The Apostle Paul calls us Jars of Clay (2 Corinthians 4:7). As followers of Jesus we must allow the Word of God to fill us with it's message of Truth and Grace. In this way, we become a "vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work" (2 Timothy 2:21).

Monday, November 28, 2016

Out of This World - November 27th 2016 sermon





By Pastor Greg


Dr. Seuss tells us that the Grinch hated Christmas because all the noise.  But here in our world, have you ever wondered why some people seem to hate Christians, and not just at Christmas time?  Oh, I know not everyone hates Christians, but every now and then you will meet a person or an organization that seems bent on silencing the message of the Church.  And maybe their reaction doesn’t make sense because I know Christians are motivated by love and concern for those living around us.  But still, Christians are persecuted and hated all over the world, and no one can give a good reason why.
Think about what Christianity does to the average person.  If they truly surrender their life to Jesus, the Spirit will transform that individual into someone who is loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled.  Christian men and women become more dependable at work.  They genuinely care about others, and don’t merely look out for their own interests.  They are better neighbors, better citizens, and tend to be considerate and polite in the check-out line.  They don’t return hate when hated.  Instead, they love.  They share things with others.  Why would anyone hate a person like that?
Okay.  Okay.  I know what you’re thinking.  You want to point out that not every Christian acts like this.  Well, yes, that’s true.  But many of us are a work in progress.  The Spirit is at work within us to transform us into this kind of Christian.  And yet, despite our failures and weaknesses, we followers of Jesus seem to be hated and criticized
So, why the hatred?  Listen to what Jesus said.
(John 15:18-25)  18 If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. 19 The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you. 20 Do you remember what I told you? ‘A slave is not greater than the master.’ Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you. 21 They will do all this to you because of me, for they have rejected the one who sent me. 22 They would not be guilty if I had not come and spoken to them. But now they have no excuse for their sin. 23 Anyone who hates me also hates my Father. 24 If I hadn’t done such miraculous signs among them that no one else could do, they would not be guilty. But as it is, they have seen everything I did, yet they still hate me and my Father. 25 This fulfills what is written in their Scriptures*: ‘They hated me without cause.” [1]
Why did the people hate Jesus?  Because they loved the darkness more than the light (John 3:19).  And why do they reject Christians today?  Because they first rejected Jesus (verse 18).  Some people in this world will reject us and our message for no other reason than they hate Jesus.  They hate the light.  As you and I are taking the message of God’s Grace out into the world, we will meet people who hate us and do everything in their power to silence the message of the Church.
Personally, I glad Jesus didn’t start off with this lesson.  How many of us would race off gung ho to tell the world about the Lord if we knew the world would hate us.  And yet, it seems, Jesus wanted us to know what we are up against.  He warns us that hatred, by some, is a given.  But He also encourages us that the Holy Spirit will help us as we witness to others about Jesus.  The Spirit, working through us, will testify about Jesus.  It reminds me of the time Barnabas and Paul we trying to tell the governor of Paphos about Jesus.  But a sorcerer kept interrupting and told him to ignore what these Christians were saying.  That’s when Paul, filled with the Spirit, called the sorcerer the “Son of the Devil” (see Acts 13:6-12).
See, that’s what I want to do.  Sometimes I just want to let loose a string of rebukes toward those who mock and ridicule my Lord.  However, I think Jesus knew our tendency to fight fire with fire.  Therefore, He throws in a subtle reminder that His followers are to respond differently.  He reminds us that we have been plucked out of the world – meaning, we should respond to hatred differently.
Let me close by spending a few moments talking about how Christians should respond to the world’s hatred.  As Christians, we are to respond to trouble, hatred, and criticism with Magnanimity.  I know, you’re thinking Magna-what?  It’s an old English word that means “loftiness of spirit enabling one to bear trouble calmly, to disdain meanness and pettiness, and to display a noble generosity.”  Today we might say this person is a true gentleman, or that she is very tactful.  Although we would rather respond to the world with hatred, we are called to bear trouble calmly, which is not so easily accomplished.
In a recent blog post, Kevin DeYoung wrote, “The magnanimous person is the one who does not bear petty grudges, does not wallow in self-pity, does not demand penance, does not advertise his suffering, and does not stoop to settle every score. In an age where everyone is scrambling to be more aggrieved than everyone else, where we think nothing of retweeting praise and retweeting insults (to prove our aggrieved status), where apologies are routinely demanded and offendedness is next to godliness, surely we have much to learn about magnanimity.
It’s not only the right thing to do. It’s the smart thing to do. While we certainly want to stand up to real physical violence and insist on all the rights accorded us by God and by the laws of the land, when it comes to insults, rudeness, and social media scrappiness, killing them with kindness is usually the way to go.” [2]
The main reason Christians should respond with magnanimity is because Jesus has called us out of this world (verse 19).  This, I believe, is the main point He is trying to teach.  Yes, there will be people who hate us for no good reason.  They will say things, post nasty statements on Facebook, try to pass laws that restrict our ability to tell others about Jesus, and they will write nasty blog posts about our Faith.  However, we are not to react as a person of the world.  At present, we may still be in this world, but our actions must demonstrate that we are no longer part of this world.  Solomon wrote, A man’s discretion makes him slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook a transgression[3] (Proverbs 19:11).  And when you or I can take an insult and bear it calmly, we give glory to God – the One who has called us out of this world.



[1] Tyndale House Publishers. (2007). Holy Bible: New Living Translation (3rd ed.) (Jn 15:18–25). Carol Stream, IL.
[3] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. 1995 (Pr 19:11). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.

No comments: