Sermon by Dr.
Text: John 12:37-43
Title: “Fear Factor”
Pastor began the sermon with short video of clips from the TV show fear factor then moved to clips from “The Naz-Fear Factor” the first was of someone in the pew watching as the offering plates comes closer, closer, closer…then moves to a woman who is being asking to help in the nursery then running screaming away…then to someone in the music portion of worship with an apathetic, flat facial expression who unsuccessfully keeps attempting to raise one hand…and finally moving to looking at houses through a fence in deathly fear of “sharing” Jesus with someone…
Does anyone know what these words mean?
Agyrophobia- Fear of streets or crossing the street.
Arachibutyrophobia- Fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth.
Sesquipedalophobia- Fear of long words
Homilophobia- Fear of sermons – hope none of you have that!
Today we’re going to look at a Scripture where people were afraid. Read text.
John tells us that even though they had seen Jesus in person doing miracles, many of the people still refused to believe in Him. I guess seeing isn’t always believing. Others, however did believe, but they had another problem. They were afraid to let anyone know about it because they thought it might get them kicked out of the club (the
The fact that others didn’t yet believe in Jesus and were lost, separated from God, and had not experienced His forgiveness was not a big enough motivation to compel them to face their fears. Even though it really was a matter of life and death that had eternal consequences, their fear factor was too big. Their silence was a sign. It was a sign that they found nothing greater to live for than self, which had to be preserved. Their own reputations were more important than other people’s eternal destiny and they refused to say anything when given the opportunity to speak up about their belief in Jesus. Not even money would have motivated them to overcome their fear of being labeled, disliked, and disallowed from entry into the temple. The truth that some of their own friends, neighbors, and even family members did not believe in Jesus and consequently were not experiencing the kind of life we only find in Him didn’t matter to them.
But it matters to us! It does matter to us that we have neighbors who we talk to when we’re out working in the yard, whose kids we watch on occasion who are missing out on a relationship with Jesus. It matters to us that we have family members who are not walking with or living for God. It matters to us that across the street, across the office, and sometimes under our own roofs there are people we know, love, and care about who need someone to speak up about Jesus. That does matter to us.
That doesn’t mean the fear factor is totally gone for us. It’s not an easy thing to speak out about Jesus when you’re not sure how your words are going to be received. Even the boldest of witnesses have had to face and overcome the tendency we all have to want other people to approve of us. No one likes to be ostracized or the brunt of jokes, even if it is because of our faith. While the reality that others may in and of itself not completely banish our fears, it’s a big enough motivation to cause us to face them.
We know that there is a motivation for actively proclaiming Christ that is far more significant than the protection of our reputation. We wouldn’t do it for money either, but there is a motivation that’s greater than money - it’s the motivation of our mission which is rooted in a love for God and for others who need God. It may not have mattered to the silent believers in our scripture for today that lost people around them needed to hear about their belief in Jesus, but it matters to us.
It’s really kind of crazy the things people will do on TV to get money. They’ll confront all kinds of fears. Money is a motivation that drives them. But the only thing driving the people we’re reading about today is fear, which is never the best motivation.
The fact that their silence effected not only the lost, but other believers didn’t matter to them either. It didn’t matter that other people who believed in Jesus but were also a little timid about saying anything would have been strengthened, empowered, encouraged to get vocal themselves if some other believer would have been willing to speak up. It didn’t matter that they could have built up each other’s faith. At least it didn’t matter enough to make any difference. The self-serving motivation to stay silent was stronger than any value they put on how their speaking or their silence might effect others who believed. Their silence was a sign. A sign that they found nothing greater to live for than self, which had to be protected. The impact their silence was making on other believers wasn’t nearly as important as what people thought of them. Not even money would have motivated them to open their mouths and overcome their fear factor. They were controlled by the fear of being labeled, disliked, and disallowed into the temple. The way their actions effected other believers - it didn’t matter to them.
But it matters to us because we understand that everything we do impacts not just us, but all the people who are around us. It matters to us that all of our behavior, whether has to do with speaking out about Jesus or not, will help or hinder, build up or tear down, represent well or misrepresent Christ. It matters to us that our integrity, our consistency, or the lack of that impacts the people around us. It matters to us because we care about each other like a family, like the Body of Christ is supposed to care about each other. It matters to us because this is not the kind of place where we can say with our words or our actions, “I don’t care about how my actions affect you.” In fact, we know that the Word says we are to prefer each other, putting each other’s needs above our own, and being so concerned with how our actions might impact our brothers and sisters that it impacts everything we do. We know there is something a lot more significant than self worth living for. We understand that everything we do or won’t do effects other believers. That means something to us that it didn’t mean to the people in this text.
Knowing that our silence can have an adverse effect on our brothers and sisters in the faith doesn’t mean the fear factor is totally gone for us. It’s not an easy thing to speak out about Jesus when you’re in the school cafeteria, the opportunity is there to say something God-centered and you’re not sure if anyone else feels the same way you do. It’s not easy when a group of people is poking fun at “goody-goody” Christians to identify yourself as one of them. But when we know that there may be another believer around who will either be inspired and helped by our speech, or disappointed and defeated by our silence, we put our fear aside.
Not even money would have motivated the people in our text to speak up, but we know that there is a motivation for proclaiming Christ that is far more significant. We wouldn’t do it for money either, but there is a motivation that surpasses that, and it’s the motivation of our mission which is rooted in a love for other believers, and love for God.
Love can motivate people to do all kinds of things. Sacrifices are made for love that wouldn’t made for anything else in the world. Mothers who are scared of spiders would stare down a lion because of love for their kids. Men would be fearless in the face of an armed felon in order to protect the woman they love. Women who would watch entire football games, and men would spend a whole day enduring hours of torture and trial otherwise known as a shopping spree for love. Love causes us to do things we wouldn’t normally do. The poor people in our Scripture today couldn’t be motivated by concern for the lost, care about other believers, and they couldn’t even find motivation in love for Jesus. Their silence was a sign. A sign that they found nothing greater to live for than self. The love shown to them by a holy God didn’t matter, not nearly as much as what other people were going to think of them. It didn’t matter to them that love compelled Christ to cross the cosmos and make earth His home. It didn’t matter to them that Jesus loved them so much He was willing to give His life for them. Neither love nor money would have motivated them to open their mouths and overcome their fear factor, the fear of being labeled, disliked, and disallowed from entry into the temple. The fact that God loved them – when confronted with their self-motivated fear, it just didn’t matter to them.
But it matters to us. We know that the only way we even know what love is, is because we saw it first in Jesus, and that matters to us. We know that greater love has no one than this, that a man lay down his life for His friends - and that matters to us. We know that Jesus loved us with a love enough to die, and that matters to us. It may not have mattered enough for the people in this Scripture to stand up, speak out, and face their fears, but it does for us. We know that there is a motivation for proclaiming Christ that is far more significant than the protection of self. We wouldn’t do it for money either, but there is a motivation that surpasses what money can entice, and it’s the motivation of our mission which is rooted in love – love for God and love for others. There’s a reason for that.
There’s something else that love does. I John 4:18 – perfect love casts out fear. The love that God has for us, and that we have for God can be so great that it motivates, empowers and compels us to do what fear would otherwise prevent. It’s love - love for the lost, for each other, and for God that empowers us to speak up when we could be silent. It’s love that overcomes fear.
Communion: His love is announced at this Table. His love is given and received at this Table. His love is proclaimed at this Table. Paul said I Cor. 11:23-26: “For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.” Our celebration of the sacrament is one of the ways we actively proclaim Christ. But here today, as we celebrate His love for us, and foster our love for Him, may we also be given the grace to receive the kind of love that casts out fear, and forces our silence to flee.
Benediction: Our mission is to glorify God by actively proclaiming Christ. Our motivation is Love. Let’s get to it.
