“DEAD OR ALIVE?”
Rev. 3:1-3
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. There was a man who had a mental problem: he walked around all day believing he was dead. His family got tired and frustrated by his delusion because dead people don’t contribute anything to the living.
2. So his wife got him an appointment with a psychiatrist. After reasoning with the man unsuccessfully for 45 minutes, the psychiatrist got an idea and said, “Tell me, do dead people bleed?” The man answered, “Of course dead people don’t bleed!”
3. The psychiatrist got a needle and poked the finger of the deluded man. A drop of blood formed and ran down his finger. The psychiatrist said triumphantly, “Now what do you say to that?!”
4. The deluded man answered, “Well what do you know; dead men DO bleed!”
B. TEXT
1. “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God. 3 So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.” Rev. 3:1-3 NASB
C. THESIS: VITAL SIGNS
1. Q - If you keeled over during this service and a doctor needed to determine whether you were alive or dead, what are the vital signs he would be looking for? [Heartbeat, Breathing, Eye-Movement, Brain activity, Reflexes, and so on.] These would demonstrate you’re alive.
2. This morning we’re looking for the vital signs of our spiritual life, asking this question – “ARE WE ALIVE?”
3. And you might reply, “Certainly I’m Alive!”
a. I got up this morning; b. I took a bath;
c. I ate breakfast d. I got dressed.
e. I brushed my teeth f. & I drove to church.
“OF COURSE I’M ALIVE!”
4. But that’s NOT what the Lord was referring to – mere existence or natural life – every human being has that, whether or not they trust in Christ.
5. But the Life referred to by the Lord is “spiritual life” that comes only from God by vital connection to Jesus Christ. This Life animates us. We should be directed by our spiritual life.
6. Paul said of a Christian woman, “But she who lives for pleasure is dead even while she lives” 1 Tim. 5:6. “The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace” Rom. 8:6.
7. “BUT PASTOR, NONE OF THIS APPLIES TO ME BECAUSE I’M A GOOD CHRISTIAN!” There may be a difference between perception and reality!
8. The title of this message is “Alive or Dead?”
I. REPUTATION VS. REALITY
Many of us are known as being a “Christian.”
A. “YOU HAVE A NAME/REPUTATION OF BEING ALIVE,” JESUS SAID.
1. HOWEVER, WHAT WE’RE SUPPOSED TO BE versus WHAT WE ARE can be TWO DIFFERENT THINGS!
2. The Lord said of Sardis, “Others are fooled; I’m not. I know exactly where you are.”
3. Our Reputation is how we USED TO BE:
a. On fire,
b. Hungry for God,
c. Diligent in the things of God,
d. You were so in love with God…But are you now?
4. ILLUS. Alexander the Great had a soldier under him who also was named Alexander. The problem was, he was cowardly. After the younger was caught being cowardly, the
great General called him before him and asked, “What’s your name?” (He asked him 3X and the younger answered.) Alex the Great then said, “That’s MY name! Either live up to it or change your name!” That’s what the Lord Jesus says to us; “Either live up to My name of don’t call yourself a Christian!”
B. LORD TOLD THEM TO TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION
1. The Lord told the Christians at Sardis that if they didn’t do something, things would get worse. Why does the Lord say such things? Because He loves us! He wants us close!
2. Q – HOW CAN I KNOW IF I HAVE THE VITAL SIGNS OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE?
a. Biologists have identified 7 signs of life found in every organism. I believe these are ordained by God as sign posts.
b. These correspond to the Seven Signs of Spiritual Life which indicate whether we’re alive in Jesus or not.
[textbook, Biology, Solomon, et. Al., Harcourt-Brace, Fort Worth, 1996. “Movement, Responsiveness, Eats, Growth, Excretes, Reproduces, Converts energy.”]
II. SEVEN SIGNS OF SPIRITUAL LIFE
A. MOVEMENT
1. Paul said we’re supposed to “keep in step” with the Spirit, Gal. 5:23. I had two kids who played musical instruments in the HHS Marching Band.
2. Occasionally we saw a neophyte not turn with the rest of the band, or walking the wrong direction when everyone else reversed. Then the tubas or trombones would turn and whap them! They got “out of step” with the band.
3. Sometimes we do that with the Lord. Our sonship in Christ is proven by our being “led by the Spirit of God” Rom. 8:14.
4. The Ark of God is on the move! The Presence of God is on the move! How can we be standing still? When was the last time you did something for the first time? God can’t steer a parked car!
5. If you’re alive in Christ, you’ll be moving forward with Him.
B. RESPONSIVENESS
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gaWrMCiZR8
2. Plants, etc. – demonstrate Phototrophy; they instinctively draw near light. If they don’t, there’s something wrong! JESUS IS THE TRUE LIGHT! We should instinctively be drawing near to Jesus, John 6:37.
3. HUMOR. Prayer is as natural to the child of God as breathing is to a new baby. A boy asked his mother, “Mom, I heard that Doctors always swat a new born baby. Why is that?” The Mom gave the boy a knowing look and said, “To get them used to it!” (Reason: take first breath!)
4. Are you spiritually breathing? Are you praying regularly? Or have you stopped?
C. EATS
1. If there are any of the 7 Signs of Life that members of this church are doing, it’s EATING! But we’re talking about spiritual food.
2. How would you respond if your child or grand-child refused to eat for a week? We’d be extremely concerned! A person who doesn’t eat will die.
3. Jesus said, “Man shall NOT LIVE by bread alone but by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God” Matt. 4:4. If all you’re getting is physical food, you’ll die spiritually.
4. Peter said, “Desire the sincere milk of the Word, that you may grow thereby” 1 Peter 2:2. Hebrews also tells us we need the “meat” of the Word (5:12,14).
5. If we’re not eating, we’re probably dead! When was the last time you ate a full meal of God’s Word?
D. GROWTH
1. Growth is “the act or process of growing; development; gradual increase.” It can be physical, mental, or spiritual.
2. God Commands us; “Grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” 2 Pet. 3:18. So we’re supposed to be transforming, altering, changing into the spiritual likeness of Jesus!
3. Are you more like Jesus today than you were 5 years ago? All living things grow (and not just our waistline). If we’re not growing, that’s evidence we might not be alive spiritually!
E. EXCRETES: Every Creature Gets rid of Waste.
1. The equivalent to this is we must get rid of SIN out of our lives! It starts early.
2. Margaret Provost said, “One day my three year old grand daughter, Beverly, was playing with her toys. Her mother, who was folding laundry across the room, noticed
that Beverly’s shirt was dirty and needed to be changed. After calling two times with no response, her mother gave her the full three-name call, “Beverly Elizabeth Provost, did you hear me?!” Beverly answered, “Yes Mama. My ears did, but my legs didn’t!” [Today’s Christian Woman, “Small Talk.”] WE IGNORE GOD TOO!
3. If we want to make heaven our home, sin must go. There won’t be any sin in heaven.
F. REPRODUCES
1. An important feature in all creatures is to reproduce. If a fruit tree is healthy and conditions are right, it should be reproducing/ producing fruit. Remember Jesus and the unfruitful fig tree? He expects us to be producing fruit.
2. The “spiritual” person should, by nature, be reproducing Christ in other’s lives – we should be trying to win souls. If we’ve really found God, we should want other lost people to have the same joy we’ve found!
3. When was the last time you lead someone to Jesus? Soul-winning is a sign of life from God.
G. ENERGY – Converts it to usable form.
1. Our faith should be put into practical use of good deeds and kindness to all around us.
2. We should walk in victory. Our conviction of heaven and its rewards, of eternal life and our resurrection body should give us a joy that everyone else is looking for.
3. Samuel Shoemaker said, “The surest mark of a Christian is not faith or even love, but joy!”
III. KEY TO SPIRITUAL LIFE: THE OLD MAN IS DEAD
A. SCRIPTURE
1. “5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord” Rom. 6:5-7,11, NKJV.
B. DEATH MUST PRECEDE LIFE
1. Conformity to Christ is accomplished by the death of one life (the old) and replacement by the New Life.
2. Think: THERE IS NO RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD WITHOUT FIRST HAVING DIED! So it’s not until we let Christ put our old life to death, that His new life can begin to form in us!
3. ILLUS. Custom of the natives in New Guinea.
a. At certain times they have rituals, songs, and dances. They work themselves up into a frenzy and the ritual culminates in what are called “the murder songs,” in which they shout before God the names of the people they wish to kill.
b. When the natives became Christians, they retained these customs and that ritual. However, in the murder songs, they no longer shouted the names of the people they hated, but the names of the sins they hated, and called on God to destroy them. A pagan custom had been captured for Christ. (Lou Nicholes)
C. CLASSIC EXAMPLE IN A PERSON’S LIFE
1. Jacob was a conniver and a deceiver; a liar and a trickster. He gypped his brother and deceived his father.
2. Eventually, God forced Jacob to acknowledge that he was a deceiver and supplanter; it is said that Jacob “wrestled” with God! It sounded like Jacob won, but it was really God who won! Jacob the convict was stripped of his criminal mind and it was replaced with the mind of Christ!
3. The Scripture says that after the encounter, Jacob limped the rest of his life. His brokenness was obvious even physically. But his brokenness also made him “Israel,” one who "wrestles with God and prevails."
4. This encounter completed the work of purification and grace God had been trying to do in him all his life.
D. SEEN IN THE METAMORPHOSIS OF THE BUTTERFLY. The Butterfly has 2 stages of existence: one as a chubby worm that can only crawl and the other as a beautiful creature that can fly high above the earth and will never crawl again. So are we now, like the caterpillar. But born again, we’ve entered the cocoon and are being transformed. At the rapture we will be freed to fly to heaven. We must be transformed to attain the goal, grandkids, a motorcycle, etc.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: Orientation of Life
1. Behavioral scientists have discovered that we usually see things we are prepared to see (reticular activating sys).
2. It works lie this: once something’s been brought to your attention and you have been prepared to see it, you will see it virtually everywhere you go.
3. Example, a new car. When you are desiring a new car, you will see them almost everywhere. The same is true of a house, of land, of a new dress.
4. This also happens spiritually. If we’re prepared to see opportunities to sin, that’s what we’ll see. If, on the other hand, we’re prepared to see opportunities for Christ, then that’s what we’ll see.
5. If we see ourselves as failures, or as weak and sickly, that’s what we’ll be. How do you look at yourself? As a person who’s weak, or failing, or a person who isn’t worth much?
6. You need to see yourself as ‘rising in newness of Life!’ “I can’t wait until tomorrow because there’s so many things I want to do for Christ.” As is your faith, so be it unto you!
B. FUNERAL SERVICE FOR THE OLD MAN [CASKET]
1. How many have some part of your life you’d like to put behind you?
2. HANDOUT: “THE OLD MAN IS DEAD” poem
We’re going to have a funeral today;
There’s a part of me that hasn’t died.
This is a funeral to bury my past;
To forever put away all I wish
I had never done or said,
To let my Old Sinful Way of Life
Be buried and forgotten.
To give up all my Sin, All my Guilt,
All the baggage, and stuff of Regrets,
Unforgiveness, Condemnation, Hurt
Feelings, and Misunderstandings.
I cast it all off now; I commit it to
The Cross and I consign it to the Grave
With Christ, and Rise with Him in
Newness of Life!
C. THE CALL
1. How many want to start with a clean slate with Jesus in charge? How many want to turn your life over to Christ this morning?
2. I want all of you to put some aspect of your Old Life, you want in the grave -- to write it at the bottom of the “Old Man is Dead” Handout. Fold it so no one else will know what it says. Now I want you to file by the Casket and drop your papers into the coffin for burial.
3. Have Musicians sing hymn “Nothing But The Blood”
(“What can wash away my sins, nothing but the blood of Jesus…”)
