The Rich Man and Lazarus

Posted by Chris on April 11, 2010 under Sermons

Parables – part 2

1. Eschatology
   1. The purpose of this parable is not to define the cosmology of heaven and hell
   2. Jesus is using widely accepted categories of the afterlife to make his point.
   3. This isn’t to say that the world to come will not be like this, but using this text as a proof text to argue for a particular eschatology is special pleading.
   4. Our goal in this study is the meaning of the parable
2. Context of the Parable
   1. The Pharisees have sneered at Jesus’ teaching
   2. According to Luke, they love money.
   3. Verses 14-18 set the context and themes for the parable
   4. First theme is the love of money. The parable will counter the notion that being rich means that one is righteous.
   5. Second theme is the persistence and witness of the Law and Prophets. Luke has a theme (that runs through Luke and Acts) which shows that the gospel and the church are consistent with the Law/Prophets and Israel
3. Mechanics of the Parable
   1. This is a double-edged parable. It makes two points
   2. First Point is the reversal after death
   3. Second point is the Law and the Prophets (and the witness of one returned from the dead)
4. Reversal After Death
   1. Common View of Hearers/Readers (First Century): God blesses his righteous ones. You are righteous, God will bless you. Turn it around: those who are financially blessed must be righteous. This is the notion of fortune and misfortune
   2. Likewise, if you are wicked, then you are not blessed. So, the poor must be wicked – or someone in their family is wicked. (Compare to John 8 and the misfortune of the Blind Man – “Who sinned?”)
   3. When Lazarus and Rich Man die, the truth is revealed: Lazarus (though poor) was the righteous one. The Rich Man (though blessed) was the wicked one. What was his sin? He ignored the suffering of his brother who was laid at his gate.
5. The Request of the Rich Man
   1. Send someone to witness and warn my family (this is a not so subtle jab at the Pharisees who sneered)
   2. Abraham notes that the teaching of the Law and the Prophets should be sufficient
   3. The Rich Man wants the “Ebenezer Scrooge” effect – If one from the dead will warn them, then they will change their ways. Abraham disagrees: If they will not heed Moses, then a risen man will not convince them
   4. This is also a comment on Resurrection.

What Does God Want Us To Do?

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

I am confident that we would all like to do whatever it is that pleases God.

• We desperately want to do what is right even though we are tempted with what is wrong
• Our heritage (Restoration, Churches of Christ) aimed at restoring the ancient order of things. The idea was that doing things the right way, we would not only be pleasing to God but we would also create a set of basic Christian practices that everyone could agree with. Later, some called these practices the identifying marks of the church – in other words, the church that gets it right.
• I have been my the side of the dying and they want to know that they have done enough to please God – they want to know, “Did I do what I was supposed to?”
• I have had people ask my advice about doing God’s will – they wanted to know, “What am I supposed to do?”
• I have been a part of studies, especially on difficult Scriptures or controversial subjects, and inevitably someone says what we are all thinking: “Oh, I wish God had made this one plain as day! Just say right out – HERE IS WHAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DO!”

I would like to show you some of those “plain statements” over the next few weeks. But first, I want to make sure you hear it the right way:

1. You can do nothing to save yourself – You are saved by God, through Christ Jesus.
2. What we do is both a response to what God has done/is doing and putting our faith in practice.
3. Through Christ we are justified and sanctified – We are saved and being saved (made holy) [You’re a saint!]

These practices are very reliable marks (characteristics) of God’s people – of Christians, of his church.

Micah 6 – Background and reading

• God’s case against Israel
• The people want in to worship God and ask: What shall we do? How can we enter your temple? Your sanctuary?
• They bargain: They offer sacrifices of increasing seriousness. They have a fix it mentality. A pay-off mentality. A by the book, policy and procedure mentality. There’s only desperation and worry in this type of worship. They are mixing up the right antidote to keep the God-monster appeased and missing out on what God wants …

God asks of you the following –

• It really isn’t that hard to figure out
• It shouldn’t be a secret
• It’s what God has always wanted
• Here it is – plain as day – “HERE IS WHAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DO!”

1. Do (Make) Justice.
   • We probably think of justice as something larger than ourselves. Something that has to be an integral part of our culture, our society, and our institutions.
   • So does this mean we all need to study law or become politicians?
   • What is justice? Genesis 18:17-19, “Should I hide my plan from Abraham?” the Lord asked. “For Abraham will certainly become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth will be blessed through him. I have singled him out so that he will direct his sons and their families to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just. Then I will do for Abraham all that I have promised.”
   • The verb here is important too. We are to do, or to make justice. This is much more “street-level” than writing laws or policies that are supposed to make our institutions just and right. Abraham precedes the law, but God sees the opportunity to work into Abraham the goal of the law

     Making Justice – Compare to Making Injustice:

     1. Getting rich by cheating the poor (6:10).
        1. Exhibit A – the home of the wicked who cheats the poor. Why is he wicked? Because he cheats the poor
        2. The poor are especially vulnerable to “cheating” because they don’t have as many options.
        3. Exhibit B – Dishonest measures: What sense does it make to increase the APR on someone who has trouble paying their bills? Consider the working poor. Calling them stupid and saying that they have made bad decisions is no help. Our bad decisions can follow us around forever.
     2. The rich have become wealthy through extortion and violence (6:12)
     3. Lying is common place – so much so that we cannot tell the truth (6:12) – We are saved by fine print.
     4. Don’t do injustice. Don’t take advantage of the poor, Don’t use means of violence or patronizing, Be Honest and Tell the Truth
     5. Justice is something that we DO. The powerful oppress the powerless. When power is not balanced, there is injustice. Workers are exploited. Courts are corrupt. Work for justice – especially those who are powerless.
2. Love mercy: “Chesed” = loving kindness. Loyalty. Steadfast Love of the Lord. Showing Care. Hope and Healing.
   • Do we want this as much as God does. Do we love it like God does?
   • Do we love mercy as much as Christ does?
   • While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”
   • On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”
   • If we are more focused on “sacrifice” then we are going to condemn the innocent (Matthew 12). When we are so mechanical and duty-bound to keep the rules that we neglect mercy, the innocent are too often the sacrificed.
   • How merciful is sacrifice? Sacrifice allows us to ignore the need to be kind to others.
   • God wants you to learn what it means to desire mercy – loving kindness. Get this other commission right and the great commission will follow.
   • Too many people have left God’s way because we have loved sacrifice more than mercy!
3. Walk humbly with your God.
   • Halakah is derived from the Hebrew halakh, which means “to walk” or “to go”; the best translation is not “law”, but rather “the way to go”.
   • Walking is ethics. It is how we live. We cannot separate belief and faith from the way we live. We live in response to what God has done for us and what he is doing through us
   • What were the disciples called in Acts? The Way!

Follow Jesus – Walk with Him.
Says God, “Of all those who have ever lived, no one does justice, loves kindness, and walks with me better than my son Jesus. I am very pleased with Him, so follow in His footsteps and you will do well.”
– (Credit for this Quote goes to an excellent sermon on this text by David Fleer at the Rochester Seminar for Preaching)

Once and For All

Posted by Chris on April 4, 2010 under Sermons

Slate magazine re-published an article from two years. The author, James Martin, was explaining why Easter has not succumbed to commercialization like Christmas and why, despite bunnies and chocolate eggs, it maintains its religious significance.

The Easter story is relentlessly disconcerting and, in a way, is the antithesis of the Christmas story. No matter how much you try to water down its particulars, Easter retains some of the shock it had for those who first participated in the events during the first century. The man who spent the final three years of his life preaching a message of love and forgiveness (and, along the way, healing the sick and raising the dead) is betrayed by one of his closest friends, turned over to the representatives of a brutal occupying power, and is tortured, mocked, and executed in the manner that Rome reserved for the worst of its criminals.

Martin continues by examining the meaning of the resurrection …
More shocking than the crucifixion is the resurrection. … Even the resurrection, the joyful end of the Easter story, resists domestication as it resists banalization. Unlike Christmas, it also resists a noncommittal response. Even agnostics and atheists who don’t accept Christ’s divinity can accept the general outlines of the Christmas story with little danger to their worldview. But Easter demands a response. It’s hard for a non-Christian believer to say, “Yes, I believe that Jesus of Nazareth was crucified, died, was buried, and rose from the dead.” That’s not something you can believe without some serious ramifications: If you believe that Jesus rose from the dead, this has profound implications for your spiritual and religious life-really, for your whole life. If you believe the story, then you believe that Jesus is God, or at least God’s son. What he says about the world and the way we live in that world then has a real claim on you.
Easter (The cross and the resurrection) is an event that demands a “yes” or a “no.” There is no “whatever.”

We believe that Jesus was crucified once and for all.
We believe that his body was placed in the tomb.
We believe that God raised him from the dead and now he lives and rules.

But do we live in a “whatever” sort of way with that belief? Believing these things is not simply a matter of checking a true or false on an exam. If you believe this, you acknowledge a reality that changes everything. You must live it out, or reject it outright.

Read Hebrews 10

Four Ways the Cross/Resurrection Change Us and Certainly Cannot Be a “Whatever” Event

1. The Sacrifice of Jesus is “Once and For All” – ¹⁰And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
   1. Sometimes we leave Jesus on the cross. Perhaps we want him to remain there so that he can take the punishment and we don’t have to. Maybe Jesus’ willingness to take our place allows us to get on with our own life.
   2. Once – Not again. The violence in our world is revealed. God has lifted the façade off of our twisted notions of civilization. There is no need to continually crucify Jesus
   3. For All – Too often we concern ourselves with who isn’t saved. We get caught up trying to find the limits. Let’s just leave it at “For All.” Keep yourself pure, God will purify the church.
2. Gratitude, not Guilt is the Proper Response – ²²let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
   1. The Risen Jesus has no need for us to be consumed with guilt. He died once for all so that we might be reconciled to God.
   2. Guilt is the proper response to our sins. Gratitude is the proper response to God’s Grace
   3. Too often we use guilt to control others or to excuse ourselves from right living. Don’t squander the blood of Christ on selfishness or self-doubt.
3. Hold on to Hope, Let Go of Sin – ²³Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ²⁴And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.
   1. The cross and the resurrection work together to expose the violence in the world and replace it with hope and love
   2. Hope is Trust in God’s justice – We have better and more lasting possessions than anything this world offers. We should not have a “whatever” attitude about this.
   3. Because Jesus died once for all we do not have to be angry anymore. We can live in love.
      1. Some of you have had some truly wicked things done to you. Real injustices not of your doing. Jesus is your friend. Look to him. He shares in your suffering. Lean on him and trust in God.
      2. But sometimes God’s people are the angriest people in the room. We are angry about our government We are angry about our work We are angry with school
      3. What right do you have to be so angry — did you go through what Jesus did?
      4. We get angry with one another. We are angry because the church is changing too fast. We are angry because it isn’t changing fast enough. We’re angry over worship styles. And if we don’t say angry we will say concerned.
      5. Look to Jesus. Look to the cross and try to hold on to your anger. Try to justify it. He chose love and God raised him from he dead. Thank God he loves and forgives.
   4. How can we not love others. How can we not forgive. Easter would be a good time for some of you to forgive someone. Forgive means let it go. Not to treat it lightly but to release it. Jesus trusted his life to god and god did right by him
4. We Look Forward to His return – ³⁵So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. ³⁶You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. ³⁷For in just a very little while,
   “He who is coming will come and will not delay.
   1. We move forward
   2. We encourage one another until the Day comes
   3. We know that he is risen and alive

Jesus died once so that you don’t have to be angry anymore.
Jesus died once so that you can be free to love.
Jesus died once so that you can live forever.
Jesus died once so that you can live a life of freedom.

Who Is My Neighbor?

Posted by Chris on March 28, 2010 under Sermons

Parables – part 1

1. Jesus used parables
   1. Stories that communicate truth
   2. More engaging and compelling than simple propositions and facts.
   3. Facts can be debated. Stories thrust us into reality of the kingdom.

2. The Parable of the Good Samaritan
   1. Lawyer testing Jesus
      1. The question of eternal life
      2. Deuteronomy 6:5, Leviticus 19:18 – Jesus agrees.
      3. “But who is my neighbor?”
      4. Expecting an exposition, the lawyer get a story
   2. The Story:
      1. The Traveler (Jerusalem to Jericho)
         1. He is ambushed, beaten, stabbed, and robbed.
         2. “He will die if someone does not arrive and help him.”
      2. The Priest:
         1. “Disregard for God’s commands led him to this fate.”
         2. “He will die if someone does not arrive and help him.”
      3. The Levite:
         1. On his way to do service in the Temple
         2. Levite forbidden to touch a dead body
         3. “Surely the man is dead.”
         4. “He will die if someone does not arrive and help him.”
      4. The Samaritan:
         1. The Hero. Who is it? What will he do? Anticipation!
         2. Shock – “It’s a Samaritan!”
            1. Show historical examples of the hostility between Samaritans and Jews.
            2. Why does Jesus use a hero that the hearers will not associate with?
            3. He is calling out their prejudices and showing them that love is about mercy and compassion, not the definition of neighbor.
            4. Hosea 6:6 – What does the Lord require?
         3. No penalty for killing a Samaritan. Stiff penalty for associating with one
         4. This is the Hero of Jesus’ story
         5. He stops, makes bandages from his own garments, oil and wine (his provisions for his journey), takes him to an inn where he is very likely unwelcome, pays the bill and more.
      5. “Which of these three became a neighbor?”
         1. Does Jesus answer the question? (No) He invalidates the question.
         2. When it comes to love, one does not choose one’s neighbor, one chooses to be a neighbor.
         3. Christ-like love does not ask “Who is my neighbor?” Rather, it is active. (“Go and do the same.”)

Worldwide Revival

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

Three Subjects To Brush Up On That Just Might Change The World

HISTORY
Salvation history. God is in command of and working through the events in history (vs the deist watchmaker and vs the god who represents our agenda)

Can We Be Confident and Christian?

Posted by Chris on March 21, 2010 under Sermons

1 John 5:13

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”

Q: How do we know God loves us?
A: He sent his one and only Son so that we might live through Him.

This is Love …

• God loved us first (4:10)
  – compare John 3:16
• Jesus gave his life for us (3:16)
• We may be called God’s children (3:1)
• So, we should love God (5:2) and one another (3:11)

Q: How do we know what is true and what is false?
A: Every ‘spirit’ that does not acknowledge Jesus is false.

Recognizing the Spirit of God

• The problem with false prophets (4:1)
• They left the fellowship of believers because they did not believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ, the Son of God (see 2:18-27)
• Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ came in the flesh is from God
• Those that do not are not (4:2-3)

(Romans 14, Colossians 2, 1 Corinthians 8-9, 2 John 9)

Recognizing the Spirit of God

• God’s truth overcomes the ‘wisdom’ of the world (4:5-6)
• We can know the truth (2:21)
• So, we can set our hearts at rest in God’s presence and know we belong to the truth (3:18-19)
  – Confessing Christ (2:23)
  – Remaining in the Spirit’s teaching (2:27)
  – Putting love into action (3:19)

Q: How can we know that we know God and abide in Him?
A: Whoever claims to abide in God must live as Jesus did.

Recognizing the Children of God

• Confessing Christ (4:15)
  – Relying on God’s love!
• Walking in the Light (1:5-7)
  – Cleansing from sin (2:1-2)
• Obeying his commands (2:3; 3:24)
  – Especially the command to love one another (2:7-11)

The One Who Has The Son

• Proof of God’s Love
  – Jesus Christ
• Test of God’s Truth
  – Jesus Christ
• Standard of a Godly Life
  – Jesus Christ

Everyday Revival

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

Three Simple Suggestions That Might Just Change Your World

And if they change your world, they just might change the world. Last weekend Randy Harris spoke of revival in terms of Christians being more serious about living out the story of Christ. Changes in our attitude and spirit might give us the opportunity and credibility to speak up for Christ in a way that the world would listen.

No Whining –
How would this make church and world a better experience? Our culture whines a lot. Especially in America with our limited perspective and our sensationalist media …

Virgin America flight 404 departed LAX on time at 7:30 a.m., flew to the New York area where it was scheduled to land at 3:30 p.m. But with a storm raging and JFK closed, the flight circled and was eventually ordered to land at Stewart Airport at about 5:30 p.m. to wait it out. The storm lasted longer than expected so bus transportation was arranged and passengers eventually made it to JFK by about 1 a.m.

Headlines and news leads featured the word NIGHTMARE frequently. about the HORROR! The NIGHTMARE! The STRANDING! The CRYING BABIES! The FORCED RATIONING!
Martin even noted on Kontain.com that MSNBC coached him to be mad.

Compare to other problems in the news.

We all whine. We commonly greet each other with whining. “How are you?” “Tired, worn out.” I suppose it is more acceptable to be tired than to brag about feeling good. We whine when we are kids and then we graduate to griping. (The pitch and the amount of power that we have is different)Whining and griping gets us off mission. Who wants to follow people with a negative spirit?

The antidote or alternative is gratitude. A virtue for God’s people. How would this change the world?
(I recall a brother who would greet you by saying “I’m blessed.” I paid attention to that.)
Hebrews 12:28 – We are the recipients of the Kingdom, how dare we whine?

No Worrying –
We haven’t given ourselves much confidence when it comes to salvation. Example: People who are dying and worried that they are not good enough. Fear of eternity.
Someone says: “But we shouldn’t be overconfident.” But this isn’t a confidence in our own ability. History and experience and Bible would show that we have no reason to be confident in our own ability. This is a confidence in God and his promises. Confidence comes from surrendering control to God.
That lack of confidence makes us worry. It makes us a church of worriers and gets in the way of the mission. Worry can devolve into fear.

Trust. The antidote is trust and a rich eschatology. When you turn it over to him, why worry? When we turn this over to God but we sit around and worry if we are going to make it to heaven, then that is sinful. Jesus is impatient with people who do not have trust. (See Martha and Mary.)
Someone may say, but if you don’t worry about going to heaven then someone can just live however they want. Not at all. Take away salvation on the basis of merit, and establish that salvation is on basis of trust, then you do not behave a certain way to GAIN salvation, instead trust is a matter of living within the trust we have for God and in God. It’s confidence.
If you trust God to save you, then you are going to live in a way that is going to be the substance of your trust.Everyone who hears me and puts these words into practice. Blessings have already been showered.
Matthew 6:27 and John 14 – Worry and Trust

No Wrath –
Our world is an angry world. Just think of how we could make a difference if we were a people who were less angry and wrathful than the rest of the culture.

Wrath and anger come in a variety of styles: Notice the works of the sinful nature – Galatians 5:19-21.
We are often offended by acts on either side of these. But do we understand why acts of anger and wrath have such a warning?

Anger is a “do-nothing” emotion. About the only positive benefit of anger and wrath: determination.
Imagine working on a project and you have a nagging problem. You might get angry enough to put some effort into it. But if you continue to be fueled by anger you will soon have a mess.

Anger has a way of building like a poison and it becomes more toxic. It will in time turn into resentment and passive aggression. Ultimately becoming hate. This is why wrath has a warning …

Of all the emotions, Anger is the nitrous oxide. Do you understand what I mean? N₂O injectors go into the system and give the car extra speed. But it is used cautiously and carefully or it will burn up the engine.
Anger and wrath have to give way to better emotions and attitudes.
Our families, nation, and churches cannot be fueled on anger. Jesus put a limit on anger.

We have better options at the point of anger is the goal follows the mission.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” – Galatians 5:22. The fruit of the spirit show the better options. Self-control allows us to cultivate compassion kindness (makes us active, not just a feeling) ultimately love.

Angry Church – One of the hindrances of mission is a critical spirit in the Lord’s churches. I have decided that there are certain journals and article in our fellowship that I just cannot read anymore. Not because I have a problem with the authors. Not because I have a problem with their conclusions. And it is not because I do not want to hear truth. But I have a problem with their attitude and their critical spirit. They are uncharitable and critical. They do not seek peace. Often they refuse to communicate directly with the individuals that they pillory. [Journals – Emotional Pornography]

It’s in the culture, too. I walked in the house the other day one of the news talk shows was on and people were in their little boxes arguing. Conservative vs liberal And the tone continued to become a drill that bored into my forehead. Why do we tune into these shows and watch overpaid pundits argue, and then punish our children for behaving the same way? Reveling in rantings. Outpouring of wrath.

The poison seeps into our fellowship too often. A wrathful culture spewing its poison. That poison can leak out when we sit down at table with one another. When we come together for worship.
Much of preaching has been filled with such wrath. Anger aimed at people. I pray that I have not done so – I don’t want to. Preaching may be direct, but it doesn’t have to be violent.

A pledge of support comes with this preaching. A word of encouragement that in God’s spirit and with God’s help. You and I can be people who are grateful, fearless, courageous, hopeful, self-controlled, truthful and loving. I wouldn’t say it if I didn’t believe that with Jesus’ help we could really be that.

Here’s a Trustworthy Saying, part 4

Posted by Chris on March 7, 2010 under Sermons

further studies in I Timothy

Trustworthy Sayings

1. Christ came into the world to save sinners (1:15)
2. Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task (3:1)
3. Our hope is in the living God, who is the Savior of all people and particularly of all believers (4:10)

Teach These Things

1. All ages (5:1-2)
2. Widows (5:3-16)
3. Elders (5:17-25)
4. Slaves (6:1-2)
5. Wealthy (6:17-21)

Promoting Godliness

• The Tragedy of the Trouble-making Mind (6:3-10)
• Flee From All This Man of God (6:11-16)
  – Don’t dance to their tune
  – Pursue godly life
  – Hold on to eternal life
  – Don’t waver

Truisms

• Some people just need to be mad. They want their pain.
• Angry people don’t speak “reason.”
• Some people need to be “right,” regardless of the cost.
• Anxiety spawns triangles–even over distances.
• Upset people lose the capacity to practice grace and will believe the worst of others in an instant.
• Just one willful angry person can stir up a group if the healthier ones do not respond with godliness.
• Anxiety spreads like a virus in a group that lacks immunity provided by godly leadership.
• During times of acute anxiety emotionality trumps rationality, even in a church full of “smart” people.
• Trust is a gossamer thread; once severed it’s almost impossible to regain.
• Information reduces anxiety (but for anxious people, so will misinformation).
• When people lack data, they’ll fill in the blanks.

Teach These Things

1. All ages (5:1-2)
   • Older men, women; younger men, women [Not elders]
     – This is not “diplomatic immunity” for elders
   • Teach gently; be an example
   • Contrast to 5:20 (applied to elders)
2. Widows (5:3-16)
   • Widows in ancient society
   • Help those who have no one else
   • Encourage others to follow God’s ways (care for family, marriage)
   • What principles could guide the way we help others?
3. Elders (5:17-25)
   • Honor those who serve well
   • Beware of frivolous accusations (see Deuteronomy 19:15)
   • Do not be hasty to appoint or accuse; let the evidence surface
   • Bring everything into the open
4. Slaves (6:1-2)
   • The statement accepts slavery without endorsing it
   • There is neither slave nor free in Christ (Galatians 3:28)
   • Show due respect and do not shame the way of God
5. Wealthy (6:17-21)
   • Do not trust in riches
   • Trust in God
   • Use wealth for doing good and sharing (Luke 16)
   • Focus on the future

Elder Ordination Service

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

Order of the Service:

704 – Bind Us Together
Coins for Christ – (No Children’s Worship)

Scripture Reading – 1 Peter 5:2-7 [Race Burns]

Reaffirming Our Shepherds

• Introduction of Mat Griffin and thanks to the Reaffirmation Team (Mat, Helen, Jack)
• Mat will thank the congregation for their feedback and report the result of the reaffirmation
• Prayer – Mat

705 – A Common Love
[The five new elders and the seven current will come to the front pews during this song.]

Commitment of New Elders- A Pledge of Servant Leadership
[Benjamin will ask the new elders to move onto the stage]

God has spoken graciously through his church calling you to tend his sheep. You are being asked to assume the responsibilities of shepherd, overseer, and elder.

• Will you serve Jesus Christ as your Lord?
• Will you teach and model the gospel of Christ?
• Will you ensure the healthy teaching that strengthens the Lord’s people?
• Will you guide us patiently and prayerfully?
• Will you lean on the Spirit of God as you equip the church for acts of faithfulness?
• Will you mentor and shepherd the other leaders God gives to the church?
• Will you lead us rather than appease us, resolving to keep us focused on God’s purposes?
• Will you pray for us when we are sick, minister to us when we are hurting, and rejoice with us when we are blessed?
• Will you work in harmony with your fellow shepherds and with the church?
• Will you be great among us by serving as Christ did?

Response: “With God’s help we will.”

Read John 13:1-17 – [The current elders will now join the new five and present them with the “servant towels.”]

As a reminder of the Lord’s example of servant leadership, we offer you this small symbolic token of this day for your encouragement. This is a towel embroidered with the words of Jesus. We hope it serves as a reminder of Christ’s grace to you, your commitment before God and our support of your oversight.

Russ McConnell will lead a Prayer of Blessing.
During Russ’ prayer, the “current elders” will be laying their hands on the “new five” – a gesture that demonstrates the sharing of God’s spirit and their affirmation as elders.
[After this prayer, all assembled on the lower stage may return to the pews.]

Part 3 – A Pledge of Support: The Commitment of the Congregation

Scripture Reading – Hebrews 13:17 [Tanner Robbins]

Church, our worship today confesses our belief that God has called these men to shepherd our congregation. Our actions from this point forward ought to reflect that belief and it requires commitment on our part.

Brothers and sisters …

• Will you follow these men in service for the sake of Christ?
• Will you be respectful of their leadership and imitate their faith?
• Will you support them in prayer and serve them in peace?
• Will you “lift up their arms” even as they care for our souls?
• Will you do all of this knowing that it pleases the Lord and shows the world the perfection of his ways?

If you so agree and pledge, then I ask you to affirm by saying: “With God’s help we will!”

Prayer of blessing for the church:
[Kevin Hesslen will ask God to help us live up to this commitment.]

Invitation for Responses

• Larry Todd will offer the invitation.
• The five new elders will assemble down front (spread out) to receive responses. This indicates that these new shepherds are ready to engage in the ministry of prayer for the sake of the congregation and for the glory of God.

Song for Responses
448 – Greatest Commands
Sending Out Prayer – Bill Dickey
[Bill will thank the congregation for participating in the reaffirmation and charge us to go out in service to Christ.]

Here’s a Trustworthy Saying, part 3

Posted by Chris on February 28, 2010 under Sermons

further studies in I Timothy

Blameless Leaders

• Trustworthy Saying 2 – Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task (3:1)
• Family and Character
• Deacons: Worthy of Respect
• Deaconess or Wives (I Timothy 3:11)?
• Romans 16:1

Deaconess or Wife?

• We know that Phoebe was a deacon (Romans 16:1)
• The word in I Timothy 3:11 is “wife” or “woman”
• Ordination is not the issue – faithfulness is the issue
• Verse 12 continues profile of deacons

Why Leaders Like This?

• “… you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household” – 3:14-15
• “… in the last times some will turn away from the true faith …” – 4:1

Hypocrites

• Hypocrisy is alluring because it carries the title of God and gets applause from others
• It does not produce godliness
  – Why bother?
  – Can’t be perfect
  – Focus on outward discipline

  

Godliness

• Trustworthy Saying 3 – 4:8 or 4:10
• 4:8 – Godliness
• 4:10 – Hope and Salvation
• Our trust (faith) is in the living God who saves us all

Charges

1. Reject silly myths – don’t encourage senseless prattle
2. Train for godliness – current and eternal benefits
3. Teach and be an example
4. Do not neglect spiritual gifts