When the light turned, she blew her horn once more at the driver in front of her, and drove on. Next thing she knew, a police car drew up behind her and pulled her over. To her chagrin, a police officer approached her window, ordered her out of the car, examined her license and registration, and made her wait while he talked to people on his radio. Finally, she demanded that the officer tell her why he was detaining her, when she had broken no law, only yelled at the driver in front of her.

"Well, ma'am," he said," I saw the way you were carrying on, and insulting that other driver; I heard the language you were using, and then I saw the bumper stickers on your bumper that said, "Jesus is Lord" and "Honk if you love Jesus," and I figured you must have stolen the car."

There is a lot of concern today about identity theft. Sometimes I wonder if Jesus doesn't feel like his identity has been stolen - by people who call themselves Christians and then act like that woman in the car; or by people who call themselves Christian and then pass laws that favor the rich over the poor; or by people who call themselves Christian and then use their high positions to rob workers of their jobs and pensions; or by people who call themselves Christian and talk behind a co-worker's back, or tell ethnically insulting jokes, or cheat their boss out of his or her due.

Over the last several sermons I've been talking about Jesus sending us out to be apostles in the world, and I've used the word 'ambassador' many times. We are ambassadors for Christ, according to the apostle Paul. The dictionary says that an ambassador is a 'state's representative in a foreign land.' And the assumption is that the ambassador conducts him- or herself in a manner that reflects the values of his country. It's a delicate and important task. If an ambassador acts in a rude or arrogant fashion, that is a reflection on the country that sent her. If the ambassador is noble and conducts business with integrity and honesty, that is also a reflection.

So what does it mean to call yourself a Christian? It means you are an ambassador for Christ; and what you do reflects on Jesus - it has to.

This morning's scripture lesson describes a turning point in the history of Christianity. Matthew describes the ministry Jesus had begun - Matthew 9:35. "Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the goods news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and sickness." That would have been all the world needed, if Jesus could have cloned himself. But the success of his ministry caused a logistical nightmare; there were too many people, too many needs, too many villages and cities crying out for him. Verse 36 tells us, "When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers..." Jesus knew that he desperately needed ambassadors.

So, the next verse tells us, "...Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority..." (You might remember: that's one of our "A" words for apostles - apostles are Authorized.) He “gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness." Then Matthew goes on in chapter 10 to tell us the names of the twelve disciples, and how Jesus sent them out.

And he's been sending them out ever since. You and I are here today because of ambassadors for Christ - people who represented him so well that he touched our lives, cast out demons, cured the sickness of our hearts and souls and bodies. When you and I were baptized or confirmed, we answered this question in some form: "According to the grace given to you, will you remain a faithful member of Christ's Holy Church, and serve as Christ's representative in the world?" And the question we always have to ask ourselves - in our cars, at work, at school, in our free time, at home - wherever we are - is How am I representing Christ right now? As an ambassador for Christ, you have the opportunity to make a good or a bad impression for Jesus in somebody's life. It's a great responsibility.

I can't help but mention one of our very public figures, who was seen this past week in a weak moment - Coach Boeheim. Coach Boeheim, of course, has had a very good week, and all the S. U. fans in central New York with him. But, early on, in a very emotional outburst, he used language that usually gets bleeped out in the media. And then, a few days later, when he should have been able to just bask in S.U.'s phenomenal victory over Connecticut, he took the time to say, "I was wrong; I shouldn't have used those words." You and I know that we are not likely to be in public for five minutes before we hear or read that language. So what was the problem? The problem is that Coach Boeheim represents something. He represents the school; he represents the team; he represents the Syracuse community on national television; he represents the standards that society holds important. So as much as I jumped out of my seat when G-Mac hit those three pointers, all the more I admired the coach for realizing his position as an ambassador, and apologizing on the air.

It's that same kind of integrity that must be regarded by someone who would dare to live by the name Christian. How am I representing Christ right now?

Of course, one of the ways we represent Christ powerfully is in the way we set an example for our children. Parents are on the front line of this; but all of us are accountable for how we act in front of those young ones who are watching our actions to understand how a person lives out his or her faith.

There's a story about a little boy who was riding home from Sunday School, when suddenly he burst into tears. His mother asked him what's wrong. And he answered, "The pastor said that he wants all of us in Sunday School to grow up in a good Christian home." "Well, what's wrong with that?" his mother asked. The boy responded, "But I want to stay with you and Dad!" (There may some problems with the way those parents are representing Christ to their little boy.)

A few years back, we took a poll in our congregation, asking what is the most important aspect of our ministry; and the Number One answer was, "providing a place where children and youth are taught the basics of faith." We have a wonderful Christian Education Director, and as dedicated a group of teachers as you'll find anywhere. But what happens in the classrooms is only part of the story. Our example before our youth and children is what really matters. Do we believe what we say? Do we live by our faith? Are we practicing what we preach?

I'll never forget a few churches back, when I took a confirmation class to observe an Administrative Board meeting, and then asked them to write down their impressions about how we conduct the ministry of the church. The comment that stuck out was, "My impression is that God must worry an awful lot about money." What kind of ambassadors are we in front of our young people?

What kind of ambassadors are we in society? Christian writer Philip Yancey has pointed out that the highest percentage of church attendance of anyplace in the world; the highest percentage of people who identify themselves as Christians and attend church regularly - is Northern Ireland; where Catholics and Protestant have been bombing each other and expressing hatred for generations. Is it any wonder the world has a hard time accepting our faith and its claims?

There are many who would like to call America a 'Christian nation'. It has been my sad observation that the very people who push on that the hardest can quite often be the most intolerant, the most arrogant, the most close-minded - things that don't remind us of the true spirit of Jesus at all. It's heartbreaking to realize how the world forms a picture of what Christians think and how Christians act based on the hatemongering of some TV preacher, or the disregard we often show toward the world community? Shouldn't Jesus be our guide if we're going to use his name?

After all - the very first Christian ambassador is Jesus Himself. He came as God's ambassador to a world tom by sin and violence, greed and narrowness. He offered a new teaching, about a new kingdom built on love. And then he did the most loving thing possible - he died on the cross in an act of unbelievable mercy and sacrifice. You and I have hope and power for our lives because of how beautifully Jesus brought the loving heart of God to life for others - and he needs us to do the same.

The actor Ben Kingsley told of the movie role that made him famous, and won him all sorts of rewards - the role of Mahatma Gandhi. So many people were amazed at how accurately he looked and acted the part. On one stop, a woman came up to him and was treating him like royalty, until he finally said, "You know, I'm not really Gandhi." And she replied, "No, but through you the master will live again." And Kingsley had to think again about the responsibility he had in representing someone who was so revered.

In the same way, you and I are not Christ - we can't be. But we are his ambassadors. And through us, he lives again for somebody. Maybe a neighborhood youth; maybe a co-worker; maybe someone in your family who is searching for that slender thread of kindness or hope that represents the touch of a loving God in their life. You may be the only sermon somebody you meet will ever hear. Will the Master live again through you?