OPEN: I read once about a certain Chinese church, where – when converts were baptized for the forgiveness of sins – when they came up out of the water they were told: “Now, Jesus has new eyes. And Jesus has new hands. And Jesus has new feet.”
When we became Christians, we became the eyes and hands and feet of Jesus. We became extensions of Christ. We now represent Jesus, and when people see us they should see Jesus in us.
That’s kind of what James is saying here in our text this morning: “…(God) brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” James 1:18
God saved us so we could be first fruits, so that we could be examples to others of what it means to be a Christian.
But now, the problem here is that doesn’t always work out real well. Christians don’t always reflect Jesus as well as we’d like. And one of the main reasons Christians fail in this is because they’ve listened to some false information - some fake news.
This sermon series we’re doing this month is called “Fake News”. Not political Fake News (about Politicians and the News Media, etc.). Instead we’re talking about spiritual Fake News - fake news that often infiltrates the church and warps Christians.
Last week we talked about a Fake News called the “Prosperity Gospel.” It’s a heresy that teaches people fake things about God and His promises. But that kind of heresy comes from the OUTSIDE. The Prosperity teachers flood us with DVDs and Books and TV programs etc. that teach people how to manipulate God so they can get health, and wealth… and whatever else.
But, frankly most people don’t need any help trying to manipulate God. They’re quite good at this type of thing all on their own. People have been doing this type of thing for centuries… and not just in the church. Pagan religions thrive on getting their god to do what they want done if they manipulate that god enough for their needs.
But why do people do that? Why do they tend to make their relationship with God all about themselves? Well, I can think of at least 2 reasons that happens. The first is that we’re all kind of selfish – we tend to focus on ourselves first.
ILLUS: A few years back the Washington Post had a poll that showed that 79% of Americans believed they were “above average” in appearance, and 86% felt they were above average in intelligence (2006 poll). Now excuse me… what’s average? 50%! Some of these folks at a vastly exaggerated view of their good looks and intelligence. But here’s the deal - when people think like that, it’s not hard for them to think church, and their relationship with God, is all about them. “I want what I want, because I deserve what I want. I’m better than the “average” person.”
The 2nd reason people can think their relationship with God is all about them is because – that’s how we treat them when they first walk in the door and when they’re baptized into Christ. We bring them, we pamper them, and we try not to upset them. And we tend to feel like it’s kind of our fault if they leave. Thus, they can get very self-centered. Amy Grant had a song about that that she sang years ago (I’ve trimmed it down a little)
“I know a man, maybe you know him, too. You never can tell; he might even be you... His spiritual tummy, can't take too much; one day a week, he gets a spiritual lunch. On Sunday, he puts on his spiritual best and gives his language a spiritual rest.
He's just a fat… fat little baby, he wants his bottle and he don't mean maybe.
He's been baptized, sanctified, redeemed by the blood but his daily devotions are stuck in the mud. He knows the books of the Bible and John 3:16; he's got the biggest King James that you've ever seen.
But he's just a fat… fat little baby.” (Songwriters: Rodney S. Robison / Steve Millikan)
That’s what coddled Christians look like. Fat little babies. And do you know what babies do when they don’t get what they want, when they want it? They cry and fuss… and they pitch a fit. And that’s what happens to Christians who don’t grow up. They think the church is all about them and so they manipulate things, and if they can’t get their way, they’ll pitch a fit!
And James says: don’t DO that… don’t GO there. GROW UP!!!!
“… be DOERS of the word, and not hearers only - deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but A DOER WHO ACTS, he will be blessed in his doing.” James 1:22-25
Quit just sitting there and wanting to get fed! Now, I like having you here and listening – at least I have someone to talk to, but if all you end up doing is “NOT doing” then you’re going to end up being just a fat little baby.
So, the question becomes: How can I become a doer? Well, I know this can be complicated, so I did a study of the Greek here, and that word “doer” (in the Greek) is p???t?? (poietes). Do you know what that word means? It means “someone who does something.” Yeah, it’s that simple. (You don’t have to thank me… it’s just part of the job!)
You see, when churches do their jobs right… that’s what people do! They DO things because they’ve been trained from the very beginning to serve. In the sermon on the Mount Jesus said this: “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and DOES THEM will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.” Matthew 7:24-25
It’s very simple. Once you hear the words of Jesus THEN you do them. You don’t wait until you know more, or have grown more… you do it THEN.
ILLUS: A young man was baptized into Christ. About a couple months later his Sunday School teacher asked him: "What have you done for Christ since you believed?" The boy replied: "Oh I can’t do anything… I'm still a learner." "Oh,” replied the teacher… (pause) “well, when you light a candle do you light it to make the candle more comfortable, or to have it give light?" "To give light" the boy replied. The teacher continued “And do you expect it to give light after it is 1/2 burned, or when you first light it?" The boy answered, "As soon as I’ve lit it." "Very good,” the teacher answered. “So go thou and do likewise; and begin at once."
Jesus said: “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16
DO IT NOW! The candle is lit. DO SOMETHING!
But what should you DO?
ILLUS: Well, how many of you drove to church today? If you drove to church… you can drive the church bus. I had a friend once who targeted a poor part of town and went to the parks there to talk to the young kids who played there. She’d make friends and ask if they’d like to come to Sunday School with her the next Sunday. Well, you know how kids are. Of course they’d like to come. And so she told them she’d be by the next morning to pick them up (after clearing it first with their parents). Having talked her brother into driving the school bus, she showed up that Sunday… and the kids weren’t ready. They’d kind of forgotten. And the parents had often spent the night getting drunk or playing games and they were still in bed. So my friend would come inside, feed the kids, wash their faces and get them onto the bus… and she filled that bus every Sunday morning. Now, the church must have really loved those kids because (of course) they had to stay for church, and they filled the first 2 rows of the sanctuary. Two rows of unwashed kids who probably hadn’t had a bath in a few days. They smelled! But they were there every Sunday and they got used to being in church… and many of them (now adults) are still in church to this day. My friend never taught Sunday School, but she got kids to church.
Can you host an in-home Bible Study? You don’t have to teach… just host. Invite a few folks over and supply the food, and I could find all kinds of people to come over. They’ll teach as long as you feed them.
Do you think that only Elders do anything at church? Do you know what Elders are supposed to do? They are supposed to watch over the flock and help meet their needs. You could do that (in fact, many people do that already). If you know someone hasn’t been in church for a couple weeks, you could write them a letter telling them you’ve missed them. If you know someone has been in the hospital… you could go visit them. Are they homebound? You could call them and chat for awhile. Or you could take them something to eat.
A lot of folks here do that stuff anyway (I brag about you all the time), but the point is this: you don’t need a Bible college degree or a fancy title to DO stuff for Jesus. You just have to do what little you can, and that may be just what needs done.
ILLUS: In WWII, allied bombers returned to their base and told a miraculous story. They’d been hit several times by German antiaircraft gunners, but that none of the shells had exploded. Specialists carefully removed the shells and took them to a safe place to examine them. And they found that the shells contained no firing pins. Where the firing mechanism should have been was a note written in Czech, apparently by one of the slave workers in a German munitions factory: "This is all we can do for now, wish we could do more."
They didn’t think they were doing enough… but for the crew of that plane, they had done a powerful and impressive thing. They did what little they could, and that made all the difference. That’s what Jesus is asking for. You don’t have to do EVERYTHING but that one small thing you do for Him can make all the difference.
Now, one last thought: It’s not enough to do stuff. You need to do your stuff FOR JESUS. And that’s what James is telling us here:
“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.” James 1:23-25
It took me a couple of minutes to figure out what James was saying here. I wondered: What’s this about a HEARER (not the DOER) looking at himself in the mirror and then walking away? Then it occurred to me what James was saying.
When most of us wake up each morning we have a ritual we go through. My ritual is to take a shower, shave, shower and comb my hair. But every once in a while my schedule gets interrupted. Someone will call after I get out of the shower and they’ll want to talk for a 15 or 20 minutes. I’ll go out in the kitchen and talk to them. Then I’ll remember something I want to look up on the computer or I’ll start making myself breakfast… and I’ll rub my chin. I forgot to shave! And I forgot to brush my teeth (you don’t want to be around me when I haven’t brushed my teeth). I looked in the mirror after my shower and combed my hair… but I walked away from the mirror having forgotten to do the rest of my morning ritual.
That’s what James is talking about here. Those who only hear the word (and don’t do it) walk away having forgotten to finish the job. They’re haven’t finished making themselves ready. But the REAL DOERS won’t give up until they’ve DONE what Jesus wanted done. The REAL DOERS look in the mirror and they’re not satisfied until they’ve changed something. Those who only “hear” the word are like those folks you see down at Wal-Mart still walking around in their pajamas. Life for the “hearer” is all about themselves.
ILLUS: In another community I preached in, there was a denominational church that had an impressive “children’s choir.” It was one of those things that it was considered to be an honor to be part of. The choir would often to other churches to put on concerts, and they even went overseas every year or so to do a “singing tour.” But every once in a while, the church board or the preacher would have a problem with how the group was being run… and then board members would lose their jobs and preachers would be fired. Why? Because the folks who led the choir weren’t doing what they did for Jesus… it was all about them. It was their agenda and their glory that was sought. And may God have mercy on the church leader who didn’t bow to their will.
That’s the difference between a hearer who doesn’t DO for Jesus… and a true DOER for Jesus.
CLOSE: So let me close with a story about a true DOER. He lived back in the 1800s, and ever since he’d been a boy he’d dreamed of being a missionary to Africa. It was a driving passion for him. Then he met a girl who had the same dream as he had… and they got married. They were faithful members of their church, and they were constantly sharing Jesus with others. And they planned and saved for their ultimate journey into ministry.
But then his wife took ill. It was soon obvious she was not going to be strong enough to endure the hardships of in a foreign country… and sadly the young man had to give up his dream.
Not sure what to do, he eventually went to work for his father – a dentist with a small side business. As his dad grew older, the young man took over that side business and found he had a skill at marketing their product. As the business grew, it struck him that perhaps he could still help on the mission field. He determined to build up the business with an eye toward using his income to financially supporting overseas missionaries. He worked hard and eventually built the company into a huge enterprise where the product became world famous and was sold in practically every supermarket and grocery.
Oh, I haven’t told you what that side business was… have I? (Taking a communion cup from the tray on the table, I held it up). The business he took over from his dad was producing unfermented wine for churches to use in communion. Do you think you might know what that young man’s name was? That’s right – Welch (as in Welch’s Grape Juice) - Thomas Welch. Over the years that business had supplied to support to hundreds of missionaries who accomplished more on the mission field than he could ever have done by himself (John C. Maxwell, “The Power of Partnership in the Church”).
Now, like I said, I'm proud of this congregation. It's been said that in many churches 10% of the people do 90% of the work. Not here. Here it's more like 50% doing most of the work. AND THAT'S GREAT! But should be satisfied with only 50% doing things for Jesus? Of course not. Every Christian ought to doing what they do for Jesus. So this sermon is all about getting the rest of you out on the pier... and then shoving you off into the water. You don't have to do everything... but you need to do something for Christ. Just get your feet wet.
But it won't do you any good to get your feet wet until you get the rest of you wet over here in the baptistery. That's why we give an invitation at the end of every service...
INVITATION
