Led by the Lord

,

Origins

Led by the Lord

(Genesis 24:1-33)

 

INTRODUCTION

“I made my pastoral calls in the county hospital and walked back to my car in the parking lot. Just as I reached out to the car door to get inside, I heard, ‘Go see Bob.’ Bob was a retired fireman, seriously ill with heart problems and confined to a bed because of his ailment. He had recently made a decision to accept Christ and was making wonderful spiritual progress. I took what I heard to be the prompting of the Holy Spirit, but I protested, saying, ‘I was there not long ago. It's not time yet to go back again.’ The prompting persisted, so I got into the car, pulled out of the lot, and headed for Bob's place. It was just a few minutes away, up a rural road winding through beautiful, northern California hills.

 

I came to Bob's house, pulled into the driveway, and looked over to the big front window of the living room where Bob usually lay in a hospital bed.

 

Bob was lying there, but he looked different. I thought to myself, "He looks dead." I hurried to the front door and knocked. Evelyn, his wife, came to the door breathless and distraught. "Oh, I'm so glad you're here. Bob just died a few minutes ago!"

 

We sat together in the kitchen, not saying too much to each other as the man from the funeral home did his work in the other room, getting ready to remove my friend from the home. Quietly, when the time was right, I read from the Scripture, and Evelyn and I prayed, seeking God in the loss of her husband.

 

I've thought back many times to that afternoon, and I am so glad that I followed the leading of the Spirit. I got there just as someone needed me most.”

 

Source: Unknown.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2008/april/10040907.html].

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Divine prompting

        • I have experienced divine promptings throughout my life

        • Most of you know the story about my divine calling to pastoral ministry and how that was confirmed by multiple people in the weeks following that calling

        • There have been times when I have sensed the Lord prompting me to pray for or call certain individuals

          • It’s amazing to hear what those individuals were going through when I was prompted to pray for them

          • It gives me chills when I call someone and they need to talk about a situation they are going through

    • Obedience shows true faith

        • I had befriended another man who worked in the suite beside the one I worked in

        • During a break, one day, he was telling me that he was considering moving in with his girlfriend to save on expenses

        • The Lord prompted me to challenge him not to do that, but I chickened out

        • When I went back to my office, I felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit for not being obedient

        • So, I prayed and asked the Lord to give me another opportunity to challenge this man

        • That opportunity came about a week later

          • We were standing outside chatting and I mentioned his comment about considering moving in with his girlfriend

          • I challenged him to trust God and not move in with his girlfriend

          • His response was something like this, “Thank you, I needed someone to challenge me on that.”

        • He claimed the name of Christ, yet he was considering doing something that he knew would tarnish that claim and witness

 

  • WE

    • Divine prompting

        • As disciples of Jesus Christ we all have probably experienced a divine prompting at one time or another?

        • How do we respond when those promptings come?

    • Obedience

        • Perhaps, like me, we all have experienced the conviction of the Holy Spirit for not being obedient to that prompting

        • Hopefully, we have all experienced the blessing of obedience, too

 

Abraham is getting older and is probably realizing that in order for God’s promise to be fulfilled, his son Isaac was going to have to get married and start having children. ​​ Abraham had a couple of criteria for this bride search that he had his chief servant swear to abide by. ​​ The servant understood the criteria, but asked what he should do if the woman refused. ​​ Abraham reassured him that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – Where God guides, He provides.

 

Abraham’s faith had developed into a strong faith that trusted God to do what seemed humanly impossible.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 24:1-33)

    • Promise (vv. 1-9)

        • Abraham’s state (v. 1)

          • His age

            • The narrator tells us that Abraham is now old

            • Well advanced in years

            • It is believed that Abraham is almost 140 years

            • Isaac would be 40 years

            • Sarah has been gone two or three years

          • His status

            • God has blessed him abundantly

            • “Age and wealth are often signs of a blessed life (e.g., Job 42:12).” ​​ [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 326]

            • God had blessed Abraham in every way

              • Long life

              • Flocks and herds

              • Gold and silver

              • Male and female servants

              • Promised covenant son

              • Promise of land (a country)

          • The narrator moves from Abraham’s state to a conversation that he has with his chief servant

        • Instruction (vv. 2-4)

          • Chief servant

            • Most Bible translations have “oldest/eldest servant”

            • From that translation, many scholars believe that it could be Eliezer, who was his most trusted servant and household administrator

            • Genesis 15:2, But Abram said, “O Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?”

            • We are not told if it is Eliezer, but if it is, he would also be old and advanced in years

          • Put your hand under my thigh

            • This must have been the customary way for oaths to be sworn in the Ancient Near East

            • The hand would actually be put under the male reproductive organ, since that was the source of life/offspring

            • “Westermann says, ‘The rite of touching the generative organ when taking an oath occurs elsewhere only in Gen. 47:29 where the circumstances are the same, namely, imminent death. ​​ The one who is facing death secures his last will by an ‘oath at the source of life.’’ (Westermann, 384” [Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 201]

          • Swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and the God of earth

            • This was not a deity that the Canaanites or Abraham’s relatives in Mesopotamia worship

            • This is the only God who deserves to be called God

            • He is the God of the Creation and the Cosmos

          • Ethnic purity

            • Abraham urges his servant to not choose a wife for Isaac from the Canaanites

            • He instructs him to go back to Mesopotamia to find a wife from among his own relatives

            • NOTE: ​​ Abraham’s relatives were also polytheistic in their beliefs, so perhaps Abraham is more concerned about ethnic purity than religious practice

          • The instructions given by Abraham cause his servant to ask two legitimate questions

        • Question & Answer (vv. 5-8)

          • Questions

            • What if the woman does not want to come back to Canaan with me?

              • Keep in mind that the distance from Canaan to Mesopotamia is around 400 miles

              • It would take about a month for the servant to travel to Abraham’s home area

              • The woman would be leaving everything she knows and embracing her new family

              • There wouldn’t be any weekend trips home to visit her mom and sisters

              • She would be making a life-changing decision to accept the marriage proposal

              • The servant wants to know Abraham’s wishes in case Abraham passed away while he was gone

            • Do you want me to take Isaac back to Mesopotamia?

              • If the woman is unwilling to return with him, do you want me to take Isaac back to Mesopotamia?

              • The servant wants to know which criteria is most important to his master – wife from his own people or remaining in Canaan

            • We see Abraham’s answer to the two questions

          • Answers

            • Don’t take Isaac back to Mesopotamia!

              • God promised to establish my offspring in Canaan

              • Perhaps Abraham was concerned that if Isaac left Canaan that he would never return

              • Abraham believed God’s promise with all of his heart and never looked back

              • PRINCIPLE #1 – “True faith always results in obedience.” ​​ [Wiersbe]

                • It would have been easy for Abraham to abandon Canaan and return to what was familiar, but he held to God’s promise by faith

                • This is true for us as well

                  • When God calls us out of our comfort zone

                  • When He asks us to follow Him to a place that is far away from family and friends

                  • Do we follow in faith or resist in doubt and fear

                  • I declined the offer, twice, to move from Ohio to Missouri, to work at the headquarters of Child Evangelism Fellowship in the USA Ministries department

                  • We did not have any family in Missouri (I did have a cousin and her family in Kansas, but they were not close)

                  • Moving from Missouri to California took us further away from family

                  • We had faith that God was calling us to both of those places, so we obeyed in faith, trusting Him

                  • He blessed us with incredible friends and neighbors who became our surrogate family

                • Is God calling you to obey Him, by faith, in a particular area?

                • Are you resisting that calling?

                • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Obey the Lord’s calling on my life and follow Him by faith.

              • Abraham knew from past experiences that God would provide and so he encourages his chief servant

            • God will provide

              • Abraham reassures his servant that God would send His angel before him to prepare the way for his success

              • Where God guides, He provides.

              • Abraham was confident in God’s ability to transform the heart and mind of a young woman to accept the adventure of a lifetime

              • Abraham then helps to put his servant’s mind at ease

            • Release from oath

              • If the woman is unwilling to come back with you, then you will be released from the oath

              • Abraham reiterates again that he does not want Isaac to go back to Mesopotamia

          • With his questions answered and his mind at ease, Abraham’s servant is willing to swear the oath

        • Oath (v. 9)

          • Abraham’s servant places his hand under his master’s thigh

          • While doing that he promises to find a wife for Isaac from Abraham’s family in Mesopotamia and not to take Isaac back there

        • Once the oath is sworn, it is time to prepare for the trip

    • Preparation (vv. 10-11)

        • Before (v. 10)

          • The servant took ten camels and loaded them down with all kinds of good things (choice things, expensive things)

          • We are not told what these good, choice, expensive things are

          • In verse 22 we find out that there was a gold nose ring and two gold bracelets

          • The narrator leaves us in suspense as to other items that the servant took as a bride price

          • The location in Mesopotamia

            • We are told that the servant goes to the town of Nahor in the region of Aram Naharaim

            • The town of Nahor can either refer to the actual name of the town or to the town where Abraham’s brother Nahor lived (perhaps Haran)

            • Aram Naharaim means “Aram of the two rivers” [Mathews, 332]

              • Northwestern Mesopotamia [northern Syria and Iraq today]

              • The two rivers would have been the Euphrates and its tributary the Habor/Habur/Khabur

          • This was the preparation for the trip

        • PRINCIPLE #2 – God will direct us when we trust and obey His Word.

          • Abraham’s servant has a general idea of where he is supposed to go

            • This is more than Abraham had when he left Haran

            • If this chief servant has been with Abraham since he left Haran, then he would know where to go, but we are not given that information here

            • He has to trust and obey God’s word of guidance as he travels north

            • When we obey God’s leading by faith, He will direct us – where to go and what to do

            • We can claim that truth for our lives today – God will direct us when we trust and obey His Word

          • About one month passes between verses 10 and 11

        • After (v. 11)

          • In verse 11 we see the preparations of the servant after he arrives in the town

          • He has the camels kneel down near the well outside the town

            • This was strategic on the servants part

            • He was preparing to watch the evening trek to the well by the young women of the town

            • What better way to encounter women who could be potential wife material for Isaac

        • There is one more vital part of his preparation – prayer!

    • Prayer (vv. 12-21)

        • Prayer (vv. 12-14)

          • He addresses the Lord

            • Since he is Abraham’s liaison, he addresses the Lord as the God of my master, Abraham

            • This is does not mean that the servant does not have faith in the Lord

          • Requests

            • Give me success

            • Show kindness to my master Abraham

            • The servant needs to know which young woman is God’s choice for Isaac, so he asks for two specific things to identify her

              • First, when I ask a girl for a drink, she will lower her jar and give me a drink

              • Second, without prompting, she will recognize that my camels need water and offer to give them water too

            • He petitions the Lord again to show kindness to his master, Abraham

          • Aren’t you glad that the Lord knows what we need before we ask (Matthew 6:8) and because He knows before we ask, He is already acting on our behalf

        • Answer (vv. 15-21)

          • The Lord had already prompted Rebekah to leave her house and head to the well while Abraham’s servant is praying

          • The narrator gives us some key pieces of information

            • Genealogy

              • He does not keep us in suspense about whether or not Rebekah is part of Abraham’s family

              • While the servant does not know it yet, we are given insider information

              • Rebekah is the daughter of Bethuel

              • She is the granddaughter of Nahor and Milcah, Abraham’s brother and sister-in-law

            • Attributes

              • Rebekah is very beautiful – probably referring to her appearance

              • She is a virgin – in the Ancient Near East it does not necessarily means she has not been sexually active, but rather it means that she is of marriageable age

              • She is pure – no man had ever lain with her (which in our modern culture means she was a virgin, she had not been sexually active)

              • Again, the servant is not aware of these attributes when he sees her

            • At the moment, the servant is relying on the criteria he has asked the Lord about

          • Rebekah went down to the spring, filled her jar, and came up again

          • The servant is hopeful, so he hurries over to meet her

            • I’m assuming that Rebekah is the first woman to come to the well, which is why he hurries over to meet her

              • He is hopeful and enthusiastic about the Lord’s ability to answer his prayer

              • Just imagine if he had already approached multiple women and they had rejected his request for a drink or, if they gave him a drink, but didn’t offer to water his camels

              • I think his demeanor would have been less hurried with Rebekah

            • When he asks her for a drink, she lowers her jar and gives him a drink, then she offers to draw water for his camels until they are satisfied

              • She doesn’t waste time, but empties her jar into the trough

              • Then she ran back down to the well to get more water and continues this process until the camels were taken care of

                • Camels who have not had a drink for a couple of days could consume as much as 25 gallons of water to rehydrate

                • Multiply that by 10 camels and you have 250 gallons of water

                • On average, a water jar in the Ancient Near East, could hold up to 3 gallons

                • That would be a potential of 83 trips down to the well and back – talk about water aerobics

              • “When you see a man or a woman going out of his or her way to minister, you have found someone very special.” ​​ [Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary, Old Testament, Volume 1: ​​ Genesis-Job, 113]

            • While she is serving the needs of the camels, the servant is quietly watching her to discern if the Lord had made his journey a success

        • We can assume that he felt certain that the Lord had made his journey a success by what he does next

    • Presentation (vv. 22-25)

        • Gifts

          • The camels are satisfied and the servant is satisfied

          • So, he takes out a gold nose ring and two gold bracelets

          • It is apparent that he gives these items to her, because in verse 30, Laban saw her wearing them

        • Request

          • He then asks her whose daughter she is and if there was room in her father’s house for he and his companions to spend the night

          • She tells him that she is the daughter of Bethuel, the son of Milcah and Nahor

          • She answers his second request by telling him that they have plenty of resources and space to house them for the night

        • PRINCIPLE #3 – God answers prayer!

          • We see that God answered the prayer of the servant through Rebekah

          • She willingly gave him a drink of water and then offered to water his camels

          • I am a huge proponent of praying specific prayers, because then we know when God answers them

            • I’m not talking about praying specific prayers that try to corner God or prosper individuals

            • I believe we can pray specific prayers according to God’s will and purposes and He will answer

            • Each week we share praise reports for answered prayer

          • We have to remember that God answers prayer in three ways

            • Yes, No, and Wait

            • There are times when we feel like God has not answered our prayers, because we did not get the answer we wanted or hoped for (so we actually missed His answer)

          • How we react to answered prayer is so important

        • That is what we see next in verses 26 and 27

    • Praise (vv. 26-27)

        • The servant bowed down and worshiped the Lord right in front of Rebekah, presumably

        • He again addresses his praise to the Lord, the God of my master Abraham

          • He acknowledges that the Lord has been kind and faithful to Abraham

          • PRINCIPLE #4 – God is faithful!

            • We can trust in the faithfulness of God

            • That is His character and His character never changes

            • How have we seen the faithfulness of God?

              • At Idaville Church, we have seen the faithfulness of God through His provision for our finances, through salvations and baptisms, through spiritual growth, through the revitalization of the church, and so much more

              • Personally, we have seen God’s faithfulness through answered prayer for family members, through God’s provision for us financially, through healings, through His protection, and so much more

              • How have you seen God’s faithfulness in your life? ​​ (take a moment and write a couple of things down)

          • The servant also recognized the Lord’s faithfulness to him

            • He acknowledges that the Lord had led him to the house of his master’s relatives

            • This was Abraham’s nephew’s family that the servant would be staying with

        • PRINCIPLE #5 – Worship is the right response to God’s faithfulness.

          • When is the last time you have bowed down before the Lord and worshiped Him for His faithfulness?

          • In our busyness we may neglect to even thank the Lord for His faithfulness and answers to our prayers, let alone bow down before Him and worship Him

          • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Bow down before the Lord in worship for His faithfulness to me.

          • We are going to give everyone the opportunity to bow down before the Lord in worship during the closing song this morning

        • Rebekah understands the significance of what is taking place, so she runs back to her house

    • Provision (vv. 28-33)

        • Pronouncement (v. 28)

          • Rebekah told her family what had happened when she went to draw water at the well

          • Perhaps they were wondering where she was, since it probably took her a long time to water the camels

          • We learn that Rebekah has a brother named Laban (that name should sound familiar and he will play a significant role with Isaac and Rebekah’s son, Jacob)

        • Hospitality (vv. 29-33)

          • Perhaps Laban was running the household at this point, which is why Bethuel does not go out to greet the servant

          • It is probable that Laban either made preparations prior to going to the spring or gave instructions to the household servants to make preparations for the entourage

          • Laban hurried out to meet Abraham’s servant and invited him to stay with them

          • Perhaps the gifts that he gave Rebekah and his worship of the Lord, prompted Laban to address him as “blessed by the Lord”

          • The servant followed Laban back to Bethuel’s house

          • Hospitality shared

            • The camels were unloaded and given bedding and food

            • Water was brought for the travelers to wash their feet

            • Food was brought out for the men to eat

          • Urgency message

            • Since the Lord had so graciously and faithfully answered his prayer, the servant did not want to eat first

            • He wanted to share the purpose of his trip

            • Laban encourages him to tell them, but that’s a narrative for another time

 

  • YOU

    • Are you ready to obey the Lord’s calling on your life and follow Him by faith?

    • Are you ready to bow down before the Lord, in worship, for His faithfulness to you?

 

  • WE

    • We can encourage those in our congregation by affirming the calling God has place on their lives

    • We can model worship for God’s faithfulness by bowing down before Him

 

CONCLUSION

As the worship team leads us in the closing song this morning, I want to encourage everyone to come forward and bow down to the Lord in worship of His faithfulness.

14

 

/by

Authentic Believing

, ,

Easter 2022

Authentic Believing

(John 20:24-31)

 

INTRODUCTION

“Thomas A. Miller, a surgeon and researcher, explores the miracle of Christ's resurrection from a medical angle. Dr. Miller notes that the body contains trillions and maybe even 100 trillion cells. Each one of these cells carries out thousands of different chemical reactions. Thus a bodily resurrection would require ‘some phenomenal power to energize life into all these individual cells, but it would have to do so in such a way that specialized nerve cells could resume their unique function, heart cells perform theirs, blood cells and bone cells do theirs, and so on.’

 

Dr. Miller continues:

 

Consider the heart as just one example. It beats on average 70 times a minute, 4,200 times an hour, 100,800 times a day … and 36,288,000 times a year …. And for that to happen, thousands of processes within each cell must act in a coordinated way to ensure that the blood entering the right side of the heart is effectively propelled into the lungs, where the red blood cells contained in it discharge carbon dioxide and pick up oxygen, following which it returns to the left side of the heart where it is propelled to the tissues of the rest of the body, do that they might receive precious oxygen they need to sustain their many functions. This all happens at least every second in such a smooth fashion that we are not even aware of it. And at the moment we die, all these processes came to a screeching halt.

 

A bodily resurrection implies that thousands of processes in trillions of cells must be restarted with the unique intricacy and inter-coordination that existed before death. Dr. Miller notes that this would require not just incredible power but also unimaginable knowledge. He writes:

 

Even the latest science has not unraveled the complete mystery of each of the cells of our bodies, and how they interact and "talk" with one another …. But for the resurrection of Jesus to occur, all of that information had to be known in its completeness and totality, and known some two thousand years ago.”

 

Source: Thomas A. Miller, MD, Did Jesus Really Rise from the Dead? (Crossway, 2013), pp. 133-136.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2013/march/1031113.html].

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Third party authentication

        • The push to protect our online accounts is never ending

        • In recent years, there has been a push for third party authentication, especially for financial accounts and even email accounts

        • The idea is that every time I login to one of these accounts, they will either text or email me a code that I enter to prove that I am the owner of the account and to protect my account

        • I am not put off by this authentication, because I want to make sure my accounts are secure

 

  • WE

    • Third party authentication

        • How many of us have had to do that recently?

        • Perhaps some of us do not want to be bothered with receiving a code and entering it in order to gain access to our accounts

    • Banking

        • Some of us don’t use a computer, but we’ve probably been to the bank to withdrawal money or cash a check

        • When we do that, the teller asks us for our ID, so we can prove that we are who we say we are

 

Jesus appeared to ten of His disciples on the day He came alive again. ​​ There was one disciple who was missing from that initial meeting. ​​ As we learned in the sunrise service, the wound made by the spear would have been a unique identifying factor that it was Jesus who was appearing to them. ​​ No other person, who was crucified, had that unique mark. ​​ We’ll see today that the disciple, who missed the initial meeting, says he’ll never believe that Jesus is alive unless he can put his fingers in the nail holes in Jesus’ hands, and place his hand in the spear hole in Jesus’ side. ​​ He wanted physical proof before he would believe. ​​ Jesus challenges him on this and speaks a blessing over those who believe without seeing. ​​ John wants us to know that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – Jesus is pleased when we believe without seeing.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (John 20:24-31)

    • Thomas’ Unbelief (vv. 24-25)

        • Who is Thomas

          • A twin

            • The name Thomas is Aramaic

            • The name Didymus is Greek

            • They both mean “twin”

            • We’re not told who his twin was

          • A disciple

            • He is one of the Twelve

            • Jesus had chosen him as one of His closest disciples

            • We know from church history that Thomas took the message of Jesus Christ to India and gave his life for the Gospel while there [Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary, New Testament, 596]

          • A realist

            • John 11:16, Then Thomas (called Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” (this was in response to Jesus encouraging His disciples to come with Him to see Lazarus, who had died – Thomas realized the volatility of going back to Judea so soon after the Jews had tried to stone Jesus)

            • John 14:1-6, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. ​​ Trust in God, trust also in me. ​​ In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. ​​ I am going there to prepare a place for you. ​​ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. ​​ You know the way to the place where I am going.” ​​ Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” ​​ Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. ​​ No one comes to the Father except through me.

          • As a realist, he would have been skeptical about the possibility of Jesus’ resurrection, which is why he may not have been together with the other disciples on that first day of the week – for Thomas, the three-year journey of faith was done – perhaps he was feeling hopeless and just wanted to be alone

        • Thomas absent

          • During the sunrise service, we looked at the episode that Thomas missed

            • It was on the evening of that first day of the week – the day that Jesus came alive again

            • The disciples were behind locked doors for fear of the Jews and Jesus miraculously appeared to them and greeted them with “peace”

            • He showed them His hands and side

          • Thomas wasn’t with them when Jesus appeared to them

            • “Thomas is a good warning to all of us not to miss meeting together with God’s people on the Lord’s Day.” ​​ [Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, New Testament, Volume 1, 394]

            • Hebrews 10:22-25, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. ​​ Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ​​ And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. ​​ Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

            • “Remember Thomas when you are tempted to stay home from church. ​​ You never know what special blessing you might miss!” ​​ [Wiersbe, 394]

            • Application

              • Think about a time when you didn’t “feel” like coming to church, but after you came, you left feeling refreshed, renewed, filled with joy, peace, comfort, and contentment

              • Early in my tenure here, we had a movement of the Holy Spirit that happened during second service that was powerful. ​​ A young man was listening to the message and as I was finishing up, he fell to his knees and began to flail around, knocking down some of the metal chairs. ​​ He stood up and came towards me. ​​ I embraced him as he kept repeating a man’s name. ​​ I asked him what we needed to know about that man. ​​ He eventually looked at me, blinked his eyes, and then said, “what just happened?” ​​ This young man had spoken with me, earlier in the week, about the man, whose name he was repeating. ​​ That man had been going through a difficult time and this young man was trying to help him. ​​ Something supernatural happened that day and not everyone in the church was there to experience it. ​​ The Holy Spirit of God was speaking through this young man and it was powerful!

          • Thomas had missed something supernatural and powerful and the other disciples tried to explain it to him

        • The disciples’ witness

          • Told

            • In the Greek this verb is in the imperfect tense, which means it is a continual or repeated action [Blue Letter Bible, https://www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/jhn/20/1/t_concf_1017025]

            • The other disciples didn’t just mention it to Thomas once, they kept on telling him

            • I can only imagine that the reason they kept on telling him is because he was shaking his head from side to side in disbelief

            • This didn’t make logical sense to Thomas, the realist

            • “My aunt and uncle had a missionary family visiting. When the missionary children were called in for dinner, their mother said, ‘Be sure to wash your hands.’

              The little boy scowled and said, ‘Germs and Jesus. Germs and Jesus. That's all I hear, and I've never seen either one of them.’”

              Source: Vesper Bauer, Audubon, Iowa, Christian Reader (Sep/Oct 1998).

              [https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2000/february/12256.html]

            • The little boy did not understand the importance of washing his hands, because he had never seen a germ

            • Thomas did not understand the importance of Jesus’ resurrection, because he had not seen Jesus like the other disciples had

          • Seen

            • This Greek verb is in the perfect tense, meaning that it was an action completed in the past, once and for all, not needing to be repeated [Blue Letter Bible, https://www.blueletterbible.org/nasb/jhn/20/1/t_concf_1017025]

            • The disciples were telling Thomas again and again that they had seen the Lord – it was a fact – He was alive!

            • Application

              • PRINCIPLE #1 – God is pleased when we tell others about Jesus.

              • “The disciples who had experienced the surprising appearance of Jesus and his empowering commissioning were apparently enthusiastically ready to share the details of their postresurrection experience of ‘the Lord.’” [Borchert, The New American Commentary, John 12-21, 312]

              • I always enjoy being around new believers, because their enthusiasm for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ is contagious

              • They aren’t complacent, apprehensive, or fearful about sharing it with anyone and everyone

              • For long-time believers, the enthusiasm seems to wear off, because they have been confronted with those who are skeptical and those who refuse to believe in Jesus – we are no longer enthusiastic and excited about sharing the Gospel

              • I believe the reason this happens in our lives is because we have a false idea of our role as messengers of the Gospel

                • We have this incorrect belief that if people don’t believe in Jesus, after we share the Gospel with them, that we have somehow failed God and Jesus

                • Our responsibility is not to convert and convince, but to communicate

                • 1 Corinthians 3:6-7, I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. ​​ So neither he who plants nor he who waters in anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

                • Planting and watering are both forms of communicating

                  • The planter is the one who shares the Gospel with an individual for the first time

                  • The waterer is the one who shares the Gospel with an individual a second, third, fourth, fifth, or more times

                • Whether or not someone believes in Jesus, when you share the Gospel with them, does not define success or failure

                • When we simply communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ with someone, we succeed in God’s eyes – He is pleased!

                • That should change everything for us

                • We should be excited and enthusiastic about sharing the Gospel

              • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Enthusiastically share the Gospel with my family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers.

                • Now that we know, success is simply communicating and not convincing or converting, let’s plant and water with enthusiasm and watch as God makes it grow!

                • Who will you plan to share the Gospel with this week?

            • The other disciples were enthusiastically and repeatedly telling Thomas that they had seen the Lord – He was alive!

          • What we see with Thomas’ response is that he probably got tired of the other disciples repeatedly telling him they had seen the Lord

        • Thomas’ demands

          • Thomas wanted proof – he wanted to experience what the other disciples had experienced and even more

            • He didn’t just want to see Jesus’ hands and side

            • He wanted to put his fingers in the holes where the nails had been

            • He wanted to put his hand in the whole created by the spear

          • “Thomas’ words help to understand the difference between doubt and unbelief. ​​ Doubt says, ‘I cannot believe! ​​ There are too many problems!’ ​​ Unbelief says, ‘I will not believe unless you give me the evidence I ask for!’”  ​​​​ [Wiersbe, 394]

            • Some people are right there, right now

            • They are telling us that they will not believe in Jesus unless He gives them the evidence they are asking for

            • They want all their questions answered to their satisfaction

              • If God is all-loving, then why does He allow bad things to happen?

              • If God is all-powerful, then why doesn’t He stop bad things from happening?

              • God is both all-loving and all-powerful in addition to being sovereign, all-knowing, ever present, unchanging, infinite, holy, righteous, and so much more

              • It’s the arrogance of humanity to believe that we can understand all of who God is and how He operates as an infinite God

            • They want physical proof that God and Jesus exist

              • It’s the arrogance of humanity to demand that God provide the evidence we ask for before we will believe in Him

                • Isaiah 55:8-9, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. ​​ “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

                • 1 Corinthians 1:27-29, But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. ​​ He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things – and the things that are not – to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.

                • Ephesians 3:20-21, Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! ​​ Amen.

            • Jesus is pleased when we believe without seeing.

          • Thomas’ declaration

            • Thomas tells the other disciples that he will not believe it without his demands being fulfilled

            • In the Greek there is a double negative, ou mē, which gives his declaration an emphatic push

            • It could be translated, “I’ll never believe it!” [Milne, The Bible Speaks Today, The Message of John, 302] or “I positively will not believe!” [Wiersbe, 394]

            • Thomas is saying, in no uncertain terms, that if his demands for proof are not met, he will never believe that Jesus is alive

        • Jesus is gracious with Thomas, and his demands, and does the supernatural again, within the week

    • Thomas’ Belief (vv. 26-29)

        • Thomas present

          • All of the eleven disciples were together in the same house one week later

          • Perhaps the other ten disciples told Thomas not to miss this Sunday gathering

          • Jesus again appears to His disciples, even though they are behind locked doors

          • He greeted them again with “peace be with you”

          • I’m sure they needed peace as he supernaturally gained access to the room they thought was secure

          • Jesus doesn’t waste any time in challenging Thomas

        • Jesus’ challenge

          • Jesus basically repeats Thomas’ demands back to him

          • “Here you go, Thomas! ​​ Put your fingers in the nail holes in my wrists. ​​ Put your hand in the spear whole in my side.”

            • PRINCIPLE #2 – Jesus is omnipresent

              • “Here Jesus is teaching a lesson of great import, for in repeating Thomas’s ultimatum, it’s as if He’s saying, ‘Boys, even though you don’t see Me, I’m with you always.’” ​​ [Courson, 597]

              • Because Jesus is omnipresent, He hears and knows our deepest desires

              • Application

                • This is a foundational truth principle for us as believers – Jesus is always present with us

                • No matter what we are going through, we can trust that He is here

                • Maybe you’re feeling lonely, anxious, depressed, overwhelmed, worried, fearful, unsure, or concerned

                • You may be struggling physically, emotionally, financially, relationally, and/or spiritually

                • Jesus is right there with you

                • Even if you can’t see Him or feel His presence with you, He is there

                • Hebrews 13:5-6, Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” ​​ So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. ​​ What can man do to me?”

                • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Claim the truth promise that Jesus is always present with me.

            • The second part of Jesus’ challenge is His exhortation for Thomas to stop doubting and believe

          • Stop doubting and believe

            • The literal translation of the Greek text would be, “Do not become unbelieving [apistos] but believing [pistos].” [Burge, The NIV Application Commentary, John, 562] or “Do not be unbelieving but believing.” ​​ [Carson, The Pillar New Testament Commentary, The Gospel According to John, 657]

            • Thomas wasn’t saying that he couldn’t believe, because there were too many problems (doubt), but rather that he would not believe (unbelief), without physical proof

            • “Authentic believing was the issue,” not doubt [Borchert, 314]

            • Hebrews 3:12-13, See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. ​​ But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.

          • Jesus’ presence, challenge, and exhortation was enough for Thomas

        • Thomas’ confession

          • The only response that Thomas could have at this point was to confess who Jesus was – “My Lord and my God!”

          • Thomas’ confession accomplished two things

            • It recognized Jesus’ authority

              • Confessing that Jesus was his Lord, meant that Thomas was submitting to His authority as Master

              • We must do the same thing when we come to believe in Jesus – submit to Him as our Master

            • It recognized Jesus’ deity

              • PRINCIPLE #3 – Jesus is God!

              • Thomas knew that only God had the power to do the supernatural

              • God is the only One who is always present with us and knows everything about us, including our thoughts and desires

          • Thomas wanted physical, material proof that Jesus was alive

            • Most of the time we refer to Thomas as “Doubting Thomas” and can be pretty critical of him

            • He was in good company though, because Peter, John, and the other disciples didn’t believe the testimony of the women, including Mary Magdalene

            • Peter and John had to see the empty tomb for themselves – they wanted physical and material proof

          • Jesus then offers a blessing over those who would never experience the physical and material proof that Thomas and the other disciples did

        • Jesus’ blessing

          • Jesus tells Thomas that he believed, because He was granted the physical and material proof he had demanded

          • Jesus then blesses those who have not seen and yet have believed

            • If you have believed in Jesus, He was talking about you!

            • You can personalize that part of verse 29 today

            • “Blessed is _______ (your name) who has not seen and yet has believed.” ​​ [have everyone repeat the verse with their name in it]

            • Hebrews 11:1, Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.

            • Jesus is pleased when we believe without seeing.

        • This naturally transitions to our belief

    • Our Belief (vv. 30-31)

        • More miraculous signs

          • John gives us some concluding remarks, which includes the theme verse for the entire Gospel of John

          • John lets us know that Jesus obviously did many other miraculous signs while His disciples were with Him

          • We don’t know how many miraculous signs Jesus did while on earth

          • It’s also probable that He did miraculous signs when His disciples were not with Him

          • John does not record the other miraculous signs

        • John’s witness

          • John records eight miraculous signs in his Gospel

            • Turning the water into wine at the wedding feast in Cana (John 2:1-11)

            • Healing of the nobleman’s son (John 4:46-54)

            • Healing of the lame man at the pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-17)

            • Feeding of the 5,000 (John 6:1-14)

            • Jesus walking on the water (John 6:15-21)

            • Healing the man born blind (John 9:1-12)

            • Death and resurrection of Lazarus (John 11:1-45)

            • Catching of fish (John 21:1-11)

          • These eight miraculous signs, that John records, are for the purpose of helping us to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God

          • When we believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, then we can have life in His name

            • The life that John is talking about is eternal life

            • He says it this way in John 3:16-18, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ​​ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. ​​ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”

            • We are all born in sin, Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned – for before the law was given, sin was in the world. (Romans 5:12-13a)

            • God sent Jesus to take our punishment for sin

              • God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (2 Cor. 5:21)

              • He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. (1 Peter 2:24)

            • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Believe in Jesus and receive God’s eternal life.

            • We have to believe without seeing the physical and material proof of Jesus’ resurrected body

            • We have to believe the eye witness accounts that are recorded in the Bible

          • Jesus is pleased when we believe without seeing.

 

  • YOU

    • Are you ready to enthusiastically share the Gospel?

    • Do you need to claim the promise that Jesus is present with you?

    • Are you ready to believe in Jesus without seeing Him and receive eternal life?

 

  • WE

    • Our mission is to pursue, grow, and multiple disciples for Jesus

 

CONCLUSION

“Tim Keller tells the following story about the power of Christ's resurrection:

 

A minister was in Italy, and there he saw the grave of a man who had died centuries before who was an unbeliever and completely against Christianity, but a little afraid of it too. So the man had a huge stone slab put over his grave so he would not have to be raised from the dead in case there is a resurrection from the dead. He had insignias put all over the slab saying, ‘I do not want to be raised from the dead. I don't believe in it.’ Evidently, when he was buried, an acorn must have fallen into the grave. So a hundred years later the acorn had grown up through the grave and split that slab. It was now a tall towering oak tree. The minister looked at it and asked, ‘If an acorn, which has power of biological life in it, can split a slab of that magnitude, what can the acorn of God's resurrection power do in a person's life?’

 

Keller comments:

 

The minute you decide to receive Jesus as Savior and Lord, the power of the Holy Spirit comes into your life. It's the power of the resurrection—the same thing that raised Jesus from the dead …. Think of the things you see as immovable slabs in your life—your bitterness, your insecurity, your fears, your self-doubts. Those things can be split and rolled off. The more you know him, the more you grow into the power of the resurrection.”

 

Source: Nancy Guthrie, editor, Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross (Crossway, 2009), p. 136.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2012/march/7032612.html].

12

 

/by

The Deed Dance

, ,

Origins

The Deed Dance

(Genesis 23:1-20)

 

INTRODUCTION

Walt Disney made a statement that is the premise behind the animated movie Meet the Robinsons.

 

He said, “Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. ​​ We keep moving forward, opening up new doors, doing new things, because we’re curious . . . and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”

 

BODY

  • ME

    • Moving a lot

        • Since Judy and I have moved around a lot during our 30 years of marriage, we have not really thought about where we would be buried when we die

        • Most people don’t like to talk about death to begin with, much less, about burial plots

        • We have discussed it a couple of times over the past 30 years, but I’m not sure we have settled on anything yet

        • We haven’t purchased burial plots

        • We haven’t met with the funeral home to discuss their services

    • Wills, estates, and burial plots

        • I have started thinking more about it, especially after the Stewardship Lifestyle Seminar and meeting with the lawyer to discuss our will and estate planning

        • My family

          • Salem Cemetery in Chambersburg, PA (Johns and Rife) – my parents will be buried there

          • Browns Mill Presbyterian Cemetery in Chambersburg, PA – behind Rhodes Grove Camp & Conference Center (Hykes and Kennedy)

        • Grove family

          • With Mabel Groves’ funeral this week, I was reminded again that Judy and I do not have burial plots

          • When we had the burial service at Barrens Salem Union Cemetery, the family was showing me the other headstones where extended family has been buried

 

  • WE

    • How about you and your family?

        • Most families have a particular cemetery where most of them have been buried or will be buried

        • This is usually the case with most families

    • Long standing tradition

        • This is not a recent tradition in our lifetime or even the generation before us

        • The idea of a family burial place comes to us from the Patriarchs

        • Abraham was just as concerned about securing a family burial space

        • I’m in good in company, because Abraham did not plan ahead for this either

        • It wasn’t until his wife Sarah’s death that he secured the family burial plot

 

Abraham was fully committed to God’s divine plan for him and his descendants. ​​ Once he entered the Promised Land, he didn’t look back – he kept moving forward. ​​ As we will see in Genesis 23:1-20, today, Abraham doesn’t take Sarah back to Mesopotamia to bury her. ​​ Rather, he purchases property in Canaan. ​​ What we will learn from Abraham’s example is that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – Faith in God’s divine word gives us strength and confidence to keep moving forward.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 23:1-20)

    • Death (vv. 1-2)

        • Sarah’s age

          • Sarah is the only woman in the Bible whose age is revealed

            • Fun note: ​​ perhaps this is why we never ask a woman her age

            • We know she is 127 years old when she dies

          • “All that we know of Sarah’s activities between the age of 90 and 127 is that she gave birth to Isaac and died thirty-seven years later.” ​​ [Hamilton, The New International Commentary on the Old Testament, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18-50, 125]

          • It is three years before Isaac’s marriage to Rebekah

          • Abraham is 137 years old

          • They have been in Canaan for sixty-two years

        • Where she died

          • Kiriath Arba

            • This would have been the name of the town when Abraham and Sarah lived there

            • The narrator gives the audience the modern city name to help them know where he is talking about

            • Joshua 14:15, (Hebron used to be called Kiriath Arba after Arba, who was the greatest man among the Anakites.)

            • “‘Kiriath Arba’ means ‘city of four’ (qiryat ʾarbaʿ), which may originally have referred to a group of four related cities (Aner, Eschcol, Mamre, and Hebron, see comments on 14:14).” ​​ [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 315]

          • In the land of Canaan – the Promised Land

        • Abraham’s grief

          • The passage makes it sound like Abraham was somewhere else when Sarah passed away

          • He was not in Hebron at the time, so where was he?

            • Genesis 22:19, Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. ​​ And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

              • This was just after Abraham and Isaac returned from the top of Mt. Moriah, where the Lord tested Abraham by asking him to sacrifice Isaac

              • If you remember, it was a three-day journey from Beersheba to Mt. Moriah (close to Jerusalem) [50-60 miles]

            • Beersheba is 26.4 miles south of Hebron (it would have been about a day and half journey)

              • Perhaps Sarah remained in a clan community in the grove of Mamre near Hebron while Abraham and Isaac helped with the flocks and herds in Beersheba

              • Abraham had dug a well in Beersheba when he and Abimelech struck a contract

              • It would have been a natural place for them to shepherd their herds and flocks, since the well was there

            • Abraham followed the mourning rites of the ancient Near East as he mourned and wept for Sarah

          • Mourning and weeping

            • The mourning rites would have included “loud weeping, tearing clothes, sitting in dirt, wearing sackcloth, and shaving the head.” ​​ [Mathews, 315]

            • Mourning would “involve crying out, exclamations of grief that may be a ritual lament, although not the cries of a formal poetic lament.” ​​ [Mathews, 315]

              • It was not uncommon in Biblical times for the surviving family members to mourn loudly

              • The neighbors would have known immediately that someone had died, because of the loud laments of the family

              • In some cases, there were professional mourners who would join the family in their grief

              • Our grief today is much more subdued, though I have experienced family members who have wept openly and loudly

              • There is certainly nothing wrong with expressing our grief openly and loudly

            • Weeping was how a person would express their grief either over the death of a loved one or a difficult situation – it has the idea of shedding tears

            • Warren Wiersbe relates this encounter, “The late Vance Havner had a wife named Sarah. ​​ Shortly after her untimely death, I was with Dr. Havner at the Moody Bible Institute, and I shared my condolences with him. ​​ ‘I’m sorry to hear you lost your wife,’ I said to him when we met in the dining room. ​​ He smiled and replied, ‘Son, when you know where something is, you haven’t lost it.’” ​​ [Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, Pentateuch, 111]

              • What a great reminder for us today

              • Philippians 1:21-23, For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. ​​ If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. ​​ Yet what shall I choose? ​​ I do not know! ​​ I am torn between the two: ​​ I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far;

              • Read 2 Corinthians 5:1-8

              • Revelation 14:13, Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” ​​ “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.”

              • When our loved ones, who have a personal relationship with Jesus, depart from this world, we can rejoice, because they are not lost – they are with Jesus!

              • #1 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Rejoice over my loved ones who have passed away and had a personal relationship with Jesus, because they are with Him now.

              • This is the hope we have as disciples of Jesus Christ – we will one day be with Him also

              • Read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

        • As soon as Abraham completes his mourning and weeping, he sets his sights on purchasing a burial location for Sarah

    • Deed (vv. 3-18)

        • This section is broken into three movements that all begin the same Hebrew word, qûm or wayyāqom in the Qal form

          • It is translated “rose” in verses 3 and 7 (arise: after lying down; from bending over the dead)

          • It is translated “was deeded” in verses 17 and 20 (stand: especially figuratively; be established, confirmed, of purchase)

        • First movement (vv. 3-6)

          • It includes the initial round of negotiations with the Hittites

            • Abraham rose (qûm) – he got up from beside Sarah’s body after mourning and weeping

            • Abraham’s request

              • Alien and a stranger

                • Abraham addresses the Hittites (the sons of Heth)

                • “A ‘resident alien’ (gēr; cf. 15:13) is someone who does not belong by right in a place; a ‘settler’ (tûšāb) is someone who is nevertheless staying there semi-permanently.” ​​ [Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament, Pentateuch, Genesis, 367]

                • Abraham had tenant status with them, since he had been living among them for years (settler idea)

                • A stranger had some recognition in the community, but could not own property of his own [Kidner cited by Gangel & Bramer, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Genesis, 200]

                • “The truth was that Abraham owned the whole land. ​​ God had given it to him, but there was no way he could convince his neighbors of that.” ​​ [Wiersbe, 111]

                  • Imagine going to the current residents of a home and telling them that God has given you their home

                  • How do you think that conversation is going to go?

                • Instead, Abraham comes humbly before the Hittite people

              • Sell me some property

                • Abraham humbles himself before the Hittites and asks for permission to buy property in their land, which would give him a permanent foothold in Canaan

                • Abraham would no longer be an alien and stranger, but rather a land owner and a permanent part of the community

                • From this little parcel of land, the descendants of Abraham would fill the whole land

                • “The man has no land of his own, but by acquiring Hittite property he demonstrates his reliance on the prior promise of the Lord (cp. Jer 32:6-15).” ​​ [Mathews, 317]

                • PRINCIPLE #1 – God is pleased when we have faith in His divine promises.

                  • Abraham believed God for the birth of Isaac and it was credited to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6)

                  • Abraham had faith that God would establish his descendants in Canaan and therefore he asked to purchase land in Canaan to bury his dead

                  • God always keeps His promises

                  • He promises to never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5-6; Matt. 28:20)

                  • He promises to always love us (Jer. 31:3)

                  • He promises to forgive our sins when we confess and repent (1 John 1:9)

                  • He promises to provide for us – supply all our needs according to His riches (Phil. 4:19); He will add all these things to us when we seek His kingdom and righteousness first (Matt. 6:33); God, who didn’t spare His own Son, will also graciously give us all things (Rom. 8:32)

                  • There are so many more promises of God found in His Word

                  • Where do we need to exercise our faith in God’s promises?

                  • #2 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Trust by faith that God will fulfill His divine promises in my life.

                • Faith in God’s divine word gives us strength and confidence to keep moving forward.

              • Abraham needed some land with a cave on it to bury his dead

            • Hittites’ response

              • Mighty prince

                • The Hittites recognized Abraham’s status within their community

                • They called him a mighty prince

                  • In Hebrew it means, “a prince with God,” “a prince of God,”

                  • They see Abraham as “God’s elect one” [Hamilton, 129]

                  • They recognized God’s protection and provision for Abraham (He was given animals and slaves from Pharaoh and Abimelech and Sarah received a thousand shekels of silver from Abimelech)

                  • Abraham had defeated the five kings that had attacked the region where Sodom and Gomorrah were located and returned all of the people to that region

                  • Abraham had become very wealthy with silver, gold, and animals

                  • Abraham was well known throughout Canaan

                  • Overall he had a good reputation with the people of Canaan

                • PRINCIPLE #2 – God is glorified when our lives testify about Him.

                  • We have the same opportunity that Abraham did, but in our own communities

                  • Do our lives testify about the Lord’s protection and provision?

                  • Do our lives testify about how awesome God is?

                  • Do our lives show others the transforming power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

                  • #3 – My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Glorify God by living a life that testifies about Him.

                • Because of Abraham’s reputation in Canaan the Hittites inform him that he can have his pick of any of their tombs

              • Have your choice of our tombs

                • The Hittites offer their choicest tombs to Abraham

                • They are willing to have Sarah buried in any of their tombs

                • Important note: ​​ The offer does not include land ownership, but simply space in their tombs

                  • There was normally a preparation table in each tomb where the bodies were prepared for burial

                  • There were other chambers where the most recently deceased person was laid

                  • Eventually, the remaining bones were piled up in the back of the tomb

                  • So, we see why the Hittites were amiable in offering their tombs to Abraham

                  • Perhaps they assumed that Abraham would take her bones when he moved on [Goldingay, 367]

          • The first movement ends with the offer of any tomb, but Abraham has a specific cave in mind

        • Second movement (vv. 7-16)

          • It includes two additional rounds of speeches

            • First round is addressed to the “people of the land,” but also includes the specific piece of land that Abraham is desiring from Ephron (vv. 7-11)

              • Abraham rose (qûm) – he got up from sitting in the gate of the city (v. 7)

                • Abraham continues to be respectful and humble as he makes his specific request

                • He stands up only to bow down before the Hittite people, in respect

              • Abraham’s request (vv. 8-9)

                • Abraham is still feeling out the situation with the Hittites when he says, “If you are willing to let me bury my dead . . .”

                • He asks the Hittite leaders to intercede on his behalf with Ephron son of Zohar

                • Ephron owns a field that has a cave at the end of it

                  • The cave is named Machpelah

                  • The name actually means “double-cave” or “split-cave”

                  • Perhaps there were to chambers in this cave, either side-by-side or one on top of the other

                • Abraham is only interested in the cave at the end of the field, and is willing to pay the fair market value for it

              • Ephron’s response (vv. 10-11)

                • Ephron was sitting among the Hittites that were gathered

                  • At the end of verse 10 the city is identified as his city

                  • Perhaps Ephron was the main leader of the city where he lived

                • Ephron offers both the field and the cave that is on it to Abraham as a gift

                  • We have to understand that this was the typical bargaining process in the ancient Near East

                  • Ephron was not really offering the field and cave for free

                  • “If Abraham had accepted the land as a gift when it was offered, he would have insulted Ephron, who then would have rescinded his offer. ​​ Many Middle Eastern shopkeepers still follow this ritual with their customers.” ​​ [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for Genesis 23:10-15]

                  • Had Abraham accepted the free offer, Ephron’s family could potentially come back after his death and reclaim the field and cave

              • Abraham understood the bargaining ritual, so he continues his dialogue with Ephron

            • Second round addresses Ephron directly and the payment for the field and cave (vv. 12-16)

              • Abraham once again bows before the people of the land in respect

              • Abraham offers to buy the field that the cave sits on

              • Ephron continues the bargaining process by stating that the land is worth 400 shekels of silver

                • This was an exorbitant price for the field, especially based on other land transactions found in Scripture

                • “David paid only one-eighth that amount—50 shekels of silver—for the purchase of the temple site from Araunah (2 Sam. 24:24). ​​ Jeremiah paid 17 shekels of silver for his cousin’s field in Anathoth (Jer. 32:9). ​​ Omri paid fifteen times as much as Abraham—two talents of silver (6,000 shekels)—for the large hill of Samaria (1 K. 16:24).” ​​ [Hamilton, 135]

                • Ephron didn’t consider the price exorbitant, because he states, but what is that between me and you?

                • He probably knew how wealthy Abraham was

                • “The custom of the day was to ask double the fair market value of the land, fully expecting the buyer to offer half the stated price.” ​​ [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for Genesis 23:16]

              • Abraham agrees to the price without haggling and weighs out the 400 shekels of silver, according to the weight current among the merchants

              • The transaction was done in the presence of the people of the land, so that there were plenty of witnesses

          • With the purchase complete, the final movement summarizes everything that just happened

        • Third movement (vv. 17-18)

          • The property and location

            • The field, cave, and trees within the borders of the field

            • Machpelah near Mamre

          • The people

            • Ephron

            • Abraham

              • This is the third time that (qûm) is used

              • Here it is translated as “was deeded,” “made sure,” “established,” “secured”

              • “Literally, the phrase is ‘rose [and went over] to.’ ​​ That is, the deed ‘rose and went to Abraham.’” ​​ [Waltke, Genesis: A Commentary, 321]

            • Plenty of witnesses – all the Hittites that had come to the gate of the city

        • The transaction is complete and Abraham can finally bury Sarah

    • Done (vv. 19-20)

        • I’m sure that Abraham didn’t waste any time in completing the burial process

        • The location of the cave is mentioned again

        • The transfer of ownership is mentioned one last time

 

  • YOU

    • You don’t have to weep like those who have no hope

        • When your family members, who have a personal relationship with Jesus, pass away, you can rejoice, because they are with Jesus

        • They are not lost

    • God keeps His promises

        • He will never leave you or forsake you

        • He will always love you and forgive you, when you repent

        • He will always provide for you, and so much more

        • So, you can trust by faith that God will fulfill His divine promises in your life

    • Glorifying God with your life is an incredible way to testify about Him with others

 

  • WE

    • We can rejoice with friends who have believing family that have passed away, because we know where they are at (we can also mourn with them as they grieve)

    • We can encourage each other with the promises of God, found in Scripture

    • We can urge each other on in living lives that glorify God

 

CONCLUSION

“In November 1858, missionary John Paton landed in the New Hebrides to establish a ministry among the people. ​​ On February 12, 1859, his wife gave birth to a son; and on March 3, his wife died. ​​ Seventeen days later, the baby died. ​​ ‘But for Jesus and the fellowship He gave me there,’ said Paton, ‘I must have gone mad and died beside that lonely grave.’

 

But we do not sorrow as those who have no hope! ​​ We have been born again, ‘to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead’ (1 Peter 1:3, NKJV), and we are ‘looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ’ (Titus 2:13).”

 

[Wiersbe, 113]

11

 

/by

All In The Family

,

Origins

All In The Family

(Genesis 22:20-24)

 

INTRODUCTION

“My parents, Salvation Army officers, were out on a miserable December night for an open-air meeting. Not another person was around, but my dad said that ‘God didn't need people to be out listening--he only needed us to be faithful.’ So they played a few carols and Dad gave a short message before everyone retreated inside.

 

A few weeks later, Dad was ringing the bell at a mall when a lady asked him if he had been on that street corner two weeks earlier. She explained: ‘My father had been in a coma for six months. We were dreading the holidays since Dad was not really with us. But then we heard the carols, and to our amazement, my father sat up and said, ‘That's God's music.’ And with that he died.’ What an encouraging proof of God's faithfulness to those who are faithful.”

 

Source: Pauline Hylton, Christian Reader, Vol. 33, no. 6.

 

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/1998/september/3989.html]

 

BODY

  • ME

    • God’s provision in FL

        • When we were expecting Wade, we had decided to live off of my income and put Judy’s income into savings

        • So, the last year she taught before Wade was born, we put her income into savings

        • After Wade was born, we moved back to Ohio and it took me several months to get a job

        • I began serving with Child Evangelism Fellowship of Hardin and Hancock Counties

        • Before I began serving with CEF, we were living off of the savings that we had put aside from Judy’s last year of teaching

        • God knew our future and He provided what we needed for the interim

    • God’s provision in CA

        • He did the same thing when I resigned from Every Generation Ministries in CA and we took several months to travel across the country and visit with family

        • We were able to live off of income that we had saved

        • God had prepared us once again for a major transition and had provided

        • God was faithful through our obedience

 

  • WE

    • How have we seen God’s faithfulness when we have been obedient?

        • Take a moment to think about that for yourself

        • When has God asked you to obediently follow Him?

        • Did you listen?

        • What was the result? ​​ How did you experience His faithfulness?

 

Abraham had obediently followed the Lord’s direction in sacrificing his only son Isaac. ​​ We saw last week that God provided a ram as a substitute for Isaac. ​​ In the final five verses of chapter 22, we see the genealogy of Nahor, Abraham’s brother. ​​ God knew just what Isaac would need in the future and He was already preparing the way for him. ​​ Through this short transitional section, we will see that . . .

 

BIG IDEA – God is faithful when we are obedient.

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD (Genesis 22:20-24)

    • News from home (v. 20a)

        • Some time later

          • These are the exact same words that are used in Genesis 22:1

          • It simply lets us know that time has passed

          • It is an indefinite amount of time – we do not know how much time has passed

        • Abraham was told

          • In verse 1 we know that God is the one who spoke to Abraham

          • Here in verse 20 we do not know who told Abraham about his brother

          • It is probable that one of Nahor’s children came from the East to visit Abraham and shared the news about his siblings

          • It is all speculation, because God’s Word does not identify who told Abraham

        • What is shared next is Nahor’s genealogy

    • Nahor’s sons (vv. 20b-24)

        • Notes about the genealogy

          • Why is Nahor’s genealogy shared here?

            • “[This] is the start of the narrative’s epilogue (22:20-25:11). ​​ With the question of Abraham’s faithfulness and the identity of the heir settled (22:1-19), the epilogue transitions Abraham’s story to the Jacob narrative (25:19-35:29) by establishing the union of Isaac and Rebekah who parent Jacob and his brother (25:21-26). . . . Reporting the productivity of the Nahor clan after the promise of blessing for ‘all nations’ (v. 18) implies that the Nahor history is part of the beginning fulfillment; . . .” ​​ [Mathews, The New American Commentary, Volume 1B, Genesis 11:27-50:26, 306]

            • “. . . it prepares the way for the history of the marriage of the heir of the promise.” ​​ [Keil & Delitzsch, Commentary on the Old Testament, Volume 1, The Pentateuch, 162]

          • The genealogy is important for the narrative that follows in Genesis 24

          • Nahor’s genealogy includes twelve sons by two women

        • Through his wife, Milcah (mil-kaw’)

          • Milcah was Nahor’s niece

            • She was the daughter of Haran, Nahor’s brother

            • She was the sister of Lot

            • [Show the family tree]

            • The intermarrying of family was not considered taboo in the ancient Near East

            • The mention of Milcah also bearing children, perhaps gives us insight into the conversation that Abraham was having with this unidentified individual

              • They were catching up on each other’s lives

              • Abraham had shared about Sarah giving birth to Isaac

              • He probably shared about Hagar having Ishmael

              • This prompted the individual to inform Abraham that Nahor’s wife, Milcah had also borne sons to his brother

            • Who were these sons? [show more of the family tree]

          • Sons by Milcah (mil-kaw’)

            • It begins with a statement about Milcah also being a mother and bearing sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor (opens the inclusio)

            • Uz (oots) “wooded”

              • Firstborn

              • Jeremiah 25:20 and Lamentations 4:21 refer to a city named Uz located in Arabia [Hamilton, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 18-50, 118]

            • Buz (booz) “contempt”

              • “Places or tribes named Buz and Hazo were probably located in the mountainous region of northern Arabia, evidenced by the fact that in Jer. 25:23 Buz is mentioned along with Dedan and Tema, which are Arabian tribes or territories.” ​​ [Hamilton, 118]

            • Kemuel (kem-oo-ale’) “raised of God”

              • Father of Aram

            • Kesed (keh’-sed) “increase”

              • “Chesed may represent the Chaldeans of Lower Mesopotamia.” ​​ [Hamilton, 118]

            • Hazo (khaz-o’) “vision”

            • Pildash (pil-dawsh’) “flame of fire”

            • Jidlaph (yid-lawf’) “weeping”

            • Bethuel (beth-oo-ale’) “God destroys” or “man of God” or “dweller in God”

              • Became the father of Rebekah

              • “. . . noting ‘Rebekah’ in the genealogy (v. 23) refers to the future matriarch by whom blessing will occur for Abraham’s family and, ultimately, all nations.” ​​ [Mathews, 306-307]

            • The inclusio is completed/closed with a nearly identical statement about Milcah bearing eight sons to Abraham’s brother Nahor

          • Then the visitor tells Abraham about the sons born to Nahor’s concubine

        • Through his concubine, Reumah (reh-oo-maw’)

          • “A concubine was a secondary wife, whose position was not considered disreputable in the East.” [Albert Barnes, Barnes’ Notes on the Old Testament, Accordance electronic ed. (Altamonte Springs: OakTree Software, 2006), paragraph 1765.]

          • Sons of Reumah [show the rest of the family tree]

            • Tebah (teh’-bakh/teh’-vac) “a slaughter”

            • Gaham (gah’-kham) “burning”

              • “Gaham appears on a sixth-century inscription from Arad as one of eight persons from whom grain is either distributed to or collected from.” [Hamilton, 118]

            • Tahash (takh’-ash) “dugong”

            • Maacah (mah-ak-aw’) “oppression”

              • “A place named Maacah is located between Gilead on the south, Bashan on the east, and Mt. Hermon to the north, that is, in southern Syria.” [Hamilton, 118]

          • Not much else is known about the other two sons born to Reumah

        • What can we learn from the passage that applies to our lives?

    • Application

        • PRINCIPLE #1 – “The Lord is faithful to all who love and obey Him from the heart.” ​​ (Boice)

          • We saw last week that Abraham obeyed the Lord by willingly offering his son as a sacrifice to the Lord

            • The Lord provided a substitute for Isaac, so that Abraham’s line would continue through this promised son

            • In this passage we see that the Lord is faithfully preparing the way for Abraham’s line to continue through Isaac and Rebekah

          • As followers/disciples of Jesus Christ and children of God, we can count on His faithfulness also

            • Read Hebrews 11:1-40

            • Abraham and many others obeyed God by faith and while none of them received what had been promised, they knew that God would faithfully complete what He had promised

          • What are you trusting the Lord to faithfully complete?

          • Are you loving and obeying Him from the heart?

          • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Love and obey the Lord from my heart and trust Him to faithfully complete His plan in my life.

        • PRINCIPLE #2 – “God provides for our needs before we even recognize them.” (Wenham)

          • God knew Abraham and Isaac’s need

            • The Lord already knew that Isaac would need a wife

            • The Lord also knew that Abraham would require his chief servant to swear an oath not to get a wife for Isaac from the Canaanites, but rather from his own relatives back east

            • We see in this text that Rebekah is already named as one of Abraham’s relatives

            • The stage is set for Genesis 24

          • God knows your every need

            • He knows about your financial needs

            • He knows about your emotional needs

            • He knows about your physical needs

            • He knows about your spiritual needs

            • “If you let your need drive you to God, God will meet your deepest need.” ​​ [Craig Groeschel, Fight, Study Guide, 48]

            • He knows about the needs you will have in the future

          • God is ready and willing to meet your needs when you seek His face

            • Read Matthew 6:25-34

            • Jesus reminds us that in our greatest need, our first response should be to seek His kingdom and His righteousness

            • Too often we seek the kingdom of this world and our own strength and wisdom

            • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness and trust Him to provide for my every need.

 

  • YOU

 

  • WE

    •  

 

CONCLUSION

“German pastor Martin Rinkart served in the walled town of Eilenburg during the horrors of the Thirty Years War of 1618-1648. Eilenburg became an overcrowded refuge for the surrounding area. The fugitives suffered from epidemic and famine. At the beginning of 1637, the year of the Great Pestilence, there were four ministers in Eilenburg. But one abandoned his post for healthier areas and could not be persuaded to return. Pastor Rinkart officiated at the funerals of the other two. As the only pastor left, he often conducted services for as many as 40 to 50 persons a day—some 4,480 in all. In May of that year, his own wife died. By the end of the year, the refugees had to be buried in trenches without services.

 

Yet living in a world dominated by death, Pastor Rinkart wrote the following prayer for his children to offer to the Lord:

 

Now thank we all our God
With hearts and hands and voices;
Who wondrous things hath done,
In whom this world rejoices.
Who, from our mother's arms,
Hath led us on our way,
With countless gifts of love,
And still is ours today.”

 

Source: Harry Genet, "The Unlikely Thanker," Men of Integrity (3-3-00)

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/2009/november/3110909.html]

8

 

/by

Jehovah-Jireh

,

Jehovah-Jireh

Who thinks about the products you buy before purchasing them? Who checks to see if they are tested for safety or how they will work under extreme conditions? As you probably know most everything is tested in some way, shape or form. It might be cars and planes tested for safety. It might be food tested for taste or quality. It might be cell phones tested for durability. I would bet that some of us just buy things and don’t really worry or seek out the results of the testing done to them. There are four reasons why product testing is important. One, testing gives insight into system level functions. This means each part is checked to make sure it will work properly with the whole. The product is only as good as the sum of all parts working together. Two, testing catches product defects early on. Product defects have the potential to cause serious injury, so, in order to protect users, company reputation and integrity, it is important to minimize the risk of defects by thoroughly testing products before they are sold. Third, testing is important for quality assurance. There are certain standards that products need to meet in order to be distributed and applied which ensures they are safe, reliable and of high-quality. Four, testing is important to find out what the product can endure. Stress testing is important in order to figure out how the product will function under extreme temperature, weather, pressure, or other harmful conditions.

This morning we are going to be looking at another kind of testing – the testing of a human being. We can be tested in many ways and by many things. We go through testing or trials because of the choices we make or the sins we commit. We may be put through tests and trials by the world or by Satan. We may also be tested by God. We should not be surprised that God will test his children. He will test us as a means to reveal our obedience. He will test us so we will “fear” or reverence him in order to keep us from sinning. He will test us to humble us, to know what is in our hearts and whether we will keep his commands. He will test us to bring about our good and he will test us to bring glory to himself. James 1:2-4 says, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.”

God’s purpose for testing us is to bring us to spiritual maturity; a spiritual maturity that brings about obedience, trust and total submission to Him. We must have occasional tests or we will never know if we are maturing spiritually or not. Briscoe says, “Faith is matured through the experience of stressful testing in the same way the cardiovascular system is strengthened through exercise and the muscles are developed by lifting weights. (Faith) often demonstrates itself more fully by its responses to the furnace of affliction than the warm shallow waters of ease and prosperity.” It would be good for us to remember that we are never too old to be tested, that God tests the faithful and that being tested by God is a compliment.

This morning in Genesis 22:1-19, we will see Abraham being tested once again. Weirsbe gives us insight into Abraham’s previous testing: He passed the “family test” when God told him to leave his family and step out in faith to go to a new land. He failed the “famine test” going to Egypt doubting God would provide for him. He also failed by not trusting God to protect Sarah and himself from Pharoah. Abraham then passes the “fellowship test” when he gave Lot first choice of the land. He also passed the “fight test” when he defeated the kings and passed the “fortune test” when he said no to Sodom’s wealth. He failed the “fatherhood test” when he went along with Sarah’s plan to have a child by Hagar. And he passed the “farewell test” when it came time to send Ishmael away even though it broke his heart.

Up to this point, Abraham’s faith has been wishy-washy or timid. Today we are going to see that his faith will be rigorously tested in the most extreme conditions. When we come to the end of this story, we will see that his faith has been transformed into a triumphant faith. His life of testing by God has produced a spiritual maturity of obedience and trust in Him. The question we want to ask ourselves as we study this passage this morning is what does it take to transform our faith from timid to triumphant? How does God require us to respond when he tests our faith? We find the answers in the example of Abraham, which brings us to our big idea this morning which is timid faith, when it becomes tested faith, is transformed into triumphant faith. Before we dive into our scripture this morning, let’s pray: Heavenly Father, pour out your Holy Spirit on us. Help us to open our hearts and minds to your Word. Let us glean your truths from our passage and put us in positions this week to share those truths with those who desperately need to hear them. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Our first point this morning is TEST and is found in Genesis 22:1-2. This is what God’s Word says, “Sometime later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”

Our passage begins with “sometime later” and we need to go back to chapter 21 to see what happened before. We see three events happening. One, Isaac is born. Two, Isaac is weaned and there is a great feast. It is at this feast that Ismael was mocking, maybe Isaac. Sarah saw Ishmael as a potential threat to Isaac’s inheritance and she told Abraham to get rid of the Hagar and Ishmael. This greatly distressed Abraham but God told him to do as Sarah had said. Three, we see a treaty being made between Abimelech and Abraham. Abraham now owns a well and settles down in the land of promise. We are told that Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time. As chapter 22 opens, most commentators believe that Isaac is now at least a teenager so it is probably ten to fifteen years later.

We are told that God is going to test Abraham. God calls to Abraham and tells him to take his only son, Isaac, whom he loves, and go to the region of Moriah and sacrifice him as a burnt offering. The intensity of this story is seen in two ways. One, the narrator uses the word, God “Elohim” instead of the more personal name “the Lord” to show who is speaking to Abraham. This is the narrator’s way of emphasizing that it is the Most High God, Abraham’s God, the one who gives and takes away who was testing him. There is no doubt as to who is asking this of Abraham. Two, in the original language God says, “please, take your son.” We have seen this before and in each instance he is asking the person to do something extraordinary, something that defies rational explanation or understanding. We can know that God is fully aware of the magnitude of this test for Abraham.

A burnt offering was the language of tabernacle sacrifice. It was a sacrifice where the entire animal was burned on the altar. With this type of sacrifice, the offerer is saying they were completely submitting themselves to the Lord. ​​ We can only wonder what Abraham must have been feeling. It had taken a hundred years for him to have a son born to him by Sarah. And this son was to be the promised son which would give Abraham descendants like the stars in the sky. This is the son through which his descendants would possess the Promised Land. We don’t know what Abraham thought but we do know what he did next.

Our second point this morning is OBEDIENCE and is found in verses 3-10. This is what God’s word says, “Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.” Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together. When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.”

The first thing we notice is that “early the next morning,” Abraham got up and prepared to do what God had commanded him. We have seen a couple times as we have studied the life of Abraham that he gets up “early the next morning.” In chapter 19, he gets up “early the next morning” to see if Sodom had been destroyed or not. In chapter 21, he gets up “early the next morning” to send Hagar and Ishmael into to the wilderness. Here Abraham gets up “early the next morning” to set out to sacrifice his son as the Lord commanded. “Early the next morning” means he was resolute, he was decided and his obedience was prompt. His mind was made up that he was going to obey God no matter what. He was going to trust God no matter the outcome.

Next we notice Abraham preparing for the trip. He saddles the donkey, gets the servants and Isaac together and he cuts the wood for the burnt offering. Most commentators feel the order in which he prepared to leave shows a hesitation especially the cutting of the wood for the burnt offering. Normally, if you were traveling to make a sacrifice, you would chop the wood once you got to your destination. You also wouldn’t want to carry all that excessive weight on the journey. But it is also possible that Abraham didn’t want to cut the wood once he got there because any hesitation on that end could cause him to change his mind. I believe everything Abraham did was part of God’s sovereign plan and we will see that later in the story. Next we notice that the journey took three days. Imagine what that must have been like for Abraham. To walk side by side with his only son knowing that when they get to their destination he was going to sacrifice him as a burnt offering. This was God taking Abraham’s timid faith, making it a tested faith, so that it would become a triumphant faith (BIG IDEA).

As they come close to the place God told him to go, Abraham does and says some things that probably seemed strange. He tells his servants to stay with the donkey. He tells them he and Isaac are going to go worship and then “we” will come back to you. He takes the wood that was on the donkey and placed it on Isaac. Again, this begs some questions. Why did he tell the servants to stay back? Why did he say that both of them would return to them after worshipping? Why did he take the wood off the donkey and make Isaac carry it? Maybe he didn’t want to have to worry about the servants trying to stop him from sacrificing Isaac. Maybe he was trying to deceive the servants and Isaac by saying they both would return. Or maybe his faith was so strong that he knew even if he sacrificed Isaac on that mountain God would be able to raise him from the dead and both of them would return to the servants? This is what the writer of Hebrews believed in Hebrews 11:17-19. “By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.” Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.”

We can see Isaac as a type of Christ in this story. Isaac carrying the wood may be seen as the equivalent to Jesus carrying his cross. Or at the very least a picture of Jesus carrying the weight of our sin to the cross. So with the wood being carried by Isaac and Abraham carrying the fire and the knife it says they “went on together.” Again, we can only imagine what is going through Abraham mind as he walks side by side with Isaac. They probably walked in silence most of the way, Abraham thinking about what is to come. Isaac finally asked his father where the lamb was for the burnt offering. Abraham answers his son that God will provide it. And we are again told again they “went on together.” We are reminded with this exchange between “father” and “son” that there is a deep affection and love for each other which makes what Abraham is going to do that much harder. We are also reminded of God, the Father, sending Jesus, his son, to the cross as the perfect sacrifice for our sins.

When they reached the place God had told him about Abraham again didn’t hesitate; he built the altar, put the wood on it, bound his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar. He then reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. We can notice that it seems Isaac went onto the altar willingly as the burnt offering. Abraham is over 100 years old and Isaac’s a teenager. We have to believe that at some point Isaac must have realized he was to be the offering and could have ran away or overpowered his father and got away. Commentators mention this as a picture of Isaiah 53:7, 10 that talks about Jesus being like a lamb led to slaughter who did not open his mouth and that the Lord made his life an offering for sin. We notice that Isaac exhibits the same qualities of perfection looked for in sacrificial victims. We see why Isaac was seen as a type of Christ.

Our third point this morning is DIVINE PROVISION and is found in verses 11-14. This is what God’s word says, “But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”

Abraham is fully submitted to God’s will and is about to plunge the knife into his son. At the last possible moment the Angel the Lord calls Abraham’s name to stay the execution. God’s timing is never early and never late; it is always perfect. We notice that the name “Lord” is now used. The same Lord, who is our savior, father and friend is “the Most High God” holy, sovereign, and creator God. The God who tested Abraham once again shows himself to be the gracious Lord who keeps his promises. The angel calls his name twice because he urgently needed to get Abraham’s attention. Abraham was to not lay a hand on the boy nor do anything to him. The angel’s “now I know” is an admission that the ordeal was a test and a confirmation of Abraham’s depth of loyalty to God. Then the Angel tells us what triumphant faith is. Triumphant faith is a faith that “fears God” and is willing to give up everything (even an only son) in submissive obedience to the Lord. (BIG IDEA) Ross says, “The fear of the Lord is drawing near to the Lord in love, adoration and reverence but never forgets that the Lord is the most High God and shrinks in fear at such an awesome deity.”

Next, we see the truth of Abraham’s words, “God will provide.” He looks up and sees a ram caught in the thicket. Abraham was surprised and recognized this was a miracle from the Lord; one second there was no ram and the next second there it was. God had truly provided the sacrifice for the burnt offering and Abraham sacrifices the ram as a substitute for his son. Then Abraham does something we have seen him do before. He commemorates the place and calls it, Jehovah-Jireh. Jehovah-Jireh has a dual meaning, which are literally, “The Lord Sees” and “The Lord Will Provide.” He is celebrating that God not only saw him but provided for him. I found something interesting which I only would have found by studying God’s Word in context and verse-by-verse. At the end of chapter 21, when Abraham made the treaty with Abimelech, Abraham planted a tamarisk tree to commemorate that place and he calls the Lord, “El Olam” or “the Eternal God.” Abraham was praising the God of the long-term and of the future. In this chapter when Abraham names this place “Jehovah-Jireh” he is celebrating the God of the short-term; the God of the details of our lives. God will “see” to it that even the littlest details of our lives are cared for. We can trust God for the future but we can also trust him for the here and now.

Our last point this morning is DIVINE BLESSING and is found in verses 15-19. This is what God’s word says, “The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” Then Abraham returned to his servants, and they set off together for Beersheba. And Abraham stayed in Beersheba.

The Angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time. This tells us that something important is about to be said. God emphatically reiterates the promises he has already made to Abraham. We can notice some interesting things. One, God swears by himself. This is first and only time in Genesis that God does this. There is no one higher to swear by and it affirmed the promises on the integrity of God’s own name and reputation. Abraham could depend on God to keep his promises; he could take these promises to the bank. Two, the reason for the blessings is because he did not withhold his only son from the Lord. He was willing to give up the promised descendants and the Promised Land that they would inherit. He was willing to give up all worldly things including his son for the Lord.

Abraham’s relationship with God was the most important thing to Him and God would “surely” or “really” bless him. These promises were going to be better than all the others. We see in the earlier promises that Abraham’s descendants were compared to “the stars in the sky” but now they are compared to the “sand on the seashore.” His descendants were now promised to “possess the gates of their enemies” meaning they will conquer their enemies’ cities not merely inherit the land. It is promised that through his descendants “all nations on earth will be blessed.” This implies that the world had already been blessed through Abraham but more blessing is to come through his descendants all because of Abraham’s obedience. Imagine how we could bless the people and the world around us today if we would just be obedient.

Finally, as we come to the end of the passage it says that Abraham returned to his servants and they set off together for Beer-sheba where Abraham stayed. Isaac is not mentioned as returning with them but we can surmise that he did. We have seen this before in Genesis as the most important character is mentioned and the secondary ones are not even though we know they are involved. What the narrator wants us to remember here is that Abraham is the central figure. It was Abraham’s faith that was tested and was found triumphant (BIG IDEA). But we should come away from this story more impressed with God’s faithfulness than with Abraham’s compliance.

There are many things we can take away from this passage. What truths does this passage have for our lives today? What next steps can we take? First, I think each of us should evaluate our faith. Is our faith timid? Has our faith been tested? And has our faith been found triumphant or something less? After evaluation if you determine that you have a timid faith it would be important to ask God to move you toward a triumphant faith. But, know that if you ask for a triumphant faith, then your faith will be tested. That is the process we all must go through to mature spiritually and to take our faith from timid to triumphant. So maybe this next step is for you. My next step is to ask God to move me toward a triumphant faith knowing that my faith will be tested by him.

Next, maybe after evaluating your faith, you can say that you’re faith has been tested and found triumphant. Great!!! But we know from Abraham’s life that we are never too old for testing as God wants to continue to mature us spiritually. As long as we live on this earth there is possibility of testing. God wants our faith to keep on growing and that requires testing. There are also times that our faith may waver as hard testing comes and we may fall back into a timid faith. We must be ready and on guard for all the tests and trials that come our way. We must be resolute and decided (just like Abraham was) in how we are going to react to them when they come. Our reaction must be obedience and a complete trust in the Lord. So maybe this next step may be for you. My next step is to be obedient to and completely trusting in the Lord when testing comes so my faith will continue to be triumphant.

Second, I feel this passage is asking us to dwell on a major question this morning. That question is what is your motivation for being a Christ-follower? Why do you love God? Why do you take up your cross daily and follow him? We are promised so much as we follow Christ. Is it because of the promises that God has given you that you follow and serve Him? I would say that this is a wrong motivation for being a Christ-follower. Look again at Abraham. He had been promised many great things for being in obedience to God. And in the end Abraham was totally ready to give up all those promises. Abraham “feared God” and was totally committed to and submitted to God. God was number one in Abraham’s life; not the promises that he was given and not even the child of promise that was given to him in his old age. In the end, the only motivation that Abraham had for following God was to “get God.” To know God more. To surrender to God more. To fall deeper in love with God more.

Andre Crouch wrote a song called, “If Heaven Was Never Promised To Me.” In it he asks “Is it just for heaven’s gain?” “But if heaven never were promised to me; neither God’s promise to live eternally; it’s been worth just having the Lord in my life – living in a world of darkness he came and brought me the light.” The question is would we be willing to give up eternity in Heaven for God? Would we be willing to follow God if there were nothing in it for us? Would we willing to follow God only for the benefit of living a life loving God with all our heart, minds and souls and loving others? This is what Paul is saying in Philippians 3:7-8. I am reading from the Living Bible translation: “But all these things that I once thought very worthwhile—now I’ve thrown them all away so that I can put my trust and hope in Christ alone. Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have put aside all else, counting it worth less than nothing, in order that I can have Christ. This is the place that we need to be as followers of Christ. Every single day of our lives should be in the pursuit of getting more of Christ. That brings us to the last next step, which is to Spend the rest of my life in the pursuit of knowing Christ better every day.

Now lastly, I don’t want to forget another important part of the passage seen in the title I chose for this sermon, Jehovah-Jireh, “The Lord Will Provide.” First, we all have stories of times and ways that God has provided for us all through our lives. The question is: What do we do when God provides for us? Do we even see or acknowledge it? Do we rejoice and praise him for it? Two, we all may have things coming up in your lives that we need God’s provision to get through it? Maybe you need God to provide physical, spiritual or emotional healing for you or a loved one. Maybe it’s your circumstances. Maybe you need God to provide financially for you and your family? You’re struggling to make ends meet and without God’s provision you don’t know what you will do. Maybe you are dealing with fear and/or anxiety and you need God to provide peace and his presence to quiet those fears and anxieties in your heart. We need to go to God in prayer for his provision for whatever struggles we are going through today.

As the praise team comes forward to lead us in a final song I invite and encourage you to come to the altar this morning. Come rejoicing and praising God for his provision in your life or come praying for the provision you need this morning. Coming to the altar is not a silver bullet. You most definitely can do the same where you are sitting. But what coming to the altar does is allows us to rejoice with you and praise God with you for his provision in your life. It also allows us to pray with and for you for the provision you need from God today. Our final song is called “You Always Provide.” As you sing or listen think about the words. Some of it says, “God, you see us every moment” “You always provide every season of our lives” “You always provide every moment every time.” Powerful words that I hope you will take with you this morning and share with those you come in contact with this week.

 

 

 

 

 

 

/by

The Sent & Scattered Church

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8 Marks Of The Church

The Sent & Scattered Church

 

INTRODUCTION

Urban Legends

 

Lecture given by Bill Mounce about the Top Ten Myths about Missions

 

“Another part of our educational task in working with local churches is to realize that many people have myths about the missionary enterprise. I call this lecture, “Dispelling the Top Ten Myths about Missions.” We have many, many faulty ideas about missions that must be separated from our thinking so that we can be better equipped to think appropriately about the great missionary cause.

 

  • Unreached means gospel-resistant – many people in the world today who are unreached are unreached, not because they have been offered the gospel and were then resistant to it, but simply because they have never been offered the good news of Jesus Christ. ​​ They need to hear the Christian gospel.

  • Evangelism always leads to church planting – people somehow believe that if we just evangelize – if we just get the word out through radio broadcasts, through the internet, through whatever means – that we will somehow be able to win the world for Christ. . . . I believe that ultimately it takes churches to ultimately spawn other churches.

  • Missions means going to live in jungles somewhere – we have a tremendous growth in the number of people in the world that are actually living in urban areas. ​​ So the mission field today is much more likely to not be a remote jungle area – though we have missionaries who work in those areas – but actually more likely to be in a large urban setting.

  • The remaining work of missions can be done by national Christians – the idea is that what really needs to be done is to send our money, our checks, and let the national workers do it. ​​ If we are talking about a people among whom there are no Christians, or there is no viable church, then we simply are irresponsible if we say, ‘Oh, we’ll let the nationals do it,’ because there are no nationals who can do it.

  • Missionaries have destroyed cultures – somehow or another assumes that missionaries have gone out, have been a destructive force, and have in many ways been critical of the national, indigenous cultures that are there. ​​ What we actually find is missionaries have empowered cultures.

  • There are no job opportunities in missions – missionary work is probably the most diverse group of people in the world, doing every conceivable professional task, as well as all of the traditional Christian ministry tasks, from preaching, to counseling, church-planting, and so forth. ​​ There are many, many job opportunities.

  • Missions is only for the super spiritual – missionaries are quite ordinary people with quite ordinary tasks that they’re involved in around the world . . . missionaries have problems like everybody else. ​​ Missionaries go through difficulties like everybody else. ​​ Missionaries get discouraged like everybody else. ​​ Missionaries wonder at times whether they really are truly called by God or not, just like anybody else in ministry.

  • Short-term mission projects are sufficient to fulfill the Great Commission – I believe that short-term missions is a part of a larger strategy of missionary activity. . ​​ . . There is not replacement for the difficult, challenging, and sometimes arduous task of language learning and cultural adaptation.

  • Missionary commitment is mainly about giving money – we have to see that the financial support, though while it’s important, should be seen as a part of the larger commitment to send workers. ​​ Jesus says, ‘The harvest is ripe, the laborers are few, therefore, pray the Lord would send out laborers into his harvest.’

  • Hearing the Gospel is the same as being reached by the gospel – because someone can hear the gospel does not mean that they have been reached by the gospel.

[https://www.biblicaltraining.org/transcriptions/lecture-9-top-ten-myths-about-missions]

 

There are many common myths about the church that are misguided at best and dangerous at worst.

 

BODY

  • Myth

    • You can gather as a church without going as a church and be a healthy church

    • This myth, if believed, can be dangerous because:

        • It gives a local church the false sense of security that they can holistically be the church without being with people who are not yet part of the church

        • It gives the church a distorted view of the heart of Jesus, who desires all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth

    • We know this is a myth because Jesus said a clear mark of a healthy church would be a church filled with people who want to tell people outside the church about Him

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD

    • MARK: ​​ The Sent & Scattered Church

        • The Sent & Scattered Church and the Teaching of Jesus (Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:19-20)

          • Acts 1:8

            • Background

              • Luke reminds Theophilus that he wrote about, in his former book (Gospel of Luke), all that Jesus began to do and to teach until He was taken up to heaven

              • Luke tells Theophilus that Jesus appeared to His apostles and disciples over a 40 day period, speaking about the kingdom of God and giving them commands

              • When they were meeting together with Jesus, they asked Him when he was going to restore the kingdom to Israel

                • This question probably arises from what Jesus tells them in Matthew 28:18, that all authority in heaven and on earth had been given to Him

                • If Jesus had all authority, then surely He would be able to restore the kingdom to Israel

                • They were thinking about shedding Roman rule

                • Jesus was not talking about an earthly kingdom, but about a spiritual kingdom

              • Jesus told them that they were not to know the times or dates that God has set for that to take place

              • He wanted them to focus on spreading the Gospel (spiritual), instead of when the kingdom would be restored (physical/earthly)

              • They had work to do, prior to God’s kingdom being restored on earth

            • Then we see Jesus’ words in Acts 1:8

              • Power

                • The Greek word for power is dynamis

                • “The Greek word dynamis entered the English language when the Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Bernhard Nobel (1833–96) made the discovery that became his fortune. He discovered a power stronger than anything the world had known up to that time. He asked a friend of his who was a Greek scholar what the word for ‘explosive power’ was in Greek. His friend answered, ‘Dynamis.’

                  Nobel said, ‘Well, I am going to call my discovery by that name.’ So he called his explosive power ‘dynamite.’” [James Montgomery Boice, Acts, vol. 20 of Boice Expositional Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1997), 25.]

                • They apostles were going to have power from the Holy Spirit to do several things:

                  • To know and truth of the Gospel and preach it with boldness

                  • The ability to speak other languages that they did not already know

                  • The ability to do miracles as proof of their commissioning

                  • The ability to endure many trials

                • The power of the Holy Spirit would enable them to be Jesus’ witnesses

              • Witnesses

                • The Greek word for “witness” is martys (mar’-toos)

                  • We get our English word for martyr from this Greek word

                  • In the historical sense the Greek word simply means, “one who testifies for one” or “to be a witness for one, serve him by testimony” [https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g3144/nasb95/mgnt/0-1/]

                  • That is how it is used in Acts 1:8

                  • In an ethical sense it has the meaning that we associate with it in the English language – someone who gives their life as proof of the strength and genuineness of their faith – a martyr

                • “. . . while some of God’s people have a calling to evangelism (Eph. 4:11), all of God’s people are expected to be witnesses and tell the lost about the Savior.” [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Dynamic, BE Series Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010), 23.]

                • “Every believer should be a ‘world Christian,’ able to function for the Savior from the other side of the street to the other side of the world.” [Kenneth O. Gangel, Acts, ed. Max Anders, vol. 5 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 1998), 10.]

              • Ever larger circles/outreach

                • The apostles are to start in Jerusalem, then move to Judea and Samaria, and eventually to the ends of the earth

                • The book of Acts really outlines this increasing outreach

                  • Acts 1-7 (Jerusalem)

                  • Acts 8-9 (Judea and Samaria)

                  • Acts 10-28 (ends of the earth)

                • Judea & Samaria

                  • Acts 8:1, On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. (NIV)

                  • Acts 8:4-5, 14, Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. ​​ Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there . . . When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them. (NIV)

                • Ends of the earth

                  • Paul’s missionary journeys took the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the known world

                  • “The uttermost parts of the earth have been given to the Saviour, (Psa. 2:8) and churches should not rest until He whose right it is shall come and reign, Ezek. 21:27.” [Albert Barnes, Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament, Accordance electronic ed. (Altamonte Springs: OakTree Software, 2006), paragraph 9119.]

            • Jesus encouraged His apostles to wait for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit and then to spread the Gospel in ever larger circles

            • In Matthew 28, He tells them what the Gospel outreach should look like

          • Matthew 28:19-20

            • Therefore

              • What is the therefore, there for?

              • It points back to what Jesus just said

              • “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” ​​ (Matthew 28:18)

              • Because all authority has been given to Jesus, He is commanding them to make disciples

            • Make disciples

              • This is the only command in these verses and it is an imperative

              • Disciples

                • “Being a disciple meant more than being a convert or a church member. Apprentice might be an equivalent term. A disciple attached himself to a teacher, identified with him, learned from him, and lived with him. He learned, not simply by listening, but also by doing.” [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Loyal, BE Series Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010), 269.]

                • “At the heart of our mission is the reproduction in others of what Jesus has produced in us: faith, obedience, growth, authority, compassion, love, and a bold, truthful message as his witnesses. They were learners commanded to produce more learners.” [Stuart K. Weber, Matthew, ed. Max Anders, vol. 1 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2000), 484.]

                • What is a disciple of Jesus Christ then? ​​ It is someone who: ​​ [Wiersbe, 269]

                  • Has believed on Jesus

                  • Has been baptized as an expression of their faith

                  • Is connected with a body of believers where they are learning God’s Word (truths of the faith)

                  • Is then able to go out and win others and teach them

                • “How much faster our churches would grow, and how much stronger and happier our church members would be, if each one were discipling another believer.” [Wiersbe, 270.]

                  • As disciples of Jesus Christ, that begs the question, who am I discipling?

                  • It also begs the question, whom am I being discipled by?

                  • We are learners who are commanded to make more learners

                  • This model of disciples making disciples is part of revitalizing and strengthening the church

                  • Every one of us can share what God is teaching us through our own personal devotional time

              • There are three participles that help us understand the imperative command of making disciples

                • Going (aorist passive)

                  • It can mean “while you are going” or “when you have gone”

                  • It is an ongoing action, not a one-time thing

                  • “The point is that we believers are active; we are not inert. Going means crossing  ​​​​ boundaries to make disciples—going across the street, going to dinner with an unbelieving friend, going into the inner city, going beyond one’s comfort zone to make the gospel accessible to the lost.” [Weber, 484-485.]

                • Baptizing (present active)

                  • In the present tense and active voice, it means an ongoing process – as individuals believe on Jesus for salvation, they are to be baptized

                  • Baptism is an outward expression of an inward decision

                  • Baptism does not save you, it is an expression, publicly, that you are saved – that you are adopting and receiving the system of religion that is Christianity

                  • “So to be baptized in the name of the Father, etc., means publicly, by a significant rite, to receive the system of religion, to bind the soul to obey his laws; to be devoted to him; to receive, as the guide and comforter of the life, his system of religion; to obey his laws, and trust to his promises. To be baptized unto the Son, in like manner, is to receive him as the Messiah—our Prophet, Priest, and King; to submit to his laws, and to receive him as the Saviour of the soul. To be baptized unto the Holy Ghost is to receive him publicly as the Sanctifier, Comforter, and Guide of the soul.” [Barnes, paragraph 3272.]

                • Teaching (present active)

                  • The present tense and active voice again mean ongoing teaching – “keep on teaching them”

                  • “By fulfilling the teaching portion of the Great Commission, we take believers at every stage of spiritual maturity to the next stage of growth.” [Weber, 486.]

            • With you always

              • Jesus tells us that He will be with us always as we accomplish His Great Commission

              • This fact of His presence with us is something that will last until He returns

          • Jesus teaches us that we have the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to make disciples in every part the world until He returns

        • The Sent & Scattered Church and the Teaching of the Early Church (Acts 2:42-47)

          • Background

            • We have been looking at Acts 2 quite a bit as it pertains to the teaching of the early church and the 8 marks of the church

            • This was the establishment of the early church, so it very important for us to study

            • We see in Acts 2:42-47 the apostles doing just what Jesus had commanded them to do, beginning in Jerusalem

            • They were making disciples of all nations, especially in Jerusalem – remember, people from all over the known world were in Jerusalem for the Feast of Weeks (one of three major annual feasts for the Jews)

            • Three thousand had already been added to their number after Peter spoke at Pentecost

            • We see the fellowship of the believers in Acts 2:42-47

          • Fellowship of the believers

            • Devoted to

              • Apostles’ teaching

              • Fellowship (agape meals)

              • Breaking of bread (communion)

              • Prayer

            • Miraculous signs were done by the apostles by the power of the Holy Spirit

            • Everything in common

              • They were spending time together – lots of time together

              • They were selling their possessions and goods

              • They used the proceeds from those sales to provide for the needs of one another

            • Daily commitment

              • Met together in the temple courts for teaching

              • They shared meals together in their homes with joy

              • They praised God!

              • Enjoyed each other’s company

            • Growth happened

              • The Lord added to their number daily

              • Notice that the work of salvation is the Lord’s work

              • The Apostles were faithful to preach and teach the Word of God, the Holy Spirit did the work in the hearts and minds of unbelievers, and Jesus provided salvation

              • “A healthy Christian community attracts people to Christ. ​​ The Jerusalem church’s zeal for worship and brotherly love was contagious. ​​ A healthy, loving church will grow in numbers. ​​ What are you doing to make your church the kind of place that will attract others to Christ?” ​​ [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for Acts 2:47]

            • “Instead of a humble and subdued group of Christians praying quietly in an upper room, we now have over three thousand people all over the city praising, praying, and witnessing for Jesus. The early church was a healthy church, a veritable model of what congregations can be in our day when they take seriously the biblical qualifications of what it means to be the church.” [Kenneth O. Gangel, Acts, ed. Max Anders, vol. 5 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 1998), 32.]

          • The early church modeled what Jesus had taught

        • The Sent & Scattered Church and the Teaching of the Apostles (1 Peter 2:12)

          • Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. (NIV)

          • “Peter’s readers were scattered among unbelieving Gentiles who were inclined to believe and spread vicious lies about Christians.” ​​ [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for 1 Peter 2:12]

          • As disciples of Jesus Christ, our actions are just as powerful and important as our words (preaching/teaching)

        • We not only see this mark proclaimed to us through teaching, but also through a picture

    • METAPHOR: ​​ The Light Of The World (Matthew 5:13-16)

        • Living in the world

          • Jesus uses two word pictures to help us understand our role as His disciples in this world

          • Salt

            • Three purposes of salt

              • Preservation

                • In the ancient world they used salt to preserve food, especially meat (it kept it from getting rotten)

                • “Just as salt prevents or kills bacteria in food, the kingdom servant prevents or confronts corruption in the world.” [Weber, Matthew, 61.]

              • Flavor

                • Colossians 4:5-6, Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ​​ Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

                • “‘Seasoned with salt’ means that what we say should be ‘tasty’ and should encourage further dialogue.” [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for Colossians 4:6]

              • Thirst – do we make anyone thirsty for Jesus Christ?

            • Jesus also used the word picture of light

          • Light

            • We are already the light of the world through Jesus Christ; it is not something we have to become [Stuart K. Weber, Matthew, 62.]

            • The city on a hill and the lamp on a lamp stand were for the purpose of being seen and providing a point of focus

              • As disciples of Jesus Christ we need to be seen as we reflect the light of Jesus to our world

              • “The function of light is to make reality or truth visible, thereby giving direction and guidance by what is seen.” [Stuart K. Weber, Matthew, 62.]

            • “Let your holy life, your pure conversation, and your faithful instruction, be everywhere seen and known, always, in all societies, in all business, at home and abroad, in prosperity and adversity, let it be seen that you are real Christians.” [Albert Barnes, Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament, Accordance electronic ed. (Altamonte Springs: OakTree Software, 2006), paragraph 596.]

        • The metaphor shows us that we are to be sent and scattered, seen and not hidden, so that the world might see our good works and praise our Father in heaven

        • So, how does this apply to our lives?

    • APPLICATION (how will we know if this mark of The Church marks Our Church?)

        • We will go to them through God’s great mandate (Mark 16:15-16)

          • He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. ​​ Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” (NIV)

          • We are called to scatter throughout our communities, our state, our nation, and our world to preach the good news of Jesus Christ to everyone

        • We will love them through God’s great commandment (Matthew 22:39)

          • And the second is like it: ​​ “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (NIV)

          • This goes well with our theme for 2022, “Love One Another”

        • We will share with them God’s great exchange (2 Corinthians 5:21)

          • God made him who had not sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (NIV)

          • This is what we are to witness to others about concerning Jesus and the Gospel

          • Jesus came down from heaven, grew up to be a man, lived a perfect life, and willingly died on a cross to take our punishment for sin

          • Our right standing before God is through the blood of Jesus Christ

          • [Share the Gospel]

        • We will disciple them through God’s great commission (Matthew 28:19-20)

          • Read Matthew 28:19-20

        • Our desire is to have a church filled with people who want to tell people outside the church about Him

 

  • YOU

    • Idaville Member Survey from RESTOR Renewal Ministries

        • There was one of the five survey questions that were in the top fifteen of the least difficult for us as a church

          • “Our church consistently teaches on evangelism, outreach and missions.” (13 out of 15)

            • We definitely strive to teach on evangelism, outreach and missions

            • It is encouraging to know that you all feel like we are doing that

          • That was the least difficult for us, but how about the most difficult?

        • One of the remaining four questions was in the top 10 of most difficult for us

          • “The people in our church know and understand our church’s plan for reaching the people in our community and the world.” (8 out of 10)

            • I know that some people struggled with questions like this, because they felt like they didn’t know what other people in the church were thinking

            • Our model for quite a few years now has been three-fold (perhaps it just was not communicated enough)

              • Locally – we are always serving locally (food pantries, other service projects, etc.)

              • Domestically – we try to do a domestic mission trip every other year

              • Globally – we try to plan an international mission trip every other year

          • That leaves three final questions

        • The three remaining questions fell in the middle

          • “The mission of our church is clearly in line with the mission of God in the world.”

            • Mission – Pursue, Grow, and Multiply Disciples

            • Our mission statement comes directly from Matthew 28:19-20

            • That should be mission statement of every church

          • “Our church consistently encourages the members of our church to engage in evangelism, outreach and missions.”

            • We provide opportunities locally, domestically, and globally

            • One of the goals for this year is to create a team that will intentionally and actively share the Gospel in our community

            • The Revival on the Farm is coming this summer (June 5-8, 2022) and each church, that is participating, will be doing prayer walks through their community to pray for and invite individuals to attend the revival services

            • This will be an incredible opportunity for all of us to engage in evangelism, outreach and missions

          • “Our church consistently provides opportunities to participate and grow in evangelism, outreach and missions.”

            • This is closely connected to the previous survey question

            • We are providing some opportunities, but we would also like to provide additional opportunities to consistently be in our community with the specific goal of sharing the Gospel

        • What are our next steps?

    • Next Steps

        • Discipleship

          • Who are you discipling?

          • Who is discipling you?

          • The amazing thing about discipleship is that both people learn from one another, so while you are discipling someone you are also being discipled by them

          • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Begin a discipleship relationship with one other person.

          • The best model for this is to be in a discipling relationship with someone of the same gender (male-to-male; female-to-female)

          • Let’s see how God will use this to grow His church and bring joy and happiness to everyone

        • Fellowship of the believers

          • We saw in Acts 2:42-47 that the early church was devoted to several things including fellowship

          • They enjoyed each other’s company, they shared everything, they took care of one another – their hearts were glad and sincere

          • They were praising, praying, and witnessing for Jesus

          • Their zeal and brotherly love were contagious and the result was a healthy growing church

          • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Examine my zeal and brotherly love for Idaville Church, so we will be a church that attracts others to Christ.

        • Sent & Scattered

          • We are working towards creating a Gospel Team that will consistently and actively share the Gospel in our community

          • We are also planning prayer walks for the Revival on the Farm

          • We will continue to provide domestic and global mission opportunities

          • These are just a few ways we are encouraging you and providing opportunities for you to be sent and scattered

          • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Commit to participating in the opportunities provided by Idaville Church to make disciples.

 

  • WE

    • Vision

        • Core Values

          • “We are a church that reaches out, spreading God's Word, God's glory, and God's promises to those that do not know Him.”

          • “We are a church who encourages our members to discover, develop, and use their spiritual gifts.”

        • Core Focus

          • Purpose (why we exist): ​​ “Pursue, Grow, and Multiply Disciples.”

        • Growth Strategy

          • Three+ Uniques – “Reaching outside our walls (warm/fellowship).”

          • Proven Process:

            • “Intentional group to welcome and direct people.”

            • “Reinstitute meal teams.”

        • Value Proposition (Promise): ​​ “Within 90 days, guests should be comfortable, connected, and committed to Idaville Church.”

    • Traction

        • “Have a Welcome Team established and functioning.”

        • “Short-term domestic mission trip in 2022.”

        • “Have a 10% increase in the number of individuals serving in missions.”

        • “Have a 10% increase in the pursuit of holiness as evidenced through salvations, baptisms, and accountability.” (annual)

          • “Create a team that will intentionally and actively share the Gospel in our community.” (quarterly)

          • “Plan specific dates, times, and locations to have the Gospel Team in the community.” (quarterly)

 

CONCLUSION

“Robert Bellah, a sociologist who teaches at the University of California at Berkeley, is very interested in the influence of religion on the community. In an interview in Psychology Today he said, "We should not underestimate the significance of the small group of people who have a new vision of a just and gentle world. The quality of a culture may be changed when 2 percent of its people have a new vision."

 

There are many more than 2 percent Christians in your country and mine. Then why aren't we having more effect? Why aren't we having more influence? I pray that God will call you to permeate non-Christian society for Christ, to take your stand there uncompromisingly with the value system and moral standards of Jesus.”

 

Source: John Stott, "Christians: Salt and Light," Preaching Today, Tape No. 109.

[https://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/1996/december/432.html]

14

 

/by

The Submitted To Godly Leadership Church

, , , , , ,

8 Marks Of The Church

The Submitted To Godly Leadership Church

 

INTRODUCTION

Urban Legends

 

Carey Nieuwhof shares 5 dumb myths every leader should abandon.

  • Success will happen overnight – “Who hasn’t fallen for this? ​​ And if you don’t believe it, you’ve secretly wanted it, haven’t you? ​​ Yet there are few overnight successes. ​​ Or as my wife has pointed out, it was a very long night.”

  • Smart work, not hard work, will win the day – “. . . smart work is no substitute for hard work. ​​ Working smarter doesn’t mean you can put in a few hours, hit cruise control and coast to victory. . . . When you stop growing, so do the people around you.”

  • I will get universal buy-in – “There will be a day when I become a good enough leader that I will announce our next move and everyone will applaud wildly, right? . . . Conditions will never be perfect. ​​ ‘Everybody’ will never buy in. ​​ Sometimes you just need to lead.”

  • There’s a silver bullet – “So there’s one thing that will turn everything around right? ​​ A silver bullet? ​​ A model I can just embrace and press play and everything will magically be wonderful. ​​ Right?”

  • One day I will arrive – “No, you won’t. ​​ And if you do, you’ll arrive to learn you’ve missed the point. ​​ Effective leaders keep growing. ​​ They never stop.”

 

[https://careynieuwhof.com/5-dumb-myths-too-many-leaders-believe/]

 

I love to read. ​​ Years ago, I would read three books at a time. ​​ One was a leadership book, another was a spiritual development book, and the third would be a “fun” book (historical fiction, etc.). ​​ I was always looking to grow in my spiritual walk and leadership knowledge. ​​ Today, I read a lot for spiritual growth through commentaries and other books. ​​ I read books on prayer and some leadership stuff.

 

There are many common myths about the church that are misguided at best and dangerous at worst

 

BODY

  • Myth

    • You can have subjective standards for church leadership and be a healthy church

    • This myth, if believed, can be dangerous because:

        • If the leaders of the church are not subject to the objective standards of leadership in the church, the people of the church won’t be subject to the objective standards of discipleship in the church

        • This confuses the church, exposes the church, and robs the church of its sense of security

    • We know this is a myth because Jesus said a clear mark of a healthy church would be a church filled with leaders who are being led by him, leading like him, and leading to him

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD

    • MARK: ​​ The Submitted To Godly Leadership Church

        • The Submitted To Godly Leadership Church and the Teaching of Jesus (Mark 3:13-15; Luke 22:24-27)

          • Mark 3:13-15

            • Background

              • The corresponding passage in Luke 6:12-16 tells us that Jesus had been up on the mountainside praying all night

              • In the morning He called the disciples up on the mountainside and chose the twelve apostles

            • Appointing the Apostles

              • Most scholars agree that the number of Apostles is probably significant, because there were twelve tribes of Israel (that number is important throughout Scripture)

              • Jesus designates the twelve as “Apostles”

                • This was a change from simply disciple to apostle

                • A “disciple” is one who learns by doing; our modern equivalent might be an “apprentice.” An “apostle” is one who is sent on official service with a commission. Jesus had many disciples but only twelve apostles, His special “ambassadors.” [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Diligent, BE Series Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010), 46.]

              • Purpose in appointing them

                • They might be with him

                  • Wiersbe and Grassmick agree that being with Jesus was for the purpose of training them

                  • The twelve apostles would learn from Jesus’ example

                  • Once they were ready, He would send them out

                • He might send them out to accomplish two things

                  • To preach

                  • To have authority to drive out demons

                  • Mark 6:6-7, 12-13, Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. ​​ Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits. . . . They went out and preached that people should repent. ​​ They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.

              • Application [J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on Mark, Expository Thoughts on the Gospels. Accordance electronic ed. (London: Wertheim, Macintosh, & Hunt, 1857), paragraph 1932.]

                • “Like the apostles, the faithful minister ought to keep up close communion with Christ.”

                • “Like the apostles, the faithful minister ought to be a preacher. This must ever be his principal work, and receive the greatest part of his thoughts. He must place it above the administration of the sacraments. (1 Cor. i. 17).”

                • “Like the apostles, the faithful minister must labour to do good in every way. Though he cannot heal the sick, he must seek to alleviate sorrow, and to increase happiness among all with whom he has to do. He must strive to be known as the comforter, the counsellor, the peacemaker, the helper, and the friend of all.”

                • “Like the apostles, the faithful minister must oppose every work of the devil.”

            • Jesus chose twelve men to be His apostles, these twelve men were going to lead the founding of the church

            • In their humanness, the Apostles struggled with the worldly idea of greatness, which Jesus had to address

          • Luke 22:24-27

            • The apostles were arguing about which of them was the greatest

              • The significance of what Jesus was sharing with them at the Last Supper was lost on them

              • “When you are interested in promoting yourself, it doesn’t take much to start an argument.” [Wiersbe, 128]

            • Worldly greatness/leadership

              • Characterized by selfishness, arrogance, and doing whatever it takes to make it to the top

              • Some kings in the ancient world gave themselves the title of “benefactor,” but it was not necessarily a true representation of who they were and what they did

            • Spiritual greatness/leadership

              • Youngest

                • In the culture of the day, the youngest person was the one who was considered the least

                • They did not have rank or position, especially as it pertained to family units

                • The first-born (eldest) would be the one who had rank and position within the family – he would inherit everything

                • “The senior leader with the most experience must adopt an attitude as if he were the youngest with no experience, no leadership responsibility, and no honors expected.” [Trent C. Butler, Luke, ed. Max Anders, vol. 3 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2000), 370.]

              • One who serves

                • Servant leadership is what Jesus was telling them to do

                  • Philippians 2:3, Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, in humility consider others better than yourselves.

                  • John 3:30, He must become greater; I must become less.

                • Jesus’ example

                  • Jesus is the One who is serving the bread and the cup at the supper

                  • Jesus gives them an example of what servant leadership looks like by taking a towel, wrapping it around His waist, and washing His disciples feet

                  • “Usefulness in the world and Church; a humble readiness to do anything, and put our hands to any good work; a cheerful willingness to fill any post, however lowly, and discharge any office, however unpleasant, if we can only promote happiness and holiness on earth,—these are the true tests of Christian greatness.” [Ryle, paragraph 7786]

              • “You must make a choice. Will you accept the world’s oppressive way of honoring greatness? Or will you follow Jesus’ example of becoming a servant and seeking the best for the “family”? Will you be part of the last who will become first? Or must you be first now?” [Butler, 370]

          • Jesus teaches us that He is the One who establishes spiritual leaders and that spiritual leadership is remarkably different than worldly leadership

        • The Submitted To Godly Leadership Church and the Teaching of the Early Church (Acts 2:42; 6:3-4)

          • Acts 2:42

            • They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. (NIV)

            • As we saw in the previous point, Jesus had chosen the twelve apostles, trained them, and sent them out to preach and teach

            • Acts 2:42 shows us what happened after Jesus sent the apostles out – the day of Pentecost happens

            • The 3,000 who were added to their numbers on Pentecost, plus those who were already followers of Jesus devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles

            • These believers were submitting to the godly leadership of the apostles

            • As the number of believers continued to grow, there had to be the delegation and sharing of leadership responsibilities, as we will see in Acts 6:3-4

          • Acts 6:3-4

            • “Ministry is everyone’s responsibility, but different ministry tasks require different ministry qualifications.” ​​ [Kenneth O. Gangel, Acts, ed. Max Anders, vol. 5 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 1998), 92.]

              • The seven that were to be chosen needed to have two primary qualifications

                • Full of the Spirit (controlled by)

                • Full of wisdom

              • They were given the responsibility of waiting on tables

                • This certainly has the idea of serving food to the widows

                • It can also have the idea of a manager’s table where funds for food are distributed

                • Acts 4:34-35, There were no needy persons among them. ​​ For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.

              • While the very important task of providing for the needs of all widows was delegated to seven men, the apostles dedicated their time to two things

            • Apostles’ priorities

              • They gave their attention to the prayer and the ministry of the word

                • The prayer that is being talked about here is public prayer

                  • Leading others in public prayer

                  • They certainly had their own quiet time of prayer also

                • Ministry of the Word

                  • In Mark 3, we saw that this was one of the primary things that Jesus sent the apostles out to do

                  • While ministering to the physical needs of the believers was important, the primary responsibility of the apostles was to the spiritual needs of the believers

                  • They needed the necessary time to prepare and teach God’s Word

              • That is not to say that they didn’t still help with food or money distribution, but that was not their primary role

          • The early church teachings help us understand that the spiritual leaders were tasked with leading believers in corporate prayer and the teaching of God’s Word

        • The Submitted To Godly Leadership Church and the Teaching of the Apostles (Hebrews 13:17; 1 Timothy 3:1-13

          • Hebrews 13:17

            • Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. ​​ They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you. (NIV)

            • Obey your leaders

              • “The reference here is to their religious teachers, and not to civil rulers.” [Albert Barnes, Barnes’ Notes on the New Testament, Accordance electronic ed. (Altamonte Springs: OakTree Software, 2006), paragraph 29886.]

              • “When a servant of God is in the will of God, teaching the Word of God, the people of God should submit and obey.” [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Confident, BE Series Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010), 176.]

              • My desire and practice has always been to be in the will of God and teaching the Word of God

              • My prayer is that this desire and practice are evident to you all

              • There have been times when leading Idaville Church has felt like a burden, but those times are few and far between

              • During those times, I reflect on the calling that God placed on my life over 13 years ago and I am encouraged and find hope

              • The vast majority of my time here has been joy-filled

              • I love you all and I love to serve together with you

              • “A disobedient Christian will find on that day that the results of disobedience are unprofitable, not for the pastor, but for himself.” [Wiersbe, 177]

            • Keep watch and give account

              • The leadership of Idaville Church is genuinely concerned for the spiritual growth and salvation of those that God has placed in our care, to shepherd

              • Each board member has a group of individuals/families that they are responsible to connect with and check up on

              • We take this responsibility very seriously, because we will have to give an account when we stand before the Lord

            • While the writer of Hebrews exhorts the people in the church to obey the leaders, Paul writes to Timothy to share the qualifications of those who serve in positions of leadership

          • 1 Timothy 3:1-13

            • Read 1 Timothy 3:1-13

            • Overseer

              • Being an overseer is a noble task

              • Qualifications

                • Positive

                  • Above reproach, husband of one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, gentle, manage family well, good reputation with outsiders

                • Negative

                  • Not given to drunkenness, not violent, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money, not a recent convert

                • When people tell me they don’t meet the qualifications of an overseer, I encourage them to work on the areas where they feel they don’t qualify, so they can qualify

              • Paul also lists the qualifications for a deacon

            • Deacon

              • Qualifications

                • Positive

                  • Worthy of respect, sincere, keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience, husband of one wife, manage children and household well

                • Negative

                  • Not indulging in much wine, not pursuing dishonest gain

              • They are to be tested

              • Their wives are to be worthy of respect, not malicious talkers, temperate, and trustworthy

          • The teaching of the Apostles helps us to understand that when qualified leaders are following God’s will and teaching His Word, that they should be obeyed and followed

        • We not only see this mark proclaimed to us through teaching, but also through a picture

    • METAPHOR: ​​ The Flock of God (1 Peter 5:1-4)

        • Fellow elder

          • Peter does not use his position as an apostle to elevate himself above the other elders

          • He positions himself as a fellow elder that was privileged to witness Jesus’ sufferings and share in the glory that will be revealed in future

        • Shepherds of God’s flock

          • “To ‘shepherd’ means ‘to lead, to guide, and to rule.’ . . . According to that psalm [Psalm 23], the tasks of a shepherd are to lead (v. 2), to provide spiritual guidance and feeding (v. 3), to offer comfort (v. 4), strengthening (v. 5), and correction (v. 2).” [Max Anders, I & II Peter, I, II & III John, Jude, ed. Max Anders, vol. 11 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 1999), 89.]

          • John 21:16, Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you truly love me?” ​​ He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” ​​ Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

            • This was the second time that Jesus asked Peter this question, after His resurrection

            • The same Greek word is used in John 21:16, by Jesus, that Peter uses in 1 Peter 5:2 – he hasn’t forgotten what Jesus exhorted him to do

          • Shepherding/Taking care involves two relationships as Wiersbe points out

            • Being among the people (know their needs/problems)

            • Being over the people (lead them and help solve problems)

        • Attitude of a shepherd

          • Willingness, not a task/duty

          • Not greedy for money, but certainly worthy of his hire

          • Eager – with enthusiasm, excitement, and energy [Anders, 89]

          • Being an example to the flock

        • “Just as a flock of sheep follows their shepherd, we follow Jesus, our Shepherd. ​​ Just as a flock of sheep are submitted to and obey their shepherd, we submit to and obey Jesus and the under-shepherd’s He has appointed for us.” ​​ [Matt Kyser]

        • So, how does this apply to our lives?

    • APPLICATION (how will we know if this mark of The Church marks Our Church?)

        • We can clearly see the leaders in our church being led by Jesus (John 21:22)

          • Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? ​​ You must follow me.” (NIV)

          • Jesus is talking with Peter by the Sea of Galilee after His resurrection

          • He has shared with him about the kind of death he would experience and Peter asks about John, who was following them

          • Jesus wanted Peter to follow Him regardless of what would happen to anyone else

        • We can clearly see the leaders in our church leading like Jesus (Mark 8:34-35)

          • Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ​​ For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.” (NIV)

          • Our desire as leadership in the church is to daily deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Jesus

          • We want to lead like Jesus, so that when you follow you will be following Jesus

        • We can clearly see the leaders in our church leading to Jesus (Colossians 1:28)

          • We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ. (NIV)

          • Pastor Marc and I strive to admonish and teach you with all wisdom

          • Our desire is to be able to present you perfect in Christ

        • We can clearly see the people of our church joyfully submitted to their leaders (Hebrews 13:17)

          • Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. ​​ They keep watch over you as men who must give account. ​​ Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you. (NIV)

          • We already addressed this verse under the teaching of the apostles

        • Our desire is to have a church filled with leaders who are being led by Jesus, leading like Jesus, and leading to Jesus

 

  • YOU

    • Idaville Member Survey from RESTOR Renewal Ministries

        • There were two of the five survey questions that were in the top fifteen of the least difficult for us as a church

          • “I’m confident that the leaders in our church are biblically qualified leaders as outlined in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1.” (8 out of 10)

            • This is so important

            • If the leaders of the church did not meet those qualifications, we would be in trouble

          • “The leaders in our church are clearly submitted to Jesus and His leadership of our church as explained in Scripture and empowered by the Spirit.” ​​ (11 out of 15)

            • This is also important

            • Pastor Marc, the board, and I look to Jesus as our Shepherd

            • We look to the Holy Spirit for guidance and direction in how and where to lead the congregation for the future

        • One of the remaining three questions was in the top 15 of most difficult for us

          • “I desire to lead others the way my leaders lead our church.” ​​ (12 out of 15)

            • It is hard to determine from the survey why this scored in the top 15 of the most difficult for us

            • When we look at the two previous survey questions it is clear that the leaders are biblically qualified, submitted to Jesus, and empowered by the Spirit

            • So, I’m at a loss as to why individuals in the church do not desire to lead others the way the leaders of our church lead

            • Some people do not want to lead at all, but rather serve behind the scenes

            • Others feel like they do not qualify to lead

          • That leaves two final questions

        • The two remaining questions fell in the middle

          • “Our leaders are the kinds of leaders I desire to submit myself to.”

          • “I will joyfully follow the lead of our leaders in the next season in the life of our church.”

          • If the leaders of the church are biblically qualified, submitted to Jesus, and empowered by the Spirit, then as the flock of God, here at Idaville Church, we should:

            • Want to lead others the way the leaders of the church lead

            • Desire to submit ourselves to the leaders

            • Joyfully follow the lead of the leaders in the next season in the life of our church

    • Next Steps

        • Leaders

          • We need to make sure that we are being among the people, so we will know their needs and problems that they face

          • We also need to be lead well by helping them to solve their problems

          • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Commit to connecting with the people of Idaville Church, so I can lead them well.

        • People

          • As the leaders of the church commit to connecting with you all and leading you well, then we should submit to them and joyfully follow their lead

          • This is does not mean that we will always agree with them, but if they are biblically qualified, submitted to Jesus, and empowered by the Spirit we can have confidence in their leadership

          • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Submit to the leadership of Idaville Church and joyfully follow their lead for the future.

        • Everyone

          • Our theme this year is “love one another”

          • Romans 12:9-10, Love must be sincere. ​​ Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ​​ Be devoted to one another in love. ​​ Honor one another above yourselves.

          • If both leadership and the people strive to follow these two verses, then everything will work out for God’s glory

          • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Love sincerely, hate what is evil, cling to what is good, be devoted to my brothers and sisters at Idaville Church, and honor others above myself.

 

  • WE

    • Vision

        • Core Values

          • “We live, model, and share the importance of being Biblically grounded.”

          • “Our leadership strives to be led more by Jesus, to lead more like Jesus, so we can lead more to Jesus.”

        • Growth Strategy

          • Three+ Uniques – “Preaching and teaching God’s Word.”

    • Traction

        • “Begin a leadership development program.”

 

CONCLUSION

I want to open the altar this morning for anyone who would like to commit to the next steps outlined in the message today. ​​ Every one of us is probably guilty of not doing something that we should be doing.

12

 

/by

The Sanctifying Church

, , , ,

8 Marks Of The Church

The Sanctifying Church

 

INTRODUCTION

Urban Legends

 

“It’s one of Hollywood’s favorite bits of pseudoscience: human beings use only 10 percent of their brain, and awakening the remaining 90 percent—supposedly dormant—allows otherwise ordinary human beings to display extraordinary mental abilities. In Phenomenon (1996), John Travolta gains the ability to predict earthquakes and instantly learns foreign languages. Scarlett Johansson becomes a super powered martial-arts master in Lucy (2014). And in Limitless (2011) Bradley Cooper writes a novel overnight.

 

This ready-made blueprint for fantasy films is also a favorite among the general public. In a survey, 65 percent of respondents agreed with the statement, ‘People only use 10 percent of their brain on a daily basis.’ But the truth is that we use all of our brain all of the time.

 

How do we know? For one thing, if we needed only 10 percent of our brain, the majority of brain injuries would have no discernible consequences, since the damage would affect parts of the brain that weren’t doing anything to begin with. We also know that natural selection discourages the development of useless anatomical structures: early humans who devoted scarce physical resources to growing and maintaining huge amounts of excess brain tissue would have been outcompeted by those who spent those precious resources on things more necessary for survival and reproductive success. Tougher immune systems, stronger muscles, better looking hair—just about anything would be more useful than having a head full of inert tissue.

 

We’ve been able to back up these logical conclusions with hard evidence. Imaging techniques, such as positron emission tomography (PET) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), allow doctors and scientists to map brain activity in real time. The data clearly shows that large areas of the brain—far more than 10 percent—are used for all sorts of activity, from seemingly simple tasks like resting or looking at pictures to more complex ones like reading or doing math. Scientists have yet to find an area of the brain that doesn’t do anything.

 

So how did we come to believe that 90 percent of our brain is useless? The myth is often incorrectly attributed to 19th-century psychologist William James, who proposed that most of our mental potential goes untapped. But he never specified a percentage. Albert Einstein—a magnet for misattribution of quotes—has also been held responsible. In reality, the concept most likely came from the American self-help industry. One of the earliest mentions appears in the preface to Dale Carnegie’s 1936 mega best seller, How to Win Friends and Influence People. The idea that we have harnessed only a fraction of our brain’s full potential has been a staple for motivational gurus, New Age hucksters, and uninspired screenwriters ever since.

 

Obviously, this is bad news for anyone hoping to find the secret to becoming a genius overnight. The good news, though, is that hard work still works. There is plenty of reason to believe that you can build brainpower by regularly working at challenging mental tasks, such as playing a musical instrument, doing arithmetic, or reading a novel.”

 

[https://www.britannica.com/story/do-we-really-use-only-10-percent-of-our-brain]

 

I like to play Sudoku and June’s Journey (it is a game where you have to find various objects in a scene. ​​ My favorite video game of all times is Portal, which is a thinking game. ​​ All of those games help to keep my mind sharp. ​​ I hope that I am using more than 10% of my brain when I’m playing those games.

 

There are many common myths about the church that are misguided at best and dangerous at worst

 

BODY

  • Myth

    • You can emphasize personal holiness as much as you want and be a healthy church

    • This myth, if believed, can be dangerous because:

        • It can give someone a false sense of security that they can be truly united together with Jesus without looking increasingly like Him

        • It dilutes and pollutes the church, which God intended to be potent and pure

    • We know this is a myth because Jesus said a clear mark of a healthy church would be a church filled with people who are being conformed more and more into the image of the Son

 

Let’s pray

 

  • GOD

    • MARK: ​​ The Sanctifying Church

        • The Sanctifying Church and the Teaching of Jesus (John 17:13-19)

          • Background

            • John 17:1-26 has historically been entitled, The High Priestly Prayer

            • Jesus is praying for Himself (17:1-5), His disciples (17:6-19), and for future believers (17:20-26)

            • In the middle of His prayer for the disciples we see His teaching on sanctification and the means by which His disciples and future believers can continue the process of sanctification

          • Means of sanctification

            • Jesus is expressing to the Father that He is coming to Him now

            • He is praying out loud for the benefit of His disciples, so they can have the full measure of His joy within them

            • He gave the disciples God’s Word

              • This brought about hatred by the world

              • Jesus was not asking the Father to take them out of the world, but to protect them from the evil one

              • Paul reminds the Ephesian believers that our struggle is not with human beings, but rather it is against the rulers, authorities, and powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians 6:12)

              • Jesus was not praying for isolation, but infiltration

            • Jesus was praying that His disciples would be sanctified in the world

              • We see, that sanctification comes by the truth

              • God’s Word is the truth!!!

              • The Greek word for sanctification means “set apart for sacred use, cleansed and made holy” [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for John 17:17]

              • Our theme last year was “pursuing holiness”

                • The Spiritual Life Journal focused on various commitments: ​​ holiness in prayer, the Word, service, giving, relationships, the Gospel, and worship

                • The commitments under the heading “Holiness in the Word” were, to read through the Bible with my Idaville Church family in 2021 and memorize one verse a month with my Idaville Church family in 2021

              • “A follower of Christ becomes sanctified (set apart for sacred use, cleansed and made holy) through believing and obeying the Word of God (Hebrews 4:12). ​​ He or she has already accepted forgiveness through Christ’s sacrificial death (Hebrews 7:26, 27). ​​ But daily application of God’s Word has a purifying effect on our minds and hearts. ​​ Scripture points out sin, motivates us to confess, renews our relationship with Christ, and guides us back to the right path.” ​​ [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for John 17:17]

              • Hebrews 4:12, For the word of God is living and active. ​​ Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

              • “The Greek word for sanctify is hagiazo, which means ‘to set apart for God’s use.’ As Bruce points out:

                This involves their consecration for the task now entrusted to them; it involves further their inward purification and endowment with all the spiritual resources necessary for carrying out that task. This purification and endowment are the work of the Spirit, but here Jesus declares the instrument of that work to be ‘the truth’—the truth embodied in the Father’s ‘word’ which Jesus had given to the disciples as he himself had received it from the Father (vv. 8, 14). The very message which they are to proclaim in his name will exercise its sanctifying effect on them: that message is the continuation of his message, just as their mission in the world is the extension of his mission (Bruce, p. 334).”

                [Kenneth O. Gangel,                 John, ed. Max Anders, vol. 4 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 2000), 317.]

              • Bruce is talking about the Gospel of Jesus Christ being proclaimed to all nations

              • It also includes teaching the nations to obey everything Jesus had commanded them from the Father (Matt. 28:20)

            • Jesus sanctified Himself, so that His followers could also be truly sanctified

          • “God’s truth has been given to us in three ‘editions’: His Word is truth (John 17:17); His Son is the truth (John 14:6); and His Spirit is the truth (1 John 5:6). We need all three if we are to experience true sanctification, a sanctification that touches every part of our inner person. With the mind, we learn God’s truth through the Word. With the heart, we love God’s truth, His Son. With the will, we yield to the Spirit and live God’s truth day by day. It takes all three for a balanced experience of sanctification.” ​​ [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Transformed, BE Series Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010), 98.]

          • Jesus’ teaching helps us understand that sanctification comes from truth, which is found in God’s Word, the Bible

        • The Sanctifying Church and the Teaching of the Early Church (Acts 5:1-11)

          • Sin in the church

            • We know from this passage that lying was the sin that Ananias and Sapphira were judged on

              • They had lied to God

              • They had lied to God’s people

              • “George MacDonald wrote, ‘Half of the misery in the world comes from trying to look, instead of trying to be, what one is not.’” [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Dynamic, BE Series Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010), 78.]

              • “They build the front just like St. Mark’s,
                Or like Westminster Abbey;
                And then, as if to cheat the Lord,
                They make the back parts shabby.” [Wiersbe, 78]

            • Realities

              • The property was theirs to do with what they wanted

              • They were not required to give all of the proceeds from the sale of the property to the church

              • But, they were required to be honest about their giving

              • If we look back at Acts 4, we better understand their desire to make it appear as though they had given the total amount of the sale of the property to the church

              • Acts 4:36-37, Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means Son of Encouragement), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.

              • Joseph was not the only one who had done this, for from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need (Acts 4:34-35)

              • My guess is that pride was also a contributing factor in Ananias and Sapphira’s deception

              • They wanted to be counted with those who were giving sacrificially to the church

            • The result of their deception was death

          • Sanctification in the church

            • Why was their lie judged so harshly?

              • First, the Lord was establishing His church through the disciples and He wanted it to be holy and sanctified

              • “This act was judged harshly because dishonesty, greed, and covetousness are destructive in a church, preventing the Holy Spirit from working effectively. ​​ All lying is bad, but when we lie to try to deceive God and his people about our relationship with him, we destroy our testimony about Christ.” ​​ [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for Acts 5:3]

              • This was not the first time that the Lord judged harshly

                • “It is worth noting that the Lord judges sin severely at the beginning of a new period in salvation history. Just after the tabernacle was erected, God killed Nadab and Abihu for trying to present “false fire” to the Lord (Lev. 10). He also had Achan killed for disobeying orders after Israel had entered the Promised Land (Josh. 7). While God was certainly not responsible for their sins, He did use these judgments as warnings to the people, and even to us (1 Cor. 10:11–12).” [Wiersbe, 79]

                • When the Lord was establishing new things, He wanted them to be established correctly, with integrity and honesty

              • Paul shares warnings from Israel’s history with the Corinthian believers before he says, These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. ​​ So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall! (1 Cor. 10:11-12)

              • We all have the capacity to deceive and lie, not only to other human beings, but also to the Lord

            • The result

              • After Ananias’ death we read, and great fear seized all who heard what had happened (Acts 5:5)

              • After Sapphira’s death Luke writes, great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events (Acts 5:11)

              • This was the correct response – reverence – to God’s righteous judgement on Ananias and Sapphira

              • The church needed to not only emphasize sanctification, but they needed to practice it

          • God takes sanctification and holiness seriously, and so should we

          • But what do the apostles have to say about sanctification?

        • The Sanctifying Church and the Teaching of the Apostles (Romans 8:28-30; 1 John 3:1-6)

          • Roman 8:28-30

            • The primary thought from these verses is, conforming to the likeness of his Son

            • Sanctification is just that, becoming more like Jesus in our attitudes, thoughts, speech, and behaviors

            • “God’s ultimate goal for us is to make us like Christ (1 John 3:2). ​​ As we become more and more like him, we discover our true selves, the persons we were created to be. ​​ How can we be conformed to Christ’s likeness? ​​ By reading and heeding the Word, by studying his life on earth through the Gospels, by being filled with his Spirit, and by doing his work in the world.” ​​ [NIV Life Application Bible, footnote for Romans 8:29]

            • Notice that the way to sanctification is again pointing us to God’s Word – it is where truth is found

            • But it also includes being filled with the Holy Spirit and doing His work in the world

          • 1 John 3:1-6

            • Wiersbe outlines vv. 1-3 very well [Warren W. Wiersbe, Be Real, BE Series Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010), 107.]

              • What we are – children of God (v. 1)

              • What we shall be – like Christ with a glorified body ready for heaven (v. 2)

              • What we should be – purified, holy, sanctified (v. 3)

            • “For a child of God to sin indicates that he does not understand or appreciate what Jesus did for him on the cross.” ​​ [Wiersbe, 108-109.]

            • “One of our resources, then, for living a more holy lifestyle is pondering and meditating upon who Jesus is, who we have become in him, and what our life is likely to be when we see him.” [Max Anders, I & II Peter, I, II & III John, Jude, ed. Max Anders, vol. 11 of Holman New Testament Commentary. Accordance electronic ed. (Nashville: B & H Publishing Group, 1999), 190.]

            • As followers of Jesus Christ, we still sin sometimes

              • What John is referring to is willful, continual, habitual sin

              • “An unbeliever who sins is a creature sinning against his Creator. A Christian who sins is a child sinning against his Father. The unbeliever sins against law; the believer sins against love.” ​​ [Wiersbe, 108]

              • We are not trying to deliberately disobey God, grieve the Holy Spirit, or take lightly Jesus’ sacrifice

              • We understand the importance of revering God

              • If we continue to sin, as a disciple of Jesus Christ, then we don’t truly understand or appreciate Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice on the cross [Wiersbe, 108-109]

            • Jesus came to take away our sin

              • The sacrificial system required a perfect lamb to be sacrificed in order to cover over their sins

              • Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29)

              • His perfect sacrifice did not cover over our sins, but took them away

            • Abiding in Christ

              • The key to not sinning is found in “living in Christ”

              • “To abide in Christ means to be in fellowship with Him, to allow nothing to come between ourselves and Christ. . . . It is this communion (abiding) with Christ that keeps us from deliberately disobeying His Word.” ​​ [Wiersbe, 110]

              • “Biblical terminology does not say that a Christian has two different natures. He has but one nature, the new nature in Christ. The old self dies and the new self lives; they do not coexist … The Christian is a single new person, a totally new creation, not a spiritual schizophrenic. It is the filthy coat of remaining humanness in which the new creation dwells that continues to hinder and contaminate his living. He is no longer the old man corrupted, but is now the new man created in righteousness and holiness, awaiting full salvation (Rom. 13:11) when he dies and is given a new body (p. 164).” ​​ [John MacArthur cited by Anders, 192-193]

          • The Apostles want us to understand that becoming more like Jesus takes reading and heeding God’s Word, being filled with the Holy Spirit, pondering and meditating on who Jesus is and who we have become in Him, and abiding in Christ.

        • We not only see this mark proclaimed to us through teaching, but also through a picture

    • METAPHOR: ​​ A Holy Nation (1 Peter 2:9-12)

        • Who we are, in Christ

          • Chosen race, royal priesthood, holy nation, God’s own possession, people of God, recipients of God’s mercy

          • The holy nation represents a nation that is pursuing sanctification

          • The reason is so we can proclaim the excellencies of God

        • Who we used to be, prior to Christ

          • Not a people

          • Not recipients of God’s mercy

        • What we should do as a result of following Christ

          • Negative

            • Abstain from fleshly lusts

            • “Sinful desires” is best understood as “strong desires motivated by selfishness.” ​​ [Anders, 1999]

          • Positive

            • Keep your behavior excellent/live such good lives/practice good deeds

            • Accusations [Anders, 1999]

              • Christians were accused of being disloyal to Caesar

              • They were accused of hurting local businesses, because they spoke against idol worship

              • Speaking against idol worship got them labeled as being godless

            • Peter is encouraging the believers to show the Gentiles, through their changed/sanctified/holy lives, that the accusations are not true or valid

          • The result of living this holy, sanctified life would be that the Gentiles would glorify God when Christ returns

        • So, how does this apply to our lives?

    • APPLICATION (how will we know if this mark of The Church marks Our Church?)

        • We will see evidence of God’s supernatural work in our lives (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)

          • Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. ​​ Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass (NASB1995)

          • The work of sanctification is the work of God in our lives as we submit to Him

        • We will see evidence of God’s sustaining work in our lives (Philippians 1:6)

          • For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus (NASB1995)

          • The perfecting work in us is God’s sanctifying work – making us more like Jesus

        • We will see evidence of our part in the sustaining work of God in our lives (Philippians 2:12-13)

          • So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure (NASB1995)

          • The working out of our salvation is again the process of sanctification

        • We will see evidence that we are being sanctified by time in Scripture (John 17:17)

          • Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth (NASB1995)

          • This takes us back to what we learned about sanctification from Jesus, the early church, and the apostles

        • We will see evidence that we are being sanctified through timeless obedience (Titus 2:11-15)

          • For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds. ​​ These things speak and exhort and reprove with all authority. ​​ Let no one disregard you (NASB1995)

          • Obedience over the long haul – denying ungodliness and worldly desires, living sensibly, righteously and godly, and looking for Jesus second coming

        • Our desire is to have a church filled with people who are being conformed more and more into the image of the Son (Jesus)

 

  • YOU

    • Idaville Member Survey from RESTOR Renewal Ministries

        • There was one of the five survey questions that was in the top ten of least difficult for us as a church

          • “I can confidently say that being part of our church has deepened my desire to be more like Christ.” ​​ (7 out of 10).

            • This is encouraging!

            • I am excited that most of us have a deepened desire to be more like Christ

            • Notice that the primary word in the sentence is desire

          • I think the next question helps us understand that while we have a deepened desire, we don’t really know how to act on that desire

        • One of the remaining four questions was in the top 10 of most difficult for us

          • “The people in our church understand what ‘sanctification’ means and the means God uses to sanctify us as Christians.” ​​ (4 out of 10)

            • I hope everyone of us can now define sanctification – becoming more like Jesus Christ

            • I also hope that we now know the means that God uses to sanctify us

              • Jesus taught us that sanctification comes from the truth, which is found in God’s Word the Bible

              • The teaching of the early church helped us understand that God is serious about sanctification and holiness in His church

              • The Apostles teaching helped us to understand that becoming more like Jesus takes reading and heeding God’s Word, being filled with the Holy Spirit, pondering and meditating on who Jesus is and who we have become in Him, and abiding in Christ

            • Spiritual Life Journal

              • There are two commitments in the Spiritual Life Journal that apply to God’s Word

                • “I am committed to read through the Bible with my Idaville Church family in 2022.”

                • “I am committed to memorizing one verse a month with my Idaville Church family in 2022.”

                • I would encourage everyone to make those two commitments

                • The daily Bible reading guide is close to the back of the journal and the monthly memory verses are in the very back

                • I want to encourage you to take it two steps further

                  • After reading the daily Bible passage, journal what God is saying to you through His Word

                  • Share what God is teaching you with another person

              • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Commit to reading through the Bible, journaling, and sharing what God is teaching me with others.

          • Where did the remaining three questions fall?

        • The three remaining questions all fell in the middle

          • “Our church has helped me to make a plan for my own personal sanctification.”

            • I do not know that we have helped each person make a personal plan for their own sanctification

            • We have definitely provided resources for you in the Spiritual Life Journal

            • Pastor Marc and I would love to meet with you, if you would like to develop a plan for your own personal sanctification

            • The initiative has to be on your part, otherwise it will not last

            • My Next Step Today Is To: ​​ Set up an appointment with Pastor Stuart or Pastor Marc to discuss my personal sanctification plan.

          • “It’s clear that the leaders in our church are consistently growing in their Christ-likeness.”

            • I trust that this will be more evident as we all pursue becoming more like Christ

          • “Our church consistently teaches on and encourages personal and corporate sanctification.”

            • As holiness and sanctification come up the various passages of Scripture that we are studying, I will make an concerted effort to highlight sanctification and encourage everyone to seek to become more like Christ

            • Our theme last year was “Pursuing Holiness”

            • We want to continue to do that even this year and beyond

 

  • WE

    • Vision

        • Core Values

          • “Our leadership strives to be led more by Jesus, to lead more like Jesus, so we can lead more to Jesus.”

        • Growth Strategy

          • Three+ Uniques – “Preaching and teaching God’s Word.”

            • Through the weekly exposition of God’s Word, we all have the opportunity to learn more about Jesus and who we have become in Him

            • We can learn about abiding in Him and how to do that

          • Proven Process – “Sunday school and Discipleship groups.”

            • Sunday school and discipleship groups are an great way to learn the truths of God’s Word

            • When we learn the truths of God’s Word then we can become more like Jesus

    • Traction

        • “Have a 10% increase in the number of people attending Sunday school and/or discipleship groups.”

        • “Have a 10% increase in the pursuit of holiness as evidenced through salvations, baptisms, and accountability.”

 

CONCLUSION

The altar is open this morning with members of our prayer team. ​​ You can come forward today and kneel at the altar or pray with one of team members about anything. ​​ It may be about something the Holy Spirit has spoken to you about through God’s Word. ​​ It may be something you are dealing with personally. ​​ You come as the worship team plays quietly and then leads us in the closing song.

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