GOSPEL IN A SHOEBOX
Eph. 6:15
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. The was a legalistic Bible college student who wanted to have a scriptural basis for everything he did. He wanted to be able to quote a Bible verse for everything he did. All went fine until he fell in love with a beautiful girl.
2. He wanted very much to kiss her, but he couldn’t think of a scripture for it. Finally he thought of the verse, "Greet each other with a holy kiss." But he went to his hermeneutics professor who said it “dealt with a church setting not a dating situation.” So again he walked her home, but couldn’t kiss his girl good night.
3. The next evening he walked her to the dormitory & once again started to say "good night." But as he did, she grabbed him, pulled him toward her, & planted a 10-second kiss right on his lips.
4. At the end of the kiss he gasped for air, & stammered, "Bible verse, Bible verse." The girl grabbed him a 2nd time, & just before kissing him said, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
B. TEXT & THESIS
1. One of the things that I had to learn early in life was to pay attention to the shoes that I chose to wear.
a. For sports you need shoes with a good grip.
b. If you’re working in mud or water, you want to wear waterproof boots.
c. If you’re going to a formal occasion, you need dress shoes to look nice, etc.
2. Part of the Armor of God also includes shoes for spiritual warfare; Paul said, “your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel” Eph. 6:15.
3. I want to share with you today "The Gospel in a Shoebox" and look at the five types of footwear that modern Christians are wearing and ask “WHAT KIND OF SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?”
I. SNEAKERS
FIRST PAIR OF SHOES IS A SNEAKER! [made to be quiet]
A. SOME PEOPLE SNEAK AROUND IN SECRET SIN
1. David said that people sneaked around to smear his reputation (Ps. 56:5-6, Msg) or betray him (Ps. 69:4, Msg). Isaiah said in his day there were sneaks who are “inventive in sin and scandal” (Isa. 32:1-8, Msg). Zephaniah said people sneak around to worship false gods (Zeph. 1:4-6, Msg.).
2. Those who wears “sneakers” think they can sin and God won’t see it. That’s impossible! God’s everywhere! There’s no place we can go that God doesn’t see us! Jesus said, “There’s nothing hidden that won’t be disclosed, and nothing concealed that won’t be made known” Luke 8:17.
3. The Word of God teaches us to be completely honest with God and confess our sins. If we do, 1 John 1:9 says that God is faithful to forgive us for our sins. YOU CAN’T TIPTOE AROUND SIN!
B. SNEAKING AROUND AS A SECRET WITNESS
1. They do it so they can fit into their social group, or get the boyfriend or girlfriend they want. They’re like chameleons, the little lizard which changes colors to fit whatever background scenery is around it.
2. But Jesus warns; “Whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven” Mt. 10:32-33.
3. Jesus said we’re supposed to be the light of the world and a city set on a hill. We can’t be secret Christians; Jesus tells us to let our lights shine in public, let people know of the God we serve!
C. SNEAKING INTO HEAVEN
1. Also, some people think it’s possible to sneak into heaven. The comedian W.C. Fields was once caught looking through a Bible. A friend asked W.C. if he was finally turning to religion. W.C. responded, “No, my boy, I’m just looking for loopholes, just looking for loopholes.”
2. There may be loopholes to human laws, but there’s not to God’s Law! Jesus said “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father accept through Me” John 14:6. Forget sneaking! Go to Jesus for your salvation!
II. RUNNING SHOES
A. RUNNING SHOES ARE GOOD SOMETIMES
If you’re running long distances, you know that running shoes are worth their weight in gold. They cushion your feet and keep you from getting shin splints. BUT RUNNING SHOES AREN’T VALUABLE IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD UNLESS THEY’RE POINTING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION! Often people run the wrong direction:
B. THINGS PEOPLE RUN FROM
1. FROM CONVICTION. The Jewish leaders, questioning Stephen in Acts 7 were so convicted by the Holy Spirit that they covered their ears so they couldn’t hear anymore of what he had to say! Are we avoiding some of God’s Word?
2. RUN FROM THE CALL/ WILL OF GOD. Jonah is the most famous person in the Bible for wearing running shoes! God told him what to do and where to go and immediately Jonah laced up his running shoes to head in the opposite direction of God’s will for his life.
3. FROM MARRIAGES. Marriages can be something we want to run away from. Illus.: “THE EXPIRATION DATE.”
a. One wife saw her husband looking frustrated, rereading their Marriage Certificate from top to bottom, over and over again... She asked:" Honey, what are you looking for?"
b. He answered:" Nothing dear, I’m just looking for the expiration date for this paper..." God wants us to be determined to stick it out in our marriages no matter what hardships come.
4. FROM OUR PASTS. We don’t need to “wallow” in our past, but we do need to get closure: to confess our faults, forgive our offenders, give it to God, get healing, and then move on to God’s plan for our lives. DID YOU PUT ON RUNNING SHOES TODAY?
III. FLIP-FLOPS
THIRD PAIR OF SHOES PEOPLE WEAR ARE FLIP FLOPS!
A. WHAT IS A FLIP-FLOP CHRISTIAN?
1. It’s a Christian who only commits to God for a short time. On Sunday they’ll rush to the altar, cry and confess, but on Monday you won’t know that anything ever happened to them.
2. HUMOR. I heard of 3 pastors who all had problems with bats in their churches. They decided to try 3 different ways to get rid of them and later tell of their success. The first pastor told how he got a shotgun, shot at them, but only succeeded in making holes in the roof of his church. The second pastor said he’d trapped them, carried them 50 miles away and released them, but the bats got back to the church before he did. The third pastor said, “I had no trouble getting rid of them.” “How?” they asked. “Simple. I just baptized them and made them members of the church and I haven’t seen them since.”
3. James describes Flip-Flops as “double-minded,” unstable in all he does” and says “That person shouldn’t think they’ll receive anything from the Lord” (1:7-8).
4. People flip-flop on whether they will teach a class, come to prayer meeting, be faithful to church, stay at one job, or stay in a relationship.
B. SOLUTION TO FLIP-FLOPISM
1. Joshua faced this same problem and gave us the remedy: “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…." Josh. 24:15.
2. Make up your mind and stick to it! If the Lord is God, then serve Him! ARE YOU WEARING FLIP FLOPS TODAY?
IV. BABY SHOES
THE FOURTH PAIR OF SHOES ARE BABY SHOES!
A. CHARACTERISTICS OF BABY SHOE CHRISTIANS
1. Paul told the Corinthians (I,3:1) that he couldn’t speak to them as mature believers because they were carnal, like babies in Christ, incapable of ingesting anything but milk.
2. Babies can’t eat food because they don’t have teeth for chewing yet; they also play with their food and make a mess out of it. We shouldn’t look down our nose at Baby Christians because we’ve all been babies before, and God has been so patient with US in all our bad attitudes, tantrums, disobediences, and selfishness.
B. MATURITY HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH SPIRITUAL AGE
1. Unfortunately, some “Baby-Shoe” Christians have been saved for 30, 40, 50 years or longer and never taken the bottle out of their mouth. They’ve never thrown away their pacifiers either!
2. Babies always want to be petted and stroked and sung to sleep or they start crying for attention. They don’t want you to change their diaper either no matter how bad it smells!
C. GROW UP, ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY
1. It’s time we quit being forever receivers, but start to be givers instead. We shouldn’t have to be served by others, but put on our apron and begin to work and serve in the Body. Only about 10% actually work in the church. We can all do something!
2. ILLUS. A revival broke out at Fort Wayne Bible College. The speaker for chapel didn’t show up so students started testifying. They lined up for 3 hours – to confess cheating, hatefulness, ungodly lifestyles, complaining, etc. When asked what was motivating them to come clean they said, “We’re tired of sham!” Are we tired of sham yet? Are we tired of pretending, projecting a Christian façade, being superficial, repenting of the same sins over & over again? It's time for a deep & thorough repentance; to get washed clean. [Paul L. Tan, 7,700 Illus., #4960]
3. We need to get out of the Christian playground and join the fight on the spiritual battleground for the souls of people around us. God help us all to grow up! ARE YOU WEARING BABY SHOES TODAY?
V. COMBAT BOOTS
A. CORRECT FOOTGEAR FOR THE VICTORIOUS
1. The last pair of shoes and the one Christians are supposed to wear are combat boots. Paul said, “Take your stand then with truth as your belt, righteousness your breastplate, the Gospel of peace firmly on your feet, salvation as your helmet and in your hand the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. Above all be sure you take faith as your shield, for it can quench every burning missile the enemy hurls at you” Phillips, Eph. 6:14-17.
2. No army in the world will win a war if they send their soldiers out barefoot. The combat footwear is designed to give the soldier maximum stability so they wouldn’t slip down or fall in a struggle.
B. COMMITMENT FROM SOLES TO CROWN
1. Are you finding yourself slipping and falling? Then put on your combat boots today! Believers should be the kind of people who can take having someone stomp on their toes and the more you stomp the more they shout “Hallelujah!”
2. God calls us to witness and serve and follow Him! What kind of shoes are you wearing today? Get off your sneakers, your running shoes, your flip-flops and baby shoes and put on your combat shoes for Jesus!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: “I SHOULD BE ON THAT CROSS!”
1. A missionary in the backcountry of Africa was telling the wonderful story of Jesus. The people were gathered on a beautiful moonlit night in a clearing in the forest. Seated on the front row was the Chief of the village.
2. The missionary told them, in vivid language, of the sinless life, goodness, and miracles of Jesus. Then he began to tell about the dark time of the betrayal by Judas, the arrest in the Garden, and the trial before Pontius Pilate. The people began to moan and cry and say, “No! Not that good man!”
3. Then the story got to the crucifixion, the people began to weep. When the missionary told how they drove the nails in His hands and feet, and stood the cross up, the Chief jumped to his feet and shouted, “Stop! Take Him down from the Cross! I belong there, not Him!”
4. He was saved and revival broke out in that village. He was right, WE should have suffered for our sins, not Him! [Walter Knight, 3,000 Illus., p. 211-212.
B. ALTAR CALL
1. Jesus’ message was about Himself. He didn’t come merely to preach a Gospel, He Himself is the Gospel. He didn’t come merely to give bread; He said, “I am the Bread.”
2. He didn’t come merely to shed light; He said, “I am the Light.” He didn’t come merely to show us the door; He said, “I am the Door.” He didn’t come merely to name a shepherd; He said, “I am the Shepherd.” He didn’t come merely to point the way; He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” [J. Sidlow Baxter] Have you surrendered to Him?
3. WHICH KIND OF SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Sneakers? Running? Flip-flops? Baby shoes? Or Combat boots?
4. Are you ready to get rid of sin? To come out boldly for Jesus Christ before others? To abandon compromise? To answer God’s call? To start working for the Kingdom? To embrace the hard-sayings of Jesus? And to go into spiritual warfare for lost souls?
5. How many of you can identify with one of these? Why don’t you stand. Let’s pray. [Sinner’s prayer and full commitment to follow Jesus.]
[This is a rewrite of a sermon of the same name by Michael Dephillips on 2/3/03]
