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Romans 10:1-13; Matthew 14:22-33 Why doPeople Need Christ?
Children: Praying before you eat. And Communion.
Every once in a while I read a really good book. As a discipline, I try to read at least two books a month that relate to the work of a pastor and every so often I am blessed by a writer or an idea that really speaks to me. Adam Hamilton is a Methodist pastor and author from Kansas who has a gift for communicating important ideas. In his book, Leading Beyond the Walls, Hamilton lists four questions he says must be answered and understood before a pastor or a church can be effective. Since I want to be effective as a pastor and I hope we all want to be effective as a church, I think it is well worth our time to consider these questions and our answers. Today, we will consider Hamilton’s first question, Why do people need Christ?
The first time I heard it, I remember thinking, Wow, that’s a great question. This is an important question. Why do people need Christ? I should probably have a succinct and well rehearsed answer to that one. I wonder what his answer is.
Some of us have hung around Christians so long; we are so used to people agreeing that Jesus is important, that we are stunned by the question. What do you mean, Why do people need Jesus? - Because that’s what we believe. This question strikes so directly at the heart of the Christian faith we might not be prepared to answer it without thinking for a while.
It might seem overly obvious to say that who we think Jesus is, in large part, determines why we say people need Jesus. If we think Jesus was a great teacher we would say people need Jesus because of the wisdom he imparts, but couldn’t they get knowledge somewhere else? If we see Jesus as moral authority, we would say people need Jesus because he modeled love and peace and non-violence and is a good example for us. Often parents want their children to go to church and learn about Jesus in the hope that it will help them grow up as well-behaved citizens of the community.
In our quest to discover who Jesus is, the New Testament offers us many different portraits of Jesus.
We read of Jesus as the child born in a manger, the promised messiah, the King of the Jews the wise men sought, and the savior of the world.
We read of Jesus as an itinerant Rabbi who called disciples and worked great miracles, demonstrating his power.
Jesus described himself as the living water, the bread of life, the light of the world, the Good Shepherd, the resurrection and the life, the way, the truth, and the life, and the living vine.
We can read of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, his rejection by the people and his death on the cross.
We also read of the stone rolled away, the empty tomb and the appearances of the resurrected Jesus, including his ascension to heaven, to the right hand of God.
And we read the promise of his return in glory.
There are many portraits throughout Scripture, so we often summarize them as the gospel message, the good news of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. Jesus is the good news that we preach: Jesus is alive and reigns in heaven with God. He has broken the power of sin and death and will come again to judge and to make all things new. This is an all encompassing picture of who Jesus is, but how does it help us answer the question, Why do people need Jesus? Sure, Jesus is great, but why do I need Jesus?
For our answer we need to consider the other half of the equation. We have to look at who we are to see the problem for which Jesus is the solution. The problem is who we are without God’s intervention. We have to recognize our need. If we were not drowning on our own in sin and corruption, facing the penalty of sin, and our death, there would be no need for a savior. But a quick examination of the world or the headlines of the newspaper or taking your own personal moral inventory, quickly demonstrates the human condition of sin and failure to follow God’s law.
When we look at the list of problems people have, wesee a lengthy list - personal problems like greed, envy, selfishness, hate, and
–social problems like racism, inequity, protectionism, and
–natural world problems, from illness to earthquake to environmental damage.
We could prescribe many different approaches to all of these problems, and seek many different remedies, but, as Hamilton says, “the deepest problems facing our society are, at their core, spiritual problems.”
All the other solutions we dream up will not be successful until we address the condition of the human heart. Evil does not come from the outside, its source and origin is in our hearts. I’m going to quote Hamilton for a while because I can’t say it as well: “The real solution must address the condition of the human heart; it must break hearts of stone, transform hate into love, and offer healing and deliverance to those who are slave to [faulty] ideas, or to upbringing, or their addictions.” (p.22) Hamilton writes, people need Christ because:
“Jesus Christ is the solution to the deepest longings of the human heart. He is the answer to the most serious problems that plague our society. When Jesus is Lord and the Holy Spirit enters the heart of the believer, we find the empty places filled, and the dark sides of our soul transformed. We are in the process of becoming ‘new creatures in Christ.’ My personal experience is that a relationship with Jesus Christ changes everything in our lives; it makes all of life more rewarding, joy-filled and hope-ful.” (p.22)
I feel like this answer from Hamilton’s book is so good I should just memorize it so I will always have it with me. Why do people need Christ? Because we have a heart problem! We are corrupted and lost and without hope. No perfection of our college curriculum will reform the thieves on Wall Street. No amount of hand holding in hot tubs will eliminate ethnic cleansing. No level of scientific knowledge will lift us beyond illness and death. No inventory of cruise missiles will eliminate hate for those who impose their will. No number of premarital counseling sessions will eliminate infidelity. We are broken.
But Jesus changes hearts. Jesus is God’s solution to our inability to reform ourselves. God has made a way for us. Through faith in God and acceptance of Jesus as our savior and our Lord, we take a giant step on to the path of salvation. In Romans 10, Paul said “if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (10:9) In our human condition, we are captive to sin. We struggle at the chains and we decorate the prison walls, but we need Jesus if we want to stop living in the dungeon, if we want to stop flailing about in the darkness. “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Jesus is God’s solution to all our problems.
Our text from Matthewtells the story of an important miracle on the Sea of Galilee. The disciples saw Jesus walking on the water and Peter said Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water. Peter was a fisherman, he knew he couldn’t walk on water, but if Jesus called him out of the boat, he could do it and he walked on the water. When he stopped focusing on Jesus, down he went, but Jesus caught him. Amazing, but most amazing of all is what the disciples did after Jesus got in the boat and the wind stopped blowing. They all worshipped him. These monotheists, these men who would rather die than worship anything other than God, worshipped Jesus, saying, truly you are the Son of God.
As we realize who Jesus is and accept the invitation to follow him, our hearts are changed. I’m reminded of the television cartoon version of How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, when the Grinch has his sled at the pinnacle of the mountain with his sled overloaded with all that he has stolen, and he hears the Whos in Whoville singing on Christmas morning because Christmas is not about the presents and food and decorations he has piled on his sled. At that moment his heart expanded inside his chest, breaking the old framework. What a great metaphor for how God changesus; the Spirit gives birth to our spirit and transforms us into God’s children. People need Jesus because it is through faith in Jesus that God has chosen to give us a new heart and new life.
In the litany of communion we say, this is the blood of the new covenant, poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Jesus’ blood, his death, is the price of the new covenant from God. People need Jesus because through Jesus, through his life and death and resurrection, God has offered us new and eternal life. Through Jesus, God has acted to adopt us as sons and daughters. In this new covenant we have forgiveness of sins and new life as we accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord. We need Jesus so that we can benew creatures in Christ, with new purpose, new power, and new potential to live the life God calls us to live. In communion we feed on Christ, we are strengthened by this means of grace so that we may grow in our knowledge and love of God and each other. “Jesus Christ is the solution to the deepest longings of the human heart.” Let God fill your heart as you give your life to God.