Author: provref

1 John 5:1-5

1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. 4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

Belief is easy, right? Isn’t this one of the objections that used to be raised against Christianity’s claim of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone? But stop and think about what belief entails. Think about what happens in a lost world when one truly believes. I think you will see that belief is not easy. Salvation is free, but it is never cheap.

As John wraps up his epistle, he ties together multiple themes of the letter: faith in Christ, obedience to God’s commands, and love of the church. All through this letter we have seen a call to believe, a call to obey, a call to love. We have seen that the one who believes is saved. We have seen that one who is saved will love the brothers. WE have seen that the one who is saved will obey the commands of God and turn from sin.

In verse 1, John says, “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God.” There is salvation by grace alone through faith alone. The one who is born of God is not defined by having earned that birth. Faith in Christ, faith alone, saves. There is no hint here that anything is added to faith to cause salvation.

Also in verse 1, John tells us, “and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.” The saved love. Particularly, the saved love others who are born of God.

In verses 2 and 3, John points out to us that we know that we are born of God and love if we keep God’s commandments. In a beautiful addition, John reminds us, “And his commandments are not burdensome” (v. 3).

Then, in verses 4 and 5, John points out that our overcoming the world is made clear in our faith. Believing in Jesus overcomes the world. Faith, true faith, conquers.

Take away a couple of notes here. First, know that the saved are the ones who have true faith in Jesus. Are you saved? Do you believe? Have you believed in who Jesus claims to be and what Jesus has done? Have you rested the weight of your soul’s eternity on his finished work alone? Have you entrusted your soul to Jesus for salvation?

If you assume yourself to be saved, ask yourself some probing questions in the other two categories. Do you love other Christians? If your life has no connection to the local church and no love for other brothers and sisters in Christ, you should be concerned. Examine yourself in light of God’s commands. Is your life marked by obedience to the word of God? I am not saying that it must be marked by flawless obedience, but it is not hard to measure whether or not the word of God is your standard as opposed to the lusts of the flesh and the ways of the world. And if your life is not marked by love for Christians and obedience to Scripture, you should be concerned that perhaps your faith is not true.

Salvation is a free gift, but never cheap. Faith is simple, but never easy. This is why John can tell us that our faith overcomes the world. The world hates our faith. The world hates the idea that we would trust in Christ alone and allow for no other way for people to determine their own sort of salvation. The world hates that we would think that the body of believers is somehow different than the rest of the globe. The world demands that we applaud their disobedience to the commands of God and even join them in their evil practices. So, no, faith is not easy. But, faith, true faith and faith alone in Christ alone, saves.

1 Thessalonians 1:4-5a, 9 – 4 For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, 5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction… 9 For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,

Every once-in-a-while, I will find myself having a discussion with folks about the doctrine of election. Obviously, for many, this doctrine brings with it a great deal of baggage. But, for those who grasp it, there is wonderful hope. It is a good thing to know that God will save his elect without fail. It is wonderful to know that the salvation of the elect is not dependent on my skill, my cleverness, my goodness, my intellect, or anything else in me. And it is wonderful that, though the salvation of the elect is not dependent upon me, I have the joyful honor of being used by God as a tool in his hand to accomplish his sovereign will.

Sometimes when people ask about this doctrine, they will ask how we know who is elect. They assume that somehow those who believe what the Bible says about election are out there trying to identify the elect before ever engaging them with the gospel. But nothing can be further from the truth. A person who has a true grasp of election will boldly and honestly share the gospel with everyone we can. But how then do we know who is chosen by God?

Note what Paul wrote to the Thessalonians in verses 4 and 5 above. He knew that they were chosen, because the gospel came to them, not only in word, but also in power, Spirit, and conviction. I fear that, when we read this, we assume charismatic miracles here. And perhaps that was the case in Paul’s ministry. But I think something simpler is at hand here. Paul brought the gospel in honest words to the people. That preached word was met with the power of God. That power of God changes lives. That power of God opens hearts. And people who believe are indwelt by the Holy Spirit of God when they become new in Christ. There is conviction that comes with the gospel as sinners see their sin, feel the pain of their sin, sense the fear of the judgment of God, turn, cry out to Jesus, and are saved.

In verse 9, Paul continues to say that he knows the Thessalonians are among the elect because they responded to the preached word of god by turning from idols to serve the Lord. In a word, they repented. The people saw their sin, turned from their sin, turned to the Lord, and committed themselves to God’s service. Let me be clear that no person is saved who does not desire to serve the Lord. While salvation is by grace alone through faith alone, no salvation occurs without a change of heart that includes a letting go of sinful self-determination for humble submission to God. Lordship is included in faith that repents.

So, two quick questions. First, are you saved? You answer that question by looking at the verses above and asking if this is any part of your life. Have you heard the word of God calling you to Jesus? Have you been convicted of your sin? Have you believed? Have you turned from your sin and surrendered your life to follow the Lord? Do you have the Holy Spirit indwelling you? If not, I urge you to run to Jesus before it is too late.

The second question is where we began. How do we know who is chosen? The answer is this: Do they respond to the gospel with saving faith? You know who is chosen by sharing the gospel with them and seeing the Spirit of God move them to salvation. If they come to Christ, you know they are chosen. If they do not come to Christ, you know to keep sharing, because today might not be the day when God has planned to bring them to himself. If they do not come, you keep sharing as God opens the door for you to do so until either they come to faith or die without Christ. Your job is not to know who is elect. Your job is to share Jesus faithfully.

Philippians 2:19-22 – 19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. 21 For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.

The word for pastor in Greek is a word that means shepherd. It is not at all complicated or confusing. Pastors are supposed to care for the sheep. Sometimes that means a warning. Sometimes it means a comforting word. Sometimes it means driving off enemies with a stick. Pastors care for their sheep.

The reason that this is on my mind is that, as I read the above passage, I see the uniqueness of Timothy. Paul says that he has nobody like Timothy who will truly be concerned for the wellbeing of the sheep. Something about the way that Timothy does ministry stands out and makes him a powerfully useful tool in the ministry of Paul and in the church of God.

What makes me sad is that I wonder how many would say something similar. I’m not wondering if people would highlight a Timothy and say how helpful and loving he is. But I do wonder how many would look at a Timothy, a man who cares for others, and say that Timothy is unique. Do we truly not have men like Timothy who will be genuinely concerned for the good of others in their care?

I fear, as I watch many a person in the church, that there are too few, far too few, who genuinely seek the good of others. We have many who will fight to be right. We have many who will happily call out error. We have many who will seek to gain a bigger audience. We have many who will go to the mat for novel doctrines. But do we have many who will simply pour out their lives to care for and seek the good of the sheep?

May we never need to find Timothy unique. May the Lord bless our church with elders and laypersons who will have lives marked by the genuine care of others. May we see pastors who love to shepherd. May we know that warning and comfort, preaching and compassion, church discipline and restoration are all part of those who care for the flock of God, shepherding as overseers.

Sometimes we struggle in reading through the end of the book of Exodus. Is there really something to learn in the instructions for the construction of the tabernacle or in the anointing of the priests? Here are a few quick thoughts I had when my daily reading took me through Exodus 29-31.

Exodus 29:19-20 – 19 “You shall take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram, 20 and you shall kill the ram and take part of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tips of the right ears of his sons, and on the thumbs of their right hands and on the great toes of their right feet, and throw the rest of the blood against the sides of the altar.

In the anointing of Aaron and his sons to be priests, we see this odd instruction. After a particular sacrifice, the people are to put the blood of the lamb on the priest’s ear lobe, thumb, and big toe. How strange? Why?

Maybe we are to see that the priest, the faithful servant of the Lord, is to be consecrated to God in multiple areas of life. We belong to God in what we think (the head or ear lobe), what we do (the hand or thumb), and where we go (the big toe on the foot). No aspect of life is our own. Every part of your life—thoughts, actions, locations—belongs to God.

Exodus 30:11-13 – 11 The Lord said to Moses, 12 “When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. 13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord.

When the people were coming into the land, God was going to have the people counted. And every adult who was counted was required to pay a ransom for his life. Rich or poor, it does not matter, every person is to pay this price. Why? Every life belongs to God. Every person is a sinner who rightly could die. Everyone needs payment to be made for who we are and to cover what we deserve.

How much does this point us to Jesus? Every one of us has sinned before God. Every one of us needs a price to be paid so that we might live. Only Jesus has the infinite worth and personal perfection to pay that price on our behalf.

Exodus 30:31-33 – 31 And you shall say to the people of Israel, ‘This shall be my holy anointing oil throughout your generations. 32 It shall not be poured on the body of an ordinary person, and you shall make no other like it in composition. It is holy, and it shall be holy to you. 33 Whoever compounds any like it or whoever puts any of it on an outsider shall be cut off from his people.’ ”

When the people were to make the sacred anointing oil, there were restrictions. This oil could not be used by ordinary folks. In fact, if an average joe were to make this oil, he would be cut off from his people.

What might we learn? God has every right to declare a thing his own. God has every right to tell his people that certain things are off limits. God has every right to tell us what is holy and what is not. And we have every obligation to follow the Lord’s commands instead of thinking that we get a say in how we are to worship.

Exodus 31:1-5 – 1 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, 3 and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with ability and intelligence, with knowledge and all craftsmanship, 4 to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, 5 in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, to work in every craft.

Here, we see that God has set apart a particular man and given him the skill to craft the artistic items needed for the tabernacle. Here we are reminded that God, when he has a ministry he wants fulfilled, will gift his people with the skill needed to accomplish the task. God gifts us on purpose to do the work to which he calls us.

All these are simple thoughts, But all these remind us that there are glorious lessons for us to learn even in obscure passages.

Matthew 23:1–4 – 1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, 3 so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice. 4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.

In Matthew 23, we are watching Jesus speak in relation to the religious teachers of his day. The Savior knows that this group of men is trying to trap him in his words. Jesus knows they want him dead. And Jesus knows that, within just a few days, he will go to the cross to lay down his life to rescue his people.

Interesting to me is the fact that, as the Savior faces down this group of falsely religious men, he warns us against them. And the first warnings against them have to do with the lack of heart in the religious leaders. Jesus does not deny that they have the ability to set policy. But what Jesus points out is that these men neither do what they themselves preach nor do they work in any way to help others.

What makes me want to challenge myself and others as I look at this on an early morning is verse 4, “They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.” Following the Lord does require things. Honoring Jesus requires life change. True godliness includes that we should turn from sin and turn toward righteousness. And we need religious teachers, faithful Bible teachers, who will point these things out. But, and this is the Savior’s point, the one who is willing to burden others with requirements had also better be one who is willing to work with others to help.

On the Internet and in the church hallways, there are sledgehammer saints. These men and women love to lay down the law on you. They love to tell you what has to change right now if your faith can be taken seriously. But how many of those folks also are willing to stoop with you under the burden and help you carry it? It is easy, super easy, to tell people how wrong they are. It is hard, often frustrating, and deeply time-consuming to actually help a person to change instead of just telling them they have to.

Christian, as you think of your role in the church, are you a genuine helper, a burden-bearer, or are you more a sledgehammer saint and keyboard warrior? I do not think it is hard to see which one Jesus appreciates. No, we do not tolerate sin. Neither do we crush brothers and sisters in the faith who are genuinely wrestling against their sin. May we tell each other the truth, but never stop letting folks know that we are right here with them to help them lift the burden.

Revelation 7:13-17 – 13 Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, “Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?” 14 I said to him, “Sir, you know.” And he said to me, “These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

15 “Therefore they are before the throne of God,
and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.
16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore;
the sun shall not strike them,
nor any scorching heat.
17 For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd,
and he will guide them to springs of living water,
and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Let’s not argue about timelines and tribulations. But let’s not lose the glorious hope that is to be found for the believer in the book of Revelation. In this glorious book, God wants his church to know a few things that are spelled out beautifully, regardless of your best guess as to the future timeline.

Chapter 7 begins with God sending angels to hold back the four winds until God’s servants are sealed for his protection. A look at Revelation will show us that this seal does not protect God’s servants from the persecuting hatred of the evil on earth. But that seal is certainly a mark that shows that God’s children are not appointed to receive God’s wrath.

Another thing we see pretty easily in Revelation is that, though we are kept and cared for by God, believers may suffer hardship, torture, even death at the hands of evil men who hate God and oppose his church. This is no surprise. Jesus promised his disciples the very same thing. As followers of Jesus, we will see the glory of God and watch the church grow. As followers of Jesus, we will face the hatred of a world that rejected the perfect God-Man and will certainly reject us the more we point to Jesus.

But, and this is what grabs my attention this morning, Even if the world hates us, kills us, turns against us in every way, God never ever loses his own. Instead, if we are willing to follow Jesus and testify to his glory, even in the face of persecution, we see the reward. Jesus clothes us in white robes, comforts us for all the pains we have ever faced, and keeps us with him eternally.

Friends, we may face hardship in this life. If we love Jesus in the face of this world, we definitely will face hardship. But it is so worth it. The glory of Jesus is worth it. The reward of Christ’s comfort, shelter, and presence is worth it. Jesus will dry all our tears. He will give us a place to serve him forever. And this will delight our souls forever.

Galatians 1:6-9 – 6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

We know this passage. It is sobering. It causes us to pay attention. We know that there is one gospel. We know that anyone preaching something other than the one gospel is in serious trouble.

When you think about the urgency and seriousness of this passage, I believe it should cause you to cling to two significant pillars: doctrine and mission. I also believe that, in many a discussion that I have read over the past couple of years, one or both of these is missing. May we be more careful.

In recent days, I have read many people telling other Christians to stop fussing about issues related to doctrine, secondary issues, side issues, tertiary issues. The assumption is that, among the basic group under the banner evangelical or perhaps under the banner of a denomination, everybody already agrees on the gospel and so there should be only focus on mission. So long as we all like the same teacher, sign the same doctrinal statement, or have the same name in our churches, there is no reason to roll up our sleeves and get down to the work of hashing out what is biblical in most issues. Just take the gospel to the world.

On the other hand, there are many other discussions I have read that are all issues. We draw lines in the sand. Are you on my side? If so, you are OK—for now. If not, you are a heretic, even if you agree with me on 99.9% of systematic theology. Perhaps we agree on every doctrine, but we disagree on implementation. It’s time to put you out of the camp.

What should we see from Galatians 1:6-9? First, doctrine matters, a lot. Get the gospel wrong, and it is a damnable offense. If any person suggests that there should be a unity of mission when there is a genuine disunity in significant doctrine, there is a problem. Yes, the gospel is simple. But the gospel is also doctrinally loaded. And we can easily distort the gospel when we also embrace false doctrines that surround it. We would be fools to think that only a basic agreement on the rudiments of the gospel is enough to say that we are doing what we should. Tell people to ignore theological differences on issues, even what you think are secondary issues, and you risk opening the door to them also misunderstanding the gospel or proclaiming a false one.

Second, there is a mission. The genuine gospel needs to be proclaimed. Thus, we cannot spend all our time and energy in polemics. Yes, that group over there may very well be wrong in how they try to accomplish this mission or how they explain that doctrine. Yes, it matters. But if your focus is primarily a focus that makes you angry at other Christians and their folly instead of being a focus that makes you love Jesus more and take his grace to the globe, something is wrong.

So, hear me, proclaim a true gospel. Make sure you know the gospel. Help others know it too. Know it matters. But do not focus so much on fixing others that you stop loving and proclaiming the gospel.

Hebrews 10:24-25 – 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Why gather? Why gather when some find it risky? Why gather when some would prefer we not? What if I do not feel like gathering or do not feel like I’m getting anything out of gathering?

By this time, I think every Christian will have heard someone speak to the verses highlighted above. In a season where gathering together has been avoided by some and clung to by others, this passage certainly should be on our minds. And what I want to mention in a quick brush of these verses is that your call to gather with other believers is not solely about you. It surely is about you, but not about you alone.

After setting for the church how great is the New Covenant in Christ, the author of Hebrews gives three significant commands to us regarding maintaining our faith and confidence. He tells us to draw near (22), to hold fast (23), and to encourage one another while not neglecting meeting together (24-25). These are all significant elements in clinging to our faith and resting in the grace of Christ in the face of a world that would turn us away from God and toward works-based faiths of one type or another.

When I read this, I am reminded of the deep significance of meeting together with believers. It is an essential element in our faith just as is drawing near and holding fast the faith. If a Christian wishes to maintain stability, he must continue to gather. But we ought not see this as merely personal—I draw near for my good. Certainly, it is true that my drawing near does me good. But we should also see that our continuing to assemble is part of how each of us invests in the lives of others. Continuing to gather together is how we spur one another toward love and good deeds. Seeing one another, smiling at one another, weeping with one another, singing with one another, sitting under the word with one another, praying with one another, rejoicing with one another, receiving Lord’s Supper with one another, all these are essential tools in our strengthening and being strengthened. Your attendance or mine is both for my soul and for the souls of the church as well as an act of obedient worship of our God.

May the Lord strengthen his church as we draw near to him, hold fast the faith, and continue to gather for his glory and our spiritual good.

I want to help us to think about hope. Life is hard, Pain is real. Suffering is sometimes overwhelming. Frustrations about so many things threaten to steal our joy. We need to cling better to hope. And I believe there is something God has inspired for us to help us have that hope.

2 Corinthians 5:1-5 – 1 For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 2 For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, 3 if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. 4 For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. 5 He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

At the end of 2 Corinthians 4, Paul talked about the suffering we endure in this life as compared with the eternal weight of glory awaiting believers. Here he goes further, expressing a genuine longing for that glory. We groan in this life, longing to be clothed in our resurrection bodies, longing to be with our Lord.

I grew up in a small Southern Baptist church singing hymns with a mainly southern gospel flair. When I went to college, I learned about the contemporary worship sounds of that era and began to look down on those old hymns. When I went to seminary and then began to serve in local churches, I began to embrace more classical and high church hymns—think “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” as compared to “When the Roll is Called Up Yonder.” And, for the most part, classic hymns are still strongly my preference to both contemporary praise songs and southern gospel hymnary.

But as the years go by, I’m noticing a lack. I see it in the classic hymns to a degree. I see it even more so in the contemporary stylings of the day. Today, we do not sing enough about the hope of heaven. We sing God’s holiness, and this is good. We sing of loving and desiring to follow the Lord, and that is good. WE sing of the presence of God in our times of suffering, and that is good. But we do not sing enough of the picture that Paul paints here in 2 Corinthians 5, of being in our resurrection bodies in the presence of our Lord.

I’m not suggesting a big return to singing of streets of gold or of family reunions on a golden shore. Honestly, I’m not even trying to make a point about what we sing. That is an illustration of the point that has my attention. Instead, I am recognizing that the modern believer needs more hope of heaven. We need more regular reminders that we have a home that is beyond this life. We have bodies that, even if this world abuses us today, will be eternal, uninjured, glorious bodies that will stand in the presence of our Lord in a way that we have yet to experience. WE will live in the presence of God without sin, without shame, without sorrow. We should find hope in and long for that change to come.

Christian, thank God for the promise of eternal life in Christ. Thank him that eternal life has already begun. Also thank him that there is an even greater future awaiting all who are in Christ. Ask God to help you to, like Paul here, have great hope in being further clothed for eternity. Ask God to help you, as Paul writes in the next verses, to find joy in knowing that to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, present in a new way, present leading to a resurrected body and an eternity of peace and joy.