Paul’s Pedigree

You can watch the message here.

Last week, Pastor Mark shared with us how amazed Paul was that the Galatians had so quickly left the grace of Christ for another gospel. Paul warned the people that if someone began teaching a gospel that was contrary to what he had preached, those people were to be accursed. Paul did not seek the favor of man, but God Himself. The gospel was given by revelation of God to Paul. And that’s where we’ll pick up this morning.

Our passage today is found in Gal 1:13-24.

Like each of us, Paul carried some baggage when he entered into a relationship with Christ. It can be difficult to overcome your past. People remember what you were and not what you are in Christ. When we talk of conversion experiences, we tend to glorify the worst of the worst when it comes to our life before Christ. Somehow a testimony is not spectacular when the individual is pulled from a good and decent life. Every single conversion story is miraculous. Prior to his conversion, the man named Saul was a despicable man.

He tells the Galatians, “For you have heard of my former life in Judaism.” I want to pause here a moment to tell you what a life in Judaism meant.    Judaism was the religion of the Old Testament worshippers of Yahweh. The religion changed as the Jewish people were exiled and enslaved in Egypt to the exodus and return to the promised land when King Solomon built a permanent temple in Jerusalem for God to dwell in. That temple was destroyed around 586 B.C. by the Babylonians. Ezekiel spoke of its rebuilding as did Haggai and Zephaniah. The temple was rebuilt by Herod the Great and this is the place where Christ taught prior to His betrayal. That temple was destroyed by the Romans in 70 A.D. and temple worship and sacrifice ceased. Judaism is associated with ceremonial practices and the keeping of the law. They follow the Torah and reject Jesus as Messiah.

Saul was deeply entrenched in Judaism and was well known in the area. He was a self-admitted persecutor of the church of God. He said he persecuted the church, “beyond measure.” Beyond measure means far beyond all comparison. Nobody persecuted the church more than he did. In the gospels, the Jews became the enemy of Christ and therefore the enemy of God. It’s easy for us to condemn them, but they were earnest in their belief that Jesus was not the Messiah. Because they believed so deeply in their religion, they missed who Jesus was. Not all Jews though. There were some bright spots, some inquisitive people who did have a desire to know the truth. Remember, Paul is talking to the Galatians about his heritage. In his religious zeal, he tried to destroy the church. He was advancing in Judaism more rapidly than his contemporaries. He was extremely zealous and deeply committed to the traditions of his ancestors. I often think about people who are extremely zealous in their pursuits. We see this often played out in athletes. People deeply committed to excelling in their sport. They’ll sacrifice their entire lifestyle and way of life in pursuit of excellence. That’s the way Saul was.

Verse 15 starts with that great word but. It sets up the contrast between what Saul was and how he came to be what he is. This is Paul now talking and remember why he is talking to the Galatians. Let me take out a phrase from v. 15 and address that first. Paul says God, “had set me apart even from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace.” Grace is a word most of us are familiar with, but let me explain it again. It comes from the Greek word charis where we get our English word charity. It means to get something you don’t deserve. It means unmerited favor. Paul was called by grace from his mother’s womb. In this way, there is nothing extraordinary because God calls everyone by grace. “For by grace you have been saved by faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Eph. 2:8) Grace is the gift of God. This is the way for everyone that responds to His grace. But there is something unique in the way Paul was called.

Let’s take out the phrase we just looked at and the verses becomes, “But when God was pleased to reveal His Son in me so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles.”  Paul’s calling was not accomplished in an ordinary way. As I said earlier, every single conversion is a miracle. Typically, a person hears the good news of the gospel of Christ. They understand that without Christ, there is no hope for redemption. They understand that there is a permanent separation from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit because of sin. They also understand the gift of the Son and the sacrifice He made on the cross, they understand the shedding of Christ’s blood was necessary to pay the sin debt to a holy and perfect God. They accept the free gift that God provided in His one and only Son and are adopted into the family of God and are saved. That’s the way is ordinarily happens. You can hear the good news in a conversation with someone, you can read it in a gospel tract, a magazine, or a book. You can hear the message in VBS or camp: you can hear it in Sunday School, Children’s Church, or a preached message. You can hear it on the radio or in a podcast. You can pick up the Bible and begin reading and searching. The conduit of the message ordinarily comes through one of those ways.

There is a uniqueness of Saul’s calling. Let’s look at what happened to Saul. You really need to look at Acts 9:1-9 to get the context. Paul had a very miraculous and unique calling. After Saul was struck with blindness, Ananias received a vision from the Lord to help Saul. Ananias protested and reminded God that Saul had really harmed the saints of God in Jerusalem. Nevertheless, God told Ananias that he needed to tell Saul how much he must suffer for God’s sake. Acts 9:17-22 speak about Ananias laying hands on Saul and how Saul was filled with the Holy Spirit and began to proclaim Jesus and increased in strength and, “Confounded the Jews in Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ.” (Acts 9:22)

If we jump back to Galatians, Paul tells them, “I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me; but I went away to Arabia, and returned once more to Damascus.” (Gal. 1:16-17) Paul is providing the background to establish he is who he says he is and has the authority to speak on behalf of God. When God called him, he didn’t get advice from men. He didn’t go to Jerusalem to consult with the apostles because he didn’t need their permission to do what God called him to do. Instead, he went to Arabia then returned to Damascus. It was three years later that he went to Jerusalem and sought out Peter. He spent 15 days with Peter and didn’t see any other apostle except James. He didn’t spend those two weeks in intense study of the Word. He wasn’t in meetings formulating the plan for ministry. In  fact, it was quite the opposite. Look at Acts 9:26-28. Paul established that his authority is from God and he has received a divine calling. Back in Gal. 1:20, Paul tells them all this is true and he is not lying.

What’s the result? Paul left Jerusalem and went to Syria and Cilicia. There is a key point here. Although Paul spoke boldly in Jerusalem, “He was talking and arguing with the Hellenistic Jews; but they were attempting to put him to death.” (Acts 9:29) Paul’s work in Jerusalem was largely unfruitful and when the brethren heard about it, they helped him leave by taking him to, “Caesarea and sent him away to Tarsus.” (Acts 9:30) The churches in Judea still did not know him by sight. He could have walked in to any gathering and they would not have recognized him. While they may not have recognized him, they certainly knew who he was. What they heard was nearly unbelievable: “He who once persecuted us is now preaching the faith which he once tried to destroy.” (Gal. 1:23) That is an incredible statement. Paul had a change of heart that could only come from God through Christ. Saul tried to destroy the faith and has now been redeemed. I find this to be one of the greatest verses of encouragement in Scripture. Saul was a despicable man intent on destroying what God did in Christ. He could have been struck dead at any time, but God had a different plan. Redemption changes the course of a life, and not just the individual but all those that are around that person. Redemption provides new hope, new goals, new passion, new energy, new behavior, new life. Paul experienced that and demonstrated it from the moment of salvation to his death. Paul tells them, “And they glorified God because of me.” Because of what Paul did, the churches in Judea glorified God. Do not have the misguided notion that what you do does not matter.

Paul’s conversion is an incredible moment in history. Your conversion is no different. Your conversion is just as miraculous and just as important. You have a mission that only you can accomplish. It may not be traveling the highways and byways of the world preaching as Paul did. If he had a calling, don’t you think you have a calling? What is it? What have you done to find out. Paul was not content to sit in one place and remain stagnant. Neither should we.

Apostles and Prophets

You can check out the video for this message here.

Last time we were together, we concluded our look at the main texts that provide the foundation of spiritual gifts. The process of our growth leads to maturity in Christ. This is true for the individual and the church. When individuals grow in Christ, the church follows behind.

When we exercise our spiritual gifts in the manner that Christ designed for us, the body of Christ grows and doesn’t get tossed around by bad doctrine, isn’t led astray by religious fads, and does not remain spiritual children. All spiritual gifts are important. All gifts are profitable, but some are more profitable than others. Over the course of my next messages, we’ll look at each gift.

Our passage for today is found in Eph. 4:1-16. Take the time to read it.

In the passages that mention apostles, it is always a reference to a person that has the spiritual gift. Apostle comes from the Greek word apostolos. It is formed by two Greek words: Apo meaning from and stello meaning to send. Apostolos can mean one sent on a mission or can mean a messenger or an ambassador. An apostle is someone sent with a message and the one that sends is the one with the authority. When we speak biblically of apostles, it is one sent by God with the Gospel message.

We need to look at some Bible facts regarding apostles. Jesus is called the, “Apostle and High Priest of our confession” in Heb. 3:1. In Eph. 2:19-22, the apostles were a special group of people sent out by Jesus Himself from whom came the foundation of the church. In Matt. 10, Judas Iscariot is included in the apostles. In Acts 1, Jesus had chosen the 11 to be His apostles and given them orders through the Holy Spirit.  These men were baptized with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost beginning the permanent indwelling of the Spirit. Matthias was later added to the group after the 11 prayed. The apostles performed many signs and wonders in order to testify that it was God that sent them. According to Acts 1:22, one requirement for this group was that they had seen the resurrected Christ.

We have to ask ourselves, “Is this gift still in use today.” Or are the “12” the only ones? Who else is called an apostle? Let’s look to the Bible to answer that. Paul is called and calls himself an apostle in many New Testament passages. James, the brother of Christ was called an apostle in Gal. 1:19. Barnabas is called an apostle in Acts 14. Silvanus and Timothy are spoken of as messengers in 1 Thes., literally “apostles.” Speaking of Titus, Paul said, “He is my partner and fellow worker among you; as for our brethren, they are messengers of the churches, a glory to Christ.”  (2 Cor. 8:23) Does the definition of apostle fit with anyone in the church today? 1 Cor. 12:28 says that, “God has appointed in the church, first apostles.” Eph. 4:11-13 says that apostles are to equip the saints until there is maturity or completion in the body. Has the church reached maturity or completion? No, so there must be people in the body of Christ with the gift of apostleship.

What is a modern-day apostle? If we remember that the word apostle means one who is sent with a message, it’s a little easier to figure this gift out. Remember that Paul traveled from place to place with the Gospel message. In his travels, his intention was to work himself out of a job. His goal was to establish an effective ministry for the Lord, to appoint leaders in that place and move on. He was a church planter. This goal is always at the forefront of a missionary’s mind – establishing a church in an area that does not know who Christ is. Paul brings all of this together in Rom. 15:20 when he says, “And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named, so that I would not build on another man’s foundation.” An apostle is one whom is sent with the message of Christ to establish a body of believers that would continue the work of ministry in that area.

Now let’s take a look at Prophets – the stereotype. When you think of prophecy or prophets, several names might come to mind. Nostradamus. Uri Gellar. Jeane Dixon. It was Jeane Dixon that predicted that Kennedy would be elected and then later assassinated. She did that four years before it happened. She was also Nancy Reagan’s much publicized astrologer during the Reagan presidency. You might think of horoscopes, palm readers, fortune cookies, or fortune telling. Is this prophecy?  If I can predict the future, am I a prophet? Is there any harm in reading my horoscope? Do people who claim to predict the future have the gift of prophecy? We need to look at it in the context of Scripture.

Look at Eph. 2:19-22 and 3:4-5. Prophecy comes from the Greek word pro that means in front of, prior or forth, and phemi that means to show or make known one’s thoughts. Prophecy literally means speaking forth the mind and counsel of God, to set forth matters of divine teaching by special ability. Prophecy is simply forth telling for another. A prophet would then be someone who proclaims a divine message or a person gifted in the exposition of the truth.

To understand Old Testament prophecy, let’s take a look at Ex. 4:14-16 and 7:1. The Old Testament includes many writings that are of a prophetic nature. Daniel. Isaiah. Ezekiel. There are minor prophets like Zephaniah, Haggai, and Nahum. These prophets received a revelation from God Himself in a dream, vision, or verbally. The message of O.T. prophets was generally reformative in nature. In other words, they spoke the truths of God with a goal to change the direction of the people based on what was going on at the time. For example, in Micah 2:3 it says, “Therefore thus says the LORD, “Behold, I am planning against this family a calamity From which you cannot remove your necks; And you will not walk haughtily, For it will be an evil time.” The prophecy Micah proclaimed was judgment on that particular family for the behavior they were engaged in. The goal was to get people to see the need for repentance before God, to see the paths of holiness found only in a loving God. O.T. prophets instructed, warned, exhorted, promised, and rebuked. They emphasized moral duty, promoted righteousness, pronounced impending terror and doom on the unrighteous, and repeated God’s promises for the future. These prophets of old did speak of future events, but the emphasis was generally determined by the conditions the people were currently in. Speaking of Assyria, Nah. 2:13 says, “Behold, I am against you,’ declares the LORD of hosts. “I will burn up her chariots in smoke, a sword will devour your young lions; I will cut off your prey from the land, and no longer will the voice of your messengers be heard.” Zeph. 1:4 says, “So I will stretch out My hand against Judah and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place, and the names of the idolatrous priests along with the priests.” So O.T. prophets spoke of current and future events.

Now let’s look at some New Testament prophecy. The gospels mention many prophets, but they refer to O.T. prophets or prophecy or refer to Jesus Himself. The first mention of a N.T. prophet is in Acts: “Now at this time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them named Agabus stood up and began to indicate by the Spirit that there would certainly be a great famine all over the world. And this took place in the reign of Claudius.” (Acts 11:27-28) In Acts 21:11, Agabus, “Took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, ‘This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.” Even though Agabus spoke about the future, most N.T. prophets are not like him. In the first century and before, there were men of God that received special revelation from God that were able to say, “This is what the Lord says.”

But since the Scriptures are complete, are there still messages received from God that are a special revelation?  Let’s look at some biblical facts about prophecy. Remember that Paul wrote in Eph. 2:20 that the foundation of the church is built on the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone. As we saw earlier, apostles are N.T. people. If Paul was talking about O.T. prophets, he would have said that foundation was built on prophets and apostles. Besides that, Paul mentions prophets again in Eph. 3:5 and 4:11. Paul told the Thessalonian church not to despise prophesying. 2 Pet. 1:20-21 says, “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” The clearest definition of a prophet is found in 1 Cor. 14:3: “But one who prophesies speaks to men for edification and exhortation and consolation.” Edification – the act of one who promotes another’s growth in Christian wisdom, piety, happiness, holiness. Exhortation – admonition, encouragement. Consolation – any address, whether made for the purpose of persuading, or of arousing and stimulating, or of calming and consoling. 1 Cor. 13:2 indicates that a prophet has a deep and enlarged understanding of the mysteries of Scripture.

When you look at all four passages that mention spiritual gifts, prophecy is the only one mentioned in each passage. According to Paul in Eph. 4:11-13, God put prophets in place to equip the saints to do the work of service. Equip in this passage means to furnish. When a person is hired as a police officer, they’re outfitted with all the gear they’ll need to safely and effectively patrol the city. Part of the prophet’s responsibility is to outfit the saint to do the work of service. Work means that which one undertakes to do, an enterprise or undertaking, anything accomplished by hand, art, industry, or mind. Work covers a lot of things. The prophet is one that accurately handles the Word of God in a manner that makes is applicable for the audience that is receiving it. Church. Sunday School. Bible study. Community Group. One on one.

How long is this prophesying going to go on? According to Eph. 4:13 this prophesying is to be done until, “We all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” 1 Cor. 13:9-10: “For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.” Until we are all in unity of the faith, until we measure up to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, until the perfect comes. Bible scholars have disagreed for years as to whom or what the perfect is. Some say it is the Word of God, but this doesn’t fit with the context of what Paul is saying to the Corinthians. The measure and stature of Christ lines up with Matt. 5:48 says, “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Acts 2:17 which is a quote of Joel 2:28 says, “AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,’ God says, ‘THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND; AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY, AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS, AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS.” 1 Cor. 13:12 says, “For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known.” It’s the now and then. Before the perfect we see dimly, but after the perfect we will see face to face. Before the perfect, we know in part, after the perfect, we will know fully.

Some say this is the second coming of Christ, but even after Christ takes the church to heaven, there will still be prophesying. Rev. 11:13 says, “And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.” That’s just one example. When you put all the Scriptures together, the only time the church will reach a state of completion is in heaven. No matter how much we mature on this earth, we’re still hampered by our sinful minds and our inability to fully understand the Word. Paul exhorts us in 1 Cor. 14:1 to, “Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.” Remember that prophesy is plural here. The church is to desire that they be saturated with Christians who have the gift of prophecy – the supernatural ability to deliver the Word of God in a manner that is applicable for every circumstance. For everything good the Lord, does, there is always counterfeits out there. Listen to these warnings about false prophets. Ezek. 13:3: “Thus says the Lord GOD, Woe to the foolish prophets who are following their own spirit and have seen nothing.” 2 Pet. 2:1: “But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.” 1 Jo. 4:1: “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

We looked at apostles and prophets this morning. Apostles carry the hope of Christ and establish new bodies of believers that carry on the work in that place. This is a church planter that are still alive and well today. We also looked at the prophet. The N.T. prophet is not a fortune teller, but a declarer of the truth of God. What about you? Are you an apostle? Do you have the gift of prophecy? How can you exercise it? Preach. Teach. Evangelize. Start new works of ministry. Exhort. Comfort. There are lots of ways to prophesize. This is by far, the most prevalent gift in the church today. It is alive and well and is our primary gift to proclaim the truth of God’s Word.

Spiritual Gifts – A Background (Part 2)

You can watch the video here.

Last week, we started our quick journey into spiritual gifts. We saw that God is the One that distributes the gifts through the power of the Holy Spirit as He determines. We looked at 1 Cor. 12 And the list of gifts Paul provided. Each authentic follower of Christ has at least one gift that is to be used for the common good of the body of Christ. Keep that in mind as we continue in 1 Cor. 12.

Take a look at 1 Cor. 12:27-31.

Hopefully you have gathered that all the gifts are important and all serve the body in a particular manner. In v. 28 though, there is a particular order. Apostles, prophets, teachers, miracles, healings, helps, administrations, and tongues. It should be obvious that these are not identical to those listed in vs. 8-10. That doesn’t bother Paul and it shouldn’t bother us. We’ll clear this up later. The point is that God set these gifts in the church. V. 11 said the Spirit distributes the gifts as He wills. V. 18 said that God has placed each member as He desired. V. 24 said that God composed the body. V. 28 said that God has appointed in the church. While some things may not be clear, one thing certainly is: we all don’t have the same gift. The gifts we do have are decided by God – we don’t have any input.

We have a list of gits, but isn’t v. 31 a contradiction? If God is the One that gives us gifts and they are distributed by grace as the Spirit desires, how can I, “Earnestly desire the greater gifts?” You may also be thinking, “You said that all the gifts were important.” They are. What’s a greater gift? Before we look at that, we need to look at that word, “desire.” Desire comes from the word that means burn with zeal. The verb is plural. Paul is not saying that individuals are to desire the greater gifts. The Spirit gives gifts as He wills. You can’t do anything to get a certain gift because the Spirit distributes them as he desires. Paul is telling the Corinthian church to desire the greater gifts that are within their body – their church. As a point of clarification and a reminder – gifts are given by grace as determined by the Holy Spirit of God. We are given a gift or gifts when we are baptized into the body. Baptized comes from the Greek word baptizo. Baptizo should not be confused with bapto. We are baptized into the body when we acknowledge that Christ is our Redeemer, that Christ paid the penalty for us all, that Christ’s shed blood atoned for our sin, that Christ suffered and died for us, that we need to receive that gift of salvation that Christ offers by grace. When we trust in the finished work of Christ and we come to Him trusting in that work, then we are baptized into the body of Christ – the universal church.

The clearest example that shows the meaning of baptizo is a text from the Greek poet and physician Nicander who lived about 200 B.C. It is a recipe for making pickles and is helpful because it uses both words. Nicander says that in order to make a pickle, the vegetable should first be ‘dipped’ (bapto) into boiling water and then ‘baptised’ (baptizo) in the vinegar solution. Both verbs concern the immersing of vegetables in a solution. But the first is temporary. The second, the act of baptizing the vegetable, produces a permanent change.

What’s a greater gift? As a body of believers, Paul instructs us to desire the greater gifts. Paul’s not contradicting himself. Look at vs. 22-24a. Greater comes from the word that means more useful or more profitable. When you look at the appointments in v. 28, there is a clear order indicated by the words first, second, third, and then. If you look in the next chapter, you learn the Corinthians wanted to have the least profitable gifts. In case you didn’t get Paul’s point that everyone doesn’t have the same gift, look at vs. 29-30. When you look at v. 28, there are three things that are listed with numbers. Apostles, prophets, and teachers. These would be the greater gifts. These are the gifts that deal with the teaching of the Word of God that is the basis for which Christians are to live.

Jump over to Rom. 12:1-8. To provide a brief overview of Romans, Rom. 1-11 are primarily doctrinal and present the facts as they pertain to salvation, sanctification, and God’s sovereignty. These chapters are the foundation of our faith. Rom. 12-16 represent the practical living of the Christian walk. So what is service? As we saw in Corinthians, our spiritual gifts are determined by God and given by the Holy Spirit for the common good of the church body. In Romans, Paul says we are, “To present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice.” A sacrifice is an offering made to God as atonement for sin; or any offering made to Him and His service as an expression of thanksgiving or reverence. The word implies that the one who offers the sacrifice presents it entirely and releases all claim or right to it. If it was an animal, it was killed and the blood offered. The sacrificial animal was set apart to the service of God. This is what Paul is talking about. Here Paul is telling us to present ourselves as a sacrifice. There was never a time when only a portion of an animal was given to God in a sacrificial manner. Paul says we are to wholly and completely give ourselves to God. It is a living sacrifice so we are to give ourselves to God continually to be used as He desires.

Remember in the context of Romans, Chap. 12 represents a shift from doctrine to practical living. This living sacrifice is, “Acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” Being a living sacrifice is the result of being saved by God’s grace. Being a living sacrifice is acceptable to God. Being a living sacrifice is our, “Spiritual service of worship.” King James translates spiritual as reasonable service. Webster defines reasonable as governed by reason; thinking, speaking, or acting conformably to the dictates of reason. But that’s not what Paul is talking about. The word means that which pertains to the mind, and a reasonable service means that which is mental, or pertaining to reason. It stands opposed not to that which is foolish or unreasonable, but to the external service of the Jews that they relied on for salvation. Remember the Jews of the day said you had to be circumcised. They said you had to keep the law. There were Jews that said you were saved by grace, but you still had to keep the Law. The worship of the Christian is that which pertains to the mind, or is spiritual; that of the Jew was external. The proper worship of God is not forced or constrained. The offering of ourselves should be voluntary. Nothing else can be a true offering, and nothing else can be acceptable. We are to offer our entire selves, all that we have and are, to God. God will not approve any other offering. When you think of the character of God, it is a character of mercy, of long-suffering, of grace, of love, and it should influence us to devote ourselves to Him. Our spiritual service of worship is how we serve the Lord using the spiritual gifts He has given us. God gives us spiritual gifts to equip us to serve Him by serving the body of Christ in the manner He has chosen. Too many Christians want to serve God partially. Too many Christians think it’s optional. Too many Christians want to serve God the way they want to serve Him, on their conditions. This isn’t reasonable or acceptable to God.

Verse 2 tells us to, “Be not conformed to this world.” Conformed is used only twice in the New Testament. 1 Pet. 1:14 says, “As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance.” The translators used the English word fashioned instead of conformed, but they both come from the same Greek word.  The word is suschematizo, a compound word that comes from the word sun, meaning together with, added to the word schêma which means external form or appearance. It means to form according to a pattern or mold, to fashion alike, to conform to the same pattern outwardly; to form or mold behavior in accordance with a particular pattern or set of standards. World in this context means period of time or age. “Do not be conformed” is in the present tense, passive voice, and imperative mood. That means that the effect of the molding is being exerted by an outside force; the world, the flesh, the devil. It looks like the Romans were already being poured into the world’s mold. Conformed is an outward expression that does not reflect what is within. Paul is saying stop taking on the form of the world; quit looking like the world, quit acting like the world, quit thinking like the world, stop letting the world influence you.

“Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Transformed comes from the word metamorphoo where we get our English word metamorphosis which is also translated transfigure. It’s the same word used to describe Christ’s transfiguration in Matt. 17:2. How are we transformed? Salvation changes the qualities of your being. You have a new mind, a new heart, a new spirit, new understanding, new thoughts and ideas; your heart is softened, your will is changed to God’s will, your affections are set on things above. “He is a new creature, old things are passed away, behold, all things are become new.” (2 Cor. 5:17) Sanctification means dying to sin more and more and living to righteousness more and more; it is a continual process, and it will continue until it is perfected in glory. This is the transformation of those who belong to Christ; it’s like putting on a new shape and figure. Ezekiel 11:19 says, “And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh.” Transformed is in the present tense and passive voice. It means that it’s still taking place and it’s being accomplished by an outside force.

2 Cor. 3:18 says, “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” God loves you too much to let you remain the same. “Transformed by the renewing of your mind.” This renewing changes the normal, selfish, self-centered human way of seeing life and gives us a point of view we could not have without God’s Holy Spirit changing our way of thinking. One of the best ways to renew your mind is to fill it with Scripture. Ps. 119:11, “Your word have I treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.” Vance Havner said, “The storehouse of God’s Word was never meant for mere scrutiny, not even primarily for study but for sustenance. It is ration for the soul, resources of and for the spirit, treasure for the inner man.” Back to v. 2, “So that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” Many Christians suffer from a lack of knowing what God’s will is. Could it be that they are conforming to the world’s way of thinking and don’t spend time in His Word to allow the Spirit to renew their minds and transform them from glory to glory? A renewed mind gives you a holy instinct, a spiritual “spidy sense.” The difficulty in submitting to the will of God would disappear if we would really believe that the character of God’s will is always good and beneficial in its effect.

We don’t have the same gifts. No matter what your gifts is, don’t think too highly of yourself. Everyone in the body doesn’t have the same function, but does have a function or a purpose. If you get your satisfaction or your worth out of what you do for the world, that is not your reasonable service of worship and God is not pleased. How are you serving God? Are you serving Him at all or are you following after the pattern established by this temporary, vaporous world that will surely pass away with all that is in it?

The Difficult Teaching Continues

You can watch the video for this message here.

Last week, Pastor Mark told us of the extreme confusion from the Jews as a result of Jesus’ instructions regarding His flesh. We know Jesus was speaking metaphorically, but the Jews were beside themselves thinking Jesus was talking about cannibalism. Jesus continued His explanation by saying that whoever does eat His flesh and drink His blood abides in Christ and therefore Christ abides in them. Jesus told them He lives because of the Father and anyone that eats of Jesus will live because of Christ. Jesus concludes by comparing manna, the bread of heaven, to spiritual bread. The people that ate the manna died, but the people that eat Jesus’ flesh and drink His blood will have eternal life. These things He spoke in the synagogue in Capernaum. This morning, we’ll see the response of many of His disciples and what it means for us.

Take a look at John 6:60-65 that we’ll be looking at today.

Hearing does not mean understanding. We start with a reference to “many of His disciples.” Who these people actually are is not mentioned, but as we have seen, many people followed Jesus with the hope of getting something in return. We’re still relatively early in Jesus’ earthly ministry and word continues to spread about Him. The twelve disciples are not included in this group as we’ll see in v. 67. John says, “Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this said, “This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?”  “This” refers to the difficult statements made that Pastor Mark told us about last week. Jesus spoke of eating His flesh and drinking His blood. For the people listening, this represented radical teaching such as they had never heard before. Even though Jesus explained what He was talking about, they didn’t understand. Since they didn’t understand it, they rejected it.

I find this very curious. If you remember, I often compare situations in our walk with Christ to daily life. We commit ourselves to the most rigorous pursuits that have little to no bearing on eternity. We have football players and coaches who subject themselves to two or three a day practices in the extreme south Georgia heat, but can’t find the time for the once a week church service. We have law students that sacrifice all their time for two years to pursue a law degree, but can’t find the time to study the Bible consistently. We have social justice warriors that sit safely at their computer pointing out all the injustice in the world, but won’t step out from behind their keyboard to do practical ministry. We face uphill climbs in nearly every pursuit of this life and we’ll work to overcome those challenges, but to serve in Children’s Church, no . . . that’s not my gift. We learn incredible principles of algebra, calculus, and physics, but conclude the Bible is just too difficult to understand. The people that followed Jesus, and I mean literally walked behind Him, had the concept of eating Jesus’ flesh and drinking His blood taught by the Master Himself, and they didn’t understand. It was a difficult concept for them. Difficult mean hard, needing much effort or skill to accomplish, deal with, or understand. The Jews were part of that crowd. Remember back in v. 52, “The Jews began to argue with one another, saying, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” Jesus responded by saying, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves.”

The Jews and the others say what a lot of people say today, even in the church: “This is a difficult statement, who can listen to it?” In other words, “It’s too hard, I don’t get it.” Good teachers recognize the potential response of difficult concepts and adapt the teaching so the students understand. They provide additional examples of the truth so the students get it. The people Jesus is teaching are not incapable of learning, they refuse to entertain the ideas presented because they are difficult to grasp. Not only did the people not grasp the principle of abiding in Christ and Christ abiding in them, they grumbled about it. If this wasn’t eternally critical in our faith walk, it would be comical. What you’re saying is too hard so I’m just not listening anymore. It’s just too hard, I don’t get it.

Jesus, the good teacher, is conscious or aware of what is happening. They grumbled. It means to express one’s discontent or to complain or murmur. These are not redeeming qualities. Jesus asks them, “Does this cause you to stumble?” In other words, does this teaching, eating My flesh, drinking My blood, cause you to lose your faith? Does it cause you to walk away? Does it cause you to be offended? Matt. 11:6 says, “Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me.” Remember that Jesus is speaking of the principle of abiding. He previously used the example of being the bread of life. He’s doing what He can to help them believe, but the reality is they do not want to believe. Remember He’s speaking to them in the synagogue, the place where Jews worship God and the place where religious teaching took place. These were people you would assume would want to hear the truth from the One that was in the beginning with God and the One that was God. Throughout human history, the prophecy of Messiah was taught. People have been looking forward to the One that was prophesied in Gen. 3:15 since the fall of mankind. The people hearing Jesus didn’t understand and instead of saying, “Jesus, we don’t understand, can You explain it another way?” they complained among themselves and Jesus, being the teacher, calls them out with a simple, pointed question. “Does what I’m teaching you cause you to fall, to be offended?” By their own willful ignorance, they get offended at Jesus’ teaching. Instead of listening to the principles, they chose to ignore His words and got offended. Does this sound familiar? They don’t want to see the truth that is standing in from of them.

And then Jesus changes tactics. It’s clear the people don’t get it and really don’t want to get it so Jesus changes methods. He asks them a rhetorical question, “What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?” If you don’t understand the principle of abiding faith, how are you going to understand it when I go back to heaven? In Jo. 3:12 Jesus said, “If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things.” If you stumble over simple principles of faith, how are you going to get the more difficult principles? We see this played out often in the church. We see people faithfully attend week after week that seem to have it all together and then something happens. God has been faithful throughout their lives and something unexpected happens. A bad medical diagnosis. An accident. A life altering injury. An affair. A church split. A fallen minister. A fallen giant of the faith. A rebellious or wayward child. A lost job. This unexpected event causes a crisis of faith and they scream why, why God have You allowed this tragedy to happen? If you stumble over simple principles, how will you ever get through the difficult principles?

The abiding principles Jesus is trying to teach them is a lesson we need to get ahold of early in our walk of faith. If we don’t take the time and effort to understand something like the abiding character of Christ and what that means on a daily basis, how will we ever walk with Him when life happens? Not to be overly dramatic here, but what I have experienced from dealing with people in a crisis of faith are generally not a result of those tragedies I just mentioned. What I have seen is people looking for the smallest thing to be offended at to give them an excuse to blame someone else for what is lacking in their own faith walk. When my wife, Kari, was diagnosed with cancer in 2015, we never one time questioned if God had forsaken us. That doesn’t mean it was easy or fun, but we gained additional insight into the principles of Scripture, we learned valuable lessons about where our hope comes from, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we were able to rely on His plan. Tragedies are not allowed to break you down and cause you to leave the faith, they’re designed to show you the power of God and to give you reason to trust and praise Him. Tragedies in our lives allow those unbelievers around us to see our complete reliance on Christ and give encouragement to believers to know that we walk by faith. Tragedies help us to see that we must totally rely on Christ. Jesus is trying to get them to understand, is trying to persuade them to grasp the principle of eating His flesh and drinking His blood. If they can’t or won’t grasp that concept, they’re not going to get it when He is lifted up to heaven. Jesus has used this technique before. He said in Jo. 1:50, “Because I said to you that I saw you under a fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” In Jo. 1:51, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” In Matt. 12:40, “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” In Matt. 26:64 Jesus said, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the son of Man sitting at the right hand of power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Jesus often told the people of easy things followed by difficult things.

Jesus then tells them the secret to understanding. “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” This verse is in direct keeping with what Jesus was teaching them about His body. He’s breaking it down in simple terms. The flesh in and of itself does nothing for anyone. A body is simply a vessel designed to carry the spirit. You hear this concept often preached at funerals. Without the Spirit giving and sustaining life, the body is just an empty house, an empty vessel void of anything that makes it of value. But a body filled with the Spirit is an entirely different matter. When Adam was formed from the dust of the ground, he was nothing until God breathed life in him.         The reason people have value, all people, is because God is the giver of life. God’s power is the force that allows a life to be conceived, a life that is precious in His sight. Once that soul departs the human vessel, it has no value. This may be grim, but the empty vessel is discarded. It’s buried in the ground, or entombed above the ground, it’s burned and turned into ashes, or it might even be thrown into the sea. When the body is buried, we might go pay it a visit because of what the vessel meant when it was alive. Dead bodies have lost all their value because the life is gone.

The conclusion of the principle. The goal for this teaching was for people to hear the words, understand them, and then follow them. It serves no purpose just to have knowledge. Knowledge should impact us. Understanding principles are life changing. When you understand that God loved us so much that He was willing to send His Son to die to pay the penalty of sin, that is life changing. It’s life changing to understand that we love because God first loved us. Jesus knew that His teaching would fall on deaf ears, not because it was difficult to understand or they were prevented from understanding, but there were some that refused to understand. He declares, “There are some of you who do not believe.” It was not accusatory; it was not condemning: Jesus was stating a fact. There were some that did not choose to have faith.

John explains what Jesus said and says, “For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was that would betray Him.” Jesus knows these things because He is omniscient. He knows what is going to happen before it happens. He knows all the variables. He knows all the characteristics of the people involved. Just because Jesus knows what will happen does not mean He causes it. Foreknowledge is not causative. Jesus knows who will reject His teachings and who will reject Him and as a result will reject the Father and face eternity separated from God. While He knows that, He desire is that all will come to repentance. Jesus offers His conclusion by saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.” Let me unpackage this for you. We need to remember Jo. 6:37 that we looked at a few weeks ago: “All that the Father gives Me will come to me, and the one that comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.”

I’m going to do something a bit strange and simply repeat what I taught several weeks ago on this matter. Acts 28:27 says, “For the hearts of this people have become insensitive, and with their ears they hardly hear, and they have closed their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and return, and I would heal them.” Why would God close the eyes and ears of people? This concept is called judicial hardening and it may be difficult to understand. This is a temporary condition designed to further His will. Those that are rebellious and disobedient are allowed to continue in this manner for a time. It’s all part of the redemptive plan that concludes with Jesus’ death and resurrection. Acts 2:23 says, “This Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.” Jesus stepped out of heaven to affect the redemption for mankind. His goal was to accomplish what God the Father set before Him. The reason people walked away was not because God pre-selected them for condemnation, but because they failed to see Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah. If God had determined that certain people had no ability for salvation, why would there need to be a temporary blindness? If they were totally depraved and had no chance at salvation, why make blindness to the truth temporary? God allowed them to continue in this blindness until such a time as He saw fit to take the veil off of their eyes. That’s why Jesus spoke in parables and mysteries. That’s why Jesus would tell people He healed, “Don’t tell anyone about this.” In Rom. 11:13-14, Paul said, “But I am speaking to you who are Gentiles. Therefore insofar as I am an apostle of Gentiles, I magnify my ministry if somehow I may move my own people to jealousy and save some of them.” There was a greater purpose in God’s plan of redemption that had to play out.

The difficult teaching over Jesus’ flesh and blood will conclude next week. For now, we’re left with the people in the synagogue confused and complaining about the hard teaching that Jesus has just shared. Jesus has challenged them by comparing this teaching to something really hard like His ascension. We know that salvation is only possible because of the plan of redemption put in place by God the Father. We know that the Father desires all men to come to repentance and the system is through Jesus who is the way, the truth, and the life. Join us next week as our friend Chris Martin will provide the conclusion to this incredibly important chapter of John.

The Bread of Life

You can watch the video for this message here.

Last week, Pastor Mark told us the crowds found Jesus across the sea. They sought out Jesus because of the miracle of the loaves and fishes; not because they believed the sign, but because they were filled. Jesus told them the work of God was to believe in, “Him whom He has sent.” The people told Jesus they wanted a sign. Jesus reminded the people that God sent bread out of heaven when they were in the wilderness, and then Jesus mentions the true bread of heaven that gives life to the world. The people tell Jesus, “Lord, always give us this bread.”  This morning, Jesus tells the people about the bread of life in a passage that has a significant impact into the theology of salvation.

Carefully read John 6:35-40 that we’ll be looking at today.

Jesus makes a declarative statement to begin His message to the people. Jesus emphatically states, “I am the bread of life.” Remember, the people Jesus is speaking to have just had their physical hunger satisfied. That was the miracle of the feeding of the 5000, but the people did not understand the significance of what Jesus provides. “Always give us this bread” they tell Jesus. The people were mainly concerned with their physical need for food, but Jesus was mainly concerned for their eternal need for Him. The people were concerned for the temporary. Jesus was concerned about what was permanent. “I am the bread of life.” Jesus uses the phrase, “I am” in this verse and it is the first of nine significant I am statements to declare who He truly is. We’ll see the others as we move on in John. “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.” In verse 31, Jesus reminded the people that God provided manna from heaven to sustain their physical needs. They had to gather the manna each day and it would spoil if it was kept overnight. They needed a daily provision of physical food. Now Jesus is saying that He would provide bread that satisfies a physical need for food.

“He who comes to Me will not hunger.” The word “come” is a very interesting word that means to move toward or up to a reference point. Jesus is saying if you move toward Him, He will provide what you need so that you will not hunger. “and he who believes in Me will never thirst.” Believe is the familiar Greek word pistis where we get our English word faith. You remember on April 25^th when I went through faith and why it’s vital to our walk in Christ. Heb.  11 provides an incredible backdrop of what faith can do. Here Jesus says that if you come to Him, you won’t hunger. If you believe in Him, you won’t thirst. If you’re wondering why Jesus speaks of physical needs, His audience would be well familiar with the people He’s speaking about. The story of the great exodus from Egypt has been told from generation to generation.  Turn over to 1 Cor. 10:1-9 and let’s take a brief look at that. Paul ties physical food, water, and idolatry together to remind the people where they came from. The need for physical food and drink is universal and Jesus is using that to help the people understand that He can provide nourishment that does not end.

But the people have a problem. After Jesus explained what He can do, there is still a responsibility on the people. You’ve heard it said, I see it, but I don’t believe it. You’ve also heard it said, I’ll believe it when I see it. This is essentially what Jesus is telling the people. Jesus says, “But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe.” You’ve dealt with those type of people. People who say they’ll believe if they see, but they don’t. People want impossible things to occur in order for them to believe, but even when those impossible things come to pass, they still don’t believe. Jesus has just fed about 20,000 people from five loaves of bread and two small fish and the people still don’t believe! How do we who live in such a vibrant, technological, information overloaded, and connected world that can see most anything instantaneously fail to believe what we see? It is a matter of faith. We must take the observation of our eyes, the experience and knowledge in our brain and translate that to faith. “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Eph. 2:8-9) Jesus knows of their belief issues and that’s why He began that verse with the word but. Just because you see a steak does not make you full or satisfy your physical hunger. The word “but” represents a contrast. Just because you see Jesus does not mean that you are follower. Just because you are in church does not make you a follower. Just because you are an American does not make you a follower. Just because your parents are followers does not make you a follower.

Belief in Jesus requires a spiritual dimension. Look at Rom. 1:18-23. God put the desire to know Him into every human being that has or will be created. These next few verses have caused considerable confusion when it comes to soteriology which is the doctrine of salvation. The correct context of Chapter 6 is crucial to a correct understanding of the doctrine of salvation. In Chapter 6, Jesus is addressing a crowd of people that largely do not believe in Him. In 6:26 Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.” They are following Jesus because they are looking for a handout, but they are not followers of Christ in a spiritual sense. Included in this mass of people are the 12 that Jesus chose for the position of Apostle. In John 10:40, Isaiah’s prophecy is quoted and the quote is attributed to Jesus and says, “He has blinded their eyes and He hardened their heart, so that they will not see with their eyes and understand with their heart, and be converted, and so I will not heal them.” Lu. 19:41-42 says, “When He [referring to Jesus] approached Jerusalem, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, “If you had known on this day, even you, the conditions for peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes.” According to Rom. 11:8, God has given them over to a spirit of stupor and they cannot understand the truth before them. It is important to note that the Israelites were not born this way. These Israelites are being cut off from God because of their rebellion and rejection of the truth. You have to understand the proper context of John 6 in order to understand what salvation is.

And then we have the collision of sovereignty and free will. Some people reading John 6 will apply a modern application to the next few verses, but as we’ve already established, John 6 is not about us. Jesus affirms that by saying, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.” Notice that incredible caveat. “All that the Father gives.” All here is the same all we’ve seen in other verses that means everyone without distinction, or anyone without exception. “All that the Father gives will come to me” is talking about the 12 Apostles. There are two types of people here: the 12 and those that hear and believe through the message of those Apostles. The concept of give is a frequent one in John and when you look at the cross references, you’re taken to John 17. Look carefully at 17:1-3. God has granted the authority over all flesh to Jesus Christ. The eternal life promised by God comes through belief in Jesus Christ. Notice the word “may” in v. 3. It is conditional and not restrictive as we’ll see again in a moment. Salvation hinges on what Christ did on the cross and the belief in that finished work. This goes back to the theme of this book that I hope you will have memorized before too long: Jo. 20:30-31, “Therefore many other signs Jesus performed in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” Belief in the work of Christ means eternal salvation. Jo. 6:27 says, “Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life.” This has been and will continue to be a fundamental principle for John that we need to understand and hold on to. We’ll see this again next week from Jo. 6:47 when Jesus says, “Truly, truly I say unto you, he who believes has eternal life.” It really can’t get any clearer than that. To solidify the fact the Jesus is talking about the 12, consider Jo. 17:12 that affirms, “While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name, which You have given Me; and I guarded them, and not one of them perished except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.” If this chapter were talking about God’s choice for salvation, was it a mistake to choose Judas? It was a choice to fulfil an office, an assignment, not about eternity.

Do not overlook the incredibly important truth in verse 37: “The one that comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.” Remember I said that there are two types of people in this verse: the given – the 12 disciples or apostles and then those that will believe  because of the words or messages of those 12 disciples. When you approach Christ with belief in what He accomplished, He will not turn His back on you. “The one that comes” is a reference to an individual pursuit. God calls everyone to Himself through the work of Christ. We’ll see from Jo. 6:44 next week that God initiates the call by saying, “No one can come to Me unless the Father draws him.” But a response, a decision is required as Mark 1:15 says, “Repent and believe in the gospel.” Individual response and belief is always required for salvation. Verse 38 goes on to say, “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” In context, Jesus is talking about while He is on planet earth in the flesh. Christ has a specific purpose while He is God in the flesh and that is to facilitate God’s redemptive plan for humanity. That plan included training those 12 disciples that were given to Christ to fill the role of apostles These 12 would then carry the message of salvation to the Jew first then the Gentile. If you notice, there’s not a whole lot of salvation preaching going on from the lips of  the original 12 until after Jesus is crucified. Jesus speaks in parables to which the disciples are frequently saying, “We don’t understand what You are saying.”

Some people try to tie v. 37 and 39 together to support a particular view of salvation. V. 39 says, “This is the will of Him who sent Me, that all He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.” Contextually, Jesus is talking about while He is on earth displaced from His proper abode in heaven. You can’t apply a 2021 context about what happened in about 30 A.D. Acts 28:27 says, “For the hearts of this people have become insensitive, and with their ears they hardly hear, and they have closed their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and return, and I would heal them.” It’s called judicial hardening and that’s a difficult concept to understand. Why would God do that? It’s a temporary condition designed to further His will. Those that are rebellious and disobedient are allowed to continue in this manner for a time. It’s all part of the redemptive plan that concludes with Jesus’ death and resurrection. Acts 2:23 says, “This Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death.” Jesus stepped out of heaven to affect the redemption for mankind. His goal was to accomplish what God the Father set before Him. The reason people walked away was not because God pre-selected them for condemnation, but because they failed to see Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah. God allowed them to continue in this blindness until such a time as He saw fit to take the veil off of their eyes. Again, that’s why Jesus spoke in parables and mysteries. That’s why Jesus would tell people He healed, “Don’t tell anyone about this.” There was a greater purpose in God’s plan of redemption that had to play out. Rom. 11:32 says, “For God has shut up all in disobedience, so that He may show mercy to all.” It should come as no surprise what the word all means. It’s the same all that’s in v. 39. God’s not willing that any should perish, but that all would come to repentance. (2 Pet. 3:9) Any and all are inclusive, not selective. People that choose not to follow Christ is not because they were predetermined for separation, but because they have chosen to reject the gift of God that is found in Christ. Over and over Scripture tells us of God’s desire to see everyone come to the knowledge of the truth and accept the gift of God, but He knows not everyone will.

Back in Jo. 6:28, the disciples asked Jesus, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” The answer is found in our last verse for today: “For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” Everyone is a very broad and inclusive term. Beholding and believing go hand in hand. For John, if you behold Jesus; look at, gaze intently so as to understand it, you will believe. Believe is that word faith that we have looked at a number of times in John. Jesus is speaking collectively at first, but notice the shift. He speaks of everyone that believes and then shifts it to a personal pronoun him. Everyone that believes has eternal life. Then Jesus says, “I will raise him up on the last day.” Ultimately salvation is a personal decision to believe based on faith. This is the second time we see the phrase last day in John. This refers to the resurrection and we’ll see the phrase a few more times in this chapter.

We started with Jesus declaring that He was the bread of life. That bread would satisfy the spiritual hunger that every human has to know who God is. Romans 1 speaks of this. Then we moved into a challenging section of the chapter that some have used to conclude that God makes the decision of salvation for us. Dr. Leighton Flowers sums this up for us. So, what is the intent of John 6?  Is it as the Calvinist teaches — that God has condemned all men over to a totally disabled condition from birth due to the sin of Adam and only irresistibly draws out a pre-selected number of people for salvation leaving the rest without any hope of response to His own appeals for reconciliation? OR…Is the intent of John 6 to tell us the narrative of Jesus’ provoking Israel in their hardened unbelief while drawing out for himself a remnant of divinely appoint messengers to take the gospel into all the world, drawing all to himself, after he is raised up? John 12:32 says, “When I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to me.”

Here Comes the Lamb

You can watch the video for this message here.

Last week, Pastor Mark told us how John testified about Christ. We learned that grace and truth were realized in Jesus. John told the Jews that he was not the Christ, not Elijah, and not the Prophet. John quoted Is. 40:3 and said he was a voice crying in the wilderness telling people to make straight the way of the Lord. Up to this point, John has been setting up his readers for what is about to happen. This morning, we’ll see an encounter between John the Baptizer and the Lamb of God.

Our passage today is found in John 1:29-34. I hope you take the time to read it.

As he is speaking with the group of Jews sent by the Pharisees, John sees Jesus coming toward him. This is the first of three encounters that occur over the three days following the initial encounter with the Jews. As John sees Jesus coming, he exclaims, “Behold.” His exclamation was designed to get people’s attention. This encounter occurs the days after the Jews met with him. We don’t know who’s there with John, but John wants those people to see who he sees. John says, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” This is the first time John uses the phrase Lamb of God. It’s not used in any of the other gospels.

What is the significance of the Lamb? The first appearance of a lamb, biblically speaking, occurs back in Gen. 22. If you’re not familiar with that story, it gives us the narrative of Abraham and Isaac. God spoke to Abraham and said, “Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains which I will tell you.” (Gen. 22:2) Abraham follows God’s direction. He got up the next morning and gathered everything that was needed for the burnt offering. Abraham, Isaac, and his servants travelled three days to get to where he needed to go. Isaac noticed that there was something missing. Abraham had the wood and the fire, but there was no lamb for the burnt offering. When Isaac asked his father where the lamb was, Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering.” (Ge. 22:8)

Lambs were very important in the system of sacrificial atonement in the Old Testament. Exodus 12 gives us the details of the Passover. God gave direction to Moses and Aaron to tell the Israelites to prepare a Passover lamb. The lamb was to be sacrificed at twilight. The blood from the lamb was to be placed on the two doorposts and on the lintel. Then the lamb was to be roasted over the fire and eaten with unleavened bread. The blood from the sacrifice would protect them as the Lord swept through Egypt killing the first born of all life. The Lord would pass over those houses where He saw the blood of the lamb. Lev. 14 speaks of the lamb as a guilt offering. The term, “Lamb of God” is found only in Jo. 1:29 and 1:36. The principle of substitutionary atonement is woven throughout Scripture. Theologian Kenneth Gangel wrote, “The emphasis on substitutionary atonement and the universal offering of salvation and forgiveness of sin form the heart and core of the gospel.”

We speak of sacrifice in our culture quite a bit, especially in the church. We’ve been told to give sacrificially to the church. We’ve been told to sacrifice our comfort by going on a short-term mission trip. Parents make sacrifices in their lives to ensure their children are able to go to a certain school or play sports.        A person may sacrifice their personal goals so their spouse can achieve theirs. You may sacrifice your time to help someone else. We understand the idea of a sacrifice, but that doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface of a substitutionary sacrifice. John says, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Ex. 29:38 speaks of offering a lamb each morning and evening every single day. The Passover sacrifice prevented the Israelites from suffering the plague of the death of the first born. The Old Testament sacrifices offered temporary relief from sin. What John speaks of is different.

We’re going to jump back and read Is. 53:1-6. Isaiah does not mention the name of the One that was despised and forsaken. He doesn’t mention the name of the One that was pierced for our transgressions. He doesn’t say who was crushed for our iniquities. We have to continually remind ourselves the Bible was not written to us per se. The readers of Isaiah’s prophecy would know who he is talking about. While it may seem mysterious to us, it wasn’t to them. We’re forced to read other passages, cross reference cultural references, and try and find the meaning of words we don’t understand. All of this would have been quite simple for the people of Isaiah’s day. John says, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” John is clearly referring to Jesus because he’s looking at Him as He walks toward him. John knows Jesus is the Lamb of God and he knows what that means for humanity. “Takes” literally means to lift up and carry away. John does not speak of temporary relief from sin. The Passover lamb released the Israelites from the curse of the firstborn in Egypt, but Jesus releases us from the curse of sin. As Jesus walked toward John, I wonder if He was thinking ahead. Is. 53:7 says, “Like a lamb that is led to slaughter.” As He approached John, Jesus was already on a journey to slaughter. From eternities past, Jesus has been walking this path knowing how it would end. John must surely see all of this as He exclaims, “Behold the Lamb of God!” Other New Testament evangelists, prophets, and missionaries knew the same thing John knew. Isaiah’s prophecy is mentioned in Matthew, Luke, Acts, Romans, 1 Peter, and Revelation.

John says, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Some people have had difficulty with the word world which is the Greek word kosmos. It can mean different things depending on the context. This is the same world in Jo. 1:10, “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.” This is the world in which Jesus was born into by a human mother. (Jo. 11:27) This is the same world that Jesus referred to when He said, “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?” (Matt. 16:26) It was the kingdoms of the world that the devil offered Jesus in the wilderness in Matt. 4:8-9. It was this world that God loved so much, He sent His one and only Son to atone for their sins. (Jo. 3:16) It is this world that was created for God’s pleasure to reflect His divine glory that is now living in disobedience and rebellion to the Creator. Following its own wisdom, this world is not for God. 1 Jo. 2:16 sums it up, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.” When John says, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” there is so much more depth to that statement than meets the eye.

In the verses leading up to today’s passage, the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to find John and question him as to his identity. John readily admitted he was not the Christ; he wasn’t Elijah or the Prophet. He had been telling those people about someone greater than he and now here comes the Lamb of God, the very One that John was talking about. Of the Lamb of God John says He, “Is a Man who has a higher rank than I for He existed before me.” That’s what he told them back in v. 15 too. In history, we speak of people who have done great things. We speak of presidents like Washington and Lincoln and what they contributed to the nation. We can talk about great military leaders like Eisenhower and Patton. We can talk about people like Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks and what they did for civil rights. We can talk about Martin Luther, John Wesley, Jim Elliott, and Billy Graham. These are people in history that did great things. But John is telling these people that the Lamb of God comes after him. Even though historically, John is before Him, the Lamb of God is greater. The Lamb of God ranks higher in position than John.

The next verse is quite intriguing. John says, “I did not recognize Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water.” Recognize is better translated know and that is the way it is in KJV, ESV, and many other translations. Know is a very important theme in John’s writings that we will see over and over again. There are those that espouse a secret knowledge that gives them exclusive insight into salvation. To address this, Paul said, “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according the elementary principles of the world rather than according to Christ.” (Col. 2:8) When John says he didn’t know the Lamb of God, that’s not unreasonable. Luke 1:80 tells us that John lived in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance. John baptized in water so that people would recognize, or know the Lamb of God.

To know something means to act upon that knowledge. What good is knowledge if it does not affect change? Paul said that kind of knowledge puffs up (1 Cor. 8:1) Knowledge gives power to become children of God according to Jo. 1:10. The believer has power over sin according to Rom. 6. Knowledge in and of itself is not a bad thing, but if that is the end goal, what’s the point?  John himself did not know God until something extraordinary happened. “John testified saying, “I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, ‘He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit.’” It’s now revealed how John came to know the Lamb of God. After baptizing Jesus in water, “The heavens opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting upon Him, and behold a voice out of the heavens said, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” (Matt. 3:17) John’s personal testimony is that he saw. He witnessed this with his own eyes and he is speaking the truth. This is how he came to know the Word that became flesh. That sight compelled him to act and that’s why he is telling the Jews about Jesus.      Jesus is the One that the Jews have been looking for since Gen. 3:15.

Jesus is the One that has fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies. John baptized with water, but Jesus baptizes in the Holy Spirit. Water baptism is significant in the life of a believer. It is a profession of faith symbolizing what Jesus did. It should be the commissioning, if you will, of a new believer into a life of devotion and service to the Lord. Although we rejoice in the life that is born again, the focus of baptism is not one the individual, but on Jesus Christ who enabled that one to receive forgiveness for sin and become reconciled to a holy, perfect, and just God. John’s baptism is one of repentance, while Jesus’ baptism provides the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. A parallel can be drawn between water baptism, signifying a beginning of a life of ministry through the power of the Holy Spirit and the baptism of Jesus signifying His beginning of public, recorded ministry. John concludes with the very powerful statement, “I myself have seen, and have testified that this is the Son of God.” Remember the theme of John written in Jo. 20:30-31, “Therefore many other signs Jesus performed in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” That is John’s main purpose in writing. He wants you to know who Jesus is. Knowledge should result in understanding. Understanding should result in belief. Belief should result in confession. Confession should result in repentance. Repentance should result in action and action can be manifested in many, many ways.

In today’s passage we looked at four very important truths. Jesus is the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. Jesus is the one that has no beginning as John said at the beginning of the chapter. He baptizes with the Holy Spirit. And He is the Son of God. You have this knowledge. Do you understand its implications? Has that understanding resulted in belief, confession, and repentance? What actions are you taking to proclaim that truth?

The Sailing Adventures of Paul

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Last week, Pastor Mike told us of Paul’s meeting with King Agrippa and all the people that were in that meeting. Paul boldly shared his personal testimony with Festus and Festus concluded that Paul was out of his mind. But after Paul asks Agrippa a question about the prophets, he said that he was almost persuaded to follow Christ. They conclude that Paul has done nothing to deserve death or imprisonment, but since he appealed to Caesar, that’s where he had to go. This morning, we’ll look into the journey to see Caesar.                                                   

We’ll start with Acts 27:1-6.

We begin Chapter 27 with a detailed account of the first few legs of Paul’s journey from Caesarea to Italy. They delivered Paul to a centurion named Julius along with some other prisoners. They embarked on an Adramyttian ship. Adramyttium was a Mysian seaport southeast of Troas. This ship was likely designed for coastal use putting into ports along the way to the final destination. Luke takes the time to mention Aristarchus joined the voyage as well. Aristarchus was, “a Macedonian from Thessalonica.” They get underway from Caesarea and arrived at Sidon the next day. In Sidon, Julius allowed Paul to receive care from his friends. The names of those friends are not specifically mentioned by Luke. I think mentioning that Paul was treated with “consideration” is important. We can only speculate why Paul was shown this kindness, but perhaps Paul demonstrated love for Julius and the favor was returned. Paul’s friends likely gave him food and other supplies necessary for the trip to Italy. Shipboard passengers often had to provide their own provisions for trips on the sea. This was no prisoner transport ship – it was a ship that anyone could get on, as long as they had the money to book passage. V. 4 has Paul setting to sea from Sidon and sailing, “under the shelter of Cyprus because the winds were contrary.” They sailed around Cyprus on the lee side. That means the island provided some protection because the winds at this time of year typically came out of the north and northwest. They went out of their way in order to have better wind to reach the next port. It’s like traveling US 17 to avoid the traffic on I-95.

“We had sailed through the sea along the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we landed at Myra in Lycia. There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing for Italy, and he put us aboard it.” Myra was apparently the destination of this first ship so they needed to find a connecting vessel to take them to Italy. Julius found a ship that was heading to Italy and so he got Paul and the others on this ship. Myra was nearly due north of Alexandria and was on the route that Alexandrian ships would take to deliver grain to Rome. Finding a ship there was probably pretty easy. Julius secured passage on the ship, but the voyage was about to take a turn for the worst. If you have served in the Navy or Merchant Marines, you can testify to the power of the ocean. For those fool hardy souls that choose to sail on top of the water, life can get very challenging on the sea.

Things are about to get dicey. Look at vs. 7-8. The winds were against them. Sailing was difficult, even for these experienced sailors. The distance from Myra to Cnidus was about 130 NM. Even sailing at a modest 4 knots, the journey should have taken just over a day, not many days as Luke says. In the sailor’s minds, they were off course. The voyage should have taken them north of Crete, but they went south of Crete. They arrive at a place called, “Fair Havens, near which was the city of Lasea.”

The tide turns in v. 9. Look at vs. 9-12. The best comparison I can make to this discussion is a Department Head meeting or leadership meeting. What’s curious is who participated. Julius the Centurion, the pilot, the captain, some or maybe all of the crew, and Paul. Do you remember what Paul did for a living? He was a tentmaker. However, he did do quite a bit of sailing so his input would not be like the Hollywood celebrities of our day weighing in on immigration. Paul said, “Men, I perceive that the voyage will certainly be with damage and great loss, not only of the cargo and the ship, but also of our lives.” Sea travel was growing increasingly dangerous due to the time of the year. The fast, or day of Atonement had come and gone. This day was linked to the moon phase and varied from year to year, but fell in late September or early October. With that information, it is not difficult to determine, with relative accuracy, the date for this voyage. Most scholars put the year as A.D. 59 and some at 60. In 59, the Day of Atonement was on Oct. 5^th. In first century sailing on the Mediterranean Sea, mid-September to early November was a very dangerous time to sail because of the prevailing direction of the winds. Paul “perceived” that the voyage would be difficult, but Luke doesn’t tell us how he came to perceive that. Was it the Lord telling him? Was it based on his knowledge of sailing? At this point, we don’t know.        What we do know is the argument to sail on was more compelling and “the majority reached a decision to put out to sea from there.” Majority rules. Don’t you just hate when the majority makes a decision you believe with all your heart is wrong? You’re the lone voice crying in the wilderness. In this case, it wasn’t really majority rules because Luke says, “The centurion was more persuaded by the pilot and the captain of the ship.” Based on this, it looks like the centurion had decision making authority for the vessel. In fact, the Roman Navy was an extension of the Army.

20:13 says, “When a moderate south wind came up, supposing that they had attained their purpose, they weighed anchor and began sailing along Crete, close inshore.” Paul is underway and I wonder if he is feeling queasy. The plan was to winter in Phoenix, a place about 36 miles from where the decision was made to sail on. Continue reading vs. 14-20. If you’ve ever been in a storm at sea, it can be a frightening thing. These were experienced sailors. The gentle south wind changed to a violent or tempestuous wind called a Euraquilo. This is a strange word that is sailor’s slang. It comes from the Greek euros meaning east and the Latin aquilo meaning north. This phenomenon still occurs to this day and we call it a Nor’easter. It was a violent wind of hurricane force that is consistent with the topography of where they were sailing. The crew attempted a number of things to combat the violence of the wind. With the ship on the lee side of an island named Clauda, the crew was able to haul in the little boat they towed behind the ship, but it was very difficult. Then they used cables or helps underneath the boat to minimize the chance of the ship breaking up from the power of the sea. Then the crew lowered the sea anchor, better translated equipment or gear. What that specifically was Luke doesn’t say which leads me to believe he was not much of a sailor. He was probably not familiar with the proper nautical terms and used whatever words made sense to him. It is likely the gear has something to do with the sails. There are a number of sails on a ship like this. The main sail was the largest of the sails capable of catching a lot of wind. If the main sail was up which seems likely since they started with a gentle southern wind, they would need to lower it to prevent the ship being driven into the shoals. No sailor or captain want their ship to run aground. Fighting against the sea into the next day, they began throwing the cargo overboard. Still fighting the sea, on the third day, the crew threw the ship’s tackle overboard. Again, it’s not certain what exactly the tackle refers to. Suffice it to say, the crew was doing all it could to save the ship, the crew, and the passengers. Look at the sobering conclusion that Luke gives, “Since neither sun nor stars appeared for many days, and no small storm was assailing us, from then on all hope of our being saved was gradually abandoned.” The crew is exhausted, probably sick, perhaps injured or hurt. Too stormy to serve food or perhaps too sick to eat, Paul stands up.

Paul gives an impassioned speech in vs. 21-26. Paul has not forgotten what the Lord told him in Acts 23:11: “You must witness at Rome also.” Remembering the promises of God should serve as great comfort to us. Far too often, we focus on the circumstances that surround us and forget the promises. Somehow, we believe our circumstances override God’s power. Paul was in a desperate situation with all indication that he and the others on the ship were facing certain death. Each soul is just as precious to God as Paul was. In the midst of the sailor’s ineffective attempt to gain control of the ship, Paul gives them a pep talk and shares what God told him through an angel: “Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar; and behold, God has granted you all those who are sailing with you.” When Paul perceived in v. 10, that was several days ago. He says, “Keep your courage men.” Keep going, keep fighting; don’t give up. We will not die! Oh, by the way, “We must run aground on a certain island.” These were professional sailors. They’ve probably spent their entire lives on the sea so running aground, on purpose, might have raised a few eyebrows. Look at vs. 27-32. The sailors suspected they were getting close to land because they could hear the waves crashing against the rocks. They cast four anchors from the stern. Some men feared certain death so they made a plan to escape by saying they would let down the little boat to cast some anchors down from the bow. Paul recognized this and reminded the Julius, “Unless the men remain in the ship, you yourselves cannot be saved.” The soldiers quickly cut away the “boat and let it fall away.”

Look at vs. 33-38. Paul encouraged them to eat something since they had little to no food for the past two weeks. We now find out that the ship has 276 souls on board. In preparation to land the ship, they throw their cargo of wheat into the sea.

In this exciting conclusion to the story in vs. 39-44, the sailors spot a good place to run aground so they cut away the anchors and hoisted the foresail. The foresail would catch the wind in which the sailors could better control the landing. They hit a reef and put the bow of the ship into a sand bar. The waves continued crashing into the stern causing it to break apart. Remember, there were other prisoners besides Paul and the soldiers did not want any of them to escape. As part of Roman law, soldiers could be held personally responsible for allowing a prisoner to escape. Killing them would prevent the prisoners from escaping. Julius intervenes and tells the soldiers that if any of them could swim, go first and get to land to secure the prisoners. It happens exactly as it should with some people swimming ashore, others holding onto planks from the ship, and still others, holding to various other things from the ship.

Why include this harrowing experience in the story of Paul? There is no sermon recorded by Luke; there’s not even any specific mention of Paul sharing the gospel to anyone on board. I think a major lesson to learn is that the promises of God are sure. When God tells you something, you can absolutely count on it to happen. You might be thinking, “Well, if God spoke to me like He spoke to Paul, I would have that confidence too.” All I can tell you dear saint, is God’s promises are recorded for us. We can read them over and over again. We can memorize them, meditate on them, and even remind God of what He said when we pray. Have confidence in God. Know that He loves you and will never leave you. Many promises are reserved for those that have made a decision to follow Him. Have you made that decision?

Three Promises

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We’ll skip 13:1-12 because that was the passage Pastor Mike was to preach through on Feb. 25^th but was away in Tennessee. Last week we enjoyed a wonderful anniversary service so if you’re wondering when we’ll cover those verses, we’ll circle back after Easter. This morning, we’ll look at a history lesson Paul gives in the synagogue.

Take a look at Acts 13:13-25.

Verse 13 says, “Now Paul and his companions put out to sea from Pathos and came to Perga in Pamphylia; but John left them and returned to Jerusalem.” When they arrived in Perga, John Mark decided he’d head back to Jerusalem. Luke leaves out the details about why John Mark left and there has been much speculation. In Chapter 15 we’ll get some insight into the fallout resulting from this so we’ll wait until we get there to talk about John Mark. Luke continues by telling us Paul and his companions went, “on from Perga, they arrived at Pisidian Antioch.” Again, Luke leaves out the details of this trip to a different Antioch. To get to Pisidian Antioch from Perga would have been an extremely difficult trip. I want to mention this because we have a tendency to forget the incredibly difficult journeys these biblical people went on in obedience to the Lord. The trip to Pisidian Antioch was about a 100 mile trip, on foot, over the Taurus Mountains on a very desolate route known for its danger. Luke simply says they go there and arrive.

We don’t know the day they arrived, but, “on the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down.”We’ll see this pattern over and over again with Paul. His normal course of action is to be in the Synagogue on the Sabbath – even when he is not at home. This synagogue was the center of all the activity in the Jewish community. Back in the olden days, you’d have a church in the center of town and everything revolved around church on Sunday. Paul and his companions arrive and find their seats. The order of service in your typical synagogue followed the same pattern from week to week. Just like at 3RC, we typically have the same routine week after week – it’s not good or bad, or right or wrong, it’s what works for us. The synagogue was a bit more rigid. The service was generally divided into six parts and depending on who was there, some parts might not be done. One of the standard parts was the reading from the Law and the Prophets. So, “After the reading of the Law and the Prophets the synagogue officials sent to them, saying, “Brethren, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, say it.” It’s kind of comical to ask a preacher of God’s Word if they have anything to say. Probably all the pastors here have had this happen when visiting a church out of town. Somehow word gets to the pastor that a visiting pastor is in the congregation and they might be invited to say something or offer a prayer. We don’t know the specifics, but Paul and his companions are invited to speak to the synagogue.

Paul delivers a message that focuses on three main promises. Notice immediately that he speaks to two groups: men of Israel and those that fear God. You’ll see some pointed remarks directed at each group as we read through the text. The first part is the promise God made to Israel. Look at vs. 16b-25. I want to highlight a couple of points. Notice that God chose the fathers of Israel and it was through His hand that they were delivered from Egyptian bondage. During the exodus from Egypt, the people were generally belly-achers, complainers, disobedient and just plain awful and because of this, God determined not to let any of them in the promised land. “For a period of 40 years,” Paul says, God “put up with them in the wilderness.” Paul reminded them how God destroyed the seven nations of the Hittites, the Gergashites, the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Perizites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. It was a battle of epic proportions and God was their deliverer. Then God distributed the land to the twelve tribes. Then after the land was distributed which took 450 years, God gave them judges until Samuel the Prophet came along. The people asked for a king and God gave them Saul. Saul lasted 40 years until David, a man after God’s own heart, ascended to the throne. Fast forward through the lineage of Jesus and Paul says, “According to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus.” John the Baptizer proclaimed that Jesus was coming and a baptism of repentance was available to all the people of Israel. John described Jesus as a man he wasn’t fit to untie His sandals. A quick history review from the Exodus to Jesus just as God promised Israel.

Paul’s second part reveals God’s promise fulfilled by Christ. Paul starts out again speaking to the two groups he calls, “Sons of Abraham’s family, and those among you who fear God.” “The message of this salvation has been sent.” He just said in v. 23, “According to promise, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus.” Paul is systematically setting up what God has done in the history of Israel. God has demonstrated his mercy to Israel from Abraham to David. And don’t forget the promise made by Nathan to David in 2 Sam. 7:16, “Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me; your throne will be established forever.” Don’t forget Matt. 1:1 where Jesus is called, “the son of David.” These facts are really important because of what Paul says next.

Look at what Luke says in vs. 27-31. This is the Gospel message and should be familiar to you if you’re a believer. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yes, the people killed Jesus out of ignorance as Acts 3:17 says, but those acts of ignorance fulfilled the prophecies that Messiah must suffer and die. What’s even more crazy is that Paul is talking to the people that should have recognized Jesus because they read about Him every week in the synagogue. If this section sounds familiar to you, it’s essentially the same message Peter preached in Acts 5. The Gospel message is still sufficient to accomplish salvation without adding to it or trying to make it more attractive. When you add or subtract or otherwise alter the Gospel, it’s not the Gospel. After Jesus was resurrected, Paul reminds the people what happened next. Jesus walked among the people and those people are now His witnesses throughout the land. Notice the lack of a personal pronoun from Paul. He’s putting everything on those that should have recognized Jesus. Paul zeroes in on the critical aspect of the Gospel – the resurrection. Look at vs. 32-37. The good news of the Gospel hinges on the resurrection. Paul quotes from Ps. 2:7, Is. 55:3, and Ps. 16:10. Anyone can die, but being raised from the dead is another matter. Predicting a resurrection is something altogether impossible. And that’s what we have in Jesus. Our faith hinges on the resurrection. Paul devoted 1 Cor. 15 to the resurrection and concluded in vs. 16-19, “For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.” If Christ was not raised, we have no hope and this life is all there is, but I submit to you, that’s just not true.

The final part of Paul’s message is an invitation to accept the promise. Read vs. 38-41. Paul recaps what is available if they’ll take the step of belief. Forgiveness of sin is proclaimed. Through Christ, “everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses.” He even provides a warning that they would never believe what he is saying even though he is describing it to them. Remember Paul is in the synagogue speaking to the men of Israel and those who fear God. How many times have you shared something with someone even though you really believed they wouldn’t listen? You still do what’s necessary and trust the Holy Spirit will work in them. You don’t give up and you take every opportunity the Lord provides to share the life changing truth with people. You remain consistent and authentic in your walk of faith knowing that it makes a difference. You go back time and time again hoping and praying they’ll still listen.

Paul took the opportunity to share the truth with these people in the synagogue. He reminded them of the promise God made to Israel. He took them from Moses in Egypt to the exodus, to the division of the land to Saul to David. he shared how the promise of God was fulfilled in Jesus. The death, burial, and resurrection of Christ is the good news they needed to hear – the message of salvation. He invited them to accept the promise that afforded forgiveness that could never be found in the Law of Moses. Something pretty exciting happened in vs. 42-43. The people were intrigued and wanted to hear more so Paul and Barnabas were invited back the following Sabbath day. Many of the Jews and proselytes – those that converted to Judaism, followed after Paul and Barnabas and they were urged to continue in the grace of God. Not saved, but on the path. What’s next for Paul and Barnabas? What will come of their next meeting in the synagogue? Good questions that will be answered if you join us next week.

The Preparation

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Last week, Pastor Zane introduced us to Cornelius. Cornelius was a devout, praying man that had a vision. God told Cornelius to send for Peter who was staying 

with Simon the Tanner in Joppa. The same time Cornelius was having a vision, Peter fell into a trance and was given a vision. They sky opened up to him and it was revealed that what had been unclean and unholy was no longer unclean and unholy. The dietary restrictions had been lifted, but the meaning was far deeper than that. This morning, we’ll see how Peter responds to this incredible revelation.

I hope you grab your Bible and read our text for today found in Acts 10:17-33.

One of the biggest church killers is the phrase, “We’ve never done it that way.” Since the dawn of humanity, people all across the globe have uttered those six words. That phrase has stifled fresh ideas, innovative methods, and new technology along with a host of other things that could impact eternity. While not always, the phrase it typically uttered by people who have been around a while, who feel vested in a church, and who feel a sense of ownership. They’re content with the status quo no matter how out of touch it may be. Early in my vocational ministry, I was being interviewed by a church just like this.          For Peter, this is what is happening. Change has come and he cannot process it.

Luke says, “Now while Peter was greatly perplexed in mind as to what the vision which he had seen might be, behold, the men who had been sent by Cornelius, having asked directions for Simon’s house, appeared at the gate; and calling out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there.” (Acts 10:17-18) Remember, Cornelius was told in a vision to send men to Joppa to find Peter. Cornelius briefed his men on why they were going and the importance of the mission. We don’t know much about these three men, but we find them at Simon’s door asking if Peter is there.  Just an interesting note, the phrase, “had been sent” comes from the same root word where we get our word apostle. As the men are asking about Peter, the Spirit reveals to him that three men are looking for him. You might task, why all the vision and dream stuff? In Acts 2:17, Luke quoted the prophet Joel that said, “And that it shall be in the last days, God says, that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” (Joel 2:28) Remember, the people we’re looking at did not have what you are currently holding in your hands. They were living out the New Testament and relied on the leading of the Holy Spirit and the leading of the Apostles without being able to line it up with Scripture in the manner we can.

Peter is contemplating what this vision could mean when he is interrupted by the Spirit of God telling him to go downstairs and go with the men who are there. Peter was to go, “without misgivings.” That literally means doubting nothing. God even qualifies that by saying, “For I have sent them Myself.” Peter goes downstairs and without introduction says, “Behold, I am the one you are looking for; what is the reason for which you have come?” It’s a fair question and one you would ask to any stranger that comes to your door. What can I do for you? What do you want? Can I help you? Now a days, you might not even open the door to someone you don’t know. The men answer Peter by telling him. “Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous and God-fearing man well-spoken of by the entire nation of the Jews, was divinely directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house and hear a message from you.” They provide Cornelius’ credentials. By society’s standards, and it seems by God’s standards, Cornelius is someone. Devout. Righteous. He and his family were God-fearing. He was a prayer warrior. He gave alms. He was well spoken of by the entire nation of the Jews – he had a good reputation. His private life lined up with his public life. This guy was the complete package. Too often, our life outside of church is markedly different than our life inside. If you’re considered for leadership here at 3RC, don’t be surprised if we ask for references. There are far too many people in  leadership who do not consistently demonstrate the fruits of the Spirit. We’re looking for people that are authentic. We’re looking for people that are growing, but haven’t arrived. We’re looking for people that want to be righteous, not right. People that are prayerful, not powerful. People that are committed, not contentious. Cornelius was that kind of guy.

His men tell Peter of their mission and that confirms what the Spirit had revealed to Peter. Peter is given instructions to go with the men to Cornelius’ house. So here we have an impasse of faith. What do you do with what God clearly tells you to do? In this case we have an angel of God telling Cornelius what to do, the voice of God speaking to Peter in a vision, and the Spirit of God telling Peter what to do. Nothing is left to chance, variables are removed; there are no what ifs or if onlys. Will you walk through the door opened by God? Will you go down the path God illuminates? Will you walk by faith? Would Peter hesitate and if so, why? Peter had a choice. Obedience or disobedience. 2000 years later, we face the same choice each and every day.

We move from we’ve never done it that way, to let’s walk down this new path that we’re not sure where it’ll take us. Peter is beginning to understand the vision because he doesn’t slam the door in the face of the three sent by Cornelius. Peter, “Invited them in and gave them lodging.” That’s pretty funny considering it wasn’t his house. Sure, come on in, we’ve got plenty of room. After a night’s rest, Peter, “Got up and went away with them, and some of the brethren from Joppa accompanied him.” Peter leaves with the three men sent by Cornelius with some believers from Joppa and they head off to Caesarea. It was a long walk. Caesarea is about 30 miles from Joppa and, “On the following day he entered Caesarea. Now Cornelius was waiting for them and had called his relatives and close friends.” Get the picture in your mind. Cornelius has a vision to get Peter and then sends men to get Peter. While all that walking is going on, Cornelius begins to gather his family and friends to hear from Peter. He is confident that Peter will come with his men.

Verse 25 says, “When Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at his feet and worshiped him.” Don’t think too ill of Cornelius. He had been told in a vision to send for Peter. Did Cornelius know exactly who Peter was? Had Peter’s reputation preceded him? Peter quickly corrects Cornelius and says, “Stand up; I too am just a man.” Of course, it’s wrong to worship a man. We would never do that. I find it interesting how star struck we get these days. From athletes to singers; from actors to musicians and even politicians. How many people would stand in line to meet Tua Tagovailoa? That starriness has even crossed into the church. Pastors that you don’t have access to. I have a friend in ministry on staff at a very large church. I asked him of his interaction with the pastor and he told me that he had met him a couple of times. Paul told us in Rom. 12:3 not to think too highly of ourselves. So, Peter walks in and sees the place packed with people. The people are not like Peter or the other apostles. Look at vs. 28-29. Peter’s vision about the sheet is becoming clearer as he remembers God’s words: “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy.” (Acts 10:15) Peter is standing in the midst of a house full of Gentiles. I came like you asked me to, I didn’t object, so tell me what I’m doing here.

Cornelius gives Peter his message. I don’t get any impatience in Peter’s tone; I don’t think he’s all huffy. Why am I here, Peter asks. Cornelius gives it to him straight. It’s found in vs. 30-33. Cornelius recaps the incredible vision he had. Remember that Cornelius is a God-fearing, devout, giving, praying Gentile of some importance in Caesarea. Peter is all those same things that Cornelius is, but is a Jew. The fuzziness of the vision Peter had about the sheet is becoming clearer and clearer with each passing moment. Peter’s vision involved animals of all kinds: “four footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the air.” It’s been four days since Cornelius’ vision and it’s the third time we’ve heard about it in these 33 verses in Chapter 10. One of the tools in Bible study is noting repetition. Any time Scripture repeats itself to this extent, we really need to take notice. While the vision is becoming clearer, Peter still does not know the specific reasons behind this visit. However, one thing is crystal clear: God has orchestrated this visit between Cornelius and his family and friends with Peter. Cornelius finishes by saying, “We are all here present before God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.”

Things are spinning in Peter’s mind. He’s been in front of crowds before so the people staring back at him are no big deal. He’s been in pressure situations before: dragged before the religious leaders of the day, he’s healed the lame, raised the dead, led by the Spirit, heard from God. All in a day in the life of a servant. But this? This is different. He’s in a room full of people that talk differently, look differently, eat differently, have different backgrounds and as he listens to Cornelius’ reasons for bringing him there, the light bulb goes off. You’ll have to wait to find out what happens next.

The Miracle of Easter

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Last week we checked out Solomon’s words regarding wisdom and learned that no matter the path you’re on, there’s always opportunity to get back on the right path. Maybe you’re here and you’re thinking, I don’t know the right path to take. I didn’t even know there was a path. Today is your lucky day! Today, Easter is celebrated all over the world, but do we really understand this day that many people celebrate? Is it just another consumer holiday where we look forward to seeing everyone’s new outfits and enjoy chocolate and jelly beans? Maybe you enjoy Easter because it generally marks the beginning of Spring. I don’t want you to miss the miraculous and eternal significance of Easter. But I’m getting ahead of myself, let’s go back in time from the first Easter to a week or so earlier.

Take the time to read our passage for this morning found in Luke 19:28-40.

So who is this Jesus? The name Jesus brings many thoughts to people’s minds. Names are like that; they mean a lot. Sometimes nicknames are commonly associated with people and are instantaneously recognized. Old Blue Eyes – Frank Sinatra. The King of Pop – Michael Jackson. The King – Elvis. Michael Jordan is known as Air Jordan. There are the not so great people like Ivan the terrible , Jack the Ripper, Bloody Mary, and Vlad the Impaler. Biblically we have John – the Baptizer. Lydia – the seller of purple. Few people call him just Thomas without preceding it with doubting. These descriptive names are no different for Jesus.

In Matt. 1:21 an angel appeared to Joseph and told him, “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, f He will save His people from their sins.” Jesus means Jehovah is salvation. Jesus most often referred to Himself as the Son of Man. He is known as the Messiah. The Light of the world. The Prince of Peace. The bright and morning star. He is the alpha and the omega. He is the redeemer, the advocate, the bread of life. He is the power of God. He is the Lamb of God, the good shepherd, the high priest. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is the resurrection and the life. That’s who Jesus is. This Jesus was loved by people of all walks of life. This is the Jesus that the prophet Micah said would come to rule Israel, One whose, “Goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity.” While loved and adored by the common people, this Jesus was despised by the religious groups of the day – the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Jesus upset the apple cart; He rocked the boat; He went against the flow, He said things that were different than what those religious people had been taught and what they believed. They called Jesus a blasphemer, they judged Jesus because He hung out with the less desirables; the tax collectors and sinners. They accused Him of violating the Sabbath because He encouraged His disciples to pick grain when they were hungry. They didn’t like this, in fact, “The scribes and the Pharisees were watching Him closely to see if He healed on the Sabbath, so that they might find reason to accuse Him.” (Luke 6:7) Jesus taught on the Sabbath, Jesus healed on the Sabbath.

So now we know who Jesus is, but why do we need Jesus? The religious crowd of the day despised Jesus because He threatened their power, their control, their desire to be elevated above others, their desire to be better than anyone else, their desire to control their own destiny, their desire and requirement for everyone to follow the Law. The Law was an interesting thing. Various religions and even denominations attempt to control people by requiring the strict following of a set of rules and regulations. Rom. 3:19-20 tells us, “Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.” Even though the Pharisees wanted everyone to keep the Law, they were powerless to keep it – all the Law did was show people they were law breakers. We need Jesus because no matter how good we think we are, the Bible says there is not a single person that is good. The Bible is very clear about our need for redemption. We need redemption because according to Rom. 6:6 we are slaves to sin. Sin owns us, it is our master. Rom. 3:23 says, “All have sinned.” 1 Jo. 1:8 says, “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves.” Rom. 6:23 says, “The wages of sin is death.”

What is sin? If we redefine what sin is, it’s easier to deal with. In our culture, we conform to the idea that personal feelings are the barometer of right and wrong, of morality and truth. We seek comfort and the least resistant path. We seek to please ourselves. We listen to so called “Christian teachers” or influential people who make us feel better about following our own path, about living in sin. Instead of calling people to repentance and authentic Christian living, these people refuse to call sin what God calls sin. We have a whole new generation of people that have succumbed to cultural pressure that it’s intolerant, judgmental, and unloving to declare God’s truth as absolute. I love Paul’s description of this found in Gal. 5:19-21 that says, “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Evident is from the word that mean plainly recognized. These are the things of the flesh – they are incompatible with a life that follows God. Left to our own devices, we cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

We know who Jesus is, and we know why we need Jesus, now finally, what should we do with Jesus? In answering this very question to the Jews that gathered in the treasury at the temple in Jo. 8:34-36: “Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. ‘The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.’” There is freedom in Christ. It’s freedom from the penalty of sin, not from the consequences. God will not and cannot allow us to get away with sin, but don’t expect to see someone’s nose grow if they tell a lie. We live in such a hectic, no time for anything world; a world where we seek instant gratification. Our cure then, comes not by redefining sin or by avoiding it. Our cure comes by admitting our sin, turning from it and receiving Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Easter          is about hope, it’s about life; it’s about fulfilled promises; it’s about Jesus. Maybe you’re thinking, “I want to be free, how do I get this freedom?” To answer that question, we need to go again to the standard of truth. Remember that each of us is a sinner, we have all done wrong. Rom. 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” As with any gift, you must accept it; just because it has your name on it does not make it yours until you receive it. Maybe if we just try harder to be good and righteous. No, the answer to sin is not to try harder to avoid it or change who you are. No matter how hard you try, no matter how good you are, it’s not enough. Eph. 2:8-9 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Rom. 10:9 says, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Confess is a great word. It means the same thing as agree. In other words, when you confess to God your failure to meet His standard or admit your wrongdoings, you are agreeing with Him.

Maybe you’re thinking God won’t accept you like you are. Pastor Ian if you only knew about me. Maybe you’re thinking, when I give up ___________, I will be good enough and I’ll trust in Christ. Here’s the good news: “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5:8) We don’t have to try harder because God knows that apart from Christ, we can do nothing. (Jo. 15:5) Rom. 10:13 says, “For ‘WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.’” You are that whoever. It is a guarantee. Becoming a Christian is a choice; it is a decision only you can make for yourself. Being a Christian really means being a follower of Christ. God changes your heart, changes your attitude, and you joyfully want to follow Jesus. It’s not something you do begrudgingly. Being a follower of Christ gives you freedom! You are not a Christian because you live in America or because you attend church, or because you pray or read the Bible, or go to a Bible study. You are a Christian because you have made a decision to trust in what Christ did to pay the penalty for sin; you choose to follow Christ. Paul gives us this hope in Rom. 6:10-11, “For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.” “To all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.” (Jo. 1:12) So how did we get to the point of death? What began just five or so days earlier as Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a colt with people waving palm branches and expressing their adoration for this man from Galilee, was overwhelmed by the crowds in Jerusalem that demanded His death by crucifixion. They got what they asked for and Jesus was sentenced to die on a cross for being found guilty of nothing. Jesus dies a horrible death on the cross and was buried in a tomb.

The rest of the story is found in Luke 24:1-9. Easter is all about the penalty Jesus Christ paid to cover our sin debt. He shed His blood for you, because of His incredible, unending, unconditional love. He is not here because He is risen. Easter is all about the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the new life that He can give you.

You have heard about who Jesus is and why we need Jesus. You have heard about what you should do with Jesus now there remains just one question. What will you do about what you know?