Many years ago, author Bruce Larson found this poem in an Atlanta, Georgia, church bulletin:
Oh, God -- The bumper sticker says "Smile if you love Jesus"
So I smiled all day long . . . And people thought I worked for the president.
The bumper sticker said honk if you love Jesus;
So I honked . . . and a policeman arrested me for disturbing the peace in a hospital zone.
The bumper sticker said wave if you love Jesus;
So I waved with both hands . . . but lost control of the car and crashed into the back of a Baptist bus.
Oh, God -- If I cannot smile . . . or honk . . . or wave . . . How will Jesus know I love Him?
IF YOU LOVE JESUS, TITHE . . . HONKING IS TOO EASY. (1)
Today we celebrate our love for Jesus. This is Christ the King Sunday. The writer of Colossians has set the mood for our celebration with this description of Christ: "He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers--all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross."
Today we talk about what Christ means in our lives. Notice the first words of our lesson. "He has rescued us from the power of darkness . . ." Some of you understand those words, don't you? You were headed down the wrong road . . . with your marriage . . . with your personal habits . . . with your attitudes, and Christ said, "About face!" And your world was transformed. "He has rescued us from the power of darkness . . ." This is a world of darkness in many ways, isn't it?
On October 20, 1988, three teenage boys in the tiny town of Carl Junction, Missouri, beat their friend to death with a baseball bat. There was no motive for their crime. They told police that they just thought it would be fun.
Where did they get such a twisted definition of fun? It may have started with the things they put into their minds. The boys admitted that they often smoked pot and listened to violent heavy-metal music. The leader of the pack also claimed that he had given his life over to Satan. He stated that Satan told him, "Just open the door once and I promise I'll never let you go." Evidently, he opened that door in his mind, and this action bore horrible fruit in the lives of many people. (2)
In many ways this is a world of darkness. Most of us are not as desperate as those three teenagers, but some of us still know about the darkness within. Something's got hold of us, something destructive, destructive to our well-being, our family, our position in the community. Something's got hold of us and won't let go.
There was an amusing story in the news several years ago about a burglary call that came in to the Oklahoma City Police Department. Officer Ronnie Allen arrived at the scene of the crime, an apartment occupied by an elderly gentleman. Officer Allen began listing the stolen items. Then the old gent made a startling statement.
"But what I'm really worried about is my one-armed orangutan," he said, "He can get downright nasty when he's not fed."
"Your what, sir?" asked Officer Allen.
"My one-armed orangutan," answered the old man. "He's only about four-
foot-six, but apes are unusually strong for their size, especially a one-armed ape.
His left arm is as strong as three men's arms."
"You had a one-armed orangutan here?" Officer Allen asked.
"Till he got stolen or ran off." said the old man. "He was here when I left.
One of these burgers was for him. He'll be angry that he didn't get his burger."
At this point, Allen didn't know if the old guy was confused, pulling his leg, or the genuine owner of a missing orangutan. But the old guy's story was confirmed when Allen heard a disturbance call from an apartment nearby. It involved some crooks who were sitting around taking inventory of the items they had just stolen from the old man's apartment. The burglars were also inhaling toxic paint fumes to get high.
Unfortunately for them, these mental giants had forced a certain one-armed orangutan, who just happened to be hanging out with them, to sniff the paint, too. The drugged-out ape had gone berserk and was wreaking havoc in the apartment. The police had to get the old man to talk the orangutan out so that the burglars could give themselves up to police without being torn apart. (3)
Drug addicts often use the term, "the monkey on my back." Maybe it would be helpful if we visualized sin as a one-armed orangutan hanging over our back. It's got hold of us and won't let go. Somewhere, somehow, we got ourselves into an unhealthy situation that we can't figure a way out of.
Darkness. Do you know what the Scripture is talking about? I hope you don't, but the truth is that many people do know what it's all about. "He has
rescued us from the power of darkness," says our text, "and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
Is there any more blessed word in our vocabulary than the word "forgiven?" You hurt your spouse, but somehow she forgave you. You hurt your parents, but somehow, out of their great love for you, they forgave you. You hurt God, but there is a cross on a hill called Calvary, that says you are forgiven. Somebody has put it into a little equation, 1 cross + 3 nails = 4given.
Nicholas Green was seven years old when he was shot in the head and killed by highway robbers while visiting Italy with his family in 1994. It would have been understandable for Nicholas's parents to be outraged and bitter. But instead, to honor their son's life and assure that his death was not in vain, they donated his organs to Italian children. As shocked as the world was by the violent and tragic death of the young boy, his parents' compassion, generosity and forgiveness was even more overwhelming. The gesture brought praise from around the world. (4)
Every once in a while you will hear about a condemned murderer being executed in our country. Among those who witness such executions are often the family members of the condemned murderer's victims. The justification is that this will help them find closure. I wonder if it does. Now I admit, I can't even imagine the pain of a person whose family member has been deliberately murdered. I honestly don't know what my feelings toward the person who did it would be. I would hope, though, I would find my closure in the same way the parents of Nicholas Green did.
Forgiveness--what a powerful force in our world. "He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." There are so many families in which forgiveness needs to be practiced.
Pastor Peter Lewis and his wife Valerie were reading through the love messages published in their local paper on Valentine's Day. They came across a touching note from some adult children to their parents. The message was short and sweet. It read: "The rebels failed, for our Utopia was the home we fought to leave."
Imagine the joy and pride those parents felt when they read this message. "The rebels failed, for our Utopia was the home we fought to leave." We can imagine the struggles that took place between the rebellious children, eager to get out of the house and start making their own rules, and the anxious parents who kept a close eye on them. And now that the children are adults, they start to appreciate the rules and boundaries their parents placed on them. And so they send this message of gratitude to bring closure to those rebellious years. "The rebels failed, for our Utopia was the home we fought to leave." (5) But that is a message humanity could nail to the cross of Calvary: "The rebels failed, for our Utopia was the home we fought to leave." The author of Colossians put it this way: "He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved son."
Then the writer adds these crowning words: "He is the image of the invisible God . . ." Here is why we celebrate Christ the King. No longer do we have to ask what God is like. God has shown us His image in Jesus Christ. Just as importantly, we now know what godly people look like--they look like Jesus.
There is a story in Mary Hollingsworth's book, Fireside Stories, about a man whom the author calls Rick. This is not his real name, but the story is true. Rick lives in the southern U.S. where Mary Hollingsworth and her pastor-husband were serving in the 1970s. Rick was a big, burly kind of guy who drove a cross-country truck, chewed tobacco, and hit home runs on the softball team. However, he rarely made it to church services or participated in the more spiritual aspects of church life. But some friends told Rick they needed his help putting on a play at church for Vacation Bible School.
When they first asked him to get involved in the drama, Rick declined saying, "That's just not my bag." However, after some arm twisting, he reluctantly agreed. Interestingly, Rick was to play Jesus. Rick had a only a nodding acquaintance with Christ at the time.
The first time Mary Hollingsworth, who had written the play, saw Rick in his Jesus costume, she almost laughed in his face because it seemed so out of character for him. Still, at that point, he appeared to be taking his job quite seriously; so she contained herself and congratulated him on his unusual interpretation of the role.
When Vacation Bible School week finally arrived, Rick played his role to the hilt, yelling in his Southern accent at the money-changers to "Git outta here! . . .You cain't turn my Father's house inta a den a'thieves, ya hear? So, jist git out, and don't chew come back . . . evah!" Then he proceeded to destroy the temple by throwing over the tables of the moneychangers (he actually enjoyed this part) and tossing the crooks out into the street. It was more like a TV cop show than a Bible story . . . but the kids got the point.
"As planned, twice every night for four nights Rick donned his Jesus suit and cleansed the temple of insincere people. And the children loved it! They voted this story to be one of the best of the whole week.
"The best part of the story, though, came after Vacation Bible School. Somehow, acting like Jesus for several weeks had a lasting effect on Rick. He began coming to the church services a little more often. He even started coming to the midweek Bible study and staying for fellowship events. But the most powerful impact on him came from the young children at the church who, for weeks and months after VBS, would point at Rick and whisper, "Look! There's Jesus!"
"Before long, the big, burly truck driver no longer chewed tobacco, drank beer, or played hooky from church. He and his wife began team teaching Sunday School classes, hosting youth activities, and leading teens on mission trips. He organized a youth softball team at the church and served as coach. And, after a few years, was chosen as a deacon to serve in the youth ministry. In short," says Mary Hollingsworth, "he stopped ACTING like Jesus and began LIVING like Jesus." (6)
That can happen in a person's life. Jesus reveals God to us. He also reveals how a godly person is to live. All of this is part of why Christ came into the world. "He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God . . ." Are you still walking in darkness? Christ says to you, "About face!" Come out into the light. Come into Christ's kingdom through the forgiveness of your sin. Begin living like Jesus.
1. What God Wants to Know by Bruce Larson, Chapter 4 - "Who Will Go for Us, " p. 47.
2. Lewis B. Smedes. A Life of Distinction (Colorado Springs, CO: Shaw Books, 2002), pp. 121-122.
3. Daniel Butler and Alan Ray, Wanted Dumb or Alive: 100 New Stories from the Files of America's Dumbest Criminals (Nashville: Rutledge Hill Press, 1996).
4. Put Your Best Foot Forward by Jo-Ellen Dimitrius and Mark Mazzarella, Scribner, New York, 2000, p. 49.
5. Peter Lewis. The Lord's Prayer: On Our Knees and in His Arms (Chicago: Moody Press, 1998), p. 79.
6. Mary Hollingsworth, Fireside Stories (Nashville: Word Publishing 2000), pp. 162-164.