20140810 9th Sunday after Pentecost A
(The fork in the road on our power point slide represents defining or decisive moments in our lives.)
Title: Defining Moments
Text: Romans 10:1-13
Thesis: God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you cannot take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we gave done, so none of us can boast about it.
Back Story
The letter to the Romans was written by the Apostle Paul to the Church at Rome.
If I were to choose a key verse that captures everything Paul wanted the Christians at Rome (and us) to know it would be this: “For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes – the Jew first and also the Gentile.” Romans 1:16
The audience to whom Paul wrote was a mixture of people of Jewish and Gentile backgrounds. It is generally accepted that most of the people in the congregation were Gentiles. Our text today reflects the ongoing tension between the places of law and works and grace and faith in salvation.
Introduction
Defining Moments:
1. A defining moment is a point at which a person’s or a groups’ character is revealed. A defining moment tells who and what you are.
2. A defining moment may be a point at which a foundation is laid for all that will follow in one’s life.
The Ebola Virus outbreak has been a defining moment as well as a divisive moment for many of us.
For example Donald Trump has been on a bit of a rant since he learned that Nancy Whitebol and Dr. Kent Brantly were being flown home after contracting the Ebola Virus. His rants generally took this form: “The U.S. cannot allow EBOLA infected people back. People that go to faraway places to help out are great-but must suffer the consequences!” The moment Donald Trump tweeted those words we knew exactly how he feels about humanitarian worker and the way we care for our own. If it means personal risk one does indeed leave one’s own behind.
The second defining moment may be a point or an occurrence that determines all related events that follow. This can be for good or bad. Defining moments lay the foundation for what will follow in your life.
Winston Churchill said, “To each there comes in their lifetime a special moment when they are figuratively tapped on the shoulder and offered the chance to do a very special thing, unique to them and fitted to their talents. What a tragedy if that moment finds them unprepared or unqualified for that which could have been their finest hour.”
Notice the difference in the defining moments the Ebola outbreak had in the lives of Donald Trump and Dr. Kent Brantly. Just a few days ago from his hospital room in Atlanta Dr. Brantly wrote, “I also want to extend my deep and sincere thanks to all of you who have been praying for my recovery as well as for Nancy and for the people of Liberia and West Africa.
“My wife Amber and I, along with our two children, did not move to Liberia for the specific purpose of fighting Ebola. We went to Liberia because we believe God called us to serve Him at ELWA Hospital.
“One thing I have learned is that following God often leads us to unexpected places. When Ebola spread into Liberia, my usual hospital work turned more and more toward treating the increasing number of Ebola patients. I held the hands of countless individuals as this terrible disease took their lives away from them. I witnessed the horror first-hand, and I can still remember every face and name.
“When I started feeling ill on that Wednesday morning, I immediately isolated myself until the test confirmed my diagnosis three days later. When the result was positive, I remember a deep sense of peace that was beyond all understanding. God was reminding me of what He had taught me years ago, that He will give me everything I need to be faithful to Him.” (NBCNews.com, Breaking News, 8/8/14)
When Dr. Brantly and his wife accepted God’s leading to serve in Liberia – that defining moment set the stage of what was to follow, even to the point of giving his life while caring for people dying of Ebola.
I have never met Donald Trump or Kent Brantly but the Ebola outbreak was a defining moment for both in revealing their character and will likely define who they will be and what they will do with their lives in the future.
That decision to follow Christ singularly sets the stage for the rest of a person’s life. The text today gives us insight into how we make our way to discovery and a making that decision.
In our text today I think the first defining moment is an “Oops” moment.
I. An “Oops” Moment is a corrective moment - Righteousness cannot be achieved by doing, Romans 10:1-4
“For they don’t understand God’s way of making people right with himself. Refusing to accept God’s way, they cling to their own way of getting right with God by trying to keep the law. For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God.” Romans 10:3-4
Paul described two different ways of seeking to be right with God.
A. Their own goodness
“…refusing to accept God’s way, they cling to their own way of getting right with God by keeping the law.” Romans 10:3
The second way is the opposite of our own way. It is God’s way.
B. God’s goodness
“For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God.” Romans 10:4
I have heard the last thing you wish to hear your surgeon says is, “Oops!” It’s an interjection made in response to the observation of a minor mistake, usually written as "Oops!" or "Whoops!"
We say “oops” when we’ve made a mistake. More recently I’ve heard, “My bad.”
The Colorado Rockies had an “oops” moment recently when they handed out 15,000 jerseys honoring All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki but misspelled his name “Tulowizki” on all the shirts. It is a rather long and unusual name so many fans did not recognize the misspelling. But you could say that when a professional baseball team misspells the name of a star player on 15,000 jerseys – that qualifies as an “oops” moment.
Our text today begins with an oops… with a corrective in which an error has been pointed out in the way some Christians were thinking about who and how people may be made right with God or saved.
In Acts 15 there is a record of an historic event called The Council at Jerusalem. In those early years of the church there were all manner of things that needed ironed out and clarified… among those issues was the way Jews and Gentiles would live together in community. The Jews brought the influences of Judaism into the church and the Gentiles brought the influences of their world into the church. In Acts 15 the issue at hand was the demand on the part of the Jewish Christians that Gentile Christians must be circumcised in order to be saved.
Some Jewish Christians from Judah had arrived in Syria and were teaching the Christian community there, “Unless you are circumcised as required by the law of Moses, you cannot be saved.” Understandably, when the Apostle Paul and his companion heard this there was a serious disagreement. The bible says, “Paul and Barnabas disagreed with them, arguing vehemently.” Acts 15:1-2
In order to settle the issue Paul and Barnabas and a delegation of the local believers from Syria went to Jerusalem where there was a Council to hammer out and arrive at a decision as to what would be expected of Gentiles who were coming into the Church. Once again Paul argued, “So why are you now challenging God by burdening the Gentile believers with a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors were able to bear? We believe that we are all saved the same way, by the undeserved grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.” Acts 15:10-11
That is a major “Oops!” and a “Phew!” moment for a bunch of Gentiles.
The “oopsyness” (I know, not a word.) of self-styled righteousness is every bit as prevalent today as ever. There is sometimes a tendency to conjoin faith and works… we believe that we are saved by grace through faith but works must follow to validate one’s faith. In other words your faith is about your performance. Actually one’s salvation is a matter of faith while one’s work or good deeds or the lack thereof is a matter of judgment and reward. (I Corinthians 3:10-15)
More prevalent than we might think is the belief that works are all that is necessary for salvation.
During an interview before his 50th college reunion, former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg confessed that his mortality has started to dawn on him, at 72. He also said that he’s been sobered by how many of his former classmates have passed away. The interviewer noted that Bloomberg pointed to his work on gun safety, obesity and smoking cessation and said with a grin, “I’m telling you if there is a God, when I get to heaven I’m not stopped to be interviewed. I am heading straight in. I have earned my place in heaven. It’s not even close.” (Jeremy W. Peters, “Bloomberg Plans a $50 Million Challenge to the N.R. A.” The New York Times, 4/15/14)
Do you know how many times I’ve heart lines like, “I have a deal with the man upstairs.” Or “If that guy can make it there is no way in hades that I’m not getting in.” Or “I’m a good person so I’ll take my chances.” Or…
Far better to admit your “Oops” now than wait until it’s too late…
Just as an “Oops” Moment can be a defining moment, so is an “Oh” moment.
II. An “Oh” Moment is a discovery moment - Righteousness may be attained through faith, Romans 10:5-10
“The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.” Romans 10:8-10
This section of our text begins with Moses and the law being instrumental in making a person right with God which becomes possible only if a person can keep every last jot and tittle of the law… in other words, righteousness by keeping the law is unattainable. But righteousness through Christ is attainable. It is nearby.
Apparently there was the perception that God was distant and you had to seek hard after God and work hard for God to be right with God.
Our text speaks to both the proximity and process of faith.
A. The proximity of faith
1. The faith way is not far away
“Don’t say in your heart, ‘Who will go up to heaven?” And don’t say, ‘Who will go down to the place of the dead’” Romans 10:7
The “Oh” moment is when you realize being right with God is not a matter of being perfect in thought, word and deed. The “Oh” moment is when you realize you don’t have to go find God as a seeker might climb some mountain in the Himalayas to ask the Guru, “What is the meaning of life?”
2. The faith way is nearby
“The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart.” Romans 10:8
What Paul means in this part of our text is that far from Christ being above or beyond or below and beneath them… Christ was actually inside them. In their mouths and in their hearts.
Then the text speaks to the process of faith...
B. The process of faith - In verses 9 and 10 Paul speaks of two elements:
1. Confessing and believing: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9
2. Believing and confessing: “For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved.” Romans 10:10
An “Oh” Moment is a moment of understanding. It’s a moment when you see and say, “Oh, now I get it!”
The “Oh” moment is when you realize you are indeed a sinner, need saving and indeed may be saved by no more or less than by faith. It is the moment it occurs to you that if you were to die you are not sure you would go to heaven. It is the moment you realize you’ve been relying on your Baptism or your Confirmation or your Membership for your eternal salvation instead of simply trusting Christ. It is the moment it realize your spouse and your kids are going to go to heaven but you’ve made no provision for your own eternal destiny. It is the moment you have a serious life threatening illness or are about to go under for a serious operation and you are afraid that you might die and not wake up on this side.
A defining “Oh” moment is when you have a sense of insecurity or doubt. It is when you wonder if you really do have it together spiritually. It is the moment when you cannot say for certain that you have decided to receive Christ into your life and become a devoted follower of Christ. The “Oh” moment is the moment you are not sure but want to be sure.
One of my favorite assurance texts is I John 5:11ff, “And this is what God has said, ‘He has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have God’s Son does not have life.’ I have written these things to you so that you might know you have eternal life.”
Sometimes discovery has to do with discovering what you don’t know.
Having made one’s way through the “Oops” and “Oh” moments we find ourselves at a third defining moments. It’s the “Aha” moment.
III. An “Aha” Moment is a moment of decision - Righteousness is available to anyone who believes, Romans 10:11-13
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13
Everyone and anyone are vastly, all-inclusive words. There are no exceptions. There is no amount of brokenness or despicable behavior or personal baggage that will prevent a person from being forgiven and accepted by Christ. No one will be excluded. Paul affirmed that truth in Galatians 3:28, “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. And now you belong to Christ.”
The faith way is a matter of trust and acceptance.
A. The faith way is trust
“Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraces.” Romans 10:11
B. The faith way is acceptance
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Romans 10:13
What does “calls on” mean? John Stott says in his commentary on Romans, “to call is to appeal to him accordance with who he is and what he has done.” To call on Jesus is to say, “I know you are the Son of God and I know you died for my sins, so I confess those sins to you seeking and receiving your forgiveness and placing my trust in you as my Savior, come into my life, live in and through me, both now and forevermore.”
On Wednesday morning our security service sent Earl out to check out a glitch in the system. Earl had been here before and he is our preferred, go-to guy. He knows the ins and outs of our old system. Anyway, Earl and I chat. In our conversation I learned he is a believer/Christ follower/Christian… I learned he received Christ into his life when he was 16 years old.
His life was a shambles, his home life hopeless. He felt trapped in a cycle of alcoholism, depression and dysfunction. He had decided to commit suicide and was about to do the deed. A city policeman happened upon him and talked with him and finally took him to his own home for the night. Earl said the policeman talked with him about how Jesus could forgive all that was wrong and give him a new life to look forward to living. Earl knelt down on the kitchen floor of that policeman’s home and invited Christ into his life.
He told me that he told God it was all or nothing… “If you are real save me.” Earl said if felt like “a soothing bath washed over me and I was a new person.”
Earl told me about his lovely Christian wife who has worked at IdRaHaJe Camp for the last 30 years. His children are all Christians as are his grandchildren. Earl literally bubbled over with gratitude to God for saving him and changing his life for good.
Virgil’s “Aha” spiritually defining moment that changed his life then and forever was when he chose to live in Christ rather than die in despair.
Conclusion
The Help is a film adapted from Kathryn Stockett's 2009 novel of the same name. Featuring an ensemble cast, the film is about a young white woman, Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan (played by Emma Stone), and her relationship with two black maids, Aibileen Clark and Minny Jackson, during the Civil Rights era in America (the early 1960s). Skeeter is a journalist who decides to write a book from the point of view of the maids (referred to as "the help"); exposing the racism they are faced with as they work for white families.
Sketterer, Aibileen and Minny wrote the book which figuratively turned the town upside down when the snooty middle-class housewives recognized themselves in the story.
Toward the end of the story Skeeter was offered a job by a New York publisher but had decided she could not accept the opportunity because her mother, Charlotte, (played by Allison Janney) had cancer and was undergoing chemo-therapy.
In one scene, rom inside the house Charlotte heard Hilly Holbrook (who was least pleased by the book) arrive and begin a verbal attack on her daughter and having nothing of that she went out the screen door and confronted Hilly. After a particularly colorful exchange with the uppity Hilly Holbrook, Hilly hurried back to her car and scattered gravel in all directions. As she sped away Charlotte asked Skeeter to help her get back into the house.
With a great deal of affection Skeeter said to her mother, “Momma, I can’t leave you like this.” To which her mother replied, “Eugenia, I have made a decision. Now, my health’s been on the uptake these past few weeks. And I know the doctor says it’s some kind of last strength nonsense, but I have decided not to die.”
We like Charlotte who decided “not to die” may have a similar moment.
Your defining moment that will change your life now and forever is the moment you decide to live in Christ. It is the moment you say, “I have decided to live in Christ!”
Invitation
