Sermon – Living a Life Worthy of the Gospel

About one to one and a half months ago, there was a big commotion about who are considered “essential workers” and who are considered “non-essential.”  During that time, a lot of businesses tried to label themselves as “essential,” in order, to keep their business running.  Some comic book shops that I know of justified keeping themselves open by saying they were running periodicals so they fell under the “news” exception and could stay open as an “essential” workplace.  The initial mandate wasn’t clear about what was and wasn’t “essential,” so I don’t blame businesses and people for wanting to call themselves “essential.”  Eventually though, it became clear that what the government meant by “essential workers” were those who worked in medicine and in the hospital (such as doctors and nurses), pharmacists, food service workers, and delivery people.  Of course, the grey area still existed about things like repair men and construction and auto shops, but retail, art, and entertainment were all considered “non-essential.”  Interestingly, this label has brought about a philosophical debate for many people, because they are offended at being called “non-essential.”  Instead, they argue that words like “critical” should be used, because everyone is “essential.”  This issue likely stems from the natural human desire to feel appreciated and desired.  I am sure many of you right now would be considered by the government to be “non-essential” but, in all honesty, are essential in your own unique way either to your family or your business or even to this church.  So maybe “essential” isn’t the right word to use.

I bring this debate up with you today, because lately, I have been struggling with my own feelings of personal self-worth.  Unlike my parents which are confident in who they are and their importance to the people around them, I have an “inferiority complex”- this feeling that I am not good enough and do not live up to the standards of the world and/or the people around me.  I mean look at my life.  For the thirty-one years that I have been on this earth, I’ve accomplished nothing.  I am still in graduate school, working on a Ph.D with no major scientific discoveries or high-impact papers that carry my name.  I have not made a large amount of money to be considered financially well-off; I don’t even own my own home.  I am not a medical doctor, a physician’s assistant, a lawyer, or a politician like my cousins.  And I feel like I’m constantly being reminded of opportunities that were not taken in the past that might have made my life “better” than it is right now.  I honestly do not feel like I’ve done anything substantial or impactful with my life, even at a small scale.  And if I started to do something, what would be the point of it all?  Even if I got a good job and made a ton of money, what would that matter?  Life just felt like a never-ending cycle of waking up, working, playing, and going to sleep.

As I thought about this, I couldn’t help but feel slightly depressed, because I felt like I had wasted my life, like it didn’t matter.  So about a week ago, I did the only thing I could do in this lowered emotional state, I went to the Lord in prayer.  I asked Him to show me what He had planned for me.  I asked Him to give me a revelation of what I am supposed to do with my life.  I asked Him what was the purpose of living?  And to my surprise, I was given a response just a few minutes later during my devotional time for that day.  Philippians 1:27 – “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ…”  God was telling me, “Josh, it doesn’t matter where you are in life right now.  It doesn’t matter what you are doing as an occupation.  It doesn’t matter how much money you make or how much recognition you receive.  It doesn’t even matter whether you feel like you are making an impact in the world or not.  All that matters is that you make sure that you live your life in a way that is worthy of the gospel of Christ.  Whatever you are doing, wherever I have placed you right now, make sure you live your life in a way that would honor and please me.  That’s it.  That’s your purpose in life.  That’s what makes you essential.”  Surprisingly, this reminder has come again and again through a lot of my readings these past few days.  For example, Colossians 1:10 states, “…So as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God…”  1 Thessalonians 2:12 states, “…We exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of the God, who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.”  1 Thessalonians 2:4 states, “…But just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts.”  I was being told again and again to not find my value in what man thought of me, what my family thought of me, and even what I thought of me, but to only seek approval and value in God’s eyes.  If I was living in a manner that was worthy of the God who gave Himself for me, then I was living out my purpose and doing something important.

I wasn’t a failure or worthless, because I didn’t live up to the world’s standards.  I was not useless and good-for-nothing, because I didn’t meet the expectations that others had for me, whether they were my teachers, family members, or even parents.  I was worthwhile and important in God’s sight as long as I lived for Him.  As long as I made it my goal to please Him in everything I do, then my life was fulfilled and had reached its goal.  I needed to be like Paul and stop looking to please man and to hear their applause, and instead to seek to hear the words of my Lord, “Thou good and faithful servant.”  I simply needed to live everyday in a manner worthy of the Gospel of Christ, worthy of the God who saved me.

But what did this all mean?  How could I ever live in a way that is worthy of the Gospel?  Did this mean that I had to earn my salvation?  No!  Definitely not!  Of utmost importance, we must remember that salvation does not come from our “own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9).  Salvation is and always will be a gift of God.  It is His grace and mercy shown to man, not because of anything we can do to earn it, but because of His great love for us.  Christ died for me even when I was a sinner, even when I rejected Him, even when I was His enemy (Romans 5:8).  All He asks of me for salvation is to receive Him as my Lord and Savior.  Nothing I did earned me salvation; it was all done for me when Christ died on the cross.  So what did “let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ” mean?  It simply meant that because of the salvation that had been given to me, because of His love poured out on that cross, because of His grace and mercy extended to this sinner, I should live in a way that would make that gift worth it.  I was called to live in a way that showed the Gospel of Christ to the world, to live in a way that would be worthy of the salvation I had been given without cost or price.  To not make that sacrifice for naught, but to make every lash from the whip, every puncture from the nails and thorns, and every mocking and ridicule from those who rejected Him, worth it.  It is just like in many of the movies we watch, when someone dies for another; the person who was saved needs to stop wallowing in misery and guilt for the death of the rescuer, and instead live in a way that makes that sacrifice worth it.

Obviously, the next natural question is “How?”  How do we live in a manner that is worthy of the Gospel, worthy of the Lord, worthy of God?  God is the Creator of the universe, the Lord of all creation, the One to whom everything already belongs.  What gift could we give that would be worthy of our great God?  To answer this question, we need to jump to a few key passages in the Bible.  The first passage that we need to visit is Hebrews 11:6, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him.”  The first step to living in a way that is worthy of the Lord, living in a way that pleases Him, is to accept His wonderful gift of salvation.  What I am saying may at first seem counterintuitive, because most people would think that the best way to pay a person back for a gift is to give them another gift that is worth the same price.  But spiritually, with God, the best way to show your gratitude and gratefulness is to accept the gift that He has given.  In order to please Him, the first thing you must do is to have faith in Him – to believe that He exists and that He is a faithful God who will reward those who seek Him.  You must place your faith and trust in God.  There is no way you can live in a manner worthy of God without first becoming His child.  Salvation is a critical step to living in a way that will please God.  If you have never given your life to Christ, you must make this first choice.

The next passage is in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”  If you sought your boss’ favor, what would you do?  Obviously, you do would do whatever your boss told you.  You would come to work on time, stay late if necessary, and work hard to fulfill his demands throughout the day.  You wouldn’t question his judgment or disrespect him by talking back; instead, you would show reverence and respect through your words and actions.  This same behavior would be taken if you were trying to impress a king or to win someone’s heart.  This rule also applies to your relationship with God – if you want to live a life that pleases Him, you would be wise to follow His commands, both in what you must avoid and what you must do, not just one or the other.  Romans 8:5-8 states, “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.  For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.  For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.  Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”  These verses are a reminder that it is impossible to please God when you are living in sin – something you should avoid.  While Matthew 25:14-30, the Parable of the Talents, reminds us that to please God we must do what God has called us to do no matter how big or small the initial gift was given.  Remember only those servants who made use of the talents given were praised with the words, “Thou good and faithful servant,” while the person who used the one talent given to him as an excuse for not working was told, “You wicked and slothful servant!”  A person who loves God and wants to please Him must follow His commands.  God considered David a man after His own heart, because David was a person “who will do all my will.”  Abraham and Moses were both considered friends of God, because they willingly obeyed and follow God’s leading in faith.  And most importantly as an example, we have Jesus Christ, the beloved Son whom God the Father was well-pleased in, who lived according to the commandments.  Those who seek to please God, to live a life worthy of Him, must obey.

Finally, if you want to please God, you need to produce fruit.  John 15:2 states, “Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”  God wants each and every one of His children to be like a branch from a plant and produce fruit.  Although most people think of spiritual fruit as the number of unbelievers that become Christians through actively sharing the Gospel, spiritual fruit also comes in the form of the Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 6:22-23) being manifested in your life – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  These fruits may not play an active role in leading a person to becoming a Christian, but they are important characteristics that draw people to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.  Whether it be directly through sharing the Gospel or indirectly through our actions and daily lives, we are called to produce fruit and to share the Gospel.  To do so, the most important thing we must do is to spend time with God, for only a branch that abides in the Vine (Jesus Christ) can ever produce fruit (John 15:5-6).  Like a good friend, we must keep in constant contact with our Lord through prayer and Bible reading.  Abraham, Isaac, Moses, Joshua, David, and even our Lord Jesus Christ made it a habit to spend time with God.  Without spending that time Him, there is no way to get to know Him.  To abide in Him also means to keep His commands, which brings us back to our second point, which is integral in pleasing God.  Paul mentioned in I Corinthians 15:10, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain.  On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but he grace of God that is with me.”  In that verse, he was telling the Corinthian church and us, that he didn’t waste God’s gift of salvation to Him, but actively lived his life in a way that made that gift worth it.  We must look to produce fruit in keeping with our salvation.

To summarize, we may not be considered “essential” according to the government’s standard today.  We may not be considered successful according to the world or to our parents or to our friends.  We may not feel like we have done anything important with our entire lives.   But if you are feeling low right now, if you are feeling like you don’t matter, if you are feeling like your life is for naught, God wants to tell you today that you do matter to Him and that you are important in His eyes.  Everything you do, no matter how big or small, if it is done in a way and manner that is worthy of the Gospel, worthy of the Lord, worthy of our great and wonderful God, then it is important and appreciated and loved by God.  If you want to please Him, then follow this simple rule, whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God (Colossians 3:17).

Psalm 132:3-5 – Don’t Delay! Don’t Procrastinate!

Psalm 132:3-5 – “I will not enter my house or get into my bed, I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, until I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling place of the Mighty One of Jacob.”

Although this will be a fairly short post, I think it will still pack quite the spiritual punch.  We all struggle with procrastination.  Some more than others.  I mean even today, I procrastinated from reading some scientific papers that I should be reading for my thesis introduction outline.  I decided to watch some television instead (I’m not proud of doing that!).  Interestingly, these verses from Psalm 132 came up in my devotions today.  King David, one of the most famous kings of Israel, stated these words as a promise to God – a promise to find a place to build a temple to worship the Lord.  During his reign, he realized that while he was living in an elaborate palace, the place of worship for God was simply a tent.  He felt that it was inappropriate for His great God to be worshipped in such meager surroundings.  Because of this, he wanted to build a beautiful temple for the worship of the one true God.  However, God told him that it wouldn’t be him that would do it, but his son.   This didn’t stop David from keeping his promise though; he put every effort he could to help prepare for the construction.  He scouted the location; he drew up architectural plans; he set aside gold and silver for the production of temple goods, and he even planned out who would sing music and play instruments for praise and worship.  He took his promise seriously and didn’t procrastinate in doing the work of the Lord.

The question I want you to reflect on today is “Are you procrastinating from doing something that God has asked you to do?”  It might be that God has prompted to you to send an encouraging text to a friend.  It might be that God wants you to call a person you have been fighting with and ask for forgiveness.  It might be that God has called you to share the Gospel with someone you know or maybe even called you yourself to accept Jesus Christ into your heart.  Whatever God has called you to do, don’t delay.  David said that he wouldn’t go to bed, until he could find a place for the LORD, a dwelling place of the Mighty One of Jacob.  He didn’t wait.  He didn’t look for an “opportune time,” as Governor Felix did, when his heart was moved by God to become a Christian (Acts 26:25).  He didn’t put it off for his son to do.  He took the initiative and did the work.  Don’t wait any longer!  Whatever God has asked you to do, do it with all your might and for Him this day, this moment.

Now is the day of salvation.

Everything according to God’s Purpose – Proverbs 16:4

Proverbs 16:4 – “The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.”

Many people are currently asking, “Why God would allow this COVID-19 coronavirus to wreak havoc on the world today?”  Millions of people have been infected by the virus, and hundreds of thousands of people have died.  Livelihoods have been destroyed, retirement funds eliminated, and businesses bankrupt.  The world has changed within the past five months of this pandemic first rearing its ugly head.  So the question is “Why?  Why would God even allow this to happen?”

I am not a world-renown scientist (although I am a graduate student in biological sciences) who can tell you the biological reasons why this occurred.  I am not an epidemiologist, who can explain to you why the social interactions that people have led to the spread of the virus.  And I am definitely not a theologian or an apologist, who can explain and defend why God allowed this to happen.  But what I am is a disciple of Christ, who read this verse in my devotions today and wanted to share it with you all.

Proverbs 16:4 states, “The LORD has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble.”  I bolded and underlined these words, because they are key important phrases in this simple proverb that might get overlooked.  “The Lord” reminds us that the Person who ultimately is in control is God.  “Everything” tells us that nothing is out of God’s purview and control.  “Its purpose” lets us know that all things happen according to the plan that God has set out for it.  “Even the wicked” reveals to us that not only does God have a purpose for the good that happens but also the wicked and evil.  Although God hates sin and would have loved for man never to fall, He allowed us to have free choice, and we chose to sin.  Because of that choice, sin and wickedness and evil came into this world, of which, we are living with the consequences.  However, even these horrible things can be used by God to accomplish His overall purpose.  He is ultimately in control.

You may have expected to a receive a clear-cut answer from me as to “Why God allowed this coronavirus to create a pandemic?” but I cannot give that to you.  I am not God and will not presume to answer for Him.  All I can do is encourage you to trust that He knows what He is doing, and all this will work out for and according to His purpose.  We can trust that God will do what is best!

To close out, I just wanted to share a memory of mine from almost six years ago that is a good illustration that even though we don’t know why God allows something to happen, it works out according to His will.  Six years ago, I took a cruise to see Greece and Israel.  It was an exciting time where I got to visit all the places I read about in the Bible.  The unfortunate thing was that I was stuck on a cruise ship where the average age was sixty years old or above.  It wasn’t that much fun, being in my early twenties without many people to interact with.  Surprisingly, one day I spoke with one of the crew members, who was about my age that was greeting guests outside the door of the theatre on the ship.  That short conversation went from a few minutes to hours to eventually midnight with a follow-up conversation on a future day.  We talked about everything from Pixar animated shorts to the best comic book heroes to our dreams and aspirations to our faith and even to our blogs.  To me it was a great time meeting, talking with someone, and making a new friend, but I didn’t know that those conversations were being used by God.  When I returned home and looked up my friend’s blog, I discovered a post speaking about how those conversations helped bring encouragement at a time when it was needed most.  God had taken a conversation and used it for His purpose, unbeknownst to me.

So with that, I just want to remind you that God has a purpose for everything – whether it be this virus, your job, your situation, and most importantly yourself.  Trust that He will work everything according to His will!  And for those who love God, all things will work together for good! (Romans 8:28)

Philippians 1:27 – The Purpose of Life

Philippians 1:27-28 – “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents.  This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.”

This morning as I was thinking about what I’ve done with the first thirty-one years of my life, I was in a little bit of distress.  I haven’t accomplished anything that would be considered important or recognized by the world.  I haven’t done anything that I felt would make my parents proud to have a son like me.  I haven’t even finished my schooling.  I am still in graduate school, working on a Ph.D., with no papers in big-name journals, no major scientific discoveries, nothing to make me proud of my life.  I have cousins younger than me who have already made a life for themselves, becoming doctors and physician’s assistants, who are at least making money.  But I am simply a poor student with no accomplishments or successes to my name.  My life felt worthless, useless, for naught.  What was the point in life?  Even if I got a good job after this and made money, what would that matter?  Was life this cycle of day to day, waking up, working, playing, going to sleep, and repeat?

Like I said, as I thought about this, I couldn’t help but feel slightly depressed, because I felt like I had wasted my life, like it didn’t matter.  So I did the only thing I could do in this lowered emotional state, I went to the Lord in prayer.  I asked Him to show me what He had planned for me.  I asked Him to give me a revelation of what I am supposed to do with my life.  I asked Him what was the purpose of living?  And to my surprise, I was given a response just a few minutes later in my devotional for today.  Philippians 1:27 – “Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ…”  God was telling me, “Josh, it doesn’t matter where you are in life right now.  It doesn’t matter what you are doing as an occupation.  It doesn’t matter how much money you make or how much recognition you receive.  It doesn’t even matter whether you feel like you are making an impact in the world or not.  All that matters is that you make sure that you live your life in a way that is worthy of the gospel of Christ.  Whatever you are doing, wherever I have placed you right now, make sure you live your life in a way that would honor and please me.  That’s it.  That’s your purpose in life.”  I was called to stand firm in my faith, not shifting from it whether I am persecuted or not, and to live a life that reflected Christ.  I was called to live in a way that showed the Gospel of Christ to the world, to live in a way that would be worthy of the salvation I had been given without cost or price.  It didn’t mean that I had to earn my salvation, for salvation has and always will be the free gift of God that can never be taken away (Christ died for me without any work required of me, only that I receive Him as my Lord and Savior.).  But it meant that because I am saved, I should live in a way that would make that gift worth it.  Simply put, I was asked to live according to Colossians 3:17, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

With that simple message, that simple phrase from Philippians 1:27, I was encouraged.  I may still be in my current state, not doing anything that feels impactful.  I may be spending the next year still working on my Ph.D.  I may or may not get a great high-paying job afterwards.  But whatever I was doing, as long as I lived my life worthy of the Gospel of Christ, worthy of the wonderful sacrifice that Jesus Christ gave to me, then my life mattered.  Live your life worthy of the great gift Christ gave to you!  That is the purpose of life!  That is what makes your life matter!