Standing Out

Standing Out

Thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight. In preparing for this sermon, when considering my audience I found it most appropriate to preach to you tonight from 1st Tim. 4: 12. Let’s go there

“Don’t let anyone look down on your because you are young; but be an example of the believers, in word, in speech , in love , in faith, in purity. “

This verse is broken down into a couple key parts that I feel like we need to look at tonight. First off, we’re going to talk a little bit about job interviews.

I’m sure the adults would agree, the main thing you want to do when going in for a job interview is set yourself apart from all the other people.

You look at these stories of these people who apply for the same job as hundreds and hundreds of other people, and just one get the job.

Why do they get it? because they set themselves apart from other people.

In a US News story from October 2010, they listed the top qualities job interviewers look for during an interview.

Here are the top ten: Energy, good manners, maturity, judgment, problem-solving skills, loyalty, cheerful nature, good health, financial responsibility, and demonstration that you finish what you start. These are all great qualities that everyone should possess.

Now, Tonight, I want you imagine you are going in for a job interview. This is your dream job. You have wanted this job since you were a kid, and you couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

So you get all nice looking, shine your shoes, comb your hair. You’re doing all right, you feel really good about the job interview. You practice all the qualities that I just read, You go to the waiting room, you’re all fired up and ready to go, they call your name, you step into your interview room, the boss has his chair spun around, you walk in there, he spins toward you, and your mind is blown.

Your interviewer is none other than Jesus! Things just changed a little bit didn’t they.

What would you do if this happened? I would be a little freaked out! But in reality, this will happen, whether your ready for it, or not. 2 Corinthians 5:10 says

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad”.

When you die, you will be judged whether you like it or not. The bible says we are appointed to live once, then face judgment.

Fortunately, for us and anyone who is willing to accept it, God sent his only begotten son to die on the cross for whoever believes in him, shall not die, and we know that it is by faith that we are saved not works.

Although we aren’t judged based on our works, Matthew 7 talks about how only those who do the will of the father are saved, and we see later in James 2, that faith without works, is dead. Not only should we have faith, but as evidence of that, we should do good works, and do the things that Christ did, and obey all of his commands.

So let’s go back to that job interview, you walk in and you see Jesus.

What qualities do you think Jesus wants out of someone he is interviewing?

What do you think Jesus wants to see in a possible candidate, that would set one person apart from someone else? (Ask around)

Those are good answers, but as we look back at 1st Corinthians 4:12 we see some qualities of someone God is look for, especially when we look at the youth, or a younger person.

You guys can probably tell, but this generation we are living in now, is unbelievably wicked, there is perversion of all kinds around every corner.

Its disgusting. I mean you have people doing drugs, and teenagers having sex, or committing terrible crimes, and who can tell me what the typical excuse is nowadays?

YOLO.

These rappers and these celebrities that teenagers look up to have perverted the America’s youth’s minds into thinking that that they can do whatever they want, live however they want, Act now, think of the consequences later.

You want to know where that’s found in the bible? The first book of Nowhere!!!

Give me a Break!

You might have your parents fooled, you might have your youth pastor fooled, but listen to this, and you sure don’t have God fooled.

And if you are in here and you claim to be a Christian and you listen to this music, and you put yourself into this kind of culture, then you need to do some serious self evaluation, because this is the cause of a lot of immorality in America.