A woman was working in her front yard one day planting new bushes and flowers. She was dressed in her work clothes and had dirt all over her hands. She looked up and saw a moving van pulling into the driveway next door. Behind the van was a car and a nice looking family got out of the car.
The new family noticed the woman and came over to introduce themselves to her. They spoke for a few moments and the woman in the yard invited the new family over for a welcome dinner that evening.
Then, she went inside and told her husband to start getting ready, and she began dying her hair. As she was getting dressed and putting on her false eyelashes and false fingernails the husband asked her why she was so dolled up just for a dinner. She told him how they had seen her all dirty before, but now she wanted them to see the ’real’ her!
This lady exemplifies the American churchgoer today. We get ready for church and put on our Sunday go-to-meeting clothes and all too often, we hide the real us. Many go to church regularly, they know much about what is expected of them, but of all the things they do know, they don’t know who they really are.
A recent survey showed that over 80% of churchgoers didn’t know what it is that makes a person a real Christian. Something is terribly sad when people go to church but have no idea if they are a real Christian or not. Let’s talk about that this morning.
1. WHO ARE WE?
1 JOHN 3:1-2 says –
‘How great the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him.’
We are the very children of God! We are made children of God through our personal and intimate relationship with Jesus Christ as our Savior. And, as children in the family of God, we have certain responsibilities to other family members.
Before we are saved through Jesus, we are sinners of the world, and we still tend to act like sinners of the world, too. Oh, we can be very nice, but only when things are going well for us. As soon as something, or somebody, creates conflict with what we want, we stop being so nice, don’t we?
When we get angry with somebody, or say something negative about somebody, we are being ungodly and we actually choose to sin. As much as we try not to, we all do this from time to time.
To show the seriousness of these actions, let me show you what this does from another angle. Let’s say I do something you really don’t like. You get upset and later on, you talk to somebody else in the church and you tell them what I did and how much you didn’t like it, only when you tell them, you use sharp criticisms or bad negatives about me.
Do you know why you do that: Because you are angry and you are trying to convince somebody else to be mad at me, too, like that is going to make you feel right or make the situation better.
Now, I am using me as an example, but we have all done that in our lives to someone else, haven’t we? The problem is that each time we repeat something, we tell it a bit differently. And if you hear something and then pass it on, you will pass it on just a bit differently, too. So, in this case, by the time four or five people have been given negative information about me, I am going to look like Satan incarnate! And again, we all have a tendency to do this. SHAME ON US!
I hope you can see that this is very sinful in nature, and has no place at all within the family of God? This is also what causes dissention and strife to be brought into the Lord’s church, and if we cause this, we will suffer punishment come Judgment Day.
We must all help each other avoid doing this, and the only way we can do this is to love each other enough to just let them know you understand they are upset, but you cannot be a party to talking like that. This will help us to know …
2. WHAT WE LOOK LIKE TO OTHERS
There is a show on TV called, “What Not To Wear.” It is basically where they help a person, who has no taste at all in clothing, find and wear clothing that is more stylish, thus helping their self-confidence. I was watching this the other day and I started thinking about what kind of clothing children of God wear around each other.
In COLOSSIANS 3:12-13, Paul writes,
‘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 on e another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.’
We are like the people in that TV program, aren’t we? We are wearing all the wrong things and somebody has to help us start wearing the right things. We are told to be compassionate, because all too often, Christians deal harshly with one another, and show no compassion at all. We are extremely critical of each other, and God despises that! We are told to be kind towards one another, letting our hearts be humbled by love. We are told to be gentle and show patience. If that is what we are supposed to be wearing, then what are we wearing now?
It has been said that the main reason more people do not become Christians, is because they see how Christians act toward each other. As children of God, we are supposed to be flexible enough in our hearts to care about others. We are supposed to give them more grace than we have given them in the past. In short, we are supposed to stop getting irate when things are not done our way. Let me give you an example of what I am talking about.
We are going to be getting our visual displays, or Power Point program, installed very soon. This will include a very nice screen and projector that will put images, words, and other things (in color) up on that screen for all of us to see. I guarantee that you will fall in love with how much this helps our services.
Now technically speaking, the best possible place for that screen is directly in front of our baptistry, and the reason for is that is where the best lighting for the screen is and that is the one place where people will not have to turn their necks to see it.
That being said, to place it there we would have to put it in front of the cross, and that would disturb many people. So, to put it there, knowing it would hurt somebody else’s ability to properly worship would be wrong. See, it is one to want things a certain way, but it is quite another to want them knowing it would hinder somebody else’s worship.
So, as Christians, we need to realize that it is okay for us to want things to go our way, but to also realize that sometimes we need them to go somebody else’s way, too. The focus would not be on what “we” want, but on what would do the most in building God’s kingdom from within this church and what would show the most love towards our family members.
So, let me repeat what Paul is telling us about how we treat our family members. We must wear the clothing of compassion, kindness, and humility when we react with other Christians. He is telling us what to wear in a spiritual sense, but this theme actually starts back in verse 8 when he lists some of the old spiritual clothes we should take off and throw away.
COLOSSIANS 3:8-10, tells us –
‘But now, you must rid yourselves of all such things as these; anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.’
I have a pair of jeans at home that Diana hates for me to wear. They are old and she says they look terrible. But those jeans are so comfortable! I love those jeans. And that shows the same mindset we too often have when dealing with those spiritual traits that we need to discard. We like them. They feel so comfortable because we are so used to them. But, in reality, they are sinful and must be discarded.
Paul is trying to tell us what a true Christian wraps himself in. Before we go any further, let me say that God is more interested in what is on the inside of us than He is in what is on the outside of us. He focuses on what is in our hearts. That is one way we differ from God. We judge a book by its cover, or a person by how they look. God, on the other hand, judges a person by what they feel. We look at the outside and God looks at the inside.
We are reminded of that in 1 SAMUEL 16:7.
‘But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
Paul is taking that one step further. He is saying that what a Christian shows on the outside is a pretty good indicator of what he is on the inside.
Jesus was making this same point in MATTHEW 7:16, when He said,
‘By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?’
All of us need to go through our spiritual closets and throw away many of the items that do not show a Christian heart, and replace them with those items that do show the love of God. Too many of us know the Bible from front to back; we know all the right words and actions to say and do in church; but when the rubber meets the road, we don’t share the love of Christ with others, we share the hate from a sinful heart with others.
How much better it would be for us come Judgment Day if we started showing the character of Christ when thinking about other people today. Christ showed His loving grace to us, in that He died for us while we were still sinners. And if we are going to be serious about calling ourselves Christians, we need to start showing a little of that loving grace to others around us.
As much as we, being children of God, need to clothe ourselves in the spiritual garments of these characteristics, we also need something else.
3. WE NEED A HEART TRANSPLANT
Our carnal nature makes us put walls up between us and those around us, and that causes us to be isolated from them. The problem with that is that we were not created to be isolated. And since our nature goes against God’s nature, we are inherently angry people.
If you don’t believe that most Christians are angry just below the surface, tell them you are going to change something they like doing. You will see that anger come rushing out like water from a spring. And that includes each person here this morning to some degree or other.
In COLOSSIANS 3:15, Paul tells us what we need to do about that anger.
‘Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body, you are called to peace. And be thankful.’
The first thing we are to do is pursue personal peace. Notice how Paul calls it the ’peace of Christ’. The reason for that is without Christ, we will have no peace. Paul calls us to have peace towards one another, as we are all in the same family.
Peace is one of those things that everybody wants, but nobody seems to know how to get. If you will notice, when every beauty contestant is asked what they want, they always say “world peace”. If everyone wants it, why don’t we have peace?
Because everybody wants it on their terms, not on somebody else’s terms. That is where having a heart that is humbled to Christ comes in, and with that heart we can then start showing some loving grace to others. That would really enhance the peace process, wouldn’t it?
Now notice what else Paul tells us to do in verse 15. He tells us to be thankful! Every Christian has something to be thankful for every day. If you are having a very good day, you can be thankful that nothing has gone wrong, and if you are having a really bad day, you can be thankful that every day isn’t that bad. If you are having one of those days when it seems everyone is behind you kicking you, just remember that you can be thankful for that too, because that means you are in the lead!
And I think the most important thing you can be thankful for is that God is still in love with you – and is waiting for you to finally surrender your heart to His Son. And you can be thankful that His Son was willing to die – just for you.
Going on to COLOSSIANS 3:16, Paul gives us more needed information.
‘Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you reach and admonish one another with all wisdom and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.’
Notice how the word of Christ is supposed to dwell in us. The word dwell means to live, so we must let Jesus’ words live in our hearts and in our minds. If they live in us, they will always be present in our thoughts, won’t they? And if they are present in our thoughts, we will be able to include those words in every conversation we have.
Whether it be by saying things like, “The other day in my church, someone said ….” or, “There’s a person at my church who is in the same business you are in.” You will be amazed at how many times, when you mention something about church, people will ask you what church you go to. Then you are involved in a conversation regarding God and that is when you can easily share your faith in Jesus.
Remember what I said last Sunday, though. Don’t try to share all the Bible verses you know because nobody but you will find that impressive, and don’t try to tell them about all the miracles in the Bible, because they won’t care until they believe. Just tell them your story – in your own words. Tell them how Jesus loves you and what He has done for you. And then tell them how Jesus loves them, and what He wants to do for them.
A businessman said he has a picture in his office of a man sitting at his desk. God is standing in front of the desk talking to the man and beside the man is Jesus, offering counsel and advice. Picture Jesus actually with you all the time. You will find it easier to talk about Him that way.
Perhaps the very best way of changing one’s heart is for them to feel grateful. When someone realizes an attitude of gratitude, their heart follows their mind. In verse 16, Paul tells us to sing with gratitude in our hearts. Why? Because being grateful creates that attitude of Christ in our heart.
In 1996, Erma Bombeck told the story of an 8 year old girl named Christina, who was dying from cancer. Knowing that she would not last much longer, Mrs. Bombeck asked that little girl what she wanted for a birthday present.
The little girl responded by saying she had a sticker book and she had a Cabbage Patch doll, and she was a Christian and was going to Heaven. The little girl said she had everything she wanted and needed.
How mature that little girl was! She knew who she loved and she knew where she was going. That little girl talked about Christ and showed the love of Christ in her conversation, didn’t she? And that little girl had a peace that surrounded her in the love of Jesus.
CONCLUSION
The whole idea behind today’s message is to remind us that we are children of God and as such, we must look and act like children of God. And to be able to do this, there are certain things we need.
We talked about the need to wrap ourselves in those characteristics that will show others who we are. We have talked about opening our hearts so that we feel the love of God in our hearts so that we can extend more loving grace to others.
But the one thing we need before we can do any of that is - peace in our hearts. We need to be able to feel real peace. I think that is something very few of God’s children really feel. It is easy for Christians to be seen as ‘unChristian’ in their actions towards one another because we still live in this world, and therefore, we still have some of those traits within us.
The difference, though, is that while we are still capable of feeling and acting this way, we are able to receive full forgiveness for doing so. And in that forgiveness, we must see the love God has for us, and the need for us to spread that love around to our brothers and sisters.
Paul talked about having peace. Many years ago, there was a contest to find the most peaceful painting in the world. Artists from all over the globe entered their paintings. A panel of many judges looked at each one of them as they came in, eliminating some and approving others.
Eventually, the contest boiled down to just two paintings. They unveiled the first painting to see a most unique sunset, as seen across gentle ocean waves coming ashore on a beautiful and warm beach. The sight of that painting was surely peaceful.
Would the VICTORY SINGERS please come back on stage?
Then, the second painting was unveiled. It showed a rushing waterfall over sharp rocks and it even had dark looming storm clouds in the sky. There was a tree on the very side which was leaning way out over the water below, and one branch of the tree jutted out to where the water barely missed it. At first glance, this painting looked anything but peaceful, but as they looked at it closer, they saw a tiny bird’s nest in the crook of that tree branch.
And in that nest, they saw a tiny bird, wing stretch over its young keeping them dry from the water. The mother bird had her eyes closed and was obviously feeling safe and secure with her brood – high above the water in that tree.
That bird felt total peace, as did her young. Upon reviewing that painting, the judges decided it showed more of what peace really is than any of the others, so it was declared the winner.
And that is how we, as children of God, are supposed to feel – just like that bird felt. We are nestled in the arms of a loving Savior, One who cares for us enough to have given His very life just so that we could live. And, when we truly love Him enough to surrender our very lives to Him, we shall then find that peace that surpasses all understanding.
Let Christ dwell richly within you; include Him in every conversation you have. Focus loving Him and in return, He will give you that peace. And that peace will enable you to show the love of Christ to everyone around you.
INVITATION
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ bulletin insert below _ _ _ _ _ _
JUST WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?
February 26, 2006
We are the very ________ (children) of God! We are made children of God through our personal and intimate relationship with ________ (Jesus) as our Savior. And, as children in the family of God, we have certain responsibilities to other family ________ (members).
When we get _______ (angry) and say something negative about somebody, we are being __________ (ungodly). We must try to never do this! It is a _____ (sin).
As children of God, we are supposed to be flexible enough in our hearts to ______ (care) about others. We are supposed to give them more _________ (grace) than we have given them in the past.
The focus should never be on what ____ (we) want, but on what would do the most to ______ (build) God’s kingdom from within this church and what would show the most ______ (love) towards our family members.
Paul is taking that one step further. He is saying that what a Christian shows on the outside when they aren’t trying to ________ (impress) somebody, is a pretty good indicator of what he is on the ______ (inside).
How much better it would be for us on ___________ (Judgement Day) if we started showing the ___________ (characteristics) of Christ when thinking about other people _________ (today).
COLOSSIANS 3:15, Paul tells us what we need to do
‘Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body, you are called to peace. And be __________ (thankful).’
COLOSSIANS 3:16, Paul gives us more needed information.
‘Let the word of Christ _______ (dwell) in you richly as you reach and admonish one another with all wisdom and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with ________ (gratitude) in your hearts to God.’
NOTE *****
When doing this insert, it will take up one standard sized bulletin page. You will insert them with the blanks and leave out the answers which are besides the blanks in parenthesis. That way, your member can fill in the blanks as you get to them.
