“A Disciple Is ...” Series

A question, phrased in various ways, comes up, quite often, in my conversations with others:

“What/who is a Christian?

What defines and differentiates an authentic follower of Christ?”

Believers ask because they want to know how to live and what to expect of themselves and others.

Non-believers ask because they wonder how to sort out the real from the frauds, the posers from the sincere!

An indisputable fact is this - God expects that those who are followers of Jesus Christ will live in a way that is clearly and distinct different from the lifes of those who are not of Christ! Paul does not leave much argument about this when he writes - 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV) “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”

What is new?
How are we different?

Let’s talk about it. God-willing, over the next 8 weeks or so, I will be jumping off from this line: A disciple is....

PRAYER

A disciple is a person with a new heart!

John Newton penned the now familiar line - "Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me!" Newton knew the depths of wretchedness. In his youth, he had gone to sea and over time became a captain, but not of noble ships. His ships carried human cargo from their African homes to lands far away. Those ships were islands of misery and death with sick and suffering humans chained below decks in squalor that defies our imagination. In addition to the physical horror, there was the utter loss of hope, the terrible grief of having their lives stolen while their bodies still lived!

In the film, "Amazing Grace" released in 2007 to tell the story of William Wilberforce, the member of England's Parliament who led the 30 year struggle to outlaw slavery, Newton reveals that the horror of slave trade haunts his dreams, despite his own experience of Christ's transforming grace which led him to become a minister of the Church of England. He was a wretch, no longer, because of God's intervention.

Some churches have taken to changing the word - 'wretch' - to 'soul' when they sing the that hymn. I prefer to hold onto the word - 'wretch' - because it makes God's grace all that more amazing!

What is a 'wretch?'

My dictionary defines it as 'a deplorably unhappy person of base or despicable character.' No wonder some hymnals are taking the word out of the song. We moderns don't like to think of ourselves as wretched. We make many excuses:

∙ We don't sin anymore, we just make mistakes.

∙ We were raised by parents who messed us up psychologically by failing love us adequately.

∙ We lacked opportunities to excel, to get the right education, etc.

Wrong, Wrong, and Wrong again!

Inside of every person lives a wretched sinful nature, which is inherited from Adam, the first in the long line of sinful wretches.

Here’s a word for your vocabulary - Depraved! Ugly, isn’t it? To be depraved is to lack moral qualities, to be corrupt, vile, or lewd. And, dear friend, that is what we are, apart from Christ.

When people turn from the true and living God to serve themselves and gods of their own making, the Bible says that God allows them to descend into depravity.
Romans 1:28-31Since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

Paul knew of the wretched state of humanity first hand, too.

He spent years pursuing Christians to bring them, with whatever means necessary back to their senses. He even stood at the murder of Stephen, watching

him die as stones thrown by hate-filled men pummeled that young saint's body. Then, he too, met Christ and experienced amazing, transforming grace.

Listen to his admission and be sure to note the wonder that still fills him up with gratitude. 1 Timothy 1:12-17

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him, even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief. Oh, how generous and gracious our Lord was! He filled me with the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus.

This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life. All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen.

Paul never forgot that his sinful nature was ready to make a re-appearance if given the least chance. He wrote, "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" (Romans 7:24, NKJV) But he does not dwell on hopelessness, nor does he make excuse for sin! A greater Power can give a new heart and a new start! Praise pours from his being at the demise of the wretch and the appearance of the glorious man -

"The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does. He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different." (Romans 7:25, The Message)

As I look on the world around me, and as I look into my own heart, there is often a strange mixture of wonder and revulsion- the wretchedness in the world, and yes, the dark outlines of the wretchedness that lurks in the shadows at the edges of my life repulse me. The utter depravity of humanity - the pornographers, the greedy money merchants who steal the meager wealth of the unsophisticated, the powerful among us who use their power selfishly, the strong who oppress the weak- is everywhere.

Ill. - On Thursday evening, I watched a program on the History Channel about the Outlaws, a motorcycle club, based in Chicago. Men from middle American backgrounds, living in ordinary neighborhoods, banded together, and throughout the 1990's spread violence, murder, and mayhem from Illinois to Florida! About 1500 men strong at their peak, the gang engaged in drug trafficking, prostitution, and human slavery. Anyone who tried to stand in their way was beaten half to death and in some cases were actually executed. And, all of this was a source of pride to the Outlaws. As Bev and I watched the program, I turned to her and asked, “How could a person live like that and sleep at night?” The answer - Depravity!!

But against the dark backdrop, there is glory all around, for I am no longer a depraved wretch!

I am a saint saved by grace!

Don’t be put off by that word - ‘saint.’ Because of the way in which the Roman Catholic church uses the word, many of us think that saint is a word reserved for a special class of Christians. But the Bible says that we are all ‘called to be saints.’ And the word is an interesting one.

In the original language of the NT, Greek, the word translated ‘saint’ is the word - hagios [hageeos/] - which means ‘something or someone that belongs to God.’ And, it comes from a root that means “an awful thing” - something so different that it inspires awe, even a kind of terror!

That, dear Believer, is just how different we can be from the world around us when the Holy Spirit gives us a brand new heart. Our lives become a thing of wonder, marked with such qualities that they inspire a kind of awe, even a fear in those who do not understand what has happened to us.

The Word promises - "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws."

(Ezekiel 36:26-27, NIV)

So, how do we gain this new heart?

I’d like you to turn to this text as it is the key to understanding this message -

TEXT - John 3: 1- 16 Pew Bible page 1649

“No one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again.” No one, Jesus says, can enjoy God’s rule and live under His blessings and protection unless he has had a new birth.

Nicodemus responds with the natural question - “How can I, an old man, be born again? I can’t pass through a womb again.”

Then Jesus explains that there are two kinds of life.

1. There is natural life which begins when a person emerges, naked and bawling, into this world.

And, 2. There is spiritual life which begins when the Holy Spirit breathes life into our souls, which are dead to God and good.

Then, anticipating our next question, Jesus tells us that the second birth results from faith in God.

READ v. 14

During the Exodus, the Israelites sinned against God by complaining and resisting His will. He judged them by sending poisonous snakes among them and many started to die when they were bitten by the snakes. When they repented and asked Moses to pray for them. God told Moses to make a bronze snake and to put it up on a pole in the middle of the camp. In Numbers 21:8-9 we read that The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.

Obedience and Faith brought God’s healing.

This, Jesus says, is how a person comes to new life through the Spirit! We gaze on Christ, who was raised up, and as we are obedient to the call of God through the Spirit, He does a transformational work in our lives.

We receive a new heart!

_______________________

Make it personal, as I close this message today.

Are you a wretch?

Are you depraved?

Confronting that truth and admitting to it is the most difficult thing you will ever do. But, both the truth of the Scripture and the Holy Spirit, agree. Apart from Christ, we are ‘dead in our sins.’

Have you bowed your heard, and humbled your heart, recognizing your wretchedness?

There is no need to remain in that unhappy state.

John 3:16-17 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”

There is a Savior who gives new hearts and fresh starts to those who receive His amazing grace. He accepts wretches and makes heart, soul, and mind new!

Clearly, the struggle with temptation and sin is not over at that moment. We still find ourselves tested when the world, the sinful nature, and/or the Devil attempts to draw us away from our Lord. Don’t think that your spiritual experience is flawed because you find yourself attracted to things you thought were ‘past tense.’

The Bible tells us in Galatians 5:16-18

“Let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves.The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires.

These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation... .”

Yes, you and I will, from time to time, slip back into our wretchedness when we take our eyes off of Jesus. The sinful nature waits to assert the wretch in us. But we need not wallow in the shame of our sins. Instead, we turn back to our God, and like the lost son, find the open arms of the Waiting Father.

And, most amazing of all, we are privileged to join with God in the fight against the wretchedness of the world, a priest of Heaven who is able to make the appeal, "on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God."

(2 Corinthians 5:20, NIV)

Next week I look forward to picking up the thread here with a message

“A Disciple is...

A Person With a Life of Purpose!”

Here's a word from the Word-
"We, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory,
are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory,
which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit." (2 Corinthians 3:18, NIV)

Away darkness of the wretch!

Shine brighter as you live in His amazing grace!
Amen.