Words Can Never Hurt Me — or Can They?

Posted by Chris on May 13, 2007 under Sermons

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me!” Really? If that’s true then why is Don Imus out of a job? Imus did not throw any sticks or stones, but by his own admission he did hurl some hurtful words. Perhaps words are not as harmless as the old saying supposes.

This isn’t the first time and will probably not be the last time that insensitive and hurtful words spoken in the public square will cause us to reflect on the way we talk. Whether or not celebrities and media outlets strive to police themselves, it would be beneficial for us to reflect on the power of words. Words can hurt, but they can also heal. Words can tear down, but words can also build up.

The power of words is demonstrated so clearly in the creation story. God speaks our world into existence with words. The naming of things defines realities. God sets up definitions by naming night and day, land and sea, human and animals. Of all the creatures that God creates he gives on the power to use words.

The destructive power of words is also evident in the Genesis story. With the subtle twisting of words and lies, the relationship between God and his creation is disrupted. Our relationship with one another is also strained because of the misuse and abuse of words.

This reading in Ephesians shows us that as God’s people we are to walk worthy of our calling. We must maintain the oneness of the spirit and the bond of peace. Living out the new life in Christ involves making choices about our behavior. In this text, the writer specifically urges us to overcome lying, anger, stealing, and evil talk. Literally, this kind of talk is described as rotten and worthless. (Sapros in Greek means rotten and decayed).

• We bring good things to our potlucks; who would dare to bring something spoiled? Why should it be any different with the things we say?

The opposite of the rotten and worthless speech is the sort of talk that builds others up. It is good because it benefits them. And we want to speak this way because we God’s children and we want our speech to be just like his – that’s quite a goal because when God spoke he created good things.

• God allows us the privilege to speak incredible things and he let’s us use words that create reality
• When we come to the waters of baptism some very incredible things are spoken: 1) the confession of belief, 2) the forgiveness of sins, and 3) the reality of new life in Christ.
• Our blessings today are not merely sentimental moments. We believe that when we speak a blessing, God in his graciousness adds to the benefit of these words.
• We can use words to forgive and to seek forgiveness. God in Christ forgave us, and he allows us to speak words of forgiveness and unity to one another.

We always have a choice when we open our mouths to speak: Our speech can be rotten and destructive or it can build up and benefit. We can use words to hurt, or we can use words to heal.

How will you use your words today? What sort of words will come out of your mouth? I am not encouraging you to feel guilty, rather I would like to encourage you to feel holy and urge you to talk like one of God’s children. I pray that these words will build you up.

A Tale of Two Ages

Posted by Chris on May 6, 2007 under Sermons

The book of Daniel is a part of a Bible that is both familiar and strange. Since we were children we have heard the stories of Daniel and his friends, the fiery furnace, the handwriting on the wall, and Daniel in the lion’s den. These tales are well-known in our culture. However, there are sections of the book of Daniel that are bizarre and seemingly difficult to understand. Who are the kings of the North and South? What is the meaning of the boastful horn and the series of weeks? What are the empires represented by the statue and the beasts? These are texts that raise as many questions as there are interpretations.

One of the reasons that Daniel is so unusual is that it comes to us as a tale of two ages. The events in the stories that take place during Daniel’s lifetime are based in the 6th century B.C. during the Babylonian Exile of Judah. Daniel’s visions concern events into the 2nd century B.C.

Daniel the Wise Man
Daniel is a Judean nobleman. He is devout. He is appointed an official and governor under the empires that rule his homeland. He is an interpreter of dreams, a visionary and a witness to great events. He is mentioned in Ezekiel 28:3 (14:14, 20) as a wise man.

We can compare Daniel to Joseph in Genesis 41. Daniel isn’t really a prophet, He’s a wise man. He is a righteous role model. Daniel, like John the Apostle, has a vision. Something is revealed to him and it informs God’s people of the truth in the midst of persecution.

Daniel also has adventures in the first six chapters. The last six chapter are mainly visions.Daniel is an everyman, or rather an ideal man. He is the ideal son of Israel in a hostile environment. He endures and he prevails because he is wise, because he has character and integrity (and thus God blesses him), and he has perspective.

Daniel is caught up in the great events of history in his own time, but his message isn’t just for his own age. It is for all ages in a timeless sense, but Daniel’s visions are also specifically for another age of struggling children of Israel.

Who Is Who in Daniel?
Daniel’s cast of characters set up the challenge between God’s people and the outsiders who oppose and challenge God’s rule. Our heroes include Daniel and his companions, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (better known as Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego), and finally there is a mysterious divine presence who appears to represent God. He is present in the fiery furnace. He comes as the angel Gabriel. He is the son of man who appears to Daniel and gives him a vision of the future.

On the other hand, there are the mighty kings who presume to have all the authority. Some of them, Nebuchadnezzar and Darius the Mede, learn the God is sovereign over all. Others, like Belshazzar, do not. There is a mysterious evil king alluded to in the visions. This evil king will come in Daniel’s future and do far worse that any king before him. But can he resist the power of God? The message of Daniel is that God and his kingdom will ultimately rule over all.

The Two Ages
There are parallels between the 6th century and the 2 century B.C. During the 6th century, Judah was conquered by the world super-power, Babylon, and their identity as God’s people was thrown into crisis. They were taken captive and the temple was destroyed.

The implications of this are huge. They lost their connection to the land and their faith. How can they offer sacrifices in the way God ordained (see Deuteronomy) when the temple is destroyed? Are the gods of Babylon more powerful than God himself?

In the second century B.C., an outside force also created crisis for God’s people. When Antiochus IV Epiphanes desecrated the temple during his conquest of Egypt, the people of God must have wondered if history was repeating.

A Tale of Three Ages?

1. What is the timeless wisdom of Daniel?
2. His future is our mostly our past
3. What does Daniel’s view of history say about our age and our future?
4. What do we learn about God?

Clothed in Christ

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

Read Ephesians 4:17-24

When I was a sophomore in high school, I received a special invitation to serve at a formal banquet. Serving at the banquet was an honor, but it meant that I had to have a tuxedo. My parents looked into renting a tuxedo and they realized that in a few months time I would have to rent one again for wedding party. They also knew that I certainly could use it during my junior and senior year for photos and proms and there would undoubtedly be other banquets and events, so they did the practical thing and just bought a tuxedo rather than spending five times as much to continually rent. (And that made sense in those days because tuxedos were rather standard and did not come in the variety of styles that they do today. The only other version we had was the sky blue one with the big ruffles on the shirt).

I look back and observe how ridiculous it seems for a backwoods kid from Brentwood to own a tuxedo. Renting is one thing, but owning a tuxedo tested me. For my parents it was simply a financial decision – they just smiled over the money that had saved. But it pressed me to ask, “What does it take to wear a tuxedo? What kind of person wears a tuxedo?”

I wanted to get it right. I was not a natural candidate for high fashion. Every day I wore grass stained jeans, dirty sneakers, and T-shirts. I rode my motorcycle down to the cattle pond and got mud all over my shoes pestering frogs with fireworks. But I wanted to get it right because every time I put on the tuxedo I thought I was James Bond. I really wanted to be as classy as the tuxedo implied.

I wanted to get it right. So, I learned how to wear the tuxedo properly. I learned to tie my own tie and how to put in the cuff-links and how to shine my shoes. Some of my friends would show up in their rented tuxes and some of them wore tube socks and sneakers; which made sense because they would play basketball in their tuxedos when they got bored with the banquet. Even their cummerbunds were upside down, but I didn’t say anything – I wanted to get it right but I didn’t want to get beat up. Besides, this wasn’t about being a snob or self-righteous. I just felt that if I had my own tuxedo, then I needed to learn how to really have the sort of class that the tuxedo implied. And I may have even picked up some good manners a long the way. All that, just because of a change of clothes …

In Ephesians 4, Paul uses the imagery of a change of clothes to describe the change in God’s people from a former way of life to new life in Christ. His point is that God’s people have put off the dirty, mismatched, ill-fitting clothing of the old life and are now clothed in the tailor-made, polished clothing of the new life. We have been clothed in the likeness of God.

Let me ask you two questions to think about for a moment:
1. As Christians, does it make any difference how we behave?
2. As Christians, why should we behave any certain way?

Let’s deal with these in reverse order, for I am convinced that the answer to the second addresses the first …

2) Why should we behave a certain way? It is not to “get into heaven” or “to get rewarded.” That is backwards thinking. God who is rich in mercy has saved us. When we were dead in our sins we made us alive in Christ. He created us in Christ Jesus to do good things – things that he planned for long ago. He has given us peace with others and blessed us with gifts.So, now that we have already been shown mercy and grace and we are called to live up to it. If we don’t live up to it then we are squandering and despising the new life that God has called us to. (How much sense would it make if my parents had bought me the tuxedo and I went to the fine banquets in my gym clothes that had been in the locker for two weeks?)

1) Now when you think about it like that above, we begin to see that the way we live and behave really does matter. We are called to be the people God always intended for us to be. We were not created and called to be and to live like people who are dead in sin waiting to be rescued and losing hope. Those who aren’t aware of God’s calling to a new life (those whom Paul calls Gentiles – not because of ethnicity, but because of ethics) are living without hope because they don’t know the truth about God and themselves. Even more tragic are those who have hardened their hearts or blinded themselves to reality. Those who aren’t aware of the life God has called them to have nothing more to live for than their own greed and lust.

The point of this is not to make us feel self-righteous. Not at all! Paul was reminding the Ephesian Christians that that was their way of life before they learned a better from Christ. That is not only the way we should regard every person, but also the way we should examine our own lives. What are the habits and behaviors of “the old life” or the “corrupt culture” that we need to strip off like dirty, tattered clothing? After all, the goal here is self-examination, not self-righteousness.

In contrast to the pointless life without God’s calling, the new life in Christ is characterized by behavior and manners that conform to the calling and gracious salvation that God is accomplishing in our lives. As you will notice, we are called to be honest, truthful, self-controlled, thoughtful, and forgiving. To preach and teach these things is to describe the manners and morals that are a part of being clothed in Christ.

This is how we should hear the preaching and teaching of these Scriptures. If you think I am grilling you, toe-stomping, or complaining about the sorry state of morals these days, then you haven’t heard correctly.
If you think I am saying something that someone else really needs to hear, then you haven’t heard correctly.
If you think I am saying something with you specifically in mind but in an indirect way through the preaching, then you haven’t heard correctly.

But if you hear a call to a way of life that is new, Christ-like, mature, you are hearing correctlyIf you hear counsel and direction for a way of behavior that would not only be good for you but would be good for all of us as we strive to live it out, you are hearing correctly.

I have a vision for this congregation that we will all live out the meaning of our baptism.

I have a vision that we will be a people of holy manners who are dressed up in Christ and are pleased to grow up together in the unity of the Holy Spirit.

I really believe this is possible and I believe we can do this because it is described as real in the Word of God.

Because I believe it, I preach it. Shall we help one another to live it?

Fitness Walk

Posted by Chris on April 29, 2007 under Sermons

Unity (Ephesians 4:1-6)
Psalm 133: How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe. It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the LORD bestows his blessing, even life forevermore.

It may seem strange to us that oil running down the head and beard of Moses’ brother, Aaron, the High Priest, should be good and pleasant. Our experience is different, but the anointing oil poured out generously – so generously that it soaks the collar of the priest’s robe – is an image of God’s gracious blessings being poured out on us.
What immediately strikes us in the Psalm is that all this wonderful experience of goodness and eternal life is connected to God’s people living together in unity. Unity is really special, but sometimes we take it for granted or we overlook it because we are anxious or concerned about other things. That’s easy to do when we think that unity is our project, but the Psalmist and Paul (in Ephesians) agree that God has created unity.
We do not come together to create unity, but simply to proclaim it. We are bound together by God who pours out the blessings of life.
Unity is God’s work. He made it so. We simply keep it. We keep it by conducting our lives in such a way that we understand how we have this ones in God.
One Body and One Lord (We are united as the church with a single head over the church)
One Spirit and One Faith (We are united through our common faith with a single spirit)
One Hope and One Baptism (We are united through our baptism with a single hope)
We believe that there is One God and that shapes the way we live. Unity is oneness in God.

Diversity (Ephesians 4:7-12)
But unity doesn’t mean that everyone is exactly the same. Unity doesn’t come from making us all alike and having us do the same thing. In fact, the unity comes from gifting people with various sorts of spiritual gifts and roles in the body but having those diverse parts work together.
Let’s not confuse unity with uniformity. Uniformity is like Henry Ford’s old statement about the Model T – “You can any color you want as long as it is black.” Oneness in God doesn’t mean that we each get handed the same uniform set of gifts and talents.
Our diversity is just as much a gift of God as is our unity. Christ, who is triumphant over death, gives gifts. Some are apostles, some are prophets, some are evangelists, some are pastors and teachers.
        What’s Happening at West-Ark – Family Meeting tonight – Multiple roles and talents
1. God has given each one of us a gift.
2. The gifts serve a purpose within the body of Christ. They are not ends in themselves.
One role isn’t better than another; they all work collaboratively for the same purpose: maturity. God is working through these various gifts to gain the same single result: maturity

Maturity (Ephesians 4:13-16)
The body of Christ grows “organically.” The church is a growing organism. It can be healthy or unhealthy. [V. 14] When we are not growing, we are immature. Paul loves to mix his metaphors: we are “infants” thrown around by whatever wave or wind comes our way. The common element of this metaphor mix is that we are vulnerable. One of the hardest things to learn as a parent is that you cannot shelter your children forever. Really our duty as parents is to help our children grow up. As the old saying goes, we teach them to stand on their own two feet.
We often say that the leaders of the church are responsible for feeding the flock, but Scripture doesn’t say much about “spoon feeding” the flock. We are expected to mature. One of the worst ways to protect the people of God from false doctrine is to run around nervously reacting to anything that seems dangerous. The best way to protect the people of God is to help the people of God grow up.
The alternative to being vulnerable to the extremes and schemes is to become more and more like Christ. In the ancient world, the head was regarded as the source of growth. So also in the body of Christ, the head of the church (Christ) is the source of growth and the goal of growth.
As we grow in truth and love, we develop the character of Christ; thus our “health” as a congregation increases and we keep the unity that God has given us. And the diversity doesn’t mean we are unhealthy as long as the different gifts and talents and leaders and contributors work towards maturity.
1. Unity: The head directs the growth.
2. Diversity: Each part does its work.

Fitness Walk
The other metaphor in this text (other than growth and health) is “walking.” Going back to verse 1, we are to walk worthy of our calling. Walking is a biblical metaphor for the way we live. We understand this in phrases like “If you talk the talk, you had better walk the walk.” Our worthy walk is a health walk. Our “walk” should be worthy of our calling. We are walking toward maturity in Christ.

Keep this in mind for our Family Meeting: Our programs, budgets, policies, buildings, etc. are not sacred in and of themselves. We don’t contribute and maintain them simply for the sake of doing sake. They have a greater purpose. They are resources and therefore means to an end.
Something as simple as a hammer and nail are resources. But when is the last time you read a book or watched a program all about hammering? Why is that? Because hammering is not the end. It is a means to an end. It is a technique that serves the purpose of constructing: building a house. [But even a house is not the final goal. A house is subordinate to a home. A carpenter can build a house, but the carpenter’s family makes the home.]

Our goal is maturity in Christ and all of our resources and programs are aimed at helping us develop the character and virtues (see v. 2) that are reflective of that. Our “walk” toward maturity leads to a “fit body.” We are after all very diverse people with a diversity of gifts, but God has fit us together just as he sees fit.
Walking with a purpose and destination …

God gave us the unity. God gave us the diversity. Let us strive for maturity.

The End

Posted by Chris on April 22, 2007 under Sermons

Eschatology

• from the Greek ἔσχατος, Eschatos (meaning “last”)
• concerned with the final events in the history of the world and the ultimate destiny of humanity, commonly referred to as the end of the world.
• eschatology related concepts – judgment, end time, and the end of days.

End of Days

• The “Left Behind” Series
  • Rapture
  • Millennium
  • Anti-Christ
• Times and Dates:
  • End Time Fears and Hopes:
  • Fascination with the way time and earth will end.
  • The scenarios are often speculative and include more detail than Scripture intends.
  • They are often dark and fearful.

End Time Texts — Daniel, Zechariah, Matthew 24, Mark 13, 2 Thessalonians 2, Revelation

These texts are sometimes run through a blender to fit a predetermined end time scenario, but there is still something going on in these texts. What is it? What is the actually eschatology? What is apocalyptic?

The object of this literature in general was to solve the difficulties connected with the righteousness of God and the suffering condition of His righteous servants on earth.

The eschatological and apocalyptic texts are written in the context of crisis.
They are intended to address situations in which the foundations of faith seem to be in turmoil. The evil seem to prosper, the faithful are persecuted, it looks bad for God’s people, some have given in to other powers and have been seduced by safety and security.
These scriptures affirm that whatever you may think right now, no matter how inevitable the outcome may seem, God always gets the last word.
The Scriptural texts are harsh, but they are always hopeful.
We know the one significant eschatological event has already happened – and all else that happens is defined by this:
It IS the life and resurrection of Jesus Christ and we await his return as he promised.
This is no secret. God has made it plain.
Why the mistrust of God? Fear of His fickleness.
He is not fickle. God has told us what He expects and what to expect.
We must live as those who know they exist between the resurrection and the return.

The Turn of the Ages

Jesus Christ
Crucifixion and Resurrection
Ascension/Spirit
Parousia (Return)
Judgment (Son of Man)

Christian Eschatology acknowledges that God has acted in Jesus Christ, but he …

1) Continues to act in Christ and the church (Acts 2).
2) He will act a second time once and for all and all things are done.

So, we live between the now and the not yet.

So the Christian emphasis will take you to the end, but then bring you right back to the now and ask how we ought to live in this interim.
Revelation does that (see especially Revelation 18) and 2 Peter 3 does that.

Living in the Last Days

1. Strangers in the world (1 Peter 1)
2. Holiness (1 Peter 1:15; 2:11-12)
3. What sort of people ought we to be? (2 Peter 3:3-15)

Living in the Last Days:

• Even in the first century, Peter knew what it meant to live in the last days.
• In his first letter to believers he called them “strangers in the world” (1 Peter 1:1).
• Although rejected by the world, they chosen by God (2:9-10).
• And so he calls them to holiness (1:15; 2:11-12):
• Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy …” Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
• In his next letter he reminds us that the return of Christ is not only important for the future, but for the present (2 Peter 3:3-15)

Conclusion:

• Because we acknowledge one lord, Jesus Christ.
• Because we know that his resurrection and return is THE defining event of human history.
• We are aliens and strangers in this world.
• We are nomads, sojourners, and colonists.
• We live here, but we don’t belong here.
• If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. – C. S. Lewis

You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.

The Body of Christ

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

Read 1 Corinthians 12

Wednesday, we did a little experiment in the Junior High Class. We began by labeling ourselves. “What do you do very well? What’s your gift?” I asked each of them. They gave all sorts of good responses: music, video games, creative arts, sports, hobbies. After that I asked them to argue why their giftedness was the greatest, most important, best of all. They did a good job. They made some outstanding arguments for why their gift was most important. They were subtle about it too: “Well, if it weren’t for my gift, then none of the others could exist.” And so on. We had a lot of fun. Yes, a lot of fun trying to outdo each other.

What we did in the Junior High Class for fun and education is what one church really did. And they were serious about it. This church had the habit of assessing church members on the basis of their talents and spiritual abilities. They were subtle. They claimed that this was nothing more than spiritual growth and maturity. They claimed that certain manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the form of a particular gift, say preaching or spiritual utterance or miraculous gifts of healing, was the peak of spiritual growth and favor with God. Of course they couldn’t agree on what particular gift was the peak of the mountain and that led to some serious argumentation and disagreement. You know the church – it was the church in Corinth.

For that reason and many others Corinth had become a mess. It was bad enough that some of the members of the Corinthian church sent messages to the apostle Paul. They asked him to give a lesson on a number of issues. Some of them probably want him to take their side so that they’ll have leverage over the other factions. Well Paul obliges, but he addresses the whole business of conflict and how they are mishandling it. In fact, every time Paul address one of the church issues that they have asked about, he answers it by demonstrating that unity in Christ is their only way of resolving the issue.

This is what the “body language” of 1 Corinthians 12 is all about. They have brought their debate about spiritual gifts to Paul and he has taken up the subject.
First, rather than picking out certain gifts, Paul affirms that there are many gifts and then points to the source: God is the source of all spiritual gifts. Different gifts, but the same God. Different kinds of service and ministry, but the same Spirit empowers them all.

Second, he follows this logic about unity and points out that if the same God and Spirit gives all the gifts, then we are all connected. And if we are all connected in this way, then the gifts are for the common good and not just for individual fulfillment. We are different parts or members, but we are the same body.

So this is where the body language comes in: Paul leaves it to them to classify the gifts any way they please. They can argue until doomsday about what gift is best, but they have to accept that they are connected to each other by the source of these gifts. And so it doesn’t matter whether they consider a particular gift to be up the scale or down the scale, they have to acknowledge that they must respect each other because God is the source of all works and gifts and he distributes them how he pleases.

The logic and the body language description does two things to their logic of division and arrogant superiority and the way it effects all of them:

1. It upsets any notion that an individual gift is the only gift worthy of a real Christian. The body isn’t a single member. A human body isn’t all eyes or ears or foot. So everyone in the body of Christ isn’t equipped with the same spiritual gift. This is the message to those who would be so independent and individualistic with their giftedness in God’s Spirit that they would so far as to say, well if you don’t have this gift then you aren’t really part of the church.
2. It dispels any notion that someone is less of member because they lack a few certain spiritual gifts. If God is the source of the gifts, then no one can say they don’t really matter. The body needs all of its members to function in a healthy way.

Conclusions:
We are Christ’s people and we are bound to Christ and thus to one another by God’s Holy Spirit.

• This ought to put “membership” in a whole new light. We tend to think of membership as nothing more than signing up or keeping our dues current.
• A member of a club or organization can leave or quit, but members of Christ’s body are like the members and parts of our body – when a member of our body is absent it is “dismembered.” That isn’t a pleasant thought, but maybe it illustrates how much the body of Christ is truly pained when some members leave or are excluded.

Epilogue:
At the end of our little experiment in the Junior High Class we did one more thing after we read the Scripture that is our text for today. We grouped together and this time everyone had to explain how they with their particular gift needed the other gifts. I thought they were good at trying to argue for their superiority. They weren’t half as good as they were at describing their interdependence and connectedness. The difference may have been that they really believed in the unity they were describing. They showed me that they were pretty good at being “the body of Christ.”

May the one God who has equipped us through the same Spirit enable us to excel in unity.

Life Together

Posted by Chris on April 15, 2007 under Sermons

Ecclesiology comes from the Greek ἐκκλησία (ekklesia), which meant a gathering or a meeting.

What is Church?
House and Home – We think these words means the same thing. But they are technically different. What is the difference?

Houses are made with bricks and beam
Home is made of love and dreams

Understanding the way we use these words somewhat interchangeably may help us understand the two ways we use the word church. Of course we will observe that one way (the way we use home) is more biblical.

Church as Vessel

Amazing Grace

Posted by Chris on April 8, 2007 under Sermons

Soteriology is the category of theological discussion that deals with salvation. From the Greek soter which translates as savior.

Are You Saved?
We should certainly be able to answer this with certainty when it comes to our confidence in Christ’s ability to save us. God’s promises and commitment are reliable.
However, this question of being saved can involve at least four different things:

1. We are saved by God
2. We are saved from something
3. We are saved for something
4. We are saved through something

These four components of salvation will serve as the structure for our all too brief discussion of salvation

1. Saved BY God
   1. Scripture is clear that it is God who save us: Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-7
   2. Atonement is a subset of soteriology. Atonement is an attempt to describe exactly how God saves us. It is a model or theory of the “mechanics” of salvation. What God does to save us involves Jesus Christ and the gospel event (death, burial, and resurrection). However, the Bible uses various metaphors to describe why this event saves us. Throughout Christian history no single metaphor has been recognized as the only true description. All of them are useful. There are four “models” of atonement that are widely accepted and prominent in Scripture. They are:
      • Substitution
      • Moral Influence
      • Christus Victor
      • Theosis

   Substitution

   1. Christ suffers for us. Christ takes up our suffering. He substitutes himself.
   2. Christ suffers instead of us. Here there is a slight change in emphasis. In this case, Christ suffers the penalty that we should suffer. This is sometimes called penal substitutionary atonement.
   3. Christ’s life is a ransom for many. This is yet another slight change in emphasis. Christ’s life serves as a ransom for ours.
   4. Key texts: Isaiah 53; Mark 10:45; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 3:18

   Moral Influence

   1. Christ in his life and sacrificial death are an example to us. Atonement takes place because we are moved to change as we are inspired by Christ’s example.
   2. We take up our cross and follow Christ.
   3. Matthew 16:24; John 13:15

   Christus Victor

   1. Christ liberates humanity from the bondage of sin, death, and evil.
   2. Christ overcomes the powers. He exposes them and conquers their power.
   3. The ransom is not a transaction but a rescue.
   4. Colossians 2:15; Romans 8:37-39

   Theosis

   1. Related to sanctification. We are called to be like God. We are to be holy as he is holy. Theosis is sometimes characterized by this phrase: “God became human, so that we might become divine.”
   2. Through Christ, fallen humanity is able to become holy as God is holy. Paul’s description of Christ as the new Adam or new humanity is foundational to the concept of theosis.
   3. Romans 5:12-21; 1 Peter 1:15-16

   Which Theory of Atonement?

   Any theories we build up as to how Christ’s death did all this are, in my view, quite secondary: mere plans or diagrams to be left alone if they do not help us, and, even if they do help us, not to be confused with the thing itself. All the same, some of these theories are worth looking at. – C. S. Lewis

   It is wrong to preference one particular view of atonement over another. The Bible doesn’t, so why should we?

2. We Are Saved From Something
   1. We are saved from sin, death, and evil
   2. We are saved by the one who is priest, prophet, and king.
3. We Are Saved For Something
   1. Sanctification – Made Holy. God did not save us only to put us on the side line. He wants us to be saved for good works.
   2. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. – Eph 2:10
4. We Are Saved Through Something
   1. Salvation as on-going process
   2. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. – 1 Cor 1:18

Forgive and Remember

Posted by Chris on under Sermons

The resurrection is an extraordinary event unlike anything else in all of history. Jesus is the firstborn from the dead. He is the Risen Lord and the Son of God. Yet, although Jesus is such an extraordinary person, after he is resurrected he does some rather ordinary things. And these seem strangely out of place.

First of all, here are the disciples. They have known for over a week now about the extraordinary, reality shaking truth that Jesus is raised from the dead. God has conquered death! Jesus’ ministry did not end in failure! There is a mission now to participate in God’s unfolding will through Jesus Christ! They know all of this, and can you believe what they are doing? They’re going fishing. Well, they have to eat after all. It’s not wrong, but it is just so ordinary. Now here comes Jesus and he says a rather ordinary thing, “Say boys, caught any fish? No, well try casting your net on the right side.”

Then, Jesus is on the shore and he has a fire going. He has some bread and he is cooking fish. It is just so ordinary. Now, of all the things you expect the risen savior, the firstborn from the dead to say, one phrase you don’t expect from such an extraordinary individual who is at the center point of changing all of human history to say is, “Come have some breakfast.” What a stunningly ordinary statement.

It is all so very mundane. Other than the unusually large catch of fish, this is just an ordinary fishing trip to provide some breakfast for hungry people. And the risen Christ shows up. It is so ordinary – but of course there is a man who was dead and is now alive present. And the only fuss made over that is Peter, who puts his shirt back on and swims up to shore quickly to see Jesus.

But it is in the common reality of the mundane and ordinary that memories of Jesus’ ministry and the power of God revealed are called up. When Jesus shows up in the morning after a disappointing night of fishing and tells the men to fish on the other side, this is when they recognize Jesus. It recalls a time before the resurrection when the Teacher presumed to tell seasoned fishermen what to do – and another time when Peter also seemed a but uncomfortable in the presence of Christ. (Luke 5.)

It is in the ordinary that memories of Jesus’ ministry are evoked. The bread and fish Jesus is serving up for breakfast recall at least two occasions when Jesus gave thanks and served a few loaves of bread and fish as a meal for thousands. As Jesus takes the bread, breaks it and gives it to these hungry men they are surely remembering a meal of bread and wine weeks earlier.

And it is in this everyday, ordinary scene that at least Peter would probably like everyone, and especially Jesus, to forget some of the things he did that evening when they took the bread and wine. Does Jesus remember the arguing over who is charge? Does he remember Peter’s uneasiness (once again) over Jesus’ offer to wash his feet? Does he remember Peter’s brave loyalty and how he brandished the bread knives and pledged to fight to his last? Does he remember how that loyalty melted away like butter when Jesus was arrested and doomed to hang on a cross? Jesus told him what would happen, and it happened just like he said. Not once but three times he lied and disavowed his Teacher and King. Peter probably figured on having to sort all this out in his own heart, but now the man he did wrong – who died – is having breakfast with him.

So here are these hungry fishermen sitting around a fire early one morning, stuffing their mouths with fish and bread. (Thomas must be taking this in. Not only does he have scars, he’s also eating breakfast!) It’s not everyday that you have breakfast with a man you saw die and a man you saw buried. But this moment is so very ordinary. This is the third time the risen Jesus has appeared to them, but what do they say? There’s sort of an awkward silence. They don’t want to say something stupid like “Who are you?” They know who it is.

Now, once they finish up breakfast, it is Jesus who breaks through the tension hanging in the air. He addresses Peter not by his nickname, but by his full name: “Simon son of John. Do you love me more than all this?”

“Yes Lord, you know I love you.”

So Jesus says, “Take care of my lambs.”

Jesus cuts right through the tension. Do you love me more than anything else Simon? If so and if you can say it then I am entrusting to you the care of the people I died for. I am entrusting to you the care of the people I love. And just to emphasize this, Jesus asks the question again – if there’s any misunderstanding or doubt he’s clearing it away. The question is just slightly different this time: “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

Peter’s answer is the same, “Yes Lord, you know that I love you.”

Jesus’ reply is slightly different, “Shepherd my sheep.” Jesus’ is investing leadership in Peter. It seems that all those things that Peter may have been worried about do not stand in the way Jesus’ forgiveness. He is must be forgiving Peter because he is entrusting something sacred to him. But now Jesus asks the question a third time: “Simon, son of John, do you love me?”

Now Peter must wonder: Is Jesus just trying to make a point or is he really trying to bring up something else. Three times? Surely he must remember the three times I betrayed him. He hasn’t forgotten – but his actions still appear to be forgiving. Doesn’t he believe me when I say I love him? Well of course he must, he knows everything. So even though he’s a bit wounded Peter replies, “Lord you know everything, you know that I love you.” And Jesus once again charges Peter to tend to his lambs.

It is a very ordinary scene, the morning breakfast. And yet this is the setting for forgiveness. Of all the things the risen Lord could have been doing he reconciles a broken relationship and restores the spirit of sinful man.

And nothing is forgotten. Jesus doesn’t say, “Look, the night you betrayed me – we’re just not going to talk about that anymore. Let bygones be bygones.” Peter and the others don’t try to bring it up only to hear Jesus say, “Hmm? What are you talking about?”

In fact, it is in remembering properly and remembering in Christ’s presence that forgiveness and love overcome sin. We see in this very ordinary scene what God’s forgiving grace and mercy are really like – especially in the wake of the resurrection. Forgiveness is not just a legal procedure or a change of status such as citizenship or club membership. Forgiveness and atonement take place in the often awkward and messy domain of relationships.

But don’t miss the meaning of this … even though the risen presence of Jesus meets us in our very ordinary and very mundane world, it doesn’t mean that the resurrection is ordinary. But it does mean this: The resurrection doesn’t deny our humanity, it calls us to be the humanity that God always intended for us to be.

Don’t miss the meaning of this … even though forgiveness rightly takes place in our very ordinary and very everyday relationships it doesn’t mean that forgiveness is ordinary. Forgiveness takes place in our relationship with God and with one another. Human lives stained and dented by mistakes and sins that we find it very difficult to forget. Forgiveness doesn’t erase bad memories. Christ’s forgiveness empowers us to forgive and be forgiven and thus to live new life. It gives us hope to go beyond the sins of the past and even if we cannot forget them, we will not be defined by them.

Surely Jesus and Peter had an understanding. Peter understood that Jesus hadn’t forgotten what had happened, but Peter also realizes that Jesus doesn’t Peter’s sin define their relationship. Jesus charges Peter to let love define the relationship.

Jesus also doesn’t want Peter to shape his future based on what he did wrong. Jesus even gives him a glimpse into his future and tells him that he will die a death that glorifies God, but even that isn’t what will define him. “Follow me!” says Jesus. Be like me, he says. That’s what defines you.

And Peter cannot help but point at John and maybe he’s a bit embarrassed by all the attention and wants to make this about someone else or maybe he wants to establish that he’s not the only sinner around the campfire and he asks Jesus, “So what about him?” Now here’s where the forgiveness of Christ really makes us human and teaches us who we are and how to live with each other. I am paraphrasing Jesus: “What business is that of your Peter? You just follow me, okay!”

God knows everything you have ever done. He knows all things, but all is forgiven. Do you love him more than the sin? Then let the risen Christ define you, not the sin you cannot forget. If you love him, then follow him.

Walking in the Light

Posted by Chris on April 1, 2007 under Sermons

God is light – light that shines in darkness. God’s light is true light which gives light to everyone in the world. The light is life. But what does this mean? It isn’t basic physics and optics. No, even John admits that there’s a problem with the darkness. The darkness did not comprehend the light. Those who were given life through the light rejected the true light. What does this mean?

Why all this talk about light and darkness? Why does John have to be so metaphorical and philosophical? Why can’t he just come to his point? Well, John’s gospel after all is a grand epic – an eyewitness spectacular of powers and signs that begins before the beginning and closes with that intriguing little comment about the world not being able to contain all the books that could be written. The gospel is a work of inspiration intended to inspire us to believe.

But the letter is the encouraging front porch conversation of “John the church elder.” He is unpacking for believers what it means for them to put this belief in action. And he knows they have been through some bitter conflict and there’s some hurt, and he intends to address it. So if the gospel is the keynote address sermon, the letter is a classroom talk for those who need to have confidence about eternal life and the practical implication of that eternal life.

Read 1 John 1:5 – Three pairs of statements explain what this means …

1:6-7 – If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

We don’t often tend to think of life in terms of light vs dark. We don’t see life as two ways. We tend to think of life as a series of one to one transactions. I sin, so I get forgiveness. This is a bogus legalistic system: Every penny on the sin ledger has to be accounted for. I am going to sin, so all I have to do is live long enough to get forgiveness. But what happens if you miss one sin on the ledger? What happens if we die before we get a chance to ask forgiveness? This turns a life of discipleship into a game. Jesus, the true light from God, as shone in such a way that he truly illuminates human life. (Magic shows.) Are we walking in light or darkness? We don’t live in haze. God is light and he purifies us from all sin. If you walk in darkness, you are heading for destruction and you just get further away from the light. If you are walking in light, the blood of Christ is purifying you. God is light and he purifies us from all sin.

Oh, so if we walk in the light then we’re without sin, yes? No that’s not what John is saying. He addresses that next …

1:8-9 – If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

The light of God illuminates the truth about sin in our life – in order to cure and heal. If we claim to be without sin, then we are just as far away from the truth as if we are in darkness but claim to know God. Sin is not forgiven through denial. There is no forgiveness if we continually try to manage our sin or deny it. It only ends up gaining power over us and we fall into self-deception. We dare not ignore our problems and claim we can stop whenever we want. It is a trap. But confession, as tough as it may be, sheds light on the darkness that has trapped us. It exposes the power and casts out the darkness. God is light and he purifies us from all sin.

1:10-2:2 – If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives. My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one …

If we claim we haven’t sinned – that is when we refuse to notice our sin, then we are indeed sinning. We aren’t allowing the word of God to work in us. We are resisting forgiveness. But we are urged to put up a front. Perhaps we think that people cannot be trusted. Perhaps we fear rejection. Perhaps we are afraid of not being in control of the way others perceive us. One of the things that unfortunately prevents people from walking in the light and experiencing the forgiveness of God is the self-righteousness of the people of God. We have to be careful with this.
We may think that walking in the light is prior to this fellowship with Christ and one another. We may think that walking in the light is a precondition or prerequisite to being purified from our sins. But John is in fact saying that the blood of Christ has purified us and his sacrifice gives us the option of walking in the light. Walking in the light is the result of Christ’s sacrifice.
This is what it means to have an advocate. He isn’t defending us from the Father. He is getting us back in relationship with the father – because we were in darkness. Let’s be very clear about the fact that we have a friend in a high place. We have someone who is pulling for us. Our advocate Jesus Christ – he is an inside track to knowing the Father. He didn’t just atone for our sins, he atoned for the sins of the whole world. The problem has been dealt with.

So what does this mean? It means that the light is on and we don’t have to stumble through the darkness.
So what does this mean? It means the path through this life is clearly lit – let’s walk like Christ. Let’s live the life he lived. That’s how we can be sure that we are walking in the light.
So what does this mean? It means we don’t have to manage righteousness the way we manage cash flow always wondering if we have enough income to cover all the expenses! Rather, God is light and in him there is no darkness. If you want to overcome darkness, then start walking in the light – and the blood of Jesus Christ, the righteous one who sits at the Father’s right hand is there for us. He atoned not only for your sins, but the sins of the whole world. I think that He can deal with our sin, right?