Reputation VS Reality

THEME: We can never stay the same

Pastor Jimmy gave us a message this past Sunday, centered on Jesus’ letter as given to John for the church in Sardis. As Pastor Jimmy emphasized, this letter centers on reputation versus reality, the reputation in the world as opposed to the truth of what our Lord sees. Verse one of this short letter states, “I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.” (Revelation‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬). The definition of reputation is:‬‬‬

Overall quality or character as seen or judged by people in general, or recognition by other people of some characteristic or ability. So, a reputation is a perception of the qualities or character of an individual, as seen by the public. Reputations are often carefully crafted images designed to mask the realities in the souls of individuals, with reputations often being considered more important than the actual character.

God does not deal in reputations, however. God deals in truth and sees much deeper into who we truly are, as Pastor Jimmy showed from the book of Matthew 23:27-28, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous, but on the inside, you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.” To paraphrase an old margarine commercial, “It’s not productive to try to fool God.” Nor is it possible.

Someone has noted that reputation is what people think you are, while character is what God knows you are. I will add that we also know who we are, and that is what leads to lives of desperation, as we must live constantly behind the mask of our created perception, and in constant fear of it slipping off.

In verse 2 of Revelation, chapter 3, Jesus says, “Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God.” He is saying, “Get out of your stupor. You are my church, and yet you are more concerned with resting on your outdated reputation in the world than on what I know about you. Wake up and start rebuilding yourselves and my church!” There is an old coaching saying that I have used many times (it is always appropriate). The saying goes, “At every moment, you are either getting better or worse. You are never staying the same.” In other words, if you are resting on your laurels and reputation, you are slowly, imperceptibly, losing ground. Spiritually speaking, only by prayer, Scripture study, and seeking God can we grow. If we think we have arrived, as individuals and as a church body, we will weaken quickly.

Another way to look at this axiom is this. If a person needs nothing, he is dead. I am alive; therefore, I get hungry and thirsty and need rest. There is a parallel to this in the Christian life. If you are spiritually alive, you will be challenged to grow, and you will feel a need to be fed, to be together, and to serve others. A church alive, as Pastor Jimmy pointed out, hungers for Christ and his purpose for it. A cadaver does not need food, drink, or clothing. Neither does a spiritually dead person know they need anything, and death will be a slow, steady process that happens when perception trumps the reality of God’s view.

"The Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, and even the Bible itself are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose."— C.S. Lewis, "Mere Christianity"

Jesus’ words are so simple, yet so profound: “Wake Up!” Do not sleepwalk through life, drunk on what the world thinks you are.

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SCRIPTURE: 1 John‬ ‭2‬:‭15‬-‭17 ‭(NIV)

‭‭“Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.”

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PRAYER:

Lord, as reputation always has to do with the world’s view of who we are, take that need from me. Let me and our church be only concerned with how you see us and that we are pleasing in your sight. Let us not slumber and become complacent but heed your warning to the church in Sardis centuries ago, to wake up and strengthen ourselves in you. In your name, Jesus, we pray. Amen