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A BULLETPROOF FAITH

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I Timothy 4:6-16

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Disciples have strategies for staying the course= .

A sermon preached by

Dr. William O. (Bud) R= eeves

First United Methodist Church

Hot= Springs, Arkansas

November 9, 2008<= /o:p>

In 1993, Sgt. Jeff Str= uecker was among a group of elite troops, the Army Rangers, sent to Somalia= to neutralize a warlord named Aidid. The story of their disastrous mission is told in the book and movie = Black Hawk Down. The ultimate aim was peace in = Somalia so food could be delivered to thousands of people who were starving. The mission involved sending highly trained special forces into the capital city of Mogadishu to capture or kill the leader= s of Aidid’s army. When the mission began to unravel, Sgt. Struecker led a caravan into the city to retrieve a wounded soldier. O= n the way back to the base, they were ambushed.&= nbsp; One of the men on his vehicle was killed. When he returned to base, his comm= anding officer told him he had to go = back into the city because a helicopter –the Black Hawk—had been shot down.

Jeff Struecker had alr= eady been there, and he didn’t want to go back. But he felt duty bound, (1) to obey orders, (2) to live by the Army Ranger code, “No man left behind,R= 21; and (3) he felt a duty to God to do the best job he could under the circumstances. Jeff didn̵= 7;t want to die; his wife was home pregnant with their first child. He prayed the prayer of Jesus in t= he Garden of Gethsemane, “Lord, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me.”

Then he said, “I realized two very important things. The first thing that I realized was that no matter what happened to = me in life, my life was firmly in God’s hands. No matter what, I was going to go = back out into the city, and either I was going to go home to my family, or I was going to go home to heaven. E= ither way, I was going to be fine. = From that moment, it was what Scripture describes as the peace that transcends a= ll understanding. From that mome= nt on, the rest of the night I never feared what was going to happen to me next.”

Jeff Struecker made se= veral more runs into Mogadishu that night, being shot at from as close as ten feet by enemy gunmen. But the bullets miraculously missed. Some of his men were slightly wounded, but none mortally, and no more were killed. When the dawn broke the next morni= ng, Struecker could see that his Humvee was riddled with bullet holes, and thre= e of the four tires were shot out. But he had survived.

The psychological and spiritual toll on this u= nit of Army Rangers was tremendous, and over the next day or two, Jeff found himse= lf sharing Christ and praying with many of the soldiers who were devastated by= the disaster in Mogadishu. He felt a call forming in his hear= t, and he told God that if he ever had the opportunity to do that again, he would = take it. So after he was shipped b= ack to the U. S., Sgt. Jeff Struecker finished his tour of duty, went to seminary, and return= ed to the Army as a full-time chaplain. He was stationed at For= t Bragg, North Carolina, but he never forgot how God called him in the midst of battle.

A few years ago, Chapl= ain Jeff Struecker, military hero and a hero of faith, shared his testimony on = The 700 Club: “What’s amazing is how gracious God is, because I am by no means the model Ranger.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> I am by no means the perfect examp= le of what a Christian soldier should be. If it were up to me in = Mogadishu, I probably would have laid down my weapon, went into the corner, curled up = in a ball and hid. But it was my f= aith in Christ that gave me the strength to go back out there and do my job. I tell soldiers today all of the t= ime, ‘Listen, I have a belief that transcends death.’ I tell them—any soldier̵= 2;in language that they’ll understand, ‘I have a bulletproof faith, = and it has never been shaken since that moment.’”[1]

What would it mean to = have a bulletproof faith, a faith that could withstand any kind of attack?

[ConneXion: I thought = we might ask someone who knows what it means to be bulletproof. A police officer, who wears a bulletproof vest in the line of duty. Video testimony]

We are under attack da= ily in our faith. The bullets of sic= kness, death and grief are flying around us all the time. Conflict, depression, hopelessness= , and loneliness threaten to take us out or take us under. External to our personal lives, the bombs of economic crisis are going off all around us. There is political instability as = we make a transition in our government. How do we walk in safety? How do we live in security? How do we have a bulletproof faith?

One of the great heroe= s of faith in the New Testament is Timothy, a young man who was known primarily = by his association with another great hero of the New Testament, the apostle Paul. Timothy was Paul’s “son in the ministry,” and he traveled with Paul, served as his messenger to some of the churches, and eventually went out on his own to pr= each and teach the Gospel. As he w= ent out on his own, he had to dodge all the bullets that go with doing ministry. So Paul wrote him l= etters to give advice and to encourage his young friend. I think Paul’s advi= ce to Timothy is still good advice for us as we follow Jesus and seek to be his disciples. Paul gives Timothy= and us strategies for developing a bulletproof faith.

First of all, Paul tel= ls Timothy to AVOID DISTRACTIONS. If you’re going to be in service for the long haul, you can’t get involved with anything and everything. You have to focus= on your mission. You have to ign= ore the negative stuff that can pull you away from God and wear you out. Paul says, “Have nothing to do with profane myths and old wives’ tales. Train yourself in godliness.”= ;= = [2] With apologies to all the old= wives present, we just can’t listen to those tales any more! Back then there were competing god= s and religions and conflicts between people who believed different things. Is that any different from today?<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> We have to deal with unscriptural = forms of Christianity, other religions, conflicts, gossip, hypocrisy—you na= me it, and the Enemy uses it to pull us away from the church and from God. Paul says our business is to be li= ke an athlete training for a competition: focused, disciplined, avoiding the distractions that would take away the edge of competition.

One sport that really requires a great deal of focus is the so-called “extreme” sport= of tree-skiing, skiing not down a cleared slope but downhill between the trees. Extremely dangerous and maybe extremely foolish! But = those who do it say there’s nothing like plunging down the mountain through= the virgin powder in a stand of aspen or spruce. The key, of course, is not to hit = the trees! Surviving tree-skiers say that it = is critical to maintain your focus, not on the trees, but on the space between= the trees—the exits where you hope to travel. They say, “Don’t stare= at what you don’t want to hit.”[3] It’s like staying away from = sins and senseless controversies. Focu= s; avoid distractions.

A student once asked D= r. Albert Einstein how many feet were in a mile. To the utter astonishment of the student, Einstein didn’t know. Every kid in elementary school knows how many feet are in a mile. But Einstein explained that he mad= e it a rule not to clutter his mind with simple information that he could look up = in a book in five minutes. His pas= sion was exploring the deepest realm of scientific and mathematical truth. In focusing his thoughts, he disco= vered some things about the universe that no one else ever had, and he had a tremendous impact on the world of science.[4]

Disciples who can avoid distraction can operate on a higher plane or a deeper level than most people never experience. “Train yourself in godliness,= 221; Paul says, “for, while physic= al training is of some value, godliness is valuable in every way, holding prom= ise for both the present life and the life to come.”[5] That’s one way to have a bulletproof faith.

Next, SET AN EXAMPLE. T= his is where Paul really called Timothy to accountability. Young Timothy could not make an ex= cuse that he was not yet mature, and neither could his church. “Let no one despise your youth, but set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity….Put these things in= to practice, devote yourselves to them, so that all may see your progress.R= 21;= = [6] The Christian walk is a p= ublic walk, and once you let it be known that you are a Christian, you become an automatic witness. Whether or= not you ever speak to anyone about your faith, your life goes on display as an example of what Christianity is all about.

I read a story several= years ago about a preacher who had just moved to a small city. Some days he would ride the bus to= work because it was convenient to the church.&n= bsp; One day he sat down and discovered that the bus driver had given him= a quarter too much in change.

He thought about what = to do, and he knew he should probably give the quarter back. Then he thought, “Oh forget it. It’s just a quarter= . The driver won’t miss it; th= e bus company won’t miss it; it’s no big deal. It’s like a little gift.R= 21;

Nevertheless, as the preacher got off at his bus stop, he paused at the door and handed the quar= ter to the driver and said, “Here, you gave me too much change.”

The bus driver looked = at him and said, “Aren’t you the new preacher at the Methodist Church? I’ve been thinking lately ab= out going to worship somewhere, and I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. I’ll see you in church on Sunday.”

When the pastor got of= f the bus, he literally grabbed the nearest light pole and prayed, “Dear Go= d, I almost sold your Son for a quarter.”

Did you know your life= is the only Bible some people will ever read?= How seriously do we take the fact that our lives display our faith?<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Our words and actions are witnesse= s to the beliefs and values we hold dear. We can look at that as an intrusion, an invasion of privacy. Or we can look at it as an opportu= nity to show people who we really are and what we’re made of. This can be an incentive to live w= hat we believe, because people are going to see what we really believe by how we live. This is a way to bullet= proof our faith. So Paul says to Ti= mothy, “Set an example.”

Finally, Paul encourag= es Timothy to USE THE GIFT. Timothy is a gifted young man, and= Paul does not want to see him lose his effectiveness for the Kingdom. Maybe he could sense that Timothy = was struggling, growing weary, or feeling stressed or burnt out. So he says, “Give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhort= ing, to teaching. Do not neglect t= he gift that is in you.”[7] Here is an opportunity. It is the most exciting time in the history of the world. Timothy= has been given the most incredible Good News to share. Seize the day! Use the gift! Make a difference!

Sometimes we just don’t realize what marvelous potential we have for the Kingdom of God. We’re like a young man in Canada = a few years ago named Danny Simpson. He was short on cash, so he robbed a bank at gunpoint. He got away with almost $6,000. When they caught him, Simpson went= to jail, but his gun went to a museum. The weapon he used in the robbery was a .45 caliber Colt semi-automa= tic pistol, made by the Ross Rifle Co. in Quebec City in 1918.&nbs= p; It was a rare antique, worth around $100,000. If Danny Simpson had known more ab= out guns, he would have known what he had in his hand, and he wouldn’t ha= ve needed to rob a bank. He already had= what he needed.= [8]

We sometimes think tha= t we can be effective disciples as soon as God gives us more of something—= more intelligence, more education, more courage, more money, more talent, more something. What I want you to understand toda= y is that you already possess everything you need to be a powerful disciple of J= esus Christ. You can be a hero of = faith yourself. Are you breathing?<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Are you believing? Then God has given you one or more gifts, by the power of the Holy Spirit, that you can use to benefit the Kingdom of God. The more you use your gifts,= the more impact God will have in your life and the more impact you will have on the world around you. Paul said to Timothy, “Put these things in= to practice, devote yourself to them, so that all may see your progress. Pay close attention to yourself an= d to your teaching; continue in these things, for in doing this you will save bo= th yourself and your hearers.”[9]

This is not going to be easy. It wasn’t for Tim= othy; it won’t be for us. I don’t recall Jesus ever saying it would be. I’ve told you before, Jesus = came not to make life easy, but to make people great. This is a time for greatness. Whatever it takes to continue in t= hese things of faith, it’s worth it. Because we have a God who is worthy of our praise, worthy of our sacrifice, worthy of our lives. Paul said, “For to this end we toil and struggle, because we have our hope set = on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.”[10] Following Jesus is a stru= ggle sometimes, but there is always hope. Sometimes it is an effort, but it is never without reward. Ultimately it is the only battle t= hat matters, because Jesus Christ is the only Savior we’ve got.

Do you have a faith th= at is bulletproof? Do you have stra= tegies in place for completing the mission of your life—avoiding distraction= s, setting an example, using your gifts? If you do, then you are already blessed. You are a hero of faith. If you don’t, or if you̵= 7;re unsure today, or if you know you’re far from God today, there is no better time to come to Christ than right now. Cast off your sin, lay your burden= on him, and put on the bulletproof vest of faith.&= nbsp; You can walk out of here today possessing spiritual invincibility! We have this bulletproof faith bec= ause our hope, our hero, is Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. Amen!