Sermons by Willetton Christian Church
Baptism is the sign and seal of the person into the covenant community of God. It shows that the person who is being baptised has now become part of the people of God in the same way that circumcision marks the child out as part of God's people. Just as how circumcision was a sign of God's blessing and grace to those who are born into God's covenant community, baptism is a sign of God's grace and blessing as well. Whether it is an infant or an adult who has come to faith, baptism celebrates God's grace and goodness in bringing that person into the covenant community. Baptism is one of two sacraments that God instituted for the church. They are the Gospel message proclaimed to us in a visual form. Therefore, they are God's means of grace to us – that is, we receive God's grace when we celebrate them because we are once again having the Gospel proclaimed to us for our hearts to take hold.
The people of God has always been set apart from their surrounding nations. Ever since God gathered his people around him, he has called his people to be different, because he has rescued and redeemed them. The New Testament continues this pattern with Jesus Christ. We are gathered around Jesus, set apart for him because of the redemption that he purchased for us. The church is a people that God has rescued through Jesus Christ. We are saved into a people, therefore our faith has never been a merely private experience, but one that is lived together with others who are in Christ. Membership in the local church is a way of expressing that reality we have in Christ. We belong to the universal church – the people saved by Christ. This is expressed by belonging to the local church. We belong to our local church family, helping each other in our discipleship to Christ, under the leadership of the elders. We all help each other in our Christian discipline, so that we grow in our love and
There are endless opinions when it comes to the singing and music in our weekend services. That is not surprising as music and songs connect to us on a deeper and emotional level. It just “feels” so much more personal than a sermon. That is why it can elicit such strong opinions. However, when you think about it, as a society, we do not actually do a lot of singing together with others. There are hardly any events that we do that. The only exception is probably concerts or birthdays. Christians, on the other hand, have been a singing people since the beginning. In fact, we sing every single week when we gather with other Christians. Why do we do that? What is so special about singing that we have musicians spending hours each week practising, so that they can lead us in singing songs? Let us explore that this coming Sunday.
We are starting our new sermon series this weekend on the Rhythms of Grace. Each Sunday as Christians, we gather at the church building. In that gathering, we have different elements of the service that we go through – we sing, we pray, we give, we serve, we listen to preaching, etc. Going through all that becomes a rhythm in our lives, like a constant beat for a piece of music. It keeps our Christian lives in sync and provides a pattern for the rest of our lives. However, if we do not re-examine why we do what we do weekly, we can become complacent or lose sight of the purpose of each element. We will be going through each element, starting this weekend with preaching. As we dig into what the Scriptures, we will find that sitting under the preaching of God's word weekly is too important to give up. In fact, this rhythm or pattern has been going on for almost all of 2000 years of church history – there has to be a good reason for that.
The account of David and Mephibosheth is a very small one in the Old Testament. However, it presents us with a beautiful picture of our abject sinfulness and the loving heart of God. This Sunday, we will explore the character of Mephibosheth: both who he was and why he was so miserable. We will also take a closer look at David's heart for Mephibosheth in comparison with God's own heart for us. We will finish by unpacking the remarkable end to Mephibosheth's story and discover how God's undeserved favour can truly transform our hearts and minds.
Psalm 119 is the longest psalm in the Bible. It is a psalm that is all about loving, celebrating, and delighting in the commands, laws, and word of God. Psalm 119 calls us to delight in God's word. It makes us wise as it teaches us about God's world and how it operates. God's word also brings us joy and delight as it tells us about God's love and heart for us. It reveals to us our sins, so that we can run to Christ, through whom our sins are forgiven. Through God's word, we know a God who has loved us and cared for us. God's word also helps us in our sufferings. We know through God's word that we are not alone - God is our refuge and shield. Ultimately, God did not just send a "letter" to us, but he sent his own Son who perfectly shows us his love for us. Through Christ, we know that God is not aloof, but he is near us and has come to us personally. We delight in God's word, Jesus Christ - the one who makes us wise, the one whom we delight us, and the one who is with us in our suff
God is speaking continuously – both through his creation and in his word. Are we listening? God is speaking through his creation. Since the beginning of creation, the whole creation is displaying God's power and divine nature. We often leave marks of who we are in the things that we create, and it is the same with God and the whole creation. We see marks of who this Creator is by noticing and “listening” to creation. They speak of God's immeasurable power and his unlimited creativity. God is speaking through the word that he gave us. This is the only way that we can know more about this God and what he is like. God's word tells us about even more characteristics of this creator God. That is why David describes God's word as perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure, and firm. That is why it is important we read our Bibles. It is only through that word that we know this God who has loved us in Christ – the word that was made flesh, ultimately the greatest revelation of God.
Across the centuries, we have different kinds of rulers, from tyrannical to the incompetent. Last week, we read about Matthew declaring that the promised awaited king has come. But what kind of king is he? We will be looking at Matthew 1:18-25 this weekend, and in that passage, we see two aspects of Jesus' kingship. This promised king will be our saviour. He has come to save “his people from their sins.” That is what a king is supposed to do – to protect, rescue, and care for his people. However, our deepest problem is our broken relationship with God, as a result of our sins. This king has come to restore our most foundational problem. This promised king will be God's presence with us. This is a God who has come close to us, instead of staying in his “lofty” position. This is a God who knows and experiences human life through king Jesus. Jesus Christ is king of God's saving grace, rescuing us from our sins and walks with us in our lives.
It is great to have the peace that passes understanding that, because we belong to Christ, we are comforted in life and death. That in belonging to Him, our sins are covered by His precious blood and all things must work for our good without a hair from our head falling apart from the will of our Father in Heaven. This is what we rejoiced in when last I preached in Willo. In Sunday's service we focus on Q&A 2 which raises the question as to, what do we need to know in order to have this comfort. It is one thing to know about this comfort, it is altogether a different thing to have it. This sermon then explores how it is we come to obtain this amazing comfort for it is clear, not every possesses it.
In Romans 16, we read of Paul's greetings to all the people that have laboured in Gospel ministry. There is a camaraderie and personal touch in Christian ministry. Paul knew many of these people personally, and they laboured together in Gospel ministry. Christian ministry involves working together with others and it is not merely the effort of an “anointed” few. One of the roles of being in Christian ministry is to watch out for those who would cause divisions within the church. These people are serving themselves, rather than God. They deceive us through smooth talk and flattery, and therefore it is important that we continue to be obedient to God and know his truth intimately. Paul ends his letter to the Romans with a wonderful benediction that once again brings our minds to focus on the Gospel of God. God has established the church based on this Gospel – that Gentiles are now eternal sharers with the Jews in the blessings of Christ – in which all glory goes to God alone.
The church is made up of a diverse group of people who have been accepted by God in Christ. Therefore, we should accept one another within the church of God. The relationships that we have built within the church have a greater impact on us and the watching world than we imagine. A united people from diverse backgrounds with strong and deep relationships is a rare breed in our world. We are united in the Gospel of Christ with our mission to proclaim this Gospel to the nations. That was the heartbeat of Paul's life, and therefore we can learn from Paul's example in our own lives. While we may not play the same role as Paul, our lives can be as intentional about proclaiming Christ as Paul's life. In the end, we are all in this together as partners for the Gospel of Christ. Contrary to what many think, we do not have to share the Gospel of Christ by ourselves. We do it together as partners in Christ.
Christians have many different opinions on different ways of being obedient to God. This is especially true on things that God himself has not explicitly mentioned in the Bible. Paul mentioned a list of issues that the Jews and Gentiles would disagree about. However, he insists that we all belong to the Lord and each of us will have to give an account to God, not to each other. Therefore, let us stop passing judgment on each other on these topics where we have freedom to practise in different ways. The kingdom of God is not about the “physical” things on earth, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Therefore, as God's people, let us focus on doing what leads to peace and to mutual encouragement of each other. We want to build and cultivate a culture of encouragement, rather than judgement of each other. There's enough of judgment in our world, let us not add to that. Instead, let us be a culture of grace, modelled after our Lord Jesus Christ.
All glory is to be to God alone. The culmination of the first four “solas” of the Reformation is that glory belongs to God and God alone. We are saved by faith alone in Christ alone through God's sheer grace alone, promised to us in the Scriptures alone. All of that is only possible because of God's initiative and work, both through the work of Christ and the work of the Spirit in us. That is Paul's conclusion at the end of Romans 11. He has been declaring the wonders of the Gospel message of Christ all the way from Romans 1:18 onwards. He concludes the whole story of redemption in chapter 11, and it is only appropriate that he ends all of that with a doxology (praise) to God. In many senses, that is exactly what good theology is supposed to do – to raise our affections for God and increase our praise to him. Paul does exactly that at the end of Romans 11. He praises the wisdom, knowledge, and plan of God.
We receive the grace of God through no work nor merit of our own. We are justified purely on the basis of Christ's righteousness counted as ours, received by faith alone. We do not need elaborate rituals, activities or work for us to gain favour from God. God doesn't help us only when we help ourselves. Instead, God gives his grace to us freely in Christ. An encounter with the transcendent gracious God does not leave us the same. This God has saved us in Christ out of his sheer grace. This grace also works in and through us to grow in our holiness and Christlikeness. Finally, this is a grace that is to come in the future when we will see Jesus. Christ will come back and make all things new, and give us a new perfected, sinless bodies to dwell with God forever.
Most Christians are familiar with the basic outline of the Jonah narrative. It's one of the first Bible stories we are taught. But are there truths and details that we miss due to this familiarity? In this message, we take a deep dive into the kind of person Jonah was.
We continue our short sermon series on the Five Solas. This week, we focus on the fact that we are saved in Christ alone through faith alone. In Ephesians 2, Paul begins by describing our condition and lives before Christ. He does not paint a pretty picture of who we are – spiritually dead and deserving of God's wrath. It is a stark reminder of what we are saved from – our sins. Because of God's great love, mercy, and kindness to us, he accomplished salvation for us in Christ. All these blessings that God gives is only possible in Christ. He made us alive in Christ, raised us up with him and seated us with Christ in the heavenly realms. We are no longer enslaved, because we are united to the one who freed us. All that belongs to Christ now belongs to us – in Christ alone. We receive all these blessings through faith alone in Christ alone. These blessings are not given to us via all the good works that we have done. The means by which God gives us his grace in Christ is through ou
500 years ago, it was thought that the Scriptures were too complicated for lay people. All we need to receive grace from God is to attend Mass at the local church. It did not even matter that we would not have been able to understand what was said during Mass, as long as we are a part of it, then we would receive God's grace. Therefore, through this sort of thinking, the teaching of the church and the Scriptures themselves are put on equal grounds. However, it is not the case today because of the Reformation. Scriptures are the very words of God, and what is remarkable is that we are able to understand Scriptures. As the people of God, we are the creature of the Word. We have been brought to life by God's word. Because of that, God's word must be central in all that we do as God's people, as Scripture alone is our final inerrant authority in all areas of our Christian life and faith.
There was a Latin phrase that was once popular amongst Christians and was even used in some Christian liturgies, and that is the phrase Coram Deo, which means "before the face of God". This captures the essence of the text for this week, that the whole of the Christian life is to be lived Coram Deo - before the face of God. To plan our lives apart from God, as if to forget him, is to rob him of his glory. What is more, is that when we forget God and rob him of his glory, we also take his place as the captain of our future, but it is God who works the future according to his goodwill and pleasure. The remedy to planning life without reference to God is not to tack “God willing” onto the end of our plans as some kind of Christian cliché but rather to tether it to our hearts as those who live all of life - Coram Deo.
In Romans 13, Paul continues his call for Christians to live a life of love towards others. He focuses on how Christians are to relate to the governing authorities. We are to submit to them as they are agents of God's justice in our world. Through governing authorities, God restrains sin in our society and therefore creates a society in which there is order and justice. That is why Christians should submit to governing authorities, because in doing so, we are actually loving our neighbours by fostering a peaceful and orderly culture. However, we only submit so far as what they are promoting is right in the eyes of God. Love is the fulfilment of all of God's laws. At the heart of all of God's commands, particularly the 10 commands, is love for others. Love should be central in all our relationships and should characterise our lives as Christians. The end of this age is coming with each passing day. Therefore, let us live in the light, as God's people with a life of love.
It is something people of all ages long for, especially in times of upset and distress…. COMFORT. The Heidelberg Catechism asks a very important question about comfort: “What is your ONLY comfort in life and death?” In other words, no matter what you're facing, no matter how critical the situation, even life threatening, what is your only comfort? In the Psalms we find many beautiful songs of assurance and comfort, yes even in the face of death. When we look at the first question and answer of the Catechism and Psalm 16, we find much there that teaches us about the ONLY source of true comfort, regardless our circumstances. A comfort no doubt experienced by many in the face of recent grief and loss. In this service we are reminded of the only source of true comfort.
Romans 12 is a shift in Paul's letter. After 11 chapters of declaring God's redemption of his people, Paul shifts the focus to what our response should be towards God's amazing mercy. In light of all that God has done for us, the only true and proper worship of God involves us offering our bodies as a living sacrifice for God. It is the totality of our lives that we give in our worship to God. Our worship begins with the renewal of our minds. We do not conform to the world, rather we conform to the mind of God. We begin to see the world as God sees the world. Our worship also involves us using our gifts to serve others within the body of Christ and we use whatever gifts God has given us to serve one another. That is how we love one another in our worship of God. So love becomes the primary way we relate, both within the body of Christ and to those outside the church. We pray, serve, share, welcome, honour one another – all out of love for them. Like Christ, we overcome evil with good
God is the grand artist of history, and the world is his canvas. He is painting his story of salvation in this world. Paul gives us a further glimpse of what this completed canvas will look like in Romans 9 – 11. We have learned that God is completely sovereign in salvation and that the Israelites themselves rejected Christ, yet there is still a remnant chosen by God. Those of us who are Gentiles are grafted into the covenant community. Therefore, we should not be arrogant about the blessings we received when it is all God's initiative and work. Our response should be one of overwhelming gratitude. Even though the Israelites have not embraced Christ as their saviour as this point in history, their hardening will not be forever. So we see, we are just one small part of a very large canvas in God's plan of salvation. No matter what happens, we know that we play a part in glorifying the God of all, whom we know loves us and cares for us in Christ. To God be the glory forever!
The true offspring of Abraham is the children of promise, chosen freely by God and not based on human effort or desire. Because of this, God's righteousness can only be obtained by faith alone in Christ alone, which the Gentiles did but the Israelites did not. The Israelites sought to establish their own righteousness, and therefore did not gain God's righteousness through Christ. That is why Christ is a stumbling block to them, without realizing that Christ is the culmination of the law. This Gospel message of Christ is actually near and available to everyone, Jews and Gentiles alike. All one has to do to obtain the righteousness of God (i.e. salvation) is to believe that Jesus is Lord. This message is meant to be proclaimed, and the Israelites themselves have heard this message, but yet they rejected it. They thought they knew God through all the practices and rituals that they have heard, but yet rejected the one person to whom all these things pointed to.
Paul is in anguish for his fellow Israelites. Even though they had all the blessings and privileges of receiving God's revelation in the Old Testament, they did not have faith in Christ. There are scores of God's promises in the OT for the Israelites. God's promises were never based upon physical descent nor our own works. Right from the beginning, it has always been God's own sovereign grace towards those that he chose. God is God and he will have mercy on whom he will have mercy. Our salvation is based entirely on God's electing grace upon us. That does not mean that God is unjust – we are all sinful, deserving only God's wrath (as Paul mentioned in 1:18 onwards). God would have been completely just in leaving us in our sins but yet in his sheer grace, he has elected some to be saved. That is why the golden chain of salvation is an unbreakable chain, because right from the start to the end, it is God and God alone who saved us.
Suffering is inevitable in our fallen world. If we live long enough, we will go through suffering. If Christ himself suffered and died, how could we as his followers expect that we are protected from that? However, Christ was raised powerfully from the grave into a new glorified body. In that same way, there will be a future perfected world that we are looking forward to. We have a future hope because of Christ and we wait eagerly and patiently for that world. As we wait and live in this world, we have God's Spirit working and interceding on our behalf today. He is our present hope, helping us to trust in God's goodness in all things. There are times in our lives when our suffering, pain, and sorrow is so great that we feel numb inside, unable to voice our words to pray. In times like that, God's Spirit who is dwelling inside of us walks besides us and helps us to pray. Through all these sufferings, we ultimately have a hope that is safe and secure in God's love.
This week in Romans, we are looking at the high point of Paul's argument. Paul has made the declaration that we are no longer in the realm of sin and death, and instead we are in the realm in which grace reigns. How should we approach our Christian life now that we have been rescued out of darkness into the kingdom of Christ? In Christ, there is no more condemnation as we have been set free by Christ. We now do not live according to the flesh, but to the Spirit. Living according to the Spirit means that we set our minds on what the Spirit desires. It is an amazing truth to know that God's eternal Spirit, the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead, is dwelling within us. Therefore, we do have an obligation – a familial obligation. God is our Father and we are his children. We are adopted as sons of God into God's family, co-heirs with Christ. Thus, in our Christian life, we are meant to think of God as our heavenly Father, not as our Judge.
This weekend we resume our series on the book of Romans after a three-week break. We will be looking at Romans 7:1-25, which is about our relationship to God's law. We are no longer bound by God's law because we have died to God's law in Christ. However, this doesn't mean that the law is no longer applicable to us. In the first place, the law was given to reveal our sin. Sin being sin, used the law to entice and deceive us to sin. The giving and enforcing of God's law in the Old Testament did not ensure righteousness. This means that true righteousness is more than mere behaviour as it starts from within our hearts. This also shows that God's law itself does not guarantee nor produce righteousness in us, because ultimately, we need a change in our hearts. We still need God to save and deliver us through Christ! “Thanks be to God, who delivers [us] through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (v25)
How important are relationships? Are we really so dependent on other people in our lives? The story of Cain and Abel is one of different views on this point. In this week's service, we will unpack the theme of relationship as it pertains to everything that we read in the Bible. Specifically, we will look at: 1) how sin rots our relationships with God and others; 2) God's deep-rooted desire for walking-talking relationships; and 3) how God restored our relationship through the blood of Christ. At the end of the day, we all need to decide whether we want to live as Cains or Abels!
As we face a world in which war and conflict seem to be ever-present, and even getting worse, the reality of these events may naturally cause us to fear what's next. As we explore these passages from Daniel and Acts, we will read of why we can be fearless in these fearsome times, for we will see, just as Daniel and Paul saw, that our God reigns, and he has equipped us to withstand the onslaught.
In the Western world, we have been conditioned to crave freedom and break free of limitations. However, such thinking will only result in anarchy and confusion. In our efforts to be set free from all constraints, we find ourselves ironically enslaved to the one thing that we did not expect – our own desires. Ultimately, we are still enslaved. Given our sinfulness, being enslaved to our desires leads only to sin and death. True freedom is being set free to be who we are designed to be in God. In other words, true freedom as the Bible envisions is freedom to obey and worship God. In Romans 6:1-23, Paul declares that we are no longer enslaved in the realm of sin and death. We are set free from our slavery to sin and raised to new life in Christ. His story has become our story. Through Christ's work on the cross, we are alive and free in Christ. Therefore, in Christ, we are truly free – free to obey and worship the God we love.
Through Christ's work on the cross, we have peace with God. This is not merely an inner peace within us, but rather a peace that the Old Testament would describe as shalom – a complete wholeness of your personhood, particularly in your relationship with God. Because of this peace, we have the hope of the glory of God and we can boast even in our sufferings. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. We are now reconciled to God. We were enemies with God in the kingdom of Adam with no hope of escaping that kingdom. It is a kingdom that leads to sin and death, brought about by Adam's sin. The trespass of this one man brought about condemnation. He is our representative head. However, Jesus' obedience brought about our rescue from that kingdom. We are no longer in that kingdom, but we now belong to the kingdom of King Jesus, in which grace reigns supreme. It is through that grace that we have eternal peace with God, a peace that transcends all understanding.
This morning we delve into the timeless truths of Psalm 46. Our sermon will explore how God is our refuge in all circumstances. First, we'll see how He provides shelter and strength in the face of natural disasters, assuring us that even when 'the earth gives way' (because doesn't it feel just like that sometimes) we need not fear. Next, we'll examine God's protection amid political turmoil, reminding us that nations may rage and kingdoms may fall, but His power and presence remain steadfast. We'll also reflect on God's gracious invitation to rest in Him, finding peace and stillness despite the chaos around us. Come and be encouraged by the assurance that God is our ever-present help in trouble, our fortress, and our source of true rest.
Today, we will continue our reflection on the same passage of Romans 3:21-31. In this passage, we see that Christ is all the more worthy to boast about than ourselves. Salvation is of the Lord alone. In Paul's description of the great Gospel message of Christ, it is God who initiates, executes, and applies salvation to us. We are merely recipients of this amazing grace. We receive this grace of God's righteousness by faith alone in Christ alone. Faith in Christ is basically trusting in Christ and what he has done for us. Therefore, it is not about the intensity of our faith, but rather the object of our faith – who we put our faith in – Christ himself. Because it is entirely the work of God, accomplished by Christ on the cross, and applied to us by the Holy Spirit, we cannot boast in ourselves. There is nothing in our salvation that can be credited to us. To God be all glory. Therefore, we boast in God alone.
After two chapters of bleak and convicting passage on sin, Paul speaks the words of life in Romans 3:21-26 to us. In that passage, Paul declares the wonderful Gospel message to us – what God has done for us through Jesus Christ's work on the cross. That work – the atonement – is like a multi-faceted diamond where we can inspect the beauty of the diamond from different angles. Each angle provides us with another glimpse into the intricate structure of the cut of the diamond, and thus makes us appreciate it even more each time. In our passage, Paul uses three different images to declare the wonders of the Gospel to us. In Romans 3:21-26, Paul declares that: 1. God has declared us not guilty before him as a judge. 2. God has rescued us from slavery through payment by the blood of Christ. 3. God has placated his own wrath towards us through the sacrifice of Christ. The glories of the atonement is something we as God's people can reflect, embrace, and meditate on for all eternity.
What is wrong with our world? Many have answered this, but at the heart of the issue according to God is the godlessness and wickedness of people. In other words, our sin. Because we did not glorify nor worship God, God gives us over to our sins. He gives us over to our sinful sexual passions. We pervert our sexual desires and activities, using our bodies in a way that God has not designed for. Because of that, we all suffer the consequences that that brings. He gives us over to our depraved minds, filled with all kinds of evil and vice. These are practices that would destroy any kind of flourishing community. We have “no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.” In the Gospel, we have a God who understands, who is faithful, who is love, and who is merciful – the complete opposite to us. The wrath of God is indeed being revealed from heaven against our world today, but there is a greater revelation – the revelation of the righteousness of God found in the Gospel.
This morning, we get a glimpse into Paul's love for the people of God and his unashamed passion for the Gospel. Even though he has never met them before, he prays for the Romans and longs to visit them. He would love to impart spiritual gifts to them to strengthen them in their faith. That is because he has been called to bring the Gospel to all mankind, particularly to the Gentiles. He does all this because the righteousness of God has been revealed in the Gospel, which is received by faith alone. It is the same Gospel that we believe today. It is the same Gospel that has transformed us, just like it did to Paul 2000 years ago. Therefore, we should seek to pray like Paul, strengthen others like Paul, and proclaim the Gospel like Paul.
The word "Gospel" means momentous, life-altering news. Right from the start, we read that Paul was an apostle that is set apart for this Gospel of God - momentous, life-altering news from God. This Gospel has been promised by God in the Old Testament through the many prophets that he has sent. This means that it is not Plan B for God, but rather that it has been in God's mind since the beginning. This Gospel is also about a real historical person and event that happened 2000 years ago - God the Son becoming the man Jesus, who lived a sinless life so that he could die for his people and redeem them. Through his resurrection, the Gospel is that Jesus is now crowned as Lord over all of creation. This news does not only have earthly significance, but it was eternal significance for all of creation. As we embark on this new journey through Romans, what is your response to this call of the Gospel?
Why am I here... why do I exist? What is the purpose of my life? These are questions that people have asked for centuries. Those who have discovered the answer find that in a purposeful life, their life is found to have 'meaning' Many people all over the world ponder these questions. It is good for us to know there are very clear answers... our lives are not meant to be aimless, without purpose or direction. In this service we explore these questions and the answers God in His Word provides.
There are so many fake things in the world of information and media in which we live and breathe. We often don't know their source, and the wise thing is that if we ignore them, our lives will be unaffected. But there is a radically important truth which will totally impact our lives and change our priorities. It is the truth about who Jesus is and what he has done. It is the Gospel. It is found in the Bible. This is truth which underlies everything in 3 John.
Mankind longs for salvation. Some think that they can find it in gaining power, either power by strength or by influence. Others think it can be found by looking inward to ourselves, either by embracing all our impulses or discarding all our desires. We think that power or inward peace will bring about eternal peace and security to our restless souls. Thank God that true salvation is not found within us and what we can do. According to the Scriptures, true salvation is found external to ourselves in the one eternally unchanging God. He is the one who has revealed his righteousness to us in Christ, and through Christ, purchased our righteousness by Christ's death and resurrection. That is the great Gospel news, meant for all mankind. It is freely offered to all, no matter our background, ethnicity, culture, status, wealth, and moral status. That is why we are called to go and share this wonderful Gospel news. How can people believe in the Gospel without knowing who Christ is? How
Two weeks ago, we read in Ezekiel 37:1-14 that God brings about our spiritual resurrection by his Word through the power of the Holy Spirit. God's people is a creature of God's word - creature in the sense that we were created and made alive by God's word. One author puts it this way, "She [the Church] has been made alive by the Word. God spoke her into existence through the declaration of the Gospel - his righteousness on our behalf." The church has been made alive by God's word. It is also God's word that sustains us, just as how God's word sustains all things by his powerful word (cf. Heb 1:2). This Sunday, we take a look at what the Israelites did when they returned from their exile in Nehemiah 7:73b - 8:18. It presents a wonderful and powerful scene of God's people gathering once again after their exile. There is much we can learn from their example in this case.
Most people want something to believe in even if it's just belief in themselves, something to hope for even if it's a bit wishful, and some experience of love even if it's only fleeting. Our hearts are hard-wired for faith, hope and love. And this great triad is also at the heart of the gospel that is perfectly designed to meet, substantially and lastingly, our deepest desires. These three virtues take us to the essence of Christianity and the greatest needs of our souls.
The fundamental problem with our world is the spiritual death of mankind. There is nothing we can do to change that. What can dead people do to save themselves? Ezekiel speaks God's word to the very dry bones and they came to life. Only God can raise us from spiritual death to life. He accomplishes that through the proclamation of God's word by the power of His Spirit. This means that the first and most important activity of our Christian life is to sit under the faithful preaching of God's word. We trust in God's sovereignty in our redemption and in the redemption of the world. He is the one who saves and raises people from spiritual death to life, just like how Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.
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