Bright Lights in Dark World | Part 1

Guest (Male): How are we supposed to live as the days grow gloriously dim? Listen to Adrian Rogers.
Adrian Rogers: Now, what do we do? In a time where there are those who want to terrorize us. Do we just hunker down? Do we close up shop? Put our head between our knees and pray, Lord, keep us safe till the storm passes over? Not at all. There's never been a greater day, a greater age, a greater time to preach the glorious gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ than this day and this age. And we don't need to sing hold the fort, friend. We need to sing onward Christian soldiers.
Guest (Male): Welcome to Love Worth Finding, featuring the profound teaching and biblical insights of pastor and author Adrian Rogers. In the first century, Christians were accused of subversion, of being an economic threat, and of condemning others. Now, as Christians in the 21st century, these accounts that we read are clear warnings to us today. In 1 Peter, we are instructed to be real and be ready. If you have your Bible, turn to 1 Peter chapter 3 as Adrian Rogers begins part one of bright lights in a dark world.
Adrian Rogers: Would you take God's word and turn to 1 Peter chapter 3? We're thinking today on this subject, bright lights in a dark world. Now, the first century world was very dark. When Peter wrote the scripture that I'm about to read to you, friend, I want to tell you something. It was open season on Christians. Uh they despised Christians, number one. They accused them of insurrection and subversion because they would not bow down and call Caesar lord. Uh number two, they looked upon Christians as an economic threat because there was a great business in idolatry and so forth. And uh they saw them somehow as a roadblock block and impediment to progress. And number three, uh their lifestyle condemned others. And they accused them of all kinds of things, incest because they called one another brother and sister. And uh number two, even people they were married to, they thought of as a sister or brother. They They accused them of cannibalism because at the Lord's Supper, they said they were eating and drinking the body and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And they would take anything and twist it and they use it against these early Christians. And uh so Peter wrote this scripture, and I want you to read it now. 1 Peter chapter 3 beginning in verse 13. He asks this question, and who is he that will harm you if you be followers of that which is good? And the word followers is the word we get our word zealot from. Uh if you you be zealous of that which is good. But and if ye suffer for righteousness sake, happy are ye. And be not afraid of their terror. Now, just underscore that. Be not afraid of their terror. Neither be ye troubled. That's God's word for you this morning. But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear, having a good conscience that whereas they speak evil of you as evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. Now, what do we do in a time where there are those who want to terrorize us? Do we just hunker down? Do we close up shop? Put our head between our knees and pray, Lord, keep us safe till the storm passes over? Not at all. There's never been a greater day, a greater age, a greater time to preach the glorious gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ than this day and this age. And we don't need to sing hold the fort, friend. We need to sing onward Christian soldiers. Not Not armed with bullets, not armed with bombs, but armed with the glorious gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with a mighty, mighty, mighty demonstration of love. But we cannot be silent. Back in Hitler's time, uh when Hitler was trying to rule the world, there was a pastor named Martin Niemöller. Uh Martin Niemöller began to preach. And as a result of it, Hitler had him put in the concentration camp. And then finally in solitaire. But finally Martin Niemöller was released. And uh he began to preach, and he always ended his messages with this statement. First, they came for the socialist, and I did not speak out because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionist, and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews. But I did not speak out because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak out for anyone. Now, the time has come for us uh to speak. And Peter tells us in this passage that number one, we need to be real. We need to be followers of that which is good. Uh we don't need a card some sort of a a plastic cardboard uh mentality in Christianity. And number two, we need to be ready. Verse 15, he says, you be ready to give an answer to anyone that ask you of the hope that's in you. By the way, when's the last time anybody asked you of your faith? When's the last time anybody ever asked you, say, what makes you different? There was a cynic named Nietzsche. Hitler learned much from Nietzsche. Nietzsche didn't believe in Jesus Christ, and he loved to look in Christians face and sneer at them and say, if you want me to believe in your redeemer, you're going to have to look a little more redeemed. Mhm. Well, do you look redeemed? I mean, when's the last time somebody's ever said, hey, what makes you tick? What puts that smile on your face? What gives you peace in the midst of the storm? What motivates you? What drives you? How do you have this hope? Would you be able to give an answer? Would you shine as a bright light in a dark place? I want to mention six things that Peter mentions right here. Things that we need to be in this dark day. Number one, we must enthrone Christ as Lord. Look in verse 15, but sanctify the Lord God in your hearts. The word sanctify means to set him aside as special above all, as reigning Lord. May I ask you a personal question? Don't say yes because I want to ask it anyway. Is Jesus Christ Lord in your life? Now, I didn't say do you admit that he is Lord in the generic sense. Have you ever bowed the knee to him? Have you ever taken the crown off your head and put it upon his head? There was a preacher of yesteryears, his name was Charles Spurgeon. Most preachers agree together that Charles Spurgeon was probably the greatest preacher outside the apostle Paul that ever lived. I've copied down something that uh Charles Haddon Spurgeon said. I want you to listen to it carefully. I'm going to read it carefully. Here's what he said. If the professed convert distinctly and deliberately declares that he knows the Lord's will, that he knows the Lord's will, but does not mean to attend to it. You are not to pamper his presumptions, but it is your duty to assure him that he is not saved. A man says, well, I know what God wants me to do, but I'm not going to do it. Spurgeon just says, Mr., you need to be saved. Do not suppose that the gospel is magnified or God glorified by pandering to the worldlings and telling them that they may be saved at this moment by simply accepting Christ as their Savior while they are still wedded to their idols and their hearts are still in love with sin. It is interesting to note that the apostles preached the lordship of Christ. The word Savior occurs only twice in the acts of the apostles. On the other hand, it is amazing to notice that the title Lord is mentioned 92 times. Now, often we hear people say, well, you need to accept Christ as your Savior. Well, friend, you cannot have what he gives unless you accept who he is, and he is Lord. He's Lord. Now, I'm not asking, are you baptized? I'm not asking you, do you know the plan of salvation? You're not saved by the plan of salvation. You're saved by the man of salvation. His name is Jesus. Is he the Lord of your life? Imagine this scene. Uh the wedding, the marriage has taken place. The cake has been cut. Uh the gifts have been exchanged. And uh Susan and John now are in the car driving away. They've just been married. Susan says, John, would you please take me home? And he says, well, now Susan, uh we're going on a honeymoon. You know that our home is not going to be ready for several weeks. I will take you there when we get when the contractor is finished building the house. He said, no, I I don't mean that home. Would you please take me to my mother's house? I want to go back to my mother's house. Now, John, I want you to understand something. Uh you and I are married. And John, uh I appreciate your love for me. And John, uh if if you have any uh love for me, don't fail to give it. I'm most grateful for it. And John, if I have a need, if I get sick, I'll call on you. And if I need money for expenses, because you're my husband, I expect you to supply my every need. But don't think that I'm going to change my lifestyle just because I'm married to you. John, take me home and keep your hands off of my life. Now, what kind of a marriage would that be? That's the same kind of salvation that some people think they have. They They call upon the Lord Jesus Christ and say, now, Lord Jesus, thank you uh that you're going to take care of me, but I'm going back to my old lifestyle. I'm going back to my old ways. Take your hands off my life. Friend, you can't have it that way.
Guest (Male): Amen.
Adrian Rogers: You can't have it that way. Has there been a radical change in your life? Is Jesus Christ the Lord of your life? Number two, not only must you uh sanctify the Lord, but number two, we must be ready with an answer. Look in verse 15, but sanctify the Lord in your hearts. Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you of the reason of the hope that is in you. Are you ready for an answer? I mean, suppose somebody came to you and said, what is the reason for your hope? And they will come to you if you have a changed life. They're going to ask you as they did on the day of Pentecost, uh what meaneth this? What meaneth this? Now, the the the problem is that and then they ask, what must we do? The reason that many people don't ask, what must we do? They haven't seen anything that is different. They They can't say what means this. Uh on the day of Pentecost, there was something that was not explainable. Is there something about you that is not explainable? Can you explain my life apart from Jesus Christ? Friend, has anybody ever asked you a question? What is the reason for your hope? Suppose somebody today, maybe in an automobile accident, would ask you, what is the reason for your hope? Help me. You'd say, just stay right there. Don't die. I'm going to go get pastor Rogers. No, you are to sanctify the Lord in your heart, and you are to be ready. I'm appalled at how little the average Baptist knows about what he's supposed to believe. One man asked a woman, what do you believe? She said, I believe what my church believes. What does your church believe? Well, my church believes what I believe. Well, what do you both believe? Oh, we believe the same thing. Are you ready? Do you have an answer? Friend, there are some good answers. The word uh to give an answer is the word that that we get our word apologetics from. Doesn't mean that we're saying, oh, I'm so sorry. It's a word that is used in a courtroom. Apologia. It means to give a defense of your faith just as a lawyer would defend a client. Can you defend your faith? I want to tell you something, friend. The people out there have some big questions. Right now, our world is swimming in questions. And somebody says, how can you have faith in God? Are you ready to give an answer to the person who asks you? Well, there's an answer in the word of God. Let me give you some scripture. Matthew chapter 22 beginning in verse 36. There was a lawyer asked Jesus, master, what is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said, thou shalt love underscore this. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. Friend, that is it. That's the bottom line. By the way, the faith of Jesus Christ is built on love, not hate. Life, not death. Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy being. This is the first commandment. This sums it all up. Now, when God made man, God made man a free creature. Why did God make man a free creature? Because God wanted man to love to love him and to love one another. Forced love is a contradiction in terms. For a person to be able to love, he has to be able not to love. If we were created where we could only love and do nothing else, it wouldn't be love at all. We would be automatons. We would just simply be uh machines. God gave man the freedom of choice. We cannot choose to be disloyal unless we can choose to be loyal. We cannot choose to love unless we can choose not to love. And what is love? Love is the highest good. And for God to take away choice would be for God to destroy the highest good. And if he did that, if God were to destroy evil, that is to give man a choice, then that act itself would be evil. No, God allows evil in this world. God does not destroy evil. God defeats evil by putting his son upon a cross and taking that sin into his own heart and his own life. And And there are answers to these things. Uh the Bible says in John chapter 15 verse 13, greater love hath no man than this, that a man laid down his life for his friends. Now, thirdly, listen, friend. If we would be a bright light in a dark world, we must practice genuine humility. This is no time to strut in arrogance. Notice again what Peter says in 1 Peter chapter 3 verse 15, but sanctify the Lord God in your hearts. Be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you of a reason of the hope that is in you. Now, notice this, with meekness and fear, with meekness and fear. Meekness is not weakness. It is strength under control. Fear is not being trembling at what is happening around us. It speaks of a holy reverence for almighty God. Now, you can have the reasons, but America is not going to be won by arguments alone, not by the ballot box, not by organization. And And there're so many people who think of those of us who are Bible believers as people of arrogance. And they'll say that about us. They'll think of us as hate mongers. They will think of us as intolerant. And we must be very careful that we do not use angry rhetoric when we respond to them. Listen to this scripture. Put it in your margin. James 1 verses 19 through 20. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath. For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. Your anger, your wrath does not bring about God's righteousness. Now, Jesus showed anger against those who were persecuting helpless people. He showed anger toward the religious hypocrites of his day. But to those who are victims of sin, the prostitutes, the thieves, the tax gatherers who in that day were guilty of extortion. He showed them love. He was a friend of sinners. That's why they crucified him. Do you know what we need in this day in this age? We, dear friend, need a full heart and a bright head, both together. Be ready to give an answer, but also show love and genuine humility. Now, when Nero, when this was written, Nero was the emperor. You say, well, they had it easier in those days. Oh, no, they didn't. Nero wanted to remodel Rome, so he had the slums burn. And the people rose up because their homes were destroyed. He had to have a scapegoat. Somebody said, why don't you blame it on those Christians? They're always talking about setting the world on fire. And so they blamed it on the Christians. And again, it was as I said, it was open season on the Christians. They would take Christians in that day, uh nail them to crosses, cover them with boiling oil, and set them on fire to light the gardens for the banquets. Can you imagine such thing? These are people These are people who love the Lord Jesus Christ. They read in the mouths of lions with their own blood. Uh they had to fight with gladiators in the Colosseum. Many of them would not fight. They would just simply give their lives. I wonder what would happen uh to some of us if we had to make those kind of choices. Uh these early Christians, friend, they had to make those kinds of choices. And uh I want to say that they had meekness and fear and their humility. Their humility, their ability to suffer for Christ brought that Roman Empire crashing down. There was an uprising in China. A Chinese student wrote these words, lies written in ink cannot obscure truth written in blood. Now, folks, it's possible for us to be so arrogant that we'll win the argument and lose the audience. I'm calling upon you to have genuine meekness, genuine reverence in this day and in this age. This is not the time to go pointing fingers at everybody else. The Bible says the time has come. The judgment must begin at the house of God. And I tell you, folks, all that's happened in America today has happened on our watch. And uh we need to confess the sins of the church. We need to confess our indolence, our laziness, our selfishness, our pride, our refusal to live a separated life and to share the gospel, the glorious gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Number four, we must live. If we would be a bright light in a dark world, we must live a superior lifestyle, a superior lifestyle. Notice the next verse. We've been in verse 15. Look in verse 16. Having a good conscience, whereas they that speak evil of you as evildoers may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. You're going to be falsely accused, but it's going to become evident. It's going to be to their shame because your lifestyle will be superior. You will be blameless. I didn't say sinless, but you will be blameless. You see verse 15 says, they're going to be asking us questions of the hope that's in us. Why? Because they can see something different about us. Go back the chapter before this uh 1 Peter chapter 2 and verse 12. Listen to what he says. Having your conversation The word conversation in the old King James scripture always means behavior. Having your behavior honest among the Gentiles that whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation. That is when Jesus comes again, when the day star rises, they're going to have to say those Christians were living a superior lifestyle. God forbid that you, I, any of us could be a part of any scandal. People are to see this church and they are to see your life at school, in the neighborhood, on the job. You should stand out like a diamond in a coal mine, like a gardenia in a garbage can. You should be different. We need to out love, out live, out give, out pray, out witness the people of this world. Amen.
Guest (Male): Amen.
Guest (Male): Are you willing to do it? We have to sacrifice them. You want them to believe in us what we believe in. If you want respect, we're going to have to get it the old-fashioned way. We must earn it. Let them see your good works. When they When we began to live this way, others will begin to ask us, what makes you tick? What is the reason for the hope that is in you? What happened to Paul and Silas when they were in that prison, that Philippian jail at midnight? Other people around them were cursing, moaning, screaming. Paul and Silas were praying. They were singing praise to God, giving God thanks. Everybody in the prison saw there was a difference. What do you think made that Philippian jailer come in there after that earthquake and say, sirs, what must I do to be saved? He would never have asked them that question if they'd been cursing and complaining. No, they were praising God. There was something different about their lifestyle in the midst of tribulation. And with that, we'll conclude today's message from Adrian Rogers and pick up with part two right here tomorrow. Now, if you'd like to learn more about how to cultivate a faith that flourishes in the midst of difficulty, we invite you to check out our grow your faith page at the website. There you can get grounded and dig deeper as you walk with Christ. Go to lwf.org/radio and click the tab that says grow your faith. We can't wait to hear from you today.
Carrie Vaughn: Hi, this is Carrie Vaughn, and this program has been brought to you by Love Worth Finding, a nonprofit ministry showcasing the powerful preaching and teaching of pastor Adrian Rogers. We operate solely through the generous gifts of individual supporters just like you. To give a gift today, call 1877 Love God. That's 1877 Love God. Or write to us at Love Worth Finding, box 38-600, Memphis, Tennessee 38183. You can also connect with us online by going to lwf.org/radio. There we offer helpful resources inspired by the timeless teachings of pastor Adrian Rogers. Additionally, you can sign up for daily emails, donate to the ministry, and learn more about how to become an ambassador of the world. Thank you so much for listening today. Be sure to join us next time for more profound truths simply stated right here on Love Worth Finding.
Adrian Rogers: I've been preaching for a number of years, and I have learned that God's word is like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces. So I try to analyze it, organize it, illustrate it, and apply it, and it seems to reach hearts.
Guest (Male): At Love Worth Finding, we are honored to share timeless teachings and exciting new resources to help you flourish in your faith. That's why we want to send you your very own copy of the Adrian Rogers Legacy Bible. Pastor Rogers loved God's word. He wanted everyone that came in contact with to love it too. Different from a study Bible, this edition is an illumination Bible designed to help you fall in love with God's word all over again. This is one of our most requested resources, and we're so excited that they are back in stock. This Legacy Bible can be yours for $68. For more information, go online to lwf.org/bible.