Camouflaged Christians
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At the University of California in San Diego, Dr. Vilayanur Ramachandran has spent a considerable amount of time studying Flatfish. Amazingly the experiments have shown that Flatfish use visual cues to dramatically change their appearance in order to camouflage their appearance and blend in with their surroundings. In as little as 2 seconds, these fish are able to altar their surface markings to resemble everything from checkerboards to beach sand. Because of this remarkable feat, Flatfish are called the “chameleons (Kamilions) of the sea.”
In the experiments, the bottoms of tanks were covered with a variety of patterns, including printed checker boards, fine yellow beach sand and a gray sheet and gravel stones with varying grain sizes. As each fish was transferred to a different tank, it would rapidly survey the new environment with its stalk-like eyes and change the pigments on its skin to match the new background. The flatfish’s ability to go from visible to invisible is amazing.
About as amazing as it is to see a Christian go from visible to invisible! Have you ever seen a camouflaged Christian?Have you ever been a camouflaged Christian? We all know that camouflage is used by hunters and military personnel in order to hide, to conceal their presence. I’m afraid that today our society is filled with tens of thousands of camouflaged Christians!
In Matthew 5:16 Jesus blows this camouflage Christian thing out of the water…read…
“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
So how do we camouflage ourselves as Christians? I want to share with you 3 ways this morning…One way we camouflage ourselves…
1. WE DON’T GET INVOLVED WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY OCCURS.
1. WE DON’T GET INVOLVED WHEN THE OPPORTUNITY OCCURS.
- Too many times we just don’t want to get involved!
- When someone is hurting or is in need, many of us camouflage ourselves!
- Why? Because we simply don’t want to get involved! We don’t want to take the time. We’ve got our own little agendas and we don’t want to be stopped or detained.
- We live in such a fast paced world.
- Have you ever come upon an individual who was in need – may be even hurt but you pretty much detoured yourself around them (the need) because you didn’t want t0 be bothered - to get involved?
- Remember the story about the Good Samaritan Jesus tells in Luke 10?
- 2 men in the story come upon a wounded man who’s been assaulted, robbed and left to die – a Priest and a Levite (religious people) but neither wanted to get involved! Too risky! Take too much time! So they detour their paths around him so they can get on by and not have to help.
- Both of them try to camouflage themselves as they pass the wounded man by! Both of them are examples to us of camouflaged religious people.
- What a great opportunity they had to do a good deed – to do something good – to help someone out in need!
- What an opportunity they had to witness for God!
- But they didn’t want to get involved!
TS – A 2nd way we camouflage ourselves…
2. WE’RE ASHAMED TO LET OTHERS KNOW WE’RE A CHRISTIAN.
2. WE’RE ASHAMED TO LET OTHERS KNOW WE’RE A CHRISTIAN.
- In Romans 1:16 Paul says:
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
- In Luke 9:26 Jesus says:
“For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory, and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
- Have you ever been ashamed to let someone know you were a Christian?
- Do you remember the story about Peter, the night when Jesus was betrayed, arrested and taken before the Jewish court in the wee hours of the morning? While Peter mingled in the courtyard where Jesus was being tried, he was recognized 3 times by servant-girls and bystanders, but on all 3 occasions Peter denied knowing Jesus. In fact, on the 3rd occasion Matthew 26:74 tells us that he began to curse and swear saying, “I don’t know the Man!” Peter – the great disciple Peter did this!
- You see, many of us try to camouflage ourselves when it comes to standing up and letting others know we’re a Christian - standing up and being identified with Him!
TS – A 3rd way we camouflage ourselves…
3. WE CONFORM OURSELVES TO THE WORLD.
3. WE CONFORM OURSELVES TO THE WORLD.
- In Romans 12:1-2 we’re told:
Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
- How many times have you just blended in to the world around you? How many times have you conformed to the world around you – the group you hang out with at school, the group at work? You just go with the flow!
- When you and I do so, we’re camouflaging ourselves and hiding who we really are!
God obviously doesn’t want any Christian to be a camouflaged Christian! What does He want? He wants you to be a neon light Christian – He wants you to be so bright for Him that others have to put on their sunglasses! Let me point out to you 3 things He wants you to do to be a neon light Christian…
1. HE WANTS YOU TO GET INVOLVED WHEN FACED WITH THE NEEDS OF OTHERS.
1. HE WANTS YOU TO GET INVOLVED WHEN FACED WITH THE NEEDS OF OTHERS.
- In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus emphasizes that a certain Samaritan came upon the same wounded man the camouflage religious people had just skirted around.
- But instead of skirting by, he stops and helps this dear man in need!
- Isn’t this what the Lord wants you to do today and every day? He wants you to get involved and minister in His name! He wants you to help others.
TS – 2nd…
2. HE WANTS YOU STAND UP FOR HIM.
2. HE WANTS YOU STAND UP FOR HIM.
- He wants you to be willing to identify with Him!
- He wants you to be proud you are a Christian – not ashamed!
- He wants you to be willing to stand up for Him – even when others around you are not!
- So what if someone thinks you’re a fanatic!
TS – 3rd…
3. HE WANTS YOU TO BE DIFFERENT.
3. HE WANTS YOU TO BE DIFFERENT.
- He wants you to be transformed rather than conformed!
- He doesn’t want you to blend in with the world – blend in to the world!
- He doesn’t want you to be a chameleon! He wants you to be different than – other than!
- In 1 Peter 1:15-16 God says:
but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior;
because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
- The truth is this: when you live a holy life (life of purity) for God, you will stand out to others. You definitely will not blend in!
- Today there are too many Christians who want to blend in rather than stand out!
- Understand today: Jesus didn’t blend in when He walked upon this earth! And the disciples didn’t blend in when they went out into the world to serve Jesus and do His Great Commission work!
- And you and I should not blend in either! We should be different = BECAUSE WE ARE DIFFERENT! I didn’t say perfect. I said different!
Conclusion
How are you and I going to reach our others for Christ if you and I are not letting our lights shine?
So my question to you this morning is simple: ARE YOU CAMOUFLAGED or ARE YOU A NEON LIGHT FOR CHRIST?
Determine the next time you have the opportunity to help someone, you will – the next time you have the opportunity to let someone know you are a Christian, you will – the next time you are faced with a just blend into the world situation, you won’t!