Tawa Baptist

Jesus’ Presence

Scripture: Matthew 28:16-20

Video Link: https://youtu.be/x5NbZl6EPjU

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Jesus’ presence calms fear
  • Jesus’ presence is close
  • Jesus’ presence can be felt
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Today we conclude our Renew Together mini-series in support of Arotahi.

our New Zealand Baptist Missionary Society.

Renew Together is about remembering God’s mission of gospel renewal and our part in that mission. Over the three weeks of this year’s Renew Together campaign we have used the sermon time to focus on Matthew 28, verses 16-20, also known as the Great Commission.

Two weeks ago we heard about Jesus’ great authority. And last week we unpacked Jesus’ great commission to make disciples. Today our message concentrates on Jesus’ great presence. Let’s remind ourselves of what Jesus says in Matthew 28…

16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey all I have commanded you. And surely I am with you all the time, to the very end of the age.”

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

There are many things we can say about Jesus’ presence. Today’s message focuses on just three ideas. Jesus’ presence calms fear. Jesus’ presence is close and Jesus’ presence can be felt. First, let’s consider how Jesus’ presence calms fear.  

Jesus’ presence calms fear

Human beings survive by forming attachments with other people. The first thing a new born baby does is cry, partly to get some oxygen into its lungs but also to get its mother’s attention and form an attachment.

Previously, experts thought that successful attachment was created by food but John Bowlby discovered there was more to it than that. Babies need caregivers who are responsive to them, who smile at them, talk to them and spend time interacting with them in a warm and positive way. 

The central idea of attachment theory is that primary caregivers who are present and responsive to a baby’s needs allow the child to develop a sense of security. When the baby knows that the parent is dependable, they are less anxious and this creates a secure base for the child to explore the world. The caregiver’s presence calms fear.

Over a period of three years the disciples had formed a significant attachment to Jesus. They had experienced Jesus’ love and faithfulness. They had learned to depend on Jesus and this had given them a secure base for their faith.

Soon Jesus would ascend to heaven so they would not be able to see him or hang out with him in the same way they had before. Things were about to change and change is scary.

What’s more, Jesus was asking his followers to do something really big. ‘Go and make disciples of all nations’; that’s massive, it’s huge, overwhelming even. Particularly when we remember the establishment was against them.

Perhaps the biggest trap for the disciples was their fear. The fear of abandonment. The fear of opposition. The fear of rejection. The fear of failure.  

The antidote to fear is presence; having someone with you who loves you. Someone you can trust. Someone who is greater than your fears. Jesus does not want his followers to be anxious or insecure so he says, “I am with you”.  Jesus’ presence calms the disciples’ fear. 

Jesus’ words echo the words of Yahweh, the Lord Almighty. A number of times in the Old Testament, God says to his people, “I am with you.” For example, in Joshua 1, as the people of Israel stand poised to enter the Promised land, we read…

9 …Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Then in Isaiah 41, the Lord says to the people in exile…

‘Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Famously, in Psalm 23, David says of the Lord…  

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

And, in the New Testament letter to the Hebrews chapter 13, we read…

5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid…”

We could go on quoting Scripture but you get the point. Jesus’ presence calms our fear. As the followers of Jesus we do not need to be afraid of poverty or evil or opposition or anything else because the Lord is with us.

The important thing is to maintain our attachment to Jesus. Because we can only make disciples if we remain attached to Jesus.  

It’s like the Lord said in John 15: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”

We maintain our attachment to Jesus in a variety of ways. For example, by meditating on Scripture, keeping right relationships, practicing hospitality, observing times of sacred rest and singing praise to God, alongside other rhythms that support our whole life.

Prayer is perhaps the most important rhythm for maintaining our attachment to Jesus. Prayer is an open ended conversation with God, one that never really ends, even though it may be punctuated with long pauses and silences.

Whether we are talking to God or listening to him, prayer keeps us open to God’s presence. When we pray, we put ourselves in the hands of God and we stay attached to Christ.

Jesus’ presence calms fear and Jesus’ presence is close.

Jesus’ presence is close

Some of you may have noticed the way Jesus repeats the word all four times in three verses. All authority, all nations, all I have commanded and all the time.

Jesus is giving his disciples confidence. He’s saying, “I am present with you everywhere and always. Nothing can separate you from my love”.

Jesus’ presence is close. No one, who belongs to Jesus, slips through the cracks. No one is beyond the reach of Jesus’ presence. We are reminded of Psalm 139, which reads…

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. 

It’s important to note what Jesus promises and what he doesn’t. The Lord does not promise that nothing bad will ever happen to us. To the contrary, Jesus was quite clear that people would hate his followers on account of him.

What Jesus does promise is to be present with his disciples, every day and in all situations. So Jesus is present when everything is going smoothly and when everything is turning to custard.

In the book of Acts, chapter 7, we are given a picture of the closeness of Jesus’ presence with Stephen. From verse 54 we read…

54 As the members of the Council listened to Stephen, they became furious and ground their teeth at him in anger. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw God’s glory and Jesus standing at the right side of God. 56 “Look!” he said. “I see heaven opened and the Son of Man standing at the right side of God!”

57 With a loud cry the Council members covered their ears with their hands. Then they all rushed at him at once, 58 threw him out of the city, and stoned him. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. 

59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he died.

Jesus did not stop the Council members from killing Stephen. Nevertheless, Jesus was close with Stephen in his suffering and Jesus’ presence made all the difference, enabling Stephen to forgive his killers as a sign of God’s grace.

You see, Jesus is not aloof or unaffected. Jesus’ presence is not that of a cool or neutral observer. No. Jesus is deeply moved by what happens to his followers. Jesus’ presence with his people is close, intimate, emotionally invested.

We notice the closeness of Jesus’ presence in Acts 9 when the risen Christ appears to Saul on the road to Damascus. From verse 3 we read…  

3 As Saul neared Damascus… suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

5 “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.

“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. 

Jesus is so closely present with his people, that when we suffer he feels it. The church is the body of Christ in a very real way. Whether any member is hurt or helped, Jesus is affected by that. Even if we are not aware of Jesus’ presence, Jesus is still very aware of what we are going through.

Jesus’ presence can be felt

The point we need to get hold of here is that Jesus’ presence is not one dimensional. Jesus’ presence is not thin, like a cardboard cut-out. Jesus’ presence has real substance and depth so it can be felt by us.  

We might not always feel like Jesus is present but there will be times when we do sense Jesus’ closeness. The Holy Spirit facilitates Jesus’ presence. The Spirit of God makes Jesus’ presence real and tangible and personal.

In John 20 we read how the risen Christ breathed on his disciples and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’. And in Luke’s gospel, the risen Jesus tells his disciples to stay in the city of Jerusalem until they have been clothed with power from on high. That power is the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit enabled the disciples to carry out the great commission by preaching with boldness, healing the sick, speaking in foreign languages and many other remarkable things besides. People accepted Jesus as Saviour and Lord because the Holy Spirit made the presence of the risen Jesus felt. 

We need to remember though, that the Holy Spirit is involved in our lives in less spectacular ways too. Jesus isn’t just present in supernatural events. Jesus is present all the time, including the ordinary, the routine and the natural.

Let me offer you three real life examples of how Jesus’ presence can be felt. Maybe my experience of Jesus’ presence connects with yours.

Firstly, Jesus’ presence can be felt through people, particularly the people of God.

When one of our daughters was young she caught rota virus and had to go to hospital. While we were in hospital, Greg, the pastor of the church we attended, came to visit us. I was about 29 at the time and had never been visited by a pastor before.

I don’t remember what Greg said but I remember he prayed for us and I remember feeling touched that he would take time out of his Saturday afternoon to come to the hospital so we wouldn’t feel alone.

Jesus communicated his presence with us through a person, through Greg. Whenever one of God’s people visits someone, Jesus is present and the body of Christ (the church) is present also. 

Not only is Jesus’ presence felt through people, we can also sense the Lord’s presence in the perfect timing of certain situations.

A day or two after Robyn & I had relocated from Tauranga to Auckland, to train for ministry, we went for a walk in Cornwall Park and got a bit lost. I didn’t really like Auckland and was feeling the weight of our decision to uproot our young family. I needed reassurance.

As we wandered around in a general state of disorientation, I noticed an elderly man in the distance. He looked familiar. As I drew closer, I realised it was Walter Lang. Walter was the senior pastor of Hamilton Central Baptist when I was there in the 1980’s. I hadn’t seen Walter in over ten years.

There are more than one million people in Auckland so the chances of me randomly bumping into Walter at the very moment I needed assurance were very slim. The timing was too perfect for it to be a coincidence. I knew God’s Spirit was making a connection.  

Seeing Walter that day was a very real and tangible sign that Jesus was with us and we were on the right path. Walter became my mentor for the three years of our training.

Jesus’ presence can be felt through people and through perfect timing. Jesus’ presence is also felt in our gathered worship.

Last Sunday, Pat led the intercessory prayer. Pat didn’t know what I was going to say in my sermon and I didn’t know what she was going to say in her prayer. And yet there were very real connections between what Pat prayed and what I preached, particularly in relation to being sensitive to where others are at.

The Holy Spirit makes connections like that every Sunday. The connections might come through the sermon or the prayer but not always. Sometimes they come through a conversation over tea and coffee after the service. Other times through the songs we sing or in some other way.

Whatever form they come in, we recognise the connections as a sign of Jesus’ presence, because they resonate with something in our spirit.

The connections are often personal to you, because of what God is doing in your life, so other people may not see the connection. But even though the connection is personal, you still need other believers to make a connection.

Jesus’ presence is felt when we come together. As the Lord said, where two or three gather in my name, there I am with them.

Conclusion

This morning we have heard how Jesus’ presence calms our fear. We can’t be effective in making disciples if we are afraid. We need to maintain our attachment to Jesus in order to be fruitful. 

We’ve also heard how Jesus’ presence is close, in good times and bad. Jesus is not an aloof observer. The Lord is deeply affected by what happens to his people.

What’s more, Jesus’ presence can be felt by us at times too. We may sense the Lord’s presence in any number of ways including through people, through perfect timing and through our coming together for worship.

The overarching purpose of Jesus’ presence though, is to empower us to be disciples and to make disciples.

May the Spirit of God give us eyes to see Jesus at work in the world, hearts to feel his presence and willingness to obey his call. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

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?

  • Why does Jesus promise to be with his disciples always?
  • On a scale of 1-10 (1 being poor and 10 being perfect) how would you rate your attachment to Jesus? Why do you give this rating? Does anything need to change? If so, what needs to change?
  • Discuss / reflect on Jesus’ words in Acts 9, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” What does this show us about Jesus’ ongoing presence with his disciples?
  • What role does the Holy Spirit have in facilitating Jesus’ presence?
  • When are you most aware of Jesus’ presence in your life? Think of / share examples from your own experience when you sensed Jesus was near.
  • How might we communicate Jesus’ presence to those around us?   
Tawa Baptist

Jesus’ Authority

Scripture: Matthew 28:16-20

Video Link: https://youtu.be/4UlurtIrQV0

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Mountain top moments
  • Worship and doubt
  • All authority
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Today we begin a new sermon series in support of Arotahi.

Arotahi is the new name for the New Zealand Baptist Missionary Society.

Arotahi means to focus in one direction, concentrating on one thing together.

Each year we spend three weeks focusing on the work of our Baptist missionaries working overseas and in New Zealand. We call this three weeks’ focus on mission: Renew Together. (In the past it was called Self Denial.)

Renew Together is about remembering God’s mission of gospel renewal and our part in that mission.

The New Zealand Baptist Missionary Society (NZBMS) began in 1885 with this statement of purpose: “…to fulfill the ‘Great Commission’ of the Lord Jesus Christ in those areas of the world to which He may direct.”

Over the three weeks of this year’s Renew Together campaign we will use the sermon time to focus on Jesus’ great commission. Let us begin then with a reading from Matthew 28, verses 16-20…

16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

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

Although this passage of Scripture, is called ‘the great commission’, there’s actually more going on here, including some important things about Jesus’ great authority and Jesus’ great presence. We will get to the commission part of ‘the great commission’ next week. The focus of this week’s message is Jesus’ authority.

Mountain top moments:

I grew up in the city of Hamilton. Unlike Wellington, the Waikato is a relatively flat place. The closest mountain of any significance is Mount Pirongia, about half an hour’s drive west of Hamilton.

It takes four and half hours to walk up Mount Pirongia, give or take. The thing I remember about the climb was the way it just seemed to go on and on and on. You thought you were making progress and then you had to walk down into a saddle, knowing you would have to climb up that distance again.

But just when you think the grind is never going to end, you come around a corner and you are there, at the summit. It’s a mountain top moment.

In general terms, ‘a mountain top moment’ is an expression which means a moment of exhilaration, joy and triumph after achieving a goal.

In spiritual terms though, ‘a mountain top moment’ refers to a significant revelation given by God. It’s a sacred time when you feel especially close to the Lord. Mountain top moments may not last long but they have the feel of eternity, like you are transcending time somehow. They leave a lasting impression.

Mountain top moments are a gift from God; we can’t really conjure them. But, in the Bible at least, they often come after some kind of ordeal.

Abraham had a mountain top moment when the angel of the Lord stopped him from sacrificing Isaac. Moses received the ten commandments on a mountain. And Elijah had a mountain top moment after his confrontation with the prophets of Baal.          

Mountain top moments mark the beginning, middle and end of Jesus’ earthly ministry in the gospel of Matthew. Jesus gives his famous sermon on the mount in Matthew 5. Then, in Matthew 17, we read of Jesus’ transfiguration on a mountain. While, in Matthew 28, the risen Jesus appears to his disciples on a mountain in Galilee.

All of these are special moments of revelation given by God. The sermon on the mount reveals Jesus’ authority in relation to the law. Jesus isn’t just a skillful and wise teacher. He is the one who fulfills God’s law of love on behalf of humanity.

Likewise, the transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain reveals Jesus’ authority as God’s representative. Jesus stands glorified alongside two of Israel’s greatest prophets, Moses and Elijah. Then a voice from heaven says of Jesus, ‘This is my Son, listen to him’. Jesus is the one the prophets spoke about.

The appearance of the risen Jesus, on a mountain top in Matthew 28, reveals Jesus’ authority over life and death. Jesus has conquered sin and death through his obedience to God in going to the cross. Jesus has authority to grant eternal life. 

As much as we may enjoy the mountain top moments and wish them to never end, we cannot remain on the mountain indefinitely. The disciples didn’t stay on the mountain top. They came down and went out into the world. In the same way, we must come down the mountain to live our lives on the flat.

Where are you right now? Are you on the mountain top or in the valley? Or somewhere in between? The mountain top may be where we are most aware of God. But really, God is with us wherever we are, even if we feel like we are in the pits.

Worship and doubt:

You’ve probably heard the saying, ‘Keep it real’. It means something like, be honest, don’t lie to yourself, be authentic. Live in your own soul. Be who you are.

The Bible has a way of keeping it real. It is such an honest book. It shows people as they are. It doesn’t gloss over the mess or the complexity that comes with being human. Verse 17 of Matthew 28, keeps things real where it says…

17 When [the disciples] saw [Jesus], they worshiped him; but some doubted. 

What we have here is a very honest picture of the disciples. A mixture of worship and doubt.

These disciples are Jewish and had been raised in the knowledge of the ten commandments, which said you shall worship no other God but Yahweh. The fact that the disciples worshipped Jesus shows they acknowledged his divine authority. After three years of not really understanding who Jesus is, the disciples finally get it. A mountain top moment of divine revelation. 

Matthew could have left out the part about some of the disciples doubting but he chooses to leave it in. And I’m pleased he did. It has the ring of truth to it.

It resonates with our own experience. Matthew is keeping it real.

So what does it mean that some doubted? Well, it is not doubt in the sense of complete disbelief. It is not the intellectual doubt of an atheist. Nor is it the arrogant doubt of those opposed to Jesus, like the religious leaders who believed in God and yet disbelieved that Jesus is the Messiah of God.

No. It is the kind of doubt that puts a person in two minds. It is an honest doubt that says, ‘I want to believe the good news, that Jesus is alive and God loves me, but I have some practical concerns that I find difficult to reconcile.’

We might call it the doubt that seeks integrity. Not the doubt of a closed minded skeptic but the doubt of an open minded seeker of the truth.

Let me offer two examples of how this honest doubt operates.

In the gospel of John, the disciple Thomas refused to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead without physical proof. Thomas wanted to touch Jesus’ wounds. For this he earned the nick name, Doubting Thomas, which is a bit unfair.

When we consider Thomas’ stand on this point we notice a certain thoughtfulness and integrity in the man. He was not willing to simply go along with the crowd. Thomas was in two minds. He wanted to believe Jesus was alive but he had some practical concerns he needed to reconcile and he was being honest about that.

When the risen Jesus did appear to Thomas a week later, Thomas believed and worshipped Jesus. Thomas rightly perceived Jesus’ divine authority. The interesting thing is that of all the disciples, Thomas travelled further with the gospel than anyone else, taking the message about Jesus all the way from Palestine to India.

There is another way to understand the doubt of the disciples in this context. That is: self-doubt. Richard France observes how the disciples were mindful of the way they had deserted Jesus when he needed them most. They were probably feeling a bit embarrassed by their lack of moral fiber.

They may have had no doubt that God had raised Jesus from the dead. What they doubted was themselves. How can I call Jesus, ‘Lord and friend’, when I have let him down so badly? How can I worship Jesus with integrity after my own lack of integrity has been so clearly shown?

You know there are some worship songs I find hard to sing. I am quite comfortable singing about the greatness of God and the worthiness of Jesus to receive all honour, praise and glory. I don’t doubt that God raised Jesus from the dead. That makes perfect sense to me.  

But when the chorus has me singing about what I will do for God or what I will give to God, my confidence evaporates. I doubt myself with good reason. I know my own limitations. What integrity I do have, stops me from making extravagant claims about what I will do for God. Like the first disciples, I worship with doubts about myself.

The good news is that Jesus’ authority is not threatened by the disciples’ doubt. Jesus is not unsettled by your doubts either. Jesus understands our weakness and frailty and is able to work with us.

Verse 18 tells us how Jesus came to the disciples and spoke to them.

Many, many times in Matthew’s gospel we read how people came to Jesus either for help or to question him. But only twice do we read that Jesus came to his disciples. Once, in chapter 17, after his transfiguration and then again in Matthew 28, after his resurrection.

Jesus comes to restore a sense of normality when his disciples are feeling overwhelmed by a supernatural event. [1]

Isn’t that cool. Jesus doesn’t use his authority like a big stick to keep his disciples in fearful submission. Jesus uses his authority to reassure his disciples and to calm their fears. Jesus accepts his disciples, honest doubts and all.

To be accepted by someone in authority is not only a great honour, it also fosters confidence and puts doubt in its place. Jesus’ authority is greater than our doubts and fears.   

The message here is that honest doubt does not exclude you from friendship with Jesus, but cynical doubt will. Know yourself and keep it real with God.

All authority:

Perhaps the clearest indication of Jesus’ authority, in Matthew’s gospel, is found on the lips of Jesus himself, where the Lord says: All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me…

This is both a statement of fact and a reference to the prophet Daniel who foresaw one like a son of man who was given all authority by God Almighty (the Ancient of Days). Jesus is the son of man prophesied by Daniel. Giving all authority to Jesus is something God had planned for centuries.   

One thing we notice here is that Jesus’ authority is universal. Jesus has been given all authority in heaven and earth. This means there is nowhere that Jesus is not in charge. There is no place seen or unseen that is beyond Jesus’ jurisdiction. The risen Jesus is Lord of life and death, of time and eternity, of this world and the next. 

Another thing we notice is how Jesus’ authority is given by God. It is not taken by force. In the same way that love can only be given freely, so too authority is given. Authority that is taken by force is not genuine, it is counterfeit. Jesus’ authority is legitimate because it is given by God Almighty.

Those who are familiar with Matthew’s gospel will understand that the key to Jesus’ authority is found in Jesus’ loving obedience to God the Father.     

In Matthew 4 we read that, when Jesus was being tested in the wilderness, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. ‘All this will be yours’, the devil said, ‘if you bow down and worship me.’

But Jesus refused. Jesus would not betray God nor take the devil’s short cut.

By choosing the longer route of obedience to God the Father, Jesus received all authority in heaven and earth, far more than Satan offered.   

Returning to Matthew 28. In verse 19 Jesus goes on to say…

19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 

We will get to the part about ‘making disciples’ next week. Today our focus is the authority of Jesus.

Baptism is the initiation ceremony for Christians. Baptism represents a number of things, including submission to Jesus’ authority. When we are baptized, we are effectively saying; ‘Jesus is my Lord and King, I give my allegiance to Christ and commit myself to obeying him’. 

We also see Jesus’ authority in the baptismal formula he uses. Jesus, the Son, places himself in between God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. Jesus is saying, quite clearly here, that he is divine.

Notice though that we are baptized into the name (singular) of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We are not baptized into three names but into one name. So God the Father, Son and Spirit are one. There is a mystery to the Trinity that we cannot fully comprehend.  

Conclusion:

Let me leave you with this thought: Jesus, who has been given all authority in heaven and earth, shares his authority with his disciples by commissioning them to make more disciples.

And who are Jesus’ disciples? Is it just the eleven who met him on the mountain 2000 years ago? No. A Christian disciple is anyone who loves and obeys Jesus. So the question is: do we love Jesus enough to do what he says?

May our God of grace bless you with his peace and a deeper awareness of his love. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading these Scriptures and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • Why does the risen Jesus meet his disciples on a mountain? What other mountain top moments do we read about in Matthew’s gospel? What do these mountain top experiences say about the authority of Jesus?
  • Have you ever had a mountain top moment (spiritually speaking)? What happened? What impression did you come away with? What change did it make in your life?
  • Why does Matthew include the comment that some of the disciples had doubts? What is the difference between honest doubt and cynical doubt?
  • Do you have doubts? What is the nature of those doubts? How might we best handle our doubts?
  • Where does Jesus’ authority come from? Why did God give all authority in heaven and earth to Jesus?
  • Who does Jesus share his authority with? What might it look like to exercise the authority Jesus shares?

[1] R. France, NICNT Matthew, page 651.

Tawa Baptist

The Presence – by Brian Gillies

John 14:15-29

15 “If you love me, obey my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. 18 No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you. 19 Soon the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Since I live, you also will live. 20 When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21 Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.”

22 Judas (not Judas Iscariot, but the other disciple with that name) said to him, “Lord, why are you going to reveal yourself only to us and not to the world at large?”

23 Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them. 24 Anyone who doesn’t love me will not obey me. And remember, my words are not my own. What I am telling you is from the Father who sent me. 25 I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. 26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.

27 “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid. 28 Remember what I told you: I am going away, but I will come back to you again. If you really loved me, you would be happy that I am going to the Father, who is greater than I am. 29 I have told you these things before they happen so that when they do happen, you will believe.

The Presence Storyline

In almost any study I do, whether it is a passge I am reading as part of my own devotions, preparation for the sermon, like today, or doing some horrendous post graduate essay. I almost always start with these 5 steps.

What is particularly cool about them is that any reader of the Bible can do them.

  1. I simply ask where and when did this happen – context.

So,starting at Chap 13 it is all about the night before Jesus’ crucifixion, what he does with the disciples and what he teaches them that night.

This is known as the “Final Discourse”.

  • Next, I ask myself 3 questions.
  • What did this passage mean then?
  • What is the principle that was being taught?
  • How do we apply that principle today?

Jesus offers a description of the disciples’ lives following his departure and the sending of the Holy Spirit. In turn, He offers us a glimpse into the nature of our relationship with him that comes as a result of the Holy Spirit.

  • The next step is to read the passage in different translations of the Bible.

Some translate this word Holy Spirit as …   

HelperAdvocateSpirit Of TruthComforting CounselorCounsellor
NKJVNIVCJBRSV

The advantage of this is we get to see word translated as “Helper” is fine, but it does not capture everything that would have gone through the mind of those listening to Jesus words. Other translations help us do that. It’s not perfect but it is helpful.

  • Then the next step is to look at keywords at phrases in the verse and find out where they have come up previously in this particular book of the Bible.

There are 4 previous references to the Spirit of which two are interesting to note.

Two key verses

Jn 1:33. (God speaking to John the Baptist) ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’

Jn 7:37–39. Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given since Jesus had not yet been glorified. [1]

  • Now I might search Dictionaries and Commentaries to unpack what others think about these verses.

Maybe you don’t have those, but you can access them for free by Google searching www.blueletterbible.org

Having done all that over a couple of sessions, I try to write up my conclusions.

The Power of the Presence

The presence of the Holy Spirit in the lives of followers of Jesus causes three key things to happen:

  1. The first is revelation of Jesus: “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (John 14:26). The Spirit communicates the words of Jesus. The holy spirit would teach the disciples all things and remind them of everything he had said (14:25–26). In other words, the Spirit would make present Jesus’s teachings. They would not be just a historical artifact but would be present in a living manner.
  • The second is that the Holy Spirit gives us power to be witnesses. “But 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” (Acts 1:8). From the day of Pentecost onward, it was obvious that the disciples had power to be witnesses; do miracles, preach effective sermons—and people became Christians. They could not have done this without God’s presence. The power is in the presence.
  • The third is that the Holy Spirit comes to make us holy, i.e., more like Jesus. Christianity is not a self-help course; Nor is it rituals and ceremony. (Though some find these helpful) Rather, it is a life of continual transformation.

The Spirit serves as an internal guide for life in Christ. Love is to be the essential characteristic of this life.

  • expressed in obedience to Jesus (14:15, 21, 23; 15:14).
  • This obedience is a means of communion with God the Father (14:21, 23; 16:27), and
  • a characteristic of the relationship between the disciples (13:34; 15:9, 10, 12, 17).17 and those of us who are followers of Jesus today.

That which makes us holy is not, anything that we do, but rather the presence of God in us. – the Holy Sprit

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Cor. 3:17–18)

Well, that’s a great summary and a fine sermon. If you get to a place something like this, you have done very well. So, let’s all have a prayer, sing a hymn, and have a coffee before we head home.

BUT I usually get to this point and ask myself “Is that it?”

I can see there is something here that is crucial to understand about the depth of relationship Jesus wants to have with us through the Holy Spirit. But just what is it?

I know the Holy Spirit has his own storyline throughout the whole Bible- Gen 1.1 makes that clear.

Surely it is something to do with his continued Presence! – that seems to me to be the hint constantly coming through in the wider passage. So, at this point I start to search wider in the Bible.  My search focused on the idea of God’s Presence among us.

“I will be your God, you shall be my people, and I will dwell in the midst of you.”1 This triple-fold promise begins in Genesis (17:7) and occurs fifty times across both testaments and stretches all the way to the second last chapter of the book of Revelation (21:4) It is one of the most important confessional statements in the entire Bible.[2]

The Holy Presence of God

When God created Adam and Eve for fellowship with him; they spent time walking around the garden with God and talking to him face-to-face. After they disobeyed and been made to leave Eden, they realized what it was to be outside the presence of God.

God’s Presence in the Tabernacle

Longing to be close to the people he specially chose, God found a way to rebuild this relationship.

First, he chooses Abraham. God promised that he would have a personal relationship with Abraham and with his “descendants” (Gen 17: vv. 7, 8).[3] This promise culminates a few generations later when God said the same to all Israel that if they followed these instructions, “I will walk among you and be your God” (Lev. 26:12).

About the same time, God gave Moses’s instructions to set up the tabernacle which was where God himselfwould dwell.

As we read on, we find that not only is the Holy of Holies the central tent, a holy place but there are “holy days,” “holy clothes,” “holy equipment” and “holy oil”.

What is it that makes something holy? The answer in the Old Testament seems to be the presence of God.

In Exodus 40:34–35 we read that during the dedication of the tabernacle “… the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.”  Further, that it was in the Holy of Holies, that the presence of God rested, and although separated by a thick veil, God dwelt in the midst of his people.

All this stuff about tabernacles and holy things comes down to relationship. – a God who delights in us and wants to dwell among his people.

The Presence Is Everything

Years later again, King David planned, and his son Solomon built, a permanent temple in the center of Jerusalem and, just like the tabernacle.

2 Chronicles 5–7. tells us of the dedication of the temple and we found out that.

When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. The priests could not enter the temple of the Lord because the glory of the Lord filled it. When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down and the glory of the Lord above the temple, they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshipped and gave thanks to the Lord, saying, “He is good; his love endures forever.” (2 Chron. 7:1–3)

Created to Be in His Presence

Moses understood the necessity of living in the presence of God. In Exodus 33 he told God, “If your Presence does not go with us [Israel], do not send us up from here.… What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” (vv. 15–16).

He knew that it was God’s presence that marked Israel as God’s people. It was only God’s presence that gave meaning to the tabernacle and then to the temple as the place of worship.  And for Christians today it’s God’s presence alone that distinguishes us. It is all about his presence!

The Presence Is Lost

The book of Ezekiel takes an interesting turn.

Ezekiel received his visions while with the Israelites in exile in Babylon. In chapter 8, Ezekiel has a vision in which he’s transported to the temple back in Jerusalem. In the temple he is shown some horrendous scenes of the people of Israel worshipping idols, and they highlight how Israel is sinning on the very doorstep of God’s house.

So, the holy God could no longer dwell in such a place and so, in Ezekiel’s vision he sees the glory of the Lord depart from the temple.

The people of Israel thought their city was indestructible because it was where God lived! BUT In 586 BC the king of Babylon crushed the city and destroyed the temple sending shockwaves throughout Israel—the place where God lived had been conquered! And his people were carried into exile in Babylon.

The Presence Will Return … Eventually.

Yet, Ezekiel went on to prophesy about the day Israel would return from exile. In Ezekiel 40–48 he has a vision of a new temple being built and the glory of the Lord returning to dwell among his people.

Furthermore, he prophesies that this sanctuary is to surpass the old one; and that the Lord intends to “put my sanctuary among them forever. And once again we get this phrase “My dwelling place will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people”. (Ezek. 37:26–28).

Eventually the people of Israel started to return from exile. One of the first things they did was begin rebuilding the temple in Jerusalem.

The dedication of this temple in Ezra 6 is different. The glory fell at the dedication of the tabernacle in the wilderness; and at the dedication of the first temple under Solomon; but is notably absent in the dedication of the second temple.

So, what of Ezekiel’s visions? Didn’t he predict that the glory would return?

This brings us to John’s Gospel which opens with these words.

Emmanuel—The Presence Is with Us

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. … The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. (John 1:1–4, 14)

Matthew’s account of Jesus birth quotes Isaiah, “A virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’—which means, ‘God with us’” (Matt. 1:22–23; cf. Isa. 7:14).

The technical term for God becoming human is incarnation. There’s a whole branch of theology called Christology that is devoted to this subject, but the bottom line is that the body of Jesus didn’t carry God in the way a car carries a person. Nor was there a “God part” and a “human part” to Jesus; he was totally God and totally human.

The eternal God chose to no longer live behind a curtain in a building where only the chief priest could come once a year.  But to live and dwell among his people.

The Presence Lives in Us

So, we come to the night Jesus prepares to leave the world and tells his disciples, “It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you” (John 16:7).

In the Old Testament the Holy Spirit comes upon prophets, priests, and kings. On the day of Pentecost, the presence of God fell on all believers. Peter explained to the crowd of thousands that gathered at the commotion, “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people” (Acts 2:17).  Jesus’ Promise was fulfilled.

If you are a follower of Jesus, then God lives in you, too; you are a holy place. We don’t have to go to a special place to find God; he is within us!  As Paul points out “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16).

The Key Is God’s Presence

Just as it was God’s presence leaving and returning in Ezekiel’s visions of the temple that made the difference between the city being destroyed and the wilderness exploding with life, so too it is the presence of God that makes the difference for his temple today. – Ezekiel’s Vision is fulfilled.

One of the great story lines of the Bible is God longing and finding a way to be present among his people. Today that presence that used to walk around Eden, the presence that fell on the tabernacle and Solomon’s temple, lives in us.

Yes, the Holy Spirit will remind and teach you of everything Jesus said.

Yes, the Holy Spirit gives us power to be his witnesses!

Yes, the Holy Spirit comes to make us holy to be more like Jesus.

Yes, The Holy Spirit enables love to be the essential characteristic of our obedience to Jesus and the Father

All this work of the Holy Spirit is a work in progress – one day it will be complete.

In Revelation 21 John describes what that completion will look like, that one day his unveiled presence will remain forever.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.” (Rev. 21:3–4)

[1] The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Jn 7:37–39.

17 Adapted from Jackie David Johns and Cheryl Bridges Johns, “Yielding to the Spirit: A Pentecostal Approach to Group Bible Study,” Journal of Pentecostal Theology 1 (1992): 109–34.

1 D. J. A. Clines, in “The Theme of the Pentateuch,” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement 10 (Sheffield, U K: JSOT, 1978), 29, affirmed that “the promise has three elements: posterity, divine-human relationship, and land. The posterity-element … is dominant in Genesis 12–50, the relationship-element in Exodus and Leviticus, and the land-element [is dominant] in Numbers and Deuteronomy.”

[2] Walter C. Kaiser Jr, Recovering the Unity of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009), 111.

[3] Walter C. Kaiser Jr, Recovering the Unity of the Bible (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009), 114.

Tawa Baptist

Doves

Scripture: Luke 3:21-22

Video Link: https://youtu.be/jlZNgPtC1rk

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Doves in the Old Testament
  • Doves in the New Testament
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Scientists estimate there are somewhere between ten and eleven thousand different species of birds in the world today. In total there are thought be at least 50 billion wild birds on the planet, perhaps more. Which means that birds outnumber human beings by six to one. That could be a worry if birds ever got organized. 

The Bible mentions around 25 different species of birds, including various types of owls, the eagle, sparrows, ravens, roosters, the ostrich, the hawk and so on. In fact, birds are referred to over 300 times in the Bible, which seems like quite a lot.

Today we begin a new sermon series called, ‘Birds of the Bible’. I don’t think we will try to cover all 25 species of birds, much less every verse that talks about a bird. But it might be interesting to consider what some of the bird references reveal about the character of God. After all, birds were God’s idea. We start our series this morning with the Dove.

Doves in the Old Testament:

One of the first references to a dove in the Bible is found in Genesis 8, which tells the story of Noah and the great flood. While Noah and his family and all the animals and birds were still floating in the ark, Noah sent out a dove to see if the water had receded. The dove came back because it couldn’t find a place to rest.

Verse 9 of Genesis 8, adds a rather beautiful detail saying, “Noah reached out his hand and took the dove and brought it back into the ark”.

Not many birds would land on a man’s hand like that. That speaks to me of a certain closeness and trust between Noah and the dove.

Noah waited seven days before sending the dove out again. This time it returned with an olive branch in its beak, indicating the waters were receding. After another week, Noah sent the dove out once more but this time it did not return so Noah knew it was safe to leave the ark.

The image of a dove over the waters reminds us of the Holy Spirit hovering over the primordial waters, when God created the cosmos. It speaks of a new creation. It also speaks of peace after the storm. A fresh start.

Doves were used by the ancient Israelites as a sacrifice. In particular, they were the sacrifice of the poor. If someone needed to make atonement for something, but could not afford to offer a lamb or a goat, then they could offer two doves instead.

We read for example, in Luke 2, how Mary & Joseph presented the baby Jesus to the Lord at the temple in Jerusalem and offered two doves in keeping with the Law.

So, as well as signifying peace and new beginnings, doves point to God’s consideration for the poor. God does not want people to be excluded from worship by a lack of finances.

Doves often mate for life. They are loyal, not promiscuous and so doves are associated with love and devotion. Also beauty. They are a pretty bird.

Perhaps the most intimate book in the Bible is a love poem called the Song of Songs. The Song of Songs refers to doves as a metaphor for beauty…

How beautiful you are, my darling. Your eyes are doves. (1:15)

My lover is knocking: Open to me, my darling, my dove, my flawless one. (5:2)

My dove, my perfect one, is unique. (6:9)

Some think the Song of Songs is an allegory of God’s love for his people or of Christ’s love for the church, a love that is reciprocated. Whichever way you might read it, there is a palpable tenderness and intimacy in the language.

As beautiful as they are, the cooing of doves sounds sad, like crying or moaning.

In the 1980’s the musician, Prince, wrote a song titled, When Doves Cry. It was a song of lament. ‘How can you just leave me standing, alone in a world that’s so cold… Why do we scream at each other? This is what it sounds like when doves cry.’

The crying doves in the song are a metaphor for two lovers mourning the loss of their relationship.

In Isaiah 38 we read how king Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. When he cried out to the Lord in tears, God healed him and added another 15 years to his life. Afterwards, Hezekiah wrote a song remembering his ordeal. In verse 14 of Isaiah 38 we read…

I cried like a swift or thrush, I moaned like a mourning dove. My eyes grew weak as I looked to the heavens. I am troubled; O Lord, come to my aid.

Moaning like a dove, in sadness and regret, was also used to describe those who survived the fall of Jerusalem. In Ezekiel 7 we read…

All who survive and escape will be in the mountains, moaning like doves…, each because of his sins.

So doves, in the Bible, are associated with mourning and grief. This fits with the idea that doves represent a new beginning. “Every new beginning starts with some other beginning’s end.” I imagine Noah and his family felt some grief after the flood, thinking of all that had been lost, much like the Jewish survivors after the fall of Jerusalem. 

Many of you will be familiar with the story of Jonah. Jonah was a prophet who ran away from God. He was swallowed by a huge fish and then spewed up on a beach. Jonah ran away because God wanted him to preach a message of repentance to his enemies the Assyrians.

Eventually, after three days in a fish, Jonah did what God asked him. He told the people of Nineveh that God was going to destroy their city. No sugar coating it. The people of Nineveh believed Jonah’s message and repented in dust and ashes, so God had mercy and spared the city.

Jonah was not happy with this. He wanted God to smote his enemies but the Lord had mercy saying: Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I not be concerned about that great city?

You might be thinking, ‘Yea, I know the story but what has that got to do with doves?’ Well, as it happens, Jonah’s name in Hebrew means ‘Dove’. So when we think of doves we think of the story of Jonah and the God of mercy who gives second chances.

The Lord gave Jonah a second chance and he gave Nineveh a second chance too. Just as he gives each of us a second and third and fourth chance. The Lord is slow to anger and rich in love.

Doves in the New Testament:

Today is Trinity Sunday, a week after Pentecost. One of the traditional readings for Trinity Sunday is the account of Jesus’ baptism. From Luke 3 we read…

21 When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22 and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

Many people see the Trinity (Father, Son & Spirit) depicted in this narrative, with the voice from heaven being that of God the Father.

We might also see in this passage a picture of heaven coming to earth, a kind of glimpse of the future, when God’s kingdom is realized in its fullness. As the Lord taught us to pray: Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

The other thing that is happening in Christ’s baptism is that Jesus is representing the human race. You see, Jesus is without sin and so he does not need to be baptized for himself. Jesus is being baptized for us. He is identifying with human beings and representing humanity to God.

This means the baptism of Jesus is not only a picture of the communion of the Father, Son & Spirit; it is also a picture of the communion (or holy intimacy) that we (who belong to Christ) will enjoy with God, when Jesus returns and heaven comes to earth.

In other words, the Trinity are not having their own private huddle in Luke 3. At Jesus’ baptism, Father, Son and Holy Spirit are having an intimate moment with humanity, in Christ. In and through Jesus, humanity gets to participate in the Trinity.

When the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus, he was also descending on all those who are in Christ. Likewise, when we are baptized into the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we become God’s sons and daughters, his family. The Father loves you and is pleased with you.

It is a curious thing that Luke only allows two verses to describe Jesus’ baptism. Given the importance of the event we might have expected a whole chapter at least. But we get just a brief glimpse. Sometimes less is more.

The Holy Spirit could have descended on Jesus in any form. A bear, a lion, a stag, a waterfall, tongues of fire or some kind of mysterious symbol. Yet the Spirit chose the form of a dove on this occasion. Why? Because the dove is like a master key unlocking the meaning of what Jesus came to do.  

For those who are familiar with the Old Testament, the mention of the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus like a dove, immediately evokes all the images we might associate with doves from the rest of the Bible.

To begin with, Jesus is like Noah. Or more accurately, Noah points to Christ. Noah and Jesus were both carpenters. Noah and Jesus were both righteous. Noah and Jesus were both instrumental in the salvation of the world.

To be ‘in Christ’ is like being in the ark of salvation that Jesus built. In and through Jesus, God is bringing about a new creation, a fresh start for everything God made, not just human beings.

Although Noah points to Christ, Jesus is greater than Noah. Jesus brings peace between God and humankind. Jesus calms the storm of judgement. Something Noah could not do.

Remember the way the dove landed on Noah’s hand. That speaks of the closeness and trust which characterizes our relationship with God through Jesus. It is the Holy Spirit who enables us to trust Jesus and be close to him.

As we have heard, the meaning of the dove has even greater riches to share. Just as the dove was the chosen sacrifice of the poor, so too Jesus is our atoning sacrifice restoring our relationship with God. Jesus is good news to rich and poor alike, because Jesus takes away the sin of the world.

The picture of the dove descending on Jesus, together with heavenly words of love and affection, reminds us too of the Song of Songs, the greatest love song ever written. Jesus is the word of God. He is God’s love song to the world.

How beautiful you are, my darling. Your eyes are doves. My dove, my perfect one, is unique. When Jesus looks at you, he sees your beauty, he sees the best in you. You might focus on your own flaws and imperfections. Jesus sees that too but not with the look of disdain or contempt. Jesus understands you are a work in progress and he sees you as you will be one day, flawless, perfect, unique.  

Then there is the image of doves crying, moaning and mourning. Jesus is the man of sorrows, acquainted with bitterest grief. Jesus wept at the tomb of his friend Lazarus and he wept over Jerusalem. Jesus weeps for the world today too. He understands your pain, your loss, your loneliness.

The Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.  

Jonah, whose name means dove, points to Jesus. Both Jonah and Jesus slept in a boat during a storm. Jonah was three days in the belly of a fish, while Jesus was three days in the tomb. And both were prophets sent with a message of repentance to a world in need of God’s mercy.

Jonah is not like Jesus in every way though. Jesus was quicker to obey God.

Not that Jesus’ obedience came easy. Jesus struggled in prayer in the garden of Gethsemane, sweating great drops of blood as he reconciled himself to God’s will in going to the cross. Not my will, Father, but your will be done.

There is one other connection with the dove that we haven’t mentioned yet. Sometime after his baptism, in Matthew 10, Jesus says to his disciples…

I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore, be as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves.

A dove is innocent in the sense that it is harmless. A dove is not a violent bird. It is not a bird which preys on other animals in order to survive. Therefore, in the context of Matthew 10, the followers of Jesus are to be like doves and do no harm, just as Jesus did no harm.

But in the context of Luke 3, where Jesus is representing the human race and the Holy Spirit descends on Jesus like a dove, the message is twofold…

Firstly, God means us no harm. God intends good for us. The Lord, the holy one, comes gently and without violence, like a dove.

Secondly, Jesus is innocent, not guilty of sin. Which means that all those who are in Christ, are also innocent.   

Conclusion:

Love, beauty, peace, a new creation, a fresh start, sacrifice, the calm after the storm, the pain of mourning, a second chance, mercy and innocence. These are what the Bible associates with doves and these are fulfilled in Christ.

May the Spirit of Jesus fill you and guide you. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

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?

  • Do you like birds? If so, what is it you like about them? If not, what don’t you like? What is your favourite bird and why? What is your least favourite bird and why?
  • Before hearing this sermon, what did you associate with doves?
  • Discuss / reflect on each of the various images associated with doves in the Old Testament. For example, peace after the storm, sacrifice, love, beauty, Jonah, new creation, etc. Which of these images / ideas speaks most strongly to you? 
  • Thinking of Jesus’ baptism in Luke 3:21-22, what light does the dove imagery shed on Jesus’ purpose/mission?
  • Why did Jesus get baptised? What is the significance of Jesus’ baptism for those who are in Christ?
Tawa Baptist

The Advocate

Scripture: John 14:15-17

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

The Advocate:

Good morning everyone.

If you are accused of a crime and have to appear in court, what do you need?

[Wait] That’s right, a good lawyer. Someone who understands the rules of the court, who can advocate for you and defend your cause.

If you are marooned on a deserted island, what do you need? [Wait]

Probably a satellite phone and a survival expert, someone who knows what you can eat and what you can’t. Someone who can start a fire and help you build a shelter until the Navy arrive.

If you are facing bullies at school or at work, what do you need? [Wait]

Someone strong to stand with you against the bullies. 

Today, because it is Pentecost Sunday, our message focuses on the gift of the Holy Spirit. Before his crucifixion, Jesus explained to his disciples that he would be going away but that he would not leave his disciples alone. He would ask God to send his Spirit. From John 14, verses 15-17, we read the words of Jesus to his followers…

15 ‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate,to be with you for ever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be inyou.

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

There are many images in the Bible associated with the Holy Spirit including breath, wind, fire, water and oil. None of these is sufficient in itself to capture the work of the Spirit. Nevertheless, these images convey something about the life giving power of God’s Spirit.

In John 14, Jesus talks about the Spirit as a living person saying that he will ask God the Father to give those who love him another Advocate.

‘Another Advocate’ implies there is a prior Advocate, one who comes before the Holy Spirit. Jesus is the first Advocate but now that he is about to leave he plans to send someone else who is just like him. Someone who will advocate for and help the disciples in his absence.

The Greek word translated as Advocate is ‘parakletos’ or paraclete. There is no exact equivalent for paraclete in the English language and so this word is translated in a variety of ways in different versions of the Bible.

Quite literally, parakletos means ‘called to the side of’ (in order to help).[1]

It was a legal term indicating the counsel for the defense. So a parakletos was sort of like a defense lawyer. Hence it is translated into English as advocate, because that’s what a parakletos does, they advocate (or stick up) for someone who has been accused of wrong doing.

Jesus is the original advocate, the one called alongside to defend our cause. But since Jesus has ascended to heaven, the Holy Spirit is our new advocate. The implication here is that we are embroiled in a spiritual conflict in which Satan (the accuser) is seeking to condemn us.

Now some of you may be thinking at this point, “Hold on a minute. I don’t have the word ‘Advocate’ in my Bible. My Bible uses the word ‘comforter’ to describe the Holy Spirit in John 14. So what’s with this new word ‘Advocate’?”

The problem with language is that it keeps evolving, it keeps changing its meaning over time. For example, the word ‘nice’ originally meant silly, foolish or simple. So to call someone nice was a bit of an insult. Nowadays though to call someone nice is like saying they are gentle or kind. ‘Nice’ is a compliment.

Comforter is one of those words which has changed its meaning with time. Comforter comes from the Latin word fortis which means brave. So 400 years ago, a comforter was someone who, through their presence, strengthened you; making you brave so you had courage to face the bullies in your life.

These days a comforter might refer to a child’s blanket or to someone who gives sympathy when you have suffered some kind of loss. Not the same thing.

While the Holy Spirit can and does offer us comfort when we are feeling sad, the older definition (of making us brave in the face of a conflict or a crisis) is closer to the mark of what the Holy Spirit does.

Other Bibles use different words to translate parakletos. For example, friend, counselor, helper or intercessor. These are all true of the Holy Spirit but none of them captures the whole truth. 

The point seems to be that the Holy Spirit is a divine person with the strength and know how to help you follow Jesus in any situation you may face.

By way of metaphor, if this life is like trying to survive in the wilderness, then the Holy Spirit is like having Bear Grylls with you to show you what to eat, how to start a fire and how to make a shelter.

Or if this life is like an international test match, then the Holy Spirit is like your coach giving advice on game strategy and lending encouragement.

Or if this life is like a court trial, then the Holy Spirit is your defense lawyer speaking on your behalf and advocating for your release.

In verse 17, Jesus refers to Holy Spirit as the Spirit of truth. A little bit later in, verse 26, Jesus unpacks what he means by ‘Spirit of truth’, when he says…

26 But the Advocate,the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you.

To put that another way: If this life is like an apprenticeship, in which we are learning to be like Jesus, then the Holy Spirit is our mentor and a master craftsman. The Holy Spirit shows us what Jesus would do. He teaches us to be like Christ.

Returning to verse 17, Jesus says the world cannot receive the Spirit of truth because it neither sees him nor knows him.

The world, in the gospel of John, can mean different things depending on the context. In chapter 14, the world refers to all people (collectively) who are opposed to Christ. Or said another way, the world represents those who live as though there is no God.

In John 3:16, when Jesus says, For God so loved the world he gave his only Son… he means that God loves those who are opposed to him. God loves his enemies enough to offer the life of his Son to save them.  

Jesus says the world is blind; meaning those who are hostile to Christ cannot receive the Holy Spirit because they cannot see him or know him. Eugene Peterson paraphrases this thought by saying: A loveless world is a sightless world.

Framing that in more positive terms, love gives us the eyes to recognize the Holy Spirit at work in our own lives and in the lives of those who do not yet know Jesus.  

In verse 15 Jesus says: ‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments…’

Basically, God gives the Holy Spirit to those who love Jesus and the proof of love is obeying Jesus. It’s a bit of a chicken and egg situation. Which comes first? Obeying Jesus or receiving God’s Spirit? I’m not sure we can obey Jesus without the help of the Holy Spirit. Surely the Spirit comes first.

Perhaps, before we are aware of it, the Holy Spirit is at work cultivating God’s love in the soil of our lives and if that love bears the fruit of faith and obedience to Jesus, then the Spirit reveals some more of God to us. There is a mystery to this process. We can’t really put the Spirit in a box or tie him to a formula.

We can say this about the Holy Spirit though. He always holds love and truth together; he never separates the two. In fact, he uses love & truth to create connections between God and people.  Jesus alludes to the love & truth connections the Holy Spirit makes in verse 17 where he says to his disciples…

You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be inyou. 

The Holy Spirit is so close to those who love Jesus that he is actually inside us. We could understand this thought in two ways. The Holy Spirit is inside our body, mind and soul, as individuals. But, at the same time, the Holy Spirit is among us (or in our relationships) as a body of believers, as the church, prompting us and guiding us.

So how does the Holy Spirit work in our own experience. What practical difference does the Advocate make in our lives? Let me suggest three things the Holy Spirit does. This is not an exhaustive list.

Firstly, the Holy Spirit helps us to understand God’s word in Scripture. We see this principle at work, for example, with the birth of the church at Pentecost.

In Acts 2 the Holy Spirit empowers the apostles to proclaim the death and resurrection of Jesus in a variety of foreign languages. People from all over the world were gathered in Jerusalem and heard God’s word preached in their mother tongue.

As well as empowering the apostles to speak in different languages, the Holy Spirit was active in the hearts and minds of those listening so they were able to believe and receive the gospel message. God’s Word and God’s Spirit go together and have a creative power.

Often, when we read the Bible, we can find it difficult to understand. Reading Scripture without the Holy Spirit is like trying to decipher a foreign language.

The Holy Spirit reveals the love and truth of God contained in the Scriptures. When we read the Bible, the Holy Spirit high lights God’s word for us so that we have that ‘aha’ moment. He shows us God’s heart. He shows us Jesus. The Spirit enables us to understand what God is saying to us personally. He makes Jesus close and real.  

As well as helping us to understand God’s word in Scripture, the Holy Spirit also helps us to pray.

In Romans 8, Paul describes the work of the Spirit saying…

26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

Prayer can be hard work at times. Sometimes we don’t have words to do justice to our thoughts and feelings. Sometimes all we have is sighs and tears.  The Holy Spirit gets us. As our Advocate the Spirit understands us intimately and he speaks on our behalf to God. The Spirit intercedes for us in harmony with God’s will. We might not know what to ask for but the Holy Spirit does.

So the Holy Spirit helps us to understand God’s word, he helps us to pray and thirdly, the Holy Spirit gives each of us a gift to share.

In 1st Corinthians 12 we read…

4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. 7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.

Some people are given the gift of administration. Some are gifted with discernment and wisdom. Others are gifted with the desire and skill to help people practically. Others are gifted communicators. Some are good with money and others are good with children. Some have musical talent and others are careful listeners or skilled organisers.

It’s a brilliant strategy if you think about it. By giving each person a different gift, the Spirit is giving each of us a purpose and a place to belong, a way to fit in and make a meaningful contribution. We don’t have to do it all on our own, but it is crucial that we do our bit.

The gifts the Spirit imparts create connections that enable the body of Christ to function so the message of God’s love & truth is shared with the world. 

What gift has the Spirit given you? How are you using your gifts for the common good?

Let me finish now with another reading of Jesus’ words from John 14…     

15 ‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate,to be with you for ever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be inyou.       

This means that, with the Spirit, you are not alone. May the divine Advocate be real for you, making you brave to face whatever comes your way this week. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

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?

  • What are some of the Biblical images associated with the Holy Spirit? What do these images show us about the Spirit? Which image resonates most strongly with you?
  • Why did Jesus ask God the Father to send the Holy Spirit?
  • Discuss / reflect on the various English translation of the word Parakletos (Paraclete). What light do these words shed on the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer?
  • How do we know if we (or someone else) loves Jesus?
  • How does the Holy Spirit work in your experience? How might we discern the Spirit’s activity?
  • What gift(s) has the Spirit given you? How are you using your gift(s) for the common good?   

[1] Leon Morris, NICNT John, page 587.

Tawa Baptist

John’s Birth

Scripture: Luke 1:5-25 & 39-45 & 57-80

Video Link: https://youtu.be/ezvbkI-Yymk

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • John’s parents
  • John’s purpose
  • John’s power
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Did you know there are over 500 active undersea cables connecting the continents of the world? 98% of all international internet traffic flows through these undersea cables. Inside the protective casing there are many strands of fibre optic cable all carrying data from one country to the next. Pretty amazing.

Before the new seal was laid on the church carpark we had a trench built and laid a pipe under the carpark so we could run cabling to provide a more reliable internet connection between the church office and auditorium. Similar principle to the undersea cables, just not as far. 

The Bible, as you know, is a book of two halves. The older and bigger half, what we call the Old (or First) Testament, was written before the time of Christ. The second half, what we call the New Testament, was written shortly after Jesus walked the earth.  

Sometimes people think of the Old and New Testaments as separate, which is understandable given there is a 400-year gap between them. But actually they are connected. Both Testaments are concerned with God’s plan of salvation and both testaments point to Jesus, the Messiah of God.

Today we begin a new sermon series on the life of John the Baptist. John the Baptist was like an undersea cable, carrying valuable information, connecting the Old and New Testaments. John’s life and work demonstrate a clear continuity in God’s plan of salvation.

This morning we focus on John’s birth in Luke chapter 1. Listen for the connections with the Old Testament. From verse 5 we read…

5 In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. 6 Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. 7 But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old. 8 Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9 he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10 And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. 11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. 14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. 16 He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

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

In thinking about the birth of John the Baptist, this morning, we consider three things: John’s parents, John’s purpose and John’s power. Let’s begin with John’s parents, Zechariah and Elizabeth.

John’s parents:

When we get what we want, we call that satisfaction. But when we get something less than what we want, we call that disappointment. Disappointment is the difference (or the shortfall) between what we get and what we had hoped we would get.

The more disappointment we experience in life the more inclined we are to clip the wings of our hope; to hope less. That may be a necessary survival technique but it makes for a pretty sad life, because joy and hope are intimately related. Joy is the energy of hope. So the less you hope for the less joy you have. Risk and reward. 

The Rolling Stones have a line in one of their songs: “You can’t always get what you want but if you try sometimes you just might find you get what you need.” I’m not sure what the Stones meant by that but it sounds to me like a strategy for balancing hope and managing disappointment.

Another famous singer, Bono, has a different take on disappointment. He compares disappointment to manure. Manure smells bad and is messy. No one really likes to handle it. But despite the unpleasantness, manure acts as a fertiliser. It enriches soil to grow beautiful flowers and delicious veges.

I like that image. If we think of disappointment as manure; as something that is unpleasant now but which produces better quality of life in the future, we redeem our suffering and we preserve hope.

Zechariah and Elizabeth understood disappointment better than most. They were faithful people who did everything in their power to obey God’s law.

Verse 6 tells us: Both of them were righteous in the sight of God and yet, despite wanting children, they were childless. It doesn’t seem fair. But notice the echo with Abraham & Sarah, who were also faithful and not able to conceive. What is God about to do?  

Zechariah was quite remarkable really. Despite the disappointment of not becoming a father, he stuck to his calling as a priest. He did not ditch his faith or walk out on God because he didn’t get what he wanted. This reveals a certain purity of heart from Zechariah.

To some degree a husband’s relationship with his wife mirrors his relationship with God. In the cultural context of the time, Zechariah could have written Elizabeth a letter of divorce and sent her away for not giving him children.

But he doesn’t. Zechariah remains loyal to Elizabeth. He shows Elizabeth hesed. Zechariah loves Elizabeth with a faithfulness not dimmed by the years. It was like the manure of disappointment had enriched the soil of their marriage.

Of course, it takes more than manure to grow a good crop. Unrelenting disappointment is not helpful to the human soul. Disappointment does not have the last word though. The fruit of God’s purpose is ultimately satisfying.

There were so many Jewish priests 2000 years ago in Palestine that they were on a roster. Your average priest was only required to serve in the Jerusalem temple two weeks a year. And the chance to enter the holy place and burn incense was a once in a lifetime privilege. Some priests were never so lucky.

The smoke of the incense symbolised the prayers of the faithful rising to God. It was while burning the incense that the angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah saying…

“Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John…”  

Now, at first glance, we might assume that Zechariah had been praying for a son. But when we think it through we realise this is unlikely. Remember, Zechariah & Elizabeth are now very old and past that stage in their life. Zechariah has long since given up on that dream. It’s simply too painful to risk more manure.

Besides, if Zechariah had been praying for a son, then we would expect a less doubtful response from him. Given the context, of the temple and the people praying outside, it is more likely that Zechariah was calling on God to redeem Israel.

After all, this is primarily God’s story. The Lord is planning to redeem humanity and indeed all creation. At the same time, God is going to redeem Zechariah and Elizabeth’s suffering by giving them a son (John) who will play a significant role in the divine plan of salvation.

You see, Zechariah and Elizabeth are representative of the faithful remnant of God’s people. They are the best of Israel in miniature, the smaller story within the larger story.

Just as Zechariah and Elizabeth have lived with disappointment and grief for many years, so too the nation of Israel has suffered for centuries. But that is all about to change. God is about to bring new life.

Zechariah questions the angel Gabriel, asking for proof and Gabriel makes Zechariah mute, unable to speak, until John is born. I don’t think this is a punishment as such. After all, Zechariah is a righteous man. Zechariah’s muteness is more of a call to listen. It’s a symbolic way of saying: ‘Just be quiet for a while and watch God work’.  

Sometimes in prayer we feel like we have to tie everything down, like we have to mansplain everything to God, as if he doesn’t know our concerns already. There is a place for words in prayer but there is also a time to be silent and watch God work.

Okay, so John’s parents were representative of the true Israel, those who remain faithful to God in the face of chronic disappointment.

John’s purpose:

What about John’s purpose? What was God wanting John to do?

Before you can paint an old surface you must first sand off the flaky bits, so the paint sticks. If we think of Israel as the old surface, then we might think of John the Baptist as the one who did the sanding to prepare the surface for Jesus to paint.

Or to use another analogy; before you sow seed it pays to plough up the hard ground. That way the seed has a better chance of taking root and growing. If Israel is the hard ground, then John is the ploughman, softening the ground for Jesus to plant the seed of God’s redemption.

Before a big tournament, the coach drills their team with a combination of fitness and skills training. That way the team are prepared when game day comes. John was like a spiritual fitness coach, getting the people ready for the coming of the Messiah and the coming of God’s kingdom.

The angel Gabriel talked about John’s purpose in God’s plan saying:

16 He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

Notice the connections with the Old Testament. John will be a prophet, like Elijah, calling the people to return to God.

That phrase about turning the hearts of the fathers to their children, comes from the prophet Malachi. It’s a variation on one of the last verses in the Old Testament. Does this mean that John’s purpose was to fix broken family relationships? Well, maybe. But it’s probably more than that.

In Hebrew thought, ‘the fathers’ often refers to the Jewish patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob); the founding fathers if you like. From their vantage point in the next world, the fathers looked at their descendants and were not pleased. However, John’s work would bring about such a positive change that the fathers would look with favour on Israel. [1]  

John was to be a catalyst for change. It was John’s job to get the people ready for the coming of the Messiah, Jesus.

We can also glean something of John’s purpose from the name he was given before birth. John means ‘Jehovah’s gift’ or said another way, ‘God is gracious’. John is the spokesman for God’s grace. But, as we will see in the coming weeks, it’s not a soft mushy grace. It is a strong gritty grace, salted with inconvenient truth. It is grace with sharp edges. It is the grace of a surgeon’s scalpel.

After John was born, Zechariah had this to say about John’s purpose…

76 And you, my child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him, 77 to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, 78 because of the tender mercy of our God…

John’s purpose is to serve as a human data cable, carrying the knowledge of salvation from heaven to earth. Notice though that the salvation in view here is not military or political. It is not won by violence or force.

It is salvation in the form of the forgiveness of our sins. In other words, God intends to save us from ourselves. Because the real enemy is not the Romans or anyone else, it’s not the political left or right; the real danger lies within.   

John’s parents were faithful to God and to each other. John’s purpose was to prepare the people for Jesus’ coming (for redemption). But how was John going to achieve this? Where did his power come from?

John’s power:

Well, the greatest source of John’s power was the Holy Spirit.

In verse 15, of Luke 1, the angel says to Zechariah that John will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before birth.

Later, in verse 41, we read how Elizabeth (who was six months pregnant with John) was filled with the Holy Spirit when Mary (who was pregnant with Jesus) came to visit.

Elizabeth, who is decades older than Mary, puts herself in a lower social position, giving honour and respect to her younger relative, saying:

“Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! 43 But why am I so favoured, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”

It’s a winsome moment. Elizabeth is genuinely happy for Mary. There is no envy, just pure joy. For love rejoices with the truth. 

You know, those undersea data cables I mentioned at the beginning of this message; they are only as good as the information passing through them. Without data being sent and received the cables are lifeless, powerless, dead. The information transferring inside is like the spirit of the cable. It is the spirit that fulfils the purpose.

It’s similar with the human spirit. Your thoughts and feelings and personality are a manifestation of the human spirit. Without thoughts and feelings and personality your body is an empty shell, with nothing to share and no way of communicating. It is the human spirit that enables us to relate with others and fulfil our purpose.

Given that we human beings are made in the image of God, we could think of the Holy Spirit (capital H, capital S) as a manifestation of God’s thoughts and feelings and personality. God relates to the human spirit through his Holy Spirit. Spirit communicates with spirit.

God’s Spirit cannot be reduced or confined by any neat formula or definition we try to wrap around him. But if you need some handles for God’s Spirit, then love and truth are a good place to start.

To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to be filled with God’s love and truth. When you are filled with the Holy Spirit (as John was), your thoughts are informed by truth and not led astray by ignorance. Likewise, feelings of fear give way to the impulse of love. And your personality, that unique finger print of your soul, is set free to be its true self, as God intended.

Sin is when the deep sea cable of the human spirit is severed, so we lose comms with God. Jesus came to repair the cable and restore the connection. The problem is, we don’t always realise the cable is severed because it is buried deep. It was John’s job to make people aware of the disconnect and point to Jesus as the one who had come to fix our relationship with God.

Conclusion:

This morning we have considered the special circumstances surrounding John’s birth. John’s parents were true Israelites; the manure of disappointment had enriched their faithfulness to God and to each other. John’s purpose was to prepare the people’s hearts, minds & spirits for Jesus’ coming. And John’s power to do this came from the Holy Spirit.

Next week we will give some thought to the substance of John’s message.

Let us pray…

Father God, we thank you for Jesus, who repairs the cable of our human spirit so we can commune with your Holy Spirit. As the busy-ness of the new year gains momentum, help us to remain connected to you. Drive out ungodly fear with your love and truth we pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

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?

  • What connections can you see between John’s birth narrative (in Luke 1) and the Old Testament?
  • What noble characteristics do we observe in Zechariah and Elizabeth? Who do Elizabeth and Zechariah represent?
  • Can you think of a time in your life when the manure of disappointment enriched the soil of your life and relationships? What happened. How did God redeem the disappointment?
  • Why did the angel cause Zechariah to become temporarily mute? When might we include sacred silence in our prayer life? How might we create space for sacred silence?  
  • What was John’s purpose? Reflect on / discuss the meaning of the phrase, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous.
  • Where did John’s power come from? Where does your power come from?
  • How strong is your connection with God at present? Does anything need to change to improve the connection? If so, what needs to change? 

[1] Refer Leon Morris’ commentary on Luke, page 70.

Tawa Baptist

Affirmation

Scripture: 1st Thessalonians 2:13-20

Video Link: https://youtu.be/FeNmfDe5CBE

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Affirmation of faith
  • Affirmation of belonging
  • Affirmation of relationship
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Affirmation, it is so important to us as human beings. To affirm something is to declare it to be true. When we affirm we uphold, confirm or ratify what is true.

At the core of affirmation is making something or someone firm, strong or secure.

When you complete a course of training, you receive a certificate to affirm that you are qualified in your chosen field.

When you buy a house or a car, you sign papers to affirm that you are the legal owner of the property.

When you pray the Lord’s prayer, saying ‘Our Father, who is in heaven…’, you affirm that you are loved by God and made in his image.

When you get married, you exchange vows to affirm your love and commitment to one another.

When you worship God, whether that is by singing or giving your time and money or obeying him in some way, you affirm his worth.

When you give someone a word of appreciation, you affirm the good you see in that person. 

When you attend a funeral, you affirm that the life and passing of the deceased matters.

When you listen to someone with empathy, you affirm the value of their thoughts and feelings.  

We could go on but you get the point: affirmation is about upholding the truth. It makes people and relationships stronger, more secure.

Today we continue our series in Paul’s letters to the Thessalonians, focusing on chapter 2, verses 13-20. The Thessalonian believers were going through a difficult time because of their faith in Jesus and so Paul affirms them and his relationship with them. From verse 13 of chapter 2 we read…    

13 And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is indeed at work in you who believe. 14 For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews 15 who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to everyone 16 in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last. 17 But, brothers and sisters, when we were orphaned by being separated from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you. 18 For we wanted to come to you—certainly I, Paul, did, again and again—but Satan blocked our way. 19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy.

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

As you have probably picked up by now, the new believers in Thessalonica were getting a hard time for becoming Christians. They were suffering in a variety of ways and to make matters worse, Paul, Silas and Timothy (who had introduced the gospel of Jesus to them), had been forced to leave prematurely.

The Thessalonians were in a vulnerable position and needed strengthening.

So Paul, who loves them very much, declares what he knows to be true…

Paul affirms the Thessalonians’ decision of faith;

Paul affirms their belonging to God’s people;

And Paul affirms his relationship with the Thessalonians personally.

Affirmation of faith:

First let’s consider Paul’s affirmation of the Thessalonians’ faith.

You may have heard the expression, ‘spill the tea’. The ‘tea’ in this metaphor is some piece of news or inside information about a particular subject. And ‘spilling the tea’ means sharing the news. Preaching the gospel is ‘spilling the tea’ about Jesus. 

When you make tea, to serve to others, you begin by putting some tea leaves in the pot. Then you pour some hot water into the pot with the tea and let it brew for a few minutes.

Once the brew is just right you can pour the tea into individual cups. Some people like milk or sugar with their tea, others are happy to have it black. Some like it in a dainty floral cup and others prefer a mug.

Whichever way you take your tea the main purpose is to drink it.  If someone pours you a cup and you don’t drink it, well that’s a bit odd, even a bit rude. When you drink the tea though, you show trust in the person who made it and affirm the other person’s hospitality to be true. You strengthen your friendship.

To make this analogy plain, God is the one who makes the tea while Paul, Silas & Timothy are like the tea pot. They are the vessel which carries God’s word.

The gospel message about Jesus is like the tea leaves and the hot water is the Holy Spirit. God’s word and God’s Spirit go together. The tea leaves of God’s word need to brew in the water of God’s Spirit for a little while before being served.

Or, to say it another way, the words we read in the Bible only become the living Word of God to us by the power of the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit of God that makes the Word of God real and alive for us. We can’t drink the tea of God’s word without the water of his Spirit.

The individual tea cups are the human heart or mind. Our hearts and minds are vessels or containers for holding the tea of God’s Word & Spirit.

When someone spills the tea, about Jesus, we have a choice. We can receive the hospitality God offers, drinking his tea down (in faith) to our inner most being. Or we can close our hearts and minds to God’s word. 

The Thessalonians chose to receive the tea of God’s word through the tea pot of Paul, Silas & Timothy.

As Paul affirms in verse 13, you received the word of God, which you heard from us, and accepted it not as a human word, but as it actually is, the word of God,

In other words, with the help of God’s Spirit, the Thessalonians trusted Paul’s message and accepted it (or affirmed it in their hearts) as God’s word.  

Paul notes that the word of God is indeed at work in you who believe. When you drink your cup of tea it goes to work in you. It hydrates your body and refreshes you, it gives you a lift. God’s word is like that. God’s word goes to work inside the heart of the individual believer and among the community of believers.

In verse 13 Paul is affirming the Thessalonians’ decision of faith. Maybe some of the Thessalonian believers were having second thoughts, due to all they had suffered. Maybe they were thinking, we got this wrong. But Paul affirms their decision as true. He is saying, you all got it right.

It’s one thing to speak positive words of affirmation to yourself. That has its own power. But it’s something else altogether when someone you respect speaks words of affirmation to you. That is even more powerful.

When I was a kid I played school boy rugby. For most of my career it would be fair to say I was pretty useless. And when you are useless the coach doesn’t waste his time with you. No potential there.

But by the time I reached the fourth form, which is year 10 at high school, I started to understand the game a bit better and put more effort in with training and skill development. It made a difference. The coach noticed.

After seven years of playing the coach actually spoke to me one on one, giving me some pointers on other things I could do to improve. It was just a small thing but it was so affirming. It said to me, ‘I believe in you. I think you’ve got potential kid’. Didn’t quite make it to the All Blacks, but that’s not the point.

The point is, affirmation from someone we respect has real power. It makes us stronger and gives us confidence.

At some stage in your journey of Christian faith you will have questions and doubts. You won’t always feel particularly strong. Don’t let it throw you. It is to be expected.

The trickiest doubt we might face in life is self-doubt. Put yourself in the path of other Christian believers who are a little further down the track than you. Hopefully, if they are listening to this sermon too, they will speak words of affirmation to you, declaring truth over your life (like my rugby coach did for me).

That’s one of the reasons it’s so important to stay connected to a church and not go it on your own. It creates opportunities for affirmation. Church is one of the ways God makes us stronger.         

Sometimes a little opposition and struggle is another thing God uses to firm up our faith.

Affirmation of belonging:

Navy divers do a training exercise called the mud run. This involves a team of divers running through mangrove swamps knee deep in mud. It’s hard yacker. The mud sucks and claws at you, making your every move a huge effort.

Not only does this natural resistance training build physical fitness and strength, it also builds bonds between the team members who help each other. The idea isn’t to be the first individual over the finish line. The idea is to get the whole team across the line together, no one left behind.   

From verse 14 Paul writes…

For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews 15 who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out.

Paul is saying here that the Thessalonians’ suffering is actually an affirmation that they have a place of honour among God’s people. They (even though they are mostly Gentile believers) belong alongside the first Jewish Christians, because they have suffered the same things for the same reason.

Far from being a cause for doubt, the Thessalonians’ suffering for their faith is in fact a sign of solidarity with Jesus, the prophets and the churches in Judea.

Paul is basically saying, you are in good company, for you walk in the footsteps of God’s faithful people. What an affirmation of belonging.

Paul uses the strongest terms he can to denounce the behaviour of those Jews who opposed the gospel of Christ, saying from verse 15:

They displease God and are hostile to everyone 16 in their effort to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. In this way they always heap up their sins to the limit. The wrath of God has come upon them at last

Now, it needs to be acknowledged that Paul’s words in these verses, have been subject to some grievous misinterpretation over the centuries. John Stott points out how one of the early church fathers, Chrysostom preached eight virulent sermons against the Jews, comparing them to animals.

In the Middle Ages the church (or part of it at least) created four repressive regulations forcing Jews to live in ghettos and wear distinctive clothes.

Then there is the embarrassment of the crusades when Jewish villages were ransacked. Not to mention Martin Luther’s writing (in 1543, toward the end of his life) in which he called for Jewish synagogues to be burned and Rabbis silenced.

When we, in the 21st Century, read Paul’s words under the shadow of the Jewish holocaust of the 1940’s, we may wish to edit verses 15 & 16 out of our Bibles.

But that is to misunderstand Paul’s heart. Paul didn’t hate the Jews. He would be horrified to think his words were misused in this way. Paul himself was Jewish. He loved his own people and would have given anything for them to be saved, as Romans 9-11 makes clear.

Paul’s point here is that by opposing the spread of the gospel among the Gentiles, some of the Jews (not all of them, just the extremists) were working against God’s purpose. Paul didn’t say this to incite violence against his own people. He said it to affirm the truth of God’s purpose, which is to save people of all nations.

You see, when we affirm that something is true, we are by implication saying the opposite is false. By affirming the Thessalonians’ faith and belonging as true, Paul was (at the same time) saying those opposed to them were wrong.

Paul’s use of strong and emotive language points to the depth of his conviction on the matter. If any of us had received the 39 lashes, five times, as Paul did (for preaching the gospel) we might use even stronger language.

Paul’s words here are not a license for anti-Semitism. His mention of God’s wrath gives all people cause for restraint. We do not need to take matters into own hands. God’s purpose will prevail in the end. The Lord will see that justice is done. Leave judgement to him.     

Having affirmed the Thessalonians’ decision of faith and their belonging to God’s people, Paul then goes on to affirm his relationship with the Thessalonians, personally.       

Affirmation of relationship:

Which of these terms describes a close relationship do you think?

Colleague, client, boss, acquaintance, best mates, golfing buddy, employee, cousin, Facebook friend, brother, sister, father, mother.   

I suppose it depends on one’s personal experience to some degree, but calling someone your best mate usually indicates a closer relationship than client.

Likewise, brother, sister, father or mother would normally suggest a closer relationship than colleague or Facebook friend.  

Listen to the words Paul uses to describe his relationship with the Thessalonians…

17 But, brothers and sisters, when we were orphaned by being separated from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you.

Paul thinks of the Thessalonians as his family. He calls them brothers and sisters. What’s more he feels orphaned apart from them. In contemporary English an ‘orphan’ is someone who has lost both their parents. But in ancient Greek, the word ‘orphan’ also referred to parents who had lost their children. [1]

Paul is affirming his relationship with the Thessalonians using strong terms. Paul longs to see the Thessalonians face to face with the same intensity that a parent longs to see a lost child, or a small child longs to see a lost parent.

I remember being separated from my mum, in Chartwell Square, when I was about four years old. Chartwell Square is a shopping mall in Hamilton. At first it was an adventure but when I got back to our Mark 1, Ford Escort and discovered she wasn’t there, I was beside myself. I needed to see her face to face, in person. I felt like an orphan, anxious and alone in the world.       

Paul says that although he and the Thessalonians are separated in person, they were not separated in thought. Not a day has gone by where Paul didn’t think of the Thessalonians and wonder how they were. When you love someone, when you care about them, your thoughts are always peopled by them. 

Despite his intense longing to see the Thessalonians, face to face, Paul’s every attempt to return to them was blocked by Satan. It is unclear exactly what Paul means here.

The English word Satan comes from a Hebrew word meaning adversary, as in an adversary of God. Sometimes in the Bible the word Satan refers to the prince of demons (like a fallen angel). Other times it simply means someone (perhaps a mortal human being) who is opposed to God’s purpose.  

Whatever Paul may have meant by the term, in this context, he continues to use strong emotive language to make the point that it wasn’t in his power to return to see his Thessalonian family.

In verses 19 & 20 Paul writes…

19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you? 20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy.

The Winter Olympics has just finished. Our most successful ever. Two golds and a silver. This was the first Winter Games in which New Zealand ever won gold. The dedication, commitment, hard work and skill the athletes put into winning those medals was huge. The joy of realising their goals matched their effort.  

The crown Paul refers to in verse 19 is not a royal crown. Rather it is the victor’s crown. In ancient Greece the winners of various events at the Olympic Games were crowned with a laurel wreath. It was their equivalent of a gold medal.

When Paul talks about the Thessalonians being our hope, our joy and our crown, it’s like he is saying, ‘You are our gold medal. We have worked so hard, suffered so much and been committed for so long to win you for Christ. We don’t want to lose you now.’

Paul is essentially affirming the high value he places on the Thessalonians and the relationship he shares with them. 

Conclusion:

This morning we have heard three of Paul’s affirmations for the Thessalonians. Three messages of strength. Let me finish with two questions for you. Firstly…

What truth do you need to affirm?

Perhaps, if you are struggling at the moment with ill health or grief or some other thorn in the flesh, you need to affirm the truth that God’s grace is sufficient for you.

Perhaps, if you are fearful about the things happening in our city and world today, you need to affirm the truth that God is in control, he’s got this.

Perhaps, if you are too hard on yourself, suffering from a brutal and relentless inner critic, you need to affirm the truth that you are loved and accepted by God.

Perhaps, if you are feeling a bit isolated or misunderstood, you need to affirm the truth that you are not alone, you belong to God and with his people.

My second question for you is this…

Who needs your affirmation?

Perhaps someone you haven’t seen in years.

Perhaps someone you see every day.

Perhaps someone at work or school.

Perhaps someone in your family.

See the good in that person. Declare the truth of it. Make them stronger.

Let us pray…

Spirit of Jesus, fill us with your grace and truth that we would be firm and steadfast in our faith, giving strength to one another. Amen.  

Questions for discussion or reflection:

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?

  • What is affirmation and why is it important? Think of a time when someone affirmed you. What did they do or say? How did this make you feel?
  • What is the difference between reading the Bible and receiving God’s word? 
  • What does Paul mean when he says, ‘the word of God is at work in you’? How has the word of God worked in you and among you? What difference did it make?
  • How are we to understand 1st Thessalonians 2:14-16? How does a wider reading of the New Testament (e.g. Romans 9-11, Matthew 5:43-48) help inform / guide our interpretation of 1st Thessalonians 2:14-16?  
  • How does Paul affirm his relationship with the Thessalonians? How do you think this made the Thessalonians feel?
  • What truth do you need to affirm?
  • Who needs your affirmation?  

Some affirmations of Jesus (from Matthew 5)…

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.

10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

[1] Refer Gordon Fee, NICNT Thessalonians, page 105. 

Tawa Baptist

Persuasion

Scripture: Acts 17:1-10

Video Link: https://youtu.be/Y-PupQ_mVz8

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Persuasion
  • Protest
  • Persistence
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

One of the things that distinguishes human beings from animals is language. Unlike animals, people are able to communicate using words.

In some ways though, words have become cheap for many people in the western world today. We are bombarded with words in advertising, at work, on TV and the internet. With all the noise and confusion around words and their meaning, we may find ourselves longing for the oxygen of silence.

Words may have become cheap for us but, in the thought world of the Bible, words carry real power.

Today we begin a new sermon series in Paul’s words to the Thessalonians. Paul wrote two letters to the Thessalonians but, before we start into the letters themselves, we are going to take a closer look at Acts 17, which describes how the Thessalonian church got started.  

In Acts 17 we hear about the power of words for good and for harm. From verse 1 we read…  

When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” he said. 4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women. 5 But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, 7 and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” 8 When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9 Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go. 10 As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue.

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

Acts 17, written by Luke, describes Paul & Silas’ experience in the city of Thessalonica. Three things we note. Paul’s mission work is characterised by persuasion, protest and persistence. Let’s start with Paul’s words of persuasion.

Persuasion:

Do you know those toys, for small children, where the child has to fit different shaped blocks through the corresponding shaped hole? There’s no way an oblong block is going to fit through a square hole. You can’t force the blocks.

First, you find the right shape to match the right hole and then you adjust the position of the block so that it lines up correctly. Once you’ve done that the block fits easily.

Persuasion is bit like that. The box that receives the shapes is sort of like the human heart or mind and the shapes that fit into the box are like pieces of the gospel message; ideas and beliefs.

You can’t force someone to accept or believe something that doesn’t fit for them. You have to understand the shape of the person’s heart & mind and then position the idea or belief in a way that person can accept.

Paul understood this. Paul did not coerce or manipulate people into accepting the gospel about Jesus. As verse 4 of Acts 17 tells us, Paul persuaded people.

Paul thought about the shape of his listeners’ hearts & minds and presented the gospel message in a way they could receive, without compromising or changing the gospel and without damaging his listeners’ hearts.

Thessalonica was the capital city of the province of Macedonia. Verse 2 of Acts 17 tells us that Paul went to the synagogue as was his custom. The synagogue was like the local place of worship for people of Jewish faith living in that area.

On the Sabbath (a Saturday) people came together in the synagogue for prayers and singing psalms and hearing the Hebrew Bible (what we know as the Old Testament) read aloud and expounded.

It was Paul’s custom to go the Jewish synagogue on the Sabbath because he had done that all his life. While the Jewish faith is not exactly the same as the Christian faith, the two hold quite a bit in common. The Christian faith grew out of the Jewish faith. The very first Christians were Jews.

From a mission strategy point of view, it made good sense for Paul to preach the gospel of Jesus in the synagogue because the people were starting with a shared understanding of God. This shared understanding included, for example, the belief that there is only one God, the creator of all there is. And he is just and merciful.  

Although Luke tells us Paul talked about Jesus in the synagogue over the course of three Sabbaths, this does not exclude the probability that Paul also talked about Jesus in people’s homes and the market place during the other days of the week. Luke’s account is not a comprehensive report of Paul’s activities. It’s more of a highlights reel.

What we notice in these verses is the way Paul went about persuading people to believe in Jesus’ death and resurrection. Paul understood better than anyone how difficult it was for Jews to believe that Jesus was the Messiah, when Jesus had been crucified.

The idea of a crucified Messiah was a key piece of the gospel that didn’t fit easily with the Jewish mind-set. To suggest that God’s Messiah had to suffer and die on a cross was like trying to fit a square peg through a round hole.

The Hebrew Scriptures carried authority for the Jews and so Paul reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. 

Reason, explanation and evidence were key tools in Paul’s toolbox of persuasion. We can easily imagine Paul using passages like Isaiah 53, which predicted the suffering of the Messiah, as a way of proving that Jesus had to suffer and rise from the dead. Isaiah 53 reads…

10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makeshis life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. 11 After he has suffered, he will see the light of lifeand be satisfied;

Verse 11 is talking about resurrection after death you see. Isaiah continues…

by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.  

Isaiah 53 fits for Jesus, the suffering Messiah.  

While it is Paul’s persuasive preaching that Luke highlights in Acts 17, it wasn’t just Paul’s words alone that convinced people to believe in Jesus.

As Paul himself writes in First Thessalonians chapter 1, verse 5…

…our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.       

This tells us the Thessalonian believers were persuaded not just by Paul’s words but also by Paul & Silas’ example (their lifestyle and deeds).

More importantly though, the Thessalonians were persuaded by the power of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of Jesus is a Spirit of truth and grace. The Holy Spirit works in our heart and mind to create the right shaped opening to receive the gospel message, with deep conviction. God’s Spirit enables us to recognise when something is true.

Paul was mindful of his listeners, in the way he presented the gospel message, but he also recognised that ultimately the effectiveness of his message depended more on God’s Spirit than anything else.

Returning to Acts 17. Verse 4, tells us of three groups of people who were persuaded and joined Paul & Silas. In other words, they became followers of Jesus. These groups included Jews, God fearing Greeks and many prominent women.

We might pass over that without thinking much of it, but it’s actually quite illuminating. These days Paul gets quite a bit of criticism for what he writes in relation to women. Paul’s thinking may be misunderstood by people today but the fact that many prominent women responded positively to Paul’s presentation of the gospel strongly suggests that the women of the first century quite liked what Paul had to say.

Protest:

Not everyone liked Paul’s words though. Some of the Jews were not persuaded. In fact, some were so jealous at Paul’s success in winning converts that they organised a protest against Paul & Silas. The jealous ones formed a mob and started a riot. What happened next mirrored (in some ways) Jesus’ experience.     

They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, 7 and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.”

There are few things less trustworthy than a crowd. The organisers of the protest were basically accusing Paul & Silas of high treason. In today’s terms it would be similar to saying they were terrorists. The accusation was untrue and unfair.   

We are reminded here, of Jesus’ words in Matthew 10…

32 “Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before others, I will disown before my Father in heaven. 34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.

Jesus is not promoting war or violence. He is not talking in military or political terms. He is talking in spiritual terms. The point here is that there is no sitting on the fence with Jesus. You have to choose which side you are on, spiritually speaking. And there are real consequences to the choice you make. 

Jason made the choice to show hospitality to Paul & Silas. The eternal (unseen) consequence of this was that Jason was joined to Christ, destined to share in Jesus’ glory. The temporal (felt) consequence, for Jason, was finding himself at the sharp end of a protest and legal action.

8 When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9 Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.

In other words, the magistrates put a legal obligation on Jason and the other Christian believers to get Paul & Silas to leave town. If Paul & Silas stayed, then Jason and the other believers would face some kind of penalty like losing their homes or going to prison.

Paul & Silas did not want Jason and the new believers to come to harm so they left quietly in the night, without making a fuss. 

Some years ago I worked in a cycle and mower shop. At times we came across nuts and bolts that were seized together with rust and age. If you tried to force the nut off, you ran the risk of breaking the bolt or slipping and skinning your knuckles.

As Aesop once said, it is better to use persuasion, rather than force. Most of the time you can persuade a rusty nut to come off with patience and a squirt of CRC, no damage done.

The jealous ones, who organised the protest against Paul, did not use reason or truth to persuade the authorities. They used lies and fear. They twisted the facts and manipulated the situation so that Paul & Silas were forced to leave. The problem with using force is that it usually has unintended consequences.

Those who were out to get Paul unintentionally promoted the spread of the gospel. By organising a protest against Paul & Silas, pretty much everyone in the city became aware of Jesus.

Now, it is thought that Thessalonica had a population of about 200,000 people in the first century. At least some of those 200,000 people would have become curious to learn more about Jesus.

Without intending to, the protest organisers actually gave weight and credibility to Paul’s message. They signalled to everyone that the gospel and the name of Jesus is a powerful thing that should be taken seriously.

The gospel is powerful but not in the way the authorities feared. God has a sense of humour. Less than 300 years later the emperor would become a Christian.

One other unintended consequence of the protest was the strengthening of the new believers’ faith.

After a potter has shaped the clay into the vessel they want (a bowl or a cup), they then put the soft clay into a kiln to be fired. The heat of the kiln sets the clay and makes the vessel strong.

By putting heat on Jason and the other believers and dragging them before the authorities, the protest organisers actually made the new believers’ faith stronger. Having suffered for their new found faith, Paul’s converts were more resolved to stick with Jesus.       

Reading between the lines of Acts 17 we see that God has a way of working adverse circumstances for good.

Persistence:

This pattern of persuasive preaching followed by strong protest was not unique to the city of Thessalonica. Time and again (in the book of Acts) Paul and his friends had to flee from one city to the next.

Which brings us to the third ‘P’ in today’s message: persistence. Paul was relentlessly persistent in persuading people to receive Jesus.

Persistence is about never giving up. We see Paul’s persistence in the wider context of Acts.

Before arriving in Thessalonica, Paul had been preaching the gospel in Philippi. With the help of the Holy Spirit, Paul managed to persuade a small group of people to believe in Jesus, including Lydia (the seller of purple cloth). But it wasn’t long before someone protested against Paul and he found himself being flogged and thrown in prison.

Once they had been released from prison in Philippi, Paul and Silas didn’t give up. They carried on, making the 100-mile journey (probably on foot) to Thessalonica, where they were forced to leave again for the next town, Berea. Fortunately, Paul’s reception in Berea was more positive.

Paul’s persistence paid off. As someone once observed, ‘Water cuts through rock, not because of its power, but because of its persistence.’

Of course, even persistence has its limits. The goal is not to be so stubborn that we never give in. The goal is to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit, that we may go the distance in God’s will for us.

Conclusion:

So what do these three P’s (persuasion, protest and persistence) mean for us as Christian believers today?

Well, persuasion has a number of points of application…

Before we can persuade anyone else that Jesus died and rose from the dead, we must first be persuaded of Jesus’ resurrection ourselves. We must know what it is we believe about Jesus, with deep conviction, and hold to it.

Persuasion also requires us to be respectful of others who have different beliefs from us. What may seem simple and straight forward to you may be incredibly difficult for someone else to accept.

It does no good to force our beliefs on other people. Like Paul, we need to be ready to speak about our faith with gentleness and an understanding of how the other person thinks, trusting the Holy Spirit to create the right shaped opening in their heart and mind.    

We must not be surprised or discouraged by protests against what we believe. When you become a Christian, you choose a side, spiritually speaking. You are not likely to be driven out of town, like Paul was. But there is a good chance you will be misunderstood and misrepresented if you identify yourself as a Christian.

Don’t take it personally. It’s not really about you. The Christian message has often been unpopular and met with resistance. Take heart. God is more than able to use the efforts of those who protest against him for good.

Finally, we must persist in our witness for Jesus. Sometimes that will mean quietly going about our lives, letting our actions speak for us. Other times that will mean proclaiming aloud our deepest convictions about Jesus. Whatever happens, hold to Christ and be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit.   

Let us pray…

Lord Jesus, help us to know you more deeply, to love you more dearly and to share you more freely, with the help of your Holy Spirit. Amen.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

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?

  • The Jews of Paul’s day struggled to accept the idea of a crucified Messiah. How were they persuaded to believe in Jesus?
  • Are there any aspects of the gospel message that you have found difficult to accept? How did you come to accept these aspects? (Who, or what, persuaded you?)
  • Verse 4 (of Acts 17) tells us a number of Jews, God fearing Greeks and prominent women were persuaded to accept Jesus after listening to Paul. What does this indicate to you?
  • What were the consequences for Jason in providing hospitality to Paul & Silas and accepting Jesus? What are the consequences for you personally in accepting Jesus?
  • How did God use the protest, against Paul & Silas, for good?
  • How do you think Paul & Silas might have felt meeting resistance in preaching the gospel and having to flee to the next city? Why do you think they persisted?
  • Take some time this week to prayerfully reflect on the points of application in the conclusion (above). Is there any point of application in particular you feel a deep conviction about? What is the Spirit saying to you? 
Tawa Baptist

Water

Scriptures: Acts 22:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 2:38, John 7:37-39, Mark 1:8

Video Recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTRtKBEhDz8

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Cleansing
  • New life
  • Holy Spirit
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

Today is such a special day because two of our congregation are being baptized.

The word baptize literally means to submerge or to plunge under water. 

Baptism also refers to the Christian ritual of initiation. Baptism is not a badge that says “I’ve made it.” Rather, baptism is a beginning.

Baptism naturally involves water. Some traditions of Christian faith sprinkle or pour water over a person’s head and other traditions (like ours) immerse the person under water completely. The amount of water that is used is not the main thing. The main thing is the attitude of the person’s heart toward Jesus.

So why use water for baptizing people? Why not anoint a person with oil or wave incense around them or something else? What is the significance of water in baptism? Well, the water of baptism signifies three main things: cleansing, new life and the Holy Spirit.

Cleansing:

Water is patient. It has the ability to soften things. If you have a cooking pot or a casserole dish with stubborn baked on food and grime, then soaking that dish in water over night softens the hardened crust so that in the morning the mess washes off easily.

The water of baptism represents cleansing. When people pass through the waters of baptism we are reminded that, through faith in Jesus and repentance, we are cleansed from our sin.

In Acts 22, when the apostle Paul is giving his testimony of conversion, he recalls how Ananias told him to, ‘Get up, be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name.’  The name we call on in baptism is Jesus.

It’s not that the water people are baptized in has any sort of magical power. The power is in the name of Jesus and his blood shed on the cross. The water is a symbol of cleansing, cleansing from the inside out.

The human body is a sacred thing. God gave us our bodies to worship him. When we are baptized we are dedicating our bodies to God, for his purpose. Full immersion baptism is a symbol that our whole lives, all of our self, is dedicated to God.

Whatever you may have done with your body and whatever may have been done to your body by others, through faith in Jesus, it is washed away and you can have a clean conscience.    

The water of baptism signifies cleansing and therefore new life and a new start.

New life:

Water is one of the most ancient elements on earth and yet it is always renewing itself in a never ending cycle of transformation, which includes condensation (when clouds form), precipitation (when it rains) and evaporation (when water molecules rise up into the air again).

Over time this cycle of condensation, precipitation and evaporation has a purifying effect on water. Which means the water we drink from our taps is actually recycled and has probably been used by other people for drinking, washing and cooking down through the centuries. 

If you think about the history of the water in this baptistery, it could have been all round the world. Perhaps some of this water was present during the great flood of Noah’s time. Maybe some of it was parted when the people of Israel walked through the Red Sea.

It is even conceivable that a few molecules of this H2O flowed through the Jordan River when John baptized Jesus 2000 years ago (although there is no way of knowing of course).     

Water is essential to our survival. They say the human body is roughly around 60-70% water, give or take, and that we can only last about 3 or 4 days without water. Water then is life to us.

Baptism is a kind of acted out parable of the death and resurrection of Jesus. When we lay a person down in the waters of baptism we recall Jesus’ body laid in the tomb and when we raise that same person up out of the water again we remember Jesus’ resurrection from the dead.    

In Paul’s letter to the Romans 6:3-4, we read, ‘Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.’

In other words, when we are baptized we are saying good bye to our old way of life, in which we did whatever we wanted, and we are committing to a new way of life in following Jesus. 

Closely connected with this newness of life, baptism signals entry into the church universal. When someone is baptized they become part of the body of Christ and part of the family of God.

The water of baptism symbolizes cleansing, new life and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit:

It seems lately there are a lot more news reports of flooding and landslides and catastrophic weather events. We hardly need further reminders that water is powerful and can be quite dangerous, if you get on the wrong side of it.

Little wonder then that some of the main images used to describe the Holy Spirit (wind, fire and water) are all powerful forces.

The Holy Spirit is the power of God; only God’s Spirit is not a destructive or chaotic power. God’s Spirit is a creative power bringing order and making life functional.  

In preparing the way for Jesus, John the Baptist said (in Mark 1:8), I baptize you with water, but he [meaning Jesus] will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.

Then later, during his public ministry, Jesus said to the people: “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within them.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. (John 7:37-39)

About seven weeks after Jesus’ resurrection, on the day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter stood up and said to the crowd: “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.” (Acts 2:38)

The waters of baptism are a reminder of the gift of God’s Holy Spirit.

Being a Christian is not easy. It can be a rough and confusing road to walk at times. But we don’t do it by ourselves or in our own strength. We follow Jesus with the help of the Holy Spirit flowing within. The Holy Spirit is there to guide us into truth and give us strength and courage to obey Jesus in faith.

Conclusion:

Cleansing, new life and the gift of the Spirit. This is what the waters of baptism symbolize. 

There may be times in our lives when we hit a dead end or we may feel like we are stuck between a rock and a hard place, with nowhere to turn. Sometimes the way ahead seems impossible.

Let me say to you, water finds a way.

Whatever challenges you may face in the weeks, months and years ahead, remember that you are not alone. You are part of a world wide body of believers, the Christian church. And God gives us His Spirit. The water of God’s Spirit always finds a way, even when we think there is none.

May you be blessed and may the presence of Jesus be close and real for you always.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

What stands out for you in reading these Scriptures and/or in listening to the sermon? Why do you think this stood out to you?

  • Have you been baptized? Describe / reflect on your experience (if you can remember).

Why do we need a ritual of initiation like baptism?

  • If you have been baptized, what does your baptism mean to you? If not, is there anything stopping you? 
  • What are some of the qualities and characteristics of water? (E.g. water is patient, powerful, ancient, etc.) What significance might these qualities imply for baptism?
  • Discuss / reflect on some of the stories from the Bible involving water. What light might these stories shed on the significance of water in baptism?
  • In what ways is the Holy Spirit like water? 
  • Can you think of a situation (either from the Bible or from your own experience) when the way ahead seemed impossible but God (by His Spirit) found a way through? What happened?
Tawa Baptist

Vine

Scripture: John 15:1-10

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • The vine
  • The gardener
  • The branches
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Good morning everyone.

One of the first things a new born foal does is stand. A baby horse normally attempts to get to its feet within the first 10 minutes of its life and manages to successfully stand after about 30 minutes or so.

Only after it has got to its feet does it begin to suckle off its mother. Then it will start to walk or run for the first time within 90 minutes of its birth. By comparison most human babies start walking independently around 12 months of age, on average.

Why the difference? Well, one reason could be that horses need to be able to run to survive. A horse can’t afford to wait a whole year before walking.

But humans are different. Human beings don’t rely so much on their ability to run. Human beings survive by forming attachments or relationships with other people. And so one of the first things a human baby does is cry, partly to get some oxygen into its lungs but also to get its mother’s attention and form an attachment.

Previously the experts thought that successful attachment was created by food, but John Bowlby discovered there was more to it than that. Babies need caregivers who are responsive to them, who smile at them and talk to them and spend time interacting with them in a warm and positive way. 

The central idea of attachment theory is that primary caregivers who are available and responsive to a baby’s needs allow the child to develop a sense of security. When the baby knows that the parent is dependable, this creates a secure base for the child to explore the world.

Today we continue our sermon series on the I am sayings of Jesus in the gospel of John. Jesus uses a number of I am statements to describe himself. These sayings tell us about Jesus’ being, his identity.

Please turn with me to John chapter 15. Last week we heard how Jesus is the gate for the sheep. This morning we hear how Jesus says to his disciples: I am the vine and you are the branches. The main idea here is that attachment to Jesus is essential to our spiritual survival. From John 15, verses 1-10 we read…

“I am the real vine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He breaks off every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and he prunes every branch that does bear fruit, so that it will be clean and bear more fruit. 3 You have been made clean already by the teaching I have given you. 4 Remain united to me, and I will remain united to you. A branch cannot bear fruit by itself; it can do so only if it remains in the vine. In the same way you cannot bear fruit unless you remain in me.

5 “I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me. 6 Those who do not remain in me are thrown out like a branch and dry up; such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, where they are burned. 7 If you remain in me and my words remain in you, then you will ask for anything you wish, and you shall have it. 8 My Father’s glory is shown by your bearing much fruit; and in this way you become my disciples. 9 I love you just as the Father loves me; remain in my love. 10 If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.

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

There are three main characters in Jesus’ allegory here, each in mutual relationship with the others. The vine (which represents Jesus), the gardener (which represents God the Father) and the branches (which represent those who follow Jesus). First let us consider Jesus, the vine.

The Vine:

The maple leaf is one of the national symbols of Canada.

The thistle is the national flower of Scotland.

The Protea is the national flower of South Africa.

While the silver fern is New Zealand’s symbol.

What plant do you think was used as the symbol of ancient Israel? Anyone want to take a guess? [Wait]

You are on to it. The vine, or the vineyard, in the Hebrew Scriptures, was a symbol for the nation of Israel.

In Isaiah 5:1-7 the prophet sings the song of the vineyard…

My friend had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. 2 He dug the soil and cleared it of stones; he planted the finest vines. He built a tower to guard them, dug a pit for treading the grapes. He waited for the grapes to ripen, but every grape was sour…  Israel is the vineyard of the Lord Almighty; the people of Judah are the vines he planted. He expected them to do what was good, but instead they committed murder. He expected them to do what was right, but their victims cried out for justice.

There are other references in the psalms and the prophets describing Israel as the Lord’s vineyard and most of them end in a note of judgement. The message seems to be that ancient Israel had failed to produce the fruit of righteousness that God intended.

It is against this background that Jesus says of himself, “I am the real vine.” That’s like saying, “I am the real Israel.” Or, “I am the true Israel. I am the root stock of the nation who produces the fruit that God desires.”

That is an incredible claim to make. Jesus’ claim to be the true vine holds together judgment and hope. On the one hand, Jesus is criticising the nation of Israel, basically saying they have failed to produce the fruit God wanted.

But at the same time Jesus also castes a positive vision for the future. Judgment does not get the last word. Jesus is saying, I am what God called Israel to be. Where Israel failed, I will succeed. And so there is hope. In and through Christ, God gets the vineyard and the fruit he wants.      

Okay, so Jesus is the vine and God the Father is the gardener.

The Gardener:

From verse 2 Jesus explains how God, the gardener, breaks off every branch in me that does not bear fruit, and he prunes every branch that does bear fruit, so that it will be clean and bear more fruit.         

To better understand what God does let me take you through the annual cycle of tending to a grapevine.   

During winter, the vine dresser prunes (or cuts back) the previous year’s canes and chooses the best branches to grow new shoots. The gardener trains selected branches to grow along the wire. [1]

Then, during September or October, comes the bud break. This is when the first signs of life occur. The buds are extremely delicate during this time. You pray there are no hail storms.

The buds continue to grow and then flower. The gardener may choose to prune the downward facing shoots to reduce the crop size. Pruning in this way reduces the quantity of the crop with a view to improving the quality. With fewer grapes on the vine you get a concentration of flavour.

Then in November or December comes the fruit set. This is when bunches of green grapes appear and grow. You wouldn’t want to eat the fruit at this stage; it would be too sour.

Towards the end of summer, the green berries change colour and ripen. This process is called veraison. Depending on how many grapes are on the vine, some winegrowers will thin the crop so that more nutrients and goodness go into the remaining fruit.

Harvest usually happens in autumn, sometime between March and May, once the sugar levels in the grapes rise and they have reached their perfect ripeness. Harvest is a busy time. Once harvested the grapes do not continue to ripen.

When winter comes round again the leaves die off and the pruners trim the vines ready for spring and a new cycle of growth.

Leon Morris makes the observation that fruitfulness is the whole point of the vineyard. Left to itself a vine will produce a good deal of unproductive growth. Pruning is essential for maximum fruitfulness. The fruit of Christian service is never the result of allowing natural energies and inclinations to run riot. [2]

Or to put it another way; less is more. The temptation, particularly when we are young and have energy to burn, is to try and do everything. So rather than strategically focusing our time and resources on one or two things, we may be inclined to dissipate our energies in a flurry of busy-ness and activity.

There is no end of need and worthy causes in this world. There is always a long list of good things we could be doing. But the reality is, we can’t do it all. So the question becomes, what is it that God (the gardener) wants me to give myself to?  

Another way to frame that question is to ask yourself, what is it that I can do that others can’t do? If you have children, then no one else can really be a mum or a dad to your kids in the same way that you can. So giving love and time to your children, while they are still young, needs to be a priority.

I’m pleased that Bono chose to write songs instead of driving trucks. Just like I’m pleased Ashley Bloomfield chose a career in medicine rather than being a rock star. Just as I am pleased each of our deacons chose to serve the church instead of watching TV or playing golf. 

We can’t do everything. Less is more. Less quantity means better quality. What is it (or perhaps, who is it) that God wants you to give yourself to? And what is it that God is wanting to prune?  

Being pruned is not a pleasant experience. It can be painful and bewildering to be cut back. We think we are on the right track, doing well. We seem to be growing and making progress in our discipleship and then wham. We suffer some kind of loss or set back and we don’t understand why.

The temptation at that point is to give up on God. To lose faith. To cease remaining in the vine. But we need to remember that God is the gardener. God is in control not us. And God is very skilled at his job. He knows what he is doing and why.

If you feel like you are being pruned at the moment, hold on to the fact that God has a purpose in what he is doing. It could be that he intends to use this experience to improve the quality of your fruit. The quality of Job’s relationship with God, after he had suffered catastrophic loss and been restored, was far better than it was before his loss.

Now, by drawing a parallel between loss and God’s pruning I don’t mean to imply that every bad thing that happens to us can be put down to God improving the quality of our fruit. Suffering is often a mystery that we won’t understand this side of the harvest. By faith we know that whatever we might suffer, nothing is beyond God’s reach. God can redeem anything.

Jesus is the vine. God the Father is the gardener and we, the followers of Jesus, are the branches.

The Branches:

We began today’s message with the idea of attachment. Being attached to another human being in a nurturing, responsive relationship is essential to our survival. As infants, it is through a healthy attachment with one primary caregiver that we learn trust and find psychological security.

In verse 4 of John 15 Jesus says: Remain united to me, and I will remain united to you. A branch cannot bear fruit by itself; it can do so only if it remains in the vine. In the same way you cannot bear fruit unless you remain in me.

In other words, attachment to Jesus is essential to our spiritual survival.

We need Jesus like the branches of a tree need the roots and trunk. It is the roots and trunk that nourish and feed the branches. We need Jesus like a baby needs its mother or father. It is through Jesus that we learn trust and security.

Today is Pentecost Sunday when we remember afresh the gift of the Holy Spirit. Although Jesus does not explicitly mention the Holy Spirit, in the opening verses of John 15, he was just talking about God’s Spirit in chapter 14 and he will go on to say more about the Spirit in John 16.

We could think of the Holy Spirit as the sap flowing inside us from Jesus the vine. The Holy Spirit is life to the branches from within.   

More than once in today’s reading Jesus talks about the branches bearing fruit when they remain attached to him. So what exactly is the fruit? Well, verse 8 indicates the fruit is that which glorifies God. My Father’s glory is shown by your bearing much fruit;

When the vine produces quality grapes, the one who grew the grapes gets the credit. The gardener (God the Father) gets the glory. As branches grafted into Christ, our job (our main purpose in life) is to bear quality fruit for the glory of God. To glorify God means to reveal or reflect something of God’s goodness to others. To make God larger in the awareness of others, in a good way.

In Galatians 5 the apostle Paul lists some of the things that glorify God. Paul writes: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. This is not an exhaustive list of the fruit but it gives us the idea.

When a husband and wife love each other and remain faithful through all the ups and downs of life, this is fruit which glorifies God. Their faithfulness points to God’s faithfulness.

Or when someone at work is having a bad day and you respond by not taking it personally but instead showing forbearance, this is fruit that glorifies God.

Or when a child sees someone alone in the playground without any lunch and goes over to share their own lunch and friendship, this is the fruit of kindness.

Or when a landlord does not charge a huge rent, simply because the market dictates it, but instead keeps the rent at a reasonable level, this kind of fruit reflects the mercy and justice of God. 

In verse 7 we see a connection between prayer and fruit where Jesus says: If you remain in me and my words remain in you, then you will ask for anything you wish, and you shall have it. 

This does not mean that we can use Jesus like a Genie in a bottle. Jesus is not promising to give us a never ending supply of wishes, like in the Tim Tam ad. Rather, when we are so closely attached to Jesus that his word is in us, we will be inclined to ask for things that are in line with his will and purpose anyway.

Another thing we notice is the number of times we come across the word remain in today’s passage. (The Good News Translation uses the word remain 11 times in ten verses.) The startling thing is that we bear the fruit of love by simply remaining attached to Jesus.

We are not required to go on some valiant quest to find the fruit like it was hidden treasure. Nor do we have to try and frantically manufacture or create the fruit ourselves. Branches don’t survive by running, like a horse. Branches grow and bear fruit by waiting, by remaining still. All we have to do is abide in Christ.

I say, ‘all we have to do is abide’, as if that is an easy thing. But in the rough and tumble of life, remaining attached to Jesus, over the long haul, is not as easy as it seems. Unlike the branches of a vine, we get a choice. We can walk away at any point. But in doing that we would only harm ourselves.

Okay then, if remaining (or abiding) in Christ is the key to fruitfulness, then what does it mean to remain attached to Jesus? How do we do that?

Well, in verse 9 of John 15, Jesus points us in the right direction when he says:

I love you just as the Father loves me; remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.

Our attachment to Jesus is defined by love. There is a possible connection here with the Song of Solomon. The Song of Solomon is a love poem from the Hebrew Bible. The poet uses the vineyard as the place where the woman and the man will share their love. From Song of Solomon chapter 7:11-12 we read,

Come my beloved… let us go out early to the vineyards and see whether the vines have budded, whether the grape blossoms have opened… There I will give you my love.

I won’t read anymore because I don’t want you to get too excited. The point is, the vineyard is a place of tender love and intimacy. 

Love is loyal. Remaining attached to Jesus means being loyal to him. Christianity is an exclusive religion in the sense that we worship one God. Jesus is Lord. Jesus is the way the truth and the life. We follow him and no one else.

Love is open. Remaining attached to Jesus means being open to him. Open to listening to what he wants to say to us in the Scriptures. Open to receiving what he wants to give. Open to his truth and grace. Open to the sap of his Spirit. But it is an openness that goes both ways. We need to be honest with Jesus and not hide from him.

There is a certain vulnerability that comes with being open to Christ. Openness requires faith and trust on our part.

Love is voluntary. Remaining attached to Jesus is something we do because we want to, not because we are forced to. Our attachment to Jesus is not based on fear of punishment, nor is it based on some legal obligation. We stay close to Jesus and spend time cultivating our relationship with him because we like him. We enjoy his presence.       

Love needs to be expressed. When love is not expressed it turns into a kind of unbearable pain. When we express love to someone we invest a part of ourselves in that person and we strengthen the attachment.  Remaining attached to Jesus inevitably involves us expressing our love to him.

There are many ways to express love for Jesus but the primary way is through obedience; doing what he asks. Notice how Jesus puts love and obedience together. He does not separate them. Jesus loves us first and we respond by obeying him voluntarily. The love goes both ways.

Love is loyal. Love is open. Love is voluntary and love needs to be expressed. L.O.V.E. Spells love.

Now in giving you this acrostic I don’t mean to imply that this is all there is to remaining in Christ. There is a certain mystery with our attachment to Jesus. We can’t fully define it, much less reduce it to a pithy acrostic. Jesus’ attachment to us is deeper and more profound than we are able to fathom.

Conclusion:

Jesus is the vine. God the Father is the gardener and we are the branches.

One of the things I like about Jesus’ allegory of the vine is that it implies there are seasons in our life; seasons of new growth, seasons of fruitfulness and harvest, as well as seasons of dormancy and loss, when it seems that not much is happening.

This means we don’t have to feel guilty if we are not being fruitful all the time. Producing fruit is a process. We are not responsible for the outcome. We just need to remain attached to Jesus. God will take care of the fruit.

Whatever season you happen to be in at the moment, may God the Gardener keep you close to Jesus.

Questions for discussion or reflection:

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?

  • Why is attachment so important for human beings? What is needed for successful attachment?
  • How would Jesus’ original Jewish audience have understood his statement: I am the real vine?  In what sense was this a criticism of ancient Israel? In what sense is Jesus’ statement pregnant with hope?
  • Why does God prune the branches? Have you ever felt like God has pruned you? How did God do this? How did you feel / respond? What was the outcome? What (or who) is it that God wants you to give yourself to at this time?
  • What does it mean to glorify God? Can you think of real examples of the sort of fruit Jesus had in mind?
  • How do we remain attached to Jesus, the true vine?
  • What season are you in at the moment? What might you expect in this season?    

[1] https://winefolly.com/deep-dive/lifecycle-of-a-wine-grapevine

[2] Leon Morris, NICNT John, page 594.