The Resurrection and Ascension--Definite Convictions Series

            As a fan of Kansas City sports, I like to listen to a sports talk radio station out of Kansas City from time to time. There’s a jewelry store in Kansas City that runs a lot of commercials on that station, and their advertising slogan is, “Now you have a friend in the jewelry business.”

            That’s a pretty smart slogan if you ask me, because it makes us feel good to think that we have friends in strategic places. If you’re ever in a jam, it feels good to be able to say, “Don’t worry – I’ve got a friend who can get us out of this!”

            Today we’re going to be reminded that we have a friend in the most powerful place of all. We have an advocate in heaven – someone who is representing us and defending us. This friend is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ himself.

            Jesus assumed this role for us after his death when he was raised to life and then ascended to heaven 40 days later. Section 5 of our Statement of Faith contains brief statements about Jesus’ resurrection and ascension before describing his present ministry for us. This section states:

We believe in the bodily resurrection and Lordship of Jesus Christ, his ascension into heaven and his present advocacy and priesthood in the presence of God for us (Acts 2:32; 1 Cor. 15:20, 23; Acts 1:9; 1 John 2:1; Heb 7:25; 8:1-2).

Let’s take a closer look at these claims.

The Bodily Resurrection

            As you can see, our Statement emphasizes that Jesus’ body truly did come back to life after it had been entombed. This emphasis is meant to counter the tendency among some people to try to accommodate Christian teaching to the challenges of skeptics. The Resurrection was obviously an unusual event; it was out of the ordinary, and so many people over the years have said that there is no way that it could’ve happened.

            Some people who have desired to uphold the Christian faith have responded to these challenges by saying, “Well, we certainly believe that Jesus spoke to the disciples after he died, but perhaps he just spoke to them in a vision. Maybe it’s true that his body didn’t really come back to life, but the disciples just thought it did.”

            That idea flies in the face of so much of what the Bible records. What happened to his body if it did not come back to life? The Bible says that three women first found his tomb to be empty when they went to visit it on the first day of the week. They reported it to the disciples, and Peter and John found the tomb to be empty when they went to check it out. Even the Roman soldiers who were supposed to guard the tomb reported that it was empty.

            The Bible also states that when Jesus appeared to the disciples they touched his body and he ate food in their presence. The Bible clearly means to tell us that his body did come back to life, and that is the only explanation that makes sense of the facts.

The Lordship of Jesus Christ

            Our Statement then mentions the Lordship of Jesus Christ. This phrase refers to the truth that Jesus himself announced in Matthew 28:18 as part of the Great Commission: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Obviously, as the second person of the Trinity, the Son of God had always been ruling over all things. But after his resurrection, Jesus as the God-man was exalted into authority over all things. That fact will be on full display one day after Jesus returns to establish his kingdom in this world.

            The Lordship of Jesus is also highlighted in the rather familiar passage in Philippians 2:9-11 [READ Phil 2:9-11]. This detail is easy to misunderstand, but we should note that the title “Lord” is actually the “name above all names” that was bestowed on Jesus. It is not Christ’s human name of Jesus, but his new title of Lord that is the name above all names. He was given that title as an honor because of his willingness to carry out God the Father’s plan of salvation. And again, we will see his Lordship on full display when he comes to reign over this world.

His Present Advocacy and Priesthood

            It’s very natural for us to ask, “What is Jesus up to these days?” We know what he did in the past because we have read about it in the Bible. We know he’s going to return in the future and that we will be with him forever. But what is he up to right now? For many Christians, that remains a great mystery. Our Statement sums up the Bible’s teaching about this when it mentions his present advocacy and priesthood.

            As our advocate, Jesus acts like something of a defense attorney for us in the courtroom of God the Father. 1 John 2:1 puts it like this – “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.” That’s Plan A for all of us, right? We don’t want to fall to temptation, but if we do, we don’t need to fall into despair.

            Why is that? Notice the rest of the verse – “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” Jesus is right now in the presence of God the Father to plead our cause for us when we sin.

            Now we must understand that Christ’s advocacy is not for God’s benefit, but for the sake of our confidence and reassurance. God the Father is not some angry man looking for a fight who has to be restrained by Jesus. Remember the truth of John 3:16 – for God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.

            The Father loves us and he doesn’t have to be constantly convinced to continue to love us. But that fact is so easy to forget when we sin, isn’t it? We think, “How could God still love me after what I’ve done? How could he still accept me after this?” So for our sake, whenever we are tempted to doubt God’s love for us, we have this reassurance that Christ is on our side – ready to take up our cause and defend us. What grace and mercy!

            Closely related to all of this is the work of Christ’s priesthood for us. Just as the priests in the Old Testament offered sacrifices for the sins of the people, Jesus has offered a sacrifice for our sins to God the Father. The author of Hebrews spilled a lot of ink in his letter as he emphasized that Christ’s priesthood is far superior to that of the Old Testament priests:

·         Jesus only had to offer his sacrifice once, whereas the Old Testament priests had to do it over and over again;

·         Jesus’ own blood was far more precious than the blood of animals that they offered;

·         Jesus never had to offer sacrifices for his own sins like they did, because he was perfect;

·         Jesus can now remain a priest for us forever – he never has to be replaced like they did when they died.

            So through his own death, Jesus offered once for all time the only sacrifice that was needed for us to receive complete and total forgiveness from God. As Hebrews 7:25 puts it, “he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.”

Monday Matters

            As always, we want to find a very practical application of these truths to our daily lives. With these ideas, such an application is not hard to find:

Jesus’ advocacy and priesthood give me all the confidence I need to pray to God about every temptation and to confess my every sin.

            Since Jesus sits right now at the right hand of God the Father, I never have to wonder if I’m going to get a friendly reception from God when I pray. I have an advocate pleading my cause and a priest representing me in the presence of God.

            With these reassurances, God has made such a gracious accommodation to our weakness. We are so quick to lose our confidence in the promises that God has already given us. Sometimes it is lost through sin, sometimes it is lost through cynicism. We are told in life that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is, and when we read in the Bible about God’s magnificent love for us, it sounds too good to be true! So even we, as God’s children, might say, “How can it be? Can I always count on him to be loving?”

            So that no lingering doubts about his love will keep us from him, God tells us that we have an advocate and a priest in his presence so that we are always doubly assured of a friendly reception. Here’s what the author of Hebrews has to say about this [READ Heb. 10:19-23].

            So that we will never wonder if God can truly understand what we need, we are reminded that our advocate and priest can sympathize with us through and through [Heb. 4:14-16].

            Isn’t that just what we need? Mercy! Grace! And they are ours for the taking whenever we go to the Lord in prayer. And we can do so with every confidence, knowing that our pleas are amplified by our great high priest!

You Cannot Serve Two Masters--Life with God Series

            Some relationships in life seem to get better when you share them with others. Having one best friend in your life is great, but it seems to be even sweeter to have a circle of friends who all enjoy each other deeply. The joy of those friendships seems to be enhanced because it is shared with others.

            Other relationships, though, cannot be shared without doing tremendous damage to the relationship. Your relationship with your spouse is one such relationship. You simply cannot share the intimacy that you have with your spouse with anyone else. If you do, then the relationship is greatly harmed.

            Over the last two weeks, we’ve been talking about sharing our faith in Christ with others—inviting them to enjoy the same kind of relationship with God that we enjoy. Today, we’re going to see that there is one sense in which our relationship with God cannot be shared with anyone else—that is in God’s role as our Lord or Master. God alone must occupy that role in our lives. Yes, we do have lesser authorities that we’re called to obey, like your boss or our leaders in government. But as far as our highest allegiance is concerned, that is to be given to God and God alone.

            It’s fitting that I mentioned marriage a moment ago when talking about this kind of allegiance, because all through the Bible, God compares His relationship with us to that of a husband to his bride. A husband and wife are supposed to give each other exclusive devotion on a number of levels; thus, that relationship is a fitting comparison for our relationship with God. That illustration also helps us understand one of the most unusual claims about God that we read in the Bible.

The Jealousy of God

            You don’t have to read very far into the Bible before you encounter this odd-sounding claim that God is a jealous God. For example, in Exodus 20, where we find the Ten Commandments, we read these words in verses 4-6 [READ vv. 4-6].

            The gears of our minds almost come to a grinding halt when we hear God call himself a jealous God. We don’t know what to make of that because we normally think of jealousy as being always and only bad. So then how could God call himself jealous?

            To make sense of this, we need to understand that at its root, jealousy is simply a passionate desire to possess something or to see something come about. The question that makes all the difference is this – do you have a right to the thing that you desire to possess? If you do and you are deprived of that thing, then your response could be called a godly jealousy. If you do not have a right to it, that’s when your desire becomes a sinful jealousy.

            A good illustration of a godly jealousy could be when a wife discovers that her husband has been unfaithful to her. She has an exclusive right to her husband’s affection, so when that right is violated, she has a natural and appropriate complaint about that. Now we might call her reaction a number of things – anger, devastation, disappointment – but we could call it a godly jealousy.

            As far as God is concerned, he has the right to receive our worship and obedience. He is our Creator and the one who keeps us alive for every moment that we are given in this life. Not only that, he is also our Savior, the one who has so graciously delivered us from the penalty of our sins. For all of this, he deserves to be the unrivaled master over our lives.

            When we do not treat him as such, he appropriately takes offense at that. But remember – this is not the same kind of petty offense taken by the person who doesn’t get the new pair of shoes that they wanted. This is the same kind of offense taken by someone who is denied justice, or by the woman whose marital rights are taken from her and given to another.

            The Lord warns us in this passage and others that when we spurn him as the unrivaled master of our lives, the consequences may appropriately be quite severe. Notice how the Lord states in verse five that he “[visits] the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.” The consequences of our sins may affect our grandchildren’s children, and whether or not that will happen is up to God. In his grace, he so rarely gives us the full brunt of what our sins deserve, but he has the right to do so if he deems it necessary.

            But to no one’s surprise, we see the grace of God shining out far brighter than his discipline. In verse six he reminds us that he “[shows] steadfast love to thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments.” That might be better translated “1000 generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.” The effects of God’s discipline may last for three or four generations – which is no small thing! – but the echoes of his blessing can sound forth through 1000 generations!

So God has given us fair warning that he is a jealous God. He will not sit idly by as we serve other masters ahead of him.

No One Can Serve Two Masters

            Jesus put this warning in perhaps its most memorable form in the Sermon on the Mount. In the context of talking about money and wealth, he said, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money (Matthew 6:24).”

            We could put many things in that statement and the principle would be just the same. The Lord could have said, “You cannot serve God and popularity,” or “You cannot serve God and personal comfort.”

            Remember that the Lord is talking about our highest allegiance. I am supposed to serve others in love, but that’s because God tells me to, and he is my highest master. I am supposed to serve my family, but that’s because God tells me to, and he is the Lord of lords – he is my highest authority.

The Danger of Idolatry

            Any time that we fail to give God our highest allegiance, we are engaging in idolatry, even though we may not normally think of our actions in those terms. We may understand that our actions have been sinful, but we don’t think of them as being instances of idolatry, though in fact they truly are.

            The reason that we can overlook idolatry in our own lives is that we associate idolatry with false worship, but our definition of worship is far too narrow. We normally think of worship as praying to something or singing a song of praise to it or literally bowing down to it and paying homage to it. So we don’t think we’ve ever worshiped our wealth because we’ve never sang a song of praise to our wallets. We don’t think we’ve ever worshiped our friends because we’ve never seated them on a chair in front of us and bowed down to them.

            But at its root, the idea of worship is simply the idea of assigning value to something. Whenever you have treated something as if it is more valuable than anything else in your life, you have worshiped it and you have committed idolatry, because you have given that thing the position in your heart that belongs to God alone.

Diagnosing Idolatry

            With that understanding of worship in mind, we can begin to diagnose idolatry that might be hiding within our own hearts. Let me present some questions that I believe can be very penetrating and very helpful for exposing idolatry.

1. Who am I willing to disappoint by my decisions?

            If I’m in a position where my decision is going to disappoint either God or other people, who am I willing to disappoint? To put it another way, am I willing to disobey God in order to go along with other people – or to impress others or to be popular? If I am willing to disobey God in those moments, that means I value the approval of others more than the approval of God. That means I am worshiping the approval of others and thus committing idolatry.

            If you find yourself in that position, you have to ask, “Why do I place such a high value on the approval of others?” It may be due to fear. If we lose the approval of others, they may reject us, and we may fear the thought of being lonely or the thought of suffering for our faith.

            It may be that you so highly value the approval of others because of a faulty view of who you are in Christ. You may tie your self-esteem to what other people think of you, when really your personal sense of worth and value should be built on the fact that you are a child of God.

2. Where do I find my sense of security?

            To put this another way, do I value the promises held out by things like money or power more than I value the promises made to me by God? Whose promises do I trust more? Thus, who will I give my highest allegiance to in the hopes that their promises to me will be fulfilled?

            In the time of the Old Testament Kings, the children of Israel repeatedly sought security in other people rather than in the Lord. On several occasions, when rumors of war came up, the kings of Israel or Judah would put themselves under the protection of a foreign nation, even though the Lord was promising to protect them. A few times, they even took some of the treasures in the Temple and gave them to foreign nations in order to buy their protection. They clearly did not value the promises of God the way they should have.

            In our lives today, we are bombarded constantly by the nearly overwhelming temptation to find our security in our wealth. This temptation can lead us to disobey the Lord in a number of ways. We may fail to be generous because we worry about our own futures or we cannot tolerate a change to our own standard of living. We may go along with unethical behavior on the job because we say, “I don’t know what I’d do without my benefits,” or “I’m just a few years away from retirement. This is no time for me to be rocking the boat.”

            So let’s all ask ourselves – do I value the promises held out to me by my savings account more than I value the promises held out to me by God? Do I value the promises held out to me by my standard of living more than I value the promises held out to me by God? If we have to answer “yes” to those questions, then we are idolaters.

3. What are my dreams for the future?

            Does my highest goal look exactly the same as that of someone who does not know Christ? Can my highest goal be accomplished in this life, or can it only be achieved when I see Jesus?

            Please understand I’m talking about your highest goal. We naturally share a lot of desires with unbelievers simply because we’re human beings. We all want to see our children grow up healthy and have everything they need. We would all prefer to live in comfort rather than hardship. I’m talking about the goal that is in the driver’s seat – the goal for which you are willing to allow other goals to fall by the wayside.

            Do I value worldly goals more than the goals given to me by God? Godly goals would be carrying out the Great Commission, storing up treasures for ourselves in heaven rather than on earth, and so on.

            It is painful to admit, but we have all been idolaters at one point or another. If you really want to press this thought, you could say that every instance of sin is an instance of idolatry because you’ve chosen to value something else more than you value obedience to God.

            The Bible cannot be more clear on this point – you cannot serve two masters. To serve anything else above God will provoke his holy jealousy and we will face his discipline for that. The only question is, to what degree?

            But the very God who is a jealous God is jealous because he is loving. He will not allow us to harm ourselves through idolatry without opposing our actions. And when we come to our senses and repent of our idolatrous ways, he is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. May we forsake all our idols today through the power of God’s Holy Spirit so that we may give God our highest allegiance, and no one else.

Sharing the Gospel Clearly--Life with God Series

            In some ways, communicating with other people is easier than ever these days. If I need to get a hold of you about something, I have close to ten different ways to do that. I can meet with you in person, send you a letter, send you an e-mail, or call your home phone. If you’re not at home, that’s no big deal, because I can call your cell phone or text you or video chat with you or send you a Facebook message.

            But ironically, communicating about important matters is just as hard as ever. One of the keys for good communication is to have your message crystal-clear in your own mind. If you’re confused about what you want to say, then there’s very little chance that you can make your point clear to someone else.

            With that thought in mind, we’re going to take a look today at what the message of the Gospel truly is. Last week, we talked about finding the boldness to tell others about the Gospel, but the truth is that we will never feel very bold until we have the essence of the Gospel clearly defined in our own minds. So first, let’s talk about what the Gospel is not, then we’ll look at a passage that tells us clearly what it is.

What the Gospel is NOT

1. It is not the entire story contained in the Bible

            As Christians ourselves, we know that Christians are familiar with the story of the Bible from Creation all the way to the Book of Revelation. The Gospel is not that entire story, however—it’s a much smaller slice of that story. When you’re sharing the Gospel, then, it’s not necessary to tell the whole story of the Bible. That’s nice to know, because it makes the thought of sharing the Gospel a little less daunting.

2. It is not an explanation of how Christians think or behave

            Sometimes we get in conversations about why Christians do or do not do certain things, and while those are good conversations to have, we need to realize that talking about some part of a Christian lifestyle is not the same as sharing the Gospel. So if you explain to someone why Christians don’t use the Lord’s name in vain, that’s good—but it’s not the same thing as sharing the Gospel.

The Heart of the Gospel—1 Corinthians 15:1-8

            So what is the Gospel? The Apostle Paul reveals the heart of it in 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 [READ].

            These verses present two main claims about Jesus, which form the heart of the Gospel. For each claim, there is also a piece of evidence or proof given that establishes the truth of the claim. The first claim is that Christ died for our sins. The proof of this is that he was buried. The second claim is that He was raised on the third day. The proof of this claim is that he appeared to many different people.

            It is the claims mentioned here that form the heart of the Gospel. The proofs are important, of course, because they tell us that the claims are true, but when you are sharing the Gospel with someone else, it’s not entirely necessary to emphasize the proofs unless the other person asks for some reasons to believe the claims. And so, it is these claims about Jesus—that He died for our sins and then was raised—that form the core of this message that we call “the Gospel.”

            Notice two other details from this passage—details that also form a central part of the Gospel. Paul stated in v. 3 that it was Christ who died for our sins. This little word reminds us of what people must believe about Jesus in order to be saved.

            Remember that the word “Christ” is not Jesus’ last name. In fact, it’s not part of His name at all; rather, it’s a title that describes who Jesus is. The title “Christ” means “anointed one” or “chosen one,” so Paul’s usage of the title here reminds us that it wasn’t just a mere man who died for our sins—it was God’s chosen one. And why was Jesus God’s chosen one? Because He was in fact the Son of God—fully divine, just as God the Father is divine.

            So this truth must also be communicated when we share the Gospel. The only reason why Jesus’ death had any benefit for us at all is because He was the Christ—God’s own Son, designated (or anointed or chosen) to be the Savior of the world.

            And how is it that we receive the benefits that Christ’s death and resurrection have provided for us? That’s what Paul told us in vv. 1-2—“which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved.” We receive forgiveness for our sins simply by receiving it from Christ—accepting Him for who He is, and resting in what He has done for us.

            This picture of “standing” upon the Gospel is a helpful one for explaining what it means to accept Jesus in faith. As far as my confidence of being forgiven is concerned, I take my stand entirely upon these facts—that the Son of God died for my sins and was raised on the third day. I stand on that foundation and no other. I don’t have one foot on Christ and one foot on my own good works—no, I have both feet planted firmly on Christ.

So these verses in 1 Corinthians 15 give us the heart of the Gospel. Christ, God’s chosen one—the very Son of God—died for my sins and was raised on the third day. I receive forgiveness for my sins simply by receiving Christ—in other words, taking my stand upon what He accomplished for me. That is the heart of the message that we desire to share with others so that they can be saved. But how might approach the actual act of sharing that message?

How Can We Share the Gospel?

            Obviously, there are many different ways that we can share this message. The variety is just as wide as the variety of people we meet and the variety of conversations that we have. Perhaps in your life you have memorized certain ways of sharing the Gospel, such as the Romans Road. These can be good and helpful, but above all, it is most important to simply have the heart of the Gospel clearly defined in your own mind so that you are free to share this message in a variety of ways.

Telling Your Own Conversion Story

            Today, though, I would like you to think about how you could share the Gospel in the context of telling your own conversion story. I’d like to suggest this thought for two reasons.

Why share your story?

1. Our culture places a high value on a person’s life story/personal perspective.

            Now, our culture does take this respect way too far by saying that I can decide what’s true for me from the context of my life story, and you can decide what’s true for you from the context of your life story. That’s going too far, but nevertheless, our culture does consider it a virtue to show respect for another person’s life story or personal perspective, so we can use that fact to our advantage.

2. Sharing your conversion story is less intimidating and is not directly confrontational

            It is less intimidating in part because it is a more natural conversation. We talk about our lives with lots of friends and acquaintances all the time. We talk about what we did over the weekend, where we grew up; we talk about our hobbies. So when we talk about our conversion stories, it’s a pretty natural step from the kinds of conversations that we have all the time.

            It’s also a less intimidating approach because it’s easier to remember. We can all remember our conversion stories because we lived through them. If you’re trying to rely on a memorized presentation, though, there’s always that fear that you might forget the next verse you’re supposed to quote!

            Also, sharing your story is not directly confrontational. Someone might dismiss your story, but they can’t really argue with it. They might say, “I’m glad that’s worked for you,” but they can’t honestly say, “You’re lying! You didn’t find comfort in the Gospel during that hard time in your life!”

Two Ways to Structure Your Story

            Even though you know your own conversion story well, it can still be helpful to think about how to share your story. If you have even a very simple outline in mind, it can help you share clearly and make sure you emphasize the Gospel. Let me suggest two different outlines that might be a good fit for your story.

1. For an older conversion or dramatic conversion

            If you were saved a little later in life or you had a very dramatic change when you were saved, you might structure your story like so. First, share what life was like for you before you were saved. Highlight some of the problems that the Gospel solved for you. Perhaps you dealt with a lot of hopelessness or shame, or your lifestyle was very destructive toward yourself and others.

            Then, talk about when you accepted Christ. At this point, you would be careful to mention those claims that form the heart of the Gospel—that Christ died for our sins and was raised on the third day.

            Finally, you would describe how your life has changed since you accepted Christ. At this point, you could touch on how Christ has made all the difference for the problems you mentioned before—He has given you hope, He has taken away your shame, He has empowered you to change in ways you never thought possible.

2. For a younger conversion or less dramatic conversion

            For some of us, we don’t have much to talk about when it comes to our pre-conversion years because we were saved at a young age. Yes, maybe we lived like horrible heathens, but then we turned six and got saved! There’s not much for us to share about our life before Christ, so what we want to emphasize is how life with Christ has made all the difference.

            Here’s how we might approach our story, then: talk first about the grand sweep of your life. You might highlight some particular highs and lows, joys and sorrows. If the person you’re talking to is going through a struggle that you’ve faced, then naturally you might want to highlight that fact.

            Then, bring it all back to Christ and the Gospel. Explain to them that through it all, what Christ did for you has made all the difference. And of course, this is where you would emphasize the core claims of the Gospel about Christ’s death for your sins and His resurrection.

            However you share it, the Gospel is a message worthy of being proclaimed, because it tells of a Savior who is worthy of being praised. As the Scripture says, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news (Romans 10:15)!” And good news is precisely what we have!

            So let us never be ashamed of the Gospel! Whether others realize it yet or not, it is good news for their souls. And how will they realize it if we do not tell them?

Talking Boldly About God to Others--Life With God Series

            When you find someone in life that you love, it’s just natural to want to tell other people about that person. We all know this is true with romance. We can become downright annoying to our friends when we fall in love because we just go on and on talking about that person.

            We do the same thing with lots of other relationships, too. If you find an author you just love, you want to tell people about his or her books. If you find a hairdresser you love, you’ll be handing out her business card anytime someone says they’re thinking about a little trim. If you find a mechanic you love, you’ll be offering to help people get their car in to his garage when they need service.

            Certainly, in our relationship with God, because we love Him, we want to tell other people about Him. We want to tell people about Jesus and all that He has done to save them. We love God, so it’s only natural to want to talk about Him.

            I would venture to say, however, that most of us don’t share our faith with others as much as we would like or as much as we feel we should. We know it’s important—we know that it’s honoring to God, and we have a message that all people need to hear. But perhaps more than any other factor, we feel like we lack boldness to speak up about our faith in Christ when opportunities present themselves.

            Today, we’re going to take a look at the ministry of the Apostles to discover how they found the boldness to continue to proclaim the Gospel despite heavy opposition—even life-threatening opposition! What did they remind themselves of, and how did they pray in order to boldly speak up for Christ? We’ll find our answers today in Acts 4.

“A Good Deed Done to a Crippled Man”

            Let me briefly set the stage for what we’re going to study in Acts 4. Back in Acts 3, Peter and John were entering the Temple in Jerusalem when they encountered a beggar who could not walk. They healed the man in the name of Jesus, and the man’s celebration and loud praise to God drew a crowd of spectators.

            Peter took advantage of that opportunity to preach to the crowd about the resurrection of Christ. Well, the religious leaders got wind of this, and Acts 4:3 says they were “greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.” So they arrested Peter and John and put them on trial.

            In the trial, their main challenge to Peter and John is recorded in verse 7—“By what power or by what name did you do this?” Peter’s response to them is a true model of boldness [READ Acts 4:8-12].

That’s quite the bold response, and now at this point in the chapter we will begin to see the keys to their boldness.

1. Know God well, and speak about your relationship with Him (v. 13; v. 20)

            Notice the statement of v. 13 [READ v. 13]. The leaders were astonished because Peter and John were nothing special. They had no credentials, no fancy education like the religious leaders had. Peter and John were just blue-collar guys who had made their living on fishing boats in the Sea of Galilee.

            The only thing special about them was that they had been with Jesus. They knew Him well through their relationship with Him, and that was all the qualification they needed to be bold witnesses. Notice in vv. 19-20 how they point out that they were simply taking about the things they had experienced with Jesus. After being told by the religious leaders not to speak about Jesus any more, Peter and John answered [READ vv. 19-20].

            Take note of that final declaration—they were speaking about what they had seen and heard. They had lived with Jesus, heard Him speak, saw His sinless life, then they saw Him crucified and then living once again after He had died. They were simply telling people all that they had experienced with Jesus.

            I love that statement in v. 20 because it reminds me about what God desires from us—simply to tell other people about our relationship with Jesus. Witnessing is not about being a debater or a fancy orator or being anything that you’re not. It’s simply a matter of telling other people about your relationship with Jesus—how He has saved you, and how He can do the same for them.

            To put it another way, witnessing is just a matter of saying what you know. The best example of this is the blind man who was healed by Jesus in John 9. The religious leaders brought that man in for questioning, too (they must have been paid by the trial!), and they peppered him with questions about Jesus—“Who do you think He is? Is He a sinner? Is He from God?”

            I paraphrase here, but essentially the man said, “I can’t answer all of your questions about Jesus, but this is what I know—I was blind, now He has made me see.” This is a great summary of what God desires from us in witnessing—just say what you know! Perhaps someone will ask a question that you can’t answer; if so, don’t worry about it—you can look into it later. If you’ve simply shared what you know from your relationship with the Lord, you can be confident that you’ve done what the Lord desires to see from you.

2. Know that God is in control (vv. 24-28)

            After Peter and John were released, they took two actions that will also help you sustain boldness for witnessing. First, they got together with their brothers in Christ [READ v. 23]. When you undertake something challenging—as sharing your faith can be—it is all the more difficult when you feel like you’re all alone. Coming together with your Christian family is imperative. With a church family, you can know that you have a place where you belong, which is especially important since we sometimes face rejection from other people when we share our faith.

            The second action they took was to pray together with their friends. The content of their prayer teaches us that in order to have boldness, it is necessary to remember that our God is in control of all things. He made them all, and He controls them still [READ vv. 24-27].

            Then what did the Apostles say in v. 28? Did they say, “Lord, we know you tried to keep them from crucifying Jesus, but it just couldn’t be done?” Did they say, “Lord, we know you did your best, but it was too hard even for you?” No, they said [READ v. 28]. Even in the very moment in which it may have seemed that God lost all control, He was still in full control over all that took place.

            God was in control over the people who crucified Jesus, and He’s in control over the people that we share our faith with today. We don’t need to be intimidated by other people because they’re not running the show—God’s running the show! Now you might say, “Pastor Tim, that still doesn’t seem very comforting, because He was running the show back then and He allowed His Son to be crucified! What if He allows something to happen to me?”

            If He does allow us to face rejection or even persecution, our comfort is this—we know that such things are not out-of-control events, but part of a larger plan that comes from the heart of a kind Father. So however we look at it, His control can give us great boldness and confidence for sharing our faith.

            During the Civil War, Confederate General Thomas Jackson became famous for his fearlessness in battle. He was given the nickname “Stonewall” because it was said that during battle, he was as immovable as a stone wall. You may have heard of Stonewall Jackson, but you might not know that his courage came from his deep faith in God. He had a firm belief in God’s control over all things—including every bullet fired on a battlefield. He believed that not a single one of those bullets would hit him unless God allowed it, so he faced the challenges of battle with great courage.

            We may not be in a war, but we are in a spiritual war when we try to share our faith, aren’t we? We face a frontal assault from a whole battalion of doubts and fears. What if my friend gets offended and doesn’t want to be my friend anymore? What if my family stops talking to me? What if my co-workers think I’m silly or old-fashioned and I get overlooked for a promotion or a raise?

            We don’t have to let those doubts stop us when we remember that God is in control. The results are up to Him, and He is kind, all-knowing, and all-powerful. So we can act, knowing that it’s all in His hands.

So the first key for having boldness is to know God well, then simply speak about your relationship with him. The second key is to know that God is in control. And finally, the third key is this:

3. Know that God will work through you and with you by the power of the Holy Spirit (vv. 29-31)

            In verses 29 and 30, we see a wonderful balance between doing what we can do – which is, speak the word – and trusting God to do what only he can do – which is, to work in miraculous ways. Notice their prayer here [READ vv. 29-30].

            Don’t overlook the balance in the Apostles’ request—“Lord, help us do what we can do, and we’ll trust you to do the things that only you can do.” When you share your faith with someone, you are merely part of the whole process. It is not all on your shoulders!

            We can get very intimidated by evangelism at times because we let ourselves think that a person’s response is all up to us. We think, “This person’s eternal destiny is hanging in the balance, and it’s all up to me! If I can’t answer every question they may have, they’re going to reject the Gospel and it’s going to be all my fault.”

            If that’s what we think, it’s no wonder why we find evangelism to be so intimidating. We know full well that we can’t change someone’s heart, but I’ve got good news for you – that’s not your part of the process anyway! I can share the Gospel, but only God can save someone; only he can change their heart.

            The illustration of a witness in a courtroom trial is a good illustration for our responsibility in evangelism. When a witness is called to the stand, he simply shares what he knows. It’s not his job to make the entire case – the witness just shares what he knows. It’s the attorney’s job to make the whole case and press it home on the minds of the jurors.

            In this picture, you and I are the witnesses and God is the attorney. We simply share what we know, and we trust that God will press it home on the mind and the heart to the person that were talking to. We do our part, and we trust God to do his.

            In verse 31, we read again about the Holy Spirit working through his people [READ v. 31]. Look again at verse 8 and notice this – how was Peter able to speak with boldness? He was filled with the Holy Spirit. We read the same thing again in verse 31 – they were filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

            When we take the simple step of obeying God, He’s not going to leave us on our own! He won’t leave us unassisted! His Holy Spirit will empower us to do what we have chosen to do for the Lord.

            So to find the boldness to share our faith, we must know God well, and then simply speak about our relationship with Him. We must know He’s in control—that all things and all people are in His hands. And we must know that God will work through us and with us by the power of the Holy Spirit. May we be bold witnesses for the Lord as we face this task unfinished—the task of making disciples of all the nations.

Loving God By Loving Others--Life With God Series

            As I’ve grown more mature, I believe I’ve developed the ability to stay fairly patient with people who hurt me or insult me. But when someone hurts my children, that’s a totally different story! That’s when my claws come out, and it takes everything I’ve got not to lose my cool.

            When someone hurts my children, I take that personally, and I can’t just pretend like it’s no big deal. To put it another way, I can’t be good friends with someone who isn’t good to my children. If you want to be close to me, you have to treat my children well because I love them dearly.

            According to the Bible, your relationship with God contains that very same principle. As God’s child, if you want to have a close, friendly bond with him, you must show love to your brothers and sisters in Christ. The way you treat them will either help you get close to God or it will hinder you from doing so. In fact, as we’ll learn today, we cannot truly say that we love God well if we do not love his children.

            This truth may rub you the wrong way if you are inclined to think of your relationship with God as an intensely personal sort of thing. It can be tempting to view our intimacy with God as being the sum total of nothing more than how much time we spend in prayer and how much time we spend in Bible study. If that’s true, then our relationships with other people don’t even factor into that equation.

            But the Bible forces us to factor other people into our relationship with God. Your relationship with the Lord certainly does have its personal elements, but what I hope you will see from God’s Word today is that it also has its interpersonal elements.

            Allow me to clarify one thing before we begin to look at some passages together. Some people have interpreted these passages as tests that you can use to measure whether or not you are truly born again. I do not interpret these passages in that way, and I would encourage you not to do so either. I think that interpretive approach has too many theological problems to be a good interpretation. Rather, I think these passages help me as a born-again person to measure whether I am walking in close friendship with the Lord or not. I would encourage you to keep these thoughts in mind as we proceed.

To Love God, You Must Love Others

            The Apostle John tells us in his characteristically blunt fashion in 1 John 4:20-21: “If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.”

            To John, the issue is cut and dry – if you think you’re loving God well but you hate your brother in Christ, you’re lying! You may not be trying to deceive yourself or anyone else, but that is the reality because loving your brother is part of what it means to love God. In the same way that staying faithful to your spouse is part of what it means to love them, loving your Christian family is part of what it means to love God.

            Now why does John place so much emphasis on sight and love? I think it’s because for John, love is truly expressed through the tangible sacrifices that we make for each other. I show love to you when I make a tangible sacrifice to meet the needs that I can see that you have. Notice what the Apostle wrote back in 3:16-18: “By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”

            Also, the fact that we are physically together gives me extra motivation to love you. We’ve all heard that old phrase, “Out of sight, out of mind.” It’s easy to forget to think about someone if you don’t see them. But since I see you often, I can see it in your face when you’re sad about something, or I can see it when you might be in need of something that is necessary for life. The fact that I can see your needs should tug at my heartstrings and draw out the love that I am supposed to show to you.

            So I simply cannot claim that I am loving God well if I am not loving you well. This is easy to understand by comparison with our biological families. If I am causing pain and anguish for my siblings, how could I say, “I’m being a great child toward my parents?” That claim doesn’t fly with our biological families, and it doesn’t fly in the family of God either.

So we must love each other, and also…

We Must Forgive Each Other

            When we took a look at The Lord’s Prayer two weeks ago, we read these words from the Lord Jesus: “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matthew 6:14-15).”

            In our day and age of cell phones, we’ve all had the experience of having poor reception. Perhaps we’re in an area with a weak signal, or something else might be causing interference. Whatever it is, when someone tries to get in touch with us, their call doesn’t get through because we have poor reception.

            Well, according to Christ, unforgiveness in my heart causes my prayer to have poor reception with God, so to speak. My behavior toward you has created a barrier in my interaction with God. It’s not enough for me to just faithfully follow my Bible reading plan or faithfully work through my prayer list. Until I correct my behavior toward you, that barrier will remain in my relationship with God.

            We saw the same kind of idea a few months ago when we were studying 1 Peter. In his instructions to husbands, Peter wrote this: “Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered (1 Peter 3:7).”

            So from these passages, it should be clear – your relationship with God is not just a private matter between you and the Lord. Certainly, some parts of it are, but the way that you behave toward other people also factors into that relationship and affects the degree to which you enjoy a close friendship with God.

            So if we want to have a good relationship with the Lord, we must also have good relationships with other people by loving them and forgiving them when need be. When we will do that, we will find not only a greater unity with the Lord, but a greater unity with each other as well, and that unity will serve as a powerful testimony to the world that the message we proclaim about Jesus is true.

The Power of Unity for Our Proclamation of Truth

            Did you know that Jesus literally prayed for you and me on the night before he died? Christians who weren’t even alive yet at that time – he had us on the mind, and he prayed for us. Notice what he said in John 17:20-23: “I do not ask for these only [meaning the 11 disciples, minus Judas], but also for those who will believe in me through their word.” That’s you and me and all believers who have not seen Jesus in the flesh but have believed in him through the apostles’ testimony in the Bible.

            And what was his desire for us on that night? “That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us.” Jesus prayed that we would have unity – the same kind of unity of mind, desire, and purpose that he has with God the Father.

            And why did he desire that unity for us? What purpose would such unity accomplish? “So that the world may believe that you have sent me.” When we live in unity, our fellowship has the power to convince people that Jesus truly is the son of God, sent into this world to save mankind.

            Can people learn that by reading about Jesus in the Bible? Certainly they can, but sadly, people have all sorts of ingenious ways of evading the plain truth that they read from these pages. But when they see us living in love, with a unity that our world has never achieved, they will not be able to deny that Jesus has the power to change the hearts of mankind, and the only way that he could have such power is if he is the Son of God.

            Jesus continued his prayer for us: “The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.” How will we ever convince the world that we have been saved by a supernatural love if we cannot get along with each other? If they see us bickering and fighting with each other, why would they ever believe that we represent the God who is love itself?

            But if we show them godly unity and love, we give tangible proof of the truthfulness of the Gospel message that we proclaim. So when we love each other, not only do we enjoy close friendship with God, not only do we enjoy close friendship with each other, but we also draw others into the same kind of relationship with God that we enjoy. For we who have received the love of God, should we desire anything less than to see others enjoy that love as well? May we display the unifying power of God’s love in our lives today!

What to Say to God When You Pray--Life With God Series

            We all know that communication is very important in relationships, but sometimes our communication with others can be hindered by nothing more than that nagging feeling that we just don’t know what to say to them. Every one of us has avoided conversations at times because we felt like we just didn’t know what to say to that other person, or if we did have some thoughts in mind, we didn’t know how to express them in just the right words.

            As we’ve been learning in this series recently, we have a cycle of communication in our relationship with God – he communicates with us through the Bible, and we communicate to him through prayer. As with all of our other relationships, our efforts to communicate with God through prayer can be hindered by that same old feeling that we just don’t know what to say.

            Fortunately for us, Jesus has given us a model prayer that teaches us the kinds of thoughts and statements that we should express to God when we pray. By getting more familiar with this model prayer, we can get a better understanding of what we should say to God when we pray. So today, we’re going to take a look at what we usually call “The Lord’s Prayer,” as it is recorded in Matthew 6:9-13.

A Striking Observation

            Once you find that passage in your Bible, if you will just take a glance over the page on which it’s written, you might notice something rather striking about this model prayer – it’s not very long at all! The Lord’s Prayer only takes about 25 seconds to read out loud, and that’s if you read it carefully with great expression!

            Now it could be that this model prayer is short because it is, after all, only a model, an example. We know that these verses don’t say everything that Jesus wanted to communicate about prayer because he had more to say about prayer at other times in his teaching.

            But it could be that the length of this model prayer is meant to teach us that our prayers don’t necessarily have to be very long. I believe we get the same impression when we remember what Jesus had to say back in verses 7-8 [READ Matt 6:7-8].

            Notice the main point of these verses – a multitude of words does not make our prayers more effective, so we should not think that they do. We don’t need to drone on and on because our Father knows what we need before we ask him. These observations have led me to think that it is okay – and perhaps even preferable – to keep our prayers short.

            This thought may not be earth-shattering to you, but I’ve got to tell you, it’s been very challenging to me. To be honest, I think I’ve spent most of my life believing that effective prayers have to be long prayers – in other words, if I want to have any chance of God answering my prayer, I need to make it long.

            I don’t know when or where I picked up that idea, but I can tell you, it really has affected my prayer life. For a long time now, I know I’ve thought that if I want to truly have a “good” prayer time, I’d better be prepared to pray for at least 20 or 30 minutes – the longer the better, even if I wind up repeating myself, and even if I find my mind wandering a lot during that time.

            But as I’ve started to reflect on Matthew 6 and some other passages of Scripture, I’ve started to think that a much better principle to follow might be this:

When you pray, say what’s on your heart, then say no more.

            At times, you may have many people that you’d like to pray for in the same prayer, or you may have a heavy burden that you need to bring to God. Those prayers will naturally be longer, and of course, there’s nothing wrong with that! But at other times, you may simply want to say “thank you” for a small blessing or you may need to confess a sin that you’ve become aware of. I believe we should feel free to simply say those things without feeling like we have to make a 10-minute production out of our prayer.

            Effective prayers are not necessarily long prayers. When you’ve said all that’s on your heart, that will suffice. Don’t drone on with half-hearted words just because you feel like your prayer needs to be a certain length. Say what’s on your heart, then say no more.

A Well-Balanced Prayer Diet

            Now I do believe that The Lord’s Prayer mentions the kinds of thoughts that we need to express in our overall habits of prayer. We don’t want to neglect any of these thoughts even though we may not include all of them in every single prayer we pray.

            To help us remember these thoughts, I’d like to tie The Lord’s Prayer together with a commonly used acronym that serves as a helpful memory device. It’s the acronym ACTS. As we go through this acronym, please don’t think of this as a hard-and-fast outline that each of your prayers must follow. Think of it more like a guide for a well-balanced prayer diet. You can achieve a well-balanced diet for your body even if you don’t eat foods from every food group in each meal. Likewise, you can have a good balance in your prayer life even if you don’t touch on every part of this acronym in every prayer that you pray.

A—Adoration

            The letter “A” in this acronym stands for adoration. That word refers to statements that express our praise to God or our love for Him.

            In The Lord’s Prayer, we find adoration expressed in the statements, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.” The Lord’s name refers not just to the title that we might use for Him, but to His reputation and His fame as well. It’s similar to when we say, “So-and-so is really making a name for himself.”

            “Hallowed” is not a word that we use often. We may use it at times to refer to the “hallowed grounds” of a battlefield, and we mean that that location has a sacredness to it and is worthy of special honor because of its history.

            So “hallowed be your name” might be paraphrased as “may you receive the unique honor that you deserve.” It’s a statement that expresses how valuable we believe God is, and that He’s worthy of our love and honor. These are ideas, then, that we want to regularly express to God in our prayers.

C—Confession

            The “C” in this acronym stands for confession. In this model prayer, Jesus teaches us to confess our sins to God when he says, “and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” Notice how Jesus ties this aspect of our relationship with God together with the way that we treat other people. Tuck that thought in the back of your mind for now, because that idea is going to be the subject of another sermon soon to come. We’ll talk about how our relationship with God is affected by the way that we treat other people.

            For now, I want you to remember that this model prayer is given for people who can call God “Father.” In other words, it is given for followers of Christ – Christians. This little observation would teach us that even after we have become born-again, there is still a need for us to confess our sins to God and ask him for forgiveness.

            It’s not that we’re asking him to save us all over again or to adopt us into his family all over again. The reality is this – when we are born again, our relationship with God moves out of the courtroom and into the living room, because we are his children now, we’re family. And as with any family, we have a need to ask for forgiveness when we have done hurtful things that bring grief to our family members.

            And so, we need to confess our sins to God when we become aware of them. If you sense that you are not regularly aware of your sins, ask God to give you a greater sensitivity toward your sins. If we ask God to make it clear to us when we have sinned, I think he will be happy to answer that prayer.

T—Thanksgiving

            The “T” in this acronym stands for thanksgiving. Ironically, we don’t find the words “thank you” in this prayer, although we can certainly see gratitude peeking out from between the lines of these verses.

            Other passages of Scripture make it clear that we should offer thanks to God in our prayers. For example, Philippians 4:6 says, “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” Colossians 4:2 likewise says, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.”

            If we would keep this thought in mind, we would find ourselves with numerous opportunities every day to say thank you to God. In fact, this could be a good way to carry out the command of 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “pray without ceasing.” If we would offer a very brief prayer of thanks to the Lord as our various blessings come to mind, we would find ourselves saying thank you quite often.

S—Supplication

            The final letter in this acronym stands for supplication, which is just a fancier word for “making requests.” This may be the most humbling truth about prayer – we are invited to bring our requests to the Lord. It certainly makes sense for us to speak statements of adoration, to confess our sins, and to thank the Lord because after all – we are speaking to our superior, our Creator and Savior. The fact that he is willing to hear our requests is an example of sheer grace.

            We see supplication communicated in the three statements of this prayer: 1) your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven; 2) give us this day our daily bread; and 3) and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

            Notice how the first statement of supplication is based on promises that God had already made. He had already promised that he would establish his kingdom of righteousness in this world; he had already promised that one day his will would be done on earth as it is in heaven. So Jesus was teaching us that some of our requests at least should be informed by and fueled by the promises that God has made in the Bible.

            So for example, we can request that Christ would return soon; we can request that God would show us how his strength is made perfect in our weakness; we can request that God would make his presence with us clear to us, since he promised that he would be with us always. Knowing God’s promises, then, gives us an important base of knowledge that should influence what we ask for in prayer.

            As far as the other two examples of supplication, notice how they give us a balance between our physical needs and our spiritual needs. We need to pray about both kinds of needs without neglecting one or the other. Sometimes our physical needs can feel so urgent that they dominate our prayers and leave us with little energy or concentration to pray for our spiritual needs. On the other hand, it might feel selfish at times to pray about your own physical needs when you remember the great spiritual needs of so many people all around you.

            The goal would be to not get off-balance in either direction. Remember your physical needs and remember your spiritual needs. Remember your own needs and remember the needs of others.

            So by learning some lessons from this model prayer, we don’t have to remain tongue-tied whenever we pause to pray. With these thoughts as our guide, we can simply say what is on our hearts, then we don’t have to feel pressure to say more, as though God has a minimum word count requirement for our prayers. With Christ’s example before us, may prayer become more delightful to us all the time.

The Atonement--Definite Convictions Series

            In the musical “Scrooge,” there’s a scene in which the Ghost of Christmas Future takes old Ebenezer to his office on some future Christmas morning. There’s a crowd gathered there, and Ebenezer doesn’t realize at first that the crowd is there to celebrate his death. A man named Tom Jenkins is leading the crowd, and he takes up a song that he sings to the now-deceased Scrooge:

Thank you very much, thank you very much,

That’s the nicest thing that anyone’s ever done for me!

            Most of the time, of course, it would be extremely inappropriate to thank someone for dying. But when we consider the Lord Jesus Christ, we can hardly help but say “thank you” as we remember all that his death has done for us. Truly, his death for our sins is the most loving, most gracious thing that anyone’s ever done for us!

            Today, our study of our church’s Statement of Faith brings us to the section entitled, “The Atonement.” You’ll notice that just after that title, in parentheses, is the word “reconciliation” – a word which is probably a bit more familiar to us than the word “atonement.” When you are reconciled to someone, you move from having hostility with them to having peace. And so, as we study this section, we are studying what Jesus has done to bring us back into a relationship of peace with God. Here’s what this section has to say:

We believe that Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, was crucified, died, and was buried as planned by God before the foundation of the world. By the shedding of His blood, His sacrificial death upon the cross became and is the only ground of atonement for sin whereby man, by personal faith, is redeemed from the guilt, penalty, and power of sin (Rom 3:24-25; Rom 5:6-11; 1 Cor 15:3-4; Heb 9:14; 1 Peter 1:18-19; 1 John 4:10; Heb 9:22).

Let’s take a closer look at a few of the statements from this section.

“As planned by God…”

            Our Statement reminds us of the incredible truth that Christ’s death for sinners was not an afterthought in God’s plan, but a central part of it. When Adam and Eve plunged the human race into sin, God was not left scrambling, wondering what he was going to do. No – before he even created the world he knew that mankind would sin, and in his love he created a plan that would allow for us to be forgiven.

            And it wasn’t just any plan – it was a plan that called for tremendous personal sacrifice from God. How can we help but marvel at the fact that God knew what the cost would be to provide forgiveness, yet he still decided that it was good to go ahead and create mankind!

            God’s planning of Christ’s sacrificial death was a theme that the Apostles stressed in their earliest sermons after the Day of Pentecost. If they were going to publicly proclaim to their Jewish countrymen that Jesus was their long-awaited Messiah, they would have to explain why Jesus had been crucified. They did this by appealing to God’s eternal plan for salvation.

            For example, as he spoke on the Day of Pentecost, the Apostle Peter told the crowd, “this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men (Acts 2:23).” Peter didn’t let the people off the hook for their own guilt in Christ’s crucifixion, but he pulled back the curtain for them to reveal that it had all happened “according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God.” It was not an accident or mistake – it was all part of God’s plan for our forgiveness.

            A short time later, as the Apostles were praying to God, they said to Him, “for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place (Acts 4:27-28).”

            It could be easy to think of the Crucifixion as a moment when history itself spun out of God’s control, but in fact, nothing could be further from the truth. The sacrifice that Jesus made was all part of God’s plan, and it came about just as he intended.

“By the shedding of His blood…”

            Our Statement then goes on to give a very appropriate emphasis to the shedding of Christ’s blood as being the means by which we are cleansed from our sins. The New Testament frequently connects our forgiveness not merely to Christ’s death, but to His shed blood. Consider these verses:

·         Romans 3:24-25: “[we are] justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.

·         Romans 5:9: “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”

·         Ephesians 1:7: “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.”

·         Colossians 1:19-20: “For in [Christ] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.”

·         1 Peter 1:18-19: “you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.

            This emphasis on the shed blood of Christ teaches us that we are saved not merely by the fact that Jesus died, but by why and how he died. It would have done nothing for us if Jesus had simply died of old age or through an accident in the carpenter’s shop. No – we are saved because Jesus died as an intentional offering to pay for our sins, and in such offerings, the shedding of blood is required.

            The author of Hebrews put this very plainly when he wrote in Hebrews 9:22, “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.” This was God’s requirement because of the connection between the blood and the very life of a sacrificial offering. He explained it this way to the children of Israel as he laid out for them the system of animal sacrifices under the Law of Moses: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life (Leviticus 17:11).” This is why we sometimes talk about the “lifeblood” of something, because life and blood are virtually synonymous.

            And so, by shedding his blood as a sacrificial offering for our sins, Jesus has paid the necessary price for our forgiveness. And as our Statement correctly says, “His sacrificial death on the cross became and is the only ground of atonement for sin.” It is not Christ or something else, as though we have multiple options for forgiveness to choose from. Nor is it Christ and something else, as though there is more that needs to be accomplished for our forgiveness. It is Christ alone as the only ground of atonement for sin.

“Whereby man, by personal faith, is redeemed…”

            And how is it that we come to receive the forgiveness that Christ has purchased for us? Is it something that God gives only to those who were born into the right family? Is it something that he gives only to those who appear to be more worthy of it than others?

            No – as our Statement says, it is received simply by personal faith in Christ. We simply have to acknowledge that we need this forgiveness because we have rebelled against God through our sin. When we make that humbling admission, we then simply trust in Jesus to save us, believing that he has done all that was necessary for our forgiveness through his sacrificial death.

Monday Matters

            As we go through this series, we always want to remind ourselves of how a knowledge of doctrine can help us in daily life. With the doctrine of the atonement, there is one application that rings out above all others:

Christ's death for my sin is the clear and unchanging proof that God loves me.

            If I may modify the song “Jesus Loves Me” just a bit, I might say it like this:

Jesus loves me, this I know,

For he died to show me so.

            Christ’s death for us is the proof of God’s love for us, our shelter in the time of storm. Sometimes the blessings of life blow in all around us like a gentle breeze in the Spring, and we feel nothing but the sunshine of life upon our faces and we see beauty on the horizon all around us as far as our eyes can see. But at other times, the storm clouds of life roll in like an unstoppable front, and the damaging winds blow and threaten us with harm.

            How can we stay grounded and secure in such times? With this ever-changing turmoil we may often ask, “Does God really love me?” But over the anguished cry of our doubts comes the sound of nails being hammered into wood, and the sound of the very same words that are on our minds: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Then drowning out every other sound in our souls comes the triumphant cry, “It is finished!”

            Yes, God really does love me. Christ’s sacrifice stands for all time like a beacon in the night, shining through the darkness to help me keep my bearings when I might otherwise feel lost. Doubts will come because they are part of difficulties, but they do not have to win the day because the hill of Calvary is the high ground that our doubts cannot overtake. We will find refuge from our doubts about God’s love if we flee to the cross of Christ again and again.