Airing Dirty Laundry

Dale Fincher told of the last few years of his mother’s life. As she fought hard against cancer, a clarity of life came to her that he’d never seen in all of his growing up years. One of the symbols that she referred to frequently was that of a lighthouse. It became a top priority.

A lighthouse cannot steer a ship, she would say. It cannot board the ship and turn the wheel. It cannot demand any response from the captain. All it can do is shine.

The shining itself is a message: “Don’t come over here onto the rocks! Steer toward the harbor!” It is up to the captain to make the choice whether to heed the message or not.

In the same way, Christians and their churches are lighthouses, shining forth what God is like. We cannot command others to worship God. At best, our role is to keep letting this community know where the harbor is, where the channels are that lead home.

The opposite is also true. Our actions done out of bad character can lead people to have a wrong view of God. Unfortunately, many have rejected Christ simply because they saw a false representation of Him.

Here is an example where showing what God is like not only involves evangelism but also sharing the truth through our lives. Everyday we are revealing the gospel through our character or our conversations about moral matters or even the decisions we make about routine matters.

As the light of the world Christ has shone his light into our hearts. We in turn are to shine that light into the hearts of our neighbors, coworkers, and family so that they may see what God is like and join us in worshiping Him. For that to happen concern for Christ’s reputation is more important than our rights.

What’s our response when Christ’s reputation is more important than our rights?

III. REVEALS TRUE SALVATION (I COR. 6:9-11)

If a church member treats fellow Christians as described in v. 7-8, then Paul warns the man he may not be a Christian. He may win the judgment on earth but in the final judgment his true condition is revealed.

How do you know if a person is a Christian? They’re different. They’ve changed. How do you know if a tree is an apple tree? By its fruit. These sins were popular sins in Corinth. For a person to reject these sins would make them stand out. A true Christian won’t be marked by this lifestyle. He is born again to a new lifestyle.

This is the danger of nominal Christianity, which is rampant in the American church. There are many who are Christian in name or appearance only. Nominal Christians are deceived into thinking they are Christians but they may very well not be believers. We will never live perfect lives but a real Christian is to live a different life.

John Newton, the author of the hymn Amazing Grace, prayed:

I’m not what I want to be, I’m not what I hope to be, I’m not what I’m going to be, but thank God by the grace of God I’m not what I use to be.

The sexually immoral refers to those engaged in sexual behavior outside of marriage. Idolaters may not seem like a big deal to us. It was more obvious in that day with their multiple gods. But an idolater is a big deal. An idolater loves someone or something more than Jesus. It might be a guy or a gal or a sports team or their business or their kids, but they serve and sacrifice for them and not the Lord Jesus. Idolatry is a huge problem today.