In his book The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Steven Covey tells the following story as he rode the NY subway one Sunday morning:
“People were sitting quietly- some reading newspapers, some lost in thought, some resting with their eyes close. It was a calm, peaceful scene,” wrote Covey.
“Then suddenly, a man and his children entered the subway car. The children were so loud and rambunctious that instantly the whole climate changed.”
Covey continued, “The man sat down next to me and closed his eyes, apparently oblivious to the situation. The children were yelling back and forth, throwing things, even grabbing people’s papers. It was very disturbing. And yet, the man sitting next to me did nothing.”
Covey goes onto acknowledge his feelings of irritation with the man, the children, and the situation. Finally Covey turned to him and said, “Sir, your children are really disturbing a lot of people. I wonder if you couldn’t control them a little more?”
(Have you ever been in a situation like this? “What on earth are they thinking about?” “What makes them think they can do that?” “Why doesn’t that parent do something with those kids?”)
Well, Covey’s question brought the man to what he called “a consciousness of the situation.” “Oh, you’re right,” the father replied. “I guess I should do something about it. We just came from the hospital where their mother died about an hour ago. I don’t know what to think, and I guess they don’t know how to handle it either.”
Covey goes on to describe the change that came over him. “Suddenly,” he says, “I saw things differently, and because I saw things differently, I thought differently, I felt differently, I behaved differently. My irritation vanished… Feelings of sympathy and compassion flowed freely.”
Covey used this story as an illustration of what many people call (and he called) a paradigm shift. Now a paradigm is more than having twenty cents in your pocket.
A paradigm is the way that you and I organize and state what we believe about the others (as Covey did), reality, right and wrong, and… ourselves. I have prayed this week and throughout this series that a Spirit-led paradigm shift will take place in our minds and hearts. Let me tell you why.
About ten years or so ago, I was struggling because my self-image rose and fell on any and every perception of success or failure in just about every area of my life. I remember at one point Susan saying to me something to the effect of “Until you realize who you are in Christ, you are going to continue to be miserable.”
Then she shared with me a book she had heard about called Victory Over the Darkness by Neil Anderson in which he wrote of the importance of understanding who we truly are in Christ. Along then with the Bible, the Lord worked in my life to bring about clarity of purpose and peace and work that has sustained me since that time. I have read more of Anderson’s work and the three key points of this series: I am acceptable in Christ, I am secure in Christ, and I am significant in Christ, are from his writings and work.
That memory was in my thoughts prior to Easter as I contemplated the next series of sermons after Easter. As I prayed and sought the guidance and direction of the Lord, I kept thinking about the struggles many Christians have in believing that they really matter to the Lord and that God can use them no matter who they are. I also had a concern that perhaps we simply treat Easter as event rather than a day of great spiritual significance and power that needs to be part of our daily life – now.
I believe that there needs to be a paradigm shift by the Holy Spirit in our individual hearts and minds as well as in our congregational perspective because the Lord wants us to live in the truth and power of the Resurrection each and every day!
This morning we conclude this series on living in the power and truth of the Resurrection as we examine our main text, Matthew 5:13-14 that focuses on the Resurrection truth that we are significant in Christ. In this passage Jesus gives what has become two important images for Christian ministry and practice - that of salt and light.
We also need to remember that He says these things in the context of the wider message that has traditionally been called the Sermon on the Mount. In this sermon, Jesus lays out what He expects His followers to think and how to live.
He begins chapter 5 with what has been named “The Beatitudes.” In this segment, Jesus shares the characteristics and qualities that God finds favor with the base characteristic being a humility that creates an openness to God.
Then the tone changes in verses 11 and 12 when Jesus says, “God blesses you when you are mocked and persecuted and lied about because you are my followers. Be happy about it! Be very glad! For a great reward awaits you in heaven. And remember the ancient prophets were persecuted, too.”
I would have loved to have seen the disciple’s expressions at that point. “What have we gotten ourselves into?” “Uh, excuse me Jesus but, uh, we’ve already seen our share of persecution, and you’re saying we are going to get more?”
Well the truth of the matter is… yes. When we live for God and do what is right we will have moments when we are mocked and ridiculed. Why? Because when you live in such a manner as the Bible tells us to live, it will make some people uncomfortable for two reasons: 1. Because of what the image of light represents and how some people respond to it. 2. There is a constant spiritual battle going on between good and evil.
In John 1:4 and 5 we read, “Life itself was in him, and this life gives light to everyone. The line shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.”
Now there are things that do not like the light. They scramble for the cover of darkness. One such thing is… (I almost hesitate to mention it) that heads for the dark when the light comes on are…cockroaches.
When Susan and I lived in Kentucky 20 years ago while I attended seminary, we did battle with cockroaches. Now, we did not have a serious problem in our apartment but others did and I remember one of my classmates telling me that he and his wife would hear the roaches scurry across the floor of their duplex when they turned the lights on.
Light attracts and light repels. And Jesus calls the twelve (and God calls us) the light of the world. This is a significant thing! It is an important thing! It is a statement about our significance in Christ! Why?
Because when we have confessed our sins to God, truly repented of them, and turned our lives over to the Lord we now have a significant assignment. That assignment is to be salt and light to the world.
Much has been written about the practice and importance of being salt and light over the years. But, in the context of this morning, we need to understand fact that you and I are significant in Christ because we have been given the very important assignment of being salt and light.
Someone (and I cannot remember who) has said that God has entrusted his message to human beings who are imperfect and make mistakes. In other words, God choose people for the assignment of telling the Good News of Jesus Christ. And because He did, it underscores the Resurrection truth that we are significant in Christ!
Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 6:1 “As God’s partners, we beg you not to reject this marvelous message of God’s great kindness.”
Other translations render the phrase ‘partner’ as ‘co-worker.” But the message is the same; we are God’s partners in the work of faith and ministry because we are significant to God!
We get a glimpse of this in John 17 that is part of Jesus’ conversation with the twelve just prior to his death (and resurrection). In verses 20 and 21 Jesus prays, “I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me because of their testimony. My prayer for all of them is that they will be one, just as you and I are one, Father-that just as you are in me and I am in you, so they will be in us, and the world will believe you sent me.”
So because of all of this, we need to see our lives more much differently than we are told to believe by our culture and by Satan himself! We have significance in Christ! We are significant in Christ!
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is not only about the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life it is about the significance of our life here and now! As followers of Jesus Christ, we have a significance far beyond what our work is or where we live or our past. We have a significance that is based on the truth and power of forgiveness that has been made possible by the Resurrection.
Let me put it this way: If God did not believe the human race was important enough to send Jesus Christ to die on the cross, then He wouldn’t have done it.
But He did do it! He did send Jesus to die and to resurrect! He did do it because God believes the human race (that’s you and me) are worthy enough of that act of love and sacrifice.
Do you believe that this morning? I do! And when I began to understand better the truth of who I am in Christ and that I am significant to Him… things changed for the better!
Now, I’ll admit that I have moments when I get discouraged and frustrated. But it’s not too long until the Holy Spirit reminds me that I am where He wants me to be at that particular point and I am doing what He wants me to be doing.
The same can be true for each of us. We can have the same assurance through the Spirit that our lives do matter and that we are significant to the Lord!
We conclude with a review of what we have heard the past three weeks:
1. I am accepted in Christ. “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.”
For the power and the truth of the Resurrection to take root in our hearts and souls, we need not to just believe in Jesus Christ we must also accept Him and His purpose for us. As we do so, the truth and power of the Resurrection is able to change us for the better as well as prepare us for heaven.
2. I am secure in Christ. “And I am sure that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on that day when Christ Jesus comes back again.”
We seek security in many ways and through many things. But we have been designed to find our ultimate security in Jesus Christ alone.
When we confess our sins to God, the good work that Paul speaks of begins in us. And once that work has started, God wants to finish it in us.
We can resist it and we can walk away from it, but we will be half-finished. And the truth and power of Resurrection will be blocked from doing the wonderful things that it was designed to do in us and for us.
But, when we allow God to do the good work in us that He wants to do, we will find a joy and a peace and a purpose that is solid and the power and truth of the Resurrection will do great things in each of us.
It will also make us significant because our true identity and validation is found only in the Lord. Circumstances change and so do relationships. Things can happen that change our lives in ways that we would never imagine. But our significance in Christ is based on how Christ view us. And He views us with eyes of love and compassion. And He wants us to see ourselves, and others, in the same way.
Remember Steven Covey’s words after he heard the father of the rowdy kids explain their situation? “Suddenly, I saw things differently, and because I saw things differently, I thought differently, I felt differently, I behaved differently. My irritation vanished… Feelings of sympathy and compassion flowed freely.”
As I reflect on those words, I think the two men on the road to Emmaus who saw things differently when Jesus broke bread with them. Their hearts felt strangely warmed.
I think of Mary and the other women who found an empty tomb and heard the words, “He is not here, He is risen!” And they ran back to tell the others.
I think of Peter who heard the report of the women and went to see the empty tomb for himself. Luke writes in his gospel account, “he went home wondering what happened.”
What does the Resurrection mean to you? More important, “What does the Resurrection do to you?”
It is my hope and prayer that we will allow the truth and power of the Resurrection to change us for the better because that’s what God wants to do for us. Amen.
