Almost a Christian

The following message was adapted from John Wesley's sermon from 1741 titled "The Almost Christian."  I pray it challenges you to consider the very important question:  Are you a Christian or merely almost a Christian.

Acts 26:1-29

¹Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You may speak in your defense.”

So Paul, gesturing with his hand, started his defense: ² “I am fortunate, King Agrippa, that you are the one hearing my defense today against all these accusations made by the Jewish leaders, ³ for I know you are an expert on all Jewish customs and controversies. Now please listen to me patiently!
⁴ “As the Jewish leaders are well aware, I was given a thorough Jewish training from my earliest childhood among my own people and in Jerusalem. ⁵ If they would admit it, they know that I have been a member of the Pharisees, the strictest sect of our religion. ⁶ Now I am on trial because of my hope in the fulfillment of God’s promise made to our ancestors. ⁷ In fact, that is why the twelve tribes of Israel zealously worship God night and day, and they share the same hope I have. Yet, Your Majesty, they accuse me for having this hope! ⁸ Why does it seem incredible to any of you that God can raise the dead?
⁹ “I used to believe that I ought to do everything I could to oppose the very name of Jesus the Nazarene. ¹⁰ Indeed, I did just that in Jerusalem. Authorized by the leading priests, I caused many believers there to be sent to prison. And I cast my vote against them when they were condemned to death. ¹¹ Many times I had them punished in the synagogues to get them to curse Jesus. I was so violently opposed to them that I even chased them down in foreign cities.
¹² “One day I was on such a mission to Damascus, armed with the authority and commission of the leading priests. ¹³ About noon, Your Majesty, as I was on the road, a light from heaven brighter than the sun shone down on me and my companions. ¹⁴ We all fell down, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is useless for you to fight against my will.’
¹⁵ “‘Who are you, lord?’ I asked.
“And the Lord replied, ‘I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. ¹⁶ Now get to your feet! For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. Tell people that you have seen me, and tell them what I will show you in the future. ¹⁷ And I will rescue you from both your own people and the Gentiles. Yes, I am sending you to the Gentiles ¹⁸ to open their eyes, so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and be given a place among God’s people, who are set apart by faith in me.’
¹⁹ “And so, King Agrippa, I obeyed that vision from heaven. ²⁰ I preached first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that all must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do. ²¹ Some Jews arrested me in the Temple for preaching this, and they tried to kill me. ²² But God has protected me right up to this present time so I can testify to everyone, from the least to the greatest. I teach nothing except what the prophets and Moses said would happen— ²³ that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, and in this way announce God’s light to Jews and Gentiles alike.”
²⁴ Suddenly, Festus shouted, “Paul, you are insane. Too much study has made you crazy!”
²⁵ But Paul replied, “I am not insane, Most Excellent Festus. What I am saying is the sober truth. ²⁶ And King Agrippa knows about these things. I speak boldly, for I am sure these events are all familiar to him, for they were not done in a corner! ²⁷ King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do—”
²⁸ Agrippa interrupted him. “Do you think you can persuade me to become a Christian so quickly?”
²⁹ Paul replied, “Whether quickly or not, I pray to God that both you and everyone here in this audience might become the same as I am, except for these chains.”

Introduction

            We live in a “Christian” society (or at least we think we do).  Polls show that 71% of Americans claim to be Christian.  However, more and more, people are acting in very unchristian ways.  Even our government is making decisions many feel are unchristian.  We fear our nation is slipping into unchristian ways.

            Paul and the other Apostles lived at a time when Christians were such a small part of the population they seemed insignificant.  It is estimated that less than 1% of the population at that time was Christian.  There were only 40 Christian churches in the whole world in 100 AD!  This tiny group of Christians were spread out across a Mediterranean world filled with debauchery, corruption, and bent on destroying the fledgling Christian faith.  Compared to those beleaguered Christians, you would think we have nothing to complain about!

            Perhaps, the main reason we fear for our country is because it has been so “Christian” in the past.  We remember fondly a time when churches were better attended, people were more honest, and society better reflected the beliefs and values we consider “Christian.”  And now, as we see those values eroding, we feel our nation will soon be “Christian” no longer.

            But then, we need to consider if we truly live in a Christian society now.  Have we ever really lived in a Christian nation?  Does the term “Christian nation” even mean what we think it means?  What does it really mean to be a Christian?  And most important of all, we need to ask ourselves:  Am I really a Christian?  These are the questions we will explore in this message.

The Characteristics of an Almost Christian

            There are many good, kind people in our world who are not Christians.  Sometimes we admire them and mistake them for Christians.  So, the first thing we must do if we are going to define what is a real Christian, is to note the characteristics of someone who is almost a Christian. Then, we will be able to go one step further and describe someone who is completely a Christian.

            Someone who is almost a Christian is honest.  They tell the truth and do not lie.  In fact, they will speak the truth even when it is hard.  They will be honest, even if it goes against the grain of public opinion.  They will tell you what you need to hear even if you don't want to hear it or if it upsets you, because someone who is almost a Christian is truthful.  Yet it is more than just words.

            Someone who is almost a Christian also has integrity.  In other words, they are the same person when no one is watching that they are when everyone is watching.  Someone who is almost a Christian acts the same way on Sunday morning at church that they do on Saturday night.  They have integrity.

            Someone who is almost a Christian--who is standing right at the threshold of being a true Christian--is kind and helpful.  They are the kind of person who always encourages others.  They send cards to people who are sick or in mourning. Someone who is almost a Christian visits people when they are in the hospital.  They are so thoughtful and always know the right thing to do to cheer people up.  Someone who is almost a Christian faithfully prays for others, but there is more.

            Someone who is almost a Christian--who is knocking at the very door--will be very religious.  They refrain from things the Bible forbids.  You would never hear someone who is almost a Christian spewing profanity.  Their talk will always be wholesome and good.  They would never commit adultery or steal.  They would never go around town gossiping about others behind their back because they are almost a Christian.  However, these people do more than avoid bad things.

            The "almost Christian" does many good things.  They go to church regularly.  They volunteer at church and in the community.  They might coach their son's baseball team or teach Sunday school.  They do good every chance they get--even giving to charity, both within the church and without.

            Someone who is almost a Christian--just millimeters away--is always clean and well put together.  They exercise regularly and take care of their body.  Their home is always clean; you can stop by anytime unannounced and you will never find dirty dishes in the sink; there will never be dust on their furniture.  Their vehicle is always clean and tidy; it never smells like the lunch they ate in their car yesterday, because they are almost a Christian!

            These people--who are almost Christian--are some of the best citizens you will find.  They always do their civic duty.  They are proud of their country and community.  They always want to do good and be good.  One more thing:  someone who is almost a Christian prays every morning and night, and before all their meals, and many times throughout the day.  They are always praying to God, because they are almost a Christian.  

            Some of you will say:  "Is it even possible that someone could have all these fine attributes and still only be almost a Christian?"           

            Yes!  John Wesley, who founded the Methodist movement, who wrote the sermon that inspired this blog, was just such a man.  He said this of himself--that he was at one time only an almost Christian.  Listen to some of the things Wesley did before he became a complete Christian:

Wesley grew up the son of a preacher.  He learned the Bible and godly living from his saintly mother.  He went to seminary and became an Anglican priest.  He traveled from England to Georgia to be a missionary to the Indians.  John Wesley strove with all his might to do good and follow God’s will as a Christian.  Yet it was only after he had already done all these things that Welsey fnally realized he was only an almost Christian.  In 1738 while listening to someone read Martin Luther's preface to the book of Romans, something amazing happened.  Wesley said, "while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that He had taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and death."  Wesley realized that all the good things he had done, all those things that made him almost a Christian, had done absolutely nothing at all to save him.  Only Christ could save him and so Wesley surrendered everything to Jesus and became a real Christian for the first time at the age of 35-years-old.

A Complete Christian

            Now that we have described someone who is almost a Christian, we can define what makes you a complete Christian.  First, Jesus said you must "Love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength…"  God must be absolutely first in your life, no exceptions.  

            Many will say, "Of course!  I do love God."  No, I don't think you understand the gravity of this.  The love of God must engross all your heart, all your desires, all your passions until you are utterly dead to the world; until your pride is obliterated.  Your love for God must take absolutely first place in your life--before your wife, before your kids, before your career, before your hobbies, before all your worldly desires.  You must forsake all else for the love of God--Jesus said this is the greatest commandment.

            And the second greatest commandment--if you are to be fully a Christian (and not only almost a Christian)--is to "Love your neighbor as yourself..."  And in case you're wondering, Jesus said everyone is your neighbor.  It's not just the person who lives next door, it is also the person who lives on the other side of town or the "wrong" side of town.  It is also the illegal immigrants from Mexico who keep crossing our borders and threatening our economy.  Our neighbors are also homosexuals and others with lifestyles with which we don't agree.  Our neighbors are people in other countries who do not share our same values.  These are our neighbors and we are to love them.  The person who shot and killed all those people at the nightclub in Orlando is also our neighbor; so are terrorists who are bent on destroying our way of life.  All these are our neighbors and we are to love them as we love ourselves.

            You say, "Those aren't our neighbors!  Those are our enemies!"  Jesus also said, "Love your enemies.  Pray for those who curse you."  So if you are to be fully Christian, you also must love your enemies--both your own enemies and the enemies of God.  And your love must be such that you would even lay down your life for them, as did Christ.  Lest you forget what this Christian love is, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 tells us, "Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance."

            You say, "Who can live like that? It's impossible."  You are right.  It is impossible.  No human can love like this.  It would be like asking a camel to walk through the eye of a needle.  So there is one more thing you must have if you are to be fully and completely and wholly a Christian: faith.  

            Humanly speaking, it is impossible, but with God all things are possible.  With Christ we are more than conquerors.  With Christ, we are called sons of God.  Christ said we would do even greater things than he did!  (How is that possible?  How can we do more than Jesus?  He was God! Yet, Jesus said we would!)  Through Christ, we have overcome the world, death, sin (not just the guilt of sin, but also the power of it!).  Through faith in Christ, we are saved!

            But don't be deceived!  Faith that doesn't bring repentance, right living, love and good works, is not real faith; it is a dead and useless faith, the same faith demons have.  You say, "I believe!  I believe what the Apostles' Creed says:  I believing Jesus was born of a virgin, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified dead and buried, and that he rose again on the third day, and ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty!"  Good, but don't you know there are demons burning in hell right now who believe those very same things?  That is not saving faith.  It is dead and useless.

            Faith that saves, is trusting in Jesus so that you surrender everything to him.  It is trusting him enough to follow his teachings and do what he says, right now.  Saving faith is putting the love of God and your neighbor above everything else.  It makes you throw away all your pride, all your reliance on your own merits--knowing that all your good deeds are nothing and have no ability to make you good, let alone save you.  That kind of faith changes you.  It changes everything.  

            John Wesley said:  "Whosoever has this faith which ‘purifies the heart’, by the power of God who dwelleth therein, from pride, anger, desire, ‘from all unrighteousness’, ‘from all filthiness of flesh and spirit’; which fills it with love stronger than death both to God and to all mankind—love that doth the works of God, glorying to spend and to be spent for all men, and that endureth with joy, not only the reproach of Christ, the being mocked, despised, and hated of all men, but whatsoever the wisdom of God permits the malice of men or devils to inflict; whosoever has this faith, thus ‘working by love’, is not almost only, but altogether a Christian."

Conclusion

So we must get to the most important question today, which is not are we living in a Christian country, but am I a real Christian?  

I think if we are honest, we will have to admit that not many of us even rise to the level of someone who is almost a Christian. How then can so many go on believing they are completely a Christian. And if not, then what are you to do? Should you go on the same as you were before you read this? Should you go on pretending to others that you are a real Christian or deceiving yourself until the day you are horrified to find yourself before God’s throne and finally realize that you were not a Christian your whole life or maybe almost a Christian, but that you have failed to be wholly and completely and fully a real Christian.

Humble yourself.  Repent.  Let Christ save you and have faith in him alone to help you live as a True Christian from this day forward.

5 Ways to Know What's Going On at Church this Summer

Stay Connected at Church this Summer.
Summertime is fun time!  Kids are out of school.  It's a time for trips and swimming and vacations and outdoor activities.  It's also a time when people lose touch with what's going on at church.  I see it happen every summer.  Someone says, "How come I didn't know Mr. Brown died?  No one told me."  Or they say, "Why didn't I know about our church VBS?"

Summertime is a fun time, but it's also a crazy time at church.  Our routines are all mixed up, people miss church on Sundays because they're on vacation (so they don't get a bulletin or hear the Sunday announcements).  All this can lead to a breakdown in communication and frustration for people who want to stay connected to the life of the church over the summer.  It is just as frustrating for church leaders who want you to be connected.

Here are 5 Easy Ways to Keep Up with What's Happening at Your Church: 

1.  Come to church.
The very best way to stay connected is to come to church on Sunday mornings.  It will feed your soul and it will also keep you informed.  Consider this: if you miss just one Sunday, you might have to go two full weeks without hearing important news from the church.  If you miss two in a row, you're just plain lost! (Not really, but you are going to have a serious problem staying informed about stuff at church.)  So come to church as much as you can.  Resist the temptation to be lazy and skip a Sunday.  I understand you might need to miss church if you are on vacation, but be sure you attend if you are in town.  And if you must miss a Sunday, the following steps become even more crucial to knowing what is happening at church.  So pay attention!

2.  Read Your Church Emails.
Let me say that again, READ YOUR CHURCH EMAILS.  During the summer months, Pleasant Grove will email a copy of our Sunday bulletin every Monday morning.  We will also send periodic updates about prayer requests, announcements, and other important information as needed.  But none of these will do you any good if you don't read your church emails.  So DON'T SKIP YOUR CHURCH EMAILS!  READ THEM!!!  I often hear people confess they didn't read an email the church sent (or that they just glanced at it without really paying much attention).  That's not going to help you. READ YOUR EMAILS or you will only have yourself to blame when you don't know what's going on.

3.  Check Our Church Facebook Page - www.facebook.com/pgumc.dalton
This is the church's most interactive, up-to-date, information source on the internet.  We post prayer requests, announcements, and other important news here regularly.  Furthermore, you can interact by responding to our posts, asking questions, or posting news of your own to share with your church family.  Facebook is a valuable tool at our church.

4.  The Old Fashioned Ways 
I understand that not everyone uses email or Facebook.  Although these tools will enhance your ability to keep up with what is happening at church, you can survive without them.  However, if you don't utilize email or Facebook, you need to be especially proactive about seeking information you might have missed.  Call the church office and ask the secretary.  Call someone who was at church Sunday and get an update.  I would especially encourage you to keep in touch with your Sunday school teachers, youth minister, and children's minster.  These leaders are more likely to have the information you need to know about church activities.  Sometimes the old ways are the best ways, but you have to work harder at them.

5.  Stop by the Church Office - Monday - Thursday, 8:00-3:00
The church office is staffed by our wonderful church secretary, Angela Stack.  She is the central relay for almost all essential church information.  Stop by and see Angela sometime during the week and she can help you catch up on what you missed.  She can also help you share information with others.  The church secretary can answer many of your questions or at least point you to the right person.

Stay Connected this Summer!
We need your help to keep everyone informed and connect at church this summer.  Please do your best to keep up with important information and we will do our best to share it with you during the fun, crazy summer months.

The Truth As Far As I Can Tell… The Art of Losing

1 Peter 5:6 – So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.

            Jiu-jitsu is a martial art that uses grappling to defeat an opponent.  Unlike other martial arts like karate and kung fu that teach kicking and punching, jiu-jitsu teaches students to wrestle an opponent to the ground and choke them or twist their joints until they submit.  When a student establishes a proper choke or joint lock, their opponent submits by tapping them so they will release the hold and not injure the opponent.  The “tap” is the most important move in jiu-jitsu.  It allows students to spar at full power without getting hurt and clearly defines when a person submits and the match is over. 

It doesn’t take long for jiu-jitsu students to let go of their ego.  You can’t hang on to your pride for very long when you are getting “tapped out” on a regular basis by people who are smaller and weaker than you.  Even the best jiu-jitsu artists tap out thousands of times in the course of their training.  Tapping out is a great way to learn.  When you tap, you go back and figure out what you did wrong and try again. 

            What is true for jiu-jitsu is true for life.  No one likes to lose.  No one likes to admit their mistakes.  It damages your pride and humbles you, but that’s a good thing.  Losing and admitting our faults are the best ways to learn.  The Disciples messed up again and again in the New Testament and, by God’s grace, it was OK.  They learned from their mistakes and went on to do better.  Through these flawed, mistake-prone people, Jesus established his Church and changed the world forever.

            Since Christians are the Disciples’ spiritual descendants, we should give ourselves and others the freedom to make mistakes, fail, and try again.  We have to change our attitudes so that losing isn’t seen as the end.  It’s just a chance to learn and improve.  Selfish-pride and ego should have no place among God’s people.  Lighten up on yourself and others too.  Seek to be and do your best, but understand that the road to your best will most likely lead through many failures along the way.  If you don’t make a few mistakes, you are playing it too safe. 

            So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor.  Of course, I’m no expert and certainly don’t claim to know everything, but that’s the Truth as far as I can tell…

God loves you and so do I,

Jesus, the Name Above All Names

Philippians 2:5-11

 

Introduction

I’m terrible with names, but after six years I’m finally starting to learn everyone’s names at my church.  For me, that’s an incredible miracle and I give glory to God for it.  Names still slip my mind, but it’s not that I don’t know them.  It’s just absent mindedness I think.  I will look right at someone I know very well and the name just won’t come to me.  I think it’s a disorder! 

I even started pronouncing Andrea Denson’s name right; but the only problem is now I call all Andreas, Undrea!  I finally figured out Barbara (older) and Becky (younger) Haley.  I knew your names were Barbara and Becky Haley for years, but I couldn’t keep straight which one was which!  And I’ve even had fun meeting new people coming to our church like DJ Seifert who joined Pleasant Grove last Sunday and his mother, Susan Stone (who by the way in my head I keep wanting to call Sharon Stone!  So Susan, please forgive me if I ever call you Sharon.  I know who you are, but I’m also an absent minded duffus sometimes!)

And I’ve finally figured out all the Brookers—at least the ones that attend Pleasant Grove.  I think I know who all belongs to who—even the ones who don’t have the last name Brooker anymore.  Of course, I still meet people out in the community sometimes who say they are part of the Brooker family and it catches me off guard because I wasn’t as familiar with them.

            It seems like every church I’ve gone to there are families and names that stand out.  In my last church, it was the Woodwards.  At the one before that, it was the Busbins.  In Lithia Springs, it was the Andrews family.  At East Cobb, it was the Dobbins family and the Ragsdales and others.  These have all been strong, proud families with a rich heritage in their communities.  We all have pride in our family names, but the families that have made the best impact on their church and community for God have been the ones who recognized the Name above all names—Jesus Christ.  The best families pattern themselves after Jesus’ example.

 

Philippians 2:5-11

⁵ You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.

⁶ Though he was God,
    he did not think of equality with God
    as something to cling to.
⁷ Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;
    he took the humble position of a slave
    and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
⁸     he humbled himself in obedience to God
    and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

⁹ Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
    and gave him the name above all other names,
¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹ and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father.

 

            Philippians 2:5-11, is one of my favorite passages in the Bible.  We ought to commit it to memory because it teaches us the attitude of Christ we should imitate.  Though he was the Son of God—deserving respect and admiration, the only person who ever lived who was actually worthy of straight out worship—Jesus was not at all presumptuous.  He was just the opposite.  The Scripture says he was, “humble” and “obedient” and that he served as a slave and even died like a criminal taking our place.  So we who call ourselves Christians should have an attitude like his.

Philippians 2:3-4 says, “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.”  That’s pretty straightforward.  It’s hard to do, but not because it doesn’t make sense.  It makes perfect sense; it’s just hard to do. 

Don’t be selfish.

Jesus was very clear that his followers were not to be selfish.  He put it plainly and even took it to its ultimate conclusion saying it like this, “If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it.”  This saying of Jesus is listed at least five times in the Gospels; I think that proves Jesus was serious about it.  I know he was, because he lived it.  Jesus didn’t ask his followers to do something he wasn’t willing to do himself.  For his entire earthly ministry, Jesus gave unselfishly.  In the end, he literally gave his own life for our sake.

Giving up your life in order to save it seems contradictory, but Jesus spoke the Truth.  I have seen this Truth played out again and again.  People who surrender their life to God and serve sacrificially are blessed and fulfilled in ways that selfish people never experience. 

What applies to individuals is also true for churches.  I see it all the time, because fewer people are going to church these days.  When a church starts shrinking, the church folks get worried.  They think, “If we don’t do something, our church isn’t going to survive.”  So they try a couple things to save the church’s life.  Some try to increase attendance—invite more people to come.   Some try to “stop the bleeding” of people leaving the church. 

At first glance, that seems like the thing to do, but take a closer look.  Isn’t that “survival” attitude really just a selfish motive in disguise?  Isn’t that just the church trying to “cling to its life?”  What does that have to do with sharing the Gospel?  What does that have to do with showing the sacrificial love of Jesus to others? 

Churches in survival mode try to walk softly and make everyone happy so they will stay.  They are less likely to speak the Truth, because it might offend someone and drive them away.  The irony is people leave “survival mode” churches anyway, because people can tell when the church really isn’t genuinely interested in them and how the church can serve them.  People can tell that churches in “survival mode” are really just interested in the butts and the bucks—getting more butts in the pews and more bucks in the offering plates.  That’s not the Church Jesus calls us to be.  If we want to be the “Church” Jesus wishes us to be and if we want to be the people Jesus calls us to be, we need to let go of our life in service of others. 

The Truth is people (and churches) who care enough to set aside their own personal interests for the sake of others find true life just like Jesus promised.  These are the people who grow in the faith.  These are the churches that flourish.  It seems like an incredible contradiction, but it is a Promise given to us by the Son of God in Holy Scripture. 

Don’t try to impress people.  Be humble.

Jesus wasn’t trying to impress people, but people were impressed by him.  It was just a natural side effect.  You can’t help but take note of someone who willingly gives up everything in order to serve others.  The people who impress me the least seem to be the ones who brag about themselves the most. 

When I was at my last church, we were auditioning drummers for our praise band.  This one guy came in and started talking about how good he was.  He said he got his drum set for free because he was sponsored by Ludwig, a company that makes drum sets.  I was really excited, thinking, “Wow this guy must really be good.  We’d be lucky to have him in our band.”  But when he stopped talking and started playing it was awful!  He played way too loud and he couldn’t keep a steady tempo—he kept speeding up and slowing down at random times. Needless to say, he didn’t get the job as our drummer! I’d rather not have a drummer than have a bad one!

                 On the other hand, the Christians I have known that impressed me the most, weren’t even trying.  There was a guy at my last church who anonymously gave $50,000 to the church.  He didn't want any recognition or for anyone to know who he was.  He also said the church could use the funds anyway they wanted.

                 It’s not about money.  I know a lady who ate lunch with her elderly mother in the nursing everyday for years before she passed away.  She didn't do it for recognition, but for love.  There are others I know that deliver cookies to people who can’t get out of their homes much  and others who faithfully check on their neighbors everyday.  There are people who kneel in prayer for others when no one else sees.

No one knows all the things sacrificial Christians do.  People may not even know their names, because they don’t go around telling everyone about their good deeds.  There are no plaques hanging in the church in their honor.  They’re not seeking glory.  They’re just giving out of genuine love.  And that’s impressive, because that’s the same attitude Christ had.  One Day, God will elevate people with that attitude to a place of honor the same way Philippians 2 says God elevated Jesus to the place of highest honor because he laid down his life for a world of lost sinners on the cross. 

Conclusion

In this life, we are proud of our families.  We are proud of our children. We are proud of our parents and grandparents.  We are proud of our church.  We may even be proud of our names.  But One Day, all these things will pass away.  Do you realize that in heaven it won’t matter if you’re a Brooker or a Mullis or a Denson or a Caylor?  In Heaven, the only name that will matter is Jesus.  Jesus is the Name above all other names.  He is the Lord and Savior of the world.  And One Day, the Word of God says, “at the name of Jesus every knee [will] bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” 

Why wait?  Why not start now?  Why not give your full allegiance to Jesus from this day forward?  I challenge you today to lay down your life before Christ.  Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves.  Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.  Make Jesus truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose.  Then you will truly know the blessings of God in your life, in your family, in your church, and in your community.

            If you’d like to accept the challenge, then say a simple prayer.  Say, “Jesus, I give you my life.  I am yours.”  Would you say that prayer today? 

Help Our Community

Matthew 5:14-16

Introductions

Pleasant Grove is on a mission from God to tell people about Jesus and the Holy Spirit gives us the power to do it.  That means whatever we do, we are telling people about Jesus. If we are teaching kids at school, we are telling them about Jesus; if we are making carpet in a carpet mill, we are telling people about Jesus; if we are are visiting someone who is sick and in the hospital, we are telling them about Jesus; whatever we do, we are telling people about Jesus and the Holy Spirit gives us the power to do it. And our long range goals are 1) give hope to the hopeless, 2) build new relationships, and 3) help our community.  

Last week, we discussed how God wants us to follow Christ’s example and build new relationships.  Today we consider goal #3 – help our community.  Listen to what Jesus said about the effect true believers have on their world.  

Matthew 5:14-16

14 “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.

Shining A Light vs. Bragging

Jesus said, “Let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”  People take notice when Christians are sincerely kind and helpful. They shine like a city on a hill.

But some people will say, “Wait a minute!  I thought we weren’t supposed to brag about our good deeds?”  Matthew 6:1 does say, “Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven.” Remember though, Jesus sais that to Pharisees because they only did good deeds because they liked to make themselves look good.

There is a subtle difference between shining your light and bragging.  It is your motivation.  Bragging tries to make you look good.  Shining your light points people to God and glorifies Him.  So we must Help Our Community for the right reasons.  Not to glorify ourselves or our church, but to bring glory to God and for the love of His people.

Jesus Helped Communities

Jesus traveled all over the land of Israel.  Everywhere he went, Jesus helped the communities he visited.  It was a natural outgrowth of who he was and the Kingdom he represented.  Jesus is the Son of God and He represents the Kingdom of God.  There is no sickness or death or suffering or poverty in the Kingdom of God.  All these evils flee when the Kingdom of God comes near.  So it makes sense that whenever Jesus was present: demons were cast out, the blind regained sight, the lame could walk, and the hungry were fed.

Of course, the miracles were a blessing in and of themselves.  But imagine how the blessings spread out and had a rippling effect like a stone thrown into a pond.  Just take for instance the effect of a healing.  Imagine how that blessed the families of those who were healed.  Now there was an extra wage earner in the family at a time when every bit of income mattered.  The family no longer had to care for the sick person; the sick person could contribute.  And that person who’d been healed would have such a fresh perspective on life.  They would be a more enthusiastic member of society, a better citizen, and one that gave glory to God in everything they did.  Imagine the economic impact of just one healing on a community.  Now there is one more person who can work, defend the city, buy and sell goods, take care of his family, raise children, and help others.  And of course, everyone who knew of the healing would find new hope and a better attitude.  So you see, whole communities where blessed when Jesus came to town.

John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist movement led a great revival of Christianity in England in the 1700s.  Wesley preached all over England and people turned to Jesus in droves.  People did away with drunkenness and vulgar language, became better citizens, harder workers, kinder, and more charitable.  Most scholars believe such social reforms as child labor laws, the abolition of slavery in England, the value of education, and prison reform where a direct result of so many people actively following Jesus during John Wesley’s time.  A whole nation was changed because Christians got serious about their faith and did what Jesus called them to do.

Helping Our Community

Proverbs 11:11 says, “Upright citizens are good for a city and make it prosper, but the talk of the wicked tears it apart.”  If we live an active, healthy, Christian life, we will be a blessing to our Community.  It will be a better place to live because Pleasant Grove UMC is in it.  We can help our community believe in itself.  We can help our area be cleaner, safer, and healthier. We should be good to our community because Jesus has been good to us.

What can you do to help our community?

One thing you can do to help your community is support local businesses.  These are the people who live here in our community—your friends and neighbors.  Their success contributes to the success of our whole community.  Our church makes a conscious effort to buy local whenever we can.  For example, you know the fabulous Pleasant Grove t-shirts we have offered.  We were buying them online from a company in Fairfax, Virginia.  Then Donna found a local business who could make the same shirts—The Trophy Hut.  It was a no-brainer for us.  We want to help our community.  We want to support the local economy.  So we bought our shirts locally.  And we try to buy locally whenever we can.  I hope you will too.

Another thing you can do to help our community—pray for it.  Prayer changes things.  It changes people, situations, and it even changes us.  If you want to fall more in love with your community, pray for it.  Do you want have a more positive view of your community?  Pray for it.  Do you want to see better schools and neighborhoods?  Pray for them.  Prayer will change things and it will change you.

When you walk or drive around town, pray for the houses and businesses you pass.    Pray for the churches in our community – not just PGUMC, all churches. (Remember, any church that is telling people about Jesus is part of our team.)  Pray for our community leaders and politicians—especially as they face a tough election this month.  Pray with people. You know just about anyone--Christian or not--will tell you they will pray for you if you ask. It's just a nice thing to say, but not necessarily something everyone follows through on. If you want to really help someone and leave a deep impression of them for Jesus, pray with them--right then when they ask. It doesn't even have to be a fancy prayer--just a sentence or too in normal, everyday language. People might forget if the preacher prays with them, but they won't forget if you do. SO when someone says, "Hey, I'm gonna be late because my son is sick. Please pray for me." Say, "Alright, do you mind if I do that for you right now over the phone." They will never forget that you prayed with them.

Help your community by participating in local community events.  Can I suggest one that happens this month?  Come out for the Family Promise Duck Race in downtown Dalton on May 21st.  It’s a fundraiser for Family Promise to help fight homelessness.  But it’s more than that.  It’s a community event designed to bring people and churches together.  So come out and help your community at the Dalton Depot on Saturday, May 21st starting at 3:00.

Last, but certainly not least, if you want to help you community, live your Christian faith with integrity.  Jesus said we “are the salt of the earth.”  Salt gives flavor.  It preserves food so it doesn’t spoil.  In the same way, Christians who truly live the way Jesus calls us to live add flavor and life to our community.  Our holy living counteracts the wicked deeds of others that threaten to spoil our neighborhoods.  If every Christian truly followed Jesus and forsook the evil ways of our world, our community would experience a tremendous revival and would be beacon of light—a true city on a hill shining for all the world to see.

Invitation

Jesus said, “Let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.”  The most luminous example is Christ, himself.  His final act of selfless love was to lay down his own life for the sake of others.  He laid his life down for you.  It was not just that he died (though that was the ultimate expression of his love).  Think of all Christ laid down for you.

Success.  A man of Jesus' ability could have gone far in this world.  Think of the money, power, influence, he could have achieved.  Yet he gave all that up and chose the life of a wandering preacher, trying to help people.  He didn’t even have a home.

Marriage.  Jesus gave up the joy of having a wife.  We had a wedding for Kathy and Stephen Yarbrough yesterday and we have another one this Saturday for Amanda and Ken.  Weddings are a time of joy and we just assume that most people will experience the joy of marriage at some point in their life.  Jesus sacrificed that dream for you.

Children.  What about children?  My son will graduate high school this month.  What a joy it has been to see Gavin grow from an infant to a young man.  Jesus never got to do that.  He chose instead to sacrifice his life for our sins—for my sins, for your sins.

Mother.  Since it is Mother’s Day, how appropriate to consider the tremendous sacrifice Jesus made in terms of his mother, Mary.  As Jesus was dying on the cross, he looked at his mother.  He must have considered the awful sacrifice they were both making.  They would not be able to spend the next 20 or 30 or 40 years together as mother and son.  Mary would not get to watch her son grow older and pass through the normal stages of life as every man should.  Jesus would not be able to help care for his aging mother.  He would not be able to sit at her bedside as she took her final breath.  Instead, the cross reversed those rolls in a way they should never be reversed for a family—the child died before the parent.  And so as Jesus was dying on the cross, he handed over his responsibility to the disciple, John.  Speaking of John, Jesus said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son.”  And to John he said, “Here is your mother.”

I cannot fathom the heartache and suffering of the crucifixion.  It was horrible for anyone, but especially because Jesus didn’t deserve it at all.  He was completely innocent, the most beautiful person who ever lived.  All he did was bring truth and justice and love into our world.  And they crucified him.  

Yet because of the cross, our sins have been forgiven.  We can find a new life.  We can leave behind our old way of living.  And I pray that we will.  I pray you will not just casually say, “Yes I believe and want to be a Christian.”  No.  I want you to give yourself to Jesus as whole heartedly and sacrificially as he gave himself to you.  As Jesus said, “If anyone wants to follow me, he must lay down his life, take up his cross and follow me.”

That’s what our community needs.  That’s what will truly help.  Not a bunch of casual church people who aren’t much different from anyone else practicing southern hospitality in our Bible-belt neighborhoods.  That kind of religion won’t change much.  But if we will become followers who truly put our allegiance to Jesus and his way of life above everything else, well…  That would truly help our community.  That might actually change the world.

The Truth As Far As I Can Tell... Graduation

            My son Gavin will pass another milestone this month.  He will graduate from high school.  In fact, we have six of our youth from our church graduating from high school—Nikki Hollis, Julia McDonald, Gavin Mullis, Kyle Roberts, Max Wilson, and Tiffany Crawford.  My how time flies!  It seems like just yesterday that Gavin was learning to walk.  I’m so proud of Gavin and all our young people who have grown into fine young men and women.

            The next few years will be tremendously exciting and formative for our graduates.  They will become more independent, making the majority of their decisions for themselves.  I pray that the faith and values we have taught them together at PGUMC will guide their whole life and especially in the next decade as they experience the tremendous transformation of the young adult years.

            If I could offer one final bit of advice for our graduates, it would be the wisdom of Proverbs 3:5-6:

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
    do not depend on your own understanding.
⁶ Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take. 

            This is true wisdom for all of us.  So much of life is beyond our understanding.  Even what we do grasp is only a partial picture.  We do not know what the next day may bring or all that God is doing through our current circumstances.  It is often only after many years that we are able to look back in retrospect and glimpse what God was doing. 

Therefore, as we progress through life, the most important thing is to follow God’s will for us the best we know how.  We must walk by faith—trusting in the Lord.  Since we cannot understand it all, we must have faith that God has a master plan as we step through each door He opens for us.  If we seek His will above all else, God will open up the right doors for us.

We do not yet know what our life will be.  However, if we trust in the Lord with all our heart and don’t depend on our own understanding, if we seek His will in all we do, He will show us the way.  And maybe one day, we will reflect back on our life and see the beautiful journey we walked with God and our hearts will smile.  Of course, I’m no expert and I certainly don’t claim to know everything, but that’s the Truth as far as I can tell…

 

God loves you and so do I!