ORGANIC FAITH: THE WORD AND WITNESS
Rev. 10:1 11
Sermon Objective: Our Witness for Christ flows naturally out of a faith grounded in The Word and Worship.
Supporting Scripture: Psalm 119
REV. 10
INTRO
Last week we began looking at “Organic Faith.” AN ORGANIC FAITH IS ONE THAT IS SEEKING TO BE A STRAIGHTFORWARD DISCIPLE OF JESUS.
• It relies on the basic truths given by God to establish one’s faith and live one’s life.
• It expects life and lifestyle to flow naturally from the inside out … a transformed, fully alive faith produces a transformed, fully alive follower of Jesus.
• And, if the most basic of elements in one’s faith is Jesus Christ, then “organic faith” would emulate (look like) and communicate Jesus Christ.
An organic faith must come from an organic environment. In other words, if you want to live a life based upon truth you must take truth in.
In the 13th century the world that the earth was flat. This was a commonly declared falsehood that people took as truth. It had consequences. It inhibited exploration, produced fear, etc. When some (s) starting challenging the falsehood and said the earth was round then there was new exploration, new discoveries, etc.
The truth set them free.
And if you want a life lived in joy, awe, and wonder, you must worship the Holy One.
And what happens when we feast on these very basic elements? WE BECOME EXPRESSIONS / BY-PRODUCTS OF TRUTH AND WONDER.
The word that John uses to describe that expression is in our language … “martyr”.
Martyr, (actually “martus” and delineations of it) is a very common word in The Revelation. It is used 16 times. It does not mean “someone who dies for their faith” that is one of many consequences of being a martus; the family of words that come from martus includes witness, testimony, testify, to record and report.
Throughout John’s Apocalypse, the organic expression of a genuine faith is “witness.” It is the natural result of walking with Christ. It doesn’t have to be programmed; it just happens. It is the fruit of His existence within us. When we begin to embody passages like, the two Great Commandments, the Sermon on the Mount, or the Fruit of the Spirit then we will live “Jesus” in our worlds. We will become like Christ and in natural ways, point people to Him. As Jesus shares His life with us we, in turn, will naturally share that life with others.
Jesus said, Matthew 5:14"You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. 15Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.
Again, an organic faith stems from two very basic elements:
1. Worship
2. The Word (Truth).
These two always point to Jesus Christ and “form Christ within us” (Galatians 4:19). Our life and words reflect Jesus Christ in such a way that we become, by default, a “martyr” (martus) … a witness.
Last week we looked at worship. I told you THAT “WORSHIP CREATES AN ORGANIC FAITH THUS GENERATING A NATURAL WITNESS.”
First worship – then witness. It is the underpinning of this entire book. John’s visions of Christ came during worship and the book teaches / encouragees worship throughout. Faith is strengthened, matured and maybe even birthed through worship.
The natural by-product of a worshipping saint is a ‘martus” that points instinctively, organically, to Jesus Christ.
To worship Christ and not give witness to Him is inconceivable.
To witness for Christ while not adoring Him is hypocritical.
BUT, WORSHIP ALONE IS NOT ENOUGH. A SECOND BASIC AND NATURAL ELEMENT IN AN ORGANIC FAITH IS TRUTH … SPECIFICALLY, THE WORD OF GOD.
If we have worship without The Word we will have “zeal without knowledge” (Romans 10:2). This is not God’s plan. The Father knows that both truth and passion are needed if we are to remain faithful and be a witness in our time and place.
GOD’S WORD CREATES AN ORGANIC FAITH
AND GENERATES A NATURAL WITNESS.
Just as “The Revelation” shows consistent support for worship as a basic prerequisite for the church’s witness it also points to The Scriptures as a basic requirement.
John’s Apocalypse places a high priority on a witnessing Church and the internal evidence tells us that a proper witness must be equipped with truth. Without it … we have no spiritual depth or message!
Throughout the book we see witness (testimony) and God’s word coupled together.
• Revelation 1:1-2 The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testifies to everything he saw—that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.
• Revelation 1:9 [One like a Son of Man ] I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus.
• Revelation 6:9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.
• Revelation 20:4 I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Passages like these reinforce the image of John eating the little book and afterwards being commissioned to preach again.
They drive home the organic (natural) relationship between truth and witness. And the story in chapter 10 just might provide us with a formula for being equipped for witness by The Scriptures.
“TAKE IT”
First, we are told to “take it.” This implies initiative on our part. John didn’t seem to get this at first. He was told to take but when he approached the angel he asked the angel to give it to him. But notice the angel did not do it … the angel, again, instructs John to reach out and take it.
God never drops the truths of Scriptures into your hands. But he does hold it out to you and offer it.
You’ll never become familiar with the Bible to such a degree that it shapes you by being passive. God expects us to “take it.” That means you have to choose to read it, memorize it, and let it renew you.
God won’t force spiritual growth upon you and He won’t impart his timeless and timely truths to you without you choosing to habitually be in His Word.
We have read portions of Psalm 119 throughout our worship service today. Did you catch what verse 30 said? It reinforces this notion of making a choice to be in God’s Word: “I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart on your laws.”
There are many others verses that also reinforce this.
• 10 I seek you with all my heart;
• 11 I have hidden your word in my heart
• 15 I meditate on your precepts
• 31 I hold fast to your statutes, O LORD;
IF you are regularly in God’s Word you can recount time after time where it has directed your paths and made them straight; where it has helped you avoid harm and live victoriously. Today is a good day to give God thanks for His Word and His faithfulness to it. The Psalmist said: 119:7 “I will praise you with an upright heart as I learn your righteous laws.”
IF you have had a habit of reading The Scriptures but have been neglecting it lately then this is the day to return and renew that covenant with God. The Psalmist said: Psalm 119:5 “Oh, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees! 6 Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all your commands.”
IF you are not in the Word regularly I want to encourage you to start. TODAY. Don’t make any grandiose promises that you can’t keep but you can enter a covenant with God and promise to read His Word every day … regardless of the day’s demands. If you do, God will honor that in ways I cannot over-emphasize! The Psalmist said: Psalm 119:16 “I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.”
“EAT IT”
Not only did John have to take the book he also had to “eat it.” He had to allow the Scriptures to become part of Him.
Tony M. teaches forensic chemistry at Potsdam State. He tells me that forensic scientists have discovered that your hair can tell volumes more about you than you are aware. When studied under a microscope your hair can tell people what you have drunk … including whether it was water, coke, tea, etc. and even what region of the country that water or drink came from. They can tell a lot about your lifestyle and habits by studying hair and other cells in your body.
There is a spiritual parallel at work here too. When you are under someone’s “microscope” (when you are being watched … being a “martus”) they can tell by your disposition, actions, habits, reactions, passions, and conversations what you have been feeding on spiritually. If a person is living a victorious spiritual life the microscope will verify it is because they have a steady diet of the Scriptures. The Word has become a part of you!
YOU SHOW ME A DISCIPLE WHO KNOWS GOD’S WORD TO SUCH A DEGREE THAT IT EMPOWERS THEM FOR LIVING AND HAS MADE A “MARTUS” OUT OF THEM, AND I WILL SHOW YOU A CHRIST-FOLLOWER THAT DELIBERATELY, METHODICALLY, AND CONSISTENTLY STUDIES IT. THERE ARE NO ACCIDENTS HERE.
You show me a disciple that is defeated by sin and life and I will show you a person who does not know and has not applied the Scriptures.
The second step in God’s formula for allowing the Word to create a functioning faith within you is to make God’s Word part of who you are. Allow it to become such a part of you that it governs and directs life’s steps.
The Psalmist said, Psalm 119:59 “I have considered my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.60 I will hasten and not delay to obey your commands.”
But, for the Word to create an Organic Faith and equip you to be a “martus” there is one final step left. You must act upon it.
“PROPHESY AGAIN” …
John’s task was not finished when he took or even ate the book. No, it was only the beginning of his commission. He “must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages and kings.” He was sent into His world to bear witness to Jesus Christ.
Until He had the Word stored up in Him he had nothing to tell and no clue about how to be a witness of the Good News. But once he took and ate the book he was equipped for service. Without this basic and essential element (The truth of Scripture) John and Christ’s Church would have fallen away when hardship came. They would not have been able to withstand the pressures and temptations. They could not have “maintained their testimony” (Rev. 6:9).
Do you remember Jesus’ parable of the sower (Mark 4)? A sower sowed seeds on four different soils; 4some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. 5Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. 6But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. 7Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain. 8Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up, grew and produced a crop, multiplying thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times."
Afterward Jesus told his disciples what the parable meant. He often does not do this but, in this case, he left nothing to chance.
14The farmer sows the word. 15Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 20Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown."
Again, organic faith has God’s Word as a basic element and witness is a natural fruit. I like Eugene Petersen’s saying, “Witnesses first become what they then say. If witness is to be anything more than gossip about God, it must be the word internalized” (Reversed Thunder, p. 107)”
You must:
• “Take it”
• “Eat it”
• “Prophesy again”
If you have ever prayed with Rit * or been in a Bible study with him you have heard him use a similar formula. He says we must “Get it. Live it. Give it.”
That is exactly what the angel told John to do with God’s Word.
Get it.
Live it.
Give it.
WRAP UP
John’s Apocalypse places a high priority on a witnessing Church. It also places a high priority on a well-grounded church. Until you choose to become well-grounded you will struggle spiritually and fail when the pressure is on. You will not be able to endure the “sour stomach” of life until have tasted how sweet God’s Word is.
WORSHIP AND THE WORD TOGETHER CREATE AN ORGANIC, NATURAL FAITH WHICH HAS AS A NATURAL BY-PRODUCT … WITNESS. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE “MOTIVATED” OR GUILTED INTO GOING OUT AND “BEING A WITNESS TO SOMEONE” … YOU SIMPLY WILL BE BECAUSE IT IS WHO YOU ARE … WHAT YOU HAVE BECOME.
But, you will not be an organic “martus” until both are present. There must be spiritual passion and spiritual truth. There must be zeal and knowledge (Romans 10:2).
Next week we will look at an Organic Faith once again. But this time we will look what “The Witnessing Church” looks like and acts like when it is supported by both worship and the Word.
This sermon is provided by Dr. Kenneth Pell
Potsdam Church of the Nazarene
Potsdam, New York
www.potsdam-naz.org
