Category: Christianity

Colossians #5. Endurance With Joy; Walking By the Spirit

On By Pastor TomIn Bible Teaching, Christianity, Colossians, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, UncategorizedLeave a comment

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When we face hardships, struggles and sufferings in the strength and joy that God gives, we show the world that God is good, that he is powerful, and that he loves us. Part of this strength flows to us as we trust what God has already done for us in the spiritual realm. The Bible calls this “walking by the spirit.”

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Colossians #5. Colossians 1:9-14

9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, 10 so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (ESV) Colossians 1:9-14

Last time we focused on verses 9-10, and the fact that true salvation through faith in Jesus results in a changed life. I want to point out, that the idea of changed life is encased, before and after, with the truth that it is  God who does the work to create that changed life. We can say “no” to him, and stop the process. But it is important for us to understand that we don’t achieve a changed life from within ourselves. We don’t get it by trying harder. We get from God himself, when we trust him fully. We obey the commands of scripture because we trust. Another way of saying it is that obedience is the result of genuine faith. If we have an obedience problem, it is most likely because, deep down, we have a problem trusting that God is good, and all powerful, and he loves us.

We talked about what it means to be filled with spiritual wisdom and understanding, and that such a thing is a gift of God, from the Holy Spirit. We talked about the importance of walking in a manner worthy of the Lord. Next, Paul prays that the believers would be strengthened with all power, according to God’s glorious might for all endurance and patience with joy. I want us to pay attention to that little word, for. In Greek, it is the word eis, occurring here as an accusative preposition. What that means is that it indicates the purpose of something. You see, we might be tempted to go a certain direction when we hear: “strengthened with all power, according to God’s glorious might.” We might think that this means we Christians are to move from victory to victory. It might sound like we have God’s glorious might so that we ourselves should become mighty and glorious. I have heard Christians who talk as if following Jesus means that everything in life just gets better and better, and you suffer less and less. You go from victory to victory, and the picture of “victory” is more or less, “everything goes well for you.” But it is very clear here that the purpose of our strengthening, the purpose of God giving us his glorious power is so that we might endure with patience and joy.

Enduring with patience and joy implies first of all that there is something to endure. Generally, that means something difficult, since we don’t talk about “enduring” the best day of our lives. Also, what we must endure requires patience, which again, does not sound like one great victory after another. Finally, it seems like what we are called to patiently endure might not normally be thought about as joyful. In simple terms, Paul is praying that the faith of these believers would strengthen them to face trials, sorrows, suffering and difficulties in a way that shows Jesus to the world.

Some of you know that I experience a great deal of physical pain almost every single day of my life.  It is true, that if I were to be healed miraculously, many people would praise God. But I am convinced that more people have been blessed by watching how Jesus strengthens me with endurance, patience and joy in suffering than would have been blessed by my miraculous healing. Through the endurance, patience and joy God has given me, the world sees that Jesus is sufficient and good, even in the middle of hard times. That is a powerful testimony; I think more powerful than many more obvious miracles. Don’t get me wrong. I believe in the obvious kind of miracles, also. But we sell God short when we forget that he can heal and strengthen us from the inside in ways that are truly miraculous.

All of us face difficulties of one sort or another. We battle the sin in our own flesh. We are tempted, and lied to, by the devil. We live in a sinful world. Sometimes, one, or all three of those things makes life extremely difficult and trying. The promise of scripture is not that we never face trials, but that, when we do, we can press in to the goodness, power, strength and love of God.

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
3 For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. (ESV, Isaiah 43:1-3)

Sometimes we do pass through the waters, or the fire. I am in the fire right now. I am in pain as I write this, the same pain that has plagued me every day for four years now. God meets us in the fire and in the flood. His mighty power will strengthen you, and you can endure. Not only that, but you can endure with patience. Wait, there’s more: you can endure with patience, AND joy. The promise is here in scripture, and that should be enough, but I add my testimony. Those of you who know me personally know that it has been true in my life.

Those who know me also know that I am not walking around, pretending everything is great. Of course I struggle. I’m not talking about a fake happiness, or pretending nothing is wrong. But on the whole, the mighty, glorious power of God gives me strength to endure with patience and joy. I believe with all my heart and soul that God is good, he is powerful, and he loves me, and the pain cannot shake that. In fact, through my pain, I know it better today than I did before the struggle began. Many people ask me how I do it. I don’t. God does. And what he has done for me, he will do for you, if you let him.

The next phrase from the text is: giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

Certainly everything we have talked about so far is worth giving thanks for. But there is more. He has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. If you think that you are not qualified to be a saint, you are both right, and wrong. No one is qualified to be a saint. No one deserves the inheritance that is given to us in Jesus Christ. But God has qualified those who trust him. So it is not our qualification that makes us worthy to be saints, or share in the inheritance of Light. It is God himself who makes us qualified. Paul explains briefly how:

13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

In the Greek (as in English) both of the verbs “delivered” and “transferred” give the sense that this is a done deal. It is an action that is completed. I know that we look around us, and say, “it doesn’t look complete to me. It looks like I’m still in between. I’m still being delivered, and being transferred. But that would not be the correct interpretation here.

This is a very important concept. The Bible teaches us that we live in two worlds at the same time. This is possible, because there are three distinct aspects of being a human being. We have bodies. We have souls. And we have spirits. Our bodies are fully in the world we see. Our bodies have not been delivered – they suffer the effects of sin, and will eventually die because of it. Our spirits, however, have already been delivered from darkness and transferred into God’s kingdom of light. If you are a believer, your spirit-person is already perfect, already holy and blameless; it’s a done deal. Your soul connects your body to your spirit. This is where the main battle is fought. Your soul is connected to your spirit, which is “already there.” It is also connected to your body, which will never be perfect, and never be in heaven. Your soul is where the tension is.

So when we hear these things, we have to understand it really is true. You (your spirit-person) has already been delivered from the domain of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of Jesus. It is already done. Yes, this mortal body will have to die. Yes, there is still  struggle going on in your soul. But in your spirit, it is a done deal. A lot of what we call Christian living is all about believing that this is true, and allowing what has been done to your spirit to flow down into your soul and body, so that you are influenced by the spirit, rather than the flesh. This is what the Bible calls “walking according to the Spirit.”

Another way the Bible describes it is like this:

11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. (ESV, Romans 6:11)

I think we have several important things to meditate on throughout this next week.

  • What are the struggles that you face? Have you availed yourself of the strength of God to allow you to endure with patience and joy? What are some ways that you might do that more?
  • It is God himself, through Jesus Christ, who has qualified you to be a saint, to share in the inheritance of the kingdom of light. Do you believe this? If not, what are the thoughts that you need to battle in order to trust that this is true?
  • Do you know, that if you are a disciple of Jesus, your spirit-person has already been fully transferred from darkness to light? What are the things that will help you believe this truth, and walk according to this spiritual reality?

COLOSSIANS #4: WALKING WORTHY, BEARING FRUIT

On By Pastor TomIn Christianity, Colossians, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, UncategorizedLeave a comment
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 When we truly believe the gospel, it changes us. We enter into a new relationship with God, a relationship that the Bible compares to marriage. Just as with marriage, this new relationship means we live differently than we did before we entered into it. It changes us. If we find we are not changed, then perhaps we need to meditate on the cross, where both the depth of our sin, and the greatness of God’s love are demonstrated.

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Colossians #4. Colossians 1:9-10

As we start on this text today, I want to remind you of  part of the process I go through in preparing these messages. The word of God is living and active. I think there are many directions a sermon might go, based upon this text, because there is so much here. I don’t mean you could get anything at all out of any given text, but I do think in each one, there are a variety of things to emphasize, and many different possible ways to apply the meaning of the Bible to our lives. I try to prepare these messages while depending on the Holy Spirit to lead me. So, I have gone one direction that the Spirit seemed to lead me this time, for this text. There are other possible things to emphasize here. But I trust that someone needs to hear what I will say this time.

For this reason also, since the day we heard this, we haven’t stopped praying for you. We are asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding, 10 so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God

“For this reason also.” We shouldn’t pass over this phrase lately. Paul is about to launch into a long prayer for the Colossians. There is much we can learn from the prayer. But the reason for the prayer is that the Colossians have received the gospel, and responded in faith. None of what comes next is possible without that reason. In many ways, in the world view of our faith, there is only one thing that is important: how to do you respond to Jesus Christ? Everything else in the world depends upon that question. If that question is answered with faith, then everything in the universe is eternally shifted to grace, joy and life. When Paul writes about growing in Jesus, we need to understand that such things are only possible because Jesus has first given us his grace. We can’t endure patiently, or bear fruit, or walk worthy of Lord on our own. It happens only because Jesus has first saved us, and next, given us His Holy Spirit to empower how we live. Paul is not praying these things so that the Colossians can be saved; no, he is praying these things precisely because they have already been saved.

With that understanding, let’s see what the Holy Spirit, through Paul desires for those of us who follow Jesus. That you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding.

Understand that this is passive. It is God, through the Holy Spirit who fills you with knowledge of his will, and gives you wisdom, and a spiritual way of looking at the world. We cannot fill ourselves with these things. It comes from the Holy Spirit.

10 But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. 11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.
13 When we tell you these things, we do not use words that come from human wisdom. Instead, we speak words given to us by the Spirit, using the Spirit’s words to explain spiritual truths. 14 But people who aren’t spiritual can’t receive these truths from God’s Spirit. It all sounds foolish to them and they can’t understand it, for only those who are spiritual can understand what the Spirit means. 15 Those who are spiritual can evaluate all things, but they themselves cannot be evaluated by others. 16 For, “Who can know the Lord’s thoughts? Who knows enough to teach him?”  But we understand these things, for we have the mind of Christ. (NLT 1 Corinthians 2:10-16).

So, spiritual wisdom and understanding are given as free gifts of God. Now, we can, however, if we choose, interfere with the Spirit’s work in our minds and hearts. For instance, one of the indispensable tools used by the Holy Spirit is the Bible, the Word of God. If we choose to remain ignorant of the Bible, we make it extremely difficult for the Spirit to accomplish his work of filling us with spiritual knowledge and understanding. If we give more influence in our lives to the things of the world than the things of God, it will be harder for this prayer to be fulfilled. I’ve used this analogy before, but it is worthwhile. Imagine you have two dogs inside you, fighting each other for dominance of your soul. Which dog will win? The one that you feed. You feed your flesh-person by indulging its desires, by spending your time and energy and focus on the things of this world. You feed your Spirit-person by reading the Bible, by spending time with other Christians who are following Jesus, by worshipping Jesus, and praying, and doing the good things Jesus asks you to do. I don’t mean it is all up to you. If you give him room, God will supply the power and will to feed the Spirit-dog. But we have to let him, and part of letting him is allowing him to change our behavior.

All this is very much related to the next verse:

so that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of God,

Where I live, this is one of the most neglected concepts of the Christian faith. I live near Nashville, TN, in an area that is sometimes called “The Bible Belt” because it is known to be a place where people are religious. Sometimes, Nashville is even called “The buckle of the Bible belt” because we have several huge Christian publishing companies here, we are the center of Christian music in the Western world, and the area is filled with big churches.

But in the middle of all this religion, it is surprising to find a huge number of people who are quite ignorant about what Christianity really means. You see, people around here are pretty good at telling others that Jesus died for their sins. They are good at explaining that you need to “get saved.” But what so few churches near me seem to teach is that all this results in a change of life. If you repent and “get saved,” then it makes a difference in how you live. You begin to walk in a way that is worthy of the Lord, pleasing to Him. You begin to bear the fruit of good works. You start growing in the knowledge of God, and are strengthened with His power so that you can endure patiently and joyfully.

I have met Christians who claim they are “saved” but who regularly have sex outside of marriage, who often get drunk or high, who cheat their bosses, or their customers, or the government, out of money when they think they’ll get away with it, and so on. But someone who is truly saved does not continue to do these things. Perhaps, if such a person did them in the past, they might fail once in a while, and fall back into the old ways. But those old ways are no longer the pattern of life for someone who belongs to Jesus. If you continue with such things as a regular, normal part of your life, you are walking away from Jesus. It is like you are standing with one foot on a dock, and the other on a boat that is pulling away from the dock. If you don’t make a choice between living as the world does or following Jesus, a choice will be made for you.

Now, someone may have a question something like this: “I get the general idea, but what does having sex, or getting drunk, or cheating the government have to do with loving God or not? Why can’t I love God, and still do those things? What’s the connection?”

I understand the question. I don’t have a complete answer, but let’s think about loving other human beings for a moment. My wife Kari really likes a clean house. When she sees dirty dishes, or junk laying around, or clothes on the floor, she feels compelled to clean it up. Therefore, when I leave messes around the house, Kari can’t relax. It creates a problem for her. I don’t entirely understand this. On the other hand, if I take time to really listen to Kari, I find it makes more sense. Now, knowing that a messy house is a problem for Kari, I have a choice. If I really love her, and want to show her I love her, I try to clean up after myself. My love for her changes my behavior.

Now, from the outside, someone may ask, “What does cleaning up your lunch-dishes have to do with love and marriage?” It may seem, to someone who doesn’t know Kari, like the two things are unrelated. But in real life, this is how love works. Kari has told me clearly it is important to her. Therefore, the loving thing for me to do is clear. I may not completely understand why, but what I need to do is not confusing at all. Any of you who have been married very long should understand this sort of thing. We all have things that are important to us that seem difficult to explain, but it doesn’t change the fact that they are important. When we love someone, what is important to them becomes important to us.

So it is with God. Why should a clean house be connected with me loving Kari? It is hard to explain, but I can’t deny that it is. Why should our sexual behavior, or honesty, or anything be connected with loving God? I don’t know entirely, but he has made it quite clear that it is. And when I take more time to listen to him, by reading his Word, I find it easier to accept and to understand.

“But wait!” say some of these folks. “God loves me no matter what, right? I am saved by grace, not by my performance, so why does it matter how I live? You’ve been telling me that God does all the work here, so why do I have to change my behavior, even if it is important to him?”

Imagine a woman who is not perfect – she’s never pretended she was. She meets a caring, kind, loving man. This guy knows she has her issues, but he loves her anyway. The woman also falls in love with the man, and they get married. In their marriage vows, the commit to be faithful to one another, to love and honor and serve each other.

Soon after the marriage, the woman starts sleeping with other men, staying away from home for days at a time without calling her husband. She spends all their money without consulting him. When someone asks her why she is treating him so badly, she says this: “Look, my husband says he loves me unconditionally. He said that he knew I wasn’t perfect, but he still loves me. He made a vow when we got married that he would be faithful to me. So, now, because he loves me, and I love him, I can go out and party, and sleep with other men, and ignore his needs and feelings. I can do all this because he loves me. He knows I’m not perfect.”

When we put it in that context, we can all see how ridiculous it is. Why did this woman say her marriage vows, if she doesn’t want to live like she is married? How can she possibly say that it is OK to sleep around, because her husband loves her? The fact that he loves her makes it worse when she betrays him, not better.

The marriage analogy is a good one, because the Bible uses it all the time. We believers are the bride of Christ.

22 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord, 23 because the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church. He is the Savior of the body. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives are to submit to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her with the washing of water by the word. 27 He did this to present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and blameless. 28 In the same way, husbands are to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hates his own flesh but provides and cares for it, just as Christ does for the church, 30 since we are members of his body. (CSB Ephesians 5:22-30)

1 I hope you will put up with me in a little foolishness. Yes, please put up with me! 2 I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him. 3 But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. (NIV) 2 Corinthians 11:1-3

Jesus often referred to himself as “The Bridegroom,” and Revelation 21 describes the church as the “New Jerusalem, prepared like a bride for her husband.” Now, you see how it is. If this woman’s marriage was real to her, she would never behave like this. In other words, if she really did love her husband, and they really were married, it would make a difference to her. She is acting as if she doesn’t believe that they are truly married.

And that is what happens to many who call themselves Christians. Many people call themselves Christians because they grew up that way, or maybe because they believe in some sort of God, but they aren’t Muslim or Jewish, so they think they must be Christian. Maybe when they were young, someone pressured them into “getting saved.” Maybe, for a while they felt some sort religious impulse, but never really connected to Jesus. But if you truly believe the gospel, it has an effect on your behavior.

If someone does not behave like a Christian, I think the problem is that they don’t really believe the gospel. They don’t really believe that they are sinners who need a savior. They don’t really believe that Jesus died a horrible death on their behalf, or maybe they don’t believe that he needed to. Bad behavior is a symptom of bad belief. The way to correct the problem is not to grit your teeth and try harder, but to truly repent of your sins, and to truly surrender your heart, mind and will to Jesus.

Some people understand this, but they still struggle. I have some advice: ask God to help you truly believe the gospel. Ask him to show you your sin, and show you his love. The best place to look at for this is the cross. The cross shows you how terrible your sin is. See, here’s the thing: we haven’t all done what Adolf Hitler did. But the same evil that lived inside of Hitler lives inside of you and I. Your sin merits a savage, bone-bruising beating. It deserves people surrounding you, mocking you, spitting on you, hating you for no apparent reason. It deserves execution without a proper trial, a brutal, vicious, torturous death that was ultimately considered too barbaric to keep, even by a barbaric people.

The cross also shows you the depth of God’s love for you. Instead of giving you what you deserve for your sin, He took all of that on himself. He took the beating, the mocking, the injustice, the savage, intense, barbaric death-by-torture. His love is so great for you that he did it before you even cared, long before you repented, even while you were indifferent to him, or even while you hated him. He didn’t just keep the house clean for you – he gave his life for you in the most difficult way possible.

Meditate on that depth of sin, that depth of love, and it will be life changing.

Revelation #49. THE END.

On By Pastor TomIn Bible, Bible Teaching, book of revelation, Christianity, Jesus, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, UncategorizedLeave a comment
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Remember the first readers of this book? They wondered if Jesus had forgotten his promise to return. They wondered if God had forgotten about them. They wondered how God could possibly be involved in the crazy, brutal, senseless, evil world they lived in. Sometimes we want to know God’s plan. Revelation shows us that we may not understand God’s plan, even if he reveals it to us. But what we can understand is that God is in control, and one day he will finally defeat all evil, make all things right, and bring his people to be with him in the New Heavens and New Earth where there is no more sorrow, death or suffering. He has promised, and he will do it.

I strongly encourage you to listen, even if you normally read, because we have a special treat at the end of the audio.

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Revelation #49. Revelation 22:18-21

 18 I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, 19 and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.

Let’s consider this warning. Let me start by being very clear about what this does NOT mean. It does not mean that we cannot ever talk about the bible, or the book of Revelation. It does not mean that it is wrong to write books (or sermons!) about the Bible, or Revelation. I say this because sometimes, Christians in the Western World have come to think religion is something intensely personal, something that is really all about you. Nothing could be further from the perspective of the Bible itself. Every part of the New Testament assumes that believers are living in fellowship with each other, and that they are led by people who are teaching them the Word of God.

To put it another way, teaching people about the Bible is not the same as “adding to, or taking away from the Bible.” The Bible itself is very, very clear that some people have been called by God to teach others the truth of God from the bible.

Now, certainly not everyone is called to this ministry. In fact, James warns that the gift of teaching is somewhat rare, which is why it should be respected. He says:

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. (Jas 3:1, ESV2011)

However, it is still very clear that some people do have that calling, and gifting. Consider these verses:

6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly. (NLT Romans 12:6-8)

11 Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. 12 Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. (NLT Ephesians 4:11-12)

God gives people gifts to use so that his people can encourage one another, and follow Jesus better. One of those gifts is that of teaching Bible truth to other Christians. In fact, teachers are part of a special group that is supposed to help other Christians to live for Jesus.

Also, consider these verses about church leaders:

1 This is a trustworthy saying: “If someone aspires to be a church leader, he desires an honorable position.” 2 So a church leader must be a man whose life is above reproach. He must be faithful to his wife. He must exercise self-control, live wisely, and have a good reputation. He must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must be able to teach. (NLT, 1 Timothy 3:1-2)

7 A church leader is a manager of God’s household, so he must live a blameless life. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered; he must not be a heavy drinker, violent, or dishonest with money.
8 Rather, he must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must love what is good. He must live wisely and be just. He must live a devout and disciplined life. 9 He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught; then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong. (NLT, Titus 1:7-9)

Christians are supposed to respect those who teach God’s word, and to support them financially, because they are doing part of God’s work:

Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel. (1 Corinthians 9:13-14, ESV)

6 Those who are taught the word of God should provide for their teachers, sharing all good things with them. (NLT, Galatians 6:6)

17 Elders who do their work well should be respected and paid well, especially those who work hard at both preaching and teaching. (NLT 1 Timothy 5:17)

God would hardly want his people to pay those who teach His Word unless he really wanted them to teach. Just one more verse:

7 Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and follow the example of their faith. (NLT Hebrews 13:7)

So, we should not think that this verse here in Revelation means that when someone teaches about a Bible passage, that person is somehow “adding to” or “taking away” from the Bible. That cannot be what this verse means, or it would contradict all those other verses I just gave you, and many more that I didn’t share here.

But it does mean something important. This statement is first and foremost about the book of Revelation, but it is not wrong to also apply it to the Bible as a whole. No teaching is at the same level as the Bible. No teacher is at the same level as the Bible. No other book should be considered as on the same level as the Bible. The Bible stands alone as the Word of God. It alone has the authority to tell us about God, humanity, salvation, and how then we should live.

Good teachers are important, and the good ones will encourage you to read the Bible for yourself. Even so, every person including Bible teachers, is flawed. I am bound to make mistakes. If I say one thing, and the Bible clearly says something very different, then I am the one who is wrong. How will you know if I’ve made a mistake about the Bible? Only if you read it yourself.

Mohammed (founder of Islam) both subtracted from, and added to, the Bible. So did Joseph Smith & Brigham Young (the founders of the Mormons). The Roman  Catholic Pope claims to have authority to add to what the Bible says. This gives Christians a clear basis for understanding where we stand in relationship to  these people – they are bringing down plagues upon themselves. We should not listen to them.

But there is something else. Many individual human beings are guilty of adding to, or taking away from the Bible for themselves. If you have decided that you will keep the parts you like, and ignore the parts you don’t, then you are doing the same thing as Mohammed and the Pope, even if you don’t lead a world religion.

There are some other implications, about the book of Revelation itself. Over the years, many people have added their “end-times-system,” to the book of Revelation. I have spoken about this before. They take this book, and make it fit into their ideas concerning what will happen at the end of the world. They speak confidently of the rapture, and the one-world-government, and one-world-currency as if those things are actually found in Revelation. This warning is for them, also. Those things are not in this book.

So once, more, we find that among the last things Jesus tells his people is to read and know His Word.

He closes with this:

20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen. (ESV Revelation 22:18-21)

Remember the first readers of this book? They wondered if Jesus had forgotten his promise to return. They wondered if God had forgotten about them. They wondered how God could possibly be involved in the crazy, brutal, senseless, evil world they lived in. Jesus revealed this vision to them.

Sometimes, we want to know what God’s plan is. Well, here’s God’s plan to return to this world and make everything right. How do you like it? It’s not very easy to understand all of it, is it? Since it is God’s plan, that ought not to surprise us. We shouldn’t expect to understand it all, since we are not God. But here, Jesus is saying, “Yes, you have heard the plan. I will return. I will make everything right. You are not forgotten. I will come back, and save my people, and bring them into a beautiful new creation where there will be no more sorrow, where the past suffering is not worth mentioning compared to the present glory. If you want to be a part of it, all you have to do is trust me, surrender your life to me, and your name will be in the book of life. I have said it, and I will do it.”

I hope and pray that you have a better understanding of the Book of Revelation. I hope and pray that especially, you have a sense of peace and joy about Jesus coming back, and that it becomes something that you long for, and pray for.

We have spent almost one year worth of sermons, and two years real time, in this book. I hope it was helpful. Because, we could have done the entire book of Revelation in just two minutes, like this: (credit goes to my dear friend, pastor Peter Churness, of Gig Harbor, WA, for making my work meaningless. This is at point 24:48 in the audio):

The Apostle John sees a vision of Jesus, Jesus gives him messages to give to seven churches, then he sees the throne room of God, and there are four mutant creatures having a worship jam, and they all see this scroll, and then they are whining, “who can open the scroll?”  John then hears the lion of Judah but sees the Lamb of God, he can do it!  But first they have to break these seven seals that are sealing the scroll.  And four seals are these four horsemen dudes representing bad stuff, and the fifth is the martyrs, sixth is Day of the Lord, part one, then there’s intermission and we get to see a multi-ethnic party in heaven, then seventh seal broken, but before scroll is opened seven warning trumpets come, and fire from altar shoots up and casts to earth bringing more Day of the Lord judgment stuff.  Then these seven trumpets start going off bringing more bad stuff like hail and poison water and blood and locusts and county music, then there’s another intermission as the scroll finally gets opened, and then John eats it, and then he has two more visions, one of a bunch of dead Christians hiding under an altar, then of two Jehovah witnesses guys getting killed by this Beast thing, but then come back as zombies.  Then the last Trumpet sounds, and God’s kingdom comes and shakes the nations like a shake n bake chicken.  Then comes a bunch of signs, one of this cosmic battle, and this pregnant lady floating in space comes down and has a baby, and this space dragon comes over and attacks it, but the baby grows up and defeats the dragon. Then there are two more beasts and everybody has to get the number 666 tattooed on them if you want to eat, or use the Apple store, then the Lamb comes again, fights the beasts and wins.  Then comes these seven bowls of wrath with things like sores and blood and fire and more blood and darkness.  Then the dragon and beast hook up together and fight one last great battle of Armageddon.  Then there’s this Day of the Lord scene… again.  But this time nations defeated for good.  Then there’s this woman riding the dragon and she’s really bad, and she fights God’s kingdom and loses.  Then comes this sixth bowl of wrath and this final final battle (in addition to the “first final” battle of Armageddon).  Then Jesus comes and he has this sword sticking out of his mouth and he wins, locks up Satan, and then Jesus and us Christians rule for 1000 years.  Then Satan makes a jail break, though Jesus really let him out, but not sure why, possibly for good behavior, seems unlikely.  Anyway he deceives everybody again.  Then there is a final final final battle, in addition to the other two “final battles” that previously happened.  Then there’s a wedding, and earth gets rebuilt, and heaven gets remade, and Jerusalem gets a makeover and comes down out of heaven like a spaceship, and all of us live there happily ever after.  And that’s the book of Revelation.

REVELATION 48: “BECAUSE I SAID SO.”

On By Pastor TomIn Bible Teaching, book of revelation, Christianity, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, UncategorizedLeave a comment
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When we take these two declarations of Jesus together, they share a common theme: You can count on Jesus. You can rely on his word. Come to Him, be satisfied in Him, by reading his word. At the same time, understand this: all satisfaction in this life is only a foretaste of what is coming. So we, the Bride of Christ, say with the Spirit to world: Come and drink now, feed yourself on the Word of God, the Son of David, the One you can rely on. Don’t wait.

At the same time, we the Bride of Christ, also say with the Spirit: Come Lord Jesus, return soon!

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Revelation #48. Revelation 22:16-17

16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”

We are considering the last things that Jesus has to say in His revealed word. We have covered three of his last seven statements. The next, the fourth, comes in the center of the chiastic structure of this little section. That means it is “highlighted,” or italicized, so to speak.

Jesus signs off with two titles. The Romans, intercepting this message, would not have known that “root and descendant of David” refers to the Messiah. Unfortunately, many modern readers don’t either. But that is why Jesus chose that title. To remind those persecuted Christians (without tipping off the Romans) that he is the Messiah who was prophesied by the Old Testament. It also reminds us that he is the God of all time. He is the descendant of David, yes, but he is also the “root,” or “source,” of David. He is both God and man. The second title is “bright morning star.” This is a bit more obscure. When Balaam was hired to curse Israel (while they were wondering in the desert between Egypt and the promised land), instead, he prophesied blessing over God’s people. Among other things, he said this, in Numbers 24:

17 I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near:
a star shall come out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel;
it shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth.
18 Edom shall be dispossessed; Seir also, his enemies, shall be dispossessed.
Israel is doing valiantly. 19 And one from Jacob shall exercise dominion
and destroy the survivors of cities!” (ESV Numbers 24:17-19)

Once again, Jesus is the fulfillment of many Old Testament prophecies. Not only that, but Balaam’s prophecy above sounds a little bit like some of the events proclaimed by the book of Revelation. In addition, if the title “descendant of David” seems to emphasize the human nature that Jesus took into himself, “the bright morning star” seems to emphasize his Divine nature.

Remember, at the very beginning of the book, we learned that those who first received this prophecy were under a tremendous amount of hardship and stress. They were persecuted. They wondered if maybe the Lord had forgotten them. But Jesus sends them this sweeping vision of God making everything right, and of the eternal future he has for those who trust him. He is now saying this:

“You can count on what I say. This is from me personally: the Messiah, the one the Old Testament prophesied about so much. I am coming back, I have not forgotten you. I am in control of every part of history. Rely upon it. I give you my word as the Messiah, and as the Son of God.”

Let’s look at Jesus’ fifth declaration:

17 The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.

This is another passage that is hard to capture fully in English. The Spirit, is, of course, the Holy Spirit. The Bride is the church, and I think this refers to the church right now, before the Lord has fulfilled all that He promises in Revelation, because it is describing her desire for Jesus to return.

R.C. Lenski, a terrific Lutheran Bible commentator, renders the Greek more literally like this (I agree with it, which is why I share it with you. But in any case, Lenski is a far better Greek scholar than me):

And the Spirit and the Bride are saying, Be coming! And the one hearing, let him say, Be coming! And let the one thirsting be coming! Let the one willing take life’s water gratis!

(Lenski’s Commentary on the New Testament. Revelation 22:17)

It is important to know that these Greek verbs are in the present tense. This is not about the Spirit and the church saying, just once, “Come, Lord Jesus!” The Holy Spirit places the longing for the return of Jesus into the hearts of the people of His church. The Spirit, and the church, led by the Spirit, are continually longing for Jesus to return. They are always saying “Oh, I wish Jesus would return and bring us into the glory and grace and joy that we were made to have!”

Aside from the Spirit and the Bride, there is another set of “characters” in this little statement. There is “the one thirsting.” This person is called not just to ask Jesus to return, but to personally come to Jesus and drink. Then there is “the one willing.” This person, again, is not just asking something from Jesus, but is told to go ahead, and take the water of life for free, and drink of it.

After last time, when we had a warning about those who reject God’s plan, we now have a welcome for those –anyone – who is willing to come to Jesus.

Once again, these verbs are present tense. We are called to find satisfaction for our souls in Jesus continually. It is not a one time event called “getting saved,” or “conversion.” It is a continual lifestyle of coming back to the well – that is coming to Jesus every day, like children coming to a beloved parent for what they need. Once is not enough. “Be coming, be drinking.”

How do we do this? John Piper wrote a biography of a famous Christian named George Mueller. Mueller had a remarkable ministry from age 25 until his death at 93 – almost seventy years. He personally saved 10,000 orphans from the streets of 19th century England, and put them in homes that he built and set up. He inspired his fellow-citizens to also engage in orphan work, which, until then, had been largely ignored. He encouraged countless missionaries, and even mission-agencies. He served as a pastor for most of his life, also. He suffered the loss of his beloved wife, and all but one of his five children. In all his work, he took no salary, and asked for no contributions (not even for the orphan ministry) but asked for money from God alone, and God provided. Discussing his ministry, and all that he had been through, and what sustained him, he claimed that his secret was that his soul was perfectly satisfied in God alone, and whatever God had for him, whether difficult or easy.  In other words, he listened to the command of Jesus, and came continually to the water of life to drink. But how do we get that satisfaction? How do we come to Jesus and drink? John Piper quotes Mueller:

But in what way shall we attain to this settled happiness of soul? How shall we learn to enjoy God? How obtain such an all-sufficient soul-satisfying portion in him as shall enable us to let go the things of this world as vain and worthless in comparison? I answer, This happiness is to be obtained through the study of the Holy Scriptures. God has therein revealed Himself unto us in the face of Jesus Christ.
Happiness in God comes from seeing God revealed to us in the face of Jesus Christ through the Scriptures. “In them . . . we become acquainted with the character of God. Our eyes are divinely opened to see what a lovely Being God is! And this good, gracious, loving, heavenly Father is ours, our portion for time and for eternity.” Knowing God is the key to being happy in God. (George Mueller’s Strategy for Showing God)

I cannot say it often enough: Christians, read your Bibles! If you don’t like to read, then listen to them in an audio version. I love this next quote from Mueller, also, because he said what I have been saying also, for years:  don’t just read a chapter here and there. Pick a book, and read through the whole book (say, the book of Ephesians). Then pick another (say, Micah), and read through it. And so on. Piper writes the first two sentences below, the rest is all George Mueller:

Therefore the most crucial means of fighting for joy in God is to immerse oneself in the Scriptures where we see God in Christ most clearly. When he was 71 years old, Mueller spoke to younger believers:
Now in brotherly love and affection I would give a few hints to my younger fellow-believers as to the way in which to keep up spiritual enjoyment. It is absolutely needful in order that happiness in the Lord may continue, that the Scriptures be regularly read. These are God’s appointed means for the nourishment of the inner man. . . .Consider it, and ponder over it. . . . Especially we should read regularly through the Scriptures, consecutively, and not pick out here and there a chapter. If we do, we remain spiritual dwarfs. I tell you so affectionately. For the first four years after my conversion I made no progress, because I neglected the Bible. But when I regularly read on through the whole with reference to my own heart and soul, I directly made progress. Then my peace and joy continued more and more. Now I have been doing this for 47 years. I have read through the whole Bible about 100 times and I always find it fresh when I begin again. Thus my peace and joy have increased more and more. (George Mueller’s Strategy for Showing God. I added the bold  and italic formatting for emphasis)

I want to add something to that. This past week, I’ve been reading about George Mueller for my own enjoyment. Yes, I’ve used it in this message, but that wasn’t why I was reading it. I encourage you to also read biographies of Christians like him. They are very helpful and inspiring. Again, if you aren’t a reader, that is no longer an excuse. There are audiobooks for everything, nowadays. George Mueller’s biography is a good one to start with. Through the Gates of Splendor (about Jim Elliot) is another good one. Here I Stand (Martin Luther) by Roland Bainton, is another good one.

When we take these two declarations of Jesus together, they share a common theme: You can count on Jesus. You can rely on his word. Come to Him, be satisfied in Him, by reading his word. At the same time, understand this: all satisfaction in this life is only a foretaste of what is coming. So we, the Bride of Christ, say with the Spirit to world: Come and drink now, feed yourself on the Word of God, the Son of David, the One you can rely on. Don’t wait.

At the same time, we the Bride of Christ, also say with the Spirit: Come Lord Jesus, return soon!

DESIRE, HOPE & THE RESURRECTION

On By Pastor TomIn Bible, Bible Teaching, Christianity, Easter, House Church, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, Uncategorized3 Comments

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What if our deepest desires – and our deepest disappointments – are really signs that we were made for something more? Jesus, by letting Lazarus die, was trying to get the attention of his loved ones. He wanted to reconnect them with their deep, unfulfilled desires, so that he could show them that He himself can and does fill them. He wanted to show them both, the depth of their desire for a world without death, and also, how completely unrealistic that desire is – apart from Himself

 

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RESURRECTION SUNDAY, 2019

John 11:1-53

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central truth on which all Christian theology depends. If Jesus wasn’t really raised from the dead, then he was a madman or megalomaniac, or maybe a demon. But if he was truly raised, then what he said was true; and he said he was God the Son, come into the world for our salvation.

I have talked before about the theological implications of the resurrection. I probably will do so again in the future. I have shared with you substantial evidence that supports the claim that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. I’ll do that again in the future also. But this year, I want to talk about the resurrection in a personal way. To do that, I want to consider a different resurrection: the resurrection of Lazarus, recorded in John chapter 11:1-53. Don’t get me wrong, this is also about the resurrection of Jesus. However, I think by considering what happened in this incident, we can learn some things about Jesus’ resurrection, and the eternal life he offers us.

Jesus was at least two days of traveling away from his friends Lazarus, Mary and Martha. Lazarus became seriously ill, and so the sisters sent word to Jesus. What John says next is pretty strange:

Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus. So when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.

John connects two things that don’t seem like they should be connected. He says Jesus loved Lazarus, so when he heard Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was. What kind of sense does that make? I can see John writing, “Jesus loved Lazarus, but when he heard he was sick, he stayed where he was anyway.” Or it would make sense to say, “Jesus loved Lazarus, so when he heard he was sick, he hurried to his side.” But John very deliberately connects the fact that Jesus loved Lazarus to the fact that he didn’t go to him, and allowed him to die.

Now, of course, that isn’t the end of the story. Jesus does go back – after Lazarus has died and been in the ground for four days. He speaks to Lazarus’ sisters, Martha and Mary. Martha says, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” This is actually a statement, but implied here is a question: “Why did you let him die? Why didn’t you come when we called?”

Jesus, typically, doesn’t answer her unspoken question. Instead, while their brother is still rotting in the tomb, he asks them to put their faith in him. You see, Jesus had bigger plans for Lazarus than merely healing him from a deadly disease. He had plans for resurrection.

We want to restore things as they were. Jesus wants to let things “as they were” die, so that he can resurrect something better in its place. In order for resurrection to occur, death must occur first. In other words, Jesus cannot resurrect something unless it dies first. To go back to the point I made earlier: Jesus loved Lazarus, therefore he let him die. This isn’t necessarily a pleasant thought. Usually, we want to skip the dying part, and go right to the resurrection; but death is a part of the equation. Jesus said:

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.  (John 12:24, ESV)

This is an obvious truth when it comes to seeds. When you plant a seed, you destroy it, as a seed. But the destruction of a seed results in something new and wonderful, something that is actually much greater than the seed was. In the same way, resurrection requires death. This truth is all over the bible:

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?  (Matt 16:24-26, ESV)

When Jesus says “take up his cross” he means quite simply, “be willing to die.”

2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.  (Col 3:2-3, ESV)

20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.  (Gal 2:20, ESV)

Ultimately, this means our physical death. It means that death is not something to fear. It leads to resurrection. But even now, before physical death, there are things that Jesus would like us to let go. There are ambitions, hopes, values, material things, perhaps even relationships, that we need to allow to die. [By the way, when I say “relationships” I don’t mean marriages. As always, we need to consider the whole scripture, and the Lord has made it clear that he considers marriages to be permanent in this life. Please do not interpret this message in any way that contradicts some part of the bible].  We might feel like letting go of our rights, or our dreams or material things is a terrible thing. And it might indeed be very difficult and traumatic. But there is a resurrection waiting, and sometimes the only thing holding up the glorious new life is the death that must come first.

You can’t fault Martha and Mary and the disciples for failing to see this, when it came to their brother. It is so much bigger than anything they have thought of hoping for. They are thinking of this life. They are thinking of what seems possible, given their level of interaction with Jesus. But they are not thinking like Jesus.

23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”  (John 11:23-27, ESV)

I identify with Martha and the others. I usually hope for what seems somewhat realistic. Considering how they had themselves seen Jesus heal people, it was reasonable for them to hope for healing. But resurrection was outside their experience. It was outside their paradigm. So often, we are like that. We want healing and continuation of this life. Jesus wants to give us resurrection. We want what seems possible, even if unlikely. Jesus wants to give us what we haven’t even thought of yet.

Before we are too old, we learn that life is full of disappointments. We find out we can’t fly. Animals don’t talk. Mom and Dad are really going to stay divorced. Work is hard, as is managing money. The odds against winning the lottery really are one-hundred million to one against it (or even worse). My marriage isn’t perfect. I can’t make a living doing what I love to do. You know exactly what I’m talking about. So, we adjust our expectations. We adjust them radically downwards. Chocolate cake is doable. I can dream of having chocolate cake, and I think I can make that dream happen. I can’t be fulfilled in my work, but I think I can manage to be pleasurably distracted by TV, or computer games.

But what if our deepest desires – and our deepest disappointments – are really signs that we were made for something more? The great philosopher, Blaise Pascal wrote:

What can this incessant craving, and this impotence of attainment mean, unless there was once a happiness belonging to man, of which only the faintest traces remain, in that void which he attempts to fill with everything within his reach? (Pascal, Pensées)

When we get honest with ourselves, we know that the world doesn’t seem right. We have a deep restlessness. As I said, we cover it up with things we think we can realistically get for ourselves, like work, entertainment, shopping, sex, food, adventure, relationships – the list is endless. But if we would just stop, and be still, we would realize that there is a deep emptiness in us. That’s probably why we so seldom stop and be still. We often blame the emptiness on ourselves; and it’s true we certainly don’t do ourselves any favors. But the problem is not only just with us. It is that we are out of place. We were made for paradise, and instead we are living on the outskirts of hell. C.S. Lewis writes:

Now, if we are made for heaven, the desire for our proper place will be already in us, but not yet attached to the true object, and will even appear as the rival of that object. (C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory)

Jesus, by letting Lazarus die, was trying to get the attention of his loved ones. He wanted to reconnect them with their deep, unfulfilled desires, so that he could show them that He himself can and does fill them. He wanted to show them both, the depth of their desire for a world without death, and also, how completely unrealistic that desire is – apart from Himself. As we follow Jesus, he sometimes asks us to let some things die, so that he can replace them with that which is far better.

Let’s continue with the story:

28 Then she returned to Mary. She called Mary aside from the mourners and told her, “The Teacher is here and wants to see you.” 29 So Mary immediately went to him.
30 Jesus had stayed outside the village, at the place where Martha met him. 31 When the people who were at the house consoling Mary saw her leave so hastily, they assumed she was going to Lazarus’s grave to weep. So they followed her there. 32 When Mary arrived and saw Jesus, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
33 When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled. 34 “Where have you put him?” he asked them.
They told him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Then Jesus wept. (NLT) John 11:28-35

Jesus himself understood that this life is deeply troubling. Even though he knew what he was about to do next, he wept. It is entirely good and appropriate sometimes to grieve, to be deeply troubled – even when we have the hope that Jesus gives. This life can be terrible and tragic. Jesus did not pretend that a future resurrection meant that you should never cry here and now. We are indeed living in a place where we were not made to live. Continuing on:

36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him! ” 37 But some of them said, “Couldn’t he who opened the blind man’s eyes also have kept this man from dying? ”

And there it is: If God is so powerful, why does he let bad things happen? If he is good, why would he allow evil to exist? I think the full answer is beyond our understanding, but one reason is this: if God were to destroy all evil, he would also have to destroy all of us, because none of us is without some evil. Only those who trust Jesus to do it for them can be made holy without being destroyed at the same time. God is patient, waiting for more people to enter through the only door. I know, however that that particular answer, though correct, is not complete. There is more going on with that question than we can understand. I know that Jesus calls us to trust, even when we can’t understand. That is certainly what he was saying to Martha and Mary. Let’s finish this story:

38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. 39 “Remove the stone,” Jesus said.
Martha, the dead man’s sister, told him, “Lord, there is already a stench because he has been dead four days.”
40 Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God? ”
41 So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you heard me. 42 I know that you always hear me, but because of the crowd standing here I said this, so that they may believe you sent me.” 43 After he said this, he shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out! ” 44 The dead man came out bound hand and foot with linen strips and with his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unwrap him and let him go.” (CSB) John 11:36-44

Now, as amazing as this is, I want to point something out: today Lazarus is dead again. His resurrection was not THE resurrection. It was a miracle that Jesus did to show who he is, and what is coming. But it is important for us to realize that it was temporary, because far too often, what we think we want is for Jesus to fix this life, and what Jesus wants to do is give us an entirely new life that will never be broken again. We want Jesus to raise things that will just have to die again anyway. We get so focused on this life, and the things in it. But the resurrection that Jesus offers us is not just a restoration of what we have right now. That was Lazarus’ resurrection, but it is not the resurrection that Jesus promises, and ultimately that Jesus himself had.

The apostle Paul describes both the resurrection that Jesus had, which is also promised to us, when we trust Jesus:

When you put a seed into the ground, it doesn’t grow into a plant unless it dies first. 37 And what you put in the ground is not the plant that will grow, but only a bare seed of wheat or whatever you are planting. 38 Then God gives it the new body he wants it to have. A different plant grows from each kind of seed. 39 Similarly there are different kinds of flesh—one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish.
40 There are also bodies in the heavens and bodies on the earth. The glory of the heavenly bodies is different from the glory of the earthly bodies. 41 The sun has one kind of glory, while the moon and stars each have another kind. And even the stars differ from each other in their glory.
42 It is the same way with the resurrection of the dead. Our earthly bodies are planted in the ground when we die, but they will be raised to live forever. 43 Our bodies are buried in brokenness, but they will be raised in glory. They are buried in weakness, but they will be raised in strength. 44 They are buried as natural human bodies, but they will be raised as spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, there are also spiritual bodies.
45 The Scriptures tell us, “The first man, Adam, became a living person.” But the last Adam—that is, Christ—is a life-giving Spirit. 46 What comes first is the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later. 47 Adam, the first man, was made from the dust of the earth, while Christ, the second man, came from heaven. 48 Earthly people are like the earthly man, and heavenly people are like the heavenly man. 49 Just as we are now like the earthly man, we will someday be like the heavenly man.
50 What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever.
51 But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! 52 It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. 53 For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies.
54 Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
55 O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”
56 For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. 57 But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 So, my dear brothers and sisters, be strong and immovable. Always work enthusiastically for the Lord, for you know that nothing you do for the Lord is ever useless. (NLT, 1 Corinthians 15:36-58)

Are you willing to let temporary things die so that you can receive something that will never die? Are you willing to believe that our deepest, most unfulfillable desires might be signs that we were made for Resurrection life? Especially, are you willing to trust Jesus to be the true Resurrection and Life, to be patient until he brings that Resurrection Life to us? When we are so willing, as Paul writes, nothing we do for the Lord is ever useless!

22 For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us. 24 We were given this hope when we were saved. (If we already have something, we don’t need to hope for it. 25 But if we look forward to something we don’t yet have, we must wait patiently and confidently.) (NLT) Romans 8:22-25

Let us look forward with hope, because the One who called us is faithful. He has risen!

He has risen indeed.

REVELATION #43: GOD HIMSELF

On By Pastor TomIn Bible, Bible Teaching, book of revelation, Christianity, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, UncategorizedLeave a comment

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If you have the treasure, you don’t need anything else, because the treasure will provide you with everything. And that is the promise of Revelation 21:3 – that we will have the Ultimate Treasure – God Himself. Anyone is welcome to receive this treasure, by walking through the Door – Jesus Christ.

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Revelation #43  Revelation 21:3-7

Last time, we looked in depth at the first two verses of this passage. Because the New Heavens and the New Earth are such a precious gift, I want to take a bit more time to meditate on what we are promised in this passage. Let’s look at verse three:

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.

This is a very ancient promise, one which was given through Moses to the people of Israel:

6 Say therefore to the people of Israel, I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 7 I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the Lord.’” (Exodus 6:6-8, ESV)

In Revelation 21:3, we are witnessing the ultimate fulfillment of that promise. God will be our God, and he will bring us into the perfect New Creation that has been promised to us. However, the center-point of this promise is not the land, but rather, God himself. God is the best, highest good in the entire cosmos. There is nothing better than Him. And so, he gives us the best thing in existence: Himself. Earlier, he said to Abram:

​Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your very great reward. ” (Genesis 15:1, NIV. This translation is, in my opinion, the most literal rendering of the Hebrew in this particular verse. It implies that the great reward is God himself.)

When we read the promises in scripture, all of the stuff we really want, deep down – like  love, peace, joy, meaningfulness, fulfillment, adventure – these are given to us as by-products of having God himself. When we have God, we have love, joy, peace, adventure, fulfilment, and so on. When we don’t have God, our experience of those things is doomed to be both temporary, and corrupted. When we have God, we have everything. If we think we have something, but we have it apart from God, we really don’t have it. That is why Jesus told these two little parables:

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. (ESV, Matthew 13:44-46)

If you have the treasure, you don’t need anything else, because the treasure will provide you with everything. And that is the promise of Revelation 21:3 – that we will have the Ultimate Treasure – God Himself.

The next several passages in Revelation are describing what it means for God to be our God, and us to be His people in the New Creation. This is what we hope for. This is what makes our present sufferings bearable. This is why we can have joy in even the hardest situations.

Verse 4 tells us that God Himself “will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” In the New Creation, we will have New Bodies which never get sick, never feel pain. Our new bodies can’t get hurt, or be killed. Death itself will be “dead.” We will have no reason to cry or mourn.

Some people may have questions about that last part. What if some of our loved ones are not there? What if they reject Jesus, and so go into the lake of fire? Won’t we cry and mourn for them?

I think we are dealing with matters that we cannot fully understand. I think that’s why we have verse 5, where God says, “The former things have passed away. Behold I making everything new!” Things won’t operate the same way they do here. We will live in an entirely new and different “system,” one which we cannot understand fully at this present time. In present terms, yes, the loss of loved ones to the lake fire would make us grieve. But the New Creation is entirely new. The old ways of looking at things may not apply there.

I have an additional thought about that question, also. I imagine that when we are fully engaged with God, with no sin in the way of our experience of Him, His Joy will fill us so completely that there simply isn’t room for grief. Everything will be so “right,” that even things that might have made us grieve cannot touch us, because then we will fully accept all that God does, and be able to wholeheartedly affirm it as right and good.

Verses 7 and 8 do not seem so positive. I am quite sure that this is referring back to the judgment before the throne in 20:11-15. The Lord is reminding us that these promises are not universal. The only way into the New Creation is through Jesus (John 14:1-6).

Many people say that Christians believe in a mean, narrow-minded God, who only saves those who believe in Him specifically. But the truth is narrow minded. The answer to 2+2 is 4, nothing else, not even 4.0001. Truth, by definition, excludes everything that is not true. That means truth is always “narrow.”

However, actually, everyone who wants to enter the New Creation may do so. The Bible says there is a door in, and that door is Jesus Christ. Anyone is welcome to use that door. But there is no other door, no other way. If someone refuses to come through the only door, then, yes, they will be kept out, because there is no other way for them to get in.

5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” (ESV, John 14:5-7).

40 For this is the will of My Father: that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (HCSB, John 6:40)

10 Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. (ESV, 1 John 5:10-12)

7 So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8 All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture (ESV, John 10:7-9)

No one is kept out because God is mean, they are kept out because they don’t want to come through the door. It humbling to come through the door. We have to admit that we are sinful, and we cannot save ourselves (1 John 1:7-9). We have to turn away from our sins, and from living for ourselves. We have to die to ourselves, and to our own sinful impulses, so that Jesus can live through us (Galatians 2:20).

Now, why should this be? Why is it that we must come through Jesus? Why is there no other way?

In the first place, only Jesus makes us truly holy, so that we can be in the presence of a Holy God without being destroyed. Every other religion says that you must make yourself holy, in one way or another. But  a flawed person cannot make themselves flawless. It is a logical impossibility. So, the Bible says, “Let Jesus take care of that, because it is not possible for a flawed person to be flawless.” The Flawless One is our only hope.

Second, this New Creation is described as perfect, and incorruptible. Nothing can go wrong here. No evil will be here, and none of the sorrow and pain that is brought about by evil. If there is to be no evil, there cannot be any person who is less than perfect. If there was, then the New Creation would be no better than this one. Therefore, if a person will not allow Jesus to change them, if they reject the forgiveness that brings holiness and the salvation that leads to perfection, then they cannot be in the New Creation without changing it back into the old creation.

Revelation 21:8 lists some specific kinds of people who refuse to come in through the door. The first is, cowards. Right before this, it says, “those who conquer, will have this heritage.” This refers to the battle of faith here on earth, before we stand in front of the judgment throne. The picture is that one the one hand, we have those who fight the battle of faith with courage and perseverance. Now, this doesn’t mean we fight our own way into heaven. But there is a lot of opposition to faith in this world. The attacks against Christianity are relentless. There is constant pressure to compromise, to give in, and even to give up. Jesus told us it would require that we surrender our very lives to him that we die to ourselves (Matthew 16:24-26). Now, it is his strength that works in us to persevere but there are some who will choose not to, because it is easier. Paul explains that we allow God to work, but it is His strength which works:

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. (ESV, Philippians 2:12-13)

So, here in Revelation, those obey by allowing God to work in them, and by pursuing his work in them, these are recognized for their courage.

Cowards are the opposite of this. There are some people who may be tempted to say of the Christian faith: “This is hard. I’m not getting enough out of it.” This is a warning to those who are so tempted. In addition, I believe this refers to Christians who are pressured and persecuted by human culture. Particularly in John’s day, Christians may have been tempted to deny their faith in order to avoid persecution and being excluded from non-Christian social circles. God is reminding those that this is a coward’s choice. It is a rejection of Jesus himself. To do so is to refuse to come through the door, because the door costs us everything in earthly terms. But the reason we have to let go of earthly approval is so that we can receive everything through God’s approval.

I am troubled by this today. Many so called “Christian celebrities” seem unwilling, when asked, to make a public statement affirming what the Bible says about human sexuality. If they are afraid of speaking the truth because they might lose their popularity, how much more are they likely to deny Jesus when they might lose their freedom, or even their very lives? I believe this should warn us that being a Christian in a non-Christian culture is always difficult. Cowardice is easy.

I want us to circle back around. It is important to remember that we must come through Jesus, and those who refuse to do so cannot enter the New Creation. But anyone who is willing to come through Jesus is welcome. And the reason for that one door, is so that the New Creation will be a whole new order, with no death, no sorrow, no decay. Instead, we have God himself, and in Him, everything our hearts truly desire, all the treasure of the universe, and more.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to us today!

Revelation #38: The Danger of Superficial Grace

On By Pastor TomIn Bible, Bible Teaching, book of revelation, Christianity, Jesus, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, Uncategorized5 Comments
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It is our job to warn those who reject Jesus, but not to condemn them. On the other hand, when we tell people there is no judgment for sin, we are treating their brokenness superficially. We are misleading people that God loves, people whom he wants to repent, and that makes him angry. In Jesus alone is the perfect balance of grace and judgment.

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Revelation #38. Revelation 19:11 – 21. The Danger of Superficial Grace

I appreciate your patience with these sermon notes. I know I am not producing them as fast as before. The truth is, even as I write this, I am in severe pain, sick to my stomach, and I just generally feel awful. I will not allow all that to stop me, but sometimes I simply can’t help from slowing me down.

With the praise in heaven offered at the beginning of this chapter, and the announcement of the marriage of the Lamb, we have officially entered the second-to-last section of Revelation. I am not quite so sure of my own accuracy in dividing up this part of Revelation, but even if I get the chiastic structure somewhat wrong, we can still receive much simply from the text itself. In any case, I call this section: “The Seven-Part Victory of Jesus.” Today, we will cover the first part of the victory of Jesus, which is the first defeat of Satan, covered in verses 19:11 – 20:3.

In the second section of the book of Revelation, we had the seven seals. The first seal was a rider on a white horse. Our analysis of the text showed that that rider represented the gospel going out into all the world. It was an indication that we presently live in a time of grace, a time when no one is being judged for their sins. Instead, God has been appealing for people to repent, and receive the grace that is in Christ Jesus. Now, in the sixth (and connected to the second) section of Revelation, we have a new rider on a white horse. Listen to the description of this rider. He is:

called Faithful and True, and He judges and makes war in righteousness. 12 His eyes were like a fiery flame, and many crowns were on His head. He had a name written that no one knows except Himself. 13 He wore a robe stained with blood, and His name is the Word of God.

Along with the vast majority of commentators throughout history, I believe that this rider represents Jesus. Since no human being is perfect, no human being could judge and make war in righteousness. The description of his eyes matches that of the description of Jesus in the first part of the book of Revelation. But the clincher is the last part: he is called the word of God. Remember, this book of Revelation was transmitted to us through the apostle John. Listen to what John says about Jesus and his gospel:

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.
9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”) 16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. (John 1:1-18)

So, it is crystal clear that “the word of God,” means Jesus.

In our text today, Jesus has another name, which no one knows except himself (verse 12). I think we are told this in order to remind us that Jesus, being in very nature God, is far beyond our comprehension. We will never be able to fully understand him, and we certainly cannot control him, or judge him. I believe it says that his clothes are dipped in blood to remind us of the sacrifice that he made for us, and for all people.

These things are very important for us as we consider this text. The first white horse came to signify a time of grace, when God’s offer of forgiveness through Jesus Christ is given to all the world, and his judgment is withheld. But now judgment is coming and it is coming through Jesus Christ himself.

We have seen all the way through the book of Revelation that time and time again, people are given opportunities to repent. But this text tells us that there will come a day when that time really is over. God’s patience is vast, and he takes no pleasure in the death of the unrighteous.

11 Say to them, As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 33:11)

But in order to bring his people into a place of eternal joy and eternal safety, he must, at last, judge those who reject him. Revelation clearly depicts these two truths: that God is reluctant to condemn anyone, but that there will come a day when he will indeed do so, in order to usher in the new heavens and new earth for those who have not rejected him.

Again, it is Jesus himself who is sent to do the judging. I believe the reminder of his sacrifice (his clothes dipped in blood), and the fact that he has a hidden name, are there to make his right to judge all the more compelling. He is God, we are not, and we can never truly know him, or put him in a box. Also, the fact that he himself shed his own blood for us and suffered the torment of hell for us, makes his right to judge indisputable. He has already taken this terrible judgment upon himself. But if we refuse to let him do that, there is no alternative. We will have to own the judgment for ourselves, which means we become objects of God’s wrath.

This is very important, because Christians seem to be confused about judgment, and the confusion cuts two different ways. On the one hand, some people seem to think that it is their job to bring judgment and condemnation on those who are not Christians. Obviously, this text shows us that that is wrong: it is the right of Jesus, and Jesus alone. I think the following analogy might be helpful:

Imagine that you have a friend who regularly cheats on her taxes. You have another friend who happens to work for the Internal Revenue Service. You know for a fact, from your IRS friend, that sometime soon the government is going to crack down on tax fraud. Sooner or later, if your friend continues her pattern of cheating on taxes, she will get caught, and she will go to prison. Now, it is not your job to catch her, nor to throw her in prison. But what you can do – and what you should do, if you really love your friend – is to warn her about the coming judgment. You aren’t bringing legal proceedings against her, you are not trying to have her thrown in prison; those things are not your job.

However, many Christians seem to be handing out condemnation tickets to non-Christians whom they do not like. But that is not our job; we have no right to do such a thing. What we can do, and should do, is to warn our non-Christian friends about the coming judgment, and to appeal to them to receive the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ instead, while there is still time. There’s a big difference between warning, and condemning. There is a very large difference also, between those who claim to be Christians, and those who do not. If someone claims to be part of the body of Christ, and under the authority of Jesus, and yet they are continuing in a long-term pattern of blatant sin, we do have the right to talk to them. The judging of those who are not believers is not our task. The apostle Paul helps to clarify this. Below, When Paul says “bears the name of brother” we need to remember that most Jesus-followers called each other brother and sister. The word “Christian” was still not widely used. So “brother” means “Christian.” :

9 I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— 10 not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. 12 For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? 13 God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.” (1 Corinthians 5:9-13)

So it is not our job to judge those who are outside the body of Christ. We are only to warn. And even when it comes to judging those within the body of Christ, Jesus and the apostles gave very specific criteria. It is not a matter of anybody and everybody going around condemning people. There is a very clear process for church discipline. It is mostly a matter for the church leadership, and only in rare cases does it involve everyone in the church.

There is another error that Christians make that this text corrects. Many, many Christians these days seem to think that there is no final judgment at all. They say things like: “It’s all about love. Love conquers all. All we have to do is love. Period.” In a way, they are right. But love is much bigger than they seem to realize. For love to be real, there must be an alternative; and the alternative to loving God is evil. Therefore, as part of his love, Christ brings true, final and complete judgment upon those who reject his loving salvation. Remember the name that no one knows? We cannot put Jesus in a box. Very often, those who want to say that Jesus is only loving, and never judges, are putting him in a box of their own making. This text is crystal clear, for those who reject Jesus, there is a thorough and terrible judgment awaiting.

When we tell people – whether Christian or not – that there is no judgment for sin, no penalty for rejecting the grace offered in Jesus, we are acting as false prophets. Jeremiah spoke about people like this:

14 They have treated My people’s brokenness superficially,
claiming, “Peace, peace,”
when there is no peace. (Jeremiah 6:14)

When we tell people there is no judgment for sin, we are treating their brokenness superficially. We are misleading people that God loves, people whom he wants to repent, and that makes him angry.

Isaiah also saw that people did not like to talk about the fact that one day God will indeed judge the earth:

9 For these are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction.
10 They say to the seers, “See no more visions !” and to the prophets,“ Give us no more visions of what is right! Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions. 11 Leave this way, get off this path,
and stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel!” (Isaiah 30:9-11)

People in the time of Isaiah didn’t want to hear about a God who holds people accountable for their sins. Neither do people in 21st century. But we are not acting truly lovingly if we hide the truth.

Paul warned Timothy about people like this, who will go looking for people to affirm their ideas, and avoid those who tell them the truth about God as revealed in the Bible.

I solemnly charge you before God and Christ Jesus, who is going to judge the living and the dead, and because of His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Proclaim the message; persist in it whether convenient or not; rebuke, correct, and encourage with great patience and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear something new. 4 They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 4:1-4)

We do no one any favors by hiding the truth. This book of Revelation is as much holy Scripture as any of the Gospels. And, honestly, you cannot read the Gospels, paying attention, without seeing that Jesus judges everyone based upon how they respond to himself. The message of shallow love; love that only affirms and never confronts, is not the message of Jesus. It is true that the Holy Spirit appeals to all people, inviting them in love into salvation through Jesus. But the reason for God’s passionate desire to be reconciled to people is that if they refuse, they will face terrible judgment, and that judgment will come from Jesus Himself. John captures both God’s love, and his judgment, perfectly. But we need to read past the first, very familiar part, and on to the end, in order to get the complete picture.

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. (John 3:16-18)

So what we do with this? What does it mean for us, as we engage in real Christian community, go to work, spend time with our families, and so on? For me, it is always good to remember the difference between warning, and condemning. Warning someone about a coming disaster is an act of love. When we appeal to people to repent of their sins, and escape judgment, our love for those people should be evident. The less loving my warning sounds, the more likely it is that I am leaning towards condemning someone.

This passage, for me, is still a reminder of the grace of God. Jesus has not yet come as an avenging warrior. We are still in a time of grace. We have seen throughout the book of Revelation that God gives opportunity after opportunity to all people, in the hopes that some might repent, receive his grace, and escape the coming judgment. If there was no coming judgment, all of that would be sort of silly; even pointless. But the fact that there is a coming judgment makes God’s grace shine all the more clearly.

This passage also reminds me that the time of grace will one day have an end. For every single person, that end is no farther off than the end of their mortal lives here on earth. Those who preach love, and no judgment whatsoever, are false prophets; they are treating people’s brokenness superficially. This is not loving at all.

Finally, the purpose of the coming judgment is so that God can bring his people into a new heavens and a new earth; a perfect world without sorrow, hatred, or fear. The end goal of judgment is a glorious, loving future with God.

Let the Holy Spirit speak to you about all this now.

Fishermen’s Delight (Luke 5:1-11)

On By Pastor TomIn Bible, Bible Teaching, Christianity, House Church, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, UncategorizedLeave a comment

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Jesus blessed the fishermen, not to endorse their fishing business, but rather, to lead them to repentance through His goodness. His blessing was not sign that they were doing something right, but rather, a sign that they should pay attention to Jesus, and where He wanted to lead them.

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Single Sermons. Epiphany 5 Series C. Luke 5:1-11

​I could preach four or five different sermons on this text, so we will have to trust the Holy Spirit to say the things he wants to say this time, and leave some for another occasion.

Imagine you own a small business. Maybe it’s a real estate business, or a construction company. You aren’t rich – certainly not in your own eyes – but you have worked hard, and you’ve had a bit of luck (even if you don’t recognize it), and things are going OK. You employ three or four other people. You go to church, like most of your friends and family, and you know a little bit about the Bible. All in all, though you wouldn’t consider yourself wealthy, you are an important member of the community.

Now, imagine that you have one of those periods that small business owners have sometimes. Things just aren’t going right. Nothing disastrous, but certainly, stressful. You go to church, and listen to the preacher. Afterwards, the preacher suggests a certain strategy. His idea sounds pretty stupid; clearly he knows nothing about the way your business works. However, you pray about it, and decide to trust the Lord, and do it. The result is outstanding! You win a contract that will keep you prosperous and well for several months to come.

You probably know someone who had something like this happen to them. Maybe you’ve been in a position like this yourself. What do you think your reaction would be? How would you respond if you prayed, trusted God, and then received a big payoff? I think many people might say some things like this:

“It just goes to show that if you trust God, things will work out.”

“I worked hard on that contract, but it was God who made it happen.”

“I am so blessed that God gave me that sale.”

“God has really blessed me in my business.”

“I was starting to wonder if I should be in this line of work, but God showed me through this blessing that I’m supposed to keep on.”

Many people take this sort of blessing as an indication that they are doing something right, even, something that God wants them to do. They  take their success as God’s endorsement on what they are doing. I am sad to say that I have even seen people become arrogant when God blessed their business. They often begin to look at the world simplistically:

“God rewards you when you trust him, pray and work hard.”

“If you just pray and work like I did, God will bless you.”

Many people may not say it out loud, but sometimes, they may think something like this: “I don’t know what that other person’s problem is. They probably aren’t trusting God like I am.”

It strikes me very hard that the responses of Peter, Andrew, James and John were nothing like this at all. These two sets of brothers were small business owners. They owned their own boats and equipment. They hired other workers. They were church goers and hard workers. After a hard and fruitless night, Jesus gave them a stupid strategy. In the sea of Galilee, the fish they were after only come near the surface at night. It is a pointless waste of effort to throw a net during the day. But they trusted him, and as a result, they were blessed financially. But listen to how Peter responds:

When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, because I’m a sinful man, Lord!”

When Peter says “go away from me,” he doesn’t mean that he actually wants Jesus to go away. He is admitting that he doesn’t deserve to be blessed like this. He is saying he doesn’t even have the right to be in the presence of Jesus, because he isn’t worthy. When Jesus blessed Peter with success, he didn’t take it a sign that he was doing something right. Instead, the grace of material blessings given through Jesus led Peter to repent. Peter and the others knew, immediately, that they did not deserve any blessing from God. This blessing did not make them self-satisfied in the least. Instead, they fell to their knees in sorrow for their sin. I find that in my hard-hearted way, I secretly believe that I deserve blessings. I work hard. I trust the Lord. Of course he should bless me. But Peter’s heart was much more sensitive to God than mine is sometimes. He recognized that while he deserved nothing but hellfire, God was blessing him anyway. God’s goodness led him into a holy brokenness. This reminds me of what the Holy Spirit says through the apostle Paul to the Roman Jews:

4 Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God’s kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? (Romans 2:4, ESV)

The ESV Study Bible says this about that verse:

They thought such blessings showed that they were right with God and had no need to trust in Christ, but Paul says the opposite is true: God’s blessings should have led them to repent of their sins.

In the lectionary, one of the other readings for this week is from Isaiah 6. Isaiah was praying, and suddenly he had a tremendous vision of the glory of God. He could have said, “I am such a devout and prayerful person that God chose to give me a vision of Himself.” He might very easily have seen this vision as a reward for his diligent devotion to God. Instead, he said:

“Woe is me for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.”

God’s goodness in giving Isaiah that vision led Isaiah not to be self-satisfied, but to be broken over his sin. I often assume that if I am blessed, it is because I put myself in a position to be blessed. Peter and Isaiah felt the opposite. When they were blessed, they saw the huge gap between their brokenness and God’s goodness. It led them to repentance.

To repent is to fully own the fact that we have been wrong, with no excuses, and then to turn away from it, for all intents, forever. Now, our turning away forever almost never happens perfectly. But it does mean that we are going a different direction now. It’s as if we were walking on one road, and the we took a turn, and started down a different road, going a different direction. We may fall down sometimes as we walk in the new direction. But we get up, and continue on in the new direction; we don’t go back the other way. Our overall direction is new, oriented toward God, not away from him.

By the way, the New Testament talks about repentance in two different contexts. In several places, particularly in the book of Acts, it speaks of a big act of repentance accompanying salvation. In other words, the process of being saved involves a definitive turning away from sin, and a life oriented away from God, and turning toward God. But many Christians don’t appear to realize that the whole Christian life on earth involves repentance. It is not a one-time deal. In many different specific areas, we need to continue to repent, and allow Jesus to come more fully into our lives. We still give in to the flesh sometimes, and sin, and we must repent of that sin. There are many verses in the New Testament that call those who are already believers to repent, but I’ll give just a few, to save space. In the verse below, Paul is writing to Christians:

9Now I rejoice, not because you were grieved, but because your grief led to repentance. For you were grieved as God willed, so that you didn’t experience any loss from us. 10For godly grief produces a repentance not to be regretted and leading to salvation, but worldly grief produces death. (2Cor 7:9-10, HCSB)

Repentance is something different than feeling guilty. When you feel guilty, you feel bad about what happened, but you also feel stuck, like there is nothing you can do. Guilt does not motivate you, and Jesus died to take away our guilt. But repentance is motivating. You know you are wrong, and you really want to be different now. You are eager to walk the new way.

In the book of Revelation, Jesus dictated seven letters to Christian churches. In all but two of those letters he calls believers to repent. Here are two examples:

3Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; keep it, and repent. But if you are not alert, I will come like a thief, and you have no idea at what hour I will come against you. (Rev 3:3, HCSB)

 19As many as I love, I rebuke and discipline. So be committed and repent. (Rev 3:19, HCSB)

5Remember then how far you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place — unless you repent. (Rev 2:5, HCSB)

Clearly, he is calling those who are already saved to practice ongoing repentance. For me, I need to remember to look at blessings as a call to repentance.

There’s another thing that strikes me about this passage. Peter did not assume that this tremendous blessing meant that God wanted him to be a successful fisherman. In fact, he quit the business that God had blessed; they all quit, and apparently, even before they cashed in on that amazing catch. I think most of us assume that when God blesses us in some particular area of our lives – particularly with something like a promotion, contract or new job or business opportunity – it means that God wants us to keep doing the thing that he blessed. But this is not the case in this text at all. Jesus blessed their fishing business, and the result was that they were fishermen no longer. God’s blessing is not the same thing as God’s endorsement of what he blesses. If we Christians really understood that, we would avoid a host of sin and error. Blessing from God cannot be taken as a sign that he approves of what we are doing, because He blesses even those who have rejected him:

For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:45-46, ESV)

We are men also, with the same nature as you, and we are proclaiming good news to you, that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and everything in them. 16 In past generations He allowed all the nations to go their own way, 17 although He did not leave Himself without a witness, since He did what is good by giving you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons and satisfying your hearts with food and happiness.” (Acts 14:15-17, HCSB)

God often blesses us to try and turn our hearts toward him. One of my favorite Hymns is “Come Thou Fount of every Blessing.” In it there is one line that strikes me particularly:

“Oh to grace, how great a debtor, daily I’m constrained to be // Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering hear to Thee.”

Jesus showed the apostles his goodness as way to turn them away from the fishing business, and toward Himself.

In the case of our text today, the blessing of God led to repentance, and to Jesus calling Peter and the others to leave their business and work in full time ministry. For a deeper look at the call to ministry, please go to: https://clearbible.blog/2014/04/01/jesus-and-fishing/

At the moment, I want to point out two things. First, this text shows us that some people are called uniquely to vocational ministry, it also shows us that everyone who trusts Jesus is called to participate in His mission. Not everyone is called to leave his or her career. However, all Christians are called to follow Jesus. For most, that means, among other things, expressing your faith and living for his purpose as you fulfill your everyday responsibilities at home and at work. It means being a disciple of Jesus when you are with your family, your friends, when you are at work, when you are driving, playing golf, fishing – in fact, all the time. It is obvious that all New Testament Christians believed this and practiced it (Matthew 28:16-19; Acts 11:19-26; 1 Peter 2:12-15, 3:15-16).

But there is also a call to unique vocational ministry. In our post-modern, anti-authoritarian culture, we are becoming so anti-institutional that many people have become suspicious of those who are called into vocational ministry. I’m not a fan of institutions or hierarchies myself.  But the bible does clearly teach that God calls certain individuals to specially dedicate their lives to teaching and training other Christians. Not many are:

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.  (Jas 3:1, ESV2011)

It is unique calling for a small number of people. But some do have it. Right now, I want everyone who is reading this to stop and ask the Lord: “what is your call on my life?” Maybe he wants to affirm that you are called to be exactly where you are. Perhaps, for one or two of you, he has a special call on your life, a call to vocational ministry. If so, this will not be the first time you have heard this. It will strike a deep, exciting and terrifying chord in you. All of us, let us listen, repent, and follow Jesus into all of life.

Unwrapping Jesus

On By Pastor TomIn Bible, Christianity, Christmas, Jesus, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, UncategorizedLeave a comment
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Isaiah unpacks the greatest gift the world has ever had. 

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Christmas Eve 2018. Isaiah 9:6

I’ve had trouble getting in the Christmas spirit this year. A big surgery two weeks ago kinda put the damper on things. I wish I could sit back and enjoy Christmas, but I don’t feel well physically. As I’ve aged, presents hold less appeal for me, too. I’ve started to think, maybe now that I’m an adult, Christmas isn’t really for me. It’s for the kids. It’s for the homeless. It’s for people who don’t have so much to do, or have enough money to get really cool gifts. But it isn’t for me, a middle-aged responsible adult.

As I’ve prepared this message this week, I realize I’m wrong. I don’t know about presents or “the spirit of Christmas,” but the meaning of Christmas is for me. It is for you too. For all of us. The central thing we Christians celebrate at this time of year is the gift of God’s presence in our lives. And that is for me, not just kids or others. And it really is for us, at all times.

Many years ago, centuries before Jesus was even born, Isaiah, prophesying by the Holy Spirit, described several key components of God’s present to us – Jesus Christ. He wrote this:

For to us a child is born,

to us a son is given,

and the government will be on his shoulders.

And he will be called

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

The first thing we ought to note from this passage is that the child is born “to us” and given “to us.”  God did not come to earth for any other reason than our benefit.  Jesus did not come for himself, nor for “someone else” but to us.  Soren Kierkegaard, the famous Danish existentialist, always encouraged people to read the Bible as if it were a personal message for them.

“When you read God’s Word, in everything you read, continually say to yourself: It is I to whom it is speaking, it is I about whom it is speaking…”

So when we read this passage from Isaiah, the words “to us” are not a mistake.  The son was born to us he was given, to us – the message is for us.  Jesus is not an abstraction that exist for those “other people” – he was not just given to Jews or to those really “spiritual” people.  He was given for you and for me.  This is an important signal, a reminder for those who read Isaiah 9:6 that it is relevant.  The prophecy is not just a fascinating historical event, that was fulfilled two thousand years ago – it is relevant to us in our time, our situations, our individual lives. Christmas is for you. It continues even in these days.

So what exactly is this relevant message?

The government will be on his shoulders.  I grew up in a third world country, where the government was frequently entertaining, but never very efficient.  I remember as a youth of twelve, getting off of a plane in L.A., touching US soil for the first time in several years.  We were to be here for three months.  As the car drove smoothly down the empty, early morning freeway, I thought to myself, “Wow, we’re in America.  The government really works here.”  I suppose it was primarily the absence of potholes on the freeway that inspired that thought.  Since that time, of course, I have become as cynical as the next person about the American government. I don’t want to get sidetracked, but it has been a very long time since I’ve had any confidence that the United States government really operates to the benefit of most of the citizens. Of course, the New Guinean government was worse. For those of you who think you might emigrate if it gets really bad, where would you go? You think anywhere is else is better?

Truthfully, no earthly government is perfect.  However, Isaiah tells us that this child, the one given to us, is the one who is ultimately responsible for everything. The fate of the world rests on his shoulders, not on any government or official.

Our hope is not in our government, or any earthly government – our hope in Jesus.  When Pontius Pilate asked Jesus about government (as a governor, it was topic that interested him) Jesus responded that his  (Jesus’) kingdom is not of this world.  In other words, Jesus is not interested in establishing physical ruler-ship of the world at this time – in spite of the fact that the Jehovah’s witness cult says he is.  He is concerned with the government of our souls, lives and our eternal future.  Whom we pay taxes to is not generally his concern, other than that he wants us to obey the laws of the lands where we live.  The Bible does say that there will come a day when Jesus will return and then he will rule the world as  King might.  However, the time and circumstances of that are not our concern.  We can simply put our trust in him, as one finally responsible for what happens. I know earthly government frustrates us sometimes, but we need to take longer view, an eternal perspective on government.

Now this child, this one given to us, the one who bears the weight of the world on his shoulders, has been given several significant names. First, he is called wonderful.  In many translations it says “wonderful counselor” but the Hebrew is probably more like “wonderful – comma – counselor.” In other words, they are two separate descriptions of Jesus.  Another way to say “wonderful” might be  “miracle-full.”  Jesus, when he lived on earth, was certainly wonderful in this sense.  Many signs and wonders accompanied his birth – the star, the angels, the wise men and so on.  He did many signs and wonders during his ministry – turning water into wine, healing people, driving out demons, walking on water.  And because he is given to us as well, he wants to continue to work wonders in our lives – reconciling and restoring relationships, healing us and even doing more supernatural miracles as well.

Next, he is the counselor.  Counselor has two major implications of course.  It can refer to someone who helps another with inner healing, and also to someone who gives counsel, or advice.  Jesus does both.  Sometimes we might have struggles in relationships, or a question about how to handle a situation.  Sometimes in our small groups, our temptation is to try and counsel each other – but Jesus is the real counselor. Our real job is simply to connect people with Jesus and His counsel.  He has the wisdom of God.  He stands close by, supporting, listening, encouraging, as good counselor would. If we are honest with ourselves and with him, he can lead us into inner healing, both directly, and through other believers. Another connotation of “counselor” is “comforter.”  Jesus offers us comfort as a counselor – he is there to love us and support us in time of need.

Mighty God.  I think that this name of Jesus is put as the third of the five names for a reason.  It stands, alone, in the center of the other four.  The other four all point to it.  It is, in fact – wait for it – chiastic structure. Jesus is not just some benign, divine uncle, simply there to our beck and call.  He is God.  There is an allegiance that his existence demands on our lives.  Yes, he wants to work miracles for us, yes he wants to be our comforting counselor, but also, he is our God.  He wants to be our ruler.  He is not under our control – but he seeks for us to joyfully submit to His control.  At the heart of the truth about this child is the fact that the God of the universe did come himself to be with us.  Christmas, and this child, is about God’s presence in our lives, and His desire to bring us into a relationship with Him, and to become King of our lives.

Everlasting Father. This is interesting. Isaiah is anticipating the birth of a child that hasn’t even been conceived yet, and he calls this baby a “father.” I think there are several things going on here. First, this is a clear prophecy that the messiah will be God himself in human flesh. Only God was known as “everlasting father.” Isaiah is saying, this child, born to us, will be more than human. He will be eternal God come into the world. Second, fatherhood in those days was significant because it had to do with inheritance. All that your father owned was yours also, even before his death. Isaiah tells us that this “eternal father” is born to us. Through Jesus we gain an eternal inheritance that will never fade or spoil. Third, through Jesus, we get the perfection of fatherhood. Fatherhood is essential to the development of children. An absent or negative father can derail a child for life. A positive and present father goes a long way toward giving the child what he/she needs to succeed in life. In this country we are in a crisis of fatherhood.  Many fathers are negative or even absent altogether.  Yet here, the promise is that this Christ-child will make up for what our earthly fathers lacked.  He can and will fill that most essential void in our lives and even in the lives of our children.  He will treat us like a good father should – He wants to be present in our lives, giving us affection and support, protection and guidance.

Prince of Peace.  “Shalom” is the Hebrew word for peace.  It does not just mean absence of war or “inner calmness” – it means, wholeness, wellness, harmony.  At the heart of Jesus’ peace is reconciliation with God.  Without this reconciliation with God, all the inner calmness in the world is pointless.  Through Jesus, through the child, we can have this peace with God, and the wellness, wholeness and harmony that come with it.

I want to return to the part that I skimmed over before: unto us a son is given.

In ancient Israel, it was tremendously important to people that they have a son to carry on the family name. They saw themselves as belonging to God in groups of families, clans, tribes and then as a nation. If you didn’t have a son, your name would die out, and be remembered no more among the people of God. Therefore, this promise of a son would have meant to those first listeners that they would always have a place in the kingdom of God. This promise of a son meant that they would always belong to God. It means the same thing today. “The Son,” is Jesus, and through him we will belong to God eternally. As the apostle John wrote:

And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
The one who has the Son has life. The one who doesn’t have the Son of God does not have life. I have written these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. 1 John 5:11-13

There is a story told about a man who came home from work one evening, tired and worn out, simply wanting to relax.  As he collapsed into the easy chair with the newspaper, his young son came up to him, wanting to his attention.  The father, unable to muster up much energy, found a picture of the world in his newspaper, and tore it up into small pieces.  He gave the pieces to his son and said, “Here’s a puzzle for you do.  See if you can put the world back together.”  He knew this would occupy his boy for quite some time, since the child did not know his world geography very well.  However in just a few minutes, the boy came back with the puzzle completed, all the countries in the right places

“How did you do that so quickly?” asked the father, amazed.

“It was easy!” replied the boy.  “On the back side of the paper was  a picture of a child.  As soon as I got the child right, the whole world was right.”

That’s sort of how it is with Jesus.  When we get THE CHILD right, our world becomes whole again.

Will you receive the promise of a son this year? Will you receive this child, who rules the universe, the wonderful counselor, everlasting father, mighty God, Prince of peace?

Merry Christmas!

PREPARING FOR CHRISTMAS

On By Pastor TomIn Advent, Bible Teaching, Christianity, Christmas, Jesus, Podcast, Religion, Sermon, Uncategorized2 Comments
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Advent is a time to prepare for the Lord, who has promised to come to you. He is coming, whether you prepare or not, so wouldn’t it be better to ready to let him in?

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2018 Advent Week 2: Preparing for the Lord

A voice of one crying out:
Prepare the way of the LORD in the wilderness;
make a straight highway for our God in the desert.
Every valley will be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill will be leveled;
the uneven ground will become smooth
and the rough places, a plain.
And the glory of the LORD will appear,
and all humanity together will see it,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. (Isa 40:3-5, HCSB)

One of my favorite places to go is the Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee. There’s nothing like that first glimpse of the Smokies when you’re driving East toward Knoxville or Maryville and you see those high ridges silhouetted against the sky. From a distance it looks like one long continuous line of mountains all across the horizon. But when you get closer, and actually start to drive into the Smokies, you realize that they are not actually just one unbroken ridge. We go to Townsend a lot, and there’s a road that weaves its way through and in between high ridges and mountains. When you get right to it, some of the ridges are actually closer and some far away. It is only the distance that makes the mountains look like they all start together and are all part of the same ridgeline.
I think this picture describes quite well how Biblical prophecy often works. Most of the prophets were given a vision by God, and that vision was much like a view of the mountains from the distance. They describe what is actually coming, but their perspective is affected by the distance of time. The prophets view the future like we view the Smokies from a distance – all the events were “out there” and they all seemed to be about the same distance away. When we get into the actual events however, we realize that actually quite a bit of distance separates each one from the other.
Very often, in addition to holding predictive prophecies, the writings of those whom we call the prophets – Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joel etc. – also contain messages that are relevant to the people who first heard them. These immediately relevant meanings are meant for us as well.
Let’s look at Isaiah 40:3-5. Isaiah prophesied to the nation primarily during the reign of Hezekiah, King of Judah, from about 750 to 690 or so, BC. One of the many things he prophesied, was that the nation of Judah would be conquered by the Babylonians, and that many of the people would be taken away to Babylon as exiles (this happened, by the way, in 587 BC, almost 200 years after Isaiah’s time). Looking even further ahead, after his prophecies about the future exile, Isaiah goes on to prophesy about the return of the Jews from Babylon (this also happened, staring in the 520s BC). Isaiah 40 is basically the beginning of the section about the future return from future exile. And yet, at the same time, parts of this passage (and others in this section) are about the future coming of Jesus Christ to earth, which he did, as we know, roughly 2000 years ago, or, about 700 years after Isaiah prophesied. And finally, elements of these prophecies also refer to the time when Jesus Christ will come back again, at the end of time.
Whew! If you wonder how one passage can contain all those elements, just don’t forget how those distant mountains look.
The essential message for those in the days of Isaiah, and later for those exiles who returned from Babylon, was this: God is bringing his glory back to his people. Even in the days of Isaiah, the nation of Israel had clearly become a second rate power. The magnificent days of David and Solomon were history. The one nation ruled by King David had long since been split into a Northern Kingdom (called “Israel”) and a southern Kingdom (called “Judah”). These two nations often fought each other. They were dominated by the powers around them – Syria, Assyria and Egypt (and later, Babylon). In fact, while Isaiah was still alive, the Northern Kingdom (Israel) was utterly destroyed by Assyria, and ceased to exist. The glory days were over. But Isaiah 40:5 says

“And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

Something that was lost is going to be restored. Now, “Glory” in the Bible, isn’t just about victory and success and triumph. In fact, the key element to Biblical “glory” is the presence of God. Maybe another way to say Isaiah 40:5 would be this:

“God’s presence will once more be manifest among you. He will be with you in such a way that it is obvious to all people. God has promised it.”

Along with this idea of the return of God’s presence, is the theme of deliverance. When we look at the context of the passage, clearly God is returning, and when he returns, he will bring deliverance. Salvation, would be another word for it.
It is significant that the voice calls in the desert, and the rest of the passage refers to making a way in the wilderness. When we consider the context of exile in Babylon, it may help to know that caravans and armies from Babylon to Israel always traveled North, around the desert, west toward the Mediterranean Sea, and then South into Palestine. When Babylon invaded, it did so from the North. And yet God is coming straight across the desert. The idea here is that there is no delay in his coming and that obstacles will be removed. God will come by the direct route. His isn’t bound by the caravans routes and traditional paths of men.
This passage from Isaiah is used in all four gospels. Each of the gospel writers identifies John the Baptist as the one who is calling in the desert, “prepare the way for the Lord…” It is probably no coincidence that John did most of his preaching out in the desert, directly east of most of Israel. John’s ministry took things one step beyond a return from exile. Once again, as a fulfillment of this passage, John was declaring that the presence of God would be manifest among his people. Certainly that promise was fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ. God was present now in a way that went far beyond what the exiles could imagine.
Each time, along with this promise of God’s manifest presence and his deliverance (in short, his glory), comes an admonition that we should “prepare the way.” I think this bears some looking at, and perhaps has some application for our own lives. One of the primary places where this passage can really be played out is in the human heart. God will come, someday, in the flesh once more and end this world. But he wants to come to you right now in your heart. And the best way for you to prepare for that “someday” is to let him in your heart today.
First, we need to be clear – we don’t “prepare” in order to get God to come be with us. He has already promised to come. His coming is not dependent on our preparation. He’s said, essentially, “I’m coming, whether you get ready or not – so get ready!” We can prepare by learning his word, by telling others about him, by discovering our gifts and using them for his Kingdom. But even more profound than that, this passage gives us a clue as to how to prepare. Isaiah says:

“Make straight in the wilderness a highway for our God.”

What he is getting at is this: we need to give God access. The image here is to let God come straight at your heart. Take out the twists and curves we put in to deceive others, ourselves, and even God. Let him get straight to the heart of the matter. I think the way to do this is to be honest with ourselves and with God about who we really are. Sometimes we might not be completely ready to be honest with other people as well. I’m convinced, however that once we make the way straight for God, once we give him unlimited access, we will experience His grace and love to such a degree that eventually we’ll be able to “be straight” with certain other people as well. Giving God clear access to your heart and life is simply a matter of saying “yes” to him. Doing that is the best way I know to receive him now into your life, and also to be prepared for when he comes back to put an end to this world.
Look at what else this passage has to say. God is coming. Give him access. And, “every valley shall be raised up.” Do you have any “valleys” in your life? Are there “low spots” – places where you are lacking or empty? I guess that’s a stupid question – of course there are. God says this. “I’m coming, give me access. And those low and empty spots, those places of weakness and hurt will be filled in. My presence is coming, and it will fill in all of your failings and inadequacies.”
Now for the final thought, which is perhaps not quite as comfortable:

“every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level, the rugged places a plain…”

Are there any places in your life that “need to be leveled?” Any sins that stick out? Bad habits, pride, ambitions that have nothing to do with God? Get ready, because God’s got a big bulldozer. This isn’t entirely a negative thought. No doctor that I have ever heard of can remove a tumor from his or her own body. Sometimes we badly need and even want someone to bulldoze all the junk out of our lives that we can’t quite seem to handle ourselves.
This idea of the valleys being filled and the hills being leveled is really a sort of promise. The passage tells us to “prepare” by making the way straight. But then, when it talks about the valleys and hills, it says “they shall be…” in other words, it is something God will do for us.
Let me give you a concrete example. Most of you know that I struggle with chronic pain. In this struggle, I have often been aware of an opportunity. Actually, let me back up. I have been through hard times in the past, and afterwards, realized that I blew an opportunity to let the character of Jesus Christ be more fully formed in my life, because I spent the time whining and complaining. This time, not perfectly, but more often than in the past, I am aware of the choice I have, and instead of fussing, I am saying “yes,” to God. As I do that, God has been giving me something so precious – a deep knowledge of his love, and a sense of being so very close to Him. I don’t know how else I could have received it, other than saying, “In the middle of this pain, I say “yes,” to you, God. Instead of griping at you, I say, “do your work in me.” I know I’m not doing this perfectly, but even so, I can sense mountains and hills being torn down, and valleys being filled up inside me. I sense the presence of Jesus with me, more and more.
All of this, is essentially the promise of Christmas. Christmas is an old word meaning: Christ-Mass. It was the communion celebration of Jesus Christ. We are in the Christmas season right now. Use this Christmas season. These next two weeks, as we get excited, use the fun of Christmas to welcome Jesus, to give him access, and to watch in wonder as he works in your life to bring you closer to him. All you have to do is believe it, and don’t shut down the work that he is doing in your life.
Let’s celebrate the fact that Jesus is coming straight at our hearts. If we allow him, he will raise up the valleys, and fill in the rough places, and – this is the big one – he will live within us. The glory of God will actually dwell inside of us by the Holy Spirit – just as it did with Mary, 2000 years ago.