Sunday's Message: Being the Church in a Challenging World (The Church Follows)

The First Letter of Peter was written to a church which was confronting certain challenges that it neither chose nor wanted. You see, they were living within a society that didn't share their focus and faith; therefore, they were facing the temptation to compromise what they believed, a situation that seems very similar to what we face as we try to be the church of Jesus Christ within a society that doesn't understand our fundamental values and motivation. And that's the reason we'll look at what Peter had to say about how Christians might be the church in a challenging world. 

• The Church Praises (1 Peter 1:3-9) - April 16
• The Church Remembers (1 Peter 1:17-23) - April 23
• The Church Grows (1 Peter 2:2-10) - April 30
• The Church Resists (1 Peter 2:11-17) - May 7
• The Church Follows (1 Peter 2:19-25) - May 14
• The Church Endures (1 Peter 4:12-14: 5:6-11) - May 21

During the fifth message in this series, we used 1 Peter 2:19-25 to consider how, when faced with a challenging world, the church can follow Jesus Christ. Below is a copy and recording of the sermon. Next Sunday morning, you can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel at 10:00 a.m.

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Of course, today is Mother’s Day. And I personally know that because yesterday we had the Mother’s Day tea in the Fellowship Hall, something to which I wasn’t invited. And just a minute ago, we heard Garth Brooks sing about how special mothers are. And although Maggie wasn’t able to come home, she ordered three presents for Debbie that are sitting on the table behind the sofa, and later this afternoon we’ll open them. And I’ve got to tell you, it really takes a load off my shoulders now that Maggie is old enough to do that kind of thing for her mom on Mother’s Day, because it wasn’t all that long ago when she wasn’t. And I can tell you from my own experience, that when the mother of your child asks you what you got for her on Mother’s Day, you better not say, “Nothing, you’re not my mother.” Although, I’ve got to admit, when I said it back about twenty years ago, to her credit, Debbie didn’t say a thing...for hours and hours and hours. Let’s just say, Mother’s Day is a big deal, especially for mothers.

But I’ve to tell you, for me, well, it’s more a time to remember than to celebrate, because my mom passed away about three and half years ago. And so, for the last few days I’ve been thinking about mom a lot. Now, I believe she was about as close to a stereotypical, 1960s mother as you could get. I mean, although trained as a nurse, she chose to be a stay-at-home mom for me and my sister and brother. Her focus was always on her home and family. And one of the things I could count on was that every day, when I got home from school, mom had some homemade cookies or brownies or gingerbread just waiting, something that, of course, I didn’t appreciate at the time. I still cringe when I remember how I asked her why we couldn’t have Oreos or Twinkies or Zingers like all the other kids. Yeah boy. But you know, even though in a lot of ways she sort of fit the Laura Petrie model for mothers, in a lot of other ways she didn’t. My gosh, often she was the emotional rock for the family, especially when we faced some special challenge. For example, I remember back when I was eleven, I had a pretty bad accident on my bicycle that ended up requiring about 30 stitches. And while my dad was in a panic, mom handled it in the same way she seemed to handle everything: calmly, rationally and with enormous compassion. Now that was my mom, and today I remember and miss her.

And you know, all this is related to what we’re going to talk about this morning, you know, how we can be the church when faced with the challenges posed by the world. In fact, that’s what we’ve been looking for the last four weeks. And during that time, we’ve talked about how, when confronted by certain values and assumptions held by a lot of folks within our society, we can stand up as the Body of Christ by praising God for what he’s done and for what praise can do for us and by remembering that we’ve been both rescued and redeemed by God. We’ve also looked at how we can stand firm by intentionally growing in our determination and dedication as well as our understanding and unity and by resisting the temptation to deny our identity and to ignore our purpose and to neglect our responsibility as the Body of Christ. Now this is what we’ve done.

And we’re going to continue our discussion this morning by talking about how, when faced by a challenging world, the church can follow. And as we’ve already done four times, we’ll use another passage from Peter’s first letter  to figure out what this following business is all about so that, by the end of our time together, we’ll have a better idea about why we follow and whom we follow and how we follow.

For example, first, if we’re serious about being the church in a challenging world, I think we need to know why we should follow, in other words, why we should be willing to follow something other than ourselves or the values and assumptions often shown within our society, why is this something important for the church to do. And you know, I think Peter explains that in what he wrote right at the beginning of our passage. I mean, “to God’s people who are scattered like foreigners in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,” [1 Peter 1:1b, CEV] he said this:

God will bless you, even if others treat you unfairly for being loyal to him. You don’t gain anything by being punished for some wrong you have done. But God will bless you, if you have to suffer for doing something good. [1 Peter 2:19-20, CEV]

Now that’s what he wrote.

And in my opinion, that’s the reason we need to be really intentional in who and what we choose to follow. I mean, the world is constantly trying to define who we are and what we believe. In fact, and this should come as a surprise to no one, there are plenty of people who want to use the church and the Christian faith to promote their agendas and to demonize their enemies and to sell whatever product or person they want us to buy. And so they take the Word of God and cherry pick verses and passages that seem to support their ideas while dismissing and distorting those which don’t. In other words, they want us to conform ourselves to their image, something a lot of Christians end up doing because either they don’t know any better or it’s a whole lot easier just to go with the flow. Good night nurse, let’s get real, those who decide to run with the crowd, man, they don’t have to deal with the pressure and the opposition, the ridicule and the condemnation, the emotional stress and sometimes even the physical abuse that those who don’t conform may end up facing in a secular society, and I’m talking about one that, as it pushes it’s values and assumptions, says to the church, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” No, as we talked about last week, there’s a price when we resist the tug of the world. But in spite of that, there’s certainly a pretty powerful benefit to doing this, a benefit to turning off a lot of the noise with which we’re bombarded and seeking out someone better to follow and here it is: God’s going to bless us. You see, even when we’re treated unfairly, God’s going to bless us. And even when we end up suffering for doing something that’s right and good, God is going to bless us. I’ll tell you, it’s just like Peter will say near the end of this letter:

But God shows undeserved kindness to everyone. That’s why he appointed Christ Jesus to choose you to share in his eternal glory. You will suffer for a while, but God will make you complete, steady, strong, and firm. God will be in control forever! Amen. [1 Peter 5:10-11, CEV]

You see, in the face of a world that wants us to conform, God will bless us if we follow. And that’s why we do it, the first thing I think the church needs to know.

But even though it’s important, I don’t believe that just knowing “why” is enough. You see, if we’re serious about being the church in a challenging world, second, I think we also need to know whom we should follow. I mean, if we’re not supposed to just buy into whatever we’re being sold, we really need to have some alternatives. And even though I’ve got a gut feeling that everybody here this morning knows the one about whom I’m talking, let’s still listen to what Peter wrote so that we might better understand who he actually is and what he actually did. You see, continuing what he just said, Peter wrote this:

After all, God chose you to suffer as you follow in the footsteps of Christ, who set an example by suffering for you.

Christ did not sin

    or ever tell a lie.

Although he was abused,

    he never tried to get even.

And when he suffered,

    he made no threats.

Instead, he had faith in God,

    who judges fairly.

Christ carried the burden

    of our sins.

He was nailed to the cross,

so we would stop sinning

    and start living right.

By his cuts and bruises

    you are healed. [1 Peter 2:21-24, CEV]

Now, that’s what Peter wrote.

And like I said, it’s really not a shocker that God chose us so that we could follow in the footsteps of Christ even though that’s going to result in suffering. But Peter didn’t just offer us a name, something a lot of folks out in the world are always dropping to convince us that the nonsense they’re peddling is Christian; he also explained exactly what Christ did that makes him worth following. You see, in spite of what he faced, he kept his focus. I mean, in spite of all the abuse, he didn’t sink to the level of his abusers. And even though he suffered at their hands, he didn’t seek revenge or make threats. Instead he kept his focus and trusted in God. And as a result, he did exactly what he came to do: Christ carried the burden of our sins. He was nailed to the cross, so we would stop sinning and start living right. [1 Peter 2:24, CEV] You see, he suffered and died for us, because it was through his suffering and his death on the cross that we were set free from the burden, the guilt, the shame that comes from the sin we carry with us from the past. And through that freedom, he’s given us the opportunity to live a life that’s good and holy and righteous. Now that’s what Jesus has already done. And I’ll tell you, it’s almost the exact same thing Peter wrote about in the third chapter of this letter. Just listen to what he said:

Christ died once for our sins.

An innocent person died

    for those who are guilty.

Christ did this

    to bring you to God,

when his body

    was put to death

and his spirit

    was made alive. [1 Peter 3:18, CEV]

You see, in spite of the abuse and in spite of the suffering, Jesus Christ kept his focus on God and as a result, he did exactly what he came to do: he gave us freedom from the past and a genuine choice as we look to the future. I’m telling you, he’s the one whom we follow, and as it faces the challenges thrown up by the world, that’s the second thing I think the church needs to know. 

But you know, even that’s not enough, because when it comes to being followers, we may understand the “why” and we may understand the “whom” until the cows come home, but if we’re really serious about being the church in a challenging world, third, we also need to know how we should follow. And when you think about it, man, this just makes sense.I mean, it’s all well and good to decide that we’re willing to suffer for doing what’s right because that’s exactly what Jesus Christ did, but let’s get real, the rubber hits the road when we begin to understand how we can actually do it. And I’ll tell you, even though it’s only one verse and at first glance it might seem a little vague, I think Peter offers us some real direction right at the end of our passage. I mean, after telling us why and whom we should follow, he wrote this:

You had wandered away

    like sheep.

Now you have returned

    to the one

who is your shepherd

    and protector. [1 Peter 2:25, CEV]

Now that’s what he wrote.

And like I said, at first glance, this seems vague, at least it does for me, but let’s unpack it a little bit. You see, I believe Peter was encouraging them and is encouraging us simply to repent. Now, having said that, I recognize that I don’t spend a lot of time talking about repentance, because frankly, I believe the word is often used to scare people into salvation, you know, that if you don’t repent, you’re going to Hell in a handbasket. Now, in my experience, that’s often how the word is used, but I’ll tell you, that’s really not what it means. You see, repentance simply means turning one’s attention from one thing to another, from something that’s bad to something that’s good. In a sense, it’s like changing your mind, which is literally what it means in Greek. And right here, that’s what Peter is challenging us to do, isn’t it? He’s telling us to stop wandering off like sheep and return to the shepherd, you know, the one who is also our protector. And you know, when you think about it, it’s when we return, man, that’s when our lives truly change. I mean, rather than being wanderers, we become followers. And as such, not only are we looking to the shepherd for guidance, we’re also willing to follow him forward, even if that might mean facing some abuse and suffering. And I’ll tell you, that was the kind of life-style I think Peter had in mind when he wrote this:

Can anyone really harm you for being eager to do good deeds? Even if you have to suffer for doing good things, God will bless you. So stop being afraid and don’t worry about what people might do. Honor Christ and let him be the Lord of your life.

Always be ready to give an answer when someone asks you about your hope. Give a kind and respectful answer and keep your conscience clear. This way you will make people ashamed for saying bad things about your good conduct as a follower of Christ. You are better off to obey God and suffer for doing right than to suffer for doing wrong. [1 Peter 3:13-17, CEV]

And so, claiming the freedom and opportunity we have in Christ, we’ve been challenged to repent, to turn from a life of wandering and confusion and to turn to a life with focus and purpose, one that’s grounded in the example left to us by Jesus Christ. You see, that’s how we should follow him, and that’s the third thing I believe the church needs to know. 

And you know, it just seems right to be talking about this on Mother’s Day, the one time each year when we remember and celebrate those women who offered us an example that we can follow, because I believe that’s exactly what Peter challenges us to do. You see, we’ve been called to be followers. And we know why; we follow because we believe that’s what God wants us to do, and he’ll bless us when we do it. And we certainly know whom; we follow Jesus Christ, the one who died to set us free. And we even know how; we follow when we repent, when our lives reflect a turning from and a turning to. I’m telling you, in the face of a challenging world, the church follows.