Rev. David Holwick Y I Believe in God, But...
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
July 23, 2017
Ephesians 2:8-10
I DON'T NEED JESUS
I. Is it enough to be religious?
A. Spirituality is popular but explicit Christianity, not so much.
1) I had previously mentioned a website that portrays the
faith and politics of movie stars.
a) Many of them described themselves as spiritual but few
wanted to pin themselves down as Christian.
b) Many people feel that faith in God and basic morality
are enough to get by.
2) I did find someone on the internet who said they were
interested in Jesus.
a) This person had a very practical approach to faith.
b) He wrote, "I don't want Jesus to be my co-pilot.
I want him to be my co-signer." [1]
c) Wouldn't we all!
B. I am sure you can be perfectly contented without Jesus.
1) Millions are.
2) Most of them are probably pretty decent people, too.
3) You don't need Jesus to be happy - you need him to be saved.
C. Being happy and nice is not the goal of our faith.
1) Christians want to have a genuine relationship with God
through his son, Jesus.
2) We want to know the goodness of God.
3) We also want to know who and what we really are, and
what we can become with the help of Jesus.
4) Jesus isn't just icing on our cake - he is the whole meal.
5) How central is Jesus to your faith?
II. People don't want Jesus because Christians don't impress them.
A. Low-commitment Christians are the worst advertisement we have.
1) Perhaps you are one of them.
a) You say Jesus is important to you, then you say
something crude or mean or selfish.
b) How do you conduct yourself when you are outside church?
2) If you see a Christian falling short, call them on it.
a) Don't make Jesus look bad.
B. We also have to work more on the positive side.
1) Let Jesus inspire you to do something noble and
world-changing.
2) Tony Campolo has had some great messages over the years on
how Christians need to stir things up.
a) Giving parties for people you don't even know.
b) Making your Christmas gift a donation to an orphanage
in Haiti.
3) We don't have to do things to earn God's favor, but when
you really know God, you should do great things that
gives God glory.
III. People don't want Jesus because they don't know who he really is.
A. His message can get lost in all our religion.
1) This week alone we have Vacation Bible School for five days,
then the Peach Festival two weeks after that.
2) There will be a lot of hustle and bustle and a maybe a
little bit of grumping. ...only a little bit.
3) Jesus can get sidelined if we are not careful.
B. There are four gospels for a reason.
1) Each of them has a different angle and unique stories.
2) But they also reinforce each other by portraying the same
man, Jesus of Nazareth.
3) How well do you know his teachings?
a) How many of them do you admire?
b) How many do you practice?
4) Spend time focusing on Jesus.
a) Think of what he taught about God and what he has
done for us.
IV. People don't want Jesus because they are satisfied with themselves.
A. They weigh themselves in a balance and come out OK.
1) Ancient Egyptians viewed salvation this way, and so do
modern Muslims. Lots of Christians, too.
2) The good in your life has to outweigh the bad, and then
you are acceptable to God.
3) Probably most Americans take the same approach.
4) When I researched this sermon I googled "I don't need Jesus"
and came up with this statement on the internet.
Her nickname is "rib-equals-woman" and she wrote:
"If I do ever stand up in front of God's judgment, ...
I'll say that I did the best I could with what heart and
mind I had... that truth and love were my highest
goals, despite the setbacks I had.
At that point, only an unfair God could condemn me, and
if it happens, I won't feel like I earned it." [2]
B. The Bible calls it "works righteousness."
1) You approach God on the basis of the good you have done.
2) The problem is that you can never be good enough.
a) Jesus himself, when someone called him a good teacher,
responded that only God is really good.
b) He wasn't denying he was good, but showing that the
human perspective takes our shortcomings too lightly.
3) We can never be righteous enough for God.
a) All humans have rebelled against God, knowingly or
unknowingly.
b) We can only be saved if we have a savior.
1> That is why Jesus came to die on a cross.
2> He had to become the sacrifice for our sins.
C. Why can't God just forgive us automatically?
1) At the same website where "rib-equals-woman" wrote, the
lead article challenges the Christian idea of
God's judgment.
The person wrote:
"From what I understand from Christians, I am "born in sin."
And then, every little thing that I have ever done wrong
is added up and, no matter what kind of good I do in
this life, this will add up to me being so
irredeemably bad that I will have to burn in
eternal torment forever.
And there is nothing I can do to make it okay with God.
Except this one thing. Which is to have Jesus save me.
But the thing is this: Either their God is a very, very,
very unloving, unkind person, or else this is
[he uses a stronger word than "baloney"].
There is nothing I have ever done that a reasonable person
would not, if I asked, forgive me for, and I can
prove it.
I have forgiven EVERYONE.
A bit more than a year ago ... I made the choice to
consciously and [literally] forgive every single person
that has ever directly or indirectly, consciously or
unintentionally caused me any hardship or pain.
It wasn't always easy to do, but I eventually did it.
Doing this has changed my life in some amazing ways.
I feel profoundly liberated.
I am without the anger and hatred that used to plague me.
So that was cool.
But it makes me think: I cannot be "bigger" than God.
Surely!
I would not send a single soul to hell, if it were up to
me.
I would try to show them why they should transform.
Why they should learn compassion.
I would do all that and I am just a normal guy on planet
earth who has had a few decades to work things out
as best he can.
I am not the eternal all-knowing creator of all things.
Who, I would think, would be a bit more wise and loving
than me.
So the bottom line is this: God is more than me.
More love, more compassion, more wisdom, more understanding,
more everything.
If God cannot forgive more than I can, then that is not
God we are talking about.
So God can forgive me and I don't need to have someone
die for my sins."
The person had given their essay this title:
"I don't need Jesus and neither do you. REALLY."
#65878
2) It is an interesting argument, but does it hold up?
a) Is my forgiving someone the same as what God does?
b) As a mere man, can I forgive Hitler for the millions
of murders he committed?
3) When I forgive, I am letting someone off the hook, but
I am not really dealing with the underlying offense.
a) God has to do this, because he is holy.
b) And his holiness is what human can't really grasp.
c) This is why we still need a savior.
V. Christmas in July.
A. Jesus wants to give you something.
1) We appreciate gifts.
a) This week I was at a meeting and we got to talking about
people who have their birthdays near Christmas.
1> One person's birthday was December 23, and another
was December 16 or something like that.
2> I wondered how it affected their gift situation.
b) Some people get around it by celebrating their December
birthday in July so there's less competition.
(none of them did this)
c) God offers you a gift that surpasses Aunt Susie's.
2) Ephesians 2:8-10 is a wonderful summary of what Jesus offers.
a) Our salvation is by grace, a gift we don't deserve.
b) We must accept it by faith.
1> But Paul is careful to point out that our faith is
not a big effort we drum up for God.
2> Even our faith is something we only have because
God enables us to have it.
c) We are not saved by works or anything we do.
1> If it was based on our efforts, I could brag about
it.
2> But I can't -- no one can.
3> Salvation is all God's doing.
3) There is a place, however, for our accomplishments.
a) As born-again Christians, God wants us to do good stuff,
great stuff.
b) But the good we do is not earning our way in, but
showing our gratitude to God for what he has done
for us.
c) All of this centers on our relationship through Jesus.
B. YOU need Jesus.
1) It is not just other people who have a problem with him.
a) Do you call yourself a Christian, but ignore him?
b) In your heart do you see yourself as a phony?
2) Have a real relationship with Jesus.
a) Talk to him.
b) Confess your sins to him.
c) Seek him every day.
d) Take his ethics and teachings seriously.
3) The early Christians knew how special Jesus is.
a) As Acts 4:12 says,
"Salvation is found in no one else, for there is
no other name under heaven given to mankind
by which we must be saved."
b) Has he saved you?
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
1. "I Need Jesus To Co-Sign," quoted by Brent Terhune but probably not
original to him; <link>.
2. “RE: I don't need Jesus and neither do you. REALLY,” Post #61, by
“ribequalswoman,” May 26, 2016; <link>.
#65878 “I Don't Need Jesus and Neither Do You,” by Forum User Id: 367499,
May 24, 2016; <link>.
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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