Living for God

Audio Player

Our subject tonight is "Living for God". It is not easy living for God. Listen to what Paul and Barnabas taught their new converts in the early church - Acts 14.22:

[they were] strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. [Listen] 'We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,' they said.

Let me tell you about a young police officer. He was taking his final exam at the Hendon Police College in north London. He was faced with this question:

"You are on patrol in outer London when an explosion occurs in a gas main in a nearby street. On investigation you find that a large hole has been blown in the footpath and there is an overturned van lying nearby. Inside the van there is a strong smell of alcohol. Both occupants - a man and a woman - are injured. You recognize the woman as the wife of your Divisional Inspector, who is at present away in the USA. A passing motorist stops to offer you assistance and you realize that he is a man who is wanted for armed robbery. Suddenly a man runs out of a nearby house, shouting that his wife is expecting a baby and that the shock of the explosion has made the birth imminent. Another man is crying for help, having been blown into an adjacent canal by the explosion, and he cannot swim. Bearing in mind the provisions of the Mental Health Act, describe in a few words what actions you would take."

The officer thought for a moment, picked up his pen, and wrote: "I would take off my uniform and mingle with the crowd." And sadly that is the way many Christians operate. Because it is hard living for God, they too often take off (so to speak) their Christian uniform and "mingle with the crowd". They become indistinguishable from the crowd. They are totally conformed.

But you must not get things wrong. Living for God may be hard, but it is rewarding and enjoyable. Such a life is infinitely satisfying because it is living God's way and God is your almighty creator. So you are living according to the maker's instructions.

Now to anchor our thinking about "living for God", I want us to look at that passage we read as our New Testament reading, John 17.6-19. And I have three headings, first, THE REALITY, secondly, JESUS' PRAYER, and thirdly, THE OPTIONS.


First, THE REALITY.

It is the night before the Crucifixion of Jesus. The disciples have had the Last Supper and Jesus has been teaching them. He then concludes in chapter 17 with a prayer - a remarkable prayer. And in this middle section of the prayer - the section we are looking at tonight - Jesus makes it clear what is the reality that his disciples - both then and now - have to face. True, these disciples with Jesus at this time are the twelve Apostles he had specially chosen. In fact they are now reduced to eleven with Judas Iscariot having left the room. But although the immediate focus is these specific disciples, the way Christ talks about the reality they confront and the prayer he prays applies (and is relevant) to you and me today in the 21st century.

So what is this reality? It is this. However other people may view human existence, behind everything, says Jesus, there are two communities - two distinct human communities. On the one hand there is a larger community. Jesus calls this "the world". On the other hand there is a smaller community that Jesus calls, verse 6, "those whom you [referring to his Father] have given me out of the world." These people are the Father's gift. He repeats this fact in verse 9 where he says this:

I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours.

Here, indeed, you have these two communities as clear as clear. On the one hand there is the world, on the other hand there are God's people, or as we would say, "the church". And members of this second group are marked by four things.

First, Christ has revealed his Father God to them (verse 6). Secondly, they receive and then obey God's word (verses 6 and 8). Thirdly, (verse 8) they know with certainty that Jesus came from his Father and they believe that his Father sent him - that is, they believe he is the divine Son of God. And, fourthly, (verse 13) whatever the difficulties, there is joy.

The beginning of these two communities can be traced back to the call of Abraham in the Old Testament. It was with Abraham - and you read about him in Genesis chapter 12 - that God started to call a people for himself out from the world. These two communities are sometimes spoken of in the Bible as two kingdoms - the kingdom of God (the sphere of God's rule) and the kingdom of Satan.

What then does Jesus say about his people - those who have been given to him? He highlights two things.

First, they do not belong to the world. Look at verse 14:

I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.

They are separate from the world. That is so vital to remember. But, secondly, they continue to live in the world. Verse 11:

they are still in the world.

To quote John Stott, they are "spiritually distinct, [but] not socially segregated."

Christ has now left the world. So this community of Christ's people have a duty to remain in it as his representatives. They are to make known to others what Christ has made known to them. So this then is the reality. There are two separate communities - the church, made up of Christ's disciples, and the world which is anti-God and anti-Christ. Let's move on.


Secondly, JESUS' PRAYER.

What, then, is Jesus prayer for his disciples? It is simple. Jesus prays for "protection" - he prays that they would be protected and so remain true to God's word and united; and he then prays that they will not be taken out of the world but will be protected from the evil one. Let's think about that.

First, verse 11

I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name--the name you gave me--so that they may be one as we are one.

This is a prayer that Christ's people will be kept true. "Your name" is the revealed character of God. The name in the Bible stands for more than a pleasant association which is the basis of many of today's names for children. So people call their babies Winston or Elvis. Probably babies are now being called Becs! But in the bible names can truly describe someone. For example, Jesus means "God saves" and Emmanuel means "God with us". Then Jesus says in verse 12:

While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me.

While he was with them, that is, he kept them true to God's name or character revealed in him and so protected them. He now prays for continued protection according to God's name. He wants them to be kept true to the revealed character of God. This is summed up in verse 17:

Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.

So Jesus prays that these disciples will be protected and kept in the truth of God. And that truth is defined (verse 17) by God's word, which for disciples today is the Bibl (where you have the teaching of the prophets, Jesus and his apostles).

And Jesus implies that when his disciples live according to God's word - the Bible - there will be unity - that "they may be one as we are one" (verse 11). And that is the first part of Jesus' prayer.

The second part is a prayer that his disciples will be protected from the evil one. Look at verse 15:

My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.

Jesus is praying that his disciples should stay in the world but not be contaminated by it. Jesus was the supreme example of keeping this balance. Matthew tells us that he was "a friend of tax collectors and 'sinners'" (Mat 11:19). Yet Hebrews tells us that he was at the same time "set apart from sinners" (Heb 7:26). That is to be the Christian's model - to be involved in the life of the world but not operating according to the world's standards but God's standards. For the world's standards are the standards of the evil one. So Jesus prays that his disciples will be protected from the evil one as well as be protected so that they will remain true to God's name and true to his word. But what are the options for Christ's people as they remain in the world. That brings us to our third heading tonight.


Thirdly, THE OPTIONS.

There are only three options. The first is to withdraw from the world and form a Christian ghetto. Many have done that down the centuries. There were Christians in the early centuries in Egypt who withdrew from society and went to sit in caves, or in a few cases on the top of pillars. They retired completely from the world. Then there were the monastic movements. And there are Christians today who withdraw and exhibit a wrong sort of "pietism". Some Christians do not get involved in the world at all or think about the world. Withdrawal for a period may be right. But that is not what Jesus is praying for here. So the challenge of Jesus prayer is this - each one of us should say to him- or herself:

Jesus did not pray that God would take me out of the world: but have I in fact taken myself out of it?

Read the life story of someone like William Wilberforce who worked for the abolition of slavery in the 19th century. He was a great Parliamentarian and involved in the world. But he was not only socially involved. He believed that he needed to pray, study the bible, meet with God's people and evangelize. He wrote an influential evangelistic best-seller called A Practical View.

The second option is to be involved, but simply "go with the flow" - to conform to the world's standards. But that is precisely what the Christian shouldn't do. That is what Jesus is praying against. Yet so many Christians do that. They say, "I want to get involved in politics" but before long they are supporting policies that are immoral or unjust - to get elected. Or they say, "I want to get truly involved in my profession." But they say, "I won't stick my neck out as a Christian too early on in life. I'll wait until I get to the top. Then I'll be effective in my stand as a Christian." The only trouble is that when they get to the top they are so compromised that they have forgotten how to take a stand on anything at all! I've seen that happen with doctors who compromise over ethical matters. I've seen that happen with clergy who compromise; I've seen it happen with teachers. But the bible says:

Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will" (Rom 12.2).

Notice, you have to think and use your mind if you are not going to drift with the flow. You have to think biblically about the issues of the world. That is why it is important to keep abreast of the material published by the Christian Institute; and you need to read the Coloured Supplements in the Newsletter; and get some of the tapes of the Morning Sermon series we do every year in July which is always about issues in the modern world (and you can read my book Church and State in the New Millennium. And, remember, you are never too young to take a stand.

That brings us to the third option - to be actively engaged in seeking to change the world. That is why at JPC our goal statement is Godly Living, Church Growth and Changing Britain. You are to be as Jesus said in the sermon on the Mount - like salt and light. Salt in the ancient world before fridges was a preservative. So Christians are to help keep the world from putrefying. And light was (and is) needed because the world is so dark. The devil darkens the minds of unbelievers. So you need to bring the light of the good news of Jesus Christ to a dark world. Look at verse 18:

As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.

So Christians who live in the world, and are not to be taken out of the world, are nevertheless sent into the world. Do you see what this means? The Christian is to pattern himself or herself on Jesus Christ who was sent from heaven into the world. That is the meaning of Christ's incarnation. John 1 verse 14 says,

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

And the verse continues - he was "full of grace and truth". That is how you are to live in the world. You don't go around as a member of the awkward squad or looking daft or sounding daft or being daft. You are to be gracious and truthful. Both of those characteristics are important. But if you are going to speak God's truth that will bring you into conflict with all sorts of people. Jesus predicted conflict. Look at verse 14:

I have given them your word and the world has hated them.

So if you say sex outside marriage is wrong, you will cause conflict and opposition. There are too many vested interests in denying that truth. If you say abortion is wrong, you will cause conflict. Again there are too many vested interests in denying that truth. And if you say, as the bible says, that ...

the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom 6.23) ...


... you will cause huge conflict. The thought is too terrible - if people only hear the first half of what you say, as they often do. And if they hear the second half that eternal life is only through Christ Jesus our Lord, many will call you narrow and bigoted. But some will say, "thank you for telling me the truth. I've examined the claims of Christ and believe them to be true." And they know that they have messed up over sex, or abortion or in some other way. They are simply wanting a way out. And the message of the Cross is the good news - the message that "Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God" (1 Pet 3.18) and so he gives you eternal life. Who needs to hear that message tonight? I expect there is someone here in a crowd like this. Paul says,

If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." (Rom 10.9).

So there is something to believe and something to do. You believe that Jesus (the Jesus of the Gospels who was sent into the world) is Lord - God incarnate, the Son of God and through his death on the cross the Saviour of the world. And this was proved by his resurrection from the dead. And he is your Saviour.

Then you publicly admit that. The formal way you can do that (and should do that) is through Christian baptism, or the renewal of baptismal vows. There is going to be an opportunity for that in three weeks time, on November 4. Do see Jonathan Pryke about that if you would like to be baptised or renew your vows. But you can also do that informally. You can tell a friend - or someone you know in the church - that you have now put Christ first in your life instead of yourself and you are seeking to live for God in the power of his Holy Spirit.


I must conclude. Let me summarize.

The reality is that there are two distinct communities - the church (God's people) and the world.

Jesus prays that his disciples will be protected so that they remain true to God's word, and will be protected from the evil one while in the world. But he does not pray that they should be taken out of the world.

No! What he wants is not that they should be in Christian ghettos; certainly not that they should conform to the world; but that they should be sent into the world to help change it by praying and then sharing God's word and being obedient to God's word themselves.

Back to top