INTRO.- ILL.- "The Fabulous Life of: Arnold Schwarzenegger.” Here it is:
* He smokes $4,000 cigars but that’s not all.
* Arnold is worth up to an estimated $800 million. His holdings in private companies like Microsoft and Starbuck’s are valued at over $20 million.
* Even his shoes are fabulous-a pair of custom Pasquale’s can cost up to $5,000 a pair.
* Arnie’s suits are of the finest Italian variety by Giacomo. A single suit can set him back $3,000.
* When on the ocean, Arnold and family cruise in style on a $4.5 million 88 foot yacht with 2 grand salons, 3 sleeping cabins, and a state of the art entertainment center.
* A trendsetter in military chic, Arnold bought the first civilian model Hummer for $117,000. Today he owns a fleet of 9 Hummers worth an estimated $1 million.
* If he leaves the 88 foot yacht home, Arnold likes to put his head down in St. Bart’s at the exclusive Hotel Guanahani where rooms can cost $2,000 a night.
* The "governator" must keep his body in tiptop shape. To pump up, Arnold always relies on his $3,000 Cybex 700 high-resistance bike.
* Arnie’s hair always needs to be perfect and for that he goes to Stephen Knoll. This hair genius has a $5,500 day rate and the scissors he uses cost up to $400.
* Now for the more positive side of Arnold’s life. He does share his wealth, perhaps not the way we Christians would, however. He’s coached the Special Olympics since 1979 and donates millions to support a multitude of charitable organizations.
My only wish for Arnold is that he might become a Christian and live for Christ. He’s very personable, otherwise.
Brothers and sisters, we tend to think that the Arnold Schwarzeneggar’s of the world are the rich people of the world. And they are! We are astounded at the wealth and the lifestyles of the rich and famous! But they are not the only rich people of the world.
I Tim. 6:17-19 “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.”
ILL.- I did a little investigation on Monday evening and here is what I found. I went through my closet and numbered some items. I have: 10 pairs of shoes, 43 various shirts, 23 pairs of pants, and 9 pairs of jeans.
How do I feel about this? I feel blessed, but also somewhat embarrassed. Why? Because there are people in our world who would say, “Look at how rich you are!” And I am.
Guess what I think you should do? Try it sometime and you might be surprised and shocked at your wealth and abundance.
Brothers and sisters, what are the necessities of life? Basically, all we need is food, shelter and clothing. Beyond that, it is pure luxury. Of course, this is not how we feel in affluent America. We feel that almost everything we have or own is a necessity of life. If we were born and raised in many foreign countries, however, we’d feel fortunate to have food, clothing and shelter.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT IS THE GREATEST STATE IN WHICH TO LIVE? It’s not Arkansas. And it’s neither Missouri nor Illinois. It’s not even Florida, California or Hawaii. It’s the state of contentment.
Phil. 4:19 KJV “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.”
Today, we also need to think about spiritual necessities. Everyone has their own idea about spiritual necessities. For example, while many people think that going to church a couple of times a month is good enough, but I suspect that God thinks otherwise!
PROP.- Our text in Romans 12:9-11 gives us a good list of spiritual necessities for the New Year. Let’s think about them and how to get them into our lives to a greater degree.
I. LOVE SINCERELY
V. 9 “Love must be sincere.”
ILL.- "Dearest Jimmy, No words could ever express the great unhappiness I’ve felt since breaking our engagement. Please say you’ll take me back. No one could ever take your place in my heart, so please forgive me. I love you, I love you, I love you! Yours forever, Marie... P.S., And congratulations on willing the state lottery." That is not sincere love. Sincere love demonstrates love whether there is any money or not.
I Cor. 13:13 “And now these three remain; faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
Love is greater than faith and hope. Love is the greatest good. It is the supreme good in life. God put us here to learn to love. The greatest lesson we can learn on earth is the lesson of demonstrating sincere love.
Col. 3:12-14 “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”
I Pet. 4:8 “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.”
It’s hard to misunderstand these scriptures. Our understanding is not the problem. Our problem is the performance of these scriptures. We do not always love people deeply. How’s your love life? That is, how well do you love people? How well do you demonstrate love to people?
ILL.- Tony Campolo, in his book THERE’S ALWAYS SOMETHING LEFT TO LOVE, tells about seeing the play entitled ‘Raisin in the Son.” In the play, an African-American family inherits $10,000 from their father’s life insurance policy. The mother of the house sees a chance to escape the ghetto life of Harlem and move into a little house with flower boxes out in the countryside. The brilliant daughter of the family sees in the money the chance to live out her dream and go to medical school.
But the older brother has a plan that is difficult to ignore. He begs for the money so that he and his "friend" can go into business together. He tells the family that with the money he can make something of himself and make things good for the rest of them. He promises that if he can just have the money, he can give back to the family all the blessings that their hard lives have denied them.
Against her better judgment, the mother gives in to the pleas of her son. She has to admit that life’s chances have never been good for him and that he deserves the chance that this money might give him.
As you might suspect, the so-called "friend" skips town with the money. The desolate son has to return home and break the news to the family that their hopes for the future have been stolen and their dreams for a better life are gone.
His sister lashes into him with a barrage of ugly words. She calls him every despicable thing she can think of. HER CONTEMPT FOR HER BROTHER HAS NO LIMITS. When she takes a breath in the midst of her tirade, the mother interrupts her and says, "I THOUGHT I TAUGHT YOU TO LOVE HIM!" The daughter answered, "Love him? There’s nothing left to love."
And the mother responds, "THERE’S ALWAYS SOMETHING LEFT TO LOVE. And if you ain’t learned that, you ain’t learned nothing. Have you cried for that boy today? I don’t mean for yourself and the family because we lost all that money. I mean for him, for what he’s been through and what it done to him. Child, when do you think is the time to love somebody the most: when they done good and make things easy for everbody? Well then, you ain’t through learning, because that ain’t the time at all. IT’S WHEN HE’S AT HIS LOWEST and can’t believe in himself ’cause the world done whipped him so. When you start measuring somebody, measure him right, child, measure him right. Make sure you take into account what hills and valleys he came through before he got to where he is."
THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING LEFT TO LOVE! To demonstrate love when someone is at their lowest point in life is genuine love. This is something that we all need to do because our Lord Jesus did the same thing. For example, remember the woman at the well? Remember the woman caught in the adultery? Remember the outcast lepers who were healed? In each of these cases and more Jesus demonstrated love to people who were at or near their lowest point in life.
This is something that we need to learn to do. Just like Jesus did.
ILL.- A young boy was overheard asking his playmate, "Wouldn’t you hate to wear glasses all the time?" "No," came the answer, "not if I had some like my grandma’s. She always sees when people are tired or sad, and she knows just what to do to make them feel better. One day I asked her how she could see that way all the time. She told me it was the way she learned to look at things as she grew older." After thinking for a minute, the first boy concluded, "Yeah, I guess you’re right; it must be her glasses."...
As we all know it was not grandma’s glasses that made her love others. It was her heart. And no doubt, hers had to be a heart that had been touched by the heart of God.
II. HATE STRONGLY
V. 9 We are told to hate what is evil. Hatred in general is not a good thing. But hatred for evil is something that is commanded by God and will also inspire us to do good.
Jude 22-23 “Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear – hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.”
We are to love the sinner, but hate the sin. There is a time to hate, a time to take a stand against the evil of our world.
ILL.- Donald Wilmon of the American Federation for Decency Journal wrote these words some years ago: “The truth is we are anything but a Christian nation. Our behavior as a nation makes a mockery of Christianity. We lead the world in every abomination known to man - abortion, alcoholism, drug addiction, gambling, divorce, child abuse, violent crime, pornography, and yes, even child pornography. Worse yet, we export our violence and immorality to other countries through our sleazy movies and TV programs. We have become the moral polluter of planet earth.
“And we are reaping what we have sown.... Read Deut. 28:15-48. The curses of a nation under judgment are listed there and the passage reads like a detailed description of America...Yet, despite these judgments, we have refused to repent. In fact, we have stiffened in our rebellion against God. In our schools we have abolished prayer, removed the Ten Commandments, and banned the distribution of Bibles. We have terrorized our teachers into believing they will lose their jobs if they mention God to their students. We have even mandated the teaching of evolution and have prohibited the truth of creationism. We are in the process of legalizing and encouraging sodomy. We are handing out condoms and needles to our youth.
“We are going out of our way to protect every expression of profanity and obscenity. America is thumbing its nose at God! The Supreme Court is in rebellion against God. Our Congress is hardened against God. Our Bureaucracy could care less about God. Our educational system has banned God.”
Rom. 12:9 “Hate what is evil and cling to what is good.”
There is a time when we must take a stand against evil. If we truly stand for Christ then we must stand against evil.
ILL.- Edmund Burke once said, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”
Our stand must be strong and secure, but also decent and respectful.
I Pet. 3:15 “In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. BUT DO THIS WITH GENTLENESS AND RESPECT.”
II Tim. 2:24-25 “The Lord’s servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful. Those who oppose him he must gently instruct, in the hope that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth.”
We must gently instruct, teach, witness, testify, take a stand for the truth and against evil.
ILL.- When Eugene Debs was imprisoned as a conscientious objector, he became interested in a black man who was said to be incorrigible, devoid of any human goodness. Since the man would not speak to anyone, Debs started a campaign of kindness by leaving an orange on the man’s bed and going off without a word. Eventually, the two became friends.
Years later at the news of Debs’ death, the black man, now a useful citizen, said, “HE WAS THE ONLY JESUS CHRIST I EVER KNEW.” Hate the sin, but love the sinner. That’s what Jesus and He did the most good. We must do as He did.
III. SERVE ZEALOUSLY
V. 11 “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.”
A New Year necessity is Christian service. We need to serve more and the best we can. We must never be lacking in zeal.
ILL.- A man hurried to the church door one Sunday around noon and said, “Is the service over?” One man said, “The worship is over, but the service is only beginning.”
Christian service can take place within the worship and programs of the church, but it also takes place outside the church. Anything we do for Christ is better than nothing.
ILL.- One day when Henry Ward Beecher was going for a drive the liveryman brought a fine-looking horse to the door. Beecher said, “That’s a fine looking animal you have there. Is he as good as he looks?” The liveryman said, “Yes, this horse is the best in our stables. He will work any place you put him and can do anything.”
Beecher smiled and said, “I wish to goodness he was a member of my church.”
It is great when people are willing to serve, any place, at any time regardless of any special gifts or talents they might have.
Some people might be tempted to say, “I can’t do that. That’s not my cup of tea.” Or “I don’t have any ability in that area.”
Obviously, not everyone can play the piano and not everyone can sing a solo, but we all can serve in various ways.
I know of several preachers who have one constant criticism of their church: They can’t seem to get people to serve. And this has long been a problem in our churches.
When will we ever learn that many hands make light work? And that the ministry is not something done “to” the church, but rather it is something done “by” the church?
Eph. 4:11-12 “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up.”
For the Lord’s church to grow numerically and spiritually, we all must get involved and do whatever we can to serve.
ILL.- A Baptist minister rushed down to the train station every single day to watch the Sunset Limited go by. There was no chore he wouldn’t interrupt to carry out this ritual.
Members of his church considered his ritual very juvenile and worthless and asked him to stop. “No,” said the minister, “I won’t give it up. I preach your sermons, teach in Sunday School, bury your dead, marry your young people, run your charities, chair every drive that pleases you to conduct. I won’t give up meeting that Southern Pacific train every day. I love it! It’s the only thing in this town that I don’t have to push!” We shouldn’t have to push people to serve.
ILL.- Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), world-renowned French chemist and biologist, who founded the science of microbiology, proved the germ theory of disease, invented the process of pasteurization, and developed vaccines for several diseases, including rabies said, “In what way can I be of service to humanity? My time and energy belong to mankind.”
And our Lord said in Matthew 20:26-28 “… whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave-- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Christ came to serve. We too must serve as best we can.
CONCLUSION------------------------------
ILL.- An old Quaker of 82 years once said, “I’m going to live until I die and then I’m going to live forever.”
Brothers and sisters, may God help us to live until we die. Living is about loving. Living is about standing for Christ. Living is about serving. Many people now living are not living. They live for self, not for Christ and not for others. Christ gave us the supreme example of true life. Let’s imitate Him.
