ON THE EDGE OF LIFE
#807 ON THE EDGE OF LIFE
Luke 7:11-17 NIV Orig. 11-23-80
Rewr. 10-25-90
Passage: Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.” Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, “Young man, I say to you, get up.” The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. They were all filled with awe and praised God. “A great prophet has appeared among us,” they said. “God has come to help his people.” This news about Jesus spread throughout Judea and the surrounding country.
Purpose: Continuing a Sunday night study in the lives of people around Jesus, here discovering Jesus’ reaction to a funeral
Keywords: Compassion Hope
Timeline/Series: Biography
Introduction
In my file are obituaries of all of the funerals that I have preached. I am not quite sure why this material has been saved. I don’t ever look through the list, I don’t even know how many there have been. I suppose there have been a hundred or more. Old men and women, but some not so old. A few have been youths, several infants. They always have merited special attention, but never has there been some passing thought of restoring life. We have gone about the intended business of depositing the corpse in the grave, and encouraging the mourners to get back to the business of living.
I suppose that Jesus went to other funerals. What His demeanor was there, I do not know. Surely, He was at Joseph’s funeral. And John the Baptist! When He went to this event, however, He went of purpose.
Billy Graham can go to London for a crusade, and 50 to 60 thousand people may come out to hear him. Millions more may watch a playback of the crusade a few weeks later. The impact of such a crusade is enormous.
Jesus had no such luxury. He had a commission from God (Luke 4:43): “I must preach the Kingdom of God to other cities also; for therefore am I sent.” The village of Nain is one of them, and one with a reputation. One of the roads out of town, perhaps this very one, led Shumen, where Elisha restored life to the son of the Shumanite (II Kings 4:18). They will be talking about this for a long time to come. I’ll just keep filing obituaries.
I. First of All, We Watch Jesus Seeing. V12 “. . . behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow.” The funeral procession was coming out from the town as Jesus’ procession entered. Do you see coincidence, or providence at work? Two crowds meet. One gives ground to the other. The women are at the front (A61.1 p. 180): “They who brought death into the world must lead it out.”
What Jesus sees however, is a grieving mother. Perhaps He thinks of His own, of the day when she will walk thus. He sees a widow about to lay to rest her almost grown son.
There are three such occasions recorded: A child raised immediately (Matthew/Mark/Luke); a youth from cemetery road (Luke); Lazarus after four days (John). The first, sought; the second, unbidden; the third, discouraged. In every case, the death angel admonished with few words: “Young man, arise.” / “Maid, arise.” / “Lazarus, come forth.”
Jesus saw the grip of death on mere mortals and He addressed it boldly. Shelly’s Adonais (lament for Keats). “As long as skies are blue, and fields are green, Evening must usher night, night urge the morrow. / Month follow month with woe, and year wake year to sorrow.” Wordsworth—She Dwelt Among the Untrodden Ways: “She lived unknown, and few could know when Lucy ceased to be: But she is in her grave, and, oh, the difference to me.” John Donne—Devotions: “Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”
Do I choose to leave my death to Jesus? Or another?
A long day in Oakdale haunts me still. Only relative a brother. When the time came, his remark to me was, “This won’t take long will it?” It’s the only time in my life I’ve wanted to hit a man.
II. Secondly, We Watch Jesus Feeling. V13 “When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not.” The feeling He feels for her is empathy. There is a place for sympathy. The distress felt by those who can’t, or won’t, do anything. The commiseration absolved by gifts. What Jesus offers is feeling for: Not the word for pity, sympathy;actually the word for bowel (spleen).
Have you felt such yearning to help that you actually hurt? Clearly, He works in the young man’s behalf, but He is not the object. All of us know the story of Hezekiah in II Kings 20: Hezekiah was spared from death and 15 years were added to his life; at Hezekiah’s death his son Manasseh became king at 12 years old. One of my questions centers around what became of the widow’s son. Did he follow?
We must not overlook His feeling for the people who saw, and who heard. There was a grieving company of family, friends, paid mourners, as well as many others who were in the group with Jesus. V11 “many disciples . . . much people.” V12 “much people of the city.” What happened there that day will be told far and wide. V17 “This rumor of him went forth.” As far as I know, only the KJV uses the word rumor; others use “It is logos, ‘word.’”
But see to it, this is not a public relations spectacle. Jesus’ heart hurts for this woman. It is within His power to do something. Compare the story with that of Elisha. Notice Luke’s special designation. V13 “And when the Lord saw her, His heart went out to her and He said, “Don’t cry.”
III. Only in This Last Regard Do We Watch Jesus Coping. V14 “He came and touched the bier: . . . and he said, ‘Young man I say unto thee, arise.’” There are certain things that we can bring to funerals. We can bring memories: how important they are, recalling things forgotten, other things not even known. What catharsis there can be. We can bring kindness and friendship. When a loss has occurred, the need is for stability; we saw that picture of a grieving Bossier City grandmother, upon learning of the deaths of two daughters and four grandchildren in a fire. We can even bring nourishment.
But what we cannot bring to the funeral is hope: We cannot clip the death angel’s wings. We cannot disengage unbelief’s power. This is exactly what Jesus brings to the funeral. Whether bidden or not, He brings hope. Whether in the milling crowd, or in the lonely vigil, He represents hope. In life’s confrontation with death, Jesus is hope. Martha: “Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.” John 11:21.
Conclusion
A children’s book tells the story of Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Alexander awoke to find gum in his hair; he tripped on his skateboard trying to get to the bathroom; got his clothes wet while brushing his teeth; had a particularly bad day at school; and a dental appointment awaited after school. He had lima beans for supper, bath and bedtime were a disaster, his pillow was gone, and the Mickey Mouse light wouldn’t work. His cat chose to sleep in his sister’s room.
If Jesus hasn’t been bidden to the funeral, nothing else will take His place.
THE CHRISTIAN ENTERPRISE OF LOVE
#757 THE CHRISTIAN ENTERPRISE OF LOVE
Scripture I Corinthians 13:1-13 NIV Orig. 12-10-61
Rewr. 10-17-65, 10-3-79
Passage: If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
Purpose: To speak to my people on the most worthy of subjects and call them to the goal of evidencing a likeness to Jesus in love for others.
INTRODUCTION
Perhaps one of the finest examples of love in action in our time was that which was lived out in the life of Elisabeth Elliot. Even after the primitive Auca Indians had slain her husband and other missionaries, she still was able to infiltrate those people and their culture and represent Christ in their midst. It should not be surprising then, that many of them came to know Christ as their Lord and Saviour.
A marvelous straightforwardness assails us in Mrs. Elliot’s book The Liberty of Obedience. She tells of the difficulties of her early months in this beginning work with the Aucas. When it became apparent that these people were responding to them, and that they could begin a larger work without fear, they had to decide how much of their own cultural deprivations that they would lay upon these people. She knew that Satan used certain human intemperances. Should she tell them what she had learned in her own walk in the faith? She wanted to tell them: “You must not tango. You must despise Cinerama. You must not wear make-up. You must not smoke.” But it became clear to her that these satanic influences as she had known them, did not exist here. The nearest movie was hundreds of miles away in Quito. They knew nothing of betting parlors and dance halls. Not wearing make-up could hardly be considered a problem in a culture where the people wore little or nothing at all. Mrs. Elliot declares that she came to the startling discovery for herself, and then for the Aucas, that Christianity is Christ. It is only indirectly related to one’s culture and its negative values. It certainly does not depend upon those negative values for its existence. What they must be taught is that Christianity is the inner presence of Christ . . . . The joy of obedience in liberty.
Perhaps no better definition of love will be brought forward. It is the joy of obedience in liberty. The enterprise that should occupy the time and the meditation of every Christian is how to love. It is learning freely to obey, not the Christ of a self-limiting culture, but the Christ within.
I. The New Testament Greek Has a Marvelous Facility: To Define Love.. We stumble with one four letter word with which we are to express the most important feeling in our language. If you want people to know how fond you are of ice cream, you love it. If you are of the mind to jockey for position with thousands of other drivers, park 10 blocks from the stadium, sit on hard seats in a smoke-filled arena for three hours, and often don’t even have the satisfaction of being on the winning side, then you love football. It has somewhat cheapened the word to use it thus when we contemplate its meaning when related to another person.
The Greek language has four magnificent words with which LOVE is defined.
The noun ερος (eros) and its verb form are used principally for love between the sexes, or perhaps even ambition or even intense patriotism. But even by the time of the writing of the New Testament the meaning of these words had degenerated to the place that they are not one time found in the New Testament. They had come to stand for a lower form of love. Our contemporary word “erotic” is a case in point. As a Christian, I may still be free to participate in an “erotic” film, or book, or TV program. I am not free to enjoy what is clearly not in my best interests. Joy, which comes from the Holy Spirit, will be absent in every such occasion.
The noun στοργε and its verb have to do with family affection. I can find no derivative in our language, although we pronounce the Greek word as “storgé.” Paul helps us here by using the word at least once. Romans 12:10: “Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another.” Not “brotherly love” as you might suspect, but “kindly affectioned.” Here the word is φιλοστοργοι, or philostorgos.
The most used word in Classical Greek is the noun φιλος “filos” and its companion verb φιλια “filίa.” It defines a close, affectionate relationship: husband and wife, parent and child, friendship.
By far the most common New Testament word is αγαπα “agapa” and the companion αγαπαν “agapan.” It appears 250 times. In classical usage it was more as a benefactor. The word became the epitome of Christian love.
II. This Word of Limited Use and Meaning Would Become the Vehicle for the Fullest Expression of Love.
I Corinthians 13:1f: Though I have the silver tongue of an orator and the voice of an angel; even if I had the gift of prophecy, understanding all knowledge; though I had all possible faith; though I give liberally to the poor; even if I were to give all of my vital organs to be used by others: and do these things for reasons other than love, it does me no good at all.
These prior words were self-limiting in their meaning. Erotic love would ever be that and nothing more—sensual pleasure. Biblically, sex is not a dirty word or an evil concept. It was an integral part of the marital relationship. Outside of marriage, it is more the biological function of the brute beast, than it is expression of human love.
The second word was limited to the feeling of warmth and affection between family members. While that is very close to Christian love, it may be that because this word was often used as an expression of devotion for the household gods.
Philia-love was undoubtedly a lovely word with deep meaning, but could properly be used only with that which was near and dear.
Christian love must reach a higher dimension. It must include the nearest and dearest, our friends and all who love us. 1 John 2:10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is no occasion of stumbling. It extends to all who are of the Christian fellowship. John 13:35: By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if you have love one to another. The expression “one another” is found often. Hallelujah in Hebrew means “praise to God.” Hallelujah in Greek means “one another.” Luke 10:27 Thou shalt love the Lord with God with all thy heart. . , soul . . , strength. . , mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.
Agapa, then, takes us beyond the family of faith to our neighbor, to our enemy, to the world. James 2:8: If ye fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself, ye do well. Which must always raise the question “Who is my neighbor?” To which we have but one answer, which is that of Christ. The parable of the Good Samaritan tells us clearly who is our neighbor.
CONCLUSION
Dr. James Sullivan, former Executive Secretary of the Baptist Sunday School Board, tells of a proofreader’s consternation that came about as a result of one of the many manuscripts that passed through the editing office. The author had used a phrase which is very familiar to all of us, “tabasco sauce,” but which was totally unfamiliar to the proofreader. She paused over this word, but finally decided that the author meant “tobacco” and changed the manuscript. Shortly after, a second proofreader was going over this paper, and came upon the expression, “tobacco sauce.” This proofreader decided that this had to be wrong, and changed it accordingly. You can imagine the consternation on the part of the author and publisher when the publication appeared using instead of “tabasco sauce,” “tobacco juice.”
It is just as easy to confuse people around us about “love.” Live the life so that friends, loved ones, even strangers will know the kind of person you really are.
***Daniel Hutto, of Wake Forest, NC, was of immense help in reproducing the Greek here***
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?”
KNOWING I AM A CHRISTIAN
#591 KNOWING I AM A CHRISTIAN
Scripture I John 5:1-15 NIV Orig. 10-29-72
Rewr. 11-4-86
Passage: Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God has overcome the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and the three are in agreement. We accept man’s testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. Anyone who believes in the Son of God has this testimony in his heart. Anyone who does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because he has not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.
I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. We have the assurance in approaching God, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.
Purpose: To help my people examine their relationship with God to the point of having assurance of faith.
Keywords: Doubt Revival Faith Word of God
Introduction
Having a guest in our home last week was a happy privilege. I have had occasion to think of such times when I was guest in pastor/family homes. One always stands out from all the rest. I arrived at my appointment at the prescribed time. The pastor took me to his home to settle in before the service that night. Entering the house, my friend explained that the teenage daughter had consented to relinquish her room for the week. She would be elsewhere in the house. I don’t know what negotiations went on before my arrival, but there I was, settling into a room that was decidedly not my style. It was sufficiently comfortable, but the decorations were nauseating. I spent the week under the watchful gaze of Bobby Sherman and Mickey Something-or-Other. And having to enter the room through a curtain made from aluminum can pop-tops left me a little fractious. There were two people praying for that revival that week. Both praying that it would pass quickly: her and me.
I am not the pin-up type. I wouldn’t even make room for Arnold Palmer or Jack Nicklaus. Sam Sneed maybe! Jan Stevenson certainly!
I do hold on to certain pictures occasionally. A brochure came in the mail awhile back. From an evangelist. It was so different I tucked it away for possible future consideration. The front contained a double picture of said evangelist. On the left side under a seedy looking individual was the following: Police Department, Houston, TX 71770. “Just as I am without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me.”
Opposite was a current picture of the same individual, shaven, hair combed, neatly dressed. Beneath this picture, Evangelist—“The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen could ever tell.”
A question emerges, Does Christ make a difference in a person’s life? If so, how can I know that I am a Christian?
I. First, We Must Certify How One Becomes a Christian. V13 “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.” One becomes a Christian by casting doubt aside, and believing. V11 “This is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.”
So there must be some analysis of doubt. Is it the doubt of ignorance? How often do we hear someone respond to questions of faith? John says in V13 “These things (are) written, that you may know fully.” Paul expressed his belief clearly that he knew which he had believed. He likewise instructed Timothy to “study to show himself approved unto God.” If doubt exists, and it is the doubt of ignorance, heed God’s word. Take seriously the witness of Christian friends who certify faith.
Perhaps your doubt is only the doubt of inexperience. Akin to that causing Abraham distress when he was directed from Ur to some unnamed land afar off. Dealing with doubt was in the going. Or that bothering the spies. Two exceptions were Joshua and Caleb. The spies saw the land and the enemy. They saw a land worth keeping, and men worthy of such keeping, and they were afraid. Victory, and disposal of doubt awaited going forth in battle. Jesus stood one day at the door of your life and knocked, waiting to be invited in. He has been there before, as He is now, and faith awaits disposal of doubt and asking.
It may also be that the doubt is the doubt of strangeness. Let the story of Balaam alone be a sufficient warning. In Numbers 22 Balaam, who had a kind of faith in God, was tempted to curse Israel. His stubbornness before God brought him to the brink of death. An angel of God blocked his path, and his donkey sensed the danger before he did. Faith in the face of stubborn doubt may not be easy, but surrender to God is required.
II. One Has Assurance that He is a Christian by Taking Hold of the Word of God. V10b “He who does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God has given.” There are parallel verses from the pen of John. 1 John 5:13 “These things were written to those who believe that you may know that you have eternal life.” John 20:31 “…Written that you might come to believe that Jesus is the Son of God and that believing you might have life.”
So the Word is there, available to us all. We must grasp the rightness of its message for us. Listen in as Elizabeth speaks to Mary. Luke 1:45 “…You believed that God would do what He said. That is why He has given you this wonderful blessing.” (LB) Hear what God said in the parable of the seed, Luke 8:15. “The good soil represents honest good-hearted people. They listen to God’s words, and cling to them and steadily spread them to others who also believe.” Do not be so quick to ignore a text of the early church, comparing Berea to Thessalonica. Acts 17:11 “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, or they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.” (Jews as well as Gentiles.)
We are able to hold onto the Word of God because we trust the character of God. Luke 12:32 “Fear not little flock, for it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” What kind of father uses gifts to control his children? Not a good one. Not for long. The Heavenly Father does not give to get or to goad or to gauge. He gives because he is genuine and generous and good. He invites us to be of one stock, with Him.
III. Before We Conclude, a Brief Word of Counsel. Don’t let the circumstance of your daily life nurture doubt. Psalm 63:1 “My soul thirsteth for thee. My flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is.” In poetry and song we equate sunshine with good fortune.
“O they tell me of a home far beyond the skies,
O they tell me of a home far away.
O they tell me of a home where no storm clouds rise,
O they tell me of an unclouded day.”
But we have seen those places marked by unending sunshine, where no clouds ever appear. It is a land through which course no streams, where no springs gurgle, and without tree or flower.
Assurance of faith is not determined by trouble-free life. It is determined by our desire to know and do the will of God. John 7:17 (Phillips) “If anyone wants to do God’s will, he will know whether my teaching is from God, or whether I merely speak on my own authority.”
Conclusion
We mentioned pin-ups earlier. What do you see in the picture gallery of your own life? Can you visualize a before and an after in relationship to God? Can you identify a time when the picture changes? What do you see that is different now? How was it before Christ came? If He has not, why do you detain Him? Why do you leave the door closed on such a One?
V12 “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”
THE MAN NAMED JOHN
#501 THE MAN NAMED JOHN
Luke 1:5-15a NIV Orig. 12/14/1990
In the time of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest name Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commandments and regulations blamelessly. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years. Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.
Purpose: Continuing a series for Sunday evenings on New Testament characters, here presenting John the Baptist as a man striving to please God.
Keywords: Biography John the Baptist’s History
Timeline/Series: Sequential/New Testament Characters
Introduction
As noted last week, we are indebted to Luke for much that we know about John’s roots. All of chapter one, remember, is unique. In that lengthy chapter, VV 5-25 and 57-80 tell us about the birth of John, and the near-miraculous nature of his conception.
Zechariah was a priest, married to Elizabeth who was also of the priestly line. They were godly people, of advanced age, who had struggled somewhat with the barrenness of Elizabeth.
The estimates for the time suggest that there may have been as many as 18,000 priests divided into the 24 courses. All would be in Jerusalem for the major festivals (Passover, Pentecost, Tabernacles). Otherwise, each course would serve one 8 day stint every six months in Jerusalem, from Sabbath to Sabbath (BI F88 p49).
One day Zechariah was chosen by lot to burn incense in the temple. (Exodus 30/I Kings 11). This happened morning and evening each day, however in the morning four were involved, in the evening only one. It is likely that this honor would fall to a man only once in his lifetime.
He entered the Holy Place, took incense from a bowl, and put it on burning coals atop the altar of incense, and then prostrated himself for a short period of prayer.
I. In This Setting, Then, the Angel Gabriel Made His Appearance, Gave His Message of the Birth of a Special Son. (Luke 1:14-16). Because of his disbelief, Zechariah would become mute, which, with recovery of speech at John’s birth, would be an enabler of many people recognizing this birth as a step, or a fore-work of the coming of the Messiah (V 76-79) “And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace.”
Conclusions that we can reach about this man named John are drawn from v 13 “Thy wife Elizabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.” Repeating what is already established, the parents were elderly, childless; they were both of priestly lineage (of the division of Abijah: I Chron 24). There is a familial link between John/Jesus. Mary and Elizabeth were kin (v 1:36 “Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.”) Their babies enjoyed unusual, even miraculous, births. Both would bear names given them by the angel Gabriel: John—Yahweh gives grace, and Jesus—Yahweh is salvation.
Of the boyhood of John, we can only surmise. He was to be reared a Nazirite V 1:15. The Nazirite vow is described in Numbers 6, and Samson and Samuel are examples. Who takes over to rear a child born in the twilight of life? No family is left to assume responsibility. One thing is known: v 80 “And the child was in the wilderness till the day of his manifestation to Israel.” One strong tradition suggests that John was reared by the Essenes, who were known to take orphaned boys and to live by strict rules of abstinence. What this does not address is the fact of John’s priestly lineage. It would be expected of him. One writer (BI W82 p36) suggests he kept this covenant, but broke with them discovering what many had become. We might well divide them today between liberal and conservative.
Matthew’s description of John lead us to close the door on the Essenes. His raiment was camel’s hair; he wore a leather girdle; his diet was of locusts and honey; and he had a message as austere as his dress. His message was as austere as his dress. V 3:8 “Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.”
II. Our Next Concern, Therefore, Must be Message. Luke 3:3 “he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” The gospel writers all affirm a prophet. Luke (1:15) brings in the Holy Spirit, the Source of the divine message.
The message proclaimed is repentance. For us: a change of mind as consequence of sin. New Testament Greek: a change of mind from evil to good, worse to better. The Old Testament word for repentance: shuv is more often translated “return again.” Remorse, regret, humiliation, grief because of sins against God mean much more than tears. I Kings 21:27: “When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and fasted. He lay in sackcloth and went around meekly. Hebrews 12:17: Esau “found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.”
That repentance was to show in their lives. Their deeds were to give evidence. “Fruits meet worthy”—from the Greek axiom. Our “axiom” means self-evident truth.
Additionally, John was to be the one who would introduce the Messiah. It was a call to preparation. “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.” Matthew 3:3/Luke 3:4. There is no need even to comment on his expectation of a particular person. How well did he and Jesus know each other? The link of their mothers does not guarantee any relationship. John recognized Jesus as the appointed one. Did he, however, recognize Jesus as the son of his mother’s kinswoman?
III. Finally, What Stands Out of John’s Example? V16 “And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.”
His ministry began as a prophetic ministry of preaching and baptism. Luke 3:3 “preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sin.” Some say the unnamed disciple of John the Baptist (1:35f) was the other John. John the Baptist offered the example of prayer. Luke 1:11 “Lord, teach us to pray as John also taught his disciples.” Certain aspects can be taught. We know it more caught than taught.
He taught them to fast (abstain from food). Matthew 9:14 “Then came to him the disciples of John saying, Why do we and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not?” Pharisees: practiced legalism which Jesus rebuked. Religious disciples from his Spartan days with the Essenes. Jesus’ answer to them (Matthew 9:15) was that “the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.”
Conclusion
We still have much to learn from John in the exercise of commitment. What they learned from him they practiced. They were jealous for him. In John 3:25 they argue with the Jews, and question John about Jesus’ early success. John’s disciples are still at work long after his death. In Ephesus (Acts 19:1f, c. 65A.D.) “disciples” of John the Baptist are ministered unto by Paul, subsequently baptized “in the name of the Lord Jesus.”
Though, as this indicates, some were slow to follow, John the Baptist pointed people to Jesus. His whole ministry was predicated on forecasting the Messiah. Four Gospels: “Prepare ye the way of the Lord.” The “way” is the very word used by Jesus of Himself. John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father but by me.” He exercises a humility in relation to Jesus that most of us have yet to learn. John 1:27, 30: “He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie….This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’” John 3:30: “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
COMPLACENT CROWD OR COMMISSIONED CHURCH
#498 COMPLACENT CROWD OR COMMISSIONED CHURCH
Scripture Luke 14:16-24, NIV Orig. 5-26-68
Rewr. 7-18-91
Passage: 16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ 19 “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ 21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ 22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ 23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”
Purpose: Addressing my people on the need for the followers of Christ to confirm in daily living all things vital in showing ourselves committed followers of Jesus.
Keywords: Christ Lord Commitment Complacency
Timeline/Series: Luke
Introduction
The article stared back at me from the daily paper (Town Talk, 5-24-67). The dateline, San Francisco, should have given it away at once. Weirdness seems to regularly first test its mettle there.
I read on anyway. “A well-proportioned brunette tiptoed through a hushed room decorated with a stuffed rat, two crows, and a skull. She took off her clothes and lay down on a leopard skin covering a mantle. All was ready for the baptism of a child.
“Anton Szandor Lavey,” continued the article, “who calls himself a sorcerer and the high priest of the First Church of Satan, baptized his gum-chewing three year old daughter Tuesday night as a hooded organist played ‘The Hymn to Satan.’”
We read such things with measured disgust, and tense up trying to pat ourselves on the back: “I thank God that I am not as other men.”
Do you suppose there is a difference in the mind of God? Think you that He sees this Satanism ploy any differently than He sees people in a Baptist, Methodist, etc., church, whose only telling influence is that they are gathered around an altar?
Here we are in our Sunday best. Some of us. Seated here in our comfortable, contemporary, even conservative pews. Add to that our disdain for what Lavey and his crowd conjure up. Is that enough to earn for us the favor of God? Or does it take personal response, commitment even, to be a follower of Christ?
I. The Signs of Complacency are Clearly About. V18 “And they all with one consent began to make excuse.” Actually, the three major concerns of life figure into this parable. One addresses his occupation, another his fascination, the last his adoration. So we examine one’s vocational life, the avocational life, the invocational life. See it as job, as fun, as church.
Remember, this is a parable, and therefore, contains teaching meant for our ears, too. Jesus was out touching lives: down-and-outers. He was at a feast in the home of a prominent Pharisee. It all started with a pontification. One of the guests said, V15 “Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the Kingdom of God.” He was inspired, perhaps convicted. Now he would inspire others. Jesus’ response was to direct his teaching to their complacency. Excuse, job-related: this piece of land has to be put to proper use. Excuse, avocation: pull-off involving five yoke of oxen, a tractor-pull. Excuse, religious devotion: “I have married a wife.”
Deuteronomy 24:5 tells us, “When a man hath taken a new wife he shall not go out to war, neither shall he be charged with any business, but he shall be free at home . . . to cheer up his wife.”
So, in the parable, these guys have been honored by one more honorable than they. It was to be a festive occasion. They wanted, expected, to be invited, and would be insulted not to. The corollary, I would remind you, is our invitation to the faith feast honoring God’s Son. “I want, expect, to be invited,” you say, “but it must be convenient.”
We could spend a lot of time here talking about excuses. We could lose our jobs. We have let pleasure take us where it would; in the tractor/taffy pull, “Go for the gold!” We even use our religion as an excuse.
II. The Expectation Here is Commission. V16 “A certain man made a great supper and bade many.” V21 “Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither.” The oriental feast had a special dimension. The invitation was for an appointed day. It was understood that the hour awaited preparation. They were to stay ready. They were to come when called. As they had accepted the invitation, they were to keep themselves available.
The wealth of talent in the contemporary church is extraordinary: People capable of turning the wheels of industry; professionals, teachers, gifted laborers. Imagine, all those talents dedicated.
Hey, I have an idea. Let’s dedicate our avocations to the Lord also. Did you see that delightful piece about Darryl Strawberry? He became a Christian, and he doesn’t play out of anger anymore. But how many athletes, musicians, entertainers, entrepreneurs, have a new mountain to climb? Christ is the Lord of what they are doing.
Very little of what it takes to be a Christian takes place here from 11 to 1. Does it bring you back at 7pm? What is your prayer life like? The worst excuse of all is blaming the pulpit.
Friendliness is an avocation: earnestness, enthusiasm. When you are out of your place, you have left a void that cannot be filled.
Leave some room for commitment invocationally, also. The chairs at the feast are going to be filled, not by the most worthy citizen, but by the most enthusiastic, the most responsive.
III. Finally, Do Not Overlook Intent. V24 “None of those men that were bidden shall taste of my supper.” Make no mistake, we are dealing with the purview of God here. The invitation went out clear to all in nature. Romans 1:20 “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, . . . so that they are without excuse." Jeremiah 31:31 “Behold days are coming when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.”
But God’s invitation came yet again. Romans 8:1 “There is now therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ.” Here the meaning came clearly. The second invitation came, the clearest of directives. The feast is prepared, you must decide. Romans 8:31 “What shall we then say to these things, if God be for us, who can be against us?”
To ignore the summons, to be complacent about the invitation is to court disaster. V24 as above—“none that were bidden shall taste of my supper.” Romans 10:1f “My heart’s desire . . . for Israel is, that they might be saved. . . For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness. . . , and going about to establish their own righteousness. . . , have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that believeth.”
The message then of the parable is fourfold. It tells of the provision of the feast. It tells us of the people invited to the feast who think themselves worthy, who know themselves unworthy. It tells us of the prospect of complacency. It tells us of punishment awaiting negligence. So it is a promise of provision through faith.
Conclusion
A young man is said to have approached a holy man of India standing by the Ganges River. “How may I find God?” he speculated. The holy man seized him and thrust him violently under the water. “Why did you do that?” he sputtered. “When you long for God as you longed for air, you will find.”
CHRIST THE JUDGE
#491 CHRIST THE JUDGE
Scripture Acts 17:31, NIV Orig. 4-28-68
Rewr. 2-20-91
Passage: For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.
Purpose: Continuing a series for Easter on Jesus’ nature, here seeing Him as the One in whom ultimate judgment must rest.
Keywords: Christ Judge Judgment Revival Nature of Christ
Timeline/Series: Easter/Other
Introduction
Most of us, because of inoculations administered when we were children, have little fear of such diseases as small pox and diphtheria. However, contagious diseases are still a great concern. We are reading about the cholera epidemic in Peru. The Centers for Disease Control reports on other problem areas in the world. Here in our own country, HIV is a terrible risk. Deviant sexual behavior is not its only source. Every winter, millions of people regularly take flu shots in a sometime fruitless attempt not to catch the flu during the peak-susceptibility cold weather months. We want to think of ourselves as invulnerable to disease.
Thankfully, some things have been brought under control. Others are as death-dealing as ever they have been. We must be sensible in our approach to health. We must generate a healthy lifestyle. Even with one, we are not completely invulnerable.
One of the myths of the ancients was that of a man named Achilles. He was the son of Peleus and Thetis. His father was noted for bravery during the Trojan Wars. Because his mother perceived that he would follow in his father’s steps and would thus face danger, she feared for his vulnerability. While a baby, she dipped Achilles in the River Styx, presumably to thus cover him with a shield of protection. He was thus submerged over the entirety of his body except the one spot on his heel where she held him. The myth informs us that it was in that heel years later that Achilles was mortally wounded.
In our day, even, an Achilles heel is a personal weakness for which there seems to be no solution. We can protect ourselves and our families from a few of life’s dangers, but not all. We may spend a fortune in the process and yet be vulnerable.
The question raised by all of this is, “What good is an almost invulnerability?” Why would people work with such determination to protect themselves from the vicissitudes of life, and pay no mind to the facing of the judgment of God? It is this judgment that we seek to address this morning as a part of the nature of Christ.
I. It is a Judgment of Appointed Time. “He hath appointed a day.” There are places in the world where time means little. People live in routine existence. Sameness controls their lives.
For most of us, everything is by appointment. We work appointed schedules. Our children practice ball, music, art, taekwondo, by appointment. We even meet our friends by appointment.
A four-year-old told her parents, just after her fourth birthday, that she wanted a baby brother for her next birthday. As if by appointment, on her fifth, he was born. Her mother was barely home from the hospital when the girl said she wanted a sister for the next one. On that very day a little girl was born. The little girl came breathlessly into the room, but was interrupted by her mother asking, “Susie, how would you like a puppy for your birthday, next year?”
The judgment of God will be by decree. John 5:28f “The hour cometh in which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, to the resurrection of life; they that have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.”
II. It is Likewise a Judgment of Universal Scope. “He will judge the world.” Every evil scheme will fall under the searching eye of God. Paul had been brought out of Berea by his friends because of dangers. They came here to Athens. Doubtless, the same message that drove him from Berea, he preaches here. Remember, these are the philosophers, scholars, learned men. Architecture, art, philosophy know no equal. There are no advantaged people before God. The message is the same to all.
Read the message preached in Acts. The life of Jesus, the death, forgiveness. Why would Jesus go through the struggle of the cross if it meant nothing? What it means is forgiveness. What it means is deliverance from the resurrection of judgment.
III. It is a Judgment Administered in Righteousness. “He will judge the world in righteousness.” There is much injustice in our world. History alludes to its presence in every time, clime, and culture. Hitler is a prime example. Russia represses the Baltic States.
There are evident Biblical examples. Psalmist: 73:6-8 “Therefore pride is their necklace; The garment of violence covers them. Their eye bulges from fatness; the imaginations of their heart run riot. They mock, and wickedly speak of oppression; They speak from on high.” In v16 he continues: “it was too painful for me, until,” he said, “I remembered what is in store or them.”
How many times the man on the street has no idea what really happens in the halls of Congress, in the state house, among the military tribunals, in our private enclaves. –But God knows, and justice will be done.
IV. It is Judgment Administered by a Chosen Agent. “He will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained.” Christ is this specially chosen vessel on the basis of his character, because His talk and His walk have been without sin. His knowledge is flawlessly accurate. An Anglican burial service contains the words: “holy and merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge eternal.”
The 19th century Scottish preacher Alexander Whyte wrote “The righteousness of God is that righteousness which His righteousness requires Him to require.” How does this measure against John 8:15 “I judge no man”? He meant “to divide,” “to separate.” John 8:15, again. “You judge after the flesh. I do not.”
It is human to issue rewards on the basis of favoritism. But Deuteronomy 1:17 reads “You shall not show partiality in judgment; you shall hear the small and the great alike. You shall not fear man, for the judgment is God’s. And the case that is too hard for you, you shall bring to me, and I will hear it.”
V. It is a Judgment Consummated in Hope. “Whereof He hath given assurance to all men, in that He hath raised Him from the dead.” Paul speaks of what they now have experienced. It was not so clear before. Job: “If a man die, shall he live again?” David: “I can go to him, but he cannot return to me.”
But it is clear now. Jesus, who was dead, lived again. Herein, the Christian witness is different from all others. For the Hindu, reincarnation offers only a proposed re-birth to a higher caste, or as a bug. Communism has a dead saviour whose coffin was a shrine.
The New Testament, however, declares that the resurrection brings the believer into a state of grace. Philippians 3:8f “. . . I count all things but loss, . . . that I may win Christ, . . . That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection.” Acts 17:18 “He preached unto them Jesus and the resurrection.” John 11:25f “I am the resurrection and the life, he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” I Peter 1:3 “His abundant mercy has begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
Conclusion
Donald Barnhouse tells of an encounter on the Celebes Island with a boy and a small monkey. The boy was selling the animal that he had trapped with a handful of rice placed in a gourd. The monkey placed its small hand into the opening for the rice, but once clutching the object of its desire, he could not pull the hand free through the small opening, and was thus captured. Sin is the object of our desire. Jesus enables us to be set free.
ORDINANCES FOR THE NINETIES
#483 ORDINANCES FOR THE NINETIES
Scripture Acts 8:35-39, I Corinthians 11:23-29 NIV Orig. 9-29-63
Rewr. 1-11-90
Passage: Acts 8:35-39
35 Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. 36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” [37] [a Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” The eunuch answered, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”] 38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing.
1 Corinthians 11:23-29
23 For I received from the Lord(A) what I also passed on to you:(B) The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, 24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body,(C) which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant(D) in my blood;(E) do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26 For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.(F) 27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.(G) 28 Everyone ought to examine themselves(H) before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. 29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.
Purpose: Remind my people that the message and meaning of the Lord’s Supper have not changed.
Keywords: Christ Ordinance Lord’s Supper Ordinance Baptism Communion
Introduction
There is a beautiful passage from John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress (250C77p123), that is most applicable in the context of the Lord’s Supper.
Then said Christian to the porter, Sir, what house is this? The porter answered, This house was built by the Lord of the Hill, and he built it for the relief and security of Pilgrims. . . . Now I saw in my Dream that thus they sat talking together until supper was ready. So when they had made ready, they sat down to meat. Now the table was furnished with fat things, and with Wine that was well refined: and all their talk at the table was about the Lord of the Hill; as namely, about what He had done, and wherefore He did what He did, and why He had builded that House. . . . Thus they discoursed together till late at night; and after they had committed themselves to their Lord for protection, they took themselves to rest. The Pilgrim they laid in a large upper chamber, whose window opened towards the Sun rising: the name of the chamber was Peace, where he slept till break of day, and then he awoke and sang,
Where am I now? Is this the love and care of Jesus, for the men that Pilgrims are Thus to provide? That I should be forgiven! And dwell already the next door to Heaven!
The potential thus in the Lord’s Supper is for us to dwell “next door to heaven.”
I. First, a Brief Word about Determining Our Beliefs about Ordinances. We must encounter the teaching of Jesus. His early ministry was similar to that of John. Acts 13:24 “. . . who preached . . . the baptism of repentance.” Similarly, He instructed the disciples. Matthew 28:19 “Go ye therefore, . . . baptizing . . . in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.” Likewise He left His imprint upon the observance of the supper. So He led the disciples. So He instructed them to continue. Luke 22:19 “This do in remembrance of me.”
The early church left a relatively clear PICTURE of its practice. Denominationalism has altered it. Individual teachers have abused it. We have the early church with which to compare ourselves. The third determinant has to do with the message of the ordinance. We will deal with this shortly in describing our present beliefs. It is noteworthy, that foot washing, exemplified by Jesus, did not pass into general use. He didn’t advise its continuance, and we are hard pressed to find a celebrant. We ought to learn the humility thus pictured.
II. Next, a Brief Discussion about Our Beliefs. Baptism: Acts 3:36 “Here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?” Scriptural baptism is immersion. A.H. Strong writes that every place where the New Testament uses the concept of baptism either requires or mandates a meaning based on immersion. It is the immersion of a believer (Acts 8:37); there is no efficacy in a dunking in water not based on faith. Repeated immersions are a sacrilege because they espouse untruth. Baptism demonstrates a belief in who Jesus is, repentance and confession, and desire for discipleship. It is an act of obedience. Acts 2:38 “Repent and be baptized, every one of you . . . unto remission of sin.” It is a three-fold symbol of the Saviour’s life: Death--Romans 6:5 “For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, so shall we be in the likeness of His resurrection;” Burial and Resurrection—Colossians 2:12 “Buried with Him in baptism . . . risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God.”
It is a testimony of the believer’s faith in Christ and in His gospel. It is the prerequisite to the privileges of church membership.
The Lord’s Supper: It memorializes the death of Christ. Its elements are twofold: unleavened bread and available fruit of the vine. It is the appropriation of the sacrifice of another for ourselves. Matthew 26:28 “This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” It is the forecasting of His return. We are able to come to grips with this world as it is. We know that the ultimate change will happen only upon His return.
It is one thing more, it is an expression of obedience celebrated by the assembled church, according to Christ, the place of the supreme Lord, displaying a momentary picture of heaven.
Conclusion
Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the great British preacher, left a poem describing the supper.
Amidst us our beloved stands,
And bids us view his pierced hands;
Points to the wounded feet and side,
Blest emblems of the crucified.
What food luxurious loads the board
When, at his table, sits the Lord!
The wine how rich, the bread how sweet
When Jesus deigns his guests to meet!
If now, with eyes defiled and dim,
We see the signs, but see not him;
O, may his love the scales displace,
And bid us see him face to face!
Thou glorious Bridegroom of our hearts,
Thy present smile a heaven imparts!
O, lift the veil, if veil there be,
Let every saint thy glory see!
(250C77p169)
BIBLE STUDY
#477 BIBLE STUDY
Scripture Luke 14:1-24 NIV Orig. 3/13/68
Rewr. 3/1971, 12/1974
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.” 15 When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” 16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ 19 “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ 21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ 22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ 23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and compel them to come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”
Keywords: Banquet Disenfranchised
Timeline/Series: Bible study
Introduction
Luke records four of the seven occasions of Jesus’ healing on the Sabbath. (1) In Chapter 4, the healing of Simon’s mother-in-law; (2) in Chapter 6, the man with the withered hand; (3) in Chapter 13, the woman with an 18-year infirmity; and (4) here, a man with dropsy—an excess of body fluids, known today as edema.
It would seem that anyone so intent on upgrading man’s physical and spiritual condition would have drawn the immediate acceptance of the people. Jesus, however, was hated by many.
Jesus’ Attitude at the Supper. 14:1 Jesus never refused any man’s invitation to hospitality. He went into the house of one of the Chief Pharisees on the Sabbath day to eat bread. They watched Him: Jesus never lost patience with men even in times of stress.
Jesus’ Action at the Supper. 14:2-6 His first responsibility is the alleviation of human suffering. V4 And He took him and healed him and let him go. Attention is called to the Pharisees’ lack of value judgment. “Which of you will not remove your beast from a pit on the Sabbath day?”
Jesus’ Analogy About a Supper. 14:7-11 His teaching is always relevant. V7 He marked how they chose out the chief rooms. His teaching here is in regard to humility. V9 When you are bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room. Humility is retained by examination and by comparison.
Jesus’ Advice to His Host at the Supper. 14:12-14 His advice is to examine our motives. V12 Do not invite your friends, your brethren, your kinsmen, thy rich neighbours, lest perhaps they also invite you. Their motives would be, perhaps, a sense of duty, self-interest, vanity, or an effort to befriend. The result will be blessing from God rather than men. V14 And thou shalt be blessed, for they cannot recompense thee.
Apposition: Jesus Was Rebuffed By a Guest at the Supper. 14:15 The guest who said “Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God,” was perhaps incensed at Jesus’ word to the host. What right had He, through healing, to contradict the Law? What right to instruct the spiritual leaders? What right to advise the Chief Pharisee? The guest might have said, “What do you know about blessing? He is blessed who is of the spiritual heritage of Israel.”
Application: Jesus Rebuked False Claims of the Jews at the Supper. 14:16-24 Even a word spoken to a cynic is spoken in kindness.
But those to whom the kingdom was offered, rejected it: Because of vocation, and so immersed in work that there is no time for fellowship—“I have bought a piece of ground”; because of avocation, so taken with some novelty—“I have bought five yoke of oxen” (Did you know that 80,000 people a week see the Saints play football?!); because of invocation, in that the Mosaic Law says a man with a new wife will not go to war or be charged with business for one year—“I have married a wife.”
Closing
There are those to whom the Christian life is a melancholy and a dread. Swinburne, the poet, wrote, “Thou hast conquered, O pale Galilean, The world has grown gray from thy breath.” John Ruskin, an English author, told of a jumping jack given to him as a child, taken away by a pious aunt with the remark that toys were not things for a Christian child. It’s little wonder that his brilliant mind turned to socialism and nature. Wesley founded a school where the rule was no play, “because he who plays as a child plays as a man.”
Jesus, however, pictured His Kingdom in terms of a feast.
***THE REMAINDER OF THIS BIBLE STUDY HAS BEEN LOST***
NO MORE CHANCES
#463 NO MORE CHANCES
Scripture Luke 13:6-9 NIV Orig. 2-16-68
Rewr. 10-26-81
Passage: Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree, planted in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it, but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’”
Purpose: Continuing the series on the parables to remind my people of the teaching of Jesus relative to our responsibility to use our opportunities.
Keywords: Grace Judgment Providence Revival Uselessness
Series: Parables
Introduction
As Jesus continued his teaching, one of his Judean listeners raised a question. There was no great love lost between the Judeans and the Galileans, and a report had been recently circulated that Pilate had stormed out against their rebellious character by having his guards strike some of them down even while they were offering sacrifices. The one who raised the question was implying that they probably got what they deserved. If there is any place that a right-thinking person ought to be safe it is at the appointment of sacrifice. If, therefore, harm fell to them there, it simply means that they are guilty as charged and got their just deserts.
Jesus then answers directly. Do you think that those Galileans were the chief sinners among Galileans because that happened to them?” Jesus then laid the burden of sin right at their feet. “No!” he said, “They were not necessarily the chiefest of sinners just because they were killed.” Then, addressing their own disdain of God’s purpose for them, he continued. “Unless you repent, you will also perish.”
Then he brought up the case of a recent natural disaster. The tower of Siloam in Jerusalem had fallen causing the death of 18 people. He implies that if such as this can happen in Jerusalem, then the people must think that these victims were somehow deserving what happened to them. Again Jesus addresses their own sin problem. “That is not the case.” He says, but unless you repent of your sin, then you will ultimately perish just as violently as they did.
He does not deny that these Galileans and these workmen in Jerusalem were sinners. There is just not anything that he can do for dead sinners. His concern is for the living and for their errant rationale that allowed them self-justification. They were not safe from judgment simply because they were Jews. They were not to be excused from the necessity of repentance simply because of the chance of their birth to a Hebrew mother. Thus he shared with them the parable of the barren fig tree.
I. The Parable Addresses Opportunity: The fig tree owned a special providence. V6 “He came seeking fruit thereon.” Perhaps the significance of a parable needs to be restated. It is a story with a hidden meaning. The significance of such a story is never in what is obvious. It is not about a fig tree, but what the tree represents. It must somehow relate to productivity.
If this is just about trees, then there are many factors to be considered: size, fertility, climate, etc. If about trees, it can produce only what it is. But if its meaning is about people then we startlingly discover that a person can do much more than just produce another being like unto himself. Not only can he improve upon what nature has given, he can do more. He can produce a thought, an idea, a word, and a deed which, by the way, may be good or evil.
It is a consuming thought to come to realize that the master of the orchard is conscious of every plant. He expects no more that the plant, or that which it symbolizes, is capable to produce. Of a fig tree, he would expect a fig. But of one created to produce more and better things, he would expect that also. The master of the orchard knows the opportunity of each of us and expects that of which we are capable.
II. The Parable Addresses Obstructions to Opportunity. The fig tree reminds us that uselessness invites disaster. V7 “Behold, these three years I come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none.” Some would like to apply the parable to Jesus’ hearers, thus the Jewish nation. It is true that Isaiah foresaw such an eventuality. He describes the beloved’s vineyard “on a fruitful hill” and marks its destruction. Isaiah 5:1-7 “I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard. My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit. Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. That more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad? Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge and it will be destroyed; I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. I will make it a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it. The vineyard of the Lord Almighty is the nation of Israel, and the people of Judah are the vines he delighted in. And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness but heard cries of distress.”
We dare see not see it, however, as relating to other than ourselves. Judging a tree we examine its leaves—right size and of good texture; its roots deep and strong; its fiber soft, pliable, moist; but if it bears no fruit, cut it down.
III. The Parable Asserts Offensiveness. The fig tree will understand that nothing which only takes and does not give can survive. V7 “Cut it down, why doth it cumber the ground?” The literal meaning is why does this plant allow the ground to be reduced to inactivity? Not only is the tree useless, the soil beneath it is rendered useless. An interesting parallel exists with other parables: Prodigal—“Lost,” loss of wellbeing; Strait Gate—“Destruction,” loss of wellbeing; Fig tree—“cumber,” loss of wellbeing; Fig tree—“cut it down,” loss of wellbeing.
The message is a twofold one, for empires and for individuals. We must never passively keep someone else from achieving their spiritual best, and we must anchor our lives to a bold, assertive spiritual activity.
IV. The Parable Speaks of Obligation. By the grace of the keeper of the orchard, a second chance is extended. V8f “Let it alone for one year more. I shall dig about it, and if it bear fruit, well.”
We are not directed to do something about our past, for we cannot; Thomas Hardy wrote in The Ghost of the Past, “We two kept house, the past and I.” We are not to be dazzled by the future, for we cannot grasp what it may hold; Longfellow wrote in A Psalm of Life, “Trust no future howe’er pleasant! Let the dead past bury its dead! Act, act in the living Present! Heart within, and God o’erhead.”
Be sure only of this, that God in Christ gives to each of us, to all, a second chance. Christ, on the cross, prayed “Father, forgive.” The foundling church offered to Israel a second chance to believe. Acts 13:46, First to Israel, “But seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.” The nation, the denomination, the individual church, the believer, likewise understand that our very being (wellbeing) is “second chance.” The mind of the Father and the Son is the same that repentance spurned. The soil must be cleared for one who will repent.
V. Finally, the Parable Acknowledges Oblivion. The fig tree testifies that there is coming a last chance. V9 “If it does not bear fruit after this year, then, cut it down.” The judgment made by the gardener is based on its fruitlessness. It is not the fault of the gardener. It is not the fault of the soil. The fault rests only upon the agency judged. Understand this, please, of the judgment of God: It will always be upon spiritual potential denied. He will not judge any person for something they were incapable of doing. What one is capable of, and what one “wills” to do with that capability is, sadly, too often, two different things.
We, who have been favored to live in a part of the world graced by the finer things of life must accept a responsibility to do with these things to the glory of God. Who then must face a more severe judgment? The Russian who grew up being taught that God was a capitalist plot? The remote tribesman whose only notion of God is the predictability or unpredictability of nature? The third world refugee who knows nothing so completely as he knows hunger? Or the polished citizen of a western culture who has the best of all things, but who ignores the clear warnings of sin, and judgment, and last chances?
Make no mistake, we are accountable. The divine gardener pleads “spare.” It is he who finally declares “cut it down!” Recall please the message of John the Baptist, the forerunner. He admonished Israel to repent, and then warned, “and even now is the axe laid unto the root of the trees: Every tree therefore that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down and cast into the fire.”
Conclusion
We are called therefore to believe. That belief requires repentance, for we have sinned, and in spite of our sin the second chance has been given. Finally, acknowledging that second chance means that we choose to live in such a way that others understanding our commitment to life in our Lord Jesus Christ will begin to reckon their own lives in relation to Him.