Divine Wisdom for Daily Living by Joanne Colvin

Retirement communities are unlike any other lifestyle that I can imagine. Services are continually offered for food, activities, rides, concierge, information, chapel services, musical events, maintenance, and emergency assistance. Not to mention a community that is immediate and constant, whenever one desires it. Every day and night, the staff prepare the next meal or event or offer it to us. Very few things in life continually operate that we can rely upon without thinking. Having lived here for almost six years, I find it easy to take these services for granted. As we consider what is so constant, I am sure the air we breathe, the patterns of day and night, sun and moon, seasons, and God’s creation all come to mind. We also think of God’s continual sustenance for life, general mercy for all creatures who are alive, for the benefit of people—none of which we should take for granted. And Christians are blessed with the special mercy of God through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. “God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved.” (Ephesians 2:4-5) Do we rejoice in God’s mercy? Being blessed with his salvation and mercy, shouldn’t we long to live a life that reflects Christ’s love, offering this mercy to others?

What Is Mercy?

Grace is God’s favor to us that we do not deserve and mercy is his withholding that wrath which we do deserve. ”In some ways mercy may be compared with grace; that is, it is undeserved. But it is not grace itself. And in the pastoral letters Paul even adds mercy to his normal Christian greeting—grace and peace—thereby implying a distinction between them. “Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord” (1 Tim. 1:2; Titus 1:4).What makes mercy different from grace? Primarily it is the quality of helplessness or misery on the part of those who receive mercy. Grace is love when love is undeserved. Mercy is grace in action. Mercy is love reaching out to help those who are helpless and who need salvation. Mercy identifies with the miserable in their misery. We cannot state the definition of mercy, however, without thinking at once of the cross of Jesus Christ. For it was here that God acted out of grace in mercy to fallen, sinful man. In fact, God’s act was so complete at the cross that there is a sense in which mercy can be seen by a sinful man there only. In his sinful, fallen state man could do nothing to save himself, so God stepped forward to do everything that needed to be done. Dr. Barnhouse has written, ‘When Jesus Christ died on the cross, all of the work of God for man’s salvation passed out of the realm of prophecy and became historical fact. God has now had mercy upon us…All the mercy that God ever will have on man, He has already had when Christ died. This is the totality of mercy. There could not be any more… [God can now] act toward us in grace because He has already had all mercy upon us. The fountain is now opened and flowing, and it flows freely'” (1) And, as recipients of God’s continual blessed mercy, believers are merciful to others.

Who Are the Merciful?

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy” (Matthew 5:7). He is saying that those who show mercy are the ones who are united in Christ and his mercy. “Because we have experienced this mercy from God we in our turn are to show mercy to others. We cannot go on from this point, however, without first calling attention to the fact that this beatitude has been a problem to some persons because it seems to imply that receiving mercy from God depends upon our showing mercy to others. The beatitude…seems to imply that we must act first in showing mercy. Does it mean this? Obviously not, unless this statement of Jesus Christ is to be accepted as contradicting all Scripture, including his own clear testimony, or unless we are to abolish the doctrine of grace entirely and with it all hope of salvation. If we are to be dealt with on these terms, no man would ever see heaven. No one would ever receive God’s mercy. Actually, of course, it is the other way around. For what Jesus actually was saying was that we are to show mercy because we have received mercy and are confident that we will continue to receive it. Conversely, if we do not show mercy to others, we show that we either understand little of that mercy by which we have been saved or else have never been saved.” (2) “Jesus does not specify the categories of people he has in mind to whom his disciples are to show mercy. He gives no indication whether he is thinking primarily of those overcome by disaster, like the traveler from Jerusalem to Jericho whom robbers assaulted and to whom the good Samaritan ‘had mercy’ (Luke 10:30-37), or of the hungry, the sick and the outcast on whom he himself regularly took pity, or of those who wrong us so that justice cries out for punishment but mercy for forgiveness. God’s mercy extends to all those people, and so must our mercy…Our God is a merciful God and shows mercy continuously; the citizens of his kingdom must show mercy too.” God’s mercy is a constant blessing that results in our showing mercy to others. John Stott then asks, “What risks have you taken in showing mercy to others? What risks do you think others have taken in showing mercy to you?” (3)

How Do We Show Mercy?

Peter, Jesus’s devoted disciple, probably thought he had a good grasp of mercy, and was probably shocked when Jesus taught him the extent of Christian mercy. During the Lord’s teaching on the characteristics of the kingdom of God, he asked, “‘Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.'” (Matthew 18:21-22) Then Jesus told a parable about the kingdom of heaven, comparing it to a king settling accounts with his servants. This king mercifully forgave the entire unwieldy debt of his servant. But when the forgiven servant had the opportunity to “pay forward” this same mercy, he jailed them for their unpaid debts. When his master learned of his coldness toward others, he imprisoned the servant, giving him exactly what he gave to others, no mercy. “The point of this parable is not that we merit mercy by mercy or forgiveness by forgiveness. The point is that we cannot receive the mercy and forgiveness of God unless we repent, and we cannot claim to have repented of our sins if we are unmerciful toward the sins of others. Or, interpreted in the context of the beatitudes, it is ‘the meek’ who are also ‘the merciful.’ For to be meek is to acknowledge to others that we are sinners; to be merciful is to have compassion on others, for they are sinners too…Nothing proves more clearly that we have been forgiven than our own readiness to forgive.” (4)

Our Unbreakable Connection to God’s Mercy

At the end of the parable, Jesus said, “So also my heavenly Father will do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.”‘ (Matthew 18:23-35) “That is troubling. Indeed, it is so troubling that many have tried to see if they cannot get rid of its disturbing implications. For one thing, it seems to imply a ‘works’ salvation. That is, if you forgive others (a work), you will be forgiven. That seems contrary to the doctrine of justification by faith. Or again, even if it does not teach that, the parable seems to imply a continuation in grace by means of works. We may be saved by grace; but if we fail to act in an upright manner, God may cancel His forgiveness and have us thrown into hell anyway, just as the king had his wicked servant jailed. What we have to recognize is that in this one story Jesus is not giving the whole of biblical theology. What He says is true enough, namely, that there is an unbreakable connection between God’s forgiveness of us and our forgiveness of other people. That is intended to snap us out of any lethargy we may have and confront us with the life-changing power of the gospel…If we are justified we will have that nature of God that will increasingly and inevitably express itself in forgiveness, just as God for Christ’s sake has forgiven us. We will be able to pray, ‘Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors’ (Matthew 6:12).” (5) As recipients of God’s continual blessed mercy, believers are blessedly merciful to others as much as possible through the Holy Spirit’s power and guidance. And our blessedness increases as we share with others the blessings of God. “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22-23)

Related Scripture: Genesis 4:24; Numbers 7:89; Psalms 23:6; 24:14; 145:8-9; Isaiah 57:15; Matthew 6:14-15; Luke 6:36; 17:4; Colossians 3:13-14; 1 Timothy 1:16; Titus 3:5; James 2:13; 3:17; Hebrews 4:16; 1 Peter 1:3.

Notes:

1. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Matthew 5:7-9, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.
2. Boice, Ibid.
3. Stott, John, The Beatitudes—Developing Spiritual Character, pp. 35-38, InterVarsity Press, 1998.
4. Stott, Ibid.
5. Boice, James Montgomery, The Parables of Jesus, Matthew 18:21-35, Moody Publishers, Kindle Edition.

September 1, 2022

Last Sunday was grooming day for GG while I worshipped. But the groomer never knows precisely when she’ll finish, so I picked up my lunch from our buffet and returned to my apartment. I decided to wait to eat since it was early and do other things while waiting for the call. When I finally had him and was back home to eat lunch, it was much later than usual, and I was hungry. I don’t know if it was because I was hungry, but the food tasted outstanding! I was surprised because the entry was not one I usually choose, let alone enjoy so much. My satisfaction was heightened, and I felt blessed to have been so hungry for a few moments and then filled. It reminded me of the satisfaction I have with GG’s progress from training after a stressful, anxious beginning. Now he longs for leadership from me, and I know how to provide it. But we’re both usually glad to  continue working on even more obedience. Satisfaction is that elusive something that we all want in this life. We want to be content, fulfilled, and gratified, but we often don’t want to work at it or know how to achieve it. Most importantly, we must begin with our heart’s desires and inclinations. “In our heart there is a battle between desires that purify us and desires that pollute us. It is a struggle between the Spirit and our flesh, between what is right and wrong, between what will gratify us and what will not. This world and its sinful desires do not satisfy. They are false gods and false loves with false promises and false hopes. They disappoint, and along with this world, they are ‘fading away’ (1 John 2:16-17). Christ alone offers water that will quench our thirst. Only those who ‘hunger and thirst for righteousness’ shall ‘be satisfied.’ But that is the problem. Do we desire to desire righteousness? What is Christ doing to straighten out our perverted desires? Despite our impression that our hearts are often nothing but a cauldron of conflicting desire, Christ is at work renewing our hearts and purifying our affections. He is constantly reforming us to want what God wants, to despise what God forbids, and to embrace what God loves. He promises to continue and complete the work he has begun in us (Phil. 1:6).” (1) We enjoy a good meal, but our satisfaction very short; having an obedient dog is nice, but he’s not very consistent. Conversely, God’s righteousness is constant and leads to life-long and eternal blessings.

How to Be Blessed

Jesus promised to bless his disciples, who continued to crave his rightness for soul satisfaction. And, he will bless us if we crave his righteousness for more consistent holy living and lives of meaningfulness. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” (Matthew 5:6) “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied.” (Luke 6:21a) “‘This beatitude again follows logically from the previous ones; it is a statement to which all the others lead. It is the logical conclusion to which they come, and it is something for which we should all be profoundly thankful and grateful to God. I do not know of a better test that anyone can apply to himself or herself in this whole matter of the Christian profession than a verse like this. If this verse is to you one of the most blessed statements of the whole of Scripture, you can be quite certain you are a Christian; if it is not, then you had better examine the foundations again.’ The verse is precious because it offers the solution to man’s great need by pointing to the offer of God’s greater remedy in Christ.” (2) James Boice continues, “What must man do? First, he must desire righteousness. Second, he must desire a perfect (and, therefore, a divine) righteousness. Third, he must desire it intensely…The only way that man can enter again into fellowship with God and find the happiness and blessing he longs for is to possess a righteousness and holiness that will commend him to God. Can this be done? Not by man, certainly. But God can and will do it. The heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ is that in him God has obtained our redemption and provided all who believe in Christ with that righteousness. The Bible says that Jesus Christ ‘has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption’ (1 Cor. 1:30). And those who hunger and thirst after his righteousness shall be filled.” (3) Christians already have the grace and mercy of God, as did the disciples sitting at Jesus’s feet during the Sermon on the Mount. But do we appreciate and apply his extraordinary gift of holiness through the indwelling Spirit? “Turning to the disciples [Jesus] said privately, ‘Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.'” (Matthew 13:16-17)

Blessed to Need Christ

Jesus promised to bless disciples who continued to crave his righteousness for soul satisfaction. And, he will bless us if we desire his piety for more consistent holy living and lives of meaningfulness. Longing for Jesus’s righteousness for godly living and meaningfulness is a blessing because we know God will respond to our request. There are some prayers that the Lord will always say yes—”make me more holy,” “humble me to yield to your will,” “show me my sins so I may confess and repent,” and “help me to love others more than I do.” “To be well skilled in the mystery of Christian contentment is the duty, glory and excellence of a Christian. I offer the following description: Christian contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition…In some there is a partial contentment…I do not doubt that many of you know this in your own experience, if you observe the workings of your own hearts. Can you say when a certain affliction befalls you, I can bless God that I am satisfied?” (4) “Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments!” (Psalms 112:1) “Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at the table, and he will come and serve them. If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants!” (Luke 12:37-38)

Drinking in Christ’s Righteousness

Now that GG is starting to succeed at passing “prey” without chasing it or barking, I strongly desire to continue with his training. Instead of relaxing as if we are finished, I am looking for ways to help him get stimulation more respectfully than hunting for cats, armadillos, or rodents. We both desire increased peacefulness and happiness without the struggle against the leash while walking. Similarly, “There is perhaps no greater secret of progress in Christian living than a healthy, hearty spiritual appetite. If we are conscious of slow spiritual growth, the reason may be that we have a jaded appetite. It is not enough to mourn over past sin; we must also hunger for future righteousness.When we talk of pursuing righteousness, we must be cautious about our meaning. According to Paul [in his letter to the Romans], the Jews failed to attain righteousness because they were seeking legal righteousness. It was the Gentiles who discovered righteousness—by faith. The righteousness Paul writes about is legal righteousness, which those who believe in Jesus have already been given as a gift. In what ways can Christians fall into pursuing righteousness, as if it were by works? Would you say your appetite for righteousness is sharp or dull? In what areas of your character do you long to be more righteous? Praise God that he is perfectly righteous and holy. Ask him to increase your appetite for righteousness…pray that your life will increasingly reflect God’s righteous character.” (5) “He who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new…I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment. The one who conquers will have this heritage, and I will be his God and he will be my son.” (Revelation 21:5-7)

Related Scripture: Psalms 42:2; 112:1, 4; Isaiah 55:1-2; John 7:37; Romans 9:30-10:4; Philippians 4:11.

Notes

* On the blessing of meekness see my post#10, March 10, 2022—https://divinewisdomforchristians.com/?s=Matthew+5%3A5j

1. Troxel, A. Craig, With All Your Heart, page 101, Crossway, 2020
2. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Matthew 5:6, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.
3. Boice, Ibid.
4. Burroughs, Jeremiah, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, passage, Kindle Version, 2010.
5. Stott, John, The Beatitudes—Developing Spiritual Character, Matthew 5:6, InterVarsity Press, 1998

August 25, 2022

What makes you laugh? Jokes? Funny things your kids do? Comedians or comic movies? My dog makes me laugh when he is so happy he can’t contain himself, running around the apartment with his squeaky toy mouse, creating a symphony of peeps. Fortunately, he tires of the game after about five minutes. I appreciate his playfulness, especially at times when life is hard. I finally recovered from a very intense summer cold that I thought would never end. Five of my friends and neighbors lost their spouses within the last few months. And when my arthritic, flat feet and sciatica are causing me pain, or I feel burdened with administrative tasks, GG cheers me up. But “There is no comfort to compare with the comfort given to a man by God.” (1) Whatever makes us laugh here on earth is a drop compared to the river of delight and joy the Spirit provides now, and even more in eternity. “In his commentary on Matthew’s Gospel, William Barclay reminds his readers of an Arab proverb that says, ‘All sunshine makes a desert.’ And it is true that a life of unmixed happiness would be unbearable and withering to the soul. Sorrow gives spice to life. It teaches us to appreciate good things. It increases our sensitivity, particularly to the needs and sorrows of others.” (2) As we continue studying the Beatitudes, we will be reminded that those who mourn and weep here will be comforted by God. We study so that we will not shrink from grieving over sin, from repenting, and thereby receive Jesus’s comforting forgiveness.

The True Christian Life

“The Christian life, according to Jesus, is not all joy and laughter. The truth is that there are such things as Christian tears, and too few of us ever weep them. But the spiritual, emotional, or financial loss resulting from sin should lead to mourning and a longing for God’s forgiveness and healing.” (4) In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus preached, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” (Matthew 5:4) Luke’s record is similar, but adds the fact that our grief is earth-based (“now”)—”Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.” (Luke 6:21b) “As our own experience suggests, this line of teaching is rather difficult to digest…[but] if we are poor in spirit, we cannot avoid weeping; we cannot be other than distressed. We are not, after all, without feelings…immovable as an anvil or a rock! Such a thing goes against our nature. We have instead to feel our miseries, which are meant to press us to the point where we bend and break; we can no longer hold our heads up, our breath is taken from us, we are, so to speak, dead men.” (5) But the Lord doesn’t leave the redeemed in their wretched state. “According to the Old Testament prophets, ‘consolation’ was to be one of the offices of the Messiah. Christ does pour oil into our wounds and speak peace to our sore, scarred consciences. Yet still we mourn over the havoc of suffering and death which sin spreads throughout the world. For only in the final state of glory will Christ’s comfort be complete, for only then will sin be no more and ‘God will wipe away every tear from their eyes'” (Revelation 7:1 7). (6) “What we must do is learn to weep before our God. It is to him that our tears must send us. When we do that, we will experience the truth of David’s words, ‘Lord you have put my tears in a bottle.’ [Ps. 56:8] Just as someone looks after a precious perfume or costly ointment, so, David says, God stores up our tears. Of course, tears fall to the ground, or else we wipe them away with our hand. Nevertheless, when we weep before God, not one tear will be lost: God will carefully preserve them all.” (7)

Weeping Like Jesus

As we consider grieving over sin, especially ours, we cannot help but think of the difference between our tears and those of Jesus. However, sin is the cause of both. While we mourn over our personal sin and the sin that infects the entire world, Jesus grieved only over the latter, having no sin in himself. “When [Jesus] drew near and saw [Jerusalem], he wept over it, saying, ‘Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.” (Luke 19:41-44) On a different occasion, “Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother [Lazarus] would not have died.’ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus wept. So the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!'” (John 11:32-36) “Jesus’ example shows that heartfelt mourning in the face of death does not indicate lack of faith but honest sorrow at the reality of suffering and death.” (6) “He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief.” (Isaiah 53:3) But while Jesus knew grief as a man in his incarnation, he, unlike us, “was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:4-5) If we don’t shrink from grieving over our sin, repenting as we follow Christ, we will receive his comforting forgiveness.

Our Consolation

“The promise of the second beatitude is ‘comfort,’ comfort to those who sense their sin and mourn for it. There is deliverance from sin’s penalty…The Bible tells us that we have been made ‘accepted in the Beloved’ (Eph. 1:6 NSB). There is unspeakable joy in this experience. This is the joy that was foretold by the angels on the evening of Christ’s birth, for they said, ‘Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord’ (Luke 2:10–11)…The deliverance of Jesus Christ also means a deliverance from present sin and from its power. If you are a Christian, Christ lives in you through his Holy Spirit. You are united to him. And you are united to him in order to make a victorious, triumphant life possible… in spite of the fact that sin will always be with the Christian so long as he lives, it is simply not true that he needs to be defeated by it…[Another] God’s comfort lies in the fact that one day Christ will remove sin and all of its effects from the believer forever.” (7) John Gill writes, “They shall be comforted: here in this life, by the God of all comfort, by Christ the comforter; by the Spirit of God, whose work and office it is to comfort; by the Scriptures of truth, which are written for their consolation; by the promises of the Gospel, through which the heirs of promise have strong consolation…and by the ministers of the word, who have a commission from the Lord to speak comfortably to them; and then are they comforted, when they have the discoveries of the love of God, manifestations of pardoning grace, through the blood of Christ, and enjoy the divine presence: and they shall be comforted hereafter; when freed from all the troubles of this life, they shall be blessed with uninterrupted communion with Father, Son, and Spirit, and with the happy society of angels and glorified saints.” (8) My Christian friends who have lost their husbands are joyful in the midst of their grief, having the Spirit and knowing that their beloved partners are with Christ. Their faith inspires me to mourn with hope.

While we know that we shouldn’t shrink from grieving over our sin, the world would have us believe the opposite—to live for pleasure since tomorrow you may die. We ought to mourn for those having no hope for anything after death while we have the assurance of our best existence. We enjoy our spirit-lifting distractions as we remain aware of the great problem of sin. “Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.” (James 4:9) “The Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18)

Related Scripture: Psalms 126:1-3; Isaiah 25:8; 53:3; 61:1-4; Luke 4:18-19; John 16:20-22; 2 Corinthians 7:10-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Revelation 7:17; 21:4.

Notes:

1. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Matthew 5:1-5, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.

2. Boice, Ibid.

3. Stott, John, The Beatitudes—Developing Spiritual Character, Matthew 5:4, InterVarsity Press, 1998.

4. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, Matthew 5:4, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008.

5. Calvin, John, Sermons on the Beatitudes, p. 28, The Banner of Truth Trust, 2006.

6. Stott, Ibid.

7. Boice, Ibid.

8. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, Matthew 5:4, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/matthew-5.html

August 18, 2022

The other day I put on my “Blessed” t-shirt because I wanted to remember this study throughout the day. When I wear it, I anticipate varied reactions from those I meet or pass while walking my dog on our town’s popular “river walk.” That day some folks responded to my eager greeting of “Good morning.” Others, though, politely but cooly gave me the slightest acknowledgment. One gracious couple, walking their two friendly dogs, stopped to converse. I was hoping that at least one of my neighbors, who share their faith with me, would ask me why I felt blessed. I guess they presumed it meant that I was grateful for all of God’s provisions and help. I am sure no one could imagine that I also wanted to remember that I am spiritually poor. We’ll continue our study of the Beatitudes by meditating on how God blesses the “poor” with an abundance of grace. I need reminders to humble myself, and having just studied 1 Peter 5 certainly helps. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you.” (1 Peter 5:6) When we are humble, we are blessed.

Who are the Poor in Spirit?

Jesus began his Sermon on the Mount by saying, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). “The Old Testament supplies the necessary background against which to interpret this beatitude. At first to be ‘poor’ meant to be in literal, material need. But gradually, because the needy had no refuge but God, ‘poverty’ came to have spiritual overtones… To be ‘poor in spirit’ is to acknowledge our spiritual bankruptcy before God. For we are sinners, under the holy wrath of God, and deserving nothing but his judgment. We have nothing to offer, nothing to plead, nothing with which to buy the favor of heaven.” (1) “The first of the Beatitudes leaves no doubt about whom the Lord is speaking…He is describing redeemed people, those who have believed, those who are part of the kingdom. Here is what their faith is like. Its foundational characteristic is humility — a poverty of spirit, a brokenness that acknowledges spiritual bankruptcy. Genuine believers see themselves as sinners; they know they have nothing to offer God that will buy His favor…If you see that God’s standard is higher than you can possibly attain, you are on the road to the blessedness Jesus spoke of in the Beatitudes. It begins with the humility that grows out of a sense of utter spiritual poverty, the knowledge that we are poor in spirit. And it consummates inevitably in righteous obedience. Those are characteristics of a supernatural life.” (2) Jesus addresses believers, rather than unbelievers, not with a formula for salvation but with a description of its fruit—blessedness as citizens of heaven. As those who have already been transformed by Christ’s irresistible, electing gospel, we wrestle with our tendency to be prideful. But when we humble ourselves and submit to the Lord, we are blessed. “Some have translated Jesus’ opening words ‘Happy are’…Though the Greek can and does mean ‘happy,’ it is seriously misleading to render it ‘happy’ in this case. Happiness is a subjective state, whereas Jesus is making an objective judgment about these people. He is declaring not what they may feel like (‘happy’), but what God thinks of them and what on that account they are: ‘blessed.'” (3) 

Good Poverty

“Hebrew uses the same word to describe both a man of lowly rank, and one who has suffered humiliation and loss. This is because prosperity puffs us up with pride and ambition; as a result we long for the limelight, and are keen to get the better of our neighbor. On the other hand, once God takes the rod to us and tames us, our haughty manners disappear. In so far, then, as suffering disciplines us, Jesus’ expression designates both the poor and the humble…That person, then, is truly blessed, who is poor in his own estimation, who willingly abases himself, who sees nothing good in himself, makes no false claims about himself, and instead accepts rejection by the world. Here we see the real significance of Jesus’ words, and the benefit which we may gain from them.” (4) Jesus turns our thinking upside down with the Beatitudes to actually “right” it for a biblical Worldview. He is radically counter-cultural, and if we are faithful followers, we will also be non-conformers. We are either attached to the world’s values, priorities, pressures, and desires or committed to God’s will, ways, and covenantal promises. When we embrace our inability to keep ourselves clean, right, or even acceptable to Him, God blesses us with an abundance of gracious spiritual and earthly blessings.

Detachment from This World’s Sentiments

“‘The kingdom of heaven belongs to the poor in spirit.’ By this we are to understand that we should not be content with what our eyes see, but that we should have in view the final goal…So this is what the passage teaches: in order to taste the blessedness of which God’s Son speaks, we must learn first that this world is a pathway to something else; it is not a place where we are to rest or where real life is to be found; we must press further on and lift up our eyes to the heavenly inheritance…God’s promises are most useful, then, in detaching us from the world. And when we have finally left present things behind, then we will know that poverty, affliction, distress, trouble, and everything else which would destroy us, cannot touch us. It is enough that God loves us, that his love has been made known to us, and that by faith we lay hold of that love when we leave this world. Let us go on, then, to finish our course, until in due time God confirms his promises to us.” (5) God has his reasons for putting us in the world, though. In John 17, Jesus prayed, “they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world (John 17:14-18). “Let’s all agree it’s clear that Jesus does not want his followers to be ‘of the world’…But notice that for Jesus being ‘not of the world’ isn’t the destination in these verses but the starting place. It’s not where things are moving toward, but what they’re moving from. He is not of the world, and he begins by saying that his followers are not of the world. But it’s going somewhere…Jesus is not asking his Father for his disciples to be taken out of the world, but he is praying for them as they are ‘sent into’ the world. So maybe it would serve us better — at least in light of John 17 — to revise the popular phrase ‘in, but not of’ in this way: ‘not of, but sent into.’ The beginning place is being ‘not of the world,’ and the movement is toward being ‘sent into the world.” (6) This is the thinking that leads to God’s blessings.

Empty Vessels

“There must be an emptying in our lives before there can be a filling. We must become poor in spirit before we can become rich in God’s spiritual blessings. The old wine must be poured out of the wineskins before the new wine can be poured in…God will fill you with the life of Jesus Christ—supernaturally—and you will begin to live the standards of the Sermon on the Mount by the power of the One who gave them and who himself lived them perfectly in this world…There must be a true poverty of spirit. But this is unnatural to man, and, therefore, impossible. We must, therefore, add that nothing but a direct confrontation with the holy, just, and loving God will produce it. C. S. Lewis once wrote of this experience, ‘Whenever we find that our religious life is making us feel that we are good—above all, that we are better than someone else—I think we may be sure that we are being acted on, not by God, but by the devil. The real test of being in the presence of God is that you either forget about yourself altogether or see yourself as a small, dirty object. It is better to forget about yourself altogether.”‘ (7) “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.” (Psalm 121) We are blessed here through our our poverty of spirit.

Related Scripture: Genesis 3:12; Exodus 19:16-18; Psalm 138:6; 147:6; Proverbs 3:34; Isaiah 6:5; Jeremiah 10:10; Mark 10:43; Luke 5:8; 22:61-62; Romans 7:14-24; Philippians 2:12-13; 1 Peter 5:6-8.

Notes

1. Stott, John, The Beatitudes—Developing Spiritual Character, pp. 10-15, InterVarsity Press, 1998.
2. MacArthur, John F., The Gospel According to Jesus, p. 165,  Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
3. Stott, Ibid.
4. Calvin, Sermons on the Beatitudes, pp. 21-25, The Banner of Truth Trust, 2006.
5. Calvin, Ibid.
6. Piper, John, “Desiring God, Let’s Revise the Popular Phrase ‘In, But Not Of’”, https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/lets-revise-the-popular-phrase-in-but-not-of
7. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Matthew 5:3-4, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.

August 11, 2022

Yesterday I was walking my dog on trails at a local nature center. As I looked down at the river, or what’s left of it in our drought, I saw bright blue instead of the expected dark green. The water reflected the brilliant blue sky. I looked up at the sky through the trees, thinking it would be even brighter, but it wasn’t. I thought about how the sky looked through sunglasses—a bit duller still. As I walked on this quiet morning, watching GG sniff the brush under the trees with interest, I contemplated how our spiritual vision is dull when we read the Bible through corrupted eyes and old, not entirely correct teachings. We often get a dulled understanding of Scripture, as if through sunglasses. If we pray for clarity through the Spirit, we have a more accurate understanding of Scripture’s teaching and see more clearly, as if looking at the sky unaided. After we have grown in Christ, with the Spirit working, we can catch his reflection even more brilliantly to grasp God’s profound truths,  seeing Christ. When Jesus taught in parables, “the disciples came and said to him, ‘Why do you speak to them in parables?’ And he answered them, ‘To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand…But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear. For truly, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.” (Matthew 13:10-17) Some of the most misunderstood and misused teachings of Jesus are in his Sermon on the Mount, starting with the Beatitudes. Over the following weeks, we will dive into the blessings described in Matthew 5:1-12. However, as an introduction today, we will use Luke’s sermon summary sermon, one that was very similar to Jesus’s teaching in Matthew. (1) Both teach us that Jesus blesses his humble, poor, and hungry disciples who are willing to be hated on his account. I pray that we will be blessed by being humble, spiritually poor, and hungry, willing to be mocked or maligned on Jesus’s account.

Blessings Resulting From Christ’s Salvation and the Spirit’s Sanctification

“And [Jesus] lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said: ‘Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven.” (Luke 6:20-23) “Immediately after his baptism and temptation [Jesus] had begun to announce the good news that the kingdom of God, long promised in the Old Testament era, was on the threshold…Here is a Christian value system, ethics standard, religious devotion, attitude to money, ambition, lifestyle and network of relationships—all of which are totally at variance with those of the non-Christian world…The beatitudes set forth the blessings God gives to those in whom he is working such a character—blessings given not as a reward for merit but as a gift of grace. By working toward the standards Christ has given us and coming as close to the mark as humanly possible, we give evidence of what by God’s free grace and gift we already are.” (2) “The Beatitudes spring from the life blood of Jesus Christ, that is they contain all His meaning, and when we read them first they seem merely mild and beautiful precepts for all unworldly, useless people, and of very little practical use in the stern, workaday world in which we live. However, we soon find that these Beatitudes contain the dynamite of the Holy Ghost…You allow the life of God, first of all, to invade you by regeneration and sanctification, and then as you have been soaking your mind in the teaching of Jesus, and it has been slipping down into the unconscious mind, then a set of circumstances arises where suddenly one of them emerges, and instantly you have to ask yourself, ‘Will I walk in the light of it? Will I accept the tremendous spiritual tornado which will be produced in my circumstances if I follow this teaching of Jesus?’ That is the way the Spirit of God works. It always comes with astonishing discomfort to begin with, it is all out of proportion to our ways of looking at things, and we have slowly to form our walk and conversation in the line of His precepts.” (3) But Jesus, who suffered tremendously throughout his ministry, blesses us when we follow him, being his humble, poor, and hungry disciples willing to be hated on his account.

Blessings for the Future

“Our happiness and blessedness do not come from the world’s applause, or from the enjoyment of wealth, honors, gratification and pleasure. On the contrary, we may be utterly oppressed, in tears and weeping, persecuted and to all appearances ruined: none of that affects our standing or diminishes our happiness. Why? Because we have in view the ultimate outcome. That is what Christ would have us remember, so as to correct the false ideas we feed upon and which so muddle our thinking that we cannot accept his yoke. He reminds us that we must look further ahead and consider the outcome of our afflictions, our tears, the persecutions we suffer and the insults we bear. When once we see how God turns all of that to good and to our salvation, we may conclude that blessing will assuredly be ours, however contrary such things are to our nature…Eschatological hope lies at the core of Jesus’ teaching here: the grieving will be comforted, the hungry will be satisfied, the pure will see God. As a preacher, [John] Calvin is fully alert to the tension which exists between the now and the not yet, between believers’ present experience of suffering and their future exaltation in heaven.” (4) Jesus brings the eternal future into view, saying, “Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven.” (Luke 6:23a)

Blessings for Now

“Jesus’ teaching inspires us to change, to become different and better people. As we pursue our studies in His Word, our mind is improved, but that’s not all. Our life is enriched…The good news is that Jesus hasn’t just given us His teachings and then told us to obey them in our own strength. He has also given us His Spirit to strengthen us and change us. The apostle Paul put it best when he said, ‘I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me’ (Galatians 2:20)…Jesus’s teaching will comfort and cheer you. No one has every spoken such truthful words of cheer, joy, hope, and happiness as He did…When His ‘red letters’ are ‘read letters,’ they lift us above the aches of earth and set your eyes on things above…We never go wrong when we read and ponder and quote the words of Jesus—to ourselves, to our friends, and to our world. He cares, and He comforts, and He brings peace to our soul with His words.” (5) Jesus blessed his humble, poor, and hungry disciples who were willing to be hated on his account. The apostles were supremely blessed to have lived and studied with him, and many were martyred for their faith in Christ, who now enjoy even more intimacy with their Savior. Jesus sent this message to John the Baptist: “The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them. And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” (Matthew 11:5-6) We are also blessed by being humble, spiritually poor and hungry, and hated on Jesus’s account, inviting others to see his character reflected in us.

Related Scripture: Psalms 34:18; 37:11; 78:2; Isaiah 57:15; 61:1-4; Matthew 5:1-12; 10:22; Luke 1:53; 12:32; John 7:37-39; Hebrews 11:26; 1 Peter 4:14.

Notes

1. “The relation between the Sermon on the Mount recorded in Mt. 5–7 and the ‘Sermon on the Plain’ given here has frequently occupied the attention of students. The similarities are clear enough to show that a common tradition lies behind the two accounts…Matthew’s version is much fuller than Luke’s, and there are considerable divergences also in actual detail. It is not, of course, impossible or even improbable that our Lord gave the Sermon to different audiences on different occasions, and that we have here independent accounts of two such discourses.” (Zondervan Bible Commentary, Matthew 5:1-12, F. F. Bruce, General Editor, One-Volume Illustrated Digital Edition.)
2. Stott, John, The Beatitudes—Developing Spiritual Character, pp. 6-7, InterVarsity Press, 1998.
3. Chambers, Oswald, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, pp. 11-13, GLH Publishing. Kindle Edition.
4. Calvin, John, Sermons on the Beatitudes, pp. 20, ix-x, The Banner of Truth Trust, 2006.
5. Jeremiah, David, The Jesus You May Not Know, pp. 87-90, Turning Point, San Diego, CA, 2020.

August 4, 2022

Do you plan to do something for someone you aren’t excited about or would prefer not to do? Sometimes we do things for others according to their interests or needs, which is good; Christians are called to submit to everyone. (See 1 Peter 3:8.) In my role in my church family, I do the administration for all women’s events, but that doesn’t mean that I always have the same interests as other women. For one thing, I am not a “crafty” girl—that is, I don’t do or enjoy crafts. I delight in being with my sisters in Christ, and when the activity portion of a fellowship comes around, you might find me talking or doing some hospitality tasks. However we serve others according to their interests, so we are motivated by their need, our calling, or simply the fact that no one else can fill the spot. I have often been the only one who could do something, according to my superiors, elders, or friends. Have you been in that position? It’s not easy when our motivation is low compared to something we love to do. And it’s precisely then that the Holy Spirit has the most opportunity to work in us, to give us his passion for service. God empowers all believers with his Spirit to serve the body differently yet in perfect unity to build up his people. We are more valuable to everyone when we encourage by employing the Holy Spirit’s wisdom, knowledge, discernment, and power. We are especially blessed by the Spirit’s work in, through, and for us.

One Spirit Working 

Many Christians wholly disregard the Holy Spirit’s role in service or overemphasize it through their obsession with particular spiritual gifts. We have much to gain from considering Paul’s advice to the Corinthians church. “Some Corinthian Christians seem to have been creating divisions over spiritual gifts…Paul wants the Corinthian church to understand how their unity can be enhanced by appreciating the variety of gifts God has given to them. [He emphasizes that] the purpose of the gifts is to build one another up and to care for one another, not to flaunt one’s own spirituality.” (1) “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.” (1 Corinthians 12:4-12) “Though these gifts, ministrations, and operations, are so different in themselves, and are bestowed upon different persons, yet they are all wrought by one and the same Spirit of God, who is the true Jehovah, and properly God, as these his works declare; for who, but the most high God, could ever communicate such gifts to men?…For as his special grace in regeneration is dispensed when and where, and to whom he pleases, signified by the blowing of the wind where it lists, John 3:8 so his gifts, ordinary and extraordinary, are severally distributed, according to his sovereign will and pleasure.” (2) All believers are empowered with the Spirit to serve differently yet in perfect unity to build each other up.

The Spirit’s Power

Take, for example, the work of William Wilberforce, who effectively halted the slave trade in England. “He grew up surrounded by wealth…he wasn’t a serious student… [but] had political ambitions and, with his connections, managed to win election to Parliament in 1780, where he formed a lasting friendship with William Pitt, the future prime minister. But he later admitted, ‘The first years in Parliament I did nothing—nothing to any purpose. My own distinction was my darling object.’ But he began to reflect deeply on his life, which led to a period of intense sorrow…His unnatural gloom lifted on Easter 1786…He experienced a spiritual rebirth…He began to see his life’s purpose: ‘My walk is a public one,’ he wrote in his diary. ‘My business is in the world, and I must mix in the assemblies of men or quit the post which Providence seems to have assigned me.’ In particular, two causes caught his attention. First, under the influence of Thomas Clarkson, he became absorbed with the issue of slavery. Later he wrote… ‘Let the consequences be what they would: I from this time determined that I would never rest until I had effected its abolition’…The pathway to abolition was blocked by vested interests, parliamentary filibustering, entrenched bigotry, international politics, slave unrest, personal sickness, and political fear…His second great calling was for the ‘reformation of manners,’ that is, morals. In early 1787, he conceived of a society that would work, as a royal proclamation put it, ‘for the encouragement of piety and virtue; and for the preventing of vice, profaneness, and immorality.’ It eventually became known as the Society for the Suppression of Vice.” (3) Are you thinking, well, Wilberforce became a believer; that’s what happened! Of course, that’s what happened—the Holy Spirit inhabited him and compelled him to do masterful things with his life in service to his country. Who wouldn’t want to do what Wilberforce did? The blessing of serving his country through the Spirit carried him through intense opposition, and physical ailments with great pain, and the resulting addition to opium, the prescribed pain medication of the day. He was blessed with God’s presence and power in his work and trials.

The Spirit Compels Us

The Spirit doesn’t just help with witnessing (evangelizing), as some might think from Acts 1:8 (“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”) As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 12, he gives diverse gifts to the body for the glory of God. “This powerful new work of the Holy Spirit after Pentecost brought several beneficial results: more effectiveness in witness and ministry), effective proclamation of the gospel, power for victory over sin, power for victory over Satan and demonic forces and a wide distribution of gifts for ministry.” (4) “[William Wilberforce] was practical with a difference. He believed with all his heart that new affections for God were the key to new morals and lasting political reformation. And these new affections and this reformation did not come from mere ethical systems…For Wilberforce, practical deeds were born in ‘peculiar doctrines.’ By that term he simply meant the central distinguishing doctrines of human depravity, divine judgment, the substitutionary work of Christ on the cross, justification by faith alone, regeneration by the Holy Spirit, and the practical necessity of fruit in a life devoted to good deeds.” (5) It’s not just “special” people, pastors, evangelists, or missionaries that God empowers. All believers have his Spirit to serve the body. Do we serve others by employing the Holy Spirit’s wisdom, knowledge, discernment, and power? Do we need to ask ourselves the question that Paul asked the Galatians, “Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:2-3) “‘Receive the Spirit’ refers to the new covenant work of the Holy Spirit that comes after saving faith, at the beginning of the Christian life, to sanctify and to empower the believer in life and various kinds of ministry…In v. 2, Paul mentioned the Holy Spirit’s work at the beginning of the Galatians’ Christian lives; here he mentions an ongoing, day-by-day work of the Spirit. Though Paul had long ago left these churches, and there were no other apostles present, the Holy Spirit was still present and was still working miracles in their midst. ‘Hearing with faith’ is not only the way to start the Christian life but is also the way to continue it day by day.” (6) Do you want joy and power to serve, even for something you have no interest in or desire? Ask for help—the Spirit’s willing. “Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.” (Romans 12:9-13) 

Related Scripture: Exodus 35:21; Matthew 28:19; Luke 1:15, 67; Luke 3:22; 4:14; 24:49; Acts 2:16-18; 4:31, 33; 10:38; 13:4; 16:6; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; 1 Thessalonians 1:5; 1 Peter 4:9-11.

Notes

1. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, 1 Corinthians 12:1-26, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008.
2. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, 1 Corinthians 12:4-12, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/1-corinthians-12.html
3. Christianity Today, https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/people/activists/william-wilberforce.html 
4. ESV Study Bible Notes, Ibid, Acts 1:8.
5. Piper, John, “William Wilberforce: Reflections on the Life and Labor,” 2002 Bethlehem Conference for Pastors.
6. ESV Study Bible Notes, Ibid, Galatians 2:2-3.

July 28, 2022

#29 The Holy Spirit’s Certain Assurance

Do you have any guarantees, perhaps for a new appliance, a car maintenance agreement, or an electronic device contract? If the guarantee is for accidental or instrumental breakage, we hope we won’t need to use it. We are required to have auto insurance, but don’t want to invoke the clauses that read, “in the event of….” On the other hand, we use our medical insurance frequently because our bodies are in a state of decay as we age. But there is a limit of coverage every year. This world and life are temporary, so anything we cling to for hope will either expire or buy us some more time and comfort. There is nothing permanent that won’t, in some way, get used up or fail to deliver. In contrast, when God promises something, he fulfills his contract, because he can’t and won’t ever do otherwise. We can’t lose our salvation because God doesn’t “undo” anything. Christ won’t redo his crucifixion or resurrection. His finished work fulfills God’s plan and promise of merciful redemption for all eternity. Our personal feelings or perspectives about Christ’s atonement for sin vary from time to time because we are fallen, unreliable people who struggle with our flesh and doubts. For more consistent, steadfast faithfulness, we turn to God’s Word to remember what he has promised. Our hearts, minds, and souls remember that God has assured us “that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). The Holy Spirit called us to Christ, opened and transformed our hearts and minds, applying his redemption. He continues to guarantee our hope, adoption, and glorious inheritance in Christ. We are called to cling firmly to our hope in Christ through the Holy Spirit, anchored to him, for our assurance that God will do all he has promised.

Allusive Hope?

“So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 6:17-20) “Hope has its degrees, as faith also. The promise of blessedness God has made to believers, is from God’s eternal purpose, settled between the eternal Father, Son, and Spirit. These promises of God may safely be depended upon; for here we have two things which cannot change, the counsel and the oath of God, in which it is not possible for God to lie; it would be contrary to his nature as well as to his will. And as He cannot lie, the destruction of the unbeliever, and the salvation of the believer, are alike certain. Here observe, those to whom God has given full security of happiness, have a title to the promises by inheritance. The consolations of God are strong enough to support his people under their heaviest trials. Here is a refuge for all sinners who flee to the mercy of God, through the redemption of Christ, according to the covenant of grace, laying aside all other confidences. We are in this world as a ship at sea, tossed up and down, and in danger of being cast away. We need an anchor to keep us sure and steady. Gospel hope is our anchor in the storms of this world. It is sure and steadfast, or it could not keep us so. The free grace of God, the merits and mediation of Christ, and the powerful influences of his Spirit, are the grounds of this hope, and so it is a steadfast hope.” (1)

Full Assurance

“The resurrection of Jesus is the ‘assurance’ or pledge God has given that his revelation is true and worthy of acceptance. The ‘full assurance of faith’ (Heb. 10:22) is a fullness of faith in God which leaves no room for doubt…This full assurance is not of the essence of saving faith. It is the result of faith, and posterior to it in the order of nature, and so frequently also in the order of time. True believers may be destitute of it. Trust itself is something different from the evidence that we do trust. Believers, moreover, are exhorted to go on to something beyond what they at present have…Genuine assurance naturally leads to a legitimate and abiding peace and joy, and to love and thankfulness to God; and these from the very laws of our being to greater buoyancy, strength, and cheerfulness in the practice of obedience in every department of duty. This assurance may in various ways be shaken, diminished, and intermitted, but the principle out of which it springs can never be lost.” (2) The Holy Spirit never abandons us but always works to increase our confidence in God and diminish our confidence in the world, our sin nature, and in the devil’s schemes and temptations. He provides our soul’s longing for a glorious inheritance in Christ. If we hold tightly to our hope in Christ through the Holy Spirit, anchored to him, we will never be ashamed or disappointed.

Child-like Confidence

“Hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us…The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him…” (Romans 5:5; 8:16-17) “Some suppose that if we have received the Spirit of adoption there must be produced a steady and uniform assurance, a perpetual fire burning upon the altar of the heart. Not so. When the Son of God became incarnate, He condescended to yield unto all the sinless infirmities of human nature, so that He hungered and ate, wearied and slept…In Heaven the man Christ Jesus is glorified; and in Heaven the Spirit in the Christian will shine like a perpetual star. But on earth, He indwells our hearts like a flickering flame; never to be extinguished, but not always bright, and needing to be guarded from rude blasts, or why bid us ‘quench not the Spirit’ (1 Thess. 5:19)?…The Christian is not always in the enjoyment of a child-like confidence. And why? Because he is often guilty of ‘grieving’ the Spirit, and then, He withholds much of His comfort. Hereby we may ascertain our communion with God and when it is interrupted, when He be pleased or displeased with us—by the motions or withdrawings of the Spirit’s consolation…In all genuine Christians there is a co-mingling of real confidence and false diffidence, because as long as they remain on this earth there is in them the root of faith and the root of doubt. Hence their prayer is ‘Lord, I believe; help Thou mine unbelief’ (Mark 9:24). In some Christians faith prevails more than it does in others; in some unbelief is more active than in others. Therefore some have a stronger and steadier assurance than others. The presence of the indwelling Spirit is largely evidenced by our frequent recourse to the Father in prayer—often with sighs, sobs, and groans. The consciousness of the Spirit of adoption within us is largely regulated by the extent to which we yield ourselves unto His government.” (3)

Like our world today, “Ancient Ephesus had a fascination with magic and the occult. This helps explain Paul’s emphasis on the power of God over all heavenly authorities and on Christ’s triumphant ascension as head over the church and over all things in this age and the next. The Ephesians needed to be reminded of these things in order to remain resolute in their allegiance to Christ as the supreme power in the world and in their lives.” (4) Paul wrote, “In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:13-14) “The Holy Spirit makes the Christian secure in his new faith and relationship…Like a down payment on the purchase of a property, he is proof of God’s good faith and an earnest of the full amount to come…Sealing with the Holy Spirit answers all our needs. It assures us of God’s favor. It shows that we belong to him. It renders our salvation certain.” (5) Since the Spirit guarantees our hope, adoption, and glorious inheritance in Christ, will we not cling firmly to our blessing in Christ through him—and turn away from the world’s insufficient remedies for hope? “It is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” (2 Corinthians 1:21-22)

Related Scripture: Psalms 110:4; 119:116; Proverbs 19:21; Ephesians 4:30; Philippians 1:6; Colossians 2:2-4; 2 Timothy 1:12; 4:8; Hebrews 6:11; 10:19-23; 1 Peter 1:3-5; Revelation 7:2-3.

Notes

1. Henry, Matthew, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, Hebrews 6:11-20, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mhn/hebrews-6.html
2. Easton, M.G., Easton’s 1897 Dictionary of the Bible, “Assurance,” software version.
3. Pink, Arthur W.. The Holy Spirit, The Spirit Assuring, Prisbrary Publishing. Kindle Edition.
4. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, Introduction to Ephesians, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008.
5. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Ephesians 1:3-14, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.

July 21, 2022

Summertime generates dieting ads, body-building programs, and an intense focus on our physical bodies. Most of my friends have a love-hate relationship with their bodies, and, as you can see, I also view my body as something separate from the rest of me (or else I wouldn’t talk about having a relationship with it). “Body dissatisfaction and overvaluing body image in defining one’s self-worth are risk factors making some people more susceptible to developing an eating disorder than others. People experiencing body dissatisfaction can become fixated on trying to change their body shape, which can lead to unhealthy practices with food, exercise, or supplements. Over time, these practices do not achieve desired results and often create a trap leading to intense feelings of disappointment, shame, guilt and, ultimately, increase the risk of developing an eating disorder.” (1) I think we all agree that there are better ways to spend our summer than being obsessed with worrying about our bodies. Of course, we maintain them with good diets, exercise, medication, or surgery as needed. And here I am preaching to myself. Scripture declares, “The God of peace himself [will] sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.” (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24) Spirit, soul, and body represent the entirety of human nature. It seems unlikely that this is a tripartite division of human nature into body, soul, and spirit, where ‘spirit’ and ‘soul’ would refer to different parts; more likely Paul is simply using several terms for emphasis.” (2) God made us in his image (Genesis 1:27), and he is one being, without any separation of “parts,” so we are each one being, created by the Lord to be more than a person—to be his holy temple. We are justified, washed, sanctified, joined to God, to be the temple of the Holy Spirit. But do we remember, rejoice, and renew our blessing of the indwelling Spirit’s power for our ongoing spiritual maturity?

God’s Temple

“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?…God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God…he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him…Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price.” (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:11, 17, 19-20) If you read the entire passage from 1 Corinthians 6, you will notice that the central idea here is to “not be dominated by anything” physical, especially food or sexuality (1 Cor. 6:12) Paul urges his readers to have a correct, biblical view of being “joined” to God, being “one spirit” with him. “The Greek word here for union means literally ‘glued,’ signifying the closest of ties, which results in complete union, or fusion…It brings into sharp contrast the Christian concept of holiness with that of pagan Corinth, where in the temple of Aphrodite prostitutes were priestesses.” (3) “Sanctification, says the Westminster Shorter Catechism (Q.35), is ‘the work of God’s free grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness’…In regeneration, God implants desires that were not there before: desire for God, for holiness, and for the hallowing and glorifying of God’s name in this world; desire to pray, worship, love, serve, honor, and please God; desire to show love and bring benefit to others. In sanctification, the Holy Spirit’ works in you to will and to act’ according to God’s purpose.” (4) What a blessing to see God’s glory now through the Spirit, and to be transformed continually rather than remain as we are.

From Glory to Glory

In 2 Corinthians 3:16 and 18, Paul writes, “When one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. And 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. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” “When any person is converted to God, then the veil of ignorance is taken away. The condition of those who enjoy and believe the gospel is happy, for the heart is set at liberty to run the ways of God’s commandments. They have light, and with open face they behold the glory of the Lord. Christians should prize and improve these privileges. We should not rest contented without knowing the transforming power of the gospel, by the working of the Spirit, bringing us to seek to be like the temper and tendency of the glorious gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and into union with Him. We behold Christ, as in the glass of his word; and as the reflection from a mirror causes the face to shine, the faces of Christians shine also.” (5) “Now the efficient cause of all this, ‘is the Spirit of the Lord.’ It is he that takes off the veil from the heart, that we may, with open face unveiled, behold all this glory; it is he that regenerates, stamps the image of Christ, and conforms the soul to his likeness; it is he that gradually carries on the work of grace upon the soul, increases faith, enlarges the views of the glory of Christ, and the spiritual light, knowledge, and experience of the saints, and will perfect all that which concerns them; will quicken their mortal bodies, and make them like to Christ; and will for ever rest as a spirit of glory on them, both in soul and body.” (6) Having been set apart, washed, and sanctified, we are one with God, and our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who ensures our blessed, ongoing spiritual maturity.

Personal Deliverance and Victories Through the Spirit

The other morning while I was doing my stretches, I remembered two un-Christian comments I made to staff members at physical therapy several years ago. I could see the people, hear their instructions, and painfully recall precisely what I said. I know I asked God for forgiveness after the two incidents and also asked for theirs. But I guess my confession and repentance weren’t complete because I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I was grateful for holy conviction, so I confessed and repented sincerely of a cold, mean, selfish heart with people trying to help me. Then I thought about including this account here as an illustration for sanctification. But I forgot, until this morning, when I’m sure the Spirit moved me to share with you, having been blessed by his help. “Moral renovation, whereby we are increasingly changed from what we once were, flows from the agency of the indwelling Holy Spirit…Regeneration is birth; sanctification is growth. Paul’s use of glory in 2 Corinthians 3:18 shows that for him sanctification of character is glorification begun. Then the physical transformation that gives us a body like Christ’s, one that will match our totally transformed character and be a perfect means of expressing it, will be glorification completed (Phil. 3:20-21; 1 Cor. 15:49-53)…God’s method of sanctification is neither activism (self-reliant activity) nor apathy (God-reliant passivity), but God-dependent effort…To clarify the relationship between the law and sin, Paul analyzes in a personal and dramatic way the sense of impotence for complete law-keeping, and the enslavement to behavior one dislikes, that the Spirit-flesh tension produces (Rom. 7:14-25). This conflict and frustration will be with Christians as long as they are in the body. Yet by watching and praying against temptation, and cultivating opposite virtues, they may through the Spirit’s help “mortify” (i.e., drain the life out of, weaken as a means of killing) particular bad habits, and in that sense more and more die unto sin. They will experience many particular deliverances and victories in their unending battle with sin, while never being exposed to temptations that are impossible to resist.” (7) I am grateful for the irresistible, convicting work of the Holy Spirit, considering how much and frequently I am tempted to resist God’s commands. Perhaps you, like me, have moments when you are doubtful about being God’s temple where his Spirit wants to dwell and stay. Maybe you, like me, feel unworthy, unsuitable, and unqualified for his presence. My body is not pretty, not particularly healthy, and certainly not holy. But Christ is beautiful, worthy, suitable, and the only qualified Savior who gives us our Comforter. How can we deny Christ what he desires? Instead, let’s rejoice in the Spirit’s work and, as a result, give him influence and power to have the blessing of Christ-likeness. “By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.” (2 Timothy 1:14)

Related Scripture: Exodus 34:29-35; Ezekiel 39:29; Psalms 4:3; Acts 20:32; Romans 8:12-16; 15:15-16; Galatians 2:20; 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24; 2:19-21; 1 Peter 1:1-2, 18-21.

Notes:

1. https://nedc.com.au/eating-disorders/eating-disorders-explained/body-image/
2. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, 1 Thessalonians 5:23, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008.
3. Zondervan Bible Commentary, F. F. Bruce General Editor, 1 Corinthians 6:12-13, One-Volume Illustrated Digital Edition.
4. Packer, J. I., Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs (pp. 169-170),  Tyndale House Publishers, Kindle Edition.
5. Henry, Matthew, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, 2 Corinthians 3:18, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/mhn/2-corinthians-3.html 
6. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, 2 Corinthians 3:18, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/2-corinthians-3.html 
7. Packer, J. I.. Concise Theology: A Guide to Historic Christian Beliefs (pp. 169-170). Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. Kindle Edition.

July 14, 2022

Did you celebrate Independence Day in the U.S.? When I was overseas, I was usually so busy that I hardly noticed the Fourth of July. But now that I’m on American turf, I see that the holiday seems to be everyone’s focus almost a week before the actual day. I enjoy hearing patriotic songs and reading posts celebrating the great liberties we have in the U.S. But that freedom is marred by sin and abuse, using independence to assert that my rights trump yours. Generally, many people think of liberty as personal freedom to succeed at any cost, make bad choices, criticize, and generally disregard the ordinary needs of others. It’s an excellent time to meditate on our liberty in Christ through the Holy Spirit’s application of his atonement, freeing us from enslavement to our flesh, Satan, and the world. I will be concentrating this month on the blessings we have through the work of the Holy Spirit. First, we will consider our salvation, and in the following weeks, sanctification, assurance (our hope and security in Christ), and finally, his calling and assistance for our service in the Lord. In a world of extremes— sports, opinions, media—we also tend to treat the Spirit of God with extreme over-emphasis or neglect. The Spirit is mentioned often in Scripture as the third person of the trinity—working together for God’s kingdom on earth and eternally. “When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.” (John 15:26) Jesus Christ liberates and gives sight to the blind, captive, oppressed, and poor through the Holy Spirit. Do we rejoice in our blessed, eternal liberty from captivity to sin as we do for our earthly independence from tyranny? 

Jesus Christ Anointed by the Holy Spirit

Jesus is united with the Spirit, just as he is with the Father. The three persons of the trinity always work as one essence, one will, and one truth. At no time are they independent of each other, except for the brief time of Christ’s crucifixion, when our sin separated him from the others. At the very beginning of his ministry, Jesus declared in the temple, quoting the prophet Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed.” (Luke 4:18-19) “The third person in the Trinity…was given to Christ as man, without measure, whereby he was qualified for his great work: he was upon him, and in him, the first moment of his conception, which was by his power; and he visibly descended on him at his baptism; and the phrase denotes the permanency and continuance of him with him…to preach the Gospel to the poor: in Isaiah it is, ‘to the meek ‘…such as are poor in spirit, and are sensible of their spiritual poverty…to these the Gospel, or glad tidings of the love, grace, and mercy of God in Christ, of peace, pardon, righteousness, life and salvation by Christ, were preached by him; and that in so clear a manner, and with such power and authority…to preach deliverance to the captives; who are captives to sin, Satan, and the law.” (1) “The work of Christ was not finished when He had merited salvation for His people and had obtained actual possession of the blessings of salvation. In the counsel of redemption He took it upon Himself to put all His people in possession of all these blessings, and He does this through the operation of the Holy Spirit, who takes all things out of Christ, and gives them to us.” (1) Have you thanked God lately for the work of the Spirit in your salvation? I enjoy asking new friends and fellow believers about their testimonies of redemption. Hearing their accounts reminds me of my own remarkable, unexpected salvation. “The Spirit of glory, the Holy Spirit, rests upon believers in an especially powerful way. Further, it is the same Spirit that rested on Jesus (Isa. 11:2; Matt. 3:16) who now rests upon the believer.” (2)

The Spirit Anoints Believers

“The word [grace] is something like a synonym for the Holy Spirit, so that there is little difference between ‘full of the Holy Spirit’ and ‘full of grace and power’ in Acts 6:5 and 8. The Holy Spirit is called ‘the Spirit of grace’ in Heb. 10:29…As the covenant in which God made provision for the salvation of sinners is called the covenant of grace, and as the Mediator of the covenant is said to have appeared ‘full of grace,’ so that we can receive out of His fulness ‘grace for grace,’ John 1:16,17, so the Holy Spirit is called ‘the Spirit of grace,’ since He takes the ‘grace of Christ’ and confers it on us.” (3) I have a friend who calls God’s blessings a “kiss on the cheek.” When I consider the work of the Spirit in rescuing me from my lost estate, it’s like a tender, loving kiss on my forehead. I was utterly lost and didn’t know it, like a person taking a new shortcut but going in the wrong direction and not realizing it. Some of us were raised in the church, with teaching about sin and the need for salvation. However, others had no idea that we were absorbed in our self-righteousness or cultural indoctrination. The Holy Spirit interrupted our lives to show us God, and we awakened us to our dead status. Even “good” people who love to help others and do what is right suddenly understand that all they have done is temporal and for their self-image when they are converted. “Good citizens” need Christ, like the prophet Isaiah needed him for the calling of God to speak to Israel. When God appeared to Isaiah, he said, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” (Isaiah 6:5) “He is made sensible of his lost and undone state…For mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts…and a lovely sight it is to see him by faith, in the glory and beauty of his person, and in the fulness of his grace; such a sight is spiritual, saving, assimilating, appropriating, very endearing, and very glorious and delightful: wherefore it may seem strange that a sight of Christ should fill the prophet with dread; one would think he should rather have said, happy man that I am, because I have seen this glorious Person, whom to see and know is life eternal; but the reason of it is, because in this view of Christ he saw the impurity of himself…just as in a sunbeam a man beholds those innumerable motes and atoms, which before were invisible to him. It was not because of his sight of Christ he reckoned himself undone; but because of the impurity of himself, and those among whom he dwelt, which he had a view of through his sight of Christ: his sight of Christ is given as a reason of his view of his impurity, and his impurity as the reason of his being undone in his apprehension of things. The prophet, in these his circumstances, represents a sensible sinner, under a sight and sense of his sinfulness and vileness.” (4) Like Isaiah, I was stunned by my sinfulness when Christ redeemed me. I spent my first year as a Christian confessing and weeping over my sin. And yet, what a blessing to have the light of God shine in my heart, exposing so many dark, dank, evil crevices where my sin dwelt undisturbed. I was cleansed. Jesus Christ relieves, liberates, and gives sight to the blind, captive, oppressed, and poor in Spirit through the Holy Spirit. He saves those who are lost and don’t know it. Without the Holy Spirit’s application of Christ’s atonement, you and I would still be lost. 

“The Spirit recreates the human heart, quickening it from spiritual death to spiritual life. Regenerate people are new creations. Where formerly they had no disposition, inclination, or desire for the things of God, now they are disposed and inclined toward God…Regeneration is not the result of faith. Rather regeneration precedes faith as the necessary condition for faith…We do not decide or choose to be regenerated. God chooses to regenerate us before we will ever choose to embrace Him. To be sure, after we have been regenerated by the sovereign grace of God [through the Holy Spirit], we do choose, act, cooperate, and believe in Christ.” (5) Have you celebrated the Spirit’s work for salvation lately? “When the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” (Titus 3:4-7)

Related Scripture: Isaiah 11:1-2; 42:1; Ezekiel 34:15-16; Matthew 3:11-16; 11:4-6; 18:12-14; John 3:34-36; Acts 26:15-18; 1 Corinthians 12: 13; Ephesians 1:13; 1 Thessalonians 1:4-5.

Notes:

1. Gill, John, John Gill’s Exposition on the Whole Bible, Luke 4:18, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/luke-4.html
2. Berkoff, L., Systematic Theology, p. 432,” Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, MI, Reprinted 1993.
3. English Standard Version Study Bible Notes, 1 Peter 4:14, (digital edition), Crossway, 2008. 
4. Berkhof, Ibid, p. 426-8.
5. Gill, Ibid, Isaiah 6:4-5.
6. The Reformation Study Bible, “Rebirth, p. 587” Reformation Trust Publishing (Ligonier Ministries), Sanford, Fl., 2015.

July 7, 2022

My friend, who is also a neighbor, gets busy, as I do, and we don’t meet as often as we would like. Our conversations aren’t remarkable and wouldn’t be particularly interesting to others. We recount what we’ve been up to since we last met or talked, or what’s on our calendars for the next few days. Aa we talk, we thank God for answered prayers and his help. We both place our Christian faith at the top of our priorities, spending time in God’s Word and serving our community. When we disagree about some way to approach someone or do something, it’s quickly put right by bringing in the gospel, and we’re on the same track. It’s not that way with everyone; sometimes, we can’t seem to overcome our differences of opinion or ways of viewing the world with others. When we have our Bible study discussions here, some of the participants grow very quiet with thoughtful expressions, letting me know that the biblical view being addressed is different or new for them. I’m always encouraged when someone lets me know they appreciate new teaching and are thinking about what we discussed. When God redeems us, the Holy Spirit works in us to transform our thinking. “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. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18; also see Romans 12:1-2.) God’s people, transformed in Christ, have what the Bible calls “koinōnia,” fellowship that draws us closer to God and others into his kingdom. God called the early church to awesome koinōnia giving his people one generous heart and mind in the gospel, resulting in others coming into his kingdom. 

Christ’s First Church

In Acts, we read about the first church God planted in Jerusalem. “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:42-47) Having committed themselves to biblical instruction, every soul, all who believed, had all things in common, giving to all, having favor with all people—which was only possible through the Holy Spirit’s work. The result was the growth of the kingdom of God, more blessings for more people, and increased blessings for those already in the fellowship. “The greatness of the event raised them above the world, and the Holy Ghost filled them with such love, as made every one to be to another as to himself, and so made all things common, not by destroying property, but doing away selfishness, and causing charity.” (1) “Acts 2:42-47 describes the early church. It is presented as a model church, but this does not mean that it was perfect. A few chapters further on, we are going to find that it was far from perfect. It had hypocrites in it, as our churches also have. It had doctrinal errors. It certainly had sinful human beings of all types, as our churches do. Yet it was a model in many important respects, and it is as such that it is described in Acts 2…Not only did it devote itself to the apostles’ teaching, but the early church also devoted itself to fellowship at many levels. [John] Stott says that ‘the word “fellowship” was born on the Day of Pentecost.’ This is because Christian fellowship means ‘common participation in God,’ which is what had drawn the early Christians together.” (2) God called the early church to awesome koinōnia giving his people one generous heart in the gospel resulting in others coming into his kingdom. The early believers didn’t create this fellowship; God did. They didn’t work themselves into a blessed state of submission, humility, sacrifice, or devotion to Christ. The Holy Spirit did this work in and among them, and they were blessed. Do we trust God and yield to him for awesome koinōnia with our brothers and sisters in Christ so that others can have Christ’s salvation in his kingdom with us?

Christian Koinōnia 

“The apostle John wrote, ‘We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ’ (1 John 1:3)…The fellowship of the church was a common fellowship because of the great spiritual realities the believers shared in together. Fellowship with God and true fellowship with others go together…If you find yourself out of fellowship with God, you will begin to find yourself out of fellowship with other Christians…But if you come close to God, you will inevitably find yourself being drawn close to other Christians. And it works the other way, too. If you spend time with other Christians, if you share a great deal with them, that fellowship will help to draw you closer to the Father. When we talk about our participation in God, we are talking about a ‘sharing in.’ But this ‘sharing in’ also results in a ‘sharing out.’” (3) “The fellowship that the Bible describes in Acts is that of sharing a common life together. As Jerry Bridges notes in his book, True Community, ‘The first Christians of Acts 2 were not devoting themselves to social activities but to a relationship–a relationship that consisted of sharing together the very life of God through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. They understood that they had entered this relationship by faith in Jesus Christ, not by joining an organization. And they realized that their fellowship with God logically brought them into fellowship with one another. Through their union with Christ, they were formed into a spiritual organic community.’ Sharing a common life together is not about doing activities but about sharing life. Spiritual life. It is about working together to bring about God’s Kingdom purposes. It is about serving together, helping each other through trials, lifting each other up when we fall, praying for one another, urging one another on in the faith. And ultimately, it is reflecting Christ in our love for one another, imaging Him to the fallen world around us. It all starts with our own friendship with God—our own fellowship with God. We give and receive from Him. We give Him our burdens and He gives us His grace, rest, and strength. We receive from Him spiritual nourishment and then pour it out to other believers. They in turn also receive from God and pour it out into our lives. It is a constant flow, an unceasing giving and sharing of God’s love and grace with one another.” (4) As we follow the example of the early church, yielding to God’s calling for face-to-face, in-person koinōnia, we will be tremendously blessed. Others will notice and be drawn by God into Christ’s salvation, sharing the fellowship in his kingdom with us.  

“The word fellowship has been so watered down in contemporary speech that it conveys only a faint suggestion of what it meant in earlier times. When we speak of fellowship today, we generally mean no more than comradeship, the sharing of good times…When the Bible uses the word, it means being caught up into a communion created by God. [In Philippians 1:3-5]…Paul was so thankful in the case of the young church at Philippi. They may have had things in common. But Paul is not speaking of these. He is thankful for their share in the gospel of God. They had been taken up into a divine fellowship. They were united, not upon a social level, but by their commitment to the truths of the gospel.” (5) Paul experienced fellowship with the Philippian church, in-person and from a distance. He wrote to them, “It was kind of you to share my trouble. And you Philippians yourselves know that in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving, except you only. Even in Thessalonica you sent me help for my needs once and again.” (Philippians 4:14-16) What blessings have you shared with your Christian family lately? “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:23-25)

Related Scripture: Psalms 55:14; 119:63; Luke 24:52-53; Acts 1:14; 4:32-33; 5:42; 13:12; 16:5; Romans 14:18; 2 Corinthians 8:9-15; Ephesians 4:3-6. 

Notes

1. Henry, Matthew, Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Bible, Acts 2:42-47, https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mhn/acts-2.html
2. Boice, James, Boice Expositional Commentary Series, Acts 2:42-47, Baker Books, Software version, 1998.
3. Boice, Ibid.
4. Boice, Ibid.
5. Fox, Christina, Closer Than a Sister: How Union with Christ helps Friendships to Flourish, Christian Focus Publications, 2017, Kindle Edition.
6. Boice, Ibid, Philippians 1:3-5.

June 30, 2022