Chippie the parakeet never saw it coming. One second he was peacefully perched in his cage. The next he was sucked in, washed up, and blown over.
The problems began when Chippie's owner decided to clean Chippie's cage with a vacuum cleaner. She removed the attachment from the end of the hose and stuck it in the cage. The phone rang, and she turned to pick it up. She'd barely said "hello" when "ssssopp!" Chippie got sucked in.
The bird owner gasped, put down the phone, turned off the vacuum, and opened the bag. There was Chippie -- still alive, but stunned.
Since the bird was covered with dust and soot, she grabbed him and raced to the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and held Chippie under the running water. Then, realizing that Chippie was soaked and shivering, she did what any compassionate bird owner would do . . . she reached for the hair dryer and blasted the pet with hot air.
Poor Chippie never knew what hit him.
A few days after the trauma, the reporter who'd initially written about the event contacted Chippie's owner to see how the bird was recovering. "Well," she replied, "Chippie doesn't sing much anymore -- he just sits and stares."
It's hard not to see why. Sucked in, washed up, and blown over . . . That's enough to steal the song from the stoutest heart. Max Lucado, In the Eye of the Storm, Word Publishing, 1991, p. 11.
I’m sure we all know what it feels like to have a bit of a bad day, a day when we have suffered unfairly at the hands of another. But I wonder how many of us have suffered because of our faith in Jesus Christ? I mean ‘suffered’, ‘really suffered’.
There is some debate about when exactly 1 Peter was written, but most scholars agree that it was somewhere around AD 64 when Peter was in Rome and he was writing to a group of Christians who were undergoing terrible persecution for their faith in Christ. More than likely it is the same persecution that in fact saw the death by crucifixion of Peter himself and the beheading of the Apostle Paul – both of which took place in Rome somewhere around AD67/68 during the reign of the Emperor Nero.
Nero – 64 AD
In July 64 A.D., a great fire broke out in Rome. Hundreds of public buildings were burned to the ground, thousands of homes were destroyed, and thousands of people were left homeless. History believes that Nero himself started the fire so that he could create some space to build a marble palace.
The people of Rome were understandably furious and were ready to overthrow their Emperor, so Nero had to find someone to blame the fire on.
Now there was in Rome a group of people who were just right to take the blame for the fire. They were called Christians. They followed a man named Christ, about whom strange things were said, and they themselves did very strange things. Now Christianity was still very much in its infancy – especially in Rome – the Apostle Paul had only arrived there for the first time – three years earlier.
And there were rumors were flying all around Rome that these people, these Christians, were cannibals, because they talked about getting together in their houses, drinking someone's blood and eating his body. They spoke about "love feasts," - at which they greeted one another with a holy kiss, and shared their innermost problems with each other. And that soon became exaggerated into stories of sexual orgies.
So they were a people already under deep suspicion. And Nero started the rumour that it was the Christians who had burned down the city.
And as a punishment Christians were dipped in tar and burned as torches to light the gardens of Nero when he threw an outdoor party. They were tied to his chariot and dragged through the streets of Rome until they were dead. They were thrown to the lions; they were tied up in leather bags and thrown into water so that when the leather bags shrank, they were squeezed to death. They were hounded and persecuted all through the Empire because of Nero's proclamation. They suffered terribly, and unjustly, for carrying the name of Christ.
Peter’s suffering
When Peter wrote that Christians can expect to suffer for the cause of Christ he knew what he was talking about. He saw firsthand what happened to Jesus: how he had been arrested, convicted, mocked, beaten, and put to death. He knew that because of Jesus’ name, Christians could expect the same kind of treatment from the world! He himself had been imprisoned a number of times, and would be martyred for his faith. And so Peter writes, as he is preparing Christians for the suffering that lies ahead: "If you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.." (1 Peter 4:16-19)
As a Christian don’t be surprised when suffering comes your way.
The suffering Church
It has been said that there have been more Christian martyrs in recent years than there were during the time of the Caesars. With each passing year, the number of Christians who will face death for their beliefs increases. It has been estimated that since AD 70, there have been over 70 million Christians put to death for refusing to renounce their faith.
Ah, but we don’t suffer very much here in the UK. In some countries Christians suffer tremendously but generally speaking – we don’t suffer for the sake of the gospel. There might on occasion be exceptions when families will scoff and mock or work mates will curse and swear. But that’s not really suffering – is it? Especially as we watch the news and witness the fate of our brothers and sisters throughout the Middle East at the hands of the Islamic State.
And I sometimes wonder to myself whether one of the reasons why we do not suffer so much for the kingdom of God is because maybe our testimony is not as bright and as sure and as pronounced as it should be. And our living for Jesus Christ is not the way that it should be.
And I sometimes wonder if we were to rise up and live the life that we are actually called to live, to preach the message that we are actually called to preach, and to be the witnesses that we are actually called to be – then maybe we would bring an avalanche of suffering upon ourselves.
I wonder, if we were to rise up as Gods people and say, ‘this is what we believe and this is what we will stand for, and this is what we will live by’. I wonder - would that result in an avalanche of suffering? Not that we would seek to court that – but I really think that when our testimony is sharp and powerful – that is what will happen.
But in many of our pulpits the word of God is no longer preached and we are seldom bold enough to rebuke sin in our midst. But I tell you that when we rise up and we live according to the Scriptures and we bring our focus back onto the word of God and preach it without fear and in the authority of the Holy Spirit – people are going to get mad with us. They really will.
Persecution is coming!
Listen! I do believe that in the days that lie ahead it is going to get tougher and tougher to be a Christian in this country. It is going to get increasingly difficult to preach and uphold the truth of Scripture. Other religions, other faiths, the move toward greater toleration is going to make it increasingly hard to live gospel lives and preach gospel truths. I find it incredible that those in society who have shouted the loudest for ‘tolerance’ have become the most ‘intolerant’ toward those who do not share their views or their lifestyles.
Persecution is on it’s way! In your Christian walk there are going to be times that the trials and burdens, the pressures and sufferings, just seem to come one after the other. There will be times that it seems as if you may not be able to bear the troubles you are faced with. There will be times that it would seem the easiest to just throw up your hands and quit.
Christianity costs
Siding with Jesus costs - if you are true to your faith, if your are true to your calling. If you stand up for truth and justice and are living the gospel life that we are called to lead – you will suffer, you will be hounded, you will be persecuted. Jesus said, deny yourself, pick up your cross and follow me. And the way of the cross is suffering.
And Peter says, "If you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name.." How many of us will be able to do that? To praise God in the midst of our suffering for Him?
Suffering = Holiness
There is great value in suffering.
? Suffering makes us more determined to obey God – Psalm 119:67 "Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey your word. It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees."
? Suffering produces perservance – James 1:2-4
? Suffering produces character – Romans 5:3-4
? Suffering (hardship) enables us to share in Gods holiness - Hebrews 12:10
That’s why on his bedroom wall Charles Spurgeon had a plaque with Isaiah 48:10 on it: "I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." And Spurgeon wrote "It is no mean thing to be chosen of God. God's choice makes chosen men choice men...We are chosen, not in the palace, but in the furnace of affliction. In the furnace, beauty is marred, fashion is destroyed, strength is melted, glory is consumed; yet here eternal love reveals its secrets, and declares its choice."
God’s plan has always been to have a church that was pure, a church that never compromised with the world. A church that would stand for Him no matter what happened in their lives. A holy people….
Holiness! Now there’s a word that is missing in much of evangelical Christianity. You don’t hear much these days about the need to live lives that are holy. You don’t hear many preachers calling the church back to holiness.
Over the centuries Satan has attacked the church in many different ways. And today his approach is very subtle. But it is still one of the most aggressive attacks the church has experienced in a very long time. And it comes in the form of pressure from our society to accept and tolerate sin. And it erodes away our holiness little by little, bit by bit.
Every day our holiness is being eroded. Just in the same way as the gentle lapping of the sea waves gradually erodes the cliffs around our coast. You see the devil is so subtle. And what happens is, we look at the world and we allow ourselves to be brain washed by it. I’ll be honest, and I well say that I today find myself looking at things on television that 30 years ago I would have turned off in disgust. And I say to myself, ‘what are you doing watching this stuff?’
We look at the world, and we become seduced by it’s culture, and by its speech, and by its sexual freedom, and before we realise it we are pulling down our standards and we get more and more like the world in our attitudes and the way that we live, and the things that we do.
Ed Lewis in his book - The State of the Church – writes this:
"I believe God is withdrawing His hand of protection from the church… but the church hasn't realized it yet.
It's a well-known fact that there are as many divorces today within the church as outside it. The pleasures and values of most people in the church are not much different from those outside. The line that once distinguished Christians from non Christians has become severely blurred... The main problem is not so much secularism as it is the secularization of the church. The salt is losing its savour. The purity of the church has been compromised, and we've lost sight of the value of a pure church...”
But we are called to be a holy people, a holy nation. We are called to live lives of holiness – scripture says ‘Be holy because I am holy’ declares the Lord your God.’ And that’s why – 1 Peter 4:19 it says ‘Judgement begins with the house of God’.
Judgement begins…
Now I don’t know about you, but I struggle with the concept of judgement – I struggle with many things – but God’s judgement on his people I do find quite difficult.
Sometimes when something goes wrong in life, you lose a job, or you find yourself in a financial crisis, or you catch some frightening disease – whatever it is – when tragedy comes your way, you always get some bright spark who will say ‘this is the judgement of God on your life. You’ve done something wrong, you’ve committed some sin and now God is punishing you’.
Now I have to say that I have a real problem with that kind of theology. That God punishes me for my sin. God punished Jesus Christ on the cross 2000 years ago for my sin! But you know, mercy and judgement are held in fine balance. And there are sufficient scripture passages that suggest that God will not allow continued, wilful sin to go unaccounted for.
Ezekiel
God gave Ezekiel a retrospective vision. And in this vision Ezekiel saw the Elders of the house of Israel (the leaders of the church) engaging in idolatry. He saw women giving themselves to fertility gods. He saw men bowing down toward the east and worshipping the sun right there in the temple of the Almighty.
And then in the vision six men with deadly weapons come forward and they are sent to bring judgement on the people and they are told in Ezekiel 9:6 (listen to this) ‘Slaughter old men, young men and maidens, women and children… and begin at my sanctuary (did you get that) begin at my sanctuary. So they began with the elders who were in front of the temple’.
Begin at my sanctuary, begin with the temple, begin with my church. Kill all those that have no burden, no concern, no guilt for their sin… and begin with my sanctuary, begin with my church.
Jeremiah 25:29 - See, I am beginning to bring disaster on the city that bears my Name, and you will not go unpunished,
Amos 3:2 - "You only have I chosen of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you
for all your sins."
Worrying isn’t it. ‘Ah’ you say, ‘but that’s old testament – surely that doesn’t apply to us anymore’. Ok so let’s go to the New Testament – post Jesus.
Romans 2 – Paul is writing to the Church in Rome who are getting up to all kinds of worldly behaviour and he says to them ‘those of you who do these things, do you think you will escape God’s judgement.’
And right here in 1 Peter 4 it says: ‘It is time for judgement to begin with the house of God; (that’s us, that’s you and me’
The Judgement of God
So let me just say something about the judgement of God.
1. God’s Judgement is inescapable – And it’s no good trying to escape the inescapable by taking
refuge in theological arguments. Often we appeal to God’s character, the richness of his kindness, tolerance and patience. We argue that God is too kind and too longsuffering to punish anybody. And we misapply scripture and try to quote statements like ‘the Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in love’. But that preaches nothing but cheap grace and it shows contempt for God, not honour. It’s not faith, it’s presumption. Paul says in Romans 2:4 that God’s kindness leads us toward repentance. That’s it’s goal, it’s purpose. God’s compassion and kindness is intended to give us space to repent, not to give us room to go on sinning.
And everyone of us will one day stand in front of him for judgement to give an account of our lives.
2. God’s judgement is based on works – Paul writes (Romans 2:6) ‘God "will give to each person according to what he has done." To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honour and immortality, he will give eternal life. But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger.’
Now on the surface that may seem to suggest that salvation is by works; that eternal life can be earned by doing good things. But that isn’t only alien to the rest of scripture, it’s also totally opposite to the rest of Paul’s teaching. This passage is dealing with God’s basis for judgement – not salvation. Listen because this is important - In the Bible salvation is by faith but judgement is according to our works.
So if you thought the things you do don’t matter – your wrong – they do! Jesus himself said, "But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. "For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."
This isn’t about whether you’re saved or not, it’s not about whether you make it in or not – we are saved by faith and faith alone! But we will stand before Christ and give account of our lives.
3. God’s judgement is according to truth. The final thing I want to say is that God’s judgement
is according to truth. Romans 2:2 Paul says, ‘Now we know that God's judgement against those who do such things is based on truth’.
I think we all tend to have a terrible habit. We tend to compare ourselves with other people. We tend to evaluate how good we are – by how good other people are not. Do you know what I’m saying? ‘Well, I must be better than so and so, because I’m not involved in that kind of behaviour. I must be better than so and so because I don’t go round gossiping and spreading rumours behind peoples backs. I must be better than so and so because I’m not addicted to that substance. I must be better than so and so because I’m in church more than that person is’.
But you know, on judgement day God will not judge you in accordance with what other people have done or not done. He will judge you according to truth, he will judge you according to the scriptures. He will judge you according to His Word.
Often we get so wrapped up with trying to be what the world tells us we should be, and do what the world tells us we should do, and with being politically correct – that we forget about being what God wants us to be, and doing what God wants us to do. But on that day when we stand before him – he won’t ask us if we have been politically correct –he will ask us if we have been Biblically correct – the two are not the same – and he will judge us according to the truth. And his word is truth.
Conclusion
God’s judgement is inescapable, God’s judgement is based on works, God’s judgement is according to truth. How do you think you will fair on that day? What are the deeds in your life that you will need to give account of? Will they commend you or will they condemn you?
May God help us to be the Church and the people that he has called us to be…
