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"DOING IT CHRIST'S WAY"
Part 2 of 2

A SERMON MESSAGE DELIVERED AT
LOS ALAMOS 1st UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
SUNDAY, JULY 22, 2007
by DR. DAVE RING, PASTOR

SCRIPTURE LESSON: Philippians 2:5-11 (New International Version) -- "5Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: 6Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, 7but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross! 9Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

PRAYER: "Lord Jesus, help us to continue to probe deeply this morning. Lower again our barriers of comfort. Touch us anew, Lord. Change us. Mold us more closely -- into Your likeness. Amen."

Last week, we began an exploration of one of the most profound of all scripture passages, Philippians 2:5-11, by considering the definition of a single term: the word "Christian." What does this word mean, particularly when it's applied to a human life? The answer to that question has significant implications for both the discipleship, and the witness, of any and all who would dare to embrace this unique identity: "Christian."

Last week's exploration carried us through verses 5, 6, and 7 of our text. We found that the "Christian attitude" is often strange, occasionally illogical, and regularly at odds with the prevailing customs of the world in which we presently live. And now, let's continue our message…
Back to the text: "And being found in appearance as a man, he (that is, Jesus) humbled himself..." Do you remember, when the soldiers came to arrest Jesus in the garden, how Peter angrily drew his sword and began to fight them off? And how Jesus calmed him down, noting that, if He wanted to, He could call thousands of heavenly warrior angels to His aid in an instant? The humility of Jesus is another of those attributes of "Christ likeness" that the world will never understand. It's one thing to be a doormat because that's all you're suited to being. But it's quite another to willingly humble yourself. True humility is by no means namby-pamby "wimpiness." The humility of Christ was born of power -- unlimited power, channeled and controlled in obedience to the will of the Father and out of love for humanity. Christ, our suffering servant, is not a mouse, bowing and scraping, but a true man who, knowing his strengths, willingly allows God to direct them -- for the good of others. This is the rock that the Jews stumbled upon, for they could not see behind the outward appearance of weakness to the inner strength of Jesus Christ.

For a number of years while they were growing up, my children took karate lessons. One of my son, Jonathan's, karate instructors was a man named Cliff Thomas, a five-time world champion of this martial art. On meeting Cliff Thomas for the first time, I must admit I was underwhelmed. He was basically an ordinary 35-year-old man of medium height and medium build. He seemed rather soft-spoken, and had no bulging muscles whatever. Even his hand felt soft when he shook hands with me -- I'd expected to feel lots of calluses. Put him in a business suit and he could pass for an accountant. Only one time did I ever see Cliff Thomas actually get out on the floor --and demonstrate his skill at karate. But having seen him in action just that once, I realize his true capabilities. While his students, children and adults alike, are eager to show off their kicks and their chops and their feints, the karate master doesn't need to play games. He keeps his true strength concealed -- under control. Just so, in a different realm, do those who are Christ-like, for the world will never recognize the inner strength of the Spirit of God, a strength which allows a Christian to practice true humility.
Again, back to our text: "And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death -- even death on a cross." Obedient. Obedience is something that is more and more a rarity -- not just among children, but throughout our whole society. Nobody wants to obey anybody else. We all want to be centers of absolute authority, and the ultimate result will be the disintegration of our culture into anarchy. But that's another sermon.

Obedience is a characteristic of Jesus Christ -- and of those who would be called Christ-like. Obedience to whom? First, to God -- and second, to every legitimate authority placed by God on earth, from the president of the U. S. to the local police department to the pastor of your church. Obedience to what? To the laws of God and the laws of man, including everything from not committing adultery to obeying an unpopular 35-mile per hour speed limit on Diamond Drive in Los Alamos. If Christians today were truly obedient people, we'd stand out from the crowd like basketball legend Michael Jordan at a dwarf's convention.

And ultimately, there is one specific obedience which was characteristic of Christ, and should similarly mark those who are His disciples -- the Christ-like ones of this earth. Obedience to death. Probably the most difficult thing I have understanding, as a pastor, is the unwillingness of people I know to be Christians to accept death as a part of God's normal plan for human life.

Certainly, there are deaths and there are deaths. I have problems coping with tragic deaths, premature deaths, deaths that are prolonged by suffering. But what is wrong with someone who is 85 years old, and who has known the Lord for 70 years, dying? It's not only not wrong -- it's very right. And yet I deal with Christian families virtually every week who will not allow grandmomma or granddaddy to go peacefully to their reward beyond this world. American Christians today are spending countless millions of dollars, dollars that could be better invested in improving the quality of life for those who have decades yet ahead, trying to squeeze another six months' worth of marginal existence out of ancient bodies and minds that have virtually ceased to function -- except for the skillful miracles of modern medical science.

If we really believe, as Christians, that death is but a doorway from this life into the presence of God -- why do most of us act no different from non-believers when faced with the reality of death? In saying this I know I might offend many of you. But Christians, our funeral practices are the greatest hypocrisy there is in modern-day Christianity. Virtually everything we do at funerals is a denial of the reality of death as a part of God's legitimate plan for the Christian life. When I die, please -- give my remains to a university hospital to benefit others, and hold a victory celebration for my spirit. Because that's what I'll be doing, on the other side of the doorway of death, in the Kingdom of Heaven. Obedience to death -- it's Christ-like.

Our scripture text today continues thus: "Therefore..." In one of my former churches, in El Paso, Texas, I regularly attended a Sunday School class whose teacher was a retired U. S. Army officer, Col. Dee Pettigrew. He was my Bible teacher for seven years, and I don't believe I'll ever again read a Bible verse which begins with the word, "therefore," without always thinking of him. He taught me a simple but profound wisdom. Colonel Pettigrew always said, "When you see a verse that begins with therefore -- read on, and find out what it's there for!" So let's do just that, now:

"Therefore, God exalted him to the highest place, and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

The twin subjects of this two-part message are discipleship and witness. And in a single word, it's "Christ-like-ness." It's being a Christian. Philippians 2:5-11 reveals that there's high purpose and ultimate meaning to "Doing It Christ's Way." For when we do it Christ's way, on earth -- the Word of God assures us that we will receive Christ's reward, in Heaven. Amen.

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