Tawa Baptist

Kidneys

Scriptures: Psalm 16:7, Psalm 26:1-3, Psalm 119:10-16, Jeremiah 12:1-2, Leviticus 7:3-6 and Mark 3:1-6.

Video Link: https://youtu.be/uQPyS8hrCLs

Audio Link: Stream Sermon – 2 Aug 2026 – Kidneys by tawabaptist | Listen online for free on SoundCloud

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • The kidneys are the seat of conscience
  • The conscience is sacred to God
  • Jesus wants to redeem our conscience
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

The human body is a wonderful thing. Take your kidneys for example.

You cannot see your kidneys; most of the time you are not even aware they are there. And yet, your kidneys are continuously working to look after your body, even when you are asleep.

According to the Health NZ (Te Whatu Ora) website, the kidneys carry out a number of vital functions including removing waste products from your blood, balancing your body’s fluids, and releasing hormones that help control your blood pressure.

Your kidneys also control the production of red blood cells and produce an active form of vitamin D that helps your body absorb calcium from your diet. Calcium is needed for building and maintaining strong bones. Today we continue our series on body parts, with a focus on the kidneys.

The kidneys are the seat of conscience:

People in Biblical times did not have the same scientific understanding of their kidneys that we do. In the Bible, kidneys were thought to be the seat of the conscience.

For those who may not be familiar with English idiom, to refer to something as the seat, is to say it is a place of high importance. The seat is the centre or the core, where decisions are made.

For example, the seat of government in New Zealand is our parliament, what we call the Beehive. This is where decisions are made and laws are passed. Likewise, the seat of justice is our court system, where legal cases are decided that often have a far-reaching effect on society.

So when we say, ‘the kidneys are the seat of the conscience’, we are talking figuratively. We mean that part of us, in our core, where moral decisions are made.

Just as our kidneys filter our blood, so too our conscience acts like a moral filter; helping us to choose right from wrong. Basically, our conscience guides our actions and our actions shape our character.  

Deciding what colour pants to wear is not a moral decision and therefore does not involve the conscience. Choosing whether to drink and drive is a moral decision and therefore does involve the conscience; although depending on how many drinks you’ve had, your conscience may be impaired. 

How many of you have ridden a horse? [Wait]

Even if you haven’t ridden a horse, you will know that you steer a horse by pulling on the reins. Pull the reins to the left and the horse will go to the left. Pull the reins to the right and the horse will turn to the right. Pull both reins back and the horse will stop (hopefully). Reins control the horse.

Does anyone here know the Latin word for kidneys? [Wait]. That’s right.

It is renes (spelt R E N E S), from which we get the English word for the reins of a horse. In fact, the King James Version of the Bible translates the word ‘kidneys’ as reins, R E I N S.

Why am I telling you this? Because I’m hoping you will see the connection between the kidneys and the conscience. To the ancient mind, the kidneys were like the reins of a horse. Just as the reins help to control the horse, so too the conscience helps to control our desires and passions.

This is difficult for our 21st Century minds to grasp, because we think about the conscience in a more scientific way, as residing in the frontal lobe of our brain; not the renal lobes of our bowel.   

Let me give you some verses of Scripture which refer to the kidneys as the seat of conscience. The first comes from Psalm 16 which reads…

7 I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my heart (kidneys) instructs me.

The word translated as heart (in English) is literally kidneys in the original Hebrew. The English translators have used heart instead of kidneys, in this instance, because saying ‘my kidneys instruct me’ makes no sense to the modern English reader. 

This is poetry, not science. The kidneys are a metaphor here for the conscience. A more straight forward translation might read something like this: I will praise the Lord, who counsels me; even at night my conscience instructs me.

The psalmist is basically saying: God guides me by speaking to my conscience. Just as a rider guides a horse by pulling on the reins, so too God guides the psalmist by pulling on the reins of his conscience.    

Psalm 26 also refers to the kidneys as the seat of conscience. From verse 1 we read: 1 Vindicate me, Lord, for I have led a blameless life; I have trusted in the Lord and have not faltered. 2 Test me, Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind (kidneys); 3 for I have always been mindful of your unfailing love and have lived in reliance on your faithfulness.

The word translated as mind (in verse 2) is literally kidneys in the original Hebrew. The English translators have used mind instead of kidneys, because saying ‘examine my kidneys’ makes no sense to the modern English reader. 

It made perfect sense to the psalmist though, because (to his way of thinking) the kidneys represented his conscience. That part deep in his core where moral decisions are made. That part which only God can see.

The interesting thing about Psalm 26 is the way the author thinks about righteousness. For the Psalmist, being blameless does not mean never making a mistake. Rather, it has more to do with where he places his trust. The Psalmist’s conscience is clear because he lives in reliance on God’s faithfulness. In other words, he doesn’t have any idols in his life. The living God comes first.

The conscience is sacred to God:

Okay, from a Biblical perspective, the kidneys are thought to be the seat of the conscience, and the conscience is sacred to God; it is holy, set apart for a special purpose.  

The Law of Moses stipulated how the kidneys of sacrificial animals were to be offered to the Lord. In Leviticus 7 we read…

3 All its fat shall be offered: … 4 both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which is to be removed with the kidneys. 5 The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering presented to the Lord… 

Verse 6 goes on to say that the fat and kidneys of the animal is most holy.

Highlighting the sacredness of the kidneys (which represent the worshipper’s conscience) indicates the sort of sacrifice God wants. He wants us to offer our moral decision making in a holy way. The Lord wants us to hand over the reins of our conscience in faith to him, so our desires and passions are guided by his purpose.

Said another way, the Lord wants us to worship him from the depths of our being, from the inside out. He doesn’t want people to merely go through the motions. God doesn’t want tick box worship.

The prophet Jeremiah was grieved by the empty worship of his day saying to the Lord: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease? 2 You have planted them, and they have taken root; they grow and bear fruit. You are always on their lips but far from their hearts (kidneys).

Once again, the word translated as hearts (in English) is actually kidneys in the original Hebrew.

We sang a song earlier by Matt Redman called The Heart of Worship.

“I’m coming back to the heart of worship and it’s all about you Jesus…”

The song offers a mild critique of the consumerism which has crept into church worship in the west.

If Matt was writing that song in Jeremiah’s day, he might have called it, The Kidneys of Worship. The lyric might read: “You search much deeper within, through the way things appear, You’re looking into my kidneys (that is, my conscience).”

Jeremiah is lamenting the false religion practised by the wicked. They pay lip service to God, but their kidneys (their moral decision making, their conscience) is far from what God desires.

The idolatry of consumerism coupled with the injustice it causes were widespread throughout the nation. People had become so accustomed to doing evil at the expense of their neighbour that they no longer thought of it as evil. The consumerism of their day did not bother their conscience.

That’s the thing with our conscience; as sacred as it is, it can still be led astray by the surrounding society we live in. Our conscience is like a musical instrument; it gets out of tune sometimes. We need to keep our conscience in tune with God’s will and purpose.

Like some of you, I do the Lectio 365 devotion each day. Last Wednesday’s devotion celebrated the life of William Wilberforce. Wilberforce was a man whose conscience was in tune with God, which led him to challenge the prevailing view of the society in which he lived.

Meditating on the Scriptures was one of the things Wilberforce did to stay in tune with God. Apparently, William Wilberforce would recite Psalm 119 each day on his walks from London’s parliament to Hyde Park…

10 I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.

11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.
12 Praise be to you, Lord; teach me your decrees. 13 With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. 14 I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. 15 I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. 16 I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word.

To be clear, the word translated as heart in these verses is heart in the original Hebrew as well, not kidneys. But the heart and the kidneys are connected. The same blood that flows through the heart also passes through the kidneys. The point is that we keep our conscience in tune with God by keeping his word in our heart.

Wilberforce was elected to parliament as an independent MP in his early 20’s. He wasn’t sure, at first, whether he should stay in politics, but his purpose soon clarified. In 1787 he wrote in his diary: “God Almighty has placed before me two great objects: the suppression of the slave trade and the reformation of manners.”

By ‘manners’ Wilberforce meant the morals of the nation. The British empire saw no problem with slavery, but William Wilberforce did, because his conscience was in tune with God’s word.

For over 40 years Wilberforce acted as a Godly conscience in parliament; labouring to pass legislation to ban slavery, among other things. He faced many obstacles, but he overcame in the end. On Friday 26 July 1833 the Abolition of Slavery Act passed its final reading in parliament. Three days later Wilberforce died.

His legacy pricks our conscience today. Sadly, despite anti-slavery laws, human trafficking still flourishes in this world. Like William Wilberforce, we need to keep our conscience in tune with God’s purpose. We need to hide God’s word in our heart and resist the consumerism of the prevailing culture.

Jesus wants to redeem our conscience:

You don’t need to answer this question out loud, just think about it in your head? On a scale of 1 to 10, how strict is your conscience? (Where 1 equals ‘my conscience lets me get away with murder’ and 10 equals ‘my conscience is a fascist dictator’.)

We are not all made the same. Some people seem to breeze through life without any scruples. Nothing troubles their conscience. The strictness of their conscience might register around 1 or 2 on the scale.

People like this tend to have little regard for how their actions might affect others. They are obtuse, maybe even borderline sociopaths, leaving a trail of hurt and destruction in their wake, wherever they go. They don’t think there is anything wrong with their actions. They are strangers to guilt.

At the other end of the spectrum are those who suffer much because of an over sensitive conscience. The strictness of their conscience might be more like a 9 or a 10. For these poor souls the conscience can be a bit of a bully; criticising their every move, always condemning them, robbing their joy and making them feel guilty, even when they haven’t done anything wrong.

A conscience like that can cripple a person with fear. It locks them in a prison of sorts, where they are at war with themselves. An over-zealous conscience can sometimes drive a person down the path of legalism, forcing them against their true nature, to comply with the letter of the law at the expense of its spirit.  

Neither extreme is helpful. Ideally, what we need is a backbone conscience.

A conscience which is strong enough to stand up to our selfish desires, but also flexible enough to show mercy. A conscience which holds grace and truth together.

I believe God wants to set our conscience free; not free to do whatever we want, but free to follow his law of love. So that when we are faced with a moral decision, we are thinking, how can I be God’s agent in this situation? How can I do some good?  

Jesus came to redeem people, body and soul. That includes redeeming our conscience. Helping us to hold grace and truth together, so we can keep our moral balance.

Many of the people of Jesus’ day had a conscience which was bound by legalism. They felt compelled to rigidly follow a harsh set of rules which often missed God’s purpose of justice and mercy. They had lost their moral balance.

The gospels are peppered with stories of Jesus seeking to set people’s conscience free. On one occasion, in Mark 3, Jesus encounters a man with a shrivelled hand in the synagogue. Some of Jesus’ critics (the legalists) were watching closely to see if Jesus would break their rules by healing the man on a Sabbath.

Jesus knows this and wants to redeem their dysfunctional conscience. So, the Lord says to the man with the shrivelled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.” 4 Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” 

Jesus is showing us here the right way to use our conscience. The law says we should not work on the Sabbath, but what if someone needs our help?

Well, a conscience that trusts in God is not afraid to risk doing some good.

A conscience that trusts in God is able to see beyond the letter of the law to find its true spirit (its purpose). 

Sadly, the people remained silent. Their conscience was bound. They refused to answer the question.

5 Jesuslooked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. 

Jesus’ healing of the man’s hand proves it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath. But Jesus’ critics don’t want to look at the evidence. The Pharisees’ conscience is in complete renal failure. They plot to kill Jesus.

Conclusion:

This morning we have heard how the kidneys are the seat of the conscience; that place deep in our core where moral decisions are made. Like the reins of a horse, our conscience guides us in matters of justice and morality.

The conscience is sacred to God. Mere lip service won’t cut it in our worship.

The Lord wants us to offer the kidneys of our conscience in faith and obedience to him. That is an acceptable offering.

Jesus wants to redeem our conscience; to set us free. Free from legalism and guilt. Free to follow God’s law of love. Obtaining the freedom Jesus offers requires us to step out in faith, trusting the Lord to justify us.

Let us pray…

Gracious and compassionate God, we offer ourselves to you. May your word dwell richly in our heart that our conscience would be in tune with your purpose. Set us free, by faith in Jesus, to do some good in the world. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. What is the conscience? Why is our conscience important? What does our conscience do?
  3. How might we get a clear conscience? 
  4. Have we handed the reins of our moral decision making over to God? Is our conscience in tune with the Holy Spirit? Are we challenging injustice in our society? Or are we conforming to the prevailing culture?
  5. On a scale of 1 to 10, how strict is your conscience? (Where 1 equals ‘my conscience lets me get away with murder’ and 10 equals ‘my conscience is a fascist dictator’.) Why is this do you think?
  6. Why does Jesus want to set our conscience free? What does a redeemed conscience look like from a Christian perspective?
Tawa Baptist

Hands

Scriptures:   Psalm 128:2, 90:17, 28:2, 141:2, 17:7 & 138:7,

Proverbs 10:4 & 12:24, Exodus 17:11-13, 1 Timothy 2:1+8,

Leviticus 1:4, John 20:24-28 & 10:27-30

Video Link: https://youtu.be/1sAi6TtXn1I

Audio Link: Stream Sermon – 26 Jul 2026 – Hands by tawabaptist | Listen online for free on SoundCloud

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Hands are for work
  • Hands are for prayer
  • Hands are for saving
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

What do these four words have in common: chandler, handkerchief, shorthand and handsome? [Wait] That’s right, they all contain a hand.

A chandler was originally someone who made candles by hand. But it can also be someone who handles the purchase of supplies for ships. A handkerchief is a cloth you hold in your hand for wiping your nose and shorthand is an abbreviated form of handwriting.  

Handsome first meant ‘easy to handle’, in the sense of being convenient or well-crafted to fit the hand. But it has since evolved to mean aesthetically pleasing or beautiful. It can also mean generous, as in openhanded.      

There are literally hundreds of words in English which contain a hand or derive their meaning from the hand.

Today we continue our new sermon series on body parts, this week focusing on the foot. No. Just kidding. We might do the foot another week. Today’s focus is the hand. Apparently, the hand is mentioned around 1,800 times in our English Bibles, which is a lot.

Our message today explores the purpose of our hands. The purpose of our hands is to make things happen. Hands get things done. In the Bible, we read how hands are used for work, for prayer and for saving. Let us begin then with hands at work…

Hands are for work:

There are 27 bones, 29 joints and at least 123 ligaments in each human hand.

This gives human beings the dexterity to do a whole variety of different kinds of work; from writing, to sewing, to changing light bulbs and chopping wood. Where would we be without our hands.

I have a confession to make. Two Sundays ago, I skipped church. We were in the Franklin district visiting one of our daughters. It was a beautiful day and there was work to do.

Among other things, I spent about an hour picking up pony poo. I needed my hands to do that. The horse doesn’t belong to our daughter. She was looking after it for one of her flat mates. The horse wasn’t that interested in me, because I didn’t have any food, but I did get on well with Cookie, the goat.

Now you might be wondering, why pick up the pony poo? What difference does it make? The horse is just going to undo your work by pooing all over the field again. Well, it’s not a pointless exercise.

Picking up the poo helps to keep the horse healthy. It’s not good for animals to eat from the same place they defecate. And, in the case of horses, taking their poo away breaks the lifecycle of worms and other parasites.

In Psalm 128 we read: “When you eat the labour of your hands, you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you.”

The labour of your hands is a poetic way of saying the produce of your work.

If you are a dairy farmer, then to eat the labour of your hands is to drink the cows’ milk. Or if you are a wheat farmer, then to eat the labour of your hands is to eat the bread made from the wheat grown in your field.

And if you pick up poo for a living, then eating the labour of your hands does not mean eating the poo. It means having a healthy horse, free of worms and parasites. The psalmist is saying that what we produce by working with our hands feeds us, body and soul. Without our hands we would be hungry and sad.

While I wouldn’t want to pick up poo fulltime, I did enjoy working with my hands that day. It fed my soul to do something different and to help someone I love in a practical way. I felt closer to God and his creation.

Working with your hands gets you out of your own head. It helps you to stop overthinking and it grounds you in the natural world. Despite the new blister,

I was happy and it was well with me.

There is wisdom and folly in our hands. The book of Proverbs has this to say about how we use our hands…

A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.

Also, Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in forced labour.

These verses are saying the same thing really. When you put your hands to work in a diligent way, with careful persistent effort, then (other things being equal) you put yourself in the driver’s seat. You have more control in your life.   

It should be noted that working with diligent hands does not automatically guarantee riches and success. We need a measure of God’s grace too.

If God didn’t send rain to grow the grass or enable the horse to produce a foal safely, then it wouldn’t matter how diligent you were at picking up the horse’s poo. As we read in Psalm 90…

Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands for us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

These words are attributed to Moses, that great man of God. Moses worked with diligent hands most of his life. He spent 40 years caring for sheep in the wilderness and another 40 years working as Israel’s shepherd.

Moses knew that hard work was not enough by itself. Without the Lord’s favour, without God’s grace to establish what his hands had worked diligently to produce, all his work would be in vain.   

It is instructive to remember that Jesus worked with his hands most of his life. He was a carpenter longer than he was a preacher. His hands were skilled, strong and most likely calloused. At the same time, they were gentle hands, not clenched in anger nor used in violence.  

The apostle Paul also worked with his hands as a tent maker. He put great stock in it. His advice to the fledgling church in Thessalonica was this…

Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. 

A quiet life doesn’t sound very ambitious and yet Paul saw dignity in it. He saw it as an essential part of our Christian witness.

Now in saying that, I don’t think Paul means that all Christians should become tradespeople. We are not all good with our hands. The point is, to work diligently for the glory of God.

The work of our hands, whether that be taken literally or metaphorically, is part of our public witness and worship. This means the work we do (whether in the church or in the world) is a sacred thing.        

What is the work of your hands? Do you see your work as part of your worship of God and witness for Christ? Or has it become something else?

We need to avoid two extremes. On the one hand, the work of our hands should not become an end in itself; it should not become an all-consuming idol which replaces God.

By the same token, we don’t want the work of our hands to be emptied of its meaning either. As Albert Camus once said, ‘When work is soulless, life stifles and dies.’ But (as the Bible indicates) when the work of our hands is done as an act of worship for God and witness for Christ, it feeds our soul.        

Hands are for prayer:

We are talking about the purpose of our hands. Hands are for work and hands are for prayer. Let me tell you a story…

Albrecht Dürer was born into a German family in 1471. He was one of 18 children. Albrecht and his brother Albert both wanted to become artists, but their parents could not afford to send them to art school.

So the brothers made a commitment to each other. They tossed a coin. The loser would go to work in the coal mines for four years to pay for the winner to go to art school. Then, four years later, the roles would be reversed. This way both brothers would support each other to become artists.

Albrecht won the coin toss and went to art school while Albert dutifully went to the coal mines. Albrecht thrived at the art academy in drawing, painting and woodcutting. He proved to be better than his teachers.

After four years, Albrecht returned home. On seeing his brother, Albert broke down in tears. He showed Albrecht how almost every bone his hands had been broken by four years labour in the mines. Albert had lost the dexterity to do the fine work of an artist. He could not go to the art academy.

Deeply moved by his brother’s sacrifice, Albrecht asked Albert to pose in prayer for him. He then drew the famous ink and pencil sketch of what we know today as the “Praying Hands”.

Albrecht Dürer became one of the greatest artists the world has ever known because of the silent sacrifice of his brother Albert. God established the work of both brother’s hands. Hands are for work and hands are for prayer.

Sometimes you see people raising their hands in church, usually during sung worship. This is not a new idea. It goes back thousands of years. Lifting open hands to God is an act of prayer. It’s a way of aligning your body with your heart and spirit. We come across raised hands in the psalms.

For example, in Psalm 28 we read: Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help, as I lift up my handstoward your Most Holy Place.

And in Psalm 141: May my prayer be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my handsbe like the evening sacrifice.

Don’t be afraid to lift your hands in church while we are singing songs of worship, if that feels right to you. It is the ancient posture of prayer. A way of reaching out to God. A way of physically demonstrating our openness to God’s will and our dependence on him for all that we need.   

In Exodus 17, Moses famously raised his hands in prayer as the Israelites defended themselves in battle against the Amalekites.  

11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up… so that his hands remained steady till sunset.

13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

Raising hands in prayer isn’t just an Old Testament thing. In the New Testament letter to Timothy, Paul writes…

I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people… 8 Therefore I want the men everywhere to pray, lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.

Hands raised in prayer are more effective than hands raised in anger.

Hands are for work and hands are for prayer. Hands are also for saving others, but salvation doesn’t come cheap. It comes at a cost. Let me tell you another story.

Hands are for saving

An orphaned boy was living with his grandmother when their house caught fire. Sadly, the grandmother was overcome by smoke and perished in the blaze. The boy’s cries for help were answered by a man who climbed an iron drainpipe and came back down with the boy hanging tightly to his neck.

Some weeks later, a public hearing was held to determine who would receive custody of the child. A farmer, a teacher, and the town’s wealthiest citizen all came forward offering to take the boy in. But as they talked, the lad’s eyes remained focused on the floor. He didn’t want to go with them.

Then a stranger walked to the front and slowly took his hands from his pockets, revealing the scars on them. The boy cried out in recognition. This was the man who had saved his life. His hands had been burned when he climbed the hot pipe. The boy threw his arms around the man’s neck and held on tight.[1]

The same marred hands that saved the boy from the fire, also gave him a home and security. We are reminded of someone else whose hands were marred in saving us. As the song goes. ‘Hands that flung stars into space, to cruel nails surrendered.’

The Psalms are peppered with this idea that God’s hand saves and delivers.

For example, in Psalm 17 we read: 7 Show me the wonders of your great love, you who save by your right hand those who take refuge in you from their foes.

And from Psalm 138: 7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes; with your right hand you save me.

This is poetry. The psalmist is using the hand of God as a metaphor for the Lord’s skill and power to save him from those who meant to do him harm.

Nothing is beyond the reach of God’s hand. Nothing is too difficult for the power and skill of God.

God’s hand to save reminds us of Jesus who used his hands to heal and restore; to save people from the enemies of sickness and death…

Jesus healed lepers by touching them with his hand.

Jesus raised Jairus’ daughter from the dead by taking her hand.

And Jesus reached out his hand to Peter to save him from drowning.

God’s hand doesn’t just save us from physical harm. God’s hand saves us from spiritual harm too, that is from our sins. But God’s salvation doesn’t come cheap. It comes at a cost.

In Leviticus chapter 1 we read God’s instructions for burnt offerings to make atonement for sin: 4 You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement for you.

By laying their hands on the head of the animal to be sacrificed, the Israelites were symbolically transferring their sin onto the animal so that when the animal was killed and burnt, their sins were done away with as well.

These ritual sacrifices pointed to Jesus, the Christ, who would atone for our wrongdoing by taking our sins upon himself. All our sins were transferred to Jesus on the cross so that when Jesus died, our sins died with him.

On the third day after his death, God raised Jesus from the dead. When Thomas (one of the disciples) was told about Jesus’ resurrection by the others, he had a hard time believing Jesus was alive. Thomas said, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” 26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” 28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

Our salvation by the hands of Jesus did not come cheap. It was costly but also effective. God established the work of Jesus’ hands.

Conclusion:

This morning we have heard about the purpose of our hands. Hands make things happen. They get things done.

Hands are for work. The work of our hands nourishes us (body & soul), it gives us more control in our lives. Better than that, the work of our hands is to be a public expression of our worship of God and witness for Christ.  

Hands are for prayer. We are not to rely solely on our own efforts but lift our hands to God in prayer, depending on him. Our hands raised in prayer should mirror our hearts open to God’s will.

Hands are for saving. Nothing is too difficult for God’s hand (his skill and power). But we need to remember, our salvation by the hand of Jesus comes at a cost. We value Jesus’ salvation of us by trusting and obeying him.

Let us pray…

God of wisdom and compassion, establish the work our hands for the praise of your glory. Through Jesus we pray. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. Have you ever injured your hand, so you were not able to use it? How did it feel not being able to use your hand? How did you adapt?
  3. What is the purpose of hands? How did Jesus use his hands? How do you use your hands?
  4. What are some benefits of working with your hands? Why is it important to work with diligent hands?
  5. What is the work of your hands? Do you see your work as part of your worship of God and witness for Christ? Or has it become something else? Does anything need to change for you, where work is concerned?
  6. Why do people raise their hands in prayer? What does this posture demonstrate?
  7. What does the Bible mean by the hand of God? Have you experienced the hand of God’s deliverance in your life personally? If so, how?
  8. How might we value our deliverance by the hand of Jesus?

Outtakes

In John chapter 10, Jesus says this…

27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”

To be in the hand of Christ is to be in the hand of God who loves us. Jesus is our security. There is no better place to be.

[1] I’m not sure where the story, about the boy rescued from the fire, comes from?

Tawa Baptist

Eyes

Scriptures:   Psalm 139:1-16, Psalm 33:13-19, 2 Chronicles 16:9,

Matthew 5:27-29 & 38-41, Matthew 6:19-23, John 9.

Video Link: https://youtu.be/sNXqQRibsoQ

Audio Link: Stream Sermon – 19 Jul 2026 – Eyes by tawabaptist | Listen online for free on SoundCloud

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • The eyes of God
  • The eyes of the body
  • The eyes of faith
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

The human eye is a remarkable thing. Apparently, your eye can see something like 10 million different shades of colour. It can detect the flame of a candle over 2½ kms away and take in around 36,000 bits of information every hour.

I’m not sure how scientists work this sort of thing out, but any way you look at it, the human eye is amazing. Your eyes provide your brain with the data you need to make decisions. They guide you and protect you. They help you in a myriad of ways, without you even being aware it most of the time.   

Today we begin a new sermon series on body parts. The Bible is full of hands, feet, hearts, lips, heads, bones, ears, and other body parts. This morning’s message focuses on the eye. Eyes are mentioned somewhere north of 500 times in the Bible. So make yourself comfortable, we have a lot to get through today. Just kidding.

Our message this morning takes a closer look at just three types of eyes:

the eyes of God, the eyes of the body and the eyes of faith. We begin with the eyes of God. The eyes of God see the inner workings of the human heart.  

The eyes of God:

According to the internet, there are in excess of 15,000 active satellites orbiting the earth with operational payloads. Most of these (over 11,000) are owned by the US.

These satellites are used for communication, navigation and observation.

They are like 15,000 eyes in the sky. However, they do have their limitations.

Satellites are expensive to launch, difficult to fix and not always reliable.

They are subject to limited band width (which restricts how much data can be transmitted at once) and they are vulnerable to bad weather. A satellite cannot see through dense cloud, much less read your mind or rescue you.

The eyes of God though, are not affected by the weather, they never fail and they penetrate deeper than the surface of things. In Psalm 139 we read how God has x-ray vision. The psalmist writes…

1 You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. 2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar… 13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb…15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place…16 Your eyes saw my unformed body

God is our maker and he sees further and deeper than we can.

In Psalm 33 we read…

13 From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all humankind; 14 from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth—15 he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.

The eyes of God see everything and everyone, better than any satellite. More than just seeing what people do, the Lord sees into the human heart and mind. He considers our actions. From verse 18 the Psalmist continues…

18 But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, 19 to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.

The Lord God does not just watch from a distance, like a satellite, detached unfeeling, impotent. No. The eyes of the Lord are looking out for those whose hearts trust in him, in order to save them.

Did you know, the pupil of the eye expands as much as 45% when we look at someone we love. Scientists reckon this response is triggered by the anticipation of reward or pleasure. They say dopamine and oxytocin flood our brain and dilate our pupils.

That may be true on a chemical level but there is more to love than hormones. True love lasts long after the dopamine and oxytocin have worn off. Love is an enduring commitment to the wellbeing of another.

In Second Chronicles 16 we read: 9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.

In other words, God is on the lookout for people who love him in a committed way, when the dopamine and oxytocin have worn off. God’s eyes see deep into the human heart; our motivation, our fear, our hope, our trust, our loyalty.

The eyes of the Lord are looking to strengthen those who love him.

Jesus had his Father’s eyes; eyes which can see the inner workings of the human heart and mind. Eyes which look on people with love.

The eyes of the body:

What then did Jesus have to say about eyes? Well, Jesus’ teaching was more focused on the human eye. The eyes of our body serve an important function; they guide us.   

Let me tell you a story dating from eleventh century England. At that time there lived a nobleman named Leofric. Leofric was Earl of Mercia and Lord of Coventry. His wife was known as Lady Godiva.

According to legend, Leofric levied a burdensome tax upon the people of Coventry. Lady Godiva looked upon these people as her friends. She acted as a mediator on their behalf. Feeling compassion for the people, Lady Godiva asked her husband to reduce the tax, but he refused.

Not one to be easily dissuaded, Lady Godiva pestered her husband until finally, to get some peace, he said: “The day you ride naked at noon through the streets of Coventry will be the day I reduce the taxes.”

Leofric thought this would be the end of the matter. He could not imagine his wife doing such a thing. But Lord Leofric should have known better than to test his wife’s resolve.

Lady Godiva passed word to her friends all through the city, asking that on a certain day at noon everyone remain in their houses with their shutters closed. Out of love and respect the people did as she asked.

At the appointed time, Lady Godiva mounted a snow-white horse and rode naked through the city and back again. To his credit, Lord Leofric, honoured his word and promptly reduced the tax.

In Matthew 6, Jesus had this to say about our eyes…

22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

Jesus is speaking figuratively here. This is symbolism, not science. The purpose of a lamp is to shine light so you can see where you are going. A lamp guides you in the dark. Likewise, the purpose of your eyes is to guide your body, to help you see where to go, so you don’t bump into things or fall into a ditch.

If your eyes are healthy, if you can see clearly, then your body will be protected (inside and out); you won’t kick your foot against a piece of furniture or walk off the edge of a cliff. You will have the information you need to make good choices and take care of yourself.

But if your eyes are not healthy, if you cannot see clearly, then you will inevitably put the rest of your body (and soul) in danger.

Lady Godiva had healthy eyes. Her perception of others was sound and generous. She could see her neighbours in need and she cared about them. She could also see her husband’s tax policy was unfair. It was crippling people. Lord Leofric’s eyes were unhealthy. He saw the common people as cash cows to be milked, not as people to be cared for.    

In the same breath as talking about the eyes being the lamp of the body, Jesus warns against hoarding riches. From verse 19 the Lord says…  

19 “Do not store up riches for yourselves here on earth, where moths and rust destroy, and robbers break in and steal. 20 Instead, store up riches for yourselves in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and robbers cannot break in and steal.

Jesus is warning against the dangers of greed and accumulating excess material wealth. Pursuing worldly riches can make us blind to the well-being of others. It can cloud our perception and darken our inner life.

If your eyes are healthy, like Lady Godiva, then your perception, your way of looking at others will be generous, warm and open hearted. Your inner life will be full of light; meaning you will have a right perspective and be happier. More than this, you will store up riches for yourself in heaven.

But if your eyes are unhealthy, like Lord Leofric, then you will look at others with a meanness of spirit and your inner life will be filled with darkness. You will lose perspective and become cynical, cold and suspicious.

Given the importance of our eyes in guiding us, it logically follows we need to take care of our eyes and be careful what we look at.  

There’s a dark addendum to the legend of Lady Godiva. A tailor named Tom sneaked a peek at the naked Lady, through a gap in his shutters, and later made the mistake of bragging about it. He lost his eyesight. Some said his blindness was divine judgement. Others said it was caused by local citizens with red-hot pokers.

The infamous Tom is still remembered today. His name is often used to describe any peeping Tom who spies on another person, especially a man who sneaks a lustful look at a woman when she doesn’t want to be seen. [1]  

Our eyes guide our body. If we are not careful, they will guide us into trouble.

In Matthew 5, verses 27-29, Jesus talks about taking care of our eyes and what we look at. The Lord says…

27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into Gehenna…” 

Adultery doesn’t start with jumping into bed with someone. It starts with the eyes and the way we look at people. If we look at a person with a view to how they might satisfy our appetite, or how we might use them, our body and mind will be guided into dark places.

Gehenna was the name of the rubbish dump outside Jerusalem, always smouldering, where the worm never dies. It has become a metaphor for hell. Verse 29, where it talks about gouging out your right eye, is not to be taken literally. Jesus is speaking figuratively; he is using words to paint a picture.

The point is to rid your life of anything that would lead you astray. Don’t be a peeping Tom. Don’t put yourself in a position where you may see things with your eye that tempt you in the wrong direction. You don’t want your eyes to guide your body into Gehenna.

Are there things in your life that you need to be rid of? Things that distract you or syphon off your best energy? Things you need to cut out. Don’t let those things become habits. Whether they have become a habit or not, ask God (your spiritual surgeon) to remove them.   

There is a saying which comes from the Old Testament law of Moses:

An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

You can interpret this verse one of two ways. If your eye (or your perception) is bad, then you might think you are commanded to take revenge when you are wronged. Tit for tat. This interpretation is false.   

The good eye, the healthy eye, looks at others with generosity and interprets God’s law in a positive way. Moses was not commanding revenge; he was trying to limit revenge. The intention is to prevent people going overboard when avenging wrong.

As Ghandi pointed out, ‘An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind’. Ghandi got his inspiration from Jesus on this point.

This is how the good eye of Jesus interpreted the law of Moses…   

38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ 39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. 40 And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. 41 If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.

This is difficult to do. Jesus did it, but it doesn’t come naturally to us. Everything in us wants to get even when we are wronged.

Resisting the temptation to take revenge requires us to look at the situation with the eyes of faith, trusting that God (who sees all) will make things right in the end.

The eyes of faith:

What then do we mean when we talk about the eyes of faith? Well, faith is how we see spiritual reality. Just as our physical eyes enable us to see the material world, so too our faith enables us to see God at work in the world.

The eyes of faith are like a guide dog. We cannot see the spiritual realm.

God is invisible to us and his ways are a mystery. But faith in Jesus guides us through this world to the next, sort of like a guide dog guides a blind person.

As Paul says in his letter to the Corinthians: We walk by faith not by sight.   

There are a number of gospel stories of Jesus healing people who were physically blind. Often though, these blind men possessed the eyes of faith to see who Jesus really is, when others couldn’t. They had spiritual insight.

One such story is found in John chapter 9…

As he went along, Jesus saw a man blind from birth. 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. 

Interesting. When the disciples see this blind man, the first thing they think of is sin and who to blame. They operate from, what we today might call, a deficit model. They can only see what is wrong, not what is right. Jesus sees this man using a strengths-based approach; as someone capable of glorifying God.

Jesus heals the man by making some mud with his saliva and putting the mud on the man’s eyes. We are reminded of God, at creation, forming Adam’s body from mud. Jesus is creating eyesight for this man.

The blind man obeys Jesus. No questions. This is faith. Trust with obedience.

Now you would think most people would celebrate with the man, but no one seems to do this. Not even his parents. When the Pharisees investigate, they want to know who healed the man, because this happened on the Sabbath and, by their (bad eye) interpretation of the law, healing people was work and therefore not allowed on a Saturday.

The Pharisees are divided. Some think Jesus is a sinner (because he healed on the Sabbath) and others are not so sure, saying: “How can a sinner perform such signs”. They cannot decide whether Jesus is from God or not. So they question the man again and he applies the Pharisees’ own logic to the situation, saying…

“Now that is remarkable! You don’t know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly person who does his will. 32 Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.”

The man whom Jesus healed cannot get over the Pharisees’ spiritual blindness. It seems obvious to him that Jesus is from God. How can they not see it?

The Pharisees don’t want to look at the evidence; much less be hoisted on their own petard. In their anger they throw the (formerly) blindman out of the synagogue, unjustly.

Afterwards, Jesus caught up with the man who was expelled and revealed himself as the Son of Man. The Son of Man has a range of meanings in the Bible but, in this context, it refers to Jesus as the long-awaited Saviour from God, who redeems humanity and indeed all of creation.

The man whom Jesus healed responded in faith and worship. He has the spiritual insight to recognise divine revelation when he sees it. He possesses the eyes of faith.

Then Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.”

These words need some explanation. Jesus did not come into this world to condemn people. Jesus is not looking to catch people out. No. Judgement is not Jesus’ purpose, but it is the inevitable consequence.

Jesus is the light of the world. Light does not condemn. Light simply reveals what is there. Jesus’ presence reveals the truth of the matter. There is no sitting on the fence with Jesus. You either see him with the eyes of faith (like the man born blind), or you don’t (like the Pharisees).    

Who is Jesus to you? That is the question we each need to face. And it can only be answered by faith. We judge ourselves by the way we respond to Jesus.  

Conclusion:

This morning we have considered three types of eyes in the Bible:

The eyes of God, the eyes of the body, and the eyes of faith.  

The eyes of God see the human heart.

The eyes of our body guide us.

And the eyes of faith enable us to see Jesus.

Let us pray…

Gracious God, give us eyes of faith to see you at work in the world. Guide us in paths of righteousness for your name’s sake. Help us to walk in the light of your word. Through Jesus we pray. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. Discuss / reflect on the eyes of God. How are God’s eyes (vision) different from our human eyes? What does God look for?
  3. What did Jesus mean when he said, ‘The eye is the lamp of the body’? In the context of Matthew 6:19-23, what does it mean to have healthy eyes? What does it mean to have unhealthy eyes?  
  4. Are there things in your life that you need to be rid of? What practical steps can you take to be rid of them? Ask God for his help.
  5. What do we mean by the eyes of faith? Can you think of a time in your life when you couldn’t see a way forward but then discovered the way by faith? What happened?
  6. How does Jesus see the man who was born blind? How is this different from the way most other people saw the blind man? How do you view people who are different from you?
  7. Why does the blind man worship Jesus?  Who is Jesus to you? 

Bibliography

  • Leon Morris, ‘NICNT: The Gospel According to John’, 1995.
  • Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, General Editors: L Leland Ryken, James C. Wilhoit, Temper Longman III, IVP, 1998.
  • John Burge, ‘NIVAC: John’, 2000.
  • Leonard Mann, ‘Green-Eyed Monsters and Good Samaritans’, 2006.
  • R.T. France, ‘NICNT: The Gospel of Matthew’, 2007.  

[1] Leonard Mann, ‘Green-Eyed Monsters & Good Samaritans’, 169.

Tawa Baptist

On this rock…

Scripture: Matthew 16:13-20

Video Link: https://youtu.be/EOvjOUfDwZE

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Clear identity
  • Stable leadership
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

You don’t own a cricket bat just to oil it. The purpose of a cricket bat is to score runs. Of course, a bat cannot score runs by itself. It needs to be guided by the hands of a skilled cricketer.

Likewise, you don’t buy a tea pot just to keep it on the shelf looking pretty.

The purpose of a tea pot is to brew tea. But the pot cannot make the tea by itself. A person needs to pour the water and add the leaves.

You don’t purchase a tractor to leave it sitting in the shed. The purpose of a tractor is to do work in the field. However, the tractor isn’t going to operate itself. The tractor needs a driver.   

The church does not exist for itself. The purpose of a church is to carry out God’s mission, his purpose in the world. But the church cannot carry out God’s mission by itself. The church, which is the community of God’s people, is built up, guided and moved by the Spirit of Jesus.

Over the past couple of weeks our messages have been in support of the work of Arotahi, our New Zealand Baptist missions organization. Two weeks ago, we heard how Mary said yes to God’s call on her life. And last Sunday we heard how Jesus is our way home to God.

In today’s message we listen in to Jesus’ conversation with his disciples about building his church. From Matthew 16, verses 13-20, we read… 

13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hadeswill not overcome it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will bebound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will beloosed in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

This morning’s message is about building the church. Not the bricks and mortar construction of church buildings, but the spiritual and relational formation of a community of people who believe in Jesus. The church is the people.

As he talks about building his church community, Jesus has two things in mind: clear identity and stable leadership.

The Christian church gets its identity from Jesus and it requires stable leadership; leadership that is guided and sustained by the Spirit of Jesus.   

Clear identity:

Front and centre of today’s reading is the importance of having a clear sense of identity; we need to be clear about who we are. Without a clear identity, the church risks being assimilated into the surrounding culture. We don’t want to lose our saltiness, our distinctiveness, and become just another club.

Some of you may be familiar with the Avatar movies, made by James Cameron. This series of films features a fictional people known as the Na’vi. The Na’vi have blue skin. They live close to the natural world and they care for it. The Na’vi have a clear sense of identity. They know who they are and what they value.

When the Na’vi’s world is invaded by corporate raiders wanting to steal the planet’s natural resources, the Na’vi do not assimilate. They stay true to who they are. They remain clear on their identity and hold to their values.

The Na’vi have a saying, ‘I see you’. More than just a way of greeting people,

‘I see you’ is an acknowledgement of who that person is, deep in their soul.

It conveys respect, understanding and value for the person.

‘I see you’ is often accompanied by the gesture of moving one’s hand from the forehead to the chest, signifying trust and profound spiritual connection.    

As human beings we have a deep longing to be seen, in this way, by someone. We even have a word for it; intimacy. Into-me-see.

In verse 13 of Matthew 16, Jesus asks his disciples “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” The Son of Man is Jesus’ way of referring to himself. Jesus is asking, ‘Who do people (in general) say I am?’ It is a question of identity.

The disciples reply, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” Each of these people were servants of God, his spokesmen.

Herod thought Jesus was John the Baptist returned from the dead. Herod’s conscience was haunting him after he had John killed.

Elijah was one of Israel’s greatest prophets. He lived during the time of king Ahab and queen Jezabel. Like Jesus, Elijah confronted false religion and afterwards was taken up to heaven. Unlike Jesus, Elijah used violence.

People at the time of Jesus believed Elijah would return to herald the coming of God’s Messiah. In fact, it was John the Baptist who prepared the way for Jesus.

Jeremiah was probably more like Jesus than any of the other prophets.

Like Jesus, Jeremiah was despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.

And like Jesus, Jeremiah, challenged the Jewish nationalism of his day, without resorting to violence. He had the unpopular task to telling his people to submit to their enemies. Sadly, the people paid a high price for not listening to Jesus or Jeremiah.   

In some respects, calling Jesus a prophet was no small thing. The Jews of the first century did not think God had spoken through a prophet in 400 years. And while it is true that Jesus was a prophet, this title is not adequate for him. Jesus is more than a prophet. The people of Jesus’ day did not see him, not properly.

So Jesus said to his disciples, “But what about you? Who do you say I am?”
And Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Peter nailed it. Peter sees who Jesus really is.

Messiah is a Hebrew word which literally means ‘anointed one’. Christ is the Greek equivalent. In Old Testament times, God selected someone to be a prophet or priest or king by having his messenger pour oil over their head; oil being a symbol of the Holy Spirit’s anointing.

Jesus is God’s anointed one. He is not just a prophet. He is priest and King as well. More than this, there is something qualitatively different about Jesus.

He is in a league of his own. He is the Son of God. There is no other prophet, priest or king who comes close to Jesus. No other with the same standing.  

As Son of God, Jesus knows the mind of his Father. Indeed, Jesus reveals God the Father. To see Jesus is to see God.

Only God can reveal God, and so Jesus affirms Peter’s declaration, saying: Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter… 

The name Peter means rock. It’s like Jesus is saying to Peter, “I see you. You are a rock, strong, dependable.”

Two points of application here. Firstly, our discovery of Jesus’ identity must be a personal discovery. Peter was not following the crowd. His perception of Jesus was not influenced by the surrounding culture. Peter was able to see who Jesus really is because God revealed it to him personally.  

Being a Christian is more than simply knowing about Jesus. Being a Christian means knowing Jesus through a personal relationship with him. Recognising who Jesus really is, on the inside. Understanding that he is Lord of life and death, that he alone is righteous; and therefore, worthy of our trust and obedience. To see Jesus is to have an intimate spiritual connection with him.  

Only God can reveal God. We need the Holy Spirit to turn the lights on in our mind and spirit if we are to see Jesus. 

The second point of application is this: We don’t define ourselves. Jesus defines us. Peter was not always called Peter. His given name was Simon. Jesus gives Simon a new name (a new identity) and a new purpose.

The surrounding culture we live in says, you can create your own identity; you can define yourself. Our surrounding culture is at odds with the gospel of Jesus. We don’t create our own identity. Our identity and purpose are intimately entwined with Jesus. It is in discovering who Jesus is, for ourselves personally, that we discover who we are and why we are.

A cricket bat is not a cricket bat until it is in the hands of the batsman. Without the batsman, the bat is just a piece of wood. Jesus is the batsman.

A tea pot is not a tea pot until it holds the tea. Without someone to pour the water and add the leaves, it is just a pretty ornament, an empty vessel. Jesus is the one who pours the water and makes the tea.  

A tractor is not a tractor until it is put to work in the field. Without the driver, the tractor is just a hunk of metal sitting in the shed. Jesus is the driver. Jesus defines us.

We do not know who we are or why we are without Christ. Jesus shows us our true self and he helps us to fulfil our God given purpose. More than that, Jesus defines the church (the body of believers) and he enables the church to fulfil God’s mission.         

Whenever someone asks me what the vision of the church is, my answer is always the same, Jesus is the vision. Jesus is God’s vision for the church. No one can improve on him.

Stable leadership:

The Christian church gets its identity from Jesus. But for the church to have a sustainable future, it needs stable leadership; a team of people who will steady the ship and make decisions that are in keeping with the will of Christ.

After Peter makes his personal discovery that Jesus is God’s anointed one, the Lord then goes on to appoint Peter as leader for the early the church. In verse 18 Jesus says: “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hadeswill not overcome it…”  

The word translated as church is literally assembly, as in the assembly of God’s people. As already mentioned, the Christian church is not a physical building or even an institution. The church, as Jesus describes it, is a gathering of people who can say with Peter, “I see you Jesus. You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”    

That Jesus is building his church on a rock speaks of stability. The church has a secure, strong, dependable foundation. So strong in fact that the gates of Hades shall not overcome it.    

Hades is the Greek name for the realm of the dead. Some English versions say the gates of hell, but that translation is misleading. Hades is not the same as our modern concept of hell. We think of hell as a place of torment and demons and destruction. But Hades, in this context, is simply a metaphor for death, no torture or suffering implied.

Jesus is saying his church will be stronger than death. Indeed, those who are part of Jesus’ church (his assembly of people) will be raised from the dead.

The church on earth may not appear that strong or robust, but it is eternally secure, not because of Peter but because of Jesus.

As we have already noted, the name Peter means rock. When Jesus says that the apostle Peter will be the rock on which he builds his church, he is speaking poetically. In plain language, Peter will be the leader of the early church; his leadership will give stability to the church community, like a rock foundation gives stability to an actual building.

Now when we think of leadership, we picture the person at the top. But that is not the picture Jesus gives us of leadership. According to the logic of God’s kingdom, the leader is on the bottom, like the foundation of a building. The leader paves the way for others; the leader supports others.

Providing stable leadership includes setting standards for the community; making it clear what is acceptable and what is not. In verse 19 Jesus says to Peter, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven;

This verse has been prone to quite a lot of misunderstanding over the years.

In popular culture, there is this idea that Saint Peter stands at the pearly gates, deciding who to let in and who to turn away. But this is not what Jesus had in mind in Matthew 16. Peter does not decide who gets into heaven. That is God’s decision.

We are better to understand the keys to the kingdom of heaven as the gospel concerning Jesus. As we heard last Sunday, Jesus is the way to God the Father. Therefore, the key is believing in Jesus. But how are people to believe in Jesus unless someone tells them the good news about Jesus?

Peter and the other apostles opened the door to the kingdom of heaven by their witness and preaching about Jesus. For example, in Acts 2 at Pentecost, Peter opened the door of the kingdom for 3,000 souls when he called on those present to repent and believe in the risen Jesus.

Likewise, in Acts 8, Peter and John opened the door of the kingdom for the Samaritans, by praying for those who believed in Jesus to receive the Holy Spirit, which they did.

And then, in Acts 10, Peter opened the door of the kingdom for the Gentile, Cornelius and his household. By doing this Peter was laying the foundation, paving the way, for all peoples to enter God’s kingdom through faith in Jesus.  

Of course, Peter was not doing this on his own initiative. Peter was responding to the impulse of Jesus’ Spirit.

Jesus continues addressing Peter saying, “…whatever you bind on earth will bebound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will beloosed in heaven.”

Binding has to do with what one forbids or prohibits, while loosing has to do with what one permits or allows.

During the first century the Jewish Rabbis had responsibility for interpreting the Law of Moses. Their interpretation either bound certain things (meaning it was prohibited), or it loosed certain things (meaning it was permitted).

Jesus is the word of God. In Jesus we have someone greater than the Law of Moses. Indeed, Jesus is the true interpretation of the Law. Peter has just confessed Jesus as the Son of God and so Peter (and the other disciples) were given the responsibility of interpreting the teaching of Jesus. [1]

To be clear, it is not that Peter makes a decision and heaven then endorses it. No. It’s the other way round. Peter is not the initiator of new directions for the church, he is the faithful steward of God’s prior decisions. [2]

Jesus’ words to Peter here are a promise of divine guidance. If Peter is like the cricket bat, then Jesus is the batsman guiding Peter. If Peter is like the tea pot, then Jesus is the one who fills Peter with the water of his Spirit and the tea of his word. If Peter is like the tractor, then Jesus is the one in the driver’s seat. The Spirit of Jesus is guiding Peter in accordance with God’s will in heaven.

We see an example of the Spirit’s guidance in Acts 10. Just before Peter went to preach the gospel to Cornelius (the Gentile), the Lord gave him a vision of all sorts of animals both clean and unclean, saying it was okay to eat them. This happened three times to reassure Peter it was okay to fellowship with Gentiles.

This vision gave Peter authority to loosen the tradition around food and fellowship so that the gospel of Jesus could spread. Without this direction from heaven, Peter could not have opened the door of God’s kingdom for Cornelius and other Gentiles.    

Conclusion:

This morning we have heard how Jesus builds his church; the community of his people. Two things are crucial for building the church. Having a clear identity in Christ and having stable leadership, which is guided by the Spirit of Jesus.  

For more than 140 years New Zealand Baptists have been involved globally in planting and building churches by training pastors and evangelists and supporting church associations so that churches are equipped to grow.

In particular, New Zealand Baptists have helped to plant churches in Tripura, a northern state of India. We have worked alongside these churches for 87 years. Now, with local growth, there are 1,000 Baptist churches with over 100,000 members who collectively make up over 60% of all the Christians in Tripura.

The Tripura Theological College is the only theological college in the state.

To serve such a large population, it needs support to train people to interpret God’s word and provide stable leadership for the church.

Following this morning’s sermon (while we are singing our closing song) the stewards will take up the special Renew Together offering for the work of Arotahi. Some of this money will help support the building of Jesus’ church in Tripura.

Now though, let us pray…

Jesus, you are the one who builds your church. Our identity is found in you. You define us. Help us to stay true to who we are in you. Bless your church, here in Aotearoa and overseas, with stable leadership guided by your Spirit. Amen.  

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. What is the church? Why does the church exist? What is the purpose of the church? What is God’s purpose for you in relation to his church?
  3. Why is having a clear sense of identity important for the church? Where does the church’s identity come from? How do we strengthen / maintain our sense of Christian identity?
  4. When did you first ‘see’ Jesus? How did this happen for you?
  5. Why is stable leadership important for the church? What does stable leadership look like?
  6. Discuss / reflect on Matthew 16, verse 19. What does verse mean? What does it not mean? In what sense did Peter unlock the doors of the kingdom for people? What does it mean to bind and loose?    
  7. Who are you?

Bibliography:

  • R.V.G. Tasker, ‘TNTC: The Gospel According to St Matthew’, 1963.
  • William Barclay, ‘Gospel of Matthew Vol. 2’, 1967.
  • Michael Green, ‘BST: The Message of Matthew’, 2000.
  • R.T. France, ‘NICNT: The Gospel of Matthew’, 2007.
  • Craig Keener, ‘The Gospel of Matthew – A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary’, 2009.

[1] Green, page 180.

[2] France, page 627.

Tawa Baptist

The Way Home

Scripture: John 14:1-7

Video Link: https://youtu.be/L8xoKm0YL8g

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Jesus is our hope (vv.1-3)
  • Jesus is our way home (vv.4-7)
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Having a home, a place to live and belong, is foundational to our wellbeing.

It is a deeply seated need; essential not just for our physical survival, but for our soul and spirit too. Having a place to call home gives us a sense of security and connectedness.

According to the UN Refugee Agency, more than 117 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to persecution, conflict or violence. That equates to 1 in every 70 people on the planet and it doesn’t include those hundreds of millions of people around the world who are homeless in their own country due to poverty.

Today we continue our annual Renew Together campaign in support of Arotahi, our New Zealand Baptist missions organization. The Renew Together campaign runs during June, culminating with a special appeal next Sunday.

Today’s message draws on part of Jesus’ farewell discourse in John 14, where the Lord talks to his disciples about the eternal home he is preparing for them. Jesus is the way home to God. From John chapter 14, verse 1 we read…

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

There are two main points to our message this morning. The first is that Jesus is our hope. The second is that Jesus is our way home.

Jesus is our hope:

Hope and home are two words that go together. They are almost spelt the same, just one letter difference. Swap the p for an m and your hope becomes a home. More than mere spelling though, our hope is often intimately entwined with our desire to find and make a home.

Hope is believing you have a good future. Or to say it another way, hope is knowing your future is secure. When you don’t have a home, you look for one, in hope. You imagine what that home will be like. You look forward to finding a home, a place where you can be secure and belong.   

Let me tell you a story, an allegory, about the hope of finding a home.

Once there was a small boat carrying refugees across the ocean to a neighbouring country. The refugees were not safe in their own land and were looking for a new home. A place where they could be secure and find peace.   

During the night a storm blew up capsizing the boat. Most of the those on board managed to swim to a nearby island but not everyone made it.

Once ashore one of their number, a young man in his thirties called Josh, emerged as their leader. He found water, built a shelter, made fire, caught fish and took care of the sick and injured.

The survivors loved Josh and depended on him; he possessed a wisdom beyond his years. His kindness kept them calm. Although stranded on a remote island, this small group felt safe with Josh, much safer than in the war-torn land they had escaped from. In many ways Josh became their home.

After three years on the island, a ship was spotted on the horizon. It was headed straight for them. At first the survivors were excited. It looked like they were going to be rescued.

But when they realised it was a pirate ship, their joy turned to terror. Josh was not afraid though; he saw this as an opportunity. If he allowed himself to be captured by the pirates, he could escape the island and then come back to rescue the others. It was a daring plan, but he knew going away was the only way to secure his friends’ future.

Josh’s community were deeply troubled by the idea. They wanted to keep their leader with them. Josh was their security. All their hope was wrapped up in him. But what could they do. They were not strong enough to fight the pirates and no one else was going to help them.

Sensing how they felt, Josh reassured them he would return one day and take them to be with him.

The next morning the pirates anchored in the bay and sent a raiding party ashore to scavenge what they could. Josh went out to meet them while his friends hid in the trees. Quite unaware of the other survivors on the island, the pirates kidnapped Josh and sailed away. Josh had saved his friends by surrendering himself to evil men.

At first, those left on the island were distraught, thinking Josh was dead and the plan had failed.

But after several weeks, an airplane flew over, dropping supplies to the island by parachute. There was a note with the supplies. It read, “I made it and I’m coming back for you.” The survivors took heart and lived with the hope of knowing their future was secure. 

For those who need me to connect the dots, the Josh in this story represents Jesus and the survivors on the island are like Jesus’ disciples. The pirates are the pharisees who took Jesus away to be crucified and the supply drop is the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In verse 1 of John 14, Jesus says to his disciples, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…” Why are the disciples so deeply troubled?

Well, Jesus has just been explaining that he has to go away and leave them for a while, by which he means he is going to surrender himself to evil men and be killed.

The disciples are understandably upset by this. They have sacrificed a lot to follow Jesus, including leaving their homes and families. Indeed, Jesus has become their home and their security. Now they are going to be separated from him, the one they love and depend on, the one they have invested all their hope in.  

With this in view Jesus reassures his friends that the separation is not permanent; but it is necessary if he is to secure their future. Jesus is going to prepare a place for them in his Father’s house, that is in heaven. The preparation Jesus has in mind here is his atoning sacrifice on the cross.  

There are times in our journey of faith, when Jesus feels very absent. Times of darkness when our peace and joy are stolen. Times when our prayers don’t seem to make it past the ceiling and our heart feels empty. Times when all we can do is wait out the spiritual winter in faith and hope.

In stillness and trust is your salvation. The Lord has not forgotten you. He will return for you.

In verse 3, Jesus promises to come back for his disciples and take them to be with him. Just as Josh had to leave the island to find the means to rescue his friends, so too Jesus had to leave this world (via the cross) in order to save us.

Most commentators agree Jesus is talking about his second coming in glory here. After Jesus died, he was raised to life by God on the third day. Then he appeared to his disciples for 40 days before being taken up to heaven.

Ten days after his ascension, the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost and is still being poured out. One day, we don’t know when, Jesus will return for those who love and trust him. That is our hope, a hope which is guaranteed by Jesus’ resurrection and ascension.

Jesus is our hope and Jesus is our way home.

Jesus is our way home:

Another story for you. This one is a true story about finding my way home; one I’ve told a couple of times in sermons. When I was about four, I got lost, separated from my mum, in Chartwell Square. Chartwell Square was, at the time, Hamilton’s largest shopping mall.

At first, I felt fine. I just walked around looking up at everyone. But it didn’t take long before I started to get upset. The mall was new and big. I wasn’t familiar with it and I had no idea where to find my mother.

The adults around me were friendly enough but as is often the case with adults, they were not much help. They didn’t know where my mum was or even who she was.    

For some reason (perhaps God put the idea into my head) I decided that my best bet was to return to our car, which at that time was a burnt orange Mark 1 Ford Escort (similar to this one); relatively easy to find. Being the 1970’s no one locked their cars, so I let myself in and waited.

I just wanted to go home and I knew the car was my way home. Eventually my mum did return to the Ford Escort, relieved to find her son safe and sound.

In verse 4 of John 14, Jesus reassures his disciples that they know the way to the place where he is going. Thomas, who is known for his doubt and his honesty, says: “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

To which Jesus famously replies: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me…”    

Jesus was going home to his Father, in heaven. Therefore, Jesus is the way home. We come to God the Father by being in Christ.

To put it another way, Jesus is like the car in my story. Find the car and you are guaranteed a ride home. Find Jesus, remain in him, and you will be taken to God the Father. Jesus doesn’t just give you directions on how to get to the Father. Jesus takes you to God the Father himself.

The emphasis in these verses is on Jesus being the way to God the Father. Access to the Father is only through Jesus. The idea that Jesus is the only way to God is offensive to many people these days. It comes across as arrogant, like Christians think they better than everyone else.

Well, Christians are not better than everyone else. The ground at the foot of the cross is level. As one of my lecturers (Brian Harris) used to say, ‘We are all sinners and we are all sinned against’.

A Christian is not better than others. I Christian knows they fall short and is relying on Jesus’ righteousness.

While it is true that Jesus is the only way to God the Father, it is also true there are many ways to come to Jesus. We human beings have only one heart, but there are many blood vessels leading to our heart.

Some people come to Jesus because a friend introduces them. Others encounter Jesus in a dream or through a miraculous intervention in their life. And still others (smart people like C.S. Lewis) work it out logically, rationally.  

Whatever way we might come to Jesus, we won’t really accept him (not properly) until we know our need for him. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. The horse will only drink if it is thirsty. It is our need, our thirst, our hunger, which makes us open to receiving Jesus.   

Someone might say, what about those who don’t know anything about Jesus? It’s not an even playing field, especially if you are born in a country that is not friendly to Christianity.

Well, God is fair. He takes all those factors into account. We don’t know how God will work things out in the end, but we do know he will do what is right by each person. The worst we can expect is justice. The best we can expect is mercy.

Jesus also said he is the truth. We (in the west) tend to think of truth as a body of knowledge, or a system of belief. Something is true or false; it is fact or fiction. For example, it is true to say the sun rises in the east, but it is false to say the earth is flat.

And while that captures part of what truth is, it is not the whole picture. Jesus takes a broader view, a more relational view. Jesus says he is the truth. Which means, truth is more than just a body of knowledge or a system of belief. Truth is a person; someone we can relate with.

The body of knowledge Jesus passed on to us (his teaching) is true because Jesus is true. If we think of our faith as a house, then Jesus is the foundation of the house.

When the foundation of a house is straight and true, the walls are straight and true. The doors and windows open and shut easily, the picture frames hang properly, the roof doesn’t leak and everything else is level.

But if the foundation of the house is crocked or untrue, the rest of the house will be out of square and prone to problems.     

We can trust Jesus’ word to us because Jesus is true. We can build our life on the foundation of Jesus’ teaching and know that the house will stand, because Jesus is on the level. He is faithful, reliable, trustworthy, strong.

Another example of what Jesus means when he says, ‘I am the truth’.

It’s like the difference between whole foods and processed foods. Whole foods are foods which are eaten in their natural state (or close to it). Things like fresh fruit and vegetables, nuts, grains and boiled eggs. Whole foods have a high nutritional value. They sustain you through the day.

Processed foods (on the other hand) have been altered or modified. Processed foods, like biscuits and white bread and fruit loops, tend to be high in sugar and carbohydrates, but low in nutritional value. They give you a quick pick me up, they make you feel good for a short while, but they don’t sustain you. They let you down over the long haul.

Receiving the truth of Jesus is like eating whole food. It is high in nutritional value, it sustains you. It doesn’t let you down. You can rely on it.   

Jesus doesn’t just tell us things that are true, he embodies the truth in himself. Jesus shows us the truth by his example. The Lord practices what he preaches. Jesus says, ‘love your enemies’ and when his enemies strike him, he turns the other cheek.  

The suffering of Christ shows us Jesus is trustworthy. He is true. You can rely on him.

Jesus completes the trifecta by saying, “I am the life”. Now, most people today think of life in merely physical terms. If you are breathing and your heart is beating, then you are alive. That is a relatively narrow definition of life. Again, Jesus takes a broader view, a more relational view on life.

In Christian understanding, life is connection. Specifically, connection with God.

The life of a plant depends on its connection with the sun. A plant can survive through the night, but if the night never ends, the plant will die. For a plant, life is connection with the sun.

Likewise, the life of a human being depends on their connection with God.

We can survive through the dark night of the soul, when it feels like God is absent, but if we are separated from the light of God for too long, we will die.

Without a real connection with God, our heart may still beat and our lungs fill with air, but our spirit will be dead. We will lose the capacity to give and receive love. We might exist but existing is not the same as living.

Eternal life is not existing forever. That would be a kind of hell. Eternal life is never ending connection with God. Eternal life is intimacy with God, forever. Life that is worth living. Life that never grows tired. Life that keeps its wonder and vitality.

Conclusion:

In verse 7 of John 14, Jesus indicates it is through him that we are able to have intimacy with God. Jesus says to his disciples, “If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

Very simply, Jesus shows us God. If you want to know what God is like, if you want intimacy with God, then look to Jesus, remain in him. To remain in Christ is to stay connected to God, the source of life. As we remain in Christ, the Spirit works through us to create life-giving connections for others.   

Putting it all together, God is our home and Jesus takes us home to God, so stick with Jesus.

This year Arotahi is building homes; physical bricks and mortar which serve as places of security where people can connect with Jesus and each other.  

In partnership with the Bangladesh Baptist Church Fellowship, Arotahi is building hostels in Bangladesh for children. In addition to this, Arotahi is building homes here in Aotearoa, New Zealand for people who face barriers and adversity, including former refugees.

These homes will provide safe and stable spaces for people to live and belong. They will be rented at social housing provider rates to ensure affordability.

The rent received will contribute to the care of the children in the Bangladesh hostels.

Over the years to come, the value of these local homes will grow, creating a lasting legacy that will contribute to Arotahi’s future work.  

Let us pray…

Jesus, you are the way home to God. You are our hope, our security, our place to belong. Make us fruitful as we remain in you and wait for your return. Amen.  

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. What is a home? Why is home important?
  3. Why are the disciples so deeply troubled? Why did Jesus have to go away?
  4. Have you ever been lost? What happened and how did you find your way home? 
  5. Discuss / reflect on Jesus’ statement: “I am the way, the truth and the life”. What does it mean that Jesus is the way? What does it mean that Jesus is the truth? What does it mean that Jesus is the life? 
  6. Why do we need to remain in Christ? How do we stay connected to Jesus?
  7. Do you know someone in need of connection? How might you reach out to them? 

Bibliography

  • R.V.G. Tasker, ‘TNTC: The Gospel according to John’, 1960.
  • William Barclay, ‘The Gospel of John: Vol. 2’, 1975.
  • Bruce Milne, ‘BST: The Message of John’, 1993.
  • Leon Morris, ‘NICNT: The Gospel According to John (Revised)’, 1995.
  • Gary Burge, ‘NIVAC: John’, 2000.
Tawa Baptist

Father, Son, Spirit

Scripture: John 16:5-15

Video Link: https://youtu.be/dlaJZBC44q0

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • The person of the Spirit
  • The prosecution of the Spirit
  • The revelation of the Spirit
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Today is Trinity Sunday, one week after Pentecost. The Trinity is the name we give to God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Some think of the Trinity as three divine persons who are one.

In simple terms, we might say the Trinity is the divine community of love. Beyond that, it is difficult to find the right words. There is a mystery in God that we cannot comprehend.

We read about the Trinity a number of times in the gospels. All three persons are present at Jesus’ baptism and, Father, Son and Spirit are woven through Jesus’ conversation with his disciples the night before he died.

Our message this morning focuses on John 16, verses 5-15, where Jesus talks about God the Father and the Holy Spirit in relation to himself. From John 16, verse 5 we read…

5 but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. 7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin, because people do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. 12 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

Today’s message has three parts: the person of the Spirit, the prosecution of the Spirit and the revelation of the Spirit. Although that sounds like a very Spirit centred message, what we discover is the Spirit does not act in isolation.

The Spirit acts in close relationship with God the Father and Jesus the Son.

Let us continue then with our first point: the person of the Spirit.

What is a person? You might think that is obvious, but it’s actually more complicated than you think. The best simple definition I could come up with was, a person is someone capable of relationship.

Now, there may be some exceptions to this but, for the sake of clarity, let’s use this as a working definition. A person is someone (not something), but someone capable of relationship. 

By this definition, a potato is not a person. A potato is not a someone. A potato is a something; it’s a vegetable. You can eat and enjoy a potato in many different ways, but you cannot really communicate with a potato. You can’t be friends with a potato or enemies for that matter. The potato is not aware it is a potato. It doesn’t care whether you mash it or fry it.

But a fellow human being is a person. Human beings are made with the capacity to relate, to communicate, to think and feel, to have opinions and make choices. Human beings care very much how you treat them. Don’t ever try to mash or fry a human person, it won’t be good for your relationship.

Now, there will be some human beings you find it impossible to relate with. That’s beside the point. They are still persons. They have a personality, a soul. They are able to relate with someone, even if it is not you.   

What about dogs? Is a dog a person? Well, I would say yes. Dogs are not human persons, obviously, but they are capable of relationship. You can communicate with a dog. A dog has feelings. Canine persons often make better friends than human persons.

A person then, is someone capable of relationship.   

Last Sunday we heard how Jesus used water as a metaphor for the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is also associated with wind and fire in the Bible. Wind, water and fire are forces of nature. They are not persons. They are a something, not a someone. They don’t possess a mind of their own or consciousness, as we do.

For this reason, wind, water and fire are helpful, but not adequate for describing the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit of God is not a force of nature; the Holy Spirit is a divine person, capable of reason and relationship. You cannot communicate with wind, water or fire but you can communicate with God’s Spirit.

In verse 7 of John 16, Jesus says to his disciples: Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 

Jesus is talking about the Holy Spirit here. The original Greek word, translated as Advocate, is: paracletos, which literally means to call alongside. Advocate, in the legal sense of that word, is a good translation but there is no one word in English which does justice to describe the work of the Holy Spirit.

Notice here how Jesus describes the Holy Spirit as a person, using the personal pronoun, ‘him’.  The Spirit is a ‘him’, a someone, sent by Jesus to come alongside and relate with us as our advocate and helper.

In verses 5-7 we see something of the relationship between the three persons of the Trinity. Jesus says: but now I am going to him who sent me. Jesus is talking about God the Father here. It was God the Father who sent Jesus (His Son) into the world to save us.

Jesus had to go away to God the father before he could send the person of the Holy Spirit. The going away that Jesus speaks of is a reference to Jesus’ death on the cross, followed by his resurrection and ascension to heaven.

As I mentioned last Sunday, sin had to be dealt with first [by Jesus on the cross] before the Spirit could be sent. Jesus’ atonement for sin made it possible for the Spirit to be poured out at Pentecost. We live at a time in history when the Holy Spirit is available to all who repent and put their faith in Jesus.

Coming back to the point: the Holy Spirit is a divine person. We relate with the risen Jesus by the Holy Spirit, and we relate with God through Jesus.

This is mind-blowing stuff. Jesus is talking about human beings participating in the life of the Trinity by his Spirit. This means the Trinity is not a closed society, it’s not an exclusive clique. God wants to make room for humanity in his love.

Okay, so the Holy Spirit is a person. What then does the person of the Spirit do? Well, the Spirit has many roles and functions, one of which is acting as a prosecutor.     

The prosecution of the Spirit:

A prosecutor is a type of lawyer. A person with special skills who advocates for justice in the realm of the courts.    

The prosecution lawyer represents the state or the government. Their job is to decide whether to press charges and then provide evidence to prove guilt and secure a conviction against the accused.

The prosecutor in any criminal case is advocating for all citizens of that society. Although we are unaware of it most of the time, the prosecutor is upholding justice and defending each one of us against dangerous criminals.   

The person of the Holy Spirit acts a bit like a prosecution lawyer. He brings convictions against the world and the devil. By doing this the Spirit is upholding justice in the spiritual realm and defending us against evil.

In verse 8 of John 16, Jesus says the Holy Spirit will prove the world to be in the wrong… The world, in this context, refers to those people and systems who are against God and his people. The world as organised by Satan.

Although they were not aware of it, many of the Jewish religious leaders of Jesus’ day were aligned with the world, as were the Romans.

Jesus says the Holy Spirit will prove the world to be in the wrong about three things: sin, righteousness and judgement.

How then is the world wrong about sin? Well, the people who called for Jesus to be crucified got it very wrong. They thought Jesus had committed a grave sin by claiming he was from God. But the truth is, those who condemned Jesus to death were the real sinners.

On the face of it, their sin was killing an innocent man. They framed Jesus so they could murder him. But their sin went deeper than that. Their primary underlying sin was not believing Jesus was sent from God. Had the religious leaders believed in Jesus to start with, they would not have killed him.

Jesus is giving us a definition of sin here. Sin isn’t just all the bad things we do or all the good things we leave undone. Sin, at its root, is not believing in Jesus. If we don’t align ourselves with Christ, then we are aligning ourselves with the world as organised by Satan.  

Given the world is wrong about sin, it logically follows it is also wrong about righteousness. The world (by in large through history) thinks of righteousness as an achievement. If we do enough good deeds, then we can earn enough points to go to heaven or nirvana or paradise or whatever.

Not according to Jesus. Christians believe that righteousness cannot be earned, no matter how hard you try. Righteousness can only be received as a gift from Jesus.

Jesus is the only truly righteous one. This is proved by his going to God the Father. Jesus’ resurrection and ascension to heaven is God’s vindication of Jesus. It proves Jesus’ righteousness. It is the Holy Spirit who enables us to believe in Jesus’ resurrection and ascension.  

To put it simply, if sin is not believing in Jesus, then righteousness is believing in Jesus. Therefore, we are made righteous by putting our faith in Jesus.

Accept Jesus and God will accept you. Reject Jesus and you condemn yourself.

That is the gospel.

The world is wrong about judgement too. Many people in this world think God wants to punish them or their enemies or both. There is this perception that God is a severe judge, gathering evidence against people so he can condemn them. That is not a fair perception of God.  

The prince of this world (also known as Satan, or the devil), he is the one who wants to accuse you and condemn you. But we do not need to be afraid, for the Holy Spirit (like a good prosecuting lawyer) has proven the devil wrong so the evil one now stands condemned.

What is your perception of God? Do you think God is out to get you? Do you think he is gathering evidence to punish and condemn you? Or do you think he wants to heal you, to redeem and save you?

God is for you. He is not against you. Jesus defeated the devil on the cross.

If you are in Christ, then the evil one has no power over you. 

We see a real historical example of the Holy Spirit proving the world wrong in Acts chapter 2. On the day of Pentecost, Peter preached to the crowds saying…

36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” 37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Peter preached Jesus and the Holy Spirit brought the inner conviction, so the people that day were cut to the heart. This conviction led the people to a realisation of the truth about Jesus and the grace of God.

Okay, so the Holy Spirit is a person, and he acts like a prosecutor, proving the world and the devil wrong. Now let’s turn our attention to the revelation of the Spirit.

When we talk about the revelation of the Spirit, we simply mean the Holy Spirit reveals things. It’s like we are in the dark and the person of the Spirit turns the lights on so we can see what was right in front of us all the time.

The revelation of the Spirit:

Have you ever believed something to be true, only to find you were wrong?

A hundred years ago, cigarettes were promoted as healthy, something good for you. Doctors endorsed smoking. It was accepted as a normal part of life. Now we know smoking can kill. Cigarette packets come with graphic health warnings.

It makes you wonder, what new truth will be revealed in 20 years’ time, changing the way we live?   

From verse 12 of John 16, Jesus says to his disciples: “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth…”   

These verses are talking about the revelation of the Spirit. The truth is too big, too much for us to take in all at once. We need time to absorb new information and adjust to that information gradually. The adjustment isn’t just intellectual; there’s an emotional and behavioural adjustment as well.

Although Jesus had told his disciples (ahead of time) that he would suffer and die and be raised to life again, they could not take it in. They were struggling to understand what Jesus meant when he said he was going away where they could not see him anymore.

Jesus understood this and reassured them that the Spirit would reveal to them what they needed to know as they needed to know it.

Some of you may have been to Pilot Bay at the Mount. Pilot Bay gets its name (I guess) because of the pilot boats that guide larger ships in and out of the harbour.

A navigator, who knows the coast well, boards the larger ship and helps to guide it safely, avoiding rocks and sandbars and other hazards. The ship’s crew don’t have the local knowledge they need, but the navigator from the pilot boat knows all the truth and guides the crew in it.

I wonder if it is like that with the Holy Spirit. When we come to a tricky time in our journey of faith, when we lack the specific knowledge we need, the Spirit guides us like a pilot guiding a ship into (and out of) a harbour.

Unlike the navigator from a pilot boat, the Holy Spirit is with us always, but we are usually more aware of him at the transition points in our lives.

We come across a real historical example of the Holy Spirit guiding Peter into the truth, in the book of Acts. In chapter 10, the Spirit piloted Peter to preach the good news to the Roman Centurion, Cornelius.

All his life Peter had avoided certain foods and certain people, thinking that contact with non-kosher food and non-Jewish people might offend God. This was a deeply held, sacred belief for Peter and other Jews of his time.

This belief was wrong. What’s more, it was getting in the way of the spread of the gospel. So the Spirit of Jesus reassured Peter, through a vision and through circumstance, that it was okay for Peter to eat non-kosher food and accept the hospitality of a gentile like Cornelius.

Long story short, as Peter was telling Cornelius about Jesus, the Roman Centurion and his gentile household received the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit guides us into the truth, especially the truth concerning Jesus and his redemptive purpose. How then do we know if a revelation is from the Holy Spirit?

In verses 13 and 14 of John 16, Jesus gives us two clues for recognising the Holy Spirit’s revelation: Firstly, the Spirit will not speak on his own, he will speak only what he hears Jesus saying.

In other words, the Holy Spirit won’t contradict Jesus. During his earthly ministry, Jesus said that food cannot make a person unclean. Peter’s vision in Acts 10 was consistent with Jesus’ teaching. So that’s the first test; the Spirit’s revelation will always be consistent with the teaching of Jesus.

The second test goes hand in hand with the first. The Holy Spirit will glorify Jesus. When Cornelius and his household received the Spirit, they praised God. The Spirit does not draw attention to himself; he is always putting the spotlight on God the Father and Jesus. So, if it doesn’t glorify Jesus, it’s not from the Spirit.

Conclusion:

In verse 15 Jesus says: All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

Here we have a picture of the communion between Father, Son and Spirit.

God the Father shares all his knowledge, all his power and wisdom with Jesus the Son. Jesus in turn shares this with the Spirit who reveals the truth to us, as we need to know it.  

Let us pray…

Holy God, thank you for sharing yourself with us. Help us to share your love and truth with others, in harmony with your Spirit and to the praise of your glory. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. How would you define a person? What are some of the key characteristics of personhood? How do we know the Holy Spirit is a person?
  3. What did Jesus mean by ‘going away’? Why did Jesus need to ‘go away’ before the Holy Spirit could come?
  4. What is sin, according to Jesus? What was the deeper underlying sin of those who called for Jesus’ crucifixion? 
  5. How does the world’s understanding of righteousness differ from a Christian understanding of righteousness?
  6. What is your perception of God? Do you think God is looking for ways to condemn you or save you? Why do you have this perception?   
  7. What is your experience of the Holy Spirit’s revelation / guidance? Can you think of / share a specific example?
  8. How do we know if a revelation is from the Holy Spirit and not from some other source? 

Bibliography

  • R.V.G. Tasker, Tyndale Commentaries: The Gospel According to John, 1960.
  • William Barclay, The Gospel of John, Vol. 2, 1975.
  • Bruce Milne, BST The Message of John, 1993.
  • Leon Morris, NICNT The Gospel According to John, 1995.  
  • Gary Burge, NIVAC John, 2000.
Tawa Baptist

As He Is In Heaven

Scripture: Revelation 5:1-14

Video Link: https://youtu.be/15y0IXakKzk

Audio Link: Stream Sermon – 17 May 2026 – As He Is In Heaven by tawabaptist | Listen online for free on SoundCloud

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Worthy
  • Sacrifice
  • Redemption
  • Omnipotent
  • Incense
  • Praise
  • Hope
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

The first time I saw Aoraki Mt Cook up close and personal, I was awestruck.

The mountain was magnificent, majestic, beautiful. I could have sat there soaking up the grandeur all day. Every other little thought faded from my mind. It was liberating.     

Last Thursday was Ascension, a special day in the church calendar when we remember the Ascension of Jesus. For 40 days after his resurrection, Jesus appeared to his disciples before ascending to heaven.

Today, in celebration of Jesus’ Ascension, our message focuses on Revelation chapter 5. In Revelation 5, the apostle John describes his vision of the ascended Jesus in heaven. John’s vision is magnificent, far greater than seeing Aoraki Mt Cook for the first time. It has the power to leave us awestruck in wonder and praise. 

As we read this Scripture then, I invite you to park your questions and simply bask in the glory of the scene which John describes. Don’t think too hard about what it means. Simply enjoy the drama and majesty of it all. We will get to the interpretation later. From Revelation 5, verse 1, we read…      

Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. 2 And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?”  3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. 4 I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. 5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” 6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the centre of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spiritsof God sent out into all the earth. 7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. 8 And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. 9 And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. 10 You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.” 11 Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. 12 In a loud voice they were saying: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!” 13 Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, saying: “To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honour and glory and power, for ever and ever!” 14 The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s for word for us.

The number seven is significant in the book of Revelation. It represents wholeness, completeness, perfection, like the seven days of creation. With this in view, our message today touches on seven key words from this chapter.

Our first word is worthy.

Worthy:

Some of you may be familiar with the legend of King Arthur. The story goes that one Christmas Eve an anvil sitting on top of a stone appeared in a churchyard. Embedded in the anvil was a sword. According to Merlin, only the true king could draw the sword out of the anvil.  

Many nobles tried, but none succeeded. None were found worthy to be king. Then came the young Arthur, a teenage boy, whose true lineage was unknown. Quite by accident and without being aware of the contest, Arthur pulled the sword out of the anvil easily. The humble Arthur proved to be the only one worthy to release the sword and inherit the throne.  

Revelation 5 begins with God holding a scroll in his hand. We wonder to ourselves what the scroll contains. Some think the scroll reveals God’s will and purpose for the future. More than just revealing knowledge though, opening the scroll may in fact release God’s plan of salvation on the earth.

This fits with the theme of Revelation. But we cannot afford to be too dogmatic, nor too literal in our interpretation. We can’t see the whole picture, which is probably the point.

In any case, the scroll has seven seals which can only be opened by someone worthy. To be worthy here is to be morally good enough. The seals of the scroll are like the sword in the anvil. They cannot be released by brute force or cunning. The test for unlocking the scroll is the moral worth that comes from divine pedigree.   

How different heaven is from the world we live in. In this world, rulers get things done by force or deceit or just being popular. But in heaven things get done by righteousness, purity of heart and goodness of character.

When the angel asks, “Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?”, no one can be found. John weeps. Weeping is a Godly response to the evil that happens in this world.  Is there really no one good enough to open the scroll and release God’s saving purpose on the earth?

I like the way Leon Morris sees this: The seals that no man can break speak to mysteries in life. We can feel caught up in the world’s evil and its misery, unable to break free. At times we feel a sense of hopelessness and helplessness in the grip of forces stronger than us. The world’s agony is real. The world’s inability to break free from the consequences of its guilt is real. [1]

Only Jesus is worthy enough to open the seals and release God’s saving purpose.  

From verse 5 we read…

5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.”

Those of you who know your Old Testament will recognise that the Lion of the tribe of Judah and the Root of David is code for Jesus, the Messiah. So why not just say ‘Jesus is worthy to open the scroll’? Why does John hide what he is saying in poetry?

Well, John was protecting the church. In the historical context of the first century, the early church was persecuted by the authorities. If John wrote in a plain straight forward way and the Roman authorities got hold of his writing, Christians everywhere would suffer for it.

Much of Revelation is written in code, using language that would be understood by Christians but not by outsiders. John was being as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves to protect the infant church.       

Sacrifice:

And so we come to our second word: sacrifice. In verse 6, John is given a vision of a Lamb that looked as though it had been slain. In Old Testament times, lambs were sacrificed as an atonement for sin. Jesus is the sacrificial lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Notice the contrast here. One of the 24 elders has just told John to look at the Lion of Judah, but instead of seeing a mighty lion, John beholds a wounded lamb. Jesus still bears the marks of his sacrificial death, even in heaven.

Most earthly kingdoms use mighty beasts to represent their countries.

Russia elevates the bear, Britain the lion, India the tiger and America the eagle.

Each of these creatures is noble but also naturally inclined to devour its prey.

New Zealand bucks the trend by having the kiwi as its national bird. The kiwi is a shy, flightless bird that comes out mostly at night to eat insects. The kiwi is no threat whatsoever. In fact, it is a vulnerable species.   

In heaven, the lamb is elevated. Lambs are a bit like kiwi, vulnerable.

How different heaven is from the power broking kingdoms of this world. Jesus conquered sin and death, not by brute force, but by obedience to God the Father. Jesus gained the victory by losing. The weakness of God is stronger than human strength.

Redemption:

Hand in hand with Jesus’ sacrifice is our third word, redemption. In verse 9 the 24 elders sing to Jesus the Lamb, saying: and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.

This verse is speaking about redemption. Jesus purchased, he bought back, he redeemed human beings for God. The purchase price of our redemption is the blood of Jesus the sacrificial lamb.

What we notice here is that Jesus redeems persons from every tribe and people group. John’s vision of redemption is broad and inclusive in its scope.

Omnipotent:

We need to be careful not to overplay the lamb of God image. Yes, Jesus is represented as the Lamb who was slain, but he is not powerless or defenceless. This lamb has seven horns.

As we have already noted the number seven signifies wholeness, completeness or perfection. The horn, in Biblical imagery, represents strength or power. Seven horns, therefore, represents complete or perfect power. Omnipotence in other words.

Jesus’ omnipotence (his power) is perfect in the sense that no one can defeat him. As we sang earlier in the service, “There’s nothing too big, big, big for his power”.

But Jesus’ power is also perfect in the sense that Jesus is incorruptible. Jesus is worthy enough, he’s good enough to hold absolute power without being corrupted by it.

He possesses the strength of a lion and the gentleness of a lamb. Jesus exercises his authority as one who understands suffering. His power is tempered with compassion.

What about the seven eyes, which are the seven spiritsof God sent out into all the earth. Well, eyes are about seeing. Jesus is all-seeing, all knowing, he is omniscient, like God. There is no place in heaven or earth that the risen and ascended Jesus cannot see you or reach you.    

In Psalm 139 we read…

7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, 10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

I invite you to sit with that for a moment. Soak in it, like a warm bath. Jesus is watching over your life for good, 24-7. He is with you always. Wherever you go, he sees you. Jesus sees the good you do that no one else notices. He sees your heart, your motivation, your wounds. He sees your desire, your doubt, your faith, your quiet desperation. Jesus bears witness to your life. He is worthy of your trust.

Incense:

Knowing that Jesus sees us and is near to us is an encouragement to pray. Indeed, the prayers of God’s people are precious to Jesus. In verse 8 of Revelation 5, John saw the 24 elders holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.

Incense is our fifth word this morning. How different heaven is from earth. Most people in this world do not see the value in praying. It seems so weak, so ineffectual, so feeble. How can prayer make a difference? But in heaven our prayers are like expensive perfume, highly valued as a fragrant offering to God.

To pray to Jesus is to acknowledge that Jesus is worthy. Worthy of our time, yes, but more than that. Jesus is worthy in the sense that he understands us completely and is he willing and able to help us.  

We have touched on five of our seven words so far: Jesus alone is worthy to open the scroll. Jesus is the lamb of God who, by his sacrifice, redeems humanity. Jesus is omnipotent, all powerful, all knowing and he values our prayers like costly incense.

Praise:

Praise is our sixth word. In verse 12 of Revelation 5, John saw and heard countless angels giving praise to Jesus, saying: “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honour and glory and praise!”

Notice there are seven things Jesus (the Lamb) is worthy to receive here. Notice also that these seven things are highly valued by most people in this world too. People want power, wisdom wealth, strength, honour, glory and praise for themselves. In fact, we human beings tend to make idols out of them.

When we pursue these things, they tend to ruin us. How easily we become slaves to money and the approval of others. We are not worthy, not morally strong enough, to receive too much of these things.

King Solomon is a case in point. He had power, wisdom, strength and wealth in abundance. He was showered with honour, glory and praise from all around, but it led him away from the Lord and it caused him to oppress his own people.   

Unlike Solomon, Jesus is worthy. Throughout his ministry the devil tempted Jesus with offers of counterfeit power and glory, but Jesus resisted the evil one, remaining loyal to God the Father.

By overcoming these tests, Jesus proved that he alone is good enough, pure enough, righteous enough, strong enough, to receive and handle power and glory in all its forms, without becoming a slave to it.  

Hope:

Our seventh word is hope. In verse 9 we read how the 24 elders sang a new song… The book of Revelation is full of new things: a new name, a new song, a new heaven, a new earth, a new creation. The elders sing a new song because God is making all things new, through Jesus.

The New Testament was originally written in Greek. The Greek language has two words for new, Neos and Kainos.

Neos means new in terms of time or age, something recent. Like when someone says, have you seen the new Spiderman movie? It’s the latest version of the same old story. Or when someone buys a second-hand car; its new for them but not brand new.  

In contrast, Kainos means new in terms of quality or essence. Something fresh, something original that has not existed before or that we have not experienced before.

Revelation uses the word Kainos. New in the sense of: ‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no human mind conceived what the Lord has prepared for those who love him.’  

One of the big themes of the book of Revelation is that Jesus comes to bring a newness that is original and fresh, a quality of life that we have not experienced before. This Kainos type newness gives us hope.

The Christians of the first century (that John was writing to) were suffering and persecuted in this world. They needed something better to look forward to.   John’s vision of the ascended Jesus, ruling from heaven, gave them hope that the life to come is not just more of the same. It is qualitatively new, different.

The hope John articulates is this: You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth.”

God’s people may often be last in this world, but they will be first in the next. They may be subject to oppression in this life, but they will reign in the next. Through Jesus, God is making all things Kainos new.

Conclusion:

This morning we have touched on seven words, inspired by Revelation 5.

If we rearrange these seven words, the first letter of each word spells, W.O.R.S.H.I.P.   W stands for Worth, O is for Omnipotence, R is for Redemption,

S is for Sacrifice, H is for Hope, I is for Incense and P is for Praise.  

Jesus alone is worthy, for he is omnipotent, perfectly powerful. Jesus redeems humanity through his atoning sacrifice. Through Jesus we have the sure hope that God is making all things new. The Lord values our prayers like costly incense. Jesus is worthy to receive our praise.

Revelation 5 describes John’s vision of the ascended Jesus being worshipped alongside God the Father. We worship Jesus because he is divine.

Let us pray…

Jesus, you are worthy to receive power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honour, glory and praise. You are our hope, our righteousness, our joy. Be large in our awareness we pray. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. Have you ever had the experience of being filled with awe and wonder? What were the circumstances?
  3. What does it mean that Jesus is worthy?
  4. Discuss / reflect on some of the ways John’s vision of heaven (in Rev. 5) is different from the way things operate on earth.
  5. What does it say about Jesus that he is described as a slain lamb with seven horns and seven eyes?
  6. Why does John hide what he is saying in poetic code?
  7. Why do the elders sing a new song? Take some time this week to compose a song or write a poem in praise of Jesus.    

Bibliography

  • William Barclay, The Revelation of John, Volume 1, 1965.
  • Leon Morris, Revelation, 1969.
  • Marva Dawn, Joy in Our Weakness, 2002.

[1] Morris, page 93.

Tawa Baptist

Three women and a baby

Scripture: Exodus 2:1-10

Video Link: https://youtu.be/6GXi7kmRR4o

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Creative faith
  • Courageous intercession
  • Compassionate leadership
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Today is mothers’ day, a time to honour the women in our lives who have given birth to us, fed us, raised us and cared for us. With this in view our message today focuses on three women who acted in motherly ways. From Exodus chapter 2, verses 1-10, we read…

Now a man of the tribe of Levi married a Levite woman, 2 and she became pregnant and gave birth to a son. When she saw that he was a fine child, she hid him for three months. 3 But when she could hide him no longer, she got a papyrus basketfor him and coated it with tar and pitch. Then she placed the child in it and put it among the reeds along the bank of the Nile. 4 His sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to him. 5 Then Pharaoh’s daughter went down to the Nile to bathe, and her attendants were walking along the riverbank. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her female slave to get it. 6 She opened it and saw the baby. He was crying, and she felt sorry for him. “This is one of the Hebrew babies,” she said. 7 Then his sister asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?” 8 “Yes, go,” she answered. So the girl went and got the baby’s mother. 9 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.” So the woman took the baby and nursed him. 10 When the child grew older, she took him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. She named him Moses, saying, “I drew him out of the water.”

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

There is more than one way to be a mother. In this passage we observe how three women all act as mothers for the same child. Moses’ biological mother exercises creative faith. Moses’ sister exercises courageous intercession and Moses’ adoptive mother exercises compassionate leadership. Let us begin with Moses’ biological mother.   

Creative Faith:

There is a classic puzzle known as the nine dots puzzle. The aim is to link all nine dots using four straight lines without lifting the pen. What you discover (after much time and frustration) is that it’s impossible to do this if you think inside the box.

The only way you can do it is by drawing your lines outside the box. The nine dots puzzle requires outside the box thinking; that is, thinking in a creative way. Moses’ biological mother had a problem which required outside the box thinking. So what was the problem?

Well, the king of Egypt (also known as Pharaoh) had issued a command to all his people, to throw every newborn Hebrew boy into the River Nile.

Pharaoh was basically instigating a policy of genocide or ‘ethnic cleansing’ against the Israelites.  

In the opening verses of Exodus 2, we read how Moses’ mum gave birth in the usual way and she saw that her son was a ‘fine’ child. There are echoes of the creation story here.

In Genesis 1, on the sixth day of creation we read, God saw all he had made and it was very good. The Hebrew word translated as fine, in Exodus 2, is the same word as good, in Genesis 1. Can you see the connection? Moses’ mother looked on her son and saw he was fine (or good), just as God looked on his creation and saw that it was good.

Although God’s name is not mentioned in the story of Moses’ birth, the reader is reminded of the creation story. Just as the Lord brought order to the chaos in the beginning, at creation, so too he is bringing order to the chaos of Pharaoh’s decree to murder Hebrew babies.   

Moses’ biological mother cannot drown her own son, so she hides him as long as she can. This kind of ‘in the box thinking’ was never going to be a permanent solution. It would soon become impossible to keep her child hidden.

Let’s just pause a moment and imagine what life was like for Moses’ parents. Normally, the birth of a child is something to celebrate, but Moses’ mum and dad could not share the good news with anyone.

Presumably, Moses’ mum tried to hide the fact she was pregnant in the first place. Then there was the difficulty of giving birth as quietly as possible, not to mention the constant stress to trying to keep the baby from crying once he was born.

Parenting a newborn baby is difficult at the best of times. Just imagine how exhausted and on edge Moses’ parents must have been trying to protect their son with a death sentence dangling over his head.

Moses’ mum is a smart lady. She knows that hiding her son is not sustainable.

If Moses is to have a chance, she needs to think outside the box, and this is the creative solution she comes up with. Moses’ mum took a basket, covered it with tar to make it watertight and set it among the reeds of the Nile with her baby in it.

Moses’ mum didn’t just throw her son into the deep end to see if he would sink or swim. No. She put him in a water-tight vessel and nestled him in the calm part of the river, among the reeds, where he was likely to be found, hopefully by someone kind.

By doing this, Moses’ mum was exercising creative faith. Creative faith is not blind faith. Creative faith is smart faith, faith that thinks outside the box for the wellbeing of others. Faith that is as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. Faith that provides doorways for our kids, giving them the best possible chance in life.

There were no guarantees with the plan. In fact, there was a lot that could go wrong. But it does no good to overthink the things we cannot control. Moses’ mum did everything in her power to give her son the best chance she could, and she gave God an opportunity to act. This is what creative faith does; it gives God options.

Courageous Intercession:

How many here have a younger brother or sister? Being an older sibling comes with responsibility. Indeed, the eldest child in the family normally possesses a stronger sense of responsibility than others. We often find ourselves in a parenting role for our younger siblings. It shapes us.  

Moses’ biological mum was not the only woman who provided care for Moses. Moses’ sister also played a mothering role in her brother’s life by exercising courageous intercession.

Intercession comes from a Latin word that simply means ‘to go between’.

An intercessor intervenes on behalf of another person. Acting as the go between, or the advocate, for someone else. 

Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, was a courageous intercessor. She was vocal in her support of the African American civil rights movement. Eleanor opposed her husband on this issue by becoming one of the only voices in the Roosevelt administration insisting that benefits be equally extended to Americans of all races.

Oskar Schindler (an Austrian born industrialist) was another courageous intercessor. He intervened, not with words but with actions, to save 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust of the Second World War. He did this by creative ‘out of the box’ thinking; employing Jews in his enamelware factory and bribing SS officials to look the other way. 

Eleanor Roosevelt and Oskar Schindler were people of power. Their intercession was courageous in the context of the times, but they interceded from a position of relative privilege. Moses’ sister did not enjoy such power or privilege, which made her intercession all the more courageous.

In verse 4 we read how Moses’ sister stood at a distance to see what would happen to her baby brother. Unlike Cain, who killed his brother Abel, Moses’ sister watched over her brother for good. As an older sibling she had a strong sense of responsibility. She was her brother’s keeper.

When Moses’ sister saw that Pharaoh’s daughter had taken pity on the baby, she found the courage to speak up and intercede for Moses saying, “Shall I go and get one of the Hebrew women to nurse the baby for you?”  

What an incredibly brave thing to do. Moses’ sister was a lowly slave girl, while Pharaoh’s daughter was among the powerful elite. And yet, Moses’ sister was suggesting to Pharaoh’s daughter that she break the law and go against her father. Moses’ sister could have wound up in a lot of trouble for even talking to the king’s daughter, let alone encouraging civil disobedience. It was a huge risk.  

But Pharaoh’s daughter agreed and Moses’ sister acted as an intercessor, a go between, fetching Moses’ mother. This resulted in Moses’ mother being paid to nurse her own son.  

I invite you to pause and reflect in silence for a moment. Who has interceded for good in your life? Bring that person to mind. How did it make you feel when you learned they had your back? If it’s a good feeling, sit with it for a while.

Is there someone who needs you to intercede for them?

Compassionate leadership:

There is more than one way to be a mum. Moses’ biological mum exercised creative faith, Moses’ sister exercised courageous intercession and Moses’ adoptive mum, the princess of Egypt, exercised compassionate leadership.  

God’s deliverance often comes from unexpected quarters. Pharaoh’s daughter is the one we least expect to save Moses. She is a pagan. She is the daughter of Israel’s arch enemy and she comes from a life of privilege.

We might expect her to be so self-absorbed that she doesn’t even notice the baby. Or, if she did notice him, so blindly loyal to her father that she would leave the child to drown. But this princess’ behaviour topples our prejudice.   

Some commentators observe that God is parallel to Pharaoh’s daughter here.

We wouldn’t naturally associate God Almighty with a princess, much less a pagan princess whose dad is a homicidal maniac. And yet this is what we find in Exodus 2.  

The Lord (Yahweh) is not mentioned in Moses’ birth narrative, but we see his image reflected in the way Pharaoh’s daughter responds to the situation with compassionate leadership.

Verse 6 tells us that when the princess opened the basket and saw the baby crying, she felt sorry for him. This ‘feeling sorry for him’ goes deeper than superficial sentimentality. She demonstrates genuine compassion for Moses.

Compassion is a feeling of empathy which moves a person to an act of mercy. Compassion doesn’t just feel sorry for the poor. Compassion does something to help the poor.

Jesus whole ministry was an act of compassion. In Matthew 9 we read…

35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”  

Jesus didn’t just feel sorry for people. He was moved to heal people and show them a better way to live. The interesting thing here is that Jesus drew others into the work of compassion with him. Indeed, he encourages us to pray for God to send more workers to help with the heavy lifting of compassion.     

In verse 9 of Exodus 2, Pharaoh’s daughter says to Moses’ mother, “Take this baby and nurse him for me, and I will pay you.”

Pharaoh’s daughter shows double compassion here. Compassion in saving the baby Moses and also compassion for a struggling Hebrew family. Pharaoh had subjected the Hebrew people to slave labour. But Pharaoh’s daughter does not agree with slavery. She wants to be fair and pay the workers.  

Notice the connection with Jesus here. Just as Jesus invites others to help him in the work of compassion, so too Pharaoh’s daughter draws together a team of people to care for baby Moses.   

Pharaoh’s daughter takes the risk of going against her father’s command and makes a long-term commitment to provide for Moses. She eventually adopts Moses as her own son, thus saving his life. This act of compassionate leadership is, at the same time, an example of courageous intercession.

God is parallel to Pharaoh’s daughter in this chapter. At the end of Exodus 2, we read how the Israelites cried out to God under their slavery and the Lord heard their cry and was concerned for them.    

Just as the princess was moved with compassion by the cry of the Hebrew baby, so too God is moved with compassion by the cry of his people. And just as Pharaoh’s daughter was faithful in adopting Moses as her own son, so too God provides for our adoption through Christ.

In Galatians 4 we read…

4 But when the set time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those under the law, that we might receive adoption to sonship.  6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.

Through faith in Jesus, we are adopted into God’s family. We are royalty. 

The name ‘Moses’ is actually an Egyptian name, probably meaning ‘son’, but it sounds like the Hebrew word, ‘to draw out’. Just as Pharaoh’s daughter drew Moses out of the Nile, so too God will draw Israel out of slavery in Egypt.

Moses’ deliverance, by the hand of Pharaoh’s daughter, foreshadows Israel’s deliverance by the hand of Yahweh.

The princess’ compassionate leadership and courageous intercession remind us that not all the Egyptians are like Pharaoh. We cannot judge a group by one member of that group.

The actions of Pharaoh’s daughter also remind us that God’s people don’t have the monopoly on compassion. God is free to work with and through whoever he wants.

Conclusion:

As is so often the case, the Lord begins his work of redemption quietly, unobtrusively, under the radar, often through the creativity, courage and compassion of those we least expect.

In Israel’s case, God sowed his seeds of salvation through women. We see God’s sense of humour here. There is considerable irony in Pharaoh’s policy of killing the sons and preserving the daughters. As it turned out, the daughters were far more dangerous than the sons. 

May the Lord bless you.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. What are some of the ways a person can be a mother? Who has been a mother to you? 
  3. How is the beginning of Genesis similar to the beginning of Exodus?
  4. What is creative faith? How might you exercise creative faith in your everyday life?
  5. What is intercession? Can you remember a time when someone interceded for good in your life? What happened? How did you feel? Is there someone you can intercede for?
  6. In what ways is God parallel to the daughter of Pharaoh?
  7. What connections do you observe between Moses and Jesus? 

Bibliography:

  • R. Alan Cole, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries: Exodus, 1973.
  • George A.F. Knight, Theology as Narration: A Commentary on the Book of Exodus, 1976.
  • Terence E. Fretheim, Interpretation Commentary: Exodus, 1991.
  • Alec Motyer, Bible Speaks Today: Exodus, 2005.
Tawa Baptist

The rich man and Lazarus

Scripture: Luke 16:19-31

Video Link: https://youtu.be/yi8J-TveAQc

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Jesus’ purpose
  • The rich man and Lazarus
  • The afterlife
  • The rich man and Abraham
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

GPS stands for Global Positioning System. The GPS in your car or phone receives signals from satellites orbiting the earth which allow it to determine the latitude, longitude and altitude of your location within inches.

If your GPS only gave the latitude coordinates, then it wouldn’t be very helpful. You need all three reference points to be able to pin-point your position with accuracy.

Accurately interpreting Scripture is like finding the right GPS location. You need more than one coordinate. A single verse or passage won’t do. Scripture interprets Scripture.

Today we continue our sermon series on the parables of Jesus, this week focusing on the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16. Also known as the parable of Dives and Lazarus. ‘Dives’ being the Latin word for ‘rich man’.

Fair warning, the content of this parable may disturb some listeners. It has the quality of a Stephen King movie. It plays on our worst fears about the afterlife.

We need to remember; the parable of the rich man and Lazarus is just one of many stories Jesus told in the gospels. We cannot expect to get an accurate picture of salvation and judgement based on this one parable alone.

That said, from Luke 16, verse 19 we read…

19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. But the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’ 25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’ 27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ 29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’ 30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’ 31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate God’s word for us.

Jesus’ purpose:

The first question we need to ask ourselves is, why did Jesus tell this parable? What was his purpose? Understanding Jesus’ purpose prevents us from going down the wrong path with our interpretation. We discover Jesus’ purpose by looking at the context. The context gives us another coordinate.

In verse 13 of Luke 16, Jesus says: 13 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” 14 The Pharisees, who loved money, heard all this and were sneering at Jesus. 15 He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God’s sight.

Jesus then goes on to talk about the value and permanence of the law and prophets before telling the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.

The immediate context shows us Jesus’ purpose. Jesus told this parable for the Pharisees, who were sneering at him because of his teaching about money.

This parable, therefore, is not about the temperature of hell. It’s about the Pharisees’ attitude to money and their interpretation of what we know as the Old Testament.

The rich man in the parable is a cartoon portrait representing what the Pharisees themselves believed. As you know, cartoon portraits tend to exaggerate certain features of the person being drawn. It appears Jesus is using hyperbole here to make his point.

Jesus is saying to the Pharisees, your interpretation of the law and prophets is wrong and therefore your attitude to money and people is wrong. You don’t value what God values. If you don’t repent, you will end up in a bad place, like the rich man. Let me give you two examples of how the Pharisees misread the Bible.

Firstly, they assumed they were automatically accepted by God because they were Jewish, descended from Abraham. Tough luck if you are not Jewish.

All those filthy gentiles are going to hell. That is severe prejudice, that’s racism, right? But, as we see in Jesus’ parable, being a descendant of Abraham does not help the rich man.

The Pharisees’ reading of the law and prophets also led them to believe (wrongly) that health and wealth are God’s reward for being righteous, therefore the rich and healthy must be righteous in God’s sight. Conversely, those who are sick or poor are being punished by God for their sin.

This belief is still around today. It’s sometimes called ‘cargo cult’ or ‘prosperity doctrine’. Jesus’ parable turns the Pharisees’ beliefs about money upside down.      

The confidence the Pharisees put in their ancestry and their wealth was misplaced.

Okay, so we can see (from the context) that Jesus’ purpose in telling the parable of the rich man and Lazarus is to correct the Pharisees’ misguided interpretation of the law and prophets. Now let’s look more closely at the parable itself.

The rich man and Lazarus:

Of all the parables Jesus told, this is the only one in which a character is named. The rich man is not named. When someone is not named in the Bible, it is often because they don’t deserve to be remembered.

The poor man, Lazarus, is named though. By giving the poor man a name, Jesus is signalling to his audience that Lazarus (even though he is poor and sick) is the hero of the story. Lazarus gets the honour of being remembered.

Lazarus is a Hebrew word which means ‘the one whom God helps’.

At first glance Lazarus’ name may seem ironic, because it does not appear that God is helping Lazarus, at least not in this life.

Lazarus does not enjoy good health. He is covered in sores and apparently cannot walk by himself. Verse 20 says Lazarus is laid at the gate of the rich man, which implies he must be carried. All of this means he cannot work or participate in gathered worship. He is an outcast, obliged to beg for survival.

By contrast, the rich man wears expensive clothes and lives in luxury, fine dining every day. The rich man is well connected.

In many ways Lazarus reminds us of righteous Job who lost everything, through no fault of his own, and ended up sitting by the rubbish heap scraping his sores with a piece of broken pottery. Lazarus does not scrap his sores with pottery, but he does (apparently) make friends with the local dogs who lick his sores.  

Unlike Job though, Lazarus does not complain to the Lord or to anyone else. Lazarus sits in silence. He does not call out for help from the people who pass by him every day on their way to the rich man’s banquets. He says nothing, all the time quietly longing to eat the scraps that fell from the rich man’s table.

But no food comes his way.

According to the internet, 1% of the population in New Zealand own 16% of the wealth. And according to the 2023 census, over 112,000 people (or 2.3% of the population) are severely housing deprived. 14.3% of children live in poverty.  

Growing up in the 1970’s, I don’t recall seeing anyone begging or sleeping rough in New Zealand. Now we see it all the time and we live in a welfare state. How did this happen? How do we turn it around?

There was no state funded welfare system for Lazarus. He was literally on the bones of his bum, dependent on the kindness of others.

The afterlife:

In time Lazarus dies and the angels carry him to Abraham’s side where he is comforted. The rich man also dies but he doesn’t go to the same place as Lazarus. The rich man finds himself in torment.

By the Pharisees’ reckoning the rich man should have been with Abraham, but Jesus turns their belief on its head.

Now, if all we had to go on was this one parable we might think the poor go to paradise when they die and the rich go to hell. Fortunately, the Bible offers other points of reference, other coordinates, that give us a more accurate picture of judgement and salvation.

We know from a wider reading of the Scriptures that the rich man did not go to hades because he was rich. He ended up in hades because he did not love God or his neighbour.

When asked, what is the most important command in the law, Jesus replied:     

30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’There is no commandment greater than these.”

The rich man loved luxury and fine dining more than he loved God or his neighbour. If he had loved God and his neighbour, he would have trusted God’s word and helped Lazarus in some way. He had the resources and he could see the need. Lazarus was right on his doorstep. But the rich man didn’t seem to care.

By the same token, we know being poor does not give you a free pass to paradise. Abraham was accepted by God because of his faith. In Romans 4, Paul writes: 3 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

That Lazarus found himself by Abraham’s side in the afterlife shows that Lazarus was justified by his faith in God, just as Abraham was justified by faith. God, who looks at the heart, could see Lazarus’ patient faith, even though Lazarus looked to everyone else like he was rejected by God.

Suffering and poverty, in this life, are not proof of God’s displeasure. Nor is health and wealth proof of righteousness. This life is not always fair.  

Returning to Luke 16, in verse 23 Jesus says the rich man was in torment in hades. Some English translations use the word ‘hell’, but the original Greek says ‘hades’, which is not exactly the same as hell.

What then is hades? According to Greek mythology (which is not supported by the Bible) the souls of the dead went to hades, a place characterised by darkness and gloom (sort of like Wellington on a bad weather day).

The Greeks imagined different zones within hades. For example, a neutral zone, where ordinary souls are kept, neither a place of reward nor punishment. There was also a paradise zone, where heroes and righteous people are rewarded. As well as a zone of torment where evil doers are punished.

Lazarus, it seems, was in the paradise zone with Abraham, while the rich man was in the place or torment.

There is a Greek myth about hades which shares some similarities with Jesus’ parable of the rich man and Lazarus. In this myth, a man by the name of Tantalus did a few things to anger the gods, so they sent him to the torment zone in hades where he was forced to stand in water with a fruit tree above his head.

Whenever Tantalus tried to bend down to drink, the water receded. And whenever he tried to reach up and pluck some fruit from the tree, the branch would spring away. This meant Tantalus was always thirsty in the presence of water and always starving in the presence of food. It is from this myth, about Tantalus, that we get the English word tantalise.   

The rich man’s punishment, in Jesus’ parable, was similar to that of Tantalus. The rich man could see Lazarus in paradise with Abraham and longed for a splash of water to cool his tongue. He was being tantalised.  

Now, just because Jesus’ parable of the rich man and Lazarus bears some similarities with aspects of Greek mythology, it does not automatically follow that Jesus endorsed Greek mythology. We know the Greek gods are not real because the Bible tells us there is only one true God, the Lord, Yahweh.

Likewise, we cannot base our understanding of hell on this one parable.

The New Testament employs a variety of different images and metaphors to describe exclusion from the kingdom of heaven.

Sometimes we come across the phrase outer darkness, and other times we are given the picture of a fiery furnace. Jesus also used the image of Gehenna, which was the rubbish dump outside of Jerusalem.

Where does that leave us? Well, if we take the Bible seriously, then we know there is a final judgement and there is a hell. We know hell is a place to avoid, but we cannot say with any certainty what hell is like. Is it a place of eternal conscious suffering? Or is it a place of total annihilation? Or is it a bit of both, some punishment before a second death? There are many theories but honestly, we don’t know.

What we do know, from the Bible and from our own experience, is that God is good. He sees the whole picture and he looks at the human heart. He is just and merciful, slow to anger, full of compassion and rich in love. He won’t treat anyone unfairly. God has provided for our atonement through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Forgiveness is available for all who repent and believe in Jesus.

The rich man and Abraham:

We see God’s fairness worked out in the rest of Jesus’ parable. In verse 24 of Luke 16, the rich man calls out: ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’  

What we notice here is the rich man’s attitude toward Lazarus has not changed. He still thinks of Lazarus as beneath him, someone to be used like a slave or a servant. He doesn’t seem to understand that the social status he enjoyed while he was alive has no currency in the afterlife.

The rich man is willing to put Lazarus in harm’s way just so he can cool his tongue momentarily. The rich man’s sense of entitlement is incredible.

What the rich man should have said was, ‘Lazarus, please forgive me. I’m so sorry’. But he doesn’t. The rich man remains unrepentant.

25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.

The thought here is not that people who receive good things in this life are automatically destined to receive bad things in the next life. No. That’s hardly fair. Besides, the reality is we each receive a mixture of good and bad things in this life. The point is, the rich man is being judged by his own standards.

In Matthew 7, Jesus says the measure you use for others is the measure God will use for you. The rich man neglected to care for Lazarus and now he himself is being neglected.

From verse 27 the rich man says to Abraham, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’

This is the only glimmer of virtue we see from the rich man. Sadly though, he still fails to see Lazarus as one of his brothers. Yet again, the rich man thinks he can boss Lazarus around like a slave.

Through all of this, Lazarus remains silent. There is no angry outburst from Lazarus. No resentment. Lazarus does not tell Abraham what to do. Lazarus has forgiven the rich man, harbouring no bitterness toward him.

Abraham refuses to send Lazarus back from the dead saying, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’

There it is. The law of Moses and the teachings of the prophets make it clear what God wants; for people to act justly, love mercy and walk humbly. The rich man and his brothers have no excuse.

Jesus is telling the Pharisees here that his teaching about how to use money (and everything else for that matter) is in accordance with the law and the prophets. So when the Pharisees sneer at Jesus’ teaching, they are putting themselves at odds with Moses and the prophets.  

Like the Pharisees who keep arguing with Jesus, the rich man continues arguing with Abraham, insisting that if his five brothers see someone rise from the dead, they will repent and be saved. But Abraham is not having a bar of it.

‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”.

How true that turned out to be. When Jesus raised his actual friend, Lazarus, from the dead (in John 11), the Pharisees and other religious leaders did not repent. They became more determined to kill Jesus and Lazarus. That’s how badly they misread the Scriptures.

Conclusion:

So what can we take from Jesus’ parable of the rich man and Lazarus?

Here’s three things:

Firstly, what we do in this life has eternal consequences. Our choices matter. When we love God and love your neighbour, money becomes our servant, something we can use to help others. If we don’t love God and our neighbour, money will inevitably become a cruel master that oppresses us and others.

Secondly, when we fail to love God and our neighbour (and we will fail at this), we need to repent and put our faith in Jesus. Salvation is not an entitlement. Getting into the kingdom of heaven is not automatic. God is looking for ways to get us into his kingdom, but we still need to repent and believe in Jesus.

Thirdly, we need to be very careful how we interpret and apply the Bible. Remember, we need more than one coordinate. Scripture interprets Scripture. If we read the Bible in a self-serving way, we risk ending up in a very bad place.

Let us pray…

Jesus, you are our righteousness and our hope. Empower us by your Spirit to love God and love our neighbour as we love ourselves. We ask you to deliver us from evil that we may enjoy fellowship with you forever. Amen.  

Questions for discussion or reflection:

  1. What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?
  2. Why is our interpretation of Scripture important? How can we check that our interpretation (and application) of Scripture is accurate?
  3. How does Jesus’ parable of the rich man and Lazarus make you feel? Why do you think it makes you feel this way?
  4. Why did Jesus tell the parable of the rich man and Lazarus?
  5. Why did the rich man end up in a place of torment after he died? Why did Lazarus end up being comforted by Abraham?
  6. What does the rich man’s dialogue with Abraham reveal about the rich man? What does Lazarus’ silence throughout reveal about Lazarus? What does the parable reveal about Jesus and God?
  7. What is your key takeaway from this message? What might you do differently? How might you think differently?  

Bibliography:

  • William Barclay, ‘The Gospel of Luke’, 1965.
  • Leon Morris, ‘Tyndale Commentaries: Luke’, 1976.
  • Fred Craddock, ‘Interpretation Commentaries: Luke’, 1990.
  • Darrell Bock, ‘NIV Application Commentary: Luke’, 1996.
  • Joel Green, ‘New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel of Luke’, 1997.
  • Kenneth Bailey, ‘Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes’, 2008. 
Tawa Baptist

Fishers of Men (by Pat Hutchison)

Scriptures: John 1:35-42, Luke 5:1-11, Acts 1 & 2

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • The Call
  • The Journey
  • The Fulfilment
  • Conclusion:

Introduction:

Some of us consider we have done Easter, we have had our share of Hot Cross Buns, Easter Eggs and we came to Church twice, so let’s move on,  But wait a minute are we missing something if we end Easter on Easter Sunday?  We celebrate the Resurrection with some amazing songs and there is so much hope.  Something wonderful has happened that changed our world forever, prophecy came true and we have a Risen Saviour who is in the world today.

I want us to pause and take a look at some events before and after the Resurrection. 

What was it really like for the disciples, in particular Simon Peter. 

We will look at: The Call

                              The Journey

                              The Fulfilment

The Call:

It began for Simon Peter with “The Call” We read in John 1:35-42.

The next day John was there with two of his disciples.  When he saw Jesus passing by he said, “Look the Lamb of God!” When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus.  Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?” They said, “Rabbi” (which means “Teacher”). “Where are you staying?” “Come” he replied, “and you will see.” So they went and saw where he was staying and they spent that day with him.  It was about four in the afternoon.  Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus.  The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus.  Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John.  You will be called Cephas” (which when translated, is Peter).

John had his disciples, it was not uncommon for a Rabbi to have followers – “Come and you will see” was an invitation to follow Jesus, but Jesus was more than a “Rabbi”.   The two disciples left John and followed Jesus. 

Andrew is named as one of the disciples with John and one of the first things he did was to find his brother and tell him “We have found the Messiah (that is the Christ) Andrew brought Simon to Jesus who named him Peter.

Jesus wanted them to be more than followers, they were to become “Fishers of Men”.  In Luke 5:1-11 we read:

One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret (Galilee). The people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God.  He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets.  He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from the shore.  Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.  When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down the nets for a catch.”  Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything.  But because you say so I will let down the nets.”  When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break, so they signalled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.  When Simon Peter saw this he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord, I am a sinful man!”. . .   Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on You will fish for people.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed Jesus.

Simon respectfully addresses Jesus as Master but is clearly not happy with the command to go a little deeper and cast his nets.  He tells Jesus that they had worked all night and caught nothing so what was the point of casting their nets again – inferring they were fishermen who knew night was the best time for fishing.  This is one of the first glimpses we get into Peter’s personality – blunt. To the point.  Peter disagreed with the request but nevertheless obeyed. 

The catch was amazing – way more than they could cope with. Peter recognised this as being a miracle, Peter experienced the grace of God and was aware of his sinfulness.  Peter was awestruck.  He is aware that his life is changed and henceforth they will be “Fishers of Men”.

So we are beginning to get a picture of Simon Peter:

  • He is a fisherman
  • He has heard about Jesus
  • He is Andrew’s brother
  • Andrew brings him to Jesus
  • Jesus gave him the name of Peter.
  • He is obedient
  • He speaks his mind
  • He becomes a disciple of Jesus.

The Journey:

This brings us to “The Journey”.  What did the disciples see and learn.  They witnessed the teaching of Jesus, the miracles, the parables, the healings.  How the religious leaders treated Jesus, how the Pharisees were looking for ways to show Jesus was not following the laws of God.  They were there at the feeding of the 5000.  They participated in the sending out of the 12 in pairs.  That was a lot to absorb and process.   Most of the references are “the disciples” but as events are drawing closer to the end of Jesus ministry, we find Peter mentioned by name.

These events give us glimpses of Peter’s personality as well as his belief and understanding of who Jesus was. It is not possible for us to look at everything so I will just focus on a few key events.

Peter experienced a very personal and close experience of the healing power of Jesus.  In Matthew, Mark and Luke Jesus went to Peter’s house with his disciples. When the disciples were in that area they often used Peter’s house as a meeting place, so they were familiar with the house and all who lived there. On this occasion Peter’s Mother in Law was sick with a fever and Jesus touched her.  Immediately she was healed and able to get up and serve her guests. The healing was complete and was a healing of someone close to them. 

There was the time after the Feeding of the 5000 when Jesus sent the disciples ahead of him by boat so he could pray by himself.  The water became rough and in the early morning Jesus came to them – he was walking on the water and the disciples saw him.  They were terrified and said – It’s a ghost. 

Jesus calmed them and assured them it was himself.  Peter replied asking Jesus to tell him to come to him.  Jesus did this and Peter got out of the boat and walked towards him.  Peter was distracted by the wind and began to sink, he cried out to Jesus and Jesus rescued him rebuking him for having little faith.  When they climbed back into the boat the wind died down and the disciples worshiped him saying, You truly are the Son of God.

At the Transfiguration, Jesus takes a small group of the disciples – Peter, James and John up a mountain. They witnessed a vision of Jesus, Jesus was praying and his appearance changed, his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men – Elijah and Moses were with him and spoke of Jesus forthcoming death. Peter and the other disciples were sleepy but became fully aware at the vision in front of them. 

Peter immediately responds by wanting to build booths to house the three figures.  Is this Peter’s impetuousness or does he misunderstand the vision?  God speaks and Peter and the other disciples are awestruck and Elijah and Moses disappear.  Jesus reassures them not to be afraid and when they are coming down the mountain Jesus tells the disciples not to tell anyone what they had seen.

The Transfiguration marks a turning point in Jesus Ministry as from here on everything points towards the Cross. Jesus foretold his death.  Peter responds to this by taking Jesus to one side declaring this will not happen.  We see Peter’s impetuousness come to the fore and Jesus rebukes him. The idea of Jesus dying is difficult for Peter and the disciples to grasp.  Peter has not grasped the full meaning of Jesus as the Messiah and what this means for Jesus. 

Jesus and the disciples are in Jerusalem, it is just before the Passover and Jesus is escalating his preparation of the disciples for what is coming and Peter is continuing to act impulsively.

We have the Washing of the disciple’s feet, Jesus tells of his betrayal by one of them.  Jesus gets up from the meal, takes of his outer garments and begins to wash the disciples’ feet, something expected of a servant, not a leader.  Peter does not want Jesus to wash his feet and Jesus explains the necessity of this.  Peter over reacts and wants Jesus to wash all of him.  Jesus replies and in his explanation tells them there is one present who is not clean and teaches them about servanthood.  This is bewildering to the disciples who could not possibly grasp what is to happen.  It is in this situation that Jesus predicts his betrayal and Judas leaves the group.

Jesus prepares his disciples by telling them he will be with them only a little while longer and giving them the command to Love one another.  By this everyone will know that they are His disciples by their love.  Peter asks, “Where are you going?” Jesus tells Peter that where he is going no one can follow but they will follow later.  Peter vows to lay down his life for Jesus and Jesus answered and predicts that before the rooster crows Peter will disown Jesus three times.

Jesus and his disciples went to the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus took Peter and two other disciples further into the Garden and told them to wait and watch while he went to pray.  Jesus began to be sorrowful and troubled – he knew what was coming.  Three times they fell asleep while waiting and Jesus tells them his hour has come and the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners, Rise:! Let us go! Here comes my Betrayer.

Judas betrays Jesus and Peter reacts with his sword, cutting off the ear of one of the men in the group coming to arrest Jesus.  Jesus rebukes Peter and heals the severed ear.  Jesus is lead away.  Peter and another disciple follow Jesus trying to keep as close as possible to him as they could.  Peter is recognised as being close to Jesus, first by a servant girl and another two times and a rooster crows.

How devastating for Peter who is immediately aware of Jesus prediction and we are told that Peter wept.

We don’t hear much about Peter until after the Resurrection when he sees Jesus along with the other disciples.  Peter and another disciples were told by the women that Jesus was not in the tomb when they came to anoint him, and they saw the empty tomb. Peter was also in the locked room because they were fearful about the rumours circulated by the guards at the grave that the disciples had taken the body from the grave. Jesus appeared to the disciples. 

Peter was fishing and again they caught nothing.  Jesus appeared to them and Peter is again told by Jesus to put down his net and the catch was amazing.  Jesus had breakfast with the disciples and Jesus reinstates Peter, and declares his love for Jesus and Jesus tells Peter to feed his sheep.

From the journey we learn:

  • Peter stayed with Jesus from the time of his call
  • Peter declared Jesus was the Messiah
  • Peter often acted impulsively
  • Peter often misunderstood Jesus
  • Peter was rebuked by Jesus
  • Peter didn’t want Jesus to die and said he would do everything to stop it
  • Peter witnessed the  transfiguration of Jesus
  • Peter denied knowledge of Jesus three times
  • Peter was with the disciples when Jesus appeared to them
  • Peter recognises Jesus when they were fishing after the Resurrection
  • Peter is reinstated by Jesus and given responsibility for the followers of Jesus.

The Fulfilment:

This leads us to the Fulfilment of Jesus bestowing on Peter he was to become a “Fisher of Men”.

The story of Peter continues in the Book of Acts.  He is indeed a Leader and is empowered by the Holy Spirit from being a follower to bringing many into faith and belief in Jesus.  We cannot look at all the accounts of Peter in Acts.

In Acts we read, before Jesus was taken up to heaven, He appeared to the disciples over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.  On one occasion he gave them this command “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.  For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.   You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth”.

The Day of Pentecost occurred at the same time as Jews gathered to celebrate The Feast of Harvest, so that explains why there were crowds from many places.  The origins of Pentecost is 50 – it was celebrated 50 days after the Passover and on the eve of 50 days after the Resurrection.

The Holy Spirit came with a great wind and tongues of fire.  They could understand the different languages and people were amazed – some people used the opportunity to say the people were drunk.  We read of Peter addressing the crowd calling on them to Repent and be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins.  And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off – for all whom the Lord our God will call. We are told about 3000 came to faith that day.  This was indeed the beginning of the Christian Church.

We also learn about Peter healing a lame beggar asking for money by saying “Silver or Gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you.  In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Many who knew this lame beggar were amazed and Peter took advantage of this and preached to the gathered crowd.  Shortly after Peter and John who was with him were arrested and imprisoned after being brought before the Sanhedrin.  This resulted in them speaking the truth despite being threatened into silence.

Healings continued along with persecution but nothing could stop them. The Sanhedrin wanted Peter and John put to death but a Pharisee named Gamaliel spoke to the Sanhedrin telling them to leave them alone saying if their activity is of human origin it will fail.  But if it is God they will not stop these men. They were released after a flogging.  They never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.  And many believed.

Peter was summoned to go to Cornelius a Roman Centurion who is described as devout and God fearing.   Peter had a vision and the result of this is that Gentiles (non-Jews) became Christians and were welcomed into the Community of Believers.  

The story does not end with Acts.  Towards the end of the New Testament we have the Letters of Peter, these are attributed to Peter.

From the Fulfilment we learn

  • Peter was empowered by the Holy Spirit
  • Peter was bold
  • Peter healed a lame man
  • Peter was put into prison for his preaching and teaching
  • Peter was persecuted
  • Peter had a vision
  • Peter took the gospel to the Gentiles
  • Peter left us with the Letters of Peter

Conclusion:

Our faith journey begins with a call and our faith journey has ups and downs with difficult times.  We may not be imprisoned or persecuted but there is suffering involved.  We learn from Peter that when you answer God’s call you don’t become perfect.  You don’t have to strive for perfection.  Faith is always growing – we learn and grow. 

Like Peter we need to keep looking to Jesus – if we take our eyes off Jesus we will sink like Peter. 

We too can become Fishers of Men.  Peter’s brother bought him to Jesus we too can bring our brothers and sisters to Jesus.  We can speak to individuals, we can pray and we can increase God’s Kingdom and so become Fishers of Men.

Let us pray…

Almighty God we have heard about Peter, his call his journey and his fulfilment of being a Fisher of Men.  Help us to be bold like Peter and to become Fishers of Men to bring others into your Kingdom. Amen.