Life in the Red (Sermon)

I was at Annual Conference a last year when a young woman got up to share. She has a short, but well-crafted speech that amounted to saying, “I thank you and I am deeply indebted to you.” One turn of phrase, however, caught me. She said, “I am not my own. I live my life in the red!” Don’t we all, I thought. In the margin of my note pad (every good pastor should take notes when others are preaching or teaching), I wrote the following sermon.

I am not my own. I live my life in the red. Being in the red refers to being in debt. What debt do I have? First, I have the debt of freedom, for my forefathers bled and died to secure the freedoms that I enjoy every day. Men and women still fight for similar freedom, and I own them a debt of gratitude.

I also owe the debt of faith, for my faith has been built up by countless people whose names and faces are dear to my heart. The traditions of the church have given meaning to my faith, and the teaching of pastors, Sunday school teachers, youth leaders, and so many others has made strong my faith.

Yet I would be remiss if I failed to mention that greatest debt, owed by all. For my freedom would be meaningless and my faith pointless if it had not been for the one who paid the debt of my Sin. Paul said it best in Romans. We all have sinned, and the wages of that sin is death, but God, through his Son, offers us forgiveness as a free gift of love.

My debt reminds me that indeed, I am not my own. I live my life in the red!

As I live in the red, I also think of the blood of Christ. Many have grown squeamish about a “bloody religion,” but without the blood, there can be no forgiveness (Heb. 9.22). What does it mean to live in the blood?

First, it means living out the Christian life. It is salvation, forgiveness, and on going sanctification. It is the assurance that if I walk as he walked, “the blood of Jesus will cleanse us from all sin.” (1 John 1.7,9)

It also reminds me of the power I have in prayer. I can enter boldly into the very throne room of heaven, because I come through the blood. I can come up to my great big pappa God and climb up on His lap and just stare into His face, because the blood that was shed makes me holy.

The blood makes me think also of the old-time saints, who used to plead the blood. They would cry out in prayer and as God to place the covering of the blood of Christ upon their lives, their loved ones, their friends and fellow laborers. The scriptures make it pretty clear that the enemy can not come through the blood.

I am not my own. I live my life in the red! I am in debt, and I live in the blood.

Red is also a color in our yearly observances. The alter cloths are red on only 7 days out of the year. Some remind us of the blood, but others remind us of the fire of the Holy Spirit.

What does it mean to live in the power and fire of the Holy Spirit? First, it means to be filled. Jesus tells us to seek it . . . to seek it . . . to knock, for we need that power. It is the power of the church to reach the lost (Acts. 1.8). It is the power to build up the body of Christ into a bride without spot or blemish. It is the power that I need to live the life that Christ calls me to when He says, “follow me.”

Living in the fire of God’s Spirit also means that we listen to the voice of this helper, promised by Jesus to His followers. For the Holy Spirit will teach us all things (John 14.26). He will give us knowledge and discernment (1 Cor. 3.10-16) as we follow after Christ, and in doing so, He will reveal the things of God to us.

Perhaps the greatest thing that the Holy Spirit does, however, is to bear witness with our spirit. (Romans 8.16) Like John Wesley, whose Altersgate experience gave him a bold assurance that he was saved, the work of the Holy Spirit within us helps us know that we know that we know. . . There is a freedom in knowing that you are saved and that your life is in God’s almighty hands.

I am not my own. I live my life in the red! Do you?