The Change of my face at Grace--message form

Press Record on recording device.

I had my idea of what I wanted to present today and began to prepare along those lines, but something took place to get me thinking in another direction.  The more I thought about it, the more I realized that this new twist was a better reflection of God’s grace in my life as a result of the collective impact all of you have had on me these three short years.  I came here as one person; I feel as if I’m graduating another—at least in terms of my outward appearance and manifestation of what God has placed in me.

So, the title of the message I want to present in honor of all of you this morning is The Change of my face at Grace.

About a month ago, I was sitting in Dr. Peugh’s office in conversation with him about our latest exploits.  He had just returned from a trip to Germany where he and his family had ministered for so many years as a missionary to that war-torn land.  We talked about that for quite a while, and then he told me:

“This is totally off the subject, and maybe you’ll be surprised by my question; but perhaps you won’t be.   I’ve been thinking and praying for over a month about something, and I want to start by asking you if there is any significance behind your beard.”  I was not surprised by his question.  I’ve been asked that several times, and my answer is always the same, but I was a little surprised that the question was coming from Dr. Peugh at that moment. 

So I told him the story, which is basically, one day hair just started growing like a weed, all over my body. I figured God put Adam in the garden to cultivate it, so I figured he must have put me in a hairy body for the same reason.  [It wasn’t long before I discovered that the hair on my chin grew out in many different colors compared to the rest of the hair on my head, and so about 10 years ago, when I decided to go with the hairstyle that I have today, I began to grow a goatee to match.  I kept it pretty short for many years, but before I came to Grace, I decided I wanted to wear it long.]  I thought my goatee fit me personally and was a kind of outward expression of who I am on the inside.  It’s hard to know the ways people might interpret it, but I have always thought that to be outside the realm of my control.

But we had been meeting together over the course of several weeks, and one of the areas that we repeatedly covered is my desire to be effective in loving people in the same way I have discovered God’s love for me.  (i.e.—God loves me this way; I love others that way.)  I can’t make growth and relationship happen, but there are certain things I can do to facilitate openness on both sides.  But my fear and trembling part as I continue working out my salvation is that people who are looking for spiritual guidance would not see enough evidence on the outside to justify the confidence they place in me as a spiritual leader. 

They may perceive in some way that I have a legitimate connection with God, but in their eyes, the expression of that love for others is lacking.  I don’t want to walk in fear; I want to walk in faith, so I’ve been meeting with Dr. Peugh in order to discover more steps I can take in that direction.

So I told him the story.  I just grew it, because I liked how it looked. 

Then he asked, “Have you considered the possibility that your beard might present a barrier between others and the message God wants to communicate to them through you?  I know you, and I know your character, but it’s very possible that others may withdraw or close up inside because they falsely interpret from your outward appearance that you are angry at them or mean to intimidate them.” 

Well, it was not as if the thought had not occurred to me before.  I have a friend who corresponds well with me in terms of his willingness to share personal opinions.  In the past he has made observations about my beard interfering with his ambitions for my life, so I never gave them careful thought.  But I knew that Dr. Peugh was considering things from a different light.  “Had I considered the possibility that my preference for such an unusual amount of facial hair might close off even one opportunity to communicate God’s love to others?”  I didn’t know.  But I was open to change if that was what God wanted of me.  And that I would have to know before I shaved.

But it was the third time that morning that I had been called to consider the essence of Paul’s message to the Corinthians.  He writes about true freedom when he says:

NET 1 Corinthians 9:19-22  For since I am free from all I can make myself a slave to all, in order to gain even more people. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew to gain the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) to gain those under the law. 21 To those free from the law I became like one free from the law (though I am not free from God's law but under the law of Christ) to gain those free from the law. 22 To the weak I became weak in order to gain the weak. [To those having no facial hair, I became as one of them (even though I myself am free to sport a goat.)] I have become all things to all people, so that by all means I may save some.

So I took those thoughts home and spent some time reflecting on them.  And as I lay in my bed, I said to Jesus, “I don’t know what to think about all this, but I pray you would make it clear to me.”  I fell asleep for a few minutes and as I was waking, I thought to myself, “You know, Sunday is my 33rd birthday.  That’s how old Jesus was when he laid down his life.  What can I do in honor of that?” 

And all at once it came to me.  And the more I thought about it, the more I began to see my willingness to cut off my goat in an entirely different light.  Against the backdrop of what was quickly being revealed to me as a simple act of obedience, I saw Jesus as he is described by Paul in Philippians 2.4-11:

Don't look out only for your own interests, but take on the interests of others as well. 5 Based on careful thought, cultivate this attitude in you which was also in Christ Jesus. 6 Who, though he really is God, did not consider his being on an equal level with God something to cling to for his own advantage. 7 But instead, he took off his outward expression of divine glory by taking up the humble position of a slave and the nakedness of human flesh. Who moreover, when he appeared in human form, 8 humbled himself further in obedience to God to the point of death – even the death of a criminal on a cross. 9 For this reason, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Concerning these things, a fellow by the name of Alva J. McClain wrote:  (Read page 6 of Alva McClain)

How does Jesus’ external glory become evident to all?  How is Jesus glorified in our bodies?  I find that it comes as I begin to think his thoughts after him, sometimes setting aside thoughts that allow me to manifest myself in ways I want, but that may not be helpful to others.  (Not that I have attained this!)

Think like Jesus to follow him to the finish

I just had a few thoughts there in my bed about my beard, and what it would mean to remove it:

·         It became clearer to me that the exaltation of my personal preferences is a subtle contributor to discord or a simple lack of unity which Paul is appealing for in Phil 2.

o   Jesus could have said, “If they have trouble with my approaching them in an external manifestation of my glory that’s their problem.  It’s their sin that kept them from drawing near to me when I met them at Mount Sinai.” But Jesus didn’t do that.  And instead of exalting his personal preference to remain as he was, he humbled himself by emptying himself of his external glory, and putting on the clothes of human flesh.

o   I exalt my personal preferences at the expense of others when I live as if this earth is my home, but Jesus did not regard heaven being his home as something to live conveniently in for his own advantage, but he came to earth in order to deliver salvation to those who were in need. I could live to make this earth my home by always choosing what is convenient, cozy, and accommodating to me, but that is not what Jesus did.

·         “I would feel kind of naked inside with my chin exposed,” but had not the way of salvation been provided by that same disrobing of our Savior?  He, setting aside the dignity and honor that comes with the position of God, came to us in the nakedness of human flesh and entered the midst of our shame. 

·         There is a certain vulnerability to the elements and inward sensitivity that comes when you shave an area that hasn’t been touched in a while, and I felt like God was saying to me that in shaving, I could do something externally that was evidence of what he has been doing, and will continue to do inside—which is give me greater sensitivity in heart to his Spirit and to others.

·         Isn’t it interesting that someone who became incarnate for the sake of the German nation is the very one God used to speak to me about this matter?

I didn’t know for certain that my facial hair presented a stumbling block for others, but there was one way to find out.  So, on my birthday, I shaved it off.  And based on the response of others, I may keep it that way as long as I am in the body.  In any case, my highest motivation was to honor Jesus for setting aside his external glory in order to come in human flesh, live, love, and die on our behalf.

One little step. I’m not the only one; God gives us all little steps to take.  Sometimes we think they are too small to be worth our notice, let alone our follow through. It’s ONE STEP, what difference does one step make?

READ Liberty Bell Invitational

We all know that the cross is where Jesus finished all he was given to do and Paul reminds us Think like Jesus to find the finish.

What are the implications for us?  Phil 2.12-13  Hebrews 12

Thank you for the many ways in which you have all coached me and cheered me on as I’ve completed many steps toward the finish.