Sermon

Moulding Culture

St. Paul's Anglican Church Chatswood - Sermons

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  1. Gracious Father, we want to thank you for your word.

  2. We want to thank you for what it reveals about you and your purposes,

  3. the view that you have of this world and your intention for it.

  4. I pray that as we've been learning through this series,

  5. that you might shape us, continue to shape us,

  6. in order that we might shape your world.

  7. And particularly tonight, as we think about the cultures,

  8. the place that you put us in,

  9. how we might work for your purposes in that place

  10. so that people might flourish.

  11. And we ask it for your glory. Amen.

  12. I've been a regular patient of a local physiotherapist

  13. over the past couple of years.

  14. Feet problems, shoulder problems, all sorts of stuff like that.

  15. And I discovered late last year that he was, in fact, a Christian.

  16. He was telling me very recently

  17. that he'd hit a bit of a crossroad in his life

  18. and particularly in his vocation,

  19. wondering if he was doing what God intended for him to do,

  20. what God wanted him to do with his life.

  21. He knew of plenty of Christian physiotherapists

  22. who were working in third world countries,

  23. working amongst great need in those places.

  24. And here he was, a physio in Chatswood.

  25. And, you know, should he be a missionary physio?

  26. That was kind of his question with his life.

  27. Does that, you know, be more purposeful for God?

  28. Is that really what God wants to do for his life?

  29. And so for him, it was a question of purpose.

  30. What does God intend for him?

  31. Was he pursuing God's purpose in his life

  32. where he was in Chatswood as a physio?

  33. He felt that his job had less purpose

  34. than those in third world countries.

  35. And what compounded it for him

  36. was that he hadn't had much, if any,

  37. opportunity to speak about Jesus in his workplace.

  38. There was no workplace Bible study group.

  39. There was no workplace prayer group.

  40. And what's more, when he'd been working on people,

  41. broken people, he hadn't shared about Jesus,

  42. the great healer of all people.

  43. And that is, he didn't see

  44. that he had any opportunity to shine for Jesus

  45. where he was in that place.

  46. Or that he was working out God's purposes

  47. at all in God's world in that place.

  48. And so it was a great opportunity for me

  49. just to very briefly,

  50. having my mind in the Frontline series,

  51. just to connect with him

  52. and encourage him about his Frontline.

  53. I said to him a number of things.

  54. Number one, I said to him that he worked

  55. as the only Christian in an organization of 60 people.

  56. Don't tell me that God hasn't placed you there

  57. for some good purpose,

  58. even if you can't see it at the moment.

  59. That's the first thing.

  60. Secondly, that I thought he did his work really well.

  61. He'd fixed my plantar fasciitis.

  62. He fixed one frozen shoulder

  63. and he's working on another frozen shoulder.

  64. And I'm kind of hoping it's going to end there

  65. because it is sort of expensive after a bit of time.

  66. But he did his work well.

  67. And in fact, so well that I'd recommended

  68. at least four other people

  69. specifically to go and see him

  70. to help them in their particular issues as well.

  71. Thirdly, one of those people

  72. who had actually went and saw him

  73. came back to me and said

  74. how much they thought this guy's character stood out.

  75. There was something different about him.

  76. And they asked me, do you think he's Christian?

  77. I said, I don't know.

  78. But there was something about him that stood out.

  79. And I said, I think fourthly,

  80. the work that he was doing all day

  81. to fix broken bodies,

  82. I think that somehow connects with God's purposes

  83. to redeem and to restore his world.

  84. Just as a rough guess.

  85. Towards the end of that chat,

  86. very quickly, just a few minutes,

  87. tears started to well up in his eyes

  88. because of the sense of purpose that he had

  89. in that moment, just very quickly,

  90. that what he was doing actually mattered to God.

  91. He was deeply thankful.

  92. I didn't get a discount,

  93. but he was deeply thankful.

  94. My hope is that as we've been going through this series,

  95. that likewise, it's an encouragement for you

  96. into where the place that God has put you.

  97. Encouragement to see how God might be using you

  98. to work, to redeem,

  99. and restore his world

  100. through what might be,

  101. quite simply, your ordinary life.

  102. The ordinary things that you do in life.

  103. And so far in this series,

  104. we've looked at the Christian worldview

  105. of both the dignity and the difficulty of work.

  106. We looked at how we might impact God's world

  107. and pursue his purposes

  108. through modelling godly character,

  109. through working well,

  110. working with all our might,

  111. as if working for the Lord

  112. and not for other people,

  113. and ministering grace and love.

  114. And today we're looking at the issue

  115. of how we might mould culture

  116. on our front lines.

  117. How we might mould culture.

  118. Now, culture is one of those big words

  119. that rolls off our tongues,

  120. but very rarely do we know what it actually means.

  121. What does culture mean?

  122. Culture exists everywhere.

  123. Most of the time, culture is hidden.

  124. It's an assumed thing

  125. rather than a stated thing.

  126. So if you said,

  127. what's the culture of your workplace?

  128. Don't we got one,

  129. but I'm not exactly sure necessarily what it is.

  130. Culture,

  131. and this is a very simplistic view

  132. of understanding culture,

  133. culture is quite simply

  134. how we do things around here.

  135. So every family unit has a culture.

  136. Every gathering of people has a culture.

  137. Every church has a culture.

  138. Every workplace has a culture.

  139. Every school and university has a culture.

  140. And you can be right next door to one another

  141. but have very different cultures.

  142. Every team has a culture.

  143. Culture is the way that people interact.

  144. It's the food that they eat,

  145. the way that they speak to one another,

  146. the way that in a church they would pray,

  147. the clothes that you would wear,

  148. the way that you would handle conflict,

  149. the way you spend money,

  150. the way the decisions are made,

  151. the way that leadership is respected

  152. or disrespected

  153. or the group is led,

  154. and a multitude of other things

  155. form a culture within a group.

  156. Or to put it another way,

  157. this might be another way to think about it,

  158. what would an outsider need to know

  159. to learn to understand

  160. about this particular group

  161. and how it functions

  162. in order for them to fit within the group

  163. and to work within the group?

  164. What would they need to know?

  165. That's culture.

  166. And culture is everywhere.

  167. As I said, in every organization.

  168. There was an article in the Sydney Morning Herald

  169. yesterday about Thermomix.

  170. And if you don't know what a Thermomix is,

  171. then you are out of touch

  172. with the culture of North Shore of Sydney

  173. and particularly the housewife culture

  174. of North Shore in Sydney.

  175. Secondly, to answer the question,

  176. what is a Thermomix?

  177. A Thermomix is a kitchen appliance

  178. that does everything.

  179. It not only dices, ways, mixes and cooks,

  180. it orders the ingredients,

  181. it will get them delivered to your home,

  182. and it will stack them into your pantry.

  183. It will run your bath and give you a massage.

  184. And apparently, it also gives you second degree burns

  185. if you're not careful,

  186. which was the issue in the article

  187. of the Sydney Morning Herald.

  188. Danica Jones complained online

  189. that she had a faulty Thermomix

  190. that went crazy, did whatever it did

  191. and caused her second...

  192. I don't think it has a mind of its own.

  193. Something went faulty with it

  194. and it just went nuts

  195. and burnt her with second degree burns.

  196. So she complained online

  197. and what she got,

  198. she received from Thermomix owners

  199. was incessant bullying

  200. about Thermomix being the greatest thing

  201. since sliced bread.

  202. And she got bullying on social media

  203. and she got intimidation

  204. from Thermomix staff.

  205. And so the lawyer defending the woman

  206. said that the culture of the company

  207. was horrific.

  208. There we go.

  209. That's a...

  210. In other words,

  211. what the lawyer is saying there is

  212. that within that organisation,

  213. the way you handle complaints or criticism

  214. is to go on the attack.

  215. That's a cultural thing.

  216. That is,

  217. culture is the way we do things around here.

  218. And some of us experience in workplace,

  219. in social clubs,

  220. in retail outlets,

  221. families,

  222. family cultures

  223. where manipulation

  224. is the way you get people to do things.

  225. That's all culture.

  226. And often we are,

  227. many of us confront unhealthy cultural groups,

  228. whatever we're part of.

  229. So how might we,

  230. as Christian people,

  231. contribute to cultural change

  232. on our front lines

  233. so that they become places

  234. where people flourish,

  235. pursuing God's purposes

  236. for the good order of society?

  237. That's what Jesus calls his disciples to

  238. in Matthew chapters 5 to 7.

    Matthew 5 chapter mention

  239. It's the famous Sermon on the Mount.

  240. And Jesus calls his disciples

  241. first of all to himself

  242. and then he shares with them

  243. what the characteristics are

  244. of those who live according to the kingdom.

  245. So get your Bibles

  246. and turn to Matthew chapter 5.

    Matthew 5 chapter mention

  247. I'm going to focus primarily on 11 to 16.

  248. The Beatitudes

  249. describe the sensual character of Christians.

  250. Blessed is he,

  251. his poor and spirit.

  252. Blessed is he,

  253. seek after,

  254. you know,

  255. blah, blah, blah,

  256. that sort of stuff.

  257. All the way down there

  258. in the early bits of Matthew chapter 5.

    Matthew 5 chapter mention

  259. And what it's saying there is

  260. that Christians are people

  261. who've got a radically new relationship

  262. with God

  263. through trust in the work,

  264. the finished work

  265. of the Lord Jesus Christ

  266. on the cross

  267. to deal with our sin,

  268. to deal with death

  269. and give us eternal life.

  270. That's what the Beatitudes about.

  271. This radical new relationship with God.

  272. And then,

  273. in verses 13 to 16,

  274. the focus shifts

  275. from the Christian's relationship with God

  276. to the Christian's relationship with the world.

  277. And so,

  278. if we have the relationship with God

  279. that the first section speaks about,

  280. then you will have the relationship with the world

  281. that the second bit speaks about.

  282. What Jesus is saying here is that

  283. if you are at all living a consistent Christian life,

  284. then in this world,

  285. you will be salt

  286. and you will be light.

  287. Verse 13 and 14,

  288. both start emphatically with you.

  289. It is like Jesus saying,

  290. you,

  291. that is speaking to his disciples,

  292. you and only you

  293. are the salt of the earth

  294. and the light of the world.

  295. And therefore,

  296. you simply must not fail

  297. what you have been called to do.

  298. and who you've been called to serve.

  299. You must be who you are.

  300. You must not lose your saltiness.

  301. You must not be contaminated or compromised.

  302. You are light.

  303. And so,

  304. you must let your light shine.

  305. And it must not be concealed by sin

  306. or compromise

  307. or laziness

  308. or fear.

  309. In other words,

  310. this is your Christian vocation.

  311. This is your calling

  312. in the world.

  313. So let's start with salt.

  314. Verse 13,

  315. you are the salt of the earth.

  316. But if the salt loses its saltiness,

  317. how can it be made salty again?

  318. It is no longer good for anything

  319. except to be thrown out

  320. and trampled by men.

  321. In ancient times,

  322. salt was used as a preservative

  323. to stop food from rotting.

  324. It was used as a seasoning

  325. to enhance its flavor

  326. and it was also used as a fertilizer

  327. to enable fruitfulness.

  328. It was, however,

  329. most valuable as a preservative.

  330. This is before refrigerators were made.

  331. And you would rub in salt

  332. into whatever would normally decay.

  333. And that salt rubbed into it,

  334. penetrating it,

  335. would stem the decay

  336. and stem its breakdown.

  337. The function of salt here

  338. is largely negative.

  339. It prevents decay.

  340. It's about stopping the spread of evil.

  341. It's an intriguing image

  342. that Jesus uses, I think.

  343. For most of us,

  344. if you see someone's life falling apart,

  345. we tend to move away from it.

  346. When you see brokenness,

  347. we tend to move away.

  348. We're always cautious

  349. about being sucked in

  350. and being connected too deep

  351. and having too much expected of us.

  352. And Jesus says,

  353. if you're a Christian,

  354. you go in.

  355. You penetrate is what you do.

  356. You go in rather than pull away.

  357. You go in to stem the decay

  358. because you're salt.

  359. And this is also true

  360. if you see a society

  361. or a city

  362. or a neighborhood

  363. or a workplace

  364. or a family

  365. falling apart with social problems.

  366. Christians don't run away.

  367. They find ways of being there

  368. to help and to shape for good.

  369. Because Christians have experienced

  370. in their own lives,

  371. Colossians 1.17,

  372. in Christ,

  373. all things hold together.

  374. We know what it is

  375. to have life falling apart

  376. and Jesus to come in

  377. and to bring it together.

  378. The Christian goes in

  379. because they want to be of help,

  380. simply responding

  381. and being for other people

  382. what Christ has been for them.

  383. It's a wonderfully rich metaphor.

  384. To be salt

  385. is to be involved.

  386. Salt penetrates.

  387. Salt stops decay

  388. unless it loses its saltiness.

  389. Now,

  390. sodium chloride

  391. is a very,

  392. very

  393. strong compound

  394. that doesn't often break down.

  395. That is,

  396. you can't normally blow apart

  397. sodium chloride.

  398. Salt doesn't lose its saltiness

  399. as such.

  400. But it will lose its purity.

  401. It will lose its purity.

  402. Salt can be contaminated

  403. and once it's contaminated,

  404. you cannot purify it.

  405. And the contamination here

  406. that Jesus has in mind

  407. is the idea

  408. where we are not distinct

  409. from the world.

  410. salt.

  411. And so,

  412. that's the connection

  413. with the second part

  414. in us being light.

  415. Now,

  416. traditionally,

  417. Christians are more known

  418. for being salt

  419. than being light.

  420. That is,

  421. we

  422. are seen

  423. by

  424. our wider society

  425. as being fundamentally

  426. negative

  427. rather than positive.

  428. negative.

  429. That is,

  430. we are more known

  431. for what we're against

  432. than what we are for.

  433. That is,

  434. that's why I say

  435. we are more known

  436. for being negative,

  437. more known for being salt.

  438. We are more known

  439. for being against things

  440. than for things.

  441. And so,

  442. this is really important

  443. for us

  444. because Jesus'

  445. disciples

  446. exert a double influence

  447. on the secular world.

  448. A negative influence

  449. of arresting decay

  450. and a positive influence

  451. of bringing light

  452. into darkness.

  453. You see,

  454. it's one thing

  455. to stop the spread

  456. of evil.

  457. It's another

  458. to promote

  459. the spread of truth

  460. and hope

  461. and goodness.

  462. Verse 14,

  463. you are the light

  464. of the world.

  465. A city on a hill

  466. cannot be hidden.

  467. Neither do people

  468. light a lamp

  469. and put it under a bowl.

  470. Instead,

  471. they put it on its stand

  472. and it gives light

  473. to everyone in the house.

  474. In the same way,

  475. let your light shine

  476. before men

  477. so that they may see

  478. your good deeds

  479. and praise your Father

  480. in heaven.

  481. So,

  482. the light metaphor here

  483. is a bit different.

  484. As I said,

  485. it's positive

  486. as opposed to negative.

  487. When Jesus talks

  488. about salt,

  489. he's saying something

  490. significant

  491. about human society

  492. that is

  493. that human society

  494. left by itself

  495. will decay.

  496. It will go rotten.

  497. And when he says

  498. something about

  499. Christians of light,

  500. he's saying

  501. something significant

  502. also about

  503. human society.

  504. It's dark.

  505. In the Bible,

  506. light symbolizes

  507. truth

  508. because light

  509. exposes falsehood.

  510. But it also

  511. symbolizes hope

  512. hope

  513. and even joy

  514. because light

  515. is brilliant

  516. and beautiful.

  517. And so,

  518. when this passage

  519. says that Christians

  520. are the light

  521. of the world,

  522. what it means

  523. is that we bring

  524. hope and joy

  525. through truth

  526. into darkness.

  527. as the positive

  528. influence

  529. that we have

  530. on society.

  531. How and how much

  532. our society needs it.

  533. A society that we exist

  534. that is

  535. a society that says

  536. that we don't need God,

  537. that he has no place

  538. amongst us at all.

  539. We are secular.

  540. We are godless.

  541. For example,

  542. Somerset Morham

  543. was a British playwright

  544. and a novelist

  545. and a short story writer.

  546. He was among

  547. the most popular

  548. writers of his era

  549. and,

  550. reputedly,

  551. the highest paid

  552. author in the 1930s.

  553. That's a long time ago.

  554. And like many people,

  555. he thought

  556. that the existence

  557. of God

  558. and survival

  559. beyond death

  560. of any sort

  561. at all

  562. was doubtful.

  563. He wasn't an atheist.

  564. But he thought

  565. about the consequences

  566. of his belief system

  567. more than most atheists.

  568. He understood

  569. the consequences of it.

  570. And he wrote this

  571. in his autobiography.

  572. He said,

  573. If death ends all

  574. and I neither have

  575. to hope for God

  576. after death

  577. nor to fear evil

  578. after death,

  579. then I must

  580. ask myself,

  581. what am I here for?

  582. And how in these circumstances

  583. I must conduct myself?

  584. And the answer

  585. is plain

  586. but so unpalatable

  587. that most

  588. will not face it.

  589. And here's his answer.

  590. There is

  591. no meaning

  592. for life

  593. and therefore

  594. life has

  595. no meaning.

  596. That's his conclusion

  597. to his belief system.

  598. And what he's saying

  599. is

  600. not that he would

  601. put it in these words

  602. is that society today

  603. will tell you

  604. that there is

  605. probably no God

  606. that there's no reason

  607. really

  608. for why you're here

  609. that there is

  610. no right or wrong

  611. and that after you die

  612. there is nothingness.

  613. That is

  614. after you die

  615. there is darkness.

  616. And so

  617. if Somerset

  618. was here right now

  619. he would say

  620. if darkness

  621. is beyond death

  622. if that's all

  623. that exists then

  624. then that means

  625. that darkness

  626. is now.

  627. That's society.

  628. It's dark.

  629. And so

  630. what's the answer

  631. of our society

  632. to that philosophical

  633. position?

  634. Go and enjoy life.

  635. Really?

  636. Have a good time?

  637. Really?

  638. Really?

  639. See what he was saying

  640. without realizing

  641. is that

  642. without the light

  643. of salvation

  644. this world

  645. is dark

  646. and we don't want

  647. to admit

  648. the world is dark

  649. but he was right.

  650. Christians

  651. are light

  652. because of the good news

  653. of the Lord Jesus

  654. gives us light.

  655. A light that we do not have.

  656. The good news

  657. of the Christian faith

  658. tells us

  659. that every single

  660. one of our deepest

  661. desires in our hearts

  662. will be met by Jesus

  663. in the end.

  664. It tells us

  665. the good news

  666. tells us

  667. that because we are

  668. saved by his grace

  669. and his mercy

  670. we are always his.

  671. It tells us

  672. that there is no

  673. condemnation

  674. for those who trust Jesus.

  675. It tells us

  676. that we might have

  677. good days

  678. and bad days

  679. and good years

  680. and bad years

  681. but you are guaranteed

  682. to be part

  683. of his glorious

  684. bright future.

  685. And Christians

  686. because of that

  687. live in the light

  688. of that future now.

  689. And friends

  690. when you look out there

  691. and you see this metaphor

  692. that we are the light

  693. of the world

  694. and you see

  695. the darkness

  696. of our secular society

  697. and wonder

  698. and Christians

  699. are being pushed back

  700. pushed back

  701. pushed back

  702. pushed back

  703. and you wonder

  704. what on earth

  705. can we possibly do?

  706. Let me give you

  707. one encouragement.

  708. It does not take

  709. much light

  710. to push back

  711. darkness.

  712. This

  713. half a watt

  714. bulb

  715. in the darkness

  716. of my daughter's room

  717. is enough

  718. to give me

  719. perspective

  720. in her room

  721. it's enough

  722. for me

  723. to be able

  724. to walk

  725. around in her room

  726. and not tread

  727. on the cat

  728. or toys

  729. or whatever it is

  730. and it's enough

  731. to push back

  732. fear for her.

  733. Half a watt

  734. because

  735. darkness

  736. cannot

  737. resist light.

  738. Darkness

  739. cannot push

  740. light back.

  741. That's the job

  742. of light

  743. pushes

  744. darkness back

  745. and it does

  746. not take

  747. much

  748. to push

  749. back.

  750. And so

  751. friends

  752. even if we

  753. are a minority

  754. even if we

  755. do not have

  756. a voice

  757. light

  758. pushes

  759. back

  760. darkness.

  761. But that's

  762. not all

  763. Jesus is saying

  764. here.

  765. He isn't

  766. just saying

  767. that you

  768. have

  769. the truth

  770. and so

  771. therefore

  772. your job

  773. in society

  774. is to

  775. preach

  776. the truth

  777. and give

  778. people this

  779. hope.

  780. because

  781. he's saying

  782. something a

  783. little bit

  784. different.

  785. It looks

  786. like Jesus

  787. is actually

  788. mixing his

  789. metaphors

  790. in these

  791. verses.

  792. He talks

  793. about light

  794. and then he

  795. talks about

  796. light at the

  797. end and then

  798. he talks about

  799. a city in

  800. the middle

  801. and so it

  802. looks like

  803. he's mixing

  804. his metaphors

  805. and if you

  806. know anything

  807. about English

  808. or you probably

  809. heard your

  810. English teacher

  811. tell you at

  812. some point

  813. that you

  814. should not

  815. mix your

  816. metaphors

  817. but the

  818. good thing

  819. is Jesus

  820. didn't speak

  821. English and

  822. so this is

  823. okay.

  824. Right in

  825. the middle

  826. it says

  827. here a

  828. city on

  829. a hill

  830. cannot be

  831. hidden.

  832. I think

  833. it's exactly

  834. the same

  835. idea.

  836. Light,

  837. light,

  838. light all

  839. the way

  840. through.

  841. Most cities

  842. were not

  843. built on

  844. hills.

  845. Most cities

  846. were put in

  847. the bases

  848. of the hills

  849. or in the

  850. bottom of

  851. the valleys

  852. where there

  853. was a

  854. water source

  855. and where

  856. the trade

  857. routes and

  858. the roads

  859. were.

  860. But if

  861. you put a

  862. city on

  863. a hill

  864. just with

  865. candles and

  866. lamps it

  867. would be

  868. enough

  869. from the

  870. light from

  871. that city

  872. would illuminate

  873. a great

  874. distance.

  875. You could

  876. see the

  877. city from

  878. a great

  879. distance.

  880. And he's

  881. saying that

  882. Christians and

  883. the church

  884. he's saying

  885. here you

  886. need to be

  887. a counter

  888. culture.

  889. You need

  890. to be a

  891. light in

  892. the darkness.

  893. You need

  894. to be visible.

  895. People need

  896. to see that

  897. you are

  898. different.

  899. see Christians

  900. are to be

  901. light of

  902. the world

  903. not just

  904. by what

  905. they say

  906. but how

  907. they live

  908. their lives.

  909. The words

  910. good deeds

  911. is right in

  912. there.

  913. People might

  914. see your

  915. good deeds.

  916. And so

  917. being light

  918. in the

  919. world

  920. I think

  921. what this

  922. picture is

  923. we are

  924. an alternative

  925. Chatswood

  926. in Chatswood.

  927. We are a

  928. city within a

  929. city.

  930. And how

  931. this city

  932. within a

  933. city lives

  934. and how

  935. it works

  936. out its

  937. life is

  938. what the

  939. rest of

  940. the Sermon

  941. on the

  942. Mount is

  943. about.

  944. The

  945. teaching of

  946. the Sermon

  947. on the

  948. Mount is

  949. radically

  950. different than

  951. the views

  952. of the

  953. rest of

  954. the Chatswood

  955. when it

  956. comes to

  957. things like

  958. money and

  959. sex and

  960. relationships and

  961. power and a

  962. bunch of

  963. other things.

  964. The views,

  965. the culture

  966. is different.

  967. You see,

  968. it's not

  969. just good

  970. enough,

  971. I don't

  972. think,

  973. just to

  974. hold up

  975. the truth,

  976. to preach

  977. it,

  978. or to go

  979. onto Facebook

  980. and just

  981. have fights

  982. with atheists.

  983. If

  984. Christians are

  985. not seen

  986. to be living

  987. differently than

  988. the rest of

  989. Chatswood,

  990. we have no

  991. impact.

  992. impact.

  993. If they

  994. don't see

  995. the difference,

  996. then we

  997. are not

  998. light.

  999. Then we

  1000. are not a

  1001. city on a

  1002. hill.

  1003. God

  1004. intends for

  1005. his people

  1006. to be

  1007. rubbed into

  1008. society, to

  1009. penetrate for

  1010. good in this

  1011. world.

  1012. Christian salt

  1013. and light

  1014. has therefore

  1015. no business

  1016. remaining

  1017. snugly in a

  1018. elegant,

  1019. newly

  1020. renovated,

  1021. ecclesiastical

  1022. salt and

  1023. light cellar.

  1024. I'll say it

  1025. again, it's not

  1026. my main point,

  1027. but I'll say it

  1028. again in case

  1029. you wonder what

  1030. I'm talking

  1031. about there.

  1032. Christian salt

  1033. and light has

  1034. no business

  1035. remaining

  1036. snugly in an

  1037. elegant, newly

  1038. renovated,

  1039. ecclesiastical

  1040. salt and light

  1041. cellar.

  1042. That is, our

  1043. job is to be

  1044. rubbed into

  1045. secular society,

  1046. into a secular

  1047. community.

  1048. Our business

  1049. is to shine

  1050. light and bring

  1051. hope and joy

  1052. and truth to

  1053. this world, to

  1054. shape for good

  1055. the cultures

  1056. of families

  1057. and organisations

  1058. and whatever

  1059. it is, people

  1060. groups that have

  1061. a tendency to

  1062. use people and

  1063. manipulate people

  1064. where there might

  1065. be a tendency

  1066. to waste resources

  1067. or a tendency

  1068. where there's

  1069. fearful for change

  1070. or a tendency

  1071. to have ruthlessness

  1072. in leadership

  1073. and to treat people.

  1074. We want to have

  1075. an influence for

  1076. good in there,

  1077. to shape the

  1078. culture of those

  1079. places,

  1080. to speak up

  1081. and to

  1082. demonstrate

  1083. good.

  1084. And so if

  1085. you're a

  1086. Christian,

  1087. if you are at

  1088. all living out

  1089. the Christian

  1090. life, a

  1091. consistent Christian

  1092. life, you are

  1093. salt and you

  1094. are light.

  1095. You may feel like

  1096. a half a watt

  1097. bowl, but you

  1098. are light.

  1099. And because you

  1100. are salt and

  1101. because you are

  1102. light and you

  1103. are working to

  1104. shape the way

  1105. things should be

  1106. done for the

  1107. good of others

  1108. and for the

  1109. glory of God,

  1110. you are not

  1111. just salt and

  1112. light, but you

  1113. are also going to

  1114. be hurt.

  1115. You're going to

  1116. be hurt.

  1117. This life that

  1118. we've received in

  1119. Jesus is lived

  1120. out in the

  1121. midst of a

  1122. culture that has

  1123. decided it wants

  1124. to live,

  1125. in a different

  1126. way, largely

  1127. without reference

  1128. to God.

  1129. We live in a

  1130. post-Christian

  1131. secular society

  1132. where Christianity

  1133. has got no

  1134. social credibility.

  1135. Christianity has

  1136. got no social

  1137. credibility.

  1138. And so the

  1139. verses right

  1140. before, verses

  1141. 13 and 16,

  1142. are very

  1143. important for us

  1144. to grapple with

  1145. in terms of what

  1146. our expectations

  1147. might be as

  1148. salt and light.

  1149. And I think

  1150. this is particularly

  1151. pertinent for us

  1152. right now.

  1153. Matthew 5,

    Matthew 5:11–12

  1154. verses 11 to

  1155. 12,

  1156. blessed are you

  1157. when people

  1158. insult you,

  1159. persecute you,

  1160. and falsely say

  1161. all kinds of

  1162. evil against you

  1163. because of me.

  1164. Rejoice and be

  1165. glad because great

  1166. is your reward in

  1167. heaven for in the

  1168. same way they

  1169. persecuted the

  1170. prophets who were

  1171. before you.

  1172. So there are five

  1173. things.

  1174. This is a pretty

  1175. sobering passage.

  1176. If you're going to

  1177. be salt and light,

  1178. you're going to be

  1179. hurt.

  1180. And there are five

  1181. things that I want

  1182. to just say very

  1183. quickly about those

  1184. two verses that

  1185. will help us with

  1186. our expectations

  1187. of what things

  1188. might be like

  1189. from Monday to

  1190. Saturday.

  1191. Firstly,

  1192. this is a

  1193. beatitude.

  1194. Blessed are you

  1195. when people

  1196. insult you.

  1197. Not if people

  1198. insult you,

  1199. but when people

  1200. insult you.

  1201. Every beatitude

  1202. is a characteristic

  1203. of the Christian.

  1204. So help

  1205. understand this.

  1206. Every Christian

  1207. must be poor

  1208. in spirit.

  1209. That's one of the

  1210. beatitudes.

  1211. Every Christian

  1212. must hunger and

  1213. thirst after

  1214. righteousness.

  1215. Or you're not a

  1216. Christian.

  1217. Verse 11 is the

  1218. last of the

  1219. beatitudes.

  1220. Jesus is

  1221. assuming that if

  1222. you are a

  1223. Christian, you

  1224. will be

  1225. persecuted.

  1226. Or, put it

  1227. more strongly, a

  1228. Christian must be

  1229. persecuted.

  1230. If you are

  1231. living in any

  1232. way consistent

  1233. with Christianity,

  1234. you will be

  1235. persecuted.

  1236. That's the first

  1237. thing.

  1238. Secondly, let me

  1239. just nuance that

  1240. just a little bit.

  1241. Just a little bit.

  1242. Notice it says,

  1243. blessed are you

  1244. when people

  1245. insult you,

  1246. persecute you,

  1247. and falsely say

  1248. all kinds of evil

  1249. against you because

  1250. of me.

  1251. It's not

  1252. because of

  1253. you.

  1254. That's the

  1255. nuance in the

  1256. persecution.

  1257. In other words,

  1258. if you're talking

  1259. about the

  1260. Christian faith in

  1261. a tackless way,

  1262. an abrasive way,

  1263. an insensitive

  1264. way, a

  1265. loveless way, a

  1266. culturally

  1267. inappropriate way,

  1268. and people are

  1269. giving you

  1270. flack because of

  1271. that, then you

  1272. are being

  1273. persecuted for

  1274. your sake, not

  1275. for Christ's

  1276. sake.

  1277. It doesn't

  1278. say, blessed

  1279. are you when

  1280. people persecute

  1281. you for being

  1282. obnoxious.

  1283. if you're

  1284. being obnoxious,

  1285. then the

  1286. blessedness

  1287. promise doesn't

  1288. hold, doesn't

  1289. carry here.

  1290. And so what you

  1291. need to understand

  1292. and think about

  1293. that in this

  1294. nuance is you

  1295. need to put the

  1296. beginning of the

  1297. passage with the

  1298. end of the

  1299. passage together.

  1300. The beginning

  1301. says that you

  1302. will be

  1303. persecuted.

  1304. The end

  1305. says that some

  1306. people will look

  1307. at your life and

  1308. praise your

  1309. father in

  1310. heaven.

  1311. Two different

  1312. responses.

  1313. Some will

  1314. hate your guts

  1315. because of

  1316. Jesus and

  1317. some will be

  1318. attracted to

  1319. you because of

  1320. your life and

  1321. your testimony

  1322. about Jesus.

  1323. If both of

  1324. those things are

  1325. happening for

  1326. you, then you

  1327. are in the

  1328. zone.

  1329. you're in the

  1330. sweet spot.

  1331. If you

  1332. speak the

  1333. truth in an

  1334. unloving way,

  1335. there will be

  1336. persecution for

  1337. sure, but there

  1338. will not be

  1339. attraction.

  1340. If you

  1341. love people,

  1342. you will be

  1343. attractive,

  1344. but there will

  1345. be no persecution

  1346. for truth and

  1347. no one might

  1348. ever come

  1349. to faith,

  1350. to Jesus

  1351. because of

  1352. you.

  1353. If you're

  1354. always being

  1355. persecuted, but

  1356. no one comes

  1357. to faith, you're

  1358. probably being

  1359. persecuted because

  1360. of character

  1361. flaws.

  1362. If you are

  1363. never being

  1364. persecuted, if

  1365. you never get

  1366. any pushback, if

  1367. no one is ever

  1368. hostile towards

  1369. you for being a

  1370. Christian, then

  1371. you're probably

  1372. being a coward

  1373. with the

  1374. truth.

  1375. You're probably

  1376. not speaking

  1377. up.

  1378. So the

  1379. question is,

  1380. point number

  1381. two, are

  1382. you living in

  1383. the zone?

  1384. Point number

  1385. three, as a

  1386. Christian, and

  1387. I don't think we

  1388. can ever escape

  1389. this, that is,

  1390. we can never

  1391. escape the

  1392. persecution.

  1393. It's not unique

  1394. to a secular

  1395. age.

  1396. Christians are

  1397. persecuted because,

  1398. as Jesus says in

  1399. verse 11,

  1400. because of me.

  1401. Jesus has been

  1402. uniquely hated

  1403. in history.

  1404. There are

  1405. secular scholars

  1406. who acknowledge

  1407. that.

  1408. There are secular

  1409. scholars who

  1410. acknowledge that

  1411. there are New

  1412. Testament scholars

  1413. whose main goal

  1414. in being a New

  1415. Testament scholar

  1416. is to

  1417. discredit Jesus.

  1418. He has been

  1419. uniquely hated.

  1420. Why?

  1421. Because if

  1422. Jesus is

  1423. right, then

  1424. he is the

  1425. Son of God,

  1426. he is the

  1427. Lord of the

  1428. universe, he

  1429. is the judge

  1430. and saver of

  1431. all humanity,

  1432. and if he's

  1433. correct on those

  1434. things, then

  1435. you lose

  1436. control of

  1437. your life.

  1438. He is

  1439. king.

  1440. You lose

  1441. control of

  1442. your life.

  1443. We have no

  1444. alternative but

  1445. to surrender and

  1446. give ourselves

  1447. over to him, if

  1448. he's correct.

  1449. Jesus says in

  1450. John 15, if the

  1451. world hates him,

  1452. it will hate

  1453. those who follow

  1454. him, because a

  1455. servant is not

  1456. greater than his

  1457. master.

  1458. And so if

  1459. you're a

  1460. Christian, that

  1461. lot will fall

  1462. on you.

  1463. Fourthly, if

  1464. you find

  1465. yourself insulted

  1466. and persecuted

  1467. and people saying

  1468. all kinds of

  1469. false things about

  1470. you, don't

  1471. whinge about

  1472. it.

  1473. I don't think

  1474. there's any

  1475. room for self-pity

  1476. here.

  1477. It comes with

  1478. the territory

  1479. of being his

  1480. representatives.

  1481. He says here,

  1482. in the same

  1483. way, they

  1484. persecuted the

  1485. prophets before

  1486. you.

  1487. It's nothing

  1488. new.

  1489. It ought

  1490. to be

  1491. expected.

  1492. Fifthly, how

  1493. do we handle

  1494. the inevitable

  1495. difficulty of

  1496. moulding culture

  1497. in a secular

  1498. post-Christian

  1499. culture?

  1500. How do we

  1501. cope with that

  1502. flack?

  1503. How do we

  1504. cope with,

  1505. because it

  1506. will cost you,

  1507. it will cost you

  1508. your reputation,

  1509. it will cost you

  1510. a bunch of

  1511. things.

  1512. How do we

  1513. handle that?

  1514. You handle it

  1515. by looking to

  1516. Jesus and

  1517. what he has

  1518. promised.

  1519. In Philippians

  1520. 2, we are

  1521. told that

  1522. Jesus made

  1523. himself as

  1524. someone with

  1525. no reputation.

  1526. He had

  1527. glory, he

  1528. had honour,

  1529. and he became

  1530. rejected.

  1531. He was

  1532. shamed, he

  1533. was humiliated.

  1534. The cross was

  1535. the way that

  1536. you killed

  1537. someone who

  1538. you truly

  1539. despised.

  1540. It was a

  1541. dishonourable

  1542. death, and

  1543. he lost

  1544. his reputation,

  1545. and we

  1546. are saved

  1547. through his

  1548. persecution,

  1549. and his

  1550. loss of

  1551. reputation.

  1552. We are

  1553. saved through

  1554. Jesus'

  1555. shame, so

  1556. that we

  1557. will not

  1558. die in

  1559. shame.

  1560. Our names

  1561. are written

  1562. in heaven,

  1563. we will

  1564. live with

  1565. honour and

  1566. glory forever,

  1567. because Jesus

  1568. chose to

  1569. reject those

  1570. things.

  1571. I think

  1572. it means,

  1573. frankly, that

  1574. we can take

  1575. the shame

  1576. of persecution,

  1577. we can take

  1578. people thinking

  1579. that we're a

  1580. bunch of

  1581. losers and

  1582. idiots, we

  1583. can take it

  1584. when you

  1585. stick your

  1586. head up too

  1587. high, someone's

  1588. going to

  1589. want to

  1590. punch it,

  1591. we can

  1592. take it

  1593. so that we

  1594. might have

  1595. the ultimate

  1596. honour.

  1597. He took

  1598. the ultimate

  1599. shame so

  1600. that we

  1601. might have

  1602. the ultimate

  1603. honour.

  1604. societies

  1605. come and

  1606. go, and

  1607. some are

  1608. very hostile

  1609. to Christianity,

  1610. but Christians

  1611. are not

  1612. powerless, I

  1613. think that's

  1614. the point

  1615. here, it's

  1616. a sobering

  1617. message, it's

  1618. a difficult

  1619. message, but

  1620. we are not

  1621. powerless, even

  1622. when we don't

  1623. appear to have

  1624. a voice.

  1625. We have

  1626. Jesus Christ,

  1627. we have

  1628. his gospel,

  1629. his ideals

  1630. and his

  1631. power, and

  1632. Jesus is all

  1633. the salt,

  1634. all the

  1635. light that

  1636. this decaying

  1637. and dark

  1638. world needs.

  1639. And so

  1640. friends, take

  1641. courage, you

  1642. are the

  1643. salt of

  1644. the earth

  1645. if you are

  1646. living a

  1647. consistent

  1648. Christian

  1649. life.

  1650. Take

  1651. courage, you

  1652. are the

  1653. light of

  1654. the world

  1655. if you are

  1656. living a

  1657. consistent

  1658. Christian

  1659. life.

  1660. It is, I

  1661. believe, a

  1662. hopeful

  1663. message, but

  1664. a sobering

  1665. message, but

  1666. it ends

  1667. with great

  1668. joy.

  1669. Rejoice

  1670. and be

  1671. glad, because

  1672. great is your

  1673. reward in

  1674. heaven.

  1675. Amen.

  1676. Amen.

  1677. Amen.

  1678. Amen.

  1679. Amen.

  1680. Amen.

  1681. Amen.

  1682. Amen.

  1683. Amen.

  1684. Amen.

  1685. Amen.

  1686. Amen.

  1687. Amen.

  1688. Amen.

  1689. Amen.

  1690. Amen.