{"id":184,"date":"2002-06-23T16:02:57","date_gmt":"2002-06-23T16:02:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/?p=184"},"modified":"2020-12-02T16:53:20","modified_gmt":"2020-12-02T16:53:20","slug":"baptists-inside-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/baptists-inside-out\/","title":{"rendered":"Baptists Inside Out"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Acts 26:24-32<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

June 23, 2002\u201410:05 Worship<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s a story about a boy who was corrected by his father. The father, without full understanding of the whole situation, yanked his son aside and told him to \u201csit down and be quiet!\u201d Seeing the hopelessness of arguing with his dad, the boy resigned himself to the assigned seat, but with steeled eyes and resolve in his voice, he said, \u201cI may be sitting down on the outside, but I\u2019m standing up on the inside!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Scriptural verses we read from Acts 26<\/a> are the conclusion of the last speech given by Paul and perhaps the best oratorical message of the day. Arrested by Festus, Paul appears in front of King Agrippa to defend himself before being transferred to Emperor Nero. Paul acknowledges that his fellow Jews have brought charges against him. When the Roman authorities arrested Paul, he may have said, \u201cI may be sitting down right now in front of King Agrippa, but I am standing up on the inside!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He starts off by telling Agrippa that he was born a Jew in one of the strictest sects and was surprised that the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem would pursue a case against him. At first, he believed that the Christians were beyond the bonds of basic Jewish faith and practice so with the authority of the chief priests, he went after the Christians–putting them in jail, voting for the death penalty. He even tried to beat the Christians to curse Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Paul remembered very clearly what happened to him on the Damascus road. A bright heavenly light blinded him. The light was the Lord. The Lord said, \u201cSaul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Get up and stand on your feet; for I appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you to serve and testify to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having had this miraculous conversion, Paul brought the Christian message of repentance to Damascus, Jerusalem, and also to the Gentiles. It was because of his missionary activities that his adversaries were trying to kill him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before he finished his defense, Paul once again stood up for his beliefs. He said, \u201cTo this day I have had help from God, and so I stand here, testifying to both small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would take place: that the Messiah must suffer, and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From deep inside of Paul\u2019s Jewish background, he knew about the prophecies. From the Lord\u2019s bright heavenly light, Paul knew that his insides have changed. From these deep convictions and experiences, Paul had no other choice but to spread the Good News of Christ. Coming out from his insides, Paul was freed to testify about Jesus Christ!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Believing in the Truth<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

Some of you know that I am a NPR listener\u2014that\u2019s National Public Radio. From WHYY in Philadelphia, there\u2019s a show called, Fresh Air<\/em> with Terry Gross as the host. Recently, she was interviewing a couple of New Testament professors by asking them the question, \u201cWhat do you do with the fact that some Christians believe that they are right and that everybody else is wrong? With all of the trouble, controversy and bloodshed in the world, isn\u2019t that sort of dangerous? Do you believe that Jesus is the one and only way?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the guests said that he didn\u2019t believe that Jesus was the only way, that there were many different ways to God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today we live in a world that is very pluralistic. There\u2019s an unwillingness to say that Jesus is right combined with an absolute, sweeping certitude that nobody else could be right either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other guest, N.T. Wright replied by saying, \u201cYou are assuming that the conflict and violence in the world is due to people thinking that they are right. From a Christian point of view, we would say that people who commit violence toward other people, people who put down other people, are not just being fanatical, they are being wrong. There are <\/em>some ideas that are wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wright went on to say, \u201cOur different ideas are our ways of making sense out of the world. And the way we make sense out of the world means that we live in very different places in the world. I think it is important to be honest, as honest as we possibly can about the ways that we are making sense out of the world. Simple honesty, as well as respect for people\u2019s differences, means that no one can seriously say that all religious people are basically all moving in the same direction and that they are sort of all saying the same thing.\u201d What Wright is saying is that not all religions are the same\u2014they don\u2019t all have the truth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I like what Wright is saying. When someone confesses that, \u201cI believe Jesus Christ is Lord and I am trying to live my life on the basis of that belief,\u201d he should not be dismissed as some sort of fanatic, someone who is \u201cnarrow-minded.\u201d When so-called intellectuals assert that a professing Christian is narrow-minded and that all points of view must be equally valid or those points of view must be driven from discussion, these people are equally acknowledging the narrowness of their own point of view too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wonder if it is possible to think that someone is right, in the way that that person believes, without spending much time or effort thinking that everybody else is wrong. Might we be the kind of Christian who know that we are right. But we don\u2019t spend a lot of time saying that we are right, and we don\u2019t spend a lot of time moving from the belief that we are right to the assertion that everybody else is wrong?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Christians, we believe we are right. We believe we have the answer to what\u2019s going on in the world. The answer is Jesus Christ who makes everything else falls into place. Jesus makes sense to us and is the one who gives us meaning in the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Freedom in Truth<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

When Jesus was teaching boldly in the temple court with those who believed in the law and were bent on destroying him, he said, \u201cIf you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.\u201d (John 8:31-32<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When we learn from Jesus, gaining knowledge by spending time with him, the truth will set us free. Freedom from insisting that we are the only ones who are right. Freedom from the need to put down people and say that they are wrong. Freedom to let the Spirit and truth of God be revealed in the hearts of each man and woman to know Jesus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Standing up in front of King Agrippa, Paul made his defense. Festus exclaimed, \u201cYou are out of your mind, Paul! Too much learning is driving you insane!\u201d Paul wasn\u2019t crazy. Paul knew that the truth of Christ freed him to speak. He spoke freely the truth even with chains around his waist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul tried to persuade Agrippa to become a Christian without coercion. In fact, Agrippa is the one with the armies and the weapons, the only arsenal Paul had was his words. Paul replied, \u201cWhether quickly or not, I pray to God that not only you but also all who are listening to me today might become such as I am\u2014except for these chains.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul received the freedom to tell about Christ because he spent time learning from Christ. And with his deep convictions inside of him, he believed he was right but at the same time, allowing Agrippa to come to his own beliefs. We don\u2019t know if King Agrippa ever became a Christian himself. Paul didn\u2019t put down Agrippa. He didn\u2019t say he was wrong. But Paul was sure that he was right in the truth of Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being Baptists<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

When we follow Jesus and learn about the truth that he is Lord and Savior, this truth liberates us and makes us free. We\u2019re not talking about being freed from oppressive governments. Paul was still a prisoner, but he spoke freely based on his faith and convictions. To experience freedom, we must turn away from trusting the law or expecting the state to further religion. All we need to do is to trust Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being Baptist today means that we are committed to religious liberty because we believed Jesus\u2019 words. Having tasted the freedom that Jesus offers to the soul, we have been unwilling to let anyone impose belief, creed, church structure, or religious practices upon us. We understand at the very core of our identity, born out of relationship with Christ, that imposed faith is no faith at all. This is how Baptists are making sense out of the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Baptists have fought for freedom of beliefs that our religious forebears in America drafted in our Constitution guaranteeing that \u201cCongress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.\u201d We Baptists can take credit for that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But in the aftermath of the September 11th<\/sup> attack on America, some Americans seem ready to trade freedom for security. \u201cWe are strong because of our religious roots,\u201d some would say, \u201cso let\u2019s post the Ten Commandments in courthouses and schools. Let\u2019s insist that prayer be returned to schools. Let\u2019s provide vouchers to help fund the education of children who want to be educated in religious schools. Let\u2019s use our motto, \u201cIn God We Trust\u201d more. Let\u2019s make \u201cGod Bless America\u201d our national hymn.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of these ideas may make us feel patriotic and a bit more secure inside, but they would go against being a Baptist!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What would Jesus say to us if he heard these suggestions? I believe he would say what he said to the Jews. \u201cDon\u2019t forget, freedom comes from the inside out. In following my teachings you will prove that you are my disciples. And you know the truth and the truth will make you free. I am the way, the truth and the life. If I set you free you will be freed indeed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I believe that Jesus would also tell us that we Americans have been given a precious gift called religious freedom\u2014a gift that makes it so much easier for his truth to be shared, accepted, and acted upon without coercion or constraint. Even with chains around his waist, Paul with the truth of Christ stood up and shared freely with Agrippa with no coercion for him to believe. Freedom comes from the inside out, not sanction by laws from the outside in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have been a Baptist all my life. We Baptists cannot win the world nor protect our country by imposing our religious beliefs on children and other people among us. Having a law that requires schools to give a time for students to pray, or reflect on our nation, may sound good in the current climate of war, but it is still the state telling children what, when, and where to pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We can best win our nation and world by continually struggling to create a climate where the claims of Christ can be presented alongside all other claims of truth. Although we know that we have the answers to the meaning of life, we can still give the freedom for<\/p>\n\n\n\n

others to believe differently without violence and coercion. That same freedom of religious liberty for others guarantees freedom for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We can best win our nation by standing up for and exercising our freedom to pray, to share our faith, and to live lives that are markedly different from the lives of non-believers. As we faithfully follow Jesus\u2019 teachings, we will prove to be effective disciples like Paul and the truth of Jesus\u2019 teachings will take root in our hearts and the hearts of our neighbors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the truth of Christ inside us, we Baptists will know the truth inside out and this truth will set us free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let us pray.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

God of grace and mercy, free us from the temptation to legislate faith on others. Teach us to learn from the truth of Jesus Christ so that from our deep convictions, we proclaim the Good News to the world. Freely out of your love, you have freed us from our sins. Freely out of our faith in you, we come to serve and bear witness of you in the world. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Acts 26:24-32 June 23, 2002\u201410:05 Worship Sermon preached by Rev. Donald Ng at the First Chinese Baptist Church in San Francisco. There\u2019s a story about a boy who was correctedContinue readingBaptists Inside Out<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[20,11],"class_list":["post-184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-donald-ng-sermons","tag-acts","tag-fcbc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=184"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2398,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/184\/revisions\/2398"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.followgreg.com\/revdonaldng\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}