My Comments at Geist Community Church Regarding Tragedy

Two days ago the peaceful silence in Newtown, Connecticut was shattered by unimaginable evil as 20 children and six adults were ruthlessly killed.  The horrific stories coming out of this small town are beyond what we can fully grasp.  There is no way to measure the loss that has occurred, nor is it possible by any human means to recover what has been lost.

Only a few days prior to this terrible event, on the other side of the country, a man walked into a shopping mall in Portland, Oregon and opened fire, killing three people.

Tragedies such as these are a chilling, unsettling reminder that the world we live in is in serious trouble.  The apostle Paul in his letter to the Ephesians makes it clear that the world, as it stands today, follows the prince of the power of the air, Satan.  Those who continue to live in disobedience to God and in rebellion against Him serve to fulfill the purposes and plans of Satan. (Ephesians 2:2)

In his second letter to the Thessalonians Paul again mentions the work of Satan in the world and reminds us that God's Holy Spirit now restrains his work.  Unfortunately, the tragic events of this past week are just a glimpse of what the world will be like when God's Spirit steps away and Satan is given full, unrestrained access to the world. (2 Thess. 2:7)  This darkest period of human history will occur just before the second coming of Jesus during a period of unparalleled tribulation upon the earth.

Why does evil continue to raise its ugly head in the world?  There are two reasons:

(1) We live in a world under the influence of Satan.
(2) Every person is born with a sinful heart

Every single person is born with a selfish, sinful, spiritually depraved heart.  God made a startling observation of mankind just prior to the great flood where He destroyed every living creature on the face of the earth except for Noah, his family, and the animals on the ark.  God looked out across the world and he saw that "every inclination of the thought of man's heart is only evil all the time." (Genesis 6:5)

Romans chapter three echoes the same truth: that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  We are all sinners and the payment owed by us, because of our sin, is death. (Romans 6:23)

In the midst of this helpless situation the words of the angel that appeared to the shepherds give us hope: "there is good news of great joy that will be for all people!" (Luke 2:10)  The "good news" is while we were still sinners, God sent his Son, Jesus.  He was born in the manger; born to suffer and die and rise again, conquering death.  Jesus alone made the necessary payment for sin, once for all, by dying in our place.  The undeniable truth of the Bible is that those who believe in Jesus would have eternal life.

We know THE way, THE truth, and THE life.  His name is Jesus and He is coming again very soon.

Sadly, we now live in a nation where mentioning the name, Jesus, is called offensive.  Ladies and gentlemen, what we are seeing is the reality of Romans chapter 1.  Paul wrote to the church at Rome who were living in a very tolerant, everything goes type culture.  The lines between right and wrong had disappeared.  It was very much like our own nation.  Here's what Paul wrote:

Read Romans 1:16-32

What a description for our nation.  We have glorified and promoted man above God.  Our culture not only willfully allows sinful behavior but it promotes, legalizes and encourages it.

The remedy to this carnage and evil is not government, gun control, tolerance, or positive thinking.  The only solution to the problem of evil, sin and death is the baby born in the manger, Jesus, the Christ.

When tragedies such as these strike we must do what Jesus called us to do in Luke 13:1-5.  In Luke 13 we read about a guy named Pilate.  Pilate had killed some Galileans while they were offering sacrifices: a tragedy!  In Luke 13:4 Jesus references 18 people who died when a tower tragically fell on them.  The point of Jesus' teaching in Luke 13:1-5 was that being killed or not being killed is no measure of a person's righteousness or lack thereof.

Anyone can die at anytime; even little ones sitting in a classroom.  However, only God's grace causes anyone to live.  Physical death is a common denominator for everyone.  Unless Christ returns first, we are all going to physically die.  Jesus said that unless you repent and trust in Him you will also perish for eternity.  God sent his Son, that those who would believe in Him would not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

When tragedy strikes we should grieve with those who grieve.  We should go home and hug our kids and our grand-kids extra tight.  We should tell them about Jesus, our only hope.  We should repent and turn back to God.  We should weep, mourn and wail for the sin of our nation as the prophet Jeremiah and so many others have done.

I read this wonderful synopsis of several Psalms somewhere online after the events in Connecticut:

"How long, O, Lord?  How long before you return to eradicate all evil, redeem all tragedies, and make all things new?  How long, O, Lord, how long?  Your Bride weeps and waits for you."

I invite you to join me as we kneel before our Father, as an act of contrite humility, and pray.

(prayer)
Our infinite God of mercy, comfort and justice.  We come before you humbly this morning confident in your love and mercy for your people.  We confess that our nation has turned away from you.  We confess that far too often we love sin more than we love you.  We come before you asking you, as the God of all comfort, to comfort those who mourn today over the loss of children, grandchildren, wives, husbands, friends.  We acknowledge that you are the God of justice and we know that some day all wrongs will be righted.  We ask for a spirit of repentance and revival to dominate our land.  We thank you for the blood of your Son, Jesus, that is greater than all our sin.  We pray that people will turn and trust in Jesus.  We pray that we, as your church, will be salt and light in this dark, sinful, lifeless world.  Father, give us courage to share the hope that is only found in our Lord, Jesus Christ, the baby born in the manger.  May we boldly proclaim: Immanuel! God is with us.  In the Name of Jesus, the Christ, we pray.  Amen.

The Combination to Your Heart

Every heart has a combination.  Everyone has something or someone that unlocks their heart.  It's like the master password that protects the financial and other identity information on your computer or smartphone.  When that person or thing collides with your heart it reveals what's really inside.

In Mark chapter 14 we discover the combination to the heart of one of the 12 disciples.  Judas had spent almost every waking hour for three years of his life with Jesus.  Yet, when the right combination collided with Judas' heart it revealed a rotten core.  What was the combination to Judas heart?

In Mark 14:1-9 Judas witnessed a woman pour a very costly oil on Jesus.  As keeper of the money bag, Judas chastised the woman for wasting the oil when it could have been sold to help the poor.  After witnessing this event Judas when straight to the religious leaders and offered to deliver Jesus over to them in exchange for... you guessed it, money.

For three years Judas ate with Jesus, he ministered in Jesus name and even cast out demons in His name.  Yet, he was bought off when the right combination collided with his heart.

What's the combination to your heart?  Let's face it, Judas isn't the last person to exchange Jesus for money.  What will you give up Jesus in exchange for?

Another way to look at it is by asking this question: Where do you draw the line in following Jesus?  You may not verbalize it, but there are many who think things like: "I'll follow you Jesus unless 'this' happens or unless 'that' happens."  or "I'll follow you Jesus, as long as it's convenient for me but the moment I have to step out of my comfort zone I'm done."

Here's what you need to do: Put your heart on "trial."  The purpose of going before a judge or jury in a "trial" is to try and reveal the truth.  Sometimes our human courts get it right and sometimes they fail miserably.  There is One Judge that never get's it wrong, God.  Psalm 139:23-24 says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart!  Try me and know my thoughts."

Ask God to put your heart on "trial," so that your true heart might be revealed.  I'm warning you from personal experience.  It may be painful...It will be hard...but it will be worth it.  Getting the correct combination to your heart will enable you to "live the life" God has called you to live. (Eph. 4:1)

(This post is based on the sermon I preached at Geist Community Church on October 28, 2012.  You can listen to/watch it or download the notes here.)

Know the Truth; Live by the Truth

A couple weeks ago my two kids and I were out in the backyard.  Grant (five) was swinging on the swing set while three-year-old Grace decided to grab a spray bottle filled with water.  She was spraying the flowers, patio, grill and anything else that crossed her circuitous path.  I knew what she was plotting as she inched closer to her brother sitting innocently on the swing. 

Grace glanced back at me, knowing that dad had told her she could spray anything in the backyard except for her brother.  She knew if she squirted him the spray bottle would be taken away just as dad had promised.  Yet, like Eve in the Garden of Eden, she couldn't resist the ONE thing she wasn't supposed to do.  Grace knew the authority, she knew the consequences of her disobedience, yet she chose to allow her own desire to trump the authority of her father.

In Mark 12:18-27 we read about a group of religious leaders who were acting very much like my three year-old daughter.  They allowed their own interests and desires to trump the authority of God's Word in their lives.  In the middle of that section Jesus zeroed in on two reasons they failed to submit to the authoirty of God's Word:

(1) "you know neither the Scriptures" - They didn't know the Bible!  The Sadducees only viewed the first five books of the Old Testament (the Books of Moses) as authoritative, so they really didn't know and understand the truth of the entire Old Testament Scripture.

(2) "nor the power of God" - Since they didn't know the Bible, they failed to know it's Author, God.  If the Sadducees would have truly known the Scriptures, they would have understood and believed that God can do anything - including raising people from the dead.

May we not stumble down the same path as the Sadducees; failing to know the power of God because we fail to know His Word.  We must know the Truth and we must live by the Truth.

          "The law of the LORD is perfect,
                  reviving the soul;
            the testimony of the LORD is sure,
                  making wise the simple;
           the precepts of the LORD are right,
                  rejoicing the heart;
            the commandment of the LORD is pure,
                  enlightening the eyes; "
                                        - Psalm 19:7-8

Living Under Authority of Civil Government

The following blog post is a synopsis of a sermon I recently preached at Geist Community Church as a part of our continuing series through the Gospel of Mark.   You can listen to or watch the entire sermon here.

As Election Day draws closer with each passing day the media frenzy continues to build at a frantic pace.  Each news organization is probing deeper with more challenging questions in hopes of stirring up some new controversy.  In most cases they simply want to create a stir and increase ratings.

The challenge for us as Christians, citizens of Heaven (Phil. 3:20), is to keep our focus off the controversies and on the Creator.  Rather than getting caught up in the hype we must remember our God-given responsibilities as it relates to authorities in this world, including civil government.  There are three clear biblical mandates that must guide us as we live within the civil framework of our society.

(1) Pray for those in authority

In 1 Timothy 2:1-3 the Apostle Paul urged Timothy, pastor of the Ephesian church, to pray for "all people" but especially for the leaders of civil government.  While Paul didn't explicitly specify the content of the prayers we can confidently say that it was for the salvation of the people and their leaders.  The minimum requirement of Christians who are living peaceful and quiet lives in the sight of God our Savior is to pray for those in authority.

(2) Participate in civil government

In Mark 12:17 Jesus says we are to pay our taxes, while at the same time asserting the need to honor God above all.  If we, as believers, were truly living as salt and light, we would effect change in the culture through our lawful participation in civil government.  There are crucial issues for which we must contend in the public arena.  We must stand up for the life of an unborn child.  We must graciously promote the truth of the Bible that marriage is a permanent bond before God between one man and one woman.

In our government we participate by voting for representatives that promote the biblical truth on these crucial issues.  We must vote on the crucial issues above all else.  We must vote on the policies and the practices, not the personalities or the parties.

Participating in civil government also means submitting to the authority and rule of civil government.  In Romans 13:1-2 we read that every person is to "be subject to the governing authorities" because "there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God."  We submit to civil government because any government only gets it's power and authority from God.  Every sovereign nation on the planet is sovereign only within it's own boundaries.  God has no boundaries.  He is sovereign over all.  Thus, the sovereignty of the state falls under the sovereignty of God.

Before Daniel was thrown in the lion's den he acknowledged it is God who removes kings and sets them up (Daniel 2:21).  Obviously, Daniel understood God establishes civil government but he also knew there are limits to our obedience.  We obey civil government until our obedience requires us to violate the commands of God.  The commands of God supersede and trump the commands of men since God is sovereign over all. 

(Caution: We must be very careful to discern what civil disobedience is indeed sanctioned by Scripture and what is not.  A personal preference isn't the same as a biblical ground.)

(3) Proclaim the truth of God

We must proclaim the truth of God even when it isn't popular...even when it causes us to be hated by others...even when our own families turn against us...even when our families or our own lives are threatened!

The Apostles clearly understood and believed Jesus' teaching.  We need look no further than Acts 4 and 5 to see them refusing to stop proclaiming the Gospel even though the government ordered them to stop.


Duty to God does not eliminate duty to government.  However, duty to government does not eliminate and must not overshadow our higher duty to God.

We may be citizens of the United States or some other country, but as believers in Jesus we are citizens of heaven above all.  There is coming a day when every nation on earth will cease to exist and the Kingdom of God will rule over all.

Until then, we pay our taxes and honor our leaders.  Our trust, however, must always be in God, not in any human government.

Psalm 20:7 "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God."

Use Your Time Wisely

Summer will soon draw to a close as our daylight slowly slips away and temperatures begin to fall.  It is amazing how quickly time seems to pass us by!  The prophet Isaiah acknowledged this truth more than two millennia ago when he compared our lifespan to that of grass in a field (Is. 40:7-8).  Almost 700 years before Isaiah, Moses drew a similar comparison in Psalm 90.  Our life is very short!

Before Jesus ascended into heaven He tasked us with ONE mission to complete during our short tenure this side of eternity: Make Disciples!  Jesus didn’t tell us to build our retirement fund or keep our house clean.  He told us to “deny ourselves” and follow Him.   We must follow Him by doing what He did: Make Disciples!

As we approach the fall, which if you believe the Mayans is our last, may we have a renewed urgency in our lives.  Steer clear of idle moments; avoid distractions; guard yourself from the allure of sin; run with perseverance focused on our God-given task. 

All Guts, His Glory

Many people believe that being a prophet of God was one of the most coveted jobs of all time.  In reality, it was quite the opposite. 

When God called Isaiah to prophesy to the people we love to dwell on the first part of his response in Isaiah 6:8.  If you grew up in the church you probably have Isaiah 6:8 on a coffee mug somewhere.  If you don't have it on a coffee mug I can almost guarantee that it's crossed your Facebook newsfeed on one of those cheesy "christian" pictures that may or may not accurately portray the truth of the Bible.

Isaiah's response: "Here I am! Send me!" is a wonderful response, but it's not his entire response.  If you read on, God gave Isaiah further direction in Isaiah 6:9-10.  Basically what God said was, "Good.  Now that you've signed up let me tell you what's about to happen.  You'll speak, but the people will never hear you.  Nobody's even going to care that you're there Isaiah."

If I had heard the same message from God while I was in seminary I've got to admit it would have been hard to keep going!

The second half of Isaiah's response is found in Isaiah 6:11.  He said, "How long, O Lord?"  That didn't sound like the ministry he thought he was signing up for!

What about Jonah?  God told Jonah to go to Nineveh and he ran the other way!

Jeremiah was in such deep despair that he said, "cursed be the day I was born!"  He then went on to write Lamentation, which is basically a bunch of really sad poetry.

Regardless of the despair; regardless of the futility; regardless of the fear (except for Jonah needing a bad fishing experience to change his mind) - these men were faithful to serve God.  It took faith and guts to answer the call. 

Will you have the guts to serve God no matter what the perceived results?  It's all guts, to the praise of His glory!

Serving God on His Terms

A.W. Tozer wrote in his book The Root of the Righteous:

          Many of us Christians have become extremely skillful in 
     arranging our lives so as to admit the truth of Christianity 
     without being embarrassed by its implications.
          So wide is the gulf that separates theory from practice in
     the church that an inquiring stranger who chances upon both
     would scarcely dream that there was any relation between them.

When we think about serving God our natural (sinful) tendency is to want to serve Him on our terms, not His.  During my first pastorate, fresh out of seminary, I was sitting in my office one afternoon when the phone rang.  The person calling cheerfully said, "Pastor, I'm driving by the church today at 4:30 is there anything I can help with?  Oh, by the way, I need to leave by 4:45"  While I don't believe it was an accurate representation of this individual's heart attitude, what I heard was, "I want to serve on my terms when it's convenient for me."

The Bible never promises us that serving God will be a life of "smelling roses and petting puppies."  In fact, it promises quite the opposite.  In Mark 13:13 Jesus promises His followers, "you will be hated by all for my name's sake."  Yet, countless buildings are filled on Sunday mornings with people who know the truth and say, "Lord, Lord," while their daily lives painfully reveal they do not really mean it (Matthew 7:23).  They only want to serve God on their terms.

Thankfully, we have a Savior, Jesus, who came to serve the Father no matter what the cost. (cf. Mark 10:45; Luke 22:42)  The writer of Hebrews admonishes us to look to Jesus, who endured the cross, as an example for our own service of God.  (Hebrews 12:1-4) 

May we look straight at the cross and gladly accept the inconvenience, pain and price we must pay to serve God on His terms!

Submit to Jesus' Authority

In Mark 11:27-33 the religious leaders (members of the Jewish Sanhedrin) challenged Jesus' authority after He rid the temple of the moneychangers and merchants who were defrauding worshipers for financial gain.  They were doing really well before Jesus showed up, but now their corrupt moneymaking business has been busted.  Rather than humbling themselves and submitting to Jesus they chose to rebel against Him.  They were more concerned with preserving their power, their wealth, their lives than they were discovering the truth.

Before we throw the religious leaders "under the bus" we need to take a long, prayerful look at our own lives.  Everyone challenges Jesus' authority.  The question is: How have you (or are you) challenging Jesus' authority in your life?

You challenge Jesus' authority when you:

(1) reject biblical truth - When you reject the Bible and it's teachings you challenge Jesus' authority.  Jesus is the Incarnate Word of God. (cf. John 1:14)

(2) remake "Jesus" - Many people today wrongly think they are submitting to Jesus when in reality they are following a "Jesus" that is vastly different than the Jesus of the Bible.  We must resist the temptation to turn Jesus into a "moral politician" or "spiritual guru" simply because we feel strongly about politics or love "spirituality."

(3) refuse to admit you're wrong - When people refuse to take responsibility for their sin they are challenging Jesus' authority because they think they know better than Jesus does.  Anytime we allow something else or even someone else to take the position of authority in our life we are refusing to submit to Jesus.

Rather than challenging Jesus' authority we need to submit to Jesus because He alone has all authority.  In Matthew 28:18 Jesus said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me."  Colossians 1:16-23 clearly describes Jesus' authority and power.  He is preeminent, second to none!

Submit to Jesus' authority by:
 - submitting to God and His Word (James 4:7)
 - submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ (Ephesians 5:21)
 - submitting to those in authority over us (Hebrews 13:17)

Even Unto Death

This Sunday at Geist Community Church will be sermon #44 in our study of Mark's Gospel.  Here's a short preview:

In Mark 10:32 there was an obvious sense among the people that this would not be a normal visit to Jerusalem.  There was no way the people could have fully grasped the fact that Jesus would be crucified less than a week after his arrival in the City of David.  Nevertheless, Jesus clearly explains exactly what is about to take place in verses 33-34. (I already taught on the three shocking predictions Jesus makes in Mark 8:31 so I won't take a lot of time to explain this Sunday.)

It's clear that Jesus, the God-Man, not only knew what would happen but was in complete control of the situation.  The script had been written before the foundation of the world and it was about to reach its climax according to the purpose and will of God the Father (cf. 1 Pet. 1:20; Isaiah 53:1-12).

Jesus would be delivered into the hands of men and tortured until He died.  Amazingly, though, He would rise from the grave three days later.  Jesus is the spotless, sinless Lamb of God who was sacrificed to take away the sin of the world, just as John the Baptizer had proclaimed almost three years earlier in John 1:29.

"God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.  Whoever has the Son has life; 

whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life." - 1 John 5:11-12

Do you have the Son?  Trust in Him... Receive true life in Him...  Abide in Him... Eagerly wait for His return... (cf. Romans 10:9; 1 John 2:28)

"so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, 

not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly awaiting for him." - Hebrews 9:28

Hallelujah for the blood of the Lamb that was slain.

I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom 

of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers 

has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they 

have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, 

for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you 

who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to 

you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” - Revelation 12:10–12

May we love not our lives "even unto death."

Divorce & Remarriage

This past Sunday was the second hardest message I've ever had to preach. It was based on Mark 10:1-12 and you can listen to it here.  As expected, the emails are already filling my inbox.   I can almost hear the pain and turmoil embedded in each word I read as people wrestle with the truth of God's Word.  Many of the questions/concerns are similar the ones I had during my months of study leading up to this message.

The foundational point of the message was that marriage is permanent.  Mark 10:9 states, "What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate."  I was first exposed to this idea of the permanence of marriage almost nine years ago in J. Dwight Pentecost's class on the Life of Jesus at Dallas Theological Seminary.  I can still remember how it challenged (and somewhat offended) my long-standing view on divorce & remarriage.  Admittedly, I hadn't really studied the topic all that much, nor had I heard one sermon devoted to the topic.

A good summary statement of Pentecost's perspective comes from his epic work entitled, The Words & Works of Jesus Christ.

"The Pharisees viewed marriage as a social institution governed by the laws of men.  But Christ viewed marriage as a divine institution governed by the laws of God.  At the time of the institution of marriage, God had said that the two became one flesh.  One is an indivisible union and the two became one.  An indivisible union was established.  Jesus, quoting Scripture, forbade man to separate what God has united." - pg. 356

My wife, Anna, still remembers me coming home from that particular class fixated on trying to prove my 91-year-old seminary professor wrong.  The results of my (highly bias) study yielded a lot of material to support my position at the time; that remarriage was allowed on certain "biblical" grounds.  Over the ensuing nine years I was quite happy living with that view as my foundation for pastoral care; until I began my study of Mark 10.

What I uncovered during my study really did turn my view upside-down. I continue to ask questions.  I continue to wrestle.  I continue to study.  My prayer is that this very difficult message has encouraged the body of believers at my church to do the same.

Godly Grief or Wordly Sorrow?

When we sin it is fairly easy to determine if we are experiencing true godly grief or just worldly sorrow because we know our own thoughts.

The real challenge comes when a believer sins and is lovingly disciplined by their church family to direct them toward repentance and restoration.  When the disciplined person expresses sorrow and claims to have repented how can the church best assess whether the person has genuinely repented or is merely experiencing worldly grief?  

The passage I've spent a lot of time studying trying to answer this question is 2 Corinthians 7:5-13.  The Apostle Paul is quite clear when he reveals worldly grief produces death (vs. 9) but godly sorrow produces repentance that leads to salvation without regret (vs. 10).  In the case of the Corinthian church, their godly sorrow led to eagerness to clear themselves by doing what was right.  Sadly, many people stop here because they are simply trying to "clear their name."  The Corinthian believers did not stop there.  They also expressed righteous indignation over their sin, fear of God, zeal, and willingness to expel from their midst the one who had caused them to stumble.

While it's impossible to offer a perfect set of principles for discerning between worldly sorrow and true repentance, here are a couple general guidelines I've pulled out of my study:

(1) What is the person's attitude toward the church's act of discipline? Does the person heartily agree that the church was right to exclude him or her because of the sin, or does the person harbor bitterness and resentment?

(2) Does the person appear to be more upset about how the sin has affected himself or herself (focusing on the pain, shame, or hardship it has brought him or her), or is the person genuinely grieved to have sinned against God, harmed others, wounded the church, and brought Christ's name into disrepute?

Obviously, with the difficulty and sensitively involved in this kind of situation it requires us as church leaders to be godly, patient, humble, prayerful, Bible-soaked men.

An extremely helpful guide, which I relied upon heavily for my study and paraphrased above, comes from the 9Marks: Healthy Church Study Guide series.  It is entitled: Guarding One Another: Church Discipline  - Click HERE for a FREE PDF download of the first chapter.

Strive for Holiness

(The following blog is based on the sermon on Mark 9:42-50 I preached yesterday at Geist Community Church.)

At the end of Mark chapter nine Jesus clearly teaches about two dangers we face on a daily basis; two dangers that if unchecked in our lives will have dire consequences both now and for eternity.

The first danger is found in Mark 9:42:  The danger of causing other believers to sin.

Jesus warned anyone who would deliberately hinder someone from abiding in Him.  The damage to the work of God's Kingdom program is immeasurable because causing another believer to fall into sin effectively neutralizes their work for God.  1 Corinthians 8:12 explains that sinning against your brother in Christ and wounding their conscience when it is weak actually results in you sinning against Jesus!

The second danger is in Mark 9:43-50: The danger of our own sin.

Sin is a hideous, sly monster that seeks to devour us.  As a believer in Christ there is now no condemnation before God because of our sin (Romans 8:1).  However, sin is still incredibly dangerous because it can render us ineffective for the work God has prepared in advance for us to do.  Avoiding sin and living a holy life is hard.  It requires drastic measures, but it is the way that leads to life.  As a surgeon does not hesitate to cut off a gangrenous limb to save a life, so sin must be radically severed to save the soul.

That's the truth.  It's hard to be much more clear than Mark 9:42-50.  The question is: how do we put it into action in our lives?  How do we respond to this truth?

As Prof (aka Howard Hendricks) always used to say in my Bible Study Methods class at Dallas Theological Seminary: "to know and not to do, is not to know at all."  Thus, we must DO to show that we truly believe the truth of Scripture.

One of the clearest passages in the Bible that shows us what we must do is found in Hebrews 12:1-4; 12-14.  Specifically, the command given in 12:14 is "strive for holiness."

We must: Strive for Holiness

3 Reasons Why:
(1) it is a command of God - 1 Peter 1:15-16
(2) it is the only appropriate response to God's grace in our lives - 1 Corinthians 15:9-10
(3) without holiness "no one will see the Lord"  - Hebrews 12:14, Matthew 5:8

3 Ways How:
(1) Strive for holiness by dwelling on the Gospel

• Titus 2:11-15
• When we dwell on the truth of the Gospel it should drive us to live holy lives out of gratitude for God's gracious act of saving us.
• We should be driven to live holy lives when we dwell on the fact that we were dead in our trespasses and sin, unable to love God, unable to do anything good to try and earn a good standing before God until God intervened through His mercy and made us alive in Christ Jesus.
• When we dwell on the power of Gospel we will WANT to present our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God as our spiritual act of worship (Romans 12:1).

(2) Strive for holiness by radically repenting of sin

• John Owen said it this way: "be killing sin or it will be killing you."
• We must get radical!  It is exactly what Jesus taught.
• Does your computer cause you to sin?  Get rid of it!  If your job requires you to use computers, get a new job!
• Does your television cause you to sin?  Throw it out!
• Does hanging around with your "friends" tempt you to sin?  Get new friends, for they are no friend.
• We must radically repent of sin if we are to strive for holiness.
• In Philippians 3:12-16 the apostle Paul likens perfection/holiness to a prize or a trophy.  He acknowledges God has given us the trophy.  It can never be taken away from us.  It is our free gift.  However, we must hold tightly to that trophy as if it depended on us, even though it does not.

(3) Strive for holiness by living under the Spirit's power

•  The Holy Spirit is power! (Acts 1:8)
• We are to live by the Spirit. (Romans 8)

When we strive for holiness by dwelling on the Gospel, radically repenting of sin, and living under the Spirit's power we will ultimately elevate and focus on the glory of God, the Holy One of Israel. 2 Corinthians 3:18 says, "we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another."  In other words, we become what we behold.  If you truly behold "the Holy One of Israel" you will "be holy, as He is Holy."

A Perspective on Global Missions

Luke 10:25-37 provides amazing theological and practical implications for global missions.

Theologically, the expert in the law asks the most important question in the Bible. He asks Jesus in 10:25, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” That is the question that all of us face at some time in our lives. We as Christians know that there is nothing that we can do on our own to inherit eternal life. Eternal life is a gift of God that only comes about by through saving faith in Jesus Christ.

Jesus replies to the Lawyer by asking him what is written in the Law. Thinking that he has Jesus trapped, the expert in the law answers Jesus with Deut. 6:5 and Lev. 19:18. Jesus says, “You have answered correctly.” However, Jesus doesn’t stop there. He continues on to say, “do this and you will live.” Obviously, the expert in the law knows that he can’t and does not follow the law perfectly, so he attempts to justify himself by asking “And who is my neighbor?”

The answer that Jesus gives to this question is in the form of a classic parable. It is a drama that introduces shock and causes the people who here it to challenged in their basic core values. Everyone listening is challenged by the definition Jesus gives for a neighbor. The experts in the law teach that a neighbor is defined socially, geographically, etc. But, the concept that Jesus introduces is that a neighbor is not defined by these things, but by those who are in need that we show compassion towards.

In the parable the priest comes by the beaten man and passes around him on the other side of the road. The priest defined who his neighbor was primarily by their garments and their speech. Since the beaten man was robbed of his clothes and could not talk, the priest assumed he was not his neighbor and passed by. Likewise, the Levite passed by on the other side. Everyone listening to this story expects the natural progression to be a righteous Jew will pass by next on his way back from the synagogue. The shock of the parable is that the next person to come by is a Samaritan. Not only did the Samaritan stop and take care of the man, but it says he genuinely took pity on the beaten man. In other words, the Samaritan had compassion on the man.

Jesus then gets to the ultimate question of asking the expert, “which of these three do you think what a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” Basically, Jesus asked the same question the expert in the law asked, “who is my neighbor?” The major difference is that Jesus provided a context in which to base his definition of a neighbor. He introduced a concept that was totally foreign to everyone listening. According to Jesus, a neighbor was not defined as the experts in the law said, but by those who need help and those who show compassion on them.

The conclusion that we come to is that "our neighbor" is defined as someone in need.  In Mark 9:37 Jesus reveals that we must receive even the "least" of society, exemplified by a needy child. We must identify our neighbor by having genuine compassion on them and trying to meet there needs just as the Samaritan took pity on the man and cared for his needs.

As a Christian, someone who has inherited eternal life through Christ, an essential characteristic of your life should be love toward your neighbor. Using this concept as of neighbor in view of missions; everyone who needs Jesus is our neighbor, whether they live next door or around the globe.

Discipleship in the Gospel of Luke

Since we are currently studying the Gospel of Mark at Geist Community Church I thought it might be interesting to look at another Gospel writer's take on discipleship.

The concept of discipleship in the Gospel of Luke is not only implicitly modeled by Jesus but explicitly taught by Him as well. Luke in particular views discipleship in much broader terms than Matthew or Mark.[1]  As Goodnough explains, in Luke “Jesus’ disciples included a large number of followers.”[2] So, just so we are all on the same page for this post let me propose Goodnough's definition for discipleship as “a comprehensive process of coming to faith in Jesus Christ and growing in commitment to him throughout a lifetime.”[3]

Let's first look at Christ’s model of discipleship in Luke's Gospel and then evaluate three major passages where He explicitly taught on discipleship.

     Christ’s Model of Discipleship

In order to study the concept of discipleship in Luke it is of the utmost importance to look at the life of Jesus Christ. The twelve apostles (including the "betrayer," Judas) were privileged to witness Jesus’ model first-hand for around three years. They observed first-hand Jesus’ incredible commitment to fulfill the will of the Father even as they saw Him being beaten and hung on the cross. We too are privileged to have a written record of Jesus modeling discipleship in the Gospels. To facilitate our understanding of discipleship in Luke it is important to look at four main ways in which Jesus’ life and ministry clearly illustrated the concept of discipleship.

First, Jesus’ modeling of discipleship clearly involved building relationships. These relationships were not limited merely to the twelve disciples. Throughout the book of Luke Jesus speaks to crowds of people numbering into the thousands. Luke 12:1 says that “a crowd of many thousands had gathered” just to hear the incredible teaching of Jesus. Goodnough points out that “While it is true that in the later part of Jesus’ ministry He did focus more and more attention on the twelve disciples, He never abandoned His ministry to the crowds.”[4] In Luke 19:37 Jesus was riding the colt down the Mount of Olives making His final trip to Jerusalem and what Luke describes as a “whole crowd of disciples” began praising Jesus.

Jesus obviously had varying degrees of intimacy among those whom he referred to as His disciples. In Luke 10:1 Jesus appointed 72 others and sent them out in groups of two. In Luke 6:12-16 Jesus called His disciples to him and chose twelve of them whom he designated apostles. There were more than twelve disciples, but it was the core of twelve that Jesus chose to concentrate on developing relationships with. Of those twelve, Jesus also seemed to have a much closer relationship with Peter, John, and James as those are the three disciples He chose to reveal His glory to on the mountain in Luke 9:28-36. Regardless of the varying degrees of intimacy, it is clear that Jesus developed relationships with those He was leading.

The second way in which Jesus modeled discipleship was by focusing on the personal development of others through teaching and real life scenarios. Of the twelve apostles that Jesus originally chose, none of them were skilled in theology or Old Testament studies. Jesus made it a priority to develop them personally by teaching them what it means to be a disciple. He focused on developing them through many different situations. As stated earlier, the twelve disciples witnessed Jesus’ miracles first-hand as He fed over five thousand people in Luke 9 and healed a blind beggar in Luke 18. Jesus also put them in situations where they were forced to exercise their faith, or lack there of, in passages like Luke 8:22 when Jesus calmed the storm.

Third, Jesus modeled discipleship by making prayer a priority in His ministry. The first mention of Jesus praying in Luke’s Gospel is found near the beginning of His ministry in Luke 5:16 where it says “Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” Again in Luke 6:12 is says “Jesus when out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.” Jesus not only modeled prayer, but he modeled it in a specific manner. Jesus’ prayer was done in private and often at the most difficult times for our human bodies to respond physically, early in the morning or late at night. Jesus likewise called upon His disciples to pray in Luke 22:40, in perhaps one of the most vivid images of Christ’s anguish as His death on the cross drew near.

Finally, Jesus modeled discipleship in the ultimate way possible by obeying the will of the Father and willingly dying on the cross as the atoning sacrifice for sin. He proved that He was completely committed to the will of the Father by giving of His own life. In Luke 14:11 and 18:14 Jesus said, “for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” The Apostle Paul reminds us in Philippians 2:8 that Jesus “humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross.” Jesus exhibited the ultimate form of humility possible by giving of His own life and thus perfectly modeled true discipleship.

     Christ’s Teaching on Discipleship

The entire Gospel of Luke is filled with Jesus’ teaching on discipleship. There are, however, three main passages in Luke where Christ explicitly taught on discipleship.

Luke 9:23-27

In this first passage, Christ clearly “made high demands on those who would be His true disciples.” [5] This paper will briefly highlight two main calls of Christ in the passage. The first call of Christ toward true discipleship is that self denial and taking up one’s own cross daily. Weirsbe reminds us, “In the Roman world, the cross was a symbol of shame, guilt, suffering, and rejection. There could be no more despicable way to die. Crucifixion was not mentioned in polite conversation, and the people would no more think of wearing crosses on their person than we would think of wearing gold or silver electric chairs.” [6] In the shadow of just explaining His coming death and resurrection He calls all those who follow Him to “be prepared every day to die for Him.”[7] Discipleship is not just a one time thing. It is a daily commitment to following Christ even unto death.

The second main call of Christ in this passage is the call not to be ashamed of the Son of Man. Pentecost points out that in 9:26 Jesus basically states that “those who have rejected Him will be excluded from His kingdom. Only those who have received him will be accepted into that kingdom.”[8] When writing on this passage Bock states “discipleship is not easy, but difficult, for it involves suffering. The cost of total discipleship is the giving up of self for God.”[9]

Luke 9:57-62

The second main passage that deals with Christ’s teaching on discipleship is found at the end of Luke 9. Having already established earlier in the chapter that discipleship requires self-denial Luke transitions to issue three reminders about the requirements of discipleship after the disciples witness Jesus’ rejection in Samaria in 9:51-56. The first reminder in 9:57-58 is a reminder that Christ’s disciples are separated from this world. Even as foxes have holes and birds have nests, those who follow Christ as His true disciples do not have a home in this world. Bock explains that “disciples must recognize that they will be distanced from the world by their discipleship, and that family matters may suffer inattention in comparison to their discipleship.”[10]

The second reminder is that of the preeminence of proclaiming the kingdom of God over all other aspects of life, 9:59-60. Commitment to discipleship requires abandonment of personal goals and desires for that of the Lord. Bock surmises that “disciples must place Jesus and the kingdom first.”[11] Again, Jesus was the perfect model to follow in this regard having subjected Himself to the will of the Father even unto death on the cross.

The third and final reminder of this section is that commitment to Christ must not only be first, but it must remain constant, 9:61-62. A true disciple cannot commit to Christ and begin the work of the ministry and then turn back and put other things in life ahead of Christ. Hobbs correctly points out that none of the men in this passage who wanted to follow Christ “possessed the qualities necessary for successful discipleship.”[12]

Luke 14:25-35

This specific passage of Luke provides one of the most explicit descriptions of discipleship in the teachings of Jesus. Bock explains that in this passage Luke is essentially asking, “If the Jewish leadership does not teach the way to follow God, then what is required to follow God?”[13] In the midst of immense popularity Jesus was teaching to large crowds of people when he suddenly turned and said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters – yes, even his own life – he cannot be my disciple.” Imagine the stir that Jesus’ words must have created in that large crowd! Hobbs comments on this verse by saying, “Jesus said that if one would be His disciple he must be prepared to choose Him over every one of life’s closest relationships. What is more, he must choose Jesus over life itself if such a choice is necessary.”[14] It is important to note that this verse does not mean that a disciple of Christ must completely ignore their family responsibilities and obligations. Other passages in Scripture clearly teach that husbands, wives, fathers, mothers, and children all have responsibilities.

In the next verse, 14:27, Jesus returns to the same call to carry one’s own cross as He used in 9:23. Thus, Jesus clearly teaches that “no one can be His disciple who is not prepared to die daily for Him.”[15] The core of discipleship means placing Christ above all other areas of our own life. Discipleship according to Jesus’ teaching in this passage of Luke requires that our priorities be arranged properly.

Jesus then gives two illustrations using a builder and a king as examples in 9:28-32. The purpose of these illustrations was to show in a more tangible way the incredible cost of discipleship. Hobbs explains, “The point of these parables is that one should count the cost before proposing to be His disciple. There is no need of attempting it unless one is willing to pay the price. Anything less is not true discipleship.”[16]

Jesus then makes a comparison, “in the same way,” to that of material possessions in 14:33 by requiring disciples to be willing to “give up everything he has.” Bock explains, “Jesus seeks to lead people in doing the Father’s will, offering to the disciple the treasures of heaven.”[17] Discipleship means being able to give up momentary treasures in this life and look with great expectation to the eternal treasures waiting in the Kingdom of God.

In the final two verses of this section Jesus turns to use the image of salt. Salt is useful because it performs a function. If salt didn’t provide saltiness that it would be absolutely useless. In the same way, discipleship requires a complete and total commitment to the work of the ministry so that one doesn’t become useless.

Overall, this passage provides a vivid reminder that discipleship does not come without a price. Bock summarizes this section by saying,

                          “discipleship is demanding. Jesus asks both
                           the disciple and the potential disciple to
                           consider the cost of following him. It is
                           better to assess the risk, complete the task,
                           and remain useful to God. Associating with
                           God is not an easy affair. Commitments
                           come with the territory. In fact, Jesus is to
                           come ahead of all one’s possessions, family
                           and soul. It is embarrassing and fatal
                           to enter into discipleship and not complete
                           the task.” [18]

     Conclusion

The concept of discipleship in the Gospel of Luke is far more than a label or a simple one time act. It is an abiding condition of life for any follower of Christ. Citing the three passages discussed in this paper Zuck and Bock state,

                        “Above all, Jesus made it clear that discipleship
                          is a total commitment of one’s life and self to
                          God. In terms of God’s expectation and will,
                          there is no minimal discipleship; what He
                          desires is everything.”[19]

Discipleship is something radical. The cost is far more than some are willing to pay, as evidenced by Christ’s teaching. Bock reminds us, “Any disciple who would follow Jesus needs to understand that this choice will require complete commitment.”[20] For those who are willing to count the cost and be a disciple of Christ, we have Jesus’ incredible model of discipleship to follow as recorded in the Gospel of Luke.

---

[1] Dana L. Goodnough. “Jesus’ Ministry as a Model for Discipleship Training.” (D.Min. Dissertation, Dallas Theological Seminary, 20020, 26.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Goodnough, 40.

[4] Goodnough, 67.

[5] J. Dwight Pentecost, The Words and Works of Jesus Christ. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing, 1981), 254.

[6] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary. (Wheaton, Ill.: Victor Books, 1996, c1989), 218.

[7] Herschel H. Hobbs, An Exposition of the Gospel of Luke. (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1966), 160.

[8] Pentecost, 255.

[9] Darrell L. Bock, Luke, volume 1: 1:1-9:50. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1994), 851.

[10] Darrell L. Bock, Luke, volume 2: 9:51-24:53. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1996), 977.

[11] Bock, 977.

[12] Hobbs, 177.

[13] Bock, 1280.

[14] Hobbs, 230.

[15] Ibid.

[16] Ibid.

[17] Bock, 1290.

[18] Ibid, 1292.

[19] Roy B. Zuck, Darrell L. Bock, A Biblical Theology of the New Testament. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1996), 115.

[20] Bock, 974.

The Jewish Synagogue

The Origin and Role of the Jewish Synagogue During the New Testament Period

Throughout our sermon series on Mark's Gospel at Geist Community Church (which we started a year ago this Sunday) we've read about the synagogue multiple times.  Since it's rather a foreign concept to most people today I wanted to provide some further explanation to aid our study.


In A.D. 70 when the focal point of the Jewish sacrificial system, the Temple, was destroyed, “Judaism survived, because the institution on which its survival, and Jewish community life in general, depended was already well established,”[1] the synagogue. When the Temple was destroyed it had, for all practical purposes, outlived its usefulness to the nation of Israel.[2] The synagogue had been established for generations as the heart and soul of Judaism. Instead of the intense sacrificial system that the Temple thrived on, the synagogue focused on the reading and exposition of the Law and Prophets. The intense focus upon the Scriptures developed a new way of thinking in many Jews that began to be obsessed with following the Law. It was these popular teachers of the Law, the Pharisees, who became the new voice for the people in the community and who ultimately became Jesus’ staunchest opponents.

The development and function of the synagogue ultimately proved to be a vital and effective avenue for the spread of the Gospel message throughout the Jewish and Greek communities.

     The Development and Function of the Synagogue

The rise of the synagogue is very obscure but often linked with the Babylonian captivity of Israel.[3] In response to the loss of the Temple before the exile, which was the center of the Jewish religious life, the synagogue may have arisen to fill the void. Although this may be the case, there is no direct evidence of the presence of a synagogue, nor is a synagogue mentioned by name in the Old Testament other than possibly Psalm 74:8. Regardless, when the Jewish community returned from the Babylonian exile there must have been local places of worship that undoubtedly began to assume the form of the synagogue found in the New Testament.[4] The simple fact that a developed synagogue form existed in the New Testament points to its beginnings throughout the preceding centuries.

Generations before Jesus many, if not all, Jewish communities had the synagogue as the common center of worship and community life.[5] When Jewish communities began to spread out across the land, particularly throughout the post-exilic centuries, the increased distance from the Temple made it nearly impossible for the Jewish religious life to focus solely on the Temple. As a result, local religious activities began to take place within individual communities apart from the Temple. Groups of Jews would gather together to provide mutual encouragement to each other and worship God. These gatherings are undoubtedly the beginnings of the synagogue and had no intention of displacing the Temple.[6] As the post-exilic centuries progressed the synagogue developed into a permanent fixture of Jewish life in Palestine and even in Jerusalem itself.[7]

The function of the synagogue was firmly established before the New Testament era. Any ten Jewish men who came together to worship and share the law in order to learn and fulfill God’s will constituted a synagogue.[8] By the time of Jesus, its main purpose was to supply the community with a local center of worship, teaching, and community ties.

Every service of worship in the synagogue consisted of prayer, the reading of Scripture, including the Law and the Prophets, and often exhortation. Each of these functions was carried on by laymen in the synagogue. There was at least one presiding officer in the synagogue that was simply referred to as the ruler in Luke 13:14.[9] After prayer was offered by one of the laymen present, the reading of the Scripture would take place. The Law was read through consecutively according to a specific cycle. On the Sabbath, the consecutive lesson from the Pentateuch was followed by a corresponding lesson from the Prophets that related to the Pentateuch lesson.[10] Thus, the prophetic lessons were not read in consecutive order, but were chosen to complement the Pentateuch lesson.

Teaching in the synagogue also took on the form of a school for young boys.[11] It became a school where they could learn to read and know the Scriptures at the same time. The influence of the teaching of the Scriptures in the synagogue most likely led the transition from the Jewish focus on sacrifice to a focus on the Law. At the forefront of teaching boys from a young age to know and follow the law were the Pharisees. Thus, the fiercest challenges Jesus faced in the synagogues of Galilee was from the Pharisees and Scribes.

Even before the destruction of the Temple, the synagogue had established itself as the premier fixture in the Jewish faith. With Jewish synagogues scattered throughout the land, the Law could be read and taught taking the place of the sacrifice. This new fixture in the Jewish community had a worship service that afforded the opportunity for Jesus and the apostles to propagate the gospel message quickly.

     The Involvement of Jesus in the Synagogue

Throughout every major Jewish community in Galilee, Perea, and Judea Jesus found a synagogue.[12] Essentially, he used the synagogues as a springboard to begin his ministry because through them he could quickly reach the people.[13] He often preached in the synagogues because he would be permitted to speak after the reading of the Scripture. After his baptism and temptation in the desert Jesus returned to Galilee where he “taught in their synagogues” (Luke 4:14-15 NIV).

Unfortunately, "very little of his synagogue preaching has been preserved.”[14] However, one instance that was recorded by Luke provides a significant look into the service of the synagogue. In Luke 4:16-20 Jesus returned to Nazareth and entered the synagogue on the Sabbath day, which “was his custom” (Luke 4:16 NIV). Jesus stood up and read from “the scroll of the prophet Isaiah” (Luke 4:17 NIV). After reading the passage “he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down” (Luke 4:20 NIV). Jesus then began to admonish the people from the Scripture he had just read which follows the typical synagogue pattern of reading and exhorting.

It was in the synagogues that Jesus encountered some of his greatest opposition because he was at the center of Pharisaic influence.[15] Thus, this opposition was not accidental but inevitable because he was in essence preaching out of their headquarters. Nevertheless, the synagogues were an incredible platform for Jesus to present the gospel message to gatherings of people.

     The Apostles’ Involvement in the Synagogue

The apostles, even more than Jesus, used the synagogue as a springboard and staging ground for their ministry in each new city they entered. By visiting the synagogues first, the apostles were able to appeal to people who already had at least a partial knowledge of the promised coming Messiah. Luke records that Stephen, who was a member of a Greek-speaking synagogue in Jerusalem, made some of the first gospel presentations to representatives of other Greek-speaking synagogues in Acts 8:8-9. Several of the Jews from these synagogues argued with Stephen but could not stand up against him.

Paul was the only apostle on record to use the synagogues for two distinct purposes. Before his conversion, Paul grew up as a strict follower of the law and was most likely taught much of what he knew about the Law in the synagogue. He was traveling to Damascus because he was going to visit the synagogues and flush out the followers of the Way to take them back as prisoners to Jerusalem. Paul even states later in his life that “many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished” referring to his persecution of believers (Acts 26:11 NIV). Thus, Paul originally used the synagogues as a place to catch and punish early believers. However, it was along that road to Damascus that Jesus appeared to Saul and gave his life a new direction. Paul, continued on to Damascus and still visited the synagogues, but instead of capturing the believers he was preaching “that Jesus is the Son of God” as a believer (Acts 9:20 NIV).

Whenever Paul entered into a new city it was his regular practice to begin preaching in the local synagogue.[16] The synagogue order of service provided him with an opportunity to speak to a crowd of people with the permission or at the invitation of the synagogue officials.[17] Many of the synagogues that Paul visited throughout his missionary journeys were a mixture of Jews and Gentiles. These Gentiles were called God-fearers because they attended the synagogue and somewhat followed the Jewish tradition, but were not fully incorporated into the Jewish community. One such synagogue Paul visited was in Pisidian Antioch. When he stood up to speak he addressed the group as “Men of Israel and you Gentiles who worship God” (Acts 13:16 NIV). It was out of some of these Jew/Gentile synagogues that the sharpest expression of the Christian faith and “its clearest challenge to ancestral Jewish customs” arose.[18] The main cause for the instant explosion of Christianity among Greek-speaking synagogues was the instant appeal the gospel made to the Gentile God-fearers.[19] Suddenly, there was an offer of salvation and acceptance by God without the strict requirements of the Mosaic Law or circumcision. The Gentile God-fearers that were present at Paul’s first synagogue message at Pisidian Antioch quickly spread the message and on the next Sabbath the synagogue was filled with Gentiles from “almost the whole city” (Acts 13:44 NIV). Many of those God-fearing Gentiles believed and “formed into the Christian church of Pisidian Antioch.”[20]

After leaving Pisidian Antioch, Paul and Barnabas visited the synagogue in Iconium and again “a great number of Jews and Gentiles believed” (Acts 14:1 NIV). Paul visited several synagogues throughout his missionary travels. Luke records that he visited the synagogues in Damascus, Salamis, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens, Corinth, and Ephesus. These records show that by the first century A.D. synagogues had already permeated Jewish communities throughout the Greek-speaking world.

As Paul continued to visit these Jew/Gentile synagogues as he traveled, the Gentiles who were considered to be on the fringe of the synagogue now formed “the nucleus of the church.”[21] Paul stayed at several synagogues for extended periods of time preaching the gospel message, sometimes exceeding a year or more at one location.

     Conclusion

Even before the destruction of the Temple, the synagogue had established itself as the premier fixture in the Jewish faith. The format of the worship service in the synagogue afforded Jesus and the apostles the opportunity to quickly propagate the gospel message. Jesus frequently visited the synagogues, especially in the infant stages of his ministry, and encountered fierce opposition from the teachers of the Law who ruled the synagogue. Likewise, Paul spent as much time as he could speaking in the synagogues and using them as a mouthpiece for the gospel message. Throughout the God-fearing Gentile portion of the Jewish synagogues Paul witnessed explosive growth.

The synagogue served as one of the major, if not the major, conduit through which the Gospel message was preached. This pillar of the Jewish community became an instrument in the hands of the apostles to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ. In some cases, the first Christian churches were even formed from large portions of former synagogue congregations.

---

[1] F. F. Bruce, New Testament History. (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1969), 147.

[2] Ibid.

[3] William G. Blaikie, Bible History. (New York: Thomas Nelson and Sons, 1925), 372-73.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Floyd V. Filson, A New Testament History. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1964), 44.

[6] Ibid, 44.

[7] F. F. Bruce, New Testament History. (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1969), 143.

[8] Floyd V. Filson, A New Testament History. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1964), 44-45.

[9] Mark 5:22 and Acts 13:15 may indicate that some synagogues had more than one ruler, “the synagogue rulers.”

[10] F. F. Bruce, New Testament History. (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1969), 144.

[11] Floyd V. Filson, A New Testament History. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1964), 45.

[12] Ibid, 44.

[13] Floyd V. Filson, A New Testament History. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1964), 93.

[14] John Bligh, Historical Information for New Testament Students. (Baltimore: Helicon Press Inc, 1967), 49.

[15] Floyd V. Filson, A New Testament History. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1964), 116.

[16] Acts 17:1-2 explains that it was Paul’s normal custom to go into the synagogue and preach when he came to a new city.

[17] Floyd V. Filson, A New Testament History. (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1964), 211.

[18] Ibid, 200.

[19] F. F. Bruce, New Testament History. (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company, 1969), 147.

[20] Ibid, 275.

[21] Ibid, 147.

What does God say about church discipline?

Recently, our own church has gone through a very difficult church discipline process.  It's one of those rare cases that would probably fall into the less than 1% category.  This particular situation caused our own church leadership to reaffirm our view on biblical church discipline.  Ultimately, it has served to strengthen our own understanding and give us a stronger foundation as we move forward it the future.

A basic foundation for church discipline really goes back to the Church's responsibility of protecting the name of Jesus in the world.  We are to be "salt and light" but as Jesus said, "if the salt loses it's saltiness...it is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet." (Matthew 5:13-16)

The problem is many people don't understand biblical church discipline and therefore, many churches today don't practice it.  In fact, we counsel many people in our church counseling ministry who come from other churches; we love assisting other believers and helping people come to repentance and reconciliation.  Unfortunately, not everyone repents of their sin.  When they don't we are forced to make the recommendation to their home church that they need to take the individual(s) through church discipline.

Sadly, the response from their church is usually either:
(1) we don't want to mess with it
(2) we don't know how to do it

Rather than trying to "re-invent the wheel" and go into a lengthy explanation regarding the foundation and purposes for church discipline, I've decided to provide links to some excellent resources regarding church discipline.


The first resource comes from 9Marks:  You can view it here

I read Nine Marks of a Healthy Church back in 2000 when it was first published.  The book served as a wonderful foundation for my pre-seminary understanding of local church ministry.  The outgrowth of that initial book was the 9Marks ministry.  9Marks continues to provide wonderful, solid direction and help for local church ministry.

If you visit their site you can scroll down and read a couple of excellent introductions to church discipline, historical & cultural issues, and possible legal implications.  (be sure to notice the Table of Contents on the right side of the page to help you navigate through various articles)



The second resource is found on Bible.org: here

Bible.org provides a plethora of solid articles and Bible studies designed to help people grow in their knowledge and understanding of God and His Word.  I am always leery of giving 100% approval of an organization because any man-made organization is going to have issues, but Bible.org would be near the top of my approved website list.


The third and final resource can be found here

Mars Hill church recently found themselves at the center of a very public church discipline issue.  I know very little regarding the specific details, but in response they posted a chapter of Pastor Mark Driscoll’s book, Vintage Church, entitled, “What is Church Discipline?”  While I probably don't agree with Pastor Mark on every detail of biblical doctrine, he is rock solid on what I consider the essential Christian doctrines and hits the ball out of the park in this chapter on church discipline.

What does God say about Parenting? (part 2)

This blog entry is based on a sermon I recently preached at Geist Community Church - The nature of the message was very philosophical, as opposed to practical. If you would like further practical advise on parenting I recommend the following books:

Parenting Beyond Your Capacity: by Reggie Joiner and Carey Nieuwhof

Grace-Based Parenting: by Tim Kimmel - (still very philosophical)

1-2-3 Magic for Christian Parents: by Thomas W. Phelan and Chris Webb



While the Bible clearly gives parents direct and indirect guidance raising children there are also a few things we need to avoid. (interestingly enough, both New Testament passages mentioned earlier tell us what to avoid)


AVOID:

(1) “provoking to anger”

How we respond to and talk with our children can easily provoke them to anger. They are kids, but they are still little humans created in the image of God.  Children are also, before coming to Christ, sinful, depraved "little humans" that desperately need a model of grace in their lives.

Far to many people view God as some tyrannical dictator because that is how their dad or parents treated them.

God is our “Father in heaven." Jesus said, we are to pray to “our Father in heaven.” Yet, far too many people get hung up on that concept because their earthly dad gave them a horrible image of God’s nature.  Their earthly dad provoked them to anger in everything!

God does not provoke us to anger?? He is gracious, compassionate, merciful with his children


(2) “hypocritical actions”

One of the main reasons so many young people leave the church is they see hypocritical actions, primarily in their own parents.  Make sure your kids understand you are going to fail them.   You should never be your child’s hero.  You’re going to fail them again and again. God will NOT.  Point them to God and be willing to confess your own hypocritical actions.


(3) “biblical labels” on certain methods of parenting

Many methods that are passed off as “biblical” are really cultural or done only because “that’s what mom & dad did with me and I ‘turned out ok.’”

If you’re going to call something “biblical” you better be sure it is.  Just because it was written by a “Christian” organization or a well-known Christian author, doesn’t make it biblical!


(4) “Avoid being a legalist”

2 things I want to say about this:

     (1) Don’t scare your kids into obeying a list.

Some churches and parents have done an absolutely abysmal job teaching kids about obedience and sin.  They explain that we better not sin because "God will be waiting for us when we get to heaven."  Sure, they will get to Heaven because they have trusted in Christ, "but if you don't listen to mom & dad then God’s going to have some wrath reserved for you!" The "threat" then is: you better listen to mom and dad and you better not sin or God will be waiting for you!!

Wrong!  Jesus took all of God’s wrath destined for you and me when He died on the cross. (Romans 8:1)  If you receive even a fraction of God’s wrath you’re in trouble!  As a believer, your destiny for eternity is with Him in the new heaven and new earth.  Instead, what we ought to be teaching our kids , and reminding each other of, is that when you trust in Jesus ALL is forgiven.  We must reinforce that truth with our kids.

As a child it was drilled into my head through the teaching of different local churches that drinking alcohol was such a "bad" sin that I thought if I drank even one sip of alcohol I would be condemned to hell forever.  I even remember having nightmares that someone tricked me into drinking a sip of alcohol and awoke in a panic because I thought I was going to hell.

That is legalism!  It is WRONG!

     (2) Parenting is NOT about a list of "dos" and "don’ts".

Isaiah chapter one is the perfect example of how obedience isn't what it's all about.  Yes, we ought to pursue obedience, but our justification before God is not based on our obedience to Him.  In Isaiah one God is a perfect parent and his children still rebelled. What was Israel’s problem? Their heart! They went through the motions. They did every task they were supposed to do. Yet, it was all in vain because their heart wasn’t in it!


As I wrap this up, let me give you two truly "biblical" keys to parenting:

(1) Pursue the heart!

This is straight out of Isaiah 1.  We must pursue peoples' hearts.  We must aggressively pursue our children’s hearts.

One of the key themes in the Gospel of Mark is the hard hearts of the disciples.  We must avoid hard hearts at all costs! We must avoid hardening our children’s hearts at all costs!

We pursue the heart!!! By focusing on the inward, not on the outward.  You can easily create a bunch of "rule following" legalists, but if their heart is not transformed it doesn't matter.


(2) Create the Norm!

Everything we teach our kids will be normal to them! Think about that for a moment! Everything will be the norm.  I was raised putting maple syrup on my cottage cheese. I thought it was normal. (It's really doesn't taste that bad!)

What happens every day in your home defines what normal is for your family! It may be normal for you to eat a hamburger every Friday night. It might be normal for you to get ice cream every Tuesday after school. It might be normal for your family to have a game night each week; where you shut off the TV and play a family game. Parents determine what’s normal for their homes by the patterns they establish! If you get up every morning and run around your house three times yelling at the top of your lungs, your kids will think it’s normal!

Is God the normal part of your family life or do you treat God like fancy china in a special cabinet? You know, the dishes that only come out when the governor, boss, or friend-that-we-don’t-really-like-that-we-are-trying-to-impress comes over. When those dishes come out everyone, especially mom, is a little on edge. You suddenly forget how to handle a plate or a cup without fear of breaking it.  You don’t know how to handle it. You don’t know if it should go in the dishwasher or not. (always choose "not")

Some of you treat your faith, and even God, like the fine china. Oh, God is important, but we don’t bring Him up much in the daily patterns of life.

Some of you grew up in a home where going to church was not the norm.  For some of you going to church was the norm, but it was just a once a week deal and like the fine china, God didn't see much time in your normal family life.

Worshiping God is an attitude of the heart; not a special event set aside for a specific time once a week or even once a day.





Every parent will leave a personal legacy. What legacy are you leaving your children? What legacy are you leaving with your co-workers?

We become so preoccupied and focused on making sure our kids have a good education so they can get a "good" job that we forget what’s most important.  NOTHING matters at the end of your child’s life – NOTHING – EXCEPT whether or not they know God and have been reconciled to Him through His Son, Jesus.

The most important thing for your children is that they have an authentic relationship with God through Jesus Christ! In the end, all that matters is Christ!