Podcasts about lord christ

But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body (Philippians 3:20-21). As we conclude this chapter, we build on Kyra's reflections from yesterday. Paul writes with tears. Was some of the ink blotched because those tears had fallen while he wrote? His heart is grieved for all those who insist on opposing the cross of Christ. Recall also that he does not name them ‘my enemies'. We do well to diligently follow his example. People are not the enemy. No matter how deep our disagreements, our struggle is against powers and principalities, not people. Regarding these ‘enemies of the cross', he says, ‘their god is their stomach'. Stomach stands in for all the desires of the body, the lusts of the flesh. Their chief concern is personal satisfaction. Their appetites dictate their lives; their minds focussed solely on this earth and this life; their vision to please the self in the moment. His warning is not against specific sins, but against the underlying sin of pandering to self. On that score, are any of us innocent? Which of us Christ followers do not, at least on occasion, fall to a temptation of the ‘stomach', pandering to self? Paul is reminding his readers that they themselves must remain vigilant. We do well to heed his warning; his tears fall for us as well. We must test our desires. In themselves, they are not necessarily bad. Desires for food, for friendship, for a healthy marriage or for rest are normally good. However, we can overindulge in food. Sometimes we can use friends to climb the ladder. Sometimes our desire for rest is just laziness. Thus, Paul reminds us that our citizenship is in heaven. Our treasures, our desires, our goals for life are determined not by the desires of our bodies, but by the values of God himself. Philippi was a Roman colony, ruled by Roman law not by its own customs; its citizens were Roman citizens. Likewise, Christians live in this world, among human cultures and value systems, but our citizenship is in heaven. We derive our values from the cross. When the truths of the cross and the return of Christ are grasped, a certain way of life naturally follows. What we believe changes our behaviour. We imitate Christ while longing for full redemption. When he returns, our Saviour will transform us so that our lowly bodies, often difficult to control, will then be subject to Christ giving glory to God. Ours are lowly bodies because they are subject to sin. The body itself, as God's creation, is good. But because of sin, we are frail and weak, easily seduced to engage in selfish activity. While our bodies remain ‘lowly', we have not arrived at our goal. But one day, our lowly bodies will give way to the new spiritual body. Eagerly we await Christ's appearance and full conformity to his resurrection body, forever in union with our God. We live in this world pressing on towards that day. At that final day he will, from his exalted position where all things are subject to him, draw our lowly bodies up into his glorious existence. He identified with our humility so that we might in turn be identified with his resurrected body. Maranatha, come Lord Jesus. As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

“For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven” (Philippians 3:18-20a). In today's verses, Paul is building off of those previous. Having encouraged the Philippians to find models to imitate, they must also be warned against those in whose footsteps they ought not to follow.  The challenge is who these people are. You may recall that in our exploration of this letter, there have been several passages where Paul makes accusations and warns the Philippian church against groups of people. So is he referring to one of these already mentioned groups? Those preaching out of rivalry from 1:15-17? Those who oppose and persecute believers from 1:28? Those “judaizers” we discussed in the early verses of chapter 3, who advocated for circumcision among Gentile converts? Or maybe even those Paul briefly alludes to in 2:21, who seek their own self-interest? The truth is that we really don't know. And so we have to be careful about using this text to extrapolate into our context and pronounce our own judgment on those we consider to be “enemies of the cross of Christ.” In a divided culture, verses like this can be used in pretty self-serving and antagonistic ways, but that's not the posture that the rest of this letter has been teaching us to take. So if we seek to avoid this error, what do these verses teach, even warn us, about? The first thing we see is that Paul grieves for enemies of the cross of Christ. He is not making a triumphalistic declaration that those with whom he disagrees are enemies of Christ doomed for destruction. Rather, he grieves for those who are misguided, who do not know Christ, whose “mind is set on earthly things.” Paul's is not a posture of hostility, resentment, or self-righteousness. He has the same kind of compassion for these enemies of the cross that Jesus had weeping over Jerusalem in Luke 19. A heart broken, not hardened, by the disobedience of others.  But what is it exactly that causes Paul to lament for this group of people? What do these verses say constitutes being an enemy of the cross of Christ? It is first necessary to highlight that he calls this group enemies of the cross of Christ, not just enemies of Christ. Some scholars suggest this may mean that those Paul is referring to are not pagan tormentors of the church, or those with lifestyles and belief systems diametrically opposed to followers of Christ. Rather, these may be believers, people who, as Pastor Michael described yesterday, maybe believe some of the right truths about Christ, but are opposed to the way of the cross as a way of life. They may claim salvation, but are unwilling to undergo the path of discipleship we have talked about over the last couple of days, and really throughout the whole letter to the Philippians.  The cross, for Paul, is the emblem of salvation, of knowledge of and participation in Christ. Cross-centred discipleship is the call of the Christian life. To crucify all privileges, status, wealth, perceived self-sufficiency in order to participate in Christ's suffering and death is to affirm one's heavenly citizenship. This is not a preoccupation with heaven to the neglect of life on earth, but a willingness to surrender all that is of perceived earthly value for the sake of Christ and his kingdom. So where might you be resisting the call of the cross-shaped life? For whom might you intercede, even through tears, that they would come to know only Christ, and him crucified (1 Cor. 2:2)?  So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

So, all of us who are mature in the faith should see things this way. Maybe you think differently about something. But God will make it clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already reached. Brothers and sisters, join together in following my example. You have us as a model. So, pay close attention to those who live as we do (Philippians 3:15-17). What is Paul getting at in these verses? It's helpful to recognize that Paul is picking up ideas from the beginning of chapter 2. There he says: “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.” The Greek word translated as “mindset” lies behind the phrase “such a view of things” and the word “think.”  In other words, Paul is saying: “All of us who are mature should take on the same mindset as that of Christ Jesus, even as you have witnessed me doing while I was with you.” Further, in considering everything a loss for the gain of knowing Christ, becoming like him in his death, Paul was practicing this mindset. In other words: to be mature in Christ is to have the mindset of Christ, as Kyra said yesterday. Paul offers his own life and experience as a witness and pattern of this mindset. It humbly submits to God and gives up everything as loss. Maturing Christians are learning to say yes to Christ in every area of our lives every day – at home, at work, at school, in our leisure, in our finances, in our friendships. The task of the Christian life is to say, “Christ is my all in all, seeking him as a precious jewel.” This had become Paul's life, full submission to Christ. And now he tells the Philippians: imitate me as I imitate Christ. Or imitate someone else whose life imitates mine or that of Christ. If we know Christ, we will mature into living the life of Christ—that life of humble submission. If believing the right truths about Christ is as far as we get, then we have not yet grown up. This is an immature Christian life. Yet, as Kyra also mentioned yesterday, Paul remains “confident… that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6). Indeed, as he says: wherever your mindset differs from that of Christ Jesus, Paul trusts that God will make it clear to you.  Paul also encourages us not to go backwards. “Let us live up to what we have already attained,” he says. The goal is always to be straining forwards, looking ahead, keeping one's eyes fixed on Christ—or at least on those ahead of you who are following Christ—so that all of us might increasingly run the race of growing up into Christ until we become mature.  Who are you following into this mindset and way of Christ—this way of the cross: of humility, submission, and loss? Who is following you? And what is God clarifying to you? What is the next step of submission for you? How is God calling you to go deeper into the mindset of Christ? Where do you need to mature in your Christian faith? As you seek Christian maturity, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12-14). Yesterday, Pastor Michael described the “upward spiral” of the Christian life, the continual dying and rising with Christ by which we are transformed more fully into his likeness. Today's verses continue to unpack what this process looks like. The letter to the Philippians talks a fair bit about having the same mindset as Christ. This, it seems for Paul, is the measure of Christian maturity, and we've seen some examples of his teaching in this regard already in our exploration of the letter. In today's verses, he uses athletic language to describe this effort: “straining toward what is ahead” and “press[ing] on toward the goal to win the prize.” Just as an athlete trains for a grueling race, so too striving after union with Christ requires a single-mindedness and self-denial.  But is striving for perfection in every step the goal Paul is describing? I'm not sure that's quite it. Paul notes that as he strives toward the prize, he must forget what is behind him. Think about Paul's history. In an earlier chapter of his life, he had been a lead persecutor of followers of Christ. He certainly had been the antithesis of what he is describing in this passage. And yet he knows himself to have been taken hold of by Christ. Were he to dwell forever on the mistakes of his past, living a life of perpetual regret, he would not have been able to do the work God had for him to do. And the challenges don't only seem to be in the past; the language of “straining” or “pressing” implies the kind of daily present hardships that Pastor Michael described yesterday. So if Christian maturity Paul describes here is not past or present perfection, what is it? Paul locates the fullness of Christian maturity in the future–a divinely appointed goal to press toward. A goal toward which God has called, and thus for which Christ followers can expect to be supported by the Spirit.  What is perhaps most significant about what Paul says here is that, because Christian maturity is a future prize toward which a believer and believing community strains together with the Spirit's help, Christian maturity is not, at least in this life, a final destination. If a believer is pretty confident that they've already reached the fullest extent of Christian maturity, that's probably not a good sign.  If your past is full of failures or sins, or you consider yourself in a position now where you are still struggling, desiring faithfulness, but falling short–you're not a liability to Christ. Because Paul teaches that Christian maturity is not confidence of full attainment already, but a desire to grow, to admit past failures but not allow them to compromise our present or future witness, and to trust in God's calling and follow it with a single-minded focus and fervour. Like Paul, we do not consider ourselves having taken hold of all that is ours. Rather, we trust that our God is accompanying us on the journey, and there is much goodness that lies ahead. So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead. (Philippians 3:10-11). There are many little tangents one could take out of these beautiful verses. We'll stick with just one: our union as Christians with the death and resurrection of Jesus. But here Paul throws an odd twist into it. It does not show up in the usual order of death, then resurrection. Instead, Paul begins with resurrection—then talks about suffering and death before returning to resurrection again. The Christian life is to be an upward spiral. Every day we begin in the resurrection life of Jesus. A new day: a gift of life to be thankful for. Not simply because we woke up on the right side of the ground—but because we have life in Jesus!  We wake up into a sure hope that gives purpose and direction to our giving and our grieving, our working and our washing, our studying and our suffering. What we wake up into is a life in Christ, a Christian life—a new life filled with new mercies every morning. If we wake up in the morning and think, “What can I get out of this day? How much can I make? What urges can I satisfy?” If we start there, we do not enter this upward spiral. However, if we start with this, “How can I serve God today? What is he calling me to? Who is he calling me to love today and what form will that love take?” With such questions we enter the upward spiral Paul is reflecting on. As we move through each new day—this Christian life calls us to take up our cross and follow Jesus in his humble, self-giving, submissive way. On this side of eternity, resurrection life is not ours in its fullness.  We still must die to ourselves and to our sins and all these other things that fall away in the all-surpassing glory of knowing Jesus. We must reckon with and die to our rage at the bad driver in front of us. We must loosen our grip on our status, accomplishments, and wealth that we have. Or on our desires to have them. We must confront and suffer our way through a still sin-broken world where nothing is as God intended. But, as we do: suffering with Jesus and letting our ambitions and sins die in his death, the Spirit forms the new, resurrection life of Christ ever more fully within us. Sometimes this happens slowly over years and decades. And sometimes we can see the full course of this rhythm of life-suffering-death-life all in one day or moment. Round and round it goes, down through the years—a continuing spiral of rising and dying and rising again until Christ is formed in us. Sometimes we slip downward. But Christ will find us and continue his work.  This is how we come to know Christ and the power of his resurrection at work in us and come to believe more fully that yes: this Christ who is bringing us to life in the little, daily things, can also be trusted to keep his promise to raise us to life at the end of all things. So, while there is much suffering still to be endured and many things in our lives that we still must die to, it is worth remembering as Paul does that the first and final word of the journey with Jesus is life. As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

July 13 2025 Sunday Your Words Matter / Week 23 / T. Stacy Hayes #findoutwhoyouare My Vision My vision is to teach the world Who They Are In Jesus Christ their Lord and Savior! To Teach them what the Bible says about them and who they have been made to be in the promises of God's Word. This changed my life years ago and completely transformed me from a person full of doubt, fear and unbelief to a strong confident Christian that knows I can do anything through Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior. And I'm determined to teach the world what God has taught and commissioned me to teach and that is His Word.  That commission takes me to jails and detention centers weekly along with other open doors at many churches and ministries that are wanting to teach these important truths to the world. My podcast goes out 6 days a week to help the people I am ministering to grow in the truths that God has taught me for many years now. This podcast is free to all that want to listen and grow strong in who God has made them to be in Christ Jesus their Lord and Savior. Isaiah 53:5  Healing… Matthew 18:19  Agree with God's Word… Mark 10:29-30  100 Fold Return… Acts 10:34  God is no respecter of persons “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12 KJV “I don't mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.” Philippians 3:12 NLT “Not that I have now attained [this ideal], or have already been made perfect, but I press on to lay hold of (grasp) and make my own, that for which Christ Jesus (the Messiah) has laid hold of me and made me His own.” Philippians 3:12 AMPC “which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.” Colossians 2:17 KJV “For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality.” Colossians 2:17 NLT “Such [things] are only the shadow of things that are to come, and they have only a symbolic value. But the reality (the substance, the solid fact of what is foreshadowed, the body of it) belongs to Christ.” Colossians 2:17 AMPC “knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.” Colossians 3:24 KJV “Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.” Colossians 3:24 NLT “Knowing [with all certainty] that it is from the Lord [and not from men] that you will receive the inheritance which is your [real] reward. [The One Whom] you are actually serving [is] the Lord Christ (the Messiah).” Colossians 3:24 AMPC “This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.” 1 John 1:5 KJV “This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all.” 1 John 1:5 NLT “And this is the message [the message of promise] which we have heard from Him and now are reporting to you: God is Light, and there is no darkness in Him at all [no, not in any way].” 1 John 1:5 AMPC “But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.” 1 John 2:27 KJV “But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don't need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.” 1 John 2:27 NLT “But as for you, the anointing (the sacred appointment, the unction) which you received from Him abides [permanently] in you; [so] then you have no need that anyone should instruct you. But just as His anointing teaches you concerning everything and is true and is no falsehood, so you must abide in (live in, never depart from) Him [being rooted in Him, knit to Him], just as [His anointing] has taught you [to do].” 1 John 2:27 AMPC Romans 10:9-10  Salvation… Romans 10:17  Faith in God comes from hearing His Word… Matthew 11:28-30  Jesus'Yoke is Easy… John 3:16  God gave Jesus to pay for our Salvation… God Loves The abortion dr As Much As He Loves The Babies They Are Killing… Philippians 12:2  Work out your own Salvation… Romans 8:1  No condemnation in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior…  Luke Chapter 15 The Story Of The Prodigal Son… Philippians 4:19  God will supply all your needs let Him… Romans 4:20  Don't Stagger at What God Is Saying In His Word… John 15:5 We can't do anything aside from Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior… 2 Corinthians 5:17  We are new creatures in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior… 2 Corinthians 5:21  We are The Righteousness of God In Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior… Mark 10:29-30  100 Fold Return… Ephesians 2:8  We are Saved by Grace through Faith in Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior… Believe God's Word Above All Opinions God Loves The abortion dr's As Much As He Loves The Babies They Are Killing… Mark 10:29-30  100 Fold Return… Share This Podcast On Your Social Media… Website https://the-prodigalson.com Email tstacyhayes@gmail.com  YouVersion Bible App https://my.bible.comi iOS App https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/prodigal-son/id1450529518?mt=8 …  Android App https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=tv.wizzard.android.prodical  Social Media https://www.facebook.com/The-Prodigal-SON-209069136315959/ https://www.facebook.com/noreligion1511/ https://twitter.com/noreligion1511 https://www.instagram.com/noreligion1511/ https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCPx4s1CLkSYef6mp4dSuU4w/featured

July 12th, 2025:  St John Gualbert - Sanctify the Lord Christ in Your Hearts; St John Gualbert - Forgiveness is Key; Ss Louis & Zelie Martin - Sanctification in the Married State; St John Gualbert - Forgiveness Through the Cross

“What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith” (Philippians 3:8-9). In the verses for today, along with those from yesterday, Paul reflects on the salvation that comes, as Pastor Michael talked about yesterday, exclusively through Christ. The verses for today continue that reflection and look back to earlier in the letter, to the poem about Christ in chapter 2:5-11.  This poem, and Paul's words in yesterday and today's verses, talk about two people who begin with elevated status. Jesus, being in very nature God. And to a far lesser degree, of course, but still of religious and cultural significance, Paul who, as Pastor Michael described yesterday, had a strong Jewish pedigree. He was righteous, well-educated, and zealous for the law.  But Paul has come to understand, and expresses in today's verses, that his version of superiority was never actually any such thing. How does he know that? He looks at Christ and recalls his poetic description in chapter 2. Christ's adoption of the form of a slave, his obedience to God and willingness to take on the humiliation of the cross, required his willful self-emptying of what was a genuine superiority. Paul, on the other hand, comes to understand that to follow Christ in his own self-emptying requires a change in his self-perception. This kind of reversal is critical for we who are Christ's followers to grasp. Certainly, as Pastor Michael described yesterday, because we have to rightly understand the source of our salvation. And also because, when we have recognized the grace of our salvation, we respond by becoming increasingly like Christ by the work of the Spirit. And to follow the one who took on human likeness, who was obedient to death–even death on a cross–requires, as the Christ poem reveals to us, deep humility. This is not the kind of humility that says, "Although, in reality, I am superior because [fill in the blank], I will follow Christ and humble myself.” If we are honest with ourselves, this is often how we practice humility. But Paul says there is nothing we have that can fill in that blank. It's all garbage. All we have is Christ, and the privilege to follow in his footsteps and mirror his downward motion for our sake.  So the gift of faith leads to humility, and humility leads to Christ's service, not to earn our salvation, but as a response to grace. As we undergo a change in our self-perception, a change in understanding where our value is from, because we no longer consider any of our privilege, power, intelligence, money–you name it–as valuable in themselves, they can be transformed into tools used in service of the faith we profess, in service of Christ. And this is the “righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith.”  So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ (Philippians 3:4-7). No confidence in the flesh, Paul says, speaking firmly against any sort of “Jesus-and” faith. Like a faith that says salvation comes by Jesus, and circumcision; or Jesus and following the law; or Jesus and good worship; or Jesus and good kid's programs; or Jesus and good ethics. Certainly, these things are important in the life of the church and the life of the Christian—but they have no place in securing our salvation. In the shifting sands of culture and technology, we tend to reach for something more than Jesus—something tangible we can hold on to, to know we're safe and secure. We build up walls of policy and doctrine, or of research and knowledge, or of wealth and possessions, or of whatever. Something tangible that we can control so that we can keep the sky from falling on us. This has been going on since the beginning of the church—like it does here in Philippians. There's nothing new under the sun. But the Christian faith is not a “Jesus-and” faith. It's just Jesus that saves us. Him alone. We put no confidence in the flesh. No confidence in any of the things that we can see, achieve, hold on to, or control. Paul gives an example. As far as Judaism goes: Paul was at the top of the class. Not only was he born into the privilege of a strong, practicing Jewish pedigree—but he also had the smarts and the drive to pursue that Jewish faith to the Nth degree—not content with the achievements of joining the legally righteous Pharisaical sect, but also pursuing an absolutely faultless life and a zealous persecution of all those who stepped outside it—like Christians. But now: all these things he once considered gain he counts as loss. Paul does not see his previous privilege and achievements as garbage—they were gains!  But considering the surpassing greatness and sufficiency of Jesus and him alone—he considers all else loss. Even what he had previously considered as gains. So it is for our wealth and our institutions, our success and our knowledge—they may very well be gains in any other sense. But they don't save us. There's nothing there to put confidence in. In fact, compared to the surpassing sufficiency of Christ, they are a loss. Or perhaps better said, they are to be lost. Our need for them must die, such that we hold on to nothing else but Jesus. This is what Paul's getting at. What gains in the world of the flesh do you rest your spiritual security upon? That is, your salvation? Does it rest on nothing but Jesus? Do you hold onto Jesus and some other things? What do you need to lose? How do we go about losing those things? Two things to start: as Kyra said yesterday, worship the triune God, including within the context of public worship. Second, get to know Jesus. You will discover that he is up to the task of saving you.  As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

“Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord! It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you. Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh. For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh— though I myself have reasons for such confidence" (Philippians 3:1-4a). Having spent some time commending partners in the gospel to the Philippian church, Paul now turns to another subject somewhat abruptly, and his tone changes with it. He has described those who are exemplary models for the community, but he now does the opposite, warning against those he calls “dogs, evildoers, mutilators of the flesh.” This is very strong language coming from a letter which, up to this point, has been full of joy and encouragement even in the midst of suffering.  Paul's warning here might be familiar to you if you've read some of his other writings. In his letter to the Galatian church, Paul warns against a group of people that scholars of Paul's letters call “Judaizers.” These were people who would follow along the path of Paul's missionary journeys, teaching that groups of Gentile converts (like the church in Philippi) had to be circumcised in order to join Jewish Christ-followers as a community of faith. In Galatians, Paul writes a pretty strongly worded letter to those tempted to heed the false teaching of this group of people, rather than recognizing and teaching that the grace of Christ meant that to be included in the family of God no longer required the physical symbol of circumcision. To preach the opposite, Paul said, was to “pervert the gospel of Christ” (Gal. 1:7). It is these teachers and their message that most scholars believe is being addressed in today's verses as well. For the believers in Philippi, and for all believers, the thing which unites them is not a sign in the flesh like circumcision, but a unity achieved by God's presence among them and working through them by the Holy Spirit.  The exhortations that Paul gives the Philippian church just before and after his warning against false teachers begins to give us an indicator of the practices Paul encourages the community to pursue which will shape them to be resilient to false teaching. He encourages them both to “rejoice in the Lord” (v. 1) and “boast in Jesus Christ” (v. 3). In essence, he's encouraging them to worship and to testify to the truth of who God has revealed himself to be in Christ.  These are practices that believers like us today can also trust to help us as we encounter false teachings, whether those that come from within the church or outside of it. We don't necessarily always think of worship as an antidote to false teaching. We may first think of doctrinal debate or apologetics as the right approach. Perhaps we wonder, or have heard others wonder, why regular worship practices, including attendance at weekly services, are important. In this passage, Paul indicates that communal practices of rejoicing and testifying about who Christ is–things the church does weekly in Christian worship–orient believers repeatedly to what is true and what is not. Being saturated in the word, active in praise and worship, and joined with a community of faith in fellowship–these provide us with the knowledge, the posture, and the accountability structures of community to help shape our minds and our hearts for discernment. And most importantly, of course, worship fosters relationship with God, and in so doing, makes it only natural that we would rejoice. So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, co-worker, and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. Indeed, he was ill and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. Therefore, I am even more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad, and I may have less anxiety. So then, welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor people like him, because he almost died for the work of Christ. He risked his life to make up for the help you yourselves could not give me. (Philippians 2:25-30). After commending Timothy to the Philippians, Paul turns his attention to Epaphroditus who gets even more space than Timothy and a commendation even grander than Timothy's because of the things he endured for the sake of the gospel. He was probably a convert since he was named for the goddess Aphrodite. Roman prisons made little, if any, provision for the prisoner's food, clothing, bedding, or hygiene. Such things would need to be brought into the prison by family and friends. The church at Philippi, having heard that Paul was imprisoned in Rome, sent Epaphroditus with money and other gifts and charged him to remain and tend to all of Paul's needs on their behalf. As he was fulfilling this service, Epaphroditus became deathly ill. But through God's grace he recovered. Paul now wants to return him to Philippi, an act which will relieve the anxiety of the church (which has heard of Epaphroditus' illness), and of Epaphroditus himself (who has been distressed that the church was distressed). No doubt much of the church's anxiety was not only concern for the health of the messenger but also frustration over what seemed a failed mission. Epaphroditus was sent to serve Paul, but as it turned out, Paul ended up caring for a deathly ill co-worker. Paul wants to relieve all such anxieties and to pave the way for a joyful return. The mission had not failed. Epaphroditus became a servant to Paul in his need, and just as Christ Jesus “became obedient to death—even death on a cross”, so Epaphroditus came near death in faithful service for Christ. Just as God, in response to Christ's obedience, exalted him to the highest place, so Epaphroditus should be welcomed back to Philippi with joy and honor because of his obedience and sacrifice. In relation to Paul, he is a brother, fellow worker, and fellow soldier; in relation to the church, he is their messenger and servant. As to his performance while with Paul, Epaphroditus almost died for the work of Christ. In a hostile environment he did not retreat but risked his life to minister to Paul. The church should not doubt him but follow his example of willing sacrifice. Therefore, says Paul, let no cloud of doubt or disappointment spoil his home coming. Welcome him with the joy and honor appropriate to his selfless and sacrificial ministry. Epaphroditus risked his life for the sake of Christ. He is to be respected for this. Who do you know who risked or risks much for the sake of the gospel and the coming kingdom? We should all know such a person, whether they have already passed into glory or still here on this earth. They inspire our faith. They inspire our sacrifice. In the early church, there was a society known as ‘the gamblers', who risked their lives to care for the sick and imprisoned and to give martyrs and even enemies an honourable burial. The work of the indwelling God changed both Timothy and Epaphroditus into the likeness of the great Servant, the Lord Jesus Christ. They were varied characters, with varying gifts and diverse temperaments; their backgrounds could not have been more dissimilar; but they were each coming to resemble the Saviour; they loved him and followed his example. What was true of them can be true of us; God has not changed. As you journey on go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one else like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon” (Philippians 2:19-24). In our text for today, Paul is doing something very practical. He is commending to the church in Philippi one of his co-workers in the gospel, a young man named Timothy, in anticipation of his visit, and the hope that Paul himself will also eventually return to them. But Paul's commendation of Timothy isn't only practical. It is an indication of the ways in which Timothy serves as an example to the church of the kinds of things Paul has been exhorting them toward in the first part of his letter. Paul had encouraged the believers to look “not only to their own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Phil. 2:3-4). In our text for today, he speaks of Timothy as showing “genuine concern for [the church's] welfare.” As we have seen repeatedly, Paul emphasizes the importance of relationships among believers as key to demonstrating the gospel message of grace. Paul also indicates that the Philippian church is aware of Timothy's character in the context of his relationship to Paul, which he compares to a son with his father. Again, think of earlier in Philippians 2 and the way that Jesus is described as obedient to the will of his Father, being humbled and then exalted. Paul's description of Timothy as a son is an indication of Timothy's own Christ-like character. So Paul sends Timothy with encouragement and, in doing so, invites the Philippian church to welcome him with gratitude and graciousness and to imitate his example. He identifies himself with Timothy, speaking of him as a co-labourer. While he hopes he can visit the community again one day, he entrusts their welfare to Timothy in the event he cannot.  This kind of sending and receiving is part of the way that churches continue to do kingdom work today. It's one of the ways we embody the mission of God that we are committed to as a church.  Immanuel has its own relationships with people it sends and receives, including various Faith Promise and missionary partners we believe are advancing the kingdom alongside us, but in other contexts. As a church committed to this work, we have a similar responsibility to Paul: To send these people with encouragement, and to cheerfully and prayerfully receive their reports about the work we have commissioned them to do. We are called to identify ourselves with them as co-labourers, and with the local and global church communities to which we send them, whether or not (like Paul) we get a chance to visit ourselves. We are one body, all of us together, and to tangibly live that out is part of the commitment a sending and supporting church makes.  So when is the last time you prayed for or intentionally encouraged those this church has committed to sending and receiving, or the communities to which you have sent them? Perhaps consider doing so today. This is part of the missional task God has given to the church, and I can speak from personal experience about how meaningful it is to receive this kind of support as a missional worker. And, as Paul himself anticipates, you may find yourself cheered by this effort too! So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

And then I will be able to boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor in vain. But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So, you too should be glad and rejoice with me (Philippians 2:16b-18). We are still following Paul's reflections on ‘working out our salvation with fear and trembling'. This phrase does not mean nervous apprehension with which the guilty face a judge. Rather, it expresses the awe that we experience in the presence of God. Now we discover that this fear and trembling includes joy; the deep, foundational joy of the Christian life. The salvation process in which we participate along with the Holy Spirit is worked out in all circumstances, even in pain, suffering, loss, death, prison, uncertainty, perplexity. It is not that we are glad for the pain, but we know the suffering is temporary and God is at work within it. So, even during unpleasant circumstances we know the ‘joy of our salvation' (Psalm 51:12). This joy does not ignore the suffering of loss or the darkness of depression. It does not suggest that every Christian should be happy every day. Rather, it comes with the sacrifices we willingly make for the sake of the gospel. It is the joy that comes when our sacrifices result in others entering the shalom of God's kingdom. In Hebrews we read, “For the joy set before him, [Jesus] endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (12:2). Our salvation was wrought through the shame and suffering of this cross. Christ's suffering also stands as an example for us to follow. He endured the torture, at least in part, because he knew the joy salvation would bring to us. Likewise, we are called to suffer for the sake of the gospel because of the joy it will bring to others. Here is an element of the Christian faith that we may resist. My parents speak of the sacrifices they made to establish churches and Christian schools and to send out missionaries. They would go without for the sake of the kingdom. Have you made such a sacrifice? Take some time to reflect on this. Let the Holy Spirit speak truth to you. The Philippians have done much and sacrificed much to aid Paul in his proclamation of the gospel; he names this “the sacrifice and service coming from your faith”.   In Leviticus, there are several passing references to a ‘drink offering', commonly understood as a small and final offering. It was still common practice in pagan rituals in Paul's day. He alludes to his potential death as but ‘a drink offering' added to all the sacrifices the Philippian Christians have made for the gospel in the process of “working out their salvation with fear and trembling”. He will be glad to give his life for the sake of the gospel in addition to all that the Philippians have given. Paul views the Philippians' continued obedience and steadfastness amid persecution as an offering to God of greater worth than the offering of his own apostolic labors—labors that may end in his death. We have no animals to bring but we do have a sacrifice acceptable to God. The gift of a life of obedience—character-building, holiness and witness—the life to which our faith prompts us. This is our priestly service to God. May we all joyfully offer it to him. As you contiue to work out your salvation, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

"Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, ‘children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.' Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life" (Philippians 2:14-16a). There are times I wonder–and maybe some of you have too–whether God might not have picked a more effective strategy for building his kingdom than this rag tag group of people called the church. Whenever I ask this question, I return to the writing of one of my favourite theologians–a missiologist and missionary in India for much of his life by the name of Lesslie Newbigin–because he answers it. Here's one of the quotes from his book The Gospel in a Pluralistic Society which helps me when I wonder about the church: “I have come to feel that the primary reality of which we have to take account in seeking for a Christian impact on public life is the Christian congregation. How is it possible for the gospel to be credible, that people should come to believe that the power which has the last word in human affairs is represented by a man hanging on a cross? I am suggesting that the only answer, the only hermeneutic of the gospel, is a congregation of men and women who believe it and live by it.”  This, I think, might be something similar to what Paul is getting at in our passage for today. “Do everything without grumbling or arguing” is quite a command. As is the expectation that his audience could become “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Why would he set such a high bar for struggling people? The reason, I think, has to do with what Lesslie Newbigin is articulating–that no matter what a church professes to believe, if it doesn't change the way they live, the gospel isn't going to seem all that convincing.  To live out what we profess, or to “shine” in a context Paul describes as “warped and crooked” means, for the Philippian church and for us, to acknowledge the way in which we ourselves are warped and crooked. We don't get to be self-righteous and assume that the warping and crookedness is only in the people around us. That's often where we get in our own way as Christians interacting with others outside of the church. If we are going to be effective witnesses, we're going to have to acknowledge our own failures first. This is part of the working out of our salvation “with fear and trembling” that Pastor Michael talked about yesterday, and the humility we talked about last week.  But then, as Newbigin points out, when we have acknowledged our warping and crookedness, and have received grace through Christ, the Spirit uses what we profess to work reconciliation and make an actual tangible difference in the relationships and actions of members of the church as they interact with each other and go out into the world. It makes the church, as Newbigin says, “the only hermeneutic of the gospel,” or, in other words, the way people understand and interpret what the gospel is all about. Neither Paul nor Newbigin makes this transformation optional for the Christian community. Paul insists it is part of the church becoming “blameless and pure” and Newbigin suggests that for a community of people who seek to make the gospel credible, it's the only way. As Pastor Michael pointed out yesterday, “Sometimes it appears that Christians reduce the godly life to the gathering of correct information.” Paul and Newbigin tell us that's not enough. Our lives need to reflect what we believe. But this isn't just another rule to follow. When we live this way, we ourselves will be blessed as we both receive and extend the grace and love of Christ. It's the beauty of the gospel; it really is good news. So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (Philippians 2:12-13). This is a text I cherish. For three reasons. One, it does not place responsibility for the spiritual growth of the congregation on the pastor. Certainly, pastors have a responsibility, but it is not primary, it is not even secondary. At best our responsibility is tertiary. This helps me sleep. Two, and more to the point, it gives us pastors permission to nudge and encourage the people under our spiritual care to get busy. Salvation is not just something received. It is received, of course, but it is also worked out. It is a matter of obedience to work out the consequences of salvation in our individual and communal lives. Christians must exert themselves, put effort in. Paul has in mind continuous, sustained, and strenuous effort. The kind of workout where the muscles get tired and want to quit, but one pushes through the pain to increase muscle strength and endurance. As Christians, people redeemed in Christ, we are to walk in step with the Spirit as the Spirit grows his fruit in us. Or to use the words of this chapter, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others” (2:3,4). The grace of God does more than get us into heaven. It also teaches us to say no to ungodly activity and to live righteous lives (Titus 2:11-12). But this is not easily done. Sometimes it appears that Christians reduce the godly life to the gathering of correct information. The most exertion required is that which gets us out of bed and to church on Sunday morning. If we have a preacher that preaches the truth, all will be well. Truth is important, but it is insufficient. If we do not apply that truth in our lives, we remain disobedient. We must allow the Spirit to identity patterns of sinfulness in our lives and to use various means to root them out. In classic Christian literature, we face three strong and wily enemies: the world, the flesh, and the devil. Paul calls us to make full use of every God-appointed means to defeat the evil so that the good has room to grow. Spiritual disciplines are not simply to gain knowledge or ‘do time'. Such discipline should always be about this: working out our salvation. We pastors are sometimes invited to walk alongside people as they work this out. It is a tremendous privilege and often full of joy. However, at times it can be discouraging. Progress is slow. First gear is a frustratingly sluggish pace. Sometimes, we witness people stuck in reverse. At those times, it is important to remember that these verses place no responsibility on pastors or others who walk alongside. Rather, it says, “for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose”. That, my friends, is good news indeed and the third reason I cherish this text. We are not on our own against our formidable enemies. God himself is at work. The God who exalted Jesus from death to the highest place is himself at work in you and me labouring out our salvation. We work with fear and trembling, not in despair, but in hope, in expectation, in certainty that progress is being made. The Holy Spirit is the chief teacher and worker after all. As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

"Therefore God exalted him to the highest place     and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,     in heaven and on earth and under the earth and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,     to the glory of God the Father" (Philippians 2:9-11).   One of the reasons I love the Christ poem that we have been looking at in Philippians 2:6-11 over the past couple of days is the way that it draws together ideas from across Scripture to demonstrate the significance of who Christ is and what he has done. One such example is the allusion that many Bible scholars find in the verses for today to an Old Testament text, Isaiah 45:23-24, where the prophet delivers these words from God: “By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone are deliverance and strength.' All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame.” This passage in Isaiah comes from the middle part of the book, which is a dramatic announcement, while the Israelites are in exile in Babylon, that the time of exile has ended, that God has a plan to release them from foreign domination and return them to their land.  In Philippians 2, the verses we've read for today, the same claim is made with implications for the church–in Philippi and around the Roman empire–that the oppressive power which rules them will be subdued. God the Father has, by the obedient death of the Son, brought about the redemption of his people. He has exalted the Son to the “highest place” giving him the “name that is above every name” and all will bow before him and confess that he is Lord, “to the glory of God the Father.” Just as God promised in Isaiah 45, despite the fact that the people were still in exile, that the time of exile had ended and God had acted redemptively on their behalf, in Christ, God has acted redemptively again on behalf of his people. In spite of the fact that the Philippian church still experienced the daily realities of suffering under a foreign empire, just as the Israelites had in Babylon, the work that was accomplished in Christ's incarnation, death, and resurrection, meant that the empire of Rome was already defeated. Their fate was sealed; their power would give way to the one whose name is above every name.  But it wasn't just Rome; every other power across time and space would give way. Every knee would bow and every tongue confess Christ's lordship. The church, whether in Philippi or among us today, is called to live as those who believe that the Son has been exalted, that he already rules over all things, in spite of any evidence to the contrary. For those of us who do not live under oppressive powers, we can easily lose sight of the significance of this. But for our siblings in Christ around the world who suffer for their testimony that Christ rules, this changes everything. So perhaps the question for us today is this: What difference does Christ's lordship make for you and your community here and now? So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

This royal psalm sets out the blessings God bestows on his King and the service the King renders to the Lord. Divine strength is at the beginning and the end of the whole, which points far beyond David to the Lord Christ, the King of kings. In concluding the psalm, we find a good desire for the saints to possess: "Be exalted, O Lord!" There is a good dependence for saints to profess: "in your own strength," at once a confession of our own weakness and an expectation of God's power. There is a good delight for saints to pursue: "we will sing and praise your power!" This is a good response to the wickedness of the world and the weakness of the church, which we should cultivate now and which will be fully realised at the coming of Christ.

And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:7-8) This hymn doesn't say that Jesus humbled himself for us. It just says that he humbled himself. If his humbling was before or for anyone: it was for God the Father, the only other person mentioned. Jesus responded to the Father by giving up everything and making himself nothing. There are a few downward steps that Jesus takes. He lets go of his divine right to use his divine status and power. This is the very opposite move to that of Adam and Eve who grasped the status and power Jesus relinquished (“You'll be like God!” the serpent said). Letting go of his rights to exercise the role, status, and power of God, Jesus turns in humility and makes himself nothing—a servant—a human—and eventually a crucified, humiliated, dead human. He is born into this world a human. The face of God visible to all in the form of new, fragile, helpless human life. Jesus lives and teaches, suffering among a suffering people. Having borne their burdens and having compassion on their needs, Jesus submits himself to death on a cross. He could have called a legion of angels to spare him from this fate; he could have crushed the Romans; he could have come down from the cross. But he didn't do that. He did not use the divine power and status that was his to use. He gave it up. He became nothing and humbled himself to death—became obedient even to this death on a cross. This resonates with deep biblical themes. In Deuteronomy, the first and second commandment, together with the Shema, say the same thing: submit yourself firstly, lovingly, and exclusively to God. Or in the Psalms where the action of the psalmists is to submit themselves and their situation fully to God—seeking no recourse of their own. It is God who will have to vindicate their cause. God, whose justice, power, and praise will be shown and known. Jesus does the same. What does it look like for us to follow Jesus in this way of the cross in our relationships? What might it mean to make ourselves nothing, to humble ourselves, to make ourselves servants? That is, to let go of all our ability to control a situation, all our roles and titles, all our resources and assets, all our relational capital in friends, family, and networks of acquaintances? This is not the sort of humility that denies having abilities, skills, relationships, or power. This humility looks with a clear eye at the rights, skills, relationships, and privileges we have and resolutely chooses not to use them for our own self—perhaps even choosing to give them up altogether. This humility chooses not to seek another term; chooses not to step in and unduly influence an important decision; chooses not to purchase the expected property or possessions that social or economic peers have; chooses not to exact retribution; chooses to forgive. We face variations on any of these examples from childhood on. Perhaps they sound less radical than we might expect. Yes, there are times that the call is to give up everything one has. More often we are called to give these things up slowly across a lifetime in the smaller, daily decisions of life. How might you take one step in this humble direction today? But why would you? Because, like Jesus, you trust God with your life. As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

[Christ] “Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness” (Philippians 2:6-7). Today, I'm going to begin by painting a picture for you. If you visited Philippi, as Paul did, in the late 40s AD, you would have seen a brand-new forum, a monumental square surrounded by various public buildings sheltering the civic life of the colony, a temple for the imperial cult, a marketplace, and more. You would also have seen a very long inscription (nearly 20 metres), made of huge bronze letters, engraved on the floor of the square to commemorate the paving of the new forum by a man who had been a priest of the deified Emperor Augustus. In the northeastern corner of the forum, an honorary monument supporting statues of the emperor Claudius and his relatives was erected. Then, a huge (5 metre long) dedication to the imperial family was carved on a wall at the centre of the city.  Why am I sharing all of these details of ancient Roman architecture with you? Because it's important for us to understand the magnitude of what Paul is saying about who Christ is and what he has done in our verses for today. See, wherever you went in the city of Philippi, it was impossible not to be reminded, by buildings, statues, and inscriptions, who was in charge and who should be worshipped. The answer was obvious to any occupant of Philippi: it was the Roman emperor, known by a Latin title translating to “son of God.” Emperor Augustus had used this title to solidify his power and position within the Roman state. His near-equality with the gods had certainly been used to his own advantage. But then, here comes Paul with quite a different story about who the Son of God is and what he does: “Christ, who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.”  Pastor Michael talked yesterday about what it means to have the same mindset as Christ Jesus. In the context of the Roman city of Philippi, it was to have the complete opposite mindset of most everyone you encountered around you. You would have walked past towering structures which would have been a daily temptation to interpret the Christ poem we read for today as utter foolishness. What kind of Son of God would choose to become like a servant–or perhaps, to translate the Greek even more accurately, a slave?  This is the kind of God we serve. One who is fully divine and who chose to be made in human likeness. It was not a decision to stop being divine, however, it was a decision to reveal to us what it really meant to be divine. And while we don't have towers of emperors around Hamilton city hall today, this message of radical self-emptying is not much less controversial in our context. We still often carry with us, and have modeled for us by world leaders, definitions of divinity, of power, of authority and influence, that are much nearer the definitions Paul is critiquing than those he is demonstrating as being Christ's own.  So the invitation for us today is to interrogate our own surroundings, as we've done Philippi, and the messages they have for us about what and who is worthy of worship and power. Then, we will be able to hold them up against the example Paul gives, of one who is, in very nature, God, and yet made himself nothing for us. So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

        In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus… (Philippians 2:5) Yesterday, Kyra said, “The kind of like-mindedness that Paul advocates for is the kind that comes, not from uniformity, but from the willingness to give priority to the needs of others and sacrifice one's own.” And as she said, ‘that's awfully hard to do.” But how do we do it? Paul answers that question in our text, “have the same mindset as Christ Jesus”. Jesus lays down for us the two greatest commandments: Love the Lord Your God with all you've got and love your neighbour as yourself. Jesus defines the love he's talking about through his own action: dying for us on the cross. As he offers his life, he gives all his heart, soul, mind, and strength in an act of love for the Father and for us. This is the crux of the Christian faith. Jesus crucified is the entire story. It tells us what Jesus has done for us. It tells us what to preach. It also tells us and shows us how to live. Keep Jesus and his cross at the centre—as that thing that defines all else—and everything else will find its way. In fact, if we do this: others will see the life of Christ in us as we live it, bringing glory and praise to God! Paul also puts Jesus and his cross at the centre of the life of the church. He invites us to have this very same mindset as Jesus in our relationships with one another. That is, to have the mindset of Christ and him crucified.  As Paul will go on to tell, and as we will cover in the days to come, to have the mindset of Christ means having an attitude and practice of humble, loving submission before God that allows us to give everything else up to be a loving servant to others. This command is at the very heart of the gospel. It resonates with Jesus' own commands to love one another and to take up our cross and follow him. By these things, the world will know we are his disciples. It's not easy though. There are times when I'm right and the other person is wrong; times when I want what someone else has; times when I'm paralyzed by what someone else thinks of me; times when I've been hurt by someone or when I want to hurt someone for what they have said or done. These are the sort of small, sometimes even petty things, that undercut loving relationships in the church and that can breed mistrust, fear, discord, malice, slander, and the sort of fights that lead to division. It is in these very situations that we are to have the mindset of Jesus Christ. What are we to do when we come to these moments finding our motivations are less than wholesome or holy? Take on the mindset of Jesus and his cross. We are called to humbly die to ourselves. It often looks like a prayer. “Dear God, forgive me for my anger towards so-and-so. Help me to love them instead, even though I don't want to.” Asking forgiveness is a humbling action. It's a dying to ourselves. But in that action, we take on the mindset of Christ that frees us to live and to love. As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

“Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others” (Philippians 2:1-4). Yesterday, Pastor Michael talked about living as those who have died and risen with Christ, those whose witness to Christ is without fear. In today's verses, we have a practical example of what such fearless living looks like: unity, like-mindedness, humility, and self-sacrifice.  In the context of Philippi, these virtues required a sort of fearlessness. Philippi was a highly stratified and diverse city, as were many that Paul visited in his ministry. The ruling class was Latin in language, culturally Italian, and politically Roman. However, on the margins, including the outskirts of the city and in the lower classes, many were Macedonian or Thracian (which are culturally and linguistically Greek) or immigrants coming from places like Egypt, Asia Minor, and Judea. There were as many as 35 different local deities worshipped in the city, alongside the Roman emperor worship. In a context of such diversity, to seek unity, like-mindedness, humility, and self-sacrifice required the courage that we discussed yesterday. It involved dying to self. Such division and diversity, although in a different cultural context, likely feels familiar to many of us as well. We too live in a context where divisions along political, ideological, and ethical lines are common. In such a context, unflinching conviction is often perceived as the most effective way to advance any cause. However, Paul seems to suggest something more nuanced in this passage. Initially, it does seem that Paul expects the whole community to think the same way. He begins by saying that the Philippian church will make his joy complete by being like-minded, and one in spirit and mind. However, he quickly follows this with commands about humility, valuing others above oneself, and looking to the interests of others. If these are his next commands, then perhaps like-mindedness is a bit more complicated than his first statement would suggest. The need for humility and sacrifice for the sake of others' interests implies that this community is not, in fact, like-minded in the sense that they all agree. The kind of like-mindedness that Paul advocates for is the kind that comes, not from uniformity, but from the willingness to give priority to the needs of others and sacrifice one's own. This, I think, is rather good news for the western church in a context of deep division. We actually are not all expected to think the exact same way on every subject. What is expected of us is finding a way to live together, with humility, in spite of that.  This seems awfully easy to say and awfully hard to do, you might say. And you'd be right. But we have to remember that Paul isn't viewing diversity of thought through rose-coloured glasses. He doesn't think it's going to be easy. He is working with a church in a deeply divided context. It's simply that for him, the fact that the church has, as he begins, been united with Christ, comforted by his love, and given a common sharing in the Spirit, was actually meant to make enough of a difference that other differences could be viewed only in that context. And that, complex though it is, is something for us to strive for too. So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have (Philippians 1:27-30). As we heard on Friday, Paul expects “to remain and continue” ministering with the church. Now he says something quite different. Now it's qualified: “whatever happens.”  This is deeper than his travel plans. He does not want the faith of the Philippians to be dependent upon him, but upon Christ. He wants society and even their persecutors to see Christ in the way they suffer and in the way that they contend for the faith of the gospel—as athletes working together side-by-side on one team. When neighbours look at Christians, our witness should not be to Paul (or our own leaders), but to Christ. This will be the witness, the sign to these others that they might be destroyed. Now, the church is to not preach this destruction, nor enact it by being cruel or retaliatory toward persecutors. Rather, by enduring our suffering in the same humble way of Christ, we bear to witness that we have something in God through Christ. We have something greater than any threat of suffering or death can extinguish. Some baptismal traditions have a beautiful way of symbolizing this. There's a stone baptistry in Philippi where those being baptized walk down steps into the waters of a running river. They take off their old clothes as they descend into the water—a sign of dying to themselves and their old way of life in the death of Christ. Then, having been baptized, they walk up the other side out of the water. On their ascent, they are given a new white robe signifying the new life of Christ to which they had just been united.  Why the Christians could stand and face martyrdom willingly, even with joy, remained a mystery to Caesar and his subjects. But the thing is, you just can't scare dead people. These Christians were already dead in the death of Christ. They had nothing to fear. All that was on display within them was the life of Christ: joy, peace, patience, and persevering love—all the fruit of the Spirit. We too are baptized saints: baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. To those around us—whether we are suffering or living in relative peace and joy—do they see this clear witness to Christ within us? Do they see that we are a people who live without fear? Do they see that we contend together as one for the faith of the gospel? Do they see that we live in the fruit of the Spirit and the life of Christ no matter what we face? This is Paul's prayer and invitation to us. As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

Your Nightly Prayer

“Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me” (Philippians 1:24-25). Yesterday, Pastor Michael reflected on Paul's indifference, even hope in anticipation of his death, but also of his commitment to life for the sake of the church. In today's verses, Paul dives further into why he is committed to remaining an active part of the church that God is forming among the Gentiles. Paul's reasons for staying include the church's “progress and joy in the faith” as well as giving them reason to “boast in Christ Jesus.” Now, if you're like me, growing up reading this passage and others in Paul's corpus of letters where he makes similar statements, you might be asking yourself, “Doesn't Paul sound a bit arrogant? Does the church really live or die by Paul's presence?” Perhaps you're willing to concede that Paul, significant character that he is in the story of Scripture, may be justified in such a claim. He started a lot of churches, had a pretty compelling way of talking about Jesus, and certainly was used by God in some remarkable ways.  However, Paul's confidence in the importance of his presence with the church is not rooted in his particular talents. He is not confident merely in his own gifts for the church, but the necessity of his role as part of the body of Christ as a whole. This means that the claims he makes about the progress and joy of the church, and the fact that believers can boast on account of him are words that can and should apply to any member of a church. We are likely familiar with Paul's teaching on this subject in a different letter, his letter to the Corinthian church, where in chapter 12 he speaks of the necessity of all members of the body of Christ: “Suppose,” Paul says, “the foot says, ‘I am not a hand. So I don't belong to the body.' By saying this, it cannot stop being part of the body. And suppose the ear says, ‘I am not an eye. So I don't belong to the body.' By saying this, it cannot stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, how could it hear? If the whole body were an ear, how could it smell? God has placed each part in the body just as he wanted it to be . . . You are the body of Christ. Each one of you is a part of it.” The reason that Paul is convinced that he must stay with the church to encourage its progress and joy, to give it a reason to boast in Christ, is because this is true of every single member of the body. Each member of Christ's church becomes an essential part of what God is doing in the world.  Are you as convicted as Paul is that you are necessary to the body of Christ? Do you go to church on Sunday morning, provide leadership as an office bearer, on a ministry team, leading youth of various ages, or volunteering in any other capacity within Immanuel or beyond its walls in the assurance that your presence makes a tangible difference–that it will lead to others' progress and joy in the faith, a reason to boast in Christ Jesus?  If your answer to this is “no,” read Paul's words again. They are as true of you, no matter who you are and what your role is in Christ's body, as they were of Paul, transformative leader that he was. If your answer to this question is “yes,” what are you doing to make sure that others around you are convinced of the same truth? We are Christ's body, and we have reason to remain members of one another and remind one another of why that is significant–for the sake of mutual joy and progress in the faith. For the sake of Christ and his kingdom. So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body (Philippians 1:21-24). Thanks to Kyra for her wonderful series on “New Hope”. Now, back to Philippines. Our text helps us to accept our own impending death, a topic many avoid. Historically, people died at home, with family present. In many places, this is still the case. But in Canada, many die in hospitals or nursing homes, often alone. Their bodies are quickly moved to the morgue or sent to the crematorium, families not knowing what to do with death. It is the worst possible event for those who believe they have an inalienable right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. We cope with death by ignoring its existence. When I started in ministry, most families had a notion of what to do when a loved one died. Today, I often hear the question, “What are we supposed to do?” There are no cultural norms or rituals for responding to death. Preparation for it is avoided. Consider the effort put into staying young and fit. Into this vacuum, Christians enter with a different story. Paul is writing from his prison in Rome, knowing that execution is likely. So, both Paul and the Philippians are confronted with the specter of his imminent death. Paul is conflicted in this passage. He sees advantages both in dying and in staying alive. Paul has been saying, “Living well means seeking the glory of Christ.” This has been his motto since he met Jesus on the road to Damascus. When he dies, he will finally be with Christ and his sinfulness will no longer detract from his Lord's glory. As Christians, we believe that there is life after death, even the resurrection of our physical bodies. And that life is better than this one. Many people do not have this hope. To be with Christ is far better than to be here, says Paul. Do you believe that? When we do, it impacts how we live and how we view death. Paul's conflict is that he also believes the Philippian church still needs his service: “…it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.” He is willing to stay. He is willing to sacrifice his own gain for the sake of the church. He lives what he will later write, “Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others” (2:4). Paul believes that continued life is a greater sacrifice than dying. Let me put it plainly, physical life or death are not of ultimate importance to Paul. Living means carrying out his calling to preach Christ and dying means gaining conformity with Christ's death and fellowship with him. He hopes for the outcome that will most clearly advance the gospel of Christ. This strikes us as strange if we have allowed the comforts of our present physical existence to have higher priority than Christ. Paul is astonishingly indifferent toward his own death. He invites us to take the same attitude. This is not, of course, to say that mourning is out of place for the Christian when loved ones die. The fact that they are with the Lord does not take away from our experience of loss. Tears are proper for believers. Jesus himself wept. We can face our own death with assurance, but not with indifference to those who will miss us. As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever” (Rev. 22:1-5). Coming to the end of working through themes related to suffering and healing in connection with the New Hope program and hearing stories about our siblings in Christ in the global church, today we are going to talk about the opportunities for “looking forward” in community which are necessary to healing. In the final weeks of the New Hope program, we invite participants to complete two activities. First, we invite them to write down a source of pain, a sin, a situation or relationship causing suffering which they have reflected on over the course of the program, and write it on a slip of paper. We then burn these slips of paper at the foot of a wooden cross, with prayer and singing, choosing to surrender them to God. Having led the New Hope program over the course of a week in South Sudan, I was doubtful about its impact on some participants. There were three young women in my group who had not answered any of the questions during the week, had not eagerly participated in the rehearsal of the stories from Scripture, and had not engaged with me after the sessions alongside their peers. I had continually prayed for them each evening when the sessions were over, but I was not sure that the program was making the kind of headway it usually made. These young women had stories of tremendous pain–fathers shot dead in front of them in tribal conflict, young pregnancies as a result of sexual violence, and one girl who was living in a refugee camp in South Sudan having fled the bombing of her city in Sudan just months before. Could these stories and simple activities really have made any difference? On the afternoon we brought the slips of paper–and with them pain, suffering, and sin–to the foot of the cross, my perception of the way that God works was challenged. Girls were invited to give testimony of what God had begun to do in their lives that week. And what do you know? The three girls from my group who gave testimony to the others present, through tears and with thanksgiving to God, were the three girls I had assumed unmoved. God does not always work healing miracles for us to see. Others' healing, it turned out, was not about me. Us churchy people, perhaps especially leaders, are not always good at remembering that. When any one of us engages in healing, outreach, ministries of mercy–they are not about us. The people we serve will know our intentions very quickly. We need to have the courage to get out of our own way and allow ourselves to become channels of the Spirit. God will work; what is required of us is a humble acknowledgement of the privilege it is to participate. The second thing we do to wrap up the New Hope program is to engage with the passage from Revelation that we read for today: “On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.” I'll never forget the time I led New Hope with an intercultural group of young adult Egyptians, western expats, and Sudanese refugees living in Egypt who, when they acted out this story together, and without prompting, interpreted the line “And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations” and began to take imaginary leaves off the tree and pass them to one another. This is indeed the beautiful work that is ours to do. When we begin to heal, by God's grace, we find the strength of the Spirit enabling us to extend that healing to others. And to recognize that we are part of a global and diverse church is to break down all barriers that existed in that room in Cairo, Egypt, but also in our community here in Hamilton–differences of personality, culture, ethnicity, race, nationality, experience–which led these young people to embrace the eschatological vision of Revelation and pull it into their present. May we too be compelled by this vision, arms outstretched, tree of life leaves in hand, offering friendship and belonging, healing and new life.  So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

“How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?     How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts     and day after day have sorrow in my heart?     How long will my enemy triumph over me? Look on me and answer, Lord my God.     Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, and my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,”     and my foes will rejoice when I fall. But I trust in your unfailing love;     my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the Lord's praise,     for he has been good to me” (Psalm 13). Continuing to work through themes related to suffering and healing in connection with New Hope and hearing stories about our siblings in Christ in the global church, today we are going to talk about lament. In the fifth week of the New Hope program, participants engage with the story of Jesus' crucifixion, and they hear the words of Christ's own lament on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Jesus is quoting the beginning of Psalm 22, a lament which would have been well-known by the Jewish onlookers and similar to Psalm 13, our text for today. Lament psalms like these are prevalent in Scripture, particularly in the Psalter. In fact, individual psalms of lament are the most common type of psalm in the Psalter. As we've just noted, Jesus himself, in his death on the cross, affirms the centrality of lament to the Christian experience of suffering. And yet, even as the importance of lament is being recovered in some church contexts, we are still often uncomfortable with this practice. John Calvin loved the psalms and wrote a commentary on them, describing the Psalter as an “anatomy of all parts of the soul.” Yet, many churches today continue to be ill-equipped with liturgical resources for the practice of lament. Perhaps this is because lament disrupts the status quo evident in popular modern cultural scripts related to suffering such as “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” or “mind over matter.” In answer, lament psalms give scriptural testimony to the importance of allowing space for deep grief, fear, betrayal, and anger, and inviting God to meet us there.  On another note, the language that these lament psalms use, addressing God directly and inviting him into suffering or questioning his role in it, challenge another impulse common in our context–that suffering can only be effectively dealt with through medical or psychological interventions, and that spiritual and religious traditions are only for the seasons that things are going well or for the private lives of individuals, not to be engaged in the public sphere (something the church regrettably and often unintentionally confirms when we fail to engage in lament in corporate worship and allow it to translate into public action for justice).  In one New Hope group I led, a training for ministry leaders from around the world who were learning the program so as to be able to pass it along to their own ministry teams, one of the leaders confessed in frustrated tears to the group that they could not engage in the activity for this fifth week of the program. The activity involved writing a lament using four simple prompts: First, “Jesus, these things happened to me…” Second, “Jesus, I am/I feel…” Third, “Jesus, the worst part of this was…”  The fourth prompt was the most challenging for the leader because it then makes the same movement that Psalm 13 does in the last couple of verses when it says, “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing the Lord's praise,  for he has been good to me.” The fourth prompt asks participants to finish this statement: “But I believe (or want to believe because I've heard this about you) that you are…” This prompt indicates that lament is not an expression of the worshipper's own experience or personal desires exclusively, but always grounded in God's character and faithfulness. It's often the greatest challenge because, in the midst of deep suffering, it is only natural to wonder about who God is and what he is up to. What we came to together as a group of ministry leaders when we discussed our members' challenge with writing this part of the lament is that this final phrase is not simply tritely hopeful or falsely optimistic. Rather, it is an acknowledgment that the source of our complaint or our pain is something which not only offends and causes us pain, but it is actually an offense to God himself. The Bible's testimony is that the sin and evil which causes harm to God's beloved creation, including each of us, is even more painful to God. Thus, lament faithfully insists that God be who God has revealed himself to be.  If you'd like to try writing a lament of your own today, I'll include the prompts in the notes of the podcast. God is not threatened by your complete honesty about your pain. He chose to make known his character and promises to his people. So you can freely answer: How are you hurting today? What do you believe, or want to believe, about who God is? As you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors. Lament Prompts Jesus, these things happened to me: ____________________________ Jesus, I am/I feel ____________________________ (suffering, hurting, in pain, discouraged, desperate) Jesus, the worst part of this was ____________________________ But I believe (or want to believe because I've heard this about you) that you are ____________________________  

“And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, ‘If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.' Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, ‘Who touched my clothes?' ‘You see the people crowding against you,' his disciples answered, ‘and yet you can ask, 'Who touched me?'' But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering'” (Mark 5:25-34). This week, we are continuing to work through themes related to suffering and healing in connection with the New Hope program and hearing stories about our siblings in Christ in the global church. If you haven't been following along with this series, feel free to look back to last Wednesday's podcast intro which will provide some context. “Go in peace,” Jesus said to the woman in front of him, “and be freed from your suffering.” I read these last words and look up, and I see the woman's shoulders shaking with suppressed sobs. The silent tears rolling down the young man's cheeks. Tears fill my own eyes. God is doing something in this room, and to say anything else, to add anything to Jesus' own words seems somehow wrong.  It is week four of the New Hope program, it's February of 2024, and I am gathered in a room full of my friends, most of them Sudanese refugees living in Egypt, those forced to flee when the war broke out again in Sudan in April 2023. A war that most of the world had, at this point, largely ignored for the better part of a year. A war which had resulted in more than 150,000 deaths of civilians through a combination of bombings and massacres but also malnutrition and disease resulting from lack of access to basic life necessities. The woman across from me, weeping, had escaped from Sudan and into Egypt the previous spring, having been held at gunpoint by officials, separated from both her older brother and the man she had intended to marry just weeks after the war broke out. The young man with tears running down his face escaped with his aunts, but neither of them have been able to re-establish contact with any other loved ones who remained in Sudan–at least as far as they know–since the beginning of the war. They face discrimination daily in their lives in Cairo, treated as outsiders by most they encounter. The group has just walked through the story of the bleeding woman and her encounter with Jesus through a visualization activity which ends with an invitation for the listener to do as the woman did, to tell Jesus the whole truth. To tell him their story. We paused for silence. Then the words of Jesus, “Daughter, son, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.” They hang in the air in the room. “Amin, amin, amin,” a woman's voice says through tears, as though with the voice of the woman in the story herself, “bashkorak ya rob.” Or, in English, “Amen, amen, amen, thank you God.”  In my mind, there isn't any kind of exegetical work or systematic theology (necessary though those things are) that does a better job of explaining what Jesus does than what happened in that room that day. I think the invitation for us, in reading this story, is much the same as it is for New Hope participants. To walk through the story and allow it, allow Christ, to encounter us as we are.  So who are you in the story today? Are you the woman, struggling desperately forward, believing that to touch Jesus will mean your healing? Are you the disciples, skeptical of Jesus' encounter? Are you in the crowd of onlookers, watching in wonder or judgment? Are you being given the opportunity to, like Jesus, extend belonging and mercy to someone in pain and fear, desperate to believe who he is, desperate for transformation? No matter where you are in the story, it is for you, as are Jesus' words–to claim as your own and to offer to others: “Daughter, son, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”  So as you journey on, go with the blessing of God: May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you: wherever he may send you. May he guide you through the wilderness: protect you through the storm. May he bring you home rejoicing; at the wonders he has shown you. May he bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.  

Second Samuel 19 Take Aways:1. While David eventually made his return as the rightful king of Israel, so Jesus Christ will make His return as the Messianic Lion of Judah, the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords—“Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him.” Revelation 1:72. Mephibosheth experienced reconciliation with David as he genuinely sought a restored relationship with his king above all else; may our relationship with King Jesus be the ultimate goal and priority in our lives—“Seek the LORD and His strength; Seek His face evermore!” 1 Chronicles 16:113. As King David sought to reward the faithful Barzillai for his generous service to the king and his people, so King Jesus will reward those who have faithfully served Him with a genuine and sincere heart—“And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.” Colossians 3:23-24

John 15: I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. (NIV) John 15:8 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (NIV) 1. Bear Fruit by How You Live John 15:8-10 This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. 9 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love (NIV) Psalm 1:1–2 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; 2 but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. (ESV) Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. (NKJV) Galatians 5:19-21 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, 21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. (NLT) Psalm 1:3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. (ESV) 
 2. Bear Fruit by How You Love John 15:10-12 If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love 11 I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. 12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. (NIV) Proverbs 11:25 A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. (NIV)
 3. Bear Fruit by How You Last John 15:16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. (NIV) Colossians 3:23-24 “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” (NIV)

Today's Passage: Colossians 3:22–4:1Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ. For the wrongdoer will be paid back for the wrong he has done, and there is no partiality. Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.Today's Prayer: Father you despise slavery and bondage. May we be reminded in this passage of how you parted the Red Sea for Your people to escape from slavery in Egypt. Even more, may we be reminded of how you defeated death on the Cross that we may escape from the ultimate slavery of sin.  Father, many today are still enslaved or labor in menial or humiliating arenas. Would you give any of us who are trapped by others or by our own circumstances to live transcendent above those circumstances knowing that any work we do for You stores into an eternal account that can never be stolen. Lord, help us work for You as our only audience. Whether our plight is from others who have abused power or by our own hands of enslaving debt, give us sincere hearts to know work was given to us before evil entered the world. It is a glorious thing to work with our hands and minds as you've created us to in Your image.  Lord, additionally, help any of us who manage or lead others to do so in a manner that builds them up versus tears them down. Help us to love those under our authority in a way that doesn't promote ourselves or abuse any power we've been given. Rather, help us see our role as helping each of them flourish in God's mission for their lives. NOTES & LINKS:Information about the Women's Summer StudyInformation about the Men's Summer StudyReach out to the Center for Spiritual Formation

Marketplace Entrepreneur for the Kingdom of God • Sunday Service Website: www.PastorTodd.org Please help us fight back and take a stand: www.ToddCoconato.com/give We are in a critical hour where the lines between sacred and secular are blurring—not because we're compromising the Gospel, but because God is invading every sphere of society through His people. The Church is not confined to the four walls of a building. In fact, many of the greatest battles and victories of this generation will not take place in pulpits, but in boardrooms, offices, construction sites, online platforms, and homes. You don't have to be a pulpit preacher to be in full-time ministry. If you're called to the marketplace, then you're on the frontlines of spiritual warfare, influence, and kingdom advancement. 1. Matthew 5:14-16 (NKJV) “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” 2. Colossians 3:23-24 (NKJV) “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.” 3. Proverbs 13:22 (NKJV) “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.” 4. Deuteronomy 8:18 (NKJV) “And you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.” 5. Acts 18:1-3 (NKJV) “After these things Paul departed from Athens and went to Corinth. And he found a certain Jew named Aquila… with his wife Priscilla… because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked; for by occupation they were tentmakers.” 6. Proverbs 22:29 (NKJV) “Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men.” 7. Isaiah 60:1-3 (NKJV) “Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. For behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and deep darkness the people; But the Lord will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you. The Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.” 8. Luke 19:13 (NKJV) “So he called ten of his servants, delivered to them ten minas, and said to them, ‘Do business till I come.'” 9. 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 (NKJV) “There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all.” 10. Ecclesiastes 11:1-2 (NKJV) “Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. Give a serving to seven, and also to eight, for you do not know what evil will be on the earth.” 11. Romans 12:6-8 (NKJV) “Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy… or he who gives, with liberality… he who leads, with diligence…” God is raising up Josephs, Daniels, Deborahs, and Esthers in the marketplace—leaders who can manage resources, interpret dreams, influence kings, and save nations. You may not stand in a pulpit, but your calling is no less holy. Your business is a platform for truth, your clients are a mission field, and your profits can fund revival. This is the hour to rise up as a kingdom entrepreneur—set apart, filled with the Spirit, and unashamed of the Gospel in the business world. CCLI: 21943673

Series Title: Ready For Mondays Subtitle: Finding Purpose in the Work You Dread “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Colossians 3:23–24 (NIV) There is already purpose in what we all do, but we have to choose to live it out Work Is Not A Curse, But A Purpose “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” Genesis 2:15 God works through the attitude we bring to our workplace God Cares About The How, Not Just The What “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord…” Colossians 3:23 (NIV) Work becomes worship when you do it for God. Your Workplace Is A Mission-Field “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.” Matthew 5:13-14 (NIV) How Can I Reflect Jesus In My Workplace? 3 Ways To Live Out Your Faith Tomorrow: 1) Pray Before You Clock In 2) Encourage Someone at Work 3) Look For Moments For Jesus To Shine Through You “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:58

Colossians 3:23-24 Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Matthew 20:26-27 NIV Whoever, wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave- just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.

So deplorable a state! Charles Spurgeon1 Corinthians 2:1, "When I came to you, brothers, I did not come with eloquence or superior wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God." Many pastors have grown 'professional' in their service, and preach like automatons, wound up for a sermon, to run down when the discourse is over. They have little more care for the souls of men, than if they were so much dirt! Too many pastors are fascinated with . . . technical trifles about words, fancies of speculation, or fopperies of oratory. God forgive us if we have fallen into so deplorable a state! "For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people." Romans 16:18

A new MP3 sermon from Grace Baptist Church of Waterford is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Follow the Lord Christ Subtitle: Mark: Devotionals Speaker: Tim Davis Broadcaster: Grace Baptist Church of Waterford Event: Devotional Date: 4/28/2025 Bible: Mark 8:34-38 Length: 35 min.

Lord, use me as thou wilt, Do with me what thou wilt; Promote thy cause, let thy kingdom come,Let thy blessed interest be advanced in this world!O do thou bring in great numbers to Jesus! Let me see that glorious day, and give me to grasp for multitudes of souls; Let me be willing to die to that end; While I live let me labour for thee to the utmost of my strength, Spending time profitably in this work, both in health and in weakness. It is thy cause and kingdom I long for, not my own. WHAT PREVENTS RISK TAKING?BARRIERS TO ENTRYFEAR OF FAILURE & LOSSFEAR OF UNKNOWNLACK VISION & TARGETED MISSION “Where there is no vision, the people perish; but happy is he who keeps the teaching.”‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭29‬:‭18‬ ‭WHY PEOPLE LACK PASSION FOR PURSUIT?APATHYCOMPLACENCY & LAZINESSDEFEATED & DEFLATED BY PAST“The way of a sluggard is like a hedge of thorns, but the path of the upright is a level highway.”‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭15‬:‭19‬ ‭HONEST SELF-ASSESSMENT PURPOSEWHAT DEFINES YOUWHAT FULFILLS YOUWHAT DRIVES YOUPERSPECTIVE WHO'S MOST IMPORTANT WHO'S MOST IMPACTED WHO'S MOST EMPOWEREDPLANHOW IS GOD HONOREDHOW ARE PEOPLE SERVEDHOW DOES IT EXPAND KINGDOMSTEPS TO PURPOSEFUL SOVEREIGNTY 1. Don't Just Wait—Take Action2. Work Hard and Be Bold3. Don't Be Ashamed to Pursue What You Want4. God Blesses Those Who Take Initiative1. Don't Just Wait—Take Action    •    James 2:17 – “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”    •    Proverbs 14:23 – “In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.”    •    Ecclesiastes 11:4 – “He who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.”→ If you wait for the perfect conditions, you'll never act.2. Work Hard and Be Bold    •    Colossians 3:23-24 – “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”    •    Proverbs 10:4 – “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”    •    2 Thessalonians 3:10 – “If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.”3. Don't Be Ashamed to Pursue What You Want    •    Joshua 1:9 – “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”    •    Romans 1:16 – “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.”    •    2 Timothy 1:7 – “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”4. God Blesses Those Who Take Initiative    •    Matthew 7:7-8 – “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.”    •    Deuteronomy 8:18 – “You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.”

Colossians 3:23-24 - And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

The God who saves is the God who keeps his people for the glory to come. The everlasting life he bestows cannot be conquered even by death. The Lord Christ fully understands and entirely embraces the Father's will—it is his delight to glorify God and to bless men.Here we see the Father's will acknowledged, that salvation is in accordance with the divine purpose from before the foundation of the world. Then we trace the Father's will expressed, described both in terms of divine purpose and human experience—the Father's purposeful gift to the Son, and the beholding of and believing in the Son on the part of those who are given. Finally, we notice the Father's will accomplished, for the Father intends that the Son should raise up those given to him at the last day, and the Son intends that he will raise up all who trust in him. All this leads to great confidence and willing service to the Lord who saves and keeps, who is to be trusted with the beginning, the continuing, and the completing of our salvation.

Colossians 3:23-24 - And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

SEQUENCE HYMN # 435 At the Name of JesusAll stand. GOSPEL READING Luke 19:28-40PriestThe Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Luke.PeopleGlory to you, Lord Christ.After telling a parable to the crowd at Jericho, Jesus went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, saying, "Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, 'Why are you untying it?' just say this, 'The Lord needs it.'" So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, "Why are you untying the colt?" They said, "The Lord needs it." Then they brought it to Jesus; and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. As he was now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, saying,"Blessed is the kingwho comes in the name of the Lord!Peace in heaven,and glory in the highest heaven!"Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, order your disciples to stop." He answered, "I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out."PriestThe Gospel of the Lord.PeoplePraise to you, Lord Christ. THE SERMON

*Listen to the Show notes and podcast transcript with this multi-language player. SUMMARY: “That they may all be one” (John 17:21) –This was Christ's prayer to the Father. This was His prayer for his disciples, but also for us. This was Christ's cry—that the interpenetration between Christ and the Father should also be evident in His sons. SHOW NOTES: From the time when Christ was on earth, He has been bringing His sons into a oneness. The key to the oneness with one another is to penetrate into one another's hearts and spirits. The Holy Spirit welds us together by the words we speak and the daily practical things we do with each other and for each other. We believe to be brothers and sisters in the Father's family, but we cannot produce this depth of relationship ourselves; He must complete this. We cannot wall off our brothers and sisters, but need to believe that God can speak through them. It's the grace of God that enables us to become the Father's family. QUOTATIONS: God is looking for a family, and He is looking for that family to melt together by His Spirit. We're releasing one another from the inability in our personalities, in our spirits, whatever, in our being from being one. What is the relationship that Christ had with the Father? He had oneness. It's as if you walk in the Light as He is in the Light, then you have fellowship. We'll have all the family spirit that we want to see as we focus on Him, and He becomes all in all. It's the Lord Christ in one another; our oneness may start with our personal relationship with the Lord in the sky, but that transitions to Christ in the earth. He's manifesting Himself as Christ in His many-membered body. Our disagreement is evident in many cases of lack of the cross or lack of finishing the cross, because when you finish the cross, you are a different creation. Grace, Lord! Make me into that person who is totally Yours! REFERENCES:

Aly McCroskey, wedding photographer and host of the Oh Happy Day Podcast, shares a powerful perspective of what it means to live out your faith behind the camera. With over a decade in the wedding industry, she shares how beauty, service, and the Holy Spirit collide on event days. From unexpected rainstorms to soul-deep reflections on identity and calling, Aly's story is equal parts inspiring and practical. This episode is a vibrant reminder that even in high-pressure, creative work, Jesus shows up. HIGHLIGHTS On Obedience:  "How many times have I not been obedient to the Lord when he was nudging me to do something like that? Because I was afraid, afraid of how my client would act, afraid, you know, would happen forget, you know, that something in or seem inappropriate. And so that was such a good reminder to me to pay attention when the Holy Spirit is nudging you to do something. Because not only is that affecting you and your spiritual life, but it had an effect in my client, who was not a particularly religious person and showed her a glimpse that God cares about her and even small things about the weather on her wedding day." On the character of God: "God reveals aspects of his character to people in their various industries. Like people in medicine know different things about God than I might know as a photographer. And it really takes doing our redemptive work in the world, whatever that is, and sharing about it with others to sort of give humanity a full picture of God is really like and the things that he cares about."   RESOURCES Download the episode transcript Learn more about Aly & her work Wild Cotton Photography  Wild Cotton Photography Instagram Oh Happy Day Podcast Every Good Endeavor - Tim Keller Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect by Will Guidara Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Colossians 3:23-24) And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” (Revelation 19:9)  

Get Your House in Order: Living Prepared and Righteously • Friday Service Website: www.PastorTodd.org To give: www.toddcoconato.com/give   1. Isaiah 38:1 (NKJV) “In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.”'”   2. 1 Thessalonians 5:23 (NKJV) “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”   3. Proverbs 3:9-10 (NKJV) “Honor the Lord with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase; So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine.”   4. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NKJV) “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.”   5. Romans 13:11-12 (NKJV) “And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.”   6. Matthew 6:33 (NKJV) “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”   7. 1 Timothy 3:4-5 (NKJV) “One who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?)”   8. Colossians 3:23-24 (NKJV) “And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.”   9. Hebrews 12:1 (NKJV) “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”   10. James 1:22 (NKJV) “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” CCLI: 21943673  

Colossians 3:23-24 - And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

Colossians 3:23-24 - And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for[a] you serve the Lord Christ.

To become a follower of Jesus, visit: https://MorningMindsetMedia.com/MeetJesus (NOT a Morning Mindset resource) ⇒ BECOME A MONTHLY PARTNER: (not tax-deductible) You can find out how to become a monthly partner including how to receive your "thank you" gift - our bonus podcast called "Digging Deeper." God t: https://mm-gfk-partners.supercast.com/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: Romans 16:17–20 - [17] I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. [18] For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. [19] For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. [20] The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. (ESV) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FINANCIALLY SUPPORT THE MORNING MINDSET: (not tax-deductible) -- Become a monthly partner: https://mm-gfk-partners.supercast.com/ -- Support a daily episode: https://MorningMindsetMedia.com/daily-sponsor/ -- Give one-time: https://give.cornerstone.cc/careygreen -- Venmo: @CareyNGreen -- Support our SPANISH TRANSLATION podcast: https://MorningMindsetMedia.com/supportSpanish -- Support our HINDI TRANSLATION podcast: https://MorningMindsetMedia.com/supportHindi ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FOREIGN LANGUAGE VERSIONS OF THIS PODCAST: Subscribe to the SPANISH version: https://MorningMindsetMedia.com/Spanish Subscribe to the HINDI version: https://MorningMindsetMedia.com/Hindi ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CONTACT: Carey@careygreen.com  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ THEME MUSIC: “King’s Trailer” – Creative Commons 0 | Provided by https://freepd.com/ ***All NON-ENGLISH versions of the Morning Mindset are translated using A.I. Dubbing and Translation tools from DubFormer.ai ***All NON-ENGLISH text content (descriptions and titles) are translated using the A.I. functionality of Google Translate.    

A true confession is not simply a matter of speaking a truth; rather, it is a matter of speaking the truth that is demanded under the circumstances. In fact, it is entirely possible to lie or to deceive with the truth. To say that it was the Romans who crucified Christ is entirely true, but to advance that particular truth in order to deny the truth that the Jews murdered the Lord Christ would be to lie with a truth. This is a tactic that Satan has employed from the very beginning. Today, we most often see this playing out with Christians who run to their doctrinal statements or confessions when faced with novel problems. The battles of the Reformation era were important (and remain important), but they are not the things that Satan is attacking today. The man who holds up his confession and denies that he could ever be wrong because he has Abraham (his doctrinal statement) as his father has become a pharisee who follows after Satan's footsteps in lying with the truth. Confessions must not become idols, and the battles of centuries ago are not the battles of today. To look upon the bronze serpent because God commanded it is one thing; to worship the bronze serpent because you have distorted what it was is another matter entirely. Satan is rightly called a serpent — do not give him the opening he needs. Show Notes See Also Further Reading Parental Warnings None.