In my last two sermons in 1 Corinthians, I have started to examine what was going on in the Corinthian church in relation to the "charismata". The term "charismata", in the original Greek simply means, "grace gifts" and is used in modern Greek to say, "birthday gift". Some changes, but the intent is more or less the same...an undeserved, and unmerited gift from God. Now we know that God in his grace has given us many gifts. The gift of salvation (Eph. 2:8-9), justification (Rom. 5:16), Eternal life (Rom. 6:23) the gift of giving (2 Cor. 9:15) etc. But we are talking specifically here about the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which are given to the elect for the purpose of building up the church. Eph 4:7 "But grace was given to each one of us according to the measure of Christ's gift" It is the Holy Spirit who takes that which is Christ's and applies to us making it our own. Therefore, every person who is born again and is given the Holy Spirit has been gifted by the Spirit for some type of ministry, and there is no such thing as the gift of pew warming. When we think of Christians being charismatic, we automatically assume that they must be prophets, speak in tongues or perform miracles, but this is not the case. There are many gifts that the Holy Spirit has bestowed on His church which are not spectacular or supernatural. Thus, if we are to interpret Scripture correctly- all Christians are charismatics. The problem is how we interpret charismatic.We need to take closer look at the scriptures. In Corinth the gifts that were manifested and were emphasized by the Corinthians, Paul makes reference to in 1 Cor. 12:9-11. But that is not an exclusive or exhaustive list. For instance look at Rom. 12:6-8
Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.
Did you ever think that serving is a gift? What about the ability contribute to the the finances of the church? Or the what about showing mercy? These are gifts of the spirit as well! They may not be spectacular or illustrious, but for the most part being a Christan is living our day to day lives not on the mountain top experiences of the supernatural highs, but rather on the plateaus and valleys where we live by faith in Christ, and are enabled by the Spirit to minister in every day life.
Too often the charismatic church puts all their emphasis on the spectacular and the extraordinary. But that's not reality. The Christian walk is not a Harry Potter movie. The bible may have records of the miraculous and supernatural, but they do not characterize the majority of biblical history. A thorough reading of the bible gives us examples of many believers who lived their life day to day in the power of the Spirit and yet these are the men and women have likewise been gifted by the Holy Spirit.
The challenge for all of us is to discover our gifts and put them to use. How do we do that? First we should pray and ask God to show us where he has gifted us to serve. Second- you should ask your pastor or an elder what they think. Often an elder, or pastor will have good insight into a persons gifting. But ultimately, God will confirm it to you as you live out your life and people will actually tell you what your gift is. The real point is that we are exercising our gifts. On judgment day we will all have to give an account for how we used the gifts God has given us. I personally think that the parable of the talents can have application here. To whatever level of gifting you have received is to the level we are responsible.
Luke 12:48 Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
A Righteousness Not Our Own
Not too long ago I was challenged by someone to rethink the imputation of Christ's righteousness to the sinner and consider that the teaching of the active obedience of Christ was simply a result of an antiquated argument. After pondering these ideas for some time it was obvious these were thinly veiled suggestions coming from the popular "New Perspective". For those of you who have no clue what I am talking about, don't feel bad. In the academic world of evangelicalism there are some heated debates among Christian scholars that the average lay person would have no clue about. However those academic debates eventually trickle down to the lay persons in one form or another. The debate we are talking about is with New Testament scholar and Anglican Bishop N.T. Wright. Bishop Wright is a brilliant man and among one of the best New Testament scholars in the church, and has contributed a great deal of good to the church. However he has also reintroduced a teaching that is not sound and can lead to serious problems if left unchallenged. The teaching commonly refereed to as the "New Perspective of Paul" based on his book- "Paul in Fresh Perspective". Overall Wright argues that evangelicals have misunderstood justification as it was understood by Paul. One of his arguments, among many, is that imputation was merely a product of middle age thought and restricted to just the Reformation mind set. Based on new scholarship of Judaism during the first century, he argues that we now have a "fresh perspective" so to speak, on Paul's view of justification. Here a couple of snippets of his views:
“It is therefore a straightforward category mistake, however venerable within some Reformed traditions including part of my own, to suppose that Jesus ‘obeyed the law’ and so obtained ‘righteousness’ which could be reckoned to those who believe in him. …It is not the ‘righteousness’ of Jesus Christ which is ‘reckoned’ to the believer. It is his death and resurrection.”
—N.T. Wright, Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision, p. 232
Is there then no 'reckoning of righteousness' in, for instance, Romans 5:14-21? Yes, there is; but my case is that this is not God's own righteousness, or Christ's own righteousness, that is reckoned to God's redeemed people, but rather the fresh status of 'covenant member', and/or 'justified sinner', which is accredited to those who are in Christ, who have heard the gospel and responded with 'the obedience of faith'." -N.T. Wright, 10th Edinburgh Dogmatics Conference: 25–28 August 2003, p. 8
In the this weeks sermon I made a clear biblical case for the doctrine of imputation and believe it is as clear as can be. I adamantly reject the New Perspective on the grounds that it leaves many questions unanswered about righteousness, and leaves the door wide open for works righteousness, whereby the believer is credited with a righteousness of their own. I cannot see how it is possible for a believer to merit any good before God. But for anyone who may doubt, I will not pretend to be a scholar, and instead point you to some of the most formidable theologians and scholars of our day and allow them to dissect Wright's views. Below are a few links that you will find helpful. But a more thorough search will help you find a wealth of resources.
Tom Schreiner's article
More Media from Ligonier Ministries
Media by D.A. Carson
Media by John Piper
Happy Studying!
“It is therefore a straightforward category mistake, however venerable within some Reformed traditions including part of my own, to suppose that Jesus ‘obeyed the law’ and so obtained ‘righteousness’ which could be reckoned to those who believe in him. …It is not the ‘righteousness’ of Jesus Christ which is ‘reckoned’ to the believer. It is his death and resurrection.”
—N.T. Wright, Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision, p. 232
Is there then no 'reckoning of righteousness' in, for instance, Romans 5:14-21? Yes, there is; but my case is that this is not God's own righteousness, or Christ's own righteousness, that is reckoned to God's redeemed people, but rather the fresh status of 'covenant member', and/or 'justified sinner', which is accredited to those who are in Christ, who have heard the gospel and responded with 'the obedience of faith'." -N.T. Wright, 10th Edinburgh Dogmatics Conference: 25–28 August 2003, p. 8
In the this weeks sermon I made a clear biblical case for the doctrine of imputation and believe it is as clear as can be. I adamantly reject the New Perspective on the grounds that it leaves many questions unanswered about righteousness, and leaves the door wide open for works righteousness, whereby the believer is credited with a righteousness of their own. I cannot see how it is possible for a believer to merit any good before God. But for anyone who may doubt, I will not pretend to be a scholar, and instead point you to some of the most formidable theologians and scholars of our day and allow them to dissect Wright's views. Below are a few links that you will find helpful. But a more thorough search will help you find a wealth of resources.
Tom Schreiner's article
More Media from Ligonier Ministries
Media by D.A. Carson
Media by John Piper
Happy Studying!
Monday, October 25, 2010
The Proper Observance of the Lord's Supper
What a wonderful occasion the Lord's Supper is for believers to celebrate and remember the work of Christ on the cross. If there is one thing we learned yesterday is that one of the key aspects of the Lord's Supper- is that it is a time to remember. Memorials are important in our life so we never forget life changing and important events in our life and society. As a nation we celebrate the 4th of July as Independence Day, remembering what it took to gain independence as a nation. On Sept. 11 of every year, we take time to remember the tragic loss of lives on 911 when so many people died in the worst attack on our nation. The names are read from Ground Zero every year as a memorial so that the reality of what took place there may remain fresh in people's memory. As married couples we celebrate our wedding anniversary every year usually by going to a special dinner and play, or maybe a vacation to spend time as a couple reflecting on the genesis of love in one's relationship. In the same way the Lord instituted the Lord's Supper so that the message of the gospel would remain fresh in our minds on a frequent basis. The Lord's Supper brings us back to Calvary and back to where the greatest act of God for mankind ever took place. It was monumental and was a life changing event for all who believe. The Lord's Supper brings us back to the foot of the cross, to see how our sins hung our Lord on that cross to be our vicarious substitute in atoning for our sins. When you begin to consider the importance of the meaning behind the Lord' Supper, we begin to value it as more than just a ritual but a celebration of eternal life.
In a recent article written by CJ Mahaney he writes this, "It is frighteningly easy to lose sight of Calvary. We drift away from the cross, not toward it." What CJ writes demonstrates that our natural tendency is to drift from the cross. What an amazing display of God's grace and wisdom to institute the Lord's Supper to keep the cross fresh in our minds! May we always live our lives close to the cross, and never let go. May we live in the grace of God knowing our sins have been forgiven and humbled by the great price paid for our redemption. Hallelujah! What a Savior!
In a recent article written by CJ Mahaney he writes this, "It is frighteningly easy to lose sight of Calvary. We drift away from the cross, not toward it." What CJ writes demonstrates that our natural tendency is to drift from the cross. What an amazing display of God's grace and wisdom to institute the Lord's Supper to keep the cross fresh in our minds! May we always live our lives close to the cross, and never let go. May we live in the grace of God knowing our sins have been forgiven and humbled by the great price paid for our redemption. Hallelujah! What a Savior!
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Robbing God
This past Sunday, Pastor Paul Frey delivered a very challenging sermon on the topic of robbing God. His passage was selected from Malachi Chapter 3 and was a thorough examination of what it means to rob God. I have been a Christian now for fifteen years and have heard sermons preached on Mal. 3:8 numerous times. It is a favorite among the prosperity preachers and is commonly used when churches need to raise funds. After hearing so many sermons on the subject it is easy to become desensitized and not really hear any more. Why is this? Because of the sensitive topic of money. Because the church has so abused this passage and so many preachers have conned people out of their money by using such a passage, we tend to have a resistance to such words because of the abuse of many so called Christina.
But can we discount the inspired words of scripture because of those who have misused it? God forbid. That is like saying, lets cease to be moral because so many legalistic people have misused the scriptures to impose their beliefs. Or that is like saying, let's abandon any kind of eschatology because so many teachers have made such outrageous interpretations. No. We cannot and must not take such an approach. The words of Malachi 3 are as strong and as relevant today as they were when Malachi prophesied several centuries before Christ. Listen to the word:
"Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need."
The attitude of Malachi's immediate audience is not different today. the attitude they has was that they believed whatever wealth they had was theirs. What they didn't realize is that everything they owned was God's. The same today- when you look at your checking account, do we see it as our money, or the Lord's money? Depending on your perspective and attitude, will determine whether or not the charge of robbing God sticks or not. If indeed our resources are God's, than we are indeed robbing him, by failing to obey him and give back to him a portion of what has been given us. If it is ours, God has no claim.Recently my daughter has learned the word "mine". In our daily learning lessons, Rachel will sometimes defy me and grab something in the house and say "mine!" To which I usually respond, "No honey, everything is mine. You are just borrowing this from me." Sadly many of us act like 2 year old children when it come to money and scream "Mine!"
In 1 Chron. 29:12-14 David prays a prayer of blessing upon the plans to build a temple in God's honor. in light of the contributions the Israelites made to the Temple fund, David prays like this:
"Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. 13 And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name. 14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you."
David clearly knew that anything he had to give to God was from God to begin with. We have nothing to offer God. We are bankrupt sinners who deserve nothing but God's judgment. Only by His grace we have anything good to offer him. And only by His grace are we able to work and earn a living. Therefore if God has been so gracious (generous) to us, how can we be cheap with him and rob him? The tithe was an OT principle for maintaining the priesthood. We no longer are under the OT jurisdiction, but that does not lessen our responsibility but rather it heightens our responsibility. The entire sermon on the Mount was preached by Christ, not to lessen the teachings of the Law, but to demonstrate the greater meaning and how much more is required to be "righteousness". God showed his grace towards us in the ultimate way by "Not sparing his only Son..And graciously gives us all things" Rom. 8:33, then we, out of humble gratitude, ought to give God our very best. Robbing God is not just about money, but we rob can rob God in our time, our gifts, our worship, our love, our honor and obedience. The eighth commandment forbids stealing from our fellow man. How much worse of a crime is it when we rob from God! The lesson is clear- After God has shown so much grace, we should be constrained with great love to honor God with the first fruits of our wealth. Then the windows of heaven will pour out a blessing, till there is not need. You cannot out give God, he has abundantly more than you or I can ever offer him!
But can we discount the inspired words of scripture because of those who have misused it? God forbid. That is like saying, lets cease to be moral because so many legalistic people have misused the scriptures to impose their beliefs. Or that is like saying, let's abandon any kind of eschatology because so many teachers have made such outrageous interpretations. No. We cannot and must not take such an approach. The words of Malachi 3 are as strong and as relevant today as they were when Malachi prophesied several centuries before Christ. Listen to the word:
"Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need."
The attitude of Malachi's immediate audience is not different today. the attitude they has was that they believed whatever wealth they had was theirs. What they didn't realize is that everything they owned was God's. The same today- when you look at your checking account, do we see it as our money, or the Lord's money? Depending on your perspective and attitude, will determine whether or not the charge of robbing God sticks or not. If indeed our resources are God's, than we are indeed robbing him, by failing to obey him and give back to him a portion of what has been given us. If it is ours, God has no claim.Recently my daughter has learned the word "mine". In our daily learning lessons, Rachel will sometimes defy me and grab something in the house and say "mine!" To which I usually respond, "No honey, everything is mine. You are just borrowing this from me." Sadly many of us act like 2 year old children when it come to money and scream "Mine!"
In 1 Chron. 29:12-14 David prays a prayer of blessing upon the plans to build a temple in God's honor. in light of the contributions the Israelites made to the Temple fund, David prays like this:
"Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. 13 And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name. 14 “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able thus to offer willingly? For all things come from you, and of your own have we given you."
David clearly knew that anything he had to give to God was from God to begin with. We have nothing to offer God. We are bankrupt sinners who deserve nothing but God's judgment. Only by His grace we have anything good to offer him. And only by His grace are we able to work and earn a living. Therefore if God has been so gracious (generous) to us, how can we be cheap with him and rob him? The tithe was an OT principle for maintaining the priesthood. We no longer are under the OT jurisdiction, but that does not lessen our responsibility but rather it heightens our responsibility. The entire sermon on the Mount was preached by Christ, not to lessen the teachings of the Law, but to demonstrate the greater meaning and how much more is required to be "righteousness". God showed his grace towards us in the ultimate way by "Not sparing his only Son..And graciously gives us all things" Rom. 8:33, then we, out of humble gratitude, ought to give God our very best. Robbing God is not just about money, but we rob can rob God in our time, our gifts, our worship, our love, our honor and obedience. The eighth commandment forbids stealing from our fellow man. How much worse of a crime is it when we rob from God! The lesson is clear- After God has shown so much grace, we should be constrained with great love to honor God with the first fruits of our wealth. Then the windows of heaven will pour out a blessing, till there is not need. You cannot out give God, he has abundantly more than you or I can ever offer him!
Monday, October 4, 2010
All Things to the Glory of God
After ending a long season on the topic of "eating meat sacrificed to idols", the scripture left us on a high note, instructing us on the importance of doing all things to the glory of God. I find that in life our attitudes and action are either going to glorify God or not. If our attitudes and actions do not glorify God they are either bringing glory to self, or they bringing glory to satan. Immediately one would protest, "But isn't that too dogmatic? Aren't there some things that are just neutral?" On the surface it appears that some actions in life can be purely neutral, like watching a movie, or playing golf. But what is a neutral action? Is there such a thing? Every decision we make in life is driven by some particular inward disposition. For example if I do choose to watch a movie, I am going to choose a genre that I like. If my wife brings home a chic-flic with Julia Roberts, more than likely I will cozy up to a good book instead. The point here is that we do what we like, and we don't do what we don't like. Therefore nothing is done from a neutral disposition. That is why Paul used such insignificant and mundane examples like food and drink. Even what we eat and drink- as unimportant as it appears, has a motivating force behind it.
The question we must begin to ask our selves is "What is motivating us when we make certain decision, or take certain attitudes?" Are we motivated by a love for God and a strong desire to bring him glory? And if not, why? Perhaps we are seeking the glory of another? Perhaps ourselves? If scripture commands us to premeditate on what we eat and drink so as to bring glory to God, what parts of our life are outside the realm of being lived to His glory? Nothing. Every part of our life should be lived with a single minded purpose to glorify God, to honor Him, and make Him look great! The only way this is possible is if we are born again. We must be regenerated and given a new heart with new desires if we are going to live a life that is motivated by giving glory to God. Because only a regenerate heart can have such a radical approach to life. That is because when God give us a new heart, we now delight in bringing glory to God and desire to make much of Him. Therefore eating, drinking, and doing whatever to the glory of God is not a burden but a delight.
So many Christians ,I believe, deceive themselves into thinking that there are areas of life that are neutral, and neither bring glory to God nor bring reproach to the Lord. In my own life recently I have had a startling revelation. I was obsessed with politics and was for all intents and purposes a "news junky". However one day the Holy Spirit brought great conviction upon me. I asked myself, "How is my obsession with politics bringing glory to God?"What I realized is that politics was just another seductive distraction the world has produced to make me lose focus on my main purpose in life. By God's grace, I rarely watch the news anymore, and take no pleasure in it. The longer I am a Christian, I find myself takign no pleasure in doing vain things, and finding great passion and joy in doing those thigns that are most glorifying to God! The point here is we may need to do a personal inventory and begin to question our motives in our favorite hobbies and activities. We may need to get on our knees and ask God to reveal to us if there is anything in our lives that is NOT gloriying to him, and we may be surprised what the Holy Spirt may reveal. When praying lke this mediate on Ps. 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me,and lead me in the way everlasting!"
If we are honest with ourselves, and open to the Spirits leading, we may find out that our lives may need some rearranging or at the very least a new attitude about the activities we engage in. In the end, our main goal- To God be the Glory!
The question we must begin to ask our selves is "What is motivating us when we make certain decision, or take certain attitudes?" Are we motivated by a love for God and a strong desire to bring him glory? And if not, why? Perhaps we are seeking the glory of another? Perhaps ourselves? If scripture commands us to premeditate on what we eat and drink so as to bring glory to God, what parts of our life are outside the realm of being lived to His glory? Nothing. Every part of our life should be lived with a single minded purpose to glorify God, to honor Him, and make Him look great! The only way this is possible is if we are born again. We must be regenerated and given a new heart with new desires if we are going to live a life that is motivated by giving glory to God. Because only a regenerate heart can have such a radical approach to life. That is because when God give us a new heart, we now delight in bringing glory to God and desire to make much of Him. Therefore eating, drinking, and doing whatever to the glory of God is not a burden but a delight.
So many Christians ,I believe, deceive themselves into thinking that there are areas of life that are neutral, and neither bring glory to God nor bring reproach to the Lord. In my own life recently I have had a startling revelation. I was obsessed with politics and was for all intents and purposes a "news junky". However one day the Holy Spirit brought great conviction upon me. I asked myself, "How is my obsession with politics bringing glory to God?"What I realized is that politics was just another seductive distraction the world has produced to make me lose focus on my main purpose in life. By God's grace, I rarely watch the news anymore, and take no pleasure in it. The longer I am a Christian, I find myself takign no pleasure in doing vain things, and finding great passion and joy in doing those thigns that are most glorifying to God! The point here is we may need to do a personal inventory and begin to question our motives in our favorite hobbies and activities. We may need to get on our knees and ask God to reveal to us if there is anything in our lives that is NOT gloriying to him, and we may be surprised what the Holy Spirt may reveal. When praying lke this mediate on Ps. 139:23-24
Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me,and lead me in the way everlasting!"
If we are honest with ourselves, and open to the Spirits leading, we may find out that our lives may need some rearranging or at the very least a new attitude about the activities we engage in. In the end, our main goal- To God be the Glory!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
How to Know a False Prophet?
My journey in the faith has taken me through some interesting places. When I first was saved, my first worship experience took me to hyper charismatic church which was at best, sorely off track.The gospel was preached and the pastor used the expository method, however the service was frequently interrupted by holy laughter and other strange phenomenon. Perhaps the worst experience was one night at a home bible study watching a woman run around in a fit of hysteria, screaming and yelling with her face red, and foaming at the mouth. As I watched in horror I asked one of the attendees what was happening and she exclaimed, "Sister so and so is experiencing a filling of the Holy Spirit" Immediately my 19 year old mind discerned that something was radically wrong. I wasn't much of a bible scholar, but I discerned the hysterical woman was NOT filled with the Holy Spirit. I soon left that church and made my journey through several Pentecostal churches over a five year period until ultimately, my skepticism of all the so called supernatural manifestations had been shored up by my studies in the Word of God. I then found myself worshipping at a sound Baptist church learning and growing in the grace and knowledge of God without being sidetracked by the shenanigans of emotionally driven churches without much substance.
To avoid the pitfall of spiritual pride, I confess it was not my ingenuity that led me away from that system of Christianity, but rather it was the Holy Spirit (ironically) that instructed me in the teaching of scripture and enabled me to discern the difference between false doctrine and sound doctrine. While I believe most of the bothers and sisters I worshipped with in the past were genuine believers, I believe their understanding of the ministry of the Holy Spirit was seriously skewed and were not as discerning as they should have been. This is the case with many believers. We take everything we see and hear that comes across as supernatural and of divine origin. Such spiritual gullibility is nothing to be proud of. The bible exhorts us to "Not believe every spirit, but test the spirits" 1 John 4:1, and that means that we need to be discerning. It would be dangerous naivety to simply accept everything we see or hear in a church as fro God, and disregard the countless warnings in scripture regarding how many false prophets have crept into the church, sent as emissaries of Satan. Which spirit are we listening to? Are we listening to the spirit of Antichrist or the Spirit of God?
When I was a young believer, my ability to discern spirits was very primitive. It took time of studying all of God;s Word before I could rightfully discern truth from error. Studying the Word takes discipline and hard work, which many people want to forgo out of spiritual laziness. Perhaps one of the reasons why False doctrine is on the rise is because Bible illiteracy is also on the rise. As people are more illiterate in the Word of God the more they will be susceptible to the doctrine of demons. Listen to the exhortation that Paul gives to Jewish Christians in the book of Hebrews:
vv. 11- 14 "about this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil."
There are many Christians who have been saved for quite some time and should be teachers at this point, but instead have to be retrained in the elementary teachings of the gospel. The message here is "Grow up! " How? 2 Peter 3:18 "But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
I trust this weeks message and article will encourage all who read to seek to grow more in the knowledge of God and thus be able to discern truth from error. So that we as mature believers may be able to have a bolder witness to the world around us that does not know Jesus Christ.
To avoid the pitfall of spiritual pride, I confess it was not my ingenuity that led me away from that system of Christianity, but rather it was the Holy Spirit (ironically) that instructed me in the teaching of scripture and enabled me to discern the difference between false doctrine and sound doctrine. While I believe most of the bothers and sisters I worshipped with in the past were genuine believers, I believe their understanding of the ministry of the Holy Spirit was seriously skewed and were not as discerning as they should have been. This is the case with many believers. We take everything we see and hear that comes across as supernatural and of divine origin. Such spiritual gullibility is nothing to be proud of. The bible exhorts us to "Not believe every spirit, but test the spirits" 1 John 4:1, and that means that we need to be discerning. It would be dangerous naivety to simply accept everything we see or hear in a church as fro God, and disregard the countless warnings in scripture regarding how many false prophets have crept into the church, sent as emissaries of Satan. Which spirit are we listening to? Are we listening to the spirit of Antichrist or the Spirit of God?
When I was a young believer, my ability to discern spirits was very primitive. It took time of studying all of God;s Word before I could rightfully discern truth from error. Studying the Word takes discipline and hard work, which many people want to forgo out of spiritual laziness. Perhaps one of the reasons why False doctrine is on the rise is because Bible illiteracy is also on the rise. As people are more illiterate in the Word of God the more they will be susceptible to the doctrine of demons. Listen to the exhortation that Paul gives to Jewish Christians in the book of Hebrews:
vv. 11- 14 "about this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil."
There are many Christians who have been saved for quite some time and should be teachers at this point, but instead have to be retrained in the elementary teachings of the gospel. The message here is "Grow up! " How? 2 Peter 3:18 "But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
I trust this weeks message and article will encourage all who read to seek to grow more in the knowledge of God and thus be able to discern truth from error. So that we as mature believers may be able to have a bolder witness to the world around us that does not know Jesus Christ.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Can Jesus be Trusted?
It was good to be back in the pulpit this past Sunday. We are so blessed to have had time together as a family and refresh ourselves in the Lord. I am especially thankful for the support and ministry of Grace and Truth Church which has been an extraordinary blessing in our lives.
This past week we went back to basics with a gospel message from John 14:1-6. I had it on my heart to preach this message for 2 reasons- 1) For visitors and newcomers to really grasp what the Gospel is, and 2) For mature believers to be refreshed with the simplicity of the pure gospel. In my sermon I tackled two topics. In my message I dealt with the reality of Heaven. Jesus promised he goes to prepare a place for those who believe in Him, and that he would not tell us this if it were not true. Can Jesus be trusted? As Christians we are convinced that Jesus can be trusted or we would not be Christians at all. To trust in Christ and take him at his word is what saving faith is. We live by faith and not by sight, scripture says, and to live by faith is to order our lives based on the authority of God's word. Not only does Jesus teach us there is a Heaven but that there is also a Hell. In Jesus public ministry he spoke more of Hell than he did about Heaven. What is Hell? Jesus used the term Gehenna to identify the place we call Hell. Gehenna was an incineration dump outside the city of Jerusalem where people basically burned their garbage, and where the refuse of sacrifices where burned. Unlike modern times where we have garbage pickups at our front curb, people had to burn their garbage in the ancient world. Gehenna had a perpetually burning fire and a stench that was absolutely disgusting. This was the metaphor Jesus used to describe what Hell will be like. Just like the garbage of Jerusalem was burned up and destroyed so not to pollute the land, every sinner who does not believe in Christ and does not have their sins atoned for, will be thrown into the "Lake of Fire" so not to pollute the New Heavens and New Earth. The bible says in Rev. 21:8 "But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” The idea of a "Second Death" is terrifying to say the least. But this implies that there is something far worse than physical death in store for those who reject Jesus. That is eternal death. And Our Lord was quite specific in warning us against Hell, Matt. 18:8-9 "And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire."
This is because our sins are so detestable and offensive to the holiness of God, it is the equivalent of taking the putrefied trash and bring it into the most elegant palace. Hab. 1:13 says "Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong" and in Ps. 5:4 "For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you." As I said on Sunday the Tabernacle in the wilderness was built after the pattern of Heaven (Heb. 8:5). All things unclean and detestable were not be found in the camp of the Lord, because his presence was there and therefore it was a holy place. In the same way Heaven is God's dwelling place and there can be no unclean or detestable thing there to defile his presence. Rev. 21: 27 "But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life."
This is why there is no other way into Heaven accept through Jesus Christ. That is because nothing can cleanse away our sins, accept the blood of Jesus. Nothing can make us fit for Heaven except the sacrifice of his life on the cross, in our place. If we reject him, we reject Heaven.
Can Jesus be trusted? I am not a gambling man. But if I was, I would say there is too much at stake to bet against Him. My hope is that whoever is reading this article will trust Him too.
This past week we went back to basics with a gospel message from John 14:1-6. I had it on my heart to preach this message for 2 reasons- 1) For visitors and newcomers to really grasp what the Gospel is, and 2) For mature believers to be refreshed with the simplicity of the pure gospel. In my sermon I tackled two topics. In my message I dealt with the reality of Heaven. Jesus promised he goes to prepare a place for those who believe in Him, and that he would not tell us this if it were not true. Can Jesus be trusted? As Christians we are convinced that Jesus can be trusted or we would not be Christians at all. To trust in Christ and take him at his word is what saving faith is. We live by faith and not by sight, scripture says, and to live by faith is to order our lives based on the authority of God's word. Not only does Jesus teach us there is a Heaven but that there is also a Hell. In Jesus public ministry he spoke more of Hell than he did about Heaven. What is Hell? Jesus used the term Gehenna to identify the place we call Hell. Gehenna was an incineration dump outside the city of Jerusalem where people basically burned their garbage, and where the refuse of sacrifices where burned. Unlike modern times where we have garbage pickups at our front curb, people had to burn their garbage in the ancient world. Gehenna had a perpetually burning fire and a stench that was absolutely disgusting. This was the metaphor Jesus used to describe what Hell will be like. Just like the garbage of Jerusalem was burned up and destroyed so not to pollute the land, every sinner who does not believe in Christ and does not have their sins atoned for, will be thrown into the "Lake of Fire" so not to pollute the New Heavens and New Earth. The bible says in Rev. 21:8 "But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” The idea of a "Second Death" is terrifying to say the least. But this implies that there is something far worse than physical death in store for those who reject Jesus. That is eternal death. And Our Lord was quite specific in warning us against Hell, Matt. 18:8-9 "And if your hand or your foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life crippled or lame than with two hands or two feet to be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into the hell of fire."
This is because our sins are so detestable and offensive to the holiness of God, it is the equivalent of taking the putrefied trash and bring it into the most elegant palace. Hab. 1:13 says "Your eyes are too pure to look on evil; you cannot tolerate wrong" and in Ps. 5:4 "For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you." As I said on Sunday the Tabernacle in the wilderness was built after the pattern of Heaven (Heb. 8:5). All things unclean and detestable were not be found in the camp of the Lord, because his presence was there and therefore it was a holy place. In the same way Heaven is God's dwelling place and there can be no unclean or detestable thing there to defile his presence. Rev. 21: 27 "But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life."
This is why there is no other way into Heaven accept through Jesus Christ. That is because nothing can cleanse away our sins, accept the blood of Jesus. Nothing can make us fit for Heaven except the sacrifice of his life on the cross, in our place. If we reject him, we reject Heaven.
Can Jesus be trusted? I am not a gambling man. But if I was, I would say there is too much at stake to bet against Him. My hope is that whoever is reading this article will trust Him too.
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