CEDAR LODGE BAPTIST CHURCH
Thomasville, Nc
A fellowship of faith, family and friendships
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May 25, 2003
Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.
Ephesians 6.10 (KJV)
Today is special in a number of ways. On Memorial Day Sunday we remember those who gave the last full measure of sacrifice on battlefields. These are the heroes who stand alone in our minds and hearts as champions of freedom.
We also honor our graduating seniors, and in so doing we recognize another kind of battlefield, one on which these young people will help shape the future of our nation and world. It is the battlefield of culture and society. In the big picture it is the battlefield for how men will view each other in this new millennium, and how, ultimately God will view the state of mankind.
Young graduates, never forget that we are not defined by what culture and popular opinion polls say about us; rather we are defined by our actions before the only audience Who really matters. With our actions, and as God watches, we define our future and our eternity. We should remember that He watches not from a far distance, and not without interest. The apostle Paul reminds us that it is the Lord Jesus who is judge, and we will be accountable to Him in the end (2 Ti 4.1).
It is most appropriate on this day to begin a series of messages on what we believe. Those who died on battlefields to secure and maintain our freedom, and freedom for others in the world, died for that which they believed. Our young graduates have been forming in the inner self beliefs that will govern their behavior for a lifetime. Our beliefs determine our behavior and ultimately define the actions of who we really are, for better or worse. This is that upon which God will see and judge!
More than two years ago our church adopted an agreement that all who choose to join in our service to the Lord here at Cedar Lodge would attend an orientation prior to becoming full members. This orientation explores our core beliefs and practices. We have long had a document that describes some of those beliefs , but documents tend to get stuffed in drawers and under cabinets. Our strongly-held core beliefs are too important to hide under a bushel basket.
So, over the next five weeks we will cover these basics to Christianity and church life and service. It’s all about Growing Strong, the commitment to be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.
The first part of our core beliefs deals with the New Birth or salvation. A person who has experienced this, received forgiveness from God through faith in Jesus Christ, and is said to be a “new man” in Christ.
17Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 (KJV)
The understanding of the new person starts with understanding the old person. To begin this understanding we go back to the beginning:
GOD’S GIFTS TO THE HUMAN RACE
We are created in His image
26And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: Genesis 1:26a (KJV)
Now the fact that God made beings like Himself indicates that He intends to not be alone. It tells us in Genesis 2 that God made Eve for Adam because it is not good for him to be alone.
We are created for fellowship with God.
5I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. 8Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. John 15.5, 8
The creation account shows us that God’s intention was to be close to mankind, and to enjoy that fellowship. A problem arose because, unlike the animals, insects, birds or plant life, God gave man a free will – the right to make choices independent of right or wrong or other people’s will. He did this because He made us in His image, with a will.
However, ever since the first time man chose against the will of God everyone has followed that path. That choice against God causes a separation between God and man. This made a whole new paradigm, new conditions; a need for redemption.
SALVATION -- WHY AND HOW
Why a person must be saved
We have all sinned 23For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Romans 3:23 (KJV)
The name for this separation between God and man is sin. It has been part of our human makeup, our human nature, ever since the fall of Adam. It is passed along by birth. It is our heritage. Everyone sins.
Consider the following illustration of what this causes when you consider our desire to be close to God, and the fact that we have chosen against His will:
Sin separates from God.
23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 6:23 (KJV)
(Here there is an illustration
of a bridge over a river. The
two shores are labeled "Earth"
and "Heaven". The river is
labeled "sin" and the bridge is
labeled "the cross".) ---
In the illustration we see that the river of sin separates Earth from Heaven. Swimming across is not an option. Our friend Dr. George Thomasson used the illustration of jumping. Many of us could jump 3 or 4 feet. Some could jump 10 or 15 feet if we got a running start. An Olympic athlete can jump upwards of 30 feet in some events. The problem is that if the standard jump to win the competition is to cover the distance from here to the sun (93 million miles), no matter how you practice and condition yourself, you are never going to meet the standard.
Now, God demands this standard of perfection when it comes to sin. If you are separated from Him because of even one “little” sin – a little white lie just not to hurt your Aunt Hattie’s feelings about that really terrible chicken n’ dumplings she makes for Sunday dinner…any sin separates you from God; that separation is for all eternity. The place of separation is called hell. Nobody really wants to go there!
But there is a solution.
Christ is the bridge of salvation
1There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. Romans 8:1 (KJV)
Because of God’s great love, Jesus’ death on the cross is our bridge. This is a bridge you cannot buy; there are no tokens to purchase, no toll gate. This is a bridge that Jesus made from earth to heaven, and He simply asks that you come. There is no other way to God, but you’re invited, and the way is free.
6Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
John 14.6 (KJV)
HOW DOES THIS HAPPEN?
How a person is saved.
There are two words in Scripture that describe “crossing the bridge” of salvation, believe and confess. They appear many times in the Bible, but Romans is clearest for me.
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.11For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. 12For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. 13For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Romans 10.9-10 (KJV)
“Whosoever”! That means anyone can be saved – anyone!
The requirements are…
…believe in Jesus as the one sent by God to die for our sins, and that on the third day He, being stone cold dead, raised up from death and is still alive; and that He did that for you.
…and to “confess with your mouth” that He is Lord.
Confessing is simple. It means you are willing to take your stand with Jesus and the Gospel account. You say it out loud. That doesn’t mean you have to stand and be grilled by a committee and you have to pass the test like the lawyer’s bar exam. It does mean taking a stand with your life.
In this church, confessing Christ means you are willing to stand before the congregation, having prayed asking the Lord to forgive you for your sins, and that for the rest of your life you are willing to have Him as Lord over the decisions of your life. There will be an invitation at the end of this message for you to do just that if you’ve never taken a public stand for Jesus. You can receive His salvation now.
You can be born again.
WHAT IT MEANS TO BE SAVED (A BELIEVER).
We are part of the kingdom of God.
1There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.
3Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3.1-3
When a person is born again, he becomes part of the family of God. Jesus said this was His Father’s kingdom. A kingdom consists of a King and subjects. It isn’t too difficult to figure out which is which in this case. The one thing most folks seem to have not gotten is the fact that in a kingdom the subjects obey the will of the King.
Obedience to King Jesus is shown in many ways. One is:
WHY A PERSON IS BAPTIZED
Obedience
Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. Acts 2.38 (KJV)
It is important to be baptized. Baptism is not the gateway to salvation. In fact, unless you have crossed the bridge with belief and confession, you do not belong in the baptismal waters. There is a good reason for that. Basically, baptism is an ordinance, not a sacrament. An ordinance is something you do out of obedience, a sacrament is that which saves. Your belief and confession of Christ as Lord and Savior are therefore a sacrament; baptism is a step of obedience. You do not “do” obedience to “get saved”; your salvation leads to good works (Ephesians 2.8-9).
Another good and logical reason is that baptism is also a means of witness. Folks, until you are saved you have nothing about which to witness! The witness is a matter of:
Identification with Christ.
3Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Romans 6:3-5 (KJV)
The main reason our church gives an invitation at the end of every service is for anyone who will make the choice to follow Christ to come and have an immediate opportunity to identify with Him. Baptism comes later, and so does the Growing Strong class. The main thing is to start your life with Christ by immediately identifying yourself as a follower of His, and being a witness.
Testimony of our faith in death, burial, resurrection, coming again of Jesus
When you come down the aisle and stand in front of the congregation, without a word you are declaring that you have repented of your sins, Christ has forgiven you, and now you present yourself as a candidate to walk with Christ and serve Him here with your brothers and sisters in the Lord. That is always a joyful experience.
Now, that is the basic introduction to what we believe here. The only question left is, where did we get all those beliefs? The answer is found in the preamble to our founding documents:
PREAMBLE
For the most certain application and preservation of the foundational principles of our faith, practice, mutual fellowship; for the purpose of this body being governed democratically (under sound Biblical principles); the general inherent rights and liberties of church membership are herein set forth.
ARTICLE II: BELIEF
We, the members of Cedar Lodge Baptist Church, affirm the Holy Bible as the divinely inspired Word of God, and it is the final word for all matters of our faith, practice, and fellowship.
ARTICLE III: COVENANT
We, the members of Cedar Lodge Baptist Church, do pledge to affirm and uphold to the best of our ability the Church Covenant as our faith pledge to God, this church, and all mankind.
THE CUTTING
We will talk more in the upcoming weeks about the nature of governance of a church, and how we operate. But one thing stands out in these church articles of Cedar Lodge’s – His Scripture’s authority among us, and our faith pledge to Him and each other to uphold that Scripture – even when it hurts!
Being a Christian is not a simple thing. There is a simplicity about the Gospel and how God provided salvation so that even a child can understand sin, repenting and becoming a child of God through faith in the Jesus of the cross and empty tomb. But it is not an easy thing, this living the Christian life. There are times when sin and selfishness enter a Christian’s life. It is then God disciplines us, and this covenant stands as a wedge to cause us to make decisions for or against God.
The word “covenant” itself comes from the ancient Hebrew word which means “to cut”. In ancient times people like Moses or Abraham would “cut a covenant”. They would gather witnesses, make their statements (like our covenant articles) and then agree to their promises by sacrificing a bull, dividing the animal in half and walking through the parts. It was symbolic; they were saying, Look at this dead animal with all its parts laid out – this is my fate if I fail to keep this agreement.
At Cedar Lodge we take this covenant seriously. It is because Jesus took our salvation seriously. Sometimes being a Christian hurts. Sometimes it divides people when some don’t take their commitment to God and their fellow believers seriously. Jesus did not say, Take up your party and follow me – or – Be my disciple by doing what you like, even if you think my ideas are too old for today. What He said was take up your cross and follow me.
Following Him may be hard, but in the end it is a joyful thing.
It is the most joy-filled reality to which a person can come.
It dispels grief and sorrow;
It makes a sinner fit for heaven and brings comfort and strength where there was fear and weakness. Everything about following Christ leads to joy. In leaving His disciples a final word Jesus said, I want my joy to fill you up!
Growing Strong in that is not a bad idea!
