THE INCARNATION OF CHRIST (December 1990)

#574 w 878                                           THE INCARNATION OF CHRIST                                                                                 

Scripture  John 1:1-14 NIV                                                                                                                 Orig. Date 3/11/1979

                                                                                                                                               Rewr. Dates  6/1985, 12/9/1990 

Passage: 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome[a] it. 6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Purpose: To share a message on the incarnation at Christmas-time, reminding my people of the importance of this Christly  intervention.

Keywords:          Incarnation of Christ       Incarnation         Doctrine               Word of God

Timeline/Series:               Christmas/Sequential    

Introduction

                A little six-year-old girl was going to her first  Sunday School Christmas party.  Her mother, remembering some of the joys of her own childhood, wanted the little girl to have similar experiences.  She did everything she could to prepare the child for the party.  She explained more in detail about Christmas as the time of the birth of Christ.  “It is Jesus’ birthday,” she told the little girl, “and you and your friends will be  helping Him to celebrate that happy day.”

                By party day the expectation and excitement were all she could talk about.  Finally, the little neighbor, with whom she was going, came to pick her up, and off she went to the party.

                She returned home a few hours later.  Her mother asked her about the party.  She replied, “Well, it was a very nice party, mother.  There were lots of children there, and we had fun.  But, mother, Jesus never showed up.”

                The essence of the incarnation is that God threw a party, and Jesus was the guest of honor, and, believe it or not, He was there.  He did appear!  Some may disclaim it, and doubt it, but it did happen.  God’s own Son came to live amongst us, and, more important, to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

I.             The Incarnation Unfolded.  V1 “In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God.”  The scripture gives us a clear definition.  The essence of God became man.  Words are used to communicate reality.  That which was not earthly became earthly.

                Jesus’ name gives us insight also. Jesus/Joshua: “God is my salvation.”  Incarnation means that God intervened to do for me what I could not do for myself.

                Scripture open with creation, and its attendant revelation.  Ten times (Genesis 1) is the phrase “and God said.” (3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, 28, 29).  It is a threefold message. It comes from God’s hand. It is intended to bless.  Man’s will is  the one thing out of God’s control.

                We came to the 20th Century to discover the impact of genes on the life of man.  Loss of life forms is the loss of genes. New evidence of genetic impact on disease.  But it is not genetic mutation that is a threat, it is man’s will. 

                But  in Christ, what had been essence now takes bodily form.  To say He is the “word” is to say that He is the creative force of God exposed.  Keep in mind that Jesus was the Son of God before He became Jesus of Nazareth.  He gave specific personality to word patterns describing God.  Active: “My word is like a fire . . . like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces.”  Jeremiah 23:29.  Passive: “Thy word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.” Psalm 119.  Of 176 verses, only five do not refer to God’s law, word, commandment.

“Last eve I passed beside the blacksmith’s door, and heard the anvil ring the vesper chime;

Then, looking in I saw upon the floor, old hammers worn with beating years of time.

‘How many hammers have you had,’ said I, ‘to wear and batter all these hammers so?’

‘Just one,’ said he, and then with twinkling eye, ‘The anvil wears the hammers out, you know.’

And so, thought I, the anvil of God’s Word, for ages skeptic blows have beat upon.

Yet though the noise of falling blows was heard, the anvil is unharmed, the hammers gone.”

                                                                                                                                                          Attributed to John Clifford

II.            The Incarnation Understood.  V4f “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not.”  Early, of course, there was a lack of understanding.           There was a theory of incarnation called adoption. 

                Acts 2:36 “Let all the House of Israel know that God hath made . . . this Jesus, . . . both Lord and Christ.” (Peter).

                Romans 1:3f “declared to be the Son of God with power.”

                Acts 13:33 (also in the Psalms) “You are my Son, Today I have begotten you.”     

Then emerged a theory called kenosis.  The word means “emptying.” Philippians 2:7 (verb) “Made himself of no reputation, but himself emptied, the form of a slave taking.”  Deity surrendered His divinity as if He could not be both.

                Kenosis begins above (God to man).

                Adoption begins below (man to God)

A third theory was called docetism.  Means “to seem.”  Jesus only appeared to be human. It was the gnostic error, explaining away His humanity.

                Understanding dismisses all here for what they are--“misguided theories.” 

                Jesus was not adopted, He is the Son.

                He did not surrender His deity, we have been visited by God.  Light and darkness exist together.  The light is so pure, the darkness so remote, that they do not mingle.  The darkness cannot fathom light.  V5 “the darkness comprehended it not.” 

                Thus, God came in the flesh of DARKNESS.  V14 “The word was made flesh and dwelt among us (“and we beheld His glory”).  Jesus came to enable the creatures  of darkness to comprehend the light.  V12 “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the children of God.”

III. Finally, the Incarnation Unfettered.  V14 “And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

                Ultimately, only one thing commends us.  There are things that earn prominence: professional status, intellectual accomplishments, social consciousness, wealth.  These things can all be disavowed by one character flaw: Many sins of the flesh can be overcome.  A person who does not keep their word cannot be trusted.

                It is in that sense that Jesus is called the Word.  He is the ultimate description of all that God is.  His coming to flesh is for man’s benefit.  His spoken message is eminently important. His bearing, equally so.

                He came as the light in man’s darkness.  Think of the inkiest blackness, a cave where lights were briefly turned off. James Weldon Johnson1: “Blacker than a thousand midnights down in a cypress swamp.”

Conclusion

                Donald Miller, in his book, The People of God2, delivers a searing indictment of far-too-many religious people today.  “The sentimentalized Jesus of our time is not one before whom men would fall on their faces, and certainly, He would frighten away no devils!  He is one whom nobody would crucify, and for whom few, if any, would be willing to die.  He could not have brought the church into being, nor could He have sustained it through all the tortuous course of the long centuries.”

                The Christ of the New Testament gospel claims our fullest devotion.  He is the incarnate One, God in human flesh. He is still in charge.  “I am the way, the truth, the life.  No man cometh to the Father but by me.”

1 Johnson, J.W. (2018). The Creation: 25th Anniversary Edition. Holiday House.

2 Miller, D.G. (1958) The People of God. London: Religious Book Club.

JESUS, SON OF MAN

#857                                                                  JESUS, SON OF MAN                                                                                         

Scripture  John 1:35-51                                                                                                                                   Orig. 10/13/89 

Passage:  The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!” 37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?” 39 “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon. 40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. 41 The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ). 42 And he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter[a]). 43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, “Follow me.” 44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked. “Come and see,” said Philip. 47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite in whom there is no deceit.” 48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.” 49 Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.” 50 Jesus said, “You believe[b] because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” 51 He then added, “Very truly I tell you,[c] you[d] will see ‘heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on’[e] the Son of Man.”

Purpose: Continuing a study from the gospel, here emphasizing the enormity of meaning in Jesus’ reference to himself as “son of man.”

Keywords:          Bible Study                         Parable                Christ                   Identity

Series:  John

Introduction

                It is interesting, and somewhat surprising, that as quickly as we turn from the Synoptic Gospel, and to John, we turn from the regular teaching of truth in parable form.  John never uses the word “miracle,” and he never uses the word “parable.”  These were major elements in the teaching ministry of Jesus, yet, John does not incorporate either in his presentation of the life of Jesus.  You will find “parable” in the King James (10:6), however, the same word found twice more (16:25, 29) is “proverb.”

                While parables are conspicuously absent from this fourth gospel, the use of rich symbolism, and use of “signs,” are conspicuously present.

                Herbert Lockyer says that John “describes . . . some twenty days out of the Lord’s public ministry of three years. . . .  John lived nearer to his Lord than the other Apostles and seemed to understand the inner significance of His messages more than the others, and supplies us with the suggestive imagery He used in His discourses.”

                We are not yet through chapter one, and we have viewed this imagery first hand. There has been the use of the concept “Word” for Jesus.  He calls Jesus “Light.”  He has John the Baptist identifying himself as “a voice.”  Last week, reference was made to the eleven, twelve if we count “son of Joseph,” marks, or signs of Jesus’ identity.

                Keep in mind what John himself says toward the end of this powerful rendering of the life of Jesus.  20:30 “And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book.  But these are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.”

I.             We Learn of Jesus’ Intent to Share the Richness of His Life with His Disciples.  V39 Jesus “sayeth unto them, come and see. . . . They . . . abode with Him.”  Our purpose this morning is to reach where this first chapter concludes.  We will pass by nine of the concepts of identity found in this chapter.  There is a message in every one. Jesus, Lamb of God, Master, Rabbi, Messiah, Christ, of Nazareth, son of Joseph. 

                Before leaving this chapter, however, we must find His meaning, “Son of Man.”  William Barclay isolates 82 uses of this term in the New Testament.  All but one are in the gospels. In Acts 7:56, Stephen said “I see . . . the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”  Of the 81 remaining uses, all but one (John 12:34, about the crucifixion of the anointed) are on the lips of Jesus.

                Revelation 1:13—“And in the midst of the seven candlesticks one like unto the Son of man. . .”

                Revelation 14:14—“. . . seated on the cloud was one ‘like a son of man.’”

                Hebrews 2:6—“What is man . . . or the son of man that thou visitest him.”

                There are other teachings in these verses.  Perhaps as many as six of the disciples come to light here.  First, there are the two disciples of John the Baptist.  V35 tells plainly.  John, himself, directs them.  You don’t know how tough this is. Or, watch your children go overseas.  One of these two was Andrew, V40.  Examine the level of discipleship.  He went to find Simon Peter, to introduce him to the Master.  We honor him still in every reference to “Andrew” clubs.  He was big enough to let his convert have the larger place.

                An additional word must be said on Simon Peter.   He was won by the direct outreach of another.  Andrew didn’t wait for him to chance upon Christ.  Christ tags him with a change of his name.  His name is not changed from rock to pebble.  Simon means “one who hears,” a marvelous facility of discipleship.  Petra and petros both mean “rock.”

                John himself emerges here.  Also of Bethsaida, youngest of 12, and of the fishing enterprise (of 4).  To him Jesus entrusted Mary. He was called “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” 

                Jesus went looking for Phillip, v 43.  He called both to faith and to follow.  Faith meant he had found the Messiah, to follow meant he must tell others.

                In that spirit, he sought Nathanael. Nathanael owes his conversion to a friend. He was dealing honestly with his doubts, opening mind and heart to the prospect of truth. “Come and see” said Phillip. V46 Nathanael mocks Jesus, then in V49 professes his faith.  V50, 51: Nathanael owes to his conversion the life of fullness.

II.            In a Manner of Speaking, We Learn How Jesus Sees Himself.  “Ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.”  Some, of course, would say that it means nothing more than that.  It was out of the common idiom of the day.  The Aramaic bar nasha means Son of man. The Hebrew ben adam means the same. 

                Isaiah 56:2 “Blessed is . . . the son of man who holds it (justice) fast.”

                Psalm 146:3 “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man in whom there is no help.”

                Or, that it was self-disclosure not unlike that found in Ezekiel, where the expression is found eighty-plus times.  It is the word from God spoken to his prophet as a specialized address.  It denotes his humanity.  It contrasts his humanity with power, glory, sovereignty of God.

                Daniel is the one, however, who helps us to understand its meaning.  He was given to see the personification of the great world powers.  He describes the vision (Daniel 7:1-14).  It was of four great world powers—Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece.  For three hundred years they dominated.  “A lion with eagle’s wings” (v4); a bear . . . with three ribs in its mouth (v5); a leopard with four heads, and it had dominion (v6); a fourth beast, dreadful, and terrible, with ten horns (v7).  V13 “And I saw in the night, visions, and behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven . . .   And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages should serve him.”

                John uses the same imagery in Revelation.  1:7 speaks of the one who “cometh in the clouds.”  1:13 “The one in the midst of the seven candlesticks like unto the Son of man.” 

Conclusion

                What you must see, what I must see, is Jesus as He is here pictured.  Daniel uses the imagery of the God-man.  One who is come to serve who is like those whom He has come to serve.  Daniel 7:18 “But the saints of the Most High, shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom forever, even for ever and ever.”  V28 “My cogitations much troubled me” “But I kept the matter in my heart.”

                The great need of our time is to see Jesus as He is, as Son of man.  Like John’s two disciples in discovering that Jesus was who John was talking about.  He (Jesus) was the Word, of which John the Baptist was the voice.  Like Simon Peter who was a large chunk of stone, but with care what a useful instrument he would become. Like Phillip, to faith him would be to follow him. Like Nathanael, casting aside our doubts we begin to see the very “heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.”

                It must remain unexplored, but there remains the potential of “son of man” for us. Matthew 12:31f, Mark 3:28f, and Luke 12:10, read “all sins will be forgiven the sons of men.”

HAPPENSTANCE AND HOWBEIT

#843                                                       HAPPENSTANCE AND HOWBEIT                                                                              

Scripture  Acts 4:1-22                                                                                                                                           Orig. 1/6/79

                                                                                                                                                                                  Rewr. 1/17/87 

Passage:  The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. ² They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. ³ They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. ⁴ But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand. ⁵ The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. ⁶ Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family. ⁷ They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?” ⁸ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! ⁹ If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, ¹⁰ then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. ¹¹ Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’^{[a]  12} Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” ¹³ When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. ¹⁴ But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. ¹⁵ So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. ¹⁶ “What are we going to do with these men?” they asked. “Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it. ¹⁷ But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.” ¹⁸ Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹ But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! ²⁰ As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” ²¹ After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened. ²² For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old.

Purpose: Continuing with the Acts study for Adult Church Training, here showing the emergence of a full-blown persecution of the early church leaders.

Keywords:          Opportunity                       Proclamation                    Opposition                         Persecution

Timeline/Series:               Acts

Introduction

                Most of us know very little about persecution in any form, much less about religious persecution.  There are many places, however, that it is being experienced today.

                The struggle between Jew and Arab is, at its heart, a religious confrontation.  The full-scale hostility in Lebanon is drawn with Muslim, Christian, and Jew; and divergent sects within these major religions are opposing their own people.  The struggle in Ireland is a struggle between Protestant and Catholic.  Many people are being persecuted because they are of one religious leaning rather than some other.

                In the early days of our own history, there was serious restriction placed on some religious groups by other religions.  You may remember that the Maryland charter had to do with settling Catholic people where they would not be an infringement on non-Catholics.  Baptists had great difficulty settling into many of the early land grants.  The holders of the grants were wealthy Englishmen.  They were of the Church of England.  Therefore, preachers of a more fundamentalist persuasion were simply not welcomed.

                Even in Virginia this was so.  The state is strongly Baptist, home, by the way, of our Foreign Mission Board.  But some early Baptist preachers--including Jeremiah Moore, Aaron Bledsoe, and Lewis and Joseph Craig--began to preach Christ. Because they had no Episcopal license, they were arrested.  Patrick Henry came to the Court House to defend these men.  He stood before the gathered crowd, held up the indictment, and said, “What is the indictment against these men?  Preaching the glorious gospel of God!  Great God! That is the indictment.  Are there no thieves going around unarrested and unconvicted?  Are there no murderers upon whom to visit the vengeance of the law, that you must indict and try these men for preaching the gospel?” (S25p49-Fcrd).

                Opposition.  V3 “And they laid hands on them and put them in hold.”  Take a moment to re-examine what was happening among the disciples.  Notice the strong link with the temple. A woman in New Orleans spoke of the new-found charismatic faith of her son, studying for the ministry.  “Well,” she said, “I’m not much into church.”  They take opportunities where they find them, not attracting wealthy, learned, influential people.  Every one is a ticket to others.  The onlookers are the ones to whom Simon Peter spoke after the healing, and their friends and family who were not present. 

                Those opportunities were to be occasions where they magnify the Lord.  The crucifixion marked their sin.  They could not sweep it under the rug.  Jesus has given them proof of resurrection.  They can no longer evade the question.  Acts 3:13 “The God of our fathers hath glorified His Son, Jesus.  3:16 “And His name, faith in His name, hath made this man strong.”

                We are no more than a matter of weeks since the crucifixion.  The one essential difference now is that Jesus is known to be alive.  They were instructed in Acts 1:4 to “wait for the promise of the Father.”  They started with 120 (Acts 1:15). They added 3,000 after Pentecost (2:41) and another 5,000 after this healing (4:4).

                Notice “howbeit” in 4:4 KJV.   Things are beginning to tighten up, but the Holy Spirit more than compensated for their disadvantage.  From here on, the pressure mounts, but they will suffer no lack of God’s promise. The officials who gather quickly here, are the same ones who brought sentence on Jesus. They thought that what was done to Jesus would bring His followers to their knees.  It did, but not in submission: rather, in prayer.

                Suddenly, the fear of dealing with Jesus again is causing them anguish. In 2:22, 3:6, and 4:10, Jesus Christ is referred to as “the Nazarene” or “of Nazareth.”  Priests were the religious power structure. They were men of wealth and learning. Many of the Sadducees were priests, wealthy landowners with the most to lose if Rome was forced to intercede.  The high priests rejected resurrection to keep order in the temple.

                Then Comes the Oration.  V8 “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said unto them.”  Those already mentioned were joined by others.  It is the court called the “Sanhedrin.”  Most of you have been to Eureka Springs to see the Passion Play, or Calhoun.  The Sanhedrin were the officials.  71 high priests were ex officio members of the Sanhedrin.  The rulers were high priests’ families.  At first the position was hereditary. Between 37BC and 67AD there were twenty-eight high priests, all but six came from four families.  (A50p36)

                The elders were respected leaders.  Of this oration, understand that when the Word is faithfully proclaimed, God blesses it.  Acts 6:4 “We will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the Word.”  2 Corinthians “God . . . hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”  2 Timothy 4:2 “Preach the word, be instant in season.”  5,000 men became believers. Women may or may not have been present.  These went home to families who likewise would believe. 

                We must not overlook the jailing.  Peter, with the gift of speaking out of turn and regretting it, and John, who had the great gift of loving people: These two are suddenly locked away, remembering their Lord’s night of trial and passion; remembering, also, that Jesus prepared them for this.  Luke 21:12 “they shall lay their hands on you, and bring you before kings and governors for my name’s sake. . . . I will give you a mouth, and wisdom.”  Luke 12:12 “For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what to say.” 

                Simon will be the spokesman, and his message will not change.  He concentrates on ”the Sent One.” Fifteen times in John, Jesus so uses “pempantos.”  Again, meaning that the Jewish fathers crucified Jesus, and that He arose for the dead, that faith in the Jesus of this victory—crucifixion and resurrection—resolves the sin problem.

                The actuality of the oration is that Christ is seen in the life of the proclaimer.  V13 “They took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.”  William Barclay (A50p38) gives us the three salient points of Christian defense:  (1) Defense of unanswerable fact—the healed man; (2) defense of utter loyalty to God (obedience); and defense of a personal experience.”  H.G. Wells said “The trouble with so many people is that the voice of their neighbors sounds louder in their ears than the voice of God.”

                Thus, Opposition Becomes Oppression.  V18 “and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.”  Here is the first instance of the satanic determination to silence the message of salvation in Christ.  We see it in the commercial world’s interest in Santa Claus rather than Jesus. 

                The political world silences the gospel because it is controversial.  Remember the news item from Jackson about the lighted windows in a state office building in the shape of a cross.  Some universalist could see it from her home and was offended.  A Christian businessman turned on his lights.

                The ACLU says “It’s okay to smoke pot, or to jeopardize industry, but don’t talk about Jesus anywhere but at home and church.”

                Madeleine Murray O’Hare says, “I want to be free to teach people atheism, but teaching about God should be restricted.”

                And for all these years, the song goes on.  Peter and John couldn’t be squelched.  V20 “We cannot but speak the things we have seen and heard.”  History’s clearest mandate is in the resiliency of the word.

                Ken Chafin wrote The Reluctant Witness, about learning to apply the word (R33p14): the need for simple basic (related) Bible study; the need for spiritual growth; the need for some basic skills; and the need for practical experience, under supervision.

***THE CONCLUSION TO THIS SERMON HAS BEEN LOST***

A WORD FITLY SPOKEN

#842                                                               A WORD FITLY SPOKEN                                                                                      

Scripture  Acts 3:12-26  NIV                                                                                                                           Orig. 11/29/79

                                                                                                                                                                                    Rewr. 1/2/87 

Passage:  ¹² When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Fellow Israelites, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? ¹³ The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. ¹⁴ You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. ¹⁵ You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. ¹⁶ By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see.  ¹⁷ “Now, fellow Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. ¹⁸ But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer. ¹⁹ Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, ²⁰ and that he may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. ²¹ Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. ²² For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. ²³ Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from their people.’^{[a]  24} “Indeed, beginning with Samuel, all the prophets who have spoken have foretold these days. ²⁵ And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’^[b] 26 When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”

Purpose: Continuing study from the Book of Acts for Church Training, calling attention to the opportunity of the early church to speak the gospel creatively.

Keywords: Christ              Lordship              Crucifixion          Resurrection    

Timeline/Series:  Acts    

Introduction

                Given a title, this study would have to be “A Word Fitly Spoken.”  You probably recognize it, however, as taken from the Book of Proverbs (25:11).  It is a beautiful statement from one of the most used, and least abused portions of scripture.  The lines of holy scripture roll off the tongue as beautifully as a highland brook rolls out of the hills.  It captivates us with its meter as well as its message.

“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in vessels of silver.”

                The ability to speak a needed and necessary word at the appropriate time is a rare and unique gift.  It is like a table vessel of great beauty and filigree, containing fruit that is at its highest degree of loveliness as well as taste.  One can almost find it unnecessary to bite into such fruit to be able to taste this delectable flavor.  In times of great duress or decision, words can be like that.  When the right word is spoken, all parties involved feel the constraint of propriety.

                It was particularly important to the early church, not only that they had the right word for the times in which they lived, but that they might also deliver it in a timely manner.

                “But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that the message might be preached fully through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear.”  2 Timothy 4:17.

                So, a man was healed, miraculously, spontaneously.  A crowd gathered, opportunistically.  Simon seizes the occasion to share.  They are at the Temple, just inside the gate called “Beautiful,” upon a colonnade known as Solomon’s Porch.  Simon spoke to the people about Jesus.  Remember, Jesus had spoken from this very place, perhaps to some of these very people.  He responded to their questions about His being the Messiah.

“The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe…”John 10:23.

                Another stone is about to be added to the wall of disbelief that the Jews are building around themselves.  They rejected Jesus, Himself.  They are about to reject this opportunistic message about Jesus.  The persecution and dispersion of the believers grows daily more intense.  Now is the time for “a word fitly spoken,” for before many weeks have passed, opportunity will have come and gone.  For now, let’s look at Simon’s message and examine it.

I.             First of All, Let Him Define What has Happened.  V12f “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this?  Or why look you so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?  The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob . . . glorified His servant Jesus, whom you delivered up . . . the faith through Him . . .  has given this perfect soundness.”

                The men of Israel are made to face the stark reality of the crucifixion.  They were the ones responsible for Jesus’ death.  We must be careful not to hate the Jew for this (anti-Semitism).  But it is historically inaccurate not to say so.  The Jews are the ones who forced Pilate to withdraw his release order. 

                Read Luke 23:4: “I find no fault in this man.”  Hearing that he was from Galilee, Pilate sent Him to Herod, v7.  Herod sent Him back, v11.  “Pilate, . . . wishing to release Jesus, . . . called out to them.  But they shouted, saying ‘Crucify Him.’” V 20-21.  “Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they requested.” V24.

                They were the ones who disowned their own religion and demanded that a criminal be set free. Peter’s message does not remind them of the remote past. It shares what is intensely recent and similar to the Pentecost message.  Acts 2:23 “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death.”

                The early church would not lose sight that crucifixion was history’s most heinous crime.  Pilate and Herod both tried to avoid it, they had seen the injustice.  People like us, you and me, overcome by emotions--anger, resentment, and misplaced zeal--voted for a criminal and crucified love.

                How often in history it has happened: Hitler.  Khomeini. Qaddafi. Returning some disbarred to the legislature. 

                The men of Israel are given cause to face up to the resurrection.    Without the resurrection there would have been no church.  All they had to do was show evidence of the body of Jesus. Read “The Passover Plot” and “Saved by His Life.”  There is proof that Jesus is alive. There is incontrovertible evidence that His life empowers today in healing and reconciliation.

                Central to this proclaimed word was the power of the risen Christ.  Special power accompanied specific circumstance.  It is reasonable to expect such power.  If it is not present, our circumstances do not merit it, or faith is inept.  The spokesperson must not ever let himself get between the Healer and the candidate.  As to healing, the channel could be only a channel, and could demand no advantages.  As to spoken word, the spokesperson was forthteller or foreteller, maybe.

                William Barclay (A50p31) reveals the secret of the Christian life.  “The Christian knows that so long as he thinks of what I can do and what I can be, there can be nothing but failure and frustration and fear; but when he thinks of ‘not I, but Christ in me,’ there can be nothing but peace and power.”

II.            Peter Next Demands that They Consider the Meaning of this Miracle.  V17f “Now brothers, what you did was done in ignorance, . . . [what] God foretold . . . He has thus fulfilled.  Repent, therefore, and be converted.” 

                Note the care with which he speaks in love.  Oh it is a warning.  But its urgency is that of love and mercy and forgiveness.  What they did was done in ignorance, but ignorance is no longer justifiable. They have witnessed more proof of integrity of the gospel.  John 15:22 “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would have no sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin.”

                With the same measured care, he implores them to repent.  Metanoe’o means “to perceive afterward,” to change one’s mind.  In the New Testament change is always for the better.    It is a changing of the mind resulting in a whole change of life.  Luke (9 times), Acts (5 times), Revelation (12 times)—eight of these are in messages to the churches, as in 2 Corinthians 12:21.

                It is a changing of the mind resulting in a whole change of life.  If they do not, they are in danger of losing the ability to repent.

John Greenleaf Whittier wrote:

“Forever round the mercy seat

                The guiding lights of love shall burn;

But what if, habit-bound, thy feet

                Shall lack the will to turn?

What if thine eyes refuse to see,

                Thine ear of heaven’s free welcome fail?

And thou a willing captive be,

                Thyself thy own dark jail?”          

                This redeemed understanding is that repentance eventuates in Positive Consequence.  Sins of the past will be blotted out. V19 “that your sins may be blotted out.”  Paul uses the same word in Colossians 2:14, exaleipho—“having wiped out the handwriting of requirements against us.”  Ink used on papyrus had no acid, and didn’t “bite” the paper. It was simply wiped away.

                Additionally, the presence of the “living” Lord will uniquely sustain them in life.  This message is the sounding of alarm and hope.  John 9:41 “Jesus said, ‘If you were blind you would have no sin; but now you say “we see;” your sin remains.’”  John 15:22 “. . . they have no excuse for their sin.”

                There comes on the scene an obligation to repentance which, remember, means more than to “change one’s mind.”  It means, also, to follow the path of a different drummer.  William Barclay (A50p33) wrote “he lays down the inescapable truth that . . . very special privilege brings . . . very special duty; . . . to do what they like, but . . . what God likes.”

                Repentance, then, effects new circumstances.  Past actions are put under a different set of controls.  Future events take on a redeemed flavor.  Repentance is the last thing people want to do, the first thing they are directed to do.  The thing least in evidence, even in the lives of concerned believers, is the most necessary thing.

                Peter now brings up the subject of the coming again of Jesus.  He has spoken in love.  He called upon them to face up to the crucifixion and resurrection.  He implores them to repent.  He does not conclude without reminding them that this Jesus is coming again.  There is no gospel that does not proclaim these necessary things.  Most of the world knows of no such destiny.  They think not at all of a Saviour come among them, to live and die, and to live again in victory over death, and to appeal to them to repent of sin, and live in Him.

                The Hebrew believers waited and expected all Israel to be saved.  They ministered to that end.  V20 “And that he might send the Christ who hath been appointed for you, even Jesus.”  Could the kingdom have come then with their repentance?  Are we in a great holding pattern awaiting the redemption of Israel?  They already rejected Jesus.  They will reject Peter here today.  Acts 4 will see the beginning of persecution, and the further hardening of Hebrew hearts.

                Peter then concludes with three valid points.  (1) He insists that everything that has happened was foretold by the prophets, referencing Deuteronomy 18:15-22. “How can we be sure of the prophet?” V22 “When what is foretold comes to pass.” (2) He reminds them of their heritage.  They are children of the prophets. They are children of the covenant.  They are children of promise. V26 “And in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”  That promise appears over and over in the Book of Genesis: 12:3, 18:18, 22:18, 26:4, 28:14.  What has brought joy to so many is yet despised by Israel.  (3) Finally, he lays down the parting declaration that special privilege brings special responsibility. Acts 18:26 “Unto you first God, having raised up his Servant, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.”

Conclusion

                And as they speak (Acts 4), One is speaking and He is speaking for all, and all are speaking in Him. Think what such a concept would do for us today.

THE CHURCH AND A HEALING MINISTRY

#841                                              THE CHURCH AND A HEALING MINISTRY                                                                     

Scripture  Acts 3:1-11, NIV                                                                                                                                Orig. 11/2/79

                                                                                                                                                                                 Rewr. 12/4/86 

Passage:  One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. ² Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. ³ When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. ⁴ Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” ⁵ So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them. ⁶ Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” ⁷ Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. ⁸ He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. ⁹ When all the people saw him walking and praising God, ¹⁰ they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.  ¹¹ While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade.

Purpose: Continuing a Bible study from Acts, showing the beginning surges of healing as it existed within the early church

Keywords:          Faith                      Healing                 Ministry             

Timeline/Series:               Acts

Introduction

                What interest do you have as a believer in the practice of Christian healing?  Most contemporary church members seem to be satisfied to avoid it altogether.  Part of the reason seems to be that it is not needed in the 20^th Century as it was in the first.  As little as fifty years ago, even the most visionary practitioner of medicine could not foresee the strides that medical research would take in our lifetimes.

                I see no reason, however, not to conclude that there is yet far more to be done, than has ever been done before.  Diseases that were unknown a century ago are prevalent today.  Some bludgeoning human ailments capturing headlines today, were virtually unknown twenty years ago (Alzheimer’s, HIV, Legionnaire’s Disease).

                There are other reasons why many people see a charismatic gift of healing as unimportant.  It is so often viewed in the pin-striped suit of big business or as a feature in the practice of snake-handling.  It is associated, almost in its entirety, with people who are often viewed as charlatans.  We hear of it, elsewhere being conducted to the end that hair may grow on bald heads, and that legs might be lengthened to eliminate back pain.  This takes place sometimes within sight of cancer hospitals, and homes for the incurables.

                Jesus healed because He believed absolutely in the power of God to heal.  The disciples undertook the continuation of that ministry because they were able to believe that He was the healer, and that He would heal, that He was the only One who could.  This may be where our faith breakdown comes.  Oh, we believe in the power of God to heal, alright; but He usually is not our only alternative.

                Great good was done in the early church by experiences of miraculous healing.  What a loss it would be if God chose to bless His contemporary church in the same way, and we have become too proud, or too indifferent, to accept the gift that He wants us to have.

I.             First, We Must View the Circumstances.  V1 “Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.”  Chapter two allowed us to focus on the importance of the spoken word.  He reminded us that a new day had come.  He related that day to Jesus’ life and ministry.  He declared the supremacy of grace over law.  He called his hearers to personal commitment.

                Now another, and different opportunity has come.  Luke records how healing is being used.  It starts with emphasis on prayer.  For the devout Jew, there were three special hours of prayer: The day began at 6a.m., and the first prayer was to be practiced at 9a.m., the second at 12 noon, and the third at 3p.m. Prayers could be said at any hour, but these were special, and if in the temple, even more so.  How important to good practice are the habits learned in childhood?  We see Jesus accentuated some of these.

                What we may know about the man to be healed are that he was lame from birth; he was the ward of public generosity—he had friends who helped, but except for them or in hard times, he was without; it is likely that the disciples have passed this man before but had no eyes with which to see—now, with redeemed sight, they see opportunity.

II.            Secondly, We Must Look at the Character of the Event.  Look for a moment at the disparity between place and person, the beggar in the temple.  The temple was of white marble in grand design.  Started by Herod in 20 BC, some 50 years prior, the inner court was sacred and worked on by 1000 priests; the temple itself was not yet complete.  Amidst all this lay the beggar.  He was there because people in a worshipful mood are always the first to show compassion.  Remember that the beggar, doubtless, had no idea who these men were, and did not ask for healing.  The disciples could not help materially.  They were living under a common fund among believers.  Note that the healing was precipitated in the name of Jesus.  “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!”  In 2:22f, Peter links his message to Christ.  The same bond is forged again.  The miracle accomplished here was instantaneous and complete. The Greek word estereothesen means “to make firm.”  The medical term steroids comes from the same word; all-American Brian Bosworth was unable to play because of steroid use.

III.           Next We Must Measure the Consequences of this Miracle.  V9 “And all the people saw him walking and praising God.”  We note a man overwhelmed by his good-fortune.  He doesn’t have someone else’s experience to try to mimic, or to compare with his own.  How often do we try to make something of faith that was not meant to be? (Copying another.)  Or how often do we keep faith from taking a natural turn?—“Walking, and jumping, and praising God.”

                A central tenet of our faith is joy.  Luke 1:14’s angelic announcement—“Thou shalt have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice at His birth.”  John 15:11,”These things I have spoken unto you that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.”

                Note also that God receives the praise of this man’s outspoken witness of faith.  We mentioned the angels’ announcement in Luke 2:13.  “Suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God."  The believer is expected and commanded to offer such praise.  Hebrews 13:15 “Through Jesus, . . . let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess His name.”

                Such praise is linked with healing and may just be one of the clearest determinants of healing.  How ennobling to find physicians who believe, and more so to hear of a surgeon who prays for his patient, or the believing patient who thanks God for whatever condition confronts him or her.  The praise of God is the noblest rite of faith.

                There is such an outpouring of emotion that a crowd quickly gathers.  In this very place, Jesus was questioned by Jews. John 10:23: “If thou be Christ, tell us plainly.” V25 “I did, ye believed not.  The works I do bear witness, . . . ye believe not.”

IV.          Finally, A Conclusion.  V10 “. . .They were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him.”  We perceive the compassion of Christ for all hurt things.  The Latin word for compassion is a compounding of 2 words meaning “to suffer with” (cum passus).  Matthew 8:17 quotes Isaiah 53:4 “He the weaknesses of us took, and the diseases bore.”   Jesus seems clearly to have determined that pain and illness are intruders.  Dr. James Stewart reminds us that there is no instance of Jesus turning away saying, “I am sorry friend, I cannot heal you, because God wants you to suffer.”

                Healing as a reflection of faith was related to Jesus’ sinlessness, His moral perfection.  If we were more like Jesus, perhaps our work would be more like His work.  Matthew 17:20 tells of the epileptic boy the disciples could not heal. “Because of your lack of faith.”  The mighty works of Jesus were the Father’s answer to the faith and obedience of His Son. In Jesus, the power of God was present and unimpeded.  John 3:34 GNV: “The one whom God has sent speaks God’s words, because God gives Him the fullness of His Spirit.” 

As Christians, we must relate ourselves to a world torn, not only by sin, but also by pain and disorder, and disease.  Healing of the body must also be a vital ministry of faith.  Such healing portends a larger healing of the broken spirits of people.

Conclusion

                A religious magazine shared the story of a Scottish minister, and of a dream that he had dreamed.  As he walked down High Street in Aberdeen, he saw a shop never seen before.  Entering, he discovered that an angel was the clerk, and he inquired what they sold. The angel replied, “Everything your heart desires.”  “Then,” said the dreamer, “I want peace on earth, and an end to sorrow, famine, and disease.” “Ah,” said the angel, “but you do not understand.  We do not sell fruits here, only seeds.”

THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH

#840                                                       THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH                                                                              

Scripture Acts 2:40-47, NIV                                                                                                                                    12/2/1986                 

Passage:  ⁴⁰ With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” ⁴¹ Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. ⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³ Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

Purpose:  Continuing a Church Training study in Acts, here leading the group to visualize the heart throb of the early church.

Keywords:          Bible study          Church                 Fellowship                         Ordinances                        Worship                                             

Timeline/Series:               Acts      

Introduction

                George William Benson, in his book The Cross:  Its History and Symbolism, gives us a rather poignant picture of how the cross has found its way into our lives. He wrote (pp 14-15):

                “Throughout all Christendom the cross appeared.  It stood upon the altar of the churches, was carried in religious procession and woven into the vestments of the priests, pictured on canvas and on stained glass, in frescoes and mosaics fashioned with rich craftsmanship, and hung upon the walls of cathedrals which were themselves built in the design of a cross.  On every spire and many gables were crosses of iron and stone, and in the churchyard they marked the meeting places of the dead.  Everywhere were wayside shrines and crosses of wood and stone, market crosses of sculptured marble and Sanctuary crosses to which man fled for refuge.

                “The Crusader’s sword was cross-hilted and every knight dedicated his sword upon the altar and wore a cross upon his breast, as he went forth upon a crusade.

                “The escutcheons of most ancient families bore it in varied forms and appeared frequently on the coins and medals of the calm.  The crowns of kings and nobles were almost invariably surmounted by a cross.

                “The prevailing use and influence of this supreme symbol of Christianity is remarkable.  The study of its origin, history, and symbolism is an investigation full of value and interest.

                “The cross is a symbol more universal in its use and more important in its significance than any other in the world.”

                All of this has happened, to our benefit, in the passing of time and Christian history.  For the early church, it was adorned in their memory, and not on their person.  It was a daily reality and not a piece of jewelry.  It was a reminder of the man who wore it, and of His message, and of their responsibility to both keep it and to share it.

I.             The Gospel was Meant to be Proclaimed.  V40 “With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’”

                Remember, this is the fourth part of which that early preaching consisted.  It was a firm call to decision.

2:21 “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

2:36 “Let all the house of Israel know.”

2:38 “Repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sin.”

2:40 “Save yourselves from the corrupt generation.”  These passages denote the place of human will and the problem of generational influence.

2:17-20 are an announcement of the “day of the Lord.”  The supreme message of preparedness should be heard in the announcement that these are the last days and Jesus is coming.

2:22 is an affirmation of the rudiments of Jesus’ life.  What a joy to walk where Jesus walked. What a blessing to witness things truthfully and decorously done.  The study of the word ought to be the easiest thing for a Christian to do.  The greatest thrill is when family or friend begins to take interest in His life.

2:29-30, finally, authenticate grace and law.  David was dead: Undeniably a great man and leader, but dead and in his tomb.  But Jesus was alive.  Many had seen.  Remember, all the Romans and Pharisees had to do was to produce the body.

                The proclamation of the gospel remains central. Whatever other great truths we believe, whatever programs we espouse, and if in any ways we are legitimately different from the New Testament church, we have no choice but to preach the gospel.  It relates man’s sin to the cross. It lays man’s sin burden bare.  It reveals God’s love.  Re-read v23 “Him, being delivered.”  It demands personal and social adjustment.  Carnality is a common, correctable condition.  The Gospel forecasts the Spirit’s involvement.  It liberates us from the past, equips us for the future.

II.            The Instrument of Its Proclamation was to be the Local Church. V41 “Then they that gladly received His Word were baptized, and the same day there were added unto them about 3,000 souls.”

                We have not yet experienced “church.”  Acts 5:11 distinguishes ecclesia “church” from ekcaleo “the called ones,” thus, “the set apart.”  All we lack here is the word itself.

                The badge of participation was baptism.  Baptidzo meant to put beneath or to bury. Repentance (v38) is to be assumed, and its primacy is established.  There were 3000 converts (all Jews).  It should be noted here that such display should be reserved for Gentiles, but these are Jews drawn readily.  In fact, it was this repentance and baptism which formed community.  Not even “the scandal” of the cross restrained them. 

                Note the three action words found here:

                Belief—“they that received the word.”  Not pistueo belief, which means “to trust.”  Rather apode’comai, which means “to welcome,” more than mental credence, with unreserved acknowledgement.

                Baptized—Jews submitted in the belief that the new Israel had arrived.  Of the 3,000, some had heard Jesus; some had been healed or ministered to; some were at Golgotha.  Others were waiting for this “new Israel.”

                Added—prosetethnsan, “to place beside.”  “Those added” came to equality.  Medical science chose this Greek word to convey meaning to artificial limbs “prosthetics”—the limb is added, and new life is assured.

III.           All Derived Local Churches Would Have this Very Excellent Model.  We first see the community in preparation.  As the apostles had been told (Acts 1:4), “do not depart, but wait for the promise.”  Even so, the larger community continued steadfast in doctrine: didache—teaching (inside), and kerygma—preaching (outside). 

They continued steadfast in the breaking of bread.  Consider all the times of meals—Emmaus in Luke 24:30; the eleven (Luke 24:36); beside the sea (John 21:12f). It is a time of togetherness.  In a Passover meal, the mood was joy.  See Exodus 12—the lamb slain in the afternoon, eating in an evening celebration:  the joy of deliverance and the joy of Christ’s presence.

                They continued steadfast in fellowship.  My son-in-law defined being in Jackson, Mississippi, for the LSU/Ole Miss game, and the uniqueness of the Mississippi State game.  Whose company do we enjoy?

                They continued steadfast in prayer.  How serious are we about prayer meeting?  People would run the preacher off who suggested canceling, but they never attend.  FM highlights calling people to pray.  Call 1-800-44FAITH—Pray.

                Next, we see the community in proclamation. 

The church witnesses by her unity.  In v41,”there were added,” and in v44, “and all that believed were together.”  The first goal is community.  Mennonites came to East Carroll Parish from Kansas where they could not family farm if they were not family.  Conditional unity is primary.  Perhaps the only other goal is self-determination.  Now that we are together in unity, what do we do with this energy?  The Devil works at broadcasting church squabbles.  Baptists move on the cutting edge of effectiveness because of our prudent self-determination.  For this reason, we hear of more Baptist churches in trouble.  Our convention impasse is the result of the drive for truth.  Self-determination has produced polar positions.

The church witnesses by her fellowship.  V46 “And they, continuing daily . . . did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart.”  Be careful of what fellowship consists: People who take active leadership roles; those who give financial support; those who have little to give physically or emotionally. What about those who are inactive?  Determination of fellowship is the experience of the lordship of Christ.  The last and least link in fellowship is the gathering called “fellowship.”  We fellowship in groups, large and small, where the substance of relationship is in our link with, to, and through Christ, who died for us.

The church is to witness by her organization.  V47 “And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”  We have considered self-determination.  Beyond that is the need of ministry. To our constituency, it is a program based on Bible education.  We also minister to other people, first through Bible education. The Sunday School class is the best means to share and to meet needs.  There is great importance in enrollment based on five principles of growth (Flake Formula):  Know possibilities; Enlarge organization; Provide space; Enlist and train; Go.

The church is to witness by her training.  V42 “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine.”  Every opportunity must be taken to train people for their tasks: Consideration of spiritual gifts; keeping believers in interest areas; organized study for training (ex, James in early February Sunday School); use of Church Training for unfragmented training.  Every believer should have the desire to improve and grow.  2 Timothy 2:15 reads: “Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed.”

The church is to witness by her place of worship.  V46 “And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple. . . .”       Much might be said about the place of worship.  We must certainly do no worse by our Lord’s house than by our own homes.  We are to treat the building with respect through upkeep and necessary maintenance.

                The church must witness by her worship.  V46 “And they continued daily with one accord in the temple . . . praising God.”  Being dignified, inviting, and compelling the church honors God.  Acts 5:42 “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not stop teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”

                The church is to witness by her ordinances.  V41 “Then they that gladly received the word were baptized: . . . And they continued . . . in breaking of bread.”  We honor our Lord by every visit to the baptistry. It means we are sharing our faith with the family and beyond.  It is a picture of death to the old things, resurrection to the new.  We honor Him by forays to the Lord’s table.  By holding up broken fragments of His life and conditioning ourselves to His blood, we glory in that He is alive.

                The church is to witness by her membership.  V38 “Then Peter said, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’”  Membership in the community of faith means three things: Repentance, the initial act of faith; Baptism, link of obedience and community; and Holy Spirit, the empowering agent for service.  We don’t “have” the Holy Spirit as a magic talisman, the Holy Spirit is to have us, to use major and minor gifts as it suits God’s purpose.

                The church is to minister by her name—“First Baptist Church.”  Church means reaching out to others; Baptist means determining our own destiny; First should tell more than the time of beginning (history), it also means first in ministry.

                The church is to witness by her contributions. V45 “And they sold their goods and parted them to all as had need.”

…The remainder of this lesson has been lost…

ANSWERS

#836                                                                            ANSWERS

Scripture  Acts 2:1-13                                                                                                                                          Orig. 10-4-79

                                                                                                                                                                                Rewr. 10-20-86 

Passage:  When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. ² Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues^[a] as the Spirit enabled them. ⁵ Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. ⁶ When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. ⁷ Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? ⁹ Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,^[b] 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome ¹¹ (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” ¹² Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” ¹³ Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

Purpose:  To lead Church Training in a study of the Book of Acts

Keywords:           Bible Study         Holy Spirit         

Timeline/Series:               Acts

Introduction

                Acts, chapter one, introduced the church. It identified the meager beginning and the handful of Jesus’ followers who took great comfort in meeting together in a small, second story room in Jerusalem.  Chapter two introduces the Holy Spirit who will infuse power into their lives and turn them into living dynamos of personal witness.

                We have already discussed the fact of the relationship of the Holy Spirit to this book.

                                Acts of the Apostles

                                Acts of the Holy Spirit

                                Acts of the Ascended Christ

                It is interesting that in the combined 68 chapters of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, there are thirty-four references to the Holy Spirit.  In the combined chapters of the writing of John, there are twenty-one references.  In Romans and 1 Corinthians, there are thirty-two.  But in Acts alone there are fifty-six occasions of the work of the Holy Spirit.

                The Holy Spirit is to be the means to the end of communicating the gospel.  The disciples are instructed to wait, and they are content to wait, in the “upper room” until they are infused with this power of gospel enablement.  The church, if it be the church at all, must have the capability of communicating the message.

                Some time ago I watched a special TV program, “I Heard the Owl Call My Name.”  It was about an Anglican vicar with a terminal disease.  He had been sent to the village of Kingcome in British Columbia.  The bishop had reasoned that if the young vicar was to learn, he must learn rapidly, and he needed a hard place to serve, and Kingcome was that.  One incident, in this true story, was of an elderly lady named Marta Stephens who had been there longer than anyone else.  She had seen the procession of vicars who had come and gone, who had done their best, and who asked to be relieved.  After worship one day, the vicar, whose name was Mark Brian, said to her, “Mrs. Stephens, tell me something.  Do you remember the first man who came here for the church?”  She replied, “Yes, he had a long, white beard.  He had to learn our language so he could teach us his.”  It is through the Holy Spirit that we are able to learn the language of “others” so that we can teach them our language and His.

I.             First, We Must See the Introduction of the Holy Spirit.  V1 It was Pentecost and an undeniable spiritual presence surprised and surrounded them.  We must first measure the significance of Pentecost.  Judaic roots spring from Leviticus 23:15 where it is referred to as the Feast of Weeks and counts the passing of seven Sabbaths.  It is called Pentecost because it begins 50 days after Passover.  Spiritual harvest lay waiting. 

Farmers must employ harvest equipment.  Farmers, tractors, and combines were the only ones who could get in the fields.  With the river rising, 23 pickers in one field was an awesome sight to see. 

At one of the great festivals, every male Jew within 20 miles was legally bound.  Others were expected to try. Travel conditions were ideal.  Keep in mind these travelers to Jerusalem.

II.            Now, the Significance of Unity Among the Disciples.  They waited for they-knew-not-what.  They knew a galvanizing “joy” when they were together.  Acts 1:13 told of the return to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, to an “upper” room.  Perhaps the room where Christ had graced their fellowship.  So, 11 or 120, coming and going, but always back to this place. 

The contemporary church must recover this sense of togetherness.  It begins with an unbridled love for Jesus.  It understands the need for the Holy Spirit’s leadership.  Notice there is total equality: “they were all together,” “it filled all the house,” “resting on each of them,” “all were filled with the Holy Spirit.” 

III.           Now, an Attempt to Sort Out what Happened to Them There. The elements of this event included (1) tongues of fire (a symbol of God’s presence—see Exodus 3:2 and Deuteronomy 5:4); and (2) the “sound” of wind--not wind but sound, or pneuma (spirit or wind). This is a consequential, spiritual event. (We try to describe it concretely.)

R.L. Maddox wrote, “God in the form of the Holy Spirit came upon the people.  Did the Christians sigh under the weight of the first breath of wind?  Did the lamps flicker?  Did strands of their hair rustle like angels’ wings? Who knows? But they would talk about that day for the rest of their lives.”

There is no evidence that they would ever try to re-capture or repeat the experience, but similar events happened among the “aliens” in Samaria (Acts 8:14) and the gentiles in Caesarea (10:44-45).   Frank Stagg (B104p52) surprises us. “The great release of power on the day of Pentecost is not in the least to be minimized, but it evidently did not stand out so uniquely for first century Christians as for some of us.  It is not mentioned in extant first century Christian writings outside the second chapter of Acts.”  There were enduring problems. Some were afraid they would not so encounter; others were afraid they would.

Let’s back up and spend a little more time on “cloven tongues of fire.”  “Cloven” means parted, divided.  What was there, we will never know.  What they saw, they described.  And what it symbolizes, we can depict.  We can only go back in time, “down into Egypt to see Moses leading God’s people.”  A thing is done that was never done before.  Exodus 13:21 “And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud; . . . and by night in a pillar of fire.” Cloud and wind by day, fire by night.

IV.          Then there is the significance of the “filling” and the “speaking” that followed.  V4 “They were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak in other tongues.”  Thus is magnified the reality of Christ’s presence.  Thus is amplified the need of yieldedness on their part to His will.  Thus is qualified that function of proclamation of the gospel.  Remember the Holy Spirit is not “It.”

Pentecost was necessary to get Christianity out of the Aramaic language.  The big question has to do with the meaning of the “tongues” experience for the future of the church.  The Holy Spirit did not have his inception at Pentecost. 

Psalms 51:11 “Take not thy Holy Spirit”

Isaiah 63:10 “Vexed his Holy Spirit”

John 20:19-23 “Receive the Holy Spirit” 

Genesis 1:2 “The Spirit of God moved”

Nor was glossolalia the matter.  What is really at issue?  Upholding our position to the rebuke of any other?  My Holy Spirit encounter is normative, therefore you seek?  Trying to tie the hands of the Holy Spirit?

What happened at Pentecost?  People heard the gospel.  They came to understand and believe.  He magnifies the proclaimed word.  Do we seek for Him to do so? Do we wait upon media blitzes?  When believers are “filled” with the Holy Spirit, when they speak in “tongues,” do others become targets of Holy Spirit ministry?

What is not the Holy Spirit?  Wind is not the Holy Spirit.  Fire is not the Holy Spirit. Language is not the Holy Spirit.  They were evidences of His presence.

Why the Spirit came—To empower Jesus’ teaching.  To convict of sin. To comfort. To consecrate for service.  To guide the Christian life.

THE DEATH OF THE BAPTIST

#820                                                          THE DEATH OF THE BAPTIST                                                                                 

Scripture Mark 6:17-29 NIV                                                                                                                              Orig. 1-29-84

Passage:  For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested and put in prison.  He did this because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, whom he had married.  For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.”  So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him.  But she was not able to because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man.  When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him.  Finally the opportune time came.  On his birthday Herod gave a banquet for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee.  When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests.  The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.”  And he promised her with an oath, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”  She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?”  “The head of John the Baptist,” she answered.  At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”  The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her.  So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head.  The man went, beheaded John in the prison, and brought back his head on a platter.  He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother.  On hearing of this, John’s disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

Purpose:  In continuing the study from Mark, to relate the death of the Baptist to Jesus’ ministry to His disciples.

Keywords:          Biography            John the Baptist               Repentance

Series:  Mark

Introduction

                The first things that come to mind when we consider John the Baptist are that he was a solitary man, a little strange actually, living in the wilderness, wearing clothes made of animal hair.  Additionally, we are told that he was the son of a priest named Zechariah, and his wife Elizabeth, who was also of a priestly family. (Luke 1:5).  In fact, his mother, Elizabeth, was a kinswoman of Mary, the mother of Jesus (Luke 1:36), a cousin perhaps.

                Because of his parents’ advanced age at the time of John’s birth, it is likely that neither of them survived to see him grow up.  Tradition has it that he was taken in by one of the Essene groups, who are known to have taken in boys like John to bring them up in the strict legalism of their communities and the privations of the desert.

                A look at John’s life:  Luke 1:80 “So the child grew and became strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his manifestation to Israel.”  So, as an orphan he was taken in by one of these Essene groups that inhabited the waste places of Judea, west of the Dead Sea.  They were deeply religious Jews concerned about Messianic fulfillment.  The movement was very strong about the time of Jesus.  Into that kind of electric atmosphere, he was born.  No variance from this belief was tolerated.

                John was taught this legalistic expectation of the Messiah, that Elijah would precede him.  Malachi 4:5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.  And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their sons, and the hearts of the sons to their fathers, or else he will smite the earth with a curse.”

                Would John, from such a background, be able to perceive of himself as Elijah?  John 3:28 “You, yourselves, bear me witness (John 1:20f) that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’”

                It is thus, then, that we encounter John preaching in the wilderness.  He was preaching of the coming kingdom. He was declaring the need for repentance.  Isaiah 40:3 “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare the way of the Lord.  Make his paths straight in the desert, a highway for our God.”  It was to be a repentance, then, that resulted in a change of life: Make his paths straight, turn the hearts of the fathers.  Baptism was never seen as the catalyst in such a conversion, it was seen as a symbol.  John had learned this from the Essenes. John did not wish to baptize Jesus simply because it symbolized what he knew in Jesus not to be the case. 

                The link of Christ’s Ministry with that of John: Mark 1:7, 8 “And [John] preached saying, “There comes One after me who is mightier than I, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to stoop down and loose.  I indeed baptize you with water, but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”  Jesus came from Nazareth to Bethany to give personal credence to John’s ministry. And to establish the Messianic link to his own ministry.  But the Jews did not then or now understand that his anointing of God (Christ) was not as political leader for Israel.  His purpose was that of Saviour.

                John then acknowledges Jesus’ presence. John 1:29 “Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.” (Isaiah 53:7)  Jesus began his ministry in Judea.  John 4:1f seems to indicate that for a time Jesus and John had parallel ministries.  At about the time that John was imprisoned, Jesus went to Galilee.

                Finally, Jesus, acknowledging that His death is eminent, prepares His disciples.  Mark 1:14-15 “Now after that John was delivered up, Jesus came into Galilee preaching the gospel of God, and saying, the time is full, the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent ye, and believe.”

                Thus, everywhere Jesus goes in Galilee, He goes preaching and healing, first for the sake of the people, then for the disciples to learn.  Then, one disturbing day, He learns that John is dead.  Not long before, John had sent his disciples to Jesus. “Are you the One?” Matthew 11. And the word was sent back, even to John, saying, “You have to act on what you see”:  Faith was the key.

                His death was caused as we have read it here.  Herod Antipas had taken his brother Philip’s wife, Herodias, who, by the way, was a niece to both.  Philip was tetrarch of Ituraea, to which place Jesus often resorted.  John rebuked Herod for his illegitimate marriage.  Herodias arranged his death.

                Jesus has taught His disciples that the same way John had preached repentance and the Kingdom of God, and as He likewise did, they were to do.

Closing

                The church today is Jesus’ ministry to the world. First, it is the declaration of repentance and the Kingdom of God.  Secondly, we are to administer that message.

A MAN UNDER AUTHORITY

#807                                                           A MAN UNDER AUTHORITY                                                                                  

Luke 7:1-10 NIV                                                                                                                                                     Orig. 11-9-83

                                                                                                                                                                                Rewr. 10-17-90 

Passage:  When Jesus had finished saying all this in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.  There a centurion’s servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die.  The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant.  When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, “This man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue.”  So Jesus went with them.  He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him: “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof.  That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you.  But say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me.  I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one ‘Come,’ and he comes.  I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.  When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him, and turning to the crowd following him, he said, “I tell you, I have not found such great faith even Israel.”  Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.

Purpose: Continuing a Sunday evening series on New Testament characters, here explaining significant characteristics of this unusual man.

Keywords:          Centurion            Man                      Worth                  Christ                    Healer

Timeline/Series:               Sequential/New Testament characters

Introduction

                Public generosity is not a new twist.  It has been around as long as man has tried to live in community.  And, through all of those years, there have been some who gave to get.  Their expression, taken by some to be community concern, was, in fact, nothing more than an advanced payment on expected gratuities.

                It happens every day.  A Louisiana pastor had a wealthy church member come to him.  He needed the pastor to intercede in the church financial records and give a business associate credit for money he claimed on tax records to have given to the church, but in fact, had not done so.

                It happens in small towns and large. It involves payoffs, scams, double-dealing, fraud, etc.  It happens at the university level, and to him who is not smart enough to know that he is being had.

                But the centurion who cared about the religious welfare of the people around him, and built them a synagogue, also had a heart of compassion.  He could certainly stop traffic with his benevolence.  He could also show deep personal feeling for an individual, and go all out to help him.  It is wonderful, indeed, to see public generosity sustained by domestic kindness.

                The centurion, A Man under Authority, also described in Matthew 8:5f, is the object of our search this evening.  We will look at his compassion, complaisance, compromise, composure, and complexity.

I.             First We Look at Compassion.  V2 “And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die.”  Before anything else, we are shown his caring concern for his servant.  Remember, he was Roman.  He was also a high-ranking military officer. Barclay p. 82 calls him “backbone of the Roman army.”  Such men were held in contempt.  Interestingly, those mentioned in the New Testament are spoken of well.

                Lk 23:47. “The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, ‘Surely this was a righteous man.’”

                Acts 10:22.  “The men replied, ‘We have come from Cornelius the centurion.  He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people.’ A holy angel told him to have you [Peter] come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say.”

                Acts 22:26.  “When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. ‘What are you going to do?’ he asked. ‘This man [Paul] is a Roman citizen.’”

                Acts 23:17, 24.  “Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, ‘Take this young man to the commander; he has something to tell him. . . .[The commander said] provide mounts for Paul so that he may be taken safely to Governor Felix.’”

                The man for whom he shows such concern was a slave (doulos)—a thing possessed.  Usually, they were treated thusly.  Little can be known about the servant.  Was he a Jew?  We do not know.  Was the servant a man of faith? It is not described.  He is said to be “ready to die,” meaning he is at the point of death.  What takes place can be perceived only as physical healing.  The miracle takes place apart from the actual presence of Jesus.

II.            We Come Next to His Complaisance.  V4f The centurion “was worthy . . . for he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue.”  The Roman presence expected such complaisance within certain limits.  They were to work with the people as much as possible.  Though they were a military, security presence, they could work in behalf of such local authority.  The Herodians were a party of Rome; the Sadducees were wealthy, intent on salvaging their wealth.  Gibbon, in The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire, wrote: “The various modes of religion which prevailed in the Roman world were all considered by the people as equally true; by the philosophers as equally false; by the magistrates as equally useful.” 

                This man gives evidence of a contrite heart toward the religion of his subordinates.  He was probably a much-traveled man. He knew Greek history and the language, and may have served in Egypt and elsewhere.  He likewise shows deep humility in relation to Jesus.  The controversy was not unknown to him. Five times in the last quarter of Acts, it is a centurion who is at the forefront of the controversy around the faith.  It takes a man of real substance to humble himself around subordinates. Augustine said that while [the centurion] counted himself unworthy that Christ should enter his doors, he was counted worthy that Christ should enter his heart  (Lockyer p. 178.)

III.           Then Note a Man Compromised.  V7: “Wherefore neither thought I myself worthy to come unto thee: . . .  I also am a man set under authority.”  He knows what it is to command, and to be commanded.  He knows the limits of command, and how often he would have commanded this illness, but it would not.  Being a Roman, it is his right to command these Jews to heed his request.  The word for “sent” is apostelien—to send on mission (willingness).  Jesus to many was only a Jew.  He sends to Jesus “beseeching.”  Different words make such requests: aiteo—a petition from a subordinate; erotao—a petition from/to equals; parakaleo—in Matthew 8:5, to ‘beseech,’ to ask for help. Erotao is the word always used by Jesus in expressions to the Father.

                Not only does he see Jesus as his equal, but of even greater worth than he.

IV.          From the Man Compromised We See a Man Composed.  V9 “I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no not in Israel.”  His constraint of Jesus is a last hope.  Does he expect Jesus to comply?  An observer reports the transaction to him: I think so.  Remembering the Jewish aversion to entering gentile homes, he sends word. “Say in a word, and my servant will be healed.”  He does not withdraw the request, only the need to come in person. 

In humbling himself, we see the true heart of an upright man.  He asks for no sign. He attributes all power to an absent Christ.  Matthew 8:13 adds “as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee.”  Both record his return to wholeness.

V.            A Final View is Gained When We See Him as the Cumulative Man.  V9 “I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel.”  That statement may sound familiar.  Luke 4/Matthew 15 tell us of the Syrophoenician woman. Like this man, also a gentile.  Like him, petitioning for another.  As he does, he believes unerringly that Jesus can meet this need.  It is shown to be a great faith (Laidlaw/Lockyer, p 179): Great coming from a man outside the covenant; great ascribing all/total power to Christ; great making no superfluous request; great in its self-forgetting benevolence.  One other thought is brought to mind:  Here is a non-Jew treated as an equal.  Here is the first opportunity for the gospel to touch gentiles.  Remembering the struggle in the early church, this is an example.  Recognizing that we still have problems with this, he opens the door.

Conclusion

                A medical journal quoted by the Nashville Banner on June 5, 1986, tells of a year old baby falling in a swimming pool.  The mother got her out, not breathing, and dialed emergency. Informed of a strike, she started screaming. A neighbor, who lost both legs in Viet Nam, rolled 80 yards in a wheelchair, crawled up 60 feet and five steps to the pool, and administered CPR.  The baby revived.  “It was God’s hand that saved the baby, not me.”  How long has it been since we were instruments working for the good of someone else?

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.”