Church of the Living God - Traverse City, MI

Probably between ad 85 and 95, John [1] wrote to the believers near Ephesus, in present-day Turkey.[2] The persecution under Nero had come and gone, killing even Paul and Peter. John was the last apostle, looking back at what had been happening in the early church. 1 John 1:1-7We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us— we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship (koinonia) with us; and truly our fellowship (koinonia) is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our[3] joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship (koinonia) with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship (koinonia) with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Come to me, Timothy, as soon as you can. You see, Demas having loved this present age, has abandoned me, and headed off to Thessalonica. Crescens took off for Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. Luke is the only one left. Bring Mark with you because he is useful in this work and will help look after me. I sent Tychicus to Ephesus. On your way here, pick up the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, and bring the scrolls—especially the parchments.Keep your eye out for Alexander the coppersmith! He came against me with all sorts of evil—the Lord will render to him according to his works — so watch your back because he has gone overboard to oppose our message.When it was time for my first defense, no one showed up to support me. Everyone abandoned me (may it not be held against them) except the Lord. He stood by me, strengthened me, and backed the truth I proclaimed with power so it may be heard by all the non-Jews. He rescued me, pried open the lion’s jaw , and snatched me from its teeth. And I know the Lord will continue to rescue me from every trip, trap, snare, and pitfall of evil and carry me safely to His heavenly kingdom. May He be glorified throughout eternity. Amen.

Today’s sermon is about cooperating with the Lord’s rebuilding. I’m going to use a ship analogy because why not?

5 But you must stay focused, self-controlled and be alert at all times. Tolerate suffering[1]. Accomplish the good work of an evangelist, and complete the ministry to which you have been called.6 For I am already being poured out, and the last drops of this drink offering are all that remain; it’s almost time for me to leave[2]. 7 I have fought the good[3] fight, I have stayed on course and finished the race, and through it all, I have kept the faith.[4] 8 I look forward to what’s in store for me: a crown of righteousness that the Lord—the always right and just judge—will give me that day (but it is not only for me, but for all those who have loved/have longed for His appearing). (2 Timothy 4:5-8) Paul must have had a sense this day was coming. He had written years earlier:“But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you.” (Philippians 2:17)“Even if” has become “am already.” Paul sees his blood as the libation which had already started being poured on the sacrificial offering.[5] Libations were one of the final acts of a sacrifice, with the worshiper pouring (usually) wine on the altar after the burnt offering was mostly consumed. Paul was under a death sentence; it appears the cruelty had already begin. Paul’s blood is about to finish off his life of sacrifice, a spiritual commitment that had now become a physical reality. And then here comes his classic ‘legacy’ statement:“I have fought the good fight, I have stayed on course and finished the race, and through it all, I have kept the faith.”

WHAT DO PEOPLE WITH ITCHING EARS WANT TO HEAR? They want to hear what they want hear. They want messages from God that will affirm their own desires and approve their choice of lifestyles, not challenge what they love and how they live. Those with itching ears prefer lies that make them feel good to truths that make them uncomfortable. God, then, becomes a God that exists to further our self-interests, not His Kingdom.I’m going to use a story from the Old Testament to illustrate how this works. It’s likely a story that Timothy would have known (remember Karl’s sermon last week about the Old Testament?), and would have connected to this idea of ‘itching ears.’

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.Here’s where the fun begins. What scriptures is he talking about here? The Gospels? Revelation? We can look at the prior verse to get an idea.15 and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.There’s a case to be made that early books of the NT were already being considered scripture; however, the only scripture available at the birth of Timothy is the Old Testament.

Repentance involves submission. We have to recognize that, if we choose to surrender our lives to Christ, there is a sense in which choices have been made for us. “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars[1] on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon[2] with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns[3] on its heads. Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that it might devour her child the moment he was born. She gave birth to a son, a male child, who “will rule all the nations with an iron scepter.”[4] And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne. The woman fled into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God, where she might be taken care of for 1,260 days[5]… The dragon pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle,[6] so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time,[7] out of the serpent’s reach. Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth.[8] Then the dragon was enraged at the woman[9] and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus. (Revelation 12: 1-6, 13-17) Did you know that was a Christmas story? Here’s what part of it looks like in Matthew’s Gospel.

The candle we light for Joy is also known as the Shepherd Candle, because of the joy given to the shepherds by the angels (Luke 2:8-20). When Jesus was born, it was announced as “good tidings that brings great joy.” Jesus was a gift of God incarnate that brought joy into the world; Paul would later write that joy is also a gift from God’s Spirit into us. Because of this, we can say that we are “full of sorrow, and yet rejoicing” (2 Corinthians 6:10). Jesus once said, “You have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” (John 16:22) So if you were to ask me how to find joy, I would say that joy is given by God the Father through the Holy Spirit, but joy is found in the person and presence of Jesus. See Jesus. And that’s what we are going to do today.

Hope is probably the key underlying theme in Advent – advent, after all, points toward the “arrival” of something or someone. But hope is pale if it is not seen as an offering in the face of evil forces that assail the world during what Paul calls “this present evil age” (Galatians 1:4).

Paul made a distinction between two kinds of people and their fruit: those who love self, money , pleasure and lies, and those who love God, truth, and the path of life that follows repentance and surrender to the lordship of Christ. One side can have the form of godliness – it can go through the motions and to at least some degree look good on the outside – but the other side has experienced transformative power. The Spirit of God and the Path of God give us transformative power to mature in Christ and represent God well as ambassadors.

For the past three weeks, I’ve been coming back to a theme: When God calls you, he equips you. God never commissions anyone to a task without giving a gift appropriate to it. Now I want to focus on a foundational way God equips all of us – through His Word.

Paul made a distinction between two kinds of people and their fruit: those who love self, money , pleasure and lies, and those who love God, truth, and the path of life that follows repentance and surrender to the lordship of Christ.

"Keep being kind to those who waver in this faith and convince those who doubt. 23 Pursue those who are singed by the flames of God’s wrath, and bring them safely to Him, snatching them out of the fire. Show mercy to others with fear, despising every garment soiled by the corruption of human flesh.”

How do we experience the fullness of blessings in the sphere of the warmth of the love of God? How do we stay in the sunlight of the Son? We walk in obedience to His revealed will. The writers of Scripture tell us this over and over again.

The feast in the church was intended to be a practical demonstration of unity, celebration, and common care that crossed all boundaries. This was meant to be a life-giving “agape”feast both socially and nutritionally, not an unhealthy or sinful indulgence of the appetites of the flesh in which the rich flaunted their luxury and the poor were reminded of theirs.

What Cain, Balaam and Korah teach us about true worship.

Reflections on Christian eulogy in light of my friend, Delynn Hoover's, death.

Becoming a follower of Christ, and finding my identity in Him, brings with it blessings that can be found in no one else. It is a privilege to be a child of God.But just like with my earthly father, I bear the image of my Heavenly Father, and I carry the name and reputation of my Heavenly Father. I must be about my Father’s business too. Why? Because God has entrusted the church, and that includes us, with His reputation. I bear the image and the name and the reputation of my Father.

The false teachers “rushed for profit” into Balaam’s error, which was was selling out or exploiting God’s people for financial gain.

Let’s revisit the story of Cain. It contains a warning – the way of Cain – but in the telling you will see that God also reveals the way of Life.

Followers of Jesus – the church, collectively – ought to be so close to everybody that there is no one who is not in the “apple” of the eye of a follower of Jesus. It’s not a perfect analogy – the Bible portrays God’s people as being in God’s eye – but it seems fair that God’s image bearers who are far from Him should be in the eyes of His image bearers who are near to Him and filled with His spirit and truth.

David asked to be the “apple of God’s eye” (Psalm 17:8) – literally the "little man of the eye,” the tiny reflection of yourself that you can see in other people’s pupils because you are being watched so closely by that person. This is a beautiful picture of how God sees us. What are the implications for how God's people are supposed to see others?

You find out who you worship whey you are in the wilderness.

You are what you love.

Why is John wrapped up this way, with an almost unflattering story about Peter? What do we learn about Jesus, and why does it matter to us?

What we learn about Jesus and about life in the account on the road to Emmaus.

Easter Sunday - The Lord is risen!

Crucifixion Friday is hard; Resurrection Sunday is glorious. What do we do on that (sometimes long) day in-between?

We believe that all human life is sacred and created by God in His image (Genesis 1:27). Human life is of inestimable worth in all its dimensions, including pre-born babies, the aged, the physically or mentally challenged, and every other stage or condition from conception through natural death. We are therefore called to defend, protect, and value all human life” (Psalm139).

Our bodies tell a story. Specifically, a theological story.

“We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. Together they reflect the image and nature of God (Genesis 1:26-27). Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman as delineated in Scripture (Genesis 2:18-25; Matthew 19:5-6). It is intended to be a covenant by which they unite themselves for life in a single, exclusive union, ordered toward the well-being of the spouses and designed to be the environment for the procreation and upbringing of children.”

The Bible also uses the word 'church' to refer to the gathered body, who are sometimes a mixed bag. That’s the visible church.

We believe that the Church is Christ’s symbolic body in the earth , and that it should reveal His character, His message, and His love to the world. We believe that the Church is to go into all the world, preach the gospel, and make disciples. This will lead people to have fellowship with God and community with others .

There is a lot that could be said about where we go when we die, and cultural notions haven’t helped to keep our view of Scripture clear. From Milton’s Paradise Lost to Dante’s Inferno, from Chick Tracks to What Dreams May Come, people have ideas that waver somewhere between relatively solid and totally made up. This is my attempt to focus on the Bible, understood in its context.

Like God covered up the shame and nakedness of Adam and Eve, Jesus covers up our shame, our spiritual nakedness, by offering Himself as the means to triumph over the power and destructiveness of sin. This is the only way we can be saved: through Jesus Christ.

We believe that the Holy Spirit indwells believers (1 Corinthians 6:19-20), confirming their salvation (Romans 8:14-16) and enabling them to bear godly fruit (Galatians 5:22). We believe that the Holy Spirit convicts the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8). He is the source of all power and all acceptable worship and service. The Holy Spirit also empowers believers to have a bold and effective witness (i.e Luke 12:12), so He manifests His gifts in their daily lives for the edification of the church and as a testimony to the world. He never removes Himself from the Church; He is always testifying of Christ; He is always seeking to focus believers on Jesus, not on themselves, their gifts, or their experiences.

Understanding the importance of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus is crucial for followers of Jesus.

A crucial part of following God is trusting and honoring his Word. How did we get the Bible? How do we know it is trustworthy? How should it impact our life?

It's not enough to claim belief; we must live it. This is why what we believe matters.

"Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house." - C.S. Lewis

The king will bring peace, but it will be the King’s peace, on the King’s terms, and in the King’s way.

Everybody dies to something so they can live for something else. We all “lay down our lives” for something that we believe will bring us life. In some ways, Jesus’ call to ‘die so we can live’ is not the radical part; the radical part is the call to die to self and for someone else – in this case, Jesus.

Peter makes a big deal about learning how to properly read Scripture to avoid falling into spiritual ruin. Because of the importance of these final words from Peter, I want to walk us through some principles of Bible study today so that we do not misinterpret the Bible and fall into spiritual ruin.

There’s a reason God makes His people wait for the fulfillment of His plans for them or for the world. The passage of time offers two important things: maturity and opportunity.

Peter uses some commonly known proverbs to describe how some who have known Jesus return to the "vomit" and "mud" of their former lives. Why would they do this?

Peter wrote that, in light of the second coming of Jesus, we ought to be people of holy conduct and godliness. What are the implications of this?

Embodied Apologetics (transformed lives) is what the world is starving for today.

"Just as false prophets rose up in the past among God’s people, false teachers will rise up in the future among you."