by Pastor Mark Andersen
On a Sunday morning in late January, just after studying together the seven letters to the churches in Revelation, chapters 2-3, those in worship were asked to write down what they thought Jesus would say to the Herkimer Reformed Church if he were to address and send a letter to this church.
There was a section to fill out that began, “I know your works…”; a section that began, “I have this against you…”; and a section that began, “This I like about you…”. The members of the congregation filled out each section and placed them in the offering plate so that I and the consistory could review and consider the congregation’s responses.
Three main areas of concern emerged from the congregation’s responses. What follows is a consolidation of the congregation’s responses.
To the angel of the church in Herkimer write: These are the words of the Lamb who was slaughtered, and by whose blood saints from every tribe and language and people and nation have been ransomed.
I know your works. You feed the hungry and care for those who are in great need.
But you have fallen from your first love. You do not put me first in your lives. You are selfish and self-centered with your time and treasure, focused on yourselves, neglecting worship, often living for your own ambitions rather than my Kingdom.
You remain comfortable in your pews and in your homes and do not go out and share the Good News of the Kingdom of God with the people in your community. You pretend to love those who come to you, but you do not. You help those who are favored among you, but shun the least, the addicts, and those you don’t understand.
You allow petty things to affect your relationships with one another, gossiping, spreading rumors, and squabbling over money and property. You resist the leadership I provide for you and are often divided by issues of the church building and the content or length of the worship service. You are easily distracted by minor disagreements and perceived insults.
Repent, and turn from the ways in which you have walked.
But I see glimpses of faithfulness in you, and I see great hope for your future. You are growing and trying to be faithful, increasing in faith and your knowledge of me. You hold fast to my Word and trust in me. You pray for each other, lifting up those in need. I will continue to bless you.
Keep my word and patiently endure every trial and tribulation.
Those who conquer will be redeemed from humankind as first fruits for God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie is found; they are blameless.
Let the one with ears listen to what the Spirit says to the church.
This letter was read at the Ash Wednesday Worship Feast service and those gathered there had the opportunity to express what in the letter concerned them and what in it encouraged them.
I’d like for us all, in this season of Lent…a season of confession and sacrifice to consider what in this letter might be especially true of you. What is the Spirit saying to you? Consider what sin…what deficiency…what shortcoming…in you the Spirit might be speaking to through this letter, confess it before God, and change your behavior or practice in order to better please God.
If you need assistance in this regard or just someone to talk to about it, please don’t hesitate to contact myself, the Elder of the Month, or another trusted Christian brother or sister.
Lent is a season of repentance, confession, and sacrifice. Let anyone with ears, listen to what the Spirit is saying to the church.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Revelation
By Jan Foster
[Pastor’s note: Jan first shared this story with me the night of the first Revelation reading back in late January 2007. I had asked her if she would be willing to write about it for the newsletter and the benefit of the whole congregation. She graciously agreed. This past January, I sent a message on Facebook, asking for her permission to reprint what she had written for our current study of Revelation. Once again, she graciously agreed. She also commented that they recently had been studying Revelation in their church in Michigan, as well. As you read or re-read Jan’s story, remember that though Jan tells the story, as she says in the article, “it involves all of us.” Here is what Jan wrote.]
Imagine you are praying for a person or situation and suddenly you get a very sharp, clear, mental picture from God of what is about to happen. Most of my adult life I have been gifted with such visions. They come at unexpected times and in unexpected places. The one I want to share with you involves all of us.
Pastor Mark had planned an evening devoted to reading the Book of Revelations from start to finish, much as it was first shared with the Church. I was very much looking forward to this; and everything seemed normal until the actual reading was under way. Then I had a strong sense of something powerful, angry, and frustrated. It kept circling; prowling around the church outside - almost like a lion snarling, growling, and pacing. The feeling was so strong I actually looked through the windows in Mary's office and the doors to outside, expecting to see something there.
Feeling nervous and unsettled, I started praying and had a clear mental picture: our group; Pastor Mark reading; the Christ Candle glowing - all under a transparent dome, while outside it was very dark and frustrated winged beings (more than one, but not a lot of them) threw themselves against the dome. They were seeking to destroy or hurt us, veering off and flinging themselves down over and over. Yet, they were unable to penetrate the dome or do any damage. The feeling of being watched by angry, frustrated, dark beings continued throughout the entire reading.
I felt very safe within the building; but still kept glancing toward the windows and doors, wondering why no one else seemed to notice. I was also a little nervous about having to leave the church and go outside; but once the reading had ended and we started sharing our reactions, the impressions of rage and frustration outside vanished and were replaced by a sense of peace.
All the time that I was aware of these visions and impressions I was able to listen to the reading and appreciated the experience. Although I know how much Christ's enemies hate His Church, I have never felt anything quite like this before; and hope to not actually experience such feelings of anger, frustration, and rage directed at our church again.
[Pastor’s note: There are two things that I would like to bring to your attention about this experience. First, there is a very real spiritual dimension to our existence and the world around us. There are dark and secret things out in the world that hate Jesus Christ and anyone or anything that is connected to him. There are demons, angels, and spiritual beings that influence us and impact our lives on a daily basis that our modern, Enlightened minds have been trained to dismiss. But believe me, just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not real. Perhaps somebody else, like Jan, for instance, who has been given the spiritual gift of discernment, can see it.
Secondly, I would like you to note the power of the Word in Jan’s recounting of her experience. It was the reading of the Word, especially Revelation, that disturbed the “dark…winged beings” and enraged them against us (Revelation paints a pretty dim future for those who don’t belong to Christ, so it’s no wonder they were so riled up). But it was also the reading of the Word that protected us from their attacks. The writer of Hebrews says, “the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12). Scripture is a powerful gift from God, and the reading of scripture has an effect, not only for the one who reads it (aloud or otherwise) but also for the ones who hear it. And you never know who or what might be listening.
Revelation begins with a blessing: “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and who keep what is written in it; for the time is near” (Rev. 1:3). We were in fact doubly blessed by the reading and the hearing of God’s Word that evening. We were blessed because God protected us from those spirits that sought to do us harm, and we were blessed because God granted one of us (that is, Jan) a revelation of the world beyond sight.]
[Pastor’s note: Jan first shared this story with me the night of the first Revelation reading back in late January 2007. I had asked her if she would be willing to write about it for the newsletter and the benefit of the whole congregation. She graciously agreed. This past January, I sent a message on Facebook, asking for her permission to reprint what she had written for our current study of Revelation. Once again, she graciously agreed. She also commented that they recently had been studying Revelation in their church in Michigan, as well. As you read or re-read Jan’s story, remember that though Jan tells the story, as she says in the article, “it involves all of us.” Here is what Jan wrote.]
Imagine you are praying for a person or situation and suddenly you get a very sharp, clear, mental picture from God of what is about to happen. Most of my adult life I have been gifted with such visions. They come at unexpected times and in unexpected places. The one I want to share with you involves all of us.
Pastor Mark had planned an evening devoted to reading the Book of Revelations from start to finish, much as it was first shared with the Church. I was very much looking forward to this; and everything seemed normal until the actual reading was under way. Then I had a strong sense of something powerful, angry, and frustrated. It kept circling; prowling around the church outside - almost like a lion snarling, growling, and pacing. The feeling was so strong I actually looked through the windows in Mary's office and the doors to outside, expecting to see something there.
Feeling nervous and unsettled, I started praying and had a clear mental picture: our group; Pastor Mark reading; the Christ Candle glowing - all under a transparent dome, while outside it was very dark and frustrated winged beings (more than one, but not a lot of them) threw themselves against the dome. They were seeking to destroy or hurt us, veering off and flinging themselves down over and over. Yet, they were unable to penetrate the dome or do any damage. The feeling of being watched by angry, frustrated, dark beings continued throughout the entire reading.
I felt very safe within the building; but still kept glancing toward the windows and doors, wondering why no one else seemed to notice. I was also a little nervous about having to leave the church and go outside; but once the reading had ended and we started sharing our reactions, the impressions of rage and frustration outside vanished and were replaced by a sense of peace.
All the time that I was aware of these visions and impressions I was able to listen to the reading and appreciated the experience. Although I know how much Christ's enemies hate His Church, I have never felt anything quite like this before; and hope to not actually experience such feelings of anger, frustration, and rage directed at our church again.
[Pastor’s note: There are two things that I would like to bring to your attention about this experience. First, there is a very real spiritual dimension to our existence and the world around us. There are dark and secret things out in the world that hate Jesus Christ and anyone or anything that is connected to him. There are demons, angels, and spiritual beings that influence us and impact our lives on a daily basis that our modern, Enlightened minds have been trained to dismiss. But believe me, just because you can’t see it, doesn’t mean it’s not real. Perhaps somebody else, like Jan, for instance, who has been given the spiritual gift of discernment, can see it.
Secondly, I would like you to note the power of the Word in Jan’s recounting of her experience. It was the reading of the Word, especially Revelation, that disturbed the “dark…winged beings” and enraged them against us (Revelation paints a pretty dim future for those who don’t belong to Christ, so it’s no wonder they were so riled up). But it was also the reading of the Word that protected us from their attacks. The writer of Hebrews says, “the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12). Scripture is a powerful gift from God, and the reading of scripture has an effect, not only for the one who reads it (aloud or otherwise) but also for the ones who hear it. And you never know who or what might be listening.
Revelation begins with a blessing: “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of the prophecy, and blessed are those who hear and who keep what is written in it; for the time is near” (Rev. 1:3). We were in fact doubly blessed by the reading and the hearing of God’s Word that evening. We were blessed because God protected us from those spirits that sought to do us harm, and we were blessed because God granted one of us (that is, Jan) a revelation of the world beyond sight.]
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Biblical Fiction
by Pastor Mark Andersen
About a month ago, I saw a promo for a miniseries that was to premiere on the History Channel in early March about the Kennedy family. They were building it up pretty big. Having been born in the post-Kennedy era (and not generally a fan of made-for-TV movies) I wasn’t terribly interested, so I didn’t really pay too much attention to it.
A couple of weeks later a college friend posts on Facebook that the miniseries had been cancelled by the History Channel. On Friday, January 7, 2011, the History Channel released a statement about the cancellation, saying of the miniseries: “this dramatic interpretation is not a fit for the History brand. We recognize historical fiction is an important medium for storytelling and commend all the hard work and passion that has gone into the making of the series, but ultimately deem this as the right programming decision for our network” (www.usatoday.com). I didn’t pay much attention to it either.
Then, last weekend, I caught a show on the History Channel called “Ancient Aliens”. In typical documentary style, the producers interviewed several individuals who all gave “expert” testimony about the subject at hand, and the subject at hand was how earth had been and continues to be visited by extraterrestrials.
The show suggested that human beings are actually hybrids of early hominids like the Neanderthal. The show suggested that aliens visited earth millennia ago and genetically engineered homo sapiens mixing their own DNA with that of the hominids living here on earth. “All the ancient texts say that the gods made human beings in their image,” one expert said.
I liked this story better when it was called the X-Files. What a good show.
Some experts suggested that the aliens altered our genetic makeup in order to foster our evolutionary development and to help us reach our greatest potential.
I liked this story better when it was called Babylon 5. I have the complete series on DVD.
Some experts suggested that because of their vast technological superiority, the aliens appeared as gods to the early humans and desired or allowed themselves to be worshipped as such. The ancient gods of Babylon, Egypt, India, Greece, and others were really powerful alien beings, many of whom sough to enslave the human race.
I loved this story when it was called Stargate! I have all 10 seasons of Stargate SG-1 on DVD, too.
Actually, the first time I encountered the idea that the ancient mythological gods were actually very powerful alien beings was in a Star Trek (the original series) episode called Who Mourns for Adonais? which first aired on September 22, 1967. (I didn’t see it then, of course. I was born in the post-Kennedy era, remember?)
Some experts suggested that these ancient aliens brought about great disasters like the flood described in the Genesis in order to control the human population. Others suggested that aliens provided people with the means to escape natural disasters like the flood by providing them with a way to escape the disaster (like building a big boat).
These experts also suggested that aliens may have telepathically communicated with people like Leonardo Da Vinci and Albert Einstein, making them to be the exceptional and brilliant people that they were.
Suddenly the History Channel’s decision to cancel the Kennedy miniseries became very, very interesting.
The History Channel cancelled the Kennedy miniseries because, according to their own statement, they felt that its type of “historical fiction” didn’t fit their brand, yet they seem to have had no problem airing Ancient Aliens (which felt very much like historical fiction and was certainly highly speculative) as if it were recorded history.
I posted some thoughts about the show and the History Channel on Facebook, and my brother Scott made the following comment: “Mark, I used to like the History Channel. The last few years I have seen a lot of historical and Biblical fiction. The shows are designed to discredit the Bible. They mix lies with truth to give the lies credibility. Because many are being led astray or never come to a saving knowledge of Christ, so when talking with someone, I never miss an opportunity to defend the Bible’s credibility.”
I’m an avid science fiction fan (you may have noticed), and Ancient Aliens seemed like it might more appropriately fit on SyFy than on the History Channel. The History Channel feels like it shouldn’t mess with the story of the Kennedy family, but it has no problem suggesting that the God who created earth and heaven and all that is in them was really a kind of little green (or gray) man. I wonder what their standards for what qualifies as “historical fiction” really are.
The History Channel’s Ancient Aliens is only one piece of a larger, cosmic struggle between the Word of God and the ways of the world which has been going on since the fall in the Garden of Eden…a struggle for the hearts and minds of human beings.
Beware, friends, of the tantalizing tales of historical fiction told by the History Channel and other experts about the Bible, Jesus Christ, and his church, for they may seem like truth, be shrouded in history, clothed in authority, and be espoused by many “experts”, but they are not truth, friends.
If you want truth…if you want to know the truth about the Bible, about God, about Jesus Christ, or about the nature of the world, don’t look to the History Channel or any other channel. Read scripture, pray, and seek the company, guidance, counsel, and teaching of those who believe and who belong to the community of the faithful.
If you prefer biblical fiction, friends, then, may I suggest the History Channel.
About a month ago, I saw a promo for a miniseries that was to premiere on the History Channel in early March about the Kennedy family. They were building it up pretty big. Having been born in the post-Kennedy era (and not generally a fan of made-for-TV movies) I wasn’t terribly interested, so I didn’t really pay too much attention to it.
A couple of weeks later a college friend posts on Facebook that the miniseries had been cancelled by the History Channel. On Friday, January 7, 2011, the History Channel released a statement about the cancellation, saying of the miniseries: “this dramatic interpretation is not a fit for the History brand. We recognize historical fiction is an important medium for storytelling and commend all the hard work and passion that has gone into the making of the series, but ultimately deem this as the right programming decision for our network” (www.usatoday.com). I didn’t pay much attention to it either.
Then, last weekend, I caught a show on the History Channel called “Ancient Aliens”. In typical documentary style, the producers interviewed several individuals who all gave “expert” testimony about the subject at hand, and the subject at hand was how earth had been and continues to be visited by extraterrestrials.
The show suggested that human beings are actually hybrids of early hominids like the Neanderthal. The show suggested that aliens visited earth millennia ago and genetically engineered homo sapiens mixing their own DNA with that of the hominids living here on earth. “All the ancient texts say that the gods made human beings in their image,” one expert said.
I liked this story better when it was called the X-Files. What a good show.
Some experts suggested that the aliens altered our genetic makeup in order to foster our evolutionary development and to help us reach our greatest potential.
I liked this story better when it was called Babylon 5. I have the complete series on DVD.
Some experts suggested that because of their vast technological superiority, the aliens appeared as gods to the early humans and desired or allowed themselves to be worshipped as such. The ancient gods of Babylon, Egypt, India, Greece, and others were really powerful alien beings, many of whom sough to enslave the human race.
I loved this story when it was called Stargate! I have all 10 seasons of Stargate SG-1 on DVD, too.
Actually, the first time I encountered the idea that the ancient mythological gods were actually very powerful alien beings was in a Star Trek (the original series) episode called Who Mourns for Adonais? which first aired on September 22, 1967. (I didn’t see it then, of course. I was born in the post-Kennedy era, remember?)
Some experts suggested that these ancient aliens brought about great disasters like the flood described in the Genesis in order to control the human population. Others suggested that aliens provided people with the means to escape natural disasters like the flood by providing them with a way to escape the disaster (like building a big boat).
These experts also suggested that aliens may have telepathically communicated with people like Leonardo Da Vinci and Albert Einstein, making them to be the exceptional and brilliant people that they were.
Suddenly the History Channel’s decision to cancel the Kennedy miniseries became very, very interesting.
The History Channel cancelled the Kennedy miniseries because, according to their own statement, they felt that its type of “historical fiction” didn’t fit their brand, yet they seem to have had no problem airing Ancient Aliens (which felt very much like historical fiction and was certainly highly speculative) as if it were recorded history.
I posted some thoughts about the show and the History Channel on Facebook, and my brother Scott made the following comment: “Mark, I used to like the History Channel. The last few years I have seen a lot of historical and Biblical fiction. The shows are designed to discredit the Bible. They mix lies with truth to give the lies credibility. Because many are being led astray or never come to a saving knowledge of Christ, so when talking with someone, I never miss an opportunity to defend the Bible’s credibility.”
I’m an avid science fiction fan (you may have noticed), and Ancient Aliens seemed like it might more appropriately fit on SyFy than on the History Channel. The History Channel feels like it shouldn’t mess with the story of the Kennedy family, but it has no problem suggesting that the God who created earth and heaven and all that is in them was really a kind of little green (or gray) man. I wonder what their standards for what qualifies as “historical fiction” really are.
The History Channel’s Ancient Aliens is only one piece of a larger, cosmic struggle between the Word of God and the ways of the world which has been going on since the fall in the Garden of Eden…a struggle for the hearts and minds of human beings.
Beware, friends, of the tantalizing tales of historical fiction told by the History Channel and other experts about the Bible, Jesus Christ, and his church, for they may seem like truth, be shrouded in history, clothed in authority, and be espoused by many “experts”, but they are not truth, friends.
If you want truth…if you want to know the truth about the Bible, about God, about Jesus Christ, or about the nature of the world, don’t look to the History Channel or any other channel. Read scripture, pray, and seek the company, guidance, counsel, and teaching of those who believe and who belong to the community of the faithful.
If you prefer biblical fiction, friends, then, may I suggest the History Channel.
Monday, January 3, 2011
A Revelation
by Mark Andersen
I was driving to Schenectady for a meeting on a Tuesday morning. It was a fairly normal winter morning. It was cold, breezy, and it had snowed the night before.
My car, which sits out in the driveway, had required some ice-scraping and snow-brushing before I could leave the house. The defrost was on full blast on both the front and the rear as I backed out, and the wipers were still frozen in place.
The throughway was wet, of course, since it had snowed the night before, and before long my windshield began to collect dirty, sandy spray from the passing cars (and the cars I was passing). The defroster had since been able to free my wipers, so I pushed the level to spray the windshield with glass cleaning fluid that would clear up my vision.
The wipers leapt across my windshield, smearing the dirty, sandy spray across my windshield, but no wiper fluid came. I tried again, further streaking the dirt on the glass, but still no wiper fluid.
The sprayers were still frozen. I couldn’t get the windshield clean. The wipers just made it worse. I had to get to Schenectady, though, so I just kept driving.
Eventually it got pretty bad. I tried every once in a while, when I thought I had enough water on the windshield to wipe it clean, but the wipers weren’t working properly either.
Eventually it got to the point where I could barely see. I’d passed seeing clearly several miles back, but now I could barely see at all. It was time to stop.
I pulled over at the next travel plaza, filled up with gas and washed my windshield. When I got back in the car to drive away, I could see the world clearly.
This month, we will be beginning a studying of the book of Revelation. Revelation will be focus of our study together in worship as well as after worship in our discussion time and on Monday evenings at 7:00 pm.
Revelation is one of those books of which much has been said. In popular culture, Revelation is associated with fire and brimstone, apocalyptic, end-of-the-world kind of imagery. In the church, many people have given their two cents worth about the strange and unusual symbols (giant locusts with scorpion tails being Apache helicopters, among many strange and unusual interpretations). Most of the things we have been said about Revelation are about as useful for understanding Revelation as that sandy, dirty spray was to my windshield. They cloud up what was meant to be clear.
What we need to do to better understand Revelation is to stop and wipe away all the stuff we think we know about what it says or means, and come to the text again, with clear vision. Revelation is about making things clear. It’s about seeing the world clearly and revealing mysteries that have been long from view.
What we find in Revelation is a view of the world as it exists underneath its material form. Jesus Christ, who gives this revelation to the church, provides a word of encouragement to a suffering church and a word of challenge to remain faithful to Jesus, who suffered and through his suffering, conquered even death.
May your windshield always be clean and your vision of the world always be clear and true.
To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
by Mark Andersen
I was driving to Schenectady for a meeting on a Tuesday morning. It was a fairly normal winter morning. It was cold, breezy, and it had snowed the night before.
My car, which sits out in the driveway, had required some ice-scraping and snow-brushing before I could leave the house. The defrost was on full blast on both the front and the rear as I backed out, and the wipers were still frozen in place.
The throughway was wet, of course, since it had snowed the night before, and before long my windshield began to collect dirty, sandy spray from the passing cars (and the cars I was passing). The defroster had since been able to free my wipers, so I pushed the level to spray the windshield with glass cleaning fluid that would clear up my vision.
The wipers leapt across my windshield, smearing the dirty, sandy spray across my windshield, but no wiper fluid came. I tried again, further streaking the dirt on the glass, but still no wiper fluid.
The sprayers were still frozen. I couldn’t get the windshield clean. The wipers just made it worse. I had to get to Schenectady, though, so I just kept driving.
Eventually it got pretty bad. I tried every once in a while, when I thought I had enough water on the windshield to wipe it clean, but the wipers weren’t working properly either.
Eventually it got to the point where I could barely see. I’d passed seeing clearly several miles back, but now I could barely see at all. It was time to stop.
I pulled over at the next travel plaza, filled up with gas and washed my windshield. When I got back in the car to drive away, I could see the world clearly.
This month, we will be beginning a studying of the book of Revelation. Revelation will be focus of our study together in worship as well as after worship in our discussion time and on Monday evenings at 7:00 pm.
Revelation is one of those books of which much has been said. In popular culture, Revelation is associated with fire and brimstone, apocalyptic, end-of-the-world kind of imagery. In the church, many people have given their two cents worth about the strange and unusual symbols (giant locusts with scorpion tails being Apache helicopters, among many strange and unusual interpretations). Most of the things we have been said about Revelation are about as useful for understanding Revelation as that sandy, dirty spray was to my windshield. They cloud up what was meant to be clear.
What we need to do to better understand Revelation is to stop and wipe away all the stuff we think we know about what it says or means, and come to the text again, with clear vision. Revelation is about making things clear. It’s about seeing the world clearly and revealing mysteries that have been long from view.
What we find in Revelation is a view of the world as it exists underneath its material form. Jesus Christ, who gives this revelation to the church, provides a word of encouragement to a suffering church and a word of challenge to remain faithful to Jesus, who suffered and through his suffering, conquered even death.
May your windshield always be clean and your vision of the world always be clear and true.
To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
GLORIFICATION (Romans 8:12-23)
"We are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ--if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him." (Rom. 8:16-17)
Robert Reymond says:
"At this point Christians will enter upon their glorified state, the goal toward which the Triune Godhead has been relentlessly driving from the moment of creation, and that ultimate end which was of the first of the decrees in the eternal plan of salvation." (A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith, 798).
God’s end goal, brothers and sisters, for those whom he foreknew, predestined, called, and justified, is glorification.
The God who elects us, glorifies us. The God who regenerates us, glorifies us. The God who preserves us, glorifies us.
Glorification is what we have to look forward to. Glorification is the outcome of our faith. Glorification is the last step in the order of salvation. In order to inherit the Kingdom of God, we must be glorified…we must be purified…we must have that in us which is glorious separated from that which is not…we must have that which is priceless separated from that which is worthless. Our mortal bodies must put on immortality. Our perishable bodies must put on imperishability, for flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God.
Those whose end is glory, brothers and sisters, however, must be put through the fire…must suffer for the sake of Christ…so that we may by purified…sanctified…may be cleansed of the worthless stone that makes us weak until only the priceless gold, which can be made into something that will last, remains. The suffering we undergo for the sake of Christ makes us stronger, purer, and more glorious, brothers and sisters, and is a necessary part of our refinement as disciples of Jesus Christ.
As God’s elect, we have been adopted into God’s family. We are the children of God, and therefore heirs with Christ of God’s eternal Kingdom. Those who are called by God, who receive his grace, and come to faith in Jesus Christ like Jesus has been, will be transformed for eternal life in God’s Kingdom…transformed through suffering…transformed into something that will last. At the end of process of God’s salvation of his people, brothers and sisters, we will be glorified.
"We are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ--if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him." (Rom. 8:16-17)
Robert Reymond says:
"At this point Christians will enter upon their glorified state, the goal toward which the Triune Godhead has been relentlessly driving from the moment of creation, and that ultimate end which was of the first of the decrees in the eternal plan of salvation." (A New Systematic Theology of the Christian Faith, 798).
God’s end goal, brothers and sisters, for those whom he foreknew, predestined, called, and justified, is glorification.
The God who elects us, glorifies us. The God who regenerates us, glorifies us. The God who preserves us, glorifies us.
Glorification is what we have to look forward to. Glorification is the outcome of our faith. Glorification is the last step in the order of salvation. In order to inherit the Kingdom of God, we must be glorified…we must be purified…we must have that in us which is glorious separated from that which is not…we must have that which is priceless separated from that which is worthless. Our mortal bodies must put on immortality. Our perishable bodies must put on imperishability, for flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God.
Those whose end is glory, brothers and sisters, however, must be put through the fire…must suffer for the sake of Christ…so that we may by purified…sanctified…may be cleansed of the worthless stone that makes us weak until only the priceless gold, which can be made into something that will last, remains. The suffering we undergo for the sake of Christ makes us stronger, purer, and more glorious, brothers and sisters, and is a necessary part of our refinement as disciples of Jesus Christ.
As God’s elect, we have been adopted into God’s family. We are the children of God, and therefore heirs with Christ of God’s eternal Kingdom. Those who are called by God, who receive his grace, and come to faith in Jesus Christ like Jesus has been, will be transformed for eternal life in God’s Kingdom…transformed through suffering…transformed into something that will last. At the end of process of God’s salvation of his people, brothers and sisters, we will be glorified.
Sunday, October 25, 2009
PRESERVATION (Romans 8:31-39)
"For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)
Joseph A. Fitzmeyer writes:
“The love of God poured out in the Christ-event is the basis of Christian life and hope. No created being or force can unsettle that foundation. In all of the uncertainty of human, earthly life there is something fixed and certain, Christ’s love and God’s election. These are unshakable; and Christians must learn to trust in them and take them for granted.” (The Anchor Bible Commentary: Romans, 536)
The doctrine of salvation, and particularly God’s preservation of his people, is at the heart of the Reformation, brothers and sisters. Must we make atonement for our own sins…must we satisfy the justice of God ourselves…or has Christ done that for us already? Can we have peace, confidence, and assurance or our eternal salvation or must we live always in anxious uncertainty? Are we saved by works of righteousness…by being good or moral person…or are we saved by grace? These are the questions upon which the Reformation was built, brothers and sisters, as Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, and other reformers came to truly believe what Paul writes in Ephesians, chapter two:
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
The reformers also understood the truth that if our eternal salvation were, in fact, in our hands, we would have good reason to be anxious because we would most certainly lose it. We can never be good enough…never do enough to earn our eternal salvation or to keep it. We would mess it up somehow. We would always find a way to screw it up, because that’s what we do, isn’t it? We screw up. Pretty frequently, too, I’d say. We are sinful creatures, brothers and sisters, bent on satisfying selfish desires, and I guarantee you, if my eternal salvation was left in my hands, I would lose it…every time in a million tries.
But as the apostle Paul assures me, as Calvin comments, and as Luther came to believe through his study of Paul’s letter, perhaps ironically, to the church in Rome, my eternal salvation is not in my hands. There is no one in earth or heaven who can bring any accusation against me except Jesus Christ, and he’s the one who saves me. There is no thing in earth or heaven that can stand between me and Jesus Christ. There is no length of time or unforeseen event in earth or heaven that can separate me from God’s love for me in Jesus Christ.
I am saved because God has chosen to save me. My eternal salvation is in his hands, not mine. It’s his choice, not mine. It’s his job to keep my salvation, not mine. There is nothing I can do to earn my salvation because I can’t do anything good enough to earn that. There is nothing I can do to lose my salvation because I can’t do anything bad enough to separate me from Jesus Christ. If rulers, angels, life or death can’t do it…if things present or things to come can’t do it…if distress, persecution, famine, peril, or the sword can’t separate me from the love of God in Christ Jesus, how arrogant…how prideful…how sinful is it to assume that I can?
Nothing will be able to separate us…nothing has the power to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord…not rulers, not persecution, not angels, not an unknown future, not height, not depth, not anything else in all creation…not you…not me…nothing and no one has the power to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
This is the assurance of the gospel, brothers and sisters…that those who God has chosen to save, he will keep until the last day. The eternal salvation of the elect is secure because it is God who holds…God who keeps us…God who preserves us...God who saves us.
"For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)
Joseph A. Fitzmeyer writes:
“The love of God poured out in the Christ-event is the basis of Christian life and hope. No created being or force can unsettle that foundation. In all of the uncertainty of human, earthly life there is something fixed and certain, Christ’s love and God’s election. These are unshakable; and Christians must learn to trust in them and take them for granted.” (The Anchor Bible Commentary: Romans, 536)
The doctrine of salvation, and particularly God’s preservation of his people, is at the heart of the Reformation, brothers and sisters. Must we make atonement for our own sins…must we satisfy the justice of God ourselves…or has Christ done that for us already? Can we have peace, confidence, and assurance or our eternal salvation or must we live always in anxious uncertainty? Are we saved by works of righteousness…by being good or moral person…or are we saved by grace? These are the questions upon which the Reformation was built, brothers and sisters, as Luther, Zwingli, Calvin, and other reformers came to truly believe what Paul writes in Ephesians, chapter two:
“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—not the result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
The reformers also understood the truth that if our eternal salvation were, in fact, in our hands, we would have good reason to be anxious because we would most certainly lose it. We can never be good enough…never do enough to earn our eternal salvation or to keep it. We would mess it up somehow. We would always find a way to screw it up, because that’s what we do, isn’t it? We screw up. Pretty frequently, too, I’d say. We are sinful creatures, brothers and sisters, bent on satisfying selfish desires, and I guarantee you, if my eternal salvation was left in my hands, I would lose it…every time in a million tries.
But as the apostle Paul assures me, as Calvin comments, and as Luther came to believe through his study of Paul’s letter, perhaps ironically, to the church in Rome, my eternal salvation is not in my hands. There is no one in earth or heaven who can bring any accusation against me except Jesus Christ, and he’s the one who saves me. There is no thing in earth or heaven that can stand between me and Jesus Christ. There is no length of time or unforeseen event in earth or heaven that can separate me from God’s love for me in Jesus Christ.
I am saved because God has chosen to save me. My eternal salvation is in his hands, not mine. It’s his choice, not mine. It’s his job to keep my salvation, not mine. There is nothing I can do to earn my salvation because I can’t do anything good enough to earn that. There is nothing I can do to lose my salvation because I can’t do anything bad enough to separate me from Jesus Christ. If rulers, angels, life or death can’t do it…if things present or things to come can’t do it…if distress, persecution, famine, peril, or the sword can’t separate me from the love of God in Christ Jesus, how arrogant…how prideful…how sinful is it to assume that I can?
Nothing will be able to separate us…nothing has the power to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord…not rulers, not persecution, not angels, not an unknown future, not height, not depth, not anything else in all creation…not you…not me…nothing and no one has the power to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
This is the assurance of the gospel, brothers and sisters…that those who God has chosen to save, he will keep until the last day. The eternal salvation of the elect is secure because it is God who holds…God who keeps us…God who preserves us...God who saves us.
Monday, October 19, 2009
CONVERSION (Titus 2:11-15)
"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, 12 training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly..." (Titus 2:11-12)
John MacArthur says:
“conversion…means to turn back. And it's used in the new testament of…a sinner who turns back to God. Now let me give you a definition of repentance and in relation to conversion. Repentance is—let's put conversion as a total circle and split the circle in half. Half of it is repentance and half of it is faith, the whole circle is conversion. Repentance is the negative, turning toward God. Faith is receiving Christ. That makes conversion.” (http://www.gty.org/Resources/Sermons/1712)
Conversion, in the basic sense, means turning around in light of some knowledge that you didn’t have before, and going another way. Conversion, in the theological sense, means, as Paul writes in Titus, chapter two, to “renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly” (Titus 2:12)…to turn from our sinful ways, and live godly lives…to turn around and go God’s way instead of our own.
There are two parts to conversion. There is turning around, and there is going God’s way. In theological language the two parts of conversion are called repentance and faith. Jesus said, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news” (Mark 1:15). Be converted. Repent and believe.
Repentance is the first part of conversion. Faith is the second part, and by faith I don’t just mean an intellectual assent. I don’t mean just saying on Sunday morning, “I believe in God the Father almighty,” after the offering. I mean living according to the values and mores of the Kingdom of God Sunday morning, Monday morning, Tuesday morning, Wednesday evening, Thursday afternoon, and Friday and Saturday night, too. Faith is more than acknowledging that something is true, it is conforming my life in accordance with what I know to be true.
If repentance is renouncing impiety and the ways of the world, faith is living a self-controlled, upright, and godly life.
If repentance is saying, “I’m sorry,” faith is not doing it again.
If repentance is turning your back on the things that led you in the wrong direction, faith is walking away.
When we are converted to Christ, we begin a life of Christian discipline…of repentance and belief. To be converted means to be changed, brothers and sisters, to go a different way than the world around us…to trust in God’s Word, God’s will, and God’s way, and follow Jesus. We must be doers of the Word, and not hearers only. We must turn around and start walking. We must repent and believe. This is conversion.
"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, 12 training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly..." (Titus 2:11-12)
John MacArthur says:
“conversion…means to turn back. And it's used in the new testament of…a sinner who turns back to God. Now let me give you a definition of repentance and in relation to conversion. Repentance is—let's put conversion as a total circle and split the circle in half. Half of it is repentance and half of it is faith, the whole circle is conversion. Repentance is the negative, turning toward God. Faith is receiving Christ. That makes conversion.” (http://www.gty.org/Resources/Sermons/1712)
Conversion, in the basic sense, means turning around in light of some knowledge that you didn’t have before, and going another way. Conversion, in the theological sense, means, as Paul writes in Titus, chapter two, to “renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly” (Titus 2:12)…to turn from our sinful ways, and live godly lives…to turn around and go God’s way instead of our own.
There are two parts to conversion. There is turning around, and there is going God’s way. In theological language the two parts of conversion are called repentance and faith. Jesus said, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news” (Mark 1:15). Be converted. Repent and believe.
Repentance is the first part of conversion. Faith is the second part, and by faith I don’t just mean an intellectual assent. I don’t mean just saying on Sunday morning, “I believe in God the Father almighty,” after the offering. I mean living according to the values and mores of the Kingdom of God Sunday morning, Monday morning, Tuesday morning, Wednesday evening, Thursday afternoon, and Friday and Saturday night, too. Faith is more than acknowledging that something is true, it is conforming my life in accordance with what I know to be true.
If repentance is renouncing impiety and the ways of the world, faith is living a self-controlled, upright, and godly life.
If repentance is saying, “I’m sorry,” faith is not doing it again.
If repentance is turning your back on the things that led you in the wrong direction, faith is walking away.
When we are converted to Christ, we begin a life of Christian discipline…of repentance and belief. To be converted means to be changed, brothers and sisters, to go a different way than the world around us…to trust in God’s Word, God’s will, and God’s way, and follow Jesus. We must be doers of the Word, and not hearers only. We must turn around and start walking. We must repent and believe. This is conversion.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
REGENERATION (Titus 3:3-7)
"he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." (Titus 3:5)
Anne Graham Lotz writes:
“My mother led me in prayer as I confessed my sin to God and told Him I was sorry. I thanked Jesus for dying for my sin and asked God to forgive me. I told Him I believed Jesus had risen from the dead, and I invited Him to come live in my heart. I don’t remember any dramatic sensation afterward, but I knew my sin had been forgiven and I had been born again.” (“Be Sure of Heaven”, http://www.annegrahamlotz.com/about-us/be-sure-heaven/)
In John, chapter five, Jesus tells the people: “You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. Yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” (John 5:39-40)
The Old Testament scriptures, from beginning to end, speak about Jesus the Christ, and point to his coming, yet the people of his day, especially the scholars…those who were well versed in the scriptures…did not accept him as the Messiah. Why? Even when the Messiah stood right in front of them speaking directly to them, doing all kinds of miraculous things, displaying great power and wisdom…why did they not acknowledge him as the Messiah of God?
Because they had no eyes with which to see the truth that was right in front of them.
Because they had no ears to hear the gospel that had been proclaimed to Abraham and all their ancestors in the scriptures and proclaimed also to them.
Because the Holy Spirit had not regenerated their hearts and minds and spirits.
The proclamation of the gospel is not enough, brothers and sisters. Hearing the gospel story proclaimed is not enough to bring someone to faith in Christ. We all know people who know about Jesus…who have heard the gospel story…and reject it…who do not believe and turn and follow Christ. If the Holy Spirit regenerates people through the proclamation of the gospel, why doesn’t everyone who hears the gospel come to faith in Christ?
This is where knowing the rest of the order of salvation comes in handy.
Why do some come to believe and others not? The short answer is election.
God chooses…God elects…to regenerate some, and not others, therefore some come to believe in Jesus and others don’t. The unregenerate cannot come to faith because they do not hear the gospel when it is proclaimed. They do not see the truth that is set before them. Those who are dead in sin cannot respond to the gospel message because they’re dead.
What’s the difference between an atheist who knows the gospel story, who has studied the Bible closely, and has rejected it as false, and the one who believes the truth of the gospel, turns to follow Jesus Christ, and offers her life as a living sacrifice to the glory of God?
What is the difference between a blind man and a man who once was blind?
What is the difference between a deaf woman and a woman who once was deaf?
The difference, brothers and sisters, is regeneration.
The difference is that those for whom the Holy Sprit regenerates blind eyes and missing ears can see and hear the truth about Jesus. Those who are left blind and deaf, though they memorize the whole Bible, will never be able to see and hear its truth…will never come to faith in Christ…because they are still dead in their sins. They have not been given new life by the Holy Spirit. They have not been born again.
God chooses us. We hear the gospel. The Spirit gives new life.
"he saved us, not because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit." (Titus 3:5)
Anne Graham Lotz writes:
“My mother led me in prayer as I confessed my sin to God and told Him I was sorry. I thanked Jesus for dying for my sin and asked God to forgive me. I told Him I believed Jesus had risen from the dead, and I invited Him to come live in my heart. I don’t remember any dramatic sensation afterward, but I knew my sin had been forgiven and I had been born again.” (“Be Sure of Heaven”, http://www.annegrahamlotz.com/about-us/be-sure-heaven/)
In John, chapter five, Jesus tells the people: “You search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that testify on my behalf. Yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” (John 5:39-40)
The Old Testament scriptures, from beginning to end, speak about Jesus the Christ, and point to his coming, yet the people of his day, especially the scholars…those who were well versed in the scriptures…did not accept him as the Messiah. Why? Even when the Messiah stood right in front of them speaking directly to them, doing all kinds of miraculous things, displaying great power and wisdom…why did they not acknowledge him as the Messiah of God?
Because they had no eyes with which to see the truth that was right in front of them.
Because they had no ears to hear the gospel that had been proclaimed to Abraham and all their ancestors in the scriptures and proclaimed also to them.
Because the Holy Spirit had not regenerated their hearts and minds and spirits.
The proclamation of the gospel is not enough, brothers and sisters. Hearing the gospel story proclaimed is not enough to bring someone to faith in Christ. We all know people who know about Jesus…who have heard the gospel story…and reject it…who do not believe and turn and follow Christ. If the Holy Spirit regenerates people through the proclamation of the gospel, why doesn’t everyone who hears the gospel come to faith in Christ?
This is where knowing the rest of the order of salvation comes in handy.
Why do some come to believe and others not? The short answer is election.
God chooses…God elects…to regenerate some, and not others, therefore some come to believe in Jesus and others don’t. The unregenerate cannot come to faith because they do not hear the gospel when it is proclaimed. They do not see the truth that is set before them. Those who are dead in sin cannot respond to the gospel message because they’re dead.
What’s the difference between an atheist who knows the gospel story, who has studied the Bible closely, and has rejected it as false, and the one who believes the truth of the gospel, turns to follow Jesus Christ, and offers her life as a living sacrifice to the glory of God?
What is the difference between a blind man and a man who once was blind?
What is the difference between a deaf woman and a woman who once was deaf?
The difference, brothers and sisters, is regeneration.
The difference is that those for whom the Holy Sprit regenerates blind eyes and missing ears can see and hear the truth about Jesus. Those who are left blind and deaf, though they memorize the whole Bible, will never be able to see and hear its truth…will never come to faith in Christ…because they are still dead in their sins. They have not been given new life by the Holy Spirit. They have not been born again.
God chooses us. We hear the gospel. The Spirit gives new life.
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