Advent Attitude: Hope

Advent Attitude: Hope

Jeremiah 33: 14 – 16.

Introduction

What are your plans for Friday, December 21, 2012?  Some people are predicting that day will be the last day of human history…that the world is coming to an end.

There are several theories about how the world will come to an end.  Some people claim there is a large planet wandering closer and closer to Earth, and it will get so close to us on December 21 that it will rip our world apart.  Other people believe that the sun will align with the center of the Milky Way Galaxy on December 21 and place our planet in the middle of a giant energy field which will cause our North Pole and South Pole to switch places.  Other theories include Earth being hit by a large meteor or unusually large solar flares.  NASA has a couple of pages on their website dedicated to answering your questions about whether or not the Earth will be destroyed on December 21, 2012.[1]

The reason people are fixated on December 21, 2012 as the last day of history comes from the fact that one of the Ancient Mayan Calendars comes to an end on that day.  The Mayan “Long Count” Calendar records dates beginning from the day the Mayans believed creation began up to 5,126 years into the future.  December 21, 2012 is the last day on the 5,126 year calendar.[2]

There are three reasons why I am not worried about the world coming to an end on December 21. 

First, I brought a couple of calendars to illustrate what I believe will happen.  These are calendars that Shauna makes for me every Christmas to hang in my office.  Each month has a different set of pictures of our family.  One of my calendars comes to an end on Friday, December 31, 2010.  The other one comes to an end on Saturday, December 31, 2011.  When the 2010 calendar came to an end, I replaced it with the 2011 calendar.  I didn’t wait for the end of human history.

Second…  How likely do you think it is that there was an ancient society (more advanced than we are today) who had the ability to predict the world would come to an end in 2012?  (2012 is 700 years after the end of Mayan civilization.)  Or, do you think it is more likely that the Mayan calendar predicted the end of a 5,126 year cycle and the beginning of one big party to celebrate a new 5,126 year cycle?[3]

Third, a biblical view of “the end times” necessarily includes the idea of God creating a New Heaven and a New Earth.  There are many different theories on “the end times,” but they all include God doing something new.  God will redeem his people and his creation.  Things will be just as God originally intended for things to be.  God’s people will live in perfect harmony with God, with creation and with each other.

Our Scripture today is one of Jeremiah’s prophecies to the people of Judah.  It was spoken at a time when they thought their world was coming to an end.  But, Jeremiah spoke words of hope and assurance.  God is at work.  And, God is making something new.

Jeremiah 33: 14 – 16.

At the time Jeremiah spoke these words, he was in prison.  The religious and political leaders did not like what Jeremiah had to say about Judah and their relationship with God.  Jeremiah told them they needed to repent, and turn back to God.  Their politics and their religion had become corrupted.  The people had forgotten about God.  And the only solution to their problem was to turn back to God…to do things the way God intended.

Jeremiah spoke out against the way Judah had abandoned the religion of their forebears.  The priests were no longer serving as shepherds over God’s people.  The priests were only looking out for themselves.  The people forgot God’s Law.  The people had abandoned God and, as a result, morality had virtually disappeared.  The widows and orphans were overlooked.  The poor were neglected.

Jeremiah warned the religious leaders that Jerusalem and the Temple would be destroyed if the people did not repent.  This was not a popular message.  Jeremiah was ridiculed and persecuted for speaking God’s Word.  At one point, Jeremiah was arrested and brought to court.  The religious leaders wanted Jeremiah to receive the death penalty.  But, a political leader came to his rescue.  He was merely placed in prison.

Jeremiah also spoke out against the political leaders who were willing to enter into treaties with Assyria and Egypt. Judah was being squeezed between two world superpowers: Assyria in the north and Egypt in the south.  The political leaders were trying to decide which side they wanted to be on.  They were willing to compromise their independence and make a political deal with whichever empire they thought would be the safer choice.

Interestingly, Jeremiah told them not to worry about Assyria.  They would be taken over by the Babylonian Empire.  Jeremiah told them to make peace with Babylon.  Because Babylon was the country God was going to use to punish Judah for abandoning God.  Jeremiah told them to get out of the city of Jerusalem and to surrender themselves to Babylon.  Anyone who stayed in the city would die.  Anyone who surrendered to Babylon would live.

While Jeremiah was in prison, all of his prophecies began coming true.  The Babylonians were marching onto Jerusalem.  The small army from Judah could not stop them.  It was obviously only a matter of time before Jerusalem fell, the Temple destroyed, and the people carried off into exile in Babylon.

But, even when the world was falling apart…Jeremiah found a reason to hope in a better future.  He even acted out his faith in chapter 32 by purchasing a field.  Imagine how silly he must have looked.  The Babylonians were holding the city of Jerusalem siege, and Jeremiah bought a field.  He was investing in the future.

Jeremiah had assurance, because God spoke to him…

Jeremiah 33: 14…  "'The days are coming,' declares the LORD, 'when I will fulfill the gracious promise I made to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.

In the Old Testament, prophets were the men and women who spoke God’s word to God’s people.  The classic formula for a prophet was to begin by saying something like, “Thus says the LORD…”  And, that is exactly what Jeremiah did here.  Notice that Jeremiah is quoting God’s words.  He reminds the people of Judah that a promise is only as dependable as the person who made the promise.  The future depends on whether or not God will keep his promise.

The hope Jeremiah preached about was not a return to the “good ole days.”  Jeremiah did not promise that God would prevent his people from suffering.  In fact, it was just the opposite.  Jeremiah warned the people of Judah that their Temple and city would be destroyed one day.  He warned them that they would experience extreme suffering.  There would be no food in Jerusalem for two years.  The streets would be filled with the bodies of those who had died of starvation.  The houses would be torn down to reinforce the walls of the city.

BUT… “Days are coming.”  There is hope on the other side of suffering.  That is a message we need to hear this morning.  God’s future is better than the present.  God’s future is even better than the past.

God’s future is based on the promises God made in the past.  Since, God is the same yesterday, today and forever, we can trust that his promises never fail.  God will keep his word.

Perhaps this is the most important thing about hope.  The promise is not as important as the One who made the promise.  God said, “The days are coming when I will fulfill the gracious promise…”  We don’t place our hope in the promise or the preacher.  We put our hope on the One who made the promise, because God is capable of living up to his word.

Jeremiah 33: 15… "'In those days and at that time I will make a righteous Branch sprout from David's line; he will do what is just and right in the land.

In the next verse, God reminds his people of the specific terms of his promise to them.  More than likely, we are supposed to hear God’s words and remember the story of David and the prophet Nathan (2 Samuel 7).  When David wanted to build a house for God, God sent Nathan to tell David not to.  Instead of David building a house for God, God would build a house for David.  There would always be a descendent of David to rule as king over God’s people.

When the Kingdom divided into the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah, only Judah continued the Davidic line of kings.  Of course, now that seems to be in jeopardy.  If Babylon defeats Judah, what will happen to King Zedikiah?  Will he be killed and replaced by a foreign king?  What will happen to God’s promise?

Jeremiah answers these questions by using the phrase “righteous Branch.”  On one hand, this could simply mean “a legitimate heir”—a legitimate descendent of David.  On the other hand, it might mean something altogether different—a truly righteous king…one who is perfect in every way.   

Jeremiah’s original audience would have understood his message as a reference to the end of the Babylonian Exile.  They would have interpreted this to mean that God would take care of his people while they were exiled in a foreign land.  Then, God would bring them back to their own land and give them another Davidic king to rule over them.

The only problem with this interpretation is the fact that it didn’t exactly work out that way.  The people did return to the land after Exile.  But, the Davidic line did not resume.  This is why we now interpret this as a reference to the Coming Messiah.  Jews continue to hope for that Coming Messiah to rule from David’s throne.  As Christians, we recognize this as a reference to Jesus—the son of Abraham, the son of David, and the Son of God (cf. Matthew 1).

This teaches us something very important about God and his promises.  As I said earlier, a promise is only as dependable as the one who made the promise.  The Bible teaches us about the faithfulness of God and gives us the assurance that God can be trusted to keep his promises.  However, we need to learn something from Jeremiah and the Jews.  God will keep his promises.  But, God keeps his promises on God’s terms and in God’s time.  We do not get to dictate how and when God keeps his promises.  Jeremiah thought God would keep his promise by bringing the Jews back to Judah after seventy years of exile and give them a new Davidic king.  But, that is not how God kept his promise.  Instead, God waited 587 years to send his Only Begotten Son to be bon in a stable in Bethlehem.

Jesus is the Legitimate Heir of David and the Truly Righteous King!

Jeremiah 33: 16…  In those days Judah will be saved and Jerusalem will live in safety. This is the name by which it will be called: The LORD Our Righteousness.'

Jeremiah’s prophecy ends with a very curious phrase, “This is the name by which it will be called: The LORD (is) Our Righteousness.”  There is a footnote in the New International Version, which tells us there is more than one way to interpret these words.  The pronoun “it” could possibly be interpreted as “he.”

If we choose to interpret this as “it,” then Jeremiah is predicting that the city of Jerusalem will one day be known by the name, “The LORD Is Our Righteousness.”  However, if we choose to interpret this as “he,” then Jeremiah is predicting that the Righteous King and Legitimate Heir of David will one day be known by the name: “The LORD Is Our Righteousness.” 

God’s promise to Judah and Jerusalem is a promise of safety and salvation.  Safety and salvation cannot come from a city.  Safety and salvation are only possible through Righteousness.  Righteousness does not come from the Law or the Temple.  Salvation does not come through political powers—by living in a certain city or under the reign of a human king.  Salvation comes from Righteousness, and the Lord is our righteousness.

This is remarkable.  Jeremiah is telling us that the Legitimate Heir will be perfectly righteous in every way.  AND…Jeremiah is telling us that the Legitimate Heir will make his people righteous in every way.

Jesus is the Righteous Branch…the Legitimate Heir of David…the Truly Righteous King.  Jesus is our Righteousness.

Jesus is the Truly Righteous King and the only person who is not subject to God’s wrath.  BUT…When Jesus subjected himself to God’s wrath, Jesus became our righteousness.  Righteousness does not depend on what God’s people can do for God.  Righteousness is what God does for us through faith in Jesus.  Through faith in Jesus, God makes us right—places us in a right relationship with God.

Conclusion:  True Hope and False Hope.

Jeremiah’s message was not popular.  He preached about the fall of Jerusalem, the destruction of the Temple, the death of the Davidic king and the exile of God’s people.  But, Jeremiah also preached about Hope. 

Jeremiah’s understanding of Hope was different from the false prophets of his day.  The false prophets told the people that everything was going to be OK.  Nothing bad will ever happen to us.  We are God’s chosen people.  God has to take care of us.  God needs us.

False hope teaches that if you will simply have faith in God, all your problems will go away.  God will make you healthy, wealthy and wise.  God does not allow his people to suffer.  Therefore, any difficulty in life is an indication of a lack of faith.

Have you ever heard that message before?  I wish that were true.  I wish God would simply prevent all his followers from all forms of suffering.  I wish that I never had to do funerals for Christians who suffer from long-term illnesses.  As long as we live in this world, we will face the sufferings and pain of what it means to be human.  False hope says we will never suffer.  God’s hope says that God is with us when we suffer and will bring us out better on the other side of suffering.  God is at work in the world, creating a better future—better than the present and better than the past…A New Heaven and a New Earth.

Advent is a season of waiting.  In one sense, we are waiting for the Coming of Christmas.  In another sense, we are waiting for God to fulfill his promise of a better future…the promise which began with the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.

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[1] http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/2012.html#end ; http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/yoemans20091110.html ; http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/podcasting/jpl-asteroid20120307.html

[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesoamerican_Long_Count_calendar

[3] http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/science/2007-03-27-maya-2012_n.htm

Thanks-Living: God’s Church

Romans 12: 1 – 8

Introduction

What do you have to be thankful for?

Hopefully, you were able to enjoy a little time off from work this week and spend time with your family…and to give thanks to God for all your blessings.  Perhaps you gave thanks to God for your life—because God not only created us, but also provides for all our needs.  Perhaps you gave thanks to God for your freedom—because it is only by the Grace of God that we live in the greatest nation in all the world.  Perhaps you gave thanks to God for the way God loves us—because God’s love is based on his character as the God of Love and not because we deserve to be loved by God.  But what about your church?  In your list of all the things you are thankful for, does your church rank high enough to stop and say thanks to God for your church?

Several years ago—when I was pastor in Mississippi—I had an interesting conversation with a woman in our church.  I had just moderated a church business meeting, and there was a close vote on what I thought was a fairly insignificant matter.  This woman had voted against the motion and found herself in the minority.  She came to me after the business meeting and said, “This is MY church.  I have been a member of this church longer than anyone else.  Mr. So-and-So is older than I am, but he served in World War 2 and wasn’t in this church.  Mrs. So-and-So is older than I am, but she went to college and was away for four years.  This is MY church, and I don’t like these new comers coming in to MY church and telling me what to do in MY church.”  (Incidentally, at the time she said this to me, the new comers had been members of that church for 21 years!)

Perhaps it is a little late for me to ask this question, since I have been here for over six years…  But, who exactly owns THIS church?  Does the church belong to the pastor?  Does the church belong to the deacons?  Does the church belong to one prominent family?  Does the church belong to a woman who never served in the military and didn’t go off to college?

I think we can find an answer to that question in the Bible…  In Matthew 16, Jesus asked his disciples what other people were saying about Jesus.  They said that some thought Jesus was John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the other Old Testament prophets come back to life.  Then, Jesus asked what the disciples thought about Jesus.  Peter answered for all the disciples by saying:

Matthew 16: 16 – 18…  “16 Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’  17 Jesus replied, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.’”

According to Jesus, this church belongs to Jesus!  We each have roles to play and responsibilities to fulfill.  But, only Jesus can build the church and grow the church.  The best thing we can do is to trust Jesus with the future of this church and allow Jesus to be the ultimate leader…to follow him prayerfully and to do the kinds of mission and ministry Jesus modeled for us.

And this is one of the things I am most proud about this church.  We have been involved in missions for 129 years.  We support missions financially, and we send our church members out as missionaries—short-term missions as well as career missionaries who have come out of this church.  We have planted 12 mission churches in Lufkin alone and helped to revitalize several struggling churches.

But…Right now, it seems that we are having an attendance problem.  It gets frustrating for me to stand up here and preach to empty pews.  One way to interpret that is to think people are not happy with the church right now.  After all, that’s the way Baptists let you know they aren’t happy—they stop coming to church and stop giving.  So, we did some investigating. 

First, our giving is not down this year.  It is actually up from the previous years.  Tithes and offerings from January through October 2012 are about $50,000 more than January through October 2011.  And, if our tithes and offerings in November and December 2012 are equal to tithes and offerings in November and December 2011, we will finish the year with a small budget surplus.  People are not withholding their offerings.

Second, we counted the number of people who attended church at least one time in September and October.  We discovered that there were over 100 people who came to church only once or twice during those eight weeks.  I think we have four different churches meeting here at First Baptist Church.  We have the first Sunday church; the second Sunday church; the third Sunday church; and the fourth Sunday church.

Our biggest problem is that people have stopped coming to church…At least people have stopped coming more than one Sunday per month.

Is it enough to come to church one Sunday per month?  I suppose that depends on what you believe about the church!  Let’s look at one of the places where the Apostle Paul teaches us that the church is the Body of Christ.

Romans 12: 1 – 8

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform (be conformed) any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. 4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his (the) faith. 7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

In this short passage, Paul used the word “body” to refer to two different things.

In Romans 12: 1, Paul tells his readers to offer their Bodies as living sacrifices.  Notice how Paul uses the plural form of the word Body.  This plural form tells me that Paul is speaking to a group of people but he is giving us individual advice.  In other words, Romans 12: 1 – 2 describes something that every man and every woman must do for himself or herself…Give your life to God daily as a sacrifice.  Resist the ways the world tries to conform you into its mold and image.  Instead, allow God to transform your body and use your body for his purposes in the world. 

Then, in Romans 12: 4 – 5, Paul switches from the plural Bodies to the singular Body. I believe he is also switching from individual instructions to many different individual men and women to corporate instructions to one church—one Body of believers.  He teaches us that just as each of us has one human Body with many members, in Christ we who are many form one corporate Body.  This corporate Body is the church, and the church functions just like an individual human Body.  When all the parts of the Body are healthy, the whole Body is healthy.  When all parts of the Body are working together, the Body will be successful.  When one part of the Body is unhealthy or competing against the other members, the church cannot be all God intends us to be. 

By using the same word in each of these sections, I think Paul was trying to communicate that Christians are supposed to have both an INDIVIDUAL life with Christ as well as a CORPORATE life with Christ’s people.  I believe there is a very simple message in this…Take your BODY and become a part of the BODY of Christ.  In other words… Take your BODY to church.

This same message shows up in other places in the Bible as well…

Exodus 20: 8…Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy…

Matthew 18: 20…For where two or three come together in my name, there I am with them…

Hebrews 10: 25…Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching…

Two Extreme Views of Church

Again…How important is it for people to go to church?  There are two extreme answers to this question. 

On one extreme we find the people who say, I don’t need the church! 

There are some people who say, I don’t need the church, because I have something better that takes the place of church…Usually, these people are members of a Bible Study group or some parachurch organization that they think better serves their spiritual needs than the church is capable of doing.  To these people I would respond that they need to remember the 4^th commandment in Exodus 20: 8, Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy…

There are some who say, I don’t need the church, because I can worship God better in a deer stand, on a creek bank or on the golf course…To these people I would respond that they need to take note of Jesus’ words in Matthew 18: 20, Where two or three are gathered in my name, there I am with them…Jesus clearly teaches us two things about worship…We need to worship in a group of more than one…And we need to gather in the name of Jesus—Deer stand, creek bank and golf course do not fit Jesus’ description…

Then, there are some who say, I don’t need the church, because I do not believe in organized religion…To these people I would respond that I have been in ministry since 1991 and served in several churches as youth minister, college minister and pastor…After 20 years of experience, I’m not sure I believe in organized religion either…I believe in disorganized religion!

Seriously, I would remind these people to read Hebrews 10: 25, Do not give up meeting together…Togetherness is an important part of church, and you cannot get a feeling of togetherness by watching church on TV, the Internet or by jumping from one church to the next church to the next church…

This past week, I visited with three of our homebound members.  These three ladies are all over 90—actually one is 103—and are no longer physically able to attend church.  All three of them told me the same thing.  “Andy, I just can’t explain to you how much I miss going to church.”

As far as I know, each of them is able to watch our video recordings of our worship services and have people from our church call or visit them nearly every week.  But, for them, it is just not the same thing as attending worship and Sunday School as a part of the Body of Christ.  It’s not the same as being able to greet other people by shaking hands or hugging necks as an expression of Christian community. 

This is why I still believe church is important!  (Even if the church is not “organized religion.”)  We are better together than we are separated.  We are stronger in our faith and our mission when everyone is here for worship, Bible Study, fellowship and community.  Then, we can go out individually to make a difference in our own circles of influence. 

On the other extreme we find the people who say, You cannot go to Heaven if you don’t go to church!

In church history this position was stated most clearly in the year 249, by Cyprian Bishop of Carthage.  (Now, that is Carthage as in North Africa and not Carthage as in East Texas.)  Cyprian was famous for two things.  As Bishop of Carthage, he claimed to have as much authority as the Bishop of Rome.  In other words, he challenged the authority of the Pope.  When he challenged the Pope, Cyprian claimed to have the same ability to grant salvation as did the Pope.  That led to Cyprian’s famous statement, There is no salvation outside of the church!

There are still some modern-day Catholics and some entire Protestant denominations that teach the same thing today.  If you are not a member of their church, you are not saved.  And even then, you had better remain in good standing with their church if you don’t want to lose your salvation.

To these people I would respond that Romans 12 teaches something entirely different.  Romans 12: 1 teaches us that we are saved as individual bodies with no reference to the church.  But Romans 12: 3 – 8 teaches us that the service and ministry God calls each Christian to perform must take place as part of the church as the Body of Christ…

Conclusion

The best way I know to describe the proper relationship between individual Christians and the church is to describe the church as the Body of Christ and an interdependent relationship.  You need the church…And, the church needs you.

The church is the place where you and I are supposed to exercise our God-given gifts together in community and fellowship with other Christians.  And, the church cannot function as the Body of Christ without all our members working together.

Years ago, when that lady in Mississippi told me it was HER church, I thought it was very selfish for Christian folks to think of church as MY church.  I think I have a little different perspective today.  Now, I wish we had more people who took such a personal interest in the church.  I wish we had more people who thought Lufkin’s First Baptist Church was MY church.

That’s MY church, and I want to support MY church with my time, talents and treasure.

That’s MY church, and I want to do everything in my power to make it a better church.

That’s MY church, and they need me.

Thanks-Living: God Is Love

Thanks-Living: God Is Love

1 John 4: 7 – 12.

Introduction

What do you have to be thankful for? 

Hopefully, you have a long list of things you are thankful for.  Family, friends, your job, living in the United States of America, God’s work in your life to create you and provide for all your needs, salvation, this church, the beauty of creation…  But, how often do you stop to say, “Thank you” to God for these blessings in your life?

Christians ought to be the most thankful people in all the world.  On one hand, we are so blessed.  On the other hand, we recognize that all these blessings come from God, and not from our own hard work.

Preaching about thanksgiving is a very difficult task.  A sermon on thanksgiving can be a very short sermon.  I could stand up here and say, “You ought to give thanks to God for all the blessings in your life.”  Then, we could pray and go home.  It’s a very simple sermon.

The problem is that God has given us so much…so many blessings…that we often take God’s blessings for granted.  Sometimes, instead of giving thanks to God, we try to take the credit for the good things in life.  Other times, we simply fail to notice that God is blessing us with something we do not deserve.

One sad example is the way we think of the Christian faith.  At times we treat the Christian faith as if it is a purely rational undertaking.  We think that in order to become a Christian, a person should acknowledge that God exists and then give mental assent to a list of Christian propositions:  God is the Creator of heaven and earth; God sent his Son Jesus to die on the cross and rise again; God is Trinity—Father, Son and Holy Spirit—and the Holy Spirit leads Christians individually and corporately; all humans are sinners who must be saved through the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus…

However, this is not what the Christian faith is all about.  The Christian faith is not about leading people to a rational decision.  The Christian faith is about leading people to a relational faith.  God is a person who has proven himself trustworthy.  God is inviting each of us to be in a relationship with himself—person to person.  The Gospel is a love story.

No one will ever come to a true understanding of who God is without first discovering that God loves you.  No one will ever develop a proper theological understanding of God, themselves or the world we live in without first discovering that God loves you.  No one will ever live a moral, Christian life without first discovering that God loves you.

In fact, I believe this is the starting point for sharing faith with other people.  We need to tell others, teach others and demonstrate to others that God loves them. 

This is also the starting point for Thanks-Living—living a life of thanksgiving to God.  It begins by recognizing God loves me…or, as we read in 1 John 4, “God is Love.”

1 John 4: 7 – 12…  7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son [fn2] into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for [fn3] our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

This passage is one of the two most frequently used passages in the New Testament on love.  It helps us to define what love is and therefore understand who God is.

John began this passage by telling us that love must come from God.  This is significant because it describes love as coming from the divine sphere.  LOVE is not from the worldly sphere, rather it comes from God.  Perfect love comes from above, not from below…Therefore, any love that comes from below must be imperfect, corrupt…Or, it must be based on the Love that comes from above. 

Then, in the next verse, John tells us that God himself is love…God doesn’t only give love…God is love…Therefore, God has demonstrated Love to us by giving us nothing short of himself. 

This is significant, because it teaches us a couple of things about the nature of God.  Since we understand Love as a personal act, then God must be a person and must be concerned with relationships as priority.  If God is an impersonal life force, we cannot describe God as loving.  If God is a detached creator, who stepped aside after creating the universe and setting everything in motion, then we could not say God is Love…Because there would be no relationship between God and his creation.  The proper understanding of God is that God is a personal creator who is intimately involved in his creation through relationship.

Relationship is one way to describe love.  If there is no relationship, there is no way to express love.  However, love must also be expressed.  So…if God is love and God is a Person, how does God express his love?

I think I have already told you that my favorite definition of Love comes from a book on personal evangelism by Oscar Thompson—Concentric Circles of Concern (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1981).  In the book Thompson describes evangelism moving across seven concentric circles—self, immediate family, relatives, close friends, neighbors / business associates, acquaintances, and person X.  Christians do not jump from self to person X without first being a witness to the other groups of people in between.  And the way we are supposed to witness to each of these groups of people is through “Love.”  Then, Thompson defines love as “meeting needs.”  In other words, if we love someone, it will be expressed by actively meeting their needs…and sometimes sacrificing our own needs to meet the needs of others.

How God Shows Love

In 1 John 4: 10, we see John’s definition of Love.  Notice that it does not say “this is God’s love.”  Instead, this verse is a description of true love or perfect love.  Any love that originates within us as humans, cannot be perfect love.  Perfect love always originates with God.  Perfect love can be described by three ideas taken directly from verse 10: 

1)  Perfect love is expressed in action, not feeling.

This is one place where the world has corrupted our understanding of Love.  We can use Love in such a cavalier way that we can say things like, “I love hamburgers.”  But perfect Love is always expressed in action.  Jesus did not say, “Greater love has no one than this that one have great affection for a friend.”  Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this that one lay down his or her very life for their friends.”

2)  Perfect love is expressed self-sacrificially.

Again, the world has corrupted us in this area.  We are taught that love is a feeling that is based on the way someone makes us feel about ourselves.  The world’s love is about receiving something enjoyable and / or fulfilling from the object of our love.  But, perfect love has been revealed to us in the life and the death and the resurrection of Jesus.  When God took the initiative to act on our behalf, he did so by making a personal sacrifice.  Perfect love was not and is not based on how the lover feels.

3)  Perfect love  benefits other people.

It was not enough that Jesus died.  In order for his self-sacrificial action to reveal perfect love, it had to benefit other people.  And it did!  Jesus died on the cross to offer us forgiveness for sin—the final sacrifice to replace all the Old Testament sacrifices.  Jesus died on the cross to make us righteous—a righteousness we could not earn for ourselves.  And, Jesus died on the cross to reconcile the broken relationship between God and humanity—through Jesus, the relationship between God and his creation can be restored.  In short, Jesus’ death on the cross demonstrates God’s love.  It was an action.  It was self-sacrifice.  It was intended for our benefit—for salvation.    

God Shows Love to Sinners

In order to truly understand the nature of God, we first need to recognize that God is Love.  But, in order to be thankful for God’s Love, we need to stop and think about the object of God’s Love.  God demonstrated his love through the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus.  BUT, God did not demonstrate his love only to those who deserve to be loved.  In fact, God demonstrated his love to people who did not deserve God’s Love, do not deserve God’s Love and never will deserve God’s Love.

The Apostle Paul describes how undeserving we are of God’s Love in several places in the New Testament.  One example is Romans 5: 8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  (Jesus didn’t die on the cross for the good people, the Christians, or even the Baptists.  Jesus died for sinners!)

Paul gets a little more specific in 1 Corinthians 6:

1 Corinthians 6: 9 – 11…  9 Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

This Scripture is remarkable for several reasons.  First, this is one of three places where Paul specifically mentions homosexual behavior as sin (Romans 1, 1 Corinthians 6, and 1 Timothy 1).  Second, we have a tendency to read Paul’s lists of sins and single out homosexual behavior and skip over the fact that greed, lying, gossip and slander are also included side by side with homosexual behavior.  Paul includes all sinners and all kinds of sins in his lists.  Third, this list represents a list of obvious sins.  Paul does not describe why these behaviors are sinful behaviors, because he does not have to.  It is self-evident to anyone reading the list that these are sinful.

If I were to venture a guess, none of us is guilty of committing all of these sins at this moment of our lives.  But, I would also guess that every one of us is guilty of at least one of these sins.  Sexual immorality…idolatry…adultery…homosexual behavior…stealing… greed…drunkenness…slander…swindling (cheating / deceiving)…

If you can find yourself in Paul’s list of sins, then you are a sinner who does not deserve to inherit the Kingdom of God.  BUT, Paul also tells us that these are exactly the kind of people that God loves.  These are the kinds of people for whom Jesus died on the cross.

Jesus died on the cross to wash you of your sins.  He wants to forgive your past sins and give you a fresh new start…a new beginning.

Jesus died on the cross to justify you.  Justify is the verb form of righteous.  So, Jesus died to make you righteous—to place you in a right standing and a right relationship with God.

Jesus died on the cross to sanctify you.  Sanctify is the verb form of the word “holy.”  So, Jesus died to make you “holy.”  Holy means to be “set apart.”  In the Old Testament Tabernacle and Temple, there were common utensils like forks and bowls and candle sticks that were “holy.”  They were “set apart” from ordinary instruments.  They could not be used for worldly purposes.  They could only be used for God’s purposes.  In the same way, Jesus died on the cross so that you and I could be set apart for God’s purposes and not for the world’s purposes.

The Result of God’s Love

Paul develops this idea of “sanctification” later in this same passage of Scripture.  He is writing to a church and a culture that values freedom.  In fact, they value freedom so much that they insist on exercising their freedom in ways that are contrary to God’s will.  Paul listed those expressions of freedom in his list of sins, and then focuses on just one of those sins—sexual immorality. 

1 Corinthians 6: 19 – 20…  19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

More than likely, the Corinthians believed that life could be divided into compartments.  There is a spiritual compartment, an intellectual compartment and a physical compartment.  As long as they kept their spiritual lives in order, they didn’t think it mattered what they did with their minds and their bodies.  Paul says NO!

Jesus died on the cross as an expression of God’s Love.  He died as a sacrifice for your sins.  He died to reconcile your relationship with God.  AND, he died to purchase your freedom from sin, death, wrath, Hell and Satan.  Therefore, your life no longer belongs to Satan, it no longer belongs to the grave, and it no longer belongs to yourself.  Jesus purchased your soul, your mind and your body.

If your body belongs to yourself, then you get to determine how you will live.  If your body belongs to Satan, you have to do what Satan wants you to do.  If your body belongs to Jesus, you will glorify God in all the things you do.  (You will not glorify yourself or Satan!  You have been set apart to bring glory to God.)

The best way I know to say this is to quote an old saying.  “God loves you just the way you are.  But, God loves you too much to leave you the way you are.”  God wants to wash away your sins.  God wants to place you in a right relationship with himself.  God wants to set you apart from the sinful things of this world.

Conclusion

I do not believe the Bible ever tells us we will reach a state of sinless perfection.  We will struggle with temptation, and we will commit sins.  The sins we commit in our bodies are not harmless sins.  They affect our minds and our souls / our spiritual relationship with God.  But God loves us and continues to work on us…to set us apart from the rest of the world.

Are you thankful for God’s Love?  If you are, then you will begin by noticing how great and how amazing God’s Love is. 

Did you come to church this morning thinking, “Of course God loves me…I am a good person?”  Or did you wake up and think, “Wow…I am a sinner who does not deserve God’s Love…and God loves me anyway?”

We can take God’s Love as a gift.  Or, we can take God’s Love for granted.  Don’t take God’s Love for granted.  Be thankful.

Thanks-Living: Two Kinds of Freedom

Galatians 5: 1 – 15.

Introduction.

What do you have to be thankful for?  It’s hard to believe, but there is only one more Sunday between today and Thanksgiving Day.  While I believe it is a great thing that we have one day every year set aside to give thanks, I also believe one day is not enough.  As Christians, we have so much to be thankful for that we cannot possibly fit it all into one day.  That is why I want to use every Sunday in November to preach about some of the things we have to be thankful for.  Last week, I spoke about the gift of life—we are thankful to God for creating us and providing for all our needs.  Today, I want to preach about freedom.

Actually, I considered preaching about freedom last week.  Last Sunday was the Sunday before the presidential election, and that seemed like a good time to preach about being thankful for freedom.  But today is the Sunday after the presidential election, and it is Veterans’ Day…Therefore, today is another good day to preach about freedom.

I am thankful for two kinds of freedom.  I am thankful for political freedom and for spiritual freedom.

I use the term political freedom to describe all the freedoms we enjoy as citizens of the United States of America.  Freedom of speech…Freedom of Religion…Freedom to elect our government leaders…Freedom to pursue our dreams.  We live in the greatest country in the world.  But, I am not one to say we live in the greatest country in the world and enjoy these freedoms by accident of birth.  No.  I believe it is by the Grace of God.  We should be thankful FOR freedom and thankful TO God for those freedoms.

Galatians 5: 1 – 15.

In the Book of Galatians, Paul addresses a controversy in the churches in Galatia.  While this controversy is mostly unknown, it has been pieced together through scholarly investigation—by reading Paul’s arguments and speculating what he is trying to correct.  It seems the churches in Galatia had been infiltrated by false teachers who taught that faith in Jesus was not enough.  They taught that in order to be a Christian, one had to believe in Jesus AND do something else.  Anything that requires more than faith in Jesus is a false Gospel.

We think the false teachers in Galatia were teaching that Christians needed to have faith in Jesus AND follow the Jewish Law.  It’s easy for us to wag our finger and shake our head at this false teaching.  But, we do the same thing.  Anytime we tell people they need to believe in Jesus AND do something else to be truly Christian, we are making the same mistake.  In Galatia, the problem was Jesus AND the Law.  For many people it is Jesus AND baptism…or Jesus AND a certain theological position…or Jesus AND a political affiliation.

Whenever we say Jesus AND something else, we have elevated something else to the point of being equal to Jesus.  This is nothing short of idolatry.  Because Jesus is enough.

               

Verse 1…  It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

To this point in the Book of Galatians, Paul has placed Christ and the Law in opposition.  In Paul’s estimation, the Law was a temporary arrangement between God and God’s people.  The Law served it purpose and came to an end when Christ came. 

The biggest difference between Christ and the Law is what they accomplish.  The Law cannot forgive sins.  It only condemns.  The Law cannot give life.  It can only take away life.  The Law cannot comfort a guilty soul.  It only increases the guilt.  The Law cannot set us free.  It enslaves.

Christ, on the other hand, forgives sins; gives eternal life; provides comfort to sinners; and sets us free.

From what does Christ set us free? 

The Law tells us that we are sinners who fall short of God’s glory and God’s expectations for God’s people.  Therefore, the Law tells us that we are deserving of God’s wrath.  Every person who breaks the Law deserves to feel the weight of God’s wrath.  This wrath is not felt in this earthly life.  It is reserved for hell: eternal torment and eternal separation from God.

However, Paul tells us that Jesus became sin for us and took away the wrath of God.  This is offered to anyone who places faith in Christ.  Through faith, we receive God’s grace and not God’s wrath.

God’s grace sets us free from God’s wrath.  God is not angry with us anymore.  God will never be angry at us again.  Since God will never be angry with us, we can love God and not fear him.  Therefore, as much as the Law might try to make us feel guilt and fear, we are free from the Law.  As much as sin might cause us to fear God, we are free from sin and its eternal consequences.  As much as death might be foreboding, we are free from death by God’s promises of heaven.  As much as Satan might try to threaten us, we are free from Satan by the power of the Holy Spirit within us.

This is the freedom that Christ accomplished for us.  We could never break free from wrath, Law, sin, death or Satan on our own.  Christ has set us free.  The only true freedom comes from the work of the cross.

Now Paul must remind the Galatians about true freedom.  They are contemplating going “back” into slavery.  I say “back,” even though they were never Jewish.  They were Gentiles.  Therefore, they have never experienced life under the Old Testament Law.  Yet, they have experienced other forms of slavery: wrath, sin, death and Satan.  According to Paul all other religious systems are equal.  Christian faith is the only religious system that sets us free and does not lead down the road to hell.

Verses 2 – 3 … Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all.  Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.

Verse 2 indicates that the churches at Galatia are still in the thinking about / contemplating stage.  They have not yet submitted to circumcision.  They have been hearing from false teachers, comparing their words to the Gospel Paul preached, and are trying to make a decision between the two.

There are two important, but closely related points in these two verses.

First, Paul says that circumcision nullifies the work of Christ.  I think we need to consider his use of the term “circumcision.”  Either Paul means circumcision literally or he means it as a symbol for something else.  Today, I think he is using it literally.  I used to think it was symbolic for the entirety of the Old Testament Law.

Circumcision was the final step for a Gentile man in his journey to become a Jewish proselyte.  It was a big step, because it was painful and difficult.  It was saved for the end of the process.  A man did not begin by having himself circumcised.  He began with other aspects of the Law.  He modified his diet, observed the Jewish calendar, studied the Torah…And only then was circumcised.  This is one reason why I think Paul is using circumcision literally.

If a man became a Jewish proselyte, he was committing himself to the Jewish religion.  The Jewish religion taught (and continues to teach) that the Messiah has not yet come.  The Jews are still waiting on the Messiah.  Therefore, a Jew and a Jewish proselyte both share the view that Jesus is not the Messiah (Christ).  By professing that Jesus is not the Christ, the Jews were also professing that Jesus was of no value to them.  It was as if Jesus had never come and had never died on the cross.  Paul’s warning to the Galatians is that they were considering a move in the wrong direction.  Instead of professing Jesus as sufficient for salvation and freedom, they were about to profess that Jesus is not the Christ, because the Christ had not come.

The second point also shows us that Paul is talking about literal circumcision.  He says that the Law cannot be separated into different sections.  The Law must remain intact.  Either the Law will be accepted wholly, or it will be rejected wholly.  There is no middle ground.  Circumcision cannot be isolated from the rest of the Law.  Submitting to circumcision is a sign that the person is submitting to the whole Law.

What Paul is writing about is the idea that circumcision is necessary for salvation, not the physical act of circumcision.  We cannot apply spiritual power or significance to anything other than the cross of Christ.  This is significant, because the Old Testament tells us that circumcision was instituted by God himself.  It was not invented by any human.  If Paul can make this bold of a statement about something instituted by God, then imagine what he would have to say about human institutions.

Verses 4 – 6 … You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.  But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope.  For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.

I do not believe the phrase “fallen from Grace” means that Paul is teaching that a person can lose their salvation.  Instead, I think he is stressing the gravity of the situation.  This is not a little matter.  It is a big deal, because it affects the whole Gospel.

Paul addresses the churches at Galatia as his “brothers.”  This indicates that he does not doubt their salvation.  They are fellow Christians.  However, even fellow Christians can distort the Gospel for future generations.  They professed faith in Christ and received the Holy Spirit.  These people are Christians.  Yet, if they begin to teach their children and others that circumcision is necessary for salvation, they are going to lead a lot of people astray.  A mistake at the beginning of the church will affect countless generations to come.

The word “righteousness” could also be translated “justice” of “justification.”  The righteousness / justice / justification for which we hope.  I would not choose to use the word “justice.”  But, I would agree with either “righteousness” or “justification.”  Paul is writing about a now and not yet understanding of salvation.  Through faith in Christ, God has declared us “righteous” or “justified” in his sight.  However, that righteousness or justification is not yet complete.  It will never be complete as long as we continue to live on this earth.  It is completed once we are in heaven.

I believe the Galatians were interested in circumcision and the Law, because they felt like they needed a boundary marker to identify them as part of the Christian community.  It was easy to identify those who worshipped as a part of the Emperor cult and those who worshipped the Roman pantheon of gods.  The Jews were easily identified by circumcision and the Law.  But, how were outsiders to identify the Christian community?

Paul ends verse 6 with a shift toward ethical behavior and the defining characteristic of the Christian community.  If Christians do not have to obey the Law, what separated us from the pagans and the Jews?  Does freedom in Christ mean that we can live any way we want to live?  No.  Salvation comes through faith.  Faith is expressed ethically in loving actions.  (We will deal with this more at the end of the passage.)

Verses 7 – 12 … You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?  That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you.  "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough."  I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be.  Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished.  As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!

Here is the final reason why I believe Paul is writing about literal circumcision.  Verses 7 – 12 contain several puns on the concept of circumcision. 

Verse 7, Paul reminds his readers of circumcision by using the word “cut.”  Often, Paul compares the Christian life to running a race.  Here, he used the Greek imperfect tense to describe the way the Galatians started their race.  The Greek imperfect is used to indicate continuous action in the past.  The NIV captures this well with the phrase “you were running.”  In other words, they were doing a great job.  They professed Christ.  They received the Spirit.  They established churches.  They were growing in their faith.  All was good until someone “cut” in on them.  Cutting is the problem.  Circumcision has distracted them from running the race.

Paul says that the ones insisting on circumcision are not from God.  God does not distract us from running the race.  Satan is the one who distracts us.  Paul makes an association with the “cutting party” and a Satanic influence.  It did not come from God.

In verse 10, Paul refers to the agitators, but refuses to identify them.  He calls them “the one who is throwing you into confusion” and “whoever he may be.”  Some take this to mean that Paul does not know who they are.  He just knows there is a problem in the churches.  I think it is a shaming device.  They are not important enough to call by name. 

Although “whoever he may be” could indicate that this false teacher was someone famous.  Either it was one of the Apostles, or it was a man who had been led to faith and discipled by one of the Apostles.  Compare this to Galatians 1: 8, and I think we have a good case for a famous false teacher.  However, reputation does not matter.  All that matters is the purity of the Gospel.  No matter who is teaching a false Gospel, it is still false.  They will be held accountable to God.

Verse 12, Paul gives some offensive words about circumcision.  Literally, this verse reads: “As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and cut it off.”  The NIV captures this with the phrase “emasculate themselves.”  If they were to “cut it off,” they would be excluded from the Jewish synagogue.  The Old Testament teaches that a man who is incomplete is excluded from worship.  If the agitators would go the whole way, the problems with the churches would be resolved.  They could no longer find acceptance in the Jewish religion.

Verses 13 – 15 … You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.  The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."  If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

There is a danger in preaching freedom.  The danger is that sometimes people interpret freedom as a license to sin.  If we are free from the Law, then it does not matter how we live our lives.

License is not freedom.  License is slavery just as legalism is slavery.  Legalism is slavery to the Law.  License is slavery to “the sinful nature.”  It is slavery to Satan.

Love is the proper balance between legalism and license.  Paul proves this by quoting from Leviticus 19: 18.  The legalists would recognize this as a good Law.  The Christians would recognize this as the words of Jesus.

The beauty of this statement is the fact that you don’t have to study huge law books to understand it.  We all know how to love ourselves.  We all know how we want to be treated by others. 

Now, treat others the same way.  It is simple, but it is also complicated.  Jesus told us in Luke 10, that loving our neighbors does not mean loving people who are easy to love.  It means loving our enemies and the people that we really don’t like.

Conclusion.

You, my brothers, were called to be free.  But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather (use your freedom) to serve one another in love.

This is the way Freedom was demonstrated for us in the life of Jesus…Jesus used his Freedom to die on the Cross for all our sins.  And Jesus used his Freedom to serve the physical needs of others around him.  He calls us to follow his example.

If you follow Jesus as his disciple, then you are Free…How will you use your Freedom?  Will you serve your own sinful desires?  Will you follow the example of Christ and serve the needs of others around you?

Both political freedom and spiritual freedom come with responsibility.  To love as Jesus loved…  To use our freedom to serve the needs of others…  If we keep on biting and devouring each other, we will destroy each other.