The following is taken from Read from Brokenness, Surrender & Holiness by Nancy Leigh DeMoss Wolgemuth - Pages 323-324
IN PATRICIA ST. JOHN'S NOVEL Star of Light, a British missionary nurse reaches out to an eleven-year-old Moroccan beggar named Hamid. Night after night, she welcomes him and other beggar children into her home for dinner and a warm place by the fire. One evening after dinner, Hamid impulsively steals two eggs from the kind woman's kitchen, just before he and the nurse go out into the cold, rainy night to visit another needy child. The woman takes a torch to light their way on the dark street. However,
“To the nurse's surprise Hamid did not wish to walk in the light. He seemed to be taking great care to keep out of the beam, slinking along the gutters, shuffling against the wall. It was very dark and very muddy, and once or twice he slipped a little, clutching his precious eggs tightly in both hands.
He was not enjoying himself at all. He was so afraid of that broad beam of light, and the eggs somehow did not seem worth it. He wished he could get rid of them, and yet at the same time he wanted to hold on to them.”
I’ll share the rest of this story later, but I wanted to share this part to illustrate how too many are in the American church today. Too many American Christians are plagued by hidden sins and an aversion to walking in the light, So, they slip and stumble and hinder the American church from making much progress in our walk with God.
But there’ve been times in our history when this wasn’t the case. There have been times when the influence of Christianity was the primary influence in determining the direction of our country. One such time was prior to the American Revolution. A movement of God that historians call “the Great Awakening” stirred the American church and greatly influenced the thinking and culture of the colonies.
Historian William McLoughlin says he has concluded that the Great Awakening had actually fostered the birth of the Revolution simply because the cry for freedom was a natural response to being biblically enlightened in this religious movement.
Author Catherine Ulrich Brakefield, explains it this way: “Free, bondservant, or slave; men, women, and children filled with the Holy Spirit spoke freely about God's grace to one another and shared how He had changed their lives. Christ was personal and real; He shared their lives, dreams, and future—and this new faith gave them hope of a brighter future amidst the oppressive taxes of King George.”
“The Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people; a change in their religious sentiments of their duties and obligations.” - John Adams
George Whitfield, a prominent revivalist, is often mentioned as an honorary founding father, because of his role in the Great Awakening.
Even after the War for Independence, the idea of the three branches of government is said to have been derived from Isaiah 33:22 (NIV): “For the LORD is our judge, our lawgiver, and our king. He will care for us and save us.”
Now, I’m not saying all the founders were Christians. But I am saying the influence of the church in colonial America because of the Great Awakening helped determine much of what happened in our early history; and that much of what’s wrong with our country today is due to the loss of influence by the American church. So how do we change things? By letting Christ change us.
Paul speaks to the Colossians about the fact that since Christ has given them new life, it’s time for a change! He mentions two determinations every Christian should make to live the changed life we’ve received in Christ. Determinations that I believe will also restore the American church to a position of needed influence again in our nation.
1. There are some things we must determine to deal with - vs. 5-9
A. Sin - vs. 5-8
Paul says we must not be content only with victory over obvious sins, but we must be willing to deal with non-obvious sins as well. While God’s people can certainly have trouble with the sins listed in verse 5, it seems that the second list in verse 8 can often can be our undoing. We need to see sin as God sees it; and get serious about dealing with it!
Another prominent leader during the Great Awakening was Jonathan Edwards, whose sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” resulted in many coming to repentance and faith, emphasized the need to take our sin seriously.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” - 1 John 1:9 (NIV)
The Greek word translated “confess” here is “homologeo,” which means “to say the same.” It means we face the darkness of our sin in light of the holiness of God. That we don’t make excuses for our sin or color code our sin or justify our sin or blame someone else for our sin. We see it as God sees it and call it the evil and wicked thing it is.
I call it an accident but God calls it an abomination;|
I call it a blunder but God calls it blindness;
I call it a defect but God calls it a disaster;
I call it chance but God calls it a choice;
I call it an infirmity but God calls it iniquity;
I call it a liberty but God calls it lawlessness;
I call it a trifle but God calls it a tragedy;
I call it a mistake but God calls it madness.
B. Hypocrisy - v. 9
The Greek word translated “hypocrite” is “hypokritai,” and originally referred to stage actors. It referred to someone who was a pretender. So, what is hypocrisy? It’s pretending to be what you are not. So hypocrisy is lying to others, as Paul describes here. When hypocrisy is rampant in the church, the world has no desire to listen.
“Of all the things in the world that stink in the nostrils of men, hypocrisy is the worst.” - Charles Spurgeon
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside? God will judge those outside. ‘Expel the wicked person from among you.’” - 1 Corinthians 5:12-13 (NIV)
Christians need to take a hard look at themselves in the mirror first, in the effort to deal with our sin and hypocrisy.
2. There are some things we must determine to develop - vs. 10-14
A. We must develop our knowledge of God - v. 10
Darrell Harrison & Virgil Walker, in their book, “Just thinking About the State,” have a chapter on the Doctrine of Elections, in which they say that voting, for Christians, is less about issues & more about worldview. Christians must be informed by a biblical worldview. This was true with America’s founding, and their influence can be seen in the statements of the founding fathers:
“It cannot be emphasized too often or too strongly that this great nation was founded not by religionists but by Christians; not on religions but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.” - Patrick Henry
“In the contest with Britain, we had daily prayers in this room for Divine Protection. Our prayers, sir, were heard and they were graciously answered. Have we now forgotten this powerful friend? I have lived sir, a long time, and the longer I live the more convincing proofs I see of this truth: That God governs in the affairs of man . . . I therefore move that prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven and its blessing on our deliberation, be held in this assembly every morning before we proceed to business.” - Benjamin Franklin
I share these quotes not to argue that all the founders were Christians but to say that they were influenced by a biblical worldview. While it is clear that Henry was a Christian, Franklin was a Deist who doubted the divinity of Christ, yet, because of the influence of the colonial church, they were both influenced by a biblical worldview. American Christians need to become more like the Bereans in Acts 17:11.
But the Bible not only can provide us with a biblical worldview, but it can help us deal with our sin and hypocrisy:
“So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls. But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.” - James 1:21-25 (NLT)
Too many Christians approach the Word of God, looking for what they can agree with in it. We need to approach God’s Word, looking for what it might disagrees with in me. This will result in two things:
1) The Word of God will convict me of my sin and hypocrisy.
“An honest man with an open Bible and a pad and pencil is sure to find out what is wrong with him very quickly.” -
A.W. Tozer
2) The Word of God will correct my sin and hypocrisy.
“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.” - 2 Timothy 3:16 (NLT)
B. We must develop our love for each other - vs. 11-14
We do this by recognizing that . . .
1) None of us is better than the other - v. 11 There is no . . .
A) Racial superiority or inferiority - “no Greek or Jew”
B) Religious superiority or inferiority - “no . . . circumcised or uncircumcised”
C) Cultural superiority or inferiority - “no . . . Barbarian or Scythian”
D) Social superiority or inferiority - “no . . . slave or free”
“Free, bondservant, or slave; men, women, and children filled with the Holy Spirit spoke freely about God's grace to one another and shared how He had changed their lives. Christ was personal and real; He shared their lives, dreams, and future . . .” - Catherine Ulrich Brakefield
2) None of us is to be inconsiderate of the other - v. 12
“There are no traffic jams on the extra mile.” - Zig Ziglar
3) None of us can afford to not forgive the other - v. 13
Everywhere we go in life, there are things about others that can “bug us.” And Paul tells us when that happens in the church, we are to put up with each other’s idiosyncrasies; and should they become offences, we are to forgive. And we are to forgive as Christ forgave us.
4) None of us can love one another without promoting unity - v. 14
A. Christian unity isn’t uniformity - everyone acting alike.
B. Christian unity isn’t unanimity - everyone thinking alike.
C. Christian unity is loving God and one another alike.
Conclusion: Now for the rest of the story: Read from Brokenness, Surrender & Holiness by Nancy Leigh DeMoss Wolgemuth - Page 332
As the story unfolds, Hamid slips and falls in the darkness, badly scraping and bruising his knees and shattering the eggs. When the turns the light of her torch on him, he is covered with mud, blood. egg yolk. He bursts into tears, terrified at the thought of what she might do, having discovered his theft. Will she call the police or have him beaten or put in jail? He knows he has forfeited the right to her kindness and is certain he will never again be allowed to enjoy the warmth or light of her home.
Instead, to his amazement, the nurse picks him up and takes him back to her home, where she washes him from head to toe, bandages his wounds, and replaces his tattered rags with fresh, clean clothes. She assures him of her forgiveness and explains his need to be forgiven by the Lord and to walk in His light.
“Hamid looked down at his clean clothes and his spotless bandage and understood. His eggs that had seemed so precious were gone, but he did not want them anymore. He had been forgiven and washed and made clean. He had been brought back into the warmth and shelter of the nurse's home.
They were going out again in the dark to find Abd-el Khader's house, but it would be quite different now. He would get under the nurse's big, warm coat and walk close beside her, sheltered from the rain; he would not stumble, and he would not be afraid of the light any longer, because he no longer had anything to hide. They would walk guided by its bright, steady beam. It would be a treat.”
May we, as American Christians, repent of our sin and hypocrisy, and turn and trust in our God to forgive and restore, so that we might be able to walk in the light as we go into the darkness of t6his world and be a positive influence on the direction of our neighbors, our culture, our country, and our world once again.
