CONFESS CHRIST FEARLESSLY

July 9, 2017

Pastor Mark F. Bartels

Old Testament Lesson; Jeremiah 20:7-13

Epistle Lesson; Romans 5:12-15

Sermon Text; Matthew 10:24-33

The text we are going to look at today is taken from Matthew, chapter ten, verses 24 through 33. This is in our Savior's name. This is Jesus speaking.

“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor is a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher and the servant like his master. If the master of the house was called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household! So do not be afraid of them, because there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, and nothing hidden that will not be made known. What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops. Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, fear the One who is able to destroy both soul and body in Hell.

“Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground without the knowledge and consent of your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.

“Everyone who confesses me before others, I will also confess before my Father who is in Heaven. But whoever denies me before others, I will also deny before my Father who is in Heaven.”

These are your words, Heavenly Father. Lead us in the way of truth. Your Word is truth.

Amen

What would happen if all of a sudden, right here in this room, there was a big, giant snake? I can tell you what would happen to me. I am afraid of snakes. I would surge with fear! And, depending upon where that snake was, I would either run as fast as I could, or if it had me cornered, I would fight, as hard as I could. Or, maybe if I was far enough away, and one of you were closer, I just might act paralyzed, hoping it might see you instead of me.

'Fear' is a basic, instinctive, emotion that comes to us. It is an unpleasant emotion, when we feel as though something is threatening us or we are in danger. Fear causes us to react to protect ourselves in generally in one of three ways.

       -Either we go into flight mode, and run away from it, trying to get away from the danger.

       -Or, we fight. We go into fight mode, and try to get rid of whatever is causing the danger.

       -Or, we get paralyzed. We do nothing, and hope the danger goes away.

Today we are going to talk about 'fear'. It is something everybody here struggles with, particularly in one area of our lives. There is a primary reason why you and I are still here on this earth as Christians. The primary reason we are still here is to go and make disciples. That is it. Jesus said,

“Go therefore,

and make disciples of all nations.”

My reason, one of my primary reasons, for being here is to tell other people about Jesus. It is great we all go to church, and we are fed with God's Word. But, why do we learn The Word? Why do we hear about Jesus, beyond our own salvation?

It is so we can tell other people about Jesus.

Why is it so hard for us to tell other people about Jesus? Why is it so hard to talk about our faith? Why is it so hard to bring up the topic of religion? Did you know, when Christians are asked, “Why don't you evangelize?” “Why don't you talk to people about your faith?” “Why don't you talk about Bible subjects with your friends?” “Why don't you invite people to church?”

Do you know what the number one reason is? It is 'fear'. 'Fear'. What are we afraid of? We are afraid of what people are going to think. “What are they going to think, if I talk to them about their particular situation in life?” “What are they going to think, if I invite them to church?” “What are they going to think, if I talk about Jesus?” “What are they going to think, if I talk about sin?” “What if they think I am stupid?” “What if, when we start talking about creation, they tell me I am dumb to believe that?” “What if we start talking about homosexuality, and I tell them I believe it is wrong, and they tell me I am bigoted, and hateful?” “What if we get into a debate, and I don't know what to say?” “What if they think I am arrogant?” “What if they think, 'Wow! You believe Christians are the only ones going to Heaven?'” “What if they laugh at me?” “What if they revile me (that means they really harshly criticize me)?” “What if they don't invite me over, any more, or invite my kids over, anymore?” What if now it is awkward for me to see my neighbor, because I talked to my neighbor about coming to church?” “What if it is hard for me to get together with family members, because I talk to them about the importance of being in church, God and His Word?”

It is 'fear' that can cripple us from carrying out one of our primary, primary reasons for being here.

Jesus, in our Scripture reading, addresses that very issue, head on. The context of today's scripture reading is this. Jesus had just told His twelve disciples, “I am sending you out to the surrounding villages, to tell them about the coming Kingdom.”

So, they were going to go out, and they were going to start to witness their faith, and talk about Jesus. Jesus knew the disciples were just like us. 'Fear' is the primary reason why it is so hard for us to talk about our faith, to talk about the Bible, and to invite people to church.

So, I want you to see what Jesus does. He gives us five reasons, five reasons not to be afraid,

       -not to be afraid to talk about your faith,

       -not to be afraid to talk about Bible topics,

       -not to be afraid to lovingly talk to a family member who maybe strayed away.

Here are the five reasons.

       -Number one, He says,

“A disciple is not above his teacher,

nor a servant above his master.

It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher

and the servant like his master.

If the master of the house was called Beelzebub,

how much more the members of his household!”

I like how Martin Luther put it. He just cut to the chase, when he said, “If they crowned Jesus with thorns, don't expect them to crown you with roses.”

“If they crowned Jesus with thorns,

don't expect them to crown you with roses.”

There really is a gut check moment all of us to ask ourselves. “Why am I a Christian?” “Why do I say I am a disciple of Jesus, and He is my Teacher? He is my Master.”

Here is the reason, when you get right down to it. It is because if Jesus isn't your Master, if Jesus isn't your Teacher, then you have a different master.

That master is sin.

If sin is your master, you still have guilt. If you still have guilt, you still have the punishment coming, and you are under the power of sin. So, if Jesus isn't your Master, you are headed straight to Hell, and the life you live here on this earth (I am just going to say it) is a worthless life of sin. That's it.

Why is Jesus your Master? Because you don't want to be under the mastery of sin.

Jesus is the only One

who has the authority over sin.

He gained that authority by coming here to this earth, living in your place, and then living a holy, sinless, perfect life. He never sinned! He has power over sin, and all of its attempts to pull us down.

And then, Jesus died on the cross to pay for your sin. That is what Jesus did.

He is the only One

who has the authority to take away the guilt.

He forgives you. He takes away the punishment. You are not going to Hell, because of what Jesus did for you.

And, He took away the dominion of sin, so that now you can begin to live for God, and live a productive life, here on this earth.

Now, think about what it cost Jesus to do that. Jesus loves you so dearly that He came to this earth for you. He lived the best life, the most loving life. He spoke the truth in love. He was concerned about every soul He came across, every single one, including yours.

And, how did they treat Him?

-Well, His own family thought He was out of His mind.

-His hometown tried to throw Him over a cliff, and kill Him.

-The religious teachers didn't like to hear about their sin, and salvation through forgiveness. So, they tried to trap Jesus in His Word. For example, when He healed someone of demon possession, they claimed He did it by Beelzebub. That was a nasty way of referring to the devil. They said, “He just does it by the power of the devil.” So, they reviled Him.

Ultimately, Jesus loves you so much He was willing to undergo all of that for you, including a crown of thorns, mockery, shame, and death on a cross. He did it for us. He is my Master. Look at what He did for me. Jesus says, “If that is how they treated me, and you go out and talk about Jesus, do you think you are going to be treated any differently?” He said,

“It is enough for the disciple to be like His Teacher

and the servant like His Master.”

“It is enough, it is enough for a servant to be treated like a master.” In other words, Jesus is saying it is an honor. Think about what Jesus was willing to go through for you. He is your Master, and it is an honor, if you are mistreated, if you are reviled, if you are laughed at. What did the disciples do, when they were persecuted for Christ's sake? They rejoiced they were counted worthy of suffering for the name of Christ.

       So, number one, remember you are not above your Teacher. He suffered for you. It is an honor to suffer for Him, (not that we look for it), but if it happens, it is an honor.

       Number two, He says,

“ So do not be afraid of them,

because there is nothing concealed

that will not be revealed,

and nothing hidden

that will not be made known.”

Right now, if

       -you talk to somebody about your faith,

       -or you try to live a Christian life, which means you stay away from things that people may be inviting you to do,

       -you aren't involved in conversations you know are wrong,

       -you lovingly try to point out what is right, and what is wrong,

       -you invite someone to church,

people may look at you, (and this really might happen), and they may think, “How crazy. How crazy to be a Christian.” “How dumb. “How stupid. They can't have any fun.” “They think they are the ones who know how to get to Heaven.”

But, Jesus says there is nothing that happens in secret that won't be revealed. He is pointing forward to The Last Day. He is telling us, “Some day, just remember that someday, even though right now you may look crazy, and stupid, when you try to talk about your faith, someday the whole world is going to see you weren't so crazy.”

I like how Martin Luther put it. “Meanwhile, Christians who are baptized into Christ's name must keep still, and must put up with being trampled upon, and must still be patient. For in this life of believing, it is Christ's Will to appear small, but in the life of seeing, that is when finally Judgment Day comes, He will not be small. He will be very great. Then, Christ will show He saw the suffering of His people. He heard their cries. His Will was inclined towards them to help them. He had the power to help them. Now, Christ hides His good Will, and His power, and His strength. But, when He appears, He will reveal His Will, and power, and strength. He could help, and save now. Christ has the power to do it, nor does He lack the Will, but it is all concealed in His Word, so that we can't see it with our eyes now, but we take hold of it by faith.” Someday it will be evident, evident to the world, that Christ is LORD. So, don't be afraid.

       Number three, Jesus says,

“Do not fear those who kill the body,

but cannot kill the soul.

Rather, fear the One who is able to destroy

both soul and body in Hell.”

What is the worst someone could do to you, if you talk about Jesus? The worst they could do to you is kill you. Can you think of anything that somebody could do, other than that? Maybe you could. Maybe mockery, or whatever. But, the absolute worst thing that could ever happen to you is you would be condemned for eternity, body and soul, in Hell.

Can anybody do that to you? Can your neighbor condemn you for eternity in Hell? Can your family members do that? Could somebody at work do that? There is only one Person who could do that, and that is God. Jesus says,

“Do not fear, don't fear the one who can kill your body.

Fear the One who can destroy body and soul in Hell.”

Our goal is not to please other people. That is not the goal. I want to please the LORD. He is the One I want to please. So, Jesus is saying, “Don't be afraid. Don't be afraid. The worst they can do is, they can kill you.”

What did Luther say?

“Take they our goods, fame, child, and life.

Let these all be gone.

They yet have nothing won.

The Kingdom, ours remainith.”

       The fourth reason Jesus says not to fear, when it comes to witnessing your faith, is

“Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin?

Yet, not one of them will fall to the ground

without the knowledge and consent of your Father.

And even the hairs of your head are all numbered.

So, do not be afraid.

You are worth more than many sparrows.”

Sherri loves birds. She has bird feeders all around our house, particularly in our backyard. It is a bird sanctuary. We get all kinds of really unique birds that come. Yesterday, I did not have my glasses on, and thought there was a really cool bird that landed on the bird feeder I got all excited, and then put my glasses on and said, “Oh, it is just a sparrow.”

Just a sparrow.

To us, sparrows aren't very important. Jesus said, “You can buy two sparrows for a small coin.” What was He saying? To you and me, the sparrows are pretty much worthless, little birds. But, Jesus said, “Not a sparrow, not a sparrow falls out of a tree without the Will and consent of your Father in Heaven.” God loves those (to us) worthless, little sparrows so much that He knows where they live, what they eat, where they sleep, and when they fall. He knows everything about them.

And then, Jesus said,

“You are worth more than many sparrows.”

If a sparrow is worth a half a penny, what are you worth to God? How much did He pay for you?

How much did He pay?

       -It wasn't a penny.

       -It wasn't all of the money in the checkbook.

       -It wasn't all the silver and gold in the world.

       -It wasn't all the gems in the world.

He paid the absolute highest price He possibly could pay.

That was the blood of His own dear Son.

Jesus is saying, “If God, the Father, watches over every, little sparrow, worth half of a penny, and you are worth the blood of God's own Son, He is with you, and watching over you. So, don't be afraid. Don't be afraid, no matter what happens. He is with you. He knows what He is doing. He even has the very hairs of your head numbered. That is how intimately He knows you.”

       The fifth reason not to be afraid to share our faith. Verse 32, Jesus said,

“Everyone who confesses me before others,

I will also confess before my Father,

who is in Heaven.

But whoever denies me before others,

I will also deny before my Father,

who is in Heaven.”

Ultimately, whose approval am I looking for? Is it the ultimate thing, if I finally get the approval of my kids? Or, I finally get the approval of the people in high school? Or, I finally get the approval of everybody in the office, and the boss? Or, I get the approval of my neighbor? None of any of that compares than to hear Jesus say,

“Whoever confesses me before men,

I will confess him before my Father in Heaven.”

That is the only approval that ultimately, ultimately in the end matters. The approval of Christ, the approval of the One who purchased me, won me, bought me, loves me, forgives me, gives me eternal life, forgives me everyday is the One that matters.

Then, Jesus said,

“But, whoever denies me before others,

I will deny before my Father

who is in Heaven.”

I will tell you, that little Bible verse, right there, reminds me of how much I still need the cross. I need the cross, because the fact is we are sinful people. Aren't there times when we have, in a sense, denied Christ? We had the opportunity. It was right there. I could have told somebody about Jesus. I could have invited them to church. The 'table was set' to talk about somebody's faith life, or to talk about some really important social issue that scripture deals with, but I backed away, or I fled the situation, or I was paralyzed, and I didn't say anything.

It has happened to me. I know it has happened to you. We need the cross. Thank God we have the cross. We have a Jesus who is not ashamed of us, a Jesus who forgives us all of our sins, freely, fully, completely. And, knowing that, motivates us to say, “Jesus, Jesus. I want to tell others about you. I want to talk about my faith. I want to talk to my family members. I want to talk to my neighbors. I want to invite people to church. I am afraid, so please forgive me. Forgive me, and help me overcome my fears.”

Amen