THE RUGGED CHARACTER GOD ADMIRES
 

MATT: 11:7-15, LUKE 7:24-28

INTRO: Christians in general and preachers in particular are pictured in modern literature as weak, spineless hypocrites with jelly backbones.

Now this is strange because Christianity was born in revolution. Its  founder was crucified for His convictions and His followers were fed to the flames and the wild beasts. Both Jesus and John the Baptist set the tone of heroism for the church. John had borne witness to Jesus and, now, when the crowds were leaving him and the charge of cowardice was to be leveled at him, Jesus bore witness to him. And in so doing He gives us a pattern for Christian heroism that He admires.

I: STRENGTH THAT CAN'T BE BULLIED:

Matthew 11:7 And as they departed, Jesus began to say unto the multitudes concerning

John, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken with the wind?

Luke 7:24 And when the messengers of John were departed, he began to speak unto the people concerning John, What went ye out into the wilderness for to see? A reed shaken with the wind?

Most people are complimentary to our face and critical to our back. Jesus did the opposite. He sent John no word of compliment but rather a mild rebuke. While John was wrestling with doubt Jesus did not want to add the temptations of pride.  Jesus heaped praises on top of praises on John behind his back. Using the familiar example of the weeds that blew in the wind, Jesus said in effect, did you walk way out in the desert to behold little wind? Thus Jesus spoke of:

(1) The Fearlessness of John:

He stood in the teeth of the wind and refused to bend. Like Jeremiah he was an "iron pillar" (Jer:1:18).

Like the three Hebrew boys, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (Dan:3), he wouldn't bend, he wouldn't bow, he wouldn't break. The fury of the king and the murderous hatred of his adulterous wife could not deter John from doing the will of God.  How different from out day, when, as Dr. R.G. Lee use to say, 19 drops of water will keep 21 people out of church. We need more old fashioned heroism which does the will of God no matter what. We need to be like the man who welded his weather vane. When asked why he said, "I want it to point north, no matter which way the wind blows." We need to be like the man who built his fence six feet high and seven feet wide. When asked why, he said, "When the wind blows it down it will be higher than ever before."

Do you have the courage to face the wind without bending with it? It takes courage to be the only Christian in the work place, to walk away when dirty jokes are told, to refuse drugs and drinks and the wrong kind of dates, to refuse to lie for someone, to uphold Christianity when it is criticized, to be different, to be unliked, to be called square, to be made fun of..... IT TAKES COURAGE...AMEN.

(2) The Faithfulness of John:

One low hour in a dungeon does not cancel a lifetime of faithfulness. (In Gods eyes) One wind of doubt blowing through the mind of this good man has no more effect on his character than the gentle desert breeze has to change the great pyramid of Egypt.

Satan is shooting at John but he has no more power to change the flow of righteousness from his inner being than the little boy who stood on the tour boat and shot his water pistol at Niagara Falls.  Not only is it not a sign of WICKEDNESS to doubt, it is not always a sign of WEAKNESS. Sometimes doubts arise out of a strong determination to know the truth first hand and the courage to test our cherished beliefs... The weak are often those who bury their doubts and profess to believe while a thousand questions are beating on the door of their souls.

(3) The Foretaste of Heaven:

We have here a sweet foretaste of the confession which He will make of them before the assembled world, when He presents them faultless at the last day before His Father's throne. Our work for God is NEVER wasted.

When Luther nailed his questions on the chapel door and rang in the Protestant Reformation, the Pope said, "Don't worry about it. It's just another drunk monk." But God knows.... What the world ridicules, God records... Amen.

II: SELFLESSNESS THAT CAN'T BE BOUGHT:

Shifting from the reeds to the finely dressed kings like Herod, Jesus bore witness next to John's selflessness. This strong giant of a man was humble as a lamb before his God and willing to make any sacrifice to serve Him.

If John was a weakling he would have EXCUSED Herod's adultery, for his favor and been given the fine clothes of everybody else who bowed down before his filthy feet.  If John was a weakling he would have possibly IGNORED Herod's adultery and preached on a more comfortable and less dangerous theme. But John stood nose to nose with him, ACCUSED him openly and paid the price. People like that, said Jesus, don't end up in king's PALACES but in their PRISONS. Amen.

Liberal preachers are adept at excusing sin and pleading that changing times demand a changing morality... (Like the lady in the Air force and adultery) But many conservative preachers are just as adept at ignoring the sins of those present. A minister can get a reputation for courageous preaching by boldly denouncing the sins of those who are not there. But real preaching, is to be willing to risk the disapproval of those who are there.

LET US SEE JOHN'S....

(1) Stand:

While the whole community was buzzing about King Herod's adulterous marriage to his brother's wife, Herodias, and while preachers were no doubt blasting away from the pulpit, John went right to his face and said, "It is not lawful for you to have her (Matt:14:4). As long as comforts, praise, peace or health are our chief goals, we will not rock the boat.. Amen

With doctor bills to pay, children in braces, and to much "month left at the end of money," many a man of God has made compromises without knowing it. ...  We need to be careful, because the carnal members who would rather have a pat on the back than a step on the toes will seize control of him, and the church and he will be a plaything... Nobody respects a fence straddling preacher.... Amen.

(2) His Sacrifice:

His stand was the result of his prior sacrifice. Early in life he had turned his face to the desert and his back to the world. He went farther than God calls most of us to go. We do not have to be poor to be holy. Men like Abraham and David have proved that. We do not, like Jeremiah, Paul and John, have to turn away from our families to have sweet fellowship with God and serve Him. Simon Peter proves that. BUT John gives us a vital principle taught by Jesus. GOD MUST BE FIRST! GOD MUST BE THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT THING IN OUR LIVES! ...Look at what Jesus said... Matthew 10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

I am afraid that luxury has eaten the heart right out of American Christianity. We are spoiled and selfish and self centered, and sacrifice is a forgotten word.   Sacrifice to most folks is having a preacher who doesn't stop at 12:00 and makes us stand in line at the cafeteria. It means sitting on unpadded pews or not having a gymnasium. It means being asked to take a job by the nominating committee or to read the New Testament through in a year.

Sacrifice for most preacher is not being able to fish or play golf once a week. Not have a New car to drive. Not have a secretary Or maybe not having a computer.... ect.

(3) His Suffering:

His sacrifice led to his stand and his stand led to his suffering. First it was prison and then it was the martyr's death... (Matt:14). We call Stephen the first Christian martyr, but I like to give that honor to John the Baptist.

We are no longer playing games in America. We should not think that America will forever be spared of War and Judgment.... (Corrie ten Boom advises us, "Teach your children to suffer for suffer they will.') If Communism reigns three things will take place.

1. Bibles will be burned.

2. Churches will be closed.

3. Confessing Christians will be put to death.

But Persecution has never buried Christianity or drove it underground until the day it bursts out to bear more fruit than ever before.

 Two things stand out to me about John..... Being unlike a reed, he could not be bullied. Being one of plain dress, he could not be bought.

 These are still the two marks of rugged Christian manhood and womanhood. (It cost John to face Herod but he paid the price).

ILLUS: Some years ago an ocean liner was wrecked on a dangerous reef on the New England coast. The coast guard went out to rescue it under the captaincy of an old seaman, but with a few inexperienced young men on the crew. One of the youngsters turned a white face to the captain, saying, "Sir, the wind is offshore; and the tide is running out. We can go out, but we can never come back." All the captain said was, "LAUNCH THE BOAT... WE HAVE TO GO OUT. WE DON'T HAVE TO COME BACK!"