Podcasts about il crossway

The Bible begins with a garden, and it ends with a garden. In the first garden, Adam and Eve sinned and what they received and what we inherited was a curse. To Eve and all her daughters, God said: I will greatly multiply your pain in childbirth, in pain you shall deliver children; yet your desire will be for your husband, and he shall rule over you (Gen. 3:16). To Adam and all his sons, God said: Cursed is the ground because of you; with hard labor you shall eat from it all the days of your life. Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; yet you shall eat the plants of the field; by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, until you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return (Gen. 3:1719). Essentially, what the curse would produce for them was the kind of suffering that sticks. What do I mean by characterizing the curse with the kind of pain that sticks with you? If you have ever suffered from nerve pain, you know from experience the kind of pain I am talking about. There are some prescription medications that can help numb you to the pain, but nerve pain is very difficult to treat. If you have had sciatica, any form of back pain, a pinched nerve, or anything of that nature, you have experienced the kind of pain that sticks. Sometime ago I read a quote from someone who said, Our first parents bit into the forbidden fruit and our teeth have ached ever since. That person was not referring to the kind of ache you might experience when you bit into something cold or hard, no... the kind of ache is the one I experienced after having all four impacted wisdom teeth taken out of my jaw in my late 20s. The curse has left us with a kind of aching that sticks and is with us until our final breath, and it is this ache that leaves us with tears. Tears over our broken world, tears over a relationship, tears over wayward children, tears over the hurt and damage caused by parents, tears over the problems sin causes in our world and to our own selves. The House that Adam and Eve Had Adam and Eve enjoyed the presence of God in a Garden that was not at all dissimilar to the tabernacle the Israelites set up and tore down as they journeyed in the wilderness, nor was it unlike the temple Solomon built after Davids death. The tabernacle and temple were designed as a model to reflect Eden as the house of the Lord. What Adam and Eve had in the garden was a gift from God that included the presence of God; In his excellent book, The Warrior Savior, Owen Strachan wrote of Eden, From the start, God sought faithfulness on the part of his people through testing. He gave them a forest-garden overflowing with beauty and gladness, trees spilling unblemished fruit, but he also gave them a prohibitionone delivered under the starkest terms: death from disobedience.[1] The tabernacle and the temple served to remind Gods people not only of the beauty of Eden but the promise that His people would one day be where He is... in His presence. So, when David wrote the last line in Psalm 23, it was the promise of God to restore what was lost in Eden that he had his heart and eyes set upon. To be in the house of the Lord is to be with the Lord. David does not have a building in mind here, but to be in the presence of God. The house of the Lord is not a structure but wherever it is that He dwells. What made the loss of Eden so devastating and catastrophic was not Adam and Eves expulsion from the garden, but that they were driven away from the presence of God. In other words, what made Eden home was the presence of God not the other things that were a part of Edens beauty. Before Adam and Eve were driven outside of the garden, God cursed the snake and promised the first couple that things would not stay cursed because He would send a Deliverer to reverse the curse of sin. The serpent entered Gods house (the Garden) and enticed Eve and her husband to doubt God and question both His goodness and faithfulness! In the garden the crafty and cunning snake spoke: Has God really said, You shall not eat from any tree of the garden? Eve replied: From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die (Gen. 3:23). The serpent then went in for the strike: You certainly will not die! For God knows that on the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will become like God, knowing good and evil (Gen. 3:45). Adam and Eve succumbed to Satans temptation and bit into the forbidden fruit, but that is not how the story ends! God found the couple and He spoke to the great serpent what is a promise to all mankind: And I will make enemies of you and the woman, and of your offspring and her Descendant; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise Him on the heel (Gen. 3:15). Strachan observes: In Genesis 3, the snake spoke first. But the snake did not have the last word in Eden, just as the devil will not have the last word in history. Strachan continues: When God shows up, the hiding stops, and justice rolls down.... the God who comes to earth is not only pursuing a mission of justice. This God is, even more, about to unleash a great rolling flood of mercy.[2] It is the promise of a better Eden through the promise of a snake-stomping redeemer that David had in mind when he wrote: Certainly goodness and faithfulness will follow me all the days of my life, and my dwelling will be in the house of the Lord forever (v. 6). Who can guide me, who can restore me, who will keep me, who will bless me, and who is it that loves me? It is the Lord of the 23rd Psalm and He will lead me to the place where I will be able to see Him face-to-face in His house forever. The House that We are Promised We have seen over and over again throughout this series that the Lord of the 23rd Psalm is Jesus the Good Shepherd, for He said of Himself: I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep (John 10:14-15). The serpent is a thief, and Jesus said of him: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10). The 23rd Psalm is the promise of the abundant life that can only be experienced through the good shepherd. The abundant life includes the table He has prepared before me in the presence of my enemies (v. 5a). The abundant life is to have His favor in the form of the oil He has anointed my head with and the cup he has placed in my hand that is overflowing with His blessing! This is what Paul meant when he wrote Ephesians 1:3, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ... The cup of Gods favor is Ephesians 1:7, In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace. Now, think again what it is that the 23rd Psalm is saying to those of us who have been found by the good shepherd. The good shepherd leads me: The Lord is my shepherd, I will not be in need. He lets me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. The good shepherd restores me: He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for the sake of His name. The good shepherd keeps me: Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. The good shepherd blesses me: You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; my cup overflows. The good shepherd loves me: Certainly goodness and faithfulness will follow me all the days of my life, and my dwelling will be in the house of the Lord forever. What does this all mean? There are no green pastures or quiet waters without Jesus leading you. There is no restoration for your soul or the righteousness you need apart from Jesus as your guide. There is no walking THROUGH the valley of deep darkness apart from Jesus keeping and guarding you. There is no blessing and treasuring of God upon you without Jesus. Finally, there is no goodness, faithfulness, and a better Eden apart from the God who loved you so much that He sent His one and only Son! Why did David long to dwell in the house of the Lord? What is it that makes heaven great? For what reasons does the promise of a better Eden outweigh all the sorrows of this world? These questions have nothing to do with the place and location of the house of the Lord, heaven, a new and better Eden, but everything to do with the One who is in the House David longed to dwell, heaven, and the new and better Eden. When Jesus prayed hours before His crucifixion, He prayed this: Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world (John 17:24). This is one of the reasons Jesus assured His disciples: In My Fathers house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be (John 14:23). For David, the blessing of being in the house of the Lord forever was that he would be with the Good Shepherd forever. In his commentary on Psalm 23, James Johnston commented on this very point: Take away the people and a house becomes a sad and empty place. The joy of Heaven is not mansions or streets of gold. Jesus is the joy of Heaven. It will be home because he is there.[3] The Better House that David Longed For For starters, what we know from verse six is that it is certainly ours, which means that without any doubt, for those of us whose shepherd is Jesus, our dwelling will be with him. How long will our dwelling be with Him? The answer is simple: Forever. What is the House that we will dwell in forever, besides the fact that it is the Lords house? It is the restoration of what was lost in the first Eden, but better! It is the city that Davids great, great, great grandfather longed to receive, for we are told from the book of Hebrews: By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he left, not knowing where he was going. By faith he lived as a stranger in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God (Heb. 11:810). Abraham was looking for a city not made with human hands because he longed for the same thing David longed for in Psalm 23:6. The house of the Lord is the city that belongs to the Christian: For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come (Heb. 13:14). We will receive the city we are looking and longing for when God makes all things new once and for all. It is the thing that Paul wrote about in Romans eight, For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For the eagerly awaiting creation waits for the revealing of the sons and daughters of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. (Rom. 8:1821) The house of the Lord that David was looking forward to spending forever in is a resurrected and redeemed earth free from the curse of sin. The Bible is full of images describing what it will be like to live in a resurrected earth free of the curse of sin. In Revelation 21, we are told that when God does make all things new and we inherit the city He has promised us, He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away (Rev. 21:4). On that day, we will see God face to face in the same way that Adam and Eve did; here is what we are told in Revelation 21:3, Behold, the tabernacle of God is among the people, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them... God will wipe away our tears because there will be no curse to cause them ever again. The new earth will be like the Garden of Eden but better; it will also be like heaven today, but better. We will enjoy physical bodies and a physical planet where the veil that shields our complete interaction of all that is spiritual will be pulled back. We will walk with angels; enjoy a full and perfect creation that will include trees, mountains, and rivers. There will be one City the City of God where we will be able to go in and out. We will run through the forests, climb mountains, eat amazing food, run barefoot through the prairies, enjoy the light of something more powerful and radiant than the sun. We will dwell on a new earth that will never again know the cold of night, but the light of a day illuminated by the Glory of God. But understand this: none of it will be worth it if our Triune God is not there! Listen, we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever because of the certainty of His goodness and faithfulness that pursues His sheep. [1] Owen Strachan, The Warrior Savior (Phillipsburg, NY: PR Publishing; 2024), 3. [2] Ibid., 6-7. [3] James A. Johnston, Preaching the Word: The Psalms: Rejoice, the Lord Is KingPsalms 1 to 41, ed. R. Kent Hughes, vol. 1, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2015), 251.

     The Bible recognizes Satan's world-system and warns us not to love it. John writes and tells the Christian, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world” (1 John 2:15-16). We live in a fallen world, and John's command is intended to warn us of real danger. First, John opens with the negative particle Μὴ Me, which is followed by the Geek verb ἀγαπάω agapao, which is in the imperative mood—the mood of command. The word ἀγαπάω agapao denotes desire or commitment to something or someone. Allen comments on love: "In its essence love is two things: a desire for something and a commitment to something … Whatever it is you desire and whatever you're committed to, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love football, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love hunting or fishing, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love your spouse, you desire to spend time with her and you are committed to her. Love is more than an emotional feeling. Love requires a commitment of time and resources."[1]      John then gives the object we are not to desire or be committed to, namely, the world (τὸν κόσμον). The Greek word κόσμος kosmos is used in Scripture to refer to: 1) the physical planet (Matt 13:35; Acts 17:24), 2) people who live in the world (John 3:16), and 3) the hostile system created and controlled by Satan that he uses to lure people away from God (1 John 2:15-16). It is this third meaning that John has in mind. Hence, the word κόσμος kosmos refers to “that which is hostile to God…lost in sin, wholly at odds with anything divine, ruined and depraved.”[2] Concerning, the word κόσμος kosmos, Allen writes: "Sometimes the word “world” is used to refer to the organized evil system with its principles and its practices, all under the authority of Satan, which includes all teachings, ideas, culture, attitudes, activities, etc., that are opposed to God. A fixation on the material over the spiritual, promotion of self over others, pleasure over principle—these are just a few descriptors of the world system John is talking about. The word “world” here means everything that opposes Christ and his work on earth. Jesus called Satan “the ruler of this world” (John 14:30; 16:11), and Paul called him “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4). In Luke 16:8 Jesus referred to all unsaved people as “the sons of this world.”[3]      Satan's world-system consists of those philosophies and values that perpetually influence humanity to think and behave contrary to God and His Word. This operating apart from God is first and foremost a way of thinking that is antithetical to God, a way of thinking motivated by a desire to be free from God and the authority of Scripture, a freedom most will accept, even though it is accompanied by all sorts of inconsistencies and absurdities. Chafer writes: "The kosmos is a vast order or system that Satan has promoted which conforms to his ideals, aims, and methods. It is civilization now functioning apart from God-a civilization in which none of its promoters really expect God to share; who assign to God no consideration in respect to their projects, nor do they ascribe any causality to Him. This system embraces its godless governments, conflicts, armaments, jealousies; its education, culture, religions of morality, and pride. It is that sphere in which man lives. It is what he sees, what he employs. To the uncounted multitude it is all they ever know so long as they live on this earth. It is properly styled “The Satanic System” which phrase is in many instances a justified interpretation of the so-meaningful word, kosmos."[4] Lightner adds: "The world is the Christian's enemy because it represents an anti-God system, a philosophy that is diametrically opposed to the will and plan of God. It is a system headed by the devil and therefore at odds with God (2 Cor 4:4). Likewise, the world hates the believer who lives for Christ (John 17:14). The Lord never kept this a secret from his own. He told them often of the coming conflict with the world (e.g., John 15:18-20; 16:1-3; 32-33; cf. 2 Tim 3:1-12). It is in this wicked world we must rear our families and earn our livelihoods. We are in it, yet are not to be a part of it."[5]      Many people who live in Satan's world-system exclude God and Scripture from their daily conversations. Some actively exclude God from their daily lives because they feel He offers nothing of value to them, or they are afraid to mention Him for fear of persecution. Most exclude God passively, in that they just don't think about Him or His Word. This exclusion is true in news, politics, academic communities, work and home life. God is nowhere in their thoughts, and therefore, nowhere in their discussions (Psa 10:4; 14:1). These are the agnostics and atheists. But there are others in Satan's world-system who are very religious, and these are the worst kind of people, because they claim to represent God, when in fact they don't. In the Bible, there were many religious people who spoke in the name of the Lord (Jer 14:14; 23:16-32; Matt 7:15; Acts 13:6; Rev 2:20), claiming to represent Him, even performing miracles (Deut 13:1-4; Matt 24:24; 2 Th 2:8-9; Rev 13:13). The Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes where this way, and they said of themselves, “we have one Father: God” (John 8:41b). But Jesus saw them for what they really were and said, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father” (John 8:44a). The religious—like Satan—are blinded by their pride. Humility must come before they will accept God's gospel of grace, and it does no good to argue with them (2 Tim 2:24-26). These false representatives loved to talk about God, read their Bibles, pray, fast, give of their resources, and spent much of their time in fellowship with other religious persons. Theirs is a works-system of salvation, which feeds their pride; giving them a sense of control over their circumstances and others.[6] These false organizations and their teachers appear as godly and righteous, but Paul described them as “false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ” (2 Cor 11:13). Though very religious, these are in line with Satan, who operates on corrupt reasoning and is a deceiver. Paul goes on to say, “No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore, it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds” (2 Cor 11:14-15).      The contrast between the growing Christian and the worldly person is stark, as their thoughts and words take them in completely different directions. The growing believer thinks about God and His Word all the time, as “his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law he meditates day and night” (Psa 1:2). The word law translates the Hebrew word תּוֹרָה torah, which means law, direction, or instruction. Navigating the highways of this world can be tricky, and the believer needs the direction or instruction God's Word provides. It is our divine roadmap for staying on God's path and getting to the destination He intends.      At the core of Satan's world-system is a directive for mankind to function apart from God, and when obeyed, people produce all forms of evil, both moral and immoral. We should understand that Satan's system is a buffet that offers something for everyone who rejects God, whether that person is moral or immoral, religious or irreligious, educated or simple, rich or poor. Satan is careful to make sure there's even something for the Christian in his world-system, which is why the Bible repeatedly warns the believer not to love the world or the things in the world. We are to be set apart (Col 2:8; Jam 1:27; 4:4; 1 John 2:15-16). Lightner notes, “The world is the Christian's enemy because it represents an anti-God system, a philosophy that is diametrically opposed to the will and plan of God. It is a system headed by the devil and therefore at odds with God (2 Cor 4:4).…It is in this wicked world we must rear our families and earn our livelihoods. We are in it, yet are not to be a part of it.”[7] It is important to understand that we cannot change Satan or his evil program; however, we must be on guard, for it can and will change us if we're not careful to learn and live God's Word.      At the moment of salvation, God the Father “rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son” (Col 1:13), and now “our citizenship is in heaven” (Phil 3:20). This transference is permanent and cannot be undone. Once this happens, we are hated by those who remain in Satan's kingdom of darkness. For this reason, Jesus said to His disciples, “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you” (John 15:18-19; cf. John 16:33; 1 John 3:13). Love and hate in this context should be understood as accept or reject, which can be mild or severe in expression. When praying to the Father, Jesus said, “they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” (John 17:14b), and went on to say, “I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15). It is not God's will that we be immediately removed from this world at the moment of salvation, but left here to serve as His representatives to the lost, that we “may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Pet 2:9). We are not to participate in worldly affairs that exclude God, but are to “walk as children of Light” (Eph 5:8), manifesting the fruit of the Light “in all goodness and righteousness and truth, trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord” (Eph 5:9-10), and we are told, “do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them” (Eph 5:11).      The growing Christian faces real struggles as Satan's world system seeks to press him into its mold, demanding conformity, and persecuting him when he does not bend to its values. The world-system not only has human support, but is backed by demonic forces that operate in collaboration with Satan. Scripture tells us “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph 6:12). The battlefront is more than what is seen with the human eye and is driven by unseen spiritual forces. As Christians living in the world, we are to be careful not to be taken “captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ” (Col 2:8). Realizing the battleground is the mind, we are to think biblically in everything, which is our only safeguard against the enemy (2 Cor 10:3-5).      As Christians we face situations every day in which we are pressured to compromise God's Word. We face difficulties at work, school, home, or other places, in which we are confronted by worldly-minded persons, both saved and unsaved, who demand and pressure us to abandon our biblical values. There is room for personal compromise where Scripture is silent on a matter; however, where Scripture speaks with absolute authority, there we must never compromise! Wiersbe correctly states, “The world, or world-system, puts pressure on each person to try to get him to conform (Rom 12:2). Jesus Christ was not ‘of this world' and neither are His people (John 8:23; 17:14). But the unsaved person, either consciously or unconsciously, is controlled by the values and attitudes of this world.”[8]      By promoting the gospel and biblical teaching, the church disrupts Satan's domain of darkness by calling out of it a people for God. By learning God's Word, Christians can identify worldly conversations and activities and either avoid them or seek to redirect them by interjecting biblical truth, which should never be done in hostility. When sharing God's Word with others it's proper to know that not everyone wants to hear God's truth, and even though we may not agree with them, their personal choices should be respected (Matt 10:14; Acts 13:50-51). We should never try to force the gospel or Bible teaching on anyone, but be willing to share when opportunity presents itself. At times this will bring peace, and other times cause disruption and may even offend. In this interaction, the growing Christian must be careful not to fall into the exclusion trap, in which the worldly person (whether saved or lost) controls the content of every conversation, demanding the Christian only talk about worldly issues, as Scripture threatens his pagan presuppositions. Having the biblical worldview, the Christian should insert himself into daily conversations with others, and in so doing, be a light in a dark place. He should always be respectful, conversational, and never have a fist-in-your-face attitude, as arrogance never helps advance biblical truth (2 Tim 2:24-26). The worldly-minded person may not want to hear what the Christian has to say, but he should never be under the false impression that he has the right to quiet the Christian and thereby exclude him from the conversation. Dr. Steven R. Cook   [1] David L. Allen, 1–3 John: Fellowship in God's Family, ed. R. Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013), 96–97. [2] Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, p. 562. [3] David L. Allen, 1–3 John: Fellowship in God's Family, 96. [4] Lewis S. Chafer, “Angelology Part 4” Bibliotheca Sacra 99 (1942): 282-283. [5] Robert P. Lightner, Handbook of Evangelical Theology: A Historical, Biblical, and Contemporary Survey and Review (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1995), 206. [6] There are many church denominations today that call themselves “Christian”, but who come with a false gospel in which human works are added as a requirement for salvation (i.e., Catholics, Methodists, Church of Christ, Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, etc.). [7] Robert P. Lightner, Handbook of Evangelical Theology, p. 206. [8] Warren Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, New Testament, Vol. 2, p. 18.

In 1939, J.R. Tolkin took Robert Dickmans hypothesis one step further in a lecture he delivered titled, On Fairy Stories. In his lecture, Tolkin said the following about fairytales and those who create them: Probably every writer making a secondary world, a fantasy, every sub-creator, wishes in some measure to be a real maker, or hopes that he is drawing on reality: hopes that the peculiar quality of this secondary world (if not all the details) are derived from reality, or are flowing into it. The peculiar quality of the joy in successful Fantasy can thus be explained as a sudden glimpse of the underlying reality or truth. The Gospels contain a fairy-story, or a story of a larger kind, which embraces all the essence of fairy-stories. But this story is supreme, and it is true. Art has been verified. God is the Lord, of angels, and of menand of elves. Legend and History have met and fused.[1] In the Bible, the three great antagonists that we face in our story include the great serpent, the problem of sin, and death (in that order). Satan entered into the Garden as a serpent where the first man and woman enjoyed true love with both God and each other, they were tempted to sin against God by the Serpent. Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit that God commanded them not to eat and a curse was pronounced upon all of creation, and ever since that fateful day, sin and death have vandalized the peace we were created to enjoy with God. In the wake of Adam and Eves rebellion and under the shadow of evil and death, God gifted Adam and Eve a promise: The great serpent would one day be destroyed: And I will make enemies Of you and the woman, And of your offspring and her Descendant; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise Him on the heel. (Genesis 3:15) So who or what is the serpent? In The Lord of the Rings, he is the Dark Lord Sauron. In The Wizard of Oz, he is the Wicked Witch of the West. In The Matrix, he is Agent Smith. In The Chronicles of Narnia, he is the White Witch. In Superman, He is Lex Luther. In Star Wars, he is Darth Vader and every evil Sith Lord before and after him. The serpent is Lucifer, the devil, the father of lies, the accuser, and the great dragon. There is another antagonist that is the consequence of our sin and rebellion, and that is death. The word gospel simply means good news, and oh is there good news my dear brothers and sisters! The apostle Paul spoke of it in his epistle to the Romans: For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek (Rom. 1:16). The gospel of Jesus Christ from Genesis through the last chapter of Revelation has everything that every great story requires, and it is a story that has the power to not only transform, but to save! The gospel of Jesus Christ is supreme because it is indeed true, and it is seen and heard throughout the 23rd Psalm! The Good Shepherd Guides His Sheep through the Valley of Deep Darkness On resurrection Sunday, we looked at the first part of verse 4, Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me... Even if your first Sunday at Meadowbrooke was on that day, you should know by now that the Lord of the 23rd Psalm is the Good Shepherd, and His name is Jesus! He is my shepherd; therefore I will not be in need. Why will I not be in need? Well... because He is my bread of life who satisfies my hunger and quenches my thirst (John 6:35)! Why will I not be in need? Well... because He is the Light of the world who lights up the darkness that surrounds me (John 8:12)! Why again will I never ever be in need so long as Jesus is my shepherd? Well... let me tell you: He for me is the resurrection and the life who has promised that not even death can take from me what I already have in Him (John 11:25-26)! Now, just because Jesus is my Shepherd, that does not mean that I am exempt from walking through the valley of the shadow of death. As I said on Easter Sunday, we all must experience the valley of utter darkness that includes suffering, sickness, a broken world, and even death; however, those whose shepherd is Jesus only must walk through it while everyone else must walk in it. For the one who does not know Jesus as the bread of life, the light of the world, and the resurrection of life will never know the kind of hope that transcends the grave. For the one whose shepherd is not Jesus, the grave is deaths victory dance over you, and the news only gets worse beyond the grave. Jesus said, Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matt. 10:28). Again, to all who would refuse Jesus as the good shepherd, He warned: Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it (Matt. 7:1314). Jesus is the narrow gate! For those whose shepherd is Jesus, then the valley of the shadow of death is a temporary experience that you are only passing through. Do you know what that means? It means that there is life at the end of the valley! There is a table, and there is oil, and there is a cup placed into your hand dear Christian that is overflowing with His goodness and faithfulness all the days of your life! At that table, we will hold high that cup and toast: Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 15:55-57). The Good Shepherd Comforts His Sheep with His Rod and Staff What is the significance of Jesus rod and staff? For starters, He is the one leading us through the deep dark valleys on this side of eternity; while in the valley, we have no reason to fear evil because He is with us, and while with us... He is armed with His rod and staff. In their commentary on the Psalms, Josh Smith and Daniel Akin comment: We are going through the deep, dark valleys because our good shepherd is leading us! The dark valley is part of the path of righteousness.[2] Not to belabor the point I made previously, but what does the dark valley include? It includes pain, it includes suffering, it includes disease, it includes achy joints, it includes persecution, and it even includes death! After all, Jesus did say: In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world (John 16:33b). You may be saying in response to this: Pastor Keith, what about what Jesus said in John 10:10? Here is what Jesus said: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly. The thief is anything or anyone that promises to give you what only Jesus is able to give, and the abundant life is a life with Jesus. Now, what about the rod and staff? Why not just the rod or only the staff? Why both? The rod was typically used as offensive weapon against any predator that would threaten the sheep from the outside while the staff was used to direct, round up, and pull in the sheep. While the rod is used to protect the sheep from enemies, the staff is used to protect the sheep from themselves. Jesus guides me with His staff, and as He does, He leads me through the valley to the table where He has prepared a feast for me. Because it is Jesus who carries the rod and the staff, I can be confident that Jesus will lead me to where I need to go, or as the apostle Paul put it: For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus (Phil. 1:6), and He will use His rod and staff to do it. Or as one person wrote: Jesus Christ, our Shepherd, is no emaciated weakling. Our Shepherd is a warrior, as shepherds had to be. No one can snatch his sheep out of his hand (John 10:28). The muscles of his arm are flexed to defend his flock; he doesnt carry a club for nothing. He is obviously enough for whatever the valley throws at us.[3] What is the point of verse 4? Here is the point: If Jesus is my shepherd, then even in the darkest moments of life I have all that I need because I have Him. Or, as the modern hymn, Yet Not I but Through Christ in Me, so adequately and helpfully states: The night is dark, but I am not forsakenFor by my side, the Savior, He will stayI labor on in weakness and rejoicingFor in my need, His power is displayed To this I hold, my Shepherd will defend meThrough the deepest valley, He will leadOh, the night has been won, and I shall overcomeYet not I, but through Christ in me The Good Shepherd Prepares a Feast for His Sheep in the Presence of Their Enemies So, where is He leading me? Where is He leading you dear Christian? What is waiting for me, and what is waiting for all who are being led by the Good Shepherd? A table that has been prepared by Jesus is what is waiting for His sheep. What is on that table? A feast is what is on that table! What is the meaning of this feast that He has prepared? It is a testament, it is proof, and it is a witness to Gods favor upon His sheep. This, my friend, is the abundant life Jesus provides! Again, another set of verses from Yet Not I but Through Christ in Me rings true! No fate I dread, I know I am forgivenThe future's sure, the price, it has been paidFor Jesus bled and suffered for my pardonAnd He was raised to overthrow the grave To this I hold, my sin has been defeatedJesus, now and ever is my pleaOh, the chains are released, I can sing, "I am free"Yet not I, but through Christ in me Where is the table set for His redeemed to feast? It is set in the place that my enemies are made to watch and not permitted to touch, take, or taunt because of the One who has prepared the table for me. But do not miss that before my enemies and yours, He has anointed us with oil and placed a cup in each of our hands! Besides the fact that in the dry and hot climate of the valley, oil would be used to sooth the skin and wine would be consumed to clear the throat. However, there is more to the oil and the cup! The imagery of oil and wine in the Bible speak of joy and prosperity. Conclusion When I think of the table in Psalm 23:5, I cannot help but think of three feasts mentioned in the Bible. The first happened while the Hebrew people were surrounded by Egypt under the bondage of Pharoh. On the eve of their deliverance they marked their doorposts with the blood of a lamb with no defects and feasted on that lamb. After they feasted, God delivered the Hebrews from the bondage of slavery and defeated Pharoh and his army, and then they sang a song known as, The Song of Moses that included this verse: The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; This is my God, and I will praise Him... (Exod. 15:2), and concludes with these words: The Lord shall reign forever and ever (15:18). The second feast is the one Jesus celebrated with His disciples on the eve of His crucifixion and death. Like Moses and the Hebrews before, Jesus and His disciples sat at a table to the feast of the Passover. During the meal, Jesus and his disciples no doubt recited or even sang the Song of Moses: The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation... There were four cups that the disciples drank from during the Passover which were, The cup of sanctification (holiness) to start the celebration and a reminder of the holiness of God. The cup of salvation (deliverance) symbolizing Gods deliverance which was drunk after the retelling of the Exodus story. The cup of redemption (blessing), which was drunk after the meal which represented Gods act of redeeming Israel. The cup of glory (praise) which was drunk at the very end representing the future redemption and coming of the Messiah. It was this cup that Jesus said, Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.... I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it with you, new, in My Fathers kingdom (Matt. 26:26-29). After that feast, Jesus atoned for sin on the cross and then defeated the curse of sin and death by rising on the third day. Just before He died on the cross, He declared: It is finished (John 19:30)! The third feast has not happened yet, and we learn of it in Revelation 19:7-10; it is the Marriage feast we will celebrate with Jesus as His Bride. I believe that at this coming feast Jesus will pick up the fourth cup and drink it with us. Do you know what will come after that feast? The defeat of the nations gathered against Jesus and the final defeat of Satan. According to Revelation 15, do you know what song all of heaven will sing on that day? Here is what we are told: And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations! Who will not fear You, Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy; For all the nations will come and worship before You, For Your righteous acts have been revealed. (Rev. 15:34) So, can you guess what comes after the banquet prepared before His people in the presence of our enemies in Psalm 23:5? You guessed it! What comes after is the triumph of the Lamb of God over all that stands against those whom He has redeemed! [1] J. R. R. Tolkien. On Fairy Stories (1939). [2] J. Josh Smith and Daniel L. Akin, Exalting Jesus in Psalms 150, ed. David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2022), 175. [3] David Gibson, The Lord of Psalm 23: Jesus Our Shepherd, Companion, and Host (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2023), 90.

In 1939, J.R. Tolkin took Robert Dickmans hypothesis one step further in a lecture he delivered titled, On Fairy Stories. In his lecture, Tolkin said the following about fairytales and those who create them: Probably every writer making a secondary world, a fantasy, every sub-creator, wishes in some measure to be a real maker, or hopes that he is drawing on reality: hopes that the peculiar quality of this secondary world (if not all the details) are derived from reality, or are flowing into it. The peculiar quality of the joy in successful Fantasy can thus be explained as a sudden glimpse of the underlying reality or truth. The Gospels contain a fairy-story, or a story of a larger kind, which embraces all the essence of fairy-stories. But this story is supreme, and it is true. Art has been verified. God is the Lord, of angels, and of menand of elves. Legend and History have met and fused.[1] In the Bible, the three great antagonists that we face in our story include the great serpent, the problem of sin, and death (in that order). Satan entered into the Garden as a serpent where the first man and woman enjoyed true love with both God and each other, they were tempted to sin against God by the Serpent. Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit that God commanded them not to eat and a curse was pronounced upon all of creation, and ever since that fateful day, sin and death have vandalized the peace we were created to enjoy with God. In the wake of Adam and Eves rebellion and under the shadow of evil and death, God gifted Adam and Eve a promise: The great serpent would one day be destroyed: And I will make enemies Of you and the woman, And of your offspring and her Descendant; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise Him on the heel. (Genesis 3:15) So who or what is the serpent? In The Lord of the Rings, he is the Dark Lord Sauron. In The Wizard of Oz, he is the Wicked Witch of the West. In The Matrix, he is Agent Smith. In The Chronicles of Narnia, he is the White Witch. In Superman, He is Lex Luther. In Star Wars, he is Darth Vader and every evil Sith Lord before and after him. The serpent is Lucifer, the devil, the father of lies, the accuser, and the great dragon. There is another antagonist that is the consequence of our sin and rebellion, and that is death. The word gospel simply means good news, and oh is there good news my dear brothers and sisters! The apostle Paul spoke of it in his epistle to the Romans: For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek (Rom. 1:16). The gospel of Jesus Christ from Genesis through the last chapter of Revelation has everything that every great story requires, and it is a story that has the power to not only transform, but to save! The gospel of Jesus Christ is supreme because it is indeed true, and it is seen and heard throughout the 23rd Psalm! The Good Shepherd Guides His Sheep through the Valley of Deep Darkness On resurrection Sunday, we looked at the first part of verse 4, Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me... Even if your first Sunday at Meadowbrooke was on that day, you should know by now that the Lord of the 23rd Psalm is the Good Shepherd, and His name is Jesus! He is my shepherd; therefore I will not be in need. Why will I not be in need? Well... because He is my bread of life who satisfies my hunger and quenches my thirst (John 6:35)! Why will I not be in need? Well... because He is the Light of the world who lights up the darkness that surrounds me (John 8:12)! Why again will I never ever be in need so long as Jesus is my shepherd? Well... let me tell you: He for me is the resurrection and the life who has promised that not even death can take from me what I already have in Him (John 11:25-26)! Now, just because Jesus is my Shepherd, that does not mean that I am exempt from walking through the valley of the shadow of death. As I said on Easter Sunday, we all must experience the valley of utter darkness that includes suffering, sickness, a broken world, and even death; however, those whose shepherd is Jesus only must walk through it while everyone else must walk in it. For the one who does not know Jesus as the bread of life, the light of the world, and the resurrection of life will never know the kind of hope that transcends the grave. For the one whose shepherd is not Jesus, the grave is deaths victory dance over you, and the news only gets worse beyond the grave. Jesus said, Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell (Matt. 10:28). Again, to all who would refuse Jesus as the good shepherd, He warned: Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it (Matt. 7:1314). Jesus is the narrow gate! For those whose shepherd is Jesus, then the valley of the shadow of death is a temporary experience that you are only passing through. Do you know what that means? It means that there is life at the end of the valley! There is a table, and there is oil, and there is a cup placed into your hand dear Christian that is overflowing with His goodness and faithfulness all the days of your life! At that table, we will hold high that cup and toast: Where, O Death, is your victory? Where, O Death is your sting? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the Law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 15:55-57). The Good Shepherd Comforts His Sheep with His Rod and Staff What is the significance of Jesus rod and staff? For starters, He is the one leading us through the deep dark valleys on this side of eternity; while in the valley, we have no reason to fear evil because He is with us, and while with us... He is armed with His rod and staff. In their commentary on the Psalms, Josh Smith and Daniel Akin comment: We are going through the deep, dark valleys because our good shepherd is leading us! The dark valley is part of the path of righteousness.[2] Not to belabor the point I made previously, but what does the dark valley include? It includes pain, it includes suffering, it includes disease, it includes achy joints, it includes persecution, and it even includes death! After all, Jesus did say: In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world (John 16:33b). You may be saying in response to this: Pastor Keith, what about what Jesus said in John 10:10? Here is what Jesus said: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly. The thief is anything or anyone that promises to give you what only Jesus is able to give, and the abundant life is a life with Jesus. Now, what about the rod and staff? Why not just the rod or only the staff? Why both? The rod was typically used as offensive weapon against any predator that would threaten the sheep from the outside while the staff was used to direct, round up, and pull in the sheep. While the rod is used to protect the sheep from enemies, the staff is used to protect the sheep from themselves. Jesus guides me with His staff, and as He does, He leads me through the valley to the table where He has prepared a feast for me. Because it is Jesus who carries the rod and the staff, I can be confident that Jesus will lead me to where I need to go, or as the apostle Paul put it: For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work among you will complete it by the day of Christ Jesus (Phil. 1:6), and He will use His rod and staff to do it. Or as one person wrote: Jesus Christ, our Shepherd, is no emaciated weakling. Our Shepherd is a warrior, as shepherds had to be. No one can snatch his sheep out of his hand (John 10:28). The muscles of his arm are flexed to defend his flock; he doesnt carry a club for nothing. He is obviously enough for whatever the valley throws at us.[3] What is the point of verse 4? Here is the point: If Jesus is my shepherd, then even in the darkest moments of life I have all that I need because I have Him. Or, as the modern hymn, Yet Not I but Through Christ in Me, so adequately and helpfully states: The night is dark, but I am not forsakenFor by my side, the Savior, He will stayI labor on in weakness and rejoicingFor in my need, His power is displayed To this I hold, my Shepherd will defend meThrough the deepest valley, He will leadOh, the night has been won, and I shall overcomeYet not I, but through Christ in me The Good Shepherd Prepares a Feast for His Sheep in the Presence of Their Enemies So, where is He leading me? Where is He leading you dear Christian? What is waiting for me, and what is waiting for all who are being led by the Good Shepherd? A table that has been prepared by Jesus is what is waiting for His sheep. What is on that table? A feast is what is on that table! What is the meaning of this feast that He has prepared? It is a testament, it is proof, and it is a witness to Gods favor upon His sheep. This, my friend, is the abundant life Jesus provides! Again, another set of verses from Yet Not I but Through Christ in Me rings true! No fate I dread, I know I am forgivenThe future's sure, the price, it has been paidFor Jesus bled and suffered for my pardonAnd He was raised to overthrow the grave To this I hold, my sin has been defeatedJesus, now and ever is my pleaOh, the chains are released, I can sing, "I am free"Yet not I, but through Christ in me Where is the table set for His redeemed to feast? It is set in the place that my enemies are made to watch and not permitted to touch, take, or taunt because of the One who has prepared the table for me. But do not miss that before my enemies and yours, He has anointed us with oil and placed a cup in each of our hands! Besides the fact that in the dry and hot climate of the valley, oil would be used to sooth the skin and wine would be consumed to clear the throat. However, there is more to the oil and the cup! The imagery of oil and wine in the Bible speak of joy and prosperity. Conclusion When I think of the table in Psalm 23:5, I cannot help but think of three feasts mentioned in the Bible. The first happened while the Hebrew people were surrounded by Egypt under the bondage of Pharoh. On the eve of their deliverance they marked their doorposts with the blood of a lamb with no defects and feasted on that lamb. After they feasted, God delivered the Hebrews from the bondage of slavery and defeated Pharoh and his army, and then they sang a song known as, The Song of Moses that included this verse: The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; This is my God, and I will praise Him... (Exod. 15:2), and concludes with these words: The Lord shall reign forever and ever (15:18). The second feast is the one Jesus celebrated with His disciples on the eve of His crucifixion and death. Like Moses and the Hebrews before, Jesus and His disciples sat at a table to the feast of the Passover. During the meal, Jesus and his disciples no doubt recited or even sang the Song of Moses: The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation... There were four cups that the disciples drank from during the Passover which were, The cup of sanctification (holiness) to start the celebration and a reminder of the holiness of God. The cup of salvation (deliverance) symbolizing Gods deliverance which was drunk after the retelling of the Exodus story. The cup of redemption (blessing), which was drunk after the meal which represented Gods act of redeeming Israel. The cup of glory (praise) which was drunk at the very end representing the future redemption and coming of the Messiah. It was this cup that Jesus said, Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.... I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it with you, new, in My Fathers kingdom (Matt. 26:26-29). After that feast, Jesus atoned for sin on the cross and then defeated the curse of sin and death by rising on the third day. Just before He died on the cross, He declared: It is finished (John 19:30)! The third feast has not happened yet, and we learn of it in Revelation 19:7-10; it is the Marriage feast we will celebrate with Jesus as His Bride. I believe that at this coming feast Jesus will pick up the fourth cup and drink it with us. Do you know what will come after that feast? The defeat of the nations gathered against Jesus and the final defeat of Satan. According to Revelation 15, do you know what song all of heaven will sing on that day? Here is what we are told: And they sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations! Who will not fear You, Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy; For all the nations will come and worship before You, For Your righteous acts have been revealed. (Rev. 15:34) So, can you guess what comes after the banquet prepared before His people in the presence of our enemies in Psalm 23:5? You guessed it! What comes after is the triumph of the Lamb of God over all that stands against those whom He has redeemed! [1] J. R. R. Tolkien. On Fairy Stories (1939). [2] J. Josh Smith and Daniel L. Akin, Exalting Jesus in Psalms 150, ed. David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2022), 175. [3] David Gibson, The Lord of Psalm 23: Jesus Our Shepherd, Companion, and Host (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2023), 90.

     Satan promotes uncontrolled anger. Paul wrote, “Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity” (Eph 4:26-27). By itself, anger is not sinful. Even God gets angry (Num 25:4; Deut 9:8, 20; Jer 4:8). Human anger is a natural response to an injustice, real or imagined. We get angry because we feel someone has wronged us, and the personal scales of justice need to be corrected. Ideally, this happens when the offender comes and apologizes and seeks forgiveness, or makes restitution for damage. However, we cannot always control other people's thoughts, words, or actions, but we can control how we respond. Paul tells us not to let anger last beyond the day. If we let anger fester, then by our choice we give the devil an opportunity to turn it into something greater, which can enslave us in bitterness. Solomon wrote, “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city (Prov 16:32), and “A man's discretion makes him slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense” (Prov 19:11). James said, “everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does achieve the righteousness of God” (Jam 1:19-20). Hoehner comments: “While believers may at times be legitimately angry (with righteous anger against sin; cf. John 2:13–16), they are not to sin. The way to prevent such sin is to “keep short accounts,” dealing with the anger before the sun goes down. The reason is that the devil would like to intensify a Christian's righteous anger against sin, causing it to become sin itself. This then gives the devil a foothold (lit., “a place”), an opportunity for leading that Christian into further sin. Then anger begins to control the believer rather than the believer controlling his anger.”[1]      Satan uses suffering to pressure us to turn from God. Satan can, on occasion, afflict God's people with suffering (Job 1:1-2:10; Luke 13:16; Acts 10:38); but this is only done with the Lord's permission. Satan's use of suffering is intended to get us to turn away from God, who is the source of life, goodness, and strength. Job is the classic example of a believer who was attacked by Satan (Job 1:1-2:10). Though Job suffered greatly, he understood his life was in God's hands and he kept faith, saying, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD” (Job 1:21). And on another occasion he said, “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him” (Job 13:15a). Jesus said to Peter, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat” (Luke 22:31). Satan's request was granted. But the Lord also told Peter, “I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers” (Luke 22:32). Peter did return to the Lord and was strengthened (John 21:15-17). The key for us as Christians is to trust in God's love and goodness when we face Satan's attacks against our flesh. This is a faith response not born of feelings or circumstances (Rom 5:3-5; Jam 1:2-4; 1 Pet 1:6; 4:12-13; cf. 1 Th 5:16-18).      Satan masquerades as a messenger of light. Satan was created as a beautiful cherub (Ezek 28:12-14), and he retains all his outward attractiveness. Inwardly he is prideful (Ezek 28:15-17), and this is part of what makes him dangerous. Satan uses his outward appearance as a disguise to deceive others, and many of his messengers do the same. Paul wrote, “Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore, it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds” (2 Cor 11:14-15). The Pharisees were satanic deceivers. They referred to themselves as God's children, saying, “we have one father, God” (John 8:41b). But Jesus said of them, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father” (John 8:44a). The Pharisees were very religious. They read the Scriptures, prayed, fasted, offered sacrifices, and spent much of their time at the temple. Jesus said they had “seated themselves in the chair of Moses” (Matt 23:2). This was because they coveted positions of power. Jesus said, they “tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men's shoulders” (Matt 23:4), they “do all their deeds to be noticed by men” (Matt 23:5), and they “love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men” (Matt 23:6-7). But Jesus also revealed their true identity as “hypocrites” (Matt 23:13-15), “blind guides” (Matt 23:16-19), and those who “neglect justice and mercy and faithfulness” (Matt 23:23). Outwardly they look attractive, “but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence” (Matt 23:25), and are “like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness” (Matt 23:27), and “outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness” (Matt 23:28). Jesus established policy for His disciples when He told them on a previous occasion, “Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit” (Matt 15:14). He also warned them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matt 16:6), by which His disciples understood leaven to refer to “the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees” (Matt 16:12b). Knowing God's Word helps us identify and avoid Satan's beautiful messengers, who outwardly appear righteous, but twist Scripture and promote false doctrines.      Satan empowers his false prophets to perform miracles in order to deceive. When Moses was executing God's plagues upon Egypt, it is recorded that three times “the magicians of Egypt did the same with their secret arts” (Ex 7:10-11; 7:21-22; 8:6-7). Moses warned the Israelites who were about to enter the land that they should guard themselves against false prophets and dreamers of dreams who arise and give them a “sign or wonder”, and then seek to lead them away from God (Deut 13:1-4). Jesus warned of “false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect” (Matt 24:24). And Paul spoke of the coming Antichrist, “whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved” (2 Th 2:9-10). Those who know God's Word and live by it will guard themselves against the deceiving power of false miracle workers.      Satan desires that we turn from God and His Word and live independently of Him. He promotes sinful pride, lies, uncontrolled anger, uses suffering to pressure God's people, masquerades as a messenger of light, and empowers false teachers to perform miracles in order to deceive. Knowledge of God's Word informs us about Satan's strategies, and the humble believer who lives by faith will be able to stand when he attacks. Satan's World-System      Satan is permitted, for a time, to rule over the majority in this world. Three times Jesus referred to Satan as “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). Other passages of Scripture call Satan “the god of this world” (2 Cor 4:4), and “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph 2:2), informing us “that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one” (1 John 5:19). Satan rules as a tyrant who has “weakened the nations” (Isa 14:12), and currently “deceives the whole world” (Rev 12:9). Furthermore, humanity is living in an “evil age” (Gal 1:4), under “the dominion of Satan” (Acts 26:18), whose sphere of influence is called “the domain of darkness” (Col 1:13). Though Satan has attacked some people directly, he mainly operates as commander of an unseen realm of demons, through a worldwide system of philosophies and values he's created, through unbelievers whom he energizes to do his will, and through the sinful inclinations of our fallen nature.      The Bible recognizes Satan's world-system and warns us not to love it. John writes and tells the Christian, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world” (1 John 2:15-16). We live in a fallen world, and John's command is intended to warn us of real danger. First, John opens with the negative particle Μὴ Me, which is followed by the Geek verb ἀγαπάω agapao, which is in the imperative mood—the mood of command. The word ἀγαπάω agapao denotes desire or commitment to something or someone. Allen comments on love: “In its essence love is two things: a desire for something and a commitment to something … Whatever it is you desire and whatever you're committed to, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love football, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love hunting or fishing, that's where your time and resources will go. If you love your spouse, you desire to spend time with her and you are committed to her. Love is more than an emotional feeling. Love requires a commitment of time and resources.”[2]      John then gives the object we are not to desire or be committed to, namely, the world (τὸν κόσμον). The Greek word κόσμος kosmos is used in Scripture to refer to: 1) the physical planet (Matt 13:35; Acts 17:24), 2) people who live in the world (John 3:16), and 3) the hostile system created and controlled by Satan that he uses to lure people away from God (1 John 2:15-16). It is this third meaning that John has in mind. Hence, the word κόσμος kosmos refers to “that which is hostile to God…lost in sin, wholly at odds with anything divine, ruined and depraved.”[3] Concerning, the word κόσμος kosmos, Allen writes: “Sometimes the word “world” is used to refer to the organized evil system with its principles and its practices, all under the authority of Satan, which includes all teachings, ideas, culture, attitudes, activities, etc., that are opposed to God. A fixation on the material over the spiritual, promotion of self over others, pleasure over principle—these are just a few descriptors of the world system John is talking about. The word “world” here means everything that opposes Christ and his work on earth. Jesus called Satan “the ruler of this world” (John 14:30; 16:11), and Paul called him “the god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4). In Luke 16:8 Jesus referred to all unsaved people as “the sons of this world.”[4] Dr. Steven R. Cook   [1] Harold W. Hoehner, “Ephesians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 637. [2] David L. Allen, 1–3 John: Fellowship in God's Family, ed. R. Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013), 96–97. [3] Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, p. 562. [4] David L. Allen, 1–3 John: Fellowship in God's Family, 96.

Nobody expected Jesus to rise from the dead, not even His disciples and those closest to Him expected Him to get up and walk out of the tomb. It did not matter to His disciples that Jesus said that He would suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise from the dead (Mark 8:31), because what He said fell upon deaf ears at the time. On the day of Jesus death, everyone believed that He had lost, and evil had won. There was no coming back in the minds of all who watched Him die, and for good reason! When a person was sentenced by Rome to be crucified, it was a sentence that was equally horrible as it was terminal. Jesus died and was buried in a tomb. When Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome went to Jesuss tomb, they went to anoint a decomposing and dead Jesus to cover up the stench of death while His disciples mourned. What these women were expecting was a very dead body. When they arrived at the tomb and found the stone moved, they were alarmed not because they expected the resurrection, but because they thought someone messed with the body (see Mark 16:1-5). This is why the young man, who most likely was an angel, said to them: Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; see, here is the place where they laid Him (Mark 16:6). What was their response? They were terrified: ...they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid (Mark 16:8). What the disciples saw as defeat, the angels viewed at the edge of their seats, if Peter and the rest could have heard the chatter from heaven, maybe they would have heard: You just wait and see whats coming! If it were possible to hear the angels, and if they were listening closely enough, maybe they would have heard all of heaven ask: Did you not hear what Jesus said when He was with you? Did you not hear Him say, I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.... No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it back. This commandment I received from My Father. (John 10:14-15, 18)? Some of you are feeling the way the disciples and those closest to Jesus felt in the wake of His death. Some of you are feeling like the disciples did when they woke up on Sunday morning: stuck, unsure, afraid, frustrated, angry, and hopeless. I want you to know today that there is a hope within your reach that can swallow up your paralysis, uncertainty, fear, frustration, anger, and hopelessness. For me to do that, I need you to see some things in the 23rd Psalm. Everyone Experiences the Valley of the Shadow of Death Death is the great antagonist and for some strange reason, we act as though we will never experience it, and when it does come... we are surprised by it. Just before Frank Sinatra died, he said, Im losing. The comedian, Groucho Marxs last words were, This is no way to live! Caesar Borgia (chayzaarayborzhuh) said on his deathbed: While I lived, I provided for everything but death; now I must die and am unprepared to die. In Psalm 23:4, we come to a very familiar sentence that has served to comfort the anxious and fearful: Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Death is something that we all must face and not one of us will be able to escape it. The valley of the shadow of death is not only death, but the deep darkness of sin, and it is a deep darkness that envelops all humankind.[1] The valley of death is a darkness that no one is exempt from, even if you are a Christian. You see, the valley of deep darkness represents the curse our world is under and the curse that affects us all, and that curse is sin. This is why our world is a mess, this is why there is sickness and disease, and this is why we have to say goodbye way too often and sometimes way too soon. The Bible says that all of us are guilty of sin (Rom. 3:23), and that it is something that has been passed down from one generation to the next. Here is what the Bible says: ...through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned.... Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the violation committed by Adam (Rom. 5:12, 14). What the valley is to you really depends on whether or not you can say with the Psalmist: The Lord is my shepherd, I will not be in need. You see, there is one group of people who will be swallowed up by the valley and then there is another group of people who will walk through the valley. The question is this: What group do you belong to? Not Everyone Remains in the Valley of the Shadow of Death Jesus said of the 23rd Psalm: I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep (John 10:11). Here is what the Bible says about all of us: All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way... (Isa. 53:3). Or to say it another way, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). All of us have sinned and fall short of meeting the standard of a Holy God. So what was Gods solution to address our sin problem? Listen to the rest of Isaiah 53:3, All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the wrongdoing [sins] of us all to fall on Him. Jesus said, I am the Lord of the 23rd Psalm but He did not stop there, He went on to say, I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep (vv. 14-15). The way that you know that the Lord of the 23rd Psalm is your Shepherd is whether or not you believe who He claimed to be and that when He laid down His life for you because of your sins, that His death on a cross is sufficient for the forgiveness of your sins. And listen, if you really believe in Jesus, if you really belong to Him, and if you really know Him... you will believe the things that He said about Himself: I am the bread of life; the one who comes to Me will not be hungry, and the one who believes in Me will never be thirsty. (John 6:35) I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life. (John 8:12) I am the resurrection and the life; the one who believes in Me will live, even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:2526) Anyone can say the things Jesus said, and everyone will die one day. If all that Jesus did was lay down his life for the sheep, then all that He is... is a dead martyr and nothing more. But consider what Jesus said to the disciples that they missed, most likely because of how impossible they found it to believe what He said to be: I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice; and they will become one flock, with one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it back. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it back. This commandment I received from My Father. (John 10:14-18) What the disciples missed was the most important part of what Jesus said: I lay down My life for the sheep.... I lay down My life so that I may take it back.... I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it back. In other words, I will die for your sins to redeem you, and then I am coming back by way of a resurrection! It should not have surprised any of the disciples or the women who knew Jesus that the tomb was empty on the third day, but because the resurrection was so impossible and so beyond the limitations of their imagination that the Good Shepherd, the Lord of the 23rd Psalm, could die for sins and then conquer death by rising from it. This is why the angel said to the women when they arrived at the place Jesus was buried: Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; see, here is the place where they laid Him (Mark 16:6). Conclusion We all want a happily ever after story. We go to the movies, and we watch sporting events just so that we might experience the impossible! We want to experience the Fellowship of the Ring and Frodo and Sams impossible mission to destroy the evil ring of Sauron. For you romantics in the room, you want Jerry Maquire to walk through the door finally believing that the love of his life is his wife, Dorothy, and maybe your heart fluttered when Dorothy told Jerry to shut up, followed by the words: You had me at hello. If you like the kinds of movies I like, then you wanted to stand and shout just before the great battle scene in Avengers: End Game. However, when it comes to experiencing the impossible for real and in our lifetime, we are shocked. When fantasy and reality merge and the impossible really happens, we are shocked. Perhaps you think your game is over because you are at the bottom of the 9th with three balls, two outs, a man on second, and you are down by one run! But wait, there is still a player on second and one more pitch to go over the plate. It was during the first game in 1988 World Series that Kirk Gibson, who played for the Dodgers, was injured and unable to run. It was surprising that he was put in as a pinch hitter at the bottom of the 9th inning with two outs. Gibson hobbled up to the plate to everyones surprise. With Mike Davis on first base, Tommy Lasorda was hoping Gibson could hit a ball far enough to get Davis to home for a game tying run. Gibson fouled two pitches for two strikes, swung at another ball down the first base line for a foul, and eventually ended up with 3 out of 4 balls giving him a full count. What this meant was that if he got another ball, he would be forced to walk or if he got one more strike, he would lose the game against the As by one run. When Dennis Eckersley, the closing pitcher for the As, threw a backdoor slider, Gibson swung with just about all his upper body to hit the pitch and sent the ball over the right-field fence for a homerun. The Dodgers won the world series that year, the only time Gibson was able to step up to the plate was that one time at the bottom of the 9th in the first game to hit one of the greatest homeruns in baseball history. After Gibson stepped on home plate, the announcer said this: In a year that seemed so improbable, the impossible has happened. There is a greater event that happened that did not happen before, nor has it happened since, and that event was the resurrection of Jesus Christ. When He walked out of the tomb on Sunday, the impossible happened, and because it happened, it changed everything. The resurrection of Jesus Christ affirms all that He did and claimed to be! Because of the resurrection, we can know and experience Him to be the Bread of Life, the light of the world, the resurrection and the life, and the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm. Jesus tomb is empty and because He defeated sin and the grave, He alone is qualified and able to guide me in the paths of righteousness... even through I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. His rod and staff comfort me because He swallowed up the deep darkness of the valley through His resurrection! Jesus not only walked through the valley of the shadow of death, but He also defeated it and came out on the other side as the victor and Lord of Life! Jesus Christ is risen from the grave! If you dont know Him, then the 23rd Psalm is not for you and there is no going through the valley of the shadow of death. But, if you do know Him, then not only will He lead you through the valley of the shadow of death, but there is a table at the other end of it and because of the Good Shepherd, Psalm 23:6 is for you and all who hope in Jesus as the Lord of Life: Certainly goodness and faithfulness will follow me all the days of my life, And my dwelling will be in the house of the Lord forever. Amen. [1] Christopher Ash, The Psalms vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2024), p. 271.

Nobody expected Jesus to rise from the dead, not even His disciples and those closest to Him expected Him to get up and walk out of the tomb. It did not matter to His disciples that Jesus said that He would suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise from the dead (Mark 8:31), because what He said fell upon deaf ears at the time. On the day of Jesus death, everyone believed that He had lost, and evil had won. There was no coming back in the minds of all who watched Him die, and for good reason! When a person was sentenced by Rome to be crucified, it was a sentence that was equally horrible as it was terminal. Jesus died and was buried in a tomb. When Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome went to Jesuss tomb, they went to anoint a decomposing and dead Jesus to cover up the stench of death while His disciples mourned. What these women were expecting was a very dead body. When they arrived at the tomb and found the stone moved, they were alarmed not because they expected the resurrection, but because they thought someone messed with the body (see Mark 16:1-5). This is why the young man, who most likely was an angel, said to them: Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; see, here is the place where they laid Him (Mark 16:6). What was their response? They were terrified: ...they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had gripped them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid (Mark 16:8). What the disciples saw as defeat, the angels viewed at the edge of their seats, if Peter and the rest could have heard the chatter from heaven, maybe they would have heard: You just wait and see whats coming! If it were possible to hear the angels, and if they were listening closely enough, maybe they would have heard all of heaven ask: Did you not hear what Jesus said when He was with you? Did you not hear Him say, I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.... No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it back. This commandment I received from My Father. (John 10:14-15, 18)? Some of you are feeling the way the disciples and those closest to Jesus felt in the wake of His death. Some of you are feeling like the disciples did when they woke up on Sunday morning: stuck, unsure, afraid, frustrated, angry, and hopeless. I want you to know today that there is a hope within your reach that can swallow up your paralysis, uncertainty, fear, frustration, anger, and hopelessness. For me to do that, I need you to see some things in the 23rd Psalm. Everyone Experiences the Valley of the Shadow of Death Death is the great antagonist and for some strange reason, we act as though we will never experience it, and when it does come... we are surprised by it. Just before Frank Sinatra died, he said, Im losing. The comedian, Groucho Marxs last words were, This is no way to live! Caesar Borgia (chayzaarayborzhuh) said on his deathbed: While I lived, I provided for everything but death; now I must die and am unprepared to die. In Psalm 23:4, we come to a very familiar sentence that has served to comfort the anxious and fearful: Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. Death is something that we all must face and not one of us will be able to escape it. The valley of the shadow of death is not only death, but the deep darkness of sin, and it is a deep darkness that envelops all humankind.[1] The valley of death is a darkness that no one is exempt from, even if you are a Christian. You see, the valley of deep darkness represents the curse our world is under and the curse that affects us all, and that curse is sin. This is why our world is a mess, this is why there is sickness and disease, and this is why we have to say goodbye way too often and sometimes way too soon. The Bible says that all of us are guilty of sin (Rom. 3:23), and that it is something that has been passed down from one generation to the next. Here is what the Bible says: ...through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all mankind, because all sinned.... Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the violation committed by Adam (Rom. 5:12, 14). What the valley is to you really depends on whether or not you can say with the Psalmist: The Lord is my shepherd, I will not be in need. You see, there is one group of people who will be swallowed up by the valley and then there is another group of people who will walk through the valley. The question is this: What group do you belong to? Not Everyone Remains in the Valley of the Shadow of Death Jesus said of the 23rd Psalm: I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep (John 10:11). Here is what the Bible says about all of us: All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way... (Isa. 53:3). Or to say it another way, all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23). All of us have sinned and fall short of meeting the standard of a Holy God. So what was Gods solution to address our sin problem? Listen to the rest of Isaiah 53:3, All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the wrongdoing [sins] of us all to fall on Him. Jesus said, I am the Lord of the 23rd Psalm but He did not stop there, He went on to say, I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep (vv. 14-15). The way that you know that the Lord of the 23rd Psalm is your Shepherd is whether or not you believe who He claimed to be and that when He laid down His life for you because of your sins, that His death on a cross is sufficient for the forgiveness of your sins. And listen, if you really believe in Jesus, if you really belong to Him, and if you really know Him... you will believe the things that He said about Himself: I am the bread of life; the one who comes to Me will not be hungry, and the one who believes in Me will never be thirsty. (John 6:35) I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life. (John 8:12) I am the resurrection and the life; the one who believes in Me will live, even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:2526) Anyone can say the things Jesus said, and everyone will die one day. If all that Jesus did was lay down his life for the sheep, then all that He is... is a dead martyr and nothing more. But consider what Jesus said to the disciples that they missed, most likely because of how impossible they found it to believe what He said to be: I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice; and they will become one flock, with one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it back. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it back. This commandment I received from My Father. (John 10:14-18) What the disciples missed was the most important part of what Jesus said: I lay down My life for the sheep.... I lay down My life so that I may take it back.... I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it back. In other words, I will die for your sins to redeem you, and then I am coming back by way of a resurrection! It should not have surprised any of the disciples or the women who knew Jesus that the tomb was empty on the third day, but because the resurrection was so impossible and so beyond the limitations of their imagination that the Good Shepherd, the Lord of the 23rd Psalm, could die for sins and then conquer death by rising from it. This is why the angel said to the women when they arrived at the place Jesus was buried: Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; see, here is the place where they laid Him (Mark 16:6). Conclusion We all want a happily ever after story. We go to the movies, and we watch sporting events just so that we might experience the impossible! We want to experience the Fellowship of the Ring and Frodo and Sams impossible mission to destroy the evil ring of Sauron. For you romantics in the room, you want Jerry Maquire to walk through the door finally believing that the love of his life is his wife, Dorothy, and maybe your heart fluttered when Dorothy told Jerry to shut up, followed by the words: You had me at hello. If you like the kinds of movies I like, then you wanted to stand and shout just before the great battle scene in Avengers: End Game. However, when it comes to experiencing the impossible for real and in our lifetime, we are shocked. When fantasy and reality merge and the impossible really happens, we are shocked. Perhaps you think your game is over because you are at the bottom of the 9th with three balls, two outs, a man on second, and you are down by one run! But wait, there is still a player on second and one more pitch to go over the plate. It was during the first game in 1988 World Series that Kirk Gibson, who played for the Dodgers, was injured and unable to run. It was surprising that he was put in as a pinch hitter at the bottom of the 9th inning with two outs. Gibson hobbled up to the plate to everyones surprise. With Mike Davis on first base, Tommy Lasorda was hoping Gibson could hit a ball far enough to get Davis to home for a game tying run. Gibson fouled two pitches for two strikes, swung at another ball down the first base line for a foul, and eventually ended up with 3 out of 4 balls giving him a full count. What this meant was that if he got another ball, he would be forced to walk or if he got one more strike, he would lose the game against the As by one run. When Dennis Eckersley, the closing pitcher for the As, threw a backdoor slider, Gibson swung with just about all his upper body to hit the pitch and sent the ball over the right-field fence for a homerun. The Dodgers won the world series that year, the only time Gibson was able to step up to the plate was that one time at the bottom of the 9th in the first game to hit one of the greatest homeruns in baseball history. After Gibson stepped on home plate, the announcer said this: In a year that seemed so improbable, the impossible has happened. There is a greater event that happened that did not happen before, nor has it happened since, and that event was the resurrection of Jesus Christ. When He walked out of the tomb on Sunday, the impossible happened, and because it happened, it changed everything. The resurrection of Jesus Christ affirms all that He did and claimed to be! Because of the resurrection, we can know and experience Him to be the Bread of Life, the light of the world, the resurrection and the life, and the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm. Jesus tomb is empty and because He defeated sin and the grave, He alone is qualified and able to guide me in the paths of righteousness... even through I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. His rod and staff comfort me because He swallowed up the deep darkness of the valley through His resurrection! Jesus not only walked through the valley of the shadow of death, but He also defeated it and came out on the other side as the victor and Lord of Life! Jesus Christ is risen from the grave! If you dont know Him, then the 23rd Psalm is not for you and there is no going through the valley of the shadow of death. But, if you do know Him, then not only will He lead you through the valley of the shadow of death, but there is a table at the other end of it and because of the Good Shepherd, Psalm 23:6 is for you and all who hope in Jesus as the Lord of Life: Certainly goodness and faithfulness will follow me all the days of my life, And my dwelling will be in the house of the Lord forever. Amen. [1] Christopher Ash, The Psalms vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2024), p. 271.

In Genesis 1:1, the Bible begins with a simple but profound sentence. Most English translations of the Bible begin with ten words and end with ten words. In Genesis 1:1, we are told: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. In the final verse of the book of Revelation the Bible concludes: The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen (Rev. 22:21). What these two verses tell me is this: We are alive and are here today because of God and by His grace. In Psalm 23, we discover that it is by the grace of God that I am brought into the fold of His sheep, and it is for His glory that He has done so. The invitation to be included as one of His sheep has nothing to do with my performance and everything to do with His grace and glory, as John Piper put it: God is the beginning and God is the end of all my righteousness. The path of righteousness has his grace as its starting point (for he leads me into it) and it has his glory as its destination (because his leading is for his names sake).[1] What happens in the in-between is the messy part. After He finds us, it is His goodness and faithfulness that keeps us with no intention of letting go. The 23rd Psalm sounds like a pilgrimage because it is. Remember that there are five images in this Psalm. We looked at the first image, which was: The Abundant Life (vv. 2-3a). God lets and makes me lay down in green pastures in that He causes me to do so. How does He cause me to lay down in green pastures? He does so by removing all that prevents me from doing so. I was made to lay down in green pastures by waters of rest, but without the Good Shepherd we blindly go astray; according to the prophet Isaiah we were both hopeless and helpless: All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way... (Isaiah 53:6). The next four images are as follows: Image #2: The Secure Life (v. 3b) Image #3: The Hard Life (v. 4) Image #4: The Victorious Life (v. 5) Image #5: The Everlasting Life (v. 6) It is to the Secure Life that we now turn our attention. What is it that makes His guiding in paths of righteousness for His namesake that brings security to those who belong to Him? Where Does the Shepherd Lead? Where does the Shepherd lead and how does where He is leading relate to our security? For starters, it is in the nature of His guiding that brings His sheep security: He guides me in paths of righteousness. The nature of His guiding is that it does not end and that it is ongoing; it is not a onetime event where the sheep are guided by Him such as a prayer that is said or a decision that was made. So, what are the paths of righteousness that He guides me into? We are given an answer through the nature of Davids prayers like the one we find in Psalm 5, Lord, lead me in Your righteousness because of my enemies; make Your way straight before me (v. 8). The answer to Davids prayer is Psalm 23:3, and those paths of righteousness are descripted for us in scores of verses in both the Old and New Testament. One such passage in the Old Testament is Psalm 1:1-3, Blessed is the person who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the Law of the Lord, And on His Law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season, And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. The paths of righteousness according to Psalm 1 includes delighting in the Law of Yahweh and meditating on His Law day and night. The Law of the Lord is the Word of the Lord. That which you delight in is where you desire to spend your time. If you delight in a particular person you will want to spend time with that person. If you have a hobby or job that you delight in, you will look for ways to spend time participating in that hobby or job that you delight in. The evidence that you delight in the Law is seen in the amount of time you spend in the Law. The one who delights in the Law of the Lord will thrive in the kinds of ways we were meant for. God wants you to thrive and considering the fact that it is His image we bear, thriving must include our Creator. Later in the Psalms, David wrote: Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path (Ps. 119:105). Jesus said something similar to Psalm 1:1-3 and 119:105; He said, If you continue in My word, then you are truly My disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8:31). The Greek word used for continue is menō, which, as you may recall from last Sundays sermon, can be translated abide. If you abide, if you remain, if you continue in My word... you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. The Greek word for know is ginōskō, which is the kind of knowledge that is much more than head knowledge. Jesus said, If you remain, if you continue, if you abide in my word, you will really know [ginōskō] the truth, and the truth will set your free. Let me say it a different way so that you get what is being said here: If you take up residence in the word of the Good Shepherd, you are truly His sheep, and by listening to His voice, you will live! Listen, the Shepherds guiding does not happen apart from our abiding! I am not sure if you will find this as cool as I do, but going back to John 10 where Jesus identifies as the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm, He uses the same Greek word for know that He used in John 8:31. In John 10:14-16, I am the good shepherd, and I know [ginōskō] My own, and My own know [ginōskō] Me, just as the Father knows [ginōskō] Me and I know [ginōskō] the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice; and they will become one flock, with one shepherd. Okay, so why does any of this matter and how does Psalm 1:1-3, John 8:31-32, and John 10:14-16 help you understand the 23rd Psalm better? So here we go: You cannot be led in the paths of righteousness if your knowledge of the Good Shepherd is only about filling your head without your heart being engaged. I will say it another way: If you are not abiding in the Lord of the 23rd Psalm then you are not finding in Him what you need. If you do not find in Him what you need, then you will not find in Him the green pastures and waters of rest that you were made for. If you do not find in the Good Shepherd the green pastures and waters of rest you that were made for, then you will find that the paths of righteousness that He guides His sheep on as displeasing instead of delightful. Jesus is the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm, and it is He who causes me to lie down in green pastures because He is the green pastures that will never leave me hungry. It is He who leads me to waters of refreshment because He is the Living Water who satisfies the thirsty soul. Jesus restores the soul because He makes all things new! As the great Shepherd of your soul, Jesus guides those who abide in Him in paths of righteousness. There is no guiding apart from abiding in Lordof the 23rd Psalm! Why Does the Shepherd Lead? So, why does He do it? Why does the Good Shepherd guide his sheep in the paths of righteousness? He does it for the sake of His name! What does that even mean? It means that He rescued you from the condemnation of your sins, He gives Himself to you as the Great Shepherd of your soul to meet your need for Him, He provides the green pastures and quiet waters for your good, He renews and restores your soul, and He delivered you from your crooked paths of this world and set you on the straight path of righteousness that only Jesus can provide. God did it all, and He did it by putting His reputation on the line! Our story is summed up in one verse from the prophet Isaiah: All of us, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the wrongdoing of us all To fall on Him (Isa. 53:6). To fall on who you ask? Ah... I am so glad you asked! The sins of us all... fell upon Jesus who is the Lamb, the Lion, and the great Shepherd of our souls! This is why the apostle Peter wrote: ...and He Himself brought our sins in His body up on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness; by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls (1 Pet. 2:24-25). In response to all that Jesus accomplished, Paul wrote those glorious words that ought to thrill every soul that belongs to His flock: What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things (Rom. 8:31-32)? And He does so for His namesake! This is why, when you read Ephesians 1:3-14 regarding how and why God saved you from your sins that we are given three answers: The Father chose us before the foundation of the world and made us sons and daughters through His Son, and why did He do it that way? He did it, to the praise of the glory of His grace... (1:4-6). The Son redeemed us through His blood and now we have the forgiveness of our sins, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us. Why did He do it that way? He did it, to the praise of His glory (1:7-12). The Holy Spirit made our redemption and salvation a guarantee by sealing us as Gods own possession. Why did He do it that way? He did it, to the praise of His glory (1:13-14). He chose his lambs for the sake of His name, He redeemed his lambs for the sake of His name, and He marked His lambs as His treasured possession by His Holy Spirit for the sake of His name! Listen, if the Lord is your shepherd, it is only because you have turned to Jesus for the salvation of our soul: Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other (Isa. 45:22). Listen to what Jesus said concerning all who hear His voice and come to Him for salvation: My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand. I and the Father are one (John 10:27-30). Psalm 23:2 is a picture of the secure life because of who it is that causes us to lie down in green pastures, leads us to inexhaustible and quiet waters, restores and renews our soul, and leads us in the paths of righteousness. The Lord of the 23rd Psalm is the God of Isaiah 46:9-11, Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, My plan will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure; Calling a bird of prey from the east, The man of My purpose from a distant country. Truly I have spoken; truly I will bring it to pass. I have planned it, I will certainly do it. This is why Romans 8:1 is for you Christian: Therefore there is now no condemnation at all for those who are in Christ Jesus. Conclusion So, let me say something you may need to hear. Just because you belong to the Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm, does not mean that you will not struggle with sin. Just because you are abiding in Jesus and love Him truly, does not mean that you will never be tempted by the enemys lies of greener pastures and more satisfying waters. The enemy is a dragon and a thief who comes, only to steal and kill and destroy... Jesus, the Great and Good Shepherd, has come so that we would have life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10). There are no greener pastures or quieter waters than what can be found and experienced in Jesus. The danger for some is that the less that you listen to His voice, the less you will delight in His Word and the less frequent you will want to abide in Him. Permit me to close with a warning from David Gibson: Life is a journey, not a viewing gallery; we are always on the move, always traveling, and were going with either Jesuss paths or a different shepherds paths. Maybe its what youre consuming online. Maybe its the choices you are making with your money or your time. Two degrees of divergence this year might mean a miles divergence next year. Take time to consider the road you are walking, who is leading you, and where that path might end. In my experience I have found that wrong steps in life are nearly always the outworking of a prior neglect of listening to Jesus speak in the Bible. When devotion to hearing his voice begins to dwindle, then eventually, inevitably, departure from his paths begins to follow.[2] There is no greener pasture outside of Jesus, for He alone is the Lord of the 23rd Psalm. Amen. [1] J. Josh Smith and Daniel L. Akin, Exalting Jesus in Psalms 150, ed. David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2022), 174. [2] David Gibson, The Lord of Psalm 23: Jesus Our Shepherd, Companion, and Host (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2023), 49.

The Psalms are the song book of the Bible, and as you are probably aware, songs and poems are written out of the deep well of the human heart. The difference between the Psalms and every other song or poem is that the Psalms are inspired by God Almighty and are the Word of God. Of all the Psalms, it is the Psalm before us that is most familiar. In my opinion, what the Lords prayer is to the New Testament, Psalm 23 is to the Old Testament. It is that familiar, and it is familiar for good reason. Think for a moment what it is that Psalm 23 says of all those whose God is the Lord: He does not leave His sheep to themselves, but leads them to the place of life, nourishment, and rest with the assurance that He will not lose any that belong to Him. As the Shepherd, He promises to be with His sheep in the face of death and will stand before them in the face of the enemy. As the Shepherd of His sheep, those who belong to Him will only know His faithfulness and love which is a promise that not even death can take what belongs to the Lord, who is the Shepherd. No wonder why this Psalm is often included in so many funerals or read at the bedside of the sick and dying. However, there is a danger with the amount of exposure we have had with the 23rd Psalm, and that danger is as the saying goes: Familiarity breeds contempt. By being so familiar with the Psalm, we can lose respect for what it says or miss the point of the Psalm altogether. My hope is that in the weeks to come, you will gain a better understanding of what this Psalm means for you and that over the weeks to come, you will experience the Lord of the 23rd Psalm. Who is The Lord of Psalm 23? For you and me to appreciate the 23rd Psalm, we have got to understand who the shepherd of the Psalm is. For starters, He is not just any old shepherd, He is the shepherd to all who truly know Him to be the Lord. One of the ways we can lose respect for this Psalm is to assume that it applies to any and all people. In the very first verse we are told that for the Lord to be the shepherd of any person, that person must belong to Him. The key word used in this verse is known as a possessive determiner, and that word is my. The way that you can know that He is your Lord is found in the second half of the first verse: ...I will not be in need. You can know that you are not in need because you have the Lord as your shepherd, and the way that you know that He is your Lord is because you understand that there is no other lord in this world that gives you what only He can give you. I have officiated many funeral and memorial services over the years, and my fear is that for some, the 23rd Psalm was printed on their memorial card more for the beauty of the Psalm than for how the deceased loved, followed, and identified with the God the Psalm describes. Before you can ever claim the kind of comfort and assurance the Psalm is meant to provide, you must answer who the Lord of the 23rd Psalm is first. The Shepherd of Psalm 23 is Yahweh The Lord that David refers in Psalm 23 is Yahweh. The first time the Hebrew people were introduced to God as Yahweh is in Exodus 3 when Moses encountered God through the burning bush. Just so you know, there are many different names for God used to describe His character and nature; the name used that is Gods covenantal name is Yahweh. After 40 years of working for his father-in-law Jethro in the wilderness, God called out to Moses from a burning bush. Moses was in the wilderness because he had killed an Egyptian guard, buried his body in the sand, learned that it was known that he did it, and had fled Egypt and went into hiding. As Moses got closer to the burning bush, God told him to remove his sandals in His presence because the ground he was standing was now holy. God then told Moses that He heard the cries of His people and planned to use the now 80-year-old man to deliver the Hebrew people from the bondage of slavery in Egypt. God was not going to send Moses into Egypt before Pharaoh alone, for God assured him: I will be with you (v. 12). Moses then asked what name he was to give to the Hebrews when he went back into Egypt; here is what he said: Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you. Now they may say to me, What is His name? What shall I say to them (v. 13)? Gods answer gets at the heart of what Yahweh means: I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the sons of Israel: I AM has sent me to you (v. 14). At the heart of Gods answer are four facts about God for why the Israelites should believe God would deliver them: Yahweh is the Creator who is above all other gods man may make. Because Yahweh is the Creator, He sustains all things, governs all things, is sovereign over all things, and owns all things. As Yahweh, God is eternal, for He had no beginning and will have no end; He is the Alpha and the Omega, and as the Alpha and Omega, He is the first and the last. The essence of what Yahweh means is found in verse 14, And God said to Moses, I AM WHO I AM; and He said, This is what you shall say to the sons of Israel: I AM has sent me to you. God told Moses: You tell the Hebrew slaves that I AM WHO I AM sent me to you. To wrap our minds around what God told Moses, I need to ask you in terms of your occupation or what you are currently doing day to day each week, Who are you? I am not asking if you are a Christian or not, I am asking what is it that requires your time? If I were to ask you to write down who you are, you may write: I am an electrician. Or I am a teacher. You might write down, I am a programmer. You might write down, I am a stay-at-home mother. I am a dad, a mom, a grandmother, or grandfather. Here is the thing with all of that, the answer you give today to that question will one day change. One day you will not be able to work, one day you will retire, one day your children will move out of your home to begin a family of their own, and one day you will die. However, with God, He is I AM WHO I AM. One pastor said that what God said to Moses through the burning bush is the equivalent of saying: I BE WHO I BE. The point is that we change, but the Lord does not change, nor will He ever change. Why? Because Yahweh is infinitely and perfectly self-sufficient and self-existent; if you belong to Him, He is your shepherd and there is no other god or lord that you need! David Gibson, in his book, The Lord of Psalm 23, put it this way: ...the one whom you need to shepherd you neither needs you nor needs to be shepherded himself as he gives himself to shepherd you. He shepherds you from his eternally undiminishing fullness, and he is never the poorer for it.[1] The Lord of the 23rd Psalm is unchanging, and it does not matter what you think of Him or what you make of Him, He is eternally who He has always been, what He still is today, and what He will always be: He is the Great I AM WHO I AM; He is Yahweh! However, what He may or may not be to you is your Shepherd. There is only one way to come to know Yahweh as your shepherd. Jesus is the Shepherd of Psalm 23 What dominates this Psalm is the promise of a life much fuller and richer than anything that any other god or lord can offer. The life that the Lord of the 23rd Psalm provides is the abundant life! The kind of life that the Shepherd of Psalm 23 provides is one that includes food to satisfy the hungry, water to quench the thirsty, security for the vulnerable, and rest for the burdened sheep who come to the Shepherd out of a desperate awareness that all that the Shepherd is and has, is all that the sheep need. There are a number of statements Jesus said about Himself that include the phrase: I Am... Just about every time He used that phrase, it unhinged the religious leaders of His day because they understood where that phrase was coming from, for it came from Exodus 3 when God said to Moses that He, Yahweh, was I AM Who I AM. One of those statements is found in the gospel of John and the way that He said it, there can be no confusion what it was that He was claiming: I am the good shepherd, and I know My own, and My own know Me... (John 10:14). Jesus said the only way to know the shepherd of the 23rd Psalm is by knowing who He is, believing in all that He claimed to be, and acting on what you know and believe concerning Him. Consider some of the things Jesus said about Himself: If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water. (John 7:3738) Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light. (Matt. 11:2830) The reason Jesus was able to say these kinds of things was because He was, and is, and will forever be the good shepherd of the 23rd Psalm! This is why He said, Truly, truly I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All those who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly (John 10:710). Again David Gibson offers the following insight of what it means to have the Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm: Psalm 23 is about abundant life. It is more about the happiness of living than the sadness of dying, and all of the happiness is bound up with being able to say that this Lord who is a shepherd is also my shepherd.[2] So I ask you dear friend, who is the Shepherd to you? Is He your Shepherd because He is your Lord? Is He your Lord because you have found Him to be the Bread of Life who alone satisfies your hunger for more? Is He your Shepherd because in Jesus you have found Him to be the Living Water who alone is able to quench your thirsty soul? Can you honestly say, The Lord is my shepherd, I will not be in need (Ps. 23:1). It will not do to only have Psalm 23 posted on your memorial card after you die unless you have found Jesus to be your life today. So, have you responded to His call? You do know that Jesus was talking about you when He said, I have other sheep that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice; and they will become one flock, with one shepherd (John 10:16). Have you heard the voice of the Good Shepherd, and do you listen to His voice? Or can it be said of you by the Lord of Psalm 23, Now why do you call Me, Lord, Lord, and do not do what I say (Luke 6:46)? There is a 460-year-old Catechism that has been passed down from generation to generation for the purpose of reminding and encouraging Christians of all ages that just as the God Moses encountered is unchanging, so is the great Shepherd of our souls, Jesus Christ, who is the same yesterday and today, and forever (Heb. 13:8). The catechism I speak of is the Heidelberg Catechism, and it begins with this question: What is your only comfort in life and death? Its answer is as follows: That I, with body and soul, both in life and in death,am not my own,but belong to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ, who with His precious blood has fully satisfied for all my sins, and redeemed me from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me, that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, that all things must work together for my salvation.Wherefore, by His Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life,and makes me heartily willing and ready henceforth to live unto Him. If you do know the Lord of the 23rd Psalm, and I suspect that you do, then Psalm 23 is for you in both life and death! 1The Lord is my shepherd, I will not be in need. 2He lets me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. 3He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For the sake of His name. 4Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. 5You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows. 6Certainly goodness and faithfulness will follow me All the days of my life, And my dwelling will be in the house of the Lord forever. Amen. [1] David Gibson, The Lord of Psalm 23: Jesus Our Shepherd, Companion, and Host (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2024), p. 16. [2] Ibid., p. 22.

In this segment (of our 2-part series), Bible teacher Dave Bigler (founder of Iron Sheep Ministries) does an overview of Bible translation theory and covers all major Bible translations from the pre-Christ Septuagint to modern day translations.Watch part 1 on Textual Criticism here: https://youtu.be/UO2FgjZ87r4Talk Outline:00:11 - What is the Goal00:39 - REVIEW - part 1 lecture on Textual Criticism- WHEN, WHY, and HOW were NT spread- Textual Criticism- Confidence in our text- God is sovereign (2 Tim 3:16-17)04:50 - Why are Bible Translations so controversial?06:51 - Why are there translations? Languages change, New manuscripts are found, & Translation theory10:11 - Translation Theory- Formal Equivalence (word for word)- Focus on a literal translation of the words of the text- Dynamic (or Functional) Equivalence (thought for thought)- Paraphrase 12:21 - Ancient translations to today13:10 - Septuagint (LXX - 280 - 100 BC)Earliest translation of the Bible. It is a Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible (before Christ and the NT). 72 translators (6 from each tribe of Israel), translated at the request of the King in Alexandria. The name was eventually shortened from 72, to just 70. Septuagint is Latin for 70.15:47 - Latin Vulgate (VUL 404 AD)Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymusin aka “Jerome” was a student of languages. He was charged by Pope Damasus to complete a translation of the OT and NT into the “common tongue.” Name: Vulgate “common or commonly known.”17:18 - Wycliffe Bible (WYC - 1382)John Wycliffe was an Oxford theologian who wanted the English people to have a Bible in their own language. Wycliffe's Bible was done by hand. It is a word-for-word translation of the Latin Vulgate. Wycliffe was heavily criticized by the Church of Rome as well as the Church of England because he taught that salvation was only available through the suffering of Christ, not through the power of the church. Wycliffe was called “The Morning Star of the Reformation.” In 1415, John Wycliffe was condemned as a heretic and in 1428 (44 years after Wycliffe's death) the Bishop of England ordered Wycliffe's remains exhumed and burned and the ashes thrown into the river.22:31 - Gutenberg Bible (1455) 1450 - Johann Gutenberg invented the Gutenberg press23:18 - The Protestant Reformation. Revolt from the abuses and totalitarian control of the Roman Catholic Church. Martin Luther (Germany), John Calvin (France), Ulrich Zwingli (Switzerland) were foundational in the protestant reformation. 26:03 - Tyndale Bible (1534)28:15 - Geneva Bible (1560)30:29 - King James Bible (1611)35:08 - Modern English translations.36:07 - Interlinear Bible38:53 - New American Standard Bible NASB39:57 - Amplified Bible AMP42:00 - English Standard Version ESV42:56 - King James Version KJV43:18 - What is the received text or textus receptus?45:03 - New King James Version NKJV45:57 - Christian Standard Bible CSB or HCSB47:17 - New International Version NIV49:00 - New Living Translation NLT50:02 - Good News Bible GNB50:44 - The Message MSG53:05 - Bad translations of the Bible53:35 - What is the Thomas Jefferson Bible?55:28 - what is the New World Translation of the Bible?57:45 - What now, what do you do with this information?Resources:https://www.blueletterbible.org/https://www.biblegateway.com/https://www.gotquestions.org/Books used for this talk:Gurry, Peter J.. Scribes & Scripture. Weatonm, IL: Crossway, 2022.Lightfoot, Neil R.. How we got our Bible. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2003.More information on Dave Bigler and Iron Sheep Ministries: https://ironsheep.org

We come to the end of Ephesians today. At the beginning of his letter to these dear Christians, Paul prayed that they would come to know the significance of what it meant to be a Christian and what it meant to be the Church: I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe (Eph. 1:1819a). Isnt this what we want for our own selves? To see with the eyes of our hearts the hope we have because of Gods calling, to wrap our hearts around the profound implications of what it means to belong to God as His inheritance, and to have our hearts full with the reality that the boundless greatness of the power of Almighty God now belongs to those of us who have been redeemed by Gods own Son. What does it mean to be a Christian? What does it mean to be the Church? The answer is provided for us more than 200 times in the New Testament and over 30 times in Ephesians alone; the answer given for what it means to be a Christian and what it means to be the Church is that you are a Christian and you belong to His church if you are in Christ. Before He spoke Creation into existence, God chose you and set His love upon you for the purpose that you would be holy and blameless... in Christ (1:4-6). Your sin was not so great to keep you from the love of God, for He made your salvation and redemption possible through His Son who died upon a cross for your sins and lavished His grace upon you (vv. 7-12). You have been sealed by the Holy Spirit which guarantees your complete and total salvation... and He did it in Christ (vv. 13-14). Oh, dear Christian, what did you ever do to deserve so great a salvation? Nothing, because all of it was provided for you in and through Christ! The Christ who was raised from the dead and seated at the right hand of the Father in the heavenly places is now yours (1:20-21)! The Christ who is far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, the One to Whom belongs the obedience of the nations, and He who is head over all things... is now yours (vv. 22-23)! Christian, what did you do to receive Him as yours? You who were once dead in your offenses and sins, was there anything in you that warranted Gods grace? You were listed among the sons of disobedience, you lived in the lusts of your flesh, you indulged the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and because of your sins... you were categorized by the Almighty as a child of wrath (2:1-3). What was it about you that compelled God to save you instead of leaving you in your sins? It was His rich mercy, His great love, and His all-sufficient grace that made you alive in Christ (vv. 4-9). You are now in Christ, and all because of Christ! Now that you have been saved by Christ, you who were once far away have been brought near so that He is now your truth, He is now your righteousness, and He is now your peace (2:11-16). You are now united to Christ and belong to His body (4:1-32). As a member of His body, you now belong to the Bride of Christ, and because you are His Bride, Jesus is cleansing and sanctifying you through His word and the power of the Holy Spirit (5:22-32). So, when you come to Ephesians 6:10 and read: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might you should know by now where it is that you are able to find that strength. It is found... in Christ. We are strong in the Lord when we put on the full armor of God. Yet, the irony is that it is already provided because of our union in Jesus. He is our belt of truth, He is our breastplate of righteousness, He is our peace through the gospel, He is our shield of faith, He is our helmet of salvation, and He is our sword of the Spirit. We are stronger in the Lord the more we recognize our weakness and how much we need to pursue Him. Listen, the only way you will discover how weak you are is by seeing how big God is, how sufficient Jesus is as your Savior, and how powerful the Holy Spirit is as the One who is keeping you. How We Are to Pray So here is what I want to do with the remainder of our time together. First, I want to look at how we are to pray and then I hope to show you what that kind of praying is where the power of the armor of God is experienced. There are four categories of prayer that ought to be a part of our prayer life as Christians listed in Ephesians 6:18. The Greek word that is used four times in verse 18 that can be translated all or every is the Greek word, pas (ᾶ). Some versions of the Bible have chosen to translate pas as all every time it is used in verse 18, while others like new version of the NASB translate pas as every and all. In an effort to make the translation read smoothly, the NASB translates it this way: With every [pas] prayer and request, pray at all [pas] times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be alert with all [pas] perseverance and every request for all [pas] the saints... So how are we to pray? We are to pray in ALL ways to God (v. 18a). What are the ways you can pray? You can pray quietly to God. You can pray vocally to God. You can pray with groups of other Christians to God. You can pray privately to God. You can pray while prostrate on your face to God. You can pray while standing, you can pray while kneeling, and you can pray while walking. You can pray with your eyes closed, you can pray with your eyes open, and you can pray with your head bowed or lifted up. You can pray in all ways to God because of who you are in Christ. We are to pray at ALL times to God (v. 18b). You can pray in the evening to God. You can pray in the morning to God. You can pray midday to God. You can pray while suffering, while hungry, while in good health, or when in ill health. It does not matter what the circumstances are or if it is in the early morning hours or in the midnight hour... there is no time when Gods door is shut, or His time limited so that His redeemed children are not permitted to come before Him in prayer. We are to pray with ALL perseverance (v. 18c). While we pray in all ways and at all times in the Spirit, we are to do so while alert and do so persistently. We stand between the first advent and the second advent when Jesus will come again as King, until He comes again, we are to remain alert for two reasons: first, while we wait, we are in enemy territory where our adversary is categorized as a roaring lion who longs to destroy and devour (1 Pet. 5:8). Jesus told His disciples that while we wait for His return that we must, Watch out, stay alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is (Mark 13:33). Sinclair Ferguson said of prayer: Christ is building his church on territory that has been occupied by an enemy. Alertness is always essential when living in a war zone.[1] We are to pray for ALL the saints (v. 18d). In the same way that we pray for ourselves, we must also pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ! We do not just pray for those who we agree with theologically, but for every Christian regardless of where they fellowship, what church they attend, or in what part of the world they live. This also means praying for your spouse, praying for your children, praying for your grandchildren, and anyone else in your world who believes in Jesus. When it comes to their relationship with God, God cares more about their spiritual health than you ever could, so pray expecting that God can do, far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think... (3:20) in the lives of those saints you pray for more than your imagination can come up with. There is a fifth way we are to pray: We are to pray in all ways and at all times in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the power that makes the armor of God effective so that you can stand strong, stand against the schemes of the devil, and stand firm on the evil day. The Power of the Armor of God is in Who it Belongs To To Pray in the Spirit according to Ephesians 6:18 is not to pray in tongues, that is a different type of praying addressed elsewhere in the Bible, but not here. When we pray in the Spirit, we pray with the confidence that we have access to God Almighty who spoke billions of stars into existence with just the word of His power; not only does He hear us as our Heavenly Father, but He can, do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think (3:20) because we are in Christ and He is our Heavenly father. It is the kind of confidence we read about in Romans 8:14-16, For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons and daughters of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, Abba! Father! The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God... Do you remember what I said about what it meant to be filled with the Holy Spirit when we covered Ephesians 4:30 and 5:18 in this sermon series? I said to be filled with the Spirit is not about you getting more of the Holy Spirit, but about the Holy Spirit getting more of you. The more of you that the Holy Spirit has, the more power of the Holy Spirit you will experience! Same is true when it comes to experiencing the strength of the Lord: the more of our hearts, the more of our obedience, and the more of our dependance He has of us... the more of His strength we will experience through His Holy Spirit. The power of the Armor of God is not in our ability to put it on but in the One who it belongs to! This brings us back full circle from what we read in the first sentence of Ephesians (1:1-14) to Ephesians 6:18-24. Conclusion The baby born on the first Christmas and laid in a manger is Christ the Lord! He who was born of a virgin, is the same One who formed Mary in her own mothers womb. The One who through whom all things were created, was laid in a manger for the purpose of carrying a cross to die for sinners. The One who lived the life we could not, to die a death we deserved is not only our Savior, but our Mediator: For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all... (1 Tim. 2:56). The Christ in the manger is ours not because of anything we have done, but because of His victory on the cross and over the grave: In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us (Eph. 1:7-8a). So, it makes perfect sense that Paul would conclude his letter with a call to all of those who are in Christ to pray in the Spirit in all ways, all the time, with all perseverance, and for all the saints because in Jesus, we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens... (Heb. 9:1). If you are a Christian, then one of the things you learn from Ephesians is that you are in Christ. To be in Christ means that you now share an unbreakable union with Christ because that union was chosen by God the Father, purchased by His Sons own blood, and sealed by His Holy Spirit. Prayer is the fruit of our union in Christ, prayer is communion we have with God, prayer is the direct access we have to God because of our union in Christ. Prayer is the power source to the strength of the Lord that is available to the Christian with the armor of God. Jesus is the belt of truth, which is your identity in Him, but the security you have with Jesus as your truth will only be as firm as your understanding and confidence that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). Jesus is your breastplate of righteousness, but your confidence in Him as your righteousness will only be as firm as your confidence that His righteousness is all the righteousness that you will ever need. Jesus is the shoes of the gospel of peace, but the extent you will be able to stand firm in the gospel will only be as secure as your understanding of the reality of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the shield of faith, but your shield will only be as large as your understanding of who He is based on how saturated your faith in the Word of God is. Jesus is the helmet of salvation, but the hope of your salvation will only be as effective as your joy in just how great your salvation really is. Jesus is the sword of the Spirit in that all the word of God points to Him, but your ability to wield the truth of Gods word will only be as effective as you are willing to use it. Prayer is what happens when you understand how weak you are and how big God really is. Prayer is the evidence that we are growing in our relationship with Christ! Sam Allberry, in his excellent book, One with My Lord, put it this way: Growth in the Christian life is needing God more, not needing him less. So we will be doing more asking over the years, not less asking. We dont grow out of prayer, just further into it.[2] This is why it is only fitting that Paul would conclude his epistle with the appeal to pray at all times! The more we seek God out of a growing awareness of our weakness, the more like Jesus we will become. Again Sam Allberry is spot on: Prayer is not about bending God to our wills but about expressing our own wills as they are being bent to his.[3] Here is the thing though: Our union in Christ is not dependent upon our performance as Christians. Our union in Christ was, is, and forever will be dependent upon the life and faithfulness of Jesus. To the extent that we depend upon Him will determine just how much of our hearts He really has, and to the extent of how much of our minds, our hearts, and our will that He has will determine just how much of His power we will experience in our lives. You will never be less in Him than you already are, but His power will only be experienced in and through your life to the extent of how much of you Jesus really has. So, my question to you dear Christian is simply this: How much of you does Jesus really have? Oh, dear brother... oh, dear sister in Christ, do you not want to see with the eyes of your heart the hope of His calling, the riches of His inheritance, and know the power of the Holy Spirit (1:18-19a)? Do you not want to know the joy of a life built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ as your chief cornerstone (2:20)? Do you not long for the kind of life that comes out of comprehending the width and length and height and depth of what you have in Christ (3:14-19)? Are you not tired of the cheap thrills this world offers when it is through Christ that you can know the kind of satisfaction that comes with walking in a manner worthy of the calling in which you have been called (4:1-3)? If you understood your union in Christ, you would seek to enjoy the unity we are called to with those who belong to His Church (4:4-6). If you understood what it is that you share with Christ, you would desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit instead of looking for ways to grieve Him (4:30; 5:18). Oh, because of the great redemption you now enjoy, do you not hate the things that displease Him (5:1-13)? Do you not want to come out of this life smelling like the sweet aroma of Christ; can you not hear the Holy Spirits call upon your life at this very moment: Awake, sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you (5:14)? To be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might (6:10), the ability to stand firm against the devils schemes, and to be able to resist when the evil day comes... will only be experienced more frequently when you see just how weak you are and how sufficient Christ is in all things, in all ways, for all times, and for all people! In so doing, may we be known for our love for Jesus and in the way we live for Him and serve those around us. [1] Sinclair Ferguson, Lets Study Ephesians (Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust; 2021), p. 186. [2] Sam Allberry, One With My Lord (Weaton, IL: Crossway; 2024), p. 151 [3] Sam Allberry, One With My Lord (Weaton, IL: Crossway; 2024), p. 152.

We come to the end of Ephesians today. At the beginning of his letter to these dear Christians, Paul prayed that they would come to know the significance of what it meant to be a Christian and what it meant to be the Church: I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe (Eph. 1:1819a). Isnt this what we want for our own selves? To see with the eyes of our hearts the hope we have because of Gods calling, to wrap our hearts around the profound implications of what it means to belong to God as His inheritance, and to have our hearts full with the reality that the boundless greatness of the power of Almighty God now belongs to those of us who have been redeemed by Gods own Son. What does it mean to be a Christian? What does it mean to be the Church? The answer is provided for us more than 200 times in the New Testament and over 30 times in Ephesians alone; the answer given for what it means to be a Christian and what it means to be the Church is that you are a Christian and you belong to His church if you are in Christ. Before He spoke Creation into existence, God chose you and set His love upon you for the purpose that you would be holy and blameless... in Christ (1:4-6). Your sin was not so great to keep you from the love of God, for He made your salvation and redemption possible through His Son who died upon a cross for your sins and lavished His grace upon you (vv. 7-12). You have been sealed by the Holy Spirit which guarantees your complete and total salvation... and He did it in Christ (vv. 13-14). Oh, dear Christian, what did you ever do to deserve so great a salvation? Nothing, because all of it was provided for you in and through Christ! The Christ who was raised from the dead and seated at the right hand of the Father in the heavenly places is now yours (1:20-21)! The Christ who is far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, the One to Whom belongs the obedience of the nations, and He who is head over all things... is now yours (vv. 22-23)! Christian, what did you do to receive Him as yours? You who were once dead in your offenses and sins, was there anything in you that warranted Gods grace? You were listed among the sons of disobedience, you lived in the lusts of your flesh, you indulged the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and because of your sins... you were categorized by the Almighty as a child of wrath (2:1-3). What was it about you that compelled God to save you instead of leaving you in your sins? It was His rich mercy, His great love, and His all-sufficient grace that made you alive in Christ (vv. 4-9). You are now in Christ, and all because of Christ! Now that you have been saved by Christ, you who were once far away have been brought near so that He is now your truth, He is now your righteousness, and He is now your peace (2:11-16). You are now united to Christ and belong to His body (4:1-32). As a member of His body, you now belong to the Bride of Christ, and because you are His Bride, Jesus is cleansing and sanctifying you through His word and the power of the Holy Spirit (5:22-32). So, when you come to Ephesians 6:10 and read: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might you should know by now where it is that you are able to find that strength. It is found... in Christ. We are strong in the Lord when we put on the full armor of God. Yet, the irony is that it is already provided because of our union in Jesus. He is our belt of truth, He is our breastplate of righteousness, He is our peace through the gospel, He is our shield of faith, He is our helmet of salvation, and He is our sword of the Spirit. We are stronger in the Lord the more we recognize our weakness and how much we need to pursue Him. Listen, the only way you will discover how weak you are is by seeing how big God is, how sufficient Jesus is as your Savior, and how powerful the Holy Spirit is as the One who is keeping you. How We Are to Pray So here is what I want to do with the remainder of our time together. First, I want to look at how we are to pray and then I hope to show you what that kind of praying is where the power of the armor of God is experienced. There are four categories of prayer that ought to be a part of our prayer life as Christians listed in Ephesians 6:18. The Greek word that is used four times in verse 18 that can be translated all or every is the Greek word, pas (ᾶ). Some versions of the Bible have chosen to translate pas as all every time it is used in verse 18, while others like new version of the NASB translate pas as every and all. In an effort to make the translation read smoothly, the NASB translates it this way: With every [pas] prayer and request, pray at all [pas] times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be alert with all [pas] perseverance and every request for all [pas] the saints... So how are we to pray? We are to pray in ALL ways to God (v. 18a). What are the ways you can pray? You can pray quietly to God. You can pray vocally to God. You can pray with groups of other Christians to God. You can pray privately to God. You can pray while prostrate on your face to God. You can pray while standing, you can pray while kneeling, and you can pray while walking. You can pray with your eyes closed, you can pray with your eyes open, and you can pray with your head bowed or lifted up. You can pray in all ways to God because of who you are in Christ. We are to pray at ALL times to God (v. 18b). You can pray in the evening to God. You can pray in the morning to God. You can pray midday to God. You can pray while suffering, while hungry, while in good health, or when in ill health. It does not matter what the circumstances are or if it is in the early morning hours or in the midnight hour... there is no time when Gods door is shut, or His time limited so that His redeemed children are not permitted to come before Him in prayer. We are to pray with ALL perseverance (v. 18c). While we pray in all ways and at all times in the Spirit, we are to do so while alert and do so persistently. We stand between the first advent and the second advent when Jesus will come again as King, until He comes again, we are to remain alert for two reasons: first, while we wait, we are in enemy territory where our adversary is categorized as a roaring lion who longs to destroy and devour (1 Pet. 5:8). Jesus told His disciples that while we wait for His return that we must, Watch out, stay alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is (Mark 13:33). Sinclair Ferguson said of prayer: Christ is building his church on territory that has been occupied by an enemy. Alertness is always essential when living in a war zone.[1] We are to pray for ALL the saints (v. 18d). In the same way that we pray for ourselves, we must also pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ! We do not just pray for those who we agree with theologically, but for every Christian regardless of where they fellowship, what church they attend, or in what part of the world they live. This also means praying for your spouse, praying for your children, praying for your grandchildren, and anyone else in your world who believes in Jesus. When it comes to their relationship with God, God cares more about their spiritual health than you ever could, so pray expecting that God can do, far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think... (3:20) in the lives of those saints you pray for more than your imagination can come up with. There is a fifth way we are to pray: We are to pray in all ways and at all times in the Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the power that makes the armor of God effective so that you can stand strong, stand against the schemes of the devil, and stand firm on the evil day. The Power of the Armor of God is in Who it Belongs To To Pray in the Spirit according to Ephesians 6:18 is not to pray in tongues, that is a different type of praying addressed elsewhere in the Bible, but not here. When we pray in the Spirit, we pray with the confidence that we have access to God Almighty who spoke billions of stars into existence with just the word of His power; not only does He hear us as our Heavenly Father, but He can, do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think (3:20) because we are in Christ and He is our Heavenly father. It is the kind of confidence we read about in Romans 8:14-16, For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons and daughters of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons and daughters by which we cry out, Abba! Father! The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God... Do you remember what I said about what it meant to be filled with the Holy Spirit when we covered Ephesians 4:30 and 5:18 in this sermon series? I said to be filled with the Spirit is not about you getting more of the Holy Spirit, but about the Holy Spirit getting more of you. The more of you that the Holy Spirit has, the more power of the Holy Spirit you will experience! Same is true when it comes to experiencing the strength of the Lord: the more of our hearts, the more of our obedience, and the more of our dependance He has of us... the more of His strength we will experience through His Holy Spirit. The power of the Armor of God is not in our ability to put it on but in the One who it belongs to! This brings us back full circle from what we read in the first sentence of Ephesians (1:1-14) to Ephesians 6:18-24. Conclusion The baby born on the first Christmas and laid in a manger is Christ the Lord! He who was born of a virgin, is the same One who formed Mary in her own mothers womb. The One who through whom all things were created, was laid in a manger for the purpose of carrying a cross to die for sinners. The One who lived the life we could not, to die a death we deserved is not only our Savior, but our Mediator: For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all... (1 Tim. 2:56). The Christ in the manger is ours not because of anything we have done, but because of His victory on the cross and over the grave: In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our wrongdoings, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us (Eph. 1:7-8a). So, it makes perfect sense that Paul would conclude his letter with a call to all of those who are in Christ to pray in the Spirit in all ways, all the time, with all perseverance, and for all the saints because in Jesus, we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens... (Heb. 9:1). If you are a Christian, then one of the things you learn from Ephesians is that you are in Christ. To be in Christ means that you now share an unbreakable union with Christ because that union was chosen by God the Father, purchased by His Sons own blood, and sealed by His Holy Spirit. Prayer is the fruit of our union in Christ, prayer is communion we have with God, prayer is the direct access we have to God because of our union in Christ. Prayer is the power source to the strength of the Lord that is available to the Christian with the armor of God. Jesus is the belt of truth, which is your identity in Him, but the security you have with Jesus as your truth will only be as firm as your understanding and confidence that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). Jesus is your breastplate of righteousness, but your confidence in Him as your righteousness will only be as firm as your confidence that His righteousness is all the righteousness that you will ever need. Jesus is the shoes of the gospel of peace, but the extent you will be able to stand firm in the gospel will only be as secure as your understanding of the reality of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the shield of faith, but your shield will only be as large as your understanding of who He is based on how saturated your faith in the Word of God is. Jesus is the helmet of salvation, but the hope of your salvation will only be as effective as your joy in just how great your salvation really is. Jesus is the sword of the Spirit in that all the word of God points to Him, but your ability to wield the truth of Gods word will only be as effective as you are willing to use it. Prayer is what happens when you understand how weak you are and how big God really is. Prayer is the evidence that we are growing in our relationship with Christ! Sam Allberry, in his excellent book, One with My Lord, put it this way: Growth in the Christian life is needing God more, not needing him less. So we will be doing more asking over the years, not less asking. We dont grow out of prayer, just further into it.[2] This is why it is only fitting that Paul would conclude his epistle with the appeal to pray at all times! The more we seek God out of a growing awareness of our weakness, the more like Jesus we will become. Again Sam Allberry is spot on: Prayer is not about bending God to our wills but about expressing our own wills as they are being bent to his.[3] Here is the thing though: Our union in Christ is not dependent upon our performance as Christians. Our union in Christ was, is, and forever will be dependent upon the life and faithfulness of Jesus. To the extent that we depend upon Him will determine just how much of our hearts He really has, and to the extent of how much of our minds, our hearts, and our will that He has will determine just how much of His power we will experience in our lives. You will never be less in Him than you already are, but His power will only be experienced in and through your life to the extent of how much of you Jesus really has. So, my question to you dear Christian is simply this: How much of you does Jesus really have? Oh, dear brother... oh, dear sister in Christ, do you not want to see with the eyes of your heart the hope of His calling, the riches of His inheritance, and know the power of the Holy Spirit (1:18-19a)? Do you not want to know the joy of a life built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ as your chief cornerstone (2:20)? Do you not long for the kind of life that comes out of comprehending the width and length and height and depth of what you have in Christ (3:14-19)? Are you not tired of the cheap thrills this world offers when it is through Christ that you can know the kind of satisfaction that comes with walking in a manner worthy of the calling in which you have been called (4:1-3)? If you understood your union in Christ, you would seek to enjoy the unity we are called to with those who belong to His Church (4:4-6). If you understood what it is that you share with Christ, you would desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit instead of looking for ways to grieve Him (4:30; 5:18). Oh, because of the great redemption you now enjoy, do you not hate the things that displease Him (5:1-13)? Do you not want to come out of this life smelling like the sweet aroma of Christ; can you not hear the Holy Spirits call upon your life at this very moment: Awake, sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you (5:14)? To be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might (6:10), the ability to stand firm against the devils schemes, and to be able to resist when the evil day comes... will only be experienced more frequently when you see just how weak you are and how sufficient Christ is in all things, in all ways, for all times, and for all people! In so doing, may we be known for our love for Jesus and in the way we live for Him and serve those around us. [1] Sinclair Ferguson, Lets Study Ephesians (Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust; 2021), p. 186. [2] Sam Allberry, One With My Lord (Weaton, IL: Crossway; 2024), p. 151 [3] Sam Allberry, One With My Lord (Weaton, IL: Crossway; 2024), p. 152.

Ancient warfare was fierce. It was close, it was personal, it was dirty, it was aggressive, it was violent, and it was in your face. In preparation for battle, soldiers lined up in tight formation side by side with about three feet separating each soldier so that they could move freely. Every piece of the armor was critically important: The belt kept everything he was wearing in its rightful place, the breastplate protected his vital organs, his shoes were designed so that he could stand his ground and maintain his footing, his shield helped protected him from any weapon that would pierce such as arrows or spears, and his helmet kept his head on his shoulders, protected his mind, line of sight, and neck. The part of his armor that was designed to defend and to harm was his sword. The sword used by Romes soldiers between 3BC and 3AD was a double-edged short sword known as the Gladius. Roman legionaries whose shield defended them from the fiery arrows of the enemy received advanced training in using the Gladius to slash the exposed kneecaps or throat of their enemies while in formation and carried their Gladius sword on their belt, or sometimes on a shoulder strap. It was impossible to forget your belt, breastplate, and shoes when marching into battle because those pieces of the soldiers armor were attached to his person. However, it was possible to leave you shield, helmet, and even your sword back in the camp where it was safe and comfortable, but no skilled and experienced soldier would dare enter battle without those parts of his armor he was required to take up and put on, such as his shield, helmet, and sword. A modern equivalent to just how foolish it would be for a Roman soldier to forget any part of his armor is a Russian soldier who became the 2022 winner of the Darwin Awards. The Darwin Awards are those awards given to honor Charles Darwin by commemorating those who improve the gene pool by removing themselves from it in the most spectacular way possible. Here is the description of the unnamed Russian soldier who won this award: You are wearing body armor in a warzone. You spot abandoned Macbook. You want Macbook. Where to hide it? With quick reflexes a Russian soldier slid that Macbook into his chest armor pocket, replacing a ballistic plate designed to save his life. He was killed in Irpin, and his body was retrieved, providing a hearty laugh for all of Ukraine. 'Instant Karma' They reportedly found a stolen iPad as well. Wonder where the iPad was hidden? I am no soldier, and although I love my Macbook Pro and have a great deal of respect for the way it is designed, even I know enough that in a warzone it is best to keep the ballistic plate in the chest armor pocket because a Macbook was never designed to stop a bullet. Yet, when it comes to the armor of God, how often do we intentionally or unintentionally replace that which is designed to protect with philosophies, ideologies, feelings, and practices that serve the enemy rather than our own protection? What is the Sword of the Spirit We are told what the Sword of the Spirit is in the very same verse: It is the word of God. From Genesis to Revelation the Bible claims at least 3,000 times to be The Word of the Lord. In 2 Timothy 3:16 we are told: All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness... We are told in the Old Testament book, Deuteronomy: ...man shall not live on bread alone, but man shall live on everything that comes out of the mouth of the Lord (8:3), which is a verse Jesus used against the devil when He was being tempted in the wilderness (see Matt. 4:1-11). In the Psalms, we learn of the written word of God: The Law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes (Ps. 19:7-8). As it relates to the authority of Gods word, we are instructed through the prophet Isaiah: This is what the Lord says: Heaven is My throne and the earth is the footstool for My feet. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? For My hand made all these things, so all these things came into being, declares the Lord. But I will look to this one, at one who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who trembles at My word (Isa. 66:12). From Genesis to Revelation the Bible claims at least 3,000 times to be The Word of the Lord. The word of God in written form is contained in the 66 books that make up our Bible. When Paul wrote that all Scripture is inspired by God..., we believe that it is a reference to all of the Old Testament and New Testament books that make up the Bible that were written over a period of hundreds of years with many different contributors who were all guided and inspired by the Holy Spirit, so that what you have before you is a supernatural book unlike any other book, that is without error. It is upon the word of God, both Old Testament (the prophets) and the New Testament (the apostles) that Jesus Church is being built upon (see Eph. 2:19-22). It is the written word of God that has supernatural and transformative power to shape and transform Gods people, for from the imagery of the Roman Gladius the author of Hebrews wrote: For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Heb. 4:12). Regarding the Word of God, Jesus prayed to the Father for His church: I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I am not asking You to take them out of the world, but to keep them away from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth (John 17:1417). In just one chapter earlier, Paul said that the way Jesus is purifying and sanctifying His church is, by the washing of the water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless (Eph. 5:26-27). So, we know what the word of God is; the question we must answer is how do we use it as the Sword of the Spirit? How Do We Use the Sword of the Spirit To answer that question, you need to know something about the two words that are used in reference to the word of God, and they are logos and rhēma. Logos is often translated as word or message. Rhēma is often translated word, saying, or statement. In Hebrews 4:12 and Isaiah 66:2 (in the Greek Septuagint) the word logos is used in reference to the Word of God. In Deuteronomy 8:3 (in the Greek Septuagint) and Ephesians 6:17, the word rhēma is used. So, whats the point? Both words are used in reference to the written and spoken word of God and its authority is based on the fact that it has come from God. Listen, every word in the Bible is authoritative because it is the Word of God and is used by the Holy Spirit of God to transform and shape the people of God. When you read or speak out loud the Word of God, as it is given within all 66 books of the Holy Bible, the voice of God is heard through His word. Pauls words in Ephesians 6:17 are calculated and carefully crafted through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; do not miss what is written: Take... the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. God always uses the authority of His own words with the power of His Holy Spirit to transform, change, and divinely challenge! So, how does one use the Word of God as the offensive sword of the Spirit? Jesus showed us how to use it as an offensive weapon when he was approached three times by the devil. In Matthew 4:1-17 and Luke 4:1-13 we are given the details of Jesus 40 days of fasting in the same wilderness that Israel wondered for 40 years because of their failure to believe and obey the word of God. Each of the temptations Jesus faced was like one of the temptations Israel faced and failed, by sinning. When Israel was in the wilderness, they complained about their lack of food (see Exod. 16). The devil came to Jesus and tempted Him with these words: If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. Jesus answered with the word of God from Deuteronomy 8:3, It is written: Man Shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of God (Matt. 4:3-4). In the wilderness, Israel frequently put God to the test, so with the second temptation Satan took Jesus to the top of the temple and said, If you are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written: He will give His angels orders concerning You; and On their hands they will lift You up, so that You do not strike Your foot against a stone. The devil even quoted and twisted Psalm 91 to try to get Jesus to fall into the same sin Israel fell into in the wilderness. Again, Jesus responded rightly and skillfully with the word of God: You shall not put the Lord Your God to the Test. (Matt. 4:5-7). In the wilderness and throughout Israels history, they were frequently guilty of false worship. In an effort to get Jesus to fall into the same sin, Satan tried to get Jesus to avoid the cross by worshiping him, to which Jesus responded with the sword of the Spirit: You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only (Matt. 4:8-11). Jesus used the sword of the Spirit to counter the Devils temptations. Did you ever notice that two of the three temptations Jesus faced were not inherently evil; it is not wrong to eat when you are hungry nor is it wrong to expect God to save you from harm. However, the scheming of the Devil was to try and get the Son of God to not trust the Fathers plan but to use a different plan that would have avoided the cross. We often counter our temptation to sin with human reason by believing another way is better than Gods way. Think about the way we reason our way out of obedience to God: I know Gods word says sex is a gift to be enjoyed within the covenant of marriage, but were in love and were going to get married anyway; or Its only a little lie. Sometimes it is more subtle: I know Gods word says, there must be no filthiness or foolish talk, or vulgar joking..., but at least it is not a 4-letter word, its not gossip if it is a prayer request, its just an innocent joke... I know that Gods word says that, sexual immorality or impurity is sinful, but its only a few scenes in the movie. Or... It only happens once a month... What if we learned from the way Jesus responded to temptation by countering our own with the Word of God? Imagine what would have happened if, in the Garden, Adam responded to the serpents temptation with the Word of God? You can take up the word of God as the sword of the Spirit or you can leave it in its sheath. Here is the thing though, just as handling a sword effectively takes some skill that can only come if you take it out of its sheath, to handle the sword of the Spirit with skill you must take it out and use it. To handle the Word of God with skill, you need to use it by reading it, studying it, memorizing it, and immerse yourself into it so that it can do what God designed it to do, which is to change you, mold you, cleanse you, and guide you. Just as you will never improve your shooting skills if you do not get out to a range and shoot, or a martial artist will only be as skilled as his time in the dojo practicing his techniques, so it is true with handling the word of God with skill. Just as there are resources to improve your aim, or your skills as a martial artist, so there are resources that God has provided through pastors, theologians, scholars, and Christian publishers to improve your skills in handling the word of God. In his letter to Timothy, Paul wrote, Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15). Some think that this verse is only applicable to pastors, but do you know why we know that is not true? How do we know that every Christian needs to strive to be able to accurately handle the word of truth? Because of what Jesus commanded every Christian: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matt. 28:1920). Conclusion Remember that the schemes belong to the devil, but the armor of God belongs to God! The sword of the Spirit is no exception! The list of Gods armor begins with the belt of truth, and it concludes with the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. What we have discovered about the armor of God is that the belt of truth is our identity in Jesus, the breastplate of righteousness is our righteousness in Jesus, the shoes of the gospel of peace is our redemption that Jesus has made possible, the shield of faith is provided through Jesus, the helmet of salvation is the hope of our salvation in Jesus, and the sword of the Spirit is the word of God that points us back to... Jesus! We learn from the Bible that all the promises of God through His word find their yes and Amen in and through Jesus Christ (see 2 Cor. 19-22). In fact, Jesus is not only Gods Yes to all of His promises, Jesus is Gods most perfect revelation of Himself because He is the living Word of God! In the opening verses of the Gospel of John, we learn that as the Word of God, All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being.And as the Word of God, He, became flesh, and dwelt among us... (John 1:1-14). Not only is Jesus your belt, not only is He your breastplate, not only is He your peace, not only is He your shield and your helmet... Jesus is your sword! How do you remain strong in the Lord? You must find Him to be your life! In closing, I read something in Iain Duguids little book, titled, The Whole Armor of God, what I am about to read to you is the essence of the Christmas message: As the Word of God, he [Jesus] spoke the world into existence. As the Word of God, he uniquely reveals to us the Father. As the Word of God, he is Gods final communication to this broken and now redeemed world, come to heal the sick, rescue the lost, restore the broken, and lift up the downcast.... The Word of God in its cleansing work serves as a set of shears, a scalpel, and a sword. Ask God to equip you with these three different tools, each one uniquely crafted to help us in the fight against temptation by the world, the flesh, and the devil. All that sanctifying power flows into your life through the work of the Holy Spirit applying his Word. And when you fail and fall, as you often will, the Sword of the Spirit points you back again to the fact that the gospel is still true and Christs power is still sufficient to keep you safe and bring you at last into your heavenly inheritance.[1] [1] Iain M. Duguid, The Whole Armor of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2019), pp. 101-02.

Ancient warfare was fierce. It was close, it was personal, it was dirty, it was aggressive, it was violent, and it was in your face. In preparation for battle, soldiers lined up in tight formation side by side with about three feet separating each soldier so that they could move freely. Every piece of the armor was critically important: The belt kept everything he was wearing in its rightful place, the breastplate protected his vital organs, his shoes were designed so that he could stand his ground and maintain his footing, his shield helped protected him from any weapon that would pierce such as arrows or spears, and his helmet kept his head on his shoulders, protected his mind, line of sight, and neck. The part of his armor that was designed to defend and to harm was his sword. The sword used by Romes soldiers between 3BC and 3AD was a double-edged short sword known as the Gladius. Roman legionaries whose shield defended them from the fiery arrows of the enemy received advanced training in using the Gladius to slash the exposed kneecaps or throat of their enemies while in formation and carried their Gladius sword on their belt, or sometimes on a shoulder strap. It was impossible to forget your belt, breastplate, and shoes when marching into battle because those pieces of the soldiers armor were attached to his person. However, it was possible to leave you shield, helmet, and even your sword back in the camp where it was safe and comfortable, but no skilled and experienced soldier would dare enter battle without those parts of his armor he was required to take up and put on, such as his shield, helmet, and sword. A modern equivalent to just how foolish it would be for a Roman soldier to forget any part of his armor is a Russian soldier who became the 2022 winner of the Darwin Awards. The Darwin Awards are those awards given to honor Charles Darwin by commemorating those who improve the gene pool by removing themselves from it in the most spectacular way possible. Here is the description of the unnamed Russian soldier who won this award: You are wearing body armor in a warzone. You spot abandoned Macbook. You want Macbook. Where to hide it? With quick reflexes a Russian soldier slid that Macbook into his chest armor pocket, replacing a ballistic plate designed to save his life. He was killed in Irpin, and his body was retrieved, providing a hearty laugh for all of Ukraine. 'Instant Karma' They reportedly found a stolen iPad as well. Wonder where the iPad was hidden? I am no soldier, and although I love my Macbook Pro and have a great deal of respect for the way it is designed, even I know enough that in a warzone it is best to keep the ballistic plate in the chest armor pocket because a Macbook was never designed to stop a bullet. Yet, when it comes to the armor of God, how often do we intentionally or unintentionally replace that which is designed to protect with philosophies, ideologies, feelings, and practices that serve the enemy rather than our own protection? What is the Sword of the Spirit We are told what the Sword of the Spirit is in the very same verse: It is the word of God. From Genesis to Revelation the Bible claims at least 3,000 times to be The Word of the Lord. In 2 Timothy 3:16 we are told: All Scripture is inspired by God and beneficial for teaching, for rebuke, for correction, for training in righteousness... We are told in the Old Testament book, Deuteronomy: ...man shall not live on bread alone, but man shall live on everything that comes out of the mouth of the Lord (8:3), which is a verse Jesus used against the devil when He was being tempted in the wilderness (see Matt. 4:1-11). In the Psalms, we learn of the written word of God: The Law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes (Ps. 19:7-8). As it relates to the authority of Gods word, we are instructed through the prophet Isaiah: This is what the Lord says: Heaven is My throne and the earth is the footstool for My feet. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? For My hand made all these things, so all these things came into being, declares the Lord. But I will look to this one, at one who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who trembles at My word (Isa. 66:12). From Genesis to Revelation the Bible claims at least 3,000 times to be The Word of the Lord. The word of God in written form is contained in the 66 books that make up our Bible. When Paul wrote that all Scripture is inspired by God..., we believe that it is a reference to all of the Old Testament and New Testament books that make up the Bible that were written over a period of hundreds of years with many different contributors who were all guided and inspired by the Holy Spirit, so that what you have before you is a supernatural book unlike any other book, that is without error. It is upon the word of God, both Old Testament (the prophets) and the New Testament (the apostles) that Jesus Church is being built upon (see Eph. 2:19-22). It is the written word of God that has supernatural and transformative power to shape and transform Gods people, for from the imagery of the Roman Gladius the author of Hebrews wrote: For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, even penetrating as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Heb. 4:12). Regarding the Word of God, Jesus prayed to the Father for His church: I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I am not asking You to take them out of the world, but to keep them away from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth (John 17:1417). In just one chapter earlier, Paul said that the way Jesus is purifying and sanctifying His church is, by the washing of the water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless (Eph. 5:26-27). So, we know what the word of God is; the question we must answer is how do we use it as the Sword of the Spirit? How Do We Use the Sword of the Spirit To answer that question, you need to know something about the two words that are used in reference to the word of God, and they are logos and rhēma. Logos is often translated as word or message. Rhēma is often translated word, saying, or statement. In Hebrews 4:12 and Isaiah 66:2 (in the Greek Septuagint) the word logos is used in reference to the Word of God. In Deuteronomy 8:3 (in the Greek Septuagint) and Ephesians 6:17, the word rhēma is used. So, whats the point? Both words are used in reference to the written and spoken word of God and its authority is based on the fact that it has come from God. Listen, every word in the Bible is authoritative because it is the Word of God and is used by the Holy Spirit of God to transform and shape the people of God. When you read or speak out loud the Word of God, as it is given within all 66 books of the Holy Bible, the voice of God is heard through His word. Pauls words in Ephesians 6:17 are calculated and carefully crafted through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; do not miss what is written: Take... the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. God always uses the authority of His own words with the power of His Holy Spirit to transform, change, and divinely challenge! So, how does one use the Word of God as the offensive sword of the Spirit? Jesus showed us how to use it as an offensive weapon when he was approached three times by the devil. In Matthew 4:1-17 and Luke 4:1-13 we are given the details of Jesus 40 days of fasting in the same wilderness that Israel wondered for 40 years because of their failure to believe and obey the word of God. Each of the temptations Jesus faced was like one of the temptations Israel faced and failed, by sinning. When Israel was in the wilderness, they complained about their lack of food (see Exod. 16). The devil came to Jesus and tempted Him with these words: If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. Jesus answered with the word of God from Deuteronomy 8:3, It is written: Man Shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of God (Matt. 4:3-4). In the wilderness, Israel frequently put God to the test, so with the second temptation Satan took Jesus to the top of the temple and said, If you are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written: He will give His angels orders concerning You; and On their hands they will lift You up, so that You do not strike Your foot against a stone. The devil even quoted and twisted Psalm 91 to try to get Jesus to fall into the same sin Israel fell into in the wilderness. Again, Jesus responded rightly and skillfully with the word of God: You shall not put the Lord Your God to the Test. (Matt. 4:5-7). In the wilderness and throughout Israels history, they were frequently guilty of false worship. In an effort to get Jesus to fall into the same sin, Satan tried to get Jesus to avoid the cross by worshiping him, to which Jesus responded with the sword of the Spirit: You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only (Matt. 4:8-11). Jesus used the sword of the Spirit to counter the Devils temptations. Did you ever notice that two of the three temptations Jesus faced were not inherently evil; it is not wrong to eat when you are hungry nor is it wrong to expect God to save you from harm. However, the scheming of the Devil was to try and get the Son of God to not trust the Fathers plan but to use a different plan that would have avoided the cross. We often counter our temptation to sin with human reason by believing another way is better than Gods way. Think about the way we reason our way out of obedience to God: I know Gods word says sex is a gift to be enjoyed within the covenant of marriage, but were in love and were going to get married anyway; or Its only a little lie. Sometimes it is more subtle: I know Gods word says, there must be no filthiness or foolish talk, or vulgar joking..., but at least it is not a 4-letter word, its not gossip if it is a prayer request, its just an innocent joke... I know that Gods word says that, sexual immorality or impurity is sinful, but its only a few scenes in the movie. Or... It only happens once a month... What if we learned from the way Jesus responded to temptation by countering our own with the Word of God? Imagine what would have happened if, in the Garden, Adam responded to the serpents temptation with the Word of God? You can take up the word of God as the sword of the Spirit or you can leave it in its sheath. Here is the thing though, just as handling a sword effectively takes some skill that can only come if you take it out of its sheath, to handle the sword of the Spirit with skill you must take it out and use it. To handle the Word of God with skill, you need to use it by reading it, studying it, memorizing it, and immerse yourself into it so that it can do what God designed it to do, which is to change you, mold you, cleanse you, and guide you. Just as you will never improve your shooting skills if you do not get out to a range and shoot, or a martial artist will only be as skilled as his time in the dojo practicing his techniques, so it is true with handling the word of God with skill. Just as there are resources to improve your aim, or your skills as a martial artist, so there are resources that God has provided through pastors, theologians, scholars, and Christian publishers to improve your skills in handling the word of God. In his letter to Timothy, Paul wrote, Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a worker who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth (2 Tim. 2:15). Some think that this verse is only applicable to pastors, but do you know why we know that is not true? How do we know that every Christian needs to strive to be able to accurately handle the word of truth? Because of what Jesus commanded every Christian: Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matt. 28:1920). Conclusion Remember that the schemes belong to the devil, but the armor of God belongs to God! The sword of the Spirit is no exception! The list of Gods armor begins with the belt of truth, and it concludes with the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. What we have discovered about the armor of God is that the belt of truth is our identity in Jesus, the breastplate of righteousness is our righteousness in Jesus, the shoes of the gospel of peace is our redemption that Jesus has made possible, the shield of faith is provided through Jesus, the helmet of salvation is the hope of our salvation in Jesus, and the sword of the Spirit is the word of God that points us back to... Jesus! We learn from the Bible that all the promises of God through His word find their yes and Amen in and through Jesus Christ (see 2 Cor. 19-22). In fact, Jesus is not only Gods Yes to all of His promises, Jesus is Gods most perfect revelation of Himself because He is the living Word of God! In the opening verses of the Gospel of John, we learn that as the Word of God, All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being.And as the Word of God, He, became flesh, and dwelt among us... (John 1:1-14). Not only is Jesus your belt, not only is He your breastplate, not only is He your peace, not only is He your shield and your helmet... Jesus is your sword! How do you remain strong in the Lord? You must find Him to be your life! In closing, I read something in Iain Duguids little book, titled, The Whole Armor of God, what I am about to read to you is the essence of the Christmas message: As the Word of God, he [Jesus] spoke the world into existence. As the Word of God, he uniquely reveals to us the Father. As the Word of God, he is Gods final communication to this broken and now redeemed world, come to heal the sick, rescue the lost, restore the broken, and lift up the downcast.... The Word of God in its cleansing work serves as a set of shears, a scalpel, and a sword. Ask God to equip you with these three different tools, each one uniquely crafted to help us in the fight against temptation by the world, the flesh, and the devil. All that sanctifying power flows into your life through the work of the Holy Spirit applying his Word. And when you fail and fall, as you often will, the Sword of the Spirit points you back again to the fact that the gospel is still true and Christs power is still sufficient to keep you safe and bring you at last into your heavenly inheritance.[1] [1] Iain M. Duguid, The Whole Armor of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2019), pp. 101-02.

It has been a few weeks since we were in Ephesians. The last sermon I preached was on the shoes of the gospel of peace. I have a confession to make, and it is not one to be proud of: I am not very good at creating space for my own rest. One of the symptoms that a break and vacation is needed is when your pastor takes 15-20 minutes to talk about shoes during his sermon introduction! In preparation for this sermon, I have been thinking about the importance of rest as it is related to faith. One of the Ten Commandments is to, Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy (Exod. 20:8-11). Here is the irony with the fourth commandment: The first four commandments address our relationship with God and the last six commandments address our relationships with one another. I am of the opinion that a Sabbath rest has less to do with the seventh day of the week and more to do with our need to separate ourselves from the noise of life. Regarding the fourth commandment, Jesus said: The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:23-28). The purpose of the Sabbath is that it creates space for you to listen to God for the purpose being strengthened in Him. The reason why the fourth commandment is sandwiched between the first three concerning our vertical relationship with God and the final six concerning our horizontal relationships with your neighbor is because if you ignore a Sabbath rest, both your relationship with God and your relationships with others will suffer. If you ignore the fourth commandment, you will be more prone to develop idols in your heart and become little good to those around you. So, here is what I want you to hear as we move forward: Sabbath rest stabilizes gospel grounded faith. The kind of rest I am talking about must include the kind of rest described in Psalm 46:10, Stop striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted on the earth. Now, with Gods command for a Sabbath rest as our backdrop, lets consider again the armor of God: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. (Eph. 6:1013) Remember that the schemes belong to the devil, but the armor we are to put on belongs to God. The belt of truth is our identity in Christ, the breastplate of righteousness is our righteousness in Christ, and the shoes of the gospel of peace enable us to keep our footing in the whole Gospel, that includes our salvation but also the full redemption of all creation. The whole Gospel includes our resurrection, but it also promises us a day when sorrow and sighing will flee away: And the redeemed of the Lord will return and come to Zion with joyful shouting, and everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away (Isa. 51:11). The fourth piece of Gods armor is the shield of faith. The questions we need to answer are what is it really; and how does one use the shield of faith? What is the Shield of Faith? The shield Paul had in mind was not the small round shield you would expect a soldier to have for hand-to-hand combat, for it was light but left most of the body exposed. Instead, the shield Paul envisioned was more like the one a soldier carried to protect his whole body from the enemys arrows shot from a distance. The large shield was called a scutum and was typically used by Roman legionaries. It was designed not only to protect the soldier wielding it from arrows, but was designed especially to protect him from arrows that were dipped in pitch and lit on fire before they were launched. The front of the shield was covered in leather that could be soaked in water; in this way, when the flaming arrows hit the shield, the fire would be quenched. For what purpose did a flaming arrow (aka fire arrow) serve? What is fire known for doing? The enemy would launch flaming arrows to set on fire anything that was flammable such as buildings, materials, and enemy troops. Fire consumes and destroys, and this is exactly what the rulers, powers, world forces of this darkness, and the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places desire to do to any and all of Gods people. We are told to take up the shield of faith to protect us from such attacks from the enemy, but what is it? Is the shield of faith a self-determined will to hold on to what you believe? Is it something that you would have more of if you simply believed more? Is the shield of faith more about having enough faith in what we read about in the Bible so that you can claim financial, emotional, relational, spiritual, and physical healing and wholeness for yourself? I dont think the shield of faith includes any of that. Remember that Paul did not just come up with the armor of God because of some Roman soldiers around him. Paul received his shield metaphor from the Old Testament. To address Abrahams fear about being without an heir, God promised Him, Do not fear Abram, I am a shield to you; your reward shall be very great. In Psalm 28:7, David celebrated the God who hears the prayers of His people with these words: Blessed be the Lord, because He has heard the sound of my pleading. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart triumphs, and with my song I shall thank Him. However, I think Proverbs 30:5 is the most helpful verse that helps us understand what the shield of faith is: Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. So, which is it? Is God our shield and if so, how can our faith be the shield? On this point Iain Duguid is helpful: Faith is the means by which we flee to God for refuge. It is how we cling to God and find in him comfort and protection in times of difficulty and distress.[1] It is one thing to believe that God exists but is quite another thing to flee to the God you know to be true because of the way He has revealed Himself through His Word. The more you know about God, the more inclined you will be to flee to Him as your refuge and strength, for the Bible says, the people who know their God will be strong and take action (Dan. 11:32b). The way you cling to God and find Him to be your comfort and protection is through His Word! We are told in Ephesians 5:26 that Jesus intends to sanctify and beautify His church through the washing of water with the word. It is the word of God that we use to saturate our shield to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. This is not a New Testament concept; it is a Genesis through Revelation principle for living faithfully before God. Listen to Psalm 119:10-11 and tell me if you cannot hear the same tone that you hear in Ephesians 6:16, With all my heart I have sought You; Do not let me wander from Your commandments. I have treasured Your word in my heart, so that I may not sin against You. How do We Use the Shield of Faith? It is all well and good to know what the shield of faith is, but how do you use it? To answer that question, permit me to show you something that I have read dozens of times and missed because I did not read Ephesians 6:14-17 as carefully as I should have. There are six pieces that belong to the armor of God. The first three are all pieces that a soldier puts on and keeps on so long as he is active: ...having belted your waist with truth (v. 14a) ...having put on the breastplate of righteousness (v. 14b) ...having strapped on your feet the preparation of the gospel of peace (v. 15) Each of these pieces are attached to the Christian as part of his/her identity in Christ. The belt of truth is your new identity in Christ, the breastplate of righteousness is your righteousness in Christ, and the shoes of the gospel of peace are the promise of full redemption that Jesus makes possible. You put on these pieces of armor by standing in the gospel, confidently recognizing that all your righteousness is in Christ, and that your identity is rooted in Christ as truth for all of life! Now notice the final three pieces of the armor of God and how Paul distinguishes them from the first three pieces with the words, in addition to all...: ...taking up the shield of faith (v. 16) ...take the helmet of salvation (v. 17a) ...take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (v. 17b) The soldiers shield, helmet, and sword were all a part of his armor, but they were pieces he could take up and put down at will. The enemy can tempt you to believe that Christ is not enough, but what he already knows is that your righteousness is Christs righteousness; wearing the breastplate of righteousness is simply walking in light of that truth. However, when the enemy attacks with his flaming arrows in the form of temptations, lies, and accusations, you can choose to take up the shield of faith or allow those arrows to pierce you so that their fire can overwhelm, consume, and incapacitate you. If you are a Christian and you have truly been born again, the flaming arrows may not be able to destroy your soul, but they certainly can wound to the point of rendering you immobile and unable to fully engage and participate in Gods mission in the world and purpose for your life. If you are a Christian, the enemy knows that God chose you before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4-6), that you were fully and completely redeemed by the blood of His Son (1:7-12), and that you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit as Gods inheritance to receive all of His promises (1:13-14, 18-23). In fact, I am convinced that the devil has more of a theological grasp over what it means for you to be a Christian than many Christians, but if he can deceive you, if he can aid in destroying your Christian witness, if he can paralyze you with shame and guilt to keep you from clinging to all that the cross of Christ represents, then he will do all within his ability to do just that! Dear Christian, when those flaming arrows come, you have a shield God has given that you can take up to defend yourself from such attacks! God has given us all that we need, but faith in His promises, a dependance upon Him, and the responsibility to proactively saturate our faith with the word of God is something we must do. Conclusion The enemy will launch his flaming arrows but make no mistake from what we have learned so far from Ephesians, there is also the danger we face from self-inflicted wounds when we fall into temptation. The devil never makes us sin, we do that all on our own! This is why it is important to take on the full armor of God. When we are mindful that Jesus is our identity and not our sin, when we are fully aware that Jesus is our only hope and righteousness, and then stand in the truth of all of Gods redemptive promises, our resolve to resist sin and temptation becomes more determined. But, when the flaming arrows fly you can lower your shield and let them pierce and consume, or you can take up your shield. When the enemy whispers: You sinned and now you are too disgusting for God to love you! You take up your shield saturated with the word of God and say: Do not rejoice over me, enemy of mine. Though I fall I will rise; though I live in darkness, the Lord is a light for me... He will bring me out to the light, and I will look at His righteousness (Micah 7:8, 9). You take up your shield saturated by the word of God and say, God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.... For if while we were enemies we were reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (Rom. 5:8, 10). Dont you think that Mary and Joseph endured many the constant barrage of the enemys flaming arrows the moment they found out about the conception of Jesus while Mary was still a virgin? Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her: Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus (Luke 1:30-31). Her only question was: How? since she was a virgin. After the angel told her that the Holy Spirit would make it possible miraculously, her response was simply: Behold, the Lords bond-servant; may it be done to me according to your word (v. 38). Mary could have been overwhelmed by fear over what her mother, father, relatives, and neighbors would think, but instead she raised up her shield of faith in the form of a song saturated with what she knew from the word of God: My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has had regard for the humble state of His bond-servant; For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed. For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name. And His mercy is to generation after generation Toward those who fear Him. He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And has exalted those who were humble. He has filled the hungry with good things, And sent the rich away empty-handed. He has given help to His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, Just as He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his descendants forever. (Luke 1:4755) Joseph could have walked out on Mary in disbelief, but He took up his shield as well and believed that God was not only big enough to make the conception of Jesus supernaturally possible, but he too believed the word of God: Behold, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and they shall name Him Immanuel (Isa. 7:14; see also Matt. 1:18-25). So, how do you use the shield of faith? How do you take it up to defend yourself? You take up the shield of faith each time you flee to God for refuge through the truth of His word and cling to Him to find your comfort and protection in times of difficulty and distress. [1] Iain M. Duguid, The Whole Armor of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2019), p. 68.

It has been a few weeks since we were in Ephesians. The last sermon I preached was on the shoes of the gospel of peace. I have a confession to make, and it is not one to be proud of: I am not very good at creating space for my own rest. One of the symptoms that a break and vacation is needed is when your pastor takes 15-20 minutes to talk about shoes during his sermon introduction! In preparation for this sermon, I have been thinking about the importance of rest as it is related to faith. One of the Ten Commandments is to, Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy (Exod. 20:8-11). Here is the irony with the fourth commandment: The first four commandments address our relationship with God and the last six commandments address our relationships with one another. I am of the opinion that a Sabbath rest has less to do with the seventh day of the week and more to do with our need to separate ourselves from the noise of life. Regarding the fourth commandment, Jesus said: The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:23-28). The purpose of the Sabbath is that it creates space for you to listen to God for the purpose being strengthened in Him. The reason why the fourth commandment is sandwiched between the first three concerning our vertical relationship with God and the final six concerning our horizontal relationships with your neighbor is because if you ignore a Sabbath rest, both your relationship with God and your relationships with others will suffer. If you ignore the fourth commandment, you will be more prone to develop idols in your heart and become little good to those around you. So, here is what I want you to hear as we move forward: Sabbath rest stabilizes gospel grounded faith. The kind of rest I am talking about must include the kind of rest described in Psalm 46:10, Stop striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted on the earth. Now, with Gods command for a Sabbath rest as our backdrop, lets consider again the armor of God: Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. (Eph. 6:1013) Remember that the schemes belong to the devil, but the armor we are to put on belongs to God. The belt of truth is our identity in Christ, the breastplate of righteousness is our righteousness in Christ, and the shoes of the gospel of peace enable us to keep our footing in the whole Gospel, that includes our salvation but also the full redemption of all creation. The whole Gospel includes our resurrection, but it also promises us a day when sorrow and sighing will flee away: And the redeemed of the Lord will return and come to Zion with joyful shouting, and everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing will flee away (Isa. 51:11). The fourth piece of Gods armor is the shield of faith. The questions we need to answer are what is it really; and how does one use the shield of faith? What is the Shield of Faith? The shield Paul had in mind was not the small round shield you would expect a soldier to have for hand-to-hand combat, for it was light but left most of the body exposed. Instead, the shield Paul envisioned was more like the one a soldier carried to protect his whole body from the enemys arrows shot from a distance. The large shield was called a scutum and was typically used by Roman legionaries. It was designed not only to protect the soldier wielding it from arrows, but was designed especially to protect him from arrows that were dipped in pitch and lit on fire before they were launched. The front of the shield was covered in leather that could be soaked in water; in this way, when the flaming arrows hit the shield, the fire would be quenched. For what purpose did a flaming arrow (aka fire arrow) serve? What is fire known for doing? The enemy would launch flaming arrows to set on fire anything that was flammable such as buildings, materials, and enemy troops. Fire consumes and destroys, and this is exactly what the rulers, powers, world forces of this darkness, and the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places desire to do to any and all of Gods people. We are told to take up the shield of faith to protect us from such attacks from the enemy, but what is it? Is the shield of faith a self-determined will to hold on to what you believe? Is it something that you would have more of if you simply believed more? Is the shield of faith more about having enough faith in what we read about in the Bible so that you can claim financial, emotional, relational, spiritual, and physical healing and wholeness for yourself? I dont think the shield of faith includes any of that. Remember that Paul did not just come up with the armor of God because of some Roman soldiers around him. Paul received his shield metaphor from the Old Testament. To address Abrahams fear about being without an heir, God promised Him, Do not fear Abram, I am a shield to you; your reward shall be very great. In Psalm 28:7, David celebrated the God who hears the prayers of His people with these words: Blessed be the Lord, because He has heard the sound of my pleading. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart triumphs, and with my song I shall thank Him. However, I think Proverbs 30:5 is the most helpful verse that helps us understand what the shield of faith is: Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him. So, which is it? Is God our shield and if so, how can our faith be the shield? On this point Iain Duguid is helpful: Faith is the means by which we flee to God for refuge. It is how we cling to God and find in him comfort and protection in times of difficulty and distress.[1] It is one thing to believe that God exists but is quite another thing to flee to the God you know to be true because of the way He has revealed Himself through His Word. The more you know about God, the more inclined you will be to flee to Him as your refuge and strength, for the Bible says, the people who know their God will be strong and take action (Dan. 11:32b). The way you cling to God and find Him to be your comfort and protection is through His Word! We are told in Ephesians 5:26 that Jesus intends to sanctify and beautify His church through the washing of water with the word. It is the word of God that we use to saturate our shield to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. This is not a New Testament concept; it is a Genesis through Revelation principle for living faithfully before God. Listen to Psalm 119:10-11 and tell me if you cannot hear the same tone that you hear in Ephesians 6:16, With all my heart I have sought You; Do not let me wander from Your commandments. I have treasured Your word in my heart, so that I may not sin against You. How do We Use the Shield of Faith? It is all well and good to know what the shield of faith is, but how do you use it? To answer that question, permit me to show you something that I have read dozens of times and missed because I did not read Ephesians 6:14-17 as carefully as I should have. There are six pieces that belong to the armor of God. The first three are all pieces that a soldier puts on and keeps on so long as he is active: ...having belted your waist with truth (v. 14a) ...having put on the breastplate of righteousness (v. 14b) ...having strapped on your feet the preparation of the gospel of peace (v. 15) Each of these pieces are attached to the Christian as part of his/her identity in Christ. The belt of truth is your new identity in Christ, the breastplate of righteousness is your righteousness in Christ, and the shoes of the gospel of peace are the promise of full redemption that Jesus makes possible. You put on these pieces of armor by standing in the gospel, confidently recognizing that all your righteousness is in Christ, and that your identity is rooted in Christ as truth for all of life! Now notice the final three pieces of the armor of God and how Paul distinguishes them from the first three pieces with the words, in addition to all...: ...taking up the shield of faith (v. 16) ...take the helmet of salvation (v. 17a) ...take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (v. 17b) The soldiers shield, helmet, and sword were all a part of his armor, but they were pieces he could take up and put down at will. The enemy can tempt you to believe that Christ is not enough, but what he already knows is that your righteousness is Christs righteousness; wearing the breastplate of righteousness is simply walking in light of that truth. However, when the enemy attacks with his flaming arrows in the form of temptations, lies, and accusations, you can choose to take up the shield of faith or allow those arrows to pierce you so that their fire can overwhelm, consume, and incapacitate you. If you are a Christian and you have truly been born again, the flaming arrows may not be able to destroy your soul, but they certainly can wound to the point of rendering you immobile and unable to fully engage and participate in Gods mission in the world and purpose for your life. If you are a Christian, the enemy knows that God chose you before the foundation of the world (Eph. 1:4-6), that you were fully and completely redeemed by the blood of His Son (1:7-12), and that you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit as Gods inheritance to receive all of His promises (1:13-14, 18-23). In fact, I am convinced that the devil has more of a theological grasp over what it means for you to be a Christian than many Christians, but if he can deceive you, if he can aid in destroying your Christian witness, if he can paralyze you with shame and guilt to keep you from clinging to all that the cross of Christ represents, then he will do all within his ability to do just that! Dear Christian, when those flaming arrows come, you have a shield God has given that you can take up to defend yourself from such attacks! God has given us all that we need, but faith in His promises, a dependance upon Him, and the responsibility to proactively saturate our faith with the word of God is something we must do. Conclusion The enemy will launch his flaming arrows but make no mistake from what we have learned so far from Ephesians, there is also the danger we face from self-inflicted wounds when we fall into temptation. The devil never makes us sin, we do that all on our own! This is why it is important to take on the full armor of God. When we are mindful that Jesus is our identity and not our sin, when we are fully aware that Jesus is our only hope and righteousness, and then stand in the truth of all of Gods redemptive promises, our resolve to resist sin and temptation becomes more determined. But, when the flaming arrows fly you can lower your shield and let them pierce and consume, or you can take up your shield. When the enemy whispers: You sinned and now you are too disgusting for God to love you! You take up your shield saturated with the word of God and say: Do not rejoice over me, enemy of mine. Though I fall I will rise; though I live in darkness, the Lord is a light for me... He will bring me out to the light, and I will look at His righteousness (Micah 7:8, 9). You take up your shield saturated by the word of God and say, God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.... For if while we were enemies we were reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (Rom. 5:8, 10). Dont you think that Mary and Joseph endured many the constant barrage of the enemys flaming arrows the moment they found out about the conception of Jesus while Mary was still a virgin? Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her: Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus (Luke 1:30-31). Her only question was: How? since she was a virgin. After the angel told her that the Holy Spirit would make it possible miraculously, her response was simply: Behold, the Lords bond-servant; may it be done to me according to your word (v. 38). Mary could have been overwhelmed by fear over what her mother, father, relatives, and neighbors would think, but instead she raised up her shield of faith in the form of a song saturated with what she knew from the word of God: My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has had regard for the humble state of His bond-servant; For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed. For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name. And His mercy is to generation after generation Toward those who fear Him. He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And has exalted those who were humble. He has filled the hungry with good things, And sent the rich away empty-handed. He has given help to His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy, Just as He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his descendants forever. (Luke 1:4755) Joseph could have walked out on Mary in disbelief, but He took up his shield as well and believed that God was not only big enough to make the conception of Jesus supernaturally possible, but he too believed the word of God: Behold, the virgin will conceive and give birth to a Son, and they shall name Him Immanuel (Isa. 7:14; see also Matt. 1:18-25). So, how do you use the shield of faith? How do you take it up to defend yourself? You take up the shield of faith each time you flee to God for refuge through the truth of His word and cling to Him to find your comfort and protection in times of difficulty and distress. [1] Iain M. Duguid, The Whole Armor of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2019), p. 68.

In 1 Corinthians 7, Paul affirms both singleness and marriage as good options for Christians. But when he is asked about issues of separation and divorce, Paul applies the teaching of Jesus and the heart of God in a way that offers both grace and truth. There is hope for every marriage to stay together, there is hope for victims, and there is hope for life after divorce.The sermon today is titled "Body Matters." It is the twelfth installment in our series "City Lights: Bearing Witness To A Culture In Crisis." The Scripture reading is from 1 Corinthians 7:8-15 (ESV). Originally preached at the West Side Church of Christ (Searcy, AR) on November 17, 2024. All lessons fit under one of 5 broad categories: Begin, Discover, Grow, Learn, and Serve. This sermon is filed under LEARN: Christian Scripture.Click here if you would like to watch the sermon or read a transcript.Podcast Notes (resources used or referenced):Coffman, James Burton. 1 Corinthians. Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible.Hays, Richard B. “Divorce and Remarriage,” in The Moral Vision of  the New Testament, pp. 347-78, NY: HarperOne, 1996.Instone-Brewer, David. Divorce and Remarriage in the Church: Biblical Solutions for Pastoral Realities, Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books, 2006.Adams, J. E. Marriage, Divorce, & Remarriage in the Bible: A Fresh Look at What Scripture Teaches, Phillipsburg, NJ: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1980 / Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986.Grudem, Wayne, Heimbach, Daniel R., Mitchell, C. Ben, & Mitchell, Craig. “Divorce and Remarriage,” in ESV Study Bible, pp. 2545-47, Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008.Collier, Gary D. “Rethinking Jesus on Divorce,” RQ 37/2 (1995): 80-96.Lightfoot, Neil. “Paul on Marriage & Divorce (1 Cor 7).” ACU lectures 1982. (Audio)I'd love to connect with you!Watch sermons and find transcripts at nathanguy.com.Follow along each Sunday through YouTube livestream and find a study guide and even kids notes on the sermon notes page.Follow me @nathanpguy (facebook/instagram/twitter)Subscribe to my email newsletter on substack.

Water Into WineJohn 2:1-11Stephen KellySaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Mark: Beyond BeliefMark 9:14-29Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Mark: TransfiguredMark 9:2-13Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Mark: Get Behind Me if You Want to LiveMark 8:32-38Blaise ShieldsSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Review of Peter J. Williams, The Surprising Genius of Jesus: What the Gospels Reveal About the Greatest Teacher (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2023). 113 pages, $14.59 (paperback). Abstract: Peter Williams, an independent biblical scholar, has written an analysis of the parable of the prodigal son in a fascinating attempt to demonstrate two truths. The first is […] The post A Model for Looking Deeply and Deeply Looking first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Review of Peter J. Williams, The Surprising Genius of Jesus: What the Gospels Reveal About the Greatest Teacher (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2023). 113 pages, $14.59 (paperback). Abstract: Peter Williams, an independent biblical scholar, has written an analysis of the parable of the prodigal son in a fascinating attempt to demonstrate two truths. The first is […] The post A Model for Looking Deeply and Deeply Looking first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Review of Peter J. Williams, The Surprising Genius of Jesus: What the Gospels Reveal About the Greatest Teacher (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2023). 113 pages, $14.59 (paperback). Abstract: Peter Williams, an independent biblical scholar, has written an analysis of the parable of the prodigal son in a fascinating attempt to demonstrate two truths. The first is […] The post A Model for Looking Deeply and Deeply Looking first appeared on The Interpreter Foundation.

Mark: Christ is Not a Last NameMark 8:27-33Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Mark: Getting BetterMark 8:22-26Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Mark: Yeast RisingMark 8:11-21Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Mark: A List of DemandsMark 8:1-13Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

In our study of Isaiah 14:1-23, we see how all aspects of God's relationship with humanity give Christians reason to rejoice. While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: –ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008) -John Oswalt, The Book of Isaiah, Chapters 1-39 (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament) (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1986) Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

The Sojourn - Part III “Foreigners”Philippians 3:17-21Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

The Sojourn - Part II “The Vulnerable”Genesis 16Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

The Sojourn - Part I “The Source”Genesis 3:21-4:16Adam ReasnerSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

In our study of Isaiah 9:1-7, we see how Jesus's fulfilled promises give us confidence, and his promises give us hope! While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: –ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008)  Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

In our study of Isaiah 8, we learn how world powers are no match for our great God. While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: –ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008)  Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

Sticking Together in ChristVarious ScripturesBlaise ShieldsSaint Andrew ChurchAuburn, IndianaProvencher, Devon and Porvencher, Robyn. The Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2022.CCLI# 1357907CCLI# 20112034

Today as we study through Isaiah 7:10-25, we see awesome prophecies about Jesus, and how exciting his return is! While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: –ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008)  Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

One theme that bubbles up today: Truth without grace breeds self-righteous legalism; grace without truth breeds moral indifference. Bible used for reading today: Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2020). Other sources consulted, quoted, or mentioned today: Randy Alcorn, The Grace and Truth Paradox: Responding with Christlike Balance, https://www.amazon.com/Grace-Truth-Paradox-Responding-Christlike/dp/1590520653. France B. Brown Jr., “Colossians,” in The Big Idea Companion for Preaching and Teaching: A Guide from Genesis to Revelation, ed. Matthew D. Kim and Scott M. Gibson (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic: A Division of Baker Publishing Group, 2021), 525. Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008). David S. Dockery, ed., Holman Bible Handbook (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 1992), 259. Miles Van Pelt, “1-2 Kings,” in Gospel Transformation Bible: English Standard Version, ed. Bryan Chapell and Dane Ortlund (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013), 456. ♱♱♱ About the #ForTheHope podcasts #ForTheHope's Daily Audio Bible is (crazy idea!) a daily audio Bible reading. But it's not just a voice — you can go anywhere and hear a better voice just read the actual text. We read through the New Testament in about 10 months and the Old Testament in about 14 months with a passion for just keepin' it real, having conversations like normal people, and living out the love of Jesus better every single day. Also showing up in your stream when you subscribe via Apple,  Spotify, or your favorite podcast software are occasional (and separate) #PracticeTheWay segments for nurturing our spiritual formation and #AlwaysBeReady segments that help you take “a ministry of showing up” to work and culture.

In our second look at 1 John 4:1-6, we see the criteria for doctrines that are most important. While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: –The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008), p. 2507 Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

     Biblically speaking, guilt implies one has acted contrary to God's moral character and laws. Divine laws are a reflection of the righteousness of God. The righteousness of God may be defined as the intrinsic, immutable, moral perfection of God, from which He commands all things, in heaven and earth, and declares as good that which conforms to His righteousness and as evil that which deviates. God's character is the basis upon which all just laws derive; either divine laws from God Himself or human laws which conform to His righteousness.[1] The Bible reveals “the LORD is righteous and He loves righteousness” (Psa 11:7). We're informed that at a future time, “He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in His faithfulness” (Psa 96:13), and He will “judge the living and the dead” (2 Tim 4:1). The problem is that all humanity is corrupt, for “are all under sin” (Rom 3:9), and “there is none righteous, not even one” (Rom 3:10), for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Rom 3:23). Sin may be defined as the breaking of God's moral laws. John wrote, “Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; and sin is lawlessness” (1 John 3:4). Sin is when we transgress God's law and depart from His intended path. According to J. I. Packer, “Sin may be comprehensively defined as lack of conformity to the law of God in act, habit, attitude, outlook, disposition, motivation, and mode of existence.”[2]The motivation behind sin is self-interest. It means we set our wills against the will of God; that we desire our interests above His interests and are willing to act contrary to His directives. According to Augustus Strong, “the sinner makes self the center of his life, sets himself directly against God and constitutes his own interest the supreme motive and his own will the supreme rule.”[3] Samuel Harris notes four characteristics of sin, namely, “It is self-sufficiency, the opposite of Christian faith…It is self-will, the opposite of Christian submission…It is self-seeking, the opposite of Christian benevolence…It is self-righteousness, the opposite of Christian humility and reverence.”[4] Merrill F. Unger states: "The underlying idea of sin is that of law and of a lawgiver. The lawgiver is God. Hence sin is everything in the disposition and purpose and conduct of God's moral creatures that is contrary to the expressed will of God (Rom 3:20; 4:15; 7:7; Jam 4:12, 17). The sinfulness of sin lies in the fact that it is against God, even when the wrong we do is to others or ourselves (Gen 39:9; Psa 51:4)."[5]      As sinners before a holy and righteous God, we bear an objective guilt because we have violated His holy character and righteous demands. We are responsible to God for what we have, what we are, and what we do. We have Adam's original sin, which has been imputed to our account (Rom 5:12-13; cf. 1 Cor 15:21-22), we are sinners by nature (Psa 51:5; Jer 17:9; Rom 7:14-25; 13:12-14), and we do sin personally (Prov 20:9; Eccl 7:20; Isa 59:2; 64:6; Jam 1:14-15). God holds us accountable for our sinfulness. Our guilt is based on what God says about us and not our subjective impressions of ourselves. J. C. Moyer states, “Guilt is both the legal and moral condition that results from breaking God's law.”[6]Louis Berkhof adds, “Guilt is the state of deserving condemnation or of being liable to punishment for the violation of a law or a moral requirement. It expresses the relation which sin bears to justice or to the penalty of the law.”[7] C.W. Stenschke states: "In biblical language and thought guilt and sin are closely related. While sin usually denotes an action of personal failure (in deed, word or thought), guilt is a legal term that denotes the state resulting from this action. Guilt is an objective fact and arises when God's standards have not been met, when the creator's claim on his creation is neglected or refused whether willfully or unintentionally."[8]      Being guilty before God is a fact and not a feeling. It is based on the objective truth of God's Word and not our subjective impressions or fluctuating emotions. Our emotions are a blessing from the Lord, but only when properly calibrated to the truth of His revelation, otherwise they can be an impediment to our relationship with Him.      Humanism rejects God and His revelation and places mankind at the center of morality and meaning. Francis Schaeffer explains humanism as “Man beginning from himself, with no knowledge except what he himself can discover and no standards outside of himself. In this view Man is the measure of all things, as the Enlightenment expressed it.”[9] But atheism creates a problem concerning moral absolutes, for if there is no God, then there is no moral absolute Law-giver; and if there is no moral absolute Law-giver, then there are no moral absolutes, and we are left to conclude that what is, is right, and any further discussion about right and wrong becomes nothing more than opinion.[10] Francis Schaeffer is correct when he states: "If there is no absolute moral standard, then one cannot say in a final sense that anything is right or wrong. By absolute we mean that which always applies, that which provides a final or ultimate standard. There must be an absolute if there are to be morals, and there must be an absolute if there are to be real values. If there is no absolute beyond man's ideas, then there is no final appeal to judge between individuals and groups whose moral judgments conflict. We are merely left with conflicting opinions."[11]      Those who reject God are left to create and impose arbitrary values on others, and the tyrants of the world are glad to bully and control others by means of strong arm tactics, whether social intimidation, economic coercion, or brute physical force. The only objective standard for measuring righteousness or guilt is set forth in God's Word which defines reality. The Bible reveals God is “the Judge of all the earth” (Gen 18:25), and He “is a righteous judge” (Psa 7:11), and He “judges righteously” (Jer 11:20), and “will by no means leave the guilty unpunished” (Ex 34:7). Yet, the Bible also reveals God is “merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth” (Psa 86:15), and One “Who pardons all your iniquities” (Psa 103:3), when we come to Him in honesty and humility. And for those who come to Him in humility, who are like the tax collector, who “was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!'” (Luke 18:13), will find Him to be merciful. For those of us who trust in Christ as Savior, we are blessed with “forgiveness of sins” (Eph 1:7; cf., Acts 10:43), the “gift of righteousness” (Rom 5:17; cf., 2 Cor 5:21; Phil 3:9), “eternal life” (John 10:28), and become “children of God” (John 1:12), with a promise that we will spend eternity in heaven with Him (John 14:1-3). J. Dwight Pentecost notes, “If you should be without Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, you stand guilty before God because you are still in Adam's race. Even though Christ bore that sin, it means nothing to you until you are related to Him by faith. The righteousness of Christ cannot be imputed to you unless you personally receive Jesus Christ as your Savior.”[12] If you have not yet trusted in Christ as your Savior, then I “beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God” (2 Cor 5:20). Dr. Steven R. Cook     [1] If there is no God, then there is no absolute standard for right and wrong and we are left with arbitrary laws based on manufactured values. [2] J. I. Packer, Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs, 82. [3] Augustus Hopkins Strong, Systematic Theology (Philadelphia: American Baptist Publication Society, 1907), 572. [4] Samuel Harris, “The Christian Law of Self-Sacrifice,” Bibliotheca Sacra 18, no. 69 (1861): 149. [5] Merrill F. Unger, et al, “Sin,” The New Unger's Bible Dictionary, 1198. [6] J. C. Moyer, “Guilt; Guilty,” ed. Geoffrey W Bromiley, The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Revised, 580. [7] Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans publishing co., 1938), 232. [8] C. W. Stenschke, “Guilt,” in New Dictionary of Biblical Theology, ed. T. Desmond Alexander and Brian S. Rosner, electronic ed. (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 529. [9] Francis A. Schaeffer, A Christian Manifesto (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2005), 24. [10] God does exist, as “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands” (Psa 19:1). And though people may “suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Rom 1:18), the reality is, “that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse” (Rom 1:19-20). [11] Francis A. Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live?: The Rise and Decline of Western Thought and Culture, 50th L'Abri Anniversary Edition. (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2005), 145. [12] J. Dwight Pentecost, Things Which Become Sound Doctrine (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1996), 48.

On January 16, 1994, sometime after I read the verses we are going to explore this morning, I reflected on the tension I felt over how a loving God could choose and predestine a person before the foundation of the world for salvation. I wasnt angry over what I read in these verses, but I was disturbed; I was disturbed to the point of a near crisis of faith even though I had only been a Christian for just over two years. While I read over Ephesians 1:3-6; I also read similar passages such as Romans 8:28-30; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; John 6:44, and the entire chapter of Romans 9. I read these passages without the aid of books or commentaries, for it was only me and my Bible. I knew nothing of John Calvin or Jacobus Arminius, nor was I aware of their teachings by which we get Calvinism and Arminianism. I share this with you because I want you to know; that if some of you currently struggle with what you see in Ephesians 1:3-6, I also struggled with these same verses, and it took a lot of time for me to work through it, with just me and my Bible. What is clear, however, is that Gods love for you is older than dirt. There are three words that are linked to what it means to be blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ (v. 3) that I want to focus our time on that I believe will help you work through what it is Paul is saying in these verses, and those words are: chose (v. 4), predestined (v. 5), and favored (v. 6). God Chose the Christian to be Holy and Blameless (v. 4) What was so hard about my struggle with verses 3-6 is that this verse could not have been any clearer: God chose us in Jesus before the foundation of the world; the Greek word used for world is kosmos, and it refers to creation. When did God do it? Before He invented dirt. How did God do it? Through His Son, Jesus. Why did He do it? That those who were chosen, would be holy and blameless before Him. Before we can get to why God chose, we need to understand what it means for Him to choose. To choose is to pick or select someone or something. Every November we vote and when we vote, we choose certain candidates that we hope receive enough votes to be elected to whatever office it is that they are running for. In the case of verse 4, to choose is to elect. From verses like the ones before us this morning and others like it, we get the doctrine of elections (aka the doctrine of predestination). No person or theologian who believes the Bible to be the word of God denies what Paul is saying here, but where theologians, pastors, and Christians throughout the ages have disagreed is how it was that God chose the Christian before the foundation of the world. Let me summarize the most popular ways people have explained how it was that God chose. God chose you for salvation because you freely chose Him. You were drawn to him, but it wasnt until you chose Him that He chose you. God chose not only you but the body of Christ that is the Church to be the group of people who receive salvation freely by faith in Jesus. So, God does not choose individuals for salvation, but he has chosen before the foundation of the world that it would be through Christ that people would be saved. God chose you for salvation because he sees all things eternally, and because He can see peoples and events both present and future, He sovereignly chose you because he already knew you would freely choose Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins. Of the three views I mentioned, the third is the one I gravitated towards and believed was the best of the three options; I even stated in my journal on January 20, 1994, Due to the Scriptures and that all scripture is inspired by God, my conclusion on predestination is made: God is all-knowing therefore He predestined us for salvation, but allowed us to choose him for salvation. At the time, my conclusion seemed to reconcile Ephesians 1:3-6 and others like it with passages like 2 Peter 3:9, The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. There is a fourth view that I have come to appreciate due to two realities I never considered back in 1994, the first concerns the fact that God stands outside of time because time is a part of creation, therefore He is not bound to time and does not make choices based on what He can see down the corridors of time because He stands outside of time. The other reality I did not consider back in 1994 was Ephesians 1:1-4, which states: And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the rest (Eph. 2:1-3). In light of Ephesians 1:3-6, how can a person respond to God in faith when that person is spiritually dead? Can the spiritually dead do anything spiritual? Can the spiritually dead will themselves alive just enough to believe in God? What does Paul mean by dead in Ephesians 2:1? The Greek word could not be any clearer, it is nekros. Do you want to know what nekros means? It means this: no longer having life. So how dead is dead? So, the question I had to answer is a question you must answer as well, and that question is simply this: How can the spiritual dead do anything apart from God doing something? Paul gives us the answer in Ephesians 2:4-5, But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (Eph. 2:45). The point of verse 4 is simply this: You, who were once spiritually dead. You who once, lived in the lusts of your flesh, indulged the desires of your flesh, you who followed the prince of this world, and you who were once a child of wrathHe chose you before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in Christ. Whatever you are doing with verse 4, whatever you want to do with verse 4, and whatever you plan to do with verse 4, one thing is very clear: God acted first. When you had no ability or desire to find Him, He found you. John Stott was right when he wrote The doctrine of election is a divine revelation, not a human speculation.[1] God Predestined the Christian for Love (v. 5) What does it mean to be chosen? It means that God predestined you to something. What does predestination mean? It means, to determine something ahead of time before its occurrence.[2] So, according to verse 5, before God invented dirt, He planned for your adoption as a son or daughter through all that Jesus would do on your account for your sin on a cross that we all deserved. We know we deserved the cross because of what Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:3, which is that all of us at one point in our lives were, by nature children of wrath, just as the rest. In Romans 3:10-11, we are told just how bad our spiritual deadness is: as it is written: There is no righteous person, not even one; there is no one who understands, there is no one who seeks out God (Rom. 3:1011). Since when have I been spiritually dead? According to Psalm 51:5, Behold, I was brought forth in guilt, and in sin my mother conceived me. Just in case you are not sure what to make of Psalm 51:5, consider Ecclesiastes 9:2, Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of mankind are full of evil, and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. So, with Ephesians 2:1-3 and a whole bunch of other verses about our spiritual problem as our backdrop, lets read again Ephesians 1:5 more closely and thoughtfully: In Love He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will. In other words, among the mass of spiritually dead humanity that has postured themselves against God as, sons of disobedience who walk according to the course of this world, God chose you, Christian, in Jesus, before He created dirt, to be holy and blameless. God chose you because you were dead, dead, dead, and because you were dead, He did the thing that no one else could have done! God raised your spiritually dead and helpless self. Why did He do it? Well, we are told that He did it In love and if that is not enough for you, Paul elaborates and tells us that He did it, according to the good pleasure of His will. And if that is not enough for you, he further elaborates on that point in the next chapter: being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead made us alive together with Christ (2:4-5). It is because of Gods love, His will, and His good pleasure that you who were once dead, now stand before Him as a son or as a daughter solely because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ! Dear Christian, the point of Ephesians 1:3-6 is this: you are only a Christian because of a merciful God who set His affection upon you by sending His son to endure a wrath you deserved for the purpose of adopting you to be His child out of an infinite love no one deserves. God Favored the Christian in Christ (v. 6) So, lets walk through these verses now that we have observed the scenery of Gods word that surrounds Ephesians 1:3-6. If you are a Christian, you were once dead in your sins, you were hostile towards God, and there was no real motive in you to seek the true God, and in spite of all of that, God the Father chose to make you alive in His Son, Jesus, before Genesis 1:1 ever happened, and He did it so that you, would be holy and blameless before Him. The point of verse 4 is that God did something you were powerless to do. Not only did God the Father choose you to be holy and blameless by making you alive in His Son, but He predestined us to be His adopted child with all the rights and privileges that come with being a son or a daughter, and He did it by putting His Son, who kept the Law, on a cross to atone for your guilt from breaking His cosmic Law just as the Bible declares: Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for usfor it is written: Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree (Gal. 3:13). If that is not clear enough for you, we also are told in Colossians 2:13-14, And when you were dead in your wrongdoings and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our wrongdoings, having canceled the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross (Col. 2:1314). You were not only dead in your sins before Christ, but the Bible informs us that we are now redeemed by Jesus who were once enemies of God: For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (Rom. 5:10). What this means dear friends, is this: You were once dead in your sins, are now alive in Christ, and are now reconciled to God. You who are reconciled to God, are now a friend of God (John 15:14-15). If you are still confused as to why He did it, look no further than verse 6. Not only did He save your sorry soul because He simply loved you, and not only did He redeem you as his child out of His good pleasure of His will alone, but He did it, to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored you in His Beloved Son (v. 6). By the way, the word favored literally means, to become the recipient of Gods freely bestowed, beneficent goodwill. What this means is that you were saved from your sins, and it was not due to anything in you, but solely because of the love of the Father who sent His Son who willingly became sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21). In his book, Friendship with God, Mike McKinley wrote what I think is a good way to end this sermon: Your status before God doesnt depend on your performance, or work, or obedience; it depends on Jesus, and he did everything perfectly to make you Gods friend. Nothing can ever separate you from Gods love in Christ (Rom. 8:38-39). Once He has made you His friend through faith in Jesus, you can never be his enemy again.[3] In closing, permit me to give you some pointers that will help you listen, understand, and submit to the authority of the Bible: Do not try to bend what you read in the Bible to your will. If you want to grow as a Christian, you must submit your will to the authority of the Bible as Gods Word. The Bible is one book, therefore read every verse in the Bible within the context of its surrounding verses, chapters, and books. When you study your Bible, pray to God to help you understand and apply His Word to your life. Read every verse in the Bible with the understanding that God does not need to get better. So, if you read a story, chapter, or verse in the Bible that you do not like, understand you are the one who needs to improve at being good, not God. Just because you do not understand or do not like something you have read in the Bible, does not mean that it is untrue. At the end of the day, what matters is what Gods Word says, not what you think the Bible says, what your pastor says the Bible says, what your family says the Bible says, what your friends say the Bible says, or anyone else says that the Bible says. What matters is what Gods Word says about who He is, who we are, and what we are called to do in this short life we have been gifted. If you have heard anything this morning, I hope you have heard this: Ephesians 1:3-6 teaches us that you are a Christian not because of what you have done, but because of everything God has done, and because of Jesus, you are now a child and a friend of God Almighty! [1] John R. W. Stott, Gods New Society (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), p. 37. [2] From Lexham Research Lexham Research Lexicon of the Greek New Testament. [3] Mike McKinley, Friendship with God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2023), p. 11

On January 16, 1994, sometime after I read the verses we are going to explore this morning, I reflected on the tension I felt over how a loving God could choose and predestine a person before the foundation of the world for salvation. I wasnt angry over what I read in these verses, but I was disturbed; I was disturbed to the point of a near crisis of faith even though I had only been a Christian for just over two years. While I read over Ephesians 1:3-6; I also read similar passages such as Romans 8:28-30; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; John 6:44, and the entire chapter of Romans 9. I read these passages without the aid of books or commentaries, for it was only me and my Bible. I knew nothing of John Calvin or Jacobus Arminius, nor was I aware of their teachings by which we get Calvinism and Arminianism. I share this with you because I want you to know; that if some of you currently struggle with what you see in Ephesians 1:3-6, I also struggled with these same verses, and it took a lot of time for me to work through it, with just me and my Bible. What is clear, however, is that Gods love for you is older than dirt. There are three words that are linked to what it means to be blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ (v. 3) that I want to focus our time on that I believe will help you work through what it is Paul is saying in these verses, and those words are: chose (v. 4), predestined (v. 5), and favored (v. 6). God Chose the Christian to be Holy and Blameless (v. 4) What was so hard about my struggle with verses 3-6 is that this verse could not have been any clearer: God chose us in Jesus before the foundation of the world; the Greek word used for world is kosmos, and it refers to creation. When did God do it? Before He invented dirt. How did God do it? Through His Son, Jesus. Why did He do it? That those who were chosen, would be holy and blameless before Him. Before we can get to why God chose, we need to understand what it means for Him to choose. To choose is to pick or select someone or something. Every November we vote and when we vote, we choose certain candidates that we hope receive enough votes to be elected to whatever office it is that they are running for. In the case of verse 4, to choose is to elect. From verses like the ones before us this morning and others like it, we get the doctrine of elections (aka the doctrine of predestination). No person or theologian who believes the Bible to be the word of God denies what Paul is saying here, but where theologians, pastors, and Christians throughout the ages have disagreed is how it was that God chose the Christian before the foundation of the world. Let me summarize the most popular ways people have explained how it was that God chose. God chose you for salvation because you freely chose Him. You were drawn to him, but it wasnt until you chose Him that He chose you. God chose not only you but the body of Christ that is the Church to be the group of people who receive salvation freely by faith in Jesus. So, God does not choose individuals for salvation, but he has chosen before the foundation of the world that it would be through Christ that people would be saved. God chose you for salvation because he sees all things eternally, and because He can see peoples and events both present and future, He sovereignly chose you because he already knew you would freely choose Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins. Of the three views I mentioned, the third is the one I gravitated towards and believed was the best of the three options; I even stated in my journal on January 20, 1994, Due to the Scriptures and that all scripture is inspired by God, my conclusion on predestination is made: God is all-knowing therefore He predestined us for salvation, but allowed us to choose him for salvation. At the time, my conclusion seemed to reconcile Ephesians 1:3-6 and others like it with passages like 2 Peter 3:9, The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not willing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. There is a fourth view that I have come to appreciate due to two realities I never considered back in 1994, the first concerns the fact that God stands outside of time because time is a part of creation, therefore He is not bound to time and does not make choices based on what He can see down the corridors of time because He stands outside of time. The other reality I did not consider back in 1994 was Ephesians 1:1-4, which states: And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the rest (Eph. 2:1-3). In light of Ephesians 1:3-6, how can a person respond to God in faith when that person is spiritually dead? Can the spiritually dead do anything spiritual? Can the spiritually dead will themselves alive just enough to believe in God? What does Paul mean by dead in Ephesians 2:1? The Greek word could not be any clearer, it is nekros. Do you want to know what nekros means? It means this: no longer having life. So how dead is dead? So, the question I had to answer is a question you must answer as well, and that question is simply this: How can the spiritual dead do anything apart from God doing something? Paul gives us the answer in Ephesians 2:4-5, But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our wrongdoings, made us alive together with Christ (Eph. 2:45). The point of verse 4 is simply this: You, who were once spiritually dead. You who once, lived in the lusts of your flesh, indulged the desires of your flesh, you who followed the prince of this world, and you who were once a child of wrathHe chose you before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in Christ. Whatever you are doing with verse 4, whatever you want to do with verse 4, and whatever you plan to do with verse 4, one thing is very clear: God acted first. When you had no ability or desire to find Him, He found you. John Stott was right when he wrote The doctrine of election is a divine revelation, not a human speculation.[1] God Predestined the Christian for Love (v. 5) What does it mean to be chosen? It means that God predestined you to something. What does predestination mean? It means, to determine something ahead of time before its occurrence.[2] So, according to verse 5, before God invented dirt, He planned for your adoption as a son or daughter through all that Jesus would do on your account for your sin on a cross that we all deserved. We know we deserved the cross because of what Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:3, which is that all of us at one point in our lives were, by nature children of wrath, just as the rest. In Romans 3:10-11, we are told just how bad our spiritual deadness is: as it is written: There is no righteous person, not even one; there is no one who understands, there is no one who seeks out God (Rom. 3:1011). Since when have I been spiritually dead? According to Psalm 51:5, Behold, I was brought forth in guilt, and in sin my mother conceived me. Just in case you are not sure what to make of Psalm 51:5, consider Ecclesiastes 9:2, Furthermore, the hearts of the sons of mankind are full of evil, and insanity is in their hearts throughout their lives. So, with Ephesians 2:1-3 and a whole bunch of other verses about our spiritual problem as our backdrop, lets read again Ephesians 1:5 more closely and thoughtfully: In Love He predestined us to adoption as sons and daughters through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will. In other words, among the mass of spiritually dead humanity that has postured themselves against God as, sons of disobedience who walk according to the course of this world, God chose you, Christian, in Jesus, before He created dirt, to be holy and blameless. God chose you because you were dead, dead, dead, and because you were dead, He did the thing that no one else could have done! God raised your spiritually dead and helpless self. Why did He do it? Well, we are told that He did it In love and if that is not enough for you, Paul elaborates and tells us that He did it, according to the good pleasure of His will. And if that is not enough for you, he further elaborates on that point in the next chapter: being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead made us alive together with Christ (2:4-5). It is because of Gods love, His will, and His good pleasure that you who were once dead, now stand before Him as a son or as a daughter solely because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ! Dear Christian, the point of Ephesians 1:3-6 is this: you are only a Christian because of a merciful God who set His affection upon you by sending His son to endure a wrath you deserved for the purpose of adopting you to be His child out of an infinite love no one deserves. God Favored the Christian in Christ (v. 6) So, lets walk through these verses now that we have observed the scenery of Gods word that surrounds Ephesians 1:3-6. If you are a Christian, you were once dead in your sins, you were hostile towards God, and there was no real motive in you to seek the true God, and in spite of all of that, God the Father chose to make you alive in His Son, Jesus, before Genesis 1:1 ever happened, and He did it so that you, would be holy and blameless before Him. The point of verse 4 is that God did something you were powerless to do. Not only did God the Father choose you to be holy and blameless by making you alive in His Son, but He predestined us to be His adopted child with all the rights and privileges that come with being a son or a daughter, and He did it by putting His Son, who kept the Law, on a cross to atone for your guilt from breaking His cosmic Law just as the Bible declares: Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for usfor it is written: Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree (Gal. 3:13). If that is not clear enough for you, we also are told in Colossians 2:13-14, And when you were dead in your wrongdoings and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our wrongdoings, having canceled the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us; and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross (Col. 2:1314). You were not only dead in your sins before Christ, but the Bible informs us that we are now redeemed by Jesus who were once enemies of God: For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life (Rom. 5:10). What this means dear friends, is this: You were once dead in your sins, are now alive in Christ, and are now reconciled to God. You who are reconciled to God, are now a friend of God (John 15:14-15). If you are still confused as to why He did it, look no further than verse 6. Not only did He save your sorry soul because He simply loved you, and not only did He redeem you as his child out of His good pleasure of His will alone, but He did it, to the praise of the glory of His grace, with which He favored you in His Beloved Son (v. 6). By the way, the word favored literally means, to become the recipient of Gods freely bestowed, beneficent goodwill. What this means is that you were saved from your sins, and it was not due to anything in you, but solely because of the love of the Father who sent His Son who willingly became sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21). In his book, Friendship with God, Mike McKinley wrote what I think is a good way to end this sermon: Your status before God doesnt depend on your performance, or work, or obedience; it depends on Jesus, and he did everything perfectly to make you Gods friend. Nothing can ever separate you from Gods love in Christ (Rom. 8:38-39). Once He has made you His friend through faith in Jesus, you can never be his enemy again.[3] In closing, permit me to give you some pointers that will help you listen, understand, and submit to the authority of the Bible: Do not try to bend what you read in the Bible to your will. If you want to grow as a Christian, you must submit your will to the authority of the Bible as Gods Word. The Bible is one book, therefore read every verse in the Bible within the context of its surrounding verses, chapters, and books. When you study your Bible, pray to God to help you understand and apply His Word to your life. Read every verse in the Bible with the understanding that God does not need to get better. So, if you read a story, chapter, or verse in the Bible that you do not like, understand you are the one who needs to improve at being good, not God. Just because you do not understand or do not like something you have read in the Bible, does not mean that it is untrue. At the end of the day, what matters is what Gods Word says, not what you think the Bible says, what your pastor says the Bible says, what your family says the Bible says, what your friends say the Bible says, or anyone else says that the Bible says. What matters is what Gods Word says about who He is, who we are, and what we are called to do in this short life we have been gifted. If you have heard anything this morning, I hope you have heard this: Ephesians 1:3-6 teaches us that you are a Christian not because of what you have done, but because of everything God has done, and because of Jesus, you are now a child and a friend of God Almighty! [1] John R. W. Stott, Gods New Society (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979), p. 37. [2] From Lexham Research Lexham Research Lexicon of the Greek New Testament. [3] Mike McKinley, Friendship with God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2023), p. 11

Ephesus was a city whose economy depended on trade. It was frequently visited by people wishing to see and experience one of the seven wonders of the world of their day known as the Temple of Artemis/Diana. The economy, culture, and ethics of Ephesus all centered on the goddess of Diana and the temple built in her honor. The temple was supported by 127 giant pillars believed to have been given as gifts by 127 different kings. The temple housed many priests and priestesses who operated under a castrated male who functioned as the high priest. The male priests were in charge of offering the sacrifices to Diana, which also included human sacrifice. The female priests were unmarried women given the responsibility to be channels of worship to Diana which was performed through intercourse of any male wishing to worship Diana with her priestesses. You can see why worship in the temple of Diana was so popular. Because the worship of Diana was the main religion in Ephesus, ritual prostitution was a dominant feature of the religious atmosphere in Ephesus. Spirits, we know as demons, frequently possessed the priestesses as well as the worshiper which should come to be no surprise, for the Bible says: that the things Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God (1 Cor. 10:20). Anytime an offering is given to an idol, it is an offering given to a demon not merely an image Diana was no exception. When the apostle Paul stopped in Ephesus to preach, the gospel disrupted the worship of the goddess of Artemis/Diana as people in the city heard the good news about Jesus Christ and gave their lives to Him. So profound was the gospels impact upon the culture of Ephesus that some who made their living off the worship of Diana expressed their great concern: in almost all of Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people, saying that gods made by hands are not gods at all. Not only is there danger that this trade of ours will fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be regarded as worthless, and that she whom all of Asia and the world worship will even be dethroned from her magnificence (see Acts 19:2328). Paul spent over two years in Ephesus where God used him to establish the same church to which he would write the epistle to the Ephesians years later, while in prison. The city of Ephesus was a very scary place full of demonic activity, full of women who were held as sex slaves, full of all kinds of perverts seeking to get cheap thrills under the guise of religion, radical feminists who distained the existence of men, public baths, and bathrooms, where modesty was considered taboo, all of which were ruled by a demon posing to be a free-spirited goddess. It is in this city that a church was birthed, cultural norms challenged, and lives transformed. What you also need to know is that years before Paul brought the gospel to Ephesus, he tried to prevent its spread because he was convinced Christianity had to be destroyed. Of his former life as a pharisee, Paul wrote in Philippians 3, If anyone else thinks he is confident in the flesh, I have more reason: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless (Phil. 3:46). Paul approved of the stoning of Stephen, who was sentenced to death because of his outspoken faith in Jesus (see Acts 7). Regarding his salvation and faith in Jesus, Paul wrote to Timothy (who would eventually become the pastor of the church in Ephesus): It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost (1 Tim. 1:15). What does it Mean to be a Christian? Fred Sanders, in his masterful book, The Deep Things of God, wrote of the gospel, The gospel so outstrips our created measurements that it can be measured only against something as immense as God himself. Sanders further comments, There is one place in Scripture where this sheer greatness of the gospel is most profusely described: the blessing with which Paul opens the epistle to the Ephesians.[1] In the weeks to come, we will plumb the depths of Ephesians 1:1-14, but for now, I only want to show you who you are if you are a Christian and who you can be, by the grace of God, if you are not. The Christian is Saved by the Will of God (v. 1) In the very first sentence to these Christians surrounded by some of the darkest evils, Paul attributes his salvation and apostleship to the will of God. The stoning of Stephen and his part in the imprisonment and persecution of Christians was not too much for the grace of God to overcome. In fact, a survey of the Bible will show you that when it comes to the will of man and the will of God, it is the will of man to run from God and it is only because of will greater than our own that God is able to pursue us and find us. The Christian has the Grace and Peace of God (v. 2) Before salvation, Paul and the Ephesian Christians stood before a holy God guilty, awaiting a judgment under the wrath of God, and the same can be said of you and me. The Bible says, because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God (Rom. 2:5). But now, because of what Jesus accomplished, the Christian has received the grace and peace of God. The Christian has the Blessing of God (v. 3) What the Ephesian Christians had before Paul brought the gospel to them was wrath. In fact, Paul describes what it was that they had before they met Jesus in the next chapter: And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath (Eph. 2:1-3). However, because of the saving work of Jesus, the Christian has received, every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. The Christian is Saved by God to be Holy and Blameless Before God (v. 4) Paul was committed to the idol of his religious legalism while the Ephesians were indulged in their worship of Diana; both were far from God, yet it was God who rescued them from their idols and from their sin. Why did God save Paul and those who made up the Ephesian Church? Why did he save any of us? Well, verse 4 answers that question for us: that we would be holy and blameless before Him. God saved you to change you, and that change is moving you closer and closer to holiness and blamelessness. The Christian is Made a Son/Daughter of God (v. 5) Before Jesus, the Christian was a child of devil (1 John 3:7-10) and a child of wrath (Eph. 2:3). But through Jesus, the Christian is adopted, as sons and daughters. As a son and a daughter, you who once stood under a wrath deserved, now stand as a child of God with all the rights and privileges of a God who now takes pleasure in you! Because you are a child of God, our inheritance is no longer condemnation, but the riches of the glory of His inheritance (v. 18). The Christian is Favored by God (v. 6) According to verse 6, the Christian is favored by God. But why is the Christian favored by God? The Christian is favored by God because of the Beloved. So, who is the Beloved? The Beloved is the Son of God. The NET Bible rightly translates verse 6 this way: to the praise of the glory of his grace that he has freely bestowed on us in his dearly loved Son. So, what this means dear Christian, is that the only reason why you are favored by God is because you are now in His Son, Jesus Christ. You are favored not because of anything you have done but because of everything that Jesus has already done on your account and on your behalf! The Christian is Forgiven by God (v. 7) You who once stood condemned by God now stand forgiven through the Son. You have been redeemed through the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of all your sins. The forgiveness of your sins through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is owing only to the immeasurable riches of the grace of God. Lord, I did not freely choose youTill by grace you set me free;For my heart would still refuse, Had your love not chosen me. The Christian is Rich in the Grace of God (v. 8) If you are a Christian, you have redemption through Jesus and nothing owning to yourself! If there was or is any confusion as to what it was that caused a Holy God to look down upon you with favor for the purpose of redeeming you, it is simply this: We have redemption through His blood according to the riches of His grace. In what way did we received His grace and how did the Almighty distribute His grace? He lavished his grace on us (v. 8)! The Christian has Been Permitted to Know God (v. 9) When it comes to knowing God, we are told, the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they will not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ (2 Cor. 4:4). Furthermore, the Bible informs us that, a natural person [sinner] does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Cor. 2:14). So how does a person come to know the will of God? Only through Jesus according to the good pleasure of God. The Christian has a Future with God (v. 11a) The One you sinned against, the One before Whom you once stood against in arrogance, the One you were blinded to, the One before heaven and earth has no place to hid and recoils before His infinite holiness (Rev. 20:11), and of whom the angles declare: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD God Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come. (Isa. 6:3; Rev. 4:8), you, Christian, are now known and favored by! This is why Jesus said, My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand (John 10:27-29). The Christian has the Security of God (v. 13) You, Christian, who was once dead in your sins (Eph. 2:1-3) and are now alive in Christ (2:4), are sealed by the Holy Spirit. This means that the One who holds you in His hand will keep you in His hand, and according to verses 13-14, He has given you His Spirit as a seal which serves as a down payment of more to come! Dont you ever forget the words of our savior dear Christian: I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand (John 10:28-29). The Christian is Treasured by God (v. 14) Finally, you who were once far off, spiritually dead, and hostile towards God are now treasured by God. The apostle Peter put it this way: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a people for Gods own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). One way to translate verses 13-14 from the Greek is this way: In Jesus, you also having heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom having also believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the initial installment of our inheritance, until the redemption of His adopted children, who were purchased to be His treasured possession to the praise of His glory. Conclusion So, who are you Christian? You are saved by the will of God. You have the grace and peace of God. You have the blessing of God. You are redeemed to be holy and blameless before God. You are a son/daughter of God. You are favored by God. You are forgiven by God. You are rich in the grace of God. You now know God. You have a future with God. You have the security of God. You are treasured by God. Who are you? If you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, you are a Christian! So, I leave you with only two questions. First, how did God save you? He saved you through Jesus Christ; this is why the apostle Paul used the phrase in Christ, in Him, and through Him ten times in just fourteen verses. Second, why did God save you Christian? God did it for the praise of His glory. And he uses that phrase at the end of his explanation of the Fathers role in your salvation (vv. 3-6), at the end of his explanation of the Sons role in your salvation (vv. 7-12), and at the end of the Holy Spirits role in your salvation (vv. 13-14). Amen. [1] Fred Sanders. The Deep Things of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2017), p. 105.

Ephesus was a city whose economy depended on trade. It was frequently visited by people wishing to see and experience one of the seven wonders of the world of their day known as the Temple of Artemis/Diana. The economy, culture, and ethics of Ephesus all centered on the goddess of Diana and the temple built in her honor. The temple was supported by 127 giant pillars believed to have been given as gifts by 127 different kings. The temple housed many priests and priestesses who operated under a castrated male who functioned as the high priest. The male priests were in charge of offering the sacrifices to Diana, which also included human sacrifice. The female priests were unmarried women given the responsibility to be channels of worship to Diana which was performed through intercourse of any male wishing to worship Diana with her priestesses. You can see why worship in the temple of Diana was so popular. Because the worship of Diana was the main religion in Ephesus, ritual prostitution was a dominant feature of the religious atmosphere in Ephesus. Spirits, we know as demons, frequently possessed the priestesses as well as the worshiper which should come to be no surprise, for the Bible says: that the things Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God (1 Cor. 10:20). Anytime an offering is given to an idol, it is an offering given to a demon not merely an image Diana was no exception. When the apostle Paul stopped in Ephesus to preach, the gospel disrupted the worship of the goddess of Artemis/Diana as people in the city heard the good news about Jesus Christ and gave their lives to Him. So profound was the gospels impact upon the culture of Ephesus that some who made their living off the worship of Diana expressed their great concern: in almost all of Asia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people, saying that gods made by hands are not gods at all. Not only is there danger that this trade of ours will fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be regarded as worthless, and that she whom all of Asia and the world worship will even be dethroned from her magnificence (see Acts 19:2328). Paul spent over two years in Ephesus where God used him to establish the same church to which he would write the epistle to the Ephesians years later, while in prison. The city of Ephesus was a very scary place full of demonic activity, full of women who were held as sex slaves, full of all kinds of perverts seeking to get cheap thrills under the guise of religion, radical feminists who distained the existence of men, public baths, and bathrooms, where modesty was considered taboo, all of which were ruled by a demon posing to be a free-spirited goddess. It is in this city that a church was birthed, cultural norms challenged, and lives transformed. What you also need to know is that years before Paul brought the gospel to Ephesus, he tried to prevent its spread because he was convinced Christianity had to be destroyed. Of his former life as a pharisee, Paul wrote in Philippians 3, If anyone else thinks he is confident in the flesh, I have more reason: circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless (Phil. 3:46). Paul approved of the stoning of Stephen, who was sentenced to death because of his outspoken faith in Jesus (see Acts 7). Regarding his salvation and faith in Jesus, Paul wrote to Timothy (who would eventually become the pastor of the church in Ephesus): It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost (1 Tim. 1:15). What does it Mean to be a Christian? Fred Sanders, in his masterful book, The Deep Things of God, wrote of the gospel, The gospel so outstrips our created measurements that it can be measured only against something as immense as God himself. Sanders further comments, There is one place in Scripture where this sheer greatness of the gospel is most profusely described: the blessing with which Paul opens the epistle to the Ephesians.[1] In the weeks to come, we will plumb the depths of Ephesians 1:1-14, but for now, I only want to show you who you are if you are a Christian and who you can be, by the grace of God, if you are not. The Christian is Saved by the Will of God (v. 1) In the very first sentence to these Christians surrounded by some of the darkest evils, Paul attributes his salvation and apostleship to the will of God. The stoning of Stephen and his part in the imprisonment and persecution of Christians was not too much for the grace of God to overcome. In fact, a survey of the Bible will show you that when it comes to the will of man and the will of God, it is the will of man to run from God and it is only because of will greater than our own that God is able to pursue us and find us. The Christian has the Grace and Peace of God (v. 2) Before salvation, Paul and the Ephesian Christians stood before a holy God guilty, awaiting a judgment under the wrath of God, and the same can be said of you and me. The Bible says, because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God (Rom. 2:5). But now, because of what Jesus accomplished, the Christian has received the grace and peace of God. The Christian has the Blessing of God (v. 3) What the Ephesian Christians had before Paul brought the gospel to them was wrath. In fact, Paul describes what it was that they had before they met Jesus in the next chapter: And you were dead in your offenses and sins, in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air we too all previously lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath (Eph. 2:1-3). However, because of the saving work of Jesus, the Christian has received, every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. The Christian is Saved by God to be Holy and Blameless Before God (v. 4) Paul was committed to the idol of his religious legalism while the Ephesians were indulged in their worship of Diana; both were far from God, yet it was God who rescued them from their idols and from their sin. Why did God save Paul and those who made up the Ephesian Church? Why did he save any of us? Well, verse 4 answers that question for us: that we would be holy and blameless before Him. God saved you to change you, and that change is moving you closer and closer to holiness and blamelessness. The Christian is Made a Son/Daughter of God (v. 5) Before Jesus, the Christian was a child of devil (1 John 3:7-10) and a child of wrath (Eph. 2:3). But through Jesus, the Christian is adopted, as sons and daughters. As a son and a daughter, you who once stood under a wrath deserved, now stand as a child of God with all the rights and privileges of a God who now takes pleasure in you! Because you are a child of God, our inheritance is no longer condemnation, but the riches of the glory of His inheritance (v. 18). The Christian is Favored by God (v. 6) According to verse 6, the Christian is favored by God. But why is the Christian favored by God? The Christian is favored by God because of the Beloved. So, who is the Beloved? The Beloved is the Son of God. The NET Bible rightly translates verse 6 this way: to the praise of the glory of his grace that he has freely bestowed on us in his dearly loved Son. So, what this means dear Christian, is that the only reason why you are favored by God is because you are now in His Son, Jesus Christ. You are favored not because of anything you have done but because of everything that Jesus has already done on your account and on your behalf! The Christian is Forgiven by God (v. 7) You who once stood condemned by God now stand forgiven through the Son. You have been redeemed through the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of all your sins. The forgiveness of your sins through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is owing only to the immeasurable riches of the grace of God. Lord, I did not freely choose youTill by grace you set me free;For my heart would still refuse, Had your love not chosen me. The Christian is Rich in the Grace of God (v. 8) If you are a Christian, you have redemption through Jesus and nothing owning to yourself! If there was or is any confusion as to what it was that caused a Holy God to look down upon you with favor for the purpose of redeeming you, it is simply this: We have redemption through His blood according to the riches of His grace. In what way did we received His grace and how did the Almighty distribute His grace? He lavished his grace on us (v. 8)! The Christian has Been Permitted to Know God (v. 9) When it comes to knowing God, we are told, the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they will not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ (2 Cor. 4:4). Furthermore, the Bible informs us that, a natural person [sinner] does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Cor. 2:14). So how does a person come to know the will of God? Only through Jesus according to the good pleasure of God. The Christian has a Future with God (v. 11a) The One you sinned against, the One before Whom you once stood against in arrogance, the One you were blinded to, the One before heaven and earth has no place to hid and recoils before His infinite holiness (Rev. 20:11), and of whom the angles declare: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD God Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come. (Isa. 6:3; Rev. 4:8), you, Christian, are now known and favored by! This is why Jesus said, My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand (John 10:27-29). The Christian has the Security of God (v. 13) You, Christian, who was once dead in your sins (Eph. 2:1-3) and are now alive in Christ (2:4), are sealed by the Holy Spirit. This means that the One who holds you in His hand will keep you in His hand, and according to verses 13-14, He has given you His Spirit as a seal which serves as a down payment of more to come! Dont you ever forget the words of our savior dear Christian: I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Fathers hand (John 10:28-29). The Christian is Treasured by God (v. 14) Finally, you who were once far off, spiritually dead, and hostile towards God are now treasured by God. The apostle Peter put it this way: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a Holy nation, a people for Gods own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). One way to translate verses 13-14 from the Greek is this way: In Jesus, you also having heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, in whom having also believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the initial installment of our inheritance, until the redemption of His adopted children, who were purchased to be His treasured possession to the praise of His glory. Conclusion So, who are you Christian? You are saved by the will of God. You have the grace and peace of God. You have the blessing of God. You are redeemed to be holy and blameless before God. You are a son/daughter of God. You are favored by God. You are forgiven by God. You are rich in the grace of God. You now know God. You have a future with God. You have the security of God. You are treasured by God. Who are you? If you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, you are a Christian! So, I leave you with only two questions. First, how did God save you? He saved you through Jesus Christ; this is why the apostle Paul used the phrase in Christ, in Him, and through Him ten times in just fourteen verses. Second, why did God save you Christian? God did it for the praise of His glory. And he uses that phrase at the end of his explanation of the Fathers role in your salvation (vv. 3-6), at the end of his explanation of the Sons role in your salvation (vv. 7-12), and at the end of the Holy Spirits role in your salvation (vv. 13-14). Amen. [1] Fred Sanders. The Deep Things of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2017), p. 105.

God is a Trinity in that He is One God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In his book, Delighting in the Trinity, Michael Reeves wrote of the Trinity: If the Trinity were something we could shave off God, we would not be relieving him of some irksome weight; we would be shearing him of precisely what is so delightful about him. For God is triune, and it is as triune that he is so good and desirable.[1] Fed Sanders in his book, The Deep Things of God, wrote: God is eternally Trinity, because triunity belongs to his very nature. Things like creation and redemption are things God does, and he would still be God if he had not done them. But Trinity is who God is, and without being the Trinity, he would not be God. God minus creation would still be God, but God minus Father, Son, and Holy Spirit would not be God. So when we praise God for being our creator and redeemer, we are praising him for what he does. But behind what God does is the greater glory of who he is: behind his act is his being.[2] To appreciate the glory of the King who was born on the first Christmas, you must understand what it is that sets the God of the Bible apart from every cult and religion is that the God in the Bible is One God in Three (Trinity) Persons. What this means is that there was never a time when Jesus was created because there was never a time when He was not the Son. What happened that never happened before and never will happen again is in the angels announcement to Mary: behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus (Luke 1:31)? What happened that was new was God the Son took on human flesh by being conceived in the womb of a virgin. What was new was that God the Son also became the Son of Mary (Luke 1:31, 35). Represented in the Christ Child was, the union of undiminished deity and perfect humanity forever in one person. The message of advent is simply this: The plan was always for a King to reign in Israel over all the nations. In passages like Isaiah 44:6-8, Yahweh was to be King over Israel. We are told in verse 6, This is what Yahweh says, He who is the King of Israel and his Redeemer, Yahweh of armies: I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me. In 2 Samuel 7:13, we read of how king David was promised that a very human descendant of his would reign as king forever: He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. Both Isaiah 44:6-8 and 2 Samuel 7:13 come together in the promise of Isaiah 9:6-7, For a Child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of armies will accomplish this. (Isaiah 9:67) The glorious reality of the Trinity is that the Son was always the King of Isaiah 44 and Isaiah 9, and the incarnation allowed Him to be all of Isaiah 44:6-8 and Isaiah 9:6-7 while at the same time becoming the Son of David (2 Sam. 7:8-17) through the virgin birth (Luke 1:26-38). Jesus is the Means for Our Redemption (vv. 4-8) The book of Revelation was written to suffering Christians who needed encouragement. There was much that John suffered because of his association with Jesus, and although he most likely was not martyred for his faith, many of his friends were. If you believe that the purpose of the book of Revelation is primarily about how the world will end, you have missed the point of the book entirely. We are told why it was written in its opening verses: The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bondservants, the things which must soon take place (v. 1). When you are in a season of long-term suffering, it is easy to grow weary believing that there will be no end to such suffering. The book of Revelation was written to encourage suffering Christians that their suffering had an expiration date while their salvation would remain nonperishable. Before we are told about what is coming, John first tells us what has already happened. In just three short verses, the apostle lists for us seven reasons why we can be confident that our suffering is not how our story will end: John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His bloodand He made us into a kingdom, priests to His God and Fatherto Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. (Rev. 1:46) The grace and peace of verse 4 is from three persons. The One, who is, and who is to come is God the Father, the seven spirits is a reference to the Holy Spirit,[3] and, the grace and peace that is for the Christian is from Jesus Christ. Seven is an important number in the Bible, especially in the book of Revelation and its use is symbolic of fullness. In these opening verses, John lists seven ways Jesus birth, life, death, and resurrection benefits the Christian: Jesus is a faithful witness in the way He lived, died, and rose from the grave. His life is our example, and we are to look to Him as we, run with endurance the race that is set before us looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfector of the faith (Heb. 12:1-2). Jesus is the first born of the dead in that he suffered and died, but He did not stay dead. Jesus conquered death, which means that our death will eventually lead to a resurrection too. Jesus is the ruler of the kings of the earth in that He is sovereign over all earthly powers to the point that no king can destroy what Jesus loves and treasures. Jesus loves us and His love for His Church is not fleeting, fragile, or conditional. Jesus released us from our sins by His blood in that He shed His blood on a cross of wood by becoming a curse for us to free us from the curse of sin in perpetuity. Jesus made us into a kingdom in that the citizenship of the Christian is in the realm of Jesus kingdom. Jesus made us into priests who were once alienated from God, are now reconciled to God, and called to participate in the mission of God as His ambassadors. Because God the Father so loved the world, He sent Jesus the Son who completed all that was needed for our redemption, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Because we are recipients of the first advent of Christs coming, we now long for the second advent of His coming which, according to verses 8-9 is as good as done: Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen. I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty (Rev. 1:78). This is why the angel was able to announce to lowly shepherds that the birth of Jesus was good news: Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:1011). So, we rejoice with the hymn writer who wrote of Jesus: He makes the rebel a priest and a king, He has bought us and taught us this new song to sing: Unto Him who has loved us and washed us from sin, Unto Him be the glory forever. Amen.[4] Jesus is the Glory of Our Redemption (vv. 9-16) In Revelation 1:9-16, John sees the glory of the One who was laid in a manger on the first Christmas, what he lists for us are nine characteristics of Jesus glory that come together in Him being fully God and fully manjust as the number 7 symbolizes fullness or completeness, the number 9 symbolizes perfection. Here are the nine things John sees in a Jesus who, because of the incarnation now is fully God and fully Man for the rest of eternity: Jesus stands in the middle of the seven lampstands. The lampstand John sees was like the menorah used in Solomons temple that symbolized the seven days of creation. It was one lampstand with seven lamps. Remember that seven symbolizes fullness; the seven churches are both seven literal churches that symbolize the global Church. Jesus is both Lord of the Church and the center of the Church because He purchased her with His blood. He is the groom, and the Church is His Bride. In the manger was laid the groom of the Church! Jesus is clothed in a robe wearing a golden sash. The clothing Jesus is wearing when John sees Him is that of both a High Priest and a King. Jesus stands in the midst of His Church as the King and He stands serving as the High Priest whose perfect sacrifice was Himself for the atonement for sins, sins we are guilty of. The one laid in a manger was born to die for sinners: Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for usfor it is written: Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree (Gal. 3:13). Jesus head and hair are white like white wool. Jesuss head and hair are white because before He was born in flesh, he was for all eternity the Ancient of Days spoken of by the prophet Daniel, I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head like pure wool (Dan. 7:9). The one laid in a manger is the Ancient of Days who stands as the groom, High Priest of His Church because He is Him who is, Holy, holy, holy Jesus eyes are like a flame of fire. What is the point? Christian, you are the Church, and although you may be weary and tired the Groom of the Church does not grow weary or tired! The One laid in a manger sees you and sees all that is wrong in the world; His eyes are like a flame of fire because the judgment He will bring will make all that is wrong in our world right and good, for when He comes, he will come to make His blessings flow as far as the curse is found. Jesus feet are like burnished and glowing bronze. His feet of bronze symbolize the strength of Jesus as both King and Savior who will crush His enemies, of which the first enemy was death. He is Lord of His Church who stands in the midst of His Bride which means that NO ONE can remove His lampstands from Him; the One whose feet are like burnished bronze is He who declared: My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand (John 10:2728). Jesus voice is like the sound of many waters. Like the continuous waves of the ocean or the roar of Niagara Falls to the tenth power the cries of the infant child from Marys womb on the first Christmas to the triumphant cry from the Cross: It is finished! is the voice of the Ancient of Days; when He speaks creation happens, demons flee, the lame walk, the sick are cured, and the dead become the living! The voice that John heard is the voice of omnipotent power and absolute authority. Jesus holds in His right hand the seven stars. Whoever or whatever the seven stars are, the point is that Jesus holds them in His right hand, which is the hand of strength. The point is that there is only One King of kings and One Lord of lords; it was a reminder that although Rome had her emperor who sentenced John to Patmos, there is only One true Sovereign! Jesus is sovereign over empires, He is sovereign over the cosmos, He is sovereign over life and death! The One laid in the manger, is the One, before all things, and in Him all things hold together (Col. 1:17). From Jesus mouth comes a sharp two-edged sword. The sharp two-edged sword is symbolic of the life and power of Christs Word. What comes out of the mouth of King Jesus is, living and active, and sharper than any two-edge sword (Heb. 4:12). Philip Hughes said of the sword John saw come out of Jesus mouth: The sword which is the Lords word has two edges [so] it never fails to cut. If it does not cut with the edge of salvation, it cuts with the edge of condemnation; for the word of redemption to all who believe is at the same time the word of destruction to those who refuse to believe.[5] Jesus face is like the sun shining in its strength. In the face of Christ, John sees what we must see in Jesus: To have Him shine upon you as your savior and redeemer who was born to live the life you could never live to die a death that you deserved to die is to have the face of God shine upon you. In the face of Jesus is the union of undiminished deity and perfect humanity forever in one person. What John saw in Revelation 1:4-18 was, is, and forever will remain the only version of Jesus that exists. The Jesus that John saw and experienced was not a Jesus who became the Son of God through the virgin birth, but He has always been the Son of God! It is this Jesus the prophet Jeremiah wrote about hundreds of years before the Christ Child was laid in a manger on the first Christmas: Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will live securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, Yahweh Our Righteousness. (Jer. 23:56). To worship any other Jesus besides this Jesus is to embrace a version of Jesus who cannot save! Conclusion: Jesus is the Goal of Our Redemption (vv. 17-18) After John experiences this Jesus, we are told that he, fell at His feet like a dead man. I am not sure if that means John had a heart attack or what, but what I do know is that Jesus placed his right hand on the apostle and said something that should now be clearer to you than when you first arrived this morning: Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys to death and of Hades (vv. 17-18). What does all this mean? What it means is this: the child born to Mary was, is, and forever will be fully God and fully Man who was born to save sinners like you and me. The Jesus of Revelation 1:4-18 took on human flesh and was born on the very first Christmas. If the manger could speak to all in attendance as it held the One identified as the Ancient of Days, the Prince of Peace, and Yahweh our Righteousness it would say, If you were a hundred times worse than you are. Your sins would be no match for His mercy.[6] Amen. [1] Michael Reeves, Delighting in the Trinity (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic; 2012); p. 9. [2] Fred Sanders, The Deep Things of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2017); p. 75 [3] The number seven is symbolic of fullness and is used here as a reference to the fullness of the Holy Spirits work in the lives of Gods people (see Isa. 11:2; Rev. 3:1; 4:5; 5:6). [4] Joel R. Beeke, Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage Books; 2016); p. 26. [5] Ibid. pp. 46-7. [6] Tim Keller.

God is a Trinity in that He is One God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In his book, Delighting in the Trinity, Michael Reeves wrote of the Trinity: If the Trinity were something we could shave off God, we would not be relieving him of some irksome weight; we would be shearing him of precisely what is so delightful about him. For God is triune, and it is as triune that he is so good and desirable.[1] Fed Sanders in his book, The Deep Things of God, wrote: God is eternally Trinity, because triunity belongs to his very nature. Things like creation and redemption are things God does, and he would still be God if he had not done them. But Trinity is who God is, and without being the Trinity, he would not be God. God minus creation would still be God, but God minus Father, Son, and Holy Spirit would not be God. So when we praise God for being our creator and redeemer, we are praising him for what he does. But behind what God does is the greater glory of who he is: behind his act is his being.[2] To appreciate the glory of the King who was born on the first Christmas, you must understand what it is that sets the God of the Bible apart from every cult and religion is that the God in the Bible is One God in Three (Trinity) Persons. What this means is that there was never a time when Jesus was created because there was never a time when He was not the Son. What happened that never happened before and never will happen again is in the angels announcement to Mary: behold, you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus (Luke 1:31)? What happened that was new was God the Son took on human flesh by being conceived in the womb of a virgin. What was new was that God the Son also became the Son of Mary (Luke 1:31, 35). Represented in the Christ Child was, the union of undiminished deity and perfect humanity forever in one person. The message of advent is simply this: The plan was always for a King to reign in Israel over all the nations. In passages like Isaiah 44:6-8, Yahweh was to be King over Israel. We are told in verse 6, This is what Yahweh says, He who is the King of Israel and his Redeemer, Yahweh of armies: I am the first and I am the last, and there is no God besides Me. In 2 Samuel 7:13, we read of how king David was promised that a very human descendant of his would reign as king forever: He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. Both Isaiah 44:6-8 and 2 Samuel 7:13 come together in the promise of Isaiah 9:6-7, For a Child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of armies will accomplish this. (Isaiah 9:67) The glorious reality of the Trinity is that the Son was always the King of Isaiah 44 and Isaiah 9, and the incarnation allowed Him to be all of Isaiah 44:6-8 and Isaiah 9:6-7 while at the same time becoming the Son of David (2 Sam. 7:8-17) through the virgin birth (Luke 1:26-38). Jesus is the Means for Our Redemption (vv. 4-8) The book of Revelation was written to suffering Christians who needed encouragement. There was much that John suffered because of his association with Jesus, and although he most likely was not martyred for his faith, many of his friends were. If you believe that the purpose of the book of Revelation is primarily about how the world will end, you have missed the point of the book entirely. We are told why it was written in its opening verses: The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show to His bondservants, the things which must soon take place (v. 1). When you are in a season of long-term suffering, it is easy to grow weary believing that there will be no end to such suffering. The book of Revelation was written to encourage suffering Christians that their suffering had an expiration date while their salvation would remain nonperishable. Before we are told about what is coming, John first tells us what has already happened. In just three short verses, the apostle lists for us seven reasons why we can be confident that our suffering is not how our story will end: John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from Him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His bloodand He made us into a kingdom, priests to His God and Fatherto Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. (Rev. 1:46) The grace and peace of verse 4 is from three persons. The One, who is, and who is to come is God the Father, the seven spirits is a reference to the Holy Spirit,[3] and, the grace and peace that is for the Christian is from Jesus Christ. Seven is an important number in the Bible, especially in the book of Revelation and its use is symbolic of fullness. In these opening verses, John lists seven ways Jesus birth, life, death, and resurrection benefits the Christian: Jesus is a faithful witness in the way He lived, died, and rose from the grave. His life is our example, and we are to look to Him as we, run with endurance the race that is set before us looking only at Jesus, the originator and perfector of the faith (Heb. 12:1-2). Jesus is the first born of the dead in that he suffered and died, but He did not stay dead. Jesus conquered death, which means that our death will eventually lead to a resurrection too. Jesus is the ruler of the kings of the earth in that He is sovereign over all earthly powers to the point that no king can destroy what Jesus loves and treasures. Jesus loves us and His love for His Church is not fleeting, fragile, or conditional. Jesus released us from our sins by His blood in that He shed His blood on a cross of wood by becoming a curse for us to free us from the curse of sin in perpetuity. Jesus made us into a kingdom in that the citizenship of the Christian is in the realm of Jesus kingdom. Jesus made us into priests who were once alienated from God, are now reconciled to God, and called to participate in the mission of God as His ambassadors. Because God the Father so loved the world, He sent Jesus the Son who completed all that was needed for our redemption, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Because we are recipients of the first advent of Christs coming, we now long for the second advent of His coming which, according to verses 8-9 is as good as done: Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen. I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty (Rev. 1:78). This is why the angel was able to announce to lowly shepherds that the birth of Jesus was good news: Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:1011). So, we rejoice with the hymn writer who wrote of Jesus: He makes the rebel a priest and a king, He has bought us and taught us this new song to sing: Unto Him who has loved us and washed us from sin, Unto Him be the glory forever. Amen.[4] Jesus is the Glory of Our Redemption (vv. 9-16) In Revelation 1:9-16, John sees the glory of the One who was laid in a manger on the first Christmas, what he lists for us are nine characteristics of Jesus glory that come together in Him being fully God and fully manjust as the number 7 symbolizes fullness or completeness, the number 9 symbolizes perfection. Here are the nine things John sees in a Jesus who, because of the incarnation now is fully God and fully Man for the rest of eternity: Jesus stands in the middle of the seven lampstands. The lampstand John sees was like the menorah used in Solomons temple that symbolized the seven days of creation. It was one lampstand with seven lamps. Remember that seven symbolizes fullness; the seven churches are both seven literal churches that symbolize the global Church. Jesus is both Lord of the Church and the center of the Church because He purchased her with His blood. He is the groom, and the Church is His Bride. In the manger was laid the groom of the Church! Jesus is clothed in a robe wearing a golden sash. The clothing Jesus is wearing when John sees Him is that of both a High Priest and a King. Jesus stands in the midst of His Church as the King and He stands serving as the High Priest whose perfect sacrifice was Himself for the atonement for sins, sins we are guilty of. The one laid in a manger was born to die for sinners: Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for usfor it is written: Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree (Gal. 3:13). Jesus head and hair are white like white wool. Jesuss head and hair are white because before He was born in flesh, he was for all eternity the Ancient of Days spoken of by the prophet Daniel, I kept looking Until thrones were set up, And the Ancient of Days took His seat; His garment was white as snow, And the hair of His head like pure wool (Dan. 7:9). The one laid in a manger is the Ancient of Days who stands as the groom, High Priest of His Church because He is Him who is, Holy, holy, holy Jesus eyes are like a flame of fire. What is the point? Christian, you are the Church, and although you may be weary and tired the Groom of the Church does not grow weary or tired! The One laid in a manger sees you and sees all that is wrong in the world; His eyes are like a flame of fire because the judgment He will bring will make all that is wrong in our world right and good, for when He comes, he will come to make His blessings flow as far as the curse is found. Jesus feet are like burnished and glowing bronze. His feet of bronze symbolize the strength of Jesus as both King and Savior who will crush His enemies, of which the first enemy was death. He is Lord of His Church who stands in the midst of His Bride which means that NO ONE can remove His lampstands from Him; the One whose feet are like burnished bronze is He who declared: My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand (John 10:2728). Jesus voice is like the sound of many waters. Like the continuous waves of the ocean or the roar of Niagara Falls to the tenth power the cries of the infant child from Marys womb on the first Christmas to the triumphant cry from the Cross: It is finished! is the voice of the Ancient of Days; when He speaks creation happens, demons flee, the lame walk, the sick are cured, and the dead become the living! The voice that John heard is the voice of omnipotent power and absolute authority. Jesus holds in His right hand the seven stars. Whoever or whatever the seven stars are, the point is that Jesus holds them in His right hand, which is the hand of strength. The point is that there is only One King of kings and One Lord of lords; it was a reminder that although Rome had her emperor who sentenced John to Patmos, there is only One true Sovereign! Jesus is sovereign over empires, He is sovereign over the cosmos, He is sovereign over life and death! The One laid in the manger, is the One, before all things, and in Him all things hold together (Col. 1:17). From Jesus mouth comes a sharp two-edged sword. The sharp two-edged sword is symbolic of the life and power of Christs Word. What comes out of the mouth of King Jesus is, living and active, and sharper than any two-edge sword (Heb. 4:12). Philip Hughes said of the sword John saw come out of Jesus mouth: The sword which is the Lords word has two edges [so] it never fails to cut. If it does not cut with the edge of salvation, it cuts with the edge of condemnation; for the word of redemption to all who believe is at the same time the word of destruction to those who refuse to believe.[5] Jesus face is like the sun shining in its strength. In the face of Christ, John sees what we must see in Jesus: To have Him shine upon you as your savior and redeemer who was born to live the life you could never live to die a death that you deserved to die is to have the face of God shine upon you. In the face of Jesus is the union of undiminished deity and perfect humanity forever in one person. What John saw in Revelation 1:4-18 was, is, and forever will remain the only version of Jesus that exists. The Jesus that John saw and experienced was not a Jesus who became the Son of God through the virgin birth, but He has always been the Son of God! It is this Jesus the prophet Jeremiah wrote about hundreds of years before the Christ Child was laid in a manger on the first Christmas: Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; And He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will live securely; And this is His name by which He will be called, Yahweh Our Righteousness. (Jer. 23:56). To worship any other Jesus besides this Jesus is to embrace a version of Jesus who cannot save! Conclusion: Jesus is the Goal of Our Redemption (vv. 17-18) After John experiences this Jesus, we are told that he, fell at His feet like a dead man. I am not sure if that means John had a heart attack or what, but what I do know is that Jesus placed his right hand on the apostle and said something that should now be clearer to you than when you first arrived this morning: Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys to death and of Hades (vv. 17-18). What does all this mean? What it means is this: the child born to Mary was, is, and forever will be fully God and fully Man who was born to save sinners like you and me. The Jesus of Revelation 1:4-18 took on human flesh and was born on the very first Christmas. If the manger could speak to all in attendance as it held the One identified as the Ancient of Days, the Prince of Peace, and Yahweh our Righteousness it would say, If you were a hundred times worse than you are. Your sins would be no match for His mercy.[6] Amen. [1] Michael Reeves, Delighting in the Trinity (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic; 2012); p. 9. [2] Fred Sanders, The Deep Things of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2017); p. 75 [3] The number seven is symbolic of fullness and is used here as a reference to the fullness of the Holy Spirits work in the lives of Gods people (see Isa. 11:2; Rev. 3:1; 4:5; 5:6). [4] Joel R. Beeke, Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage Books; 2016); p. 26. [5] Ibid. pp. 46-7. [6] Tim Keller.

In our study of 1 John 3:6, we get encouragement in our fight against sin. While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: – The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008) – Dr. J. Vernon McGee, “Through the Bible” – Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 1991), Vol. 6 – John Owen, The Glory of Christ Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

Today's study of 1 John 3:5 shows us the beauty of Jesus's payment for us! While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: – The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008) Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

As we study 1 John 3:3, we see how hope for future transformation transforms us today! While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: – Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Theology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994), Chpt. 42, “Glorification (Receiving a Resurrection Body)” – The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008) Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

In our study of 1 John 3:1b, we see what sets the believer apart, and what threats he faces to that holiness. While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: – Francis Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live? (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2005) – “Creation Apologetics Master Course”, Answers in Genesis; edu.answersingenesis.org – Wayne Grudem, Christian Ethics (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2018) – John Piper, 21 Servants of Sovereign Joy (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2018), “J. Gresham Machen”, p. 476 Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠⁠⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠⁠⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

In today's study of 1 John 2:26-27, we see a life built on a humanist worldview and a life built on God's Word. While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: -Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Theology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994), Chpt. 6, “The Clarity of Scripture” – Francis Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live? (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2005) – “Creation Apologetics Master Course”, Answers in Genesis; edu.answersingenesis.org -Tony Reinke, Lit! (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2011), Chpt. 2, “Wide-Eyed into the Son” Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, ⁠adoptedbelievers.com⁠. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

Today in our study of 1 John 2:25, we just take a moment to look at the glorious promise we have: eternal life! While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: – Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Theology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994), Chpt. 12, “Communicable Attributes of God (1)” – Francis Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live? (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2005) – “Creation Apologetics Master Course”, Answers in Genesis; edu.answersingenesis.org Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, adoptedbelievers.com. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

Jesus was asked what he believed the greatest of Gods commandments was, and his answer was simple: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 22:3740). Jesus answer can be reduced to seven words: Love God and also love your neighbor. How you love God will affect the way you treat the people in your life, and the way you treat the people in your life can serve as a barometer for the spiritual climate of your heart and relationship with God. What does this have to do with Malachi 2:10-17? The way the people were treating one another and the way the men were treating their wives, was symptomatic of their relationship with God. Because the men did not think highly of the promise made to their wives, God did not regard or accept their worship. We will unpack verse 13 but consider the shocking tone of this verse to set the tone for the whole passage: You cover the Lords altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. I am reading a book titled, The Great Dechurching; what got my attention before I purchased the book is what it said in the back: We are currently experiencing the largest and fastest religious shift in US history. This shift is greater than the First and Second Great Awakenings combined (when America experienced the largest religious shift in the Church towards growth) but in the opposite direction. In the opening pages of the book, Jim Davis and Michael Graham glean from the largest and most comprehensive study of dechurching in America: About 40 million adults in America today used to go to church but no longer do, which accounts for around 16 percent of our adult population. For the first time in the eight decades that the Gallup has tracked American religious membership, more adults in the United States do not attend church than attend church. This is not a gradual shift; it is a jolting one.[1] What this means in the words of Davis and Graham: More people have left the church in the last twenty-five years than all the new people who became Christians from the First Great Awakening, Second Great Awakening, and Billy Graham crusades combined.[2] Here are some of the takeaways so far from my reading of The Great Dechurching: Dechurching is happening on every income level, regardless of educational status, and area of the country people live, which means that people all over the country are, deciding to forgo their in-person worship for other activities on Sunday morning.[3] And they are doing so for a variety of reasons.[4] The children of the dechurched will inevitably become unchurched, which in the words of the authors of their book will change, the nature of spirituality in America significantly.[5] One of the most alarming findings that I have read in The Great Dechurching so far is what the authors state at the beginning of their book: We learned in our research that 68 percent of dechurched evangelicals said their parents played a role in the decision to leave the Church.[6] There was something about the culture of the home these evangelical dechurched Christians experienced that turned them away from the church. I believe Malachi 2:10-17 speaks into the phenomena of the great dechurching. Know God as Your Father Tozer said it well when he wrote, What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and mans spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God.[7] I have used this quote so many times in sermons, Bible studies, and classes I have taught; it still has not lost its punch because it is so true! So, who is this God we identify as our Father? Or as Malachi states in the form of a question: Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? (v. 10). If you are a Christian, then our Father is the creator God who spoke the galaxies into existence with only the word of his mouth in only six days (Gen. 1:1; Exod. 20:11; Heb. 11:3). Our Father is El Elyon, which means, The Most High God. There is no God like him and there is not god above him (Gen. 14:18-20; Ps. 57:2; Isa. 46:8-10). Our Father is El Roi, which means, The God Who Sees. Nothing goes unnoticed by him. He sees our circumstances, he sees the secret places, he sees when no one else notices, he sees all things (Gen. 16:13-14; Prov. 24:12). Our Father is El Shaddai, which means, The All-Sufficient One. He lacks absolutely nothing, he cannot be outdone, and he is able to do what he says he will do. Our Father is Yahweh who is the covenant keeping God; He does not break his promises and He is faithful even when we are faithless (Exod. 3:13-14). Dear brothers and sisters, what comes to mind when you think of the God that you call, Father? As Yahweh, our Father provides (Yahweh-Jireh) for his children (Gen. 22:11-14). In Exodus 15:26, we discover that our Father heals his children (Yahweh-Rapha). In Exodus 17:15, our Father is a banner for his people in Whom we find our true identity and purpose (Yahweh-Nissi). In Exodus 31:13, we discover that our Father loves his children too much to leave them as they are, for He is the one who sanctifies His people (Yahweh-Mekoddishkem). In Judges 6:24, our Father is the only One who is able to bring peace (shalom) to His children (Yahweh-Shalom). In Psalm 46:7, our Father is a refuge and fortress for his children even when you find yourself standing on the ashes of what once was (Yahweh-Sabaoth). In Psalm 23, our Father is our Good Shepherd (Yahweh-Raah). But wait, there is one other name I want you to see that describes what our heavenly Father will do for His children in Jeremiah 23:5-6, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: The Lord is our righteousness. Now skip down to Malachi 3:1; the Messenger Malachi prophesied would come to prepare the way for the Lord, is the One Jeremiah described as, The Lord is our righteousness. The messenger would be John the Baptist: Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. Malachi 3:1 is a part of next weeks sermon, but before we look at the rest of Malachi 2, I want you to hear two things: The Righteous Branch from David is Jesus, the righteousness of all whose faith rests in Him, for in Jesus we discover a Father who is our righteousness who sent His Son to be our righteousness: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). Because of what Jesus accomplished for you, Christian, we read in five verses earlier in 2 Corinthians 5:17, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come. Richard Gaffin wrote something that amplifies the significance of what it means to have God as your Father in the following statement: At the core of their being, in the deepest recesses of what they arein other words, in the inner selfbelievers will never be more resurrected than they already are. God has done a work in each believer, a work of nothing less than resurrection proportions that will not be undone. Such languageis not just a metaphor.[8] If you can truly call God, Father because you have reconciled to Him by faith through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, then you, will never be more resurrected at the core of your inner self than you already are. Before we can go any further, I want you to let that truth settle upon your heart for a moment. Recognize the Bond You Share with Gods People If you are a Christian, then God has done a work in your life that has changed the DNA of your inner self is such a way that what was once spiritually dead is now alive! That work will and can never be undone (if you doubt that, just read Ephesians 1:3-14 and Romans 8). So, if you are tempted to believe the lie that you cannot change, you need to preach to your own heart that the same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the grave, is the same power that has made you spiritually alive and empowers change in you. The power at work in your life is a power those addressed in Malachi 2 did not know. The evidence that a person can truly call God, Father is seen by that persons loving response to God and those who bear His image. So, for those in Malachis day who claimed to know God as Father, but were faithless to one another received the following rebuke: Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers? Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god. May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob any descendant of the man who does this, who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts! (Malachi 2:1012) What was the covenant of the fathers that was being profaned? It was the covenant that included certain prohibitions, and one such prohibition was not to marry individuals from certain people groups who did not love or worship Yahweh because they worshiped other gods. Specifically, God instructed His people: You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods (Deut. 7:34). Generations before Malachi, Solomon married women from other people groups who worshiped other gods and they turned his heart away from God and the consequences where catastrophic for the nation of Israel. Solomons disregard of Deuteronomy 7 was the soil that resulted in nation-wide idolatry and the eventual discipline of God that exiled the Hebrew people, yet the men of Malachis day ignored all of that and went and married women who worshiped other gods anyway. If God is a Father to you and you know Him to be all that He has identified Himself to be, then why on Gods green earth would you enter into the one covenantal relationship that was instituted by God with a person who does not love or worship that same God as you do? If God is God and He is a Father to you, then why would you risk entering into a relationship with someone who will at best make the worship of Him burdensome and at worst turn your heart against Him? If the God who instituted marriage where sex is to be enjoyed and the procreation of children to be shared for the purpose of raising them up to know the One True God, why would you willingly enter into a relationship where your child/children will inevitably be torn between whatever god is worshiped by one parent verses the true God worshiped by the other? Listen, Malachi 2:10-12 is not just for Malachis contemporaries, these verses are for the Church too! What is in Malachi 2:10-12 is not an Old Testament principle to be ignored by New Testament saints in the name of grace or missionary dating, for we are told in the New Testament: Do not be mismatched with unbelievers; for what do righteousness and lawlessness share together, or what does light have in common with darkness? Or what harmony does Christ have with Belial, or what does a believer share with an unbeliever (2 Cor. 6:1415, NASB20)? Listen carefully, the point being made in these verses is that the only reason you would want to marry someone who does not love or know the true God is because you love the unbelieving man or woman more than you love God. To profane the covenant of marriage in verse 11, is to treat the covenant of marriage as common and nothing more than simple romance that can be disregarded when the feelings fade, or the intimacy is gone. If what I just said seems harsh to you, then how else do you explain verse 13, which states: And this second thing you do. You cover the Lords altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. This is exactly what Esau did after he found out that by trading his birthright for a bowl of stew and after the blessing was given to his younger brother, he wept (see Gen. 28:30-38); Hebrews 12:17 describes Esaus response this way: For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears (Heb. 12:17). Sin is simply the trading your birthright in for a bowl of stew that will not satisfy your soul. Faithfully Nurture the Covenant You Have Entered The other thing the men in Malachis day were doing, was that they were divorcing their Hebrew wives to marry women who worshiped other gods. The way the men were treating their wives was evidence that they really had little regard for the covenant of marriage. There were some who desired marriage with foreign women who worshiped another god, and then there were men who married a Hebrew wife who did worship Yahweh but divorced them to marry women who worshiped other gods. To these men, Malachi addresses in verse 15, Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one God seeking? Godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth (Mal. 2:15). We read in Genesis 1 something that Malachi and his contemporaries would have been familiar with: So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Gen. 1:27). God then commanded the man and woman to create and fill the earth with people like themselves and to manage creation. Furthermore, we are told in Genesis 1:28 that God told Adam and his wife, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth (Genesis 1:28). This is the covenant of marriage, and in Genesis 2:24-25 we are told of the sacredness of marriage and the place that sex had within that covenantal relationship: Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed (Genesis 2:2425). By profaning the covenant of their fathers (Mal. 2:10), the people (mostly the men) treated everything about marriage as common. Their primary reason for doing so had more to do with sex than anything else. The way Malachis contemporaries were treating marriage and sex was not all that dissimilar to the way marriage and sex is treated by our own culture where marriage and sex is treated as common instead of sacred. Malachis day and our own treats marriage as something to be experimented with or to be experienced with few barriers, if any. As it is treated in our day, so it was in Malachis day: Marriage was not viewed as a sacred covenant by those who claimed to know God, nor as a covenant instituted by God. The reason why this was, is the same reason for our own day: They did not stand in awe of Gods name. Gods response and feelings toward the way the people treated the covenant of marriage in Malachis day is still the same for our own day, and we see that response in verse 16. There are two legitimate ways Malachi 2:16 can be translated; both ways are seen in the way the ESV and the NASB translates this verse: For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and do not be faithless.(Mal. 2:16; ESV) For I hate divorce, says the Lord, the God of Israel, and him who covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of armies. So be careful about your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously. (Mal. 2:16; NASB20) What is the point? God hates divorce because of what it does to the institution He has called sacred. Why is it sacred, well besides the obvious, marriage is also a portrait of something much greater than the love two people have for one another. Here is what the apostle Paul said of marriage: Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband (Eph. 5:3133). Not only were the men and women of Malachis day faithless to those within their community of faith as worshipers of One true God, but they were faithless to God because they desired the women of foreign gods over the women who loved Yahweh. This was evil in the sight of God, but what was even more detestable was the way the Hebrew men treated their Hebrew wives by divorcing them because they desired to be with the women of a foreign god more than they wanted to be with their own wives because they did not really know, love, or stand in awe of the God they offered sacrifices too. Conclusion Remember Jesus answer to the question regarding the greatest of the commandments: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 22:3740). I will reiterate again that the way you love others is symptomatic of the kind of love you have for God. The apostle John picked up on this in his epistle by writing: Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes (1 John 2:911). Did you know that there are at least 59 one another verses in the New Testament? At least 12 of those 59 one another statements include: Love one another. Do you know why that is? Because if you are a genuine Christian, you are able to love God in such a way that it will affect the way you treat others. What is different about you is that you, will never be more resurrected at the core of your inner self than you already are because of what Jesus has done for you and in you. Now that you know God and are loved by Him, you are able to love others in a way unlike the rest of the world. I am going to say something that might shock you into wanting to leave frustrated or angry, but it really needs to be said. So here it is: the point being made in Malachi 2:10-16 is that the reason you treat people, sex, and the institution of marriage as common is because you love the act of sex and or the person you are with more than you love God. The good news is that this does not have to be the legacy of your life. In the words of Richard Gaffin, if you are a Christian, then At the core of your being, in the deepest recesses of what you arein other words, in your inner selfyou will never be more resurrected than you already are. God has done a work in you, and that work cannot be undone if you really are a Christian and not only religious. What this means is that it is not too late for you! I asked you last week: What threshold were you hesitant to cross to go all in to follow Jesus? What are you holding onto that Jesus is asking you to surrender to Him? What act of obedience have you not taken because you are more afraid of what others might think than you are of what God thinks? God wants life for you. He is not against your joy He is for your joy! The same appeal that was always before Israel is before you today: I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them. (Deut. 30:19-20) That relationship you participated in that included sex outside of marriage does not need to define you. That marriage you entered into with your unbelieving spouse is worth investing in and your spouse is not beyond the reach of grace of God. That divorce you initiated or pursued and now you are in your second or third marriage your present marriage can thrive! If you are single, married, divorced, or remarried if you are a Christian, Gods will for your life cannot be any clearer that what is found in 1 Thessalonians 4:3, For this is the will of God, your sanctification. For the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is doing the impossible in your life too! In closing I leave you the hope of Romans 8:11 to combat the lie of the enemy that would convince you that your old self is who you are: If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. Amen. [1] Jim Davis, Michael Graham; The Great Dechurching (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan; 2023), p. 3. [2] Ibid; p. 5. [3] Ibid, p. 24. [4] Ibid. [5] Ibid, p. 33. [6] Ibid, p. 9. [7] A.W. Tozer. The Knowledge of the Holy (San Francisco, CO: HarperSanFrancisco; 1961), p. 1. [8] Paul Miller; A Praying Church (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2023), p. 73.

Jesus was asked what he believed the greatest of Gods commandments was, and his answer was simple: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 22:3740). Jesus answer can be reduced to seven words: Love God and also love your neighbor. How you love God will affect the way you treat the people in your life, and the way you treat the people in your life can serve as a barometer for the spiritual climate of your heart and relationship with God. What does this have to do with Malachi 2:10-17? The way the people were treating one another and the way the men were treating their wives, was symptomatic of their relationship with God. Because the men did not think highly of the promise made to their wives, God did not regard or accept their worship. We will unpack verse 13 but consider the shocking tone of this verse to set the tone for the whole passage: You cover the Lords altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. I am reading a book titled, The Great Dechurching; what got my attention before I purchased the book is what it said in the back: We are currently experiencing the largest and fastest religious shift in US history. This shift is greater than the First and Second Great Awakenings combined (when America experienced the largest religious shift in the Church towards growth) but in the opposite direction. In the opening pages of the book, Jim Davis and Michael Graham glean from the largest and most comprehensive study of dechurching in America: About 40 million adults in America today used to go to church but no longer do, which accounts for around 16 percent of our adult population. For the first time in the eight decades that the Gallup has tracked American religious membership, more adults in the United States do not attend church than attend church. This is not a gradual shift; it is a jolting one.[1] What this means in the words of Davis and Graham: More people have left the church in the last twenty-five years than all the new people who became Christians from the First Great Awakening, Second Great Awakening, and Billy Graham crusades combined.[2] Here are some of the takeaways so far from my reading of The Great Dechurching: Dechurching is happening on every income level, regardless of educational status, and area of the country people live, which means that people all over the country are, deciding to forgo their in-person worship for other activities on Sunday morning.[3] And they are doing so for a variety of reasons.[4] The children of the dechurched will inevitably become unchurched, which in the words of the authors of their book will change, the nature of spirituality in America significantly.[5] One of the most alarming findings that I have read in The Great Dechurching so far is what the authors state at the beginning of their book: We learned in our research that 68 percent of dechurched evangelicals said their parents played a role in the decision to leave the Church.[6] There was something about the culture of the home these evangelical dechurched Christians experienced that turned them away from the church. I believe Malachi 2:10-17 speaks into the phenomena of the great dechurching. Know God as Your Father Tozer said it well when he wrote, What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and mans spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God.[7] I have used this quote so many times in sermons, Bible studies, and classes I have taught; it still has not lost its punch because it is so true! So, who is this God we identify as our Father? Or as Malachi states in the form of a question: Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? (v. 10). If you are a Christian, then our Father is the creator God who spoke the galaxies into existence with only the word of his mouth in only six days (Gen. 1:1; Exod. 20:11; Heb. 11:3). Our Father is El Elyon, which means, The Most High God. There is no God like him and there is not god above him (Gen. 14:18-20; Ps. 57:2; Isa. 46:8-10). Our Father is El Roi, which means, The God Who Sees. Nothing goes unnoticed by him. He sees our circumstances, he sees the secret places, he sees when no one else notices, he sees all things (Gen. 16:13-14; Prov. 24:12). Our Father is El Shaddai, which means, The All-Sufficient One. He lacks absolutely nothing, he cannot be outdone, and he is able to do what he says he will do. Our Father is Yahweh who is the covenant keeping God; He does not break his promises and He is faithful even when we are faithless (Exod. 3:13-14). Dear brothers and sisters, what comes to mind when you think of the God that you call, Father? As Yahweh, our Father provides (Yahweh-Jireh) for his children (Gen. 22:11-14). In Exodus 15:26, we discover that our Father heals his children (Yahweh-Rapha). In Exodus 17:15, our Father is a banner for his people in Whom we find our true identity and purpose (Yahweh-Nissi). In Exodus 31:13, we discover that our Father loves his children too much to leave them as they are, for He is the one who sanctifies His people (Yahweh-Mekoddishkem). In Judges 6:24, our Father is the only One who is able to bring peace (shalom) to His children (Yahweh-Shalom). In Psalm 46:7, our Father is a refuge and fortress for his children even when you find yourself standing on the ashes of what once was (Yahweh-Sabaoth). In Psalm 23, our Father is our Good Shepherd (Yahweh-Raah). But wait, there is one other name I want you to see that describes what our heavenly Father will do for His children in Jeremiah 23:5-6, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: The Lord is our righteousness. Now skip down to Malachi 3:1; the Messenger Malachi prophesied would come to prepare the way for the Lord, is the One Jeremiah described as, The Lord is our righteousness. The messenger would be John the Baptist: Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. Malachi 3:1 is a part of next weeks sermon, but before we look at the rest of Malachi 2, I want you to hear two things: The Righteous Branch from David is Jesus, the righteousness of all whose faith rests in Him, for in Jesus we discover a Father who is our righteousness who sent His Son to be our righteousness: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). Because of what Jesus accomplished for you, Christian, we read in five verses earlier in 2 Corinthians 5:17, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come. Richard Gaffin wrote something that amplifies the significance of what it means to have God as your Father in the following statement: At the core of their being, in the deepest recesses of what they arein other words, in the inner selfbelievers will never be more resurrected than they already are. God has done a work in each believer, a work of nothing less than resurrection proportions that will not be undone. Such languageis not just a metaphor.[8] If you can truly call God, Father because you have reconciled to Him by faith through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, then you, will never be more resurrected at the core of your inner self than you already are. Before we can go any further, I want you to let that truth settle upon your heart for a moment. Recognize the Bond You Share with Gods People If you are a Christian, then God has done a work in your life that has changed the DNA of your inner self is such a way that what was once spiritually dead is now alive! That work will and can never be undone (if you doubt that, just read Ephesians 1:3-14 and Romans 8). So, if you are tempted to believe the lie that you cannot change, you need to preach to your own heart that the same resurrection power that raised Jesus from the grave, is the same power that has made you spiritually alive and empowers change in you. The power at work in your life is a power those addressed in Malachi 2 did not know. The evidence that a person can truly call God, Father is seen by that persons loving response to God and those who bear His image. So, for those in Malachis day who claimed to know God as Father, but were faithless to one another received the following rebuke: Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our fathers? Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god. May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob any descendant of the man who does this, who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts! (Malachi 2:1012) What was the covenant of the fathers that was being profaned? It was the covenant that included certain prohibitions, and one such prohibition was not to marry individuals from certain people groups who did not love or worship Yahweh because they worshiped other gods. Specifically, God instructed His people: You shall not intermarry with them, giving your daughters to their sons or taking their daughters for your sons, for they would turn away your sons from following me, to serve other gods (Deut. 7:34). Generations before Malachi, Solomon married women from other people groups who worshiped other gods and they turned his heart away from God and the consequences where catastrophic for the nation of Israel. Solomons disregard of Deuteronomy 7 was the soil that resulted in nation-wide idolatry and the eventual discipline of God that exiled the Hebrew people, yet the men of Malachis day ignored all of that and went and married women who worshiped other gods anyway. If God is a Father to you and you know Him to be all that He has identified Himself to be, then why on Gods green earth would you enter into the one covenantal relationship that was instituted by God with a person who does not love or worship that same God as you do? If God is God and He is a Father to you, then why would you risk entering into a relationship with someone who will at best make the worship of Him burdensome and at worst turn your heart against Him? If the God who instituted marriage where sex is to be enjoyed and the procreation of children to be shared for the purpose of raising them up to know the One True God, why would you willingly enter into a relationship where your child/children will inevitably be torn between whatever god is worshiped by one parent verses the true God worshiped by the other? Listen, Malachi 2:10-12 is not just for Malachis contemporaries, these verses are for the Church too! What is in Malachi 2:10-12 is not an Old Testament principle to be ignored by New Testament saints in the name of grace or missionary dating, for we are told in the New Testament: Do not be mismatched with unbelievers; for what do righteousness and lawlessness share together, or what does light have in common with darkness? Or what harmony does Christ have with Belial, or what does a believer share with an unbeliever (2 Cor. 6:1415, NASB20)? Listen carefully, the point being made in these verses is that the only reason you would want to marry someone who does not love or know the true God is because you love the unbelieving man or woman more than you love God. To profane the covenant of marriage in verse 11, is to treat the covenant of marriage as common and nothing more than simple romance that can be disregarded when the feelings fade, or the intimacy is gone. If what I just said seems harsh to you, then how else do you explain verse 13, which states: And this second thing you do. You cover the Lords altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. This is exactly what Esau did after he found out that by trading his birthright for a bowl of stew and after the blessing was given to his younger brother, he wept (see Gen. 28:30-38); Hebrews 12:17 describes Esaus response this way: For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears (Heb. 12:17). Sin is simply the trading your birthright in for a bowl of stew that will not satisfy your soul. Faithfully Nurture the Covenant You Have Entered The other thing the men in Malachis day were doing, was that they were divorcing their Hebrew wives to marry women who worshiped other gods. The way the men were treating their wives was evidence that they really had little regard for the covenant of marriage. There were some who desired marriage with foreign women who worshiped another god, and then there were men who married a Hebrew wife who did worship Yahweh but divorced them to marry women who worshiped other gods. To these men, Malachi addresses in verse 15, Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one God seeking? Godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth (Mal. 2:15). We read in Genesis 1 something that Malachi and his contemporaries would have been familiar with: So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Gen. 1:27). God then commanded the man and woman to create and fill the earth with people like themselves and to manage creation. Furthermore, we are told in Genesis 1:28 that God told Adam and his wife, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth (Genesis 1:28). This is the covenant of marriage, and in Genesis 2:24-25 we are told of the sacredness of marriage and the place that sex had within that covenantal relationship: Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed (Genesis 2:2425). By profaning the covenant of their fathers (Mal. 2:10), the people (mostly the men) treated everything about marriage as common. Their primary reason for doing so had more to do with sex than anything else. The way Malachis contemporaries were treating marriage and sex was not all that dissimilar to the way marriage and sex is treated by our own culture where marriage and sex is treated as common instead of sacred. Malachis day and our own treats marriage as something to be experimented with or to be experienced with few barriers, if any. As it is treated in our day, so it was in Malachis day: Marriage was not viewed as a sacred covenant by those who claimed to know God, nor as a covenant instituted by God. The reason why this was, is the same reason for our own day: They did not stand in awe of Gods name. Gods response and feelings toward the way the people treated the covenant of marriage in Malachis day is still the same for our own day, and we see that response in verse 16. There are two legitimate ways Malachi 2:16 can be translated; both ways are seen in the way the ESV and the NASB translates this verse: For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and do not be faithless.(Mal. 2:16; ESV) For I hate divorce, says the Lord, the God of Israel, and him who covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of armies. So be careful about your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously. (Mal. 2:16; NASB20) What is the point? God hates divorce because of what it does to the institution He has called sacred. Why is it sacred, well besides the obvious, marriage is also a portrait of something much greater than the love two people have for one another. Here is what the apostle Paul said of marriage: Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband (Eph. 5:3133). Not only were the men and women of Malachis day faithless to those within their community of faith as worshipers of One true God, but they were faithless to God because they desired the women of foreign gods over the women who loved Yahweh. This was evil in the sight of God, but what was even more detestable was the way the Hebrew men treated their Hebrew wives by divorcing them because they desired to be with the women of a foreign god more than they wanted to be with their own wives because they did not really know, love, or stand in awe of the God they offered sacrifices too. Conclusion Remember Jesus answer to the question regarding the greatest of the commandments: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets (Matt. 22:3740). I will reiterate again that the way you love others is symptomatic of the kind of love you have for God. The apostle John picked up on this in his epistle by writing: Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes (1 John 2:911). Did you know that there are at least 59 one another verses in the New Testament? At least 12 of those 59 one another statements include: Love one another. Do you know why that is? Because if you are a genuine Christian, you are able to love God in such a way that it will affect the way you treat others. What is different about you is that you, will never be more resurrected at the core of your inner self than you already are because of what Jesus has done for you and in you. Now that you know God and are loved by Him, you are able to love others in a way unlike the rest of the world. I am going to say something that might shock you into wanting to leave frustrated or angry, but it really needs to be said. So here it is: the point being made in Malachi 2:10-16 is that the reason you treat people, sex, and the institution of marriage as common is because you love the act of sex and or the person you are with more than you love God. The good news is that this does not have to be the legacy of your life. In the words of Richard Gaffin, if you are a Christian, then At the core of your being, in the deepest recesses of what you arein other words, in your inner selfyou will never be more resurrected than you already are. God has done a work in you, and that work cannot be undone if you really are a Christian and not only religious. What this means is that it is not too late for you! I asked you last week: What threshold were you hesitant to cross to go all in to follow Jesus? What are you holding onto that Jesus is asking you to surrender to Him? What act of obedience have you not taken because you are more afraid of what others might think than you are of what God thinks? God wants life for you. He is not against your joy He is for your joy! The same appeal that was always before Israel is before you today: I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them. (Deut. 30:19-20) That relationship you participated in that included sex outside of marriage does not need to define you. That marriage you entered into with your unbelieving spouse is worth investing in and your spouse is not beyond the reach of grace of God. That divorce you initiated or pursued and now you are in your second or third marriage your present marriage can thrive! If you are single, married, divorced, or remarried if you are a Christian, Gods will for your life cannot be any clearer that what is found in 1 Thessalonians 4:3, For this is the will of God, your sanctification. For the same power that raised Jesus from the dead is doing the impossible in your life too! In closing I leave you the hope of Romans 8:11 to combat the lie of the enemy that would convince you that your old self is who you are: If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. Amen. [1] Jim Davis, Michael Graham; The Great Dechurching (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan; 2023), p. 3. [2] Ibid; p. 5. [3] Ibid, p. 24. [4] Ibid. [5] Ibid, p. 33. [6] Ibid, p. 9. [7] A.W. Tozer. The Knowledge of the Holy (San Francisco, CO: HarperSanFrancisco; 1961), p. 1. [8] Paul Miller; A Praying Church (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2023), p. 73.

To help us understand 1 John 2:19-20, we bring in the Senior Pastor of First Baptist Church Park Street, Dr. Rob Pochek! While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: – Francis Schaeffer, How Should We Then Live? (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2005) – “Creation Apologetics Master Course”, Answers in Genesis; edu.answersingenesis.org   Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Be sure to check us out at our website, adoptedbelievers.com. You can find out more about us, articles, and access to all our podcast content and links to various podcast platforms.

Francis Schaeffers book, How Should We Then Live, was published in 1975. Francis Schaeffer was a theologian, philosopher, and a highly respected evangelical thinker in his day. In his book, Schaeffer shows how the decline of a society from the fall of Rome up through the twentieth century begins when that society shifts from Gods design for humans, and the rest of creation. Towards the end of his book, Schaeffer lists five attributes of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire that is true of any culture in decline; according to Schaeffer these are five signs of a society that is about to break down: A mounting love for affluence. A widening gap between the very rich and very poor with little to no middle class. An obsession with sex. Freakishness in the arts. An increased desire to live off the state. Out of our love for affluence, we as a nation are now 48.9 trillion dollars in debt with the average household debt owing to $14,241 in credit card debt, $58,112 in student loan debt, $31,142 in automobile loans, and $202,454 in mortgage debt. The middle class in America is shrinking, for it used to be that 61% of Americans made up the middle class, but that percentage has shrunk to 50% and looks as though it will continue to shrink. When it comes to an obsession with sex, very little needs to be said with the ever-increasing list of types of sexualities a person can identify with, the oversexualization of our youth, and gender reassignment. Now, in the arts, anything deviant can be passed off as art to the point where you can have Sam Smith dress up as Satan with his dancers performing promiscuous acts as part of an intentional satanic chorographic ritual for a song titled, Unholy. Sam Smiths performance was not the only deviant performance either. So, what does all of this have to do with Malachi 2:1-9? Without a right and proper fear of God, the heart becomes an idol factor that does not lead to life, but death. This is the human condition that has been our problem since Adam and Eve bit into the forbidden fruit. The root cause for Adam and Eves rebellion was the same for the Priests Malachi addresses in 2:1-9, and it is the same for us today: The root cause for mankinds rebellion is the absence of a right and proper fear of God. The Fear of the Lord Remember how Malachi 1:6 begins: A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. The priests did not honor or fear God, and the evidence for their lack of honor and fear for God was seen in how they worshiped Him. To fully grasp just how serious the lack of fear and honor the priests had for God was, we need to understand the type of fear and honor the priests lacked. The kind of fear for God that is expected from His people is not a fear that is contrary or at odds with genuine love. A biblical fear of God is not at odds with a love for God. We do not love God in the same way you love a sunset, nor is it the same kind of love that you have for your dog. To fear God is to love and enjoy God for all that He is. It is a love that truly appreciates and honors God as infinitely perfect and overwhelmingly beautiful in his holiness, righteousness, graciousness, justice, mercy, love, and majesty. In the words of Michael Reeves: In a sense, then, the trembling fear of God is a way of speaking about the intensity of the saints love for and enjoyment of all that God is.[1] Reeves points out in his book, Rejoice Tremble, that the fear of God, is not at all what we, with our cultures allergic reaction to the very concept of fear, might expect. Instead, we can say with Spurgeon that this is the sort of fear which has in it the very essence of love, and without which there would be no joy even in the presence of God.[2] Of the fear of God, Charles Spurgeon said, It is not because we are afraid of him, but because we delight in him, that we fear before him.[3] So that you can see what I just said from the Bible, consider the following scripture passages on the fear of the Lord: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. (Prov. 9:10) And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul (Deut. 10:12) Then you have this promise from the prophet Jeremiah concerning a New Covenant when God would address the problem with mans heart: And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. (Jer. 32:38-40) What is it that would encourage the Priests to offer sacrifices before the Lord that he said he would never delight in? How on earth could they ever consider service to Yahweh as a burden? Why would they not listen to Gods word or give honor to His name? It is because they did not fear Him. What it Means to Delight in the Lord The presence of a right fear of God and a genuine love for God is to delight in God. This is what the priests of Malachis day did not do, and it is the absence of such delight in the true God for why cultures, nations, kingdoms, and empires crumble. It is a system failure in that the One, we live and move and exist (Acts. 17:28), is not delighted in because He is ignored. In ignoring Him, we live in a society that is drinking from the broken cisterns of affluence, sex, and self-assigned identity, be it sexual or national. Because our world is fallen, it is understandable that those who do not yet know God, do not delight in Him. But it is a great evil to know who God is and chose something or someone else to take His place. Of the people that should have known the joy of what it means to delight in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, it was the priests. The purpose of the priests was that they served to mediate between the people and God just as Aaron did as he walked alongside Moses. In contrast to Malachis contemporaries, God said of Levi: My covenant with him was one of life and peace, and I gave them to him. It was a covenant of fear, and he feared me. He stood in awe of my name (v. 5). Who was Levi? Levi is the ancestor of Levites from whom all the priests came. You could not serve as a priest unless you belonged to the tribe of Levi. From Levi is a history of godly men who feared God more than they feared people and were known for speaking on behalf of God to the people. Concerning those who served God out of fear and love, God said, True instruction was in his mouth, and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity (v. 6). The priests were known for guarding knowledge and the people at one point in time knew that they could seek the priests for guidance because it was clear that the priest was a messenger of God almighty (v. 7). Why? Because the legacy of Levi was that he delighted in the Lord! The relationship Levi had with Yahweh was one where he rightly feared and loved God while he stood in awe of His name. He stood in awe of the name of God! What does it mean to stand in awe of the name of almighty God? It is a type of fear that includes reverence, pleasure, joy, and a filial fear. Filial fear is the kind of fear experienced by a son for his father as they enjoy a healthy relationship with one another without the son confusing who it is that is in authority. In many ways, I had that kind of relationship with my father; I understood that although we were very close and that I could trust him, I also understood that I could not talk back or disrespect him. The line between father and son was always clear. God is all-powerful. God is all-knowing. God is all-present. God is just, He is wise, He is love, He is so much more, and He is holy. He is the One from whom heaven and earth recoil at His presence (Rev. 20:11), and before whom the prophet Isaiah heard the angels proclaim: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory! and in response to the majesty of the Almighty, Isaiah responded: Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts (Isa. 6:3-5). Isaiahs response is what it looks like to stand in awe of God. To stand in awe of God is to understand who you are in light of who He is: Tremble before him, all the earth; yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, The Lord reigns! Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it! Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! (1 Chron. 16:30-34) This is what the priests in Malachis day lacked, but of all the people in Jerusalem, the priests should have known better.What was true of Levis legacy was the antithesis of priests addressed here, for they were living in disobedience of the Lord. Instead of guiding the people of Israel, they were causing them to sin against the Lord. Instead of embracing the promises of God, they openly and defiantly violated the covenant of Levi. Instead of deciding cases with godly wisdom and impartiality, they showed favoritism and were unjust. Gods response to the priests disregard for His name is staggering: If you will not listen, if you will not take it to heart to give honor to my name, says the Lord of hosts, then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart. Behold, I will rebuke your offspring, and spread dung on your faces, the dung of your offerings, and you shall be taken away with it (Malachi 2:23). The curse that God warned would come upon the priests are the curses God warned would come upon His people if they turned from Him in disobedience (see Deut. 28). The dung of the sacrifice was to be burned outside the camp of Gods people. With the threat of God to spread dung on the faces of the priests, was to say that their behavior was so repulsive to God, that they would remain ceremonially unclean and indefinitely unqualified to serve as priests. To spread dung on their faces was to cover the priests in their own shame for all to see, so God concludes: But you have turned aside from the way. You have caused many to stumble by your instruction. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts, and so I make you despised and abased before all the people, inasmuch as you do not keep my ways but show partiality in your instruction (Malachi 2:89). What God wanted was the hearts of His priests, he did not need their worship. This is why His response to their lackadaisical and half-hearted worship in Malachi 1:10, Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hand (Malachi 1:10). What the priests lacked was the kind of awe we read about in Isaiah 66:1-2, Thus says the Lord: Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool; what is the house that you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest? All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the Lord. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word. Conclusion So, what does any of this have to do with you Christian? We have a better Priest than Levi! Levi mediated the Old Covenant, but Jesus is not just any PriestHe is the High Priest of a better covenant: But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. (Heb. 9:1114) If you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as the One whom God, made Him who knew no sin to be sin in our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor. 5:21; NASB), you are a Christian. If you are a Christian, then what is written in 1 Peter 2:9-10 is true of you: But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are Gods people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy (1 Peter 2:910). Jesus is our High Priest, but He is so much more! He is the Almighty and the Alpha and Omega (Rev. 1:8; 22:12-13). He is the Author of Life (Acts 3:15). Jesus is the Bread from Heaven (John 6:32), the Bread of Life (John 6:35), and the Bright Morning Star (Rev. 22:16). He is the Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4), He is the Christ (Col. 3:15), and He is the Deliverer (Rom. 11:26). He is the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm (John 10:11). He is the rightful Heir of All Things (Heb. 1:1-2). Jesus is the Holy and Righteous One (Acts 3:14), the Horn of Salvation (Luke 1:69), and the Great I Am (John 8:58-59). He is the Light of the World (John 8:12), the Gate for the Sheep (John 10:7), the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25), the True Vine (John 15:1), the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6)! Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5), He is the Lord of Glory (1 Cor. 2:8), and He is the Pioneer and Perfecter of our Faith (Heb. 12:1-2). Jesus is the Word made flesh (John 1:1), He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53, He is the Savior (Luke 2:11), and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16). If Jesus is who He says He is, and you say that He is the sum of all that He is to you, then how are you living in light of His Lordship over your life? In this very moment, can you hear the Savior ask the following question directed at your heart? Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not what I tell you (Luke 6:46)? You, who are a priest before Jesus, are you listening to His words? Are you taking His life to heart? Do you stand before the Father and the Son with awe? Is your life motivated by a right fear and genuine love for the One who ransomed your soul and made you a son or a daughter? As His priests, we should be known as men and women whose lips, guard knowledge? Are you in a place in your relationship with Jesus that people are able to seek instruction from your mouth? Of those who know you, can it be said that you are a messenger of the Lord of hosts? In conclusion I leave you with two appeals from the Bible, the one is from Jesus and the other is about Jesus: From Jesus: Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name? And then will I declare to them, I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. (Matthew 7:2123) From the Psalmist: Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. (Psalm 2:1112) Amen. Discussion Questions: Read Malachi 2:1-9 and Deuteronomy 28 as a group. In what ways is Deuteronomy 28 similar to Malachi 2:1-9? What does it mean to delight in the Lord? Pastor Keith said in his sermon on Sunday: To fear God is to love and enjoy God for all that He is. It is a love that truly appreciates and honors God as infinitely perfect and overwhelmingly beautiful in his holiness, righteousness, graciousness, justice, mercy, love, and majesty. How is this kind of fear different than the kind fear one might experience when facing their abuser? Based on what you know so far about the priests Malachi 2:1-9 addresses, do you think the above fear was missing in their worship? God said of Levi, that he feared me. He stood in awe of my name (v. 5). What does it mean to stand in awe of Gods name (hint: Read 1 Chron. 16:30-34)? In what ways can our worship reveal how highly or lowly we esteem Gods name? According to 1 Peter 2:9-10, the Christian is a priest as representative of Jesus Christ; in what ways does Malachi 2:1-9 challenge you in light of what you read in 1 Peter 2:9-10? How does Jesus as our High Priest (Heb. 9:11-14) encourage you as you strive to follow Him? Pastor Keith listed the following names and titles of Jesus (read them to the group): Jesus is our High Priest, but He is so much more! He is the Almighty and the Alpha and Omega (Rev. 1:8; 22:12-13). He is the Author of Life (Acts 3:15). Jesus is the Bread from Heaven (John 6:32), the Bread of Life (John 6:35), and the Bright Morning Star (Rev. 22:16). He is the Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4), He is the Christ (Col. 3:15), and He is the Deliverer (Rom. 11:26). He is the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm (John 10:11). He is the rightful Heir of All Things (Heb. 1:1-2). Jesus is the Holy and Righteous One (Acts 3:14), the Horn of Salvation (Luke 1:69), and the Great I Am (John 8:58-59). He is the Light of the World (John 8:12), the Gate for the Sheep (John 10:7), the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25), the True Vine (John 15:1), the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6)! Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5), He is the Lord of Glory (1 Cor. 2:8), and He is the Pioneer and Perfecter of our Faith (Heb. 12:1-2). Jesus is the Word made flesh (John 1:1), He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53, He is the Savior (Luke 2:11), and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16). In light of the above, read Luke 6:46-49. In what ways do you find Jesus words in Luke 6 challenging, frightening, or encouraging? In what ways do you believe God is challenging you so far in this Malachi series? Conclude with a time of prayer with your LIFE Group. [1] Michael Reeves, Rejoice Tremble (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2021); p. 52. [2] Ibid, p. 50. [3] Ibid.

Francis Schaeffers book, How Should We Then Live, was published in 1975. Francis Schaeffer was a theologian, philosopher, and a highly respected evangelical thinker in his day. In his book, Schaeffer shows how the decline of a society from the fall of Rome up through the twentieth century begins when that society shifts from Gods design for humans, and the rest of creation. Towards the end of his book, Schaeffer lists five attributes of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire that is true of any culture in decline; according to Schaeffer these are five signs of a society that is about to break down: A mounting love for affluence. A widening gap between the very rich and very poor with little to no middle class. An obsession with sex. Freakishness in the arts. An increased desire to live off the state. Out of our love for affluence, we as a nation are now 48.9 trillion dollars in debt with the average household debt owing to $14,241 in credit card debt, $58,112 in student loan debt, $31,142 in automobile loans, and $202,454 in mortgage debt. The middle class in America is shrinking, for it used to be that 61% of Americans made up the middle class, but that percentage has shrunk to 50% and looks as though it will continue to shrink. When it comes to an obsession with sex, very little needs to be said with the ever-increasing list of types of sexualities a person can identify with, the oversexualization of our youth, and gender reassignment. Now, in the arts, anything deviant can be passed off as art to the point where you can have Sam Smith dress up as Satan with his dancers performing promiscuous acts as part of an intentional satanic chorographic ritual for a song titled, Unholy. Sam Smiths performance was not the only deviant performance either. So, what does all of this have to do with Malachi 2:1-9? Without a right and proper fear of God, the heart becomes an idol factor that does not lead to life, but death. This is the human condition that has been our problem since Adam and Eve bit into the forbidden fruit. The root cause for Adam and Eves rebellion was the same for the Priests Malachi addresses in 2:1-9, and it is the same for us today: The root cause for mankinds rebellion is the absence of a right and proper fear of God. The Fear of the Lord Remember how Malachi 1:6 begins: A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. The priests did not honor or fear God, and the evidence for their lack of honor and fear for God was seen in how they worshiped Him. To fully grasp just how serious the lack of fear and honor the priests had for God was, we need to understand the type of fear and honor the priests lacked. The kind of fear for God that is expected from His people is not a fear that is contrary or at odds with genuine love. A biblical fear of God is not at odds with a love for God. We do not love God in the same way you love a sunset, nor is it the same kind of love that you have for your dog. To fear God is to love and enjoy God for all that He is. It is a love that truly appreciates and honors God as infinitely perfect and overwhelmingly beautiful in his holiness, righteousness, graciousness, justice, mercy, love, and majesty. In the words of Michael Reeves: In a sense, then, the trembling fear of God is a way of speaking about the intensity of the saints love for and enjoyment of all that God is.[1] Reeves points out in his book, Rejoice Tremble, that the fear of God, is not at all what we, with our cultures allergic reaction to the very concept of fear, might expect. Instead, we can say with Spurgeon that this is the sort of fear which has in it the very essence of love, and without which there would be no joy even in the presence of God.[2] Of the fear of God, Charles Spurgeon said, It is not because we are afraid of him, but because we delight in him, that we fear before him.[3] So that you can see what I just said from the Bible, consider the following scripture passages on the fear of the Lord: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. (Prov. 9:10) And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul (Deut. 10:12) Then you have this promise from the prophet Jeremiah concerning a New Covenant when God would address the problem with mans heart: And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me. (Jer. 32:38-40) What is it that would encourage the Priests to offer sacrifices before the Lord that he said he would never delight in? How on earth could they ever consider service to Yahweh as a burden? Why would they not listen to Gods word or give honor to His name? It is because they did not fear Him. What it Means to Delight in the Lord The presence of a right fear of God and a genuine love for God is to delight in God. This is what the priests of Malachis day did not do, and it is the absence of such delight in the true God for why cultures, nations, kingdoms, and empires crumble. It is a system failure in that the One, we live and move and exist (Acts. 17:28), is not delighted in because He is ignored. In ignoring Him, we live in a society that is drinking from the broken cisterns of affluence, sex, and self-assigned identity, be it sexual or national. Because our world is fallen, it is understandable that those who do not yet know God, do not delight in Him. But it is a great evil to know who God is and chose something or someone else to take His place. Of the people that should have known the joy of what it means to delight in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, it was the priests. The purpose of the priests was that they served to mediate between the people and God just as Aaron did as he walked alongside Moses. In contrast to Malachis contemporaries, God said of Levi: My covenant with him was one of life and peace, and I gave them to him. It was a covenant of fear, and he feared me. He stood in awe of my name (v. 5). Who was Levi? Levi is the ancestor of Levites from whom all the priests came. You could not serve as a priest unless you belonged to the tribe of Levi. From Levi is a history of godly men who feared God more than they feared people and were known for speaking on behalf of God to the people. Concerning those who served God out of fear and love, God said, True instruction was in his mouth, and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity (v. 6). The priests were known for guarding knowledge and the people at one point in time knew that they could seek the priests for guidance because it was clear that the priest was a messenger of God almighty (v. 7). Why? Because the legacy of Levi was that he delighted in the Lord! The relationship Levi had with Yahweh was one where he rightly feared and loved God while he stood in awe of His name. He stood in awe of the name of God! What does it mean to stand in awe of the name of almighty God? It is a type of fear that includes reverence, pleasure, joy, and a filial fear. Filial fear is the kind of fear experienced by a son for his father as they enjoy a healthy relationship with one another without the son confusing who it is that is in authority. In many ways, I had that kind of relationship with my father; I understood that although we were very close and that I could trust him, I also understood that I could not talk back or disrespect him. The line between father and son was always clear. God is all-powerful. God is all-knowing. God is all-present. God is just, He is wise, He is love, He is so much more, and He is holy. He is the One from whom heaven and earth recoil at His presence (Rev. 20:11), and before whom the prophet Isaiah heard the angels proclaim: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory! and in response to the majesty of the Almighty, Isaiah responded: Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts (Isa. 6:3-5). Isaiahs response is what it looks like to stand in awe of God. To stand in awe of God is to understand who you are in light of who He is: Tremble before him, all the earth; yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, The Lord reigns! Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it! Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth. Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever! (1 Chron. 16:30-34) This is what the priests in Malachis day lacked, but of all the people in Jerusalem, the priests should have known better.What was true of Levis legacy was the antithesis of priests addressed here, for they were living in disobedience of the Lord. Instead of guiding the people of Israel, they were causing them to sin against the Lord. Instead of embracing the promises of God, they openly and defiantly violated the covenant of Levi. Instead of deciding cases with godly wisdom and impartiality, they showed favoritism and were unjust. Gods response to the priests disregard for His name is staggering: If you will not listen, if you will not take it to heart to give honor to my name, says the Lord of hosts, then I will send the curse upon you and I will curse your blessings. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you do not lay it to heart. Behold, I will rebuke your offspring, and spread dung on your faces, the dung of your offerings, and you shall be taken away with it (Malachi 2:23). The curse that God warned would come upon the priests are the curses God warned would come upon His people if they turned from Him in disobedience (see Deut. 28). The dung of the sacrifice was to be burned outside the camp of Gods people. With the threat of God to spread dung on the faces of the priests, was to say that their behavior was so repulsive to God, that they would remain ceremonially unclean and indefinitely unqualified to serve as priests. To spread dung on their faces was to cover the priests in their own shame for all to see, so God concludes: But you have turned aside from the way. You have caused many to stumble by your instruction. You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts, and so I make you despised and abased before all the people, inasmuch as you do not keep my ways but show partiality in your instruction (Malachi 2:89). What God wanted was the hearts of His priests, he did not need their worship. This is why His response to their lackadaisical and half-hearted worship in Malachi 1:10, Oh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hand (Malachi 1:10). What the priests lacked was the kind of awe we read about in Isaiah 66:1-2, Thus says the Lord: Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool; what is the house that you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest? All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the Lord. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word. Conclusion So, what does any of this have to do with you Christian? We have a better Priest than Levi! Levi mediated the Old Covenant, but Jesus is not just any PriestHe is the High Priest of a better covenant: But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. (Heb. 9:1114) If you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as the One whom God, made Him who knew no sin to be sin in our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him (2 Cor. 5:21; NASB), you are a Christian. If you are a Christian, then what is written in 1 Peter 2:9-10 is true of you: But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are Gods people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy (1 Peter 2:910). Jesus is our High Priest, but He is so much more! He is the Almighty and the Alpha and Omega (Rev. 1:8; 22:12-13). He is the Author of Life (Acts 3:15). Jesus is the Bread from Heaven (John 6:32), the Bread of Life (John 6:35), and the Bright Morning Star (Rev. 22:16). He is the Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4), He is the Christ (Col. 3:15), and He is the Deliverer (Rom. 11:26). He is the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm (John 10:11). He is the rightful Heir of All Things (Heb. 1:1-2). Jesus is the Holy and Righteous One (Acts 3:14), the Horn of Salvation (Luke 1:69), and the Great I Am (John 8:58-59). He is the Light of the World (John 8:12), the Gate for the Sheep (John 10:7), the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25), the True Vine (John 15:1), the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6)! Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5), He is the Lord of Glory (1 Cor. 2:8), and He is the Pioneer and Perfecter of our Faith (Heb. 12:1-2). Jesus is the Word made flesh (John 1:1), He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53, He is the Savior (Luke 2:11), and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16). If Jesus is who He says He is, and you say that He is the sum of all that He is to you, then how are you living in light of His Lordship over your life? In this very moment, can you hear the Savior ask the following question directed at your heart? Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and do not what I tell you (Luke 6:46)? You, who are a priest before Jesus, are you listening to His words? Are you taking His life to heart? Do you stand before the Father and the Son with awe? Is your life motivated by a right fear and genuine love for the One who ransomed your soul and made you a son or a daughter? As His priests, we should be known as men and women whose lips, guard knowledge? Are you in a place in your relationship with Jesus that people are able to seek instruction from your mouth? Of those who know you, can it be said that you are a messenger of the Lord of hosts? In conclusion I leave you with two appeals from the Bible, the one is from Jesus and the other is about Jesus: From Jesus: Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name? And then will I declare to them, I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness. (Matthew 7:2123) From the Psalmist: Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. (Psalm 2:1112) Amen. Discussion Questions: Read Malachi 2:1-9 and Deuteronomy 28 as a group. In what ways is Deuteronomy 28 similar to Malachi 2:1-9? What does it mean to delight in the Lord? Pastor Keith said in his sermon on Sunday: To fear God is to love and enjoy God for all that He is. It is a love that truly appreciates and honors God as infinitely perfect and overwhelmingly beautiful in his holiness, righteousness, graciousness, justice, mercy, love, and majesty. How is this kind of fear different than the kind fear one might experience when facing their abuser? Based on what you know so far about the priests Malachi 2:1-9 addresses, do you think the above fear was missing in their worship? God said of Levi, that he feared me. He stood in awe of my name (v. 5). What does it mean to stand in awe of Gods name (hint: Read 1 Chron. 16:30-34)? In what ways can our worship reveal how highly or lowly we esteem Gods name? According to 1 Peter 2:9-10, the Christian is a priest as representative of Jesus Christ; in what ways does Malachi 2:1-9 challenge you in light of what you read in 1 Peter 2:9-10? How does Jesus as our High Priest (Heb. 9:11-14) encourage you as you strive to follow Him? Pastor Keith listed the following names and titles of Jesus (read them to the group): Jesus is our High Priest, but He is so much more! He is the Almighty and the Alpha and Omega (Rev. 1:8; 22:12-13). He is the Author of Life (Acts 3:15). Jesus is the Bread from Heaven (John 6:32), the Bread of Life (John 6:35), and the Bright Morning Star (Rev. 22:16). He is the Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4), He is the Christ (Col. 3:15), and He is the Deliverer (Rom. 11:26). He is the Good Shepherd of the 23rd Psalm (John 10:11). He is the rightful Heir of All Things (Heb. 1:1-2). Jesus is the Holy and Righteous One (Acts 3:14), the Horn of Salvation (Luke 1:69), and the Great I Am (John 8:58-59). He is the Light of the World (John 8:12), the Gate for the Sheep (John 10:7), the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25), the True Vine (John 15:1), the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6)! Jesus is the Lion of the Tribe of Judah (Rev. 5:5), He is the Lord of Glory (1 Cor. 2:8), and He is the Pioneer and Perfecter of our Faith (Heb. 12:1-2). Jesus is the Word made flesh (John 1:1), He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53, He is the Savior (Luke 2:11), and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:16). In light of the above, read Luke 6:46-49. In what ways do you find Jesus words in Luke 6 challenging, frightening, or encouraging? In what ways do you believe God is challenging you so far in this Malachi series? Conclude with a time of prayer with your LIFE Group. [1] Michael Reeves, Rejoice Tremble (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2021); p. 52. [2] Ibid, p. 50. [3] Ibid.

In today's study of 1 John 2:12-14, we see three stages in spiritual maturity, and John's exhortations to them. While ABP is not a scholarly work, I would like to reference any material that my teaching was based on or influenced by: – The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2008), p. 2431 -John Piper, Desiring God (Multnomah Publishers, Inc., 2003), p. 18, I quoted “The chief  end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.” – Donald S. Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life (Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress, 2014) Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This episode is a narration of Dewey Dovel's work titled "The Holy Spirit in Christian Education." Here are the sources for his paper: [1] Steven B. Cowan and James S. Spiegel, The Love of Wisdom: A Christian Introduction to Philosophy (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2009), 1-4. [2] Although the disciplines of philosophy, science, and theology are often seen in conflict with one another, Vern S. Poythress demonstrates how this should not be the case on pages 13-31 of Redeeming Science: A God-Centered Approach (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2006) and pages 13-19 of Redeeming Philosophy: A God-Centered Approach to the Big Questions (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2014). [3] “Social Media Statistics Details,” Undiscovered Maine, October 8, 2021, https://umaine.edu/undiscoveredmaine/small-business/resources/marketing-for-small-business/social-media-tools/social-media-statistics-details/. [4] Even secular neurological and psychological studies have disclosed that human cognition is foundational to human experience. Consider the following resource as a sampling of this research: Celeste Kidd and Benjamin Y. Hayden, “The Psychology and Neuroscience of Curiosity,” Neuron 88, no. 3 (November 4, 2015): 449–60. [5] On the basis of recorded human history, Tyrel Eskelson argues for at least 5,000 years of formal education in “How and Why Formal Education Originated in the Emergence of Civilization,” Journal of Education and Learning 9, no. 2 (February 5, 2020): 29–47, https://doi.org/10.5539/jel.v9n2p29. [6] A sample of book length treatments teasing out competing methodologies of formal education are Russell Lincoln Ackoff and Daniel A. Greenberg, Turning Learning Right Side Up: Putting Education Back On Track (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, 2016) and James M. Lang, Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons From the Science of Learning (San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2021). [7] James N. Anderson, What's Your Worldview?: An Interactive Approach to Life's Big Questions (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2014), 69-70. [8] As defined by John M. Frame in A History of Western Philosophy and Theology (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 2015): “[Materialism is the belief that] all events can be explained in terms of matter and motion. On this view, there is no immaterial soul. If there is something we can call soul, it is either material (the Stoic view) or an aspect of the body” (10-11). [9] Greg L. Bahnsen, Always Ready: Directions for Defending the Faith, ed. Robert R. Booth (Nacogdoches, TX: Covenant Media Foundation, 2000), 51. [10] George R. Knight, Philosophy & Education: An Introduction in Christian Perspective (Berrien Springs, MI: Andrews University Press, 2006). 224. [11] Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are derived from the New American Standard Bible (1995). Furthermore, this paper is not arguing that it is impossible to attend or work for a secular academic institution and be faithful to one's Christian witness. Rather, this paper is observing that at the philosophical level, secular and Christian academic institutions are operating from fundamentally antithetical presuppositions. By definition, secular academic settings seek a neutral/non-religious stance from the outset of formulating curriculum, hiring staff, etc. On the other hand, Christian academic settings seek a positive religious stance from the outset of formulating curriculum, hiring staff, etc. Yet ironically—given the philosophical impossibility of neutrality—the former approach is not only unable to satisfy its own expressed intentions, but it also necessarily sets itself in opposition to biblical Christianity (e.g., Matt. 12:30; Luke 9:50). Therefore, by virtue of being incompatibile with biblical Christianity, secular educational philosophies should be understood as materializing from the god of this age (2 Cor. 4:4). At bottom, Believers who choose to be immersed into secular educational contexts need to be aware of the preceding antithesis from the outset of their involvement. [12] Although all of the triune God's ad extra works in creation are inseparable, many passages of Scripture will appropriate specific works to one person of the Godhead. For more on the “essence-appropriate”—“persons-appropriate” distinction, see Mark Jones, God Is: A Devotional Guide to the Attributes of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2017), 22-23. [13] The inescapability and universality of presuppositions is teased out on page 5 of Cornelius Van Til, Christian Apologetics, ed. William Edgar, 2nd ed. (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 2003): “Everyone ‘sees' through a lens. There can be no neutrality, because everything in our awareness flows out of some kind of presupposition.” [14] Theologians have historically designated God's revelation in nature as general revelation, and God's revelation in Scripture as special revelation. More expansive definitions of these terms can be found on page 936 of John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue, eds., Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017). [15] Cornelius Van Til, The Defense of the Faith, ed. K. Scott Oliphint (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 2008), 176. [16] Lamenting the state of secular education in “What Shall We Feed Our Children?,” Presbyterian Guardian 3 (1936), Cornelius Van Til calls for the people of God to retrieve a distinctly Christian education: “Our child will certainly attend the grade school for several years and that for five days a week. In Sunday school our child has learned the nineteenth psalm. As he goes to school those beautiful words, ‘The heavens declare the glory of God' still reverberate through his mind. But when he enters the school room all this has suddenly changed. There the ‘starry universe above' somehow operates quite independently of God. And what is true of ‘the heavens above' is true of everything else. At home the child is taught that ‘whether we eat or drink or do anything else' we must do all to the glory of God because everything has been created by God and everything is sustained by God. In school the child is taught that everything comes of itself and sustains itself. This much is involved in the idea of ‘neutrality' itself. At best this means that God need not be brought into the picture when we are teaching anything to our children. But is it not a great sin for Christian parents to have their children taught for five days a week by competent teachers that nature and history have nothing to do with God? We have no moral right to expect anything but that our children will accept that in which they have been most thoroughly instructed and will ignore that about which they hear only intermittently” (23-24). [17] On this point, the axiom “all truth is God's truth” is especially applicable. For insights into the utilization of such an axiom, see Frank E. Gaebelein, The Pattern of God's Truth: Problems of Integration in Christian Education (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1968), 20. [18] In Reformed Dogmatics: Prolegomena, ed. John Bolt, trans. John Vriend, vol. 1, 4 vols. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003), Herman Bavinck argues that the “operation of God's Spirit and of his common grace is discernible not only in science and art, morality and law, but also in [false] religions” (317). Hence, the ability for humanity to know any true things in reality is an extension of God's common grace, with a special appropriation to the Holy Spirit's work in creation. [19] These twin truths were championed by the Dutch Reformed Neo-Calvinists of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. A sampling of this observation is portrayed in Cory C. Brock and Nathaniel Gray Sutanto, Neo-Calvinism: A Theological Introduction (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Academic, 2022), 91-92. [20] Upon reflecting on Christian teachers' absolute dependence on the Holy Spirit throughout the educational process, J.T. English offers sage insights in Deep Discipleship: How the Church Can Make Whole Disciples of Jesus (Nashville, TN: B & H Publishing Group, 2020): “There is no path for deep [learning] other than living the Christian life by the power of the Holy Spirit; only he can make us whole again and conform us to the image of the Son. If not for the work of the Holy Spirit, all of our best ministry plans [and efforts] would be laid to nothing” (136). [21] As argued by Stephen Wellum in “From Alpha to Omega: A Biblical-Theological Approach to God the Son Incarnate,” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 63, no. 1 (2020): 71–94, the Lord Jesus Christ is both at the center of Scripture and is the goal (telos) of Scripture. [22] By virtue of divine simplicity, and the ensuing doctrine of inseparable operations, the entirety of the Godhead co-equally receives glory through any self-revelation in creation or Scripture. As footnote 12 indicates, “persons-appropriate” language does not undermine the co-equality of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. [23]  Daniel J. Treier's chapter in Christian Dogmatics: Reformed Theology for the Church Catholic, ed. Michael Allen and Scott R. Swain (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2016), 216-42 is especially helpful in accentuating the lordship of Christ subsequent to His humiliation and exaltation (e.g., Phil. 2:5-11). [24] James D. Bratt, ed., Abraham Kuyper: A Centennial Reader (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1998), 488. [25] The following excerpt from Joel R. Beeke and Paul M. Smalley, Reformed Systematic Theology: Revelation and God, vol. 1, 3 vols. (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019) incisively communicate the unique relationship that Jesus has to God's special revelatory purposes: “Possessing unique intimacy with the Father, the Son is uniquely qualified to make known. Christ is ‘the Word,' the living Revelation of God who has been from the beginning, so that no one has ever known God unless ‘the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father,' has ‘declared him'” (266). [26] See footnotes 12 and 22 for clarifying comments about “persons-appropriate” language in Scripture. [27]  In Institutes of the Christian Religion, trans. Henry Beveridge (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2015), John Calvin unpacks how the Old and New Testament authors were guided by the Holy Spirit to divulge the person and work of Jesus Christ: “If what Christ says is true—‘No one sees the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him' [Matt. 11:27]—surely they who would attain the knowledge of God should always be directed by that eternal Wisdom… Therefore, holy men of old knew God only by beholding him in his Son as in a mirror (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18). When I say this, I mean that God has never manifested himself to men in any other way than through the Son, that is, his sole wisdom, light, and truth. From this fountain Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and others drank all that they had of heavenly teaching” (763). [28] The Holy Spirit's role in bearing witness to the person and work of Christ is summarized on pages 13-14 of Roy B. Zuck, Spirit-Filled Teaching: The Power of the Holy Spirit in Your Ministry (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1998). [29] Perhaps the quintessential evidence of global confusion surrounding Christology, and other basic tenets of orthodox Christianity, is encapsulated in the bi-annual State of Theology Survey conducted by Ligonier Ministries and LifeWay Research. To access the results of every survey from its inception in 2014, see “Data Explorer,” The State of Theology, accessed August 30, 2023, https://thestateoftheology.com/. [30]  Chapter 17 (i.e., “The Holy Spirit and Scripture”) of Gregg R. Allison and Andreas J. Köstenberger, The Holy Spirit (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2020), 307-23 supply readers with many helpful insights pertaining to the connection between a believer's reverence for God's written word, and how such a reverence cultivates a posture of submission to Christ's lordship. [31] Although the notion of “thinking God's thoughts after Him” is usually attributed to Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), Jason Lisle provides several practical ways in which believers can “think God's thoughts after Him” on pages 54-61 of The Ultimate Proof of Creation: Resolving the Origins Debate (Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2022). [32] The definition recorded for education is a paraphrase of the more expansive definition transcribed in Robert B. Costello, ed., Random House Webster's College Dictionary (New York, NY: Random House, 1992), 425. In the technical sense, this definition is a faithful synopsis of what any education experience will offer. [33] Based on the model of Acts 2:37, Lawrence O. Richards and Gary J. Bredfeldt propose that there are three integral dimensions to imparting divine truth to students (or people in general): (1) cognitive; (2) affective; (3) behavioral. The cognitive dimension pertains to exposing others to truth, the affective dimension alludes to the process whereby one explains how attitudes/values should be impacted by the truth, and the behavioral dimension refers to how a lifestyle should be impacted as a result of embracing the newly discovered truth. Each of these insights documented by Richards and Bredfeldt signify a uniform perspective on the relationship between what one knows intellectually and how one applies that particular data. To access the chapter long treatment of these subjects, see Creative Bible Teaching (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2020), 145-63. [34] Arthur W. Pink, The Holy Spirit (Seaside, OR: Rough Draft Printing, 2016), 107-8. [35] Despite many individuals and institutions who claim the name Christian, and embrace orthodox doctrinal/ideological convictions, an evaluation of their observable lifestyle reveals that they are not Christian in any meaningful (i.e., biblical) sense of the term. Francis Turretin highlights the nature of those who model proper head knowledge, but display no fruit of living it out: “[Unbelievers of this kind possess knowledge that] sticks to the uppermost surface of the soul (to wit, intellect); [but] it does not penetrate to the heart, nor does it have true trust in Christ.” Institutes of Elenctic Theology, ed. James T. Dennison, trans. George M. Giger, vol. 2, 3 vols. (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 1994), 588. [36] This threefold line of argumentation employed throughout the paper has followed this biblically-based template: Knowledge: Christian Education Must be Shaped by Divine Revelation. Righteousness: Christian Education Must be Shaped by the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Holiness: Christian Education Must be Shaped by Holiness of Living. Incidentally, a synonymous line of reasoning is likewise expressed in Question and Answer 13 of the Baptist Catechism: “Question: How did God create man? Answer: God created man, male and female, after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures (Gen. 1:26-28; Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:24).” An online edition of the Baptist Catechism can be accessed here: “The Baptist Catechism,” Founders Ministries, September 12, 2022, https://founders.org/library/the-baptist-catechism/#:~:text=God%20created%20man%2C%20male%20and,4%3A24).

This episode is a narration of Dewey Dovel's work titled "The Holy Spirit in Christian Education." Here are the sources for his paper: [1] Steven B. Cowan and James S. Spiegel, The Love of Wisdom: A Christian Introduction to Philosophy (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2009), 1-4. [2] Although the disciplines of philosophy, science, and theology are often seen in conflict with one another, Vern S. Poythress demonstrates how this should not be the case on pages 13-31 of Redeeming Science: A God-Centered Approach (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2006) and pages 13-19 of Redeeming Philosophy: A God-Centered Approach to the Big Questions (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2014). [3] “Social Media Statistics Details,” Undiscovered Maine, October 8, 2021, https://umaine.edu/undiscoveredmaine/small-business/resources/marketing-for-small-business/social-media-tools/social-media-statistics-details/. [4] Even secular neurological and psychological studies have disclosed that human cognition is foundational to human experience. Consider the following resource as a sampling of this research: Celeste Kidd and Benjamin Y. Hayden, “The Psychology and Neuroscience of Curiosity,” Neuron 88, no. 3 (November 4, 2015): 449–60. [5] On the basis of recorded human history, Tyrel Eskelson argues for at least 5,000 years of formal education in “How and Why Formal Education Originated in the Emergence of Civilization,” Journal of Education and Learning 9, no. 2 (February 5, 2020): 29–47, https://doi.org/10.5539/jel.v9n2p29. [6] A sample of book length treatments teasing out competing methodologies of formal education are Russell Lincoln Ackoff and Daniel A. Greenberg, Turning Learning Right Side Up: Putting Education Back On Track (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, 2016) and James M. Lang, Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons From the Science of Learning (San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 2021). [7] James N. Anderson, What's Your Worldview?: An Interactive Approach to Life's Big Questions (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2014), 69-70. [8] As defined by John M. Frame in A History of Western Philosophy and Theology (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 2015): “[Materialism is the belief that] all events can be explained in terms of matter and motion. On this view, there is no immaterial soul. If there is something we can call soul, it is either material (the Stoic view) or an aspect of the body” (10-11). [9] Greg L. Bahnsen, Always Ready: Directions for Defending the Faith, ed. Robert R. Booth (Nacogdoches, TX: Covenant Media Foundation, 2000), 51. [10] George R. Knight, Philosophy & Education: An Introduction in Christian Perspective (Berrien Springs, MI: Andrews University Press, 2006). 224. [11] Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are derived from the New American Standard Bible (1995). Furthermore, this paper is not arguing that it is impossible to attend or work for a secular academic institution and be faithful to one's Christian witness. Rather, this paper is observing that at the philosophical level, secular and Christian academic institutions are operating from fundamentally antithetical presuppositions. By definition, secular academic settings seek a neutral/non-religious stance from the outset of formulating curriculum, hiring staff, etc. On the other hand, Christian academic settings seek a positive religious stance from the outset of formulating curriculum, hiring staff, etc. Yet ironically—given the philosophical impossibility of neutrality—the former approach is not only unable to satisfy its own expressed intentions, but it also necessarily sets itself in opposition to biblical Christianity (e.g., Matt. 12:30; Luke 9:50). Therefore, by virtue of being incompatibile with biblical Christianity, secular educational philosophies should be understood as materializing from the god of this age (2 Cor. 4:4). At bottom, Believers who choose to be immersed into secular educational contexts need to be aware of the preceding antithesis from the outset of their involvement. [12] Although all of the triune God's ad extra works in creation are inseparable, many passages of Scripture will appropriate specific works to one person of the Godhead. For more on the “essence-appropriate”—“persons-appropriate” distinction, see Mark Jones, God Is: A Devotional Guide to the Attributes of God (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2017), 22-23. [13] The inescapability and universality of presuppositions is teased out on page 5 of Cornelius Van Til, Christian Apologetics, ed. William Edgar, 2nd ed. (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 2003): “Everyone ‘sees' through a lens. There can be no neutrality, because everything in our awareness flows out of some kind of presupposition.” [14] Theologians have historically designated God's revelation in nature as general revelation, and God's revelation in Scripture as special revelation. More expansive definitions of these terms can be found on page 936 of John MacArthur and Richard Mayhue, eds., Biblical Doctrine: A Systematic Summary of Bible Truth (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017). [15] Cornelius Van Til, The Defense of the Faith, ed. K. Scott Oliphint (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 2008), 176. [16] Lamenting the state of secular education in “What Shall We Feed Our Children?,” Presbyterian Guardian 3 (1936), Cornelius Van Til calls for the people of God to retrieve a distinctly Christian education: “Our child will certainly attend the grade school for several years and that for five days a week. In Sunday school our child has learned the nineteenth psalm. As he goes to school those beautiful words, ‘The heavens declare the glory of God' still reverberate through his mind. But when he enters the school room all this has suddenly changed. There the ‘starry universe above' somehow operates quite independently of God. And what is true of ‘the heavens above' is true of everything else. At home the child is taught that ‘whether we eat or drink or do anything else' we must do all to the glory of God because everything has been created by God and everything is sustained by God. In school the child is taught that everything comes of itself and sustains itself. This much is involved in the idea of ‘neutrality' itself. At best this means that God need not be brought into the picture when we are teaching anything to our children. But is it not a great sin for Christian parents to have their children taught for five days a week by competent teachers that nature and history have nothing to do with God? We have no moral right to expect anything but that our children will accept that in which they have been most thoroughly instructed and will ignore that about which they hear only intermittently” (23-24). [17] On this point, the axiom “all truth is God's truth” is especially applicable. For insights into the utilization of such an axiom, see Frank E. Gaebelein, The Pattern of God's Truth: Problems of Integration in Christian Education (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1968), 20. [18] In Reformed Dogmatics: Prolegomena, ed. John Bolt, trans. John Vriend, vol. 1, 4 vols. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003), Herman Bavinck argues that the “operation of God's Spirit and of his common grace is discernible not only in science and art, morality and law, but also in [false] religions” (317). Hence, the ability for humanity to know any true things in reality is an extension of God's common grace, with a special appropriation to the Holy Spirit's work in creation. [19] These twin truths were championed by the Dutch Reformed Neo-Calvinists of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. A sampling of this observation is portrayed in Cory C. Brock and Nathaniel Gray Sutanto, Neo-Calvinism: A Theological Introduction (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Academic, 2022), 91-92. [20] Upon reflecting on Christian teachers' absolute dependence on the Holy Spirit throughout the educational process, J.T. English offers sage insights in Deep Discipleship: How the Church Can Make Whole Disciples of Jesus (Nashville, TN: B & H Publishing Group, 2020): “There is no path for deep [learning] other than living the Christian life by the power of the Holy Spirit; only he can make us whole again and conform us to the image of the Son. If not for the work of the Holy Spirit, all of our best ministry plans [and efforts] would be laid to nothing” (136). [21] As argued by Stephen Wellum in “From Alpha to Omega: A Biblical-Theological Approach to God the Son Incarnate,” Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 63, no. 1 (2020): 71–94, the Lord Jesus Christ is both at the center of Scripture and is the goal (telos) of Scripture. [22] By virtue of divine simplicity, and the ensuing doctrine of inseparable operations, the entirety of the Godhead co-equally receives glory through any self-revelation in creation or Scripture. As footnote 12 indicates, “persons-appropriate” language does not undermine the co-equality of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. [23]  Daniel J. Treier's chapter in Christian Dogmatics: Reformed Theology for the Church Catholic, ed. Michael Allen and Scott R. Swain (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2016), 216-42 is especially helpful in accentuating the lordship of Christ subsequent to His humiliation and exaltation (e.g., Phil. 2:5-11). [24] James D. Bratt, ed., Abraham Kuyper: A Centennial Reader (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1998), 488. [25] The following excerpt from Joel R. Beeke and Paul M. Smalley, Reformed Systematic Theology: Revelation and God, vol. 1, 3 vols. (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019) incisively communicate the unique relationship that Jesus has to God's special revelatory purposes: “Possessing unique intimacy with the Father, the Son is uniquely qualified to make known. Christ is ‘the Word,' the living Revelation of God who has been from the beginning, so that no one has ever known God unless ‘the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father,' has ‘declared him'” (266). [26] See footnotes 12 and 22 for clarifying comments about “persons-appropriate” language in Scripture. [27]  In Institutes of the Christian Religion, trans. Henry Beveridge (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2015), John Calvin unpacks how the Old and New Testament authors were guided by the Holy Spirit to divulge the person and work of Jesus Christ: “If what Christ says is true—‘No one sees the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him' [Matt. 11:27]—surely they who would attain the knowledge of God should always be directed by that eternal Wisdom… Therefore, holy men of old knew God only by beholding him in his Son as in a mirror (cf. 2 Cor. 3:18). When I say this, I mean that God has never manifested himself to men in any other way than through the Son, that is, his sole wisdom, light, and truth. From this fountain Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and others drank all that they had of heavenly teaching” (763). [28] The Holy Spirit's role in bearing witness to the person and work of Christ is summarized on pages 13-14 of Roy B. Zuck, Spirit-Filled Teaching: The Power of the Holy Spirit in Your Ministry (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1998). [29] Perhaps the quintessential evidence of global confusion surrounding Christology, and other basic tenets of orthodox Christianity, is encapsulated in the bi-annual State of Theology Survey conducted by Ligonier Ministries and LifeWay Research. To access the results of every survey from its inception in 2014, see “Data Explorer,” The State of Theology, accessed August 30, 2023, https://thestateoftheology.com/. [30]  Chapter 17 (i.e., “The Holy Spirit and Scripture”) of Gregg R. Allison and Andreas J. Köstenberger, The Holy Spirit (Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2020), 307-23 supply readers with many helpful insights pertaining to the connection between a believer's reverence for God's written word, and how such a reverence cultivates a posture of submission to Christ's lordship. [31] Although the notion of “thinking God's thoughts after Him” is usually attributed to Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), Jason Lisle provides several practical ways in which believers can “think God's thoughts after Him” on pages 54-61 of The Ultimate Proof of Creation: Resolving the Origins Debate (Green Forest, AR: Master Books, 2022). [32] The definition recorded for education is a paraphrase of the more expansive definition transcribed in Robert B. Costello, ed., Random House Webster's College Dictionary (New York, NY: Random House, 1992), 425. In the technical sense, this definition is a faithful synopsis of what any education experience will offer. [33] Based on the model of Acts 2:37, Lawrence O. Richards and Gary J. Bredfeldt propose that there are three integral dimensions to imparting divine truth to students (or people in general): (1) cognitive; (2) affective; (3) behavioral. The cognitive dimension pertains to exposing others to truth, the affective dimension alludes to the process whereby one explains how attitudes/values should be impacted by the truth, and the behavioral dimension refers to how a lifestyle should be impacted as a result of embracing the newly discovered truth. Each of these insights documented by Richards and Bredfeldt signify a uniform perspective on the relationship between what one knows intellectually and how one applies that particular data. To access the chapter long treatment of these subjects, see Creative Bible Teaching (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2020), 145-63. [34] Arthur W. Pink, The Holy Spirit (Seaside, OR: Rough Draft Printing, 2016), 107-8. [35] Despite many individuals and institutions who claim the name Christian, and embrace orthodox doctrinal/ideological convictions, an evaluation of their observable lifestyle reveals that they are not Christian in any meaningful (i.e., biblical) sense of the term. Francis Turretin highlights the nature of those who model proper head knowledge, but display no fruit of living it out: “[Unbelievers of this kind possess knowledge that] sticks to the uppermost surface of the soul (to wit, intellect); [but] it does not penetrate to the heart, nor does it have true trust in Christ.” Institutes of Elenctic Theology, ed. James T. Dennison, trans. George M. Giger, vol. 2, 3 vols. (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 1994), 588. [36] This threefold line of argumentation employed throughout the paper has followed this biblically-based template: Knowledge: Christian Education Must be Shaped by Divine Revelation. Righteousness: Christian Education Must be Shaped by the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Holiness: Christian Education Must be Shaped by Holiness of Living. Incidentally, a synonymous line of reasoning is likewise expressed in Question and Answer 13 of the Baptist Catechism: “Question: How did God create man? Answer: God created man, male and female, after his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures (Gen. 1:26-28; Col. 3:10; Eph. 4:24).” An online edition of the Baptist Catechism can be accessed here: “The Baptist Catechism,” Founders Ministries, September 12, 2022, https://founders.org/library/the-baptist-catechism/#:~:text=God%20created%20man%2C%20male%20and,4%3A24).

There is a museum by the Dachau Concentration Camp that serves to remind its visitors of the horrors suffered under Hitler and the Nazi party. There is a sign posted for all visitors to see as they leave with a quote by Winston Churchill that reads: Those who do not learn from history are condemned to repeat its mistakes.[1] Judes little epistle serves to remind us of a history, that if ignored, we too might be doomed to repeat. The people Jude warns us of remind me of the morning my brother and I were late to the bus stop for school, I believe we missed the bus that day. On our way to the bus stop, a nice stranger invited us to get into the car so that he could take us to wherever we needed to go. My brother was tempted, and I was afraid to get into the car, so when it became apparent that we would not get into the car, the stranger drove off. False teachers are like the nice stranger who offers a child candy to get that child to get into the car, to take that child to a place that will forever impact that childs future. The candy often comes in the form of something that sounds good, such as the offer to gain a better understanding of the Bible, to grow closer to the true God through some hidden secret knowledge, or the offer of some key to unlocking the secrets of the Bible and reality. Permit me to push the stranger illustration a bit further. The reason my brother and I were able to sense danger when we were offered a ride from the person in the car was because our parents warned us of such people and informed us of a history involving such people, and the best way to resist them. The reason Jude saturated his little letter with examples from Israels past is because there is nothing new under the sun; the only thing that has changed is the dress. Since the birth of the Church, many have snuck into churches to introduce false doctrines that are labeled in the Bible as, doctrines of demons. Listen to the warning the apostle Paul gave to a young pastor named Timothy: Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons (1 Tim. 4:12). The reason Jude emphasizes the need to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints (v. 3), and that the Christians everywhere must build on the, most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life (v. 21) is because the Devil is really good at using the ignorance of Gods people to harm them. John Wycliff said it best when he wrote the following warning: To be ignorant of the Scripture is the same thing as to be ignorant of Christ.[2] Listen, if you are ignorant of the Great Shepherd, you will be gullible enough to buy into the lies of a stranger who seeks your harm and not your good. These are the people we are warned about in Jude: In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions (v. 18). Daniel Akin wrote concerning false teachers: Disciples of Jesus must never let their spiritual guard down. They must be spiritually discerning, testing every teaching by the gospel of Jesus Christ and the Word of God. Eloquent speech is not the issue. Faithfulness to the Bible is.[3] The Scoffers When will the scoffers come? Jude says, In the last time. What is the last time? It is the time between Jesus ascension into heaven and his return to earth; the last time is the time we find ourselves in today and it is the time Christians have found themselves in since the birth of the Church that we read about in the book of Acts during the first century. The scoffers are the same people who have crept into the church, but not only those who snuck in. To scoff is to mock, but it can also include an attitude that is dismissive due to a self-assured arrogance[4] that following their, own ungodly passions is the best way to walk. In fact, it is their arrogance and ungodly passions that serve as their moral and theological compass. In 2 Peter 3:4, these scoffers question the legitimacy of Jesus promised return to judge the living and the dead. In Jude, these scoffers do not revere or respect the holiness of God. In the wake of their walking these scoffers are divisive, worldly, and devoid of the Spirit (v. 19). Jude informs us that the reason these people teach the things that they teach and live the way that they live is because they are, devoid of the Spirit. What this means is that these scoffers are spiritually lost even though they say that they know Jesus, they really do not know Him. Paul wrote in Romans 8:9, Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. In Titus 1:16, we are told that such people, profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work. Jesus said of such people: every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits (Matt. 7:1520). One of the many false teachings the Church encountered in the past confronted head on during the Protestant Reformation is what is known as Antinomianism. Antinomianism, which still exists today under a different dress, teaches that Christians are freed from all obligation to obey Gods Moral Law. There are dozens of examples from the Bible that such teaching does not represent the teachings of the Bible; what Jesus said in Matthew 7 and what Jude wrote in verse 19 is proof enough that true genuine faith in the resurrected Jesus as Master and Lord over your life does not give you a license to sin, but instead will affect you in such a way that you will want to live a life that falls in line with Gods Moral Law. The lifestyle of the false teachers, according to Jude, is proof enough that although they say that they belong to Jesus, they really do not and are in fact, devoid of the Spirit. What is possible to notice in these verses, is the way Jude contrasts the scoffers with the beloved. The Beloved So, who is the beloved? You remember from the very first verse in Jude that the beloved is the person who has been called by God, unconditionally loved by the Father, and kept for and by Jesus. According to the second verse in Jude, the one who is kept for Jesus because he is loved by the Father, will only know the mercy, peace, and love of the One who called him. Yet, in the first two verses, Jude gives us the reason why we must avoid the false teachers who deny Jesus as Master and Lord (v. 4), Jude offers us a strategy to not only avoid the trap of the scoffers, but a formula that will only deepen our relationship with the God who saved us. There is an imperative (command) that Jude anchors three participles to. The imperative is the word, keep. The three participles are found in verses 20-21 (the participles are italicized): Building yourselves in your most holy faith Praying in the Holy Spirit Waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus The way the NIV translates the Greek I believe is helpful in seeing how these three participles are connected to the word, kept: But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in Gods love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life (Jude 2021). How does one remain in Gods love? You do so by building your life upon His word, praying in the Holy Spirit, and waiting for Jesus Christ. Build yourselves upon the Word of God Another way you can say this is, Grow in your understanding and knowledge of the Scriptures. What he means by this is what he already admonished his readers to do in verse 3, contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. The apostle Paul said the same thing in Ephesians 2:20, So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone (Eph. 2:1920). The Cornerstone of our faith is Jesus and the gospel, as it is fleshed out from Genesis through Revelation, is our foundation. Our understanding of Jesus, as our Cornerstone, will shape our understanding of who God is. If we get Jesus wrong, we will get God wrong; if we get Jesus right, we will get God right. This is why Jesus said to anyone who would follow Him: Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it. (Matt. 7:2427) In their commentary on Jude, Jim Shaddix and D.L. Akin observe: As we learn the Bible and understand its truth, we are strengthened, we grow, we mature, we are built up. Without the Scriptures there is no growth. Without the Word there is no maturity. Without the gospel nothing of eternal good will last. Like the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat, it is vital that we daily ingest and digest Gods Word and its truth.[5] Pray in the Holy Spirit Praying in the Holy Spirit is the second participle anchored to the word kept. What Jude means here is not that we pray in some angelic or heavenly language, but that we depend upon the Holy Spirit. What kind of praying does Jude have in mind? It is the kind of praying described in Ephesians 6:18, where we are, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. It is the kind of praying that seeks Gods will for our lives above our own desires and dreams for life. The Holy Spirit is not some force or a type of impersonal power, the Holy Spirit is a He, and that He is a Person, and that Person is the Helper and Counselor promised to the Christian (see John 16:4-15), and the Helper is God the Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who seals and secures all who belong to God: In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory (Eph. 1:1314). It is the Holy Spirit that the false teachers are devoid of, and it is what sets the true Christian apart from those who do not have eternal life, so we depend upon Him in knowing and that helps us in our weakness: Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words (Rom. 8:26). Wait for the Savior As we build our lives in obedience upon the Word of God with Jesus as our Cornerstone, while we depend upon Gods Holy Spirit to help, lead, and direct we wait and long for our Redeemer: God the Son. Waiting is another way of saying, watching. Why are we waiting and watching for Jesus? Because we know that because the tomb is empty, his promise to return is imminently sure! It is Jesus who the Psalmist promised in Psalm 24:7-8, Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle (Psalm 24:78)! The mercy Jude says the true Christian is watching is the, blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13) that every Christian anticipates. Or as Jim Shaddix so eloquently describes: The Christians heart and eyes are fixed heavenward, looking for a rider on a white horse whose name is Faithful and True, whose eyes are like a fiery flame, and on his head are many crowns. We are looking for one whose robe is dipped in blood, and on his thigh he has a name written: King of kings and Lord of lords (cf. Rev 19:1116). Until then we will grow in his Word, pray by his Spirit, and watch for his coming.[6] Oh, dont you see what Jude is doing in these verses? He is showing us that the key to keeping in the Love of God is found in a relationship with a God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit! We are to set our eyes heavenward on the God who called us. We are to watch for Jesus out of a longing for our Groom as His Bride. We are to desperately depend upon the Holy Spirit who has sealed us for the Day of our redemption and powerfully Helps us to persevere until the end. This is what the false teachers want to deconstruct and pervert, but it is the key to remaining in the love of God that is foreign to anyone who has not been called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ (v. 3). Conclusion (vv. 22-23) As men and women with our eyes set on God, our hearts fixed on Jesus, and our dependance resting in the Holy Spirit, how are we to respond to the those who have crept in? What is our posture to be towards those who deny Jesus as Master and Lord with their words and with their lives? Well, in verse 22, we are introduced to next the imperative, and that is: have mercy. We are to exercise the same mercy we have received in three different ways: We are to have mercy on those who doubt. We are to show mercy by seeking to rescue those caught up into false teaching from hell. We are to exercise mercy with the utmost caution and fear. We are to have mercy on those who doubt. The Christian is a conduit of Gods mercy and grace. We must have mercy on those caught up in false teaching and responsible for the false teaching because the God who called the Christian is merciful (Psalm 116:5). There is no sin so great that Gods mercy and His grace cannot overcome; we Christians ought to be very aware of this because we have experienced it ourselves. We are to seek to rescue those caught up in false teaching from hell. God uses those He has redeemed through the blood of His Son to tell unredeemed sinners where to find redemption. As one commentator wrote: Too much is at stake for believers not to take decisive action to rescue others from the destruction awaiting the false teachers.[7] One of my favorite quotes is from a missionary by the name of C.T. Studd who said, Some want to live within the sound of church or chapel bell; I want to run a rescue shop, within a yard of hell. We are to exercise mercy with the utmost caution and fear. We are to show the scoffers who deny Jesus as Master and Lord mercy, but a mercy laced with a fear of being drawn into the same kind of sinful deception. What is true of the one who has been called, beloved, and kept by God is a hatred of sin. This does not mean that we are free from sinning, but it does mean that our affections have changed and continue to change where we long more and more to please the One who rescued us from hell. We are a walking example of the kind of change God can bring upon a person; what is true of the Christian is offered even to the false teacher: Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool (Isaiah 1:18). [1] Helm, D. R. (2008). 1 2 Peter and Jude: sharing christs sufferings (p. 323). Crossway Books. [2] John Wycliffe (Source unknown) [3] Akin, Daniel L. (2019). Christ-Centered Exposition: The Sermon on the Mount (pp. 141-42). Holman Reference. [4] Matthew S. Harmon, ESV Expository Commentary: Jude (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2018); p. 519. [5] Shaddix, J., Akin, D. L. (2018). Exalting jesus in 2 peter, jude (Jud 20). Holman Reference. [6] Ibid. [7] Matthew S. Harmon. ESV Expository Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway; 2018), P. 520