The Lord's Supper

September 4, 2016

“Design the car for the life you want.” I saw this advertisement for Jaguar on Twitter the other day. “Design the car for the life you want.” Wow! What kind of life do you want? Do you know? And does a car have anything to do with it? Are you living the life that you want?

Does the life you want revolve around material things? Does it revolve around significant relationships? Does it revolve around having a certain kind of character and conduct? Is God a part of the life you want?

I recently read about a Jewish man named Andrew Klavan. He was raised by atheist parents, and yet they did observe Jewish customs. At his Bar mitzvah he declared himself a member of the Jewish faith. But he was lying and he knew it. In a leather box he kept the jewelry, watches, pens, and savings bonds worth thousands of dollars that had been given to him as gifts at his bar mitzvah. He knew he had betrayed his own integrity and so one winter night at the age of 13 he buried the box into the trash can so it would not be discovered by the garbage men. And he lived his life as an atheist.

What kind of life do you want? This morning I want to commend to you the life that only God can give through Jesus Christ. And as we have the Lord’s Table before us, let me say that the saving mercy of God is revealed at the Lord’s Table.

I. MANNA: GRAIN FROM HEAVEN. Ps.78:17-24

Psalm 78 is a very long psalm. It has 72 verses. Basically this psalm recounts the history of Israel up until the time of King David. Over and over in this psalm we read about how the people of Israel rebelled against the goodness of God in unbelief and disobedience. It recounts how the Lord chose the tribe of Judah by raising up David as the King of Israel. The psalm ends with King David reigning, as if to indicate that with David on the throne all is well. David is Israel’s ideal king. Of course we know that while David was a man after God’s own heart, he was flawed. He was Israel’s greatest king in the Old Testament. But a greater King was coming out of the line of David. His name is Jesus.

In v.17-24 we read, “Yet they sinned still more against him, rebelling against the Most High in the desert. They tested God in their heart by demanding the food they craved. They spoke against God, saying, "Can God spread a table in the wilderness? He struck the rock so that water gushed out and streams overflowed. Can he also give bread or provide meat for his people?" Therefore, when the LORD heard, he was full of wrath; a fire was kindled against Jacob; his anger rose against Israel, because they did not believe in God and did not trust his saving power. Yet he commanded the skies above and opened the doors of heaven, and he rained down on them manna to eat and gave them the grain of heaven.”

What do you think? Can God spread a table in the wilderness? Most of us are familiar with this grain from heaven. It was called manna, and it appeared every morning on the ground. The people of Israel had to go out and collect enough to feed themselves for the day. If any was left over in the evening, it rotted. God provided this manna even during the 40 years of wilderness wandering until the entire generation who came out of Egypt died.

Despite Israel’s unbelief, rebellion, and disobedience, God mercifully set the table. He delivered his people from starvation. Manna was bread from heaven. The people were unable to provide food for themselves. They were in the desert. This manna was food that only God could give. And yet they continued to complain. In Num.11:6-8 we read, “But now our strength is dried up, and there is nothing at all but this manna to look at." Now the manna was like coriander seed, and its appearance like that of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it and ground it in handmills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil.” They developed various recipes for manna, but they grew weary of it.

There is a very obvious application for us. This is suggestive of how easy it is to take God’s saving mercy and grace for granted.  Manna was something no human ever thought up. It was completely God’s doing. But after many days it became boring. I’m sure I don’t need to remind us that the same is often true in regard to our salvation in Christ. Day after day of living in God’s grace can become boring. The joy of the Lord becomes old, even though his grace and mercy to us in Christ is renewed every day just as the manna came every morning. Surely this is one reason why the Lord’s Table is so important. It is a place of physical and spiritual remembering, renewal and refreshment.

II. FEEDING OF THE 5,000: JESUS THE TRUE BREAD FROM HEAVEN. Jn.6:1-15; 28-35

In Jn.6:1-15 we read about how Jesus had gone over to the east side of the Sea of Galilee. It was close to the time of the feast of Passover. A large crowd of well over 5,000 gathered to him because of the miracles that he had been doing. Luke tells us that he “spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing.” As the day wore on people were hungry. Since it was a desolate place food was not readily available.

Well, we know the story of how from 5 barley loaves and two small fish, Jesus spread a table of abundance in the midst of great need. By the way, barley bread was a poor man’s bread. In v.11 we read that, “Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted.” Just as God did in the wilderness when Israel was being led by Moses, so Jesus, God in the flesh did for the people on that day by the sea of Galilee.

If you look at Jn.6:14, it says that, “When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, "This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!" Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.”

What does it mean when it says that the people said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come”? Well in Dt.18:18, towards the end of his life, Moses said to the people of Israel, “I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. And I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him.” Even in Jesus’ day Jewish people were looking for this prophet like Moses that God was going to raise up. When they saw Jesus perform this miracle of multiplying the 5 loaves and 2 fish, they concluded that Jesus was the prophet like Moses who was to come. Jesus miraculously provided bread.

Even though the people wanted to make Jesus their king, Jesus withdrew because he was not the kind of king they were looking for. On the next day the people found Jesus again and in v.26-27 Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal."

Clearly, Jesus was talking about a different kind of food, a food that endures to eternal life. Well they were interested and they wanted to know how to work for the food that endures for eternal life. Jesus responded in v.29, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." So they said, “Well okay, what sign do you do to prove your claims.” And they quoted from Ps.78. They said, “Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat."

Now, look at v.32-35. Jesus is the bread of life. In other words, Jesus is the one who satisfies the spiritual hunger and thirst that every person experiences in life. As this chapter goes on, Jesus explains that the life he gives is eternal life. All who believe in him will be raised up on the last day and will live forever.

In v.41-42 we read that, “the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, ‘I am the bread that came down from heaven.’ They said, ‘Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" Then in v.51, Jesus again says, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh." Well, Jesus miraculously spread a table of bread and fish before that large crowd. They ate and were fully satisfied. But Jesus wanted them to understand that that miracle pointed to an even greater miracle. God was concerned to provide food for his people in the wilderness. God in Christ was concerned to provide food for the people on the east side of the Sea of Galilee. But God is even more concerned with providing for our deepest need of life in the kingdom of God. Jesus himself, is the true bread from heaven who gives eternal living. And that brings us to another, more important table

III. THE LORD’S TABLE: JESUS, THE BREAD OF LIFE

In Lk.22:14-20 we read, “And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. And he said to them, "I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God." And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, "Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes." And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.”

What was Jesus doing here? He was spreading a table. They sat down for the Passover observance but Jesus was spreading a new, a different table. The Passover table reenacted with food, the miraculous deliverance from slavery in Egypt that Israel received from God. Their time of slavery was over. God redeemed them from slavery in Egypt. Now Jesus was spreading a new table of deliverance, salvation. And this salvation would come through the giving of himself through death on the cross and resurrection from the grave. This salvation would be a salvation, a deliverance from the sin and death that is destroying our lives and our world.

Was God present when he provided manna, bread from heaven in the wilderness? He surely was. Was God present when Jesus miraculously provided bread by the Sea of Galilee? God was right there providing bread from heaven through his Son. Was God present when Jesus instituted the Lord’s Table in the upper room? He surely was in the very person of Jesus, God in the flesh. Is Jesus here at the Lord’s Table today? Yes. He is here as the Bread of Life.

O his presence is not bound up in the bread or the cup, as if eating a little piece of unleavened bread and drinking a little shot glass of grape juice could contain his presence. No. But Jesus, the living Son of God, the true Bread of heaven is here. This is his table. It is through faith in Jesus the Bread of life that we receive his eternal living in the kingdom of God. Wherever the bread and cup are observed, the Lord Jesus is present. He is present with you as you eat and drink. And so as you come to the table do not come as if this was just another day of manna. Do not come because you want Jesus to do a miracle for you like the people did at the feeding of the five thousand. Rather come because Jesus is the saving bread of your life. Come because you are trusting in Jesus as your Savior, Lord and King.

For the next 35 years Andrew Klavan, the man I referred to earlier, lived as a philosophical agnostic and a practical atheist. He is a writer, a novelist and one night during his 40s he was lying in bed with one of Patrick O’Brian’s great seafaring adventure novels. A character in the novel he admired said a prayer before going to sleep. Klavan thought to himself, “Well, if he can pray, so can I.” He writes, “I laid the book aside and whispered a three-word prayer in gratitude for the contentment I’d found, and for the work and people I loved: “Thank you, God.” Listen to what Klavan writes, “It was a small and even prideful prayer: a self-impressed intellectual’s hesitant experiment with faith. God’s response was an act of extravagant grace. I woke the next morning and everything had changed. There was a sudden clarity and brightness to familiar faces and objects; they were alive with meaning and with my own delight in them. I called this experience “the joy of my joy,” and it came to me again whenever I prayed. Naturally I began to pray every day. And over time, this joy of my joy became a constant companion: a steady sense of vitality and beauty that endured even in periods of sorrow and pain. I was living in the beautiful Southern California town of Santa Barbara when I realized that prayer—that God—had transformed my life utterly, giving me a depth and pleasure of experience I had never known. I drove up into the hills one day, and with the forest and the city and the sea rolling by my windows, I asked God, “How can I thank you for what you’ve done for me? What could I possibly offer you in return?” And as clearly as if he had spoken aloud, God answered, “Now, you should be baptized.” The thought had never occurred to him before. Listen to the ending: My bar mitzvah had been an empty ritual, devoid of God—and truth. But my baptism was the outward expression of a deep and authentic inner conviction. The moment I rose from my knees by the baptismal font, I knew I had stepped through some invisible barrier between myself and a remarkable new journey. Within a week or so, my wife noticed it too: a new joy and easiness. My soul had found its northern star. And that star still leads me on. Andrew Klavan found Christ and is walking with Christ today. The life you need is found in Jesus Christ. You can turn to him today for the forgiveness of your sins and eternal living in the kingdom of God.

Christians In a Contentious World

August 28, 2016

“Stop the world – I want to get off,” was the title of a 1961 British musical. It opened in the United States in 1962 and had 555 performance run. A well known song from that musical is, “What Kind of Fool Am I.” I never saw the musical, but I have felt a kinship with the title. “Stop the world I want to get off.” Have you ever felt that way? When we look at the world today, when we look at our country today it is not very hopeful.

And yet as Christians we are filled with a living hope because of the life we have received in Jesus Christ. In fact, we are not of this world; we belong to the world to come. This means that the way we live is shaped by our citizenship in the new heaven and new earth. Peter writes about how believers are to live in this old, sin-driven world filled with antagonism. He tells us that in the midst of a contentious world believers are to live a godly life.

I. A GODLY LIFE IS GRACIOUS TO ALL. v.8-9a

In 1Pt.2:12, Peter writes, “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” Then in chapters 2 and 3 Peter instructs believers on how to live in various secular situations. How do Christians engage government? How do Christian slaves serve their non-Christian masters? How do Christian wives live with non-Christian husbands? Then we come to 3:8 where Peter says, “All of you.” He is speaking to all the believers in the churches that he is writing to. So is Peter speaking about how believers are to treat each other in the church? Is he speaking about how believers are to treat unbelievers in the world? I think the answer is both. In v.8 Peter instructs believers on how they are to treat each other in light of the persecution they are experiencing. But in v.9 it also seems that Peter extends this to include the way Christians treat unbelievers. He says, “Don’t repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling.”

All this to show that Peter wants us to see that these virtues describe a Christian’s general way of being. And it is important because persecution, opposition from the world puts stress and pressure on the church. When we are under stress we do not always treat each other in Christ like ways. And yet if the church is going to survive in the world, having Christ-like virtues is critical.

These virtues certainly do not imply weakness or apathy. There are times when Christians must be strong and firm in dealing with various issues. Sometimes doctrinal or moral issues call for a firm response in the church. Sometimes moral issues call for a firm response in regard to government or society at large. But when a firm response is required, even then believers should seek to live according to these virtues.

Our way of being ought to be oriented around having unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. These virtues are all in keeping with the character and conduct of Jesus Christ. These are the virtues that we focus on and pursue. And do we not want to be this kind of person? Do we not value the harmony that is found in unity? To be sympathetic means to have harmony in our feelings with one another. We enter into the joy and sorrow of each other. Do we not want to show brotherly love? I mean what value is there in being unkind, unloving? When the Greek word for “tender hearted” appears in a medical context it literally means “healthy bowels.” The idea here is that we are compassionate. We can be moved to help and encourage each other. Does anyone not want to be tender hearted? And what about having a humble mind? Do we want to have a humble mind, lowly mind? Of course the opposite is pride. Peter is saying that we should hold our thoughts and ideas in humility.

So how do we cultivate these virtues in our lives? How do these virtues become our general demeanor in life? Let me point out that we must be convinced that these virtues are worth having. Of course we all agree that these are desirable virtues, but at the same time most of us are very willing to abandon these virtues when we feel the need to secure our lives and have our way. Jesus did not use force to secure his life or to have his way. Yes, when he cleansed the temple it says, “…he drove out all who sold and bought in the temple and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.” He used to force to restore the house of God as a place of prayer and worship. He was restoring things that belonged to him to their rightful place. But in his demeanor Jesus embodied the virtues Peter is calling us to embody. Do we believe that the way of Jesus is sufficient for living life? If so, how does this become reality for us? It happens as we continually bring before our minds the goodness of Jesus through worship, prayer, and the reading of Scripture. It happens as we regularly say, “No,” to our selfish desires and fears and say, “Yes,” to loving and serving  Christ and others.

Now it’s not that the world is against these virtues. Not at all! Each of these virtues is valued in our world. It’s just that people who don’t know Christ are apt to practice these virtues when they are self-promoting, self-enhancing. When they lose the personal advantage there is nothing to gain. Believers practice these virtues regardless of personal advantage because they flow from Christ who lives in us. We learn to embody these virtues in keeping with our Lord, Jesus Christ. So surely this will involve the ongoing process of dying to self and living for Christ and others.

II. A GODLY LIFE IS BLESSED BY GOD. v.9-12a

In v.9 Peter includes something I did not discuss earlier. He talks about blessing those who do evil against you or who revile you. This idea comes straight from the lips of Jesus who said, “Bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” In 1Pt.2:23, Peter refers to Jesus and writes, “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.” This is difficult for us because it involves personal attack and injury. I mean Peter seems to be suggesting that when this happens we are to respond with active passivity. I say active passivity because we must learn to not respond in an aggressive way.

But it is important to take note of the context. These believers were facing persecution because they acknowledged Christ as Lord of all. They would not worship Caesar or any other god. They sought to live righteous lives in honor of the Lord. For this they were being persecuted. So our first level of application has to be to situations in which believers are experiencing persecution. Often in those situations the believer has no control. He or she only has control over him or herself. In those situations the believer has no one to appeal to. There is no recourse.

This is not our situation. So how do we apply Peter’s words? For example, how would you respond if you were being mistreated at work, perhaps because of your identification with Christ or not? Assuming you have not given cause for such treatment, if you have recourse, you can pursue it. If you can do something about the situation, that might be the way to go. And you can always quit if you have to. But whatever you do, it should be done in line with these virtues. In other words we try to bless, seek the welfare of our enemy. Christ is our life and we live for him.

Think also about the way in which the church of Jesus Christ is being marginalized today. It may not seem to be so bad at the moment, but there is a trend away from the church in favor of a secular society. The church is being increasingly moved out onto the fringe of society. Well, how will we respond? Some of you may not agree with me when I say that there is no place that I can find in the New Testament where believers are to fight for their rights. Paul does exhort believers to pray for those in government so that we might “…lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.” Of course the New Testament was not written in the context of a democracy. We do have recourse in this country and when religious liberty is being trample upon, we can appeal to the recourse that we have, just as Paul appealed to Caesar. But whatever we do, the church of Jesus should strive to be known for being loving and peaceable.

Now I don’t want to miss the point I am making. Peter says that we have been called to bless our enemies so that we may obtain a blessing. What blessing is he talking about? Well, he supports his admonition by quoting from Ps.34:12-16. You see the blessing defined in v.10: “Whoever desires to love life and see good days.” I don’t see this referring to the time of the new heaven and earth; I see this referring to our life on this earth. And obviously persecution and martyrdom does not bode well for loving life and seeing good days. So here is what I think. I believe that when Christians choose to bless those who are persecuting them, God will bless them with an outlook on life that is filled with the joy and goodness of Christ. Think about this. When we ask God for blessings we tend to be materialistic and focused on our happiness. But who is really blessed by God? I mean are his persecuted followers blessed less than his unpersecuted followers? I don’t think so. When Paul and Silas were singing hymns in prison after having been beaten, they were loving life and seeing good days. Notice v.12, “For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer.” God sees you. As we seek to live a life that is gracious to all God will bless. A godly life is blessed by God.

III. A GODLY LIFE IS PRESERVED BY GOD. v.12b

The last part of v.12 reads, “But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." Would you look again at 2:23? It says that Jesus, “…did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.”

Brothers and sisters our perspective on life in this world is far different from the perspective of an unbeliever. Jesus said that his kingdom is not of this world. And as followers of Christ you and I are not of this world. Christ is our life.

This past week I read an article by Dr. John C. Nugent on the website called “think Christian.” He was writing about the coming election. Let me quote a statement. He says, “…we must not vote as if the nations bear the meaning and direction of world history. They don’t. God’s transnational church does. The nations preserve the old order and are destined to perish with it. Christians are ambassadors of the new order. We seek it first. We know it alone will endure. And we know that we must not force it upon others.”

Now I am not so much interested in commenting on the elections. Rather I am interested in this idea of the old order and the new order of the Kingdom of God. We should not be surprised if we suffer at the hands of the people and governments of this world. The religious freedom that we enjoy is a great gift from God. It is one of the things that makes America a great country. And we pray that it will continue. But it may not. We may come in for persecution.

If that happens how are we to respond? Well, we must respond like Jesus. He continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. God has his eye on those who do evil. Vengeance, justice belongs to God.

Now trying to discern the ways of God is difficult. If you and I had been Jewish slaves in Egypt perhaps we would have wondered, “Where is God.” They were slaves for 400 years before God delivered them. If you were a Christian living in North Korea, Syria or Iran and you lost your family because of persecution, you might be wondering how God is for you since you see that many are against you. I do not have answers for these questions other than the example of Jesus given here by Peter. Jesus entrusted himself to God, who judges justly. When Asaph, the psalmist pondered how it could be that the wicked could prosper while the righteous suffer, he concluded in Ps.73:26-28, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. For behold, those who are far from you shall perish; you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you. But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge that I may tell of all your works.

As Christians, followers of Jesus Christ, we do not vest our lives to this world or its governments. We are thankful when government secures the safety, justice, and morality of a nation, but we are well aware of the pitfalls of government in this world. Our lives are vested in God through Christ. We look to him for security, justice and morality as we seek to live a godly life. A godly life is preserved by God.

One day this world will stop. But so far, that day is not today. While it is still called “today,” it is for us a day to show the world the gracious life given to us in Jesus Christ. Through faith in Christ we have been born again to a new eternal life. We are being transformed into Christ like people. How can we not seek to make the world a better place through gospel talking and gospel living? Gospel talking and living is in our DNA for Christ is our life. Amen

The Blessing of a Christian Husband

August 14, 2016

“Traditional marriage has been on a downward trajectory for generations.” Fewer and fewer people are getting married. This is especially true for the millennial generation. One of the primary concerns is not having the financial stability needed for a good marriage. But added to this are changing values when it comes to marriage.

Marriage is a wonderful institution that is very important for the stability of a society. It can be challenging to be married. Men and women often have to work hard to build a solid marriage.

When the Bible addresses husbands and wives it is not pop-psychology or just good common sense for how marriage works. In the Bible we learn how followers of Christ are to live in this world. The Bible can help us have a healthy and strong marriage, but God is more interested in marriages that honor Christ. That will have bearing on how husbands and wives treat each other.

Peter is interested in helping Christian wives and husbands live in the world in a way that brings honor to God and points others to Christ. Christian marriage opens up an avenue for Christian witness to the lordship of Christ. Today we consider the role of a Christian husband. We see that a Christian husband is called to be a blessing to his wife.

I. KNOW YOUR WIFE. 1Pt.3:7a

The first part of v.7 says, “Live with your wives in an understanding way.” While it seems to be a general truth to say that men do not understand women, it is also true that a husband can make great strides in understanding his wife. But why would Peter have to write this? I think it is because dominance often leads to selfishness. Peter lived in a world that catered to men and treated women as second class. Women largely existed to serve men. And even though a great deal has changed since Peter’s day, in many ways it’s still a man’s world. Society is largely patriarchal. I have no desire to enter into a discussion on whether or not that is how it should or shouldn’t be. I am more concerned with thinking about what it means for a man to be a Christian husband. Peter says it means living with your wife in an understanding way.

Now every day is a new day. It is never too late to begin a new approach to living with your wife. Your wife may be a difficult woman to live with. If that is the case, yes, being married will be challenging. Here’s the thing. You cannot make your wife change, but you can bring change to yourself with the help of the Holy Spirit. And one of the important changes that you may have to make is learning to live with your wife in an understanding way.

To live with one’s wife in an understanding way means that you have understanding of your wife. Do you understand something about your wife’s background, her family life while growing up? Do you know what her dreams are? Do you know the goals she has for life? Do you know the things that bother her, the things that she worries about? Do you have knowledge of the things she regrets in her life? Do you have a sense about what brings her joy? Do you know what her favorite foods are? Does she like flowers? Do you have understanding of her spiritual life? Does she know the Lord?

Men, marriage is one of God’s finishing schools for our lives. In marriage we have the opportunity to learn to die to ourselves. The quickest way to finding fulfillment and joy in marriage is die to yourself. But dying to self is not a quick project. So what would the next step be for you to begin living with your wife in an understanding way? The next step might be a heartfelt apology for being self-centered. The next step might be regularly asking the Lord to help you attend to your wife.

One of my regular prayers is that the Lord will help me to be a blessing to Angie each day. I pray this because I can be so into myself. I read and think a lot and in the evenings when my mind is tired I play candy crush. One of my challenges is to attend to Angie when she talks to me.

Maybe there are things about your wife that are dysfunctional. Maybe she has habits that deeply bother you. Is there a way to gain understanding about it? What’s behind the dysfunction or habits? There is nothing easy about these situations. But being resentful isn’t going to help. So maybe you need to take steps to forgive your wife in your heart. Jesus Christ is Lord in your house. If you are a Christian then ultimately the way you treat your wife is about your relationship with the Lord. And if you have destructive habits or ways in which you are dysfunctional, it might be helpful to get counseling. You owe it to yourself and your wife. Peter says, “Live with your wife in an understanding way.” Get to know your wife.

II. HONOR YOUR WIFE. 1Pt.3:7b

The second part of the verse reads, “showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life.” When we honor someone we elevate them. We have regard for them. We respect them. And in marriage I am going say that we serve our spouse because we honor them.

Peter gives two reasons why we are to honor our wives. First he say we honor our wives because they are the weaker vessel. The obvious meaning is that men are physically stronger than women. When it comes to brute force, men have it over women. This is not to say that women are not strong. I have watched African women carry heavy objects on their heads and spend long hours working in the fields. And I wouldn’t want to play rugby with our US women’s rugby team. But generally men are stronger than women. Unfortunately there are a good number of men, including Christian men, who use their strength in harmful ways. Physical, sexual abuse is common in our society. And when Christian men abuse their wives that is deeply sinful and so destructive.

When we value something that we can easily break, we treat that thing with great care. Again I’m speaking in a general way. Husbands, we have no right as Christians to overpower our wives. The use of force is not the way of Jesus. In fact, as Christians our goal ought to be to offer ourselves in service to our wives, especially because they are the weaker vessel. Our goal ought to be to protect our wives because they are the weaker vessel. Would you give your life for your wife?

Then Peter says that we are to honor our wives because they are fellow heirs of the grace of life. Clearly God views men and women as having equal value. It was a woman, Mary, who bore Jesus our Savior into the world. Women are just as much heirs of God’s grace as any man. And because of this Christian husbands are to honor and serve their wives as joint heirs of life in Christ. God gives the same blessings of his grace and mercy to men and women who enter into life with Christ. Husbands, how do you think an heir of the grace of life should be treated? Whether or not your wife is a Christian you should treat her as Jesus would treat her.

It is true that honoring and serving our wives can be challenging. It’s one thing to volunteer at the church or some other ministry once a week or once a month, it’s quite another to honor and serve our wives 24 hours a day. Many of us will struggle to do this. Like everyone else, we wrestle with temptation and sin. We get worried; we get angry; we make dumb decisions; we are human. But you know what? As you seek to honor and serve your wife I imagine that most wives will take note and be very grateful. Honor your wife. What can you do to serve your wife today? What would help her? What would bless her? If it is difficult to do it for your wife than do it for the Lord. Do not stop serving. Do not give up.

III. PRIORITIZE PRAYER. 1Pt.3:7c

The last part of the verse says, “so that your prayers may not be hindered.” Well this comes as a bit of a surprise. I can’t think of another verse like this in the Bible, except maybe Ps.66:18 which says, “If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” But when I read this verse in 1Pt.3 it always comes as a surprise because prayer is not in the context of these verses. It seems to come out of the blue.

How important is prayer to us? Brothers could you get along without prayer? Do you get along without prayer? Quite frankly I know many people who seem to do just fine without an active prayer life, but then they are not trying to live as followers of Christ. The role of prayer in our lives says something about our faith. If Jesus Christ is little more than someone who keeps us from going to hell then we have misunderstood the gospel. Jesus is not an insurance policy. Jesus is the giver of new life in the kingdom of God. We put our faith in Jesus not as a hedge against death and hell, but as the Savior, Lord and King who gives us his righteous, eternal life to live. Anyone who seeks to live as a follower of Jesus will be seeking the Lord in prayer on a regular basis because this world does not embrace Jesus. Being a follower of Christ is challenging. It effects everything we do and say.

It can be challenging to live with our wives without ongoing disagreement and arguing. It calls for regular prayer wouldn’t you agree? But Peter tells us that if we do not live with our wives in an understanding way, showing honor to them, then our prayers will be hindered. I don’t know exactly what that means and I don’t really want to find out. I can’t afford to have my prayers hindered. Can you?

Now this isn’t meant to be a burden to us. Who wants to live in disagreement and conflict? That doesn’t make for a happy life. The goal of Peter’s admonition is for our good and the good of our marriage and for the glory of God.

When a man and a woman get married, it is usually a very joyous occasion. We often cry at weddings. We eat and dance and celebrate with the happy couple. We want the best for them. We want the best for them because we know that it isn’t always easy. Every marriage experiences seasons of happiness and difficulty. For the husbands who are here this morning, I want to encourage you to do your best to be a blessing to your wife. Ask the Lord to help you be gracious. Amen.

The Lord's Supper

August 7, 2016

There is a lot of animosity, hurt, and anger in the world today. In fact it seems as if the world is fueled by animosity. In our own country we are polarized politically and socially. People are not happy with how things are going and we don’t seem to know how to fix it.

And what is true in our country is also true in many of our personal relationships. Marriage relationships, family relationships, our relationships at work are often broken on various levels and we don’t know how to mend the brokenness.

The most important relationship is one’s relationship with God. Being in a deep relationship with God will have a positive effect on all our other relationships. But the truth is our relationship with God is broken. Deep in our heart we want to be our own God. O we want God to solve our problems and help us. But we do not want God to rule us, even though living under God’s rule is the best possible way of living. How can we be reconciled to God? How can our relationships experience reconciliation?

In Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth we learn that that church had problems. People in that church were polarized and there were factions. Relationships needed to be reconciled. So when Paul wrote about the Lord’s Supper he made it clear that broken relationships in the church were incongruous with the Lord’s Supper. In other words, Christ’s presence at his Table calls for reconciled relationships in his Body.

I. RECONCILATION IS THE HEART OF THE LORD’S TABLE. 1Cor.11:17-21

The good news about Jesus Christ is that through his life, death and resurrection our sins are forgiven and we can enter into an eternal relationship with God, living under his good rule, in his eternal kingdom the moment we believe. The believer is the one who confesses with his mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord of all, to the glory of God.

Whereas we were once separated from God because of our sins and our refusal to acknowledge Christ as Lord, when we heard this good news of forgiveness and life we put our faith in Christ and through Christ God reconciled us to himself. Listen to what Paul writes in Col.1:19-23. “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.”

The Lord’s Supper focuses our attention onto Jesus Christ who died for us. When we gather around this Table we are brought into the presence of Jesus and we surrender ourselves to him. Our desire is to have our lives reoriented around Christ and his saving work. We give thanks because we have been reconciled to God.

But here in 1Cor.11, Paul makes it very clear that this reconciliation is not just vertical between us and God. It is also horizontal. Our being reconciled to God also means that we are to be reconciled to all those who know God through Christ.

In the church at Corinth there were divisions and factions. In 1Cor.1 we learn that people in the congregation were aligning themselves with various church leaders. Some were saying, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Peter,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Christ.” And they were arguing about this. In 1Cor.6 we learn that some believers were suing other believers in court. Here in 1Cor.11 we see that there was a socio-economic divide in the church. Before having the Lord’s Supper, the church would have a pot-luck dinner called a love feast. Those who were wealthy would bring their food and gather together and begin eating and drinking before everyone else arrived. Those who were poorer and who perhaps had to work longer hours would get there later and there was nothing for them to eat. Instead of sharing their food, the wealthy ate it. Not only that but some were getting drunk. And then the congregation would observe the Lord’s Supper.

You notice in v.20 Paul writes, “It is not the Lord’s supper that you eat.” Wait. Didn’t they break bread? Didn’t they have the cup? Didn’t they give thanks and hear the words, “This is my body. Eat this in remembrance of me. This is my blood of the new covenant.” They were having the Lord ’s Supper, only Paul says, “It is not the Lord’s supper that you eat.” How can that be? Well, through his death and resurrection Christ is reconciling all things to God. In Christ we are reconciled to God. If we are reconciled to God, should we not be reconciled to God’s people? As far as I can see here, division in the church negates the Lord’s Supper.

In the Lord’s Prayer we say, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” In other words, if we want the Lord to forgive our sins, how can we not extend forgiveness to others? Likewise, if the Lord has reconciled us to God, how can we remain unreconciled to others in the body of Christ?

In v.17 Paul says that when the believers were coming together for this love feast, it was not for the better but for the worse. The body of Christ was being harmed. When believers dwell in an unreconciled condition it does continual harm to the body of Christ. In fact, in v.29-30, Paul writes, “For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.” Some say that Paul is referring to the person of Christ himself, while others say that Paul is referring to the church, the body of Christ. These believers in Corinth were not discerning the unity of the church. They were thinking only of themselves and that is why some were weak and ill, and others had even died. Clearly the Lord’s Table is very significant and not to be taken lightly. And this leads me to say that…

II. RECONCILIATION IS A PRIORITY IN CHRIST’S BODY. 1Cor.11:22, 33-34

In v.22 Paul writes, “What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not.” I would imagine if someone asked these wealthy people if they despised the church of God that they would have said, “No.” From what I can see, these folks were regular attenders. Perhaps they were prominent in the church. Maybe they were the best givers in the church. Paul says they were despising the church and humiliating those who were poor. So what were they to do?

In v.33 Paul tells them that when they come together to eat they should wait for everyone. In other words, they should have regard for their fellow believers and they should share their food. In fact, in v.34 Paul says that if a person is so hungry he should eat at home before he comes.

When we come to the Lord’s Table we come to Jesus, who gave himself for us. He came to serve and to give himself as a ransom for many. He died to himself in order to die for us that we might be reconciled to God. In 2Cor.5:17-18 we read, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” People who have been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ are given a ministry of reconciliation. We want to see others reconciled to God. But if we have a ministry of reconciliation does that not include being reconcilied with our brothers and sisters in the local church?

I don’t know all the interactions that go on between each other in our church. Having attended various churches over the course of my life, I do realize that the potential for being misunderstood and hurt is high in most churches. As one person puts it, the local church is a body of differents. We are different from each other. Some of us are more easily offended than others. We have various ways of communicating. When we become aware that someone has misunderstood our words or intentions, when we feel hurt because of something that was said, it is very important that we take the matter to the Lord, and then try our best to be reconciled.

In the church, the body of Christ our goal is to encourage each other and to build each other up in Christ. In Rm.12:15-18 Paul writes, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

Brothers and sister, before we can think of helping others be reconciled to God, should we not make every effort to be sure we are reconciled with God’s people? The Table of the Lord calls us to be reconciled with each other.

Now maybe you realize this morning that your relationship with God is broken. You have pretty much kept God at a distance. Well, God came to this earth in the person of his Son, Jesus Christ. In Christ, God came to this earth to find you. God sees the sin and brokenness of your life. God sees that the trajectory of your life is moving towards a death in which you are unreconciled to God. Jesus died on the cross for you. Somehow God put the guilt of your sin and my sin on Jesus. Sin leads to death. Jesus died for you. And he rose from the dead and on the basis of what Jesus did, God is extending to all an invitation to receive his forgiveness of your sins and to receive his eternal life in his kingdom. He invites us; he does not force us. Well, Jesus is here and if you will have him, he will gladly be your Savior, Lord and King and give you his life to live.

But many of us already know God through faith in Christ. Well, before we come to the Lord’s Table, I want to give us time for personal reflection. Are you at odds with someone? Are you holding something against someone? Are you aware that perhaps you may have hurt someone? Please bring that before the Lord and after the service seek to be reconciled. Amen

A Word For Christian Wives

July 24, 2016

The circumstances of our lives help to shape our priorities for living life. If you are a university student looking to prepare for a career, your priority will be to study hard. If you have recently lost your job your priority will be to find a job.

Now what if you become a Christian, a follower of Christ? A person who follows Christ will have a priority of living for Christ. In 1Pt.2-3, Peter speaks about what it means to follow Christ in the various circumstances of life. In chapter 3 he speaks about marriage. First he addresses wives. Christian wives, with Christian priorities will point their husbands to Jesus.

I. SEE THE PRIORITY OF THE GOSPEL. 3:1

First Peter focuses on the impact that the gospel has in a person’s life while living in a hostile world. In chapter one Peter writes about the great benefits of receiving salvation through faith in Christ. Not only are our sins forgiven, but we are given a living hope. There is a glorious inheritance being kept for us that will be revealed when Christ returns. What is more, when we turn to Christ in faith we are given new eternal life. And this eternal life is given to us while we still live in our earthly bodies.

Again, when we embrace the gospel, we become part of the people of God, the church. In 2:9, Peter writes, “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

The church proclaims to the world the excellencies of God revealed in the person of Jesus. The world in which the believers of Peter’s day were living was hostile to the gospel and to followers of Jesus. And so beginning in 2:13 Peter refers to specific scenarios in which believers must live as Christians. He talks about how Christians engage government. In 2:18 Peter has a word for how Christian slaves are to engage their masters. And beginning in 3:1 Peter speaks to Christian wives and husbands.

In each of these scenarios Peter calls believers to live in such a way that will promote the gospel in society and silence those who would try to malign believers.

But at this point I must raise the question. Have you embraced the good news, the gospel of forgiveness, life, and love in Christ? The problem for all of us is that we are filled with self-will to the point that we do not want to live under the good will of God. We want our way over his ways. Self-will, disregard for God’s good commands has brought disobedience, brokenness, and sadness into our lives, our relationships, and our world because our self-will separates us from God. In the Christian worldview, only Christ can restore our lives and our world to the good that God originally intended for us. Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, God offers forgiveness and eternal life to all who will turn from their own way and by faith embrace Jesus. When we embrace Jesus and become his follower we enter into a relationship with God in the Kingdom of God and are filled with the life and love of Jesus. And the brokenness of our own lives begins to be healed by Jesus. As we follow Jesus our lives are transformed and we become part of the solution for healing, reconciliation, and restoration in this world.

Well you can see that turning to Jesus makes a big difference in how we live. It makes a big difference in how Christian wives live with their husbands. Peter’s hope is that the way Christian wives live with their unbelieving husbands will win their husbands to Christ. So do you know Christ? Have you turned to him for forgiveness and life?

II. SEE THE PRIORITY OF CHRISTIAN CONDUCT. 3:1-2

Just as we are to be subject to government authorities and slaves are to be subject to their masters, so Peter writes that wives are to be subject to their husbands. When we considered our relationship to government we had to adapt Peter’s words to our situation. We don’t live in the Roman Empire; we live in a democracy. So we said that Christians are to do their best to live under whatever government is in place. Christians are to live under the laws as long as the laws do not compromise their loyalty and obedience to Jesus. When we considered Peter’s words to slaves, we pointed out that slavery in the ancient world was quite a bit different from slavery in our own country and since we no longer have slavery we applied Peter’s words to employees. When we think about how to apply Peter’s imperative for Christian wives we recognize that while our society is still patriarchal, much has changed. The strong patriarchy that once dominated and greatly restricted women in Judaism and the Roman-Greco societies has given way to a much more egalitarian approach to marriage. In fact, most of us would say that the Bible in no way promotes the strong, controlling and dismissive treatment of women that once characterized societies and marriages. Whereas in the old country a husband might feel well within his rights to hit or slap his wife, today we would say this is not what God desires. In fact, in the face of physical, verbal, emotional, and sexual abuse within marriage, which is still a huge problem, many pastors today would encourage the wife to leave the husband for her own welfare.

So in applying Peter’s admonition to Christian wives, I would say that Christian wives are to graciously live with their husbands according to the freedoms and restrictions generally embraced by society. Of course I am not talking about any sinful behavior. If our lives are characterized by gospel living that is going to be seen in our conduct. Here Peter refers to respectful and pure conduct.

In your marriage you want to live like Jesus would live if he were in your shoes. That is the goal for every believer. Peter points out that this is especially true if your husband or wife is an unbeliever. Notice that Peter refers to winning your husband without words. In other words, I believe Peter is saying that in our marriages conduct is more important than gospel conversation. We don’t badger people to embrace Christ by continually telling them they need to be saved. A Christian wife who continually tries to get her husband to become a believer by always talking about it is probably doing more harm than good, especially if your gospel words are not backed up by Christian living.

Truth be told, Christian conduct, Christian living is more challenging than gospel conversation. It is in our conduct that Christ is revealed. Are you married to an unbelieving husband? What does he see day in and day out as you live together? Are you critical? Do you nag and find fault? Or do you seek to encourage and build up? Are you selfish, putting yourself first? What about your language? Do you yell and curse? When you are upset are you quick to anger? Do you hold onto resentments or are you quick to forgive? Do you complain and grumble at your lot in life? Do you lie? Are you more concerned with having a certain standard of living than living to the standard of Christ? Do you purposely do things that will irritate your husband? Do you apologize when you hurt him? Do you withhold yourself from your husband? I get it. Marriage is not easy. But if you are a Christian it should make a difference in the way you treat your husband whether he is a believer or not.

Peter says to respect your husband. That means to have regard for your husband’s unique personality, preferences and needs. Does he have a favorite meal? Is he discouraged? Do you try to please your husband? I know of a husband who likes to have his feet rubbed. It’s not me. But would you be willing to do that if he were your husband? You might be thinking, “Wait a minute! It can’t be all about him.” I understand, but this is the man you are married to. This is the man you show Christ to in your conduct. The goal in marriage is to love and serve one’s spouse not one’s self. When the focus is on loving and serving, talk about submission is usually unnecessary. A Christian wife is going to seek to love her husband and be grateful for him.

Now there are some very unloving, lazy, and disrespectful husbands. And, of course that will make it very difficult for a Christian wife to respect and serve her husband. However, God will work through you to reach your husband as you follow and obey Christ.

And then Peter refers to pure conduct. This refers to being morally pure, sincere and blameless. Every believer struggles with sin and temptation, but because we are followers of Christ, our desire is to keep our focus on Jesus and his ways and turn away from selfishness and sin. The temptation in marriage is to keep the focus on our spouse’s short comings while giving our own shortcomings a pass. You cannot change your husband, but with God’s help you can change your behavior over time as you focus on Christ. And changed behavior is a powerful testimony to the reality of Christ in us.

III. SEE THE PRIORITY OF CHRISTIAN BEAUTY. 3:3-6

For women, external beauty is a big business in every part of the world. To be sure, standards of beauty vary from culture to culture, but wherever you go the beauty and fashion industries are bringing in big bucks.

Why is this? Well it’s because in our world, women are considered the fairer sex and men value beautiful women. And women vie with each other to become more beautiful, calling attention to their appearance. Of course, those who are wealthy can spend more money on clothes, make-up, perfumes, etc. And today, because the ideal body image is thin, but shapely, many women are not able to measure up and they feel bad about themselves because in their minds they can’t be beautiful. Again, if you are wealthy you can always have surgery to enhance this or that part of your body. For every woman age eventually diminishes the luster of beauty. Wealthy women are often willing to spend more money to hold onto every last ounce of their youthful beauty.

In Peter’s day the standard of feminine beauty included braided hair, gold jewelry, and fine clothes. Paul writes the same thing. In 1Tim.2:9 Paul says that Christian women should not adorn themselves with “braided hair, and gold or pearls or costly attire.” Let me say that there is nothing wrong with braided hair, gold jewelry, pearls, or nice clothing. If you received a strand of pearls from your grandmother, Paul is not saying, “It is sinful to wear those pearls.” I don’t believe Peter and Paul are saying a women should not wear makeup or dress nicely. Rather, they are saying that Christian women should not make an idol out of their outward appearance. Christian women should not depend upon outward beauty to secure their sense of wellbeing. If you focus on your outward appearance you will never be truly happy or content with yourself.

So how should Christian women make themselves beautiful? Peter encourages Christian wives to focus on cultivating inner beauty, the inner beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit. The word for gentle is sometimes translated with the English word, “meek.” This is a person who is considerate and humble. This person does not demand their way. She is not pushy. The word quiet refers to an inward, quiet calmness.

Notice that Peter says this kind of beauty is imperishable. Cultivating an inner, Christ like beauty will only enhance one’s marriage relationship. But there is more to this than meets the eye. Our body and soul are deeply integrated. What happens in our soul eventually shows itself in the body. And what happens to the body eventually shapes the soul. The woman who is constantly seeking outward beauty begins to develop inner pride and or, dissatisfaction. This woman is often comparing herself with other women and this in turn creates a critical spirit. On the other hand, the woman who is seeking to cultivate the inner beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, will find that in time her body will be at rest and peace. Contentment and grace have their effect on the body. This is true for everyone, not just women. And please do not think that Christian women should look frumpy and old fashioned. Rather as Paul writes in 1Tim.2:9, “women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control.”

When a man and woman are married, they cast their lot together. If in the course of the marriage the wife becomes a Christian, the marriage relationship may be strained because the husband is not a believer. The husband might do things that the wife doesn’t approve of. You remember that Abraham told his wife Sara to tell Pharaoh that she was Abraham’s sister. Sara was beautiful and Abraham was afraid that Pharaoh would kill him in order to take Sara. But God protected Sara. If you are a Christian wife married to an unbeliever, do all you can to show the righteousness, love, grace, and mercy of Christ in your conduct and cultivate deep trust in God. Entrust your life to God and he will help you in difficult circumstances. There is more hope for your husband to turn to Christ as you adopt this plan for living. Your husband will see how your life is being transformed and God will use you to point him to Jesus. Amen

Working In the Way of Jesus

June 26, 2016

The reality of life is that we all have to work. Sometimes we complain about our job. We don’t like the way they run things at the hospital or the factory. We find our co-worker to be annoying. We are not paid enough. Or maybe we love our job and it is a wonderful source of meaning and purpose and income.

Now in one sense how we feel about our work is immaterial because we have to work to live. But as Christians our work is actually a great opportunity. Peter speaks about this. You see,  Christians view employment as an opportunity to imitate Christ.

I. GRACIOUSLY SERVE YOUR EMPLOYER. 2:18-20

Obviously Peter is not talking about general employment. He is talking specifically to slaves. And it is important to understand something about slavery in world history. I have read multiple sources in which the authors have pointed out that the form of slavery existing during the 1st century was far different from the slavery that took place in our country.

In Peter’s day it is estimated that as much as one third of the urban populations were comprised of slaves. What is more, slavery was not based on racism. In fact, many of these slaves were doctors, teachers, writers, accountants, agents, bailiffs, secretaries, and overseers. Slaves could own property and even their own slaves. Many people volunteered to become slaves because it was a means of bettering oneself, saving up money and even gaining Roman citizenship. This is not to say that slavery was easy or that all slave owners were good. Many slaves were mistreated.

However, the form of slavery known in our country and elsewhere was despicable. It was rooted in racism and slaves from Africa were considered to be subhuman. Our country is still paying the price. And what is really sad is that slave owners, who professed to be Christians, even used passages like 1Pt.2 to justify slavery.

Is there a biblical justification for slavery? Why would Peter encourage Christian slaves to be subject to their masters and even endure undeserved suffering? Let me share two thoughts. First there are hints in the New Testament that suggest slavery is in many cases immoral. In 1Tim.1:9-10 Paul is listing various sins and he includes enslavers. Then in 1Cor.7:21, Paul writes, “Were you a bondservant when called? Do not be concerned about it. (But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity.)” Clearly slavery was not encouraged in the New Testament. And I believe the abolishing of slavery is exactly in keeping with God and his ways.

At the same time, given the fact that slavery was often a chosen way of life for many, clearly we cannot condemn outright those who chose to voluntarily become slaves as a means of bettering their lives. In addition to this, given the fact that much of the economy was based upon this kind of slavery, Peter and Paul did not want to give any impression that Christians were trying to disrupt the economy by overthrowing slavery. If the gospel was going to gain a foothold in society the overthrow of slavery would have to be put on hold.

And so Peter tells Christian slaves to be subject to their masters. Because many slaves were compensated for their work, there is an application for us today. All of us who work for someone else, need to heed the teaching of Peter in these verses. Our general posture at work is to be subject to those who are over us. We are to respect our supervisors and managers even if they are not respectable in the way they treat us. As Christians we want to be conscientious in our work, doing our best to have a good attitude.

Of course the reality for many employees is that their supervisors and managers mistreat them in any number of ways ranging from saying unkind things to refusing to grant a deserved raise or promotion. Peter is quick to say that as Christians we should certainly not be guilty of any wrongdoing that would merit disapproval. But at the same time he says that when unjust suffering comes on the job, it is a gracious thing in the sight of God to endure it. Wow!

Now let’s think about this. In Peter’s day, the master held all the cards. The master owned the slave. So the slave had no real recourse. In Paul’s letter to Philemon, we learn that Philemon had a slave named Onesimus who ran away from Philemon after perhaps having stolen something. While in Rome, Onesimus turned to Christ. Paul was urging Philemon to receive Onesimus back now as a brother in Christ. It was Philemon’s decision. He held the cards.

Today, employees have legal rights especially in regard to any kind of discrimination. Based upon what Peter writes here, would it be appropriate for a Christian to take his or her employer to court because of discrimination? Would it be right for a Christian to blow the whistle on an employer who was breaking the law? I would say, “Yes.” I say yes because these are important legal rights for the wellbeing of everyone in the United States.

Having said that I would quickly add that our motivation should never be to get revenge and it would also seem to me that one should try to follow in house procedures for registering a complaint. We want to be respectful and seek the wellbeing of everyone involved. Why? So that we can promote Christ and the good news of life in Christ. After all, everything we do as Christians is for the glory of God

In Col.3:22-23 Paul writes, “Bondservants, obey in everything those who are your earthly masters, not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord. Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men” And in Col.4:1, Paul writes, “Masters, treat your bondservants justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.” Whichever side we are on in the workplace, as Christians we represent Christ and that shapes how we work.

II. CONSIDER THE EXAMPLE OF JESUS. 2:21-23

What Peter writes here is not easy. It is not easy to suffer at the hands of someone else, especially when that suffering is undeserved. At least for us, if we really cannot bear to work at a place, we can quit. Slaves could not quit. But not everyone can quit. Sometimes our work situations are such that we cannot quit and so we must endure. How can we do that? Peter tells us to consider the example of Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ did nothing wrong. He never sinned. He only did what was good and right. And yet, Jesus experienced more suffering than any of us ever will because he bore the guilt of all our sin when he died on the cross. While living on this earth Peter reminds us that Jesus was reviled but he did not respond in kind. He did not threaten anyone, instead he entrusted his life into the care of God, who will judge all people. What is more, Jesus did this for us, so that we may receive the forgiveness of sin and eternal living in the kingdom of God. Peter says that Jesus is an example for us. In other words there are going to be times in our life when we will be mistreated and may suffer in some way unjustly. In those times, we are to look to Jesus.

Generally, our initial reaction to such suffering is to become angry. We feel justified in our anger because we have done nothing to deserve the suffering. It’s not right. And it isn’t right. But we are Christians. And as Christians our eyes are on Jesus Christ. In Heb.12:3 we read, “Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.”

Now I don’t want to prolong this point except to say that one of the good things about following Christ is that by keeping Christ before our minds, we are encouraged to be like him. In Christ we are free to be gracious when treated unjustly because that is how Jesus was. And our lives are safe in his care.

Sometimes our patterns of negative thinking are so deep that all we can think about is how unjustly we are being treated. Jesus didn’t do that. Jesus kept thinking about how good God is to care for him. Jesus kept thinking about the joy set before him. What we think about does make a difference. The more our minds are filled with Christ, the better able we will be to follow in his steps when it comes to graciously enduring suffering.

This is challenging for every believer because there is very little in our world that helps us keep Jesus in the forefront of our minds. There is simply no way to do this without being intentional about it. I’m not talking about some legalistic quiet time. I’m talking about personally seeing the value of keeping Christ before your mind and creatively taking steps to do that. Whether you want to memorize scripture, or read through the gospels, one way or another our minds need to be set on Jesus and his goodness.

III. LIVE THE LIFE OF JESUS. 2:24-25

Having Jesus as our example is wonderful. There is no better example than Jesus. But Jesus is more than just an example. Jesus is the Savior, Lord and King of heaven and earth. In dying on the cross and rising from the grave Jesus provided the only means by which our sins can be forgiven and we can receive a brand new way of living that is eternal. By putting our trust in Jesus and committing ourselves to follow him, we enter into a life changing relationship with Jesus. Our sins are forgiven and we receive new eternal living that transforms our lives. We become a new creation in Christ. The Holy Spirit of God comes to live in us.

Someone asks, “Well how do I actually come to Him? We come to him by faith because we cannot see him. We take Jesus at his word when he says that he came that we might have eternal life. We acknowledge him as our only Savior, Lord and King. And then we live the life he gives to us. We become followers of Jesus.

Peter says Jesus bore our sins in order that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. When Jesus comes to live in us, he changes us, not against our will, of course. But as we put our trust in Jesus and begin to follow in his way with our heart, mind, and soul, our lives begin to change. So often we have reduced this process to a onetime event. We might say, “O right, when I was 7 years old I asked Jesus to be my Savior. I got baptized. So yeah, I put my trust into Jesus then and was saved.” But men and women, putting our trust in Jesus is a daily, ongoing journey. I didn’t just put my trust in Angie on our wedding day. I put my trust in her every day.

Because Jesus is living and dwells in us, we have the strength or power to actually follow in his steps by the Holy Spirit. In fact, as Peter tells us, we die to sin and we live to righteousness. We die to sin as we resist disobedient, prideful, self-centered ways. And we live to righteousness as we fix our eyes of the virtues of Jesus as seek to be like him. As we surrender our lives to Jesus, the Holy Spirit transforms our lives so that we begin to display his fruit which is, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. These are not just things we talk about. These are virtues we seek to embody and practice. These are things about which we apologize to others when we fail to practice them.

These are the virtues we want to display when we are working. Why? Because we are doing our work to the glory of God and Jesus. Jesus is the most important person in our lives and so in the work place where we spend so much or our time, we seek to imitate Jesus. In imitating Jesus, we are promoting his goodness and love. And God will use us to point people to life in Christ.

Now some of you may have jobs that are very unsatisfying. You are not appreciated and work is wearying. Some of you work for a Christian organization and you may be disappointed at how unchristian, Christians can be. Every job has its challenges. As Christians our primary goal is to show up every day seeking to display the virtues of Jesus as we do our work to the glory of God. Amen.

The Christian and Government

June 19, 2016

Everyone here has some kind of relationship with the United States government. You are either a citizen or not. If you work in this country you must pay taxes. There are laws that must be obeyed. If you are a citizen you can vote. There is no avoiding the government.

However, I don’t know if everyone here has a relationship with Jesus Christ. Why would a person desire to be in a relationship with Jesus? Well, it is because Jesus is the Jewish Messiah who has become Lord of heaven and earth. Jesus reigns in the Kingdom of God and is calling all men and women to embrace him as their Savior from sin and King of their lives.

In dying on the cross and rising from the dead, Jesus bore our sins and made it possible for our sins to be forgiven. To those who turn away from their self-centered way of living and embrace Jesus as Savior, Lord, and King, God will give them eternal living in his eternal kingdom.

As you might imagine, the ways of God and Jesus are quite different from the ways of living in this world. This world is driven by self-centeredness and selfish ambition. We are all sinful people who would rather live our lives apart from God and his good rule. But when a person begins to follow Jesus it impacts every dimension of life in this world. For example, our relationship with Christ shapes our relationship to government.

I. BE SUBJECT. 2:13-14

The question is what should be the overall posture of the Christian to government? The simple answer found in v.13 is to “be subject.” We are to live under the government order of whatever society we are a part of. When Peter was writing, Nero was the Roman Emperor. In fact, Peter was martyred under Nero. And since everyone basically lived in the Roman Empire you were stuck with the current emperor and whatever governors he appointed in your part of the world. Today there are many different forms of government that believers live under. Being subject will mean something different in each setting.

Now there are two thoughts in these verses we need to observe. First, you see in v.13 that believers are to be subject for the Lord’s sake. This tells us that our first priority is to Jesus Christ, our King. Our character and conduct in this world is to be patterned after the character and conduct of Jesus. His commands are to have first place over any other command. When we do something for the Lord’s sake we do it to honor, exalt and promote the Lord. It was the Lord who said, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and give to the Lord what belongs to the Lord.” So in whatever form of government we find ourselves living under we must do our best to live for Christ and comply with the government.

The second observation is that Peter gives us a thought about one of the purposes of government. Government is meant to maintain moral order. It is the government that punishes those who do evil and praises those who do good. Of course government does much more than this, but this is foundational to good government. In Prov.11:10-11 we read, “When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish there are shouts of gladness. By the blessing of the upright a city is exalted, but by the mouth of the wicked it is overthrown.” Or in Prov.29:2, we read, “When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.” When government begins to punish those who do good and exonerate those who do evil it puts Christians in a very difficult position. We see what happens in countries in which oppression reigns. Those who seek to do good are often mistreated.

So how do we carry out Peter’s admonition? In the Roman Empire, the average person had no say in deciding the laws. If you held a prominent place in your village or town, you might have some input concerning local laws. But if you were a slave or poor, you had no input. So you do your best to comply as unto the Lord.

On the other hand Peter’s admonition looks very different for people who live under a form of democracy. Ours is a representational form of government in which we have the opportunity to elect our government leaders. Not only that but many of the laws which govern our states are laws that are voted on by the people who live in those states. There is a process for introducing new laws and for modifying existing laws. We have a constitution which protects the right to free speech, including public protest. The people Peter was writing to had none of these rights. I’m sure there was a great deal of government corruption just as there is today. If the people in Peter’s day had protested the government they were likely to lose their lives.

Today in the United States, if the federal or state government makes a law that is in direct conflict with what Jesus taught us to do, then we must disobey. If the government passed a law which required me to marry a gay or lesbian couple, I would have to respectfully disobey the law. So far, as Christians we do not have those kinds of laws, although it feels like such laws could come at any time. There are laws which are interpreted in ways that make it difficult for Christians in certain settings and so as Christians we must act according to our conscience, in keeping with Scripture, but always in a respectful and gracious way. As Christians we may not always agree on how to respond. We certainly cannot expect the world to conform to Christ or our particular way of thinking. Our primary citizenship is the kingdom of God, not the United States. In obedience to Christ, our general posture in society is to be subject to the government.

II. DO GOOD. 2:15-16

When you read the gospels you discover that Jesus does not spend a lot of time criticizing the government. He does call Herod a fox. He points out that in the world there is a me-first attitude, but he does not spend his time talking about governmental laws and policies. Jesus’ main criticisms are directed towards the hypocrisy of the Jewish religious leaders. Jesus was far more interested in seeing people enter into life in the kingdom of God by becoming his willing follower. He did not coerce people to follow him. Rather he lived and spoke in such a way as to attract people to follow him. His life and teachings were compelling. He went around doing good for people. Many did follow him and many others did not.

So we are not surprised to read Peter’s admonition to do good. Not only are we to be subject to the government, but we are to do good for others in our society. Today there is much written about human flourishing. What is the best kind of life one can live? Of course it involves virtue and wisdom, beauty, and health. All of these things help to bring happiness. For Christians, human flourishing begins with knowing God. When a person comes to know God through faith in Jesus, there is the highest potential for human flourishing. In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word for flourishing would be shalom. Shalom signifies, salvation, wholeness, integrity, soundness, community, connectedness, righteousness, justice, well-being. All of these things sound like human flourishing. In Phil.4:8 Paul writes, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Well, all of those things contribute to human flourishing.

In our daily living what can we do to help others flourish in life? How can we contribute to the well-being of others and society? The simple answer is by doing good wherever we can.

Of course, our world is filled with a great deal of sadness, sickness, violence and destruction. We live in a world that has lost its moral compass. People have competing views about what is truly good. And we may not always know what is the good to do in a given situation. But it is always good to help those who are poor and needy. It is always good to seek justice for those who are oppressed and mistreated. It is always good to lend a neighbor a helping hand. It is always good to care for those who are sick, disabled, and sorrowing. James tells us to care for the widows and orphans. The writer of Hebrews talks about visiting those in prison. I mean there is plenty of good that we can do.

Notice the reason Peter gives for doing good. In v.15 he says that we should do good so that we can put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Doing good is a way of making room for the good news of Jesus in society. When we are known for doing good it is difficult for others to speak against Christ. In other words we seek to do good in order to make the good news of Jesus attractive.

Mother Teresa was someone who went around doing good. She cared for the least of these. And there are many Christians who are seeking to do good in society. Some are involved in helping to create fair housing laws. Others are trying to protect abused children. Some are trying to rescue girls and boys from sex slavery. Some are working in our cities where there is much homelessness, poverty, violence, addiction. But all of us can seek to encourage and be a blessing to others. Frankly, it seems to me that seeking to do good in the name of Jesus holds far more promise for gospel witness, than taking public stands when it comes to our political preferences. Our hope is not in a political party or in the Supreme Court. Our hope for the present and the future is in the kingdom of God. And when the Christian left and the Christian right become an arm of a political party we lose our distinctiveness as Christians. We lose our ability to show the kingdom of God because the kingdom of God is not aligned with these political organizations.

It is interesting to see what Peter writes in v.16. He says, “Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God.” To know Christ is to be set free from all bondage. We are set free from bondage to satan, sin, and death. Since our lives are safe in the hands of God there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. As Christians we may suffer in this world, but we know our lives are safe in Christ. That brings liberating freedom, freedom for good, not for evil. Our freedom in Christ is best enjoyed as we serve God. Doing good flows out of living the kind of life that naturally produces good works. It is Christ living in us.

III. HONOR EVERYONE. 2:17

We must remember that Peter is writing to believers who were experiencing various kinds of persecution. They were living under Roman rule and Nero, the Roman emperor did not look favorably upon Christians. In v.17 Peter writes, “Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.” What does this mean?

To honor someone means to value and have regard for that person. Again, this is our general posture as we live in society. Followers of Jesus Christ value people. We try to look at people, even those who mistreat us, through the compassionate eyes of Jesus. When Jesus was on the cross, he looked at those who were crucifying him and said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

Listen to this extended quote from Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount: "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil. But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you. "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?”

Now I believe that this kind of behavior is only possible as a person knows and follows Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit. This kind of behavior is only possible as believers die to themselves and dying to self is difficult. This kind of behavior is only possible as believers keep the radiant goodness of Jesus before their minds by dwelling on Scripture and daily casting themselves on the care and protection of God.

In the next phrase we are told to love the brotherhood. Here Peter is talking about our brothers and sisters in Christ. It is interesting that when one reads the epistles of Paul it becomes clear that the burden Paul had was the mystery that in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself and people to each other. Constantly Paul is talking about how the church is the new people of God in which Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female, are one in Christ. All humanity is leveled at the cross. And over and over again, Paul, taking his que from Jesus, tells us to love each other.

Brothers and sisters, it is true that each one who knows Christ is a new creation in Christ. In other words, the new heaven and earth that God is bringing about has already begun in the life of everyone who knows Jesus Christ. Every believer is living new creation life. But what we see in the New Testament is that every believer is part of the church of Jesus Christ. Every believer belongs to the people of God and the implication is that each believer will be a regular, active participant in a local congregation. In Paul’s day there wasn’t much opportunity for church hopping. There just were not that many local congregations. Nor was worship a time for congregations to compete with each other, trying to put on the best show. Worship involved singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, hearing the word of God, encouraging each other, drawing near to Jesus at the Lord’s Table, and prayer. The present day emphasis on prosperity, technical excellence, numbers, and marketing in the church of America is shameful for it detracts from Jesus Christ.

Now of course, we all want to do our best for the Lord in whatever we do. But when doing our best means that we cannot appreciate the contribution of another brother or sister, because it doesn’t quite measure up, then we have made an idol of doing our best. Our focus must be on loving one another with the love that God has poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit and the only way we can do this is if we are part of one another in the church.

Then Peter says, “Fear God. Honor the emperor.” The order is important. The last thing that Christians want to do is dishonor God. God is the One who gives us life in his Kingdom. God is the One in whose love we live. God is the One who holds our lives together in Christ. God is the One who has given us his good commands to obey. Our loyalty is to God and his Son, Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit. So we have a holy fear, a reverence for God.

We are also to honor those in government who have authority over us. In other words we are to respect and value them as long as we are not compromising our loyalty to God and his son, Jesus.

I am grateful for the privilege of living in the United States of America. And while I have never thought of our country as being a Christian country, I do believe that Judeo-Christian values found in the Ten Commandments helped to form the constitution that we live under. Jesus summarized the Ten Commandments in terms of loving God and loving one another. I am thankful for government leaders who seek to lead according to these values. My hope would be that many who run for office would embrace the values expressed in the Ten Commandments. But today, these values have fallen on hard times.

And so as our country becomes increasingly secular in its government we can learn from Peter how to live. We must be subject. We must do good. And we must honor everyone. Amen

The Lord's Supper

June 5, 2016

The good news about Jesus is summed up by two words: forgiveness and life. Jesus continually spoke about having a kind of life that is different from the life we enter into at birth. It all goes back to the beginning. When God created Adam and Eve, everything he made, including Adam and Eve, was good. Adam and Eve were given the privilege of governing the world on God’s behalf in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were ikons of humanity living under the rule of God and sharing in that rule.

Adam and Eve chose to usurp the rule of God. In rebellion and disobedience Adam and Eve claimed the place of God and God banished them from the Garden and cast them into the world as we know it. All the descendants of Adam and Eve, including you and me, have followed in their steps, putting ourselves in the place of God. Well, God continued to seek to establish his good rule on earth by choosing Abraham and Israel. Israel was to be a light to the nations as they lived under the good rule of God in the Promised Land. Eventually Israel wanted to have human kings, and God gave the usurpers what they wanted. God sought to establish his good rule through the Jewish kings. But even the godliest kings of Israel were usurpers like Adam and Eve.

Finally God sent his Son, Jesus into the world. Jesus was a descendant of David. Jesus, God in the flesh, showed the world how good it is to live under God’s good rule. But more than that, in seeking to establish the kingdom of God, Jesus allowed himself to be crucified on the cross and in doing so, he bore the guilt of our sins and absorbed in himself the wrath of God against all sin. But Jesus rose from the grave with eternal life to give. And through Jesus, God is forming a new creation people. These are people who embrace and believe Jesus to be the only savior and giver of new life in the kingdom of God through the forgiveness of sin.

All of us have usurped the good rule of God for our own rule, our own kingdoms. But in Jesus we have the opportunity to enter into a whole new life. Eternal life. Men and women, eternal living is found in Jesus.

I. JESUS IS THE VISIBLE EXPRESSION OF GOD. Jn.6:57a

John 6 is the longest chapter in John’s Gospel and it is a very significant chapter. It is significant because in it we read about the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. Other than the resurrection, this is the only miracle that appears in all four Gospels. But before we actually get to the miracle I want to think about the first part of v.57. There Jesus says, “As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father,…”

To think about this let’s look at Jn.5. After healing the man at the Pool of Bethesda, we read in v.18, “This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.” The Jewish leaders understood the claims Jesus was making for himself. They realized that Jesus was claiming to be God in the flesh.

In v.20 Jesus claims that the Father shows him all that he is doing. In v.21 he says, “as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.” In v.22-23, Jesus says that the Father has given all judgment to the Son that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father.” Wow! Jesus is saying that people should worship him just as they worship God. Look at v.27-29. “And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.” Two things: Jesus referred to himself as the Son of Man. This comes from Dan.7 and supports his deity. But also note that at the time of judgment the dead hear the voice of Jesus. Now go back to v.26. “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.”

God is self-existent. In other words, the existence of God is not dependent on anything else. In fact, everything else derives its existence from God. You and I exist right now because God is enabling us to live. But Jesus claimed that he was and is self-existent as God because the Father granted the Son also to have life in himself. Theologians talk about the eternal generation of the Son from the Father. They sometimes use the analogy of a ray of light generated from the sun. As long as the sun exists the ray of light exists. Well it might be a helpful thought, but however we try to understand this, the reality is that Jesus is one with the Father from eternity past and he has life in himself.

Now drop down to 5:39-40. All this time Jesus has been talking to the Jewish leaders. Here he says, “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” In Jesus’ day, the scriptures referred to the Law and the Prophets, what we call the Old Testament. The Old Testament points to Jesus. The Scriptures do not give life. It is Jesus who gives life. We already saw this in v.21. “Just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.”

There are people who have a sort of magical view of the Bible. They think that because they have a Bible and read it sometimes, that this will bode well for them. But no. The Bible does not give life. Jesus gives life. The Jewish religious leaders did not receive Jesus as their Messiah. They refused to come to Jesus for life.

What I want us to see is that God makes himself known in Jesus. Earlier this year we heard about the former professor at Wheaton College who said that Christians and Muslims worship the same God. And there were many opinions on that question all over the internet. Of course muslims believe that Mohammed was the last prophet who revealed much about Allah, but he did not claim to be allah. And if allah is anything like Mohammed, then Allah is nothing like the God we worship. Jesus claimed to be God in the flesh and as such he reveals what God is like. God is like Jesus. Jesus is the face of God. He is God with skin on.

Because Jesus reveals God, we can see that God is not some far away being who is looking forward to bring judgment upon us because of our sins. Rather God is a God of love who has gone to great lengths to rescue and deliver us from our sins. Jesus is God with us.

People say many evil things about God because they think that God is to blame for the many evil things that occur in our society. How can a loving God allow innocent children to die? What they don’t understand is that in Jesus, God entered into and endured all the evil that society has to offer.

Has God done you wrong? No he has not. We live in a fallen world and God entered into our fallen world through his Son, Jesus, in order to rescue us that we might begin to enjoy eternal living in the kingdom of God. Jesus is the visible expression of God. Get to know Jesus and you get to know God.

II. JESUS IS THE SOURCE OF LIFE WITH GOD. Jn.6:57b

The second part of the verse reads, “so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me.” In some way Jesus is dependent upon the Father for his eternal existence. And according to Jesus we are dependent upon him for our eternal living with God.

In Jn.6 we read about the miraculous feeding of the 5,000. In v.14-15 it says, “When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, ‘This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!’ Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.” When Jesus multiplied the loaves and fishes the people liked what they saw. They figured that Jesus was just the guy who could make Israel great again. And so they tried to take him by force and make him their king.

It’s not hard to see why they acted in this way. I mean if you had received this food from Jesus wouldn’t you think, “Wow, this guy can make food appear on demand. I want him to be my king. They didn’t really want Jesus to be their king. They wanted Jesus to fulfill their hopes and dreams for life. And on the next day when the crowd hunted Jesus down and found him, Jesus said in v.26-27, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal." In v.30 they asked, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform?” It’s amazing. Even though Jesus had done this miracle, they pointed out to Jesus that Moses had given the people manna, (bread from heaven) for 40 years while in the wilderness. Could Jesus top that?

Jesus responds in v.32 by saying that it was not Moses who gave manna, but God. In fact God continues to give the true bread from heaven. They were interested and asked Jesus to give them this bread from heaven. Then in v.35, Jesus says “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” The Jewish leaders did not like what Jesus was saying. As far as they were concerned, Jesus was the son of Joseph, so how could he say that he had come down from heaven? Now look at v.47-51. Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh." Jesus was referring to his death on the cross.

Well the Jewish leaders took this in a very literal way and in v.52 they wondered how Jesus would give them his flesh to eat. And that’s when Jesus started talking about feeding on his flesh and drinking his blood. Verse 57 says, “So whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. The word translated, “feed,” means to crunch, to gnaw, and to eat. It is pretty graphic language.

In fact it is what we experience as we receive the Lord’s Supper. We take the bread and we chew it and crunch it with our teeth. In a sense we are doing exactly what Jesus told us to do. We are not chewing on Jesus, rather just as we sustain our physical lives by chewing and swallowing our food, likewise our life in Christ is sustained as we have fellowship with him around his table. We are being strengthened by his life giving presence.

Whenever we eat, we have a very intimate relationship with the food we are eating. It becomes part of who we are. Likewise with Christ. The Lord’s Supper offers an ongoing, life giving meeting with Jesus. Jesus is continually becoming part of who we are as we live our life in Him. In fact, he is our very life.

Earlier we saw from Jn.5:39 that just reading the scriptures does not give life. The Scriptures point us to Jesus who gives life. Jesus is the Life-giver. We could say the same thing about the Lord’s Supper. We might say, ‘You take the Lord’s Supper, because you think that in it you have eternal life.” No, like the Scriptures, the Lord’s Supper bears witness to Jesus. The bread and the grape juice do not give life. Jesus gives life. The bread and the grape juice are a sign pointing us to Jesus. Just as Jesus will meet a person through the Scriptures, so Jesus will meet us through the Lord’s Supper as we receive him in faith. Mere participation in a church ritual is of little benefit. The ritual points us to the reality of Christ in us through faith.

I don’t know about you, but I find joy in reading the Scripture. I am encouraged by reading the Scripture. My faith is strengthened as I read the Scripture. Through the Scripture I draw near to God. The same is true in the Lord’s Supper. We find joy, encouragement, strength for living as we draw near to Jesus and receive from him. Amen

We are going to sing a hymn to prepare our hearts and minds to come to the Lord’s Table.