Sermons

ADVENT: THANKSGIVING

A PASTORAL LETTER

Dearest family,

I trust you had a thankful Thanksgiving! Although many were out of town on Sunday, we had a good quorum and I took advantage of the juxtaposition of Thanksgiving and the first Sunday in Advent to give the annual pep-talk on “thanksgiving”. This is foundational to the advent season as we echo the words of Paul to the Corinthians, “Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!”

The sticky spores of greed that blow in the wind at this time of year, with Red-eye Thursday and Black Friday, set the onslaught of Mammon up against the advent of Messiah. Could there be two more opposing spirits? But before we tut-tut the state of the culture at large, it behooves us to check on the health of thanksgiving in personal and church life. The fact is, like everyone else, we do not seem to be grateful or thankful by nature. On the contrary, we are easily discontented, dissatisfied, hard to please, unsubmissive, opinionated, critical, judgmental, with a keen sense of our own rights and deserts, and more aware of what we want than what we have. It is worth reminding ourselves that the failure of thanksgiving was at the root of the sin of our first parents. Amidst a feast of provision they had nothing better to think about than what they were disallowed from having.

I gave you a quick five point message on a theology of thanksgiving, accompanied by five observations. Herewith is the summary. (Download the sermon mp3 for the full package!) Biblical summary on thanksgiving:

1. AT EVERY MOMENT: “Continually offer to God the fruit of lips giving thanks…”
(Hebrs. 13:15)
2. IN EVERY WORD AND DEED: “Whatever…in word or deed…giving thanks to God…”
(Cols. 3:17)
3. IN EVERY CIRCUMSTANCE: “Giving thanks in all circumstances…” (1 Thess. 5:18)
4. FOR EVERYTHING: “Always giving thanks to God the Farther for everything…” (Ephs.
1:20)
5. FOR EVERYONE: “…thanksgiving be made for everyone…” (1 Tim. 2:1)

How many of you noticed the emphatic common word? EVERY! As Paul summed it up: “God created everything to be received with thanksgiving.” (1 Tim. 4:2) How are you doing? (I asked that of you on Sunday and after the service John Weyrich told me he was too slow in responding, “Thanks for asking”!!) So what people, what things, what circumstances, what events, what timings are presently outside this call to obedience in your life?

I also made comments on the following headlines:

1. We were created to give thanks
2. As Christians, our priestly calling is to give thanks.
3. There is a relationship between godly remembrance and thanksgiving. Forgetfulness
is an enemy of gratitude.
4. There is a relationship between prayer and thanksgiving. Thankless people are
prayerless people. You cannot ask without thanking (Phils. 4:6) or thank without
being buoyed in faith to ask God for more.
5. There is a relationship between thanksgiving and healthy personal discipleship
and healthy corporate community life.

The book of Revelation presents heaven as one long Thanksgiving Day. “We give thanks to you Lord God Almighty…” seems to be the main song! So it would seem reasonable to be tuning up for that! As the psalmists put it: “Give thanks to the Lord our God and King, for His love endures forever.” If “forever” is the extent of His love then “forever” is the extent of our thanksgiving. Did you notice the word EVER again!? May this advent season recharge, refuel, re-fire your thanksgiving as you ponder again God’s “indescribable gift.”


Pastorally yours,

Stuart

GOD'S MERCY

Dear Church,

This past Sunday Stuart continued his series on the book of Jude with a focus on the theme of God’s mercy and our necessary response to it. Jude begins and ends with mercy: “May mercy, grace and love be multiplied to you” (v. 2); “…waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ… And have mercy on those who doubt… to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh” (v. 21-23). Stuart exhorted us to consider how pervasive the theme of mercy is throughout Scripture (if you need any convincing, just start scrolling down this link). In his letter, Jude implores his readers to hold to the mercy of God in a context of surrounding and impending apostasy. This mercy is not just a doctrinal issue, but a matter of the heart; and in a context in which we might be tempted only to go “head to head” with the twisters of orthodox doctrine, we need to remember the need to go “heart to heart” as well. Those who spout false teaching and those who are drawn to it are no less in need of mercy than the rest.

Stuart helped to define mercy for us, and its relationship with grace. The two go together, but there are different nuances. Where God’s grace is addressed at our sins, his mercy is aimed at our misery. Where grace brings pardon for the undeserving, mercy provides relief to the helpless. Where grace focuses on God’s bounty, mercy focuses on our need.

Behind Jude’s appeal to mercy is the story of the Exodus (cited in v. 5), and along with this story comes the revelation of God’s name to Moses on Mt. Sinai: “The LORD, the Lord, A God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty…” (Exodus 34:5-7) In the revelation of God’s name there is both the comfort of those who will run to the merciful One, and warning for those who spurn this mercy. So Stuart talked about the CLAIMS of mercy and the CAUTIONS of mercy.

THE CLAIMS OF MERCY
It is only the mercy of God that gives us any ground for an appeal to Him, any hope of confidence to approach his throne for help and blessing. We have no merit to bring to the bargaining table. The prophet Daniel understood this profoundly when he prayed, “To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him… we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy” (Daniel 9:9, 18). And David knew that it was only on the basis of God’s mercy that he could have an audience with the Lord: “Have mercy on me, O God… according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions” (Psalm 51:1). So mercy is the ground for our pleas. It is also the ground for our praise: “I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy” (Psalm 31:7, KJV). We can worship without self-consciousness because of our confidence in God’s character of mercy toward us. It is furthermore the ground of preaching and pastoring: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God…” (Rom. 12:1); “Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God…” (2 Co. 4:1)

THE CAUTIONS OF MERCY
Mercy does not only warm the heart; it also warns the heart. It can be either a green or a red light. Jude’s letter exhorts us to keep ourselves in the love of God, as we wait for the mercy offered in Christ consummately at his second coming (v. 21). And among those who had previously encountered the merciful LORD at Sinai, there were many who fell away (v. 5). We can wrong mercy by neglecting its offer (2 Co. 6:1-13); by denying its truthfulness and remaining in self-pity; by self-glorification, ignoring that we have accomplished what we have not on the basis of our own efforts but on the basis of God’s mercy; by presuming on it as we persist in sin; or by simply forsaking it by holding on to our idolatry (Jonah 2:8)

So, are we claiming God’s mercy? Are we cautioned by it? These are things for each of us to ponder, but we should also consider one more response to mercy: Are we reaching out in mercy? Does the mercy of God toward us move us not only to a more humble and confident relationship with the Lord, but also to a more concerned attitude toward the real need around us. This need is not limited to physical poverty, for Jude’s appeal for mercy is directed in his letter most specifically to those who have been intellectually seduced by false doctrine. To those in danger of such seduction, for those have serious doubts, or who have begun to “play with fire” (v. 22-23), Jude asks us to reach out in mercy.

May we continue to persevere in mercy as we wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Blessings,

Ben

THE APPEAL & THE ASSURANCE

Dearest family,

When I’m teaching, I usually go into the pulpit with about 20 pages of notes. On Sunday, I had 9 pages so it hopefully was shorter than usual!! However, with all the wonderful things that went on during the service, I’m sure you didn’t get out early. In the second message of the Jude series I focused on the first of three points on verses 1-4: AN ASSAULT. Last Sunday, I briefly covered the other two points: an appeal and an assurance Working backwards from the nature of the virulent assault (v4), we can understand the intensity of Jude’s appeal (v3), and working backwards from that appeal, we can now understand why he begins with such a strong word of assurance. (vs 1-2)

We noted the intensity and urgency of Jude’s appeal, and hopefully took the example of Jude’s earnest exhortation to heart. Are we diligent or negligent? Are we resolute or dilute. Is it about responding today, or procrastinating till tomorrow? I cited over thirty different scriptural passages that reveal the strong affections and diligent attitudes that accompany discipleship. Then we looked at one of Jude’s characteristic three-pointers: called, loved, kept. Here is the assurance that grounds all that follows.

“to those who have been called…”
This is such a repeated NT assurance. This is not the kind of call that randomly shouts, “Hey you!” Behind this call is the idea of choice. You have been wanted, desired. That’s hard to receive if you battle rejection. Paul lays this same foundation of assurance at the beginning of his letter to the Romans. His confidence in even addressing them is because he is “called to be an apostle” (1:1) He describes Christians as “those who are called to belong to Jesus.” (1:6) The word that Jude uses here has three senses all wrapped up in it. It is a call to responsibility, as in a job offer. It is a call to a party, an invitation to joy. It is the word used when you are called to trial, to give an account of yourself, a call to judgment. So to summarize, it is a call to service, a call to scrutiny, but a call to celebration. We know who we are because we know whose we are. You will usually find that when you suffer self-doubt or lack of personal assurance, it is rooted in insecurity about who you really are in Christ and what Jesus really thinks and feel for you. There is assurance in this call because of what we know about it:
• it is a hope-filled call (Ephs. 4:4) “called to one hope”
• it is a high calling (Phils. 3:14) “I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling…”
• it is a heavenly call (Henrs.3:1) “who share in the heavenly calling”
• it is a holy call (2Tim. 1:9) “God…has…called us to a holy life…”

Has this call of grace taken your breath away? You’re called! The call is to Christ, the call is to the Father. That’s closeness, that’s safety, that’s relationship. Paul is writing to the Thessalonians who are embattled and besieged on every side, a bit like Jude’s readers. Listen to him: “Brothers, loved by the Lord…from the beginning God chose you…He called you to this through our gospel that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then stand firm and hold on to the teachings we passed on to you.” (2 Thess. 2:13-15) Do you hear the similarity to Jude?

• “God has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus…” ((1 Cors. 1: 8-9) But right before that, because of this call, he could say, “He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of Jesus Christ.” Exactly what Jude is saying!
• “Those who are called may receive the promised inheritance.” (Hebrs. 9:15) How assuring is that?
You are not a floater. You are not on the fringe? You are not on probation till you can prove that you are worth his choice of you? You are not the kid who was always picked last, or never picked at all? You are the most popular with your Father God. He called you! That means you are on His side. You will never be separated. Blessed assurance!

“loved in God the Father…”
I spent a whole year about two years ago, teaching on the heart and the love of the Father. Are you still unconvinced that God will leave his stoop to run toward you? Do fathers and mothers forsake us? Yes. Do friends and lovers forsake us? Yes. Yet at our most unloveable He loves us. He’s not checking out the photo albums of our unloveableness. While I was an enemy he loved me. What assurance in the surety of His love for me. The entire record of scripture records this avalanche of the love of God – unmerited of course but lavished anyway. “Herein is love, not that we loved God but that He loved us and sent His son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 Jn. 4:10) Jesus’ passionate prayer for us in Jn. 17:22-23 was that we would know that the Farther loved us in the same way that He loved Jesus. Jesus uses the perfect tense which means we are the permanent objects of His love. You want assurance, given your experience of fickle and faithless and philandering love? His love is EVERLASTING! “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” (Jer. 31: 3-4) It is UNFAILING! “I will not forget you…I have engraved you on the palm of my hands!” Your name is God’s tattoo! You worry it will not be enough for you? It is GREAT! “Because of His great love for you, God who is rich in mercy…” (Ephs. 2:4-5) You stay unassured because you are overwhelmed by your lack of worth, by your unloveability? His love is UNCONDITIONAL! “While we were still sinners Christ died for us!” (Roms. 5:8) His love has been demonstrated in our salvation, in our adoption: “When the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us…How great is the love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called the children of God!” What kind of love do you need to give you assurance? He has assured you that he loves you as a Father (Hebrs. 12: 9-10); he has assured you that he loves you as a mother (Isa. 66:13); he has assured you he loves you as a spouse (Isa. 62:5) And when we are in Christ, He cannot love us less than He loves Jesus! Darling, be assured, he loves you: personally, passionately and permanently. Blessed assurance!

“kept for Jesus Christ…”
There’s hardly an epistle that doesn’t begin with an affirmation of the secure keeping power of God. Kept by his call (Roms. 1:1); kept by his will ((1Cors. 1:1); kept by his comfort (1 Cors. 1:3); kept by his delivering power (Gals. 1:4); kept by our adoption (Ephs. 1:5) and on and on. This keeping power of God dominated the teaching of Jesus: “No one can snatch them from my Father’s hand.” (Jn. 10:28-31) It dominated the teaching of Paul: “The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom.” (2 Tim. 4:18) This keeping power of God dominates the prayers of Jesus: “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name.” (Jn. 17:11) It dominated the prayers of Paul: “May your whole spirit, soul and body, be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and will do it!” (1 Thess. 5:23) Kept from sin, kept from temptation, kept from persecution and in it, kept from youth to old age, kept in death.

The clarion cry of Jude has rung through the centuries of church life as a doxology: “Now unto Him who is able to keep…(v24) He is able to keep that which I have committed to Him against that day…” (2 Tim. 1:12) Blessed assurance!

But of course this assurance is not a one sided affair. As sure as it is we do not presume on it and therefore despise or disparage it.
• Yes you are called. “Be all the more eager to make your calling…sure… make every effort to
add to your faith…” (2 Pet. 1:10)
• Yes you are loved. “Keep yourselves in God’s love.” (Jude v21)
• Yes you are kept. “You keep your spiritual fervor” (Roms. 12:11) “You keep in step with the
Spirit.” (Gals. 5:25) “You keep yourself pure.” (1 Tim. 5:22) “You keep your lives free
from the love of money.” (Hebrs. 13:5) “You keep yourselves from being polluted by
the world.” (Jms. 1:27)

This relational reciprocity is all the way through Jude. As for love, as we have seen, keep yourselves in the love of God. As for peace, you pray in the Spirit. As for mercy, you look for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. If we receive the assurance, we can respond to the appeal and we can resist the assault.

I’m so glad you could share communion on Sunday. Is there any example like Jesus for what I was talking about? Was there another as diligent, whose words as an obedient servant were pre-heard by Isaiah (50:7) “I set my face like a flint.” Was there any more vigilant: “Could you not watch with me?” Was there any who agonized more? Whether in the wilderness in his bearing the onslaught of Satan, or whether in Gethsemane: “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” (Lk. 22:44) Did he not pioneer for us everything that Jude seems to be asking of us. Was his assurance not the call of the Father: “He will be called the Son of the Most High…” (Lk. 1:32) Was not his assurance the love of the Father? “You are my Son whom I love.” (Lk. 3:22). Was not his assurance the keeping power of the Father? “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above…Father, into your hands I commit my Spirit.” (Jn. 19:11; Lk. 23:46) Blessed assurance!

Jesus was assured about whose He was, and who He was. The Pharisees were the enemies of grace and the deniers of the lordship of Jesus the Messiah. No one warned against the challenges to faith in Jesus more than Jesus himself, but no one was a surer example of how to endure the assault of false teaching, and how to triumph over it. As Peter said, He left us an example so that we could follow in his footsteps.


Pastorally yours,

Stuart

FALSE TEACHERS

Dear family,

What follows are some notes that I did not have time to go through in my message on Sunday, but they will hopefully serve as a useful study outline for you of some the specific workings of grace in our lives. I am trying to capture the range of NT descriptions that are behind Jude’s concern when grace is perverted. I’ve provided the alliteration for good measure for free – a gracious act indeed!

1. Saving grace: “saved through grace” (Acts 15:11) “It is by grace you have been saved – this is not from yourselves – it is the gift of God.” (Ephs. 2:8) But part of this experience of saving grace is the instruction we receive for the totality of our lives. Listen to how Paul describes it to Titus (2:11): “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say NO to ungodliness and worldly passions and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in the present age, while we wait for the blessed hope, the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” Do you see then that when Jude says that they change the grace, then what goes out the window is the instruction is righteousness that is the work of grace in us.
2. Securing our grace: “this grace in which we stand” (Roms.5:1-2) “the true grace of God. Stand firm in it.” (1Pet.5:12) Grace secures us, or we could call this strengthening grace: “the word of his grace which can build you up” (Acts 20:32)
3. Sanctifying grace: this is grace’s work in growing, maturing, promoting and encouraging and effecting our progress in faith and holy godliness, in pleasing God. Writing to the Corinthians Paul describes his conduct and character: “We have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relationships with you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God. We have done so not according to worldly wisdom but according to God’s grace.” (2Cors.1:12)
4. Serving or stewarding grace: “Use your gifts to serve others as faithful stewards of God’s grace.” (1 Pet. 4:10) “The grace God gave me to be a minister” (Acts 15:15). This is the enablement to minister – the charismata – the grace gifts. Paul’s summation of ministry in his farewell to the Ephesians elders: “If only I may finish the race and complete the task…of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.” (Acts 20:24)
5. Sharing grace: “Grace given to me for you…” (Ephs. 3:2) “all of you share in God’s grace with me…” (Phils. 1:7)
6. Sending grace: the callings of God, commending to the word of his grace. Paul’s testimony: “God called me…by his grace and was pleased to reveal His Son in me.” (Gals. 1:15)
7. Supplicating grace: “Spirit of grace and supplication…” (Zech. 12:10) “Throne of grace…find grace to help us in our time of need…” (Hebrs. 4:16) Result of prayer: “much grace was upon them” (Acts 4:33)
8. Supporting or supplying grace: B.B. Warfield, the great reformed Princeton theologian, on Acts 9:11- Paul prepared by prayer for the reception of grace through Ananias, so Spirit of grace both prepares for the provision of grace through prayer. Prayer “adjusts the heart for the influx of grace.” (Warfield)
9. Speaking grace: “grace those who listen” (Ephs.4:29) “Let your conversation always be full of grace, seasoned with salt.” (Cols.4:6) Favor as well as flavor! So crucial that this grace is expressed through us in a culture of contempt and anger. Are you surprised that when they changed grace the speech of the false teachers in Jude is “speaking abusively…grumblers… faultfinders… they boast…and flatter”?
10. Singing grace: “With psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, with grace in your hearts to God.” (Cols.4:16) The hymnody and psalmody, formal and informal, liturgical and non-liturgical, ancient and modern – all of grace that must be turned into gratitude in song and antiphon. The range of grace that requires more range of human intonation as our heart wants to give all the keys of its grateful piano to God. If you are dull to worship you are dull to grace.
11. Sustaining grace: this is about special times of need – “My grace is sufficient for you and my power is made perfect in weakness.” (2Cors.12:9) – “Let us approach the throne of grace…and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrs.4:16) “God gives grace to the humble.” (1Pet.5:5)
12. Staying grace: By staying here I’m not referring to the idea of an abiding grace, though it is, but in the sense of staying the hand of judgment. I would add this one because the grace of God is not just manifested in what he does do, but in what he doesn’t do – for example, by the delay of judgment. Maybe I can stretch something else under this category. God’s grace is manifest in what he gives and allows, in what he provides, but it is also in what he disallows, what he prohibits. The word that commands us not to, is a staying word of grace. Stop! Halt! No further! Do not transgress! Do not move that boundary! Thou shalt not! (It is crucial to understand the law as an expression of God’s love and grace. He loves us so much that he commands us not to engage that which he knows will destroy us and separate us from Him.) Genesis: all the trees (provision) except (prohibition) – equally evidences of grace. The fall is fundamentally a sin against grace. There is grace in giving, but also grace in the staying of things, the with-holding, the taking away of those things that are not going to promote spiritual growth in grace. Again, in Jude, if you remove the grace of God in its truth, you remove the commands of God.
13. Suffering grace: grace often brings God’s goodness in a way that doesn’t at first feel good to us. Phils.1:29: “It has been granted (literally-graced) for Christ’s sake, not only to believe in him but to suffer for him.”
14. Suffusing (welling up from within) grace: “the grace that is in me” says Paul – the grace that dwells within – the indwelling spirit of grace that rises within us, that “overflows” again to use Paul’s language. This grace that changes us, that makes us in turn, gracious.
15. Sovereign grace: “grace might reign through righteousness...” (Roms. 5:21). Now you can see that if grace goes, the belief in the sovereignty of Christ goes with it.

How awful is it then to sin against, to try to change, this saving, securing, sanctifying, serving, sustaining, sharing, sending, supplicating, supporting, supplying, speaking, singing, staying, suffering, suffusing, sovereign grace. Clearly, just these few scriptural quotes that I have given are sufficient to dispel any notion that grace is sweetly benign, or is something that is helpful now and again. Grace is not a commodity, a thing – but the very active and engaging presence and personality of God in our lives and circumstances. Invasion, infusion is what we should be thinking about. To sin against grace is to sin against the very nature and heart of God. Grace’s power, its penetration, its communication – every expression is proactively an expression of the nature of God ministering to the needs of man – it is strong grace according to the NT. It is a strong brew, and those who experience it are grace intoxicated, but more importantly, God-centered and God-adoring. This leads me to an important final but foundational point. If you like, grace is self-effacing. It points away from itself to the giver of grace. What is grace about, that the false teachers just don’t get? After all the purposes it serves that I’ve just mentioned, all its glorious operations, I can put it even more precisely. Is grace just for us? Is it all about us? In a word grace is for God. Let me explain in a way that helps you understand the nature of the offence in Jude.

One of the repeated words in conjunction with these false teachers in Jude was “themselves” (12, 16) Their lives are all about “their own” desires (16); for “their own advantage” (16) We live in a self absorbed culture, including Christian culture. Our decisions are suited to what works best for us, pleases us, conforms to our preferences, supports our traditions and perceptions, fits our comfort zones. This is true of how we often choose our churches, our missions, our vocations, how we express our spirituality. This raises an important point. Do we need God to experience this grace we need, or do we need grace to experience the God we desire. John Piper has put it this way: “Is the ultimate treasure the grace of God or the God of grace?” This is a key question he is asking, and it all has to do with who is at the center. What is the ultimate object and purpose of grace? To gratify me or to glorify God? Is the main issue that I receive grace’s works or that God receives my grateful because graceful worship?

As simple and foundational as this is, it is the most ignored truth. All doctrines start with the doctrine of God (e.g. evangelism – His nature before human need). This is true for the doctrine of grace. Again, quoting Piper: “We cherish grace because it brings us to God, rather than cherishing God because he brings us grace.” In other words, our worship is about the God of grace, not primarily about the work of grace described by all those fine words beginning with “S”! Every which way you look at grace, any description of grace, the ultimate purpose is a revelation of who God is. Grace is utterly God-horizoned, God-focused, God-centered. Grace’s ultimate homing instinct is the glory of God. He is totally selfsufficient so His grace to us is this brilliant overflow of His life. Grace is not pipetted or rationed or given in small portions – it is always amazing, always huge, always extravagant. When God’s life and love wash over us, spill over us, soak into us, we call it grace. Grace is not other to himself. We often limit our understanding of grace to the particular provision or answer or deliverance that we get. No the grace is himself – for that is always the best that he can give. In any case God, being God, is moved by his nature, his gracious and compassionate and loving nature, to continually show himself, give himself away, reveal himself so he can be known. Now do you understand the heinous and blasphemous nature of the sin against grace. It is the rejection of the personhood of God no less. And Jude presents this not as some kind of intellectual theological atheism but as awful unholiness that defies God’s personality and breaks relationship.

Here endeth the notes.


Pastorally yours,

Stuart

JUDE INTRODUCTION

The letter of Jude warns against those who, having gained admission to the church, were perverting the grace of God, denying “our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ” (verse 4). Jude used Old Testament examples to warn of these “blemishes” on the church. He wrote multiple denunciations of these ungodly people who “defile the flesh” and “reject authority” (verse 8). He urged Christians to continue in godliness and love toward such people, in some cases reasoning with them, in other cases “snatching them out of the fire” (verse 23). Jude closes with one of the most beautiful doxologies in all of Scripture (verses 24–25). Jude was the brother of James (probably “James the Lord’s brother,” Gal. 1:19). He likely wrote sometime between A.D. 65 and 80.

TO THE CHURCH IN EPHESUS

Dearest family,

Last Sunday we looked at the first of the letters to the churches in Revelation, the one to Ephesus. I spent quite a bit of time looking at the question: how and why does love grow cold? But for the purpose of this week’s pastoral letter, I want to reiterate the refrain that ended the letter, which will be repeated in all the others, though each one will contain a different promise. “He who has an ear to hear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.” (v7) This is what is left ringing in your ears. This is a deliberate repetition of the same words with which Jesus began his ministry as recorded in the parable of the sower and the seed.

Our text and series raises huge questions about the quality of the church’s hearing. The Bible has so much to say about hearing, both good and bad.

About good hearing:

• There is that lovely listening ear that Isaiah speaks about: “He wakens my ear to listen morning by morning.” (Isa. 50:4) It says this is the word that sustains the weary, that teaches us.
• There is an ear that is shut to evil (Isa. 33:15) This is the one who walks righteously.
• There are ears that are simply described as “opened by the Lord” which saves the hearer from rebellion and drawing back. (Isa. 50:5) “My ears you have opened” (Ps. 40:6) Response is “Here I am!” “Speak for your servant is listening.” (1 Sam.3:9)
• There is the ear that hears and receives reproof and correction (Pvbs. 15:31)
• There is the attentive ear. “They hung on his words.” (Lk. 11:48) “Lydia attended” (Acts 16:14) The fruit of that attentiveness was: her household, a church, barbarian Europe were reached from Philippi!
• There is the obedient ear that Jesus blessed.
• We are exhorted to be “swift to hear” (Jms.1:19)
• We are taught how to hear: carefully, diligently (Dt.15:5; 11:13)
• So many encouragements in scripture to good hearing: incline your ear (Pvbs. 2:2), bow your ear (Ps. 5:1), apply your ears to instruction (Ps. 23:12), open your ears to the words of his mouth (Jer. 9:20) let these things sink down into your ears (Lk. 9:44) go near to the house of God to listen (Eccl. 5:1) faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God (Roms. 10:17)
• We are invited to take responsibility for how we hear and to ask for good hearing: “I will incline my ear”(Ps. 49:4) “Let me hear thy voice…for sweet is thy voice.” (Song of Sol 2:14) Good hearing is the response of love.
• Do your own study on the fruits of good hearing: faith I’ve already mentioned, also instruction and wisdom. When we hear rightly God is glorified (Acts 21:20) Both blessings and cursings are utterly determined by how we listen. (Dt. 28)

About bad hearing
• heavy, dull ears that will not understand ((Isa. 6:10)
• ears that have not been opened (Isa. 48:8)
• ears that are deliberately stopped to anything they don’t want to have to deal with (Pvbs. 21:13) Stopped to injustice’s cries (Zech.7:11)
• ears of fools that do not hear (Jer. 5:21)
• Jeremiah talks about the uncircumcised ear that finds the word of the Lord offensive, that reacts against God’s commands. Stephen quotes this in his final sermon and he tells them that the mark of an uncircumcised ear is resisting the Holy Spirit. (Acts 7:51) Six verses later they can take no more and his condemnation of their hearing literally gets him killed. It says “they covered their ears” proving what he said about their hearing was right!
• Ears that choose not to be attentive to the Lord produce bad results: stubborn inclinations, go backward not forward (Jer. 7:24)
• Ears that resist correction – truth perishes (Jer. 7:28)
• Ezekiel struggled with an unlistening audience in the face of calamity. “Ears to hear but do not hear.” (12:2) There is a terrible symmetry a few chapters later when it is prophesied that the enemy will overcome them and cut off their ears. (23:25)
• Paul talks of the great dangers of an “itching ear” influenced by personal desires, wanting to hear what they want to hear. (2 Tim. 4:3) ears that turn away from the truth. (v.4)
• Israelites actually said at Horeb “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord.” (Dt.18:16)
• Ears of the scorner, the cynic (like Sarah laughing) Pvbs.13:1
• Romans talks of those (Israel) who cannot hear because there is a spirit of stupor on them (11:8)
• The gospels identify those who did not hear because they chose to be offended.
• It’s interesting but you’ve only been reading the Bible 5 minutes and you encounter man’s first responses to hearing: wrongly (to the serpent and sinning) and wrongly again to the voice of God – they heard…they hid. (Gen. 3:8) The history of hearing that begins in Genesis ends in Revelation 22:17 “Let him who hears say Come”

If ever there was a day to listen and hear what the Spirit is saying to the church this is it. We’re in the book of Revelation as the world falls apart, the same book that prophesies in the end times that there will be a globalization of the economy, of government and of religion. If you don’t believe or perceive how far we are in to that inevitable process then you are not only not listening but not looking. So let’s take heed to what this word teaches. From beginning to end, it gives reason after reason why we either don’t listen or cannot hear: pride, untruth, self-satisfaction, rebellion, disobedience, idolatry, unbelief, cynicism, shame, unconfessed and unrepented sin, unteachableness, distraction, loving the sound of our own voice more than his, unbelief, willfulness, stubbornness, offence. Our text is telling us to hear what the Spirit says, so we cannot afford in these days to be dull of hearing for any of these reasons.

There are three things that would be good for our ears:

1. In Ex. 21:6 and Dt.15:17 we read of a practice that was the piercing of the ear. It’s the root of the idea of an “earmark” that simply signifies ownership. Has your ear been spiritually pierced? Are you unquestionably the Lord’s servant who will not, cannot hear and entertain any other offers for the stewardship of your life? Are you vulnerable to other voices (Did God really say?) Do you have ears for his voice only? Is your hearing consistent with your confession of his lordship?

2. In Ex. 29:20 we read of another practice related to the ears. Blood was put on the ears of the priests. We are all a royal priesthood. It signified consecration, being set apart to hear and obey whatever the Lord said.

3. But what if you’ve hearing loss? What if you’re deaf, if not totally, partially to certain frequencies of His love and his commands. What if there are things that you will not or cannot hear but you should? If there’s one thing Jesus specialized in it was deafness. Remember the healing of the deaf mute for example? By the way, spiritually, our lack of hearing always results in a lack of speaking. We speak those things that we have heard. Where little has been heard from the Lord there is little to share. Where there is no listening there is no learning. Maybe you need the Lord’s fingers in your ears as it were. Maybe you need to hear just one word: “Ephphatha!” (Mk.7:34) Be opened! Maybe you need to pray afresh with the psalmist, “Cause me Olord to hear your loving kindness.” (Ps.143:8)

Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear!

Pastorally yours,

Stuart

https://www.christourshepherd.org/pastlet.htm (and follow links to download MP3 audio of sermon)

SEVEN CHURCH INTRODUCTION

Dear Church Family,

We began a much-anticipated teaching series on Sunday titled “Biblical Sexuality: Some Considerations”. The anticipation of this series has been with some fear and trepidation. That is not just because sexuality is a very personal and therefore a sensitive subject. . It is also because it is in the area of sexual morality that the traditional understanding of Biblical ethics is the most at odds with our culture today. In a nutshell, the traditional understanding is that the Bible teaches that sexual relations are for a marital relationship between a man and a woman and should not be practiced outside of that. And this understanding differs markedly from the perspective of our surrounding secular culture. In the message on Sunday, I explored the perspective on sexual ethics in our secular culture and the challenge that this presents to Christians. I quoted from a recommended book, Sex and the iWorld by Dale Kuehne (correctly pronounced “Keen” by the way).

The proverbial elephant in the room for this topic is the controversial issue of homosexuality, so I spent much of the time on that issue and the challenge it presents to us. (You will need to listen to the message online as I will not be trying to summarize it hear). However, the teaching series is about sexuality in general and will explore the importance and implications of how all of us think about and live out our sexuality. Future messages will include examining how biblical authors understood and related to the cultural perceptions of sexuality that they encountered, studying the foundational passages in the Genesis account of creation, considering a healthy theology of our physical bodies, sexuality and singleness, and sexuality and marriage. We will return to specifically addressing the topic of homosexuality again toward the end of the series.

This should not be viewed as a neatly packaged COSC teaching on Biblical Sexuality. This issue is very complex with many different angles and confusions. There is simply not time enough to include everything or even offer thorough explanations for what we will include. This is a topic that we need to discuss and wrestle with as a community. This series offers considerations for that wrestling. Stuart and I cannot do all of the work for you. All of us need to “think man think, sweat baby sweat.”

Stuart and I would like to engage with your questions and reactions to the messages so we know what we might need to clarify or explain more thoroughly. We welcome and value your e-mails. We have also set up a link for you to communicate anonymously if that would be more comfortable for you.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1OdmCupAlkylPafMuXhwBUFJrkELZ0JgyEbdFJ6CF3xA/viewform

Homegroups will be discussing the messages with questions that we will be providing. The purpose of these discussions will be to allow people to wrestle with these considerations together. Our goal is the goal of Paul’s prayer for the Colossians in 1:9-10 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. We believe that the Holy Spirit uses discussion to accomplish this within and amongst us. It is very important that everyone feels the freedom to express their perspectives and questions, especially where there might be disagreement. We want to have the mind of God, but we are all in process of attaining that, none of us have arrived. The more that we seek to understand one another when we do disagree, the more we will all grow in wisdom and discernment. So, when encountering someone with a different perspective, we do not have to agree with that perspective in order to value its contribution to a discussion. We should believe that the more fully we understand different perspectives, the more we will be able to sharpen our own and be more fully aligned with the mind of God.

May the following passage be the guide to these homegroups discussions, James 3:17-18, But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Pastorally yours,

Bo

https://www.christourshepherd.org/pastlet.htm (and follow links to download MP3 audio of sermon)