Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro:

30 Saints Taken Off Church List

Vatican City (AP)—Nearly 30 saints were dropped in a drastic revision of the liturgical calendar of the Roman Catholic Church.

Among those dropped were St. Christopher, patron saint of travelers and the figure in millions of St. Christopher medals; Saint Barbara, after whom countless girls have been named.

Saint Susanna, for whom the American Roman Catholic Church in Rome is named.

The new calendar was issued under a special decree titled “Paschalia Mysterii” (“Of the Paschal Mystery”) issued by Pope Paul VI.

The calendar states the deleted saints were removed from the listing because it is doubtful that they ever existed.

5145 Christmas Loses St. Nick

St. Nicholas, otherwise known as Santa Claus, has been abolished by Roman Catholic officials with one majestic sweep of forty-one saints that “may never have existed,” according to an announcement from Vatican City.

The announcement said that some of the abolished saints had attained their standing more through legend than truth and the decree was to set the record straight

Transition:

Thank the Lord that TRUE Saints endure and are never dropped from God's list--the Book of Life!

I felt lead to talk to you this morning about genuine Christian living and the impact of authentic evangelism.

Our passage this morning is from Matthew 5:3-16 a very familiar passage indeed, but a very important passage as well

3“Blessed are the poor (πτωχός humble) in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4“Blessed (μακάριος happy due to circumstance) are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

5“Blessed are the meek (πραΰς gentle), for they shall inherit the earth.

6“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

7“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

8“Blessed are the pure (καθαρός clean) in heart, for they shall see God.

9“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

10“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.

12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

13“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste/saltiness (μωραίνω - to make foolish), how shall its saltiness be restored?

It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.

14“You are the light of the world.

A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Jesus' teachings here are antithetical to how the world sees the blessed and this teaching mocks self-sufficiency which our culture so idolizes.

This following quote from Dr. McLachlan sums up the application of our passage well "The Beatitudes describe who we are as Christians; and the Salt & Light metaphor is what we should do on account of who we are.

If we really are what we are supposed to be, then we should be able to do what we are called to do"--Be Salt and Light.

Most of the following comes from the help of Dr. Douglas McLachlan

I. Authentic Living

Can Christians with the beatitude qualities really make a difference in the world? the Poor, those who mourn, the meek, the merciful, those who are persecuted--when was the last time you heard the media accredit these type of Christians?

Can we (us, here in this sanctuary) really make a lasting difference in our society, which idolizes immorality and greed and rampantly kills babies, with these seemingly powerless attributes?

But Before you're quick to answer that, first consider that Jesus never shared in this pessimism, He never doubted the intense power of the church with the Gospel, He changed outcast Jews hated by their government to victors for our Lord.

He typically uses the poor, the meek, the merciful to entrust effective service so that He is the One to receive the Glory (v.16).

Lets look at the society in which Jesus spoke these truths.

a. Living Conditions

Rome was the superpower of that known world, yet:

Morally, they were

Hedonistic

-they did whatever pleasure felt good--overate, immorality was rampant-- even in public, etc.

Spiritually, they were

Polytheistic

-many gods with many roads to some spiritual paradise

Philosophically, they were

Agnostic & Skeptical

-who can really know anything about the afterlife anyway?

In addition, they were obsessed with ungodly, horrific entertainment.

Does this first century society not sound any familiar to us?

Well, apparently 2,000yrs hasn’t changed human depravity much.

You might recall last week when Pastor told us it was during Domitian’s reign that the Apostle John, in exile at Patmos, received the vision recorded in Revelation.

And how wicked these Caesars of Rome really were (i.e.

Nero)-- I think if Christianity thrived during the times of these Caesars then Hillary and Trump should not be a real threat to us!

This proves that the Gospel is more powerful than politics and government!

Transition:

So What did these disciples do in that cultural darkness and decadence?

Did they throw their hands up in despair and say, "Well… there is nothing we can do in a society like this, no point in witnessing to these people!"--much like we tend to do? NO!

b.

Living style

First, they had to

Survive

-which wasn’t an easy task, as you know most the disciples were executed.

They didn’t just survive-- they had to

Grow

-by always sharing Christ with both individuals as well as groups.

And they grew by planting churches wherever they went, but thriving wasn't the end!

Then they went on to

Conquer

-they conquered the great Roman Empire with all its gods and caesars in the timespan of around 2 centuries by changing-converting this secular/pagan empire into the Christian Empire--known then as the Great Holy Roman Empire, and Finally they had to

Endure

-they indeed endure today since the Roman Caesars are all dead & gone, but Christ followers are still here, present with us today.

Transition:

Can Jesus do this again in the 21st Century America?

Yes, but we must be salt and light.

Christian Living is part of the light, next let's look at how to be salt: -- salt is our work

and that is the second point

II.

Authentic Work

What does salt have to do with Christian ministry?

Salt in the Bible times to early 20th century was not just for flavor (contrary to popular belief..

And contrary to the yumminess)!

With no refrigeration technologies, salt was a primary tool for preserving meats.

Meat becomes rancid when bacteria grows and the salt is to slow down the bacteria growth significantly.

a. Work Ethic

Our salt is losing its saltiness

Sodium chloride is a very stable compound and will never be anything else but salt.

Yet salt easily becomes contaminated and dissolves when watered down.

Is this not the condition of the American church--watered down?

"...but if salt has lost its saltiness--became foolish!

how shall its saltiness be restored?

The church in America has been made foolish, --please understand I am not being sacrilegious here-- but how shall its foolishness be turned to Glory?

"If we really are what we are supposed to be, then we should be able to do what we are called to do"

How do we ensure our saltiness?

Be different, be the Beatitudes and live out the commands that are for the believers in scripture

b.

Work Qualifications