How Can You Believe?

What is it that stands in the way of true faith? Is it that there is not enough evidence, or is there more (or less) to it than that? Actually, evidence is not in short supply, the very creation calls for the necessity of a Creator. As the Apostle Paul wrote to the Believers in Rome, he informed them of this;

Romans 1:18-20  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,  19  because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.  20  For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse…

The evidence is there and it is plain, but men do not want to be accountable. As Jesus confronted the religious leaders of His day, he said essentially the same thing to them. After healing a man on the Sabbath Day to get their attention, He spoke of the testimony of God through the Prophets, and of the Miracles He had performed publically…

John 5:31-34  “If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  32  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  33  You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  34  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.

John 5:36-37  But I have a greater witness than John’s; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish–the very works that I do–bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  37  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.

Though the evidence was overwhelming, these men persisted in their hard-heartedness. It was not their intellect that restrained them from believing that Jesus was the Messiah. Jesus gives the accusation;

John 5:43-44  I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  44  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?

These men were primarily concerned about appearances; what other men thought of them. They were following the status quo of their time. Not to mention that their positions of power would be demonstrated to be without foundation if they accepted Jesus as Messiah. And so, Jesus demonstrates the impossibility of their faith as long as they maintained the mindset that man’s opinions of each other was paramount. When man’s judgment is the determining factor of truth, then the best they can do is to make a god that fits their scheme. God is above all of creation. He has made men in His image and implanted the work of His law on our hearts. In our rebellion, we have sought to suppress that knowledge, but as we hear the truth of His Word and it is quickened by His Holy Spirit, we are able to set men’s opinions aside and seek the truth of the Only True God. It takes a large dose of humility, but in the end, is it better to be thought wise by your peers or the possessor of real wisdom?

How Can You Believe? – AUDIO

From Glory to Glory!

Glory to Glory

Why am I here? What exactly is the point of all of the trials of this life? Why do I still sin? Should I just give up or is there hope for me to become who I ought to be in Christ? Sanctification has been the topic we have been looking at for the past few weeks as we have studied the Letter to the Colossians.  It is a topic that should not only be of interest, but of primary interest to all Christians. After all, we have been saved, not just to avoid hell,  but to be conformed to the image of Christ. As an addendum to our study of Colossians, we took a little detour into 2 Corinthians in our evening service to see what the Apostle Paul says there, is the source of sanctification.

From Glory to Glory – AUDIO

Amazingly, the Apostle does not say that we need to move on from the Gospel to maturity, but that the Gospel itself is the source of sanctification for the saint as much as it is of salvation for the sinner.

2 Corinthians 3:15-18  But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart.  16  Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.  17  Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.  18  But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.

Sanctification was a problem for the Corinthians Believers. They were riddled with gross sin. In fact, just about the whole first letter to them was strong correction. Having seen the sinfulness of sin from Paul’s rebuke, they were beginning to move toward the holiness that they were called to. This moving toward holiness, was the purpose of the second letter.  Paul says to them in 2 Corinthians 7:1  “Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” What promises are these that the Corinthians had? The Gospel, the promise of Christ’s atoning death and righteous life credited to their account as they embraced Him by faith. If God has done this for us, what is our proper response? “cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.” This is accomplished by what the Apostle tells them in the third chapter.

“Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” There is freedom from bondage to the Law with its ceremonies and obligations as well as its penalties, but there is also freedom to become who we are in Christ! This is really accomplished by what he says in verse 18, “But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” The glory of the Old Covenant was pretty spectacular, even though the Law was the bringer of death. Moses came down the mountain glowing from his encounter with God. It was a terrifying glory that had to be covered with a veil. But the glory of the New Covenant eclipses that glory as Christ frees us by becoming our righteousness.

We behold that glory in the mirror of the Gospel. That is where we see Christ most clearly. There we come, with not a veil to obscure His glory, there we see Him as the Creator and the Sacred Victim who bought our freedom and established as holy, blameless and above reproach before the God whom we have alienated and made ourselves enemies of through our sin. What a glorious glory! It is our duty as Christians to make a habit of beholding the glory of the Lord in that mirror. The Greek here is important. “Beholding as in a mirror” is one word in the original. It is in the middle voice which means that it is something we do to ourselves. It is a present tense participle, which means that it is something that continually describes us. We are to be mirror-lookers, constantly beholding the glory of the Lord, as followers of Christ. That is done by spending real time in the Word, reading good books that expand the Gospel to us and by sitting under sound preaching regularly.

One such book that I recently came across was written in 1639 by the Puritan, Richard Sibbes. Here, in 100 pages, he unfolds these two verses (2 Corinthians 3:17-18) to demonstrate the depth of the concept I am writing about here. That book is called, The Excellency of the Gospel Above the Law.  (There is a modern language version out called Glorious Freedom, published by Banner of Truth.)

As we do what we are called to do, in our beholding, God does His part, by His Spirit, to transform us. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” We behold, He transforms. Again, the Greek tells us that this transformation is passive, that means that the Spirit does it to us. It is in the present tense meaning it happens as we are beholding and it is in the indicative mood meaning it is a statement of fact. We behold and He transforms. He does it from “glory to glory.” that is, little by little. Not all at once, but incrementally. He does that to teach us to depend on Him. To build strength in our faith.

So, the Gospel is the key to our sanctification. We need to make sure we are laboring to know it better, to grow in our knowledge and appreciation of it. We do that by continually digging in its deep, rich mines and beholding the glory of the Lord in it. Not by programs or gimmicks, but through the Gospel. As the Apostle told the Colossian Believers, “You are COMPLETE in Him!”

I encourage you to listen to the audio of the lesson and then look for some more resources to help you behold the glory of the Lord. I especially direct you to the works of the Puritans as a most worthy source.

From Glory to Glory – AUDIO

In Christ!

Kevin

Avoiding Shipwreck [1 Timothy Pt. 6]

Avoiding Shipwreck

Ministry is tough! How tough? Paul described it to Timothy as “waging the good warfare.” That’s right, the ministry is a difficult task. The fact that this was prophesied to Timothy was a reason to be encouraged to that task. Many people enter the ministry for notoriety or a sense of importance and yet those who are given the task of overseeing the Flock of God need to be sure who appointed them and take strength from the fact that He knows about the difficulties associated with the job.

Having opened this letter with the declaration that Timothy needed to stop some false teachers in Ephesus (1 Timothy 1:3) and going on to give an overview of the basic point of the ministry, producing love from a pure heart (1 Timothy 1:5), Paul charges the young pastor to take up the reigns of the ministry there.

1 Timothy 1:18-19  This charge I commit to you, son Timothy, according to the prophecies previously made concerning you, that by them you may wage the good warfare,  19  having faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck,

The necessary tools for him to completes his task are “faith and a good conscience.” Those who have lost sight of these things have come up short. The idea of “shipwreck” here is that they never made it to their final destination. They got on the boat, the Church of Jesus Christ, but that boat did not take them where they had hoped to go. The two elements of successful ministry are also applicable to the Christian life. We need to live having both Faith and a Good Conscience.

Faith: Here we are not talking about our ability to ascent to basic facts, but the facts themselves. There are many people who have faith in many things. Some prefer to have an abstract faith that is based on what they think ought to be. This is not faith at all but a delusion.  J.C. Philpot says, “If your doctrine be unsound, your experience must be delusion and your practice imposition.” We have to believe what God says about us and about Himself. We have to take it on His authority. If not, we are not holding to faith but to speculation. Faith has to be in what God has said because faith is taking God at His Word.

The greatest problem we have as fallen human beings is that we don’t want to submit to authority and so, we often struggle to take God at His Word. Our wills get in the way and we skew God’s precepts and promises to fit our preconceived notions. This is dishonest and so Paul adds to simple faith.

Good Conscience: That is, accepting God’s Word, His authority without manipulation. We need to accept what God says about us with unswerving fidelity. Only then will we be able to hold the faith with a good conscience.  Paul mentions men who have used the Gospel to promote their own agenda, Hymenaeus and Alexander. We can’t be sure who Alexander was, but we know that Hymenaeus taught that the resurrection had already happened and overturned the faith of some (2 Timothy 2:17-18). What was the basis of his false teaching? Many commentators believe that it was rooted in proto-Gnosticism. The Gnostics were a group of people who began with the teachings of Plato and formulated their religion around his idealism. That is, out there somewhere is a perfect everything but the things we actually see are imperfect copies of that spiritual ideal. This developed into the idea that spiritual is good and physical is evil. Men brought this presupposition into the Christian faith and began to teach that our souls and spirits are saved, but the evil flesh is unsavable. This lead them to teach that once the soul is saved (Hymenaeus’s resurrection) that the body can continue in sin without detriment. Thus, a licentious Christianity was preached and it destroyed the faith of some. Hymenaeus came to the Faith and altered its truths to fit his ideas and tried to make the faith serve him rather than the other way around. Thus, his faith was superficial and did not allow him to arrive at his expected destination, he suffered shipwreck.

In their commentary on this passage, Jamieson, Fausset and Brown say “If one’s religion better not his morals, his moral deficiencies will corrupt his religion.” The Gospel is a story of God’s remedy for sin, about man’s absolute moral corruption and God’s gracious offer of redemption from all of that. It is salvation from sin, not a way to feel better about yourself. Feeling better about ourselves will eventually come,  but not in such a way as to give us the freedom to walk in sin without compunction.

I believe that many in the Church today are here to let God serve them through the Gospel. To give them personal freedom to live godless lives. This is not holding the faith with a good conscience. As I see it here, the question comes down to this, Who’s agenda takes precedence? Am I looking for a Gospel that will serve me or a Gospel that demands my service to it? The answer to that question will also determine whether you ship will arrive at the destination that you hope for or become shipwrecked along the way.

I encourage you to listen to the audio of our discussion and to make an assessment of your agenda.

Avoiding Shipwreck – AUDIO

In Christ!

Kevin

Perfect in Christ [Colossians Pt.11]

Perfect in Christ

What is the purpose of the Church in the world? What should our goal be as far as ministry? Many believe that it is either to evangelize  or to worship and glorify God. I would say that they are part of the bigger plan. Certainly the Glory of God is ultimate goal. However, this is done simultaneously not only through evangelism and worship, but ultimately by bringing sinners to maturity in Christ. Thus evangelizing, worshiping and also instructing people to bring them to completion in Christ (who then evangelize, worship and bring others to maturity) glorifies God in the ultimate sense.

The Apostle Paul’s goal in life and ministry is given to us in the verses that lead us from the end of Colossians 1 and into chapter 2.  He tells them;

Colossians 1:28-29  Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.  29  To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.

To “present every man perfect in Christ.” is the goal that accomplishes God’s purpose and thus tends the most to His Glory. This includes their coming to faith and learning to worship and live for Him.  It also includes our ministry to them in that process.  It is done by the ministry of preaching, teaching and warning every man in all wisdom. The inculcation of the primary truths of the Gospel is the substance of it all.

Colossians 2:1-3  For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh,  2  that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ,  3  in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Encouragement, love and assurance are the basis of the the “perfected” man. They are rooted in an understanding of the knowledge of the great mystery of the Gospel; that God would make His enemies into His sons and daughters and give them a perfect standing in righteousness before Him through the sacrifice of His only Son. As we embrace this basic idea and begin to grow in our understanding of its implications, we gain more encouragement, grow in our love for God and one another, and become more assured of our place in His plan. The depth of that mystery is unfathomable, just as the God who has planned it and brought it to pass as a result of and yet in spite of our rebellion. As we trust God and His plan we are changed and grow in this simple yet profound truth.

This is the goal of all ministry.  Not to present “new” truths or to grow up beyond the basics of the Gospel, but to help people to grow deeper in their grasp and appropriation of this basic truth. It is when we try to move beyond it that we move toward error, as the Apostle warns them next;

Colossians 2:4-8  Now this I say lest anyone should deceive you with persuasive words.  5  For though I am absent in the flesh, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the steadfastness of your faith in Christ.  6  As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,  7  rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.  8  Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.

The questions then come; What are you looking for in your walk with Christ? What are you trying to accomplish with your ministry? If it is not to move into a deeper apprehension and application of the fundamental concepts of the Gospel, then it is likely that you will be lead or lead others away from the true Faith, away from the Glory of God. I encourage you to listen to the audio of this message and contemplate the truths as we find them here in the letter to the Colossians; to evaluate your walk and ministry and to seek the Glory of God through His ordained means.

Perfect in Christ – AUDIO

In Christ!
Kevin

What Would You Suffer For? [Colossians Pt.10]

Suffering for the Gospel

What is there in your life that you value the most? What would you willingly suffer for? Family, Home, Way of Life?

In this series from Colossians we have seen Paul’s acknowledgment of the reality of the faith of the Colossian Believers (Col 1:3-8), His prayer for them to have the strength that comes from God and to understand His mercy (Col 1:9-14) and his brief, but densely packed and powerful summary of the Gospel (Col 1:15-23). Once he has done all of this, he moves on to show them the value of it from his own personal example as he tells them;

Colossians 1:24-25  I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church,  25  of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God,

Paul, as he writes from prison, where he is incarcerated for his faith, tells them that his suffering is a cause for his rejoicing. The reason that he is rejoicing in his suffering is because they are being benefited by it.  Paul was called by Jesus on the Damascus Road and when he was converted it was said to the man who commissioned him that Jesus was going to show him how much he would have to suffer for Him (Acts 9:15-16). But Paul is not the only one who is called to suffer for Jesus Christ. He said to the Disciples in Luke 9:23,  “Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” All of us who name the name of Christ are called to suffering on His behalf. I know that many preachers today try to promise prosperity and blessing to all who claim to follow Jesus, but that flatly contradicts what the Bible teaches. Sure there are blessings, sometimes material blessings, but that is not what defines our relationship to Jesus.

Suffering and Salvation are often paired in the Bible. The Apostle Paul told Timothy, “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” (2 Timothy 3:12) There are reasons why Jesus deems it necessary for His servants to suffer. Reasons that should make us rejoice in our suffering as well. The letter that Peter wrote to the Believers in Asia Minor that we call 1 Peter, was written to saints who were suffering persecution that was far beyond what most of us will ever see. Read that letter looking for exhortations to suffering Christians and you will see it properly. He gives them at least three reasons for their suffering and we can see others in the New Testament as well. I have found at least five.

1. To strengthen them in their faith and their relationship with God.   1 Peter 5:10  “But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.”
2. To increase our hope as we await His return and our rest from the suffering of this life. 1 Peter 4:13  “but rejoice to the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding joy.”
3. To obtain a good testimony before God and men. 1 Peter 2:20  “For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God.”
4. It also benefits the other members of the Church, (as we saw in Colossians 1:24) particularly the preaching of the Gospel as those who are being called see the commitment of those who preach it. 2 Timothy 1:8-12  “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God,  9  who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,  10  but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,  11  to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles.  12  For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.”
5. Finally we see in the Letter to the Hebrews, that it increases our compassion for others. Hebrews 10:32-34  “But recall the former days in which, after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle with sufferings:  33  partly while you were made a spectacle both by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated;  34  for you had compassion on me in my chains, and joyfully accepted the plundering of your goods, knowing that you have a better and an enduring possession for yourselves in heaven.”

Suffering, suffering well, suffering with integrity, suffering in faith; these show the world that we are serious and that we really believe and value the message of the Gospel above all else. It is God’s way of showing men the value of the message that He has commissioned us to carry to them. Do you value the Gospel and those who need to hear it enough to suffer for them? Do you value them enough to rejoice in that suffering?

Audio from this message is available by clicking on the link below.

Suffering for the Gospel – AUDIO

In Christ!

Kevin

Right Use of the Law [1 Timothy Pt. 4]

Right Use of the Law

A couple of weeks ago we considered the Wrong use of the Law. This time we took on the other side of the issue. How is the Law to be used in the New Testament Church?  As the Apostle Paul instructs the pastor, Timothy, charging him to stop false teachers from corrupting the church he tells him this,

1 Timothy 1:7-11  desiring to be teachers of the law, understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.  8  But we know that the law is good if one uses it lawfully,  9  knowing this: that the law is not made for a righteous person, but for the lawless and insubordinate, for the ungodly and for sinners, for the unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers,  10  for fornicators, for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine,  11  according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust.

Although there is an issue in the church with putting people under legalistic restrictions and Paul wants to confront that issue, that does not mean that we should throw out the baby with the bathwater. There is a proper use for God’s moral commands and the Apostle says that it is to used, not with righteous people, but with sinners.  I think that the most amazing phrase in this passage is in verse 11,

…according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God…

According to the Gospel, the law is to be used in the confrontation of sinners and the Apostle gives us a typical laundry list of behaviors that he classifies as sin. Notice that there are extremes like murder and sexual sin that are included with others that we would consider less sinful such as lying. According to the standard of God, there is no difference. The problem here is common in the church, probably more so than the legalism that we discussed last time. Not calling sin, sin is the result of the culture telling the church how to think about things. Certainly the average “sinner” does not want to consider himself as such. But sin is the human problem.

Sin is THE problem that humanity has more than any other. All other problems have sin as their source either directly or indirectly. Unless and until we come to grips with it we will never see our need for the Savior. Speaking to the Ephesian Church at another time the Apostle reminded them of where they had come from and how they had gotten there;

Ephesians 2:1-5  And you, who were dead in trespasses and sins,  2  in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience,  3  among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.  4  But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,  5  even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),

He tells the Romans after two chapters of educating them about the  nature and origin of sin;

Romans 3:19-20  Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.  20  Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

If this is the case and God has given us the tool to bring the knowledge of sin and bring conviction over it, if Paul says that it is so, “according to the glorious Gospel of the blessed God,” then to leave this tool unused in our preaching of the Gospel is to mistrust God’s judgment and consider ourselves smarter than He. Author Ian Murray says in an article on Puritan, Thomas Hooker‘s understanding of conversion, “If repentance means turning one’s back upon sin, and if conversion entails turning from sin to holiness, no one is going to see the need for such a change who has not first felt sin to be a burden. Faith is more than reason but it is not irrational. It is a response to truth, and where faith is not the act of a person who understands his need of the saving power of Christ it is not scriptural faith.” And so, it is our responsibility to use the Law to bring conviction of sin in order that men will see their need of the Savior.

This is the way to love people. This is the way to bring rebels to reconciliation with a Holy God. The alternative is to leave them to their destruction and that is not love.

You can listen to the audio of this study by clicking on the link below.

The Right Use of the Law – AUDIO

In Christ!

Kevin

Interpreting Scripture

What is interpretation? Do we all do it? Does that mean that when we do, “Our Interpretation” is only valid in our culture and time? On the other hand, can we read something like the Bible without interpreting it? Doesn’t it just say what it says?

To answer this question we need to consider some other important truths first. How important is it to know what the Bible says? If it is God’s Word to us, it is of utmost importance.

If it is that important to know, How did God communicate it to us?  He communicated it to us through written language. So, how important is that written language? As important as the content that it carries within.

If the words and syntax are needed to get the message, then it is our duty to show due diligence in gaining an understanding of it. Certainly the Holy Spirit will help us in this,  but we also bear a responsibility in it as God’s Word itself tells us.

2 Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

2 Peter 3:15-16 and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation–as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given to him, has written to you,  16  as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which untaught and unstable people twist to their own destruction, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures.

And so, as Believers in Jesus Christ, we need to work at it. If we value what it says, we will have no problem in working to understand it. I have given some pretty detailed instruction on this in the past. On Wednesday I gave a short lesson on it. I encourage you listen and read and pray and THINK as you read God’s Word.

June 15, 2011   Interpreting Scripture

October 30, 2010  Interpreting Scripture (Men’s Bible Study, Longer)

May 5, 2007   Hermeneutics (Men’s Bible Study, Most Detalied)

Notes in PDF

In Christ!

Kevin

Looking For Love Pt. 4; The Purpose of the Commandment

The Purpose of the Commandment

How does your understanding of God’s love effect your life? Can you say, “God is love.” or “I know that God loves me.” without in turn loving others? Can you take God’s love for granted? Certainly we all do at times. Now let me ask you another question. Does the teaching that you receive in your church inspire you to love others or does it make you want to separate from those who are not like you? As the Apostle Paul instructed the young pastor, Timothy to lead the church at Ephesus, his first instruction was to command false teachers to quit adding to the Gospel. This was obvious because their teaching brought endless arguing and debate. That is not to say that we should end all debate, but that the main fruit of it was not godliness and contentment but pride and contention. This ought not to be the case.

1 Timothy 1:3-4 As I urged you when I went into Macedonia–remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine,  4  nor give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which cause disputes rather than godly edification which is in faith.

Love certainly is not afraid of confrontation when it is needed. As these men who claimed the office of teacher showed the wrong fruit, it was necessary to stop them. They imagined themselves teachers of the Law (1 Timothy 1:7) but really did not base their teachings on the truth of God’s Word. The purpose of instruction in the church is not to show ourselves how wonderful we are. It is not to brag about our superior knowledge or morality. It is not supposed to generate an attitude of arrogance! Paul tells Timothy what the ultimate goal of all instruction is supposed to be.

1 Timothy 1:5 Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,

In the context of the first chapter of 1 Timothy, it should become obvious that love for one another is the indispensable fruit of knowing Christ. In the Law and in the Gospel, love for God and one another is the goal;

Matthew 22:36-40 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”  37  Jesus said to him, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’  38  This is the first and great commandment.  39  And the second is like it: ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’  40  On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

John 13:34-35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.  35  By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

Don’t take this as an assertion that the Bible teaches that we just love people without regard to truth or sin. The context of the passage in 1 Timothy certainly does not support that idea! Love looks out for the benefit of others; the true benefit! The Love of God, His creating, preserving and saving us from our sin was not just a feeling or a sentiment. It involved His own personal expense and suffering. Love does that. It also rebukes the one who is bent on self-destruction, i.e the false teachers in Ephesus.  But it does not teach us to hate people. It does not teach us to neglect or separate ourselves from them.

We certainly do not deserve the Love of God! To take it in and not see the need to let if flow back out to others is blindness in the extreme. What would your spouse say if you expected them to give in their relationship to you but you never gave back to them in that relationship? It would not be much of a relationship.

Matthew 5:43-48 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.’  44  But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you,  45  that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.  46  For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?  47  And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so?  48  Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.

The purpose of the commandment is, Love from a pure heart, a good conscience and sincere faith. The teaching  that is done in our churches, that we listen to on the radio, television or internet, what purpose does it serve? It must be both sound in doctrine and conducive to generating an attitude of love in us or it is either inadequate or in error.

Audio of this message is available by clicking the link below.

The Purpose of the Commandment

In Christ!

Kevin

God’s Patient Love [Jonah Pt.9]

God's Patient Love

So, what does a story about a prophet of Israel going to preach to a bunch of Assyrians have to do with God’s plan working itself out in the Old Testament? Some of the Jews couldn’t figure that one out.  Bible Commentators Jamieson, Fausset and Borwn remark, “It seemed strange to Kimchi, a Jew himself, that the Book of Jonah is among the Scriptures, as the only prophecy in it concerns Nineveh, a heathen city, and makes no mention of Israel, which is referred to by every other prophet. The reason seems to be: a tacit reproof of Israel is intended; a heathen people were ready to repent at the first preaching of the prophet, a stranger to them; but Israel, who boasted of being God’s elect, repented not, though warned by their own prophets at all seasons.” This is certain. I would add to it that it is also a tacit reproof of Jonah and rest of the Jews who had an attitude of hoarding God’s Love. A desire not to let the promise God made to Abraham, to bless every family of the earth, actually come to pass.

Sometimes, we as Christians forget that God has saved us in spite of ourselves. Not because we are such wonderful people who are deserving of His love, but because His is a loving and faithful God. Jonah could not stomach the idea that the God who is, “…a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. ” (Jonah 4:2)  would behave that way to anyone other than his own people. Yet, his own people were once aliens from God and His promises and were called through Abraham, not because of who they were, but due to God’s love. (Deuteronomy 7:7-8) In spite of His love, they rebelled more and more as He called this with cords of Love to turn from their idols and their sin (Hosea 11:1-4)

As Christians we to were once “aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.” (Ephesians 2:12) In spite of who we were, God chose to set His love upon us. Totally Undeserved! If this is so, how can we look upon another person and feel any sense that they are undeserving of God’s mercy and more that we?

Titus  3:3-5 For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit,

There is ultimately a lesson in the book of Jonah that we need to see. Jonah certainly had reason to hate the Assyrians. They had pillaged and plundered his homeland. They had subjugated it and forced it to pay tribute. Yet, when God chose to show mercy to them, Jonah was reproved by God for opposing His plan. How much less can we stand in judgment over God as He chooses to show mercy to others, no less deserving that ourselves? This it the heart of the message of Jonah as the Jews read it and continued in their sin, yet begrudged God’s mercy to heathen who obeyed His Word. May we never find ourselves in such a place as Christians. Hear God’s gentle reproof!

Jonah 4:10-11 But the LORD said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which came up in a night and perished in a night. And should I not pity Nineveh, that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot discern between their right hand and their left–and much livestock?

How easily our priorities can get shifted! How easily can our comfort and customs cause us to take God’s grace for granted and look with conceit upon others whom we deem less worthy. Yet as with Jonah, how patiently God deals with us, as He gently reminds us of His grace in our own lives.

You can listen to audio of this message by clicking on the link below.

God’s Patient Love

In Christ!

Kevin

Looking for Love; It’s Source and Supply

Its Source and Supply

What is love? In order to define it from a post-modern philosophical perspective it is just a certain way the chemicals in your brain respond to specific stimuli. It is nothing more than the firing of a synapse.  From a purely naturalistic perspective that is all you get. We all know that there is more to love than a chemical process. It is the driving force of society. From the Christian Worldview there is a much more satisfying answer.  Christian Thinker Francis Schaeffer says in his book, The God Who is There,

“The validity and meaning of love rests upon the reality that love exists between the Father and the Son in the Trinity”

That is right. Love existed in a very real way before there was one molecule to the universe. It existed perfectly and completely within the Godhead. Not only that, but just hours before His arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed that that love would be known and understood through what He was about to do in order to bring people into a right relationship with that God. Just before He went to the Cross He prayed these words;

John 17:20-23 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word;  21  that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  22  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  23  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

That love, expressed through the cross (for those who are not worthy of it!) was extended beyond the members of the Trinity. It came to a fallen race of rebellious men. It was demonstrated by the willingness of One of the members of the Godhead who willingly suffered, absorbing the wrath of God, the penalty for sin, for the benefit of those rebels.

Romans 5:6-8 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.  7  For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.  8  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Because of this, the very same love that the Father has for the Son is offered to all who will repent and believe in what the Son has done. God’s love is extended through the sacrifice of His Son. To reject the Son is to reject the very love of God. To receive that Love of God through the Son is to go from being an alien and an enemy to being a member of the Household of God.

Ephesians 2:11-19 Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh–who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands– 12  that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.  13  But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.  14  For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation,  15  having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace,  16  and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity.  17  And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near.  18  For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.  19  Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,

We will be studying this love for several weeks on Wednesday nights. I encourage you to join us or at least listen in here or on the church website. We can never explore this subject too much.

The past two Wednesdays we been in this study. You can listen to audio of the studies by clicking on the links below.

What Manner of Love? – 1 John 3:1-3

The Love With Which You Have Loved Me – John 17:20-26

I Christ!

Kevin