A TIME FOR CONFESSION
#734 A TIME FOR CONFESSION
Matthew 16:13-16, NIV Orig. 1-19-79
Rewr. (10-85) 11-7-89
Passage: When Jesus can to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Purpose: To use the occasion of the Lord’s Supper to challenge my people of the need to lift up life and voice in confession of Christ as Lord.
Keywords: Christ Lordship Lord’s Supper Ordinance Communion, Confession
Timeline: None
Introduction
Not many of us are generally familiar with the writings of George Buttrick. His ministry to God’s people ended [long ago]. His books are still in circulation, but may not be known except to an occasional pastor or Bible teacher.
Mr. Buttrick’s is a name often quoted in seminary classrooms. He left insightful material relating to the work of pastors. Speaking to the Senior Class of Princeton University a number of years ago, he issued a pastoral challenge. His ableness of speech came out of the fact that he then served as pastor of Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City. Several in his audience were themselves going into the pastorate. He urged these graduates to “be with their people.” They were to be listeners in the marketplace to understand where their people are in life, and what they are thinking. He advised what some might find contradictory. I quote, “When you are at Coney Island, don’t tell the people of the concessions on the Boardwalk, about which they already know; tell them of the mystery of the sea, about which they do not know.”
It is a late hour in the saga of the evolution of life. We gain wonderful knowledge about our world every day. But the more informed we become about the world, the less concerned we seem to be for the mysteries of Christ. The question was asked of the disciples, for which we must have an answer: “Who do you say that I am?” I must know the answer. So must you!
I. It is Firstly a Question of Determination. V.13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” Examining the context we know that Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem. Luke 9:51: “He steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem.” (He fully/finally determined.) It is with knowledge of His death. He knows it will be violent.
Caesarea Philippi arcs His course southward. It identifies the time when Jesus’ public popularity is on the wane. Matt 13:1 “The same day…great multitudes were gathered unto him.” 12:46 “So many sought him (His mother and brothers)…could not get close.” 9:8 (after healing a paralytic) “when the multitudes saw it they marveled and glorified God who had given such power to men.”
We will not again see this public acclaim until Matthew 17:1-6: After six days Jesus took with Him Peter, James, and John the brother of James and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There He was transfigured before them…The disciples fell on their faces. Matthew 17:24 “Does your Teacher not pay temple taxes?” Mt 19:1-3: “Some Pharisees came to him to test him.” Mt 21:15: And when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did…they were indignant.”
It is as if some line of demarcation has been passed. Jesus had always faced opposition. But He had lived in the sunshine of a ministry marked by blessings/benefits to people around Him. He perceives the sun slipping behind the clouds, darkness invading the land. As He faces down Mt. Hermon’s flank, He knows another mount, called Golgotha, must soon be scaled.
“Up Calvary’s mountain, one dreadful morn, walked Christ my Saviour, weary and worn;
Facing for sinners death on the Cross, that he might save them (us) from endless loss.
Father, forgive them, thus did he pray, E’en while his lifeblood flowed fast away.
Praying for sinners while in such woe; no one but Jesus ever loved so.”
II. Secondly, it is a Question of Decision. V 15: “But who do you say that I am?” There was no debate about a right answer to this question. It was answerable in different ways: Saviour, Son of God, Anointed, Messiah. But all are answers that allude to God’s forgiving grace in Christ: that man has a sin problem; that only God’s answer suffices. Matthew 3:15 John hesitated when Jesus presented Himself for baptism. (Not because he didn’t know who Jesus was, but because he did. “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”
Too many today are uncertain as John was, but their confusion is from the speculation of doubt. There was speculation even back then. Healed people were instructed not to tell. (Matthew 8:4/9:30.). Evil spirits guessed His identity and were commanded to silence. Even John the Baptist later sent for confirmation. Luke 7:19 “Are you the Coming One (anointed) or do we look for another?” Jesus accepted this reticence. Luke 7:23 (His answer to John): “Blessed is he who shall not be offended because of me.”
Deal with your decision on the basis of being offended because of Jesus. Are there times when it embarrasses you for people to know you are a believer? During social upheaval do you tend to remain non-committal? Does the Swygart/Gorman controversy offend you? What about the SBC leadership stand-off? Are moral crises requiring polarization? There were reasons for reticence then. Jesus was not what the people expected in Messiah. He clearly was interested in more than mainline Judaism.
The militant sought to use Him to address their purposes. John 6:15 “When Jesus perceived that they would come and take Him by force to make Him a king, He departed again into a mountain alone.” There are even good reasons for reticence today: We faced the burden of our sin. The age grows the more complex, and the void grows wider. The lateness of the hour suggests the gravity of unbelief. The message is so unlike the means for making it known.
How do you describe a mountain panorama? The Grand Canyon? A beautiful sunset? A matchless symphony? A 50th anniversary of a devoted couple? But we do try, don’t we? And as well, we must share with those around us our faith in Christ.
“Who do you say the Son of man is?”
Conclusion
Do you recall the story from Uncle Tom’s Cabin? Tom was on the barge being taken with other enslaved people to the riverside plantation of Simon Legree. The name still makes us draw up in dread. Tom was trying to console another who had been sold away from wife and children. “Come unto me, all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” “Them’s good words,” said the other, “but who says ‘em?”
In a dark hour in Thomas Carlyle’s life, someone read to him from John 14:1. “Let not your heart be troubled…in my father’s house are many mansions.” The essayist replied, “Aye, if you were God, you had a right to say that; but if you are only a man, what do you know more than the rest of us?”
It is thus the Christ who calls us to answer: “Who do you say that I the Son of man am?”
WATCHING JESUS CLOSELY
#476LS WATCHING JESUS CLOSELY
Scripture Luke 14:1-14, NIV Orig. 3/13/68
Rewr. 1/30/85
Passage: One Sabbath, when Jesus went to eat in the house of a prominent Pharisee, he was being carefully watched. 2 There in front of him was a man suffering from abnormal swelling of his body. 3 Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in the law, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” 4 But they remained silent. So taking hold of the man, he healed him and sent him on his way. 5 Then he asked them, “If one of you has a child[a] or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull it out?” 6 And they had nothing to say. 7 When he noticed how the guests picked the places of honor at the table, he told them this parable: 8 “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. 9 If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. 10 But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all the other guests. 11 For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” 12 Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
Purpose: Using the occasion of the Lord’s Supper for a brief message relative to the interrelationships of Jesus at a supper.
Timeline/Series: LORD’S SUPPER
Introduction
Take note please that on a Sabbath, the Holy Day to a Jew, Jesus went into the home of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to share in a festive meal. It is said that the Jews normally ate two meals a day; but on the Sabbath a festive meal was added to the middle of the day. It is a joyful occasion.
Some people have a forlorn and complex view of Jesus as a man who never was other than serious. John Wesley founded a school near Bristol, England, where no games were allowed because “He who plays when he is a child will play when he is a man.”
William Barclay (G30p201) gives us some examples of this short-sighted view of the happy Christ. He quotes Swinburne, “Thou has conquered, O pale Galilean. The world has grown gray at the breath.” Julian spoke of “pale-faced, flat-breasted Christians for whom the sun shone and they never saw it.” And it was A.B. Bruce who said one “could not conceive of the child Jesus playing games when he was a boy, or smiling when he was a man.”
There were those present who were “watching Jesus closely.” Let’s join them and see what we can learn of our Lord’s disposition.
Observe Jesus’ Presence at the Supper. Jesus never refused any man’s hospitality. V1 “He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath.” Jesus went in response to a supposed kindness. It was a large gathering including lawyers and Pharisees. It included also an infirm man, either a plant or someone who happened in off the street. Jesus was not ill-at-ease in the surroundings. V1: “They watched Him closely.” Paratereo means “to watch with sinister intent.”
Note, please, that at such a supper given in His honor, Jesus is present.
Observe Jesus’ Activity at the Supper. He was there as a Pharisee’s guest. The lack of sincerity on the part of some would not change Him. He was there as a guest. However, one was present for whom something must be done. V4: “And He took him and healed him and let him go.”
Attention is called to the Pharisees’ lack of value judgment. It was the Sabbath. That was their excuse to do nothing. Jesus not only does what is right, he rebukes their do-nothing attitude.
At this supper given in honor of our Lord is the appropriate time to check our own values.
Observe Jesus’ Teaching about a Supper. V7: “So He told a parable” about being invited . . . to a wedding feast.” There is always relevancy in Jesus’ teaching. They were at a supper as guests. Some were not acting accordingly.
V7 “He noted how they chose the best places.” Thus, His teaching to them was a lesson in humility. V10 “When you are invited, go and sit in the lowest place.”
Note that it is a rare thing for us to think of ourselves as humble. What place would you want at the table where Jesus sat?
Observe Jesus’ Advice to His Host. He encourages him to examine his motives. Why do we do the things we do? Duty? Self-interest? To befriend? He had invited Jesus and perhaps the infirm man. Fearing what his friends would say, he invited them.
Do the right thing and let God provide the blessing. What better advice or higher goal could we accord than this? I will do the right thing, and I will wait for God to bless as he will.
***THE REMAINDER OF THIS SERMON HAS BEEN LOST***
FAITH MADE PERFECT
#036 FAITH MADE PERFECT
Scripture James 2:19-26 NIV Orig. 10-14-62
Rewr. 10-8-87
Passage: 19 You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder. 20 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless[a]? 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”[b] and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. 25 In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? 26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.
Purpose: Beginning the new church year with an emphasis on faith and church organization in conjunction with the Lord’s Supper
Keywords: Church Activity Faith Ordinance Lord’s Supper
Introduction
Tomorrow is a special milestone in our great Baptist Heritage. It represents a very special anniversary for Louisiana Baptists.
On October 12th, in 1812, the first Baptist work was begun in our state. That was the date, in Washington Parish, on the Bogue Chitto River, that the Half Moon Bluff Church was organized.
For 175 years, the gospel has been proudly proclaimed by Baptists of Louisiana. Those earliest believers, because of their location in extreme southeastern Louisiana, were for some years affiliated with Mississippi Baptists, but they were, nonetheless, the forebears of Louisiana work.
It was the same year, by the way, that Adoniram Judson left to go to Burma as a missionary. If you recall the story, you recall that he changed to his life-long Baptist faith on the ship that took him to a land that knew nothing of Christianity. He went, then, without support. His former denomination withdrew support. And it was before we Baptists were known for our missionary vision. These struggling churches, not unlike Half Moon Bluff, in the early Nineteenth Century, supported what missionaries that there were, on butter and egg money, by the women of the Ladies Aid Society, the forerunner of our Women’s Missionary Union.
It has been people of vision, working together organizationally, who have reared up this great Baptist heritage. It seems that some of us are satisfied to let some parts of it die. In the name of our Lord, and in His covenant with us in his own blood, I challenge you to be a strong arm of influence in our town and Parish, for our Lord, and for His church.
I. Faith Demands an Effort Put Forth. V22 “…by works was faith made perfect.” Make no mistake, they were not saved by works. Abraham faithed God. God imputed (deposited to his account). Those with children away at school have to impute solvency so that these young people will appear secure. That depositing of worth expects a response of concern. In other words, the works don’t save, but they prove the faith.
Our faith calls us to organize our concern. We organize a Bible teaching program called Sunday School for the teaching of the Word of God. A Church Training emphasis was organized years ago to personalize youth involvement and growth. Today it provides opportunity for growth in Christ, in Bible study, in ability, for all. Missions organization is just that, a means to share with all the prospect of service to the needs of humankind.
The 2nd Sunday in October represents World Hunger Day. Are you aware that 730 million people remain hungry every day? The wafer and juice we consume is more than many will have all day. In Ethiopia, 5-10 million may starve this year. In America, there may be as many as 3 million homeless. People working full-time at minimum wage are $1800 below the poverty line for a family of three.
Thus, faith is an instrument in our lives for good. Faith is belief. But it is belief to train, to work, to serve. And we begin where we are. Too many Christians assume that they are excused from such service. No person in this room is little qualified to serve Christ, none too old, or too feeble.
Rahab (v25) served, simply by becoming a relocation agent for God’s people passing through.
II. Faith Made Perfect is a Process Through Which We Grow in Our Understanding of God’s Will and Way. V26 “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” As a believer, I have a responsibility: To stay as close to the Lord as I can through Bible study, service activities, and mission involvement (Camp Harris), and to walk by faith—to live by faith—to work by faith.
As a believer, I have a responsibility to share. We share readily with those we love. When will our hearts be open to love those less fortunates for whom Christ died? We have been successful in the Georgia Barnette State Mission Offering. We will soon endeavor to opportunize the Lottie Moon Foreign Missions Offering. What can we do for hungry people?
Conclusion
Let me remind you as we turn our attention to the Lord’s Supper, that stewardship is a faith venture also. In the great text of II Samuel 24:24 about David and Araunah the Jebusite, Araunah was prepared to give whatever it might take in the King’s name. David’s reply is a classic. “Nay, but I will surely buy it of thee at a price; neither will I offer . . . offerings unto the Lord my God of that which doth cost me nothing.”
What better time, than now, can we offer to our Lord, that which comes of dedication and even sacrifice?
THE IMAGE OF THE CHURCH
#029 THE IMAGE OF THE CHURCH
Scripture I John 1:1-10 NIV Orig. 10-18-64
Rewr. 10/7/86
Passage: That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our[a] joy complete.
5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all[b] sin. 8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
Purpose: Lead my people in the observance of the Lord’s Supper with a brief message about our image as God’s people.
Keywords: Church, Image Lord’s Supper Ordinance
Introduction
I am not sure any longer what happened to it, but I used to have a book in my library entitled Games People Play. The author, Eric Berne, simply describes some of the ways that people pretend to be different than they really are. They imagine the kind of person they wish to be, or what they perceive others expect of them, and then they pretend to actualize that concept.
Children grow up playacting. In fact, it is one of the strong ways they have of perceiving the adult world of choices. Perhaps many have gone into chosen professions, including church vocations, who first playacted their way through some rainy day activity.
This fantasy world stops being a game when deception is being practiced. And remember, there are two kinds of deception: one, the kind when we deceive others; the second is the kind when we deceive ourselves.
Churches have to be careful also. We have a true image in our community. We want to be sure that the image being portrayed to our community is accurate, and that it is Christ-honoring.
I. The Church’s Image Is Seen in Her Fellowship. V3 “That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us.”
Is it the image of compassion or compensation? Who stands to benefit most?
Is it dependable or demoralizing? Someone asked me recently, “Have you ever had a friend really let you down?” “Yes!”
Is it indispensable or insensitive? Do we really look for opportunities to share our faith through acts of ministry?
Is it peace-making or pageantry? We by our attention, or lack of it, determine what our image is.
Someone has suggested that the church has become a babysitter for delinquent parents, and organizer of discreet partying. Even if that is accurate, we are not wrong if we continue other image functions that enable us to portray ourselves as the people of God. Psalm 119:63 “I am companion of all them that fear Thee, and of them that keep Thy precepts.” Ecclesiastes 11-12 is a treatise about human activity, and ends, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”
II. The Church’s Image Is Seen in Her Spirituality. V6 “If we say we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth.” Of what does the constituency of the church consist? Is it socially prominent? Is it wealthy? Are its members educated? Are they baptized Baptists? Remember that our church covenant requires that shared baptismal encounter. Is it a mecca of variant entities from throughout the community?
What the church should reflect: Those led by the Spirit of God to receive Jesus as Saviour; those who have publicly professed their faith in Christ; and those who declare their faith through worship and witness and ministry.
Regrettably, some speak of “The church within the church.” This is a divisive concept. Paul Tillich has defined faith as “ultimate concern:” Concern for self; concern for others; and concern for the output of our lives in association with others.
III. The Church’s Image Is Seen in Her Purpose. V7 “If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin.”
This is not one upmanship—It is a worthy walk of faith. It is Christ supreme in our lives that He might be perceived as supreme in all things. It is to give expression to the transcendence of God.
Conclusion
Someone tells the story of a new family that moved into the small town. Needing groceries, the housewife called a local merchant and discovered that he delivered. She placed her order, and soon a young delivery boy was at her door. While there she inquired about his name. “Humphrey Bogart,” he replied. “Why, that’s a very famous name,” said the wife. “It ought to be,” came the immediate reply, “I’ve been delivering groceries around here for years.”
Our image needs to be true, it needs to be our own, and it needs to reflect a servant mentality.