Title: What does it take?
Scripture: Romans 10:8-17
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming:
9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."
12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile--the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,
13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
14 How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
15 And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"
16 But not all the Israelites accepted the good news. For Isaiah says, "Lord, who has believed our message?"
17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.
To be a good marathon runner doesn’t just happen overnight! It takes years of preparation and conditioning to not only compete competitively but to finish the race in the top 100!
To be a praise singer, or a computer programmer, or an accountant, or a bus driver, or a teacher, not only takes skill but also a little bit of studying and dedication.
To do anything, to be anything, to pursue any career takes careful planning and studying to ensure success. And, the number one reason people don’t pursue a higher career, or try to move up in a company is that they are afraid of failure. Yes, there are many people that are happy and comfortable in those positions that God has placed them in, and they will continue to be happy and continue to stay in that position until God calls them to another position. However, there are those that are miserable right where they’re at now because God has something else for them and they refuse to move.
Our first verse in our scripture for today tells us that the Word is right there near you. It’s in your mouth and in your heart, but are you listening to it? When God says, “Go here!” do you go? When God says, “Do this!” do you do it?
I may say some things today that, though we all need to hear, some might take the wrong way, or take offense at. Rest assured, I am talking in general terms, but, if you feel the conviction of the Spirit on you to deal with an area of your life, then, you’re not taking offense at what I’m saying, you’re taking offense at what the Spirit is trying to do in your life.
We’ve got two parts to look at today. Us and them, or,
On our part
We need to be a Christian, true and through.
We need to be willing
We need to be preaching
We need to have faith
On their part
The Word is nearby
The Word is heard
The Word is followed
On our part
We need to be a Christian, true and through.
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming:
9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Just what does it take to be a Christian? Are there any criteria, is there a set of rules? Is there an apprenticeship or internship program that we have to undergo? Just what does it mean to be a Christian? What is a Christian?
A Christian is a believer and advocate of Christ; one that is committed to Christ; one that is a follower of Christ. Did you know that the word Christian is used just three times in the New Testament.
The first instance occurs in Acts, chapter 11. There we see where Believers "were called Christians first in Antioch" because their behavior, activity, and speech were like Christ.
(Acts 11:26) … and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch.
The second occurrence of the word is again in Acts. This time in chapter 26, where we see King Agrippa responding to Paul’s witness by saying, "Almost thou persuade me to be a Christian" (Acts 26:28). He spoke of becoming a follower of Christ.
Lastly, we see in 1st Peter, chapter 4, where the Apostle Peter stated that believers who "suffer as a Christian" are to do so for the glory of God (1 Pet. 4:16). A Christian is one who becomes an advocate of Christ, whose daily life and behavior in facing adversity is like Christ.
Now, in reading those verses and understanding the teaching of Christ to the 12, and the statement by Paul in Philippians 2:5,
Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
then, the questions we need to ask ourselves are these:
Is my behavior like Christ?
Are my actions Christ-like?
Is my speech, or everything about my conversation, like Christ?
How well did you do? Are you a Christian? Here’s some more questions, based on Peter’s definition:
How well do you handle daily life?
How well do you respond to the daily pressure?
How well do you face adversity?
How well did you do on those?
Are you a Christian?
The point that we are trying to make is that we will never see ourselves grow, nor will we see this church grow, unless we are Christians, true and through. Unless we are ready to assume the title Christian and everything that that brings with it, we will not grow in those two areas! What did Paul say in verses eight and nine?
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming:
9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
That’s good news because it means I don’t have to do it alone! The word is near us, it’s in our mouth, and in our heart. That covers all those questions that we brought up. If I will surrender and let the Spirit take over, my behavior, actions, and speech will reflect that word that is near me, Jesus Christ.
What does it take to be a Christian? It takes a person that is a Christ-like, true and through.
On Our Part:
We need to be willing
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming:
9 That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
Wow, that a lot of pointing, isn’t it? Doesn’t really leave it to chance who Paul might be talking about, does it?
Earlier, in a previous statement, I mentioned four words at the front of a sentence, I said, “If I will surrender…” This is very important, for many do not yield to the leading of the Spirit in their lives. Instead, they are happy with the miserable life that they have.
What is ‘need to be willing’ all about? What is this abide or surrender that is always put back on the Christian. What is this submission that we have to evidence in our lives. Why can’t I just receive all the time?
(Matthew 8:2-3) A man with leprosy came and knelt before him and said, "Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean." 3 Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. "I am willing," he said. "Be clean!" Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.
(Matthew 23:37) "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.
(Romans 12:16) Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
(1 Timothy 6:18) Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.
We should be willing because of what we said earlier about being a Christian, true and through, but, we also should be willing because He, Jesus Christ, was willing to go to the cross for each one of us. Is that a ‘willing’ that we should dare to question? I think not.
On our part:
We need to be preaching
14 …how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
When’s the last time you shared the good news with someone? When is the last time you shared Jesus with someone? If you never share the Gospel with anyone, how are they going to know Christ? And, further, if you never invite anyone to church, how are they going to know they can come to International Christian Church?
It’s a funny thing about people. People are like sheep, probably worse, but, we can safely say that people are like sheep. A sheep needs to be cared for, it needs to be in a safe place, it needs to have its needs met usually by some one or some thing other than the sheep itself.
What’s the point? If you don’t lead a person to church, they ain’t gonna come!
You know it’s a funny thing about people. People are like little babies, probably worse, but we can safely say that people are like babies. A baby needs to be cared for, it needs to be fed, it needs to be in a safe place, it needs to have its needs met usually by some one or something other than the baby itself.
What’s the point? If you don’t stay on someone’s case about growing in Christ, they won’t grow to the point of taking care of themselves. Instead they will continue at that baby level, or infant level until they eventually fall away.
I know some of this sounds a bit rough, but we need to hear it! Sometimes we need to have the Word shouted into our lives! We need to have the Word highlighted in our lives and before our eyes. We need to have the Word secured tightly in our heart, and ruling our mind and thoughts. We need the Word of God to purify us, to wash us clean as snow.
You got to be preaching! You need to be preaching! You need to be talking to those people out there. Your friends, your relatives, your co-workers, all need to know that Jesus Saves! Your friends, your relatives, your co-workers, all need to know that there is a God-ordained church in here to take care of them and their families. But they won’t know that until you tell them that. They won’t know about Jesus or International Christian Church, unless you tell them.
On our part:
We need to have faith
11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."
Do you have assurance that God, through the Spirit He has put in you, will win the lost to Him? Do you have that assurance? Do you believe that God will work in you and through you to bring people to Him? Do you have that assurance? Do you have the faith that God, in His work to reconcile man to Him, will save a portion of that world through you? Do you have that assurance?
Our scripture says:
11 As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame."
He won’t let you fail when you trust Him ENTIRELY.
On their part
The Word is nearby
8 But what does it say? "The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart," that is, the word of faith we are proclaiming:
The lost people of the world are similar to the saved in this respect, in that the Word is nearby, it’s right there beside them and in them waiting for you or I to speak the Word of God to them. To ignite that fire of God’s Spirit in them.
I think of it like this. All cars have batteries. Not all of those batteries are great batteries. Some are weaker than others. Why, some of those batteries won’t even start the car, but there you have it, every car has a battery. For those cars that have batteries that won’t start the car, another car can come along and hook a couple of wires together and, using the energy from the good battery, the car will start!
Every one of us has had the seed planted in us and need the Word of God to jump start us into the Kingdom of God!
The word is nearby. They have it, we just need to bring it to the surface. The word is in their heart. They have it already there, we just need to let God use us to bring it to a saving knowledge in Him.
The downside of this? Not every car is going to respond to that jumpstart. Not everyone is going to heed the call of God, but we don’t know which ones, so we still have to try, don’t we?
On their part:
The Word is heard
14 …And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
How can a person that never hears the Gospel get saved? They can’t. People must hear the word of God to be saved. They must hear the Word, Jesus, speaking to their heart in order for their own spirit to be convicted and turn to Christ.
We must constantly pour the Word of God into the lost and dying world, or truly, there will be more lost and dying than there already is.
17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.
They have to hear in order for their very spirit, mind and body to be touched by the Spirit of God.
On their part:
The Word is followed
13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."
After the Word is heard, it’s up to them to make that decision whether or not to follow Jesus. We can only put the Word out, we can only put forth the Word, it is up to the listener to surrender to the power of the Spirit moving in their lives and hearts.
We said earlier that the non-Christian needs to hear the message of the Gospel. Well, yes they need to hear, and they need to listen to it. How many times did you hear the message of Christ before you actually listened to it? And, then how many times did you actually listen to it before you actually put your faith in Him, and picked up your cross and followed Him?
Conclusion:
On our part
We need to be a Christian, true and through.
We need to be willing
We need to be preaching
We need to have faith
On their part
The Word is nearby
The Word is heard
The Word is followed
These were the points that we only briefly covered. We covered them briefly, and not entirely, for the message here in church is just the tip of the iceberg. The message is to get you thinking, talking, studying the word of God during the week. This week we need to study the Word of God and uncover those precious gems for ourselves.
