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Title: Are You Prepared To Own a Famous Faith? By Pastor Douglas Koehler
Text: Romans 1:8-17
If you’ve ever had a connection to the boy scouts then you would be familiar with the phrase, ‘BE PREPARED”. As a kid, the words “BE PREPARED basically said to me, “Get ready for a lot of learning”. For example, in order for me to be prepared on breathing life back into one of those practice dummies we used for CPR, I had to feel confident enough to know what I was doing. I had to study in order to BE PREPARED.
To this day the Scouting motto has guided millions of young boys to know that if you ever want to make a difference in this world, you must BE PREPARED. Truthfully, whether you are a man or a women, that motto is coveted by us all. We all want to be prepared so that we will always have available what we need before we need it.
How prepared are you right now for your faith to be proclaimed to all the world? What is it that we still need to learn? What classes do we still have to take? What lessons do we still need to experiment with before we can become a shining city on a hill; a people of God famous for our faith?
These are stirring questions, questions that prompted me years ago to try and learn all that I could learn so that I could be prepared for that day when I truly felt comfortable sharing my faith with others. For years I attended lectures, small group studies and evangelism programs. I purchased books from the latest best selling Christian authors and each one was supposed to prepare me all the more for the day when I could proclaim my faith. Eventually, I went to Seminary. So, do you think that I am prepared enough to proclaim my faith to the world? Do you believe you need more education, more programs and further practical experience before you can truly be ready to have your faith proclaimed?
In the storyline of the movie THE MATRIX, if the hero needed to learn how to fly a helicopter all he needed to do was have that information instantly downloaded into his mind. One minute he would not know how to fly the helicopter and the next minute he was a pro at flying. That sort of thing sounds a bit fanciful; it seems only possible in a science fiction story. Yet, through Paul’s letter to the Roman church, we can see clearly how the power of God provides instant preparedness for today to own a famous faith.
Do you remember that passage in Matthew 6 that calls us not to worry about tomorrow because tomorrow will take care of itself? Have you ever wondered if maybe that passage could be transposed to say, “Even as God has already taken care of what you will eat and what you will wear; he has also taken care of what you need for becoming a faithful witness? Remember, the Lord responded to the apostles who once exclaimed the words, “INCREASE OUR FAITH” with these words, “If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea, and it will obey you.” What the Lord did not say was that their faith needed to be increased through a grand effort on their part.
Before Paul wrote his letter to the Roman church, he had never interacted with them before. As far as we know, no apostle had founded the church in Rome. These people certainly did not have a seminary to prepare them, nor did they have to prepare themselves in any way for what made their faith famous. So it appears that God simply fulfilled his promise to take care of what his people needed right now. He gave them what they needed to become a shining city on a hill; a people of great faith who influenced so many others.
Paul was certainly influenced by what he heard about this new Roman congregation. Think about that, impressing the great Apostle Paul. To me that does not sound like that easy a task. Paul was the man of faith in my opinion because he let nothing interfere with his passion for proclaiming Christ and Him crucified and Risen. Anyway, since Paul was influenced to introduce himself to this Christian body of believers that really tells you something about what these people were doing in the name of Jesus.
So Paul wrote, “I thank my God through Jesus Christ concerning all of you that your faith is proclaimed in all the whole world.” Paul was thankful to Jesus because, it was the Christ’s work that created this sound faith in these people. It was His love that moved so many strangers to gather together and form a church.
Here is something for us to ponder. When you all enter into this building, do you stop and give praise to Jesus for bringing you all together here, so that you can work together in Christ’s name? Paul’s letter today certainly encourages us to think that way. Maybe the next time you share the peace of the Lord with someone you might also consider telling them that YOU thank God for them; that is if you do not already do such a thing.
When we thank God for someone or something, we are taking note of the Lord’s power or presence’; we reflect upon his impact or His passion seen in someone else’s life and in short we give God the Glory.
Take a look again at why Paul was so readily praising Jesus concerning all of the Roman congregation. It was because their faith was being proclaimed to the whole world. Paul was not simply thankful for their faith but, that their faith was being proclaimed. The world “Proclaimed” tells us that in the capital of the world, a congregation of Christians was established and that that congregation’s faith was not being kept quiet but, was being projected to others.
It excites my spirit to see just how the power of the Holy Spirit can motivate and excite God’s people into such immediate action. The result of such action was that others talked about them and possibly tried to imitate their actions. Paul’s spirit was so excited that he was motivated to constantly include them in his prayers and Paul longed to see them.
What did God do through these people in order to move them into such public action that would in turn make their faith famous to all the known world? What God did was send his one and only Son into this world, to take away the punishment of our sins by suffering for us, dying for us and rising again. What Jesus did was defeat sin, and death and the devil for us. What Jesus did was love us. What the Holy Spirit did was bring us to faith in Christ Jesus. And again there were no Seminaries, classes, special programs, encounter groups (or downloads) that were needed by God’s people, in order for them to be prepared to be people of a famous faith.
You see hopefully right now, God’s Gospel is either affirming or re-convincing you that you do not have to worry about being prepared for sharing your faith with someone. You don’t have to worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will take care of itself. You do not have to wait for the next big program to teach you how to share your faith because God has already downloaded that information right into your mind. You don’t even have to worry about today because our Lord who promises to clothe you, and feed you and protect you today, has also blessed you with a famous faith. And this faith does not really make you famous. No. It is the author of that faith who is famous. He is famous for his love, and work and dedication to his children. And what you have to share today about Him, will enable someone else to know the author of this famous faith; Christ Jesus who is the author and perfector of our faith.
Now as I was preparing this message I imagined myself preaching to you as I am now. However, in the middle of the sermon I imagined seeing all of you rise up, and begin to walk out of the church. I had a laugh at the thought of someone saying to me, just before they left the building, , “pastor, since God has already prepared us why do we need to be here? Why do we need to continue to go to church and to continue in our studies? Why can’t we just leave now?” Why not indeed! I actually would not mind that one bit, if you all went out to tell others about your faith in Christ. I would go out with you because that is my passion as well. I have been given the same good news about Jesus as you, as Paul and the Roman church.
While it is true that there is nothing left for us to learn in order for us to tell someone that Jesus Christ is the Son of God or to say that He loved us so much that he was willing to take the punishment for sin that we created upon himself, so that we could have eternal life with Him, Paul still makes it clear to us in his letter that the Lord desires to continue to build on a firm foundation..
Paul, knowing that the faith of these Roman Christians was being publicly proclaimed, still desired to be with them so that he could build them up all the more, so that he could impart some spiritual gift and be mutually encouraged with them. Those are but some of the reasons why we continue to gather together even though we are fully prepared to be faithful witnesses. In a world where gas prices are climbing to $4.00 a gallon and where orange juice is climbing above $5.00 a gallon, we need each other to be mutually encouraged. And truly part of owning a relationship with Jesus is owning a desire to want to draw as close to Him and each other as we possibly can.
Paul knew that the church of Rome had a great foundation and I am sure he could only imagine what further instruction in the Word of God would do for a people who already had a famous faith. I am sure he also remembered what God promised in Isaiah 49:10 which says, “He who has compassion on them will guide them…”.
That’s what Paul wanted to convey, that God would continue to guide them through his Word and through his gifts. That is how God guides us today as well. None of us are too proud to believe that although we are prepared to go forth into this world, we no longer have need to be filled daily by God’s Word and Blessings. And who of us would want to forsake the gathering of other believers? Especially during POT LUCK SEASON?
When I think about this church of Rome and the impact they had on those around them, all I can think about is that they owned a tremendous passion for Jesus. They were so excited to hear and share the good news of our Savior. And their passion is our own.
It is God’s power who influences us to say with the Psalmist, “Not to us O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory because of your love and faithfulness.” We are here on this world to be His witness. It is not our glory that we seek but God’s. It is not our glory which we want to proclaim; only God’s.
Both Paul and the Roman Church lived John 7:38 which tells us, “He that believeth on me, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water”, which tells us that the people who have Jesus as their source for instant downloads will in themselves be a source of blessings to others”
And so we must ask ourselves, are we being that source of spiritual blessings to others? Would you like others to give Glory to Jesus Christ because of the faith Christ has created in you? If so, then the good news is that you have already been given, freely, everything you need to be a faithful witness, a changed person, and one who lives out faith publicly. The joy of the Lord is our strength. God does provide us with all that we need to sustain this body and this life, as well as our faith. He has prepared us in every good way. Amen.
