS. What Satan was saying was this: Since you are a Christian you can sin a little and still be forgiven; since you are a taxpayer, you can fudge a little
The bread is innocent sounding until you realize that it replacing Gods interest with our own interest
This is security: When personal comfort replaces faith.
Man does not live on Bread alone...it does not say we do not live on bread at all.
We have security in God when we realize that all we need physically, emotionally and spiritually has it’s source in God. God uses the world to bless us but the source of the world, its creator is God. We cannot replace the source with the blessing--as Satan was asking Jesus to do. If you bump into a car, do you leave a note(Rocks) or do you leave(bread).
Satan wanted Jesus to take the easy way out rather than the righteous way out. It would be easy to have security for all our lives just by asking. What I’m really asking for is an easy life with bread where I do not have to trust God. I can still believe in God all I want and still worship, but when I use sin as a way to not need god, I have replaced him with my loaves of bread and bought security.
Sometimes trust does not come easy when you are in the desert.
III Second
Temptation--PROSPERITY
TRANS. O.K., so I an dully convicted by first wish to have an easy life. Forget that. Now all I want is to win the power ball lottery. $300 million. All in one lump sum. I’ll buy some land. Wyoming should do nicely. And Ill get a new Dodge truck.
ILLUS. Have you gone into a store that dazzles you (Caboose Hobbies). It’s hard to think of a Bible verse when all you want is that shiny brass locomotive. Spielberg Movies are the same. Splashy beginnings, action packed and excitement throughout. Try going into your favorite store and thinking of a Bible verse.
read text-v.5-8
Satan tried to dazzle Jesus with the worlds beauty--which it has lots of beauty. I’m sure Jesus was impressed but wasn’t sweped off his feet. Where we forget about God in a moment of excitement or in a moment of anger, Jesus near lost sight of the Father. We are always in a state of worship--either god or not God.
And all this could be his --if the price was right.
ILLUS. Price is Right game show. Bob Barker, Jesus Christ, come on down. You’re the next contestant on the Price is Right. All you have to do to win is bow down, touch your head on the ground as a sign of reverence and you will win. Of course he didn’t do it, but we do when we fall for the lure of a life of prosperity. We touch our forehead to the ground in reverence when we are swepped off our feet. This is not affluence, but rather a burning desire to have more than what we have already. When our things become life.
Prosperity:
when attachment replaces ownership.
(remember security--from the first temptation-When personal comfort replaces faith.)
Attachment is a consuming, burning desire to have something or be someone. Ownership is one thing, but attachment is bowing down and touching your head on the ground at the feet of anything but God. For some reason we never learn that sin does not satisfy because we keep wanting to be attached. We live in a culture that caters to this never ending demand for more.
Jesus answered “ You shall worship God and serve (be attached to) him only.
IV Third
Temptation PERSONAL GLORY
TRANS. O.K., so again I am convicted that My wishes are bogus. Here’s my last wish. I wish I could return to my childhood and do it over again but this time knowing what I know now. My super intelligent mind in a child’s body. I would be a prodigy. I would be a great scientist at the age of nine, really impress my parents--and they would be proud; I’d be wise beyond belief, respected beyond measure, and perhaps the most godly person alive. I’d turn heads where ever I went, and I would finally have the love I deserve.
read text v.9-12
If Jesus took this temptation, he would have a large following and would be believed by all. People would be amazed. But his kingdom would be based on sight not faith. Although he did do a lot of things that were seen, none of them focused on himself. His miracles were for other peoples needs, not for his own glorification.
Here, even Satan quotes from Psalms to try and beat Jesus to the punch. Didn’t work. We do not show our faith by testing God.
ILLUS. If you’re sick, go to a doctor. If you’re depressed, go to a counselor. There are a lot of ways of healing other than divine intervention.
If Jesus had jumped, he would not have been violating a law of God. It is not a sin when we do not see a doctor, although it may be foolish. But this testing is a demand that God rescue us from a problem--which would make God our servant.
When we put God to the test, we are not trusting. Instead, trust is the test.
When we test God, we are seeking personal glory when our desires are that God fulfill us instantly.
Personal Glory is this: When people replace God
(remember security--from the first temptation-When personal comfort replaces faith.)
Prosperity: from the second temptation-when attachment replaces ownership.
It doesn’t matter what we follow, be it security, Prosperity
or personal glory just so long as we don’t follow God. This was what Satan was asking Jesus to
do. Us too.
V Conclusion
Then Satan left for a more opportune time...Perhaps Peter, Judas, or us???
It is likely that all sin falls into one of these three areas.
Bread--Security--I want the easiest way out of a situation, I do not want hardship, and I will use anything at my disposal to make my life easier. I refuse to trust God in the difficult circumstances. My security is the most important thing.
Treasures--Prosperity--I want to replace God with tangible things that sparkle and dazzle. My life must be exciting and I must never lack. I refuse to be satisfied with God. My attachment to things is the most important thing
Temple--Personal Glory--I must be important, understood, accepted and liked. I must be in charge, call the shots, make my own agenda. I refuse to believe that God loves me. My attachment is to how people think of me.
Instead we can learn ...
Trust--Bread--God supplies all we need
Worship--Treasures--God is greater than all things
Patience--temple--God is in charge of all that happens
When we feel that we are in the wilderness, it is important to remember that God is our provider, he is greater and he is in charge.
So be careful what you wish for because you might just get it. And use it to replace God. Then you will know despair.
Sixth Devotional
How was the Jewish “bandwagon” the cause for the stoning of Stephen? When we are on “bandwagons”, how do we act as the Jews did?
Sermon
I promised myself that when I had children they would not watch TV. Instead they would sit at my feet and learn from my gentle tutelage. Inspired by my wisdom, they would grow to be just like me. When I had kids I pretty much threw that idea out and let ‘em watch lots of videos, but promised myself I would never tell anyone. Now, not only do I let them watch, I too watch them--over and over and now I am even using one of them as the opener to a sermon as an illustration of how silly fights among believers look to everyone else. It is the Sneetches on the beaches who are fighting about stars on thar bellies. Those who have stars push aside those who do not have stars on thars. Until Sylvester McMonkey Mc Leech comes along and for five dollars eaches puts stars on the sneetches.
If you know the story, you probably understand it. It seems as if Dr. Seuss often writes about the silliness of prejudging something like eggs and ham, or stubbornness that leads us into total immobility--the Zacks and the prairie of Prax or the absurdity of separating ourselves onto groups based upon a silly notion--the sneetches. But churches are famous for doing just that. We divide ourselves up into denominations and cliques based on lots of silly things. I wish it were as simple as stars on our bellies but it is a little more subtle. Perhaps it is age. Marital status, background, cool or uncool, drinker or tea toteler, fat or thin. Not only are these differences going to be erased someday, but I believe we will be held accountable for the differences we cling to.
Illus: Story of a man jumping from bridge--Are you a Presbyterian--of the Missouri or the Alabama Synod--the Northern or the Southern--of the 1887 or the 1889 convention--Die Heretic!!!!
No matter how spiritual and fervent your bandwagon, if you are on it, you are likely leaving Christ behind.
This happens today, and it has happened all through Biblical times. One interesting example can be found in Acts 7 and I need to give you a little historical background which is NOT code for time to take a mental break until I come up with another interesting story.
Some Background: The early church was struggling with what to do with itself in the face of well established Judaism. The early converts were mostly Jewish and were reluctant to give up the ways they had been raised with. Can’t blame them.
Stephen first appears as one of the seven appointed by the twelve disciples to distribute food to the poorer members of the group. There was early on a conflict between the two groups of Jews (Greek speaking and Aramaic speaking ones). The Aramaic ones were accused of getting preferential treatment because of their status. They were not of the “dispersion”. Another debate occurred soon--that is the nature of the temple. The Hebrew Jews --Aramaic speaking ones often held to the sacred nature of the building while the Hellenistic ones, Greek speaking ones seemed to want the abolition of the temple and an institution of a more spiritual form of worship.
Back to the Sneeches on the Beaches. Can’t tell the difference between the two groups, you’re not alone. To go to war over these things is as silly as excluding a sneech for not having a star...
Anyway, Stephen was of the Hellenistic--Greek speaking group and was accused of wanting to do away with the temple.
Jesus was accused of the same thing in Mk. 14:58. So was Paul in Acts 21:28.
Any attack on the temple was considered to be blasphemy of the worst kind. There is a parallel today. What do we hold as completely sacred that any attack on it constitutes doubt on a persons salvation??? We will get to that later.
Anyway poor Stephen was called on the carpet for what people thought he was saying and his words are not so much a defense as a proclamation. He says, rather pointedly that God is not confined to walls. Temples are fine but they neither encapsulate God nor do they define him. He quotes from Isaiah 66:1.
All the sudden in v. 51, Stephen calls the listeners a stiff necked people. They must have reacted to his quotation. He accuses them of having hypocritical hearts, killing the Messiah and not obeying the law.
At this, they gnashed their teeth. But Stephen went on..
Stephen saw Jesus standing --quoting Palm 110:1 perhaps as his advocate.
At this they rushed him and stoned him.
His last words were a prayer asking God to not hold this sin against them. Stephen became the first martyr of the Church. He was proclaiming to the Jews the essence of what they believed and, more importantly, why what they believed was now out of date. You see, the Jews of the time were on a bandwagon. And they left God behind. The essence of Judaism was the promise of a messiah but that became secondary to them as they began to want control. To put boundaries on God. To define God. To enthrone him and to imprison him in a temple. And any word against the temple was a word against God. But God is greater than the temple as the writer of Hebrews says: In Chapter nine we learn that the temple was an imitation, an illustration of what would eventually happen once and for all on the cross. Until Christ died, the temple was all the Jews had but new revelation had occurred. The Jews missed it, but Stephen didn’t. He proclaimed this to the Jews, but because they were on their bandwagon without god, they missed the good news and killed the messenger.
Interesting, when we are on a bandwagon, no matter how fervently spiritual, not only do we leave Christ behind, but also miss our stop when we should get off because the need to be on the wagon exceeds the need to be obedient to Christ. Here are a few examples of bandwagon Christianity...I am going to attack some of our sacred cows so now may be a good time to take that mental coffee break if your life is sustained by a wagon ...
Homosexuality. There’s a good one. Have you ever participated in a conversation or listened to a show that totally slams the gay population? Do you know someone who sees gay people as our sworn enemies, villains of all that is good? Just stay on your side of the fence and away from my kids and we will all be safe. OK..perhaps not that ignorant, huh? How about this bandwagon..Love the sinner, hate the sin? Where is that Biblical, but it is code for stay away from me. I will profess a love for you but if you are a way I do not accept, I have a spiritual right to hold you in contempt. And if you are gay, you are by nature a dangerous creature. But I love you, just stay away. We have mislabeled who the real enemy is. They are not out there. They are in here. Inside. Satan is the enemy. Not the homosexual community. Remember, all sexual sin is condemned whether hetero or homosexual. It is the bandwagon that skews our views. I am not making a statement one way or the other. Just beware...when you judge another you bring judgment on yourself because a judgmental heart is unaware of the inward corruption. Oh, that churches would take care of themselves before they condemn others.
How about abortion: There are those who get completely undone about abortion. This is a dangerous topic because it is one of the most sacred of cows. Much like the temple back in Stephen’s day. Again, I am not here to tell you what to think about this one, but just remember, we have ALL murdered. Let me say that again: We have all murdered. Whenever we slander another, gossip against another, hated another, we have assassinated their character and have become perhaps more guilty that the one who kills the unborn. Oh, that churches would look inwardly and repent of their own sins, their own sacred cows, get off their bandwagons before they offer criticism of another. As long as we are on a bandwagon, no matter how spiritual, we leave Christ behind because when we get on, repentance gets forgotten about.
There are other silly bandwagons. Which version of the Bible is correct. What women should say in church. How a church should be run. And as I read the seventh chapter of Acts, I would like to identify with Stephen, but honesty tells me I am more in line with the Jewish leaders who stoned an innocent man not because he was offensive but because they were hard in their hearts. And when I look down my nose at anyone--which I do-- have stoned them for a sin which is mine.
Illus: Jeff foxworthy--you know you are a redneck when...
You know you are a bandwagon believer when..You know within five minutes where a person stands on...
You look at a churches statement of faith first thing to see where they stand on...
You push a person away when you discover they are...
When we are not on a bandwagon, we can divide the word. When we are on a bandwagon, we divide people.
Be careful who you throw rocks at. It shows you are, like me, a bandwagon believer.
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