"The Winsome Witness"

Sermon Transcript for June 25, 2000

By Rev. Mike Beck

Scripture Reading: Luke 5:27-32

 

Kyle, thank you so much. Kyle, the true test of success in life is not in not hitting any wrong notes but how well we recover when we do. And you did that very well. Kyle, and a number of our youth returned last Sunday afternoon from a wonderful mission week in Galveston, Texas. They’re excited to share that story with you and we’re going to give them the worship services the 20^th of August to share the story of how God used them in that way.

In this year’s 50-day Spiritual Adventure, the theme is "Celebrate Jesus". We’re looking at the qualities that Jesus possessed that attracted people to Him. There’s a related verse that I want to detour and share with you; it’s found in 2 Corinthians, Chapter 5, Verse 20, where if you are a follower of Jesus Christ this verse describes you. It says, "You are Christ’s ambassador as though God were making His appeal to others through you." That’s kind of an awesome responsibility and challenge. So as followers of Christ we ought to strive to try and have those same qualities that Christ had that attracted people to Him. It might be good to review two of those qualities that we’ve looked at the first two weeks. In week one, we were reminded that Jesus stayed connected with His Heavenly Father through a deep life of prayer that allowed Him to remain focused in the midst of tremendous demands placed upon Him. And then last week, we looked at the fact that Jesus shattered the stereotypes of "us" and "them". He realized that all persons were in need of and could receive God’s love and grace.

Well today’s message is closely related to last week’s theme. Today we want to look at the fact that in Jesus we find a winsomeness. A winsomeness that attracted people to Him. As we look at the Gospels we see that Jesus genuinely liked people. He looked beyond what was going on in their lives at the moment and instead He saw what they could become connected to Him. Looking at the word "winsome" in the dictionary we find this definition: pleasing and engaging, often with a child-like charm and innocence. Not childish--child-like. Pleasing, engaging, often with a child-like charm and innocence. Jesus radiated those things and it attracted people to Him.

There are volumes that could be spoken about versus 27 and 28. I want to read them again. "After this Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting in his tax booth. Follow me, Jesus said to him, and Levi got up and left everything and followed Him." Now, we have to remember when we read the scriptures we’re given concise little nuggets that more often than not don’t tell all the details connected to this. I doubt very seriously that this was the first time Jesus had encountered Matthew and Matthew just quickly writes this up on a first encounter and leaves everything and follows him. No, I think there were a great deal of previous interactions between Jesus and Matthew.

In the film, "Jesus of Nazareth", and I’m going to try and create this picture in your mind. I’d be tempted if it were July 16^th to flip the 12-minute segment of film up on the screen for you to watch because that would be a lot more powerful than what I’ll convey to you now. But try to create this picture in your mind. It’s Capernaum where Jesus had his headquarters for his ministry. He’s already come in contact with Andrew. And Andrew’s begun to follow Jesus. Andrew’s brother Peter has been out fishing all day. He brings the boat in and they haven’t caught anything. Peter is big mouthed and impulsive and when he arrives on the dock, Andrew says to him, "Peter, I want you to meet Jesus." To which Jesus says, "Yeah, Andrew, you’re always getting caught up with these newfangled preachers." And then Jesus turns to Peter and says, "Let me go out with you." Peter says, "We’ve been out there all day; haven’t caught a thing. What good is it going to do for me to go out and take you with me?" And Andrew says, "Shut up, Peter. Do what he tells you." So they go out and earlier in that chapter that we read we have the account that Jesus says, "Put you nets down here." And they catch a record number of fish.

Well, by now Peter’s curiosity is whet. But then in the film, "Jesus of Nazareth", the next scene is Matthew’s tax collector office. And somebody comes in and says; "Peter’s boat just came in. They’ve got a record number of fish." And Matthew says, "Oh, that’s good. He’s behind on his taxes. I think I’ll just wander over to his house and collect." So Matthew wanders over to Peter’s house and then we have the scene of the event that proceeded the versus we read today.

There was a throng of people around. This man who had been paralyzed from birth was lowered through the roof. Jesus not only heals him but tells the man his sins are forgiven. And Matthew’s on the edge of the crowd and he sees what’s going on. Then, Peter, who by now is pretty taken up with this carpenter of Nazareth, sees that Matthew’s over at the edge of the crowd. He’s come in to his home. And he doesn’t call him very pleasant names. And says, "You blood sucker. Get out of my house." And Jesus turns to Matthew and says, "I see you’re not welcome here. What is your name?" To which he says, "Levi." And then Peter responds, "Yeah, and a whole lot of other names that we call you." And Jesus says, "Could I go to your house for supper?" And Matthew, kind of startled, says "Yeah." And Peter and Andrew say, "Oh no, Jesus, you can’t go there; you’d be defiled."

And then it becomes an evening scene and Jesus is walking over to Matthew’s house. And Peter and the disciples are beside themselves. How in the world could Jesus do this? He’s going to ruin his reputation. Jesus enters Matthew’s house and believe me, friends, it’s not a religious gathering that’s going on. But Jesus is quite at home and comfortable. He starts to sit down by a lady who looks like, from her appearance, that her reputation in town may not be real good. And Matthew says, "Oh, you don’t want to sit there." And Jesus says, "This will be fine. In true humility, He sits there. And then in a moment he says, "Could I tell you a story?" And Matthew, at this point having been engaged by the winsome witness of Christ, says, "Tell us a story." And Jesus tells the parable of the Prodigal Son.

And just about the time Jesus gets in to the parable, Peter and the other disciples have made their way up to Matthew’s door. They won’t go in; it might defile them if they went in. But they hear the story. And Jesus, as he is telling the last part of the story about the elder brother, who in his self-righteousness would not celebrate that his long, lost brother had come home. Peter hears Him tell that and when the story ends Peter walks in to the house, head down, goes up to Jesus, says, "I’m not quite sure who you are, but I know who I am. I’m a stupid man, Lord." And then the scene ends with Peter going over to Levi, to Matthew, and simply placing his hand on his shoulder. And the relationship between these two enemies begins.

Isn’t it ironic that this same Matthew, a hated Jewish tax collector--see, Matthew was Jewish, that’s why they were hated. To other Jews they had sold out by working for the Romans and collecting their taxes. But notice how often in the Gospels the word tax collector and sinners are connected together in the same phrase. But this same Matthew would write the Gospel bearing his name. His attraction to Jesus came about, perhaps, because Jesus was a winsome witness to the good news of God. Pleasing, engaging, with a child-like innocence.

So I ask. Can we learn to do the same? In our relations with others can we learn to see them through the eyes of Christ? Jesus saw a person struggling to find the way in life and He simple said, "Come and follow me." And I ask, who’s going to find the doorway to eternal life because of you? Because you are standing close enough to the door that you can help others who are groping to find it, to find the way. Jesus saw lonely persons needing a friend and he asked, "Could I come to your house for dinner?"

As I was working on the sermon I thought back, it’s been a few decades ago now, to the Simon and Garfunkle song, "All the Lonely People, Where Do They All Come From." And I ask you in the name of Christ, "Are you ministering to anyone who is lonely and needing a friend?" Jesus saw persons in need of a healing touch and he engaged their life in a winsome way to help bring about wholeness. And I personalize that and ask you today, "Who is in the process of receiving healing--perhaps healing in their marriage, healing from their brokeness, healing from a deep period of discouragement and depression, healing from some great loss--because you’re there for them? And as a winsome witness you become the conduit for God’s healing to touch their life. Friends, what a great privileged that is!

Jesus saw persons like Matthew who had fallen in to sin. And he didn’t give them judgment. He offered them mercy and a fresh start. And I ask, "Who is the person that God has placed in your path whose self-worth right now is at zero, who feels they’ve got nothing to offer the world, to which God wants you to be a bridge to love and to hope?" God wants to use every single one of you hearing my voice today as a winsome witness to His love and mercy and grace to somebody around you whose quite sure that God couldn’t love them. With God’s help you could be that kind of person.

It begins by staying connected to God in prayer. When we pray God shows us who those people are and He pulls out the resources to help meet their need. It continues as we see persons through God’s eyes, not through the glasses of "us" and "them" that we are so prone to wear. It happens as it did with Peter and Matthew here, when we put aside our pretenses. When we take time to listen. And then, when we’ve done that, then we lovingly point them to a God of love and mercy and forgiveness and grace.

Let us pray, "Lord, we confess that many times we have been anything but a winsome witness; but we want to be that because we see in the Gospels that there is something about our Lord Jesus that attracted people to Him. And there they came in touch with the God who could change their lives and make them new. Help us to listen. Help us to move away from our self-righteousness and judgmentalism. Help us to take time to be still so we can hear you telling us who you are calling us to witness to. This is our prayer, oh Lord, in Christ’s name, Amen."