The Route Is the Same

Posted by David on March 14, 2004 under Sermons

Allow me to begin by calling to your attention two commonly held views regarding worship prior to Jesus’ resurrection. These views are relatively “modern” views.

View one: worship prior to Jesus’ resurrection could only be described as primitive acts by primitive people who were showing just how uneducated and uninformed they were. Their whole concept of priests, the slaughtering of animals, the blood rituals, the preparation of parts of the carcasses for burning, the following of different sacrificial rituals for different needs all scream out just how primitive they were. In Jesus Christ we moved away from such primitive, uneducated worship forms.

View two: worship as it exists under Jesus Christ as Lord and worship as it existed prior to Jesus’ resurrection are totally different. Those two forms or expressions of worship could be compared to two parallel lines with a lot of distance between them. They have a lot of similarities. They are going in the same direction. Yet, basically, they are very distinct and quite independent of each other. While it is okay to look at their similarities, they should never be considered as connected or as a continuation of each other.

I want to begin our thinking with view two and then focus on view one.

1. Should we who are Christians in the twenty-first century look at worship prior to Jesus resurrection as something totally different and never a continuation or extension of each other?
   1. Should we look at them as parallel lines with a wide distance between them?
      1. Should we see Jewish worship coming to an abrupt halt when people are converted to Jesus Christ?
      2. Should we see Jewish Christians deliberately separating themselves from Jewish communities because they were in total disagreement with them about everything including worship?
      3. I want to share some things with you this evening that I shared with you previously.
         1. I do not seek to get you to agree with me, but I do ask you to think.
         2. As you think, I want you to keep focused on scripture instead of what you always just accepted as fact.
   2. You are very familiar with the fact that people who were not Jews were not required to convert to Jewish practices and customs in order to become Christians.
      1. That is very obvious in scripture, and it is something that most Bible students have long understood.
         1. We were taught that understanding.
         2. Two sources of scripture that make this very obvious are Acts 15 and the letter of Galatians.
      2. We understand and accept this without question because most of us are gentiles.
   3. I call to your attention another fact from scripture that is just as obvious, but we either have been taught it is unimportant or taught to be blind to this fact: just as gentiles did not have to become Jews to be Christians, neither did Jews have to become gentiles to be Christians.
      1. A Jew did not have to abandon Jewish culture and Jewish rituals in order to become a Christian who accepted the resurrected Jesus as Lord.
      2. There is obvious documentation of this fact in scripture.
      3. After Acts 2 and the conversion of 3000 Jews and proselytes, the first incident Luke records in Acts is two apostles, Peter and John, going to the Jewish temple to pray.
         1. This is an infinitely Jewish act at an infinitely Jewish place that observed the Jewish time table for daily afternoon prayer in the temple area.
         2. Much of what occurs in Acts 4 and 5 has to do with this Jewish temple incident.
         3. The point made is (1) “Jesus is what God promised us and what we as Jews should focus on” not (2) “Judaism is an evil thing with which Christians can have no association.”
      4. When the non-Christian Paul wanted to arrest Jews who as believers belonged to Jesus Christ, where did he go? Listen to Acts 9:1,2:
         Now Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest, and asked for letters from him to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, both men and women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
      5. When Paul began his work among the gentiles, the relationship between Jewish converts and gentile converts became a major religious issue, the “hot button” issue in the community of Christians.
         1. When he and Barnabas came back from their first mission trip to the first known, sizable gentile congregation [in Antioch], an enormous debate was in progress: must gentiles become Jews in religious practices/perspectives to be Christians? Must they be circumcised and follow the customs of Moses?
         2. The issue is not Jewish Christians abandoning Jewish ways; it is “must gentiles do things the way Jews do them.”
         3. Note verse 19 says that gentiles who are turning to God should not be troubled with doing Jewish things Jewish ways.
         4. Also note what verse 21 reads:
            For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath.
         5. This is Christian leadership among Jewish Christians affirming the work and purpose of Jewish synagogues in maintaining Jewish ways among the Jewish people–it is not a rejection of Jewish synagogues but an affirmation of them.
   4. When the Christian Paul went to a new city, where is the first place he went?
      1. He always went to the Jewish assemblies at the synagogue.
      2. Why?
         1. Early in my life I was taught these were the reasons:
            1. This is the place that people knew and studied scripture [that is true, but that is not the reason scripture gave].
            2. This is the place where people knew the living God [that is true, but that is not the reason scripture gave].
            3. If he convinced the Jews that Jesus was the Christ, there would be an immediate, great force of teachers [that is true, but that is not the reason scripture gave].
         2. Then what is the reason scripture gave?
            1. Consider the words of Paul himself:
               Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
               Acts 13:46 Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first; since you repudiate it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles.
            2. Consider the words of Peter spoken to Jews in Acts 3:25,26:
               It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.”
      3. In Acts 18:18, long after Paul became a Christian, long after he did mission work among the gentiles, we read this statement about Paul’s actions:
         Paul, having remained many days longer, took leave of the brethren and put out to sea for Syria, and with him were Priscilla and Aquila. In Cenchrea he had his hair cut, for he was keeping a vow.
         1. The Jewish Christian, Paul, who was a missionary to gentiles, did a very Jewish thing–he took a Jewish vow.
         2. The cutting of the hair was a key element in the Nazarite vow.
         3. Paul did not bind Jewish behavior on gentiles, but as a Jew he was free as a Christian to continue to follow Jewish behavior.
      4. In Acts 21 the Christian Paul gave a report on his work among the gentiles to the Jerusalem elders and leaders. Listen carefully to the reaction of the Jewish church leaders to a matter that concerned them.
         Acts 21:20-24 And when they heard it they began glorifying God; and they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and they are all zealous for the Law; and they have been told about you, that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs. What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; take them and purify yourself along with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads; and all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law.
         1. The Jewish church leaders were concerned because Paul was accused of teaching Jews to forsake circumcision and Jewish customs.
         2. That accusation was very serious. Thousands of Jewish Christians were zealous for the law.
         3. This was the Jewish leaders recommendation: be the sponsor of four Christian men who have taken a Jewish vow.
            1. Purify yourself with them [Jewish purification code], and pay their expenses to take the vow.
            2. Then everyone will know the accusation is false: though you teach gentiles about Jesus, you continue to be [personally] true to Jewish customs.
      5. Just the evidences in Acts confirm that Judaism and Christianity are to be seen as a “continuous” line, not “parallel” lines that are never connected.

2. If you think that worship before Christ was at best primitive and uneducated, and that worship of the resurrected Jesus has nothing in common with Israel’s primitive, uneducated worship, I would like you to consider some emphasizes from scripture.
   1. Just like Israel, we depend on a high priest.
      1. A high priest represented Israel to the holy God.
      2. A high priest represents us to the same holy God.
      3. Listen:
         Hebrews 2:14-18 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendant of Abraham. Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted.
         Hebrews 4:14-16 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
         Hebrews 5:7-10 In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety. Although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered. And having been made perfect, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation, being designated by God as a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.
         Hebrews 7:26-8:2 For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, made perfect forever. Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man.
   2. Just like Israel, we are dependent on God’s tabernacle and a gift of blood.
      Hebrews 9:11,12 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.
      Hebrews 9:24-26 For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; nor was it that He would offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the holy place year by year with blood that is not his own. Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
   3. Just like Israel, we are dependent on a sacrifice.
      Hebrews 10:10-14,18 By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. 18 … Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.
   4. Just like Israel, we have relationship with the holy God because of a sin offering.
      Hebrews 13:10-16 We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy place by the high priest as an offering for sin, are burned outside the camp. Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered outside the gate. So, let us go out to Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach. For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come. Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

Worship in Israel was never based on the primitive, but on an understanding of the holy God. Worship among Christians is based on the same understandings of the same holy God.

“What is Truth?”

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

Order of Worship and Discipleship:

“WHAT IS TRUTH?”
(John 18:28-40)
Jesus as Teacher/Revealer/Reconciler

Pilate – I’ve met him before. He’s as familiar as me. He can convince himself that he has contributed to the construction of the world he occupies, but somehow he doesn’t feel at home in it. There are moments when he recognizes that that is just a veneer covering the reality that he’s just another part of the huge, cosmic system. That the world he thought he constructed is just an illusion.

Pilate is a truth seeker. He’s looking for something real and with substance. Something that reveals the mystery of the universe.

We are truth-seekers. We ache not for truth, but the truth.

• Factual truths are all around us and it is easy enough to discern these – Everyday our science and experience opens up another truth.
• The truth is the revelation of mystery. It is seeing the world truthfully – the way God sees it.
• Perhaps the reason we are all truth seekers is that we’ve been lied to. I don’t simply mean that somewhere along the way some politician, used car salesman, or preacher lied to us. I don’t even mean that someone we love – a parent, a husband, a wife, a child, – has lied to us. No, these are symptoms of the broken world we live in. And another way to describe our sinful state is to say "we’ve been lied to." For the whole problem begins with a single lie.

  Think about that. There’s no cosmic battle between Satan and God in the garden. Adam doesn’t mount a rebellion. Eve is no evil witch commanding the powers of darkness. The tragic moment hinges on a lie that really doesn’t seem all that bad. It’s a lie that says – "Hey, there’s another way of looking at this Eve. I’m just saying, you’ve got options. Look here, Adam, I’m just saying maybe it’s time to trust in yourself and grow up a little. You don’t have to believe me, but I’m just telling you what I heard – I mean is that really what you heard God say? I’m just saying, maybe there’s another way to look at this."

And that’s how the lie spreads like a virus. Finally, there are so many different ways of perceiving the world, that we cannot see or hear clearly anymore and suddenly it strikes us – Everything we call our world and home is an illusion, a subtle distortion of the truth. We live in a virtual reality – which amounts to an illusion; an imitation of the truth.

• I want to mention a movie (that I do not necessarily endorse) that made quite an impact when it was released in 1999. The science-fiction thriller The Matrix contained more that wanton violence and ultra-cool special effects. One of the reasons it may have resonated so deeply with our culture was the premise that the world we live in isn’t the "real world." That it is an illusion, or as one character, Morpheus, puts it – "[The world we perceive] is the world that has been pulled over our eyes to blind us to the truth."
• Maybe this movie touched a nerve with so many because we have in fact been separated from the truth by illusion and delusion?

But what if there is no true reality? When Pilate asks, what is truth? He may be asking with hope that this bruised man in the chains with the Galilean accent might actually be able to reveal it – and he may also be making a statement with his question that there really isn’t such a thing as truth. The only truth is that which we make for ourselves.

• And if we embrace the second option, we are always separated from the world. If I am the beginning and end of truth, then perhaps all of the world is a lie, a figment of my own imagination. And if my truth is supreme, then your truth is supreme too – even if it is something radically different. And so my truth – my way of seeing the world – is no more or less valid than the new age vegetarian communist, feminist. My truth is no more or less valid than the conservative capitalist, fundamentalist, imperialist. As long as I have an "ist" I can make my own truth! But then we see again that if noting is ultimate truth, then the truth is there is no truth – and how can that really be truth – and we’re back on the hamster wheel again.

This is all because of the lie – the illusion – the veil, the cataract that clouds our vision. God’s love – his good news, is this – he restores our sight so we can recognize the truth. He restores our sight by reconciling us. So the separation into our own personal truth is transformed by relationship

1. This truth is more than just a set of propositions, laws, and intellectual arguments. Some might say, "Well, it’s in the good book!" Sure, the Bible reveals truth, but it does more than just boil it down to five principles. It records a story. It is the witness of a God yearning for his children to come home. They’re in a far country full of empty lies.
2. Telling the truth is important – but since we’ve been lied to so much we need more than just a telling. Have you ever tried to teach a child how to do something simply by telling them. Children don’t always read instruction books. I can remember buying Wyatt his first Lego toy. He was frustrated because he couldn’t put it together. He was frustrated and had Lego pieces scattered everywhere. He didn’t like the Lego. It’s broken! There’s a piece missing. I showed him in the book. That didn’t make any sense. The pictures in the book are 2-d and these Legos are 3-d. So, I finally said, “Let me show you how to do it.” I got down on the floor and picked up the pieces and with my hands and his hands working together I helped him build his Lego. Here I was, a grown man sitting on the floor playing with Legos. But I showed Wyatt how to do Legos and now he can build anything at all!
3. In the beginning, God told us how to be human. But we saw things differently and now there’s a mess. God gave us the instruction book, but it was true, but it was 2-d and we’re 3-d. So God came down into our world. He appeared to us as a man. And Jesus was God here to show us how to do human.
4. Truth isn’t discovered in a fact or formula. Truth isn’t discovered in a legal courtroom, a legislative assembly, or a scientific laboratory. Truth isn’t even discovered through meditation, prayer, or by coming to church – unless one encounters Jesus Christ. For truth is revealed in a person – Jesus. And truth is discovered in a relationship with him. And our discovery begins if we see the world like Jesus. Then we are on our way home.
   • In the movie, Pilate asks his wife Claudia, "How do you know the truth?" She replies, "If you will not hear the truth, how can I tell you?"
   • Pilate assumes that there is some label, some reducible element that makes something true. He thinks he will find the truth in a fact or a philosophy. But recognizing the truth means knowing the one who is the source of truth.

The Gospel cannot be reduced to a formula like E=mc². No offense to other religions, but the gospel of Jesus Christ cannot even be reduced to a confession such as "Namu amida butsu" or "There is one God and Mohammed is his prophet." There just isn’t an equivalent to that in Christianity – but haven’t we tried? I understand how it’s helpful to condense biblical teaching to four spiritual laws or even five steps of salvation. But reducing the gospel truth down to a formula like that apart from a relationship with Jesus Christ misses the truth. Jesus didn’t come among us to amend the instructions and simply announce that there’s an easier take on the 10 Commandments that reduces it to two. In his words, "For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world-to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice."

Jesus is the truth – He IS the way, the truth, and the life. John 8:32– Jesus’ disciples know the truth and the truth has set them free. The truth they know is more than fact – it’s a person. And a reunion with the Father, the restoration of our home-world, comes through a relationship with Jesus. And our confession, repentance, and baptism are not simply religious obligations we’d better perform if we want to be secure in the next life. In John’s gospel, Jesus uses a rather unique image to describe himself – a door. "I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture." – John 10:9. In baptism, we unite with Jesus – there’s relationship. It’s the loose plank in the fence through which we can escape the false world of the lie and enter into the kingdom or truth.

Jesus invites us. Not to sign up for an exemption from hell. Not to the big house in the sky where we all float around like wisps of smoke. Not even to our evolution to divine beings (trying to become gods is what got us into this mess!) – but Jesus uncovers the mystery and casts light on the illusion – he shows us the door – he shows us the way home – he invites us into his life – even now. He calls us to be born again into the new humanity (John 3). He shows us what it means to be truly human. Jesus is truth.

To Others, Unbelievable; To Us, Reality

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

“Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” — Galatians 6:1, 2

Those experiencing life among peoples in other nations are awed at the way they “see” American prosperity. In third world countries, the American lifestyle and home equipment is beyond comprehension–power, cooking stoves, refrigerators, air conditioners, hot water, etc. In many European nations (including Eastern Europe), people cannot comprehend the affordable food available to typical Americans. In numerous cultures only the extremely rich can afford to eat as the average American eats.

Thus a third world parent who loves his/her child dearly might beg a returning American, “Take my child to America with you!” Or, a well-to-do Eastern European recipient of “southern hospitality” here cannot respond “in kind” when the American visits.

Their common perspective: “Americans are incredibly happy because they have so many material things.” Try to explain to people in unimaginable poverty or to people who never have things available we take for granted the reality of pain in America. It is impossible! They, as too many Americans, think happiness is found in possessions. They, as too many Americans, think possessions and lifestyle make unhappiness impossible. They, as too many Americans, conclude the key to happiness is material well being. They, as too many Americans, think, “If I had all I want, I would be happy.” Often they, as we, want to fill empty lives with things. We know the emptiness, and we are confused because “things” do not fill it.

There is so much pain and hurt in America! What pain and hurt? The pain and hurt of failed relationships (marriages in misery; divorce; alienation between parents and children). The pain and hurt of mortality (ask any older person–aging is not a joyful experience, even if you get rid of arthritis and wear Depends!) The pain and hurt of sickness and death (being sick is no fun, and dying hurts many people beside the one who ceases to live physically). The pain and hurt of injustice (there are tons of ways to make victims). The pain and hurt of loneliness (feeling like no one cares is awful!). Lengthen the list: hopelessness, injuries, addictions, failed expectations, disappointments, etc.

Christians have a unique voice too rarely heard in our culture. We should be (must be!) the community who cares! We have a way to love and be there for each other because God teaches us how to love and be there. Want to see God’s love and concern? Look at Jesus! Through Jesus, God reveals life’s true focus. Being a Christian, being a part of the Christian community, does not remove all hurt and pain. It shows us how to care for those in hurt and pain. In that community, God Himself shows His people how to love and care. This is the courageous voice we must share with America–and beyond!

Jesus: “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.” Luke 6:32

The Two Aspects of Worshipping

Posted by David on March 7, 2004 under Sermons

If Christians from the first century world were to worship with us today on Sunday mornings, they would find those worship assemblies quite strange and unfamiliar. Christians of the first century would feel as uncomfortable and “out-of-place” in our worship assemblies as we would in theirs about 2000 years ago.

1. Our four-part harmony in singing would be strange to them. As I understand it, having different parts and having what we regard as harmony among those parts is relatively a “new” development. Among Christians around 2000 thousand years ago, what we regard to be harmony did not exist. Many of us would not even find their songs melodious. To us it would sound more like a reading or even a prayer. While the sounds made in their music would be strange to our hearing, the sounds made in our music would sound strange to their ears. [Even were it all in English.]

   The focus and subjects of our songs compared to the focus and subjects of their songs are different. In the few songs we have from early churches, the focus is primarily on Christ and sometimes on God. Some of our favorite songs focus on us, our dreams, our hopes, our anticipations. Likely they would find that a strange focus.

   The purpose of our songs would be strange to them. To us, songs are primarily inspirational. To them, songs were a means of confessing their faith in Christ or teaching others about Christ.

2. They would find our communion quite strange. Let’s just say that the emphasis they placed on communion and the ways they took communion were likely quite different from our emphasis and the way we observe communion.

3. They would find assembling in a church building quite strange. In the Roman empire, Christianity as a religion was illegal. In places where Christians were considered undesirable and dangerous, Christians of necessity had to be quite cautious about where they gathered. Where there was little or no opposition to them, they could be more open.

   They gathered in a variety of circumstances for worship. If you were converted from a Jewish background and history, you might gather in a Jewish home or in a synagogue. If you were a Christian converted with a pagan background and history, you might gather in a home, in a synagogue, or in a secretive place such as the catacombs.

   Since the major issue about Jesus among Jews was, “Is he the Messiah God promised?” and since the scriptures of the first century church were the Hebrew Bible [Old Testament to us], it was compatible for converts with a Jewish background [Jews, proselytes, God-bearers] to gather in synagogues since that would be the depository of scripture and the center of Jewish discussion about Jesus’ identity.

To me, the bottom line is this: first century Christians would not feel like they had worshipped if they came to our worship assemblies, and we would not feel like we had worshipped if we attended their worship assemblies. The differences in each setting would distract the visiting group.

1. There is a significant change between then and now that has a powerful influence on our perception of Christianity and Christian worship assemblies.
   1. Christians existed in the first century as an identifiable community who took care of each other.
      1. They fed the widows (Acts 6).
      2. They adopted widows for total care when they had no family to care for them (1 Timothy 5:8-12).
      3. They took care of orphans (James 1:27).
      4. They opened their homes to each other (2 John 9,10).
   2. That situation reminds me in many ways of the small rural church of my childhood.
      1. I can remember when several families pooled together their Sunday lunches and had their own “small group meetings” on Sunday afternoon.
      2. I can remember when we “were there” for each other, doing what we could to be of help in times of crisis.
      3. I can remember the strength of the bond that tied us together as a functioning community of Christians who cared about each other.

2. If this sense of community with its bonding and closeness is to exist, at least two things must be true.
   1. The congregation must be a community, not an institution.
      1. We must know each other.
      2. We must care about each other.
      3. We must help each other.
      4. The bond of genuine love must be strong among us.
   2. As a congregation, we individually must maintain a strong relationship with God.
      1. We must feel a joyful dependence on God–and see our dependence as a good thing!
      2. We must want to be Christians–we are attracted to God’s holiness!
      3. We are committed to being Jesus’ disciples–we willingly let Jesus teach us who we are, how we live, and how we think.
      4. We as a people are committed to being a particular kind of people, not just doing certain things.
      5. Our highest priority in life must be to walk in God’s paths, to behave like God’s people.

3. How does this relate to worship? We offer God worship in two basic ways.
   1. We worship God collectively, together, as a people.
      1. That obviously occurred in the New Testament among Christians.
      2. It began in Acts 2 and continued to be reflected in the epistles–groups of Christians met together to gladly praise God for His gift of Jesus Christ.
      3. For the sake of illustration, I call your attention to 1 Corinthians 11:17-34.
         1. Read with me and note one thing–the importance of their sense of togetherness in taking the Lord’s supper.
         2. Verse 17: the Corinthian Christians being together caused problems–their assemblies made Christians weaker, not stronger.
         3. Verse 18, 19–their worship actually emphasized and advanced their divisions.
         4. Verses 20, 21–instead of their being together affirming their commitment to each other and God, it only stressed their differences.
         5. Verse 22–their agenda in being together failed to emphasize their closeness as a people in Christ [despising the church of God is despising ourselves as Christ’s body].
         6. The purpose is not to satisfy a physical need for food, but to affirm your sense of community as God’s people.
         7. Verse 33–you cannot achieve God’s objective in the Lord’s supper if you do not care about each other being a part of the remembrance.
      4. Communion had two objectives:
         1. To remember what God and Jesus did for us in Jesus’ death.
         2. To affirm our relationship with each other in Christ.
         3. The Lords’ supper was to affirm a sense of belonging among ourselves, a sense of caring and togetherness, a sense of community in Christ.
   2. We as Christian persons worship God individually on a continuing, daily basis.
      1. Read with me Romans 12:1,2
         Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
      2. My personal understanding is this: they collectively were urged to accept a personal responsibility.
      3. This presentation of the physical body to God is to be on a daily basis–the injunctions that follow in Romans flows from this presentation.
      4. I make the presentation because I am moved by the enormity of God’s mercy.
      5. I make my physical body a holy sacrifice–I consciously climb up on the altar to sacrifice myself every day.
      6. By my desire, God redefines who and what I am.
      7. He gives me a new way to think and His will becomes my priority.
      8. God helps me define what is good, what is acceptable, and what is “on target” in life (focuses life).
   3. Thus worship involves two considerations in a Christian’s existence.
      1. It is a collective act in which I appreciatively declare my dependence on God and my oneness with God’s people; it is my commitment to the community of Christians.
      2. It is a daily individual act in which I surrender myself to God.
         1. All my obedience flows from this surrender to the holy God.
         2. This worship defines who and what I am in all my relationships and all interactions with other people–those who are Christians, and those who are not.

There are two questions each of us should focus on as Christians:

1. What do I declare in my group worship?

2. Every day do I climb on the altar and surrender myself as a holy sacrifice to God?

“Are You a King?”

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

Order of Worship and Discipleship:

“ARE YOU A KING?”
(Luke 23)

In   The Passion of the Christ   movie, Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, interviews Jesus who has been arrested and charged with treason. If Jesus claims to be the ruler of Judea, then he represents a political threat to Rome. So Pilate, who more than anything wants to remain uninvolved but also wants to avoid a riot, asks Jesus the all important question: Are You a King, then?

Reading of Luke 23:1-38
[prayer]

Kingdoms in Conflict

TIBERIUS	HEROD	PILATE
PHILIP	ANNAS	CAIAPHAS

Romans like Tiberius and Pilate maintained the peace of the empire through fear, coercion, and advanced technology. If you sided with Rome, life could be very, very good. But if you challenged Rome in any way, life could be very, very bad. Hail Rome for giving us fresh water through the aqueducts – but let’s not mention the fact that it is built by slaves!
Jewish leader like Herod and Philip ruled through privilege. They had Roman connections and alliances on their side. But since they were lesser powers in service of Rome, their privilege and security was easily threatened and they didn’t want to lose their lifestyle – so Herod the Great made sure to eliminate all threats even if it meant slaughter.
Religious leaders like Annas and Caiaphas earned a measure of respect in avoiding the corruptions of Herod and the political rulers of Judea. Their good lifestyle took work but it paid off. Maintaining the truth and the stability of their heritage occupied their time and passion – and if that meant they had to be exclusive and cautious then that was a small price to pay for truth.

These power-players all had their own agendas. And sometimes they were compatible but sometimes they were conflicting.

Our experience of conflicting powers: Is it really that hard to imagine the world Luke describes? Is it really that hard to imagine the world of conflicting powers that Jesus’ lived in? Isn’t this still our experience today?
We are entertained by shows that place people in situations in which they must cheat, lie, and takes sides against one another. How revealing that we call these reality shows. Is this how we perceive reality?

It is reflected in our catch-phrases:

• Life’s Not Fair!
• Survival of the Fittest.
• Good guys finish last!
• It’s a dog-eat-dog world.

These clichéd statements confess to the conflict woven into the fabric of our world. We accept as fact that there must be winners and losers. We will even compartmentalize our rules for life so that we think that compassion and the golden rule are high principles to live up to, but when it comes to business, politics, and security a different set of rules applies.
          The powers of business in this world are ordered upon conflict between management and labor. Communism is really just oppression. It doesn’t work, so consumer capitalism is the only thing that does work – it’s not perfect, but it’s all we got.
          The powers of politics in this world are based on conflict between special interests. Monarchies are always corrupt. That doesn’t work, so a two-party system that encourages bickering and debate is the only that seems to work. [How many sigh saying is it election year already?] It’s not perfect, but it’s all we got.
          The powers that involve our security seem to thrive on conflict. All of us have secret codes and passwords and ID numbers – and our security depends on who knows and who doesn’t. Our security may depend on being first in line, getting on the right side of the fence, killing the killer before he kills us. Our security in our social world may depend on what we tell others (or don’t tell others) who we befriend and who we don’t befriend. Hey, it’s not perfect – but it’s all we got. That’s just the way it is. Conflict is part of life.

          We may feel that way when we’re on the up-side of the contest, but how do we feel when we’re on the down side? How do we feel when greedy CEO’s embezzled our money and ruined our fortunes for the future? How do we feel when our political system alienates us and favors injustice? How do we feel when we are excluded and uninformed because we are no longer as valuable as we once were?
          Maybe it’s not always easy to swallow the bitter reality of this world in conflict? And does God really have anything to do with this? Where’s God in this conflict? Is he indifferent? Is he so spiritual that the earthly powers don’t really concern him?
          But what if God has stepped into the fray? (The in-breaking rule of God)

We often think that Jesus and Pilate are just "following the script" that God wrote for this moment. Jesus is a victim of the corrupt sinful system of this world. He gets chewed up and spit out by the forces of darkness because God abandons Jesus to evil. But is that really how it was? Let’s take a different perspective and consider what powers and forces hostile to God and Christ are at work leading up to this moment. What evil explains the fact that an innocent man who came to save the world is being condemned to death? What explains Jesus’ seeming reluctance to fight back?

Jesus is not on trial for what he did, but for who he is. Pilate doesn’t think that Jesus has done anything "against the law." But law-breaking isn’t the issue. Jesus ushers in the Kingdom of God. It’s not a geographical, institutional, or political kingdom. Kingdom means "rule" or "reign" and it refers not merely to the visible evidence of that rule, but the authority of the ruler and the extent of the ruler’s power. But just because this "rule of God" isn’t limited to geography, politics, or institutions doesn’t mean it has no impact on those. In fact the rule of God extends over everything. It is a higher authority that tests and challenges everything in creation.
So even though the kingdom that Jesus proclaims is spiritual and not of this world, it threatens the powers and dominions that have something invested in the world order as it is – even if it isn’t perfect. [They are so threatened that they would prefer a terrorist set loose than see Jesus alive. Even Pilate goes along with this madness!]

Jesus has stepped into the ring – in this case history – (the world as we have known it and do know it.) He has crossed a line in the sand – and doing so makes enemies – It threatens those powers and kings and authorities that try to rule instead of Christ or even those that try to rule alongside of Christ.
Jesus is a threat because he is aligned with the rule of God. His very being puts him into conflict with that which is against God. Jesus is standing at Ground Zero of the conflict between God and the forces that have conspired against God. Yet, he chooses to offer few words in his defense.

"Yes it is as you say" is his answer to Pilate’s question. Why?

• The only way for Jesus to escape the trial is to change who he is – to become something that does not threaten the power-players.
• Jesus knows that Pilate and the priests will do whatever they want with whatever he says. Jesus knows that he is King, but Pilate and the Jewish leaders have to do more than say it or write it on a sign  - they have to submit to it! And there’s the conflict. This is the battlefield.

With a word, Christ can end the whole sorry affair. But there’s no victory in that. The weapon of Christ is not force or coercion. Christ fights with weapons that the enemy cannot manage – confidence, truth, love. Confidence in God to preserve his life, the truth about the rule of God, and love enough to invite others – even enemies – into that kingdom.

• Jesus isn’t the one who needs to speak a word to save his life. It’s Pilate, and the Jewish leaders, and the disciples and the crowd that need to be to saved. They need to choose sides. Jesus is inviting them to say "He is King!" and mean it. How they say it, makes all the difference.

Jesus is no victim. He goes to the cross a warrior-king. He lays down his life freely to conquer the true enemy of evil … The real enemy is not Pilate, Caiaphas, or Herod. It’s not Rome or the Sanhedrin. It’s not Republicans or Democrats, conservatives or liberals; it is not Adolph Hitler, Saddam Hussein, Osama bin Laden. It’s not the slanderer who tells lies about you or the hacker who put a virus on your computer. They are the victims! They have aligned themselves with false powers – pretend authorities!

• The real enemy is sin and all its products: injustice, hatred, murder, idolatry, abuse, corruption, etc. Indifference in the face of injustice or hunger is unloving and affiliation with the enemy. Adopting the enemy’s means to defeat it is alliance with the enemy. But love means stepping into the fray and sacrificing self for the liberation of captives. A heroic faith will risk self in an effort to be on God’s side because the gospel is that whatever the enemy may do to us, God will win.
• Victory – not a Victim. The victory of the cross is portrayed in the movie in a scene in which Mary asks the question: “Why is this night unlike all others?” The answer comes from the Passover ritual "Because once we were slaves but now we are set free."
• The tenth-century Anglo-Saxon poem The Dream of the Rood describes the cross as a heroic, kingly victory."He is a young and confident champion striding from afar … Vigorous and single-minded, he strips himself for battle and a kingly victory. The action is entirely his, an eager sacrifice; there is no question at this point of his being nailed to the cross. Instead he climbs to embrace it." Read Colossians 2:15.

Here’s the good news: Our King went to battle to overthrow the lesser powers – and he won!

At the cross:

• The Romans who ruled with fear thought they were ridding themselves of a renegade – but Christ wasn’t afraid of them.
• The Jewish elites who were convinced they had the final say on truth thought they had silenced a scandal – but Christ knew the truth.
• The crowds, the thieves, and the disciples who struggled daily to preserve their lives wondered why he didn’t save himself – but Christ was resisted the power of self-preservation and saved us from evil with love.

What Does it Mean? In Revelation, persecuted Christians are encouraged with the good news of Christ’s ultimate victory (Revelation 19), the defeat of God’s enemies (Revelation 20) and the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21). Those are visions and promises of a triumphant future that served as good news for the followers of Christ, but they were a far cry from the difficult fight that these believers lived with daily. So between their present reality and the bright future, Christians were called upon do their part for the war effort. What that involved can be read in the Letters to the Seven Churches (Revelation 2-3), but in general it meant staying faithful and being willing to die for Christ (Revelation 13:8-10). To do that was to be like Christ, the Lamb that was slain, who understood that love meant doing his part to be loyal to God and defeat the foe.

• Return of the King – "Enemy-occupied territory – that is what this world is. Christianity is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in a great campaign of sabotage." – C. S. Lewis
• Reading of Acts 4:27-34 – Luke continues the story of the living Christ by showing how the rule of Christ the King is breaking into the world. In Acts 4 he shows how the confidence, truth, and love of Christ that overcame the kingdoms of Pilate and Herod. There’s a portrait of a community that participates in the life of Christ. They’re not afraid when they’re threatened. They are not deceived by the darkness and deception of evil. And they are able to establish loving relationship in which no one is needy because others sacrifice in love as Christ their King did for them. That’s the kingdom sabotage and in flies right in the face of the powers that oppose Christ’s rule.

The earliest confession of the Christian church was "Christ is Lord (King)!" These were more than words, this was a expression of an allegiance that sometimes alienated Christians and threw them into conflict with the powers and victims of the enemy. But those who made that confession were no victims. They had already died with Christ and they had already inherited the Kingdom of God. The received it as a generous gift.

Focusing On Our Purpose as a Congregation

Posted by David on February 29, 2004 under Bulletin Articles

Permit me to begin by asking some questions we do not often ask. What are the purposes for convincing men and women that they should “enter Jesus Christ” and have “Christ in them”? What purposes do men and women who are “in Jesus Christ” have? Why do we exist as a congregation? Are there purposes in being a congregation? Are those purposes ours or God’s? Do they exist because of our concerns or God’s priorities?

Do we exist as Christians merely to exist? Do we exist as a congregation merely to exist? Is the purpose of being “in Christ” no more than staying out of Hell? Is the purpose of being a congregation no more than survival?

If those questions seem trivial, “too thoughty,” or too concerned about issues you never consider, may I give you a guarantee? The guarantee: any elder who takes serious his role of leadership in a congregation never regards any of those questions trivial, “too thoughty,” or focused on insignificant matters.

This Sunday morning as we consider God’s importance to our lives in the worship of our physical and spiritual Creator, our shepherds/leaders will challenge us. It will not be a business meeting. It will be worship. These men thought long and hard about God’s purposes in us as individuals and a congregation. They want to briefly share their thoughts with us. Their sharing will be in the form of challenges rather than the form of directives. They will seek to lead us rather than control us. They will focus on our purpose and our goals to the glory and honor of God, Christ, and the Spirit.

Our Purpose:
• Making disciples for Jesus who are eager to serve others.

Our Goals:

• To daily focus on Jesus and His Cross.
• To nurture spiritual growth to transform all into God’s holiness.
• To increase love and godly behavior.
• To recognize our spiritual gifts and use them to glorify God.
• To proclaim a biblical worldview that is obedient to Christ.

These men sacrifice much to be our shepherds. They want to share with us what these things mean to them. They want us to think and focus as we make God the core of our daily lives. They want us to think and focus as we seek to be God’s people-nothing more and nothing less. See you Sunday as we honor God by thinking about who we are!

“Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds?” (Hebrews 10:24)

The Moods of Worship

Posted by David on February 22, 2004 under Sermons

Those of us who are older have long accepted as fact that there is only one appropriate worship mood. The only appropriate mood is solemness. Anything other than being solemn in worship is a human invention that is unknown to God.

People are to approach God with reverence. In the Churches of Christ [and in many other churches as well] in the 20th and 21st century, reverence meant solemn. Any worship mood that failed to be solemn was declared totally inappropriate for worship. The common opinion: proper worship is founded on death [sacrifices, and Jesus’ crucifixion]. There is only one appropriate mood to be associated with death. That appropriate mood is solemn.

Jesus’ birth as recorded in Luke 2 was a time of celebration, but we have no occasion for celebration in our worship. Jesus’ presentation as an infant at the temple was a moment of joyful thanksgiving for Simeon and Anna in Luke 2, but we have no occasion for joyful thanksgiving. The baptism of Jesus an occasion of joy in which God Himself declared that He was well pleased, but we have no occasion for expressing joy in worship.

I have difficulty believing that the marriage feast at Cana or many of the healings were not occasions for spiritual celebration and joy. God acted in wonderful ways! It is difficult for me to imagine that a leper being healed, or a blind man seeing, or a lame man walking, or a demon possessed person being freed, or a dead person being raised to life would produce only solemn spiritual thoughts. It is impossible for me to see these people worshipping God in anything but joyful thanksgiving for the great blessing received.

One of the earliest Christian miracles occurred in Acts 3. When Peter by Jesus’ power gave the gift of walking to a man lame from birth, the man stood up with a leap and entered the temple walking, and leaping, and praising God. He was in the holiest place they knew, but what he did was not solemn. Neither was it irreverent. God enabled this man who had never taken one step to walk, and he was thrilled beyond words! He had to praise God for his gift!

1. The fact that worshipping God includes many moods comes from God Himself.
   1. Jewish expressions of worship were either commanded by or sanctioned by God.
      1. Some of their special occasions of worship included these:
         1. Passover and the feast of unleavened bread.
         2. The feast of weeks, also known as the feast of harvest or the day of first fruits.
         3. The feast of tabernacles, also known as the feast of booths or the feast of ingatherings.
         4. The Sabbath occurring on the seventh day of each week.
         5. The day of blowing the trumpets.
         6. The day of atonement.
         7. The feast of Purim.
         8. Jubilee
      2. Most of these were feasts that involved worship centered around sacrifices and eating with joy.
         1. God commanded His people to have occasions of celebration as they honored and praised Him–a part of remembering was celebration!
         2. The idea and thought of people joyfully praising and glorifying Him have never been foreign to God.
   2. We truly need to distance ourselves from the human idea that God is offended when His people worship Him in the joy of gratitude for His kind and gracious gifts and blessings.
      1. All the men of Israel made pilgrimages from all over the land on special festival days, which we would call occasions of worship.
         Deuteronomy 16:16 Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths, and they shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed.
      2. It was a sight unlike anything we have ever seen as thousands and thousands of people flooded the roads to the Jerusalem temple.
      3. As these thousands and thousands of people made their pilgrimage, they sang as they neared Jerusalem and the temple.
         1. Their songs were know as the songs of Ascents.
         2. As thousands of Israelites sang as they “went up” to Jerusalem, these songs echoed through the valleys with increasing volume as they neared their destination.
         3. Psalms contains some of those songs, and those songs reflect a variety of moods–and one of those moods is joy.
         4. Listen to some of the words in those songs:
            Psalm 121:1-4 I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From whence shall my help come? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.
            Psalm 122:1 I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”
            Psalm 126:1,2 When the Lord brought back the captive ones of Zion, We were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting; Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” (Probably a song sung after the captivity.)
            Psalm 135:1-3 Praise the Lord! Praise the name of the Lord; Praise Him, O servants of the Lord, You who stand in the house of the Lord, In the courts of the house of our God! Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; Sing praises to His name, for it is lovely.

2. I want you to think and consider as we note some of the holiest Jewish occasions of worship.
   1. The Passover and feast of unleavened bread:
      1. The Passover primarily was a time of remembrance in Israel when they celebrated the fact that it was God with His great power who freed Israel from slavery.
      2. Think about it! It celebrated the wonderful things God did for them, not the horrible things they did to God.
         1. God acted powerfully on their behalf–that is not a mournful, downcast memory.
         2. God ended their existence as slaves–that is not a mournful, downcast memory.
         3. God made them a nation–that is not a mournful, downcast memory.
         4. God led them to a country of their own–that is not a mournful, downcast memory.
      3. Listen:
         Exodus 12:14 Now this day will be a memorial to you, and you shall celebrate it as a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations you are to celebrate it as a permanent ordinance.
         Exodus 13:11-16 “Now when the Lord brings you to the land of the Canaanite, as He swore to you and to your fathers, and gives it to you, you shall devote to the Lord the first offspring of every womb, and the first offspring of every beast that you own; the males belong to the Lord. But every first offspring of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, then you shall break its neck; and every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. And it shall be when your son asks you in time to come, saying, ‘What is this?’ then you shall say to him, ‘With a powerful hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. It came about, when Pharaoh was stubborn about letting us go, that the Lord killed every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of beast. Therefore, I sacrifice to the Lord the males, the first offspring of every womb, but every firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ So it shall serve as a sign on your hand and as phylacteries on your forehead, for with a powerful hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”
      4. Passover was about the joyful memory of God’s deliverance through God’s powerful act.
         1. They are to never forget what God did for them.
         2. The feast of unleaven bread was a continual memorial to remind every Israelite yearly of how quickly Israel left Egypt.
         3. It was a feast, a meal, not a fast.
         4. It remembered how deeply indebted Israel was to God.
   2. The feast of weeks [also known as the feast of harvests or the day of first fruits]:
      1. Notice again that this is a time of feasting.
      2. It was held at the completion of the spring grain harvest.
      3. Listen:
         Deuteronomy 16:9-12 You shall count seven weeks for yourself; you shall begin to count seven weeks from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain. Then you shall celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the Lord your God with a tribute of a freewill offering of your hand, which you shall give just as the Lord your God blesses you; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite who is in your town, and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your midst, in the place where the Lord your God chooses to establish His name. You shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt, and you shall be careful to observe these statutes.
   3. The feast of tabernacles [also known as the feast of booths or the feast of ingatherings].
      1. Again, notice this was a time of feasting.
      2. This was a festival that occurred at the end of the harvest which also marked the end of their year.
      3. It was a week of joyful remembrance: God brought us out of Egypt; God preserved us in the wilderness; God gave us this harvest; God is our Provider Who Protects us.
      4. Listen:
         Leviticus 23:39-43 On exactly the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the crops of the land, you shall celebrate the feast of the Lord for seven days, with a rest on the first day and a rest on the eighth day. Now on the first day you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. You shall thus celebrate it as a feast to the Lord for seven days in the year. It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations; you shall celebrate it in the seventh month. You shall live in booths for seven days; all the native-born in Israel shall live in booths, so that your generations may know that I had the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out from the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.
   4. The day of atonement (Leviticus 16):
      1. I want you to notice the contrast.
         1. Passover, the feast or festival of weeks, and the feast or festival of tabernacles were occasions of joy combined with feasting which celebrated the powerful acts and blessings of God.
         2. The day of atonement was a day for the nation to focus on their sins, their failures, their unholiness before the holy God.
         3. There was no feasting; only a remembrance of their failures and their need for atonement [forgiveness].
         4. The high priest cleansed himself, then cleansed the sanctuary, and then cleansed the nation.
      2. Listen:
         Leviticus 16:17-31 When he goes in to make atonement in the holy place, no one shall be in the tent of meeting until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself and for his household and for all the assembly of Israel. Then he shall go out to the altar that is before the Lord and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and of the blood of the goat and put it on the horns of the altar on all sides. With his finger he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it seven times and cleanse it, and from the impurities of the sons of Israel consecrate it. When he finishes atoning for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall offer the live goat. Then Aaron shall lay both of his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the sons of Israel and all their transgressions in regard to all their sins; and he shall lay them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who stands in readiness. The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to a solitary land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness. Then Aaron shall come into the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there. He shall bathe his body with water in a holy place and put on his clothes, and come forth and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people and make atonement for himself and for the people. Then he shall offer up in smoke the fat of the sin offering on the altar. The one who released the goat as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes and bathe his body with water; then afterward he shall come into the camp. But the bull of the sin offering and the goat of the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall be taken outside the camp, and they shall burn their hides, their flesh, and their refuse in the fire. Then the one who burns them shall wash his clothes and bathe his body with water, then afterward he shall come into the camp. This shall be a permanent statute for you: in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall humble your souls and not do any work, whether the native, or the alien who sojourns among you; for it is on this day that atonement shall be made for you to cleanse you; you will be clean from all your sins before the Lord. It is to be a sabbath of solemn rest for you, that you may humble your souls; it is a permanent statute.

3. I focus your attention on this fact:
   1. There is no “refocusing” of the concepts of worship in the Christian age–worship of God was worship of God.
      1. Forms for expressing worship changed, but worship as a concept did not change.
      2. Lessons learned from the concepts God gave Israel for worship are truly relevant for our Christian concepts of worship.
   2. In worshipping God, there were occasions to joyously celebrate the gifts and power of God–by God’s own choosing and direction!
   3. In worshipping God there are occasions to mourn our sinfulness–by God’s own choosing and direction!

The basic understanding in worship is simple. If the focus is on God and His powerful acts and blessings, the mood is a joyful celebration. If the focus is on us and our sinfulness, the mood is somber. This is what God revealed, not what we decided.

Joy

Posted by David on under Sermons

I want to focus our thinking by reading Hebrews 12:1-3.
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

1. In modern America, in the church, we have taken much of the brutality and violence out of Jesus’ crucifixion.
   1. Crucifixion was a common method for executing people who were not Roman citizens.
      1. Jesus and the two thieves who were crucified on the same occasion were only three of hundreds of first century Jews crucified by the Romans.
      2. Nor was this method of execution used by the Romans only with Jewish people–it was a common means of execution by the Roman troops.
      3. It was a very violent, brutal, cruel way to die.
   2. Twentieth and twenty-first century Christians have removed much of the violent brutality and cruelty from Jesus’ crucifixion.
      1. We tend to be much more comfortably focusing on artist’s renditions of the crucifixion which are “pretty” but not violent or cruel.
      2. We know Jesus suffered when he died, but we much prefer to focus on his enormous love rather than his real suffering.
      3. Many of us are just plain shocked when we are confronted with the violence and cruelty of Jesus’ execution.
      4. It was a brutal execution witnessed by a crowd of onlookers, much like the crowds that witnessed hangings in our western movement.
      5. It was a contemptible, disgraceful way to die–the intent was to disgrace the execution victim by destroying his humanity in death.

2. A question I asked myself for many years was this: “How did Jesus do it?”
   1. He made no physical attempt to avoid it when he knew before the event it would occur.
      1. In fact, he consciously did the things he knew would lead to crucifixion.
      2. He knew it was coming.
      3. He knew it would involve enormous suffering.
      4. Yet, he did not run, did not hide, did not defend himself.
      5. How is it possible to do that when you are not guilty of anything?
   2. The “how” is addressed at least twice in New Testament writings.
      1. One is given in 1 Peter 2:23.
         And while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously.
         1. As Jesus endured enormous injustice in his death, he used his strength to focus on being [in suffering!] the person God wanted him to be.
         2. He did not have the strength [nor do we!] to focus in suffering on the injustice and on being the person God wanted him to be.
         3. So he entrusted the injustices to God to let God care for them.
         4. He just focused on being the person God wanted him to be–he did not let injustice distract him!
         5. That is one of the “hows!”
   3. The other “how” is given in the reading we shared at the beginning (Hebrews 12:1-3).
      1. That “how” was this: he was motivated to endure the cross and despise the shame for the sake of the joy in front of him.
      2. Our reaction is, “Joy? What joy? What possibly could be worth going through that experience?”

3. For a moment, I want you to focus on joy.
   1. “What joys did Jesus know that were ahead of him that made the experience of crucifixion endurable?”
      1. I am certain I do not know all of them.
      2. I am confident that they included:
         1. Being the means through which God’s promise made much more than a thousand years earlier was kept.
         2. The resurrection.
         3. Being enthroned by God on God’s right hand (kingly language).
         4. Being made Lord of lord’s and King of kings by God Himself.
         5. Interceding for every man or woman who trusts him and his death.
   2. Here are my questions to us.
      1. If Jesus found joy in being our ransom by giving his blood for our redemption, do we find joy in being ransomed?
      2. If Jesus found joy in becoming our Savior, do we find joy in being saved?
      3. If Jesus found joy in making our forgiveness a permanent reality, do we find joy in being forgiven?
      4. If Jesus found joy in the right to intercede for us, do we find joy in realizing that is what he does for us every day of our lives?

How do we respond to this great gift provided in the brutality of his execution? Surely, in many ways. Yet, one of those ways that must not be absent is with joy! Our joy to be alive in Christ must be real and must be expressed! How do you express this joy?

Making Disciples Eager to Serve Others

Posted by David on under Bulletin Articles

I express my personal thanks to all who made our banner possible! To make it required enormous work by a lot of people! Ladies, thank you for all the time and skills you dedicated to it! Personal schedules had to be coordinated for months. Since it is so large, finding a place to work on it was not simple (this is a very used facility!). Hanging it from the rear balcony area was a major task (thanks Mark Hite, Denise Lusby, Martha Walker, Debbie Belote!). In such a large room, it is large enough to be seen, but not an “overpowering” display. It is simply a readable reminder as we leave our worship assemblies.

A few months ago our elders suggested to us as a congregation that our purpose statement be, “Making disciples for Jesus who are eager to serve others.” That is a statement reflecting an understanding of our purpose as declared in Titus 2:14.

We exist to make disciples who follow Jesus. We seek to call people to Jesus as Lord and Christ. We want these people to enter Christ because they want to follow Jesus as their teacher. We want them to allow Jesus to guide them in a Christian lifestyle.

We exist to encourage every Christian to make discipleship in Jesus a core purpose in every area of personal life. We want every one of us to follow Jesus in the personal desire and commitment to allow him to remake us. We are to do more than seek to escape the consequences of our evil. We want Jesus to teach us how to live in ways that reflect God, our Creator, in our lives as we serve others to God’s glory.

Our commitment to Christ is not a selfish commitment. Just as he lived, died, and was resurrected to serve, we as his followers want to have his eagerness to serve. Just as we benefit from Jesus’ commitment to service, we want others to benefit from our commitment to service. Just as he became our Savior through giving and serving, we want to be his followers to God’s glory through serving and giving.

Now, each week as we leave after assembling to praise and honor God for His gifts to us through Jesus, we are visually reminded to (1) be disciples of Jesus and (2) eagerly serve others. We want to be a people whom God can use to make differences in the lives of others and each other. We exist as God’s people in order for God to use us for His purposes. That is our purpose just as it is Jesus Christ’s purpose.

If we are on the journey to live with God as an eternal part of His family, a physical lifestyle can never define us, nor can this physical existence ever be our home. We seek the faith to be like Jesus in the ways we live and the courage to allow Jesus to be Lord.

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

The Creator God

Posted by David on February 15, 2004 under Sermons

The Bible opens in Genesis 1 with the creative act of God. The entire first chapter of the Bible is devoted to the acts of the Creator God. Basically it says that everything Israel saw and knew began with the creative acts of the Creator God.

In my life time [and certainly not confined just to the period of my life] Genesis 1 has been analyzed, dissected, debated, and refocused in terms of our concerns. Most of our analysis, dissection, debates, and refocusing have been about our modern, scientific concerns and issues, not about the expressed concerns of Genesis. We have spent a lot of time seeking answers to questions that (a) are not in the book of Genesis and (b) were not a part of the concerns of the original Israelite recipients.

Neither Genesis nor chapter one was written to address 20th and 21st Century concerns about our scientific questions and issues. To me, efforts to make Genesis chapter one [or the book] about our questions and issues miss the primary message of that chapter and the book.

This is my conclusion: if we make Genesis one and Genesis about our questions and issues, we will either miss or misunderstand God’s message in Genesis one and the book. The result is that we hear ourselves speaking for God and not hear God speaking for Himself.

When the Israelites who first received the Genesis message heard it, there are certain questions they did not ask. They did not ask, “What do you mean by the word day, and how long was this period of time?” They did not ask, “What method was used to create, and what process did the creative acts follow?” They did not ask, “How are we to look upon and explain strange life forms?”

To them, the information addressed two simple questions: (1) “How did we as human being and as the nation of Israel come into existence?” (2) “For what purpose do we exist as the nation of Israel?” The answers: “We came into existence as people and as Israel through the intended, direct, creative acts of the Creator God. We exist as a nation to serve the Creator God.”

They had a clear, foundational understanding: “We owe everything to the acts of the Creator God. It is only right that we belong to Him, listen to Him, and serve Him.”

1. I accept as fact that the original recipients of Genesis were Israelites, perhaps the Israelites who left Egypt.
   1. What was Genesis’ messages to these original recipients?
      1. “You are to understand that your origin is in the Creator God.”
         1. “The God Who created brought people (including you!) into existence and gave them life.”
         2. “The God Who created brought you into existence as human beings and as a nation.”
      2. “You live as human beings because in God’s goodness and kindness He did not destroy human beings when they rebelled against Him.”
         1. “The reason you have difficulties is found in human rebellion, not in the Creator God.”
         2. “When the Creator God finished this physical creation, everything–including humanity–was good.”
         3. “Human rebellion through human choice gave evil a place in human existence.”
      3. “You exist as Israel because of God’s great love for Abraham, the man of faith.” (Consider Deuteronomy 4:37-40; 7:6-8)
      4. “You do not exist because you are wonderful–you are not wonderful! You are forgiven because it is the nature of the Creator God to be merciful and kind. You are Israel because the merciful, kind Creator God loved Abraham, your forefather who was a person of faith.”
         Deuteronomy 9:4-6 Do not say in your heart when the Lord your God has driven them out before you, ‘Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is dispossessing them before you. It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out before you, in order to confirm the oath which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn people.
      5. “Because you owe your existence in every dimension to the Creator God, you have every reason to belong to Him and serve Him. It is right that you listen to Him and obey Him.”
   2. I want you to focus on something quite simple–yet extremely important.
      1. If God creates it, it is good.
      2. If Satan or evil perverts what God has created, it is bad (sinful, evil).
      3. Satan cannot create, only pervert.
      4. We humans cannot create, only be perverted.
      5. The only hope humans have of moving toward goodness is moving toward God.
      6. We were “good” when the Creator God brought us into existence.
         1. By our choice, with our permission, humans moved from their created goodness to evil’s perversion.
         2. The only hope humans have to move toward their original goodness is an act of God in their individual lives. [God is the power source, not they themselves.]
   3. With that understanding, I want you carefully to listen to two New Testament statements given by Paul to Christians in the first century.
      1. The first statement is given to Christians at Ephesus:
         Ephesians 4:20-24 But you did not learn Christ in this way, if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
      2. The context makes this statement both fascinating and insightful.
         1. Paul wrote to Christians, men and women who already have come to Christ, who because they believed already have been baptized into Christ.
         2. He said, “Understanding Christ means understanding a specific message that is consistent with what and who he is.”
         3. “You may think you understand Christ, but you surely have missed an understanding of the message.”
         4. “If you understood the message, you would not live the lives you live or behave in the manner you act.”
         5. “Truth is found and understood by understanding Jesus the Christ.”
         6. “This is the simple message:
            1. “There was a way that you lived and acted prior to coming to Christ.
            2. “When you come to Christ you do not live and act that way any more; you cannot continue to live and act as you did when you were a Christless person.
            3. “That way of living was based on being deceived by your perverted desires–you must intentionally abandon that way of life.
            4. “Instead of having a deceived mind, you are going to have a renewed mind.
            5. “You must be a new self which is dedicated to God and seeks to reflect God’s likeness–others will not look at the way you live and act and be deceived about Who God is or what human behavior is when it is consistent with the nature and character of God.
            6. Please carefully note: “This new self exists because the Creator God has created this new self in righteousness and holiness of truth.”
         7. If you place this passage in a larger context of what is said both before and after it, Paul’s point is simple: “You cannot continue the behavior and lifestyle of people who do not know God because God has created you to be righteous and holy as is He.”
         8. What a powerful commentary to those who have transformed worship into a physical presence at a church building and transformed communion into a ritualistic act!
      3. The second statement is also given by Paul to Christians at Colossae:
         Colossians 3:1-10 Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory. Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry. For it is because of these things that the wrath of God will come upon the sons of disobedience, and in them you also once walked, when you were living in them. But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.
      4. Again, the context makes this passage insightful and fascinating.
         1. Again, Paul wrote to Christian men and women.
         2. “Belonging to Jesus Christ refocuses your entire life.
         3. “Before you were Christians you were focused on your desires; after you become a Christian you are to focus on Jesus Christ.
         4. “If you want to be ready to receive Christ at your resurrection with joy and glorious anticipation, you set your mind (thinking) on spiritual realities in the place where Christ is, in heaven where he is at God’s right hand (the choice place of the one whom the King favors).
         5. The new attitudes of the person who is in Christ:
            1. “I have died, and my life is now hidden in Christ.
            2. “I will not worship immorality, impurity, a passion for evil things, or evil desires–letting those things rule my life amount to idolatry.
            3. “Nor will I be a person controlled by anger, wrath, malice, slander, or abusive speech.
            4. “All those things characterized who I used to be, not who I am hidden in Christ.
            5. “I will treat people with mercy and kindness, just as the Creator God treats me.
            6. “I will deliberately abandon the life I lived before I believed in Christ.
            7. “I will put on the new self which is God made, not continue in perversions produced by evil’s deceptions.
            8. “I will renew this new self through the true knowledge which imitates the Creator God.
            9. The Christian has this new self because the Creator God through a creative act gave it to him.
         6. There is a striking contrast between their behavior and values prior to knowing Christ (in verses 5 and 8) and what their behavior should be as people who have been created by God in Christ (in verses 12, 13).

2. Think about these factors:
   1. Only God can create good in human existence.
      1. In Christ God creates us to be the new humanity, those people who choose to belong to God.
      2. As those who choose to belong to God, our entire lifestyle (which includes our thinking) is dedicated to reflecting the nature and character of God.
   2. We are in Christ because we choose to be new selves, God’s new humanity.
   3. Some obvious observations:
      1. There is a direct coupling between worshipping God and living lives that reflect the character and nature of God daily–neither can be substituted for the other.
         1. To disconnect the way we live from our worship of God is to be deceived.
         2. The dedication of our daily lives to ungodliness will make our worship an insult to God.
      2. Only the creative acts of the Creator God can provide us a new self that allows us to honor the God Who created humans and Who created us to be His people.

We are God’s new humanity. We need to learn to worship and act as the people who belong exclusively to God.