Don't Fake It - Charles R. Swindoll

for those of you who are new don't let that lectureship scare you there are those who read papers there are also others who present from their paper and doctor aid Kuruvilla and i had the privilege of sharing a session at the evangelical theological society meetings this past November and I watched him lecture to a group of scholars and it was scintillating and you will love it and it will be great so relax and look forward whether you say the name dr. Charles swindle or simply as he loves to be called Chuck many Christians around the world are familiar with his name his voice his laughs his writings is speaking some of you may have even decided to attend here because of his ministry in your life and that's well understood he is a graduate of Dallas seminary he has numerous honors and multiple honorary doctorates given by a number of institutions including Talbot Theological Seminary Taylor University Pepperdine University and Dallas Baptist University he served on our board for a number of years while he was a pastor in California at the ìiî Church in Fullerton he served then as our fourth president of DTS he's done by millions as one who practically applies the scripture to everyday living hence the radio program in sight for living he's the pastor of the Stonebriar Community Church in Frisco Texas he's the offer of over a million books and in fact fiber coming out today but and if you know the history he was mentored by dr. Pentecost he used to do the same thing to me but Chuck serves as our Chancellor and continues to minister on our campus would you join me in welcoming this one well first off bill I want to tell you the reason you don't have groupies as you play that sorry trumpet all the time you know we used to have a man on our faculty his name is Harold Horner and Harold always set in the chapel right down here right where the spit valve from that trumpet and bill would often turn that trumpet and play it right at Harold and Harold just said there is so calmly and quietly and people didn't know it but he's deaf in that ear as a result of the horn bill kept blowing on it but gosh retiring after all these years a terrific bill thank you for all that good work you do you're a great sport when you retire you can give up at trumpet too I want to take Wells you've guessed by now they don't bring me here to encourage you academically though I really do believe in what you're doing here and I do applaud you for pursuing your degrees I have to say that this is a place of theory it's a place of academia and it needs to be but there is nothing theoretical or academic about ministry and they're analyzed the rub and that's the reason I sometimes show up to address some of the reality unrelated to the academic world I I believe in what you're doing and I I applaud the plan as it unfolds and I know in order to get a degree you have to do a number of things that require academic discipline in some of your cases excellence you are very white people and you wouldn't be here if you weren't I have no sarcasm and in saying that I'm I'm impressed with your ability and with this faculty to lead you into realms that you would not otherwise go on your own but there is no required reading once you're out of here there is no written testing once you're gone from here there are no semesters there is no classroom but there are constant examinations not the kind of professor will give you an grade but examinations on life because you can you can form habits here that are that are very destructive in ministry out there in the middle of nowhere when there are no longer professors to look over your work or those who keep the record of your accomplishments academically you will not fail or be disqualified in ministry because of intellectual failure you will fail because of character failure that's where you'll fail and nobody here wants that for you but there's only so much a school can do it doesn't do magic and if you don't come with some things in place if you're not careful in this dangerous place you learn to fake it and because you're capable intellectually and able to ace many of the exams you can begin to believe your own stuff and think that it's kind of that's going to qualify you for ministry and it does not in ministry the secrets ultimately become known as in a home one of the great things about home is constant accountability from parents and siblings none of them is impressed with you you know that when you go you know profits without honor right there at home it's why always shudder when I go back to Houston that's where my most of my roots are and and I remember her our band instructor Eugene C strand looking at me with shock when I went back to campus to visit he said you're supposed to be in Alcatraz that's a nice gathering of thoughts there but when you are in ministry the truth is becomes known it isn't long before folks notice that your discourteous are selfish or you are envious or you're rude are you lack forgiveness or you don't do well as it relates to sharing the credit that another person really deserves which made me appreciate this little piece I came across a few years ago it's a picture of an old lady has got a face like about eight miles of bad road in Mississippi I and it reads in an inner trial a southern small-town prosecuting attorney called his first witness a grandmotherly elderly woman to take the stand he approached her and asked mrs. Jones do you know me she responded with a shrug wad I do know you mr. Williams I've known you since you were a little boy and frankly you've been a big disappointment to me you lie you cheat on your wife and you manipulate people you talk about them behind their back you think you're a big shot when you haven't the brains to realize you'll never amount to anything more than a two-bit paper pusher yep I know you the lawyers a little stunned not knowing exactly what else to do pointed to the attorney across the room and said Miss Jones do you know the defense attorney she replied yeah I know him - I've known Bradley since he was a youngster he's lazy bigoted has a drinking problem he can't build a normal relationship with anyone and his law practice is one of the worst in our entire state not to mention he cheated on his wife with three different women one of them was your wife yeah I know Bradley defense attorney nearly passed out the judge asked both counselors to approach the bench and a quiet voice said either of you idiots ask her if she knows me you're going right to the electric chair I like that they get to know you in ministry and they are not impressed you're not there to make a great impression you're there to exalt the Savior they will be grateful for the end to the end of their life that you help them understand his word better and that you model his truth as best you could given your old nature and the things that mark you as a human being because you carry all of that with you all of that goes with you all the bad habits you cultivated in college you brought with you to seminary and unless something rather significant happens you'll only get better at covering them up rather than dealing with them which is the benefit of being involved in spiritual formation nobody asked me to to underscore the value of that but you who are really really bright really academically gifted will tend to overlook that you won't see that is very and intellectually challenging so you'll do what's required and that's about it you won't really throw yourself into it when in fact some of you really need serious attention to your character because you're phony some of you more than others all of us a little bit and because that's true I shudder a little when I think of your getting through here with great grades and a rotten attitude or maybe put in a little nicer or just a selfish spirit I care about that I was sitting on the platform about to speak out of commenced meant for a Christian college sitting next to a classmate of mine actually he was a couple years behind me and we had gotten to know each other as I was finishing and he was starting here at school and so we caught up on each other's life it was great to be there's one of the great things about the camaraderie of the graduates of our school and he and I were talking and happened to be a commencement where they also gave the awards here at seminary we do a Awards chapel just before the commencement ceremony I like that dividing them up but at that school they they gave awards the same day they they graduates students and it was a is a large class about 300 and the young lady who won the academic award she's valedictorian 4.4 as I recall graduating top of her class when they called her name and to come up and get the award the place just exploded and I noticed my buddy sitting next to me doesn't applauding and I leaned over and I said you must know something nobody else knows he said you know kind of whispered this as my body was fawning over her he said I wish we gave awards for great attitudes because her stinks he said the tragedy and he said all of this just in a few few seconds of time and I don't know her and I'm not talked to him since but he said you know I deal with her and she is very very bright and very obnoxious but we don't grade that I wish we graded that it's seminary we sort of do in some classes but most of them the profs are really nice and they'll they'll courteously overlook your rudeness your arrogance and what does that have to do with what I've got to say today is a lot uh I'm here to bring a little reality to your world because that's my world my world is a body of eleven elders to whom I am intimately account with whom I'm intimately accountable we met just yesterday morning for two and a half hours yeah by the way I didn't plan to say this but I I will add I decided over the holidays that I would put together eight commitments of my life for 19 for our 2015 and I wrote him down oli typed him up ran them off took them to the meeting and gave them out to the guys I said I want all of you to hold me accountable these are eight areas where I feel my life needs attention and I want to be better at it at the end of the year than I am at it right now and in fact read them the commitments to no one asked me to do that they were very gracious and - group of elders I've ever worked with in any church um at one of his stand to sing by the way man I respect with every fiber of my being and he had the courtesy to thank me for that after that but I didn't do it to get thanks I did it because I want them to know on the front end as the year starts that I an 80 year old pastor serving a church with a wide variety of ages and stages of people I know that I can begin to slip I know that I can get lazy and I know that I can get away with things if for no other reason than my age or what a little bit of reputation I've been able build over the years I don't want to do that I don't want to get away with anything that is inappropriate and diminishes the glory of Christ and his role in my life and his work in my life I have a long ways to go in areas like you do so when I speak to you rather forcefully as I have I will always tell you the truth I will never lie to you and and I will always address issues that are real issues I don't make them up because you will be there when I'm dead and gone and you will be there when no prophets there to correct a paper or to rearrange your thinking in an area where you're moving into error that's why you can slip easily in ministry if you're not accountable to those who hold your feet to the fire theologically and if you don't read on your own all your reading is dated and so one of my commitments was to stay up on where we are never forgetting that God is sovereign over at all so I stand with you today as a fellow sinner just a few more years in my life than you have but the book that I love and from which I preach with all the passion I can muster is filled with very wise directives that time to take personally regardless of achievements or academic accomplishment as in your case or what other people may think I know myself too well to know that I could easily fake it so can you when I started last semester with you as a my first time to speak in Chapel I had everybody turned to Philippians 3:10 were uh I'm turning right now and III called this Paul's great passion that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the Fellowship of his sufferings that I may know him the amplified bible does a masterful piece of work in just doing that amplifying it for my determined purpose in life is that I may know him that is that I may become increasingly more intimately acquainted with him intimately intimately I think of my wife and myself as intimate partners 59 years this year 60 years together she knows me she had not impressed with me but she loves me too much to let me get away with stuff that is really ugly and inappropriate so if I'm going to become intimately acquainted with her I'm going to open her open myself to her and have no secrets nothing hidden and I'm going to listen when she corrects me and tells me you know you're getting a little sloppy on the red lights she's right I think red lights lasts too long and the yellow light goes red too quickly and the other day as I would went past it was kind of pink people and all of a sudden a bright light went on from a camera right that's what I did Oh so I went home walked in well how was the time with Parker it was great really good she says good everything okay I said no I had my picture taken actually not my picture but the cars picture she goes on so the other day when the mail came she brings it in here's the mail you may want to open that I may know Christ so deeply and so intimately that I'm aware of the fact that I am impatient and I don't keep that from you or anyone I acknowledge it I face it I have nothing to lose by telling you that that is a weakness in my life I will on occasion an unguarded moment say to the Lord just simple prayer just hurry up come on Lord I've been asking you this for the last hour as if an hour is in his event but he doesn't run his life my life like I want it run so I adapt to him it's called submission or one of the disciplines of the godly life surrender and it doesn't come easily if we are to become intimately acquainted with him so that he really has the right to rule every part of our lives then there's going to be a place where it's either my will or his will and I have to learn to surrender and so do you I don't care how bright you are I don't care how well you do at school you fail to submit you fight surrender you're gonna pay for you're going to make a fool of yourself you're going to drive your kids away from you and before long you'll you'll be grateful your maid is still with you because of the way you've been acting see what I'm saying this stuff at Dallas seminary as magnificent as it is I don't know of a better place to train for ministry they don't train you in being patient that's kind of a by-product that they hope you will get hold of but if you're not careful you won't and you came greedy you'll leave greedy you came lustful you'll leave lustful but the problem is the brighter you get the better you get at wearing the mask and covering it up and acting like that's not a battle ministry we'll bring it out now whatever maybe the ministry whatever may be the realm of ministry maybe serving in some mission thousands of miles away it'll happen there may be a parachurch ministry perhaps you'll be used in the realm of the arts it'll happen there you may step into a local pastoral role as an assistant or part of the staff or a senior member of the staff and they'll really know you and you know what they that they really will want to respect you and admire you and and love you and one of the secrets as I learned from Jim Peterson with the navigators many many years ago still let them see the cracks in your life let them see them that's why I say the guys that go do the candidate examine at a church don't preach your best stuff they'll expect that all the time you know preach preach a reasonably good message but well if you knock it out of the park they expect you to be a home run hitter every time you get up there and you're not you're not that good but they'll think that if you try to impress them with this you know sugar stick that you you're able to deliver so well an intimate walk with Christ means that I tell the truth regardless now hold a place in Philippians we're going to be back in chapter 2 in a second but look at Hebrews yeah Hebrews 12 you got a Bible okay good Hebrews 12 since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us and did that a great word picture it's a picture of an arena an arena is made up of two groups all the people in the stands often thousands and those on the field the athletes and the spectators and you're among the athletes engaged in this case all the spectators are dead but they are living martyr Rome we got a word martyr from it they are the witnesses they are the ones saying you can do it I've been there I know it's hard you can make it stay with it there are your witnesses that surround you however you want to take that he describes him as a cloud of witnesses and they surround us and by the way this school forgive me at the school you're surrounded by the history 90 years of people that have done it and we're all pulling for you we want you to finish what you started don't quit don't pull up don't cut it short and we know it's tough it's supposed to be tough ministry is tough if it isn't tough it isn't Ministry of Jowett the great preachers said ministry that costs nothing accomplishes nothing it's cost me my whole life that's a what a great investment but it's taken me from my family ties when I'd rather been there it's interrupted of a plan that I had it requires of me to listen when I'd rather talk yeah I'm better at talking than listening I'm not a real good listener so I've learned to listen better and on and on but these witnesses that surround you always all completely human all of them and they're saying in effect you're there now you're on the field you've got to run that race in fact you're engaged in it run it but before you run it look at the order look at it let us lay aside every encumbrance that's before getting in the blocks and take it off on the relay or the race you've never seen a runner keep the sweat clothes on at the time of the running he stripped out of the bare essentials and you get rid of those things that are entangling us encumbrances that's what I've been talking about lying is an encumbrance taking credit that someone else deserve is ism is an encumbrance striving for your own weight though doing it this eat fully is an encumbrance not at all you can list them but I've no corner on understanding you've got as good imagination as I do but lay that aside and he then mentions the sin definite article different from encumbrances more general this is the sin I think in context it is the sin of unbelief chapter 11 is all about the people of faith goes back to the end of chapter 10 and context takes you into the first three verses of chapter 12 all of that is in a segment of this section at the writer is addressing but the sin that be sets you and me is the sin of unbelief it's a constant battle remember the great words from Proverbs trust in the Lord with all your heart lean not to your own understanding remember those words in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight remember that you memorized them when you were sunday school or maybe a Vacation Bible School or perhaps with some group you were meeting with proverbs 3:5 and 6 all your heart all your ways big is life stands out trust him with all your heart the seminary course that you're taking right now and every time you are back here every semester will be a test of your faith trust God trust him he will not let you down he will not give you your way he will not say yes when you need to know trust him to lead trust him to provide it is the sin that easily entangles us so I surrendered to him out of trust in him and he's there and he won't let you down he doesn't speak audibly so you don't always know what his agenda is it's different than you thought it was unless you're very unusual you missed it by a mile because your training won't lead to where you think it will lead to where he's planned and for each one of you that's a unique destination with a unique set of experiences that you will go with my experience at this school of four years is like no other person I've ever visited with there are similarities and places but the details are different your details are different Cynthia learned things as a result of being with me those four years that we still talk about and on and on I could go but each was it seemed was a test of our faith to trust him trust him lean on him you're worried about finances that means you're not trusting him your worry is draining you of energy that you need to apply to your studies to your work to your occupation to your home and family if you have one here that it is the sin that easily entangles itself around us and and it besets us the easily beset ik sin trust him trust him listen to Dennis next week outstanding a representative of the Lord Jesus good friend Denison Barbara all the stuff they've gone through he has things to teach you trust the Lord to speak through his mouth to say thing don't don't miss that week or think it's a time to kind of hang out uh elsewhere you be right here drink that in some of the best stuff we got in my years here we got from what we call them the Bible lecture series or the spiritual life week and I can I can quote Lions that I heard that came from those who spoke here what a privilege to hear Dennis who comes to you to deliver this it's all part of your training but you're arrogant and you're self-sufficient and you're right and you will therefore convince yourself you don't really need what Dennis Rainey has to say you do need one more passage okay the Philippians 2 this will eat your lunch you think three got to you look at chapter two talking about surrendering your will verse three do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit now there's a mouthful and were three sermons do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit but with humility of mind look at this this is for you seminary students this for me preacher this is for you faculty members this for you administration this is for all of y'all do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another is more important than himself that's a tough assignment doesn't mean just holding the door open so somebody else can walk in before you do know that's a courteous thing to do there's a word borrowed from German for the pleasure we take in the disappointments and suffering of others it's schadenfreude ah schadenfreude ah is the basic principle behind 90% of reality TV the opposite is a specific kind of jealousy listen to this this is the story of your life and ministry unless you're going to be really different being depressed by the good fortune of others Envy is an ugly emotion and an even worse lifestyle and it doesn't get any less ugly when you try to accessorize it as idealism pretending that your jealousy is a sense of justice or fairness for example unfortunately it is the common law of mankind not only to covet your neighbor's ass I'm using the term biblically it says he says Adhemar but also to be annoyed and irritable if he has an especially nice one I learned this one afternoon in a hotel room in Washington DC an acquaintance of mine had recently published a quite successful book and was getting both good reviews and healthy sales as it happened the author deserved all of the success because the book was well done timely and an important addition to the public debate so I was depressed a recent book of my own on a similar subject had not been nearly as successful so watching the other authors celebrity was a bit like a root canal for my ego my relative lack of success was in no way caused by the other author and his success took nothing away from me but I was nevertheless in a deep funk I also had a decision to make as it turned out he was having a book signing party in a local Washington bookstore that evening should I go the question made as much sense is how would I like a hot sharp stick poked in my eye but I thought about it youth has its passion but age has its bitterness and frankly I didn't like the way it felt first of all it was pointless what good did it do me to be depressed about someone else's success it's one thing to be down about your own failure although you shouldn't dwell on it but what possible reason would you have to wallow in self-pity over someone else's good fortune in that a good question Morse good stuff he writes but that's one you're going to fight I don't know if any sin more subtle or more a famous in ministry that envy you'll fight it constantly unless you're really a cut above and if you are I admire you to applaud the success of a classmate to graduate and to know what kind of a classmate he or she was and then to see that success wash over them when you really may have studied harder or maybe even make better grades but success doesn't come to you like it comes to her or to him and you're going to fight that that ugly Envy will emerge again and again and again until you finally look yourself in the mirror and say knock it off what an ugly way to respond to this brother or his sister who deserves every bit of the of the accolades that she's receiving don't do anything from selfishness or empty conceit of the humility of mine regard each is more important than himself don't merely look out for your own personal interests but the interests of others practice that at DTS I gotta quit I wish before you leave you'd buy a copy of the valley of vision this is a series of Puritan prayers is my second time through it I'm about worn this one out I wore out another one so you know it's it's worth reading I read them from time to time very eloquent words that maybe sound dated but have a relevant ring to them and I close with these words I'm a shelf full of dust made anew by an unseen power of Greece yet I'm no rare object of valuable price but one who has nothing and is nothing although chosen from thee of thee from eternity and born again I'm deeply convinced of the evil and misery of my sinful state of the vanity of creatures but also of the sufficiency of Christ now listen closely when thou wouldest guide me I control myself when thou wouldest be sovereign I rule myself when thou wouldest take care of me I suffice myself when I should depend on thy providing Zhai supply myself when I should submit to thy Providence I follow my will when I should study love honor trustee I serve myself i fault incorrect bylaws to suit myself instead of V I look to man's approbation I'm by nature and idolatry Lord it is my chief designed to bring my heart back to thee convinced me that I cannot be my own God or make myself happy nor my own Christ to restore my joy nor my own spirit to T Gaiden rule me help me to see that grace does this my providential affliction for when my credit is God not us cast me lower when riches are my idol not Oh swing them away when pleasure is my all not us turn it into bitterness take away my roving eye my curious ear my greedy appetite my lustful heart show me that none of these things can heal the wounded conscience or support a tottering frame or uphold a departing spirit take me to the cross and leave me there take me to the cross and lead me there how grateful we are for the cross her first saw the light and the burden rolled away don't ever get over the sheer ecstasy of that Lord changes an order and I'm first in line after all these years of knowing you and walking with you I'm just now learning some of these things and I'm ashamed to admit that I'm like a juvenile in some of these things I'm just learning them and you had faithful to work with me all these years you've used for kids and ten grind kids in my life you've used affliction and confrontation from brothers and sisters you've reproved me and I'm just now getting it give me a few more years Lord to live it out I'd like to show you how much you mean to me keep me at the cross where change comes only from you change my heart change my motivation change my life in the name of Jesus everybody said

Channel: Dallas Theological Seminary

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Length: 46min 8sec (2768 seconds)

Published: Wed Jan 14 2015