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August 22, 2004
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Nik Harrang
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"Three Relationships"
II Corinthians 5:16-21
I saw that University of Oregon hat going around. If I'd had my Beaver hat, I would have
swapped it out. But I didn't. But the Ducks need the Lord too and we're excited that God is
ruler on campuses all over. There's hope! Actually one of our newest [Victory Campus Ministries] chapters is starting at
the University of Oregon. I got involved at Oregon State University after growing up here.
God Has a Plan for You
But you never know where God will lead your life and take your life. As I look at the
youngsters here I'm reminded that I had a real interest in sports. Right here in the Banks
grade school in the gym in the fifth grade when I tried out for basketball, I said, "Maybe I'll
become a basketball star!" But my hopes were dashed when I realized I didn't really know the
rules too well. I remember one time, right after our team had made a basket, I really wasn't
paying attention very well, so I kind of stayed down under the basket as the ball obviously
switched sides and I was standing next to a guy on the opposite team. Bleep! The ball went out
of bounds and was passed in to me! I'm looking at him. It was just him and just me, and both
teams are down at the other side of the court. I'm looking at them and I'm looking at him,
then I'm thinking I'm supposed to be with them at the other end of the court. And all of a
sudden, my coach is yelling: "Shoot! ... Shoot! ... Shoot!" I'm like: Oh yeah! I can shoot!
He gave me the ball and there's the basket! So here's my moment of glory, and ....
Air ball! . . . . So my hopes are dashed.
And then, in Junior High I'm thinking maybe I'll work for NASA some day. I like science; I
like rockets. Dad and I built plenty of model rockets and model airplanes. I had a little gas
powered airplane that Dad and I fired up once for the very first time and off it went with a
string. Wasn't too fancy; didn't have a control or anything, just a string. It went up and
Dad started saying, "It's getting too hi! getting too high!" So I got it to go a little
lower. Then Dad said, "It's getting too low! getting too low! But by that time it was too
late. There was my model airplane in fifty pieces....
But it was right over here actually that I had my model rocket one time. I'm glad we still
have this [stadium] here today. Because one of my rockets kinda went awry and caught a little
grass on fire. It was an accident! Honestly! We swatted that out and the grandstands were
saved and we're dry here today. So you never know what God's going to do with your life, how it's
going to turn out and where God's going to lead you.
I had a couple of different ideas for my life. Actually I ended up majoring in Wildlife
Science, with a great love of the outdoors my family had instilled in me. But God had a different
plan.
So growing up here and going to Oregon State, I also got involved with Victory Campus
Ministries. A friend invited me to a Bible study. I was already going to church, so I said,
"Aw I don't really need that." But after a while I decided to go and it was through that
study that I really had to make the decision to make that faith my own.
Young people need to
have parents who roll model Christianity and bring them to church and bring them to Sunday
School. Here's one of my Sunday School teachers right here, Leslee Sipp. I'm sure there are
others in this audience.
But there comes a time in each young person's life that they need to make that decision for
themselves. For me that was at Oregon State at age nineteen with Victory Campus Ministries.
I didn't know Kristy at that time. She was actually four years younger than me. She grew up
in California in what she called a small town, 50,000 people, near San Francisco. And
independently what God was doing in her life and God was doing in my life was giving us a
heart for missions. And little did we know, that instead of living in a little mud hut
somewhere over seas, which we would be happy to do, God had a different mission field in mind
for us. And that's the mission field we were already on, right there as university students.
Why The Campus?
And so briefly, before I share some other things, I want to share: Why the campus? Why is the
campus one of the most strategic mission fields of our day?
Traditional mission work involves
usually going to another nation to reach the people of that nation with the Gospel. Matthew
28, which most of us are familiar with tells us it's our responsibility to obey Jesus and go
make disciples of all the nations. And yet we're at a unique time in history, where in this
nation, God is bringing the nations to us in an unprecedented way. There's about 580,000
international students studying at American colleges and universities right now and these
represent the top 1 or 2 percent of the future leaders in their countries, the top 1 or 2
percent academically, economically and politically. A lot of these kids say, "My dad's an
ambassador of this country." or "My dad's the vice president of this nation." It's amazing
the kind of leaders you meet right their going to go back, leading their nations in
significant ways. Just this past year, for example, we were ministering to students from
Tajikistan, Tunisia, Uganda, Ethiopia, India and beyond. Some of these aren't just your
eighteen year old, brand new college students, but these are actually government officials
working as ministers of finance or ministers of information technology. I met the guy who's in
charge of their version of the IRS in Tajikistan. Did you know that Tajikistan wants to make
their tax system better because they need to get their infrastructure up and going? So we were
ministering to them.
[Tajikistan is the small nation sharing borders with Afghanistan and China - ed]
And we saw students from South Korea and Japan give their hearts to
Jesus as well, going back to their countries with a vision to reach their peers, their
families and their nation with the gospel.
Yet, this country's university
system is set up so that our own future leaders of this nation are being educated as well.
Every politician, every educator and most media moguls, businessmen and women, homemakers
and so many others pass through the university system. There's where the world's
human values are shaped and influenced often by an ungodly and sometimes an anti-God perspective.
I'm so glad that somebody was there, while I was being hit by so many things and invited
to things that were not helpful to me. Then I was invited to something that was exactly what I
needed at that time, a Bible study that was going to put me back in touch with the truth of
God.
And lastly, there's a really unique window of openness in that age bracket of high school and
college. They say that between 90 and 95 percent of those people who make an appeal to
Christ, usually do so before the age of 25. We can thank God for the exceptions; I know there
are exceptions here today, but that's where most people are still open to the gospel in a real
open way and looking for purpose and trying to find something worth giving their life to.
Let me just read you a brief testimony written recently by one of our students who came to VCM
about a year and a half ago. He said this:
"I was born on the Island of Oahu, Hawaii and raised in a broken home. Trying to find some way
to cope with domestic violence and a lack of self worth, I quickly became familiar with gangs
and parties. After adopting this sort of life style I soon found my self kicked out of high
school. When I went to Seattle to go to college, I got deeply into drugs and became an avid
abuser of alcohol. When I settled on this group called Campus Ministries, I was on the verge
of suicide. I simply had no wish to live as the drugs and alcohol had almost completely
overtaken my mind and body. It seemed that all the money, women or drugs couldn't make me
happy. I couldn't seem to find any answers to all the questions I had regarding life. The
people of VCM helped turn my life around and gave me a true sense of purpose. I've just recently
graduated from Seattle University with a degree in Finance and Business Economics and I'm
finally ready for that next transition in my life. VCM truly changed my outlook on life and I
hope your support of this group will help others make positive changes in their lives as
well."
Just this week I received a phone call from this young man and he said, "I got it! I got
it!"
"You got what?"
"I got the job at Wells Fargo as a financial planner that I applied for."
And so here's a young man who just a year and a half ago was on the edge of throwing
everything away. And now he's taking that next step into a not only hopefully great career,
but also this guy really believes in what he's doing and is sharing what God is doing as well.
This is great! This is what God has called us to do. But what does this mean for us here?
Christ's Love Compels Us
What does this mean for us, for you as a church in Banks, which is not necessarily a university
town?
Well, in 2nd Corinthians, chapter 5 verse 11, Paul said this: "Since we know what it is to
fear the Lord, we persuade men."
And in verse 14, he says, "For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died
for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all and that those who live should no longer
live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again."
So this Christ's love that moves us to share with other people, that because his love has
changed our lives, out of the overflow we want it to touch their lives as well.
And then in verse 16 here is something very important:
"So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ
in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he (or she) is a new
creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to
himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that God was reconciling
the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to
us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were
making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. God
made him who had no sin to be sin (a sin offering) for us, so that in him we might become the
righteousness of God."
There's so much here to say, but I just want to touch on that verse 16 primarily. Where Paul
says that no longer do we regard anyone from a worldly point of view, when it comes to what
Christ has done for us. So let me ask you: How do you regard that business person that you
work with that you don't get along with so well? Do you regard him with a worldly point of
view? How do you regard that neighbor that maybe is a little bit annoying, a little bit
sneaky at times? Do you regard them from a worldly point of view, or do you regard them with
the lens that God wants us to see through that Jesus loved us and changed our lives so that we
should see others with the love he had?
There's a big difference between loving people and liking people. God didn't tell us to like
anybody. That's kind of impossible sometimes. But he tells us to love everybody such that we
desire the best for them, that we would overlook an offence, that we would see past the
imperfections and flaws than we would see past the issues that everyone of us has, to see
the values that God placed in each and every person around us, and say, "God, how would you
want to use me to help them, to encourage them, and if they don't know you to share your love
in a way that they can understand and respond to?"
Moving on another chapter or two in 2nd Corinthians, Paul continues in the same letter to
the same group of people. There's an interesting verse in Chapter 10; it's verse 13. Paul
says this:
"We however will not boast beyond proper limits, but will confine our boasting to
the field God has assigned, a field that reaches even you."
The word here: field, can also be translated as "sphere" or "area." And so Paul said basically that God has assigned us a field
or area of ministry, an area of impact. What does that mean for you? Well, that means, I
believe, the scriptures reveal that God has assigned you a field, a place to touch men for
God. What's your field? Well, it's right here in Banks or Forest Grove or out in the outlying
areas, your business place, your friends, relations, your neighbors. God has assigned you a
field. Sometimes guilt creeps up on us that we're not doing as much as so and so where God
assigned him. Well, that's ok. The pay is the same as long as you're obeying God and if God
has placed you in a certain place, you have an opportunity to reach that field, going about it
in whatever way the Lord teaches you.
One of the topics of evangelism is "Sharing Your Faith."
I find that a lot of people start to get really nervous and say, "Do you mean that I have to
cram my religion down somebody's throat?" or "Do I need to force my views on someone?"
Absolutely not! That's not what we're talking about at all. What we're talking about
first and foremost, is making sure you have aligned your life with the God who loves you and
then that overflows out to the reaching of people with his love. We find on campus that sometimes people think that you just walk up to strangers and say, "Here! Read this and give your life to Jesus! ...
What's your name again?" No! We don't do that because we find that people don't really care how much you know until they know how much you care. And it really takes relationships and students knowing that someone actually values them and gets to know them and loves them. Then they want to know, "OK, well what's working for you?" I don't always try to convince people of absolute truth and that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life first. I try to convince them that this is something that works for me and it can work for you. So let's spend some time with them; let's get to know them. Let's let this life with God that God has graciously blessed me with be seen in my life in a way that they will soon by hungry for that very same thing. So in the Church in Banks we're given an awesome opportunity and responsibility of really two things:
1. Growing continually, step by step and day by day, in your walk with God
2. Growing as ministers of reconciliation for those that God has placed in your spheres.
Lessons from the Cross
I forgot to bring my props today. We're not in a church building but an outdoor church. But we all know what a cross looks like. The cross represents, really, the key to life.
1. First and foremost the biggest beam is the vertical beam. That represents all relationships with God. That represents God reaching down, in time, 2000 years ago when he came here to touch our lives with his love, with the message of reconciliation of what Jesus did in taking our place, dying for our sins, that we might have his life. That is the first and foremost hope of our life.
2. Secondly, as we have that in place, the horizontal beam represents our relationship with others. It represents that as God has touched our lives, he now expects us to reach out laterally to those on the planet that God has placed in our spheres with his love, with his truth.
It all begins with that vertical relationship. Sometimes people will ask you, what is the key to really having an impacting Christian life? What is the secret? They go to a Christian bookstore and there's "Seven Easy Steps to Living a Happy and Pain-Free Life." I'm telling you, they don't work. I mean they help, but there is no secret to living an easy and pain free life.
Developing Three Kinds of Relationships
But there is a key to living a fulfilling life. And really, I believe that it boils down to prioritizing your life around three relationships:
1. First it's your relationship with God. I'd venture to say that everyone here believes that God exists, otherwise we probably wouldn't be here on this rainy August morning. We believe that God exists, but this needs to be evaluated by taking stock and asking, "Have I come to that place of making that no turning back decision? Do I believe that I made that decision that I will follow Jesus every day of my life?" It doesn't mean that you're perfect.
We met a sweet little Japanese girl this year who believed in Jesus after we talked. She didn't have any religious background; she didn't have Buddhism or anything. And as we talked with her and she shared with us about the fear that she saw in her life, "I want what you have; I want to know God like you know God." As we shared the Gospel, she was always hesitant to make that decision to put Jesus first, and we didn't know why. Finally, on her last day in this nation, as she stayed in our home as we were taking her to the airport on Saturday of the second weekend of June, Kristy finally got down to the issue. She said, "I'm not thinking about God all the time and I'm not perfect yet." And Kristy goes, "Honey! And neither am I! I wish I thought about God every second of every day; I wish I were perfect, but that's not to be in this life." It's an attitude of the heart so that you want to follow him. You know, it's a little bit scary to give up the driver's seat. But if you don't get out of the driver's seat, you won't have Jesus. Let him take control of your life. Promise to follow him: Where you lead me, I'll follow; what you feed me, I'll swallow. Jesus is Lord of my life. To develop that, you pray: "Not my will but your will be done." And seek to know about it through the Bible and through prayer on a daily basis.
2. The second key relationship is developing a relationship with the people of God. 1st Peter talks about it as many stones that have been fit together to become a temple in which God dwells by his Spirit. And I tell people that when they build that temple, they ought to take chisels, hammers, all sorts of tools to break those stones with rough edges and fit them together to become a beautiful building. If you have conflict in your church, don't be surprised. You've got some rough edges you need to get knocked off and so does that person you have a little issue with. That's OK, but it's being committed to walk through things together, being committed to go together with the people of God. If you've ever been to a beach bon fire you've probably seen how, if you get a hot enough fire going, you can even take a wet log, throw it on there, and pretty soon even that wet log will start to burn. But no matter where you are spiritually, if you want to go deeper with God, be sure that you're not only spending that time with God independently which I do, but that you're also spending time with God's people. Some people say my church is out on the golf course. It's just God and me out on the golf course. Well. No. That's right! That's just you and God out on the golf course. But that's not church. Church is the people of God gathering together, imperfect, but glorifying God and loving one another, joining together perfectly.
3. Finally let us set up relationships, true relationships with those around us who don't know Christ, who aren't as yet, following him, loving those God has place around you sharing God's truth both by action and by word as God gives opportunity. And with that I want to just encourage you, the church of Banks, that one true church, the one true gathering of the people of God, those that are here and those that are not able to be with us this morning, that God can use each and every one of us, as we're growing in God and loving those around us as he gives us opportunities. Amen?
Nik Harrang and his brothers grew up in Banks, Oregon and in the Banks Community United Methodist Church. His parents continue to be a vital part of our church family. Nik and his wife, Kristy, are campus missionaries with Victory Campus Ministries working in the Seattle, Washington area.
This message was delivered at Kelly Field, the Banks High School stadium, at our community service during Banks Barbeque, an annual August weekend celebration in Banks. The four churches of Banks, the total "Banks Church," shared in this time of worship. Presented here is a direct transcript of Nik's message as it was delivered on that very rainy August morning.
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