[2] Where are the genuine people today? Where are they? It doesn’t seem like anyone tells the truth any more. And you know what, it doesn’t even seem like people are expected to be truthful any more. Lying is commonplace, accepted and even expected from time to time. Do we have any politicians here this morning? No? Good. Let’s talk about them.
I mean, is it possible to get a politician to give us an answer to a question that matches up with the last time he answered that same question and one that actually matches up with the truth? To a politician lying isn’t considered a character flaw anymore – it’s considered strategical maneuvering.
But it isn’t just politicians that are disingenuous. What about lawyers? What about the news media? What about certain salesmen? What about the hundred emails a day that we receive stating that we’ve inherited millions of dollars from some prince in Ethiopia?
[Insurance verification letter story.]
The point is, we’ve become a culture where words mean very little any more because we’re so suspicious that people are lying to us. And rightly so! I mean, when someone you don’t personally know is trying to convince you of something do you find yourself wondering if they’re telling you the truth?
In our world today talk is cheap. Words are on the clearance shelf and nobody’s buying them any more.
But even though our culture has become extremely cynical, people are still looking for something to believe in. People are still looking for someone they can trust. People are still looking for purpose and direction and truth.
So when those people look at our lives, when those seekers look at our church, what will they see? Can others look at our lives and see genuine people who serve the living God?
Now I’m not talking about when people listen to what we say. I’m talking about when people look at our lives and see who we really are. You see, [3] when our lives do the talking, people take notice. Actions speak louder than words.
[4] Saint Francis of Assisi once said, “Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary, use words.” People need to see the gospel of Christ in us before they are going to listen to us verbalize the gospel.
Now before we go any further we need to make one thing very clear. Who we really are on the inside will eventually show itself on the outside. So when people see who we really are will they see someone passionate about Jesus Christ, or will they see a hypocrite. What will people see when they see us for who we really are.
In this morning’s passage we’re going to see a group of believers in Jesus Christ who got noticed because of the lives they lived. Their actions caused others to listen to their words. Turn with me to Acts 11 where we see God again working amongst the non-Jewish community. And the first thing that we’ll learn from these people is that [5] who we really are moves us to action.
[Read Acts 11:19-21.]
When Stephan was killed for the faith a great persecution arose and many Christians fled Jerusalem for safety. They found themselves in non-Jewish territories like Antioch which was the third largest Roman city at that time. Antioch was a huge city, a wealthy city, but it was also a very pagan city.
When these Jewish believers got there they started telling the Jews that already lived there about Jesus Christ. But the believers who were of Greek descent, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, they began reaching out to the non-Jewish community in Antioch. And as a result God did an amazing work amongst the gentiles in that wicked city.
You see, those gentile believers were moved to action because of who they were on the inside. They knew the gospel was for all people so they made sure everyone there got to hear it regardless of their heritage.
While most were reaching out to the Jews, who were at least the moral people group there in Antioch, they were reaching out to the gentiles, the most outwardly pagan and immoral people in Antioch. But they were simply doing what their Lord had told them to do – “Preach the gospel to all creation.” Who we really are moves us to action.
If you’re a complacent Christian who’s faith is cold, that’s who you really are. And the actions you’re moved to are mostly for yourself.
But if you’re a Christian who’s faith is alive and, well that’s who you really are. And the actions you’re moved to do are mostly for the Lord and for others. And I find that these kinds of people don’t need a lot of motivation to do things for the Lord. When an opportunity comes to serve they are on the front lines ready for action.
I can’t tell you how many times, especially in the last few months, where people have come up to me with God-born ministry ideas for here at church. Ways to welcome visitors better when they pull into the parking lot, all kinds of children’s ministry ideas, outreach efforts for the coming holidays, and all sorts of ideas to enhance our facilities. It’s exciting to see God’s people moved to action for the Lord and for others.
You see, who we really are moves us to action, and those actions speak louder than words. These Greek believers in Antioch were reaching out to the worst of society. But they loved Jesus and loved others; That’s who they were; So they were naturally moved to action.
As a result, they got noticed. The community recognized that something significant was going on amongst them. [6] You see, who we really are gets noticed by others.
[Read Acts 11:22-26.]
When the church in Jerusalem found out what was going on in Antioch, they sent Barnabas down there to bring some leadership and encouragement to this group of new believers. But there were so many people coming to the Lord that Barnabas needed some help. So he went to Tarsus to find Saul, (the apostle Paul), who came back with him. They then spent an entire year teaching the church there to “remain true to the Lord.” (v23)
The results were amazing! Those believer’s lives were so dedicated to the Lord that they earned the nickname “Christian” for the very first time in history. The word Christian actually means “men of Jesus’ party”; people associated Jesus’ teachings; followers of Christ. They were so passionate for Christ that people identified them with Him!
Now that nickname probably wasn’t given as a compliment. Remember, this is a city where most of the 500,000 people there were involved in all sorts of wicked, pagan activities. And here is this group of people who follow the teachings of a dead, Jewish carpenter who thought He was God. But their belief was so evident that they earned the name Christians.
It’s like when people of the world referred to Christians in the 70’s as Jesus Freaks; Or Christians in the 80’s as born-agains; Or Christians in the 90’s as fundamentalists; Or Christians today as evangelicals. Most of the times when a non-Christian refers to us in those terms it isn’t to pay us a compliment. It’s to mock us.
But at least they notice! At least they notice that we have such a strong belief in Jesus that we revolve our lives around His teachings. That is, as long as that’s who we really are.
[Two kinds of “bumping into teens” illustration.]
Wouldn’t it be a terrible thing if the people who know us best had no idea that we were a Christian? Wouldn’t it be sad if our faith went unnoticed by people who see us every day? Who we really are get’s noticed by others. And if our faith is alive, it will show.
Mainly, our faith will show in the way that we conduct our lives. [7] Who we really are is evident in our lifestyle. Let’s look at the lifestyle of these Christians in Antioch.
[Read Acts 11:27-30.]
In the church in Jerusalem there were some prophets who had been given the revelation that a famine was coming that would spread throughout the Roman world. So they were sent to the church in Antioch to let them know what was about to happen. The Bible says here that the famine took place during the reign of Claudius. Later, secular historians Tacitus, Suetonius, and Josephus recorded that this famine did in fact take place just as predicted by these prophets.
So what did this new group of Christians do when they heard of a coming disaster? They emptied their pockets for brothers in Christ that they had never met. Think about it, the prophets were telling them of a famine that was coming, so this predominantly gentile church in Antioch sent money to the predominantly Jewish church in Jerusalem.
Who they really were showed up in their lifestyle. People needed help and so they were ready to give it. And I’m sure that this selfless act of love spoke volumes to the lost people around them.
You know, when people see the way we live out our every day lives, it speaks volumes about who we really are.
[Old man picking up newspapers in the neighborhood, (deaf) story.]
The way we live, the things that we do or don’t do, speak to the world about who we really are. Our lives preach a message to everyone who stops long enough to listen. Hopefully we live in such a way that people can see God at work in us.
But sometimes our lives have the opposite affect. Sometimes we do things that actually turn people away from God.
[Luke haircut story.]
Listen, the way we live matters. Our lifestyle shows people who we really are. We need to make sure that we’re living in such a way that people can see Jesus in us.
[Read I Corinthians 6:19-20.]
Our lifestyle will preach the most effective message if we will live in a godly, holy way. Now we don’t have to be perfect for people to see Jesus in us. We are human. But we do need to dedicate our lives completely to Him.
[8] When our lives do the talking, what is it saying? Is our faith noticed? Is the existence of God verified in us? Could people tell we’re a Christ-follower by the way we live?
[“You’re the only Bible some people are ever going to read.”
vs.
“You’re the first Bible some people are going to read.”]
When our lives do the talking, what is it saying? People are looking for someone to believe in. People are looking for purpose and direction and truth. People are looking for someone who is genuine. Will they see that in your life and be drawn closer to the truth of Jesus Christ? [9]
