A group of frogs were happily leaping through the woods one day going about their froggy business when two of them fell into a deep pit. All of the other frogs gathered around the pit to see what could be done to help their companions. When they saw how deep the pit was, they agreed that it was hopeless and told the two frogs in the pit that they were as good as dead.
Unwilling to accept this terrible fate, the two frogs began to jump with all of their might. As they jumped some of the frogs rebuked them, "You wouldn't be in this situation if you had been more careful and obeyed all the froggy rules." Other frogs shouted, "Give up! Save your energy. You are both going to die soon." As their friends shouted, the two frogs continued jumping with all their might. After several hours both had grown quite tired. Finally, one of the frogs gave in to the calls of his fellow frogs. Exhausted, he quietly resolved himself to his fate, lay down at the bottom of the pit, and croaked.
Meanwhile, the other frog continued to jump as hard as he could. Even though his body was wracked with pain, he was completely exhausted, and his companions pleading with him to accept his fate, the weary frog jumped harder and harder until, wonder of wonders, he leaped so high that he sprang from the pit! Amazed, the other frogs celebrated his freedom and then gathering around him asked, "Why did you continue jumping when we told you it was impossible?" Astonished, the frog explained that he was virtually deaf and that as he saw their gestures and shouting, he thought that they were cheering him on.
Our words have the power of life and death.
Words are powerful. Proverbs 18:21 (NIV) says, "The tongue has the power of life and death." By our words we can cheer people on and inspire them to receive new life. Or if we're negligent, our words can discourage people. Our words can misdirect the course of someone’s life. They can cause others to lose heart and croak.
Last week we dug into the deeper meaning of Christmas. We described how Jesus Christ is the very source and essence of life. Jesus is our life-giving Lord and Savior. He came so that we might have life and live more abundantly. He is the way, the truth, and the life. He is the bread of life. He is the resurrection and the life. In him was life. And that life was the light of men. Just as the Father has life in himself, so the Son has life in himself. He who has the Son has life. He who does not have the son of God does not have life.
Christmas is about receiving new life in Jesus Christ.
This is what Christmas is all about. It is about God loving our world so much that he sent his one and only son to live on earth. Whoever believes in Jesus might not perish, but will have eternal life. Christmas is about receiving this new life in Jesus Christ, this hope of eternal life. Jesus Christ is God’s gift to the world. The most important thing you can do this Christmas is to receive God’s gift, his son Jesus Christ, and begin living life to the fullest. And you don’t have to wait until Christmas to open this gift.
Well as we all know, Christmas isn’t just about receiving. It is also about giving. It is so important that we receive new life in Christ by believing in Jesus Christ. All of eternity hinges on our response to God’s grace. Without Christ there is no hope or life beyond the grave. Without Christ this world is all there is. We die. But it is also important that we recognize the importance of giving, or sharing our new life in Jesus Christ with others.
We must recognize the importance of giving and sharing new life in Jesus Christ.
A few weeks ago I got some Christian mail order catalog. In the top corner of one of the pages the catalog read, "Give the gift of life this Christmas." What an utterly profound thought. God has given you and me the ability to share the gift of new life in Jesus Christ with people who do not have that life.
By now I hope that you are putting everything together. Proverbs 18:21 (NIV) says, "The tongue has the power of life and death." One reason our tongues have such power is because we have a choice. We can choose to verbally share the life-giving, life-changing message of Jesus Christ with others. Or we can hoard the gift of Jesus Christ for ourselves. We can encourage and inspire others to receive new life in Christ. Or by our silence we can allow our world to lose heart and never know the life that God offers through Jesus Christ.
God has ordained it that our words would hold the power of life and death for those with whom we would or would not share Christ. Romans 10:13 (NIV) says, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." But then, Romans 10:14-15 (NIV) says, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!' "
By now you probably have a number of Christmas lists in hand. A family member sent me an e-mail detailing what he wants for Christmas. For each item on his wish-list he has a detailed description complete with a digital picture, a model number, a catalog number, the store name and the price. Another family member wants things that I have no idea where to locate. In fact, we have given up searching for what he wants and are thinking gift certificate.
Both of these family members have received Jesus Christ. But I was thinking that the thing our loved ones need most will probably never appear on their Christmas lists. We all know people who need new life in Christ this Christmas. We can choose to give those we love what they want or we can give them what they need. We can preach and tell them about our life-giving Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Or we can let them live under the illusion that life will be found under the Christmas tree.
The tongue holds the power of life and death. How will they hear without someone preaching to them? How will they gain new life in Christ if we are silent? I guess the point is that they won’t. As we go into the Christmas season, I want you to think about how you might share your new life in Jesus Christ with someone you love.
It is interesting to note how quickly after their confessions people in the New Testament would begin sharing what Jesus Christ had done in their lives. In John 1:41 (NIV) Andrew finds his brother Simon and tells him, "We have found the Messiah." In John 1:45 (NIV) Philip finds Nathaniel and tells him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
In John 4:39-42 (NIV) we read this about the Samaritan woman. "Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him (Jesus) because of the woman’s testimony, 'He told me everything I ever did.' So when the Samaritans came to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two days. And because of his words many more became believers. They said to the woman, 'We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves; and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.' "
Keep in mind that all of these things are happening immediately after their confessions. In John 5:15 (NIV), upon being healed, the paralytic, "went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well." In John 9:11 (NIV) the man who was once blind stands before the Jewish leaders and explains his healing. "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see." They continually pressed him and he repeated in later verses in John9, "He put mud on my eyes and I washed, and now I see." "I was blind but now I can see." "If this man were not from God, he could do nothing." In Matthew 12:34 (NIV) Jesus tells us, "..out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks."
Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.
Upon experiencing new life in Christ we should instinctively share our new life in Christ with others. We should instinctively want to talk about Jesus and give testimony. In fact, many Christians do. Just this past week David Humke and I met with a young couple who is on fire for Jesus Christ. The husband was more than excited to tell us everything God has been doing in his life in the last year. Out of the overflow of his heart he wanted to talk and share his new life in Christ.
In our Deeper LIFE Groups, members of our church have been working through a simple process to learn how to share their new and deeper life in Christ. They answer three basic questions. I would like you to jot down and work through these questions.
What was it like before I gave my life to Jesus Christ?
Before they met Jesus, Andrew and Philip were caught up in their occupations. They had no sense of purpose and meaning in their lives. They were searching for spiritual answers. The adulterous Samaritan woman was moving from one dead-end relationship to the next one. The paralytic was putting his hope in angels and fairy tales. The blind man was begging for money and being a nuisance to passersby.
But what about you? What was your life like before you met Jesus Christ? Did you suffer from a lack of inner peace? Did you fear death? Was something missing? Did you have a desire to be in control? Were you lonely? Were you depressed? Did you worry a lot? Did you have a lack of security, purpose, and meaning in your life? Were you struggling to find significance? Did you have many friends? Were you motivated? Did you struggle to forgive others?
What about your marriage and family? Were you a workaholic? Were you enslaved to drugs or alcohol? Did you obsess about sports or fitness? Were you greedy for money? Were you driven by sex? Were you plagued with poor friendships? Were things out of balance? Was your character crumbling? Were you struggling with anger? Impatience? Hate? Stress?
We all have a story. Sometimes pride keeps us from sharing it. We want to look like good Christians. We want to impress people. Don’t let pride keep you from being honest about who you were when you wereapart from Christ.
How did I give my life to Jesus Christ?
Andrew and Philip got introduced to Jesus by close friends. The Samaritan woman met Jesus at the well and got into a pointed conversation. The paralytic met Jesus near a pool and was asked by Jesus whether he wanted to become healed. The blind man had mud rubbed in his eyes, washed, and could see.
Each story is unique, but not in every way. In every case the individuals believed in the identity of Jesus Christ. They responded with faith, repentance, and obedience. They confessed the name of Christ. Many experienced baptism.
The reason it is important to answer this question is because people need to know "how" to experience new life in Christ. Where do I go? Who do I talk to? What do I need to know? How do I respond? What does repentance look like? What is confession? What is baptism? What is faith?
What has happened since I gave my life to Jesus Christ?
In Ephesians 2:1-7 (NIV), Paul describes the impact Christ has made. "As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus."
What are you willing to do so that people you know will go to heaven? Is anyone going to be in heaven because of you?
This past week I was reading through Rick Warren’s new book The Purpose-Driven Life. In one chapter he asks a pair of important questions. The first question he asks is, "What are you willing to do so that people you know go to heaven?" The second question is, "Is anyone going to be in heaven because of you? Will anyone walk up to you and say, 'Thanks.'?" Our words have the power of life and death to other people. We can share the gift of life, not just at Christmas, but around the whole year.
I’d like to close with 2 Corinthians 5:16-21 (NIV). "So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."
The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life.