I Am....the Way, the Truth, and the Life
Scripture: John 13:33, 36; John 14:1-6
from the series "I am..."
Introduction
John 13:33
33 - My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for Me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.
John 13:36
36 - Simon Peter asked Him, Lord, where are You going? Jesus replied, Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will later.
John 14
1 - Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me.
2 - In My Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.
3 - And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with Me that you also may be where I am.
4 - You know the Way to the place I am going.
5 - Thomas said to Him, Lord, we don't know where You are going, so how can we know the way?
6 - Jesus answered, I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
A few years ago while en route to Maine for a family vacation we stopped and spent a few days in the Boston area. There were several things we wanted to see and do while we were there...like visiting Plymouth Rock or touring Cape Cod. We even talked about taking a boat ride out on a whale watching trip. But the first thing we planned on our schedule was to hike the Freedom Trail which is marked with a huge red line that leads through downtown Boston to all kinds of American historical sites...places like the Boston Harbor, the Old North Church, and the homes of Paul Revere and Betsy Ross.
Well, I carefully consulted the map and we left our motel in plenty of time so I felt confident that we could get where we needed to go which was to the parking lot for the start of the trail near Bunker Hill...but it turned out that we had a great deal of difficulty finding our way. I could see where I wanted to go. It was in sight but with Boston's confusing maze of one-way streets and with the interstate packed with commuters, I just could not seem to get there. Several times in the ordeal we would come to a hill and be able to see the Bunker Hill monument a few blocks away, but the harder we tried, the more wrong turns we took, and the more wrong turns we took the greater the family tension we experienced. I think I blew my top several times before we finally pulled into the parking lot.
Sermon
Now, I think all of us know how troubling...how frustrating...it can be to want to get somewhere that you know you need to be but not know how. I imagine most of you have had experiences like this on vacation. Well, as we read a moment ago, at their last supper together Jesus told His disciples that He was going away and that they could not follow Him just yet. They asked Him WHERE He was going and He told them about Heaven and the plans that God already had underway to prepare for their arrival at that celestial city. At this point I think they all thought, That's great! We want to go to heaven and be with You, Jesus....but how do we get there?
Like me wanting to get to Bunker Hill, they could see Who they wanted to be with. I mean they knew where they wanted to go but they didn't know how to get there. And in response to Thomas' request for directions, Jesus said. I...am the Way...the Truth...and the Life. No one comes to the Father but by Me.
Now, I want you to be sure and note that in this particular I Am... statement Jesus summarized everything He had tried to teach His followers for the past three years. Along the highways and byways of Palestine Jesus had used parables and scripture and sermons to guide His followers to understand that what all people need most is God .but that due to our sinful nature, and God's perfect holiness, all people are separated from God. So Jesus came, and by virtue of having lived a sinless life, He would take the sin punishment for all mankind on His body as He died on the cross. In this sacrificial act He would make a way...THE way...from mankind to God. Jesus in essence would become a bridge...the only access to God. This then is what our Lord meant that night when He said, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but by Me.
Now, these days most people like the LAST HALF of this I am... statement. They want to come to the Father. That is to say they want to spend eternity with God in heaven. They yearn for the LIFE AFTER DEATH that we spoke about last Sunday. And they also want the other thing Jesus mentioned. They want ...the Life. They long for a life NOW that is exciting and full of purpose and meaning. They crave the LIFE BEFORE DEATH that we also discussed last week. So they like the last half of what Jesus said here in John 14:6 . But, they don't like the FIRST HALF of what He said that night before His crucifixion...the part where He described Himself as THE Way and THE truth. And the problem is you can't have one without the other. You can't have truly abundant life and the promise of eternal life in heaven unless you embrace the TRUTH that Jesus is the only WAY to God.
Well, this morning as we continue our study of Jesus' I am... statements, I want us to focus our time on studying these two somewhat controversial phrases Jesus used to describe Himself in the hopes that we will be better prepared to explain to our friends and neighbors and co-workers how they can make their way to God so they can experience the life both now and forever that He graciously offers.
1. First of all let's examine the meaning of Jesus' words when He said, I am...the WAY.
Now, the Greek here is emphatic. So what Jesus literally said was, I...and no other... ALWAYS am the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus was saying that there never was, nor will there ever be, any other way to have eternal life in heaven with God other than through His Son's sacrifice on the Cross. Now as you know, if you read the papers these days, this statement is not easy for many people to swallow. In fact, Christians who embrace this conviction that Jesus is the ONLY WAY to Heaven are often referred to as narrow-minded, bigoted...even snobby or pious. Rabbi Schmuley Boteach reflected this attitude toward Christians who believe this when he said,
I am absolutely against any religion that says that one faith is superior to another. I don't see how that is anything different than spiritual racism. It's a way of saying that we are closer to God than you, and that's what leads to hatred.
The views of Rabbi Boteach are illustrative of the day in which we live...a day of religious pluralism and tolerance, where this exclusivity claim of Jesus is politically incorrect and is considered a verbal slap in the face of other belief systems. You see, we live in a culture where there are endless options in virtually every arena of life. And people expect there to be options in the spiritual arena as well. They think of Christianity as just one more option on the spiritual buffet table of life. Many people these days believe that it is okay to think you are right but not okay to think others are wrong. I mean most people don't mind your saying that Jesus was the Son of God. But they do get upset when you say He was the ONLY Son of God.
I believe it is important to point out here that Christians aren't the only ones who claim their way is the only way. Muslims, Mormons, Hindus, Jehovah's Witnesses, Christian Scientists, Buddhists, Orthodox Jews...all of these faith systems also make this claim. But, for some reason Christians are the only ones who are criticized for doing so.
Now, embracing this ONE WAY belief is not popular in our culture because many people feel that all religions are basically identical. They think that all spiritual paths lead up the same mountain so to speak. And you know, Christians SHOULD concede that there is some common ground shared by many of the world's religions, especially when you look at their teachings of basic morality. But at the same time, there ARE drastic and irreconcilable differences between Christianity and other faith systems that cannot be papered over.
All religions are not the same! For example you can't say that all religions believe in the universal Fatherhood of God because they don't. Buddhism doesn't even claim there IS a God. And Hinduism says that everything is God...You are god...I am god...this pulpit is god. Christianity's written source of authority is the Bible. As you and I say every Sunday after we read the sermon text....we believe this is the Word of the Lord. But Mormons take their authority from the book of Mormon and Muslims use the Koran. Another essential difference is the fact that Christianity affirms the deity, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ whereas other faiths like Islam deny all three of these Scriptural truths.
And then, as C. S. Lewis pointed out, one other major difference is that-unlike any other religion-Christianity proclaims a GOSPEL OF GRACE and not works. Every other religion is based on people DOING something. Adherents struggle to somehow earn the favor of God. Some faiths teach that people have to use a Tibetan prayer wheel, or they have to go on pilgrimages. or they have to give alms to the poor, or they have to avoid eating certain foods,
or they have to perform a certain number of unspecified good deeds, or they have to pray at a certain time in a certain position each day, or they have to go through a cycle of reincarnations,
OR WHATEVER.
You see, other religious systems are essentially DO-IT-YOURSELF propositions. Follow this way of life, they say, and you stand a good chance of gaining favor with God and eventually achieving salvation. Other faiths are attempts by people to reach out to God. But Christianity teaches that, in Jesus Christ, God is reaching out to us. We know that Scripture says that God's gift of salvation through Jesus was GOD-given, GOD-driven, GOD-empowered, and GOD-originated. Salvation does not come from man to God through our efforts. No! It is from God to man.
And Christianity alone is based on this philosophy of grace and not works. It teaches that God reached down to us because we are INCAPABLE of reaching up to Him. As it says in I John 4:10, It is not our love for God; it is God's love for us in sending His Son to be THE WAY to take away our sins. Now, on the basis of this point alone, Christianity is set apart from any other religion in the world. No other system, ideology, or religion proclaims a free forgiveness and a new life to those who have done nothing to deserve it and in fact deserve judgement instead. John MacArthur writes, As far as the way of salvation is concerned, there are only two religions the world has ever known or will ever know-the religion of divine accomplishment, which is biblical Christianity, and the religion of human achievement, which includes all other kinds of religion, whatever name they may go under.
This distinction is starkly demonstrated by comparing a parable that was taught by Jesus with a similar story found in Buddhist literature. Both stories involve sons who became rebellious and left home in a huff, but who later saw the error of their ways and decided to return home to be reconciled with their families. But it's the ENDING of the two stories that so clearly points out the difference between Christianity and all other belief systems. In the Buddhist story, the errant son is required to work off the penalty for his past misdeeds by spending years in servitude. But the Christian Parable of the Prodical Son ends with the repentant son being warmly welcomed home by a loving father who showers him with undeserved forgiveness and grace. You see, grace-LESS religions are DO religions-adherents must constantly DO things to even hope to earn their salvation. But Christianity is a DONE religion-it is based on what Jesus Christ has DONE for us in dying on calvary's cross.
Now, don't get me wrong. The Bible teaches that Christians should do good works but we do them as a demonstration of our HAVING RECEIVED God's forgiveness, not as a badge of merit of having EARNED IT.
And you know, because of this profound difference, Christianity alone offers ASSURANCE of salvation. In every other religion it is impossible to have any certainty that you have achieved eternal life. I mean, when do you know that you have done ENOUGH good works? You NEVER know and you never can. Paul Little writes,
I have often asked Hindus, Muslims, and Buddhists whether they would achieve nirvana or go to paradise when they died. I have not yet had one reply in the affirmative. Rather they referred to the imperfection of their lives as being a barrier to this realization. There is no assurance in their religious systems because salvation depends on the individual's gaining enough merit.
Well, as we know, thanks to the Bible, no sinful human could ever gain enough merit to atone for their sins. You see, there is a penalty to pay for our sin and that penalty must be equal to the offense committed. Since our sin is against an infinite God, we need a sacrifice of infinite value. It follows then that only our infinite God can supply the sacrifice that He Himself demands and that is exactly what He has done in sending His only Son to die for us. Martin Luther once spoke to people who thought they could earn their salvation with good works and said, What makes you think that God is more pleased with your good deeds than He is with His blessed Son?!
Christianity affirms this fact then, that our salvation is a result not of what we do, but of our faith in what Christ has done for us. Do you remember Jesus' last words as He hung on that cross? He said, IT IS FINISHED! Through Jesus' death and resurrection love's redeeming work was DONE! So, do you see? The message of DO religions is fundamentally incompatible with the message of DONE religion. DO and DONE are opposite concepts. Both could not come from the same GOD. After all, God isn't schizophrenic. As Lee Strobel says, It would be unlikely that a God who embodies love and TRUTH would go to one side of the planet and say, 'PSST! Let me tell you how you can become reconciled with Me.' and then go to another spot on the globe and describe a completely contradictory way for humans to understand and worship Him, and tell yet a third population something totally new. It makes much more sense that God would act according to His nature as the author of all truth and provide ONE Path...ONE Way...for us to follow. And in fact this is what HE did when He sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to enter human history. This then, is the first way Jesus described Himself to His disciples that night and the other word picture He used was when He said,
2. ...I am the TRUTH.
Now, what was He saying with this phrase? Well, He simply meant that everything He said was true....His every thought and action was absolutely genuine and trustworthy. You know, one of the problems that comes with living in a fallen world, polluted by sin, is that there is so much falsehood and deceit. It is very difficult to know what is real...what is true...what to build your life on. And Jesus came and said, Build your life on Me and My teachings. Trust what I say for I, and I alone, am the truth!
That day we were on vacation in Boston one of my problems was the map I was using. It was flawed and incomplete. I followed it's directions a couple of times and was led the wrong way.
That's the way it is in the world today. Other religions claim to be telling you the truth but anyone who follows their ways will end up at a dead end. Jesus is saying here that we must not trust any other way than His, for His way is the only TRUE way. To experience life both now and in eternity we must follow His teachings.
Now, people have a problem with this statement as well. You see, we live in an age in which TOLERANCE is a much-esteemed word. We are told to be tolerant of everyone's perspectives on truth, no matter how different they may be. And, it IS important for us to be tolerant of people who believe differently than we do. The Bible tells us that, as followers of Jesus we need to be loving and respectful as we share our faith with all people. I Peter 3:15 says, Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with GENTLENESS and RESPECT. So tolerance is a good thing, a biblical concept.
And, I think we would have to confess, that some Christians have not obeyed the command imbedded in this verse. They have shared the truth of the Gospel but they have not done so in gentleness or respect. Ravi Zacharias says that in India there is a proverb that says, Once you cut off a person's nose, there is no point in giving him a rose to smell. And if we are arrogant or unloving then there is no point in attempting to share our faith with others because they will be too angry or defensive to be receptive to our message. In our Bible Study this past Wednesday someone pointed out that due to his own experience with unloving believers Mahatma Gandhi once said, I like their Christ, but I don't like their Christians. Friedrich Nietzshe had a similar experience for he once commented, I will believe in the Redeemer when the Christian [acts] a little more redeemed. We Christians must stop treating people who don't believe as we do like the enemy. For, they are not our enemies. They are victims of the enemy.
We need to be respectful-tolerant-of other faiths. People DO have a right to believe what they wish. This is one of the principles that has made our country strong. But you know, just because beliefs are equally tolerated or protected by our nation's laws does not mean they are equally true. That would be impossible because truth by definition IS exclusive. If a true statement does not exclude, then no assertion of truth is being made. You see, truth, by its very nature, is intolerant of error. If two plus two is four, the total cannot at the same time be 23. I think most math teachers would agree that one should not be regarded as intolerant if they maintained that the only correct answer is 4. If you were to jump of the Cabin John bridge believing you would not fall, don't expect the truth of gravity to be tolerant of your views.
Well the same principle applies to religious matters. One must be tolerant of other points of view and respect their right to be held and heard. But he cannot however be forced, in the name of tolerance, to agree that all points of view, including those that are mutually contradictory, are equally valid. Such a position is nonsense. For example, it is not true that it doesn't matter what you believe as long as you believe it. Hitler's slaughter of five million Jews was based on a sincere view of racial supremacy, but he was desperately wrong. And when it comes to religion, everyone IS entitled to their opinion but opinions do not make truth. Jesus is the truth whether we accept it or not.
Now, I'd agree that Christians are being narrow-minded or holier-than-thou if there really were many roads to God and we were saying that our road was the best. But this is not what Christianity says. We know that the Bible teaches that there IS only one truth -- not many. And the truth is that all of us have sinned and if we are going to get to Heaven, Someone has to pay the penalty for our wrongdoing. Jesus, by virtue of His sinlessness and divinity, is the only One qualified to do this....to be our substitute. That is what He was as He hung on the cross as our substitute. As I John 4:10 says, He came to be... the propitiation for our sins. This is true. This is factual and it is not narrow-minded to act in accordance with the truth.
You know often babies are born with a condition known as jaundice. It's caused by a disorder of the liver and it causes the infant's skin and the whites of the eyes to turn yellow. This is a potentially devastating disorder but it has a simple cure. These babies are put under a special light, which somehow stimulates the functioning of the liver and corrects the problem in a matter of hours. If you've ever visited the newborn area of a hospital then you have probably seen jaundiced newborns being treated. They wear little sunglasses to protect their eyes and they lay there under that light with just a diaper on, looking like they are on the beach catching a few rays. Now, suppose you had a child born with this disorder and the physician urged you to allow him to treat your child with this light. You could respond by saying, That sounds too easy...in fact it's downright silly! Put the baby under a light? I think it would be better if we scrubbed him with soap and water and dipped him in some bleach instead. Certainly if we worked hard enough to scrub him in this way, we could get the normal coloring back.
If you did this the doctor would look at you and say, No, you don't understand. There is only one way to cure your son. You could still refuse his guidance and say, How about if we just ignored all of this. You know the jaundice is your truth doctor. It's not our truth. If we sincerely believe our truth, then things are going to turn out for the best. The doctor would counter by saying, You're going to jeopardize the life of your child if you do that. There is only one truth in all of this....only one way to cure him. It may sound too easy but look at the credentials on my office wall. I've studied at medical school. I've used what I learned to treat and cure countless babies. Trust me on this. Would anybody accuse you of being intolerant or narrow-minded if you looked at those credentials and decided to trust the doctor and pursue the only course of treatment that would cure your son? Of course not! That is not being narrow-minded. That is acting rationally in accordance with the evidence.
Well, as I said last Sunday, the fact is every human being on this planet has a terminal illness called sin. And the reason that followers of Jesus cling to Him so tightly is because they have discovered that He is the great Physician Who has the only cure. We could try to scrub away our sins with good deeds....but that would not work. We could sincerely believe that there are other ways of dealing with our sin but we would be sincerely wrong. The truth is that only the Great Physician offers a treatment that will erase the stain of sin. Only He has the credentials and the credibility to back it up. So when we turn to Him, we're not being narrow-minded. We are simply acting rationally in accordance with where the evidence points.
As Jesus truthfully said that night in the upper room He really is the ONLY Way for us to experience real LIFE now...and have ETERNAL LIFE with God when we die. One of my favorite old hymns says,
I must needs go home by the way of the Cross...there's no other way but this. I shall never get sight of the gates of light if the way of the Cross I miss. I must needs go on in the blood-sprinkled way, the path that the Savior trod, if I ever climb to the heights sublime, where the soul is at home with God. So I bid farewell to the way of the world, to walk in it never more; for my Lord says 'Come' and I seek my home where He waits at the open door. The way of the cross leads home....the way of the cross leads home...it is sweet to know as I onward go, the way of the cross leads home.
Ron Mehl tells of an incomplete bridge span across the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon. It sums up the message of this I am... statement beautifully. When the bridge was built back in the mid-1960's, it was designed to accommodate an east-running freeway, still on the drawing boards which was to be known as The Mount Hood Freeway. But the freeway was never built. Even though land on the east side had been purchased and cleared for it's path, Oregon voters opted for a light rail line instead and plans for the highway were scrapped. If you look carefully when you cross the bridge, you can see how it was built to accommodate a freeway lane veering off to the southeast. There's a lane that juts out just a bit from the bridge structure, but then is cut off as though sliced by a giant knife. The "exit," permanently blocked, now goes nowhere, except to the waters of the Willamette River far below. You can still see Mount Hood in all its beauty, glistening like a jewel in the distance. In the evenings, the setting sun clothes it with a mantle of pink and gold. But you could never, never reach the high slopes of that mighty peak via the Mount Hood Freeway, because the freeway doesn't exist.
Now, that's a picture of man's relationship with God. We might understand that there is a God and even yearn to reach Him across an impossible distance. We might recognize His power and glory, His majesty and goodness, and desire with all our hearts to know Him and be with Him. But the distance is too great. The gulf is too wide. None of us can reach Him. None of us can see Him or be near Him....not on our own! The relationship that existed back in Eden was broken. The road was shattered. The exit ramp to God's presence was cut off and ended in empty space. There was no way until God in Jesus made one. The writer of Hebrews called it "a new and living way opened for us." (Hebrews 10:20 ) Peter bluntly warned his audience not to search for any other road. In Acts 4:12 he proclaimed the truth that, "Salvation is found in no one else...."
Invitation
Now, why is it that so many people today resist this fact? Why do they have such a hard time embracing Christ as the only way...the only truth? Well, I think one reason is that we live in a very selfish world and to accept the claims of Christ requires us to obey His command and die to self. Becoming a disciple of Jesus involves a commitment to let Him rule your life and live in and through you. And many people just aren't willing to do that. It is too much of a threat to their power and autonomy. They want to live their lives as they see fit, not according to the will of God. This is a tragic mistake for as any Christian knows, when we give our lives to God to use, we always get back far more than we give. Well, what about you this morning? Are you willing to die to self and follow Jesus? Are you ready to put your trust ONLY in Him Who is the only way...the only truth? We invite you to make that all important decision so this morning.
Talk to God right where you are; Admit to Him your sin. Believe that Jesus is His only Son and that He died for you on Calvary's cross. Commit to Him your life to use as He sees fit. And, if you are already a Christian looking for a church home, then I encourage you to ask God if this is the place He wants you to serve. Whatever decision you have to make we urge you to make it public by walking the aisle and sharing it with myself or Steve as we stand together now and sing.
Friday, August 1, 2008
I Am , The Good Shepherd
I Am, the Good Shepherd
Scripture: John 10:11-15, 18
from the series "I am..."
Introduction
As you may know by personal experience, most of us go through an identity crisis of sorts when we're about half-way through college. For some reason, when we get to this particular stage in life many of us become unsure as to who we are or why we have been put on this planet. There's an old youth choir anthem that expresses this feeling. It's lyrics ask,
"Why was I born? What am I living for? If I should die, what would I be dying for?Is there an answer to my question? Is there an answer to my plea?"
When I was in college this anthem was popular and I remember being drawn to its words because I was going through my own time of asking myself these very same questions. In fact I changed my major three times before I finally found the answer I was seeking....which made it possible for me to squeeze a four year college degree into five years!
But, other people who face this identity crisis aren't satisfied by simply changing their major. They feel a need to LEAVE college and go off alone in an attempt to FIND THEMSELVES, spending months hiking across Europe or down the Appalachian trail. Tony Campolo, who used to teach sociology at Eastern College, says that every May one of his students would come in his office and say, Doc, I'm not coming back next semester. When asked to explain himself, the student would say, I need time Doc. I need time. Campolo says that at this point he would always think, This guys' done nothing in my class for the past six months and NOW he needs time!? The student would go on and say,
I need time to FIND MYSELF. I'm tired of playing all these roles that society says I have to play. I'm tired of being the ME that my FRIENDS expect me to be...the ME the CHURCH expects me to be...the ME that my PARENTS expect me to be. I've got to peel away each of these socially prescribed identities. I've got to peel away each of these socially constructed roles. I've got to peel them away-peel them away do you hear?-and come to grips with the core of my being...the essence of my personality. At this point Campolo would break in and say, Suppose after you peel away each of these socially prescribed identities; after you peel away each of these socially created selves you discover you are an onion?
Well, in his teasing of this college student, Campolo has touched on a very important truth for all of those who face identity crises like this. You see there is a common presupposition in our culture that every body has a self waiting to be found. Now, if this were true someone would have found it long ago. One of the thousands of youth who set out in search of themselves would come back and say, I found myself....just north of Cleveland. But, this doesn't happen because the SELF is not something waiting to be found...SELF is something that is waiting to be created.
The only way to create self...is through commitment to something in life and the only commitment that is worth giving your SELF over to is a commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In fact it is only in THIS commitment that we FIND what we are seeking. Do you remember what Jesus said about this issue? ..whoever loses his life for My sake, will find it. (Matthew 10:39b) This is because we are custom-designed for a relationship with God. In fact, each of us is uniquely-gifted for a specific role in His kingdom. In Ephesians 2:10Paul reminds us of this when he says, We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
So you see, it is only in giving our-SELVES over to God's purposes that we find the reason for our existence and the sense of direction that comes with that all-important commitment. The last verse of that old youth choir anthem I referred to a moment ago speaks of a teen who discovered this truth and said,
"Then I met the One Who loved me, Who gave His all on Calvary.I gave my life into His keeping. He took my sin and set me free.I'm here to love the One Who first loved me. I'm here to live throughout eternity. HE is the answer to my question. HE is the answer to my plea."
I remember tearing up whenever my church's college choir sang that anthem because it expressed so clearly my own questions and the answers that I found. You see, like other young disciples down through the ages, I found myself...my life's purpose...my reason for being...when I surrendered to Jesus' call in my life. I found myself in losing myself within His will.
Sermon
And you know, unlike us, Jesus never had an identity crisis. He never had to go out in search of Himself. Even at the age of 12 our Lord knew exactly why He was here. Do you remember what He said to His parents when, after a frantic search, they found Him in the temple in Jerusalem teaching the priests a thing or two? He explained Himself by saying that his life purpose was, ...to be about His Father's business. Throughout His life Jesus made other statements that showed He very clearly KNEW Who He was and WHY He was here. Many of these statements are recorded in the Gospel of John and we refer to them as the I AM sayings of Jesus. You probably know them by heart.
Well, over the next four Sundays I want us to study several of our Lord's I AM sayings in the hopes that we will come to know Him better here at Redland and in the process will find ourselves in a renewed commitment to His lordship. Next Sunday we'll focus on John 6:35where Jesus said, I AM...the Bread of life. On April 15th, EASTER SUNDAY, we'll study John 11:25where our Lord said, I AM...the resurrection and the life. Then on April 22 we will focus on John 14:6where Jesus said, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father, except by Me. On April 29th, Mark Cooke will be in our pulpit, leading us as we look at John 15:11,where Jesus said, I am the true Vine. And today we begin with John 10where Jesus said, I AM...the Good Shepherd. Take your Bibles and let us read together these words of Jesus found in John 10:11-15:
11 - I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
12 - The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it.
13 - The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
14 - I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me--
15 - just as the Father knows me and I know the Father--and I lay down my life for the sheep.
And John 10:18:
18 - No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."
Now of all the I AM sayings, this one is the most beloved and I think it is for two basic reasons.
1. First off, we are drawn to this particular I AM saying because each of us instinctively knows how desperately we need a shepherd.
Deep down inside we realize that we require guidance or leadership-also known as shepherding-to make our way down the roads of life. I mean, think about it. How many times in the past week have you asked someone for their opinion on a decision that you faced...everything from...what to wear or where to eat or how to handle a homework problem to how to handle some child-rearing or marital crisis? All people need guidance almost constantly and they seek it everywhere from horoscopes to psychics-from parents to pastors. We do all this because everyone knows deep inside that they do NEED guidance in life.
Now, to give you a word picture to help you understand why this is true, let me pose a question:
Which animal are you and I most like? There are several different opinions these days. Charles Darwin of course claimed that the MONKEY was the nearest animal to man and his assertion that we are descendants of apes caused quite a stir. It still does to this day. And like all controversies it has been the source of several jokes. Have you ever heard the one about the ape that was seen ambling out of the public library with a Bible under one arm and a copy of Darwin's book The Origin of the Species under the other? A passerby asked the ape what kind of research he was doing with those two books and the simian replied, I'm trying to find out whether I'm my brother's keeper or my keeper's brother.
Now other scientists-mainly biologists-tend to think that man is most like a mouse or a rat. I say this because they base their testing of drugs for potential human use on these rodents...saying that their bodily functions are very similar to our own. I don't know about you but it's a little unsettling to me to know that but pretty much whatever makes a rat sick will affect a human in a similar fashion. What does THAT say about our inner nature?
Some scientists say that we are a lot like ants or bees because like humans they are social creatures that live in highly structured societies. Others have recently compared people to dolphins because of the similar ratio of brain mass to body size.
But in the Bible we are MOST often compared to another animal-SHEEP. David, the psalmist, a shepherd himself, employed this analogy repeatedly. In Psalm 100:3he said, ...we are [God's] people and the SHEEP of His pasture. In Psalm 77:2he wrote, God, You lead Your people like a flock... Psalm 79:13says, We Your people and sheep of Your pasture will give You thanks forever. And in Psalm 23,his most popular Psalm containing this comparison, David said, The Lord is my shepherd....
Throughout the Bible we see this same parallel drawn between man and sheep. One of my favorites is in Isaiah 40:11where it says that God, ...tends His flock like a Shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads those that are with young. Now, we could go on and on citing scriptures that infer that we are similar to sheep. In fact, I've lost count of how many times we humans are compared to sheep in the Bible and I think God inspired this comparison in His word so often because---of all the animals God created---the species that most NEEDS guidance is SHEEP.
First of all, no insult intended---I mean you and I are in the same boat here---but sheep on the whole are pretty stupid and stubborn animals. Ask yourself, have you ever seen a group of trained sheep in a circus? Of course not. You've seen trained apes and even trained mice or rats or dolphins but not sheep. And you probably never will because sheep are just too simple-minded.
Second, sheep are dirty and wayward. Real sheep aren't like those clean, fluffy balls of cotton depicted on greeting cards. And if you've ever seen the southern end of a northbound herd, you'll know why. They can't keep themselves clean, and they smell atrocious. Plus, they tend to wander off easily, perhaps because they can't see very far....less than 15 yards. And, no matter how many times you bring wayward sheep back, they are prone to wander off again because they can't learn from their mistakes.
Third, sheep are defenseless and dependent. They don't have much of a bite... no natural defense---no claws, no horns, no fangs....not even a stink bag like a skunk. To make matters worse they are top-heavy and their legs are spindly. This makes them slow. Plus they have no camouflage, so when they are being chased by a wolf they are out of luck...unless there happens to be a store that sells racks and racks of wool sweaters nearby. Sheep are also susceptible to all kinds of diseases....they will eat too much if you let them and get sick. They are definitely not your king-of-the-forest types.
And fourth, sheep are easily frightened and confused. It doesn't take much to scramble the simple mental yolk of a nervous sheep. They've even been known to plunge straight over the edge of a high precipice in a panic, one following right after another.
Now, God doesn't compare us to sheep so often in His Word to put us down. He makes this comparison in His book so often because He wants to communicate one very important truth to us. He wants us to know that we are designed to NEED a Guide in life. As David wrote in the 23rd Psalm, we need Someone to lead us on paths that are right...We need a Shepherd with a "rod and a staff" to protect us.
So when we read scriptures like Isaiah 53:6where it says, We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way...or Mark 9:36where it says, "When Jesus saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd." Texts like this should remind us that we have an inborn need for a Shepherd.
So, one reason so many Christians are drawn to this particular I AM statement is because they understand this need. This leads us to the second reason that this particular I AM statement of Jesus is so precious to so many of us. You see, not only do we need a shepherd...
2. ...Jesus is the only One Who is qualified for this task.
Now think about it. What are the items on Jesus' resume' that show Him to be capable not only to be A Shepherd for us but THE GOOD Shepherd?
A. Well, first off, He knows us like no other guide could possibly know us!
He is not some stranger-some hired hand-some substitute teacher paid to do the job. NO, Jesus knows us. You know the relationship between sheep and shepherds was different in Palestine than in other parts of the world. For example, in Britain most sheep are kept for killing and eating but in Palestine most sheep were kept for their wool or milk. So in the land of the Bible, the sheep were often with a shepherd for years-many times from birth throughout their entire lives. Those shepherds KNEW their sheep and gave them names!
And we could certainly say the same thing about Jesus. He has watched each man and woman be born and grow up that has existed from the foundations of the world. As God in the flesh Jesus knows everything about us from the molecular level on out! I like how MAX LUCADO spotlights this wonderful truth with his comparison of COWBOYS & COWS to SHEPHERDS & SHEEP...
Behold the hero of the American west: The Cowboy. Behold the hero of the Bible: The Shepherd. On the surface he appears similar to the cowboy. He, too, is rugged. He sleeps where the jackals howl and works where the wolves prowl. Never off duty. Always alert. Like the cowboy, he makes his roof the stars and the pasture his home. But that is where the similarities end. You see, the shepherd loves his sheep. It's not that the cowboy doesn't appreciate the cow; its' just that he doesn't KNOW the animal. He doesn't even want to. Have you ever seen a picture of a cowboy caressing a cow? Have you ever seen a shepherd with his arms around a sheep? Sure! Why the difference? Simple. The cowboy leads the cow to slaughter. The shepherd leads the sheep to be shorn. The cowboy wants the meat of the cow. The shepherd wants the wool of the sheep. And so they treat the animals differently.
The cowboy drives the cattle. The shepherd leads the sheep. A herd of cattle has a dozen cowboys...a flock has one shepherd. The cowboy wrestles, brands, herds, and ropes. The shepherd leads, guides, feeds, and anoints. The cowboy knows the names of the trail hands. The shepherd knows the names of the sheep. The cowboy whoops and hollers at the cows. The shepherd calls each sheep by name. Aren't we glad Christ didn't call himself The Good Cowboy?
Our Lord is THE GOOD Shepherd because He knows us. We can all say with David: O Lord, You have searched me and You know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely O Lord...for You created my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother's womb...Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be. (Excerpts from Psalm 139)
Jesus knows everything there is to know about you and your life situation. And this is not just an intellectual awareness. This is an intimate knowledge between God in the flesh and His creation. There isn't a single motivation, thought, act, or word, that has slipped out of your being and escaped our Lord's undivided attention. As Hebrews 4:13puts it, All things are naked and open to the eyes of God.
And not only does He know us...He WANTS to guide us through life. Isaiah 58:11says, The Lord will guide you continually. Psalm 25:12says, Who is the man that fears the Lord?...God will teach him the way that is best. In Psalm 32:8God says to us, I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you.
In Isaiah 65:24God says, Before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
B. And then...another fact on Jesus' resume' that makes Him qualified to be our Shepherd is the fact that not only does He know us....we know Him.
We recognize Him when He speaks. And this is the way it is with sheep. They may not be too bright but they have enough gray matter up here to recognize their true Shepherd. And when he calls they will follow. In fact this is how shepherds proved ownership in Jesus' day. They didn't have brands or marks. Each shepherd had his own distinctive call and sheep would only respond to that call.
This week I read the true story from the days of WWI when a group of Turkish soldiers came to one of the hills near Jerusalem and stole a large number of sheep. The shepherd had been asleep and when he woke up and realized what had happened and ran into the hills and looked down and saw his sheep a few hills over being led astray by these Turkish soldiers. The situation was pretty much hopeless. They were armed and he was outnumbered. He couldn't attack. So, the shepherd did the only thing he knew to do. He stood on the hill and put his hand on his mouth and gave out his unique call...that one he always used with his sheep. When he did they stopped, turned, and ran across the hills to him, leaving their captors behind for they had enough of a relationship with him to know his voice.
And we are like sheep in that we know Jesus' voice. We recognize the call of our Creator and Redeemer. When we become Christians God gives us a sort of caller ID that enables us to distinguish His voice from that of our adversary. And, the more time we spend with Him in prayer and Bible study, the better this caller ID functions. And the wonderful thing about this is when we heed the instructions of our Shepherd we not only make wise decisions that benefit us...we actually join God in His work and benefit others!
In his book, Surprise Endings, Ron Mehl tells a powerful story of what happened when a Christian by the name of Roger Simms recognized the guiding voice of God, and obeyed. On May 7, while hitchhiking his way home after his discharge from the army during WWII, Roger got a ride from a rich business man driving a brand new Cadillac. When he got in the man asked, Are you going home for keeps? Roger replied, I sure am! In fact I can hardly wait to get this uniform off! Roger found out that the man was on the way to Chicago and would pass right by his driveway.
Well, as they rode along they talked and Roger discovered that the man owned a business in Chicago and that his name was Hanover. Well, after conversing about many things, Roger, a Christian, felt a compulsion to witness to this man about Christ. But he kept putting it off, ignoring the guiding voice of our Lord, until he realized he was just 30 minutes from his home and that it was now or never. So, Roger cleared his throat and said, Mr. Hanover, I would like to talk to you about something very important. He then proceeded to explain the way of salvation, ultimately asking Hanover if he would like to receive Christ as Savior. When he finished Hanover pulled the Cadillac over to the side of the road and Roger feared he was about to be ejected from the car. But the business man bowed his head and prayed to receive Christ. He then thanked Roger saying, This is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me.
Well, five years went by. Roger married, had a two-year-old son, and started a business of his own. One day while packing his suitcase for a business trip to Chicago, he found the small, white business card Hanover had given him five years before. When he arrived in Chicago he felt compelled to look up Hanover Enterprises. When he did, a receptionist told him it was impossible to see Mr. Hanover, but he could see Mrs. Hanover. A little confused as to what was going on, he was ushered into a lovely office and found himself facing a keen-eyed woman in her fifties. She extended her hand and said, You knew my husband? Roger said he did and proceeded to tell her how her husband had given him a ride when he was hitchhiking home from the war. She asked, Can you tell me when that was? Roger replied, It was May 7, five years ago, the day I was discharged from the army. At this point Roger hesitated. He wondered if he should mention his witness to Hanover and at this point he sensed the voice of His Lord saying, YES, do! By all means! So he did. He said, Mrs. Hanover, I explained the gospel to your husband that day. He pulled over to the side of the road and wept against the steering wheel.
He gave his life to Christ that day. At this point explosive sobs shook her body. Then, getting a grip on herself, she sobbed, I had prayed for my husband's salvation for years. Roger said, Where is your husband, Mrs. Hanover? He's dead, she wept, struggling for the words. He was in a fatal car crash that apparently occurred not to long after he let you out of the car. He never got home.
You see, Jesus is qualified to be our Shepherd because we know His voice and when we listen and do what He says, we join Him in seeking and saving the other lost sheep of this world.
C. But there is one other quality that makes Jesus more than capable of being our Good Shepherd. And it is the fact that He laid down His life for His flock.
There are many stories of shepherds in Jesus' day dying in the process of attempting to protect their flocks from wolves or lions or thieves. And, as Jesus said in our text, a hired hand would not do this for he was only interested in his pay but a true shepherd would, for he loved his sheep. They belonged to Him. A TRUE shepherd knew and loved his sheep from birth. And that is exactly what Jesus has done. Our Creator and Redeemer laid His life down to protect us from sin and death. In essence, the Good Shepherd, became a Lamb, that One sacrificial lamb Who died for the sins of all mankind. Now up until this point sheep were sacrificed in the temple for the Shepherd. But in Jesus the roles were reversed. The Shepherd sacrificed Himself for His sheep.
I remember Randall O'Brian telling us years ago that when cowboys in Argentina or Brazil would come to a piranha infested river, through which they had to drive their cows, they would protect the herd by taking one cow up stream a few hundred yards where they would kill it and throw it in the river. The piranha would attack the dead cow and while they were thus distracted the cowboys would lead the rest of the herd across safely. Well, this is an example of what Jesus has done for you and me...except for one thing. As He says here in John, no one took His life from Him. He laid it down of His own accord. He willingly died for you and me.
This was his purpose in coming to earth in the first place. Do you remember what John the Baptist said when He saw Jesus coming to be baptized in the Jordan? Behold, the Lamb of God, Who comes to take away the sin of the world. (John 1:29) In the same text where the prophet Isaiah compared us to sheep who had gone astray He spoke of Jesus and said, Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows...He was pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities...by His wounds we are healed...for He was led like a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open up His mouth.
So, this I AM saying of Jesus is beloved by so many for two reasons: we all need a Shepherd and only Jesus is qualified to meet that need. One more thought....do you remember those first five words of the Shepherd Psalm? Let's say them together:"THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD..." Now listen as I say these words, "THE LORD IS
Invitation
MY SHEPHERD..." "THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD..." Do you get the subtle emphasis there? God can't be---WON'T BE---your shepherd until you make Him your Lord. Shepherd's lead....sheep follow. He can't...He won't lead you---until you commit your life to follow Him. If you are here today and you don't know the GOOD Shepherd, He is here right now and as I said a moment ago He wants to guide your life! Even now He is calling you by name! So it is up to you....Will you accept Him as Savior and follow Him as Lord and in so doing find yourself?
There may be other Sheep here this morning who know the Good Shepherd but don't have a fold! You are looking for a flock to join! I know I am biased but I think the best one on the planet meets right here! We would love to have you become a part of this church family. However it is that God is leading you...we invite you to follow. Won't you come as we sing?
Scripture: John 10:11-15, 18
from the series "I am..."
Introduction
As you may know by personal experience, most of us go through an identity crisis of sorts when we're about half-way through college. For some reason, when we get to this particular stage in life many of us become unsure as to who we are or why we have been put on this planet. There's an old youth choir anthem that expresses this feeling. It's lyrics ask,
"Why was I born? What am I living for? If I should die, what would I be dying for?Is there an answer to my question? Is there an answer to my plea?"
When I was in college this anthem was popular and I remember being drawn to its words because I was going through my own time of asking myself these very same questions. In fact I changed my major three times before I finally found the answer I was seeking....which made it possible for me to squeeze a four year college degree into five years!
But, other people who face this identity crisis aren't satisfied by simply changing their major. They feel a need to LEAVE college and go off alone in an attempt to FIND THEMSELVES, spending months hiking across Europe or down the Appalachian trail. Tony Campolo, who used to teach sociology at Eastern College, says that every May one of his students would come in his office and say, Doc, I'm not coming back next semester. When asked to explain himself, the student would say, I need time Doc. I need time. Campolo says that at this point he would always think, This guys' done nothing in my class for the past six months and NOW he needs time!? The student would go on and say,
I need time to FIND MYSELF. I'm tired of playing all these roles that society says I have to play. I'm tired of being the ME that my FRIENDS expect me to be...the ME the CHURCH expects me to be...the ME that my PARENTS expect me to be. I've got to peel away each of these socially prescribed identities. I've got to peel away each of these socially constructed roles. I've got to peel them away-peel them away do you hear?-and come to grips with the core of my being...the essence of my personality. At this point Campolo would break in and say, Suppose after you peel away each of these socially prescribed identities; after you peel away each of these socially created selves you discover you are an onion?
Well, in his teasing of this college student, Campolo has touched on a very important truth for all of those who face identity crises like this. You see there is a common presupposition in our culture that every body has a self waiting to be found. Now, if this were true someone would have found it long ago. One of the thousands of youth who set out in search of themselves would come back and say, I found myself....just north of Cleveland. But, this doesn't happen because the SELF is not something waiting to be found...SELF is something that is waiting to be created.
The only way to create self...is through commitment to something in life and the only commitment that is worth giving your SELF over to is a commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In fact it is only in THIS commitment that we FIND what we are seeking. Do you remember what Jesus said about this issue? ..whoever loses his life for My sake, will find it. (Matthew 10:39b) This is because we are custom-designed for a relationship with God. In fact, each of us is uniquely-gifted for a specific role in His kingdom. In Ephesians 2:10Paul reminds us of this when he says, We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
So you see, it is only in giving our-SELVES over to God's purposes that we find the reason for our existence and the sense of direction that comes with that all-important commitment. The last verse of that old youth choir anthem I referred to a moment ago speaks of a teen who discovered this truth and said,
"Then I met the One Who loved me, Who gave His all on Calvary.I gave my life into His keeping. He took my sin and set me free.I'm here to love the One Who first loved me. I'm here to live throughout eternity. HE is the answer to my question. HE is the answer to my plea."
I remember tearing up whenever my church's college choir sang that anthem because it expressed so clearly my own questions and the answers that I found. You see, like other young disciples down through the ages, I found myself...my life's purpose...my reason for being...when I surrendered to Jesus' call in my life. I found myself in losing myself within His will.
Sermon
And you know, unlike us, Jesus never had an identity crisis. He never had to go out in search of Himself. Even at the age of 12 our Lord knew exactly why He was here. Do you remember what He said to His parents when, after a frantic search, they found Him in the temple in Jerusalem teaching the priests a thing or two? He explained Himself by saying that his life purpose was, ...to be about His Father's business. Throughout His life Jesus made other statements that showed He very clearly KNEW Who He was and WHY He was here. Many of these statements are recorded in the Gospel of John and we refer to them as the I AM sayings of Jesus. You probably know them by heart.
Well, over the next four Sundays I want us to study several of our Lord's I AM sayings in the hopes that we will come to know Him better here at Redland and in the process will find ourselves in a renewed commitment to His lordship. Next Sunday we'll focus on John 6:35where Jesus said, I AM...the Bread of life. On April 15th, EASTER SUNDAY, we'll study John 11:25where our Lord said, I AM...the resurrection and the life. Then on April 22 we will focus on John 14:6where Jesus said, I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father, except by Me. On April 29th, Mark Cooke will be in our pulpit, leading us as we look at John 15:11,where Jesus said, I am the true Vine. And today we begin with John 10where Jesus said, I AM...the Good Shepherd. Take your Bibles and let us read together these words of Jesus found in John 10:11-15:
11 - I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
12 - The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it.
13 - The man runs away because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
14 - I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me--
15 - just as the Father knows me and I know the Father--and I lay down my life for the sheep.
And John 10:18:
18 - No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father."
Now of all the I AM sayings, this one is the most beloved and I think it is for two basic reasons.
1. First off, we are drawn to this particular I AM saying because each of us instinctively knows how desperately we need a shepherd.
Deep down inside we realize that we require guidance or leadership-also known as shepherding-to make our way down the roads of life. I mean, think about it. How many times in the past week have you asked someone for their opinion on a decision that you faced...everything from...what to wear or where to eat or how to handle a homework problem to how to handle some child-rearing or marital crisis? All people need guidance almost constantly and they seek it everywhere from horoscopes to psychics-from parents to pastors. We do all this because everyone knows deep inside that they do NEED guidance in life.
Now, to give you a word picture to help you understand why this is true, let me pose a question:
Which animal are you and I most like? There are several different opinions these days. Charles Darwin of course claimed that the MONKEY was the nearest animal to man and his assertion that we are descendants of apes caused quite a stir. It still does to this day. And like all controversies it has been the source of several jokes. Have you ever heard the one about the ape that was seen ambling out of the public library with a Bible under one arm and a copy of Darwin's book The Origin of the Species under the other? A passerby asked the ape what kind of research he was doing with those two books and the simian replied, I'm trying to find out whether I'm my brother's keeper or my keeper's brother.
Now other scientists-mainly biologists-tend to think that man is most like a mouse or a rat. I say this because they base their testing of drugs for potential human use on these rodents...saying that their bodily functions are very similar to our own. I don't know about you but it's a little unsettling to me to know that but pretty much whatever makes a rat sick will affect a human in a similar fashion. What does THAT say about our inner nature?
Some scientists say that we are a lot like ants or bees because like humans they are social creatures that live in highly structured societies. Others have recently compared people to dolphins because of the similar ratio of brain mass to body size.
But in the Bible we are MOST often compared to another animal-SHEEP. David, the psalmist, a shepherd himself, employed this analogy repeatedly. In Psalm 100:3he said, ...we are [God's] people and the SHEEP of His pasture. In Psalm 77:2he wrote, God, You lead Your people like a flock... Psalm 79:13says, We Your people and sheep of Your pasture will give You thanks forever. And in Psalm 23,his most popular Psalm containing this comparison, David said, The Lord is my shepherd....
Throughout the Bible we see this same parallel drawn between man and sheep. One of my favorites is in Isaiah 40:11where it says that God, ...tends His flock like a Shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads those that are with young. Now, we could go on and on citing scriptures that infer that we are similar to sheep. In fact, I've lost count of how many times we humans are compared to sheep in the Bible and I think God inspired this comparison in His word so often because---of all the animals God created---the species that most NEEDS guidance is SHEEP.
First of all, no insult intended---I mean you and I are in the same boat here---but sheep on the whole are pretty stupid and stubborn animals. Ask yourself, have you ever seen a group of trained sheep in a circus? Of course not. You've seen trained apes and even trained mice or rats or dolphins but not sheep. And you probably never will because sheep are just too simple-minded.
Second, sheep are dirty and wayward. Real sheep aren't like those clean, fluffy balls of cotton depicted on greeting cards. And if you've ever seen the southern end of a northbound herd, you'll know why. They can't keep themselves clean, and they smell atrocious. Plus, they tend to wander off easily, perhaps because they can't see very far....less than 15 yards. And, no matter how many times you bring wayward sheep back, they are prone to wander off again because they can't learn from their mistakes.
Third, sheep are defenseless and dependent. They don't have much of a bite... no natural defense---no claws, no horns, no fangs....not even a stink bag like a skunk. To make matters worse they are top-heavy and their legs are spindly. This makes them slow. Plus they have no camouflage, so when they are being chased by a wolf they are out of luck...unless there happens to be a store that sells racks and racks of wool sweaters nearby. Sheep are also susceptible to all kinds of diseases....they will eat too much if you let them and get sick. They are definitely not your king-of-the-forest types.
And fourth, sheep are easily frightened and confused. It doesn't take much to scramble the simple mental yolk of a nervous sheep. They've even been known to plunge straight over the edge of a high precipice in a panic, one following right after another.
Now, God doesn't compare us to sheep so often in His Word to put us down. He makes this comparison in His book so often because He wants to communicate one very important truth to us. He wants us to know that we are designed to NEED a Guide in life. As David wrote in the 23rd Psalm, we need Someone to lead us on paths that are right...We need a Shepherd with a "rod and a staff" to protect us.
So when we read scriptures like Isaiah 53:6where it says, We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way...or Mark 9:36where it says, "When Jesus saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd." Texts like this should remind us that we have an inborn need for a Shepherd.
So, one reason so many Christians are drawn to this particular I AM statement is because they understand this need. This leads us to the second reason that this particular I AM statement of Jesus is so precious to so many of us. You see, not only do we need a shepherd...
2. ...Jesus is the only One Who is qualified for this task.
Now think about it. What are the items on Jesus' resume' that show Him to be capable not only to be A Shepherd for us but THE GOOD Shepherd?
A. Well, first off, He knows us like no other guide could possibly know us!
He is not some stranger-some hired hand-some substitute teacher paid to do the job. NO, Jesus knows us. You know the relationship between sheep and shepherds was different in Palestine than in other parts of the world. For example, in Britain most sheep are kept for killing and eating but in Palestine most sheep were kept for their wool or milk. So in the land of the Bible, the sheep were often with a shepherd for years-many times from birth throughout their entire lives. Those shepherds KNEW their sheep and gave them names!
And we could certainly say the same thing about Jesus. He has watched each man and woman be born and grow up that has existed from the foundations of the world. As God in the flesh Jesus knows everything about us from the molecular level on out! I like how MAX LUCADO spotlights this wonderful truth with his comparison of COWBOYS & COWS to SHEPHERDS & SHEEP...
Behold the hero of the American west: The Cowboy. Behold the hero of the Bible: The Shepherd. On the surface he appears similar to the cowboy. He, too, is rugged. He sleeps where the jackals howl and works where the wolves prowl. Never off duty. Always alert. Like the cowboy, he makes his roof the stars and the pasture his home. But that is where the similarities end. You see, the shepherd loves his sheep. It's not that the cowboy doesn't appreciate the cow; its' just that he doesn't KNOW the animal. He doesn't even want to. Have you ever seen a picture of a cowboy caressing a cow? Have you ever seen a shepherd with his arms around a sheep? Sure! Why the difference? Simple. The cowboy leads the cow to slaughter. The shepherd leads the sheep to be shorn. The cowboy wants the meat of the cow. The shepherd wants the wool of the sheep. And so they treat the animals differently.
The cowboy drives the cattle. The shepherd leads the sheep. A herd of cattle has a dozen cowboys...a flock has one shepherd. The cowboy wrestles, brands, herds, and ropes. The shepherd leads, guides, feeds, and anoints. The cowboy knows the names of the trail hands. The shepherd knows the names of the sheep. The cowboy whoops and hollers at the cows. The shepherd calls each sheep by name. Aren't we glad Christ didn't call himself The Good Cowboy?
Our Lord is THE GOOD Shepherd because He knows us. We can all say with David: O Lord, You have searched me and You know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; You perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, you know it completely O Lord...for You created my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother's womb...Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be. (Excerpts from Psalm 139)
Jesus knows everything there is to know about you and your life situation. And this is not just an intellectual awareness. This is an intimate knowledge between God in the flesh and His creation. There isn't a single motivation, thought, act, or word, that has slipped out of your being and escaped our Lord's undivided attention. As Hebrews 4:13puts it, All things are naked and open to the eyes of God.
And not only does He know us...He WANTS to guide us through life. Isaiah 58:11says, The Lord will guide you continually. Psalm 25:12says, Who is the man that fears the Lord?...God will teach him the way that is best. In Psalm 32:8God says to us, I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go; I will counsel you with My eye upon you.
In Isaiah 65:24God says, Before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.
B. And then...another fact on Jesus' resume' that makes Him qualified to be our Shepherd is the fact that not only does He know us....we know Him.
We recognize Him when He speaks. And this is the way it is with sheep. They may not be too bright but they have enough gray matter up here to recognize their true Shepherd. And when he calls they will follow. In fact this is how shepherds proved ownership in Jesus' day. They didn't have brands or marks. Each shepherd had his own distinctive call and sheep would only respond to that call.
This week I read the true story from the days of WWI when a group of Turkish soldiers came to one of the hills near Jerusalem and stole a large number of sheep. The shepherd had been asleep and when he woke up and realized what had happened and ran into the hills and looked down and saw his sheep a few hills over being led astray by these Turkish soldiers. The situation was pretty much hopeless. They were armed and he was outnumbered. He couldn't attack. So, the shepherd did the only thing he knew to do. He stood on the hill and put his hand on his mouth and gave out his unique call...that one he always used with his sheep. When he did they stopped, turned, and ran across the hills to him, leaving their captors behind for they had enough of a relationship with him to know his voice.
And we are like sheep in that we know Jesus' voice. We recognize the call of our Creator and Redeemer. When we become Christians God gives us a sort of caller ID that enables us to distinguish His voice from that of our adversary. And, the more time we spend with Him in prayer and Bible study, the better this caller ID functions. And the wonderful thing about this is when we heed the instructions of our Shepherd we not only make wise decisions that benefit us...we actually join God in His work and benefit others!
In his book, Surprise Endings, Ron Mehl tells a powerful story of what happened when a Christian by the name of Roger Simms recognized the guiding voice of God, and obeyed. On May 7, while hitchhiking his way home after his discharge from the army during WWII, Roger got a ride from a rich business man driving a brand new Cadillac. When he got in the man asked, Are you going home for keeps? Roger replied, I sure am! In fact I can hardly wait to get this uniform off! Roger found out that the man was on the way to Chicago and would pass right by his driveway.
Well, as they rode along they talked and Roger discovered that the man owned a business in Chicago and that his name was Hanover. Well, after conversing about many things, Roger, a Christian, felt a compulsion to witness to this man about Christ. But he kept putting it off, ignoring the guiding voice of our Lord, until he realized he was just 30 minutes from his home and that it was now or never. So, Roger cleared his throat and said, Mr. Hanover, I would like to talk to you about something very important. He then proceeded to explain the way of salvation, ultimately asking Hanover if he would like to receive Christ as Savior. When he finished Hanover pulled the Cadillac over to the side of the road and Roger feared he was about to be ejected from the car. But the business man bowed his head and prayed to receive Christ. He then thanked Roger saying, This is the greatest thing that has ever happened to me.
Well, five years went by. Roger married, had a two-year-old son, and started a business of his own. One day while packing his suitcase for a business trip to Chicago, he found the small, white business card Hanover had given him five years before. When he arrived in Chicago he felt compelled to look up Hanover Enterprises. When he did, a receptionist told him it was impossible to see Mr. Hanover, but he could see Mrs. Hanover. A little confused as to what was going on, he was ushered into a lovely office and found himself facing a keen-eyed woman in her fifties. She extended her hand and said, You knew my husband? Roger said he did and proceeded to tell her how her husband had given him a ride when he was hitchhiking home from the war. She asked, Can you tell me when that was? Roger replied, It was May 7, five years ago, the day I was discharged from the army. At this point Roger hesitated. He wondered if he should mention his witness to Hanover and at this point he sensed the voice of His Lord saying, YES, do! By all means! So he did. He said, Mrs. Hanover, I explained the gospel to your husband that day. He pulled over to the side of the road and wept against the steering wheel.
He gave his life to Christ that day. At this point explosive sobs shook her body. Then, getting a grip on herself, she sobbed, I had prayed for my husband's salvation for years. Roger said, Where is your husband, Mrs. Hanover? He's dead, she wept, struggling for the words. He was in a fatal car crash that apparently occurred not to long after he let you out of the car. He never got home.
You see, Jesus is qualified to be our Shepherd because we know His voice and when we listen and do what He says, we join Him in seeking and saving the other lost sheep of this world.
C. But there is one other quality that makes Jesus more than capable of being our Good Shepherd. And it is the fact that He laid down His life for His flock.
There are many stories of shepherds in Jesus' day dying in the process of attempting to protect their flocks from wolves or lions or thieves. And, as Jesus said in our text, a hired hand would not do this for he was only interested in his pay but a true shepherd would, for he loved his sheep. They belonged to Him. A TRUE shepherd knew and loved his sheep from birth. And that is exactly what Jesus has done. Our Creator and Redeemer laid His life down to protect us from sin and death. In essence, the Good Shepherd, became a Lamb, that One sacrificial lamb Who died for the sins of all mankind. Now up until this point sheep were sacrificed in the temple for the Shepherd. But in Jesus the roles were reversed. The Shepherd sacrificed Himself for His sheep.
I remember Randall O'Brian telling us years ago that when cowboys in Argentina or Brazil would come to a piranha infested river, through which they had to drive their cows, they would protect the herd by taking one cow up stream a few hundred yards where they would kill it and throw it in the river. The piranha would attack the dead cow and while they were thus distracted the cowboys would lead the rest of the herd across safely. Well, this is an example of what Jesus has done for you and me...except for one thing. As He says here in John, no one took His life from Him. He laid it down of His own accord. He willingly died for you and me.
This was his purpose in coming to earth in the first place. Do you remember what John the Baptist said when He saw Jesus coming to be baptized in the Jordan? Behold, the Lamb of God, Who comes to take away the sin of the world. (John 1:29) In the same text where the prophet Isaiah compared us to sheep who had gone astray He spoke of Jesus and said, Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows...He was pierced for our transgressions and crushed for our iniquities...by His wounds we are healed...for He was led like a lamb to the slaughter and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open up His mouth.
So, this I AM saying of Jesus is beloved by so many for two reasons: we all need a Shepherd and only Jesus is qualified to meet that need. One more thought....do you remember those first five words of the Shepherd Psalm? Let's say them together:"THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD..." Now listen as I say these words, "THE LORD IS
Invitation
MY SHEPHERD..." "THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD..." Do you get the subtle emphasis there? God can't be---WON'T BE---your shepherd until you make Him your Lord. Shepherd's lead....sheep follow. He can't...He won't lead you---until you commit your life to follow Him. If you are here today and you don't know the GOOD Shepherd, He is here right now and as I said a moment ago He wants to guide your life! Even now He is calling you by name! So it is up to you....Will you accept Him as Savior and follow Him as Lord and in so doing find yourself?
There may be other Sheep here this morning who know the Good Shepherd but don't have a fold! You are looking for a flock to join! I know I am biased but I think the best one on the planet meets right here! We would love to have you become a part of this church family. However it is that God is leading you...we invite you to follow. Won't you come as we sing?
The Wrong Righteousness
Date: July 27, 2008
Scripture: Romans 10
from the series Romans
Introduction
How many of you know any non-Christian people who live morally upright lives? I'm talking about good people who aren't believers and it could be a friend or a co-worker or a neighbor—any individuals you know who openly admit that they aren't Christians. Don't get me wrong. They aren't negative or rude—they don't go around bragging that they are atheists or anything. It's just that the subject came up one day and they let it be known that they don't believe in God....and that shocked you because you know by experience that they're wonderful people. In fact, you just assumed they were believers because—well, they're kind, helpful, hard-working—they are family-oriented. They are fun to be with and keep their lawn mowed. They don't have a car up on blocks rusting away to nothing in their driveway. They always put out the flag on the 4th of July. They coach little league or serve as a den mother for the brownie troop. They give to the United Way. They run in 5k's to help end breast cancer. They are in the booster club and always lend a hand at school events.
Suffice it to say that they're just plain exemplary people in the community.
Well, let me ask—is it hard for you to believe that these non-Christian—but still very GOOD people—is it hard for you to believe the gates of Heaven would be closed to them? I mean, do you ever find yourself thinking, "Somehow—some way—wonderful people like that are going to get in. Surely—God must have made some provision for guys and gals who are THAT good. There's no way THEY'D go to Hell."
While you ponder that I'll tell you that more than once I've had a conversation with someone who knows I'm a pastor and they will say something like: "This past week my uncle died. He wasn't a Christian...but there wasn't a finer person on the planet." And then there's an uneasy silence because I feel like they want me to say, "Hey no problem...I mean if there wasn't a finer person on the planet, then as a pastor I can tell you to rest assured because your loved one is in Heaven."
But could I really say that? Does God's written Word give me permission to give that kind of assurance to someone who is grieving? Is a saving relationship with Jesus Christ necessary for EVERYbody? Does EVERYONE have to embrace OUR faith in order to get to Heaven—or does that only apply to the really BAD people in this world?
Sermon
This morning we're looking at Romans 10 and, as Bill Hybels says in his comments on this text [I'm relying on a Bible Study he taught on this chapter several years ago], Paul is going to address this particular "hot topic" issue—but Paul's going to push it a step further. He's going to increase the stakes by dealing with an even more difficult question, namely:
"What about the individuals in this world who not ONLY lead an upright life—what if in ADDITION to being an exemplary kind of a person....what if they ALSO have a burning desire to please God and a zeal for serving Him and they actually carry out that zeal in practical works of righteousness each and every day? Now...certainly just because someone like THAT didn't enter into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ—I mean, since he has all the rest going for him, well, surely HE would get into Heaven—wouldn't he? Think of it: a righteous life, a love for God and a religious zeal for service for God...what more could God want? Is God really so narrow-minded and picky as to sentence that kind of person to Hell?"
While you ponder all this—let me tell you that the 10th chapter Romans is somewhat of a review of basic information that has been included in prior chapters. I mean, you'll hear familiar material this morning because Paul DRAWS on some of the lessons he's already taught in order to give a satisfactory answer to this hot-topic question once and for all—and here it is again: "Is there anyone good enough to be saved without putting their faith in Jesus Christ?"
Fortunately, it doesn't take Paul long to answer that particular question. Look at verses 9-10 where he plainly says, "If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead...THEN...you will be saved...for with the heart man believes....resulting in righteousness and with the mouth he confesses resulting in salvation."
Note—Paul says nothing about being a good person or doing good things. He just lists TWO basic conditions for being saved from the separation from God that is Hell—and here they are. Paul says we must:
- ...join the church and tithe—nope!
- ...teach the 7th grade boys SS class and wash the pastor's car—nope!
- ...walk forward at the end of the service and promise never to sin again—nope!
Paul says to be saved you have to BELIEVE God raised Jesus from the dead and you have to CONFESS with your mouth that He is the Lord of your life.
Now—the word "believe" here in the Greek means, 'to trust in, to cling to, to rely on, to commit to" so it's more than just your standard every day belief. The Bible says even the devil has a "normal caliber" of belief. Our adversary believes in Jesus—satan knows Who He is—but we won't see satan in Heaven. And unfortunately there are a lot of people who, like the devil, only have a head knowledge of God and Paul would say they are going to miss Heaven by 18 inches, because they don't have the kind of belief that is a foot and a half "lower." They don't have "heart belief" — they don't have the kind of conviction that leads to commitment. I mean, I believe in Hitler but I'm not a Nazi—and people can believe in Jesus and still not be Christians. Commitment is the difference. Based on your belief in Who Jesus is and what He did—you decide to commit your life to Him. You cling to Him. You rely on Him.
And Paul says—this belief that leads to commitment is more than believing Jesus died on the cross. It must include believing God raised Him from the dead because as Paul says in 1st Corinthians 15, "...if there is no resurrection then our faith—our belief—is false." You see, the fact that Jesus rose again PROVES that He is Who He said He is. Listen—a lot of people died on the cross before Jesus and a lot died after Him. But Jesus died for a specific purpose. He died not for His own crimes but rather for the crimes of all mankind. And then Jesus did something ELSE no one did. He rose again—so if you deny the resurrection of Jesus—you're not a believer. Well, this caliber of belief-inspired commitment to Jesus Christ is the FIRST step. Paul says the SECOND thing we have to do is to CONFESS our belief. In other words, Paul says you can't be sneaky about it. You can't be a "closet Christian." You have to give witness as to your belief or its DOUBTFUL that your commitment is genuine.
Rick Warren says that some believers are "Arctic river Christians...because they're frozen at the mouth..." and this is not a good thing because God expects us to verbalize our faith. Okay—look at verses 12-13 where Paul says,"There is no distinction between Jew and Greek for the same Lord is Lord of all abounding in riches for all who call upon Him for whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord will be saved." Paul is saying it makes no difference what a person's nationality is...or what their spiritual background is. Their religious heritage is not a factor in their salvation. No—everyone who winds up in Heaven does so on the basis of their individual response to the Person and the work of Jesus Christ—PERIOD. And, I'm talking about the upright people, the downright immoral people, your GOOD friends, your BAD friends....the Gentiles, the Jews—everybody gets to Heaven by going through the same door and the door is the person and work of Jesus Christ.
Now—you may be thinking, "AMEN...but Mark, we've heard that before! Been there, done that, got the T-shirt...so let's move on." And in reply I would say—not so fast—because to FULLY understand the message God has put in this text..to make sure we "GET" this review of the first few chapters of Paul's letter, I think we need to answer ANOTHER question so here goes: WHY is it so EASY for us—including those of us who have known the Scriptures for a long time. WHY is it so EASY for us to slip into thinking that an upright life and a zeal for God and service for God is enough to merit a person's ticket to Heaven? WHY do many of us as Christians tremble when asked if Jews are saved? WHY do we give false assurance to people by saying their moral and upright deceased friends are in Heaven—when we know for a fact they rejected Jesus 'til the day that they died? WHY is it so easy for us to get fuzzy on this most basic part of the Christian faith—namely what it is that qualifies a human being for Heaven?
I think the answer to these questions is found in the fact that all of us have a difficult time grasping how sinful we REALLY ARE are in comparison to how holy GOD really is. You see, with our minds—minds that are deformed by sin—we tend to look at upright, kind, religious, moral people and think, "Those people are ALMOST perfect. If perfection were a 10 they are certainly 9.7 or 9.8! What kind of God would consign a person to Hell for all eternity for simply lacking a tenth or so on their moral score?"
And friends, when we begin to think like that as Christians—well, I would say we are manifesting a kind of spiritual absent mindedness that is very scary. I mean, even ENTERTAINING that question unveils a caliber of fuzzy thinking that should have no part in the mind of a Biblically-oriented Christian because the Scriptures clearly teach that NO human being is scoring 9.7 or 9.8—not even close. No human on this planet is ALMOST reaching moral perfection. In fact, the Bible teaches that God is so holy—so righteous—that in comparison OUR best deeds of righteousness are like filthy rags.
Max Lucado says that thinking we would work our way into God's Holy presence with our own good deeds is like someone trying to blow a sailboat across the Atlantic on their own lung power. It's not going to happen—but it may explain why so many RELIGIOUS people always seem to be out of breath!
Look back at verses 3 & 4 where Paul first brings up this issue that he deals with in verse 10. Referring to the infamously RELIGIOUS Jews he says, "My hearts desire and prayer for them is for their salvation...for they have a zeal for God...but not according to knowledge. Seeking to establish their own righteousness, the Jews did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God, for Christ is the end of the law."
Paul is saying that the Jews' primary problem is that they honestly felt that they could muster up enough of their own righteousness—somehow—someway to make themselves completely acceptable to God—without any help from Jesus. They thought they could establish their own righteousness and not need any that Christ would offer. And before we judge the Jews we must admit that without a lot of spiritual discipline it is easy for US to REPEAT their mistake and fall into this kind of absentmindedness that says, "I think good and upright and moral people are almost perfect. They are almost there."
One thing that helps us embrace this kind of thinking is PRIDE. I mean, no one likes to think they are bad enough to need saving. Ray Stedman says, "I will never forget the startled look on the face of a man who came up to me in a movie theater. The seat beside me was vacant, and he said, 'Is that seat saved?' I said, 'No, but I am.'" They guy frowned and took a seat across the aisle. And we all know that "look." No one likes to be told they are "lost" and need "saving." Stedman writes, "It makes us uncomfortable—only when we refuse to face the fact that all men and women are lost...and they are facing an eternity of separation from God. These are the facts as the Scriptures put it."
Understand—you and I may ACT good; we may DO good; we may LOOK good to the HUMAN eye—but the Bible says we are ALL flawed and fallen—sinful beings who need saving. Let's take this glass of water. It looks good. I would say it looks like crystal clear. We'd have no problem drinking it. But do you remember your high school biology class? You took a drop of water from a glass like this and looked at it on the microscope and you saw: dirt, sediment, germs, creatures, herbicides—all kinds of contaminants in just a single drop of what APPEARS to be crystal clear water. Now...multiply that drop by all the drops in the glass and you see what I'm driving at. That glass of water is not as pure as you think it is. Well the Bible says that on the day of reckoning, our lives are going to be put under God's microscope. And when that happens every little piece of dirt—every little imperfection—every contaminant; every improper motive...every impure thought...every devious plan...every self-centered perspective...all of that will be magnified and it will become painfully obvious that in life we were not scoring 9.7s or 9.8s. In fact, we will see that we were way down in the minus area...negative 10 — if that. As the old hymn lyric puts it, we'll see that before Jesus we were "sinking deep in sin.." far from God.
So—we can spend a lifetime THINKING we can work our scores up on our own but the truth is we're never going to even get close to a ten. We will never be able to muster up enough personal righteousness to make ourselves acceptable to the standards of a holy God and people who try to are pursuing the WRONG righteousness. Paul says—to get to Heaven we need to abandon OUR righteousness and RECEIVE Christ's righteousness. This is the central thrust of the Gospel and it's the message that Paul has been trying to get across in the book of Romans since way back in chapter 1.
Well, now he's bringing it back up in chapter 10 because he is aware of the fact that most of the Jews don't believe him. Most of the people in his race think they are still scoring 9.7 or 9.8 and that their own righteousness will suffice in the day of reckoning. Paul says, "No way—you are misunderstanding the whole thing!"
Now—the thing that usually taints OUR thinking on this subject is the irresistible temptation to COMPARE ourselves and our RQ—our "righteousness quotient"—to the RQ's of other human beings—instead of God's holy standard. Let me show you how this works. Some of you will be able to relate to this easily because you did this for years. I hope none of you are still doing it! Okay—I've got a graph to show you what I mean.
When we start comparing ourselves to the righteousness or unrighteousness of other people—when we start putting a "righteousness quotient" on ourselves...well, we usually start by identifying the dregs of society...the degenerates...drug dealers...axe murderers....those kinds of people. We think—if a 10 is perfection, then those kind of people will be on the bottom rung—but they ARE, living human beings so we'll give them a score of 1. In comparison of course, we are much better than the dregs of society so that automatically bumps our righteousness score up to about a 5—and we've just started! We continue by rationalizing the fact that there are an awful lot of louses loose in society. I'm talking about the people at school or work who lie without batting an eyelash, who are very loose moral people—the people who run roughshod over other people's feelings...the kind of person who will cheat and cut corners if it serves their purposes...and we think, well, we're not like those people at all...so if the degenerates and axe murderers get a "1" and that brought the rest of us up to the "5" range—and if these louses maintain their 5 rating...well, that bumps us up somewhere in the mid 7's. Things are literally looking up! At this point we start tallying up the long list of admirable character qualities that you and I possess. I mean think of it: you've been gainfully employed for years and in all that time you've have never stolen much from your company—just a few postage stamps and paper clips. Add to that the fact that you are kind to most people you meet. And—you keep your word for the most part...you are faithful to your spouse...at least in a physical sense. You attend PTA meetings, and buy girl scout cookies. You support public television—and let's face it—not many people do those kinds of things these days. I mean you are clearly, several steps above these other kinds of people. Well, at the least this puts us in the mid 8's and we're not done yet because now we begin to list our religious involvements—our spiritual merit badges. Now—hang on to your hats because we go to church almost every week. We plop down 15 bucks in the offering plate.
Every one else will figure it's a full tithe but how will they ever know? We serve on a committee every so often. We prayed in public after 911..and Hurricane Katrina. And the list could go on and on but suffice it to say we are fairly spiritual people—and when you add THAT to our RQ calculation, well—in all humility we're talking 9.7, 9.8, or even 9.9! Granted it would be boastful to claim that we are tens but sometimes it's almost false modesty to claim anything LESS! Right? I mean, compared to all the other people on this planet we're 9.8 or 9.9 which is pretty amazing isn't it? And that's got to be good enough for God! It's just got to be! Would a loving God quibble over a tenth?
We chuckle, but this way of thinking is widespread. It is rampant. It goes way back in history and yet it is as modern as today. This mind set is why the Jews of Paul's day said to themselves, "We can establish our own righteousness we don't need a Savior. We don't need Christ's righteousness when our own will suffice." This is what Paul is referring to in verse 6 when he says this kind of person thinks he can raise him-SELF up to Heaven.
Well, as I said, this kind of thinking permeates the secular man in our day. This is why many people feel insulted when we tell them they need a Savior. They think, "Who needs Christ's righteousness when my own is plenty?" But their whole argument falls to pieces in an instant when we realize that God's Word clearly teaches that we shouldn't waste our time comparing our righteousness with others'...because our righteousness is going to be measured not by theirs but by the Holy righteousness of God and by that scoring our righteousness will wind up much much different, SHOCKINGLY different!
A few years ago, Daniel and I ran in the Rockville Twilight Run. I think it appealed to me because it was on a Saturday night and most public races are on Sunday morning plus it's done in the dark of night so no one would recognize me in my running out fit—and I don't look very "pastoral" when I'm suited up to run and sweating profusely. Well, that 8K was my first real "race" and when I went to the starting line I noticed that they wanted you to line up according to your speed. At the front of the line were the fast guys—the people who could run a mile at 10MPH or better and Daniel lined up with those guys. Behind them was a sign for people who could run those 5,280 feet at 9MPH and so on down to 5MPH. Behind that were the walkers and the people in wheelchairs.
Well, I knew my pace was about 6MPH—but I looked at a couple of the people in the 7MPH area and I thought, "They don't look so fast....in fact, there's a lot of gray hair up there and one of those guys looks like he'll deliver a baby in about a week—what a gut!" Plus—in the 6MPH area there were mostly housewives and a brand new running outfits with shoes to match—an obvious sign that these weren't serious runners. I mean, they were more interested in appearance than speed. They hadn't run much or their shoes would be beat up like mine. So I thought, "I must belong in the 7MPH slot—and maybe even the 8MPH group." Well, that's where I started—and by the time we reached the campus of Montgomery College I was having a hard time. My speed began to wane such that some of those housewives passed me...and when I was finally able to see the finish line—I looked and there was that guy with the beer gut ahead of me. I finished the race—but let's just say it was a very humbling experience.
I share this because a far, far, greater humbling realization hits people who finally GET IT—They stop comparing themselves to other sinners and begin to realize just how HOLY God is. To keep with the "running illustration" —when they begin to grasp God's perfection—they begin to see how far behind they are—how woefully insufficient their own righteousness really is. God's holiness is so pure—so blameless—that our meager little attempts at impressing Him with our little noble intentions and deeds of service—well we see that they fall so short.
I have met a lot of church-going believers in my life—hundreds...maybe thousands...and do you know how I have learned to recognize TRUE spiritual maturity? I can tell if someone enjoys a truly intimate relationship with God by how humble they are—because the closer we get to God—the more we understand how sinful we are and that realization HUMBLES us! We see this principle of maturity in the Scriptures when individuals came face to face with God because when that happened they weren't prideful...no—they were mournful! The prophet Isaiah—perhaps the greatest prophet of the Old Testament—when he had that vision in which he stood before God's throne...he cried out, "Woe is me, I am a sinful man. I am undone. Depart from me...I am unclean!" Once Paul—this Pharisee of Pharisees whose sole focus was personal righteousness—once he met Jesus, Paul began to refer to himself as, "the chief of sinners."
Here's what I'm driving at—Until men and women subject their righteousness to the measuring rod of God's holiness they will wrongfully rate themselves in comparison to other people and will wind up with a score way higher than they deserved. When a person is thoroughly convinced that he is a 9.7 or a 9.8, then we are all wasting our time talking to them about their need for a Savior because in their own minds they just don't need one. Who needs Christ's righteousness when your own is plenty?! And Paul is lamenting about the fact that this is the mind set of most of his fellow Jews. The are counting on their own righteousness and its not going to work. They think they are easily in the 10MPH group—but they are only dreaming! And they are going to face a night mare on the day of reckoning.
Well, what's the SOLUTION to this problem? Paul gives it to us in verses 14-15 where he asks,
"How, then, can they call on the One they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the One of Whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
In other words Paul says the solution is for Christians to get the truth out about God's holiness and man's sinfulness. We have to TELL people that when we come to the end of our lives the measuring rod is not going to be the feeble righteousness of others but rather God's perfect holiness. We have to tell them the good news that Jesus Christ lived a perfect, sinless life—and then He died in the cross in our place.
As we said back when we looked at Acts 3 & 4, the only way to get to Heaven is to clothe ourselves in Jesus' righteousness. We have to let people know this! I mean, how can we expect them to believe in Jesus and confess their faith in Him if they've never heard the truth about these matters?
Well, that is our mandate. This is message we have to get out. We have to be messengers for those who are giving themselves 9.8 or 9.9. We need to let them know that they are pursuing the WRONG righteousness—they need to know this because a day is coming....when they will stand before our loving HOLY God...and on that day we'll see how WRONG our righteousness really is.
Steve Hugo wrote the following autobiographical story about his childhood. He says:
"For as far back as I can remember, I always treated Old Man Jones, my neighbor, in the worst ways. Each April 1st, I pulled the 'burning paper bag with dog stuff in it' tradition, and even though Old Man Jones never fell for it, he still had a gross pile to remove from his front stairs! He always knew that it was me, and always said, without anger in his voice, 'Someday, you'll be sorry.' His driveway was next to ours and in the winter, I always shoveled our snow onto his drive, giving him twice the work. He never did get a snow blower, but when I was 12, just before a blizzard, one appeared in my driveway, with a note saying, 'You might need this!' I could now delight in blowing all the snow from my driveway, and most of my front yard, onto Old Man Jones's car. I would even cut a wider-than-needed path for my mom's car just to put more snow on the dinosaur's driveway. (That's what my mom always called him: 'the Dinosaur.') He always knew that it was me and always said without anger in his voice, 'Someday, you'll be sorry.' I keyed his car more than once. When I discovered the mint 1969 Mustang Mach series car that always stayed under a thick canvas cover, kept for someone, I quickly sought to learn how many pumps of my BB rifle it took send the metal orb through it's windows. It took ten pumps. He knew that it was me and said without anger in his voice, 'Someday, you'll be sorry.'
Between my BB gun and slingshot, most of his home's windows had to be replaced at one time or another, not to mention the battered aluminum siding that still bears the myriad of little dents. He never complained about the shattered bird feeder or the constant supply of dead squirrels, sparrows, cardinals, and whatever else winged its way into his yard. I do remember the tenderness that he buried the vermin with, though. I can't recall how many times he had to take his cat to the vet to remove a pellet from an infected wound, but I do remember that he always knew that it was me, and always said, without anger in his voice, 'Someday, you'll be sorry.' At Christmas-time he used to set up lots of lights around his house that looked like virtual BB magnets, which they were. A plastic manger scene was the prime target one year, and stayed on the relic's front lawn until I shot the baby's face off. He knew that it was me and said without anger in his voice, 'Someday, you'll be sorry.'
There was this room in his house that I would look into sometimes when the old man was away. It was the kind of room that I would have loved to have, if my mom could ever get a real job. It was just like one of those 'Good Housekeeping kid's bedrooms that everybody is supposed to want. I always figured that Jones was on the loony side, and this 'keeping a cool room for a kid he didn't have thing' was the final proof that I needed of his senility. But I never shot that window out.
My mom and I never had much in the money department, but every year, on Christmas, a couple hundred dollars worth of cool stuff was left on my doorstep with, 'Merry Christmas' and my name written on each carefully wrapped gift. (That's where the BB gun came from, along with a great target setup, which was never needed with the shooting range next door.) My mom, too hung over each Christmas morning to get me up early enough to meet the Gift Bearer, said that the stuff probably came from my grandfather, whom she hadn't cared to talk to or see since long before I came around. There had been some long remembered fight over his 'interference' in her affairs. I had never seen him and really didn't even know or care where he lived, so long as the goodies came.
One Christmas, I got up early on My own because I thought that I might want to see what my ancestor looked like, not to mention that I was hoping for BB's from my benefactor, 'cause Old Man Jones had just gotten a new bird feeder with 'unbreakable' glass in it, and my Daisy was calling my name before the sun was up. I was still rubbing sleep from my eyes, when I heard a soft shuffling on the porch. As I quietly opened the front door, the rising sun reflected off of an armload of carefully wrapped presents, in silver and gold paper, each with 'Merry Christmas' and my name written on it. The arms were still holding the gifts, but the face was hidden by a tall package. The obscured gift bearer was unaware that I had opened the door, until he carefully put the gifts down. Startled, Old Man Jones stood up stiffly and with moistened eyes and broken voice said, 'Merry Christmas.' 'Someday' had come, and Old Man Jones could have never been more right. I was sorry..."
Friends, our righteous and holy God gives us good and perfect gifts every day—because He loves us. Yet we treat Him poorly. We sin and do wrong in His eyes. Every day every one of us falls short of His holy standard. Perhaps the worst insult we send God's way is our prideful assumptions that, on our own, we can be good enough to enter His holy presence. But, unless we believe in and confess our faith in Jesus' righteousness...a day will dawn when we will be sorry for our sin—sorry for our feeble attempts at the WRONG righteousness. That day, there will be a lot of sorry people, who will regret that they ignored God, and believe me, that is not the day that you want to be sorry.
Christians, our hearts must break for the GOOD people in our realm of influence who are pursuing the WRONG righteousness—the people who are GOOD—but still very lost. Personal, relational evangelism must always have top priority in our minds. Remember, Jesus' first words to His disciples were, "Follow Me and I'll make you fishers of men." And His last words were, "You will be My witnesses...Go ye therefore!"
Invitation
Let me ask one final question. Have you taken advantage of the opportunities God has given you to tell your lost but "GOOD people" friends about Jesus? If not—then hear Paul's words once again, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved...but...how can they call on the One they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the One of Whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?" I hope and pray all of you are taking advantage of these opportunities because how are they ever going to learn of their need for Jesus if you don't do your job as messenger? Remember, as Paul says in verse 15, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
LET US PRAY
Father God,
This morning I ask that you would heal our blindness...open our eyes so we can see two things very clearly. First, show us our sin—help us all to feel the despair Isaiah felt when He stood in Your presence...help his exclamation to echo in our minds such that we all think, 'Woe is me...I am undone...for I am unlcean...' Use that terrible realization to remind us as Christians once again how much we need Jesus...And then with that still fresh in our minds...show us how lost our non-believing friends really are. BURDEN us with that understanding. Make our hearts heavy so that—relying on the guidance of Your Spirit—we will seize every opportunity to tell them the good news of the Gospel message. I ask this in Jesus' name. AMEN
As we stand and sing, I invite you to respond publically in any way you feel led. Come and profess your faith in Jesus...come and ask to join our church...but come as God leads.
BENEDICTION:
Let the PEACE OF CHRIST rule in your hearts
since as members of one body you were called to peace.
Let the WORD OF CHRIST dwell in you richly
and whatever you do...in word or in deed
Do it all in the NAME OF CHRIST giving thanks to God the Father
through Him.
Who Chose Whom?
Date: July 20, 2008
Scripture: Romans 9
from the series Romans
Introduction
This week I did an Internet search on famous feuds—and several examples popped up. Here's a sampling:
The first one I found mentioned was between Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. Apparently these two guys were bitter political rivals and tensions had simmered for years. Things came to a head and on the morning of July 11, 1804 they stood back to back, each with a dueling pistol, walked the obligatory 10 paces, turned, and fired. Hamilton, the former secretary of the treasury was shot and fatally wounded by Burr who, by the way, was vice president of the United States at the time. I can't help but remember Vice President Cheney's accidental shooting of a hunting companion a while back.. Perhaps that job is a lot more stressful that we think!
The next feud to come up in my search is very well known—and I'm referring to the squabble between the Hatfields of West Virginia and the McCoys of Kentucky. Here's a shot of one of those families—and as you can see, they are armed and ready to go. Their infamous disagreement started over the supposed theft of a pig and it led to a bloody feud that raged for more than a decade. Ten family members died before the fighting ended in 1891.
And then, do any of you remember the feud between these two famous actress sisters of yesteryear: Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine? They had endured a strained relationship since they were teens and it reached a breaking point in 1941, when both received Oscar nominations for best actress. Fontaine won and that sparked an all-out feud that the sisters, now both in their 90s, continues to this day.
Sermon
The reason feuds were on my mind this week is because this morning's text from Romans has helped spark a squabble that has raged far longer than these other feuds combined. I'm referring to a disagreement among two groups of Christians that has lasted hundreds of years, centering around attempts to reconcile the sovereignty of God with the free will of men. To be more specific, these two groups haven't been able to agree as to WHO chose WHOM. Does God chose who will be His children? Or—do we use our free will to chose Him? Which is more correct—free will or predestination—Calvinism or Arminianism?
As I said, this argument has made the 9th chapter of Romans one of the most controversial chapters of the New Testament. Differences over how to understand this text and others like it have destroyed friendships, split churches, and divided Christians into different denominational groups.
Reflecting on the consequences of this struggle, William Barclay once said, "This is one passage I wish Paul had not written." So—I've decided to go with Barclay's perspective, skip these volatile verses, and head right into chapter 10. All in favor, say "Amen." Of course I'm just kidding. All Scripture is God breathed and is useful for teaching and correction—so we won't skip it! Instead we'll ask God to guide us in our study! Take your Bibles and turn to Romans 9 and let's read verses 10-21.
10 - Rebekah's children had one and the same father, our father Isaac.
11 - Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God's purpose in election might stand:
12 - not by works but by Him Who calls—she was told, "The older will serve the younger."
13 - Just as it is written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."
14 - What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all!
15 - For He says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion."
16 - It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy.
17 - For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display My power in you and that My name might be proclaimed in all the earth."
18 - Therefore God has mercy on whom He wants to have mercy, and He hardens whom He wants to harden.
19 - One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who resists His will?"
20 - But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to Him Who formed it, 'Why did You make me like this?'"
21 - Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?
Wow! Are you SURE you don't want to just head on over to Romans chapter 10? Again—I'm just kidding! Let's see what we can learn together in our study of this controversial chapter. Reviewing a bit—I would remind you that Paul has just built a powerful argument for the faithfulness of God and the absolute security of every believer. He ended his 8th chapter of the book of Romans by declaring that nothing shall SEPARATE us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Do you remember those final climactic verses? Well, as Paul begins the 2nd half of his letter he very creatively makes a transition into the theological mine fields of chapter 9 by saying. "And speaking of being SEPARATED..."
Bill Hybels points out that this is a play on words—a clever segue using the word "separated" from chapter 8 and carrying it over into verse 3 of chapter 9 and I agree. In essence Paul says, "Speaking of being SEPARATED...There is a group of people—my kinsmen—my race—my brethren—the Jewish people—Many of MY people are SEPARATED from Christ." And please note...this is not a callous statement of fact on Paul's part. No—his heart is breaking over the fact that the Jews, as a whole, have rejected Jesus Christ—the Jesus Paul loves so much and proclaims so boldly. You can't help but hear the compassion in his voice as Paul says in verse 2, "I have great sorrow and unceasing grief in my heart because my kinsmen are SEPARATED..." And we see how sincere his feelings are in verse 3 where he goes so far as to say,"I wish that I myself could be accursed so that the whole nation of Israel could be saved."
In other words, Paul says, "If my going to Hell in their place would get them into Heaven, I'd do it in a heartbeat!"
So, Paul loves his fellow Hebrews—he loves the Jewish people. He can't bear to think of them in Hell separated from God for all eternity.
And—I think we should stop at this point and to a little self-examination.
I mean, ask yourself, Christian—does YOUR heart break like this for the lost people around you—the people you know who don't know Jesus? It could be a Jewish neighbor across the street or a family member who has turned his or her back on God. It could be that co-worker who is so skeptical of Christianity...that person who is more on "the left" politically and looks at believers like you as "the enemy." Do you grieve over the spiritual condition of those people? Do you pray for them? Do you care that they are going through life without Jesus? Does your heart break that they are SEPARATED from God? It should! A man once said to his friend, "I hear you fired your pastor. Why were you guys so unhappy with him?" The man said, "Well, he kept telling us we were going to Hell." "Oh...well, what does your NEW pastor say?" the friend asked and the man said, "Our new pastor says we're going to Hell, too. But we like him." "Really? If your new pastor tells you you're going to Hell, just like the old one, why do you like him?" "Because," the man said, "when our old pastor said it, he sounded glad of it. When our new pastor says it, he sounds like its breaking his heart." Does your heart break for the lost people around you? More importantly, can they sense your compassion—or your judgement? Listen, fellow Christian, we need more of Paul's broken-hearted compassion for the lost—the kind of sacrificial love for people that prompts missionaries to labor in leper colonies...or to risk their own lives taking the Gospel message in places where it is illegal to do so.
Okay—back to our text. In verses four and five Paul elaborates on his grief saying basically, "It's such a shame that they have rejected Jesus because the Hebrew people have had all the advantages." And then Paul lists eight of their unique benefits as a nation.
- From among all the races of the Earth God chose them to be His representatives—His missionaries to this lost world. God adopted the Jews for this all-important task.
- They witnessed God's glory every day as He led them through the wilderness.
- They also had the covenants that God made with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and David.
- On top of that the Jewish people had the law. We have the Judeo-Christian ethic today thanks to the written guidance God gave the world through this chosen nation.
- The Jews also had the advantage of Temple worship—including all the sacrifices that served as object lessons to help us understand our sin—and God's sacrifice in sending His Son.
- They had the promises of God—promises given to them as His chosen people.
- The Hebrews had the patriarchs—great leaders like Abraham and the rest.
- But the greatest blessing of all was the fact that they had the privilege of being the race from which the Messiah, Jesus, was born.
So, Paul's grief is intensified because he knows his people—the Hebrew nation—he knows they had everything going for them. They had all of these advantages but on the whole they blew it! Time and time again they turned from God and in the end most of them even rejected His Son. As John 1:11 says, "He came to His own but His own did not receive Him."
This makes it appear as if God's plan to save mankind has failed. But, in verse 6 Paul says that, no—God's plan has not failed because, yes, through the history of the Jews many messed up. They ignored God and became nothing more than "Jews of the flesh." But there were other Jews who were obedient—Jews who trusted God and became His true Children...children of the promise. Paul seems to say that God has CHOSEN these special Jews to buy into His plan: Isaac instead of Ishmael and Jacob instead of his brother Esau. And then in verse 14, in order to silence anyone who would say, "Hey—that's not fair," Paul says, "Is God unjust? Not at all! For as He said to Moses, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.' It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy." Paul seems to be saying some Jews will be chosen by God and others passed by.
Now—I don't pretend to have the spiritual gift of discernment but I sense a special sort of HEAVY silence in the sanctuary at this point...because the argument Paul is making here in chapter 9 is one that rubs many people the wrong way—especially Baptist believers.
In fact it almost seems as if Paul knew people who read this would respond this way because he says, "Here's another example to prove my point. Remember? God hardened the Pharaoh's heart to demonstrate His power! So, God has mercy on whom He wants to have mercy, and He hardens whom He wants to harden." To use a current example, it is as if Paul says, "God is the owner of the Green Bay Packers, so He doesn't have to let Brett Farve play quarterback if He doesn't want to."
Well that's pretty much it in a nutshell. We've scanned the bulk of this controversial chapter in about five minutes. That's got to be a world record and if we closed the service now we'd beat the Presbyterians to Ledos but we'd also leave with a lot of unanswered questions on our minds.
So, I want to use the rest of the time allotted to me this morning to try and help you to understand this doctrinal feud a little better. Of course I won't be able to resolve this issue. Far wiser believers than I have tried and failed but I still want to do my best to try and explain the nature of the controversy so that at least you can be more aware of it. Then you can join the rest of us who have been tortured by this disagreement. I mean, misery loves company—so let's dive in!
I want to begin by trying to explain the Calvinist position and these days it is usually referred to as "The Reformed Position." It's become more popular recently in reaction to "overly seeker sensitive churches" and the emergent church movement—believers who tend to de-emphasize doctrine.But Calvinist or Reformed—whatever you call this group—these guys and gals have read texts like this one in Romans 9 as well as Ephesians chapter 1 and they have concluded that God alone makes the determination as to who is going to be saved and who is going to be lost.
Sometimes this viewpoint is referred to as "Double-predestination" because the people on this "side" of the feud believe God predestines some for Heaven and predestines others for Hell. The Christians who embrace this conviction say that God made the decision as to who would go where before the foundation of the world and man has nothing to do with it.
And that's not all. This side of the "feud" makes other assertions. For example, many Calvinists believe that Jesus died on the cross ONLY for the elect—those chosen or predestined by God for Heaven. They say this must be true because it would have been unthinkable for Jesus to spill His precious blood for those who would not benefit from it. They also believe that only the elect—those chosen by God to go to Heaven have the GIFT OF FAITH that enables them to believe in Jesus. All others are passed over in this particular gift giving. It's kind of like the "non-elect" have a spiritual birth defect because they don't have the ability to reach out to God.
Reformed believers are quick to say that it is not UNFAIR for these non-elect to be skipped over in this way because like all people, they are sinners—undeserving of God's grace.
To explain their line of thinking, imagine a judge in a court room who hears the evidence and convicts twenty-five people for running a stop light. He fines each of them 100 dollars. Understand they were all caught on camera—so there is no doubt that they are all guilty. Calvinists would say, "Who could accuse this judge from being unjust for taking 500 bucks from his pocket and choosing five out of the group saying, 'For reasons known only to me I'm going to be merciful to you. I've paid your find. I'm going to set you free.'" Could the other 20 complain legitimately? No—because they were guilty. They received the just punishment for that. No one could say the judge was unfair because EVERYONE deserved punishment. They would say in life everyone has sinned and all of us deserve Hell...so if God simply passes people by and doesn't offer them the miraculous gift of faith...well those people are only getting what they justly deserve in the first place.
Here's another thing that Calvinists tend to believe. They say that not only does God choose the elect—they can't refuse His choosing. This is what is called "irresistible grace." In other words, if you are chosen by God to go to Heaven—well, I'm sorry—but you have to go whether you want to or not!
A good summary of extreme Calvinism is found in what is called the "TULIP" acronymand as I use it to cite the doctrines of this side of the feud make a mental note as to which ones you agree with.
- T.otal depravity. By nature everyone is a sinner—totally depraved.
- U.nconditional election. God elects or chooses who will go to Heaven and who will go to Hell.
- L.imited atonement. Christ died ONLY for the elect.
- I.rresistable grace. The elect cannot say NO to God.
- P.erseverance of the saints...or "once saved always saved." The elect cannot be lost.
Okay—what are the benefits of this position? What are the "pluses" of Calvinism? And there ARE pluses.
(1) Here's the first. Calvinism is a view that extols the sovereignty of God.
I count this as a PLUS—because God IS absolutely sovereign. God can do whatever He wants to do. He doesn't need anyone's permission. He can love who He wants to love; He can forgive Who He wants to forgive and condemn who He wants to condemn. God doesn't owe you, or me, or anyone anything. We are not in a position to dictate to God our own personal concept of right and wrong because as Creator, He's the One Who makes the rules. This is what Paul is getting at in verse 20, "Who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to Him Who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?'
Have you ever played the computer game Sim City? In this game you build your own city.
You are in control. You decide where the houses will be, how commerce will be conducted, what amenities will be made available to the public, how the economy will be driven, and so on.
It's your game; you make the rules. The "people" you create cannot object. What right would they have to do so? It's your game. It's your computer so you can do what you want to do. In the same way God can do what He wants to do. He is SOVEREIGN—so I think the Calvinists get that right. We can learn a thing or two from them when it comes to this one.
(2) Here's a second plus. Calvinism emphasizes the amazing grace of God.
They understand—perhaps better than any other group of Christians—that salvation is a gift of God and that we don't get to Heaven on good works or human merit. This is what Paul is stressing in verse 16 when he says our salvation, "...does not depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy." And—again—the Calvinists get an A+ on this one because the clear teaching of Scripture is that salvation is indeed by grace alone.
(3) Here's one other plus: Calvinists, who consider themselves one of the elect tend to be very grateful for their salvation.
I mean, think of it. If you believe God chose an undeserving sinner like you from among the billions of sinners on this planet—well, it just bowls you over! To think, "God chose ME!" I get this mental image of the people who open the door and see the Readers Digest Prize Patrol guys with a huge check or Ty Pennington and his Extreme Make-over crew, ready to build you a new house. Those people are so humbled—so grateful—aren't they?! Well, if you have this conviction that only some are chosen and you are one of them—well let's just say you don't usually take your salvation for granted. You tend to be much more grateful to God than other believers. AND—all believers—no matter which side of this feud they land on should be GRATEFUL to God for saving them. To put it in "Redlandese," our understanding of God's saving grace should drive us. It should be what motivates us to live Godly lives.
Okay—those are the pluses—what about the minuses? Where does Calvinism or the Reformed movement fall short? And again—this is my opinion.
(1) First, it ignores the texts in God's Word that indicate people do indeed have free will.
I always want to ask an extreme Calvinist how he or she explains the scores of passages that indicate mankind has a decision to make...a choice. To me these verses certainly seem to indicate that people do play a part in determining their destiny. For example, Adam and Eve are given a choice to make in the Garden of Eden. They made the wrong choice—but it was theirs. And what about verses like Joshua 24:15 where it says, "Choose you this day who you will serve but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." What about the next chapter in Paul's letter—Romans 10:13 where he says, "Whosoever will call on the name of the Lord—whoever CHOOSES to call on Jesus—will be saved." What about John 3:16 where Jesus says, "For God so loved the world that WHOSOEVER BELIEVES in Him will not perish but have everlasting life." What about Jesus' interaction with the Rich Young Ruler where our Lord plainly gives him a choice? Remember? Jesus told him, "Sell your possessions. Give the money to the poor. Come follow Me. Make the choice—give up your stuff and be My disciple. It' s up to you."(Matthew 19:21) I don't know about you but in my feeble mind it seems as if the Calvinist position leaves a lot of passages of Scripture unexplained. Plus—if, as human beings, we are given choices in other areas of life, why would this one choice be taken from us? That doesn't make sense to me. This leads me to mention another flaw:
(2) Extreme Calvinism makes human beings into little more than robots.
If everything is determined, then people are nothing more than puppets who go through the motions of living. In fact, this doctrine could even be seen as an excuse to sin. If we have no choice in the matter then sinning is not really our fault. And this really bothers me because believing God set it all up this way makes Him the author of sin—and I KNOW that is not Biblical. After all, as James 1:13 clearly says, "God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone."
(3) A third potential error is that extreme Calvinism tends to discourage evangelism.
You see, if God chooses who will be saved—then we have no role in it. And there are some churches that follow this line of thinking. They don't reach out. They don't share the gospel. They don't participate in missions because in their mind the individuals who are going to be saved is already a done deal.
Well, that's the Calvinists. What about the other side of the spectrum? What do Arminians believe?
Well, basically Arminians believe that God provided the sacrifice for our sins through Jesus' death on the cross—but men are individually responsible to choose to accept God's free gift or to reject it. I think Herschel Hobbs illustrated it well when he explained predestination or election by saying, "There is an election held. God votes for you. satan votes against you. And you cast the deciding vote." Suffice it to say that Arminians believe the Bible teaches we have a role in our salvation—we decide to accept or reject Jesus as our personal Savior and Lord. It's our choice.
Here are the "pluses" of this group's beliefs.
(1) The Arminianism perspective acknowledges the verses in Scripture that tell of God's universal love for ALL people—not just a select few.
For example, they point to 2 Peter 3:9 where it says, "God is not willing for ANYONE to perish but for EVERYONE to come to repentance." And John 3:16 where is says: "God so loved THE WORLD..." ...not just the elect.
I call this a PLUS because, yes—God is sovereign—and He can do what He wants—but in His word He tells us over and over again that what He wants to do is to save THE WORLD. He wants to forgive all of us and help all of us and bring all of us peace and joy in life. The Bible teaches that people matter to God—ALL PEOPLE.
Almighty God—Who can do anything He wants to do—wants to give you a purpose for your life here on this earth and also wants to spend all of eternity with you in Heaven—and the Armenian viewpoint acknowledges this.
(2) Here's another plus—the Armenian viewpoint resolves the unsavory idea of God sending some people to Heaven and other people to Hell.
Arminians say that God is sovereign—but in His sovereignty He chooses to give each of us free will. Those who choose to confess their sin and their need for Jesus—those who choose to follow Him as Savior and Lord are welcomed into Heaven. Those who refuse—those who don't want anything to do with God—well, they get their wish because they spend this life and the next separated from their loving Creator.
Now—some of you are thinking—well that's that. This sermon is a done deal because Mark has just explained the right position—the one this church holds. Let's wind up this service because if we leave now—we can still beat the Presbyterians to Ledos.
But wait—because the fact is Arminianism has a flaw or two as well...and it wouldn't be fair not to mention them so here goes:
(1) First, most Arminians just simply ignore these texts that seem to teach predestination.
They skip over Ephesians 1 and Romans 9—and that's not a good thing because as 2nd Timothy 3:16 says, "ALL SCRIPTURE is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." We mustn't commit the sin of Thomas Jefferson and simply take a pair of scissors and cut out the passages of the Bible that we don't agree with—or we won't be "thoroughly equipped."
(2) One other minus is this. Arminianism can reduce God's part in our salvation.
If we're not careful it makes God into sort of a cosmic vending machine because, like putting the right change in the slot for a soda, if we say the right words He has to grant us salvation. I mean, with the Arminian view it is easy to wind up subjecting God to the wills and whims of man. It conjures up images of us saying certain phrases that obligate God to act in a certain way.
Now—if you've heard me preach—then you know I tend to be far more Arminian than Calvinist.
I believe that if we study the Bible systematically we can see that God loves all people and that Jesus died for all mankind—and that in His amazing grace He has given us free will. I believe that by rightly dividing this Word of truth with careful study we can solve the riddles of certain perplexing texts. For example, this text in verse 13 that says God loves Jacob but hates Esau is a quote of Malachi 1:1—a verse that was originally written 2000 years after Esau and Jacob lived and died. So—by the time it was written the names referred not to the individuals but to the nations that came from these two brothers. Jacob referred to the people of Israel and Esau to the Edomites—a nation that had mistreated the Jewish people. I think Paul's purpose in quoting this verse was to condemn the actions of a NATION not to say God chose one INDIVIDUAL above the other.
Another thing—the word "hate" here is meant to emphasize a contrast—in the same way that Jesus said, "If any one wants to follow me, he must HATE his father and mother." Jesus wasn't saying we should hate our parents. To do so would be to contradict God's command that we honor them. No—He was simply saying our love for HIM must have pre-eminence. I think the word "HATE" is used in the same way here—as a contrast—because God did lovingly blessed the individual named Esau—his offspring became a great nation. It was Esau's DESCENDANTS who used their free will mistreat the Jews. This is what God hated.
And the passage that says God hardened the Pharaoh's heart—well, that's a quote from Exodus beginning with chapter 7 and if you were to read the literal translation of the Hebrew you'd see that of the 20 times it speaks of Pharaoh's heart hardening, ten refer to the Pharaoh hardening his own heart and ten refer to God. Plus the fact that there were so many plagues suggests to me that God gave Pharaoh many opportunities to choose to obey and set the Hebrew people free. Another thing, the word in Romans 9:22 that we translate "fitted for destruction" literally means "fitted himself for destruction." In other words Pharaoh's destruction came as a result of his own God-given choice.
If you look carefully at verses 30-33 of this controversial chapter you'll see that it ends by saying our salvation is based on our response of faith. And—passages like Ephesians 1 do say that Christians are predestined—but if you look closely you can see what it is really saying is they are predestined to become like Jesus. One more. I DO believe we can't come to Christ unless He invites us. As Jesus says in John 6:44, "No one can come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me draws him." But I believe God draws all men. As Paul reminded us in Romans 1, even people who have never heard the gospel story can look at creation and "hear" God calling to them. I believe all people have this inborn yearning to fill that God-shaped hole that is in their hearts.
So—what are we to do? How should we respond to this FEUD? Should we "lock and load" and get ready to settle this once and for all?
No—I think history proves that wouldn't be effective so instead let me QUICKLY suggest a few things.
(1) First, don't get into heated arguments about this.
I mean, there are brilliant Christians on both sides. For example: John MacArthur, John Piper, Al Mohler, R. C. Sproul, and others are un-apologetically of the reformed persuasion. And on the whole, I for one benefit from their preaching and writing. In fact, my favorite set of commentaries are written by James Montgomery Boice—a very Calvinistic guy. I agree with him on most things so I just ignore the parts of his commentaries where he gets into things I don't agree with him about—because the rest—the good stuff—is EXCELLENT. Plus—I have found most Calvinists to be VERY evangelistic. I mean, the late presbyterian, Dr. D. James Kennedy wrote Evangelism Explosion—one of the most effective tools ever written when it comes to training believers to share their faith. When these reformed evangelists are asked to explain why they so aggressively share their faith they usually say they don't know who are chosen
and they know Jesus commanded us to go and share the Gospel...so they go. I have no problem with those folks. I figure they'll learn they are wrong when they get to Heaven.
(2) And then second, if you think I'm being a bit too cavalier, remember, we won't understand some things until we get to Heaven.
God's thoughts are not our thoughts—so there are things about His actions that you and I are just not going to "get" on this side of eternity. Jerry Bridges writes, "A finite mind simply cannot comprehend an infinite being beyond what He has expressly revealed to us." And Bridges is right.
(3) Finally—and I love this advice from Bill Hybels—worship like a Calvinist and witness like an Arminian.
Learn from our Calvinist brothers and worship God as if He chose you—because there is a sense in which He did. On the cross Jesus knew He was dying for YOU. So, learn from those of the reformed tradition and don't take your salvation for granted. Remember, you are a sinner who deserves Hell but in His unfathomable grace and love He sent His only Son to pay for your sins.
Speaking of worshiping like a Calvinist...bow down and worship God for the Sovereign being that He is—a God of mystery we can't possibly fully understand.
And then, like Paul, with hearts breaking for the lost, witness like an Arminian. Do all you can to get the good news of the Gospel to people who either have yet to hear or respond. If God gives you a chance to WALK ACROSS A ROOM and share your faith—Do so! Witness as if their salvation depends on it because as Paul says in Romans 10:14, "How can they call on the One they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the One of Whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?"
Let us pray.
Invitation
Father God,
Remind us that feuds and arguments tend to both please the adversary and also push lost people away from Your love. Help us to trust You for those things we don't understand. Empower us to obey You in those things we do. And now Father...You have promised to guide us through life and so I ask that You would speak to each of us. Convict us of attitudes and actions that need to change if we are to be more in line with Your will.
I ask this in Jesus' name.
AMEN
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All of us want to be loved. All of us want somebody to love us, Well , I want to tell you that God Loves you. He loves you so much that he gave us his Son to die on the Calvary cross for our sins. And he loves you so much that he will come into your life and change the direction of your life and make you a new person, whoever you are.
Are you sure that you know Christ ??
Jesus Christ is my Master.
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