Does Character Matter?

Text: Selected Scriptures

Introduction:

  1. Senator Henry Clay, great orator of past century said, "Of all the properties which belong to honorable men, not one is so highly prized as that of character."
  2. Contrast that statement with the idea that is so prevalent to day that "Character doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter how immoral a man is as long as he knows how to get the job done."
  3. In one century, virtue of character was esteemed, even deemed a necessary qualification for office. Now, it is considered an optional commodity.
  4. While I think that it is obvious that we need character, not a character, in public office, this is not a sermon on the need for character in public office. It is a sermon on the need for us, as individuals and as a corporate body, to have character.
  5. God gives you want you want. We have characterless leadership, because we have a people who are without character.
  6. May, 25 1987 cover story for Time Magazine "What Ever Happened to Ethics?"
  1. Definition of Character
    1. Definitions, Components
      1. Character is what you are, not what you appear to be
        1. 1 John 2:4 "He that saith…" versus he that "doeth"
        2. Character and reputation are two different words
        3. Bob Jones: "Character is what you are in the dark."
      2. Character is Integrity
        1. "A man should be upright, not be kept upright."

          2. Marcus Aurelius (121–180 A.D.), Roman emperor, philosopher. Meditations, bk. 3, sct. 5.

        2. What is integrity?
          1. Four words
            1. tom, tummah: carries the idea of innocence, complete, whole, truth
            2. amemptoV: blameless, without defect
              1. 1 Thess. 3:13 "blameless in holiness"
              2. 1 Thess. 2:10 "Paul behaved in a blameless manner"
            3. anegklhtoV: not able to bring a judicial charge against; not accuse (Col. 1:22)
            4. anepilhptoV: not be laid hold of, can’t grab hold of on account of some fault
              1. 1 Tim. 6:14
              2. ill. In politics, you can grab a fault and ruin a candidate, i.e. Gary Hart, Dukakis
          2. Putting it together
            1. to be whole, not fractional
            2. to be true through and through, inside and out
            3. genuine
            4. nothing hidden
    2. Illustrations of Character
      1. Doing right even when no one else will know
        1. You don’t glimpse at pornography even if you know you won’t get caught
        2. You tell the truth even when you know you can get away with telling a lie
      2. Doing right in the face of opposition
        1. Illus. Daniel praying after the king’s edict was passed that you could not pray to any god for 30 days
        2. Illus. Jeremiah prophesying captivity even though all of the false prophets were prophesying peace
      3. Doing right when it is not convenient
        1. Paying taxes when you could get by with claiming less income
        2. Confronting sin when silence would be easier
          1. Illus. John the Baptist preaching against Herodias
          2. Jeremiah preaching against the sins of the people
      4. Doing right when you don’t "feel" like it
        1. Living by principle, not by passion
        2. Being true to the faith, not a slave to your feelings
        3. Being faithful to God, not indulgent to the flesh
  2. The Demolition of Character
    1. A. W. Tozer: "The first down for any church is taken when it surrenders its high opinion of God"
      1. Exchange the holiness of God for the happiness of man
      2. Water down the attributes of God to the vices of men
        1. Illus. The Roman gods were nothing more than pathetic, man-made deities with lustful passions just like men
        2. Today we are bringing God down to our level, treating Him as if He were like us. We are creating (defining) God in our image when in reality, we were created in His image but lost much of that image when we fell into sin.
          1. Illus. Grandfather idea of God
          2. Illus. The cosmic zapper God
          3. Illus. The vending machine God
    2. The second step: Elevating "feeling good" above "being good"
      1. A. W. Tozer: "It appears that too many Christians want to enjoy the thrill of feeling right but are not willing to endure the inconvenience of being right."
      2. Wiersbe speaking on the priests in Jeremiah’s day, "The priests and false prophets peddled a popular brand of religion that gave the people enough experience to make them happy, but not enough trith to make them holy."
      3. The Ultimate goal is not our happiness, but our Christlikeness
        1. 1 Pet. "Be ye holy, as I am holy."
    3. The third step: Elevating success above fidelity
      1. Wiersbe: "We are promoting ministry and merchandise the way the world promotes toothpaste and used cars."
      2. Wheaties Approach to Christianity:
        1. Become a Christian because celebrity so and so is a Christian
        2. Emphasis is on the fame of the witness, not the faith of the witness
        3. We elevate those who can draw a crowd rather than those who are faithful to the Word
        4. We want to lift up Jesus, not celebrities.
      3. Wiersbe on the problems that led to Pearlygate: "Basically, it was a problem of integrity: reputation was more important than character; and popularity and the abilty to draw a crowd were more important than a consistent, Christian lifestyle."
  3. The Devastation from a Lack of Character
    1. Loss of Power
      1. "Form of godliness but denying the power thereof."
      2. Wiersbe: "something is radically wrong when evangelical ministry can be so popular and yet at the same time so weak. Perhaps its popularity is its weakness; after all, reputation and character are two different things."
      3. Samson "wist not that the Lord was departed from him."
        1. His lack of character caused him to be weak
        2. His did not recognize his weakness
        3. Church is blind to her weakness
        4. Rev. 3 "I am rich and increased with goods" when in reality we are "poor, blind, wretched."
    2. Loss of Integrity
      1. We have no influence with the world because our lack of character reflects on our message
      2. When the world rejects the message, it is their fault. When they reject the messengers of the message because we have no integrity, it is our fault.
      3. Jer. 7:3-4, 8-11
        1. Den of thieves is where they run to for safety.
        2. Some come to the church to assuage their consciences and cover their sin rather than repent and forsake their sin
    3. Loss of Perspective
      1. Deceive ourselves
        1. 1 John 2:4
        2. James 1:22
      2. Vance Havner: "We are challenged these days, but not changed; convicted, but not converted; we hear, but do not; and thereby we deceive ourselves."
  4. The Restoration of Character
    1. Matthew 6:19-24
      1. Single heart: Love God supremely
        1. "First duty of every soul is to find not its freedom, but ist rightful Master."
        2. "Love God with all our hearts, soul, mind…"
      2. Single mind (eye):
        1. Doubleminded man is unstable in all His ways
        2. Focused on the Lord and His Word
      3. Single will: serve
        1. Not my will but thine be done
    2. 2 Pet. 1:5-10
      1. Develop Godly habits
        1. Read the Bible
        2. Faithfulness to church
      2. Develop Godly character
        1. Rom. 12:1-2

Conclusion:

  1. Daniel: Purpose in your heart
  2. Joseph: Do right no matter your circumstances