A Faith With Integrity

Matthew 6:1-8

Eric Thorson – Senior High Sunday II

June 15, 2008

While thinking of topics to base a sermon on it became ever present that because I only intend on preaching one sermon in my entire life that I had better choose a topic that I can speak on easily.

When you look into what so many churches have now, it’s a little unsettling. You need look no further than Christian youth rallies that churches look upon with such excitement and enthusiasm. I mean think about it to get hundreds if not thousands of young people screaming and jumping for the Lord when they raise their hands in the air and praise God, they are feeling God move in there lives aren’t they? Or are they feeling acceptance from a group of likeminded people? Is the need to feel accepted into a group of people so strong that they will change everything about the way that they act to fit in, to feel just a little bit of attention not given to them before? Everybody needs attention; but…

5"And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 6But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 7And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. 8Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.

At these Christian youth rallies or things aimed at youth they tell you that all you have to do is open your heart and Jesus will come into your life. Then there is a time when they ask all nonbelievers to come forward if they feel ready to accept Jesus into their lives. Now they stress this point a lot that ALL you have to do is open your heart; Jesus will come into your life. This one moment will change your life; you will be changed forever and that it is a turning point for your faith.

However if that really is ALL there is to it, then why do so many kids not change their ways? Why do so many just go back to the way they were beforehand? Because let me tell you that being a Christian is more than just opening your heart up. It takes a certain mindset, a certain amount of determination and discipline. Now depending on which of the many doctrines out there that can be preached at you that could mean many different things. No matter which way you believe however, there still has to be determination beyond basic acceptance. You become a Christian by accepting Jesus; you become a disciple by following Jesus. It means staying the course when you see horrible things happen to people who don’t deserve it.

My dad has already told you this story, but it had a big impact on my life so it’s my story too. When I was in Plano in the youth group, there was a guy named Bryce, a couple years older than me, who did his best to lead by example. He was a devoted Christian; he was a lot of fun. He made us all laugh and helped us enjoy life. He showed us that being a Christian doesn’t mean you always have to be strict and serious. When he prayed, he was real…he was genuine…he had integrity. He got accepted into Oklahoma State University and when he and his family were driving up, they stopped at a burger place. Bryce and his girlfriend left ahead of the others. A little ways up the road, his Jimmy rolled and it broke his neck.

To deal with what happened to Bryce, to watch someone die like Bryce who was devoted to the church and doing all the good things…that takes more than opening your heart to Jesus. That takes holding on to Jesus when it doesn’t make sense. It takes work. It’s hard. If your religion is based on a performance, on being seen, it won’t do you any good in the hard times.

2"So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. 3But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

The Bible says it’s really important for us to give our money to support ministry and to pray…and both of those need to be sincere though, not a show. When you give, give generously, give from your heart and don’t make a show out of it. Make it consistent in your life. If you spend a ton of money on yourself, and give a little to the church, don’t act like you’ve done something special.

My youth group in Plano went on a mission trip to Memphis. We worked hard. We stayed in a car dealership that had been converted, filled with bunk beds and mission groups from all over came to stay. We repaired roofs, drywall and other basic home repair for the poor. It was good for us. It got us to stop being so self-centered for a while. And while we were there, one day we did an exercise to help us learn about world hunger. There was lottery based on world statistics of how few people eat well, a few eat ok, and most are starving. A few kids “won” the lottery, and they got more food than they could eat. Most got just a cup of raisins, and we had to work all day on just that. It was a lesson we would all remember. That was good for us too.

But then later in the week, we played a game of carving up spam and then it just got thrown away. We played another game bobbing for rice Krispie treats in vats of orange juice…and all that just got thrown away. What a waste. How could we learn about world hunger on one day and waste huge amounts of food on the next day?

Jesus in Matthew 6:5 says “Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

Another time we went out to east Texas to glean yams. We picked up yams left in the fields by the harvesting machines and gave truckloads of yams to the North Texas Food Bank. On our breaks we played “yam-ball”. It was good for us and it was fun. But to get out there and back we rented a huge new bus with TVs on it. I have a hard time with the irony of riding in luxury to serve the poor.

I want a faith with integrity; I want to have fellowship with Christians whose lives match what they believe as much as possible. None of us can be perfect, but we can try to live thoughtfully and with integrity.

I want to pray with people who are real.

Coming here has been good for me. Because when I came here I saw a group of people who did not come to church in order to be seen coming to church rather a family of close knit people as dedicated to the faith as I was.