Introduction
I
have with me here a jigsaw puzzle of 1000 pieces. I completed it a few years
ago though I’m not a great jigsaw enthusiast. It’s of the history of this
country from the Stone Age to the present day and I did the puzzle because I
was useless at history at school and I thought this might be a good way to
learn it.
I
completed the puzzle as far as I could without looking at the image on the box.
Well, I finished it and I now know a little bit more about British history than
I did.
If
you often do puzzles, you’ll know what it feels like when you tip the pieces
out of the box onto the table. Hundreds of assorted shapes with different
colours – your heart sinks. If you haven’t studied the completed picture on the
lid of the box, it’s impossible to imagine what the individual pieces will look
like when they’re assembled but you might guess the basic theme just by looking
at the jumbled pieces.
Bits
and Pieces of Jesus
The
pieces on the table are similar to the picture the Old Testament prophets had
of Jesus when they spoke about the Messiah. The letter to the Hebrews says “God
spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but
in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son.”
Like
a jigsaw, it was in bits and pieces at the start but as the picture slowly
emerges when you join the pieces together, with Jesus we see perfectly clearly
what God is like.
Our
reading this morning speaks about this: “the prophets, who spoke of the grace
that was to come to you, [who] searched intently and with the greatest
care, [tried] to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit
of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah
and the glories that would follow.”
The
prophets saw dozens of glimpses of Jesus. One said he would be conceived by a
virgin. Another said that he would be born in Bethlehem. Another said he would
be in David’s line. Another said he would speak in parables. Another said he
would have his hands and feet pierced. Another said he be buried in a rich
man’s tomb. Still another said he would rise again from death.
Peter
Stoner, former Professor of Mathematics at Pasadena City College, did some sums
and calculated that the probability of just 8 such predictions being fulfilled
in one person is one chance in one hundred million billion (which is many times
more than the total number of people who’ve ever lived).
But
only when all these prophecies come together do we see the full picture. And
when we hold the box lid of Jesus’ life against it we see a perfect match.
Set
Apart
When
you step back and look at the completed picture, you see one like no one else.
He
only had to say “Follow me” and fishermen dropped their nets at once.
People
would travel for miles and press into crowded buildings to get anywhere near
him.
Yet
he would stop everything to give his undivided attention to one poor soul.
No
one in all history has a personality anything like his. As
John Stott said “It would be hopelessly incongruous to refer to him as ‘Jesus
the Great,’ comparable to Alexander the Great, Charles the Great, or Napoleon
the Great. Jesus is not ‘the Great,’ he is the Only. He has no peers, no rivals
and no successors.”
Jesus
stands head and shoulders above the rest. He is set apart from the crowd. And
that is what the word “holy” means; different, set apart from the rest.
Some
people don’t like the word “holy.” We sometimes associate it with weirdness.
Religious oddballs are called “Holy Joes” People who look down their noses are
called “holier than thou.”
But
Jesus wasn’t sanctimonious. He was just unlike anyone who ever breathed before
or since.
Today’s
theme is “being holy” and this is what it means; to be like Jesus, to be set
apart. When we live holy lives like Jesus people will see him in us. That’s why
the letter to the Hebrews says “Without holiness no one will see the Lord.”
There’s
a subtle temptation most Christians face from time to time – to want to fit in,
to prove that we’re just like everyone else. But we’re not. Verse 15 of our
passage says: “Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you
do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy.’”
The
former slave trader turned preacher John Newton once said to the hymn writer
William Cowper “I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I want to be. I am
not what I hope to be. But, thank God, I am not what I used to be.”
How
do you get on the path of holiness? You do what John Newton did. Firstly, he
gave up running his life and turned to Christ in faith. He wrote about his
conversion to Christ in the hymn “Amazing Grace” that we still sing today.
Secondly, he repented of his former life - he stopped working in the slave
trade and he did all he could to abolish it. He committed his life to becoming
more like Jesus.
Our
passage talks about some of the ways we live holy lives. These are the things
that God expects of you and me. I’m just going to finish very quickly with four
of them.
First,
it talks in v13 about “minds that are alert and fully sober.” Think straight.
Don’t get intoxicated with latest ideas and crazes. Our mass media relentlessly
and subtly promotes godless standards and values. Holy people don’t get sucked
into that. Holy people think differently.
Secondly,
in v14 it talks about obedience. “As obedient children, do not conform to the evil
desires you had when you lived in ignorance.” It’s saying don’t make the same
mistakes you once did when you had no thought of God or relationship with
Christ.
Thirdly,
in v17 it says “live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear.” Fear
God. That doesn’t mean you live constantly in dread of going to hell. Quite the
reverse; Jesus delivers us from that. It means something else altogether. Think
about how you’d feel if you upset someone you care for deeply. It is a healthy
thing to fear hurting someone you love. That’s what it means to fear God. And
if you really fear God, you’ll never fear anything else.
Fourthly,
in v18-19 it says “Be grateful.” Having an attitude of gratitude moves your
focus away from what you lack onto the abundance you already have.
Psychological research shows that gratitude is good for you. And look what we
have to be thankful for; “you were redeemed from your empty way of life.” Look
at the price tag; “not with… silver or gold (money gets devalued with every
economic crisis) … but with the precious blood of Christ.”
Conclusion
As I close, I want to do an experiment. This is something I came across this week.
Close your eyes and imagine with me that you have a lemon in your hand. Feel how cold it is since you just took it out of the refrigerator. Feel the shape of it. Now take a knife and cut the lemon into quarters. Careful! Don’t cut yourself. Look at the juice run down over the sides on to your fingers.
Now,
put three of the quarters down and just hold one quarter of the lemon. Now,
look at it. Lean down and smell it. Get a good, full sense of the lemon fresh
scent of it. OK, now take a big bite out of this freshly cut,
tart, yellow lemon. Imagine that lemon juice on your lips, your tongue and
your gums. You just bit into this very bitter, juicy lemon.
Right,
who feels like they have more saliva in their mouth than they did a minute a
go? How can that be? It was only pretend! The reason is because you always
react to what your mind thinks about.
So
as we fill our minds and soul with the full and glorious picture of Jesus – the
most attractive personality, the most compelling individual, the most
inspirational figure in human history, let’s be grateful that we have had the
privilege of meeting him and let’s commit ourselves afresh to be like him,
living holy lives.
Sermon
preached at Saint Mary's Long Newton, 9th February 2014
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