|
Our Core
Values
Who We Are And Why We Do What We Do
Personal Integrity—Influencing The Community
Matthew 5:13-16
Introduction: Getting Started
We are beginning a series this morning on core
values. Core values express the heart. They define who an
individual is and explain why they do what they do. Core values
determine the choices we make—or at least they should.
Just as individuals are shaped by their core values,
so are organizations. That should be most true for the church
of Jesus Christ. As Discovery Church anticipates some major
changes, hopefully involving relocation, it is more important
than ever to see how the actions that are taken are the expression
of our core values. In other words: what we do is the expression of who God wants
us to be and what we believe He wants us to do. Without
building on the foundation of core values anything we do or
try to do is nothing more than wasted motion. So, beginning
today and extending to the end of May we will investigate
seven core values.
We start this morning with being people of integrity.
The result of integrity is influence. The way to influence
the community is by being the people Jesus calls us to be—people
of salt and light.
In a survey of 1,300 senior executives
from across the nation they were asked to list, in order of
priority, what they thought was most important to an organization’s
success. Almost 90% of these executives (the vast majority
of whom were not believers) placed integrity at the top of
the list.
I want you to turn in your Bibles to Matthew 5:13-16.
This is a familiar lesson taught by the Lord. My hope is that
familiarity builds power rather than breeding contempt. Jesus
has just finished presenting the Beatitudes—some beautiful
characteristics of what it looks like to live as one of His
people. Follow along as Jesus is speaking to His followers.
You are the salt of the earth. But if
the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again?
It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out
and trampled by men.
You are the light of the world. A city
on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp
and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand,
and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way,
let your light shine before men, that they may see your good
deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:13-16 NIV
4 Initial Observations
Jesus Summarizes The Believer’s Function In One Word: Influence
Jesus gave His life to save us so that we would
become salt and light in our culture. We are to be people
of influence.
Influence Is The Result Of Modeling The Attributes In The Beatitudes
Living with the blessing of God enables us to function
as salt and light.
Jesus’ Emphasis Is On Being Before Doing
What we are as demonstrated by our integrity is
more important than what we do, resulting in influence. In
fact, without being grounded in integrity any influence will
be short-lived if not impossible. In other words, we might
be able to fake it for a little while—but only for a little
while.
The Goal Of Integrity Is Influence
As one of the disciples listening to Jesus outline
the Beatitudes and then talk about salt and light, Peter offers
this insight about our purpose as believers.
But you are a chosen people, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that
you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness
into his wonderful light. 1 Peter
2:9 NIV
During the past 25-30 years two names
consistently found on the list of the most influential people
in the world were Billy Graham and Mother Teresa. Dr. Graham
has been admired for his passionate devotion to declaring
the message of God’s love through Christ around the world.
Mother Teresa was admired for her sacrificial service in helping
unfortunate and overlooked people. Both of them shared a common
attribute of unimpeachable integrity.
Our world looks for and longs for integrity and knows it when it sees
it. Jesus says we are to be salt and light. In a world
that relishes a different kind of spice to satisfy its salacious
appetites and tries to hide its desire for licentious filth
in the shadows of darkness, salt and light stand out.
Once you are home pick up the Sunday paper and
you’ll see that our world needs a lot of salt and light. That’s
why integrity sits at the very top of the core values for
our church. We are God’s people. We are here to make a difference.
We are here to influence people and influence begins and ends
with integrity.
4 Insights About Salt and Light
The Presupposition: Corruption and Darkness
Jesus lived in constant awareness of the state
of world as separated from God. He knew all about the corruption
and darkness of evil. That’s why salt and light are necessary.
The great preacher G. Campbell Morgan observes,
The world needs salt because it is
corrupt and it needs light because it’s so dark.
Listen to these observations from John Maxwell
about what is claimed to be the improved world in which we
live.
Man has increased in scientific,
medical, historical, educational, psychological and technological
knowledge to an astounding degree; but he has not changed
his own basic nature. And he’s not improved society. Man’s
knowledge has greatly improved, but his morals have progressively
degenerated. His confidence has increased, but his peace of
mind has diminished. His accomplishments have increased, but
his sense of purpose and meaning have
all but disappeared. And instead of improving the moral and
the spiritual quality of his life, man’s discoveries and accomplishments
have simply provided ways for him to express and promote his
depravity faster and more destructively. Modern man has simply
invented more ways to corrupt and destroy himself.
Sobering observations, aren’t they? They remind us that basic human nature is filled with sin and that left
to ourselves we rush down the road that is wide and leads
to destruction. Jeremiah describes the problem well.
The heart is more deceitful than all
else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?
Jeremiah 17:9 NASB
The Plan: Impact Society
God’s plan to interrupt the rush down the road
to destruction begins with Jesus and then extends to the followers
of Jesus who are to be salt and light. Jesus’ plan is very
straightforward. He says to His followers, “I want you to
reveal my difference to society by being salt and to reveal
my truth by being light. You are the salt of the earth. You
are the light of the world.”
What Does It Mean To Be Salt?
Even though salt has been placed on the hit list
of dieticians as something to watch, especially if you have
high blood pressure, we know salt is useful. What’s popcorn
without it? How much more difficult would it be to drive on
Minnesota roads in the winter? Salt had an even wider range
of uses for the audience to which Jesus spoke as they used
it to preserve meat and treat wounds. With all the uses of
salt, what does it mean for us to act as salt?
Being Salt Means We Add Flavor
In a world that practices godlessness we add the
flavor of godliness.
Being Salt Means We Remain Pure
Jesus told His listeners salt that had lost its
saltiness was worthless. Salt loses it saltiness when it becomes
contaminated. Knowing how important this is to Jesus we make
it our desire to maintain purity by avoiding sin and then
confessing sin when we fail.
Being Salt Means We Create Thirst
Remember my question about popcorn without salt?
What’s salty popcorn without a soda? Movie theatres count
on this. The customer who buys popcorn will also buy something
to drink. Saltiness creates thirst. Living for Jesus by being
salt should result in people we know asking where they can
enjoy a long, refreshing drink of living water.
Being Salt Means We Contribute Value
Salt was a prized commodity. People were willing
to trade gold and silver for salt. When we act as salt we
contribute value to our world.
Being Salt Means We May Cause Pain
When salt enters a wound you know it. The pain
is real. Many times, however, that pain is the first step
to healing.
Being Salt Means We Preserve Life
Salt was the primary preservative used to keep
meat for extended periods of time. It interrupted the process
of decay and kept the meat good for future use. Being salt
means we slow the process of decay in our culture. We
need to be aware that when we decry the moral decline in our
world that we are also llikely commenting on a decline in
our saltiness.
What Does It Mean To Be Light?
Having this background about salt, let’s turn our
attention to light. Jesus explains characteristics that make
light useful.
Light Is Useful Because It Shines In The Darkness
We have two battery powered lanterns. We bought
them when we lived in California because there were several
times we were left without power for days when ferocious winter
storms rolled in off the Pacific. Flashlights were good for
some tasks but the lanterns provided light for completing
many of the regular daily tasks. In the same way, we are to
be lights of God’s grace, truth, goodness and righteousness
in a world where people pursue the dark passions of their
hearts.
Light Is Useful When It Remains Visible
When the storms knocked out our power we set our
lanterns up on a table or piece of furniture where it could
light the most space. We tried to put them in places where
the light wouldn’t be blocked. As God’s people of light we
are to be where we can be seen so the light benefits people.
Light Is Useful When It Burns Brightly
At times over the years I have replaced the batteries
in our lanterns. As the batteries lost power the light dimmed.
After a while they barely helped. Once the batteries were
renewed they once again shone brightly. Another time one of
the batteries corroded, the power supply was interrupted and
the lantern didn’t work at all. We need to be sure that we
remain in constant contact with our source of power, God’s
Spirit, so we will shine brightly.
What a powerful combination—salt and light! Sociologists tell us that leadership is influence. Influence is the result
of integrity. Did you know that the average person influences
10,000 people in his or her lifetime? 10,000 people is a significant
number. For a church like ours that adds up to hundreds of
thousands of people. Multiply that by the 153 years we have
existed and you see how powerful Jesus’ plan is.
The Problem: Threat of Failure
The plan Jesus presents is good but it isn’t foolproof.
There is the threat of failure hanging over His plan if salt
ceases to be salty and light no longer shines. There is a
threat that we, as Christians, lose our value. Please understand
that we don’t lose our value to God. We never lose our value
to God because that is established by Him; not by us. But,
we can lose our value to the kingdom of God. To illustrate
this, consider these three examples from the New Testament
of what can be called spiritual cancer.
The Cancer of Hypocrisy (Acts 5:1-11)
Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold
a piece of property.With his wife's full knowledge he kept
back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and
put it at the apostles' feet. Then Peter said, "Ananias,
how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have
lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of
the money you received for the land? Didn't it belong to you
before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn't the money
at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing?
You have not lied to men but to God." When Ananias heard
this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who
heard what had happened. Then the young men came forward,
wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him. About
three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.
Peter asked her, "Tell me, is this the price you and
Ananias got for the land?" "Yes," she said,
"that is the price." Peter said to her, "How
could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The
feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and
they will carry you out also." At that moment she fell
down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and,
finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her
husband. Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard
about these events.
In Acts 5 we see how God dealt with the spiritual
hypocrisy of Ananias and Sapphira. This couple decided to
sell a piece of property and contribute the proceeds to the
fledgling church in Jerusalem. There’s a good chance they
had been influenced by the generous example of Barnabas. But,
somewhere in the process greed got the best of them. They
decided to keep some of the sale price for themselves but
make it look like they were giving the entire amount. It must
have still been a generous contribution but it wasn’t what
they made it out to be. There would have been at least one
other person in Jerusalem who knew this—the person who purchased
the property. Given a chance to own what they had done they
each refused and were immediately removed by death. A loss
of integrity resulting in a loss of influence couldn’t be
tolerated.
The Cancer of Immorality (1 Corinthians
5:1-13)
It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you,
and of a kind that does not occur even among pagans: A man
has his father's wife. And you are proud! Shouldn't you rather
have been filled with grief and have put out of your fellowship
the man who did this? Even though I am not physically present,
I am with you in spirit. And I have already passed judgment
on the one who did this, just as if I were present. When you
are assembled in the name of our Lord Jesus and I am with
you in spirit, and the power of our Lord Jesus is present,
hand this man over to Satan, so that the sinful nature[a] may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord. Your
boasting is not good. Don't you know that a little yeast works
through the whole batch of dough? Get rid of the old yeast
that you may be a new batch without yeast—as you really are.
For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore
let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast
of malice and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the
bread of sincerity and truth. I have written you in my letter
not to associate with sexually immoral people—not at all meaning
the people of this world who are immoral, or the greedy and
swindlers, or idolaters. In that case you would have to leave
this world. But now I am writing you that you must not associate
with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral
or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler.
With such a man do not even eat. What business is it of mine
to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those
inside? God will judge those outside. "Expel the wicked
man from among you."
Early in the history of the church an issue to
be settled was how to handle immorality in the church. In
the church at Corinth there was a man who was sleeping with
his step-mother. It appears the church was proud this could
happen and have the man stay in the church. Paul says they
should have been filled with grief. Instead of boasting about
how this could be; they were instructed to remove this man
who was involved in open sin if he refused the opportunity
to repent. The problem was that the evil leaven would ruin
the entire loaf. Integrity would be gone and influence would
be lost. If the message was going to mean anything they had
to deal with the cancer.
The Cancer of Hardheartedness (1 Corinthians
11:23-32)
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord
Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when
he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my
body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me."
In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This
cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you
drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat
this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death
until he comes. Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks
the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of
sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. A man ought
to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks
of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks
without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment
on himself. That is why many among you are weak and sick,
and a number of you have fallen asleep. But if we judged ourselves,
we would not come under judgment. When we are judged by the
Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned
with the world.
This cancer springs from blatant refusal to deal
with sin during the celebration of communion. Knowing that
Jesus died for sin, they refused to confess and repent of
their sin even though they knew it ignored God’s purpose.
The instruments God used were illness to try to get their
attention and finally death.
We learn from this that integrity matters to God. When we stop living as God’s people, we lose our influence. That’s a
problem.
The Purpose: To Glorify God
The reason it’s such a problem is because it defeats
the ultimate purpose of having those who were previously opposed
to God join in praising God because they have seen the light
and experienced the effects of the salt. Our
primary purpose in being the people of God is never to bring
attention to ourselves. It is to glorify God. We do that
by being the church. Jack Hayford observes,
The call of the church has never
been to be a political analyst. We are called to be cultural
catalysts, who will act as salt and light in society. But
there are dangers. Salt, if you use too much becomes embittering;
but if you sprinkle it, it flavors. And light is annoying,
if it glares in your face.
Hayford goes on to comment that when a light shines
directly in your face you try to push it away. If, however,
you let the warm glow of the light shine, people will come
to it. He says Jesus never called us to rub salt in the wounds
or to shine a million-candle powered spotlight in someone’s
eyes. He called us to be the warm glow of Jesus’ love and
the flavoring quality of His nature. God
never called us to be morally indignant. Instead, we are to
be spiritually vibrant.
The word integrity comes from the
Latin word from which our word sincere
comes. The literal meaning of the word is without wax. This
was the result of potters, who fired the clay jars and pots
in ovens, fixing cracks that developed by filling them in
with melted wax that later hardened to hide the imperfections.
Later, the wax would deteriorate and the resulting leaks meant
the loss of whatever was stored in them. On those occasions
when a jar was produced without cracks it was written on the
bottom—Sinceros. It was identified as a vessel of integrity,
without cracks, whole.
That’s what God wants us to be. He wants us to
be whole and without cracks filled with wax. He wants us to
be beautifully different. He wants people to see us not as
abnormal or pushy, but as someone whose example is worthy
to follow.
Maybe you have heard the story about
Joe. He had been a drunk, but then he met Jesus, was converted
and had his life changed. He stayed in the part of town where
the rescue mission was located so he could minister to others
who were having problems with their addiction. People loved
Joe. He didn’t condemn people; he loved them. His life had
changed so radically that everybody loved Joe.
One Sunday night during the service
at the mission, one of the men came forward to the altar.
As one of the counselors moved toward him to pray the man
was sobbing. The counselor asked, “What can I do for you?”
The man replied, “I want to be like Joe. I want to be like
Joe.” The counselor who knew Joe well and agreed he was a
great, godly guy still knew he needed to correct the error
of this searching sinner. He said, “No, I think you have it
wrong. You want to be like Jesus.” The man looked at him and
asked, “Well maybe. Is Jesus like Joe?”
Conclusion: People of Integrity
That says it all, doesn’t it? This man knew Joe. So, if Jesus was like Joe, then certainly he wanted
to be like Jesus. Living as people of integrity brings light
in the darkness and creates a thirst for Jesus. I
say to you, “Let’s be people of integrity. Let’s be people
of influence.”
As we wrap up this morning go ahead and close your
Bibles and put away your notes. I want to share with you some
short stories about three people of integrity and influence
and how they made a difference in my life.
Three Stories
That’s salt and light. That’s integrity. That’s
influence. You don’t need to go half way around the world
to serve. How many people
around you are waiting for the touch of God on their lives? Just
be salt and light with them—right where you are.
Prayer: Father, thank you for being an incredible
God. Jesus, you told us we are to be salt and light. Holy
Spirit, as we leave this morning, use us to add flavor and
light to our world.
Benediction: As you go, let your light shine brightly
and add that right dash of salt to the lives of people God
wants to love through you.
| 