Daventry Baptist Church

teaching

1 Peter 4:7-11 ~ Church-life to the Glory of God

Let's pray...

Introduction

Sometimes the future looms so close that it casts a shadow upon the present and impacts how we live in the here and now. In the passage that we are going to look at, Peter challenges us - How should we live as Christians in the light of Christ's return?

It's the consistent message of the New Testament that Jesus could return at any minute. Peter later tells us - in his 2nd letter - that it is only God's mercy for those who do not yet know him, that is delaying the return of Christ. It's as if we are playing in extra time, not knowing how long we've got left to win people for Jesus. How then, should we live? How can we draw people to Jesus, how can we live so that people see the beauty of Christ in and through us? Well, Peter lays four challenges before the churches to which he is writing, four practices that should characterise the church in the last days.

{Read 1 Peter 4:7-11}

I should tell you now that I love this passage of scripture and I was delighted when Mark asked me to preach on it. I was delighted because THIS IS MY GAME PLAN. I've got no secrets from you. I'll tell you up front that these are the things I am going to emphasise in my ministry here. And I'd like you to join me in that. I'd like to suggest that these four practices are a specific challenge to Daventry Baptist Church. As we think about the future and the new chapter that God is taking all of us into, how prepared are we? Are we ready to be the kind of people that God is calling us to be? Are we that people? How can we live now, here in Daventry, in the light of Eternity, yes, but also in the light of all that God is calling us to be? What does it mean to be a healthy and effective church in the last days and what does it mean to be a healthy and effective church on this day?

4 Challenges:

'Be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray.' Peter is saying, yes, Jesus could return at any minute, but don't go all loopy and sell your property, move to Israel and pitch a tent on the Mount of Olives to await his return. Instead, pray.

The challenge before us is enormous. In a town the size of Daventry, what influence can 30 or so people really have? What sort of lasting, eternal, impact can we make in this area? Let me tell you - none at all. But that's not a cause for panic, or a reason to throw our hands up in despairing resignation. Rather, it is an incentive to turn to God. From first to last we are dependant upon God's empowering, God's leading and God's gifting. That's why Peter begins his list by pointing to the need for prayer. We cannot even begin to live as a church to the glory of God if we don't begin and base everything in prayer.

It is my prayer that God would do such a work in our hearts that we would at one and the same time realise our own incompetence and His sufficiency. Join with me in crying out to God to let an attitude of dependence-upon-Him fill and permeate every aspect of the life and work of Daventry Baptist Church. I'm not calling for more prayer-meetings. Not at all! What I am suggesting is that prayer becomes as natural and as perpetual to us as breathing. That our lives and our life together may be lives of prayer.

The second challenge that Peter lays before us is sincere love. Notice that he doesn't say, 'be nice to one another.' Neither does he tell us not to offend anyone. But he gets to the crux of the issue and says, 'Above all, love each other deeply.' Above all. Peter's not interested, primarily, in whether we sing the latest worship songs or whether we're Baptist, Methodist or Pentecostal. Peter's main concern, above all else, is whether we love each other. And not just whether we love each other, but whether we love each other deeply. That gets beyond the polite "How-are-you"s and the "Fine, thank-you. How are you?" No! Go deeper than that. Love each other deeply.

And this isn't just asking us to get on with one another. In fact, one of the true tests of "deep" love is, is it still there when we don't get on with one another? Peter says that our love needs to be the kind of love that covers each others sins - love that somehow enables fellowship in spite of our imperfections. We look at each other and we know our faults, and you know who's said a harsh word to you and what you thought in return. You know who rubs you up the wrong way and who never seems to even greet you on a Sunday morning. But Peter says, "Go deeper than that."

This sort of Love is costly. This is get-your-hands-dirty love. This is put-yourself-out love. This is even-when-you-don't-feel-like-it love. This is deep love. So, let's agree together, let's commit ourselves to being the kind of church that loves deeply.

Now, one of the out-workings of this deep and genuine love is the next practice spoken of that I want to spend some time emphasising this morning.

Peter goes on, in verse 9 to say that we should 'offer hospitality without grumbling.' I like Peter's honesty here. He knows what human beings are like, so he says "be hospitable, but be sure to do it without whining." Without whining about the time and effort it takes to fix a meal or straighten the house. Without complaining about another Red Wine stain on the carpet. Without grumbling about the way that some people always turn up too early, or really late - or even, most annoyingly of all, exactly on time. And without grumbling about the piles and piles of washing-up.

Romans 12:13 says, "Share with God' s people who are in need. Practice hospitality." And the words there literally mean, "Pursue hospitality." We should be on the look-out - like Vultures - for an opportunity to be hospitable. I'm gonna come back to that in a minute, but recognise, for now, that what Peter's talking about is not a command (just) to do something. It is not a command that can be legalistically fulfilled with a certain quota of guests. It is a command to be a certain kind of person, namely, the kind that doesn't resent having to be hospitable. The kind of person who doesn't look at the extra dishes and bedding and work - and grumble, but who joyfully shares their home and their belongings and their lives with others.

You might wonder why I'm making such a big deal out of this - and why I think that this is so vital to healthy and effective church-life. So, I want to spend some time looking at our motivation for hospitality. Why do we do it? What's so important about it? What's our incentive? Well, there are a number of reasons given in scripture for being hospitable and we only have time this morning to focus upon one of them, but let me briefly mention the others in passing.

Firstly, Hebrews 13:1-2 tells us to entertain strangers and reminds us that 'by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.' And we remember Abraham, in Genesis 18, who entertained the Angel of the LORD in this way. So - looking at the wider principle - we are hospitable because we don't know what God is up to. This person at our dinner table could be on the verge of accepting God or on the brink of committing suicide. Perhaps they are a Christian and God has got an incredible ministry of evangelism lined up for them, but he just needs you to encourage them and point them in the right direction. Maybe, they are an angel.

The second reason is that given by Jesus in the parable of the Sheep and Goats (Cf. Mt. 25:35-40). Jesus said 'For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in…' and so on. And the righteous ask him, "When? Lord, when did we do those things?" And Matthew 25:40 says, 'The King will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me."

So, the second reason we are hospitable is that by doing so we are ministering to Jesus - we are serving God.

The final reason for being hospitable - and it is this one that I want to emphasise this morning - is one that I never really considered until recently. But this is actually the reason given back in the Old Testament. So, if you've got your Bibles, turn with me to Leviticus 19:33-34: "When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God."

The point is not 'you should feel sorry for strangers, because you were strangers once.' The point is, 'I am the Lord your God who rescued you and made a home for you. Therefore, you shall love the stranger as yourself. You shall be holy as I am holy (Leviticus 19:1). Your values shall mirror my values. Your actions my actions. Your heart, my heart.' For the people of God in the Old Testament the duty of hospitality - the legal requirement of hospitality - came right from the very centre of who God was.

You see, we have all received the hospitality of God! We don't normally, think about it like that, do we? But Grace - by which we are saved - is the hospitality of God to welcome sinners into His family. So, when we practice hospitality, we are acting as living parables, walking testimonies to the grace and love and welcome of God our saviour. (And we experience the refreshing, exhilarating joy of becoming channels of God's hospitality, rather than keeping it to ourselves and smothering out God's grace.)

Please, don't underestimate the power of hospitality. The first time I walked into the Youth Group at [my home] Church I saw Ray - the Youth Leader - in a pink shirt, tight denim shorts and a pencil moustache and I laughed out-loud. And I thought - "look at these Christians, they really haven't got a clue!" But, I went back the next week and the week after that and Ray soon invited me over to spend the day with his son. Now his son didn't look very happy about that and I suppose he had plans of his own and friends of his own, but nevertheless, the next Sunday I went to have Dinner with the Yates household.

I'd never really been to someone else's house for Sunday Dinner before. Sure, I'd been to friend's house for Tea and I'd had Lunch at someone's house if I was round playing in their back Garden. But being invited for Sunday Dinner was like, well, it was the kind of thing that adults do!

Ray and [his wife] told me that if I ever needed anything that I should come round. And I did. You know, I was 16/17 years old and kids that age have earth-shattering emergencies every week without fail; most of them involving girls, if my memory serves me well. I can't remember the number of cups of Tea and Sunday Lunches that I had with that family, but I can tell you this: I have never seen Jesus Christ so clearly as I did in that house. Their welcome and love and acceptance and grace were more than just examples of God's grace - they were its embodiment. Their hospitality was a conduit of God's hospitality. Through their love, I received His love.

So, let me encourage you to offer hospitality. Start simply. Invite someone round for Dinner. Even this morning. Don't worry about the fact that you haven't made extra - the food will stretch. Trust me, it always does. Don't worry about the fact that your house is in a mess. Just kick the toys into a corner as you walk through the door. Why not make it a habit - at the very least on Sunday's - to invite someone new over for Dinner? You don't need to cook anything fancy. And you can forget trying to impress anybody. In fact, if it helps, use Paper plates. Nobody should have to spend Sunday afternoon washing dishes anyway!

As a church, let's pursue hospitality. Search it out. Hunt it down. Grit your teeth and go after it, like a Lion on the trail of Deer, seeking out whom he may devour. Get it in your sights and carefully, systematically and persistently stalk it. Pursue hospitality - hunt out that opportunity to pass on God's grace.

If you have a spare room, don't just fill it with junk. Look for opportunities to have people to stay. Do something radical - love deeply, offer hospitality without grumbling. Pay the extra insurance on you Car so that anyone can use it in an emergency. Take up your cross and follow the one who was accused of being a friend of sinners. What an accusation! Go the extra mile. Yes, some dirt will get walked into your Carpet. Sure, someone may drop one of your favourite glasses. And no, I can't guarantee that people won't take advantage of you. Love is costly. Grace is risky. But we get the opportunity to be imitators of God! To love like He has loved. To share the Grace that we've been shown.

If we are going to become the kind of Church that points people to Jesus, we need to become the kind of people who share their lives with one another. So, pray for the strength and the resources and the opportunities and then open your hearts and your homes that people might see Jesus.

The final practice spoken of is using our gifts. Each one should use their gift - whatever it is. Whether it's preaching or welcoming or worship-leading or faith or generosity or prophecy or mercy - each gift is needed. If you like, the symphony orchestra that is Daventry Baptist Church cannot work without your gift - be it a Penny Whistle or a French Horn. If we are gonna be that kind of community that we have been talking about, then we need one another. This body cannot walk or even stand up straight without your gift.

Now, your gift is not an opportunity to show off and announce your spirituality. It is an opportunity to serve. And see the reason given for using your gift - which confirms what we've been saying about hospitality. The penultimate reason is to serve others, but the ultimate reason - the reason why we serve others - is to distribute the grace of God. Use your gift to serve others 'faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.' Your gift is one of the ways that God gives out his grace!

What that means is that if this church is to be a community of people that point to Jesus, if we are going to be moulded into a channel of His grace, then we need - each one of us - to be using our gifts. This plan of God's will not work if you leave it all to the elders. If you simply look to those who appear to have it all together or if you just depend upon those who seem to be really strong Christians, then God's grace will not be distributed as widely or seen as clearly as He longs for it to be.

You know, church is not meant to be a spectator-event or a one-man show. It's meant to be a body of people reflecting the beauty of Jesus and sharing the grace of God. Listen to this story by a guy called Fred Craddock and ask yourself - am I ready to take up the challenge?

'It was the custom [in the church I served at before I was married] at Easter to have a baptismal service. My church immerses, and it was held, this baptismal service in Watts Bar Lake on Easter evening at Sundown. Now out on the sandbar, I, with the candidates for baptism, moved into the water, and then they moved across to the shore where the little congregation was gathered, singing around a fire and cooking supper. They had constructed little booths for changing clothes with hanging blankets. As the candidates moved from the water, they went in and changed clothes and went to the fire in the center. Finally, last of all, I went over, changed clothes, and went to the fire.

'Once we were all around the fire, this was the ritual in that tradition. Glen Hickey, always Glen, introduced the new people, gave their names, where they lived, and their work. Then the rest of us formed a circle around them, while they stayed warm at the fire. The ritual was that each person in the circle then gave her or his name, and said this, "My name is..., and if you ever need somebody to do washing and ironing..." "My name is...If you ever need anybody to chop wood..." "My name is...If you ever need anybody to babysit..." "My name is...If you ever need anybody to repair your house..." "My name is...If you ever need anybody to sit with the sick..." "My name is..., and if you ever need a car to go to town..." and around the circle.

'Then we ate, and we had a square dance. And then at a time they all knew, I didn't know, Percy Miller, with thumbs in his overalls, would stand up and say, "Time to go," and everybody left. He lingered behind and, with his big shoe, kicked sand over the dying fire. And my first experience of that, he saw me standing there still, and he looked at me and said, "Craddock, folks don't ever get any closer than this."

'In that little community, they have a name for that. I've heard it in other communities too. In that community, their name for that is "church." They call that "church."'
{Adapted from Craddock Stories, pp. 151-152.}

Conclusion

The conclusion to all of this and the result of carrying out these four practices is seen if we read verses 10-11... The aim of church-life - the reason why we gather and the reason why we scatter into the world as church - is to glorify God through showing His grace.

And it seems to me that if we are going to respond to this challenge then it takes more than Sunday-Christians. This isn't only about having people over for Sunday Lunch or using your gifts during the Sunday service. I would love for us to be the kind of people who are in and out of each other's homes throughout the week. People who come together on a Sunday and share with joy the ways that God has been using us throughout the week to spread His grace. This is 7-DAYS-A-WEEK-Christianity. This is the kind of attractive church-life that wins people to Jesus. This is living for God.