Sermon Manuscript

[Video: “Made for Mission - Bumper” - 0:26]

Jeffrey Gitomer, an American speaker and sales trainer for companies, once said, “Customer satisfaction is worthless.  Customer loyalty is priceless.”  Shep Hyken, an American consumer service expert, put it this way.  He said, “Satisfaction is a rating.  Loyalty is a brand.”  I like that.  But Warren Buffett, one of the world’s most famous investors, put the same concept in a funny way when he said, “I’ll tell you why I like the cigarette business.  It costs a penny to make.  Sell it for a dollar.  It’s addictive.  And there’s a fantastic brand loyalty.”

Brand loyalty is difficult for companies to achieve and maintain but when they do so they are able to become wildly successful.  So think with me about some of the brands that many of us purchase from.  What are the brands you are most loyal towards?  The type of brands that you not only buy but you tell your friends about and try to encourage them to buy too?  Let’s think about that for just a moment.  How many of us are Apple brand loyalists?  If we are going to buy a phone or a tablet or a computer or a watch we wouldn’t dream of buying anything but Apple.  By a show of hands, how many are here today?  I’m right there with you.  Years ago “I switched to a Mac and never turned back.”  That should be on a t-shirt somewhere!  But I love my iPhone and my iPad and my iMac.  I can’t even imagine what it would take to get me to disrupt my Apple eco-system!  I love the Mac.  Or what about Starbucks?  How many of us are Starbucks fans?  If you’re going to buy a cup of coffee you couldn’t imagine not paying at least $8 for a cup of coffee that the rest of us are only willing to pay $1 for?  Whoops.  I just let out my bias there.  I’m not a Starbucks fan.  But how many are?  By a show of hands, how many would never buy coffee from somewhere else if they can get Starbucks?  OK.  Good.  There’s a few.  I once knew a guy who would go to Starbucks several times a day!  Incredible.  Talk about brand loyalty!  Or what about Harley-Davidson?  How many of you Harley-Davidson fans?  If you are going to buy a motorcycle it can only be a Harley, right?  Some of us are Ford or Chevy fans, right?  If you’re buying a vehicle it will only be a Ford or a Chevy?  In my own family I have two brothers who only buy Toyota.  Loves, loves, loves Toyota.  Our family is a Honda family.  I’ve had several Honda Accords and have two of them now!  I personally drive a Dodge Grand Caravan.  And I love my minivan!  It’s my “covered work truck”.  Don’t hate on the minivans!  Ladies, how many of you if you’re going to buy a purse you will only buy a Coach purse or a Kate Spade purse?  Some of us really love Nike?  When I was growing up I loved Nike.  I had Nike t-shirts, shorts, hats, socks, shoes, etc.  I was a walking, talking, endorsement!  My boys were too when they were little.  Some of us who are golfers will only hit Titleist balls, right?  And there’s brand loyalty for sports teams!  The Dallas Cowboys call themselves “America’s Team”.  I always hated the Cowboys!  But they are loved by many!  So are the Yankees and Packers and other teams.

Simply put.  Those business analysts were right!  Customer satisfaction is worthless but customer loyalty is priceless!  Because satisfaction is just a rating or a score but loyalty to Apple and Starbucks and Harley-Davidson and Nike.  Customer loyalty at those levels are priceless!  Because that’s the type of loyalty that matters!  It’s the type of loyalty that causes a person to not only buy the product but encourage their friends and family members to do the same!  And what you and I buy says something about us.  It says something about what is important to us.  If I refuse to buy a non-Apple product or you refuse to buy non-Starbucks coffee or only buy a Ford it says something about what’s important to you.  It says something about what you represent.  And today we’re going to wrap up our series by thinking about how the choices we make in life show who we represent before the world and why it matters.  Why it truly matters.

So let’s get started.  If you have your Bibles, turn with me now to the book of Exodus chapter 19.  Today we’re going to be in verses 1-11.  If you would like to follow along with us online you can do so by using our app.  It’s called Church Center.  Simply open it up and click on Sunday Services followed by Message Notes.  There you will find everything you need for our time together this morning.

As you turn there and get prepared, let me quickly remind you of where we are in our series and where we are as we enter into Exodus 19.  With regard to the series today we are wrapping up a series of messages called Made for Mission where together we have learned about five tasks in which God has called us to accomplish in order to live out His mission.  We’ve discussed how we need to know God’s story, care for His creation, bless other people, walk differently, and last week on Mother’s Day live redeemed lives.  Because Boaz was a Kinsman Redeemer for Ruth and Jesus is our Kinsman Redeemer.  He is the One who has redeemed us or “bought us back” from sin and death and hell and the grave.  And so we are called to live lives that are redeemed for Him.  And this morning we’ll discover a sixth and final task.

And with regard to Exodus chapter 19 we are at the point in which the Israelites have been delivered from the hands of the Egyptians and brought out into the wilderness by Moses.  God had called him to go to the Egyptian Pharaoh and told him to tell the Pharaoh to “Let my people go”.  The Pharaoh refused and so God brought ten plagues upon the nation of Egypt.  The last of which was the death of each family’s first born son.  Finally, they allowed Israel to leave but if you remember when they did Egypt had second thoughts and chased them.  So Moses held up his staff and the people crossed over the Red Sea on dry land but when the Egyptians tried to follow he lowered his staff and the waters returned and all of the Egyptians perished.  Then the people went out into the wilderness and eventually camped at the foot of Mount Sinai.  And in the next chapter, chapter 20, Moses will be given the Ten Commandments.  Huge moment and an important part of the Exodus story.  But in chapter 19, just prior to where those statements are made, we read about what God first says to Moses when they arrive at Mount Sinai.

So here’s what happens in chapter 19, beginning in verse 1.  We read:

1 On the third new moon after the people of Israel had gone out of the land of Egypt, on that day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. 2 They set out from Rephidim and came into the wilderness of Sinai, and they encamped in the wilderness. There Israel encamped before the mountain, 3 while Moses went up to God. The Lord called to him out of the mountain, saying, “Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the people of Israel: 4 ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. 5 Now therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; 6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.”

Alright.  So the timing of what’s taking place here is interesting and important.  We’re told in verse 1 that these events took place in the “third new moon” or the “third month” in which the Israelites left Egypt.  Three months is roughly 90 days.  However, in Leviticus 23:15-16 God will later tell Moses to teach the people to celebrate this period of time by counting off seven weeks from the Passover.  It would be called the Counting of the Omer because an omer is a portion of a barley grain.  And so the Israelites will be told to count off seven weeks from Passover and to celebrate a festival which will be known as the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost.  So on Pentecost or 50 days after the Passover the Jews will celebrate the giving of the Law which is what is about to happen here.  Does that make sense?  So Jewish scholars suggest that Israel left Egypt during the first month, traveled through a second month, and arrived at Mount Sinai at the beginning of the third month.  Or 50 days later.  They then will celebrate during the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost the giving of the Law.  So even today during this festival which is also known as Shavout which is the Hebrew word for “weeks” the Jews celebrate the giving of the Law from God to Moses by studying the Torah and reading the Ten Commandments.

So this was a very, very, important moment to God’s people and one in which they would commemorate and celebrate from this point forward.  And it’s in this moment while they are encamped at the foot of Mount Sinai that God says to Moses, “I want you to go and speak to the people.  Tell this to the house of Jacob and the people of Israel:  You saw what I did for you in Egypt.  You watched how I performed the ten plagues.  You saw how I turned water into blood, brought frogs upon the land and then followed up with gnats and flies and a disease upon their livestock.  You saw how I put painful boils upon their skin and used hail and locusts to destroy their crops.  You saw how I brought darkness upon the land for three whole days.  And most of all you saw how I took the life of their firstborn sons.  And all of it was done to save you and rescue you and deliver you from their hands.  You saw what I did to them and how I lifted you up and “bore you on eagles’ wings” and brought you to Myself.  You saw what I did and you now know what I can do.  Therefore, if you will obey Me and keep My covenant you will become to Me a treasured possession among all of the people.  Because all the earth is mine.  And you will become to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.  This is what you are to say to My people.  This is what you are to say to the people of Israel.”

And immediately following this moment we read what happens next.  Verse 7 says:

7 So Moses came and called the elders of the people and set before them all these words that the Lord had commanded him. 8 All the people answered together and said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do.” And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord. 9 And the Lord said to Moses, “Behold, I am coming to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever.” When Moses told the words of the people to the Lord, 10 the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments 11 and be ready for the third day. For on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people.

On the “third day”.  This is a pattern that will be found in Scripture.  It was on the “third day” that God says He will come down and speak to Moses on Mount Sinai.  This establishes the Mosaic Covenant and reveals God’s Law to His people.  However, in the New Testament it will be on the “third day” that Jesus is resurrected from the dead.  And that will establish a New Covenant with God and reveal God’s salvation which has now been made available to all through His Son.  So the third day is a time marker which shows us God is about to do something very important.  Here reveal His Law and His commandments to His people as part of the Mosaic Covenant.  Later, through Jesus, reveal His grace and His mercy and His salvation as part of the New Covenant.  The third day marks the time in which an important revelation will take place.

But notice again what God says to the people.  He makes a conditional statement when He says in verses 5 and 6, “If you will obey Me and if you will keep My covenant then you will become for Me a ‘treasured possession’ among all people.  You will belong to Me.”  He says, “If you will obey Me then you will belong to Me and I will treat you as my most prized possession.  You will be the people of the earth who belong to Me.”  He then continues and says, “And you will be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”  

That’s key.  That phrase is key.  Fast-forward into the New Testament and Peter picks up on this truth when he writes in 1 Peter 2:9 to exiled Christians scattered in different areas these words.  He says this about the Church:

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

So the message God gave to Moses and told him to tell the people in the Old Testament was the same message God gave to Peter and told him to tell the Church in the New Testament:  “You belong to Me.  You represent Me.  You are My people.”  Because the idea behind the terms “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation” is the idea of a group of people who are all called to minister to God and serve Him as priests.  And the idea of a group of people who are all called to be set apart and holy unto Him.  To be different from all others because they represent Him.

And that leads us to a sixth and final task.  That if we want to complete the mission God has given to us as His people then we need to remember we represent God to all.  We represent Him to all the world.  When the world wants to know who follows God and what it looks like to love God and serve God and obey God and follow Him they look to us.  They look to His people.  They look to the Church.  To the people of God who know God and fear God and love God.  To the people who are in a relationship with God.  To the people who represent God to all others.

Think about it in this way.  Recently, my brother sent me an unexpected birthday present.  It was a plaque that he found which I hung up in my garage.  And it’s a picture of Bo Jackson spiking a football in the 1980s video game Tecmo Bowl.  Now if you know anything about me you know that when I was growing up Bo Jackson was my hero.  If you’ve never heard of him and don’t know who he is, check him out later on YouTube today.  I still believe he was the greatest athlete of all-time.  But I know many would disagree with me.  And growing up for a time I became a Raiders fan because of him.  Now if you know anything about the Raiders you know they are known for their crazy fans.  In fact, they have a section of their crowd known as the Black Hole where the craziest of the crazy fans sit.  (Show Picture)  And for a time I loved the Raiders because of Bo Jackson.  When I moved to Indiana I became a Colts fan and still am today.  But… I soon discovered that they have their own crazy fans, right?  (Show Picture)  Even one guy known as the “Colts Superfan”.  You see you become known as a “superfan” when you are easily recognizable and represent your love for the Colts to the “world”.

The same is true spiritually.  We become “superfans” and “true followers of Jesus” when we are easily recognizable and represent our love for God and for Him to a lost and dying world.  We represent God to others.  We represent who God is and what God stands for by how well we reflect Him and His character within our lives.  And just as God counted on Israel to represent Him then He is counting on the Church to represent Him now.  We are called by God to be His people and to represent Him well to all others.  To show who we are and who we love to others.

So how do we do that?  How do we demonstrate who we are as God’s people and followers of Jesus?  Should we all dress up in crazy outfits and make a big scene?  Obviously not.  God wants us to represent Him well and the way we do that is through the way we live our lives.

With this in mind here’s three actions we can take to best represent God to others.  All three are based upon God’s message to Moses for His people.  First of all, share what God has done for you.  When God said to Moses, “Tell them that you yourselves saw what I did in Egypt and how I bore you on eagle’s wings and brought you out to Myself” He reminded them of the Exodus story.  And how He had saved and delivered His people.  We need to do the same.  We need to tell the story of how God saved and delivered us.  That begins with our testimony and how God saved us in Jesus.  So we need to be able to share with others what happened when we realized our sinfulness and our need for a Savior.  We need to be able to explain how God used people to speak to us and the steps we took to turn to Jesus, accept Him as Lord, be baptized into His name, and receive the gift of Eternal Life.  We need to be able to tell that story.  But we also need to be able to share stories of how God has continued to take care of us and provide for us ever since.  We need to share stories of how God saved our friendship, saved our marriage, saved our relationship with a family member or another believer, saved our business or our job, saved our reputation, or saved us from financial disaster.  There are so many stories of what God has done in all of our lives.  And people need to hear them.  People outside of the church and people inside of the church.  I need to hear your stories and you need to hear mine.  Why?  Because when we share stories of what God has done we explain to seekers and remind believers of the power that God has to save and deliver us from anything and everything.  And ultimately His greatest form of salvation is found in Jesus but let’s be honest.  God saves and delivers us all throughout our lives.  And if we want to represent God well then we need to tell more and more and more of those stories.  So represent God by sharing what He has done for you.  Second, submit to what God has said to you.  Moses was told to tell the people that “If they would listen to God’s commands and keep His covenant that they would be His people.”  And the same is true for us.  We need to not only share what God has done but also submit to what God has said.  Because most of what God wants you to know about this life and how to live it has been already written.  God has commanded you to not forsake the assembly.  So you should be in church.  God has commanded you to obey your mother and father as children or as fathers not to provoke your children to anger.  God has commanded wives to submit to their husbands and husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church.  God has commanded you to love God and to love others.  To give generously and to serve intentionally.  God has commanded you to put on the whole armor of God in order to stand firm against the devil’s schemes.  And God has commanded you to pursue righteousness and justice and to seek perfection because Christ was and is perfect.  God has commanded all of us to obey our leaders and to submit to governing authorities both in the church and in the world.  So the question is not “Has God commanded us to do something?”  The question is, “Do we know God’s Word and will we submit to Its authority within our lives?”  That was the question for Israel on Moses' day and it’s the question for us on this day.  So represent God by listening to God’s Word, learning from it, and living it out.  That’s how you represent God well.  Submit to what God has said for you to do.  And then third and finally serve who God has given you.  Serve who God has given you.  God told Israel that if they would listen and obey Him that they would be to Him a “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation”.  Priests represented God to the people and they represented the people to God.  They stood in the gap between God and man.  The Church, as the people of God, does the same.  We stand in the gap.  People look to us in order to know who God is.  We represent God to them.  But we also represent them to God.  And as God’s priests we are called to serve Him and to serve one another.  Ultimately, Jesus is our High Priest and He served us through His death and resurrection.  But we follow in His example by laying our lives down for God in service to Him and one another.  So spouses do this to one another in marriage and mom and dad do this for their children.  Children serve mom and dad out of respect and their love for the Lord.  In the local church, the Elders serve the people through leadership and the people serve the Elders through the ministries they lead or serve within.  Everyone serves.  They might serve in different ways but because we are in Jesus we all serve.  And we always look most like our Lord and Savior when we follow in His example and serve.  So serve who God has given you.

Three actions based upon this text which can help us to represent God well within our lives.  We can share what God has done for us, submit to what God has said to us, and serve those God has given us.  And when we do these three things and take these three actions we show God how much we love Him in obedience and we show others how we belong to Him.  We are His “treasured possession”.  We are His “children” and His “family”.  And we are to Him a “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation”.  A people who are set apart for Him.  A people who represent Him within this world and who point this world to Him.  We represent God to all.

Pastor Matt Chandler, in his book called The Explicit Gospel, tells the story of a time he and a couple of his friends invited a young woman named Kim to a gospel concert.  He was hoping that she would give her life to Christ that evening but instead what happened was a “train wreck.”  He said that the preacher took the stage and disaster ensued.  He gave a lot of statistics about STDs and said things like “You don’t want syphilis, do you?”  Then within his big illustration he took out a single red rose.  He smelled it dramatically, caressed its petals, and talked about how beautiful it was and how it had been cut fresh that day.  Then he threw it out into the crowd and encouraged everyone to pass it around.  At the end of the message he asked for it back.  By that point it was broken and drooping and the pedals were falling off.  His big finish was, “Now who in the world would want this?” And His essential message, which was supposed to represent Jesus to a world of sinners was, “Hey, don’t be a dirty rose.”

Needless to say, Matt didn’t hear from Kim for a few weeks until one day Kim’s mother called and said that she had been in an accident.  So Matt went to visit her.  And in the middle of their conversation Kim said, “Do you think I’m a dirty rose?”  Matt Chandler said that his heart sank inside of him and he began to explain to her the whole Gospel and how the Gospel teaches us that Jesus wants the rose.  It’s Jesus’ desire to save, redeem, and restore that dirty rose.

You see the truth is that in all of our lives we, too, have been like that preacher who used the dirty rose illustration.  We’ve all made mistakes and misrepresented Christ.  You have and so have I.  Over the course of 16 years here at The Fountain and 35 years as a Christian I can’t count the number of times I have misrepresented Jesus.  Sometimes with the best of intentions and other times not.  But that story reminds me of how all of us misrepresent Jesus in our lives.

And yet the truth still remains.  God still considers His people a “treasured possession” and He still calls His people to be a “kingdom of priests” and a “holy nation”.  A people who are set apart for Him and who will live their lives in such a way that they represent Him well.  So what about you?  How will you act on behalf of God within your life?  Will you represent Him well or not?  Will you share what He has done?  Will you submit to what He has said?  Will you serve those whom He has given you?  Will you represent Jesus well or not?  

Because God has called us to go on a mission with Him.  You and I are made for mission.  And our mission is to reach this world.  But in order to do that we’ve got to represent Him well.  It’s not easy and we will make mistakes.  But it’s what we’re called to do.  So…

Show people who God is by how you choose to live your life for Him.

Let’s pray.

[Prayer:  For God to help us to represent Him well through the way we live our lives.]

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