Kings Mountain First Church of the Nazarene
Thursday, February 23, 2012

Pastor Mark Wojtal's Message
From January 29, 2012
 
"Are You a Jesus Fan?"

Romans 12:1-2 (NIV)
1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your
bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
 
Romans 12:1-2 (New Living Translation)
1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God
because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable.
This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world,
but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to
know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
 
Romans 12:1-2 (J.B. Phillips New Testament)
1-2 With eyes wide open to the mercies of God, I beg you, my brothers, as an act of intelligent
worship, to give him your bodies, as a living sacrifice, consecrated to him and acceptable by him.
Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within,
so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good, meets all his demands
and moves towards the goal of true maturity.

Romans 12:1-2 (The Message)
1-2 So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping,
eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what
God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don't become so well-adjusted to your culture that you
fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You'll be changed from the inside out.
Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always
dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.
 
  • What are your priorities?
  • We are designed to worship something.
  • 63% of Americans are football fans.
  • 111 Million people watched the Superbowl on TV last year in the United States. 
  • Last year the Superbowl was broadcasted in 180 different countries with over 1 billion people watching worldwide.
  • We are in a culture that is passionate about sports.
  • What is the definition of a fanatic? A fanatic is defined as: a person whose enthusiasm or zeal for something is extreme or beyond normal limits.
  • What would our church, culture, and nation be like if Christians were as passionate about Jesus and about speading the gospel as people are about sports?
  • This culture needs more "Jesus Freaks".
  • What does God think about Christians that can get so fired up about a sporting event or rock band or movie and are quiet and reserved about God?
  • We need more fanatics about the gospel.
  • These days, it's socially acceptable to be a sports fanatic, but it's not acceptable to be a Jesus fanatic.
  • People are sold out to a game and to their team, but not to the God who sent His only Son to die for them to save them.
  • Sports fanatics are not afraid to stand out.
  • Could we as Christians learn from sports fans?
  • Christianity is not a game...it's a matter of a life or death!
  • Why are Christians so conformed to the culture that we blend in?
  • Are you a Christian, but you are so adjusted to the world that you fit right in?
  • Can you be a witness for Christ if your morals are the same as the world's?
  • We as Christians are to testify about what Christ has done for us.
  • There's a high cost to be a fan, real fans don't worry about the cost.
  • We are the light of the world.

Matthew 5:11-16 (NIV)
 11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against
you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the
same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
  13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be
made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

   14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do
people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone
in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your
good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

Mark 8:38 (NIV)
38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of
Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

  • We are living in the last days!
  • We're afraid to be a bold witness for Christ.
  • Too often we want to fit in more than we want to live for Christ.
  • Where are the Tim Tebows? People who are not ashamed of their faith.
  • C.S. Lewis said, "Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important."
  • We should be die-hard "Jesus Fans".