Not of the world, but sent into it

Introduction:

Imagine someone in this community who does not follow Christ. This person has hit rock bottom and is looking for someone to help them find hope. They are looking for someone who has demonstrated a level of wisdom, spiritual maturity, and Bible literacy that want to reproduce in their lives. Who in this church would they reach out to? Think of a name or a group of names.

If you didn’t think of this answer, then we have work to do: Any member of Slayden Baptist Church.

Here is a bold statement: the people in any community should be able to reach out to any member of the church in their community and be discipled to follow Jesus Christ. But here is the truth: Most people have never met a believer who was capable of making a disciple.

There are two fundamental problems in todays American church:

1. We are not as burdened over lostness as the Lord has called us to be. We are broken over poverty, over the state of politics, over sickness, etc. but we are not broken over brokenness—our lives reflect it.

On Sunday, September 8, at 5pm, I am starting an evangelism training class. It will be a six week class, and I will only take 7 people. It is best if you have read through the Bible at least once. I will repeat the class throughout the year. I will train you to share the gospel and start evangelistic Bible Studies. It will be intense. You will lead one or more people to the Lord over the course of the next year. I am preaching this sermon in part to help you figure out if you need to be a part of that.

2. We as Christians go to church, but we don’t look as much like Christ as we should. In fact, we increasingly look more and more like the culture around us.

On Thursday, September 12, 6:30pm, I am starting a men’s discipleship class. It will be a one year commitment. We are going to add our names to the list of those who can make disciples. We are going to study God’s word, we are going to learn how to explain it to others, we are going to memorize Scripture, we are then going to disciple other men. We are going to look each other in the eyes and say lets be about the work of building the Kingdom. I am preaching this sermon to help you figure out if you need to be a part of that.

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David Mathis changed the phrase “in the world, but not of it,” to “Not of the world, but sent into it.” (august 29, 2012)

Romans 12:2 CSB

2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

rom

Three reminders to the church of today:

You are not of this culture, but you are sent into it

You are not of this culture’s religion, but you are sent to it.

You are not of this world, but you are influencing it.

, am going to be a bit of a RACONTEUR today. I want to unpack this concept this morning and ask the question: Are you standing out, or has the culture conformed you?

You are not of this culture’s religion, but you are sent to it.

You are not of this world,

Not of the culture, but sent into it

If your lifestyle is not remarkably different, you may have been conformed to the culture.

in what ways is your lifestyle different than the culture…besides the fact that you go to church?

God has called us to be remarkably different than the culture around us.

Romans 12:2 CSB

2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Romans 12

I want you to see what happens to Daniel and his friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.

God sent them to another culture:

Daniel 1:3–7 CSB

3 The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family and from the nobility— 4 young men without any physical defect, good-looking, suitable for instruction in all wisdom, knowledgeable, perceptive, and capable of serving in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the Chaldean language and literature. 5 The king assigned them daily provisions from the royal food and from the wine that he drank. They were to be trained for three years, and at the end of that time they were to attend the king. 6 Among them, from the Judahites, were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. 7 The chief eunuch gave them names; he gave the name Belteshazzar to Daniel, Shadrach to Hananiah, Meshach to Mishael, and Abednego to Azariah.

3-

What is happening here is the word enculturation. The process of enculturation as defined in the dictionary:

the gradual acquisition of the characteristics and norms of a culture or group by a person, another culture, etc.

EXAMPLE: (Russia—shoes, Cartoons Aurthur and My Little Pony introduced gay characters…what is happening? enculturation…they are attempting to teach children that it is normal to live outside of God’s boundaries for gender and marriage.)

This is happening to all of us from the time we are born. We are enculturated into the culture of our family, the culture of our neighborhoods, the culture of our region, the culture of our country, etc. But enculturation also occurs on a smaller scale at our schools, our workplaces, our church, our shopping center, etc.

The Babylonians have a strategy to rule the world. They conquer a nation a little bit at time. They first take the most talented people from a country and enculturate them into leadership positions of the Babylonian empire. Then they take another group of people from a conquered nation and enculturate them into the work force. Then they take a third group of people only leaving the poor and the destitute in their original land.

Danial, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah have been taken in this first group from Judah.

Many men (Jews and men from other conquered nations) with them are taken into the order of eunuchs in the Babylonian Court. Because they will have access to the high level of government, they must not be any danger to the kings harem. They are taught the language of the Babylonian culture, their literature, and their food. Their names are all changed to Babylonian names.

It is a remarkable strategy. The Babylonian goal is to enculturate these men. They want to turn them into Babylonians.

I want you to notice how Daniel and his friends understood this principle—they were being enculturated: They were not of this culture, but they were sent into it.

Daniel 1:8 CSB

8 Daniel determined that he would not defile himself with the king’s food or with the wine he drank. So he asked permission from the chief eunuch not to defile himself.

dan 1

Nothing in God’s law prohibited them from learning another language. Nothing prohibited them from having another name or reading other literature. However, God had place boundaries around what they ate. Nothing prohibited Daniel and his friends from drinking the wine (unless they had taken a Nazarite vow), but they probably understood the responsibility of the moment and decided to abstain from alcohol so they would have fresh minds each day.

The chief eunuch was afraid to grant their request, but a ten day testing period was agreed upon…they would eat vegetables (probably because the meat was meat that was prohibited in God’s law) and drink water…Daniel and his friends were found to look healthier at the end of ten days. So for the remainder of their three year training program, they were allowed to eat in a way that God had required in His law.

This may seem like a small thing, but we must understand that our culture is attempting to enculturate us every day. We make many decisions every day that are culturally related, and quite frankly, many in the body of Christ are making wrong choices…they are being enculturated. Our Culture says:

you should watch movies and tv shows with nudity in them…everyone else is…its normal…it is a good plot…it is a good show…it is pleasing to God that you are entertained by things that disgust Him.

men, it is normal and perfectly fine for you to look at pornography!…you can look at the menu, just eat at home!…you are made to notice the beauty around you…it won’t affect your wife at all if you enjoy the beauty of other women.

you have seen beer commercials since you were old enough to watch tv…no body looks like they don’t feel good…they all have flat bellies…they don’t have relationship problems…they are all sleeping real well and have lots of energy…

ladies…dress in such a way to draw the attention of all those men!...

you don’t have to be careful about what you wear ladi

Your children don’t need to be at the church that often …there are so many more important things that they need to learn…As long as they are around the word of God for one or two hours a week, that is enough...

Marriage is not just between a man and a woman, our culture tells us…it is normal for a man to marry a man or a woman to marry a woman.

Our culture tells us you need to have sex before you are married…and it is normal to have multiple partners…marriage has nothing to do with sex…

You are just a product of your upbringing and your genetics…God made you to identify as a different gender…God made you to want to murder people

your children only need to be at church one or two hours a week…after all, there are so many other important things for them to do that will prepare them better for life.

Don’t shelter your children…you don’t want them to be ostracized because they don’t have sinful lives…you want them to fit in to a sinful culture don’t you?…they need to go and sow their wild oats!…most people have done things they regret…don’t try to teach your children to live differently…don’t shelter them.

you don’t have to read the entire Bible…just read a devotional every day…that is enough…you don’t need to be able to explain the Bible…you just need to go to church.

You don’t have to memorize Scripture…especially if you have access to the Bible on your phone!

You are really busy during the week…Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, are just exhausting…you don’t need to go to church on Wednesday…after all, they are just going to pray…Wednesday is your down time…nobody is ever refreshed by praying and reading the word...

You are just a product of your upbringing and your genetics…God made you to identify as a different gender…God made you to want to murder people.

It is ok…this is how we do it in this place…this is our culture. Everyone else does it.

Many in the American church live this way, because our culture has convinced them that it is normal…well it is not!

It may seem like a small thing that they chose to eat only the food offered to them that God permitted...Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah understood that they were not of that culture, but they were sent to it. God blessed their faith in the midst of crisis…Look at how these men stood out…they were remarkably different…they were remarkably better:

Daniel 1:18–20 CSB

18 At the end of the time that the king had said to present them, the chief eunuch presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king interviewed them, and among all of them, no one was found equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they began to attend the king. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding that the king consulted them about, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and mediums in his entire kingdom.

dan 1 18-

When compared, this is exactly how each one of us should come out: We are sent to this culture, but we are not of it.

If your life is not remarkably different and more successful than the next guy, it could be that you were sent into the culture and became a part of it.

To us Daniel’s decision about food was a small thing…but are the small decisions you are making each day causing you to stand out or blend in?

Not of a religion, but sent to it

If the Jesus you serve is not the Jesus of the Bible, you have created a false god.

Daniel 3:13-18

Romans 12:2 CSB

2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Later, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah faced another crisis:

King Nebuchadnezzar set up a gold statue 90 feet tall and called all of his government officials to gather before it. He ordered this group of people from every conquered nation to bow before his statue and forsake their gods. If they refused, he promised that they would be thrown into a furnace and burned alive.

The music played and everyone bowed down accept Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.

Nebuchadnezzar was furious:

Daniel 3:13–18 CSB

13 Then in a furious rage Nebuchadnezzar gave orders to bring in Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar asked them, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, is it true that you don’t serve my gods or worship the gold statue I have set up? 15 Now if you’re ready, when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, drum, and every kind of music, fall down and worship the statue I made. But if you don’t worship it, you will immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire—and who is the god who can rescue you from my power?” 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we don’t need to give you an answer to this question. 17 If the God we serve exists, then he can rescue us from the furnace of blazing fire, and he can rescue us from the power of you, the king. 18 But even if he does not rescue us, we want you as king to know that we will not serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.”

dan 3 13-

what faith! What transformation had taken place in these men’s minds! “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

I don’t want you to miss this: They didn’t have faith that God was going to rescue them! They simply believed that obeying God was worth it! Even if it hurt them, they were going to obey God.

They understood that they were not of this religion, but they were sent to it.

Our Culture not only attempts to change our lifestyle, it also tries to change our view of God…it tries to change our religion:

Many will try to convince the church during the next months that God’s hands will be tied if we end up with the wrong president.

Our Culture wants us to believe that Jesus is anybody but God. Our culture wants us to believe that Government is more powerful, that social groups are more effective, and that prayer to any powerful imagined being works!

If our culture can’t convince us of that, then it attempts to recreate a false god that allows things that the Jesus of the Bible does not allow. And many in the church have taken the bate:

Many would want to serve a Jesus who allows disunity in the church…I refuse to change the Bible’s description of Jesus.

Many would want to serve a Jesus who:

hates people or mistreats people who are not American

doesn’t really require Christians to share the gospel

approves of homosexuality

A Jesus who is not Lord but still Savior...a Jesus who requires only a one-time prayer of salvation, but no commitment to obey Him.

promises to make you rich

who accepts people who don’t really live a Christian life, but go to church

A Jesus who holds corporate worship services in the deer stand or on the golf course or on the lake or at the ball field.

just wants people to be tolerant of everything

is pleased by a worship services that makes lost people comfortable

A Jesus who doesn’t car if His followers are a part of His church.

A Jesus who doesn’t care if a pastor has integrity as long as he is an entertaining speaker.

I refuse to serve the god other people are imaging and calling Jesus! Whose with me?

We need to understand that we are not of the religions of this culture, but we are sent to them.

If the Jesus you serve is not the Jesus of the Bible, you have created a false god. Many people fall into this cultural trap…they aren’t determined to obey the Lord, so they end up making their own rules…they create in their minds a god who allows the new rules, then they call their new god, Jesus.

just because you call your household idol Jesus, doesn’t mean it is the God of the Bible.

If you find yourself obeying the same set of rules your culture obeys, you might have conformed to your culture’s religion. Are you determined to obey the Lord, even if it doesn’t benefit you? Even if it hurts?

Wed to get to the point as a church where it doesn’t matter what Beth Moore thinks are the rules, or Tim Keller, or J.D. Greer,

Not of this world, but influencing it

If nonbelievers around you don’t start praising God, the world may be influencing YOU! On the other hand…if the nonbelievers around you are perfectly comfortable with you…if nobody is criticizing your walk with Christ…you may have become the influenced rather than the influencer.

Romans 12:2 CSB

2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah understood that they were not of this world, but influencing it.

Nebuchadnezzar ordered that they be bound in their clothes and thrown into the furnace. The heat was turned up 7 times hotter than normal. Them soldiers that threw them in were killed because of the heat.

However, when they were thrown in a fourth man appeared with them. Nebuchadnezzar realized that they were walking around in there and there was a divine being with them.

They were brought out. Not only were they unharmed, their clothes didn’t even smell singed. Then listen to what this pagan king, Nebuchadnezzar said:

Daniel 3:28–29 CSB

28 Nebuchadnezzar exclaimed, “Praise to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angel and rescued his servants who trusted in him. They violated the king’s command and risked their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I issue a decree that anyone of any people, nation, or language who says anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego will be torn limb from limb and his house made a garbage dump. For there is no other god who is able to deliver like this.”

dan 3 28-29

These men were willing to obey God even if He didn’t rescue them. But God had sent them into this culture, to this religion, and to this king.

Don’t miss this: God was revealing Himself to Nebuchadnezzar and used the obedience of His servants to accomplish this.

Make no mistake about it. God has sent us into the world to influence it. He wants to make Himself known to the people around us.

He has commanded us to obey Him, to declare the gospel to every person everywhere…to make His glory known. And He has promised to pour out the Holy Spirit to accompany the sharing of the gospel with signs and wonders. He has promised to make Himself known, and He has commanded the church to steward what He has made known about Himself.

He is looking for a people a faith to know His word, believe it, and dare to obey it.

What about you? What is it about the culture of your neighborhood that will make your obedience to God’s word stand out?

What is it about the culture of your:

Workplace

extended family

your circle of friends

your school

Has anyone every met you and as a result been saved and ultimately praised God?

Are you standing out? Don’t be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind so you will be able to discern what is pleasing to God.

Let’s Influence the world.

Invitation

Maybe you look exactly like this culture because you are not saved. 1-2-3

If you are a man and say right now, if someone was backed up against a wall and needed someone to help them learn to follow Jesus, I am not their guy…but I know God has commanded me to sep up to the plate and become a disciple-maker…I want you to walk up to me and commit to be a part of a men’s discipleship class. September 12, 6pm, my house, one year commitment with breaks throughout the year.

If you are a believer and you know that God has called you to be burdened by lostness as He is that God has sent you into this community to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ, and you know that right now you are not doing it, but you want to…I want you to walk up to me and commit to be part of the evangelism class. September 8, 5pm, 6 week commitment. 7 person limit…first come first serve.

If you are a member of Slayden Baptist Church and a person in this community would not choose you to help them follow Jesus, because you don’t stand out in this culture…repent.