Who Am I

Who Am I

9:30 1/23/93 Romans 1:16 Exodus 3:4-14 1 Peter 3:8-16

TOBY

Our sermon for this day is on knowing "Why I Am A

Christian." Let us pray...O God we ask for the Power of the

Holy Spirit to fall and to anoint and illumine Your word, Oh God,

that the Holy Spirit may make it real in our hearts and evident

in our lives. We ask this in Jesus’s name Amen.

RICK

If someone wanted to know who you were, how do you think you

would go about explaining who you are, and where would you start?

Would you begin with your race, your age, your education, your

family, your citizenship, or your relationship with Jesus Christ.

We need to know who we are, so that we can understand why it is

that we do, what we do. Back in the 70’s everybody was out

trying to find themselves. In the 80’s everybody was out trying

to please themselves, and we’re not sure what the 90’s will bring

but hopefully for the church it will bring an understanding of

why it is we are Christians.

TOBY

Yes, we are more than our professions in life be it school

teacher, assembly worker, cook, counselor, housewife, house hus

band or whatever. We are more than the many different roles we

are called to play. Psychologists tell us it’s important to know

who we are . While it is important to know "who we are," I think

it is more important for us to know "why we are." Why are you a

schoolteacher, a factory worker, a secretary, a counselor, a cook

, a doctor or a student. And equally as important if not more

so, "Why are you a Christian."

RICK

Saints, knowing who you are will give you a sense of identi

ty. Knowing why you are, on the other hand will give your iden

tity integrity. The word integrity comes from a Latin word which

means a condition of being complete or whole. Integrity is

knowing why you are who you are. The mark of identity for most

of us is that of being a Christian. When we tell others we are

Christians, that should give them insights into the way they can

expect us to act in certain situations, if integrity is a part of

our identity as Christians.

TOBY

In 1 Peter 3:15, The apostle Peter instructed the Chris

tians in Asia Minor saying, "And always be ready to give a de

fense to everyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is

in you." Saints, the word defense here, comes from the same

Greek word that we get the term apology from. Peter is saying,

be ready to give an apology for the hope that is in you. Give an

apology? Is Peter suggesting that we apologize for our faith? Of

course not! The word apology is a legal term. It means to

develop a defense as an attorney might in a court of law. It

means to give a reason or explanation.

RICK

Could you defend the reason you are a Christian today? If it

were a crime to be a Christian and you were arrested for being a

Christian, would there be enough proof to guarantee you a jail

sentence, or would you have to be set free for insufficient

evidence? Why are you a Christian? If someone were to ask you

that question this morning, what would you tell them? Well my

parents were Christians. I want to go to heaven. My friends are

Christians. What would you say?

TOBY

My friends let us quickly share with you, a few good reasons

to be a Christian. The first is that "we need the Lord." Notice

where the need is. It’s not that God needs us, but that we need

the presence of God in our lives. From the moment we come into

the world, we need the Lord. You know when we come into the

world, we come in with a condition. A condition that theologians

call original sin. Original sin means we all originate out of a

sinful world which taints us from the word go.

RICK

Nobody ever has to teach us to be selfish. Nobody teaches us

to lie. Nobody teaches us to steal. Nobody teaches us to want

what we belongs to others. It’s all built into us from the

beginning. We all tend to make ourselves the center of the

universe right from the start. If a baby is hungry, he or she

could care less about what is going on, that baby is going to let

everyone within listening range know, that somebody better do

something for him or her or the situation is going to get worse.

TOBY

When we grow up making ourselves the center of the universe,