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“DEAR HOPE, KEEP LIVING UP TO YOUR NAME”
August 6, 2006
Galatians 1:11-24 and 6:14-18
Rev. Tonya Arnesen

In her wonderful series of books about life in Mitford, North Carolina, Jan Karon’s newest is called Shepherds Abiding. In this story, a young woman named “Hope” is going through a difficult time of transition. She has come up with a bold, but risky plan to acquire the bookstore where she works –… but is having trouble getting everything to fall into place at the right time. She is worried, anxious, nervous, frightened… close to giving up until she receives a brief letter with these words: “Dear Hope, keep on living up to your name.”

That is our calling, isn’t it? To live up to our name as Christians – and the name Christian means:

§        Follower of Christ

§        Disciple of Christ

§        One who belongs to Christ.

If a Michiganian is a person who lives in Michigan, then a Christian is one who lives in Christ! And that’s how we live up to our name as Christians. We take what Jesus has taught us in words and deeds… and we try our best to live in that Spirit. We pray that through the miracle of His Grace and the presence of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, we may become Christ-like in our living.

A couple days after our daughter Sarah was born, I was sitting with her on the sun porch, when suddenly it hit me… I’m a parent! I’m somebody’s Mom! And as I thought of the joy and privilege and responsibility of that, I recalled my own parents, and everything they had done for me. My Dad introduced me to beautiful music – many a Sunday afternoon was spent laying on the living room rug, listening to David Oistrahk play Beethoven’s violin concertos. My mother taught me how to thread a needle, measure and cut fabric, how to finish garment seams so they would look tailored, not homemade. I remembered family reunions and camping trips – and the fun we had canoeing down the Little Manistee River. And I thought about how hard my parents worked to feed and clothe four children – on a preacher’s salary.

As I recalled so many examples of my parents’ sacrificial love, I wondered, “How can I ever repay them?” Words aren’t enough. Gifts won’t suffice. There is not enough money in the world to repay my parents for what they did for me. So, what CAN I do? I vowed to pass it on! I decided the best way to say “thank you” to MY parents, was to be a good parent to my own children.

The same is true of our faith and commitment to Christ Jesus. How do we repay Christ for what He has done for us? How do we express our gratitude for His sacrificial love, his merciful forgiveness? The best way is to pass it on; to dedicate our lives to becoming more Christ-like so that we might more fully live up to the name “Christian”.

Early in his ministry, the Apostle Paul dealt with people’s doubts and questions. Before his conversion, he had the reputation of being the most arduous persecutor of Christians – so it was no wonder people questioned his motivation and commitment to Christ. Here’s how Paul responded to their doubts: “Nobody has to wonder who I am. Nobody has to ask what I stand for. Nobody needs to question my allegiance to Christ and His Church… I have the marks of Jesus branded on my body. It’s clear to see that I belong to Christ! Look at my life! I am a Christian and I am giving it everything I’ve got to live up to that name.”

Let me ask you something. Can you say that? Can people look at you and see clearly that you are a Christian? Does your life bear the marks of Christ-likeness? This morning, I want to share two ways we can live up to our name.

First, Christians have Christ-like COMMITMENT. Jesus had an unflinching, unwavering, unshakeable commitment to do God’s will. We heard it in the Lord’s Prayer, “Thy Will Be Done on earth, as it is in heaven.” We saw it in the Garden of Gethsemane as He prayed on the night before his arrest and crucifixion.   Jesus was determined to do His Father’s will – regardless of the price he’d have to pay.

The Apostle Paul also exhibited that kind of Christ-like commitment. From the moment he encountered the Risen Christ on the Damascus Road, Paul was so bowled over by God’s gracious love and forgiveness, that he was intensely determined to serve the Christ who had saved him. And when others questioned the veracity of his commitment, he said, “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus!

Most likely, Paul was referring to the physical scars he received from beatings, floggings, shipwrecks, harsh persecution… all prompted by his undying commitment to Jesus Christ. But, when Paul used the word “body,” he didn’t just mean flesh and blood – he also meant total personality. When he said, “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus,” he also meant that the spirit of Christ had pervaded every aspect of his life: his heart, his mind, his soul, his strength, his attitudes, his abilities, his whole being. Paul was wholly devoted to serving Christ. How about you? Do you have Christ-like commitment? Are you living up to your name?

A second way we live up to our name is to strive towards developing Christ-like CHARACTER. There’s a story about two men who went camping together. On their second night out, they slid into their sleeping bags and lay there side by side. One said, “When I look up into the sky at night, I see stars and planets and constellations and galaxies and the vastness of space.” He paused for a minute and then he said to his buddy: “When you look up, what do you see?” And his buddy said: “I see that somebody stole our tent!”

When I look at what’s happening in our world today, I think someone must have stolen our tent . . . our tent of character. There was a time in our nation’s history, when character, ethics and morality were of prime importance, when the 10 Commandments were taught and respected. When children began every school day with prayer. There was a time when integrity, honesty, goodness and virtue were highly valued and encouraged in our literature and in the media.

Not so today. Recently, a teenage girl was caught cheating on a test and sent home from school. When her mother confronted her about it, the girl screamed: “You don’t get it! Everything is different now! Your rules don’t work anymore!” . . . Friends, I want to know, when did the rules change? Do Biblical principles suddenly not fit today’s world?

Let me tell you, I believe there are some values that should always endure; there are certain truths that should always be relevant. And just as it was wrong to steal, wrong to cheat, wrong to injure others in Biblical times… it is STILL wrong to steal, and cheat and hurt other people now. The ethics of the Bible are not just rigid rules intended to ruin our fun and make our lives miserable. God’s law is a gift to us – given to show us how to live together without destroying one another!

Sadly, many of us who DO know what is right and wrong, but we’re willing to excuse and rationalize our bad behavior; we justify doing whatever we want to do – and ignore God. It’s no wonder that Christians have gotten the reputation of being hypocritical – too few of us are honestly trying to live up to our name! Friends, we’ve got to be careful – you never know who is watching.

Rev. Charles Anderson tells the story of a minister who moved to a new city, and decided to ride around town on the metro bus, in order to become familiar with his new surroundings. He had boarded and sat down, when he realized the bus driver had given him too much change. It was only a quarter, but he wondered what to do. Should he give the quarter back – or not worry about such a small amount?

When it came time to get off the bus, the moment of truth had come. He decided to be honest, and returned the quarter to the driver saying, “Pardon me, sir. You gave me too much change.” “I know,” said the driver. “I recognized you when you got on the bus – in fact, I heard you preach last Sunday. You know, I’ve been thinking about joining your church and I wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. It might have been wrong of me to test you like that, but Reverend, you passed with flying colors… I’ll see you Sunday!”

That preacher stepped off the bus; weak in the knees. He bowed his head and prayed: “O God, forgive me. I almost sold you out for a quarter!” Friends, with every decision, every word, every action – in every day – you and I can either sell out or live up to the name of Christ.

Now, let’s remember that we cannot be Christ-like by our own power. We’ve got to have God’s help! The Apostle Paul knew that. He said, “I do what I don’t want to do – and I don’t do what I know I should do. What a wretch I am!” So if Paul – that heroic disciple of Christ – couldn’t consistently live up to his name, how can we hope to?

Well, the good news is, we can, if we rely upon Christ – if we cooperate with, and are obedient to His Spirit, who is always working to guide and correct us. Remember, we worship the Living Lord, who is with us in every situation! So you are never alone in your struggle to do what is right. The spirit of Christ is there to lead the way.

Brian Bouknight tells the story about a 17-year old boy who got lost in a coal mine in West Virginia. Suddenly his light went out and he found himself in total darkness. Terrified, he fell to his knees and prayed “O Lord, help me! Jesus, I’m lost!”

And as he prayed, he noticed that his right knee was touching something hard. He groped around – and discovered below his knee was a railroad track. And he thought, “If I just keep my hand on this track and follow it, the track will lead him out! That’s what he did. He held onto the track and followed it until it led him out of the dark, out of the depths of the mine… to light and safety.

That’s a great parable for us as Christians: if we just hold onto Christ – he will keep us on track. And as we strive towards Christ-like commitment and Christ-like character, no matter how dark some moments may be – that track will bring us out of the darkness and into the marvelous light.

Friends, hold onto Christ! Keep on living up to your name – so that others will come to know and trust Christ through YOUR life!

Prayer: Lord, we want to be like Jesus – in our hearts and in our lives; in our commitment and in our character. Fill us to overflowing with the Spirit of Christ; that HIS presence might spill out of our lives and touch every person we encounter this week. Amen.

Rev. Tonya M. Arnesen

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