October 3, 1999
Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church of San Francisco.
When the stock market remains high with the Dow today over 10,000, we say that the market is bullish. Even when there are reasons for investors to have doubts in the market, for some amazing reasons, Americans continue to have optimism and hope that the “good times” will go on forever. Like a stubborn bull refusing to move out of the way, the stock market continues to make millionaires everyday.
Consider this: The internet company Yahoo, with $8.2 billion market capitalization, is worth more than the New York Times Company valued at $7.6 billion.
At $6.2 billion, Amazon.com is worth more than rival booksellers Barnes & Noble and Borders combined.
America Online, valued at $26 billion, is worth about as much as ABC, CBS, and NBC put together.
These amazing virtual businesses are worth an astonishing amount of actual bucks. The stuff of silicon and fibers combined with brain power and speed have turned whiz kids and stock investors into people with billions of equity.
Are internet industries real and valuable? Apparently so! Although internet stocks took a hit last spring and are subject to market variables like other stocks, the fact is, high-tech stocks are hot. They’re very real and very valuable, although they don’t have much in the way of real estate and storefronts and inventory. In fact, one of the reasons they have such value is that they don’t have big stores to maintain and overhead costs to pay. There is a whole new set of values in the market today, and it seems that the businesses that are worth big bucks are the internet industries.
Changing Values
We are witnessing a stunning value shift in our culture—best illustrated by how internet businesses have out run traditional companies in being successful.
With only 89 days before the end of the second millennium, we are wondering about what other cultural shifts are in store for us. This shift in values was also evident with the apostle Paul at the beginning of the first century. What the pre-Christian Saul thought of as valuable, the Christian Paul regards as rubbish. His human merits are now divine demerits, his stunning gains are not staggering losses.
In Philippians 3, Paul highlights the value of his past religious life. He says, that if there should be anyone who can boast about how confident he was in the flesh, all those worldly and Jewish values, he would be that person. There was no one to compare with Paul on how strictly and religiously he followed Judaism. If anyone thought that he was more religious, Paul said “I have more” to boast. He said,
I was circumcised on the eighth day.
I am a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin.
I am a Hebrew born of Hebrews.
Paul completely surrendered his life to the total system of Jewish ritual observances as the path to righteousness. Paul was steeped in the law as a child. As a member of the highly esteemed tribe of Benjamin, Paul could boast of his family’s continued loyalty to the monarchy.
Not only did Paul inherited special privileges and station, but when he became an adult, he chose to strengthen his position in the law even more by becoming a Pharisee—the most observant sect in first-century Judaism. And then on top of that, Paul made a name for himself of persecuting Christians with “zeal.”
There was no one more bullish than Paul in being a good Hebrew.
Because of Christ
It is almost like Paul was reading the “business section” of the newspaper, checking out his stock investments when he experienced a value shift. In verse 7, Paul said, “Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as losses because of Christ.” Paul suddenly shifts from counting his merits to a radical balancing of the books. All that Paul so carefully boasted about are now dismissed as having any value at all. “Because of Christ,” Paul experienced a radical realignment of all his thinking, and his whole perception of gains and losses was completely altered.
Just like the internet businesses of Yahoo and America Online are making us ask questions that challenge everything we know about how the stock market should behave, “because of Christ,” we are asking ourselves how we should behave as Christians today.
When we think about how some people have become rich simply from being day traders and buying a little piece of America Online’s $26 billion business, what are our values in regards to making money from stock investments and the meaning of work?
Are we playing it safe by keeping our savings in the bank, or are we willing to risk it all in the market for the sake of knowing Jesus Christ?
Are we investing in the “law” when we think that following strict rules leads us to believe that we are righteous or is it “grace” when the all-forgiving love of Christ shows us that we are all sinners in need of God’s love?
Is our value system virtual or eternal? Are we placing our trust in artificial and superficial values or are we trusting in God’s eternal truth?
But there’s no one more bullish on eternal values than the apostle Paul. His advice: There’s nothing like the surpassing value of knowing Christ as Lord. Paul sees that everything he had is now rubbish—losses compared to gaining the knowledge of Christ and for Christ to find him. That’s an investment that grows and pays dividends forever, with a value that is far more than virtual.
Funny
Here’s a little ditty that came through the internet that illustrates the value shift that we as Christians may need to think about.
Funny how $100 “looks” so big when you take it to church,
but so small when you take it to the mall.
Funny how long it takes to serve God for an hour,
but how quickly a team plays 60 minutes of basketball.
Funny how we can’t think of anything to say when we pray,
but don’t have difficulty thinking of things to talk about to a friend.
Funny how we get thrilled when a baseball game goes into extra innings,
but complain when a sermon is longer than the regular time.
Funny how hard it is to read a chapter in the Bible,
but how easy it is to read 100 pages of a best selling novel.
Funny how people want to get a front seat at any game or concert,
but scramble to get a back seat at church services.
Funny how hard it is for people to learn a simple gospel message well enough to tell others, but how simple it is for the same people to understand and repeat gossip.
Funny how we believe what the newspaper says,
but question what the Bible says.
Funny how everyone wants to go to heaven provided they do not have to believe, or to think, or to say, or to do anything.
Funny how you can send a joke through e-mail and it spreads like wildfire,
but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing it.
Funny, isn’t it?
It’s funny because in many ways, we who claim to be Christians “because of Christ,” are still more confident in the flesh than confident in our faith in Christ. We are like the
pre-Christian Saul who believed that the path of righteousness is found in the world. It’s funny because we sometimes have more confidence in worldly values than in eternal stocks.
Press on Toward the Goal
This feeling of knowing what we should be doing and realizing that we are falling short in achieving it is common and true for all of us. It was also true for Paul. Listen to him again.
Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I
press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do:
forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press
on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.
Although we continue to find ourselves trusting the world before we might trust God, one thing is for certain. As Christians, we are to look outward, strain forward, press on toward the goal.
Realize that you received the righteousness that comes through faith in Christ, and let that great gift free you from the shackles of worrying about what you may think is wrong with you. Jesus is with you, as Lord and friend, sharing not only his sufferings but also the power of his resurrection. With Christ at your side, you can:
*Love others as God has loved you, even the neighbors who are unlike yourself, who may not be from the tribe of Benjamin.
*Work hard with zeal—and even suffer—for the things you believe in because Jesus first suffered and died for us.
*Speak of your faith, not as a structured religion following all the rituals and do’s and don’ts but speak of your faith as a saving relationship just like how Christ first found you.
*Shift from your confidence in the world of the flesh and share the values of Christ to others through your words and your actions.
*Like Paul, let us begin to see that what we think are gains are truly losses because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus as our Lord.
Real Treasure
Let me close with a story. This is the time of year when schools have “open houses.” One couple recently went to Open House at the public elementary school. Listen to their story.
When Rachel’s teacher met us, her eyebrows seemed to elevate slightly. She spoke kindly of our first grader but said she had some concerns. She then invited us to look at the artwork; we would see what she meant.
Dozens of brown paper treasure chests were tacked to the bulletin board. Each had a barreled top attached with a brad. On the front was printed, “A Real Treasure Would Be…” We walked over and began opening the lids to find Rachel’s treasure and see why it so concerned the teacher.
As we peeked into each chest, we saw TVs and Nintendos, videos, Pokiemons, and stuff animals. Rachel’s chest was in the very bottom corner. We had to stoop to open it. Inside, our daughter had drawn a picture of Christ on the cross. She had completed the sentence, “A Real Treasure Would Be…Jesus.”
“Do you see my concern?” the teacher asked, her arms folded across her chest.
“Yes,” my husband agreed, “I see what you mean. The J is written backwards, isn’t it?”
Because of Christ, our lives are changed. We no longer see worldly treasures of Sega systems, big TVs, fancy cars, bigger houses and designer clothes as important anymore. Because of Christ, whatever gains we thought we had are now losses because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus as our Lord.
Together, let’s get bullish on eternal stocks—the surpassing value of knowing Christ as Lord. This venture requires no up front cash or options, concrete or steel, fiber or silicon—only a trusting heart and a willing spirit. But it is an investment that will grow and pay big dividends, in this market and in the next.
Let us pray.
Dear God, bless each and every one of us here today so that we may come to know your love for us. Challenge us to invest in your plans for us in this world in order for us to bear witness to the suffering and resurrection of Christ Jesus. Amen.