Sermon Tone Analysis

*Engaging Culture II: Striving for a Gospel Perspective*

*Romans 3:22-24*

*/January 9, 2011/*

* *

*Prep: *

·         140

 

*Scripture reading: Romans 3:21-26*

 

 *Objectives of sermon:*

· That we feel our desperate need for God’s glorious Gospel.

Prayer

 

 

engaging culture

 

We are in the second week of our *4 week series* on evangelism, reaching out and sharing the Gospel and bringing people into God’s kingdom.

·         This is to launch The Gathering’s emphasis on “*Engaging* *Culture*” in *2011*.

Q   *Last* *week* we asked the fundamental question: Do you *want* to?

The reason many of us think we *hate* *evangelism* is because of *negative* *memories* of either trying to witness or *being* *witnesses* *to*, and have mistakenly come to associate that with evangelism.

This week we will begin talking about *how* to do it *right*.

As a reminder, here is the *formula* for effectively engaging our culture: S+C+X=EC

 

·         S: *Striving* – in process, living a *Gospel* *Perspective*.

·         C: *Community* – maintaining *connections* with outsiders, building *relationship*, and paying your *relational* *dues*.

·         X (Chi, the letter “Christ” begins with in Greek): *Christians* – being able to *clearly* *communicate* *Gospel*.

not just the starting point

 

·         Today we focus on “Striving,” living the Gospel in our lives.

You say, “I get it, I was saved by *faith*, not by *works*, I can’t earn salvation, so God gives it by grace.”

*Shortest* *sermon* ever.

·         Not so fast, slick.

The Gospel isn’t just the *starting* *point* of Christianity, it is the *entire* *race*.

We will be living by the Gospel until we cross the *finish* *line*.

Q   This isn’t *semantics* – you know how Christians are frequently guilty of being *self*-*righteousness* and acting *superior*?

I am convinced that most of this comes from *failing* to maintain a *Gospel* *perspective* throughout our lives, and especially when we are *witnessing*.

·         It is *vital* that we not just *understand* this but *live* this.

There is a real danger that our *witnessing* have shades of *self*-*righteousness* mixed in, even if it’s well hidden.

Yes, that can happen even at *The* *Gathering*.

·         You can be drinking *beer* and quoting hip *movies* and still be self-righteous.

!

Don’t be a good boy

 

“Being a *good* *witness*” doesn’t mean be a *good* *boy* or a good girl so that non-Christians will look at you and *want* to *be* *one* to.

·         Our *godly* *lives* are of *greatest* *importance*, no doubt, but that is not the *core* of the Gospel.

If we make *being* *good* the big *selling* *point*, Christianity   becomes another *moral* *religion*.

There are a lot of those out there, and I’m not even sure Christianity is as *efficient* at that as ones driven by fear.

·         As near as I can tell, what separates Christianity from the rest is that we view *morality* as the *result*, not *goal*.

Being a *good* *witness* is driven by a *Gospel* *Perspective*: I live in *desperate* *dependency* upon God’s *grace* at every step.

! struggling with grace

 

Q   Do you really feel like you need *desperately* *need* Jesus?

Most of us kind of *fluctuate* between feeling *pretty* *good* about ourselves and feeling *pretty* *worthless*.

And each of us tends to spend *more* *time* on one side or the other.

I know that I am speaking to *both*.

On one hand, some of you (both Christian and non-Christian) feel so *worthless* that you *struggle* to genuinely believe God *loves* and could *accept* you.

On the other hand, some of you (both Christian and non-Christian) feel like you are *pretty* *good*.

Not perfect to be sure, but not all that bad.

·         But both of those groups *struggle* with accepting *God’s* *grace*, his *unearned* *acceptance*.

What *separates* Christians from non-Christians is not these *feelings*, but *accepting* God’s grace, whether we feel like we don’t *deserve* it or don’t *need* it.

The book of *Romans* is the most through explanation of the Gospel in the Bible, and in it Paul faces the same *two* *audiences* and he handles it by *tearing* every one *down* to the same level.

·         *Likewise*, I’m going to remind us how desperately we need God.

If you already feel *worthless*, you may feel like I am just rubbing *salt* in your *wounds*, but it’s a *bad* *news*~/*good* *news* thing: We want to hear the bad news first.

·         The bad news is that you are actually *worse* than you think, but the good news is God’s *grace* is *greater* than you think.

Furthermore, many of the *non*-*Christians* you will speak to don’t *feel* *lost* and you need to understand how to *communicate* the Gospel to both the seemingly *worthy* and *unworthy*.

!

I’m a pretty good guy

 

If I’m honest, I usually feel *pretty* *good*.

I know it sounds *arrogant*, but there it is.

I was *loved* unconditionally by my parents so I never doubted *acceptance* and didn’t do “*bad* *stuff*.”

·         To this day I am still not sure what *pot* *smells* *like*.

I know there are *many* of *you* that feel the same.

Even if you have some cool story of being saved from the depths of sin, that was a long time ago.

Usually pastors will tell people like me that from God’s view, all of my “*misdemeanor*” sins and just as bad as the *felony* sins.

·         And this is true; in light of God’s *absolute* *holiness*, St. *Teresa* and *Hitler* are almost equal in depravity.

The problem is that from our *human* *perspective*, it’s hard to *emotionally* *accept* it.

The fault is ours, not God’s.

Our *opinion* of *goodness* is radically *skewed*, *childish* (contra child-like).

·         Below a certain age, a child cannot be made to understand that tall, *skinny* *glass* isn’t bigger than a short, fat one.

I can *intellectually* and *theologically* understand that I am as *bad* as a *murder* and need the Gospel just as much as they do, but have a hard time accepting it *emotionally* and *practically*.

Q   Are any of *you* tracking with me?

Do you feel the same?

Q   Do you know *non*-*Christians* who feel that way?

The glory standard

 

There is a theological term for this – being *self*-*righteous*.

If we think that we are *pretty* *good* *boys* and *girls*, it is because we are *comparing* ourselves to the wrong thing.

·         We are like that “*art* *critic*” (one of my favorite forwarded emails) that compares children’s works with his.

Let’s look at what Paul says:

 

*Romans 3:22-24 *  22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.

There is no difference [between the Jews who felt worthy and the Gentiles who felt unworthy],  23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

[Leave open to this, it’s the *only* *passage* we’ll be in, but it is one of the richest in the Bible.]

Q   What is the *standard* here?

The *glory* of God, the *mind*-*blowing*, *sense* *over*-*riding*, *dumbfounding* glory of God.

The glory of God which makes the seemingly *infinite* *wonder* of the universe look like a grain of *sand* compared to *Mt*.

*Everest*.

Anything *short* of *that* falls short of the standard.

It doesn’t matter that you a *smidge* (a “tinch” is what my girls call it) *closer* than someone else, you are still short.

·         But even this still is *theoretical*; I want to show you how God has been *showing* *me* how much I fall short of his glory.

There are many ways to look at it, but this has helped me.

Hey look, a SQUIRREL!

About three months ago, I was diagnosed with *Adult* *Attention* *Deficit* *Disorder*.

I will give you a second to let that *sink* *in*.

·         I know what you are thinking – oh, well *THAT* *explains* a lot.

·         It’s like a t-shirt said “It’s not that I have ADD, it’s just that – Hey look!

A *Squirrel*!

 

One of the best descriptions I have heard is that it’s like I have *10* *radio* *stations* playing at equal volume and I *can’t* *filter* out which ones are the most important, so I am drawn to which ever *catch* my *interest*.

·         You may be telling me what time *to* *pick* up my *kids*, but that *squirrel* is currently *more* interesting.

Looking back it makes sense of the *challenges* I have faced over the years.

But even more importantly, it’s given me a lot more *sympathy* for what *Marilyn* has to deal with.

Because I *lack* *filters*, I’m *overwhelmed* by a lot of stimulus.

If I walk into the girls’ bedroom after they tear it apart, it’s like a *circuit* *breaker* *snaps* – turns out, that’s *not* *normal*.

·         I cope by *equally* *ignoring* everything; I’ll walk over the same *sock* for a week and *never* *see* it – that’s *not* *normal* either.

!

Sin and Brokenness