Living God, we worship you today with joy in our hearts and thanksgiving on our lips! May we be inspired to share in your purpose and advance your kingdom of love, justice, and peace. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

As Rick introduced me earlier, my name is Jeff Huhman. I’ve been interning here over the summer for almost three months. It’s been an awesome experience, and I want to thank all of you for giving me an opportunity to work with you and your people here at the church. It’s been pretty wonderful. 

 

I would like to start today with a little anecdote. It’s a little story for you to think about. 

 

There’s a young man named Phil. Phil is starting to get ready to be out of college, and everyday for his four years of college, he had the exact same attire. His nice, old, tattered ripped holey t-shirt with the same pair of jeans for all four years. They are kind of old. They are ratty, torn up, but they’re his favorite pair of jeans. So why buy a new pair? For Phil, there was no use for shoes or for fixing his hair after he crawled out of bed.

 

Phil’s a guy who, in appearance, doesn’t seem to hold up very well, but intellectually, Phil is brilliant. He’s very bright and somewhat profound. Throughout Phil’s college years, the Spirit encountered him, and he became a Christian while he was in college. 

 

Across the street from the college campus, there’s a very uptight, very, very conservative, well-dressed church. So one day Phil decided, “I’ve been doing this whole Christian thing for a little while, I want to go see what this church across the street is up to.” 

 

So one day Phil decided to go check out that church. When he got there, the service had already started, and so he started making his way down the center aisle, trying to find a place to sit throughout the service. Well, people kind of saw him come in. They looked over their shoulders and whispered to each other saying, “What is this guy doing here? He doesn’t belong here.” 

 

They were all ready for a typical day in their conservative church with all the gentlemen wearing their three-piece suits. It is what you might imagine in that sort of setting. 

 

As Phil started making his way down the aisle, he had to keep walking further and further, because this day the church was packed. There is no room in the church. There are full pews everywhere; nowhere for Phil to go. He just kept going up the aisle trying to find a seat but couldn’t find a place. He got to about in front of the pulpit and figured, “Well, there are no seats, so I’ll just sit right here on the carpet.” Phil just sat right down in the middle of the church, right in the front. 

 

Everybody was kind of nervous and uncomfortable. They weren’t really sure what to think of that – this college kid. The church had been trying to build a college ministry for a little while. However, they never really could figure how to go across the street and reach that group of people. 

 

The minister basically had to stop preaching the sermon right there, because he knew what was going on. About that same time, he saw an eighty-year old deacon, gray-whitish hair, three-piece suit, a very godly man, very courtly, a very dignified man in the church. He started coming up the aisle from the back of the church. 

 

People started seeing him come, and they were getting a little more tense. They started whispering to each other, “You know, you can’t really blame him for what he is doing. He’s this guy who doesn’t really understand this college generation. He has to do what he has to do. He has to come talk to this guy. He doesn’t understand him.”

 

Everybody just waits as this elderly man makes his way down the aisle and uses a cane to walk. The church is silent – silent except for the sound of the old man’s cane. The man eventually makes it to where Phil is sitting on the ground, just waiting for church to keep going on, because he’s there to see what they’re doing that Sunday. 

 

Eventually, the elderly man gets to Phil. He drops his cane, and with great difficultly squats down and sits down right next to Phil. He didn’t want Phil to be sitting there worshiping alone.

 

The church – the entire congregation - saw what had just happened. Everybody was just choked up with emotion. When the minister finally regained control of the congregation, he said, “What I’m about to preach, you’ll never remember, but what you have just seen, you’ll never forget.” 

 

This elderly gentleman had a reputation that I specifically tried to set up for you in the story as to what you might anticipate would happen to Phil as he might get dragged right back out of the church, telling him that he is not really appropriate for the setting. This elderly man’s reputation was somewhat defined by this action he did. People will always remember what his reputation was because of what he did that day. 

 

Everything we do – our words, our deeds – can make lasting impressions on people’s hearts. In the story, as I said, the deacon created this reputation for himself. 

 

The Scripture I want to use for today to be the foundation for what I’m talking about is in the book of Colossians. Colossians 3:17 says, “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do all in the name of Jesus Christ, giving thanks for him to God the Father.” 

 

That says a lot to me. Hopefully what I say today furthers my interpretation of that Scripture and maybe what we can do to fulfill that. 

 

It’s a reputation.   A reputation is what I’m talking about for today. Webster’s Dictionary defines a reputation as “the overall quality or character as seen, or judged by people in general; or recognition by other people of some characteristic or ability.” 

 

Whether we like to admit it or not, we each have a reputation. Some more-well- known reputations might be Mother Teresa’s ministry to the less fortunate, or Martin Luther King’s “I have Dream” speech. They are some things that were remembered. Other reputations might be Charles Manson’s reputation of being a serial killer. 

 

We each have a reputation with others. What I want to do is to give an idea that some people create a reputation that really makes an effect on the entire world, or a specific community. We each have an opportunity to make a difference in this world, especially with the reputation we leave. 

 

Unfortunately not all reputations are always positive. Not everything that people will remember about us is always going to be the wonderful things we do. Sometimes people create reputations by the things they don’t do, or the things they don’t do so well. 

 

In Galatians it says, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, for which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”

 

I have some things I would like for you to think about today. I have a lot of questions to propose to you. I hope that you will take each one delicately and seriously. 

 

What is it that you are known for? What is it that you want to be known for? What is it that you want people to say about you? What is it that you want people to remember once you’ve moved away or gone on to another part of this life that we live?

 

We can build our reputations for ourselves, or we can build a reputation from the name of God. Who is it that you want to build a reputation for?

 

In building a reputation, a couple of questions come to mind. What is it that we want our lives to represent? What is it that we want to be said of us? Secondly, how can we practically take steps to build this reputation? 

 

I want to challenge each of you to think, right now, what it might be that keeps you from building a reputation, maybe a godly reputation? What is it that personally holds you back? 

 

For me, what hurts me, sometimes, is I live in a world were a lot of peer pressure is around. A lot of choices that one makes really define one’s reputation. Sometimes I don’t necessarily think that what I say, and what I do, and what other people think of me, is what I value the most. But to have a godly reputation isn’t what is seen as cool or hip in these days. Sometimes that’s something that makes me second-guess my actions and some of the things I might do if I’m not in the right place. That’s one of the things that hold me back. 

 

What is it that perhaps holds you from keeping a pure and true godly reputation? Maybe another way to ask that would be: whose kudos will you and I live for? When I say “whose,” I’m asking do you want people to praise you specifically, or maybe for what you do, or what your reputation might represent that brings kudos to someone else.

 

John 5:44 says, “How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?” 

 

I think John has a pretty good insight here. 

 

What is it that you truly believe? If you seek to be praised by those around you, but do not seek for the praise that comes from God, it seems to me, maybe, the faith needs to be questioned a little bit here. When I refer to the faith, I mean to say the faith to believe in Christ, and understand, and accept what it is that he did for our life. 

 

When I think about that, God came down into this world in the form of God’s son, and was crucified, died in the worst way, so that I will, not only be able to live a pure life, but I can give all my sins to him who died for my sins. Not just so I can live a pure life and seek forgiveness, but so that I would be able to live with God in heaven. I would be able to be accepted into heaven because of his death. 

 

That’s kind of a big idea for me, something that gets me excited. When I think about that, how would I not want to live a life that would praise our God? How would I not want to live a life that would praise a God that would do that for my life? 

 

One of my mentors, one that I experienced this past school year, said something like this: “In our suburban, happy fest of cosumeristic, deceptive blindness, I think it is easy to think we have it, when we are as lost as ever.” 

 

I find a lot of truth in what he said. For sometimes, I think we're living in a very consumer mindset, where we think that if we just try to gain more property, more stuff to our name, then we might be happier. That leads me to make the point that we might start to think we have it, because were getting all these things. The more we get, the more money we get, or the better quality of things we get, we think we might have what is great, what is success, what is seen as the best by the world’s perspective. I would venture to say that if we do lean that way, then we will be lost and far from the truth. 

 

I talk about what it is to try to be successful, what it is to try to be something, try to be worthwhile. Having the name of the president of the company, or the highest salary, or whatever it might be, I wouldn’t necessarily call that success. Success, to me, is, in order to be faithful, is listening to and obeying the voice of God. That means to me that, not only would you be faithful and committed to listening to what God desires from your life, but that you’re actually able to follow through with it. I think that is one of the most difficult parts.

 

We can each try to listen to God and try to figure out how God is trying to talk to us. It’s a whole different thing completely to actually follow through with what God wants for our life. What I’m trying to get across to you is maybe we need to try to hear from God. So how would you know that you’re hearing the voice of God?

 

I think we need to ask ourselves a question. What is it that God is trying to teach me right now? Honestly, when people try to think about that, and figure out how God’s trying to reach them, that’s exactly what God is wanting in their life right now. If you’re listening to God, you know what God is trying to teach you. If you can follow through with what God is teaching you, and follow through with what it is God desires for your life, then maybe that is exactly what God desires for you.

 

In Philippians, it says, “For it is God who works in you to will and act in accordance to God’s good purpose.” 

 

In Ephesians, it says, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” 

 

Here are a couple of Scriptures that say to me that God created us to do God’s work. God desires for us to listen to God and try to follow through with what God wants for our lives, and so that just empowers me to try to figure out what it is that I need to be doing for God. 

 

Growing up, it seems like my parents were the ones who tried to build me up. 

They took the responsibility of making me into a better individual. They were the ones who really, deep down, tried to help grow me, make me into a better person. I think that similarly God does it in the same way. We are God’s children, and God takes it into God’s responsibility to build us up very seriously. 

 

In 1 Corinthians there’s a passage I think can make a good analogy of what he’s trying to assess in this message to Corinth: 

 

It took me a while to understand what exactly was trying to be said to the church in Corinth. I discovered that when each of us tries to build on our reputations, similar to building a structure, we start with our foundation in Christ. 

I think that is one of the most important parts of the foundation. It really sets the course for the rest of the structure. So, when we do that, we have a great potential to succeed when our foundation is in Jesus Christ. 

 

When we sometimes have times of trial, these are times when what we build might be tried and put to a flame. Although your structure, or your reputation, might get burned up, the builder will not. Your foundation will still be there, your foundation in Christ. When your faith is in Jesus Christ, what your reputation is may be destroyed, but with your foundation still in Jesus Christ, you will be saved. You are bought by the death of Christ. That’s what the faith says. That’s what the gospel is. That’s something we can always believe in. However, if you use a different material that will withstand the fire, then you will actually have a structure that will withstand, or a reputation that will always be represented. 

 

Once God buys us back, once we accept Christ and accept what he did for us, I believe that God begins the process of making us like God’s son. 

 

Another passage from Colossians says, “So, everywhere we go, we tell everyone about Christ. We warn them and teach them with the wisdom God has given us, for we want to present them to God perfect in their relationship to Christ.” 

 

In this Scripture, the word “perfect” is from the Greek word tellias, which means “mature.” So when people teach others about Christ, and they’re presented to God, we want them to be seen in a mature relationship with Christ. That is, our lives in Christ are similar to the ones that we live today. We need to grow and mature. When we are presented to God mature in Christ then that is something God desires for our life.

 

So then, how might we change? Some issues that we’re talking about trying to change here might be in your character, in your habits, in your jobs that might need to be done, in obedience to certain things. Essentially what is it that you’re known for? 

 

God’s two main tools to grow you from an infant to maturity, I believe, are both trials and responsibilities. Usually we know when were encountering a trial. Not always do we know when we have a responsibility on our shoulders, but I think in the same way for both trial and responsibilities, we need to hear from God to understand how it is that God desires for us to use them to grow in our relationship with Christ. 

 

I’ve talked about how there’s a reputation that we need to set down, and then there are ways that we might be able to do that through either a trial or responsibility. How do we do that? As I was saying before, I think we need to hear from God as to how to do it. How is it that you might hear? 

 

There are a couple of ways.   It might be through prayer, through friends or peers, or the Word of God, or from godly older counsel. If we live a life of constant prayer, maybe then it will keep us in tune with God’s plan – when we’re in constant conversation; we’re in constant prayer with God. 

 

Friends or peers who know you well enough to challenge you, and even to speak to you from a peer-to-peer basis, are also wonderful ways to try to hear from God. For someone who’s trying to be accountable with their friends, they can be challenged by what it is that God might be trying to reach them, or teach them at that point. When you have a mentor or someone to disciple you, 

one who might be seen as an individual who challenges and pours into you and really seeks to teach you truths in Christ that they have experienced throughout the years, I think that is an incredible way to hear from God. 

 

I’ve had a couple of mentors who really poured into me what they’ve learned throughout their years of being a Christian, and they’ve try to teach me, so that, not only will the reputation they’ve created be passed on to me in this form of understanding what Christ desires of our lives, but it is also another way that we can hear what God desires for our lives. 

 

So then, why? Why is it important to do this? Why is it important to make progress? If this is truly something that you want to do, if you truly want to be in tune with God and follow what it is that God desires for your life, which I believe the Scriptures tell us is what we are responsible to do as Christians, I think it’s important to ask yourself, “Why do this? Why is this so important?” 

 

If you’re “why answer” is lame, then your progress will be lame as well, because no one can tell you to go and listen to God and do what God tells you to. People can tell you to do that, but it won’t make you do it. You can try to have someone tell you that you need to believe in God, because that’s what going to be good, but really it’s up to you. It’s within you. If you don’t have a strong motivation to do that daily, then it won’t happen. It’s a relationship between you and God, not something between someone else and you. 

 

I think we then need to try to find an obedience plan – some way to keep you accountable, some way to keep you motivated to follow what it is that Christ desires for your life. 

 

I think some other ways to do that is constant prayer with God, with friends, with godly, older counsel, and with even memorizing Scripture. Some of these resources can definitely help keep you encouraged to stay obedient, not just listening what it is that God desires for your life, but to actually act on those things. 

 

As I asked you a little bit earlier to try and think of some things, what is it that are your barriers and obstacles? What is it that is going on inside of you? What holds you back from a godly reputation? If perhaps you can answer these, I would recommend you share them with someone who can help keep you accountable with it, or you can at least take it to God and say, “God, I know that this is a struggle for me. This is something that I’ve been working on.” 

 

Maybe it’s something where you and someone else can work with and ask God for help with that. 

 

Henry Blackaby once said, “You cannot stay the way you are and go with God. I would say that God loves too much to let you stay the same. God loves us so much that he desires for us to keep growing, keep learning more about him, and keep becoming more devoted to faith in him.” 

 

In 2 Timothy, there is another passage that says, “In a large house there are articles, not only of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay; some are for noble purposes and some for ignoble. If a man cleanses himself from the latter, he will be an instrument for noble purposes, made holy, useful to the Master, and prepared to do any good work.” 

 

When we choose to be trained with a noble purpose, we also then will be used for a noble purpose. For whatever purpose that God may desire of us that is what will be noble, that will be what will be a lasting impression. 

 

If, indeed, we are able to listen and obey what we hear from God, not only will we be successful, but, I believe, we will have an incredible, amazing, wonderful opportunity to build a reputation, not for us, not to glorify ourselves, not a reputation that will bring wonderful things to us, but a reputation for the one who is truly worthy of that wonderful great reputation, our Father in heaven. 

 

When we go, whether we move away or move from this earth, the reputation that we have established will have a lasting impression on each of those who God has touched through our lives. For when people fill into and pour into you, and you understand what it is that God desires for your life and actually make those action, God can help teach others about that. 

 

When other people actually do remember that, they will have an idea as to what your reputation was – what it was that you were on this earth to do. They will understand what your legacy was, and your reputation will live on as a man or woman who lived for God. 

 

So, I challenge you to think about that. Who is it that you want your reputation to be lived for, and exactly how it is that you might be able to go about living that? 

 

And we all say together…   “Amen.”

 

 

Creator God, let us always remember whose we are. May the words we say, and the things we do reflect you. May the snapshots of our lives reveal your family resemblance. Amen.