Beautiful One Series

Sermon

Lanier Christian Church

September Start Up – September 18, 2016

David Simpson

Beautiful One

Romans 10:15

What is September Start Up (Outside Worship on our front parking lot) without a treat?

This has become a tradition! I’m afraid if I don’t show up one year

without a treat, that you will grab me and throw me in the dunking

tank! So…this year’s treat is…the OREO cookie! (Distribute cookies)

Wow…there is a lot about the Oreo cookie on the internet! I learned a whole lot about this chocolate or vanilla cream filled cookie! The cookie is now over 104 years old, and was first created in New York City in 1912. (They’re only 10 years older than Lil Heald, here today, and she’s a whole lot sweeter!)

The Oreo is the world’s best selling cookie. The company sells more

than 95 million packages a day. They’re available in more than 100

countries around the world. If you stacked all of the OREO cookies

sold in a single day, you would have 136 stacks of cookies as high as

Mt. Everest, and then some! (from: eltondesigns.net – About Oreo)

The Oreo became kosher in 1997. If you think they tasted differently in your childhood, you are right. Before 1997, they contained pig lard, now vegetable oil is used.

Do you know that Kraft foods, who one time manufactured the cookie,

actually did a survey of 2000 Oreo eaters in 2004. They found out

that the way that you eat an Oreo might say something about your

personality.

They found that dunkers tend to be energetic, adventurous, and social; twisters are sensitive, emotional, artistic, and trendy; and biters are easy-going, self-confident, and optimistic. They also found that more women dunk, while more men bite. And Republicans tend to dunk, while Democrats are twisters. (From mentalfloss.com – 15 cream filled facts about oreos)

But beyond all of these facts is the intrigue of the name of the cookie

itself. OREO. The truth is, that no one knows the exact origin of the

name, but one of the most popular versions, from the company itself

and from Wikipedia.org, is that the cookie’s name comes from the Greek word – Oreo, meaning beautiful.

As many of you know, the New Testament was written in Greek. So I did my research and found that there are at least four verses in the New Testament of our Bibles that use the word, “orios.” In each case, the word orios …Oreo…as we would say…means, (according to Vincent Word Studies)…beautiful, as a tree in full bloom, fully developed and mature.

For instance, we look at a tree in full bloom in the Spring-time of the year, and we say, what a beautiful tree! Or we will look at a tree in the next few weeks, at the peak of fall and we say, what a beautiful tree! Or we saw the moon on Friday night and said, “what a beautiful moon.”

We are using the Greek word: Oreos! When we ascribe beauty to something other than a person we are using the word “Oreos.”

So today I want to challenge you to become more beautiful in your life. I don’t mean with make up or a new haircut or even slimming down. I want you to be beautiful …oreos …in the message that you carry. How so you might ask?

The Bible says, as written by the Apostle Paul in Romans 10:15, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”

There are a lot of well known Greek words in that biblical verse. Beautiful – oreos; Feet – podes – where we get the word “podiatry; Euangelizomenon, where we get the word Evangelism, translated as good news; and the Greek word, “Agatha,” meaning, “good things.” Literally Romans 10:15 reads – how beautiful the feet of those proclaiming peace of those proclaiming good news of good things

So I ask you today: Are you a beautiful proclaimer of good news? Is oreo…beauty…a part of your life? When people see you coming, do they brace themselves for bad news, or discouraging words, or bitter comments, or selfish talk, or harmful gossip, or angry reactions? Or when you arrive on the scene, do you bring beautiful words, encouraging words, good news?

The Bible says we ought to be “oreos”…beautiful in our proclamation of good news. This verse in Romans 10:15 is actually borrowed from Isaiah 52:7 where it reads there:

How beautiful on the mountains

are the feet of those who bring good news,

who proclaim peace,

who bring good tidings,

who proclaim salvation,

who say to Zion,

“Your God reigns!”

Here in Isaiah, God’s people were suffering under the hands of the wicked Assyrians. But, there was coming a day Isaiah said, when God’s people would be redeemed, delivered from their oppression. Peace, good news, salvation was on the way!