One of the most impressive aspects of the early Church that we studied in Acts this Sunday is their continual devotion to apostles’ teaching. The church was hungry for the truth of the Word of God – a sure sign of a Spirit-filled church! The first thing you should look for when looking for a home church is a church that carry’s Bibles, opens their Bibles regularly, and sticks close to the text. That’s what the Bereans of Acts 17:11 are known for: searching the Scriptures to see if what the apostle Paul was telling them was true. Just like the early Church, we need to be serious about understanding the Word of God for us and the generations to follow. Like a relay team passing a baton, each generation must do their part. When you study the letter of 2 Timothy, you catch a glimpse of this principle. Paul is writing to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:1-7 using a few analogies to depict the Christian life, but let’s focus on his athlete analogy, thinking of ourselves as “athletes in Christ.” “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. Timothy is part of a spiritual heritage that has been passed down to him by his grandmother Lois and mother Eunice (1:5). Paul had also invested a lot in this young man’s life and now he is being asked to step up and step forward in the call to ministry. You even catch a glimpse of his ordination in 1:6. He is like an athlete in a relay race asked to pass on a baton he received. Paul refers to it as “the things which you have heard from me”, “the standard of sound words” or “the treasure” (vv. 13-14). It is the body of gospel teaching.
At least five generations are in view here: Christ, who entrusted the body of gospel teaching to Paul, who entrusted it to Timothy, who will entrust it to faithful men who teach others. I guess we could be considered the “other faithful men” because we are in a long line of truth that has been passed down and every believer should think of themselves as athletes in Christ, responsible both for receiving the gospel baton and passing it on in some way. The sad context, however, reveals the tendency of people to drop the baton! In chapter 1:15, Hermogenes and Phygelus have “turned away” from Paul. In 4:9, Demas is described as having “deserted” Paul out of a love for this present world. And in chapters 3 and 4, Paul prophetically cautions Timothy about the “last days” when people will want to have their ears tickled – rather than listening to truth, they will want to hear what they want to hear. Timohty is being asked to preach the Word in a world that doesn’t always want to hear it, but he must not bend. The Word of God is what people need! That’s why you have one of the clearest affirmation of Scripture’s inspiration in 2 Timothy 3:16-17. It is “God-breathed” and for “every season.” We must study the Word to compete “according to the rules” (v. 5). But what is this going to require? Endurance. That may be the key word for the entire book of 2 Timothy: Endurance. Every soldier, farmer, and athlete must endure. They expect it. They go into it with that mindset. That way, they won’t get mad when things get difficult or give up when it gets hard. But how do we endure? Is it by gritting our teeth and bearing it? No. Paul basically says, “by supernatural strength in Christ.” More precisely, verse 1 says, “Be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.” In other words, just as you entered the race by grace through faith in Christ (1:9), so continue on by the grace in Christ! To endure in receiving and passing the baton, you must depend on God’s grace. God has grace for salvation and for service. For pardon and power. Apart from Him, we can do nothing, right (Jn. 15:5)? Let’s remember this as we go on day by day in ministry. And let’s keep our eyes on the prize to come – the future rewards for faithfully passing on the baton. The soldier pleases the One who enlisted him. The farmer receives his share of the crop. And the athlete wins the prize. In Christ with you, Pastor Justin
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This week my family and I picked the pumpkins in our pumpkin patches, wrapping up a long and bountiful year of gardening produce. It was fun to watch the kids try and carry those heavy pumpkins and stuff their sweatshirt pockets and hats full of the small ornamental ones. Those pumpkins, combined with all of the trees changing into their beautiful colors, has inspired in me a spirit of thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a posture of the heart that seems to crop up (pun intended) a little more than usual during harvest time – and for good reason! Back in the Spring, I, like many others, prayed over my freshly planted garden for a good harvest to share with family and friends. This Fall, I made sure to thank Him for answering that prayer! Luke 17:11-19 tells a wonderful and shocking story about thankfulness. Ten leprous men come to Jesus, asking Him to heal them of their terrible, isolating disease. Jesus instructs them to go and show themselves to the priests and as they are going, they are miraculously healed! The interesting thing about the story is that only one returns to thank Him for the healing. Only one! And a Samaritan of all people! This man, the text says, “turned back, praising God with a loud voice; This story is shocking in that it’s a sure sign of man’s depravity and wonderful in that it reveals the rarity of thankfulness to God (Rom. 1:21). It’s rare, like a precious diamond in the rough. Jesus uses this lesson to teach His disciples that an attitude of gratitude should characterize them as His followers. At the top of the list of things to be thankful for is His mercy! Jesus tells the man who returned to thank Him that his faith had made him well. Based on the reality that all were healed, but not all had faith in Jesus, this tells us his healing is much deeper than the physical healing. More importantly, this man has been healed spiritually by His mercy. He is no longer isolated from God! When we come to Jesus in faith, trusting Him as the Savior who died for us, we are also healed spiritually. Our sin that isolates us from God is dealt with and we are reconciled to Him (Rom. 5:10). 1 Peter 2:24 quotes Isaiah 53:5, saying, "By His wounds, you are healed." This healing is in the atonement (covering) Jesus’ sacrifice provides for us. It’s something we can be thankful for every moment of every day. Paul says in Colossians 2:7 that when we are rooted and built up in Christ, we will overflow with thanksgiving. Being rooted in Christ produces the fruit of thanksgiving! At a pastor’s conference in Illinois years ago, I met a sweet, old lady who gave me her son’s book (her son is a pastor) on how to develop and maintain a daily quiet time with God. In addition to praying, reading the Bible, and looking for application to apply that day, one of his unique aspects was to write down one thing he was thankful for each day. In this way, he would start off each day with a grateful heart. Seems like a worthy habit to develop! What can you be thankful for today? What answered prayers have you forgotten to thank God for answering? There’s a lot of moaning and groaning and complaining these days. Wouldn’t it be refreshing to those around us to be thankful? It would certainly refresh God’s heart! Let’s stand out from the world by thanking God for all He is and does for us, being watchful and thankful for how He provides physically and spiritually. Colossians 4:2 says, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”. In Christ with you, Pastor Justin All of us have made big decisions that we later realized wasn’t the best choice. Think about one of those specific decisions. Now think, were the determining factors in making that decision? Did you take someone else’s advice? Was it what your friends were doing? Peer pressure? Did you follow your heart? Your feelings? Did you think it would make you happy?
In Acts chapter 1 this Sunday, Peter decided they needed to replace Judas with another man who was qualified to fill that apostolic office. But did you notice his determining factor? He based his decision on the inspired Word of God as he prayerfully considered what God had to say. The Word of God gave Peter clear application for making that decision as a leader. As believers, when we go to make a decision, the first and natural thing we should do is ask ourselves, “Does God’s Word say anything about this decision I’m about to make?” Boy, I tell you what, had I considered what God’s Word had to say before making decisions when I was a young man, it would’ve prevented a ton of unnecessary stress and problems in my life. I realized this after I got saved and started reading through the book of Proverbs. It was hidden wisdom finally revealed to me! That book became like a father to me (which is no surprise because it’s written as a father’s instruction to his son). I’ll tell you about one of my poor decisions. Before I should have, I bought the big, fancy truck of my dreams. I had a solid job at the time, but the decision was based more on the pursuit of happiness than anything else and in the end, I was left as Proverbs says, “the borrower is slave to the lender.” That truck glued me to that job, making me fearful of losing my job. It also prevented me from being able to freely serve the Lord wherever He might eventually call me. I could not really be available to go anywhere for the Lord as long as my taskmaster was the bank. And I was willing to go anywhere! This world says, “Buy now and pay later!” but Matthew 6:33 says, “Seek first His kingdom and righteousness and the rest will be given to you.” Now, with biblical wisdom and hindsight, I see what they mean by “pay for it later” because 1 Timothy 6:6-10 says those who desire riches pierce themselves with many griefs. Living and operating by the wisdom of the Word would relieve so many unnecessary problems and struggles in life and marriages. Another example: Let’s suppose a single Christian is thinking about dating someone they’re attracted too. In that situation, it is easy to make a decision based on feelings alone. Before the single Christian does anything, they should consider the clear precepts of God’s Word: “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever?” 1 Corinthians 7:39 says to marry only in the Lord. A man named Esau in the OT disregarded this kind of advice by marrying outside the Lord and it made life bitter for his family (Gen. 26:34-35). Remember, decisions affect not only us, but our relationship with God and those around us. The best thing you can do to start making the solid decisions and operating consistently according to a Christian worldview, is to get to know your Bible. I know that reading the Bible through and getting familiar with your Bible can be a daunting task, but think of it this way – by reading only 3 chapters a day, you can read through the whole Bible in one year! Whenever you start a new job, there’s always new manuals to read and learn. As believers, it’s important that we get to know God’s manual for life. Jesus uses people of the Word, who know it and live it. When you go to make that next big decision:
In Christ with you, Pastor Justin This last week in my social media timeline, I was reminded of a special memory from one year ago this week when my family and I moved into our new home. As I looked the pictures over, I was struck by how you could tell exactly where the previous owners watered the lawn and where they didn’t (actual picture above). It’s not much different this year. Where we water, it is lush green grass. But where the water stops, it is dead and brown, or weedy. This reminded me of a sermon I heard about 5 years ago from Berean Fellowship of Churches president Scott Mathis. If I remember correctly, I was in my tractor at the time listening to his message as I prepared the summer fallow for September wheat planting. It was in August, so everything was very dry. In the message, Scott told about his old cowboy friend Keith who was assigned to teach him how to irrigate a pasture on this ranch he worked for in the mountains of Colorado. On the horseback ride to the pasture, Keith told him, “Son, water don’t lie.” What he meant by that was that if water didn’t get to a certain section of that pasture, before long it would be obvious. It wouldn’t grow the grass needed for the cattle. One of the symbols of the Word of God is water. Water is often used in industrious applications today to cut materials. God’s Word cuts right to our hearts (Heb. 4:12). Water cleanses us as well. God’s Word, too, has a cleansing effect on our lives (Eph. 5:26). Water also comforts and refreshes us, as does God and His Word (Rev. 22:17). If the water of God’s Word isn’t getting into our lives or certain parts of our lives, we shouldn’t be surprised to find dead, brown spots and weeds in place of lush, green grass! With the church’s vision of a tree that has deep roots and is bearing fruit, it’s going to require us to constantly be watered by God’s Word. What are the dead brown spots in your life? What areas of your life reveal that you aren’t getting the water of the Word that you need? In a research project by The Center for Bible Engagement, a division of Back to the Bible with Arnie Cole, they sought to answer this question: Why do so many people own Bibles but so few read them? Since its inception in 2003 asking that question, they have surveyed more than 400,000 people around the world about their spiritual lives. A key discovery they found is that if someone engages God’s Word 4 or more times a week, their life will look radically different from the life of someone who doesn’t. Among those Christians who do not engage the Bible most days of the week, their lives are statistically the same as the lives of non-believers. For those in the Bible once or twice a week, it had an insignificant effect on them. If someone was in the Bible 3 times a week, you could start to tell there was a heartbeat – a tiny bit of a difference. But for someone who engaged the Bible 4 or more times a week:
On top of that,
The research is incredible but not surprising if we believe “water doesn’t lie.” God’s Word is powerful and the best counselor. This research proves Isaiah 55:10-11, “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My Word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Ask God today to water the brown spots in your life as you consistently begin the discipline of spending quality time in His Word. “Remember son, water don’t lie.” In Christ with you, Pastor Justin What do you think of when you think of paradise? Most of us probably think of white sandy beaches, palm trees, crystal-clear blue water, and a slight breeze to go along with it. Another majority might think of mountainous vacation spots like a log cabin with a great view of the mountains. Inside, a crackling fireplace, cozy blanket. Outside, the snow is gently falling down. Both are unquestionably paradisiacal pictures we long for.
Having spent so much time dedicated to the study of Genesis 1-3, I’ve come to realize that as amazing as those pictures are, we have far too small a picture of paradise. I would put forth that paradise is much more than enjoying the physical beauty and comforts of creation. If we were to define paradise according to the garden of Eden before the Fall into sin, then paradise would be more than a place where creation flourishes, though creation flourishing is part of it (Gen. 3:17-18; Rom. 8:20), but many of us miss that paradise was, most importantly, a place where relationships flourished. Creation’s curse is the result of a relational breakdown that has occurred between man and God. In the original paradise, there was perfect harmony between man and God. God walked with man in the cool of the day (Gen. 3:8). I understand that to mean that when Adam’s purposeful and rewarding work of tending of the garden was done for the day, God would come regularly to hang out with him much like we enjoy spending time with our families in the evening. Adam walked with God and found purpose in doing His will. In the original paradise, there was perfect harmony between man and man. Adam and Eve understood they were made for each other. Genesis 2:23 suggest that when Adam saw Eve, whom God has fashioned from his very own flesh and bone, he looked at Eve as though she was perfect: “This is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh[!]” I always want to add an exclamation point there. They say the original Hebrew suggests it could have “Wow!” tone to it. Genesis 2:24 closes the chapter with Adam and Eve’s marriage. They are described as one flesh, cleaving to each other, and being naked and unashamed. There is no conflict. No shame. Their focus had not turned inward (they hadn’t seen the need for fig leaves yet!). There was an intimate oneness between them as they reflected the image of the Triune God. In the original paradise, there was perfect harmony between man and himself. Man understood his intrinsic value that wasn’t based on looks, feelings, or performance. Guilt wasn’t a thing, as there was no true, judicial guilt before God. They hadn’t wronged God or each other. There was no fear – no need to run and hide from God or cover themselves up. There was no empty pursuits because man was satisfied with God and His love (1 Jn. 4:18) and who God made him to be. We all long for this paradise, don’t we? I think if we were honest, much of our attempts to “get away” are the attempts to try and run from our interpersonal conflicts with others at home or at work. Many are also “escaping” by trying to find the satisfaction their soul longs for in the world, rather than in God. God is a last “resort” for them – pun intended. Like Onesimus in Philemon, we run from our Master and run from the consequences that come with broken relationships in our lives. The truth is though, we can be in the middle of nowhere on an island but if we have a broken relationship somewhere 1,000 miles away, we can be an anxious, bitter, and sorrowful mess on the inside. Running doesn’t help the situation and “giving it time” just won’t do the trick. The good news is that Jesus came to restore us to paradise through the gospel. For those who’ve received Him as their Savior, they have the ultimate hope that He will come again one day and after transforming our bodies into glorious, sin-free bodies like His own. He’ll take us by the hand and lead us to a New Heaven and New Earth where paradise is restored in all aspects. In the meantime, as we studied in Philemon today, the gospel is still the answer to making life a little more like paradise – a place where interpersonal relationships flourish by the enabling work of the Spirit in us. As we live out the gospel by showing each other the same mercy, grace, kindness, love, and forgiveness that God has shown us, we become like a little pocket of flourishing in the world. Our churches, homes, and relationships become little glimpses of paradise – the paradise that was and is to come. My heart breaks for those who’ve never genuinely experienced a church where they really lived out the gospel. Many churches are known for biting and devouring one another instead of being known for extraordinary love of their neighbors. Would you join me in the pursuit of giving this longing world a glimpse of paradise by living the gospel? Pastor Justin While in language school in Santiago, Chile, I met a young man from California who seemed curious about the gospel and what I believed. I was able to share much truth with the him as he seemed really receptive, but the conversation eventually ended with him saying, “Yeah, but I still think there are some translation issues with the Bible.” This was a bit of a balloon-popping moment for me and a wake-up call as to how important it is to trust the inspired Scriptures we hold in our hand. Having come across a bracketed passage in Mark this week, I thought I would remind us of many reasons why we can trust the Bible in this week’s devo. I want us to have a knowledgeable trust in God’s Word and not just a blind trust. In his book The Battle for the Bible, Harold Lindsell rightly identifies Biblical trust as a watershed issue. What he means is that just as which side of the continental divide rain falls on determines whether or not it ends up in the Atlantic or Pacific, so whether or not one believes the Bible is the Word of God will determine whether we end up in apostasy & unbelief or truth & belief. It can determine destinies. As it’s been said, "We choose what we trust." If you believe the Bible is God’s Word, you’re more likely to study it and be made wise unto salvation (2 Tim. 3:15) Since almost the beginning of time (Gen. 3), Satan has been trying to get man to discredit, doubt, and distort the Word of God like he did with Eve. And it’s interesting that the Bible ends with a warning not to add to the Word of God. It’s like a capstone which says, “Remember, that’s what got you into this mess in the first place.” But to question is not the same as to doubt. The young man was doubting God’s Word but didn’t sincerely question it. It is fair to question it and study how God’s Word came to be. Personally, doing so has only strengthened my conviction that the Bible is indeed the Word of God and can be trusted. There are many reasons why we should trust God’s Word is the Bible. It is a book that claims to be the Word of God and can back it up (2 Tim. 3:16). It has endurance like no other book. It is a living, animated book (Heb. 4:12). It is a unique book. It has wonderful knowledge from eternity past to eternity future that you can’t get anywhere else and it lines up with reality like a hand to a glove. It has the highest, logical morals and ethics in the world that if humanity applies, will flourish. Despite having 40 authors and written over the course of 1,400 years, it has continuity, consistency, and one central main theme: Jesus is coming (OT), Jesus is here (Gospels), Jesus has come and is coming again (Epistles). The literary excellence of the Bible is unmatched in all of its genres. It gives fresh insight for a lifetime of study. It has life-changing power (I am witness!). Archaeology has only proven the Bible true. Even secular archaeologists use it to know where to dig. Lindsell said, “The spades of a thousand diggers over the centuries have not discredited the truth of Scripture nor has the turned earth proven the Bible to be untrue.” Science and philosophy have changed their minds countless times, while the Bible has stayed the same and proven true. When Greeks taught the world rested on Atlas’ back and Hindus taught the world rested on 4 elephants riding on a giant cosmic sea turtle, the Bible said God hangs the earth on nothing (Job. 26:7). It has never lost its integrity through such a mythical claim as other ancient books have. Most of it was compiled by eyewitness accounts, many of which were martyred for their faith. This is big: 1/3 of the Bible is detailed prophecy of which, all that was supposed to come true by now, has come true! Want to know the future? Next, the reliability of the manuscripts. The New Testament has the most manuscript copies of any ancient writing at approximately 25,000 to date, dwarfing the numbering of any other. Homer’s Iliad is next at 1,800; Demosthenes at 258; Gallic Wars by Caesar with 10; Herodotus at 8; Thucydides at 8. The vast number of biblical manuscripts allows textual critics to determine the exact words of the original author despite minor manuscript variants which are mostly grammatical or punctuative and have no effect on faith or substance. A. T. Robertson said, “The vast array of manuscripts has enabled textual scholars to accurately reconstruct the original text with more than 99.9 percent accuracy.” The recent discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls affirmed the superior accuracy of the Bible. Then we have transmission precision. Because Hebrews and Christians believed they were copying God’s Word, scribes transmitted with extraordinary care, sometimes one letter at a time with a bath in-between! Lastly, we consider the time gap interval between the original autographs and the manuscripts. The shorter the gap, the better. The closest time gap for the Iliad is 350-400 years, while Gallic Wars, Herodotus, and most others are between 1,000-1,300 years apart. The earliest NT fragment (John Rylands) is between 27-48 years from the original. Many others are between 100-150 years, with Codex Sinaiticus & Codex Vaticus at about a 250 time interval. Dr. Norman Geisler writes, “The New Testament documents are copied accurately – the New Testament has more manuscripts, earlier manuscripts, and more accurately copied manuscripts than any other book from the ancient world.” Like the young man from language school, most people tend to give the credibility of the Bible too little thought. In reality, they are the most trusted documents in the ancient world. Let’s receive the Word like the Thessalonians who accepted it, “not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which also does its work in you who believe.” It really is a God-breathed book (2 Tim. 3:16)!
Pastor Justin We were made for relationships. Period. How can that be said so confidently? Because deep down, we all desire close relationships. The majority of secular songs being written about relationships that are sweet or have gone wrong reveals the human heart’s desire for them. But more concrete than that, Genesis 1:27 says we’re made in God’s image and God is by his very nature, a relational being. Since before the creation of man and angels or any other created thing, God has always been existing in 3 Persons – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – all existing in perfect fellowship, harmony, and community with one another. On top of that, as believers in Christ, we’re all interdependently connected to one another in Christ’s body (Eph. 4:16). As image bearers and members of Christ’s body, we are to reflect that same Triune harmony and oneness of Christ’s body in our relationships. We are to put into practice the theology we believe about God and Christ. But how? Well, one of the ways given in the New Testament is through godly communication. Relationships require good communication. In Ephesians 4:29, Paul emphasizes unity, saying, “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.” This is a critical word of wisdom as we don’t often think about how important godly communication is to a relationship. Without what Paul calls wholesome words, our relationships will suffer. Unwholesome is a word that is used in relation to fruit (Mt. 12:33; Heb. 13:15) and can mean rotten or harmful. Our unthoughtful, harsh, degrading, slanderous, and other heartless words cause relationships to rot and remain unhealthy. But without intentionality inthe use of our tongues, this tends to be our natural bent. We find it so much easier to criticize than to commend and to put down than to praise. A young lady once told John Wesley that she thought her talent was to speak her mind. Wesley replied, “I do not think God would mind if you buried that talent.”1 Sometimes it’s better to bite the tongue until it bleeds than ruin the relationship and the testimony of Christ you carry. Human relationships are difficult in a fallen world and require effort – thinking before we speak.1
Now in contrast to the word rotten is the word edification. It is a construction term that means to build up or to strengthen. Our minds can rightly think of construction workers who are framing a house. We can build others up, like a house being built up, by the use of our words. Words that build are words of grace. Another great passage for the tongue is Colossians 4:6. It says our speech should be seasoned with salt, meaning it should have a preservative effect on relationships, preventing them from rottenness and decay. In 1994, Thomas Thurman, running back for the Buffalo Bills, sat with his face in his hands on the bench after his team had just lost its 4th straight Super Bowl loss. Thomas’ 3 fumbles had helped seal the loss. Suddenly coming up to Thomas was Emmitt Smith, the Dallas Cowboys running back who had been voted MVP. Smith turned to his goddaughter in his arms and said to her, “I want you to meet the greatest running back in the NFL, Mr. Thurman Thomas.”2 Don’t you love it when speech is gracious like that, intentionally aimed at building someone else up? It stands out in a world when there’s so many heartless comments are spoken or typed to tear others down? I can remember an occasion in my life years ago when someone graced me with their speech. I was grilling some brats and hotdogs for friends & family, but let them cook a little too long! As everyone was filling their plates and scraping the char off, I started to apologize when someone interrupted me, saying gently with a smile, “They’re perfect. Thank you so much for cooking!” The food didn’t taste the best, but I never forgot that taste of grace! How can you build someone up with gracious words? Think outside the box! People are used to happy birthday’s and congrats. How about thanking others for doing the simplest, taken-for-granted tasks like washing the dished or taking out the trash? Writing a note of encouragement or pointing something out about them that makes them a unique blessing? Speech that builds up like that honors Christ and the Triune nature of God (Jas. 3:9). Pastor Justin So this Sunday, we talked about how we can model Christ as His “body” by living in unity and harmony with each other while each of us performs our God-given function in the “body”. As a result of each member growing and exercising their function, the body grows strong. In Paul’s words, the body is built up from a child into a mature man, the measure of stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. If you are wondering which member you are and what specific function God would have you perform to build up the body in love, you’ll need to be aware of how He has gifted you. If you don’t know what your gifting is, don’t be too hard on yourself. Because the “clergy and laity” mentality that has been so pervasive throughout the centuries, many people don’t understand they have crucial, God-given gifts to add to the building up of the body… they are a critical joint supplying a need (Eph. 4: 16). Many think, “Well, I can only write checks or offer up a prayer now and then.” However, God has given everyone at least one gift and talents and resources and personal interests that add to the contribution of the body. Gifts also require time to discover and develop through involvement. Gifts are not something you can discover through a simple spiritual gifts test or creative project, but through day-to-day interaction with the rest of His body. Just as a personal testimony, I never would’ve dreamed that when I became a Christian I would eventually be the one teaching and preaching someday. In fact, it’s the last thing I would’ve guessed! But for some reason, God kept giving me opportunities to speak and share. Even though public speaking was my greatest fear and weakness, I knew that God’s grace was sufficient and perfected in areas of weakness. Through time and experience, the gift (they say) was recognized and I’ve been working to develop it continually. I share that not to boast or think more highly of myself than I ought (Rom. 12:3) but because many people underestimate the power of God’s grace in their lives and what He is capable of accomplishing through them. In a podcast episode between Dr. Howard Henricks and Dr. Mark Bailey, Hendricks reportedly asked a faithful, promising “layman” in his church if he could teach Sunday school. The man said, “I can’t teach!” Mr. Hendricks replied, “Have you ever taught?” He said, “No.” So Hendricks asked, “Well, then how do you know?” He started teaching a class and within 5 years the man was the leading class better than those who were trained too! When it comes to seeking your gifting, stay open, patient, humble, and look at it as an adventure. Also, don’t stress about it! I don’t know anyone who stresses out about receiving gifts – they look forward to opening them with joy! That being said, if you desire to discover your spiritual gifts, here are four steps I recommend: Pray.To discover your gift, you will need wisdom which comes through prayer (James 1:5). Wisdom is not a spiritual gift (though some think they have it!). Prayer is necessary because only God truly knows how He has sovereignly distributed to you the gifts that He desired by His Spirit and He can reveal them to you. Study.There are around 20 spiritual gifts mentioned in the Bible and at least every believer has one. Read the passages that talk about spiritual gifts and takes notes about their purpose: - 1 Peter 4:10-11 - Romans 12:6-8; - 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 - Ephesians 4:10-11 In addition to that, consider going online to our website ˃ resources ˃ sermon series ˃ spiritual gifts study to study about spiritual gifts or click here: Spiritual Gifts Study (chadronberean.org) Or read Spiritual Gifts: What They Are & Why They Matter by Thomas Schreiner, located on the library table in our foyer. Get Involved.Roll up your sleeves and get ministry experience. Is there an area you are really interested in? Do you see a need? Do you see an opportunity? Be willing to serve. Step in and give it a try, with proper consultation of leaders of course for sensitive positions. You might step in and serve and feel like this area just isn’t your thing. I remember serving in a capacity once where I felt like a chair being used as a ladder – it worked, but it’s not really what it was designed for – and that’s fine! Keep getting involved with sacrificial love and building up of the body in mind. Remember, it’s not about you, but about how you can edify others. Seek Counsel.Consult with other mature members of the body of Christ and ask them what they see in you. Ask for an honest opinion. Collectively, the church may recognize what your gifting is when you don’t.
Pastor Justin Have you ever wondered why it is so much easier to sit with a bucket of popcorn and watch Captain Jack Sparrow on a big screen for 2 hours, than it is to kneel and pray for 5 minutes? Or why is it that one minute we can have such a passion to glorify God with a pure lifestyle, and then one alluring commercial later we are fighting back an entire nest of wicked desires? Or why does there seem to be constant tension between wanting to do good and finding it much easier to do evil? The reason is because every single one of us has what is called an indwelling sin nature, sometimes referred to as “the flesh” or “old man” or the “old self” in Scripture. Last week in our Foundations in Genesis series, we asked the question, “Why must we be born again?” This implies that there is something fallen about the human nature and we learned that when Adam and Eve sinned, they lost the spiritual element in their lives. This is why we must be born again by the indwelling of the Spirit of God (Jn. 3:3). But what else happened at that crucial moment in Genesis 3 is that every man would also inherit the indwelling sin nature. This sin nature is a result of Adam and Eve’s fall into sin (Rom. 5:12). When Adam and Eve ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil they began to know, experientially, both good and evil – and so began the war with sin in our hearts. In Genesis 4, God told Cain, the first murderer, that “sin is crouching at your door and it’s desire is for you, but you must master it.” That’s a really great depiction of sin, by the way. It’s like an enemy who is always there waiting to pounce on us and make mincemeat out of our lives. And the thing is, no matter how far we think we’ve outrun it, it always catches back up to us! It’s always “at our door”. Since we can’t run from it, but are to master it, we should study what the Word of God says about it and how to have victory over it in our lives. SIN NATURE REALITY #1 Every person has an indwelling sin nature. Since we’re all descendants of Adam and Eve, we’ve all inherited this evasive and deceitful sin nature. Unlike Christ, all of our conceptions were maculate, not immaculate. And because we aren’t born with the Spirit of God indwelling us, the sin nature is our only master until we’re born again. We are slaves to sin (See Romans 6). The sin nature is so engrained in us that Paul even calls it a law of human nature by giving it the title “the law of sin” (Romans 7:23). The internal "law of sin" wages war against the external “Law of God”. He explains this in Romans 7. Romans 7:22-24 says, “For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! When I think of a law, I think of something that is permanently fixed in the fabric of something. It affects everything and is unchangeable by man. In our world, it is something like gravity in that always pulls and never rests. Like the sin nature, it tries to bend everything in its direction. Man also has a law of hunger and thirst. As much as we’d like to quit eating and drinking for various reasons, maybe to get more work done or lose weight, our bodies have a law driving us to fulfill its demands. Like gravity or hunger, the sin nature is a ruthlessly demanding law that desires to bend our will to consent to it rather than God. With this law raging on the inside of us, we must realize that we need a new law, a higher and more powerful law to defeat it. And not just something external like the Law of Moses, even as great as it is. We need this new law inscribed into our very being. As one man said, “No mere written law can muster a threat against the law of sin working from the inside.” So we need an internal law more powerful than the law of sin. This is what is promised in the spiritual aspects of the New Covenant and is received today by grace through faith in Christ. Jeremiah 31:31-33 says God’s law is now written on our hearts, on the inside, by the Holy Spirit. “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it” and, “not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of the human heart…” (2 Cor. 3:3). The Spirit of God can meet the law of sin on level playing ground inside of us and give us the power we need to have victory over it. Paul calls this new law, “the law of the Spirit of life” in Romans 8:2. This leads us to Sin Nature Reality #2. SIN NATURE REALITY #2 Every believer in Christ is free from the power of the indwelling sin nature by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. When I say that, I don’t mean that believers are completely free from the sin nature altogether – as if the sin nature is totally eradicated – but that we are free from his rule in our life. We don’t have to live only for “him” anymore – our old master – but we can now choose to live for a new Master, with a capital M (the Spirit). We can choose to walk according to “the law of the Spirit of life” rather than “the law of sin”. When we trusted in Christ as our Savior, the Holy Spirit took up residence in our hearts, indwelling us forevermore. But now, having been given a new divine nature (2 Peter 1:3-4), we enter the new experience of having 2 indwelling masters vying for the consent of our wills. Paul talks about this internal tug of war going on for our souls in Galatians 5:16-24. Verses 16-17 say, “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of Having two natures means things will not always be easy. We will be in this tug of war even on our best days and in our best moments and we can tell which master we are serving by the produce of our lives. Our lives either exhibit the works of the flesh or the fruit of the Spirit. But the reality is that Christ has set us free from the tyrannical rule of the sin master so that He can produce the fruit of the Spirit in us! Romans 6:18 says, “having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.” Christ has overthrown sin’s rule, weakened its power, and even killed its root so that it cannot bear the fruit of eternal death in a believer. What a glorious reality to be set free from sin by God’s grace! What is more glorious is the fact that this war will not go on forever. Sin will be defeated for good in us when Christ fully redeems us with glorified bodies like His own! That’s Sin Nature Reality #3. SIN NATURE REALITY #3 All believers will be freed from sin’s presence when they receive glorified bodies. Like Paul in Romans 7:24, this is something we desperately long for! “Who will set me free from this body of death? What this means, again, is that today as a believer Christ’s gives us freedom for the sin nature’s power – hallelujah! – but also that one day, when the morning star arises in our hearts, we will even be free from its presence and we will be gloriously conformed to the image of His Son. Romans 8 teaches us that the Spirit of God in us now is His pledge to us that this hope of glory is a coming reality. Just as all of creation is groaning to be set free from the subjection to sin, so, “also we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body.” For a long time, I’ve thought of the flesh hypothetically like a tricky, deceitful, elusive pirate captain. He’s a lot like Jack Sparrow in that just when you think you have him, he slips away and steals all your loot and your ship. He’s always got something up his sleeve. But in reality, this captain is not as funny as the Jack Sparrow character in The Pirates of the Caribbean.
However, almost unexpectedly one day, the Owner of the ship came – whose name is Christ – and He freed the ship from this old captain’s domineering control. He took charge of the ship that was rightfully His. And the pirate captain? Well, he is tied up to one of the poles on the ship where he waits to be taken into custody as soon as we get to the home port. Now, even though this old captain is tied up to one of the ship’s poles, he’s still barking his same old orders, but we don’t have to listen to him! We have a new captain and the pirate’s power and authority has been usurped. When we reach the heavenly shore of glory, Christ will kick him off the ship and he will be locked up forever, without bail.
VICTORY APPLICATION #1 Realize you cannot win the battle against the flesh in your own strength. John 15:5 says, “Apart from Him [Christ], we can do nothing.” We are spiritually powerless to win in our own strength and must go to Christ for the indwelling power of His Spirit. It is “by the Spirit” that we put to death the misdeeds of the body (Rom. 8:13) and the Spirit who gives life to our mortal bodies (Rom. 8:11). You cannot do this on your own. VICTORY APPLICATION #2 By faith, look to Jesus Christ’s death, burial and resurrection. This is the main applicable rule for walking by the Spirit. By faith you must look to Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection not only to be saved, but to live the Christian life. The flesh’s ways are opposed to the Spirit’s ways. The flesh’s ways are rooted in self-effort with the goals of legalism or license. It is self-centered and self-rooted. However, as the book of Galatians explains, the way of the Spirit is by faith and is Christ-centered and Christ-rooted. The way of new life as a Christian is not by looking to self, but looking to Christ. Let this diagram help you: When you trust Jesus Christ, you are given a perfect position (standing) before God that comes with many glorious realities: You have been indwelt and sealed by His Spirit; your Abba Father has adopted you; you have been united with Christ in His death, burial, resurrection and ascension; you have been forgiven; shown mercy; set free from the power of sin; raised to new life and so much more! We have been blessed with all spiritual blessings in the heavenly places (Eph. 1:3)! Now, it is by faith, still looking to Christ and all the great gospel truths that will cause you to walk by the Spirit. As you do so, your condition (green) will start to catch up with your position (yellow), becoming Christlike and fruitful. To sum it up: just as you were saved by grace through faith in Christ, so you live by grace through faith in Christ. As we walk with our eyes on Jesus, we are reminded of the great cost He paid to free us from sin’s penalty and power, and the wonder of His mercy and grace floods our souls with renewed love for Him (avoiding license). As we walk with our eyes on Jesus, we remember He paid it all and our Christianity is not us working for heaven (avoiding legalism). As we walk with our eyes on Jesus, we remember His resurrection and that we’ve been raised to new life in Him (Col. 3:1-4) and are new creations (2 Cor. 5:17). As we walk with our eyes on Jesus, we remember He is our High Priest who is ever there to help and defend and allow entrance into the Holy of Holies in heaven. As we walk with our eyes on Jesus, we remember that He has been in our shoes and He understands what we’re going through (Heb. 2:17-18; 4:15-16). I think you get the point: to walk by the Spirit is to walk by faith in Christ. This faith-walk is opposed to the flesh-walk. VICTORY APPLICATION #3 Keep your mind on heavenly things. In addition to the gospel realities, meditate (ruminate) on all things which are eternal and good and right and pure and lovely, etc. (Phil. 4:8). Keep your mind on heavenly things and what will matter for eternity. If you’re tempted to worry, fear, or complain about things going on in the world, remember God’s sovereignty – that’s a heavenly thing! Colossians 3:1-4 says it well: “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you will also be revealed with Him in glory.” Our minds are like a river with thoughts constantly flowing through them and we must build a dam to divert some thoughts from passing through. The Bible says to guard your heart, taking shameful thoughts captive and making them obedient to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5). The sooner you build a dam and stop the bad or lustful thoughts and focus on something good and right, the better. The longer you wait, the more likely you are to consent to the imagination and make the fantasy a reality. Meditating on the Sciptures and memorizing them is helpful, allowing you to quickly replace bad thoughts with Scriptural thoughts. Maintain deep times of communion with God in prayer and His Word. The flesh wants to keep you from deep communion with God. VICTORY APPLICATION #4 Run when you have to! There is no shame in running when you have too! There are occasions when like Joseph was in Potiphar’s house, tempted by his wife, you will have to simply run (Gen. 39:9-12)! He called it sin against God and knew consequences would follow. Paul said to “flee immorality” trusting God to provide escape (1 Cor. 6:18; 10:13). VICTORY APPLICATION #5 Do preventative maintenance decision making. We don’t change our oil when the cars breaks down. We change it to keep the car from breaking down. It’s called preventative maintenance. We can do preventative maintenance in our lives by making wise decisions ahead of time. Romans 13:14 says, “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provisions for the flesh.” In other words, don’t provide opportunities for the flesh. If you know of a time that you are vulnerable to temptation, get some accountability at that time – simply text or call a friend. If there is a place you are tempted, avoid it. If there is a substance you are trying keep from mastering you, don’t keep it around the house. Throw it out! I heard of one man who wrote out Psalm 101:3 on a card and set it on top of his television – “I will set no evil thing before my eyes.” Some may call that extreme, but didn’t Jesus say killing sin sometimes requires drastic measures (Matt. 5:30)? Proverbs 21:31 depicts the last two victory principles well: “The horse is prepared for battle, but victory belongs to the Lord.” Do what you can, but know that victory belongs to the Lord and you cannot do it without Him. It is His grace sanctifying you. VICTORY APPLICATION #6 Take specific temptations to God in prayer. When you are struggling with a specific temptation, take it to the Lord in deep, honest, meditative prayer to God. Ask for victory and seek His power over this reoccurring work of the flesh in your life. Thank Him for making you a new creation and victory attainable. By faith, walk in His help as you continue to look to Christ.
Whenever you go to the doctor, the doctor will examine you and ask you several questions hoping to diagnose you correctly and therefore, give you the proper treatments to solve your issue. Well, it’s no secret that mankind has a sin issue and needs to be properly treated for it. But where do we turn to understand that problem? You guessed it – Genesis. Genesis chapter 1 records the week of creation and Genesis 2 records the creation on man on day 6 of creation. Adam and Eve were living in perfect paradise, however, a dramatic turn of events occurs in chapter 3. Adam and Eve eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil that God said they were not to eat of. Think of this: they had all the freedom in the world and could eat of any other tree’s fruit, but just not this one. What happened? Exactly what God said would happen – they died. God told Adam in Genesis 2:17 that, “in the day you eat of it you shall surely die.” But how did they die? Physically? No… well, at least not immediately, but eventually. So how did they die that day? It was a spiritual death. Both eventual physical death and immediate spiritual death would ensue as a result of this decision to disobey God and forfeit their perfect relationship with Him. As their descendants, we’re all born into sin and spiritually dead. This is a biblical view of anthropology (the study of man). We are dead in our trespasses and sins and must be made alive again spiritually. This is what Jesus meant when He said we must be born again. In John 3:3, when He said this to Nicodemus, Nicodemus was confused, “How can I be born again? Do I have to re-enter my mother’s womb?” Nicodemus wasn’t comprehending the biblical reality of the Fall and man’s spiritual death. He was confused, thinking literally, while Jesus meant spiritually. It’s the same thing in John 6 where Jesus is teaching the crowds that in order to live they must eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood. He wasn’t going against the Law which said not to do those things – His words were spiritual – teaching them that by faith in Him they could have their spiritual hunger and thirst satisfied completely. In John 6:33 He said, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. Most folks go through life trying to treat their sin problem with religious activity and good deeds. Others go the other route and treat their longing for something more through negative things like drugs and alcohol or positive activities like adventure and exercise. But whether it's a non-religious and rebellious man or a religious and moral man, it doesn't matter if they don't have Jesus because only Jesus can fill the emptiness vacuum created by the removal of God's Spirit. We must be born again by faith in Christ to live. Jesus is Life. To properly treat your sin problem once and for all – I mean really be cured – you must go to Jesus, trusting Him as your Savior who died for your sins. He is the Life that reverses sin’s curse of death on us. Only when we believe in Him are we born again by the Spirit of God. Ephesians 1:13-14 says, “In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, This has been another devotional reminding you that
nothing makes sense except in light of Genesis. Pastor Justin |
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