Sunday Sermons
A Holy Nation
A Holy Nation
The following statement was made about Christians in 150 A.D. in the Letter to Diognetes, “The Christians are distinguished from other men neither by country, nor language, nor the customs which they observe. For they neither inhabit cities of their own, nor employ a peculiar form of speech, nor lead a life which is marked out by any singularity. They dwell in their own countries, but simply as sojourners. As citizens, they share in all things with others, and yet endure all things as foreigners. Every foreign land is to them as their native country, and every land of their birth as a land of strangers. They are in the flesh, but they do not live after the flesh. They pass their days on earth, but they are citizens of heaven. They obey the prescribed laws, and at the same time surpass the laws by their lives. They love all men, and are persecuted by all. They are poor, yet make many rich. To sum up all in one word, what the soul is in the body, that are Christians in the world”.
A life not marked by any one singularity
Many religions are marked by a couple of peculiar traits or practices, but not Christianity. It is a faith that transforms one’s entire life, “Be holy yourselves also in all your behavior” (1 Peter 1:15). There have been and presently are a number of movements and religions that are not going along with the cultural stream, yet Christianity is the supreme resistance against “the world” (1 John 2:15; Romans 12:2). “Nor should we have any illusions that the Christian alternative will be easy. Christians, by virtue of the truth they hold, stand even more uncompromisingly against the cultural stream” (The Dust of Death, Os Guinness, p. 365).
Truly Revolutionary
To this day, the New Testament is still far more “revolutionary” than any document written by mere men. For example, the early Christians were not revolutionary because they roused the slaves against their masters, this they never did. “To set slave against master would only have allied Christ to Spartacus, Marx and Mao” (Guinness p. 368). Rather, the New Testament teaches that such distinctions really do not matter when it comes to serving God and others (1 Corinthians 7:21). It simply is a non-issue, something that really doesn’t matter one way or the other. The most important issue is not economic or physical freedom; rather, it is moral freedom (Titus 2:9-10).
The Transcendent Message
In our modern world there are a number of people who believe that the “truth” is whatever is embraced by the present historical time period, that is, if enough people today believe such and such, then such becomes our truth. Yet Jesus declared, “Thy word is truth” (John 17:17). “Thus Christian truth transcends present reality in terms of its view of who man is, what morals are, what solutions are possible. What the Christian sees man to be and do by virtue of his being in a fallen world, he judges by the transcendent truth of who man was, is, and could be by virtue of his being created in the image of God and his being offered renewal in Jesus Christ. Hence, Christian truth is not one-dimensional. It stands against and above (John 12:48), judging the present situation in the name of God” (pp. 371,372). In reference to the coming Messiah, Isaiah said, “He will not judge by what His eyes see, nor make a decision by what His ears hear” (11:3),which demonstrates that God’s criteria are His own standards of justice and have no necessary relation to the values of the time or culture.
· “Christian truth describes root reality so that any form, idea, ideology, custom or morality inconsistent with this must be challenged” (p. 375). See Ephesians 5:11; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Psalm 119:105.
· Since Christians are in touch with the God of truth, Christianity is never other than relevant. Yet the moment it marries the latest fad or views of the culture, it ceases to be contemporary.
· Christianity equally offers the perfect balance between form and freedom. “If form dominates freedom, society swings toward authoritarian control, but if freedom dominates form, society tends toward anarchic chaos. But how can human society maintain this necessary balance? For the Christian—with his concept of truth as the description of ultimate reality, ‘that which is’ (whether who God is or man is), freedom (either personal or social) will be possible only within the form which God made man to enjoy and within the values by which he made man to live” (p. 372). Thus Jesus taught, “and the truth will make you free” (John 8:32).
The High View of Man
“Made in the likeness of God” (James 3:9); “For what will a man be profited, if he gains the whole world, and forfeits his soul?” (Matthew 16:26); “Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep!” (Matthew 12:12); “Yet Thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and doest crown him with glory and majesty” (Psalm 8:5). In the abortion debate, God’s truth not only answers the question of when a baby is human (James 2:26; Psalm 139), “But will also delve deeper to point out that the widespread demand for abortion today accurately mirrors a low view of life, love, relationships and physical intimacy” (p. 379). When it comes to the subject of capital punishment, the discussion of this subject in the book of Genesis presupposes and demands a high view of man. “Murder is the ultimate violence, because each human life is inviolable. In Genesis, capital punishment is the expression of a high view of man (Genesis 9:6 “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man his blood shall be shed, for in the image of God He made man”). Thus, opposition to capital punishment can never be called “humane”. “It is the very strength of Christianity that allows it to be gentle without being sentimental, tender without being trite, sacrificial without being melodramatic” (p. 380).
Honest about Men
“But Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men, and because He did not need anyone to bear witness concerning man for He Himself knew what was in man” (John 2:24-25).
“The glorified Christ sees to the bottom of every heart, detects every superficial confession, every trace of indifference or hostility” (Lenski p. 226), and then trials came, many would forsake Him (John 6:66). Jesus did not fully commit Himself to the protection of men, for He knew that people are frail, and undependable, and that man is not the true source of security. Barclay notes, “It is the great characteristic of Jesus that He did not want followers unless these followers clearly knew and definitely accepted that which was involved in following Him. He refused---in the modern phrase---to cash in on a moment’s popularity” (p. 106). He knew their hearts (Mark 2:8; John 4:29; 6:61; 21:17). “He didn’t need to be told about anyone” (Beck). “And had no need of anybody’s evidence about men” (Gspd). In other words, Jesus did not need a course on human psychology. “It was not necessary for Jesus to listen to testimony concerning any particular person, for his own penetrating eyes were able to look into the very depths of that person’s heart” (Hendriksen p. 128). “For He knew mankind to the core” (Tay). “He knew that a man can be swept away in a moment of emotion, and then back out when he discovers what decision really means. He wanted, not a crowd of men cheering they knew not what, but a small company who knew what they were doing and who were prepared to follow to the end” (Barclay p. 106).
Christianity is not naïve about people. “The naïve man tries to love all men and be open to all men but finds himself taken for granted, taken for a ride; therefore he swings to the opposite extreme of cynicism, suspecting low motives in the best of actions, wanting to control a relationship or not have it, speaking at people and not with them. Jesus was able to be open to men. The reference point for His trust was His Father, not men” (p. 381). When the Christian looks at men, he has two lines that come together for an accurate picture. One line is the fact that men are created in the image of God and the other line in the crosshairs is that man is a sinner as well. This is the fundamental reasoning between such passages as, “If anyone will not work, neither let him eat” (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Giving money to the non-worker is only strengthening a sinful habit, it prevents the motivation to change, it fuels the temptation to procrastinate, live only for today, and misuse such resources. Thus, true compassion is only found in the Christian faith, for Christianity has the true understanding of who man truly is.
True Identification
In recent article Joel Belz noted that not only did Muslims fail to grasp what Pope Benedict said about the Muslim faith, yet many Westerners failed to grasp it as well. “Quite specifically, he said it is time to ask Muslims to help the rest of the world understand a deity who, whenever he pleases, becomes so transcendent or ‘over the top’ that you can do whatever you want in his name. Is the God of Mohammed, the pope probed, ‘bound to truth and goodness’”? (World Magazine 10-7-2006, p. 6). By contrast, the true God is bound by truth, goodness, and an equal love for man. “As God became man in Jesus (John 1:14), he was not a Pentagon chief, making quick flying inspections of the front line, but one who shared the foxholes, who knew the risks, who felt the enemy fire. No other God has wounds. It is because God identified so fully with us that we know Him and trust Him” (p. 387). See Hebrews 4:14-16 “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin”.
It Works
Bertrand Russell remarked, “The Christian principle, ‘Love your enemies’ is good. There is nothing to be said against it except that it is too difficult for most of us to practice sincerely” (The History of Western Philosophy p. 579). Yet such a quote demonstrates the line between humanism, atheism, philosophy and all man-made religious systems and worldviews. What is “impossible” for most, is possible in Christ. This is why Christianity is the only unique faith—“with a God who is, with an Incarnation that is earthy and historical, with a Resurrection that blasts apart the finality of death, is able to provide an alternative to the sifting, settling dust of death and through a new birth open the way to new life” (p. 392).
Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net/mdunagan@easystreet.com
