This past Sunday we shared in Amazing Grace Sunday with other believers all across this country. The first phrase of that song goes like this.

Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me.

Isaac Watt’s put it this way:

Alas and did my Savior bleed, and did my Sovreign die;
Would He devote a Sacred head for such a worm as I.

Am I a wretch? Are you a wretch? Perhaps John Newton, the writer of Amazing Grace was a wretch because he was one of those wicked slave traders. We could probably think of others who are a wretch or wretched, but that title would never apply to ourselves. The dictionary defines wretch as a miserable, unfortunate, or unhappy person or a base, mean, or despicable person. That doesn’t define me does it? That doesn’t define you does it?
Even better with the second hymn I quoted. Who wants to be a worm? Most girls don’t even want to hold a worm or be near one. I know I not very fond of them. Perhaps that’s why I’m not a good fisherman. Worms are scum of the earth. We certainly don’t think of ourselves as scum, usually.
Most of us think of ourselves as decent people. We come from respectable families. We might be bad, but never a wretch. What were we before we became Christians? We basically think of ourselves as nice people. When we become Christians, we add value to our life.
If all this is so, why did men like John Newton and Isaac Watts write songs like that? Paul reminds us in Titus 3 that, “Once, we too were foolish and disobedient. We were misled by others and became slaves to many wicked desires and evil pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy. We hated others and they hated us.”
This is a perfect picture of what someone who has not received Christ looks like. Wretch or worm is a perfect word for the person Paul has described. This describes all of us before we Christ changed us. Paul writes in Romans, “For all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious standard.” If I sound like I’m repeating myself from Sunday you’re right. It’s important to remember that without a faith in Christ, we are wretched.
Now, here’s the good part…God desires change in us. The same Paul who persecuted the new Christians in the first century, is the same Paul whom God changed and became, arguably the greatest apostle and missionary on the face of the earth. Paul knew the power of change. Paul knew what it meant to be an enemy of Jesus. Paul also saw the power of Christ working in him to change into the person Christ wanted him to be.
Paul even writes in his second letter to the church in Corinth, “‘Be reconciled to God!’ For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” He goes on to write, “As God’s partners, we beg you not to reject this marvelous message of God’s great kindness.” Paul was not writing to heathens. He was writing to “good Christian folk.” We are Christ’s ambassadors. We represent Christ. As representatives of Christ, we should be changed. We shouldn’t act like everyone else does. There are things in our lives that should be changed. Paul tells us that “Indeed, God is ready to help you right now. Today is the day of salvation.”
Some of you are wondering where I’m going with this. My concern lies with so-called Christians, who are no different from the world around them. If you call yourself by the name of Christian, you should reflect Christ. It should reflect in everything you do.
Some of you who ride the van might think I’m a little touchy about the songs you listen to and you are right. Don’t get me wrong, there are good songs played on the regular radio, but many songs written and sung by “wholesome” artists, just don’t help you reflect Christ the way you should.
Another area that concerns me is in the area of our language. Does your language reflect Christ at all times? I want you to think seriously about this. There are words that do not reflect a wholehearted relationship with Christ. Choose your words that they reflect Christ.
How about how you listen and how do you respect those in authority over you? Do your actions reflect Christ? This includes school teachers, bus drivers, church teachers, van drivers and others throughout our church. As far as I’m concerned ANY adult at Preston Wesleyan has the authority to address you if you are behaving the way you should. How you respond to them, reflects Christ. Related to that is how well you follow the rules; here, at home, or anywhere. Does that reflect Christ? We have rules here that have been put in place because some have decided to do what ever they want, whenever they want. As your pastor I expect you to respect the boundaries that have been put in place and in so doing you reflect Christ.
Paul says, “We try to live in such a way that no one will be hindered from finding the Lord by the way we act, and so no one can find fault with our ministry.” Tonight, I’m mainly addressing our students here, but this is a great guideline for all of us. Do we live in such a way that we are not being a stumbling block to others finding the love of Christ? Paul continues by saying, “In everything we do we try to show that we are true ministers of God.”
I say all that because I have great concern not only for our students. Our prayer for each one of you is that first, you would be reconciled to God. Christ paid a high price for us. Christ never sinned and yet took on all of our sin to be a sacrifice, that he could be a sin offering for us, so that we could be made right with God. That is my first concern this evening. If you are not in the right place with God, before we go any further, you need to get yourself right. Remember that not one of us is good by ourselves in God’s eyes. It is only through belief in Christ that we are reconciled to Him. It is only through that belief that we are made right in God’s eyes. I’m going to ask you to bow your heads. Is there anyone here who is not where God would want them to be?

Second, my prayer continues for each of us, that we would reflect Christ in all we do. As we get ready to continue into the next part of our service, I want us to think.
One of the areas that is missing in the church today is confession. I’m not talking about our ideas about priests and confessional. James writes, “Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results.” James is in effect telling us that the only way our prayer life will be effective is to first, confess our sins, second to pray for each other. Then our prayers will have great power.
As we’ve been looking at the scripture, God might have brought something to your mind that you need to confess. As you walked in tonight, you received a piece of paper. Place your confession on that piece of paper. 1 John 1:9 reminds us, “But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong.” God has been dealing with me over the past few days and I need to confess them to him. The paper you have will not be seen by anyone else. As you place your confession on the paper, I invite you to come forward and place it in the bowl…Prayerfully and seriously consider what God is speaking about to you.