"The Difference Believing Makes" Sermon Transcript for April 29, 2001By Reverend Dan Sinkhorn
Scripture Reading: 2 Peter 1:1-11
Well, we’ve reached a milestone today. I don’t know if you realize that or not. We have reached the final sermon message in our 32-part series on knowing God with the heart and mind which we borrowed from the Christian Believer study. Several people from our congregation have been going through this process and have been getting the full dose of the study. And I bet you they feel a little bit more knowledgeable today than they did when they began. And I hope that’s the way it’s been for you as you’ve gone through this series of messages on our churches’ doctrine and just exactly what it is that we believe as Christians and why we believe it.
We are called to know God not only with our heart but with our mind and to do it with confidence. As I was preparing for today’s service, I was thinking about those commercials for the hotel chain. I don’t know if you’ve seen these commercials or not, but the last one I saw had
two guys on a boat out on the ocean. And one of them was in diving gear and he was getting ready to go in to a shark cage. And the other fellow was standing in the boat reciting all of his vast knowledge of sharks and how to behave around them and just exactly what you should do and shouldn’t do. And the fellow in the wet suit and diving gear is getting ready to go into the water and he said, "You know, Fred, I didn’t realize you were such an expert on sharks." And Fred said, "Well, I’m not; but I stayed at a Holiday Inn last night."A lot of Christians approach their Christianity that way I’m afraid. We have a tendency, sometimes, to speak the language and sound like we know what we’re talking about. And then we justify it by saying, "Well, I went to church last Sunday." And that is a little bit troubling when you think about it because we all hope that we know what we’re talking about. This series of sermons has been a way for us to make sure that we know what we’re talking about. And just as the Holiday Inn commercial implies that because you used good judgement and stayed at a Holiday Inn you must be pretty smart, I’m here to tell you that because you come to church every Sunday, you must be pretty smart! You’re doing the right thing; you’re here. And it’s our responsibility to help you in your spiritual growth so that the words of your faith become a reality in your life. A reality of the heart and the mind that draws you into the divine nature of God.
Our Scripture reading from 2 Peter says that so beautifully. Did you hear how many times he used the word "knowledge" in that reading? Let me just find that here because this is just wonderful stuff. Simon Peter is writing to the churches and he says that he has given us great promises so that we could participate in the divine nature, but those promises are assured to us because of our knowledge of Him. We increase our knowledge of God and thus increase our effectiveness and participation in His divine nature. And so we really are called to grow in our knowledge and to make sure that the things we say "Amen" to are really our own. When you say "Amen" it literally means "so be it". But as far as I’m concerned, when you say "Amen", you’re saying "I own it. Me too. I’m with you buddy. I agree. I’m on the same page as you. We’re singing from the same hymn book." That’s what "Amen" means to me. And the knowledge that we have of the words and the activities of our faith, help those "Amen" moments to be more significant. You recited the words to the Nicene Creed just a few minutes ago. I chose that for us as opposed to some of the shorter version, because it is a creed that was given to us through the heritage of the church at the cost of many lives and much suffering over several hundred years the Nicene Creed was hashed out. And by the grace of God and through His Holy Spirit it arrived at the place where we find it today as we read it. Words of our faith that accurately explain what we believe about God, about His Son, Jesus, about the Holy Spirit, and about the church. And at the end of those words you said, "Amen"--that’s for me, I believe it, I own those words. We must be sure that we say it with the real confidence that we understand what we’re saying. Now I’m not suggesting that we all need to be seminary graduates and have a tremendous knowledge of theology and doctrine. But we should be able to say "Amen" because we mean it. And your "Amen" at the end of the Creed, or when you sing the glory to God, or when you sing the Doxology, your "Amen" at the end of that is your personal signature on that document. You’re signing your name to it and saying that’s for me.
So the challenge through these 32 weeks of sermons has been to help you know that in your heart and your mind. Because what you carry in your heart and mind determines your actions. Your beliefs tell the world through your actions. What you believe is seen through the way you live. Character does count. And the way that you carry yourself, the way that you act, the way that you speak, the language you use and the way that you solve problems, the way that you deal with life’s adversities--all show the depth of your beliefs. And those beliefs reflected in action separate you from the rest of the world and make you unique. And that is the theme seen throughout the Bible. That we are to be different.
In the Old Testament God separated a people called Israel and asked them to be different. He gave them a different set of rules to live by. He gave them a different kind of God to worship. When the rest of the world had many Gods and largely uninteresting and boring Gods who really weren’t all that concerned about anything that happened in the world, they were just to be appeased, here was Israel being asked to worship a God who was above all Gods, who was the one God. Here was Israel being asked to enter into personal interaction with God and to have a relationship with God. Here was Israel allowing God to determine their history. This was so unique. No one else in the world lived like that. They were different. And they struggled with that difference. The Old Testament Israelites were constantly getting into trouble. There’s a constant cycle in the Old Testament where they are living according to God’s dictates, they are doing as God called to do. They are being a separate and different kind of people. And eventually it gets to them. And they start envying the rest of the world or they just get tired of being different. And eventually the Israelites begin to blend in with the rest of the world and accept their ways. And eventually they fall away from faith in God. And eventually they come back. And the cycle continues.
And in the New Testament it isn’t any different. It just got a different name. In the New Testament it’s no longer about the Israelites and everybody else. Now in the New Testament language it’s about believers and unbelievers. We are told by the Apostle Paul that God is now inviting all people to join with Him in that unique family by their beliefs in something unique. There are many places in the New Testament where the language refers to believers and unbelievers. And the believers knew who they were because they understood the language and the activity of their unique belief. And they were bound to each other by that unique belief. The New Testament believers were dependant upon that. In many cases their lives depended upon being able to recognize one another by the unique language of their beliefs and the unique behavior of their beliefs. We studied that in our 32-weeks of Christian Believer series.
And it is something that, well, a lot of us aren’t use to experiencing. Or at least we take it for granted, because we are surrounded by so many people that we go to church with or who say that they believe the same things we do. But I’ve had experiences in my life that help me to recognize how that must have been in the old days. I want to share that with you. This summer when I go to Course of Study school in Chicago I will be with about 300 pastors from all over the United States and all over this part of the world. About half of them will be people who speak Spanish. And some of them will be from the furthest reaches of South America, from the Caribbean Islands, from Central America, and from Spanish-speaking congregations even here in Indianapolis. And they will be so culturally different from me that there will be no mistaking that we don’t have much in common. They’ll look at me and they’ll see this white guy from Franklin. And I will look at them and I will see these dark-skinned Hispanic people from their various cultures and their various backgrounds. And they’ll be so different from me that you won’t have any trouble knowing that we don’t have much in common until one of them, probably several, will greet me maybe from across the parking lot as I arrive. And they’ll say, "Hola, mi hermano. Como estas?" And I’ll say, "Bueno en nuestro Senor!" They taught me to say that. It’s not very good. But this much I’m sure of. He just said, "Hello my brother. How are you doing?" And I just said, "I’m doing well in the Lord." And we will be bound by common beliefs. Even though we’re so different, we’ll be united for those four weeks together by our common belief in Jesus, by our common love for the Lord we will call each other brothers and sisters.
You see, being unique and being different because your beliefs are different, is a good thing. And the trick is not being afraid to be different. All you have to do is find other people like you. You can identify them by their language. By the stuff from their beliefs. And then you are with brothers and sisters and there is nothing to be afraid of. Jesus told us that we would be different if we followed Him. In fact, He said that the difference makes all the difference! In Matthew, Chapter 5:13-14, He says, "You are the salt of the earth and without you the earth loses it’s saltiness." I don’t know how many of you are on a low sodium diet, but have you ever tasted that stuff? It’s awful! I have to watch my blood pressure sometimes and I try to cut the salt down. And boy the food’s lousy without the salt! And that’s the way it is, Jesus says, with the world. The world is a boring place without you. The world is bland without believers who make it unique and add that flavor. It gives the world its saltiness.
Jesus said, "You are the light of the world." Think about that. Without you the world is a dark place. When Alex, my oldest son who is now 15, was just five we toured the Wyandotte Cave down in Harrison County where I come from. And the cave has a wonderful chamber in the middle that’s really huge. I think they call it the "Congressional Chamber". And the guide sat us all down in one corner of that chamber and he turned off the lights. And he wanted to illustrate how dark it really is in that cave. And he was talking about how you can’t even see the hand in front of your face. But there was this little boy sitting a few places down from me and Laura and Alex and this little boy said, "I can see something". And the guide said, "No, no, no, you can’t see anything in here. It’s pitch black". And the little boy said, "No, I see something." Well, what he was looking at was Alex’s shoes. Alex’s tennis shoes had little glow-in-the-dark places on them. I’m glad the lights were ought because I was a little embarrassed. You know, there was about thirty of us and my son ruined the guide’s talk because he brought light into the darkness that was suppose to be pitch black. His little glow-in-the-dark shoes were like the light of the world. What a wonderful illustration that was. And when Alex, at five, realized that all those people he couldn’t see were all looking at his shoes, you know what he did, don’t you? Well, he wiggled them around and he danced those little feet around so the whole world could see the light shining from his glow-in-the-dark tennis shoes. And that’s what Jesus says we are. He says we are light in the darkness. We’re wearing glow-in-the-dark tennis shoes, so dance around and let the world see it. Be different; it’s okay.
In 2 Peter, we were told that the knowledge and the belief and all those other behaviors that separate us from the world, unite us with God in his divine nature. Think about that. Do you want to be part of the divine nature of God? The whole entire Bible is about God revealing His divine nature to the rest of us so that we could be bound to Him and grow to be like Him. Grow is the secret word here. As we talk about observing these beliefs of our religion, of our faith, we understand that not all people enter in to it with a vast knowledge. In fact, the writer of Hebrews tells us in Chapter 5 that you shouldn't’t expect that. That you enter Christianity as a baby and you feed on milk because you can’t handle solid food. And that’s okay. That’s just how it should be. But he says, "Don’t get use to the milk." Begin to grow and mature in your faith, and start eating solid food. When my children were babies, they were all faith. They laid in their crib and they cried until one of us came to take care of them. It was an act of faith crying out for me. And they don’t know the half of it. Laura was so much better at that than I was. It was an act of faith to cry out. And they got what they needed because we weren’t going to let them down. And as they got older, they found their own way to the cookie jar. As they got older they decided what they were going to eat and what they weren’t going to eat. And you know how frustrating that can be. And when Alex, now is 15, he eats us out of house and home.
And wouldn't’t it be neat to be that kind of Christian? So hungry for the religion and faith that saves that you eat it until it’s gone and then you want more. There are hungry Christians like that. There are ravenous adolescent Christians in our midst. They are so hungry they can’t get enough. And Hebrews is saying to us in that scripture passage from Hebrews that is just how it should be. And that’s what these 32 messages have been about--feeding the hunger for growth. You are on a journey and what you need most of all is opportunities for growth and increased knowledge. You can begin with personal study and prayer. You can do that on your own or you can seek the guidance of elder members of faith. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they are older than you in age but they’re more advanced in their Christian journey. You can look for their advice in your study and prayer. You should interact with other Christians as often as you can. Not only for the benefit of greater knowledge, but because it gives you the confidence and joy that you get from the fellowship of brothers and sisters in the faith. You live out together your unique beliefs and you don’t fear what the world thinks when you are surrounded by other believers. One of the joys of being a part of this congregation as a pastor, is all the retired pastors that I can go to and draw on their vast knowledge and experience. I don’t have to know everything because there’s somebody out there that knows what I need to know. I just have to ask. Fellowship with other believers is essential to your spiritual development and the feeding of your Christian growth.
And Christian education is that last thing that I want to encourage you to do. I know that many of you are part of Sunday School classes and other short courses that are offered here. But if you’re not, consider getting involved with something. We offer so many things. And we do it because of a sincere belief that you must constantly seek new knowledge. And we have tried for God’s glory to put into place everything from the most essential basics, which we try to offer through ALPHA, to the real meaty stuff like you get in the Christian Believer class or in the Disciple Bible Study. And everywhere in the middle. There is something there for you. And there is no one here today that doesn’t have a need for greater knowledge and a deeper participation in the divine nature. That’s what this is all about.
We come and we worship the Lord, we participate in our church, so that we can join in that divine nature. God is asking you to never get too satisfied or too complacent. To always hunger for more. And He will never fail to satisfy you and send you further down the road. Our hope is that this Christian Believer series has helped you be more courageous and confident witnesses for Christ. And it is my sincere hope that you are now even more bold in your evangelism and your desire to see others enter in to fellowship with God and become partakers in the divine nature. I believe this morning God is calling some of us to go deeper. He’s asking us to let Him have His own way. And I’d like for us to respond to His word now by singing that hymn. You can find that at #382.
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