Responding to Economic Turmoil

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Gyrations in the stock market. Banks losing billions. Dire predictions unless Congress does X. Congress does X, yet the situation deteriorates.

What does it all mean? How should Bible-believing Christians respond?

We should respond by trusting in God and in His Word.

Paul tells Timothy to know that hard times are ahead (in his case, from persecution and evil deceivers), but to “continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:14-15).

Just so for us. Remain steadfast. Remind yourself and others of the truths of Scripture. God does not change. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. His Word is our anchor; His promise is our hope, a “sure and steadfast anchor of the soul” (Hebrews 6:19). (more…)

How Should a Christian Vote?

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Is there a Christian position on the political issues facing us today?

We have seen that all in the body of Christ are exiles in this present world, citizens of another kingdom. Our primary responsibility in this period of exile is to serve as ambassadors of our King, speaking and living out His message of reconciliation.

At the same time, we are to “seek the welfare of the city” where we are in exile (Jeremiah 29:7). In a democracy, this surely implies voting; for some individual Christians, it might well mean deep involvement in the political process. But our hope is never to be in any political candidate or party; our hope is in our coming Redeemer King.

Here are some biblical principles concerning voting that I commend to you during this political maelstrom. (more…)

Receive the Spirit

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Have you received the Holy Spirit? Are you filled with the Spirit?

While these questions look similar, biblically they are distinct.

Two weeks ago I exhorted you from Scripture to be filled with the Spirit. We need the power of the Spirit to fulfill God’s purposes for us, to live the Christian life to His glory. This is true in every area of our lives, from craftsmanship to marriage. So in Ephesians 5:18 Paul exhorts those who are already believers to be filled with the Spirit.

But in the text we will consider the next several Sundays, Peter, speaking to those who are not yet believers, says, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). Peter is clear: All those who repent and trust in Jesus for forgiveness will receive the Holy Spirit. (more…)

Christians and Politics

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What is the relationship of the Christian to politics?

As we move towards November’s election, what should role should Christians play?

As a church, we explicitly say in our vision and values statement: “We are not tied to any political party. We value speaking biblical truth to the issues that confront our society, regardless of what parties might be made uncomfortable by the proclamation of that truth.” Over the course of the next several weeks I will address issues facing us this election. My goal is to do just that: to bring out the ways that biblical truth sheds light on the issues discussed in this election.

But prior to looking at specific issues, we need to understand our fundamental role. To that end, consider some key biblical texts: (more…)

Filled with the Spirit

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How can you live the Christian life? How can you fulfill the purpose of your creation through glorifying God? How can you resist temptation and obey the command to rejoice in the Lord always?

The message of the Bible is: You can’t. That is, in your own power, through your own resolution, by means of your concentrated effort, you can’t.

But you can – by the power of God.

Jesus says, “Apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). But that same verse implies that with Him, when you are connected to Him, leaning on Him, depending on Him, you can live to His glory: “Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit. . . . By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:5, 8).

God gives us power for living the Christian life through filling us with the Holy Spirit. Next month, as we consider Acts 2 for three or four sermons, I’ll have much more to say about the different images that Scripture gives of the activity of the Spirit within Christians. For today, consider these different passages that discuss the filling of the Spirit.

Why does God fill His people with His Spirit? (more…)

Seven Years On

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This week marks seven years. Seven years since the towers fell. Seven years since terrorists hijacked four planes, aiming to kill tens of thousands of innocent people. Seven years since they succeeded in killing almost 3,000. Seven years.

In God’s providence, the Bible reading plan I developed eight years ago schedules for the 11th reading in September Jeremiah 39 and 52 – the accounts of the terrible destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians in 586 BC. In the following days I read the Psalms that look back on that event – Psalms 74, 79, and 94 – as well as the book of Lamentations. On September 11, 2001, I read of Jerusalem’s fall without much feeling in the morning; that evening, knowing of the attack and the destruction of the towers, I reread the account, and continued to read these psalms and Lamentations – and wept.

Today, much of our visceral reaction to that attack has faded from memory. Newspapers this year used more ink talking about lipstick on pit bulls and pigs than they devoted to remembering 9/11.

But we must remember. We must remember.

What must we remember? (more…)

The Acts of Jesus Christ

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What is the main point, the central message of the book of Acts?

This Sunday we begin a sermon series on this great book that chronicles events during the first thirty years of Christ’s church. Most Bibles entitle this book “The Acts of the Apostles.” That’s not an accurate summary of the book, however (and that title was not assigned to the book until about 100 years after it was written). The eleven disciples who remain after the death of Judas are listed in Acts 1:13; of these, only three are mentioned again in the book: Peter, whose actions dominate most of the first twelve chapters; John, who accompanies Peter in the events recorded in chapters 3, 4, and 8; and James, whose death is recorded in chapter 12. The other eight do not appear again. The activities of Paul – the apostle “abnormally born” (1 Corinthians 15:8 NIV) – dominate chapters 13 through 28.

Given that focus primarily on only two apostles, should we entitle this book “The Acts of Peter and Paul”?

No. The main purpose of the book is not to provide us with a history of the church, much less biographical accounts of Peter and Paul.

What then is the central message of the book? (more…)

The Heart of the Gospel

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What is the heart of the Gospel? What does the Gospel teach at its core?

In our adult Core Seminar this week, we consider this issue by means of J.I. Packer’s “The Heart of the Gospel,” chapter 18 from Knowing God (republished by Crossway this year in In My Place Condemned He Stood: Celebrating the Glory of the Atonement). In this chapter Packer explains the central importance of propitiation – that is, of averting God’s anger over sin by an offering. He explains the reason why so many take offense at the idea, the biblical support for the idea, and the importance of the idea in our Christian walk.

Here is a brief outline of the chapter to whet your appetite. Please read it if at all possible, and join us this Sunday as we glory in Christ’s work on our behalf. (more…)

Striving, Resting, and the Word

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On Sunday we focused in part on Hebrews 4:11:

Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.

We noted the paradox of this verse: We are to work real hard to rest. And we showed that this does not mean, “Work read hard NOW to rest IN THE FUTURE.” Psalm 23 and Matthew 11:28-30 clearly show we are to be resting now, while we are working. Our rest in Christ is, instead, similar to a runner – a Usain Bolt, a Ryan Hall – relaxing while running the race of his life. He is working hard – yet, other than the specific muscles required for running, he is completely relaxed. In the image of Matthew 11, we are yoked together with Jesus. He gives us rest – simultaneous with our taking up His yoke. His power does the labor, the pulling, as we are paired with Him.

The Hebrews passage clarifies further how we are both to strive to rest, and to rest while striving. The author writes:

11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest . . . 12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

The word “for” links the command to how we live out the command. And there is only one way to depend actively on God: Through His Word.

How does the Word help us do this? (more…)

The Old and the New

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“So much of the Christian life is not learning new things but learning fundamental things in new ways.”

So wrote Tom Ascol, Executive Director of Founders Ministries, in a recent blog post. Several weeks ago he was struck by lightening – yes, literally – and is still recovering.

In this country, we have a passion for the new: New electronic gadgets, new books, new ideas, new leaders. We expect progress; we anticipate that all will improve.

The anticipation of progress is less common around the world and, from a historical viewpoint, is rather recent. Now, in many ways, believing that change is possible is helpful and necessary; indeed, a belief in change is fundamental to salvation.

But our fascination with the new has a downside also: We quite easily slip into an attitude of disdain for the old. C.S. Lewis labeled this “chronological snobbery,” which he defined as “the uncritical acceptance of the intellectual climate of our own age and the assumption that whatever has gone out of date is on that count discredited” (from Surprised by Joy chapter 13.)

Tom’s statement is an excellent summary of the right attitude towards biblical truth. We must remind ourselves and one another again and again of the great truths of the Gospel, of the great acts of God in history, of the great aspects of His character, of the great promise of Christ’s return. This is how we run the race of faith with endurance.

But reminding ourselves of these fundamental truths requires more than simply reciting a known fact. We must learn them in new ways, as Tom says. We must apply these eternal truths to the changing and challenging circumstances that overwhelm us in this life. (more…)