tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57230579366937992062024-03-12T17:36:59.049-07:00Love and the Law of God"For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous." 1 John 5:3
Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-30238964044671874342020-05-24T07:32:00.001-07:002020-05-24T07:32:55.546-07:00The Law of the Kingdom of God is Love (Part 2)<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Part 2 of this short series on the Kingdom of God is in audio form only. You can listen to the message by going to the link below.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Law of the Kingdom of God is Love - <a href="https://youtu.be/KQM4mi_slLY" target="_blank">LINK</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The law of God's kingdom is love - but what does this mean? </span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-37286822031592217842020-05-12T16:37:00.000-07:002020-05-12T19:36:08.564-07:00My Kingdom is Not of this World (Part 1)<span style="font-family: "arial"; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">When Jesus was arrested, he plainly declared that his kingdom was not of this world. If it were of this world, his servants would fight. What did he mean by this? Here is the passage.</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Jhn 18:33-37 NKJV] 33 Then Pilate entered the Praetorium again, called Jesus, and said to Him, "Are You the King of the Jews?" 34 Jesus answered him, "Are you speaking for yourself about this, or did others tell you this concerning Me?" 35 Pilate answered, "Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered You to me. What have You done?" 36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here." 37 Pilate therefore said to Him, "Are You a king then?" Jesus answered, "You say [rightly] that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice." </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christ has a Kingdom</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christ’s kingdom is a real one. It has a king - the Lord Jesus Christ. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Isa 9:6-7 NKJV] 6 For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of [His] government and peace [There will be] no end, Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, To order it and establish it with judgment and justice From that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. In fact, in this same conversation, Jesus told Pilate, "You say [rightly] that I am a king.” </span></span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is a kingdom with laws, which govern it (the moral law of God). </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Mat 22:36-40 NKJV] 36 "Teacher, which [is] the great commandment in the law?" 37 Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 "This is [the] first and great commandment. 39 "And [the] second [is] like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 "On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">" The laws are the two love laws, which are further explained in the Ten Commandments (See Romans 13)</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. These are further explained in the various righteous rules, statutes, judgments, testimonies of a moral nature, found throughout the word of God. (See Psalm 119)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is a kingdom with subjects (Christians), which Christ the King rules over in love. Speaking of this, the Apostle Paul wrote, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Phl 3:20 NKJV] 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Speaking to Gentile believers, Paul wrote, [Eph 2:19 NKJV] 19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One day, everyone will acknowledge his Lordship and bow their knees to him. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christ’s Kingdom is NOT of this World</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christ’s kingdom is </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">not</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of this world.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is not a worldly kingdom as we know kingdoms. This means that it is not a kingdom in any worldly sense. It does not have land. It does not have borders. It does not have a worldly form of government. It does not have worldly leaders. It does not have a worldly army. It does not have a worldy citizenship</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. And since it has none of these, it does not have wordly objectives. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This means that we who are in Christ, who possess faith in Christ, should not think in worldly terms about Christ’s kingdom. For instance, we shouldn’t think in terms of taking over the world by holding land, running governments and so on. As we’ll see in a moment, the kingdom of God is a spiritual kingdom, not an earthly, fleshly one. Paul wrote, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Rom 14:17 NKJV] 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In Luke 17, Jesus affirmed that the kingdom of God is not something observable in the flesh, meaning consisting of things we can see or touch. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Luk 17:20-21 NKJV] 20 Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 "nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!' For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Since the kingdom of God is spiritual, and not physical, it cannot be seen or understood or experienced through the natural senses. You cannot find it on a map, or on a road. There’s no sign that says, “The kingdom of God 234 Miles.” A man can no more find the kingdom of God through his earthly abilities (sight, hearing, intellect, imagination) then he can jump to the moon. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Jhn 3:3-5 NKJV] 3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." 4 Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" 5 Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Some in Jesus’ day made the mistake of thinking that the Messiah was about an earthly kingdom. They, in fact wanted to take hold of him to make him their earthly king. But since his kingdom was not of this world, and he did not come to establish an earthly kingdom, he hid himself from them. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Jhn 6:15 NKJV] 15 Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Some are making the same mistake in our day, thinking wrongly that the church is about taking over the world, politically and otherwise, buying land and trying to influence governments. But Christ would say to them, “My kingdom is not of this world.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christ’s Kingdom is a Spiritual Kingdom</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Christ’s kingdom is a spiritual kingdom, meaning it is a product of the word of God and the Spirit of God. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We were all born into the world naturally, into worldly nations, with worldly leaders. But to enter this kingdom, Christ’s kingdom, one must be born spiritually (John 3:3). This only comes through hearing the word of the Spirit (Rom 10:17) with faith. When a person hears the gospel, and the Lord grants that person faith in Christ (Phil 1:29), and gives them the Holy Spirit (Eph 1:13-14), and takes away their sin (Psalm 103:12), and clothes them in the righteousness of Christ (Rom 3:21-26) - then and only then are they partakers of this kingdom. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This is a righteous kingdom, and the citizens of this kingdom must be as righteous as the King himself. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Psa 5:4 NKJV] 4 For You [are] not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness, Nor shall evil dwell with You</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Recall the wedding guest who was thrown out of the wedding and into utter darkness because he was not clothed properly. (See Matt 22:11-13). A person must be perfectly righteous in their standing before God, to be part of this kingdom. And this is exactly the standing of all who believe in Christ, from the moment they first believed. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Zec 3:4 NKJV] 4 Then He answered and spoke to those who stood before Him, saying, "Take away the filthy garments from him." And to him He said, "See, I have removed your iniquity from you, and I will clothe you with rich robes.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">" And again in Isaiah 61 - </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Isa 61:10 NKJV] 10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks [himself] with ornaments, And as a bride adorns [herself] with her jewels</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. And again in Phil 3 - </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Phl 3:9 NKJV] 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which [is] from the law, but that which [is] through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">; Only those who are equal in standing with the King himself (who is perfectly righteous), will have citizenship here. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Only by faith in Christ, and through the indwelling Holy Spirit, is this kingdom realized, known and dwelt in, understood by a person. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Jhn 3:5-6 NKJV] 5 Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Being a spiritual kingdom, to be in the kingdom of God, one must have the Spirit of the the kingdom of God. A person is given the Holy Spirit the moment God granted them faith in Christ. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Eph 1:13-14 NKJV] 13 In Him you also [trusted], after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What rights do Christians have in Christ’s kingdom?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While the Lord may graciously grant certain </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">temporary</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> rights (like freedom of religion) to particular Christians, in a particular nation, at a particular time in history, we should by no means conclude that such temporary rights are the norm, or are promised, or are even needed by God to add new citizens of his kingdom, or to advance his kingdom in any way. Freedom to vote, to assemble, to speak may be found in America presently, but they are by no means guaranteed in the Bible, by our Lord. Indeed, he may remove these from us at any time to suit his holy, just and perfect purpose and will for us in Christ. (Some, at this point are no doubt remembering the Apostle Paul, and his appeal to his rights as a Roman citizen. I will address this in the next article, but suffice it to say that it was not employed to change the Roman Empire, but rather to advance the kingdom not of this world.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And while we shouldn’t hope or pray that the Lord takes these temporary rights away, (in fact we should pray for our leaders for quietness and peace, that we may live godly lives - 1 Tim 2:1-3) even if all of our temporary rights were removed from us tomorrow, it would be for our good in Christ. (Romans 8:28) Our biblical rights as citizens of God’s kingdom only include those that are found in the word of his kingdom. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The rights that we have in Christ, found in the word of God, all relate to his kingdom which is not of this world. And they are all immeasurably wonderful, gracious, beneficial! In no particular order, in Christ, we have the right to boldly go before the the throne of grace, 24 hours a day, seven days a week (Heb 4:16). We have the right to come into his presence when we assemble, in the most Holy Place (Heb 10:19). We have the right to suffer all things for his sake (Phil 1:29). We have the right to deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow him (Matt 16:24). We have the right to be blessed through the preaching of the word and indwelling Spirit (Luke 11:28). We have the right to love God and our neighbor - and our enemies (Mark 12:30-31). We have the right to grow in Christ, to be molded into his image (2 Peter 3:18). We have the right to go and make disciples of all nations (we’ll come back to this one in the next article), baptize and train (and be trained) to observe all that Christ commanded (Matt 28:18-20). We have the right to experience love, joy and peace that the world cannot give (Gal 5:22). There are many more such rights, and we can find them all on the word of God which we have access to now in Christ. None of these rights are ever impaired, or lessened in value by any circumstance in the world. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One more thing should be said about the above-mentioned rights that we have in Christ - they were all costly! They were all bought and paid for by the King himself, the Lord Jesus Christ, when he went to the cross, and suffered the wrath and judgment of God we richly deserved (Isaiah 53). Apart from his sacrifice for our sins, we would have no access to God or his kingdom, and no kingdom rights either! But in Christ, even in trials and persecution, in illness and trouble, these blessed rights are ours. They are safeguarded by the Lord himself, and no one or no thing can remove them from us. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Rom 5:1-5 NKJV] 1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 And not only [that], but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Members of God’s Kingdom are called to fight a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">spiritual</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and not a worldly war</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Because his kingdom is a spiritual one, and not a worldly one, those in his kingd</span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">om engage in spiritual warfare</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Eph 6:10-13 NKJV] 10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual [hosts] of wickedness in the heavenly [places]. 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If the kingdom of God was a worldly kingdom, the members of his kingdom would fight in worldly ways. We would defend his kingdom in the flesh. We would fight with politics, with weapons and with armies. We would physically defend his kingdom. This is what Jesus meant by “fight,” something we do not do. But since his kingdom is </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">not</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> made up of nations or borders or political leaders and the like, there is nothing physically or politically to fight for in this world. These battles are of no use to the King and his kingdom. Rather, his subjects fight with prayer, with the word of God, with the gospel of truth. This war is waged in the Spirit with the things of the Spirit - not the things of this world. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Eph 6:13-18 NKJV] 13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints-</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">-</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Beloved Peter learned this lesson quickly on the night of Jesus’ arrest, in the very same chapter where Jesus declared that his kingdom is not of this world. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Jhn 18:10-11 NKJV] 10 Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear. The servant's name was Malchus. 11 So Jesus said to Peter, "Put your sword into the sheath. Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">" The correction of Peter for his fleshly defense of Jesus is consistent with our Lord’s words to Pilate given not long after - </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[Jhn 18:36 Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">."</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The War Christians Fight</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Make no mistake, Christians are in a war, but it is a spiritual one, not a political or military one. In fact, Paul says that we are not in a fleshly war, and therefore the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly. Our enemy is not anyone in the flesh, but rather him who is a fallen spirit. Read his word Brothers and Sisters, and let there be no doubt of our calling. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[1Pe 5:8-11 NKJV] 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. 10 But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle [you]. 11 To Him [be] the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[As an aside, when Christians get involved politically, the gospel often suffers, because we may make fleshly enemies based on some temporary political position we are taking. Our own sin is enough to offend another person - let us not add to it some political position, some worldly position based upon some wordly temporal circumstance. But which is our calling in Christ, to defeat those who disagree with us politically, or to bring them the good news? Hardly will it be possible to do this if those who are lost associate Christianity with a particular political position. I think we would do well to lay aside our political views for the sake of the gospel.] </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let us prepare ourselves, not to fight for our temporal rights in this world, which have no eternal purpose or influence, but for the King of kings. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">[2Co 10:3-6 NKJV] 3 For though we walk in the flesh, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">we do not war according to the flesh</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. 4 </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For the weapons of our warfare [are] not carnal</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As members of his kingdom, by faith alone in Christ alone, being saved and washed and made righteous - let us spend our God-given time on things of his kingdom, and not things of this world. [</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Eph 5:15-17 NKJV] 15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord [is]</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Let us be wise, and spend the limited God-given time we have on things eternal, on things spiritual, on things found in the word of God.</span></span></div>
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Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-79965146721440903712020-04-11T09:48:00.001-07:002020-04-11T09:48:15.430-07:00Elders are a Means of Grace (Part 2) - Application of this Means of Grace<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>[Heb 13:7 NKJV] 7 Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of [their] conduct.</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In part one of this topic, we examined the fact that elders given to a particular local church, to the specific members of that church, as a means of grace in their lives, for their equipping and maturation in Christ, for the work of ministry. We also saw that a "means of grace" is a particular <b>biblical</b> way God blesses us or brings grace into our lives. To read this post, go <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/2020/04/elders-are-biblical-means-of-grace-part.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In this post we will examine <b>how to employ elders in our lives</b>, in biblical ways, so that we benefit (by grace alone) by this particular means of grace. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here are some ways (but not all of the ways) we can benefit from the elders God has given us.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>First, remember the elders that God gave you</b>. <i>[Heb 13:7 NKJV] 7 Remember those who rule over you. </i></span><span style="font-size: large;">The point here is not the particular man's ability or accomplishments. Far from it. Rather it is to see how God is working in the men he has given us as elders in biblical ways. To remember, is to recall to our minds the biblical doctrine we hear and the biblical behavior we see in our elders. </span><span style="font-size: large;">[Heb 13:7 NKJV] 7 Remember those who rule over you.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What is it we should remember? Two things in general. <b>One, we should remember their teaching or doctrine.</b> </span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>[Heb 13:7 NKJV] 7 Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you... </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">God is sovereign over his church, meaning over every particular local church. He is the source of it, the head of it, savior of it, the organizer of it. He is the one who chose its particular elders (Acts 20:28) and members (1 Cor 12:18). It is he alone who gives grace to it. He determined from the foundations what good works it would do in his name. (See Eph 2:10) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">The Lord knows the strengths and weaknesses of every local church. Every local church is unique and has its own strengths (by the grace of God) and its own share of issues (by the sovereign will of God). Consider the seven churches in Revelation 2-3. The Lord, who walks in the midst of them (Rev 2:1) commends them for biblical behavior, and corrects them for sinful (i.e. un-biblical) behavior. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Lord prescribes that <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-assembly-of-church-is-irreplaceable.html" target="_blank">the whole church come together in one place</a>. He chose the elders and prescribed that they feed the flock the word of God, not only but especially when this occurs. <i>[2Ti 4:1-2 NKJV] 1 I charge [you] therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season [and] out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ultimately, it is the Lord using the faithful teaching of sound doctrine, by the elders he gave to a particular church, to feed that church from the heritage of Jacob (Isaiah 58:14), and to feed that church from the rivers of his delights (Psalm 36:8). It is Christ who called that church into his banqueting house, where his banner over them was love (Song of Solomon 2:4). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">On the Lord's Day (and other at other times), the chosen elders of a particular church, speak the word of God to the members of that particular church. Like particular loaves of bread, the saints are to take that spoken word, the banquet provided for them by the Lord himself, and feed off of that word. They are to remember the word spoken to them by their elders (Heb 13:7). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The way a church eats the loaves of bread provided by the Lord, through the elders, is given in his word. <b>One</b>, we should be present to receive the loaves as they are given by the Lord. This is the teaching provided by the Lord through the elders/teachers. Do not forsake the assembling of the church. <b>Two</b>, we are to receive those loaves with eagerness (Acts 17:11). We should desire the pure milk of the word that we may grow thereby(1 Peter 2:2). <b>Three</b>, we are to receive the loaves with meekness (James 1:21), which means a willingness to submit to biblical teaching. <b>Four</b>, we are to take the loaves we received and inspect them. We should search the Scriptures to see if what we heard was true (Acts 17:11). <b>Five</b>, we should ingest the loaves. We should meditate (or think about) what we heard day and night (Psalm 1). This would also include talking about, praying over, asking questions in consideration of the word we heard. <b>Six</b>, we should apply the loaves to our lives. Let us be doers of his word and not hearers only (James 1:22). <b>Seven</b>, we should seek unity with our brothers and sisters in our local church regarding the loaves we are fed. We should agree on the sound doctrine taught to us by our elders (1 Cor 1:10).</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: large;">It should be noted that the word fed to a church by its appointed elders should be a priority over instruction from sources outside of that local church. If we did the above faithfully, we would have plenty to feed off of each week. This is not to say we can't listen to other sermons from other sources. It is to say that what is prescribed in God's word is better for us, is a higher priority and should take precedent over any teaching by another elder from another church. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Second, we should remember their behavior before the church and imitate it.</b> Elders are in fact called to be examples to the flock. </span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>[1Pe 5:2-3 NKJV] 2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; 3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock</i>; </span><span style="font-size: large;">This does not mean (and will never mean) that they are perfect in their behavior. They are no different in their ability than anyone else. (No one is able to obey God's law in and of themselves - Romans 7:18) It is their godly (biblical) behavior, caused by the working of God's grace in them, that should be imitated. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We are to observe the <i>biblical</i> behavior of the elders and imitate it. </span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>[Heb 13:7 NKJV] 7 Remember those who rule over you, ... whose faith <b>follow</b>, considering the outcome of [their] conduct. </i>The word, "follow" is a Greek word meaning "to mimic" or "imitate." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The elders are not the only ones to be imitated (see 1 Cor 11:1), but they are to be imitated. This is a very simple principle. What you see them doing in the church, that is also found in the word of God - do! What you see them practicing - practice! If they are present at church on the Lord's Day, imitate them and be present on the Lord's Day. If you hear their prayers, listen to how they pray, and imitate them. If you see them discipling someone, disciple someone or get discipled. If you see them reading their bibles etc...</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Paul taught this very principle to the Philippians who had heard his teaching and seen his behavior. <i>[Phl 4:9 NKJV] 9 The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, <b>these do</b>, and the God of peace will be with you</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Observe the elders and "<i>consider the outcome of their conduct</i>" (Heb 13:7). The word, "consider" means "...to look at attentively, to consider well, to observe accurately." We are to watch what they do (that is biblical) and think carefully about it, with the intent of doing the same thing. And we are to do this knowing the outcome of their faith in Christ, the salvation of their souls. God working through them, producing godly behavior in them, before the church over a period of time and ultimately to the consummation of their life - their being united with Christ in their death. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">God gave specific elders to specific local churches. Let us a members of our local church employ this means of grace in biblical ways in our lives, that we might grow up in all things unto Christ. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-6635264222357195262020-04-05T09:55:00.003-07:002020-04-05T09:55:55.412-07:00Elders are a Biblical Means of Grace (Part 1)<span style="font-size: large;"><b>[Eph 4:11-16 NKJV] 11 And He Himself gave some [to be] apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head--Christ-- 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.</b></span><br />
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Elders and teachers are given to a particular local church as a <b>means of grace</b> to the members of that particular church. (The use of the term "teachers" will not be addressed in this post.) It is <b>not</b> the man, and his own abilities, that matters, but rather God's means of using that man in biblical ways to bless his people by his word and Spirit. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>By "elders" God means the actual men raised up in a particular local church, made up of particular individual Christians, and given to the members of that particular church only.</b> There is no such thing as a "universal" elder. Elders are called to shepherd the flock that is among them. (1 Peter 5:2) They are not called to lead members of other local churches. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The phrase "means of grace," simply refers to the biblical ways that God blesses his people spiritually. </b>These are things found in God's word, which are given and prescribed by him for the spiritual well-being, growth, maturation and ministry of believers of a local church. God uses his means of grace to mold each believer into the image of Christ, something he planned from the beginning. (See Romans 8:28-29) Examples of means of grace would include prayer, meditation on the word, assembling with the church and so on. </span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Characteristics of Means of Grace </span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Means of grace</b> have a few characteristics that we should know. <b>First</b>, they are all biblical. They are all found in and specifically prescribed in God's word. If it's not in the word of God, it's not a means of grace. <b>Second</b>, they are all necessary. Every believer needs <i><b><u>all</u></b></i> of the means of grace for his/her own maturation in Christ. Because they are given by God, they are therefore needed by all Christians. <b>Third</b>, we can't make up one means of grace by doing more of another means of grace. For example, meditation on God's word can't be replaced by more prayer. We need to use all of them. <b>Fourth</b>, they cannot be substituted out for other things <i><b>not</b></i> found in his word. We can't invent ways to be blessed by God to make up for the biblical ones we choose not to use. <b>Fifth</b>, if we don't use a particular means of grace, we lose the blessing of that particular means of grace and are in fact handicapped in our walk with Christ.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Let's see now that elders are given by God to a local church as a means of grace by applying the five characteristics mentioned above.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>First, elders are biblical. </b>They are God's design for leadership in local churches. The prescription for elders is found in 1 Timothy 3. Paul wrote about the characteristics of men God was raising up to be elders so that the church would know how to properly employ them. <i>[1Ti 3:14-15 NKJV] 14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly; 15 but if I am delayed, [I write] so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.</i> Establishing elders is one way a church "ought to conduct" itself properly. Elders are to be established in every church. <i>[Act 14:23 NKJV] 23 So when they had appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. </i>They are referred to as "leaders" or "rulers" by God in his word. <i>[Heb 13:7 NKJV] 7 Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of [their] conduct</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Second, elders are necessary for the growth and maturation of every believer and to equip them for ministry.</b> As we see above in Eph 4:11-12, God gave them to the church to equip the saints. The word "equip" means to complete furnishing for the work of ministry. God uses elders, in the role he gave them and according to his word, to provide to the church the tools it needs to do ministry (that ministry being the Great Commission - Matt 28:18-20). The fact that God has given them specifically to the members of a local church for their equipping makes them indispensable. (Again, not the accomplishment or ability of a <i>particular</i> man but rather God's grace working through particular men is what is intended in Eph 4:11-16.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Holy Spirit himself makes elders (by giving them the applicable gifts and calling) for every church. He admonishes all elders in this way. <i>[Act 20:28 NKJV] 28 "Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Third, as a particular means of grace, elders cannot be replaced by having more of a different means of grace</b>. We can't make up one means of grace by having more of another. More prayer is not a substitute for meditation in God's word. Similarly, listening to sermons online is not a replacement for elders in our lives. We can't make up the grace God intends in our lives, through the elders he has given us, by our own self-study or mediation on God's word. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">(<b>Note</b>: This is not to say that we can't or shouldn't listen to messages given by other elders. It is to say that the priority for us should be the teaching of the elders God has specifically given to us for our equipping in Christ.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Each and every means of God is designed by God to bless the believer. The means of grace are meant to be enjoyed and employed in their entirety; they are not to be taken in cafeteria style, having some of one but none of another.</span><i style="font-size: x-large;">And He Himself <b><u>gave</u></b> some [to be] apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,</i><span style="font-size: large;"> 12 </span><i style="font-size: x-large;">for the equipping of the saints... </i><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Fourth, as a particular means of grace, elders cannot be replaced by other methods or tools <i>not</i> found in his word</b>. Every Christian needs biblical elders, who are actual men who lead them in a local church. The calling of believers is to submit to and imitate their behavior in the church. <i>[Heb 13:7, 17 NKJV] 7 Remember those who rule over you, who have spoken the word of God to you, whose faith follow, considering the outcome of [their] conduct. ... 17 Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.</i> (<b>Note</b>: This article does not address the issue of elders going beyond their biblical calling by lording over the church members. This is sin and should not occur - 1 Peter 5:3)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Further, an elder is not an elder is not an elder. <b>The elders that are the means of grace in our lives are the ones he has given to our local church</b>. These (hopefully) are the men who know us best, who pray for us, who watch and labor over us (Heb 10:17), and who know the condition of the individual church members and church as a whole. (<i>[Pro 27:23 NKJV] 23 Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, [And] attend to your herds;</i>) </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">While very far from perfect, they are to be examples to us that we are to imitate in behavior. [<i>1Pe 5:2-3 NKJV] 2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; 3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock</i>; Another elder, from another church, no matter how faithful or sound in doctrine, cannot be and is not called to be a substitute for the elders God gave us in particular. Consequently, the teaching and example of the elders in our own church must take priority over another elder from another church. </span><br />
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To try to correct problems in the church, some have established "churches" without elders/pastors. This is an un-biblical practice not found in the word of God. <b>A problem in the church is not the opportunity to find a solution outside of God's word.</b> While any honest elder will tell you that he is only a sinner saved by grace, unworthy of such a role, and flawed beyond measure personally, he is nevertheless God's prescribed method of leading a particular local church. It is God and not the elder himself who works grace in every believer. <i>[Jas 4:5-6 NKJV] 5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, "The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously"? 6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: "God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.</i>"</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Each and every elder, of every local church, will have to answer directly to Jesus Christ for his doctrine and direction in that particular church. <i>[2Ti 4:1-2 NKJV] 1 I charge [you] therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season [and] out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. Although faulty, elders cannot be replaced by the invention and imagination of men.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Fifth, to not have elders in our lives as members of a local church, is to lose the gracious blessing intended by God for our lives</b>. God gave them for our equipping. They are not the only means of our equipping but a necessary one. God uses them by grace, in particular ways, for our good in Christ. To not have elders, as a member of a local church, is to not be equipped by them. It is to lose this particular way in which God wants to bless us in Christ. To not be equipped by them is to be handicapped in our walk with Christ. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">To suggest that elders are not necessary in my life for my equipping is to take the name of the Lord in vain. <i>[Exo 20:7 NKJV] 7 "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold [him] guiltless who takes His name in vain</i>. To take the name of the Lord in vain is to make nothing out of something. It is to believe that something stated in God's word is vain or useless for my life. In this case the "something" is that God has given elders to the local church (and to me as a member of a local church) for our equipping for ministry. The "nothing" is to say that I don't need them! It is to say that God gave elders in vain. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Without elders, I am missing an essential part of my equipping to do the work of ministry. I am in effect, handicapped in my walk with Christ. I am lacking something that God intended for my good in Christ. I am missing out on one of the ways by which God furnishes me with the tools I need to do ministry - and do it biblically! <b>Many in the church culture believe that they can do ministry outside of the local church, and without elders in their lives - but the Lord would disagree</b>. If we did not need them, he would not have given them to us (Eph 4:11-12). Am I to suppose that he gave them to the local church, but not to me? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Before we close out this post, let's survey from Ephesians 4:11-16 why elders are needed <b>as one of many</b> necessary means of grace in our lives. <b>One</b>, they are given for our <i>equipping</i> (Eph 4:11-12). <b>Two</b>, they are given for our <i>edification</i> (building up - verse 12). <b>Three</b>, they are given for our <i>unity</i> with other members of our local church (verse 13). <b>Four</b>, they are given for our <i>knowledge</i> of Christ (verse 13). <b>Five</b>, they are given for our <i>maturity</i> in Christ (verse 13). <b>Six</b>, they are given that <i>we would no longer be children</i> (verse 14). <b>Seven</b>, they are given that we would <i>grow up in every way</i> unto Christ (verse 15). And <b>eight</b>, they are given that <i>we become properly working parts of our local church</i> (verse 16). None of these can or will occur without the use of elders as a means of grace in our lives. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Elders are one biblical means of grace, employed and given by God for our growth, maturity and equipping for ministry. Let us be serious about the gracious gift of elders, whoever they may be, and employ them in biblical ways as a means of grace in our lives for our equipping, for the work of ministry.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the next post we will examine <b>how to employ our elders as a means of grace</b>. </span><br />
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<br />Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-6198194104864338442020-03-29T12:00:00.001-07:002020-03-29T16:29:49.959-07:00The Assembly of the Church is an Irreplaceable Means of Grace<i><b><span style="font-size: large;">[1Co 14:23 NKJV] 23 Therefore if the whole church comes together in one place...</span></b></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">[A short podcast series is being done currently and can be found <a href="https://greatcommissionrc.org/encouragement/" target="_blank">HERE</a>.]</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Given that most churches are not assembling together on the Lord's Day during this trial, we thought it would be good to teach a little on what is and what is not an assembly of God.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">There is a lot of information on the internet today about what churches are doing in place of meeting together, and this serves to muddy the waters a bit on this issue. Some are meeting in homes as families, some are meeting online. And others are getting together in small groups.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Why is this important?</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Lord tells us in his word how he wants the church to behave. The Scriptures are written, in part, for that purpose. <i>[1Ti 3:14-15 NKJV] 14 These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly; 15 but if I am delayed, [I write] <b>so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God</b>, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.</i></span><br />
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The Scriptures <b><i>alone</i></b> teach us everything we need to know about what we should be doing, as the people of God - everything from doctrine, to ministry, and to personal behavior. This is known as the doctrine of "Sola Scriptura." <i>[2Ti 3:16-17 NKJV] 16 All Scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (For a short message on Sola Scriptura - go <a href="https://youtu.be/M16q1DYDcOU" target="_blank">HERE</a>.)</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sadly, somewhere along the line, the church adopted the belief that if there was a problem, it could use its imagination and invention to find a solution. Consequently, all sorts of ministries occur now that are found nowhere in Scripture. Some of these are so embedded in the fabric of church culture, that they have become a law unto themselves. At this time the church is tempted again to find new ways to serve the Lord as a substitute for assembling in his presence.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Scriptures alone make us wise in the ways of the Lord. <i>[Psa 119:98-100 NKJV] 98 You, through Your commandments, make me wiser than my enemies; For they [are] ever with me. 99 I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies [are] my meditation. 100 I understand more than the ancients, Because I keep Your precepts.</i></span><br />
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<i>[Psa 19:7-11 NKJV] 7 The law of the LORD [is] perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the LORD [is] sure, making wise the simple; 8 The statutes of the LORD [are] right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the LORD [is] pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 The fear of the LORD [is] clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD [are] true [and] righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired [are they] than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned, [And] in keeping them [there is] great reward.</i></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">What is an assembly of the church?</span></b><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b>A biblical assembly of the church is when the whole church comes together in one place in the name of the Lord (1 Cor 11:23). It includes elders, deacons and all of the saints (Phil 1:1). </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is seen in a number of places in Scripture, but 1st Corinthians provides the best examples:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">[1Co 11:17-22 NKJV] 17 Now in giving these instructions I do not praise [you], <b>since you come together</b> not for the better but for the worse. 18 For first of all, <b>when you come together as a church</b>, I hear that there are divisions among you, and in part I believe it. 19 For there must also be factions among you, that those who are approved may be recognized among you. 20 <b>Therefore when you come together in one place</b>, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper. 21 For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of [others]; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I do not praise [you].</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We see in the above passage (and also 1 Cor 14:23) that the <i><b>whole</b></i> church <b>is coming together,</b> <b>in one place</b>. This means several things:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-size: large;">It means that all of the saints of a particular church, (elders, deacons and saints - See Phil 1:1) are assembled.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">It means that all the saints are physically present as they have "come together."</span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: large;">It means that the church is all physically assembled "in one place." This means one place geographically or physically. [In fact, the church is always either assembled together in one place OR it is separated unto its homes or other locations privately.] </span></li>
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<span style="font-size: large;">When Paul uses the phrase "whole church," he cannot mean it in the sense that every single member of a given church must be present for an assembly to occur. Practically speaking, this hardly ever occurs. Some will be sick, some will be out of town and others may have to work. (Let us not miss the assembly for worldly or fleshly reasons.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What Paul is demonstrating in these verses is the Lord's <b><i>prescription</i></b> for his people. He desires, wills and takes pleasure when all the saints of a church assemble together in his presence. <i>[Psa 95:2 NKJV] 2 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving; Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms. [Psa 100:2 NKJV] 2 Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. [Heb 10:24-25 NKJV] 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as [is] the manner of some, but exhorting [one another], and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Assembling together with all of God's people is the holy, right, good and loving thing to do in light of our salvation in Christ<i>. [Psa 116:12-14 NKJV] 12 What shall I render to the LORD [For] all His benefits toward me? 13 I will take up the cup of salvation, And call upon the name of the LORD. 14 I will pay my vows to the LORD Now <b>in the presence of all His people</b>.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The day on which the church should assemble is the first day of the week. (See Mark 16:9, John 20:19, Acts 2:1, Acts 20:7, 1 Cor 16:1-2) This is the Lord's Day (Rev 1:10) or Christian Sabbath. Isaiah makes an obvious reference to the church today (made up of Jews and Gentiles). [<i>Isa 56:6-7 NKJV] 6 "Also the sons of the foreigner Who join themselves to the LORD, to serve Him, And to love the name of the LORD, to be His servants--Everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, And holds fast My covenant-- 7 Even them I will bring to My holy mountain, And make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices [Will be] accepted on My altar; For My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations." </i></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Price of the Assembly of the Church</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It would do us well to consider the high price that was paid for our ability to assemble as a church, in the presence of God acceptably. It was none other than the cross of Christ, whereby he took the wrath of God we deserved for our sin, and died. By the sacrifice of his body, and by our faith in him, we now have the privilege of assembling together in his presence. [This, of course is not our only privilege in Christ, but one that we could not have apart from the cross.] Read and consider anew the cost of our ability to enter the Holiest!</span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">[Heb 10:10, 12-14, 19-25 NKJV] 10 By that will <b>we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once [for all]</b>. ... 12 But this Man, after <b>He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever,</b> sat down at the right hand of God, 13 from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool. 14 <b>For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified</b>. ... 19 Therefore, brethren, <b>having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus</b>, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and [having] a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, <b>having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.</b> 23 Let us hold fast the confession of [our] hope without wavering, for He who promised [is] faithful. 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as [is] the manner of some, but exhorting [one another], and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.</span></i></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Assembly is a Means of Grace </span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">To see why this issue is so important, we must understand what is meant by "means of grace." "Means of grace" is a phrase that stands for the <i>biblical</i> ways in which God blesses his people spiritually. These are the things the Lord actually tells us to do in his word. It would include things like prayer [1 Thes 5:17], meditation [Psalm 1:2-3], preaching of the word [2 Tim 4:1-4], singing [Psalm 100:4], getting discipled [Luke 6:40], engaging in the Great Commission in the church [Phil 1:27] and so on. God blesses his people through biblical means (or ways) of grace. [For a message on Meditation - go <a href="https://youtu.be/9O6qJ6fVA2s" target="_blank">HERE</a>.]</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The assembly of the church is a biblical means of grace.</b> It is something in particular the Lord prescribes in his word that his people should do. The Lord blesses his people in unique ways when a whole church assembles together in one place.</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">[Psa 36:8 ESV] 8 They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights.</span></i><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">[Psa 65:4 NKJV] 4 Blessed [is the man] You choose, And cause to approach [You], [That] he may dwell in Your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, Of Your holy temple.</span></i><br />
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<i>[Psa 84:4, 7, 10-11 NKJV] 4 Blessed [are] those who dwell in Your house; They will still be praising You. Selah ... 7 They go from strength to strength; [Each one] appears before God in Zion. ... 10 For a day in Your courts [is] better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness. 11 For the LORD God [is] a sun and shield; The LORD will give grace and glory; No good [thing] will He withhold From those who walk uprightly.</i></span><br />
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<i>[1Co 11:23-26 NKJV] 23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the [same] night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke [it] and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." 25 In the same manner [He] also [took] the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink [it], in remembrance of Me." 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.</i></span><br />
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The assembly of the church is a particular means of grace, a particular way that the Lord blesses his people. And it occurs when the whole church comes together in one place. When it assembles together in the name of Christ, it does so in the Most Holy Place. <i>[Heb 10:19-23 NKJV] 19 Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and [having] a High Priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of [our] hope without wavering, for He who promised [is] faithful</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Old Testament temple inner chamber, called the Most Holy Place or Holy of Holies, [see Lev 16] where only one man (the High Priest), from one nation (Israel), from one tribe (Levi), on one day (the Day of Atonement) could enter, pointed to every assembly of a local church, every time it assembles in one place. We gather together as the royal priesthood (1 Peter 2), washed in the blood of Christ (Heb 10), clothed with his righteousness (the priestly garments - Isaiah 61) in the Most Holy Place (Heb 10). This is an honor and privilege beyond measure.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And when the church assembles in one place, it does so in the presence of Christ. <i>[Mat 18:20 NKJV] 20 "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.</i>" [The immediate context of Matt 18 is a brother in sin, who has been warned privately without repentance, and now must be addressed by the whole church. To narrow the application of this passage to church discipline is a mistake. To suggest that Christ is present for the assembly of the church for the loving discipline of a brother, but not when it is assembled in the Holy of Holies, as the royal priesthood, to offer up spiritually acceptable sacrifices (1 Peter 2), speaks for itself. <b>The point is that Christ is present in a unique way when the whole church comes together in one place.</b> The application of this passage to the Lord's Day assembly is obvious from the whole of Scripture.]</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The assembly of the whole church together in one place is a means of grace whereby God blesses his people in unique ways.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Applying the Means of Grace</span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">A very simple principle applies to all of the biblical means of grace, including the assembly of the church together in one place. <b>If a saint does not, or cannot partake of a particular means of grace, he will not be blessed by particular means of grace .</b> <i>[Gal 6:7-8 NKJV] 7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. 8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And again in James we read - <i>[Jas 4:8 NKJV] 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse [your] hands, [you] sinners; and purify [your] hearts, [you] double-minded</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And again from Psalm 19 we read - <i>[Psa 19:9-11 NKJV] 9 The fear of the LORD [is] clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD [are] true [and] righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired [are they] than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 1<b>1 Moreover by them Your servant is warned, [And] in keeping them [there is] great reward</b></i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Let us use a means of grace or lose the blessing of those means of grace</b>. God's prescription, or means of grace, with regards to the church assembling is this - Assemble <b><i>with</i></b> all the saints, <b><i>when</i></b> the church assembles, <b><i>for as long as</i></b> it assembles, <b><i>every time</i> </b>it assembles, and we will be blessed in the Lord! Take advantage of this means of grace and we will be blessed. <i>[Psa 65:4 NKJV] 4 Blessed [is the man] You choose, And cause to approach [You], [That] he may dwell in Your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, Of Your holy temple. </i>How can a man be blessed in this way if he is not present?</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">There are No Substitutes or Workarounds</span></b><br />
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We should be cautioned to avoid believing that there is some substitute or workaround if we are not able to assemble. Make no mistake, the assembly of the church is when the whole church comes together (physically) in one place. There is no substitute or workaround for this.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Right now the Lord is preventing us from assembling according to his word. We should not believe that we can find another way to obtain the same blessings that he promises when the church assembles.</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">While meeting in our homes to worship the Lord, or getting together with other Christians to worship, or listening to sermons online, or even having a broadcast to the church at a particular time, may provide spiritual nourishment and up-building, none of these can replace what is lost by not assembling with the whole church in one place. </span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Lord, by his sovereign hand, is preventing us from assembling. He is in effect removing this means of grace from our lives presently. <b>There is no biblical replacement for this</b>. We are, by the will of God, losing the promised blessings of assembly by not being able to assemble. And we can't make these blessings up online, or in our homes with our family or getting together with a few other brothers and sisters. This isn't a problem we can fix!</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">What Can We Learn from Current Events? </span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Knowing that the Lord himself is preventing us from assembling in his presence, we should humble ourselves before the Lord. We should consider how valuable the Lord's Days assemblies are, that they are not to be treated lightly, are not to be thrown away by pursuits of the world. <b>Rather, they are to be desired, prepared for properly, attended always (barring some merciful reason), delighted in always, participated in fully, and missed greatly when they do not occur. </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Psalmists, in Psalm 84 capture this perfectly. <b>The assemblies of the Lord (referred to as "the courts") are lovely!</b> <i>[Psa 84:1 NKJV] 1 To the Chief Musician. On an instrument of Gath. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. How lovely [is] Your tabernacle, O LORD of hosts!</i></span><br />
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<b>They are highly desirable! </b><i>[Psa 84:2 NKJV] 2 My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the LORD; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>They are a blessing to us in Christ! </b><i>[Psa 84:4 NKJV] 4 Blessed [are] those who dwell in Your house; They will still be praising You. Selah</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>They are up-building to us in spiritually dry world</b>! <i>[Psa 84:5-7 NKJV] 5 Blessed [is] the man whose strength [is] in You, Whose heart [is] set on pilgrimage. 6 [As they] pass through the Valley of Baca, They make it a spring; The rain also covers it with pools. 7 They go from strength to strength; [Each one] appears before God in Zion</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>They all occur in the presence of the Lord!</b> <i>[Psa 84:8-9 NKJV] 8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer; Give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah 9 O God, behold our shield, And look upon the face of Your anointed</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Each individual assembly is worth more than any amount of any other activity in the world</b>! <i>[Psa 84:10 NKJV] 10 For a day in Your courts [is] better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>They are a means of grace!</b> <i>[Psa 84:11-12 NKJV] 11 For the LORD God [is] a sun and shield; The LORD will give grace and glory; No good [thing] will He withhold From those who walk uprightly. 12 O LORD of hosts, Blessed [is] the man who trusts in You!</i></span><br />
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<b>Seek the Grace of God!</b></span><br />
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Our God is a gracious God! <i>[Psa 116:1-2, 5 NKJV] 1 I love the LORD, because He has heard My voice [and] my supplications. 2 Because He has inclined His ear to me, Therefore I will call [upon Him] as long as I live. ... 5 Gracious [is] the LORD, and righteous; Yes, our God [is] merciful. </i>Because the Lord is gracious, we can assemble in his presence!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We know that his will and pleasure is that we come before him together in love. <i>[Sng 2:14 NKJV] 14 "O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, In the secret [places] of the cliff, Let me see your face, Let me hear your voice; For your voice [is] sweet, And your face [is] lovely." </i>He died for us that we could come before him in love.</span><br />
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If we find that our hearts are not right with the Lord regarding assembling with the church, or if our habit has been to attend periodically (every now and then), or partially (only part of the time the church assembles on a given Lord's Day), <b>know that God is gracious, and he will give us right desires!</b> We only need seek his grace, and ask that he move our hearts in the direction of his will, and we will have it!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Seek the grace of God to think rightly and behave rightly regarding the assemblies of our church. Ask, and it will be given to you who believe in Christ! <i>[Mat 7:7-8, 11 NKJV] 7 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 8 "For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. ... 11 "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Rejoice that even though we all fall short (or sin) in many areas of our Christian lives, God is slow to anger and abounding in loving-kindness towards us. <i>[Psa 103:8 NKJV] 8 The LORD [is] merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. </i>Ask that you may receive grace in time of need!</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">[1Jo 5:14-15 NKJV] 14 Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. 15 And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.</span></i><br />
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What a wonderful, glorious, joyful, gracious, blessed, hopeful, holy, right, good means of grace God has given us in the coming together of the whole church in one place in his presence! Love it! Desire it! And when the Lord allows, do it! Delight in it! Don't forsake it! Let us assemble in his presence and be blessed by the Lord! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>[Psa 122:1 NKJV] 1 A Song of Ascents. Of David. I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go into the house of the LORD."</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Amen.</span><br />
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Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-66290582770008488672018-12-02T12:17:00.002-08:002018-12-02T13:22:55.054-08:00The Law of God is a Compass (Part 2): Safety<span style="font-size: large;"><b>[This is part 2 of the Law of God is a Compass series. Find Part 1 <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/2018/09/the-law-of-god-is-compass-part-1.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>.]</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>The law of God is a compass that always points in the direction of safety. </b>There are myriads of ways we can sin, myriads of ways we can deviate from God's will. How do we know for certain if what we are doing is something the Lord wants us to do? How do we know for certain if what we are doing is pleasing to the Lord? How do we know for certain if something we are doing is sin or not? The law of God answers all of these questions for us. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">The law of God will always point us in the safe path, the path of God's will. When Paul defended the law in Romans 7 (yes - that is what he did there), he asks the question, What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet." (Romans 7:7) </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">What Paul is saying here is that there is nothing wrong with the law of God. In fact, it shows him when his behavior is sinful. <b>What could be wrong with that?</b> If not for the law, he would have coveted and coveted and coveted, not knowing that this was sinful behavior. Is the law sin? <b>By no means.</b> It was the law of God which taught him that coveting was wrong. (Romans 7:7)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">The Psalmist also understood this and declared it over and over again in Psalm 119. <i>Psalm 119:117 Hold me up, <b>that I may be safe</b> and have regard for your statutes continually! </i>You see, he knows that he is safe when God causes him to have regard for his statutes. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">But one might ask, what danger is there? Is there a danger of losing one's salvation if they don't keep the law of God? The answer is <b>absolutely not</b> to the true believer. We are saved, made righteous in position and justified by faith alone in Christ alone, apart from works of the law. (See Romans 3-4-5) [See our position on justification by going <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/p/were-glad-that-youre-visiting-love-and.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>.]</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;"><b>The danger, when we don't have regard for God's law, is that we will surely break it.</b> And this should be grievous to any believer.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Why would we want to break his law (or sin) when he has shown us nothing but unlimited love, mercy, and grace? Why, if we love him, would we disregard what he wants us to do? Surely we can agree that we should not want to break his law. Pertaining to this, Paul asks, "Should we continue in sin that grace may abound?" God forbid! (Romans 6:1)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">The last thing the Psalmist, and Paul and every other writer of Scripture, want to do is to dishonor the Lord by breaking his law. Sinning brings shame upon the person and dishonors the Lord. The Psalmist is trying to avoid this and wants to be safe from doing it. This is why he prays, "Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping your statutes! Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments." (Psalm 119:5-6)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Regarding love for the Lord, obedience to Christ is evidence of love for Christ. (See 1 John 5:1-3). Jesus said, "If you love me, keep my commandments." (John 14:15) Jesus showed the world that he loved the Father by obeying the Father (John 14:31). So, out of love for God, we should not want to sin. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Because of Christ's death on the cross, the believer is forever safe from God's judgment (Romans 5:1, 8:1). What we are <i><b>not</b></i> safe from is sinful behavior. The law of God is a compass that always points to safety from sin. <b>It does not provide the ability to avoid sinful behavior - only the Holy Spirit in us can do that.</b> But what it does do is point us in the safe path of behavior. It always informs us as to what is the right thing to do, the godly thing, the holy thing, the loving thing. It always shows us the safe path to go to avoid sin. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">And for that, we should love it and thank God for it.</span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-3758060037771709082018-11-29T09:58:00.000-08:002018-11-29T09:58:45.710-08:00How can it be that we can come into the presence of the Lord?<span style="font-size: large;">How can it be that sinners such as we, can be in the presence of a thrice holy God?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1 Peter 2:5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Heb 10:19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Only by the very high price of Jesus on the cross. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Isaiah 53:4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his stripes we are healed. </span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-45869061720196495922018-11-28T12:23:00.000-08:002018-11-28T12:24:04.411-08:00How to Have a Delightful Assembly <span style="font-size: large;">One of the greatest privileges and blessings we have in Christ is to spend the day (or a large part of it) together in the presence of Christ. A day in his courts is better than a thousand elsewhere! (<a href="https://www.biblestudytools.com/esv/psalms/84.html" target="_blank">Ps 84:10</a>).</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But how can it become what God intended it to be - <b>a delight</b>? Do we want to have joy on the Lord's Day, especially when we assemble? The Lord promises it to us! (<a href="https://www.biblestudytools.com/esv/isaiah/58.html" target="_blank">Isaiah 58:13-14</a>).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here are some things we can do to bring joy to our Lord's Days assemblies. Obviously, none of these work without the help of the Holy Spirit - hence the first one!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. <b>Pray for the Lord's Day</b> - pray that the Lord would prepare the hearts of his people, that he would set our minds on Christ, that he would help us to come into his presence with joy, that we would deny ourselves in his presence, that we would delight in Christ and his works, that he would make the hearing of his word profitable, that he would help poor pastors who have the responsibility of preaching the word, that we would repent of sin, that we would call the Sabbath a delight, that we would set aside our love for the world and the things in it. (That's a good start!) </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Prayer should begin on the Sunday evening before the next Lord's Day. The Spirit gives life - our flesh is no help at all. Without prayer, forget about it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>2. Prepare for the Lord's Day - </b>Not only do our hearts need to be prepared, so do our bodies and lives to have joy on the Lord's Day. We can prepare by getting things ready to go on Saturday - Don't wait until Sunday morning! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Go to be early enough to be rested. While the Holy Spirit can do all his holy will in us regardless of our physical state, if you read the word of God, the intent is not that we come into the Lord's presence dragging. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Israel prepared for two days to come into the presence of the Lord at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19). Are we any less in his presence on the Lord's Day? Prepare, but prepare yourselves for joy!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>3. Get other stuff out of the way.</b> This is sort of a subset of number 2. The idea of the Sabbath is to be freed up of work and responsibility (as much as is possible) to enjoy Christ. This is going to sound legalistic - it's not. We can't cram Jesus into a host of other activities. We should come into his presence singing and with joy, without an eye to the clock!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Free up yourself from other responsibilities and commitments. There's no better place to be than to be in the presence of the Lord with all of his people! A thousand other activities, no matter how important or enjoyable, can't match a single day in his courts (Ps 84:10). </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The cost of our assemblies was high - the suffering and death of Christ. He chose you to enjoy this great honor and satisfaction. <i>Psalm 65:</i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>4 Blessed is the one you choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts! We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple!</i> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>4. Remember your salvation in Christ!</b> Preach to yourself! Remember why you are going to church in the first place. Is it not because Jesus saved you from your sins - sins that would have brought judgment! Christ died for you, and because he did (and you believe in him), your salvation, your inheritance, your forgiveness, your adoption, your redemption, your justification, your sanctification - your future - are ASSURED! </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">If these don't get us wanting to come into his presence with joy, something is wrong. Meditate on these wonderful, glorious, gracious, merciful truths. Rejoice in them before you assemble, and you will have plenty to fuel gladness on the Lord's Day. <i>Psalm 92:4 For you, O LORD, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>5. Pursue unity with your church (deny yourself)</b> - While we are meant to enjoy the Lord on a highly personal level when we assemble, we are to assemble as one body in Christ. Nowhere is our Lord's admonition truer - <i>Matt 16:24 Then Jesus told his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.</i> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Unity trumps a lot of other things when the church assembles. In fact, if the church is not unified when it assembles, if it behaves in selfish ways, then it would be better if it had not assembled at all.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>1 Cor 11:17 But in the following instructions I do not commend you, because when you come together it is not for the better but for the worse. 18 For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part, 19 for there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As we just read, one of the ways we demonstrate that we are truly in the faith is that we behave in a unified way when assembled with the church. Factions demonstrate insincere faith. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">How differently would we behave if we knew that our own behavior impacted the acceptance of our assemblies to the Lord? <i>Romans 12:10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>6. Desire biblical things! </b>This one should be obvious - it isn't. The Lord tells us exactly what he wants the church to do on the Lord's Day when his people assemble. Desire the things you see in his word. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What might they be? Reading and hearing the word (2 Tim 4:1-2), prayer (1 Tim 2:8), singing of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs (Eph 5:19-20), the Lord's Supper (1 Cor 11), stirring up one another to love and good works (Heb 10:24-25) through upbuilding - encouragement and consolation (1 Cor 14:3), praise and thanksgiving (Psalm 92:1-2), a love feast (meal 1 Cor 11). </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">All of these are either commanded, taught in principle or seen by example in Scripture - meaning these are the biblical things God sanctions for his assemblies - for joy!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now, if we come to church wanting something other than these things (unless I've left something out from Scripture), then we're not on the road to spiritual joy. Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit - can we believe he produces it in us by things not found in his word?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">How filled is the church today with activities on the Lord's Day found nowhere in Scripture. For joy, let us stick to God's word which is sufficient to make us equipped in all things - including assembling in his presence (2 Tim 3:16-17). </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>7. Love your brothers and sisters in Christ</b>. There is no joy without love (John 15:8-14). He commands us to love one another - how much when assembled in his presence!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now, how do we love our brother biblically? We do what the Scriptures say to do towards them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">1 John 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">What should we do on the Lord's Day? Look at what the Scriptures say to do - that will always be the right answer to the question - how do I love my brothers? Look at the Scriptures. Understand what God desires of you. Pray for help to do his will. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>8. Be there! </b> This one should be obvious too - but it isn't because of our fleshly hearts. Jesus wants us to have joy in his presence, joy when we assemble together. <i>Psalm 16:11 You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Being there shows love for Christ and love for your brethren. It is discouraging to others when we forego the assembly. Love your brothers and sisters and be present for them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Jesus wants you there. Christ, who loves you with a perfect, eternal love, wants to spend intimate time with you. <i>Song of Solomon 2:14 My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places on the mountainside, show me your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely</i>. He thinks you're lovely (because of his redeeming work in you), and wants to be with you!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Rejoice in his presence, knowing that he desires to see you and hear from you! What a God we serve. <i>Psalm 8:</i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>4 what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him</i>? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">God intends us to have joy always, but particularly on the Lord's Day when we assemble in his presence. And he tells us in his word the things that will help our joy. May God cause us to do these things, that this may be truly said of us,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Psalm 100:1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! 2 Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.</i></span></div>
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Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-55294091637041618772018-11-03T10:45:00.000-07:002018-11-03T10:46:30.628-07:00You are Holy in Christ Jesus<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Eph 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus: </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><br /></b></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The Apostle Paul, and the Holy Spirit (as the author of Scripture) makes a simple but profound declaration at the opening of the letter to the church in Ephesus. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">He greets those in Ephesus as "saints." What a simple but epic salutation!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We need to apply the biblical principle that while the apostolic letters addressed specific issues in doctrine and behavior to specific churches, the doctrines declared and the commandments issued apply to all churches and all Christians everywhere, for all time!</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Consequently, when Paul writes to the "saints," he is writing to you and to me as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ! We are "saints" by the declaration of the Holy Spirit himself!</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">What does this term mean?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The word "saint" literally means, "holy one." </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">From Strong's Concordance - Word: agioj </span><span style="font-size: large;">Pronounce: hag'-ee-os </span><span style="font-size: large;">Strongs Number: G40</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Orig: from </span>hagos<span style="font-size: large;"> (an awful thing) (compare 53, 2282); sacred (physically, pure, morally blameless or religious, ceremonially, consecrated):--(most) holy (one, thing), </span>saint<span style="font-size: large;">. G53 </span><span style="font-size: large;">Use: TDNT-1:88,14 Adjective </span><span style="font-size: large;">Heb Strong: H6944 </span><span style="font-size: large;">1) <b><span style="color: blue;">most holy thing, a saint </span></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>The Lord is not referring to our behavior in Christ, but instead our position in Christ, our standing in Christ</b>. We are seen as holy before him, as perfect before him, as sinless before him in our standing before him. What an amazing truth and reality! For more on this, go <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/p/were-glad-that-youre-visiting-love-and.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We sin and sin and sin away in our behavior, but all the while we are considered "saints" or "holy ones" in his sight. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>Why are we seen as holy in his sight? Because the blood of Christ washes away all of our sin.</b> <i>Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Right before Christ died on the cross, he said, "it is finished," which literally means, "paid in full." Our sin debt was paid in full by his blood. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>Why are we seen as holy in his sight? Because Christ's perfect obedience to the law of God is placed on our account</b>. <i>2 Cor 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Christ obeyed the Father perfectly in his life, and the Father took his obedience and placed it on to us. We should rejoice greatly in this truth. We wear Christ's righteousness like clothes. Isaiah declared, <i><b>Isaiah 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels</b></i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>Why are we seen as holy in his sight? Because we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ!</b> <i>Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ</i>. We are justified, meaning we are legally, forensically and every other way declared and are in fact "guiltless" before him. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Because of Christ, his obedience to the Father and his sacrifice for our sins on the cross, the Father judges us by his holy law and finds us NOT GUILTY! </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">What amazing grace from our Father in heaven! Because of Christ we now are in fact, holy ones, saints before him. This is our present and permanent standing before God, by virtue of our faith in Christ alone.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Rejoice exceedingly in this good news, and now live your lives for him. Amen.</span><br />
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<br />Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-56708215879279394162018-10-31T16:09:00.000-07:002018-10-31T16:09:20.272-07:00The Law of God Gives Believers Direction<span style="font-size: large;">It's a blessing for believers to walk in the law of the Lord. <i>Ps 119:1 Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD! 2 Blessed are those who keep his testimonies, who seek him with their whole heart, 3 who also do no wrong, but walk in his ways! </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We are not saved by obeying the law, <a href="https://greatcommissionrc.org/forgiveness/" target="_blank">but by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ alone</a>. <i>Acts 16:30 Then he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" 31 And they said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.</i>" </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Go <a href="https://greatcommissionrc.org/forgiveness/" target="_blank">HERE</a> for more on forgiveness by faith alone in Christ alone.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But once <a href="https://greatcommissionrc.org/forgiveness/" target="_blank">we're saved by faith alone in Christ alone</a>, we are called to walk in the law of the Lord. Jesus said, "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." (John 14:15)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The law of God is a blessing to us <b>because it gives us direction</b>. Paul asked and answered, "<i>What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! <b>Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin.</b> For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet.</i>" (Romans 7:7) It informed Paul that coveting was sin and what loving behavior is (i.e. not to covet your neighbor's things). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>The law of God does <u>not</u> do many things</b>. It does not give us the motivation to obey. (That comes by looking at Jesus, his attributes and his works - Heb 12:1-2) It does not give us the grace to obey (as that comes from the Father - Matt 7:7-10). It also does not give us the power to obey (as that comes from the Holy Spirit dwelling in us - John 6:63). </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>What the law does do is give us DIRECTION</b>. It tells us what to do to love God and what to do to love our neighbor. <i>1 John 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome</i>. </span><br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Psalm 119:9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. 10 With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! ...24 Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors...104 Through your precepts I get understanding; therefore I hate every false way. </span></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Because of this, the Psalmist loved the law of God. <i>Psalm 119:97 Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day. 98 Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. 99 I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Once <a href="https://greatcommissionrc.org/forgiveness/" target="_blank">we're saved by faith alone in Christ alone</a>, our calling is to walk in the law of the Lord - to obey him by grace. <i>John 14:15 "If you love me, you will keep my commandments.</i> </span><span style="font-size: large;">The law helps us to do this only by teaching us what it is we are supposed to do. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As Christians, we can be very busy doing many things - <b>but not necessarily the things we are called to do in God's word</b>. The law helps guide our actions into the path of his will. <i>Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We should look to the law then, not for motivation, not for power, not for grace, <b>but for direction</b>, so that we can know with certainty how we ought to live. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">What a blessing the law of God is, once we understand it's role properly - to make us wise in the way of Christ, to inform us how to love God and our neighbor. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">May God give us grace to walk in the law of the Lord. Amen.</span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-49501970787855732112018-10-20T14:37:00.002-07:002018-10-20T15:23:24.905-07:00The Biblical Characteristics of Disciple TrainingNot only does the Lord command the church to train disciples to observe all that he commanded, he has also given us numerous principles (or characteristics) of how he wants individual disciples to be trained.<br />
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Put together like a mosaic, they paint a picture of biblical ministry in the life of believers, and it looks nothing like modern day program-oriented ministry we see everywhere in the church today.<br />
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Here are some of the biblical characteristics of disciple training, found in the word of God. A link to the pdf document is found by going <a href="https://greatcommissionrc.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/The-Teacher-Disciple-Model-in-Scripture.pdf" target="_blank">HERE</a>.<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;"><span style="white-space: pre;"> </span> The Teacher/Disciple Model </span></b><br />
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What commandments/principles/examples do we see in Scripture regarding teachers and how disciples are to be trained?<br />
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Note: Salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, by hearing the Scriptures alone, to the glory of God alone. No one is saved by works, or by obedience to God’s commandments. (Romans 3, 5:1 etc…) However, once a person is saved, is justified by faith alone, their calling is now to learn to observe all that Christ commanded according to the Great Commission. Christ commissioned the church not only to preach the gospel so that people can be saved by coming to faith in Christ, but also to then train those new disciples to walk in his ways according to his word.<br />
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<b>The Great Commission</b>: This is found in Matthew 28:18-20 as follows:<br />
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Matt 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."<br />
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<b>It consists of five parts:</b><br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1. Christ’s authority to commision the church (v.18) Our Lord commissioned us to do what is found in these verses. How can he be our Lord, if we do not want to do these three things? How can we say we love him, if we do not do them? Luke 6:46<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>2. The command to go and make disciples (v. 19). This is only done by preaching the word of God. (See Romans 10:14-17) A disciple is more than just a convert and is a person who is now committed to learning to observe all that Christ commanded (v.20). (The word “disciple” means “pupil,” or “learner.”) The church is called to “go” out into the world to preach the good news (Mark 16:15)<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>3. The command to baptize disciples (v. 19). The pattern from Scripture is that a new disciple is baptized almost immediately. Examples would be Acts 10:44-48 (Gentiles), Acts 16 (Lydia and the Philippian Jailer). In the Great Commission, training comes after the baptism.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>4. The command to train disciples to observe all that Christ commanded (v. 20). This should be done in accordance with the commands, principles and examples from God’s word (see below). When you examine all that the Bible says about “teaching them to observe all that Christ commanded,” a fairly detailed picture emerges. A disciple is to be taught to “observe,” which means to guard his life according to God’s word. The disciple is to be trained to obey the Lord, to do what he actually says in his word. This will only happen by grace, but it is the goal and calling of all Christians to learn this - to be doers of his word and not hearers only. 1 Peter 1:15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct,<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>5. The declaration that Christ is with us always as we by grace obey the Great Commission (v.20). We can have every confidence that that as we fulfill the Great Commission by grace, Christ is with us always. What great encouragement this is!<br />
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The Great Commission summarizes the whole of what the church is called to do. The church is to make, baptize and train disciples. The Scriptures provide us with commandments, principles and examples to instruct us on how to fulfill it. Found below are portions of God’s word that speak to the training of disciples. We believe that these paint a definite picture (when taken as a whole) of how the church should be training disciples to observe all that Christ commanded.<br />
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Notice also that it is baptized disciples who are to be trained. The church is called to train baptized disciples. It is not called to train unbelievers.<br />
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Any success in any of the three things commissioned by Christ, is by grace alone, by his word alone, by his Spirit working alone. We are merely the instruments the Lord uses to accomplish his holy will in his people (See Eph 2:10, Phil 2:13). The exciting thing is that he will not accomplish any of his work without the church doing the Great Commission (See Romans 10). When Lazarus was raised from the dead, Christ called his disciples to roll the stone and remove the grave clothes (See John 11). Even though we are faulty instruments, the Lord chose in his wisdom to use his people to do these wonderful things! What a privilege and honor it is to serve the Lord!<br />
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None of the this can or should be “forced,” and the teacher/trainer is not to “lord over” the disciple. Both the trainer and disciple must engage in the training voluntarily. They cannot be or should not be coerced, manipulated or anything of the sort to do this. The training should only be the result of the preaching of God’s word and the working of the Spirit of God in the lives of individual believers.<br />
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The teacher/trainer is to lovingly, patiently, biblically, prayerfully, gently, teach and train the young disciple in the way of Christ. This takes a long time, requires biblical, selfless and God-given love, and any success is by the grace of God only. All disciples of Christ (who truly believe and are saved) are called to be trained to learn to observe all that he commanded. Is anyone exempted by the Lord to forego learning to observe all that he commanded?<br />
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<b><span style="color: blue;">The teacher/disciple model found in Scripture: (Are these optional?)</span></b></h3>
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>A. The teacher/trainer is to be older/more mature Christians of the same gender. Titus 2:3 Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, 4 and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, 5 to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.<br />
<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>B. The teacher/trainer is not only to teach sound doctrine but also is to train behavior. (See above) They are not just to teach that a woman should love her husband, but should train that disciple until she is actually loving her husband (biblically). “...and so train the young women to love their husbands... See also Matt 28:20 - teaching them to observe all that I commanded…<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>C. The teacher/trainer is to both teach and admonish (correct) the disciple. Col 1:28 Him we proclaim, warning (admonishing) everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. Note that every disciple is to be trained this way. The goal of training disciples is maturity. Maturity requires both admonishment and teaching in the life of a disciple.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>D. The teacher/trainer is to train the disciple to “observe” (or do) all of the commandments of Christ. Matt 28:20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. This addresses the scope of the training. It is not simply to teach a disciple that he should do something, but rather train them until they are actually doing it (by grace).<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>E. The teacher/trainer is to be an example of Christ in doctrine and behavior to the disciple and is to love the disciple the way Christ loved his disciples/Apostles. John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." See also 1 Cor 11:1, 2 Tim 3:10 etc…<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>F. The teacher/trainer is to specifically pray for the maturity/obedience of the disciple he is training. Luke 22:31 "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you,that he might sift you like wheat, 32 but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers."<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>G. The teacher/trainer is to engage the disciple in life situations to further train the disciple in obedience to Christ. (Paul to his disciple Timothy) 2 Tim 3:10 You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, 11 my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra--which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. What benefit is the training if it cannot be practically applied in the life of the disciple.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>H. The teacher/trainer is to train the disciple until he is mature. (See Col 1:28-29, Eph 4:11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>I. The teacher/trainer is to train the disciple until the disciple is obeying Christ in the same ways that the teacher/trainer is obeying Christ. Luke 6:40 A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone, when he is fully trained, will be like his teacher. God shows the teacher something. The teacher shows the disciple that same thing. The teacher imitates Christ (by grace) so that the disciple can learn to imitate Christ. 1 Cor 11:1 Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>J. The teacher/trainer trains the disciple around the clock, meaning whenever there is the opportunity. (See Jesus training of his disciples in all four gospels.) This does not mean that the teacher Lords over the disciple, or gets into his affairs. It simply means that the teacher is available to the disciple as much as possible to love and help the disciple grow.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>K. The teacher/trainer is to train specific individual disciples (not a class of disciples). Matt 4:18 While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Disciples are individuals, with unique personalities, situations, experiences, who the Lord wants trained to grow up in every way unto Christ (See Eph 4). This is not done by large or even small groups. It is, in fact, impossible to train a disciple (“in every way…”) in a classroom. Jesus trained the twelve, Paul trained Timothy. Barnabus trained Mark etc… He admonished Peter privately, appropriately and lovingly.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>1. The argument is made that Jesus meeting with all twelve disciples is the same as a “bible study” or class today. An examination of the gospels will indicate that this is not accurate as Jesus spent time doing all of the above with the men he trained. He did not give them a weekly class or bible study and in fact, engaged them throughout the week. In addition to at times training all of his disciples at once, he clearly had personal relationships with them all, allowing for the above principles to occur. While some learning may occur in classes and bible studies, the training of a disciple to “observe all that Christ commanded” is not possible in these settings.<br />
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<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>L. The training is to be intentional and goal-oriented. No one becomes a mature believer by simply coming to church. The command to “teach them to observe all that Christ commanded” is a specific, goal-oriented command. Maturity doesn’t and won’t happen by osmosis. Just as a person will not come to faith without someone preaching the gospel in some (biblical) form, (how will they believe if they do not hear?) no one will become mature without being trained by someone more mature. Titus 2:3 Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, 4 and so train the young women… While mutual encouragement and the hearing of preaching is biblical, the purpose of ministry in and to the church is to produce mature disciples who love Christ and manifest that love by grace by obeying his word.<br />
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<br />Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-19971973428718644992018-10-14T18:17:00.000-07:002018-10-14T18:17:47.622-07:00We Were Once Foolish - But Then God's Goodness Appeared<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Titus 3:3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy... </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We who are Christians are no different than anyone else. We were born into the world in sin, lived out our lives according to our own desires, and denied that Jesus was God. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Paul talked about this in Ephesians 2:1-3. We were by nature children of wrath, just like everyone else. He echoes this in Titus 3:3 by saying that "we ourselves were once foolish..." </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Because of this, we should NOT look down upon others in the world, because they do not believe in Christ, or behave a certain way. This is in fact, hatred.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Paul says so in our passage above, saying that we were "hated by others and hating one another." We know from John's definition of love in 1 John 5, that by "hatred," Paul means that we were not keeping the law of God towards our fellow man. For the law always points us in the direction of love behaviorally (see 1 John 5:1-3).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">It was during this season of life that God appeared in our lives. Titus 3:4 " "But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared..." The Lord came to us while we were being hated and hating others, while we were unbelievers, while we were not seeking him (See Romans 3:11). </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The goodness and loving kindness of God appeared while we were denying him, while we were doing whatever we wanted in this life. And these led to our salvation. "...He saved us."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">He saved us from our sins, from our guilt, from sure judgment and condemnation. This is what his goodness and loving kindness led to - our salvation.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">He didn't save us because we were good, or smart, or rich, or moral or anything else. We were no better or no more deserving of salvation than anyone else. In fact, there was absolutely nothing in us or done by us by which he saved us. He saved us "...not because of works done by us in righteousness." </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Instead, his goodness and loving kindness led to his having mercy upon us. Mercy is when God does not give us what we deserve. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">How much mercy did he have on us? The Psalmist tells us in <i>Psalm 103:10 He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him.</i> (KJV)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We sinned and sinned away, and he did not give us what we deserved. Instead, through his goodness and loving kindness, he saved us - saved us from sure judgment. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We were foolish. God was good, and kind and merciful to us. And because he was, we were saved from our sins. </span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-45033027428572607102018-10-11T16:10:00.000-07:002018-10-11T16:10:03.611-07:00The Law Informs Us on How to Love<span style="font-size: large;">Jesus said, "<i>A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another</i>." (John 13:34)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">If we've believed in Christ for a while, we've heard this commandment. Now, here's a diagnostic for you. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Without referring to the word of God, how do you love your brother? What are you supposed to do to show love to your brother?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">If we have an answer to this question, without referring to the word of God, then we have what's called <i>an</i> <i>opinion</i>. Because that's all that we could offer up as an answer to the question, "what are we supposed to do to show love to our brother" without the word of God as a reference. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Fact is, without the word of God, we don't have a clue as to what to do to love our brother. The reason is that when God commands us to love our brother, he <b>only</b> means according to his own will and holy nature. He certainly doesn't leave it up to fallen man to figure this out. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Now, what part of God's word tells us what to do to love our brother? The answer is the law of God. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Paul taught this in Romans 7, when he asked the question, "Is the law sin?" His answer was very telling. Here it is...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Rom 7:7 What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin. For I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet."</i> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">He would not have known that coveting his neighbor's whatever was sin, if the law had not said, "you shall not covet." You see, the law told him that coveting was wrong, it was unloving, it was evil, it was sin from God's point of view. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">If our neighbor has something, it is by God's sovereign will. To want what God has given our neighbor is wrong. We shouldn't do it because it's unloving. (Sidebar - we've all done it.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Paul would not have known that this was wrong "<b>if it had not been for the law...</b>" In other words, Paul was clueless about coveting until the law informed him that coveting was not the thing to do. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">And that is one of the blessings of the law of God. It informs us as to what we should do, (or as we saw above, what we should avoid) to love our neighbor. Without the law, we wouldn't know what to do. (Of course, I am only referring to those who are already justified by faith. Go <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/p/were-glad-that-youre-visiting-love-and.html" target="_blank">HERE</a> for more on justification.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">As wonderful as they are, even the two love laws are insufficient to inform us as to how to love God and our neighbor. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Imagine if the law only contained two commandments - love God and love your neighbor. Based on these, what would you specifically do to love God? Or to love your neighbor?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We wouldn't have the foggiest idea based on these two commandments. The reason is that they are <i>summaries</i> of the entire law, not replacements for it. Paul taught us this in Romans <i>13:9 For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet," <b>and any other commandment, are summed up in this word:</b> "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."</i> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Only the full law of God informs us as to the "what" of love. What should we do to love God and what should we do to love our neighbor. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Without God's law, we wouldn't know what to do.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">What a gift the law of God is to the church. It is a roadmap, a compass, a teacher, which instructs our hearts and minds and will and behavior, on what to do to love God and our neighbor. </span><br />
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Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-28331117424070546142018-10-09T17:54:00.000-07:002018-10-09T17:54:44.800-07:00What Priority Should the Church Have in the Believer's Life?<span style="font-size: large;">What priority should the local church have in the life of a believer? It is given by the Apostle John in 1 John 3:16 as follows,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>1 John 3:16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The church is not a club, a social group, a local chapter of some organization. It is the living, breathing, temple of the Holy Spirit. It is the elect from every nation. It is the very people Christ came for, lived for and died for. <b>Matt 1:21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."</b> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The value of the church, to the Father, is Christ, for Christ is the price he paid for it. <i><b>Is 53:10 Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand</b>.</i> </span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">And of course, our Lord commanded that we love one another. Love for the brethren defines us as disciples (learners) of Christ. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>John 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span> <span style="font-size: large;">(As an aside, it is the law of God which tells us how we are to love our brethren. <i>1 John 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments</i>.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The extent to which we should love our brethren is found in the verse above from 1 John 3. We should be willing to lay our lives down for one another, just as Christ laid his life down for us.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">This isn't a theory; this isn't a nice idea to put on some placard or wall. It's not optional for Christians. It is what the Lord desires of us. <b>We ought to lay our lives down for the brothers. </b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Now we will all fall short of this mark, and thanks be to God for the blood of Christ which cleanses us of all sin. But we should at least know and understand that this is what our Lord wants of us. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">It should also be noted that what we should be willing to give our lives for <b>are the people in the church</b>, not the institution of the church, not the buildings or campus or programs, not the traditions or culture of the church. It is the people who matter. It is for them that Christ died. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">This willingness to lay our lives down for one another doesn't just mean that if we get into a tight spot with some believers, we would be willing to give our life for theirs. It includes this of course, <b>but also everything leading up to giving our lives actually</b>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">It includes a willingness to not forsake the assembly when the church meets. It includes praying for our brothers without ceasing. It includes esteeming our brothers more highly than ourselves. It includes exhorting, encouraging and admonishing our brothers. It includes making the church a priority with our time, energy and resources. It means laboring alongside our brethren to fulfill the great commission (Matt 28:18-20).</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">How can we lay our lives down for the brethren if we are not willing to do the above things? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We should also understand that laying our lives down for the brethren means doing so in the way the word of God says, and not our own way. We naturally want to do things our own way, and this would be no exception. But the way the Lord wants us to lay our lives down for the brethren is to obey his word- to do what it actually says. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We need to seek his grace to do this for we won't do it on our own. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is the priority the church should have in our lives - that is to say the people in our church - and Christ was our example. He obeyed the Father unto death and gave his life for us. He lived and died for the church. We ought to as well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Lord, grant us the desire and ability to love our brethren as you would have us - with our very lives. Amen.</span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-36517587105509164952018-10-03T15:45:00.000-07:002018-10-03T15:45:23.838-07:00Christ is the Motivation, the Holy Spirit is the Power, and His Law the Direction<span style="font-size: large;">The church so desperately needs clarity today on teaching on the law of God. So many pitfalls to fall into, so much error.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">With lack of clarity, there is a lack of understanding, and ultimately lack of love for God and for our neighbor. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">One area where clarity would help us greatly is in understanding the mechanics of obedience. By this, I mean the <i><b>motivation</b></i> for obedience, the <i><b>power</b></i> to obedience and the <i><b>direction</b></i> of obedience.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It is great error and perhaps even heresy to confuse these. For instance, if the law is our motivation, we may become Pharisees in our faith. Or, if we believe we can obey on our own power, self-righteousness is a danger, and so on.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, let's quickly consider all three of the above. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>First, Christ is the <i>motivation</i> for obedience</b>. (Again, we are only speaking of believers who are already justified by faith alone in Christ alone. For more on justification go <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/p/were-glad-that-youre-visiting-love-and.html" target="_blank">HERE</a>.) The motivation to obey the Lord is Christ!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The person of Christ and his glorious attributes (characteristics) are worthy and should produce a desire to obey him. <i>Leviticus 19:1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 "Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy</i>. This is repeated by Peter in 1 Peter 1:16.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Jesus taught us this principle in Matt 5:48 <i>You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. </i>Pretty simple. We should <b>be</b> because God <b>is</b>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The works of Christ should also be our motivation to obey. <i>Psalm 116:12 What shall I render to the LORD for all his benefits to me? 13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD, 14 I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people. ... 16 O LORD, I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant. You have loosed my bonds. </i>We serve the Lord (in the way that he wants according to his word) because he has loosed our bonds. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">He had mercy on us, was gracious to us and forgave us our sins, that we might walk in obedience to him. <i>Psalm 130:4 But with you there is forgiveness, that you may be feared</i>. To fear him means to believe in him, love him, revere him, obey him. We cannot and are not fearing him while we are disobeying him. He forgives sins, in part, that he would be feared by his people.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">These two - Christ's person and his works, are more than enough <i><b>motivation</b></i> to walk in obedience to his law. If they are not, then perhaps we need to hear the gospel again. If we're having motivation problems wanting to obey the Lord, we should spend more time meditating on who Jesus is and what he has done for us - that should help us greatly. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Second, the Holy Spirit is the power by which we obey the law of God</b>. Jesus said, "<i>I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing</i>." (John 15:5) </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It is by the Spirit of God alone that we do anything in obedience to his word, starting with believing in Christ. 1 Cor 12:3 <i>Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says "Jesus is accursed!" <b>and no one can say "Jesus is Lord" except in the Holy Spirit</b></i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We can no more obey the Lord on our own power than we can leap over the moon. John 6:63 <i>It is the Spirit who gives life; <b>the flesh is no help at all</b>. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life</i>. The Psalmist declared this as well. Psalm 119:32 <i>I will run in the way of your commandments <b>when</b> you enlarge my heart</i>! </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We only obey by the grace of God, when the Spirit of God works in us to empower us to do his will. We should, therefore, seek his grace to understand and obey his law.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Third, the law of God is the direction</b>. It has no power to cause us to obey, and should <b>not</b> be our motivation. When the law of God is our motivation to do something, we have become Pharisees. I am going to church because the law says to... etc...</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Rather, the law of God informs us as to <b>what</b> we should do in light of who Christ is and what he has done for us. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Because of Christ, we should do something. What is it? The law of God teaches us. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">It is a compass that always points in the direction of love, of holiness (in behavior), of peace (of mind), of joy in the Spirit and so on. If it were an app on our phones, we could plug in a situation and the law would tell us what we should do - to be loving, to obtain blessing and peace and joy in the Lord. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">God's law will do this every single time - teach us what the holy, righteous and good thing to do is... It will never lead us to the wrong path. Because of this, the Psalmist loved the law of God. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Psalm 119:97 Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day. 98 Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. 99 I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. 100 I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts. 101 I hold back my feet from every evil way, in order to keep your word. 102 I do not turn aside from your rules, for you have taught me</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Once we look at Christ for motivation, and to the Lord for power (from the Holy Spirit), then we look to the law to see what we should do. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Keeping these three truths straight will give us clarity and help us to live lives in accordance with God's will.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">For <b><i>motivation</i></b> - look at Christ and his works</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">For <b><i>power</i></b> to obey - pray to God to give you strength through the indwelling Holy Spirit</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">For <b><i>direction</i></b> on what to do - look to God's law, which informs us as to what we should do to live and love as Christians</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">May the Lord give us clarity concerning his law today, that we might walk in ways pleasing to him. Amen.</span><br />
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<br />Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-54919668824728665472018-09-30T09:08:00.002-07:002018-09-30T09:08:43.248-07:00The Sabbath and Work<span style="font-size: large;">One of the defining characteristics of the Sabbath is that it is a day without work. The remaining days of the week are there to accomplish all of the good work God gives us to do. </span><div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Exodus 20:9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The first thing we see God doing, in Genesis, is working. He declares it to be work in Genesis 2. God worked for six days. He is a God who works.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Genesis 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God <b>finished his work </b>that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day <b>from all his work that he had done</b>. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested <b>from all his work that he had done in creation</b></i><b>.</b></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Since God is a God who works, when he made man in his image, he gave him work to do. <i><b>Genesis 2:15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it</b>. </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Work not only reflects God's nature (as he is a God who works) but is also something he gave Adam to do before he fell into sin. At this point in history, nothing had been soiled by the fall. Consequently, the work that God gives man to do, in and of itself (and within whatever other boundaries God puts around it in his word) is good. (It is sin that makes this good work difficult.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And in the course of time, which is the seven-day week, God gave man six days to do all of his work. "Six days you shall labor and do all your work." </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">(It should be noted that the only reason we have a seven-day cycle in time, is because of the creation account in Genesis. There is no seven-day cycle associated with or set by the sun, moon, and stars.) </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In this seven-day week, we have six days to work, go shopping, run errands, conduct business, and so on. God graciously gave us these days for this purpose.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It should also be noted that in the Fourth Commandment, nothing is said about the <i>exact</i> days of the week. It does not say, for instance, that the six days of work that we are to do begin on Sunday, or Monday or any other day. Rather, it only says, "six days you shall labor and do all your work."</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">In addition, by adding the phrase, "but the seventh day..." the Lord indicates that the days are in succession. So, one works for six days and then on the seventh day, in succession, he ceases his work. (We hope to cover this in more detail later.) This follows God's pattern of behavior at creation. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is an important distinction because if God said, you shall work for the first six days <i>of the week </i>and then rest on the seventh day <i>of the week</i>, then not only would the pattern of six days of work followed by a day of rest be set, but also which days of the week as well. It would be God's will then for man to work the first six days <i>of the week</i> and then rest on the seventh day <i>of the week</i>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">But the phrase "<i>of the week</i>" is not in the commandment. Therefore, we are not bound by this understanding. (There are more reasons why Saturday is not the Sabbath, and we will address this in future posts.) It is the <i><b>pattern</b></i> of six days of labor followed by a day of rest from labor that we are to follow.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The behavior and teaching of the Apostles and church in the New Testament set the day of rest from labor as the Resurrection Day or the first day of the week. The Sabbath, also called the Lord’s Day, (which is the first day of the week - Matt 28:1, Acts 20:7, 1 Cor 16:1-2, Rev 1:10), is the day set aside by our Lord for the assembling of the church in his presence. This is made evident by the appearances of Christ, the teaching and behavior of the Apostles and the practice of the church. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">With the church resting from its labors on the first day of the week, the six days of labor followed by the seventh day of rest, in succession, is kept.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Sabbath Day then, in part, is a day of rest from the good labor God gives us the other six days. Before the resurrection, this pattern was kept in Israel by their working the first six days of the week and resting on the seventh day. With Christ's resurrection on the first day of the week, the pattern shifted to resting from labor on the first day of the week and working the other six days. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">When we understand that work is a good gift of God and that he gave us six days to accomplish all of it, we can then see the blessing of the Sabbath day - a day of rest from these good labors, a day of refreshment of our minds, hearts, bodies and souls. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Even the Lord benefitted from the Sabbath day. In Exodus 31:17, we are told, "...<i>that in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested <b>and was refreshed</b></i>.'" </span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Let us follow the example and teaching of our Lord, by enjoying the good work he gives us to do for six days, and then enjoying the day of rest from our good work on the Sabbath. </span></div>
Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-45720860453169105882018-09-29T09:18:00.003-07:002018-09-29T09:30:24.984-07:00What about Love?<span style="font-size: large;">J<b>ohn 13:34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another</b>."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Are you a disciple (a learner) of Christ? If we say "yes," then Jesus says that it will proven by our love for other disciples. <b>By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">You see, it's by that standard that we are proven to be disciples of Christ. Do we love our brothers and sisters in Christ?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">John echoed this truth in <i>1 John 4:</i></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i>20 If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">He repeats it in chapter 5, where we see that there are no exceptions to this. <i>1 John 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, <b>and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him</b></i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">So, not only is love important, not only is it something we are commanded to do, it is something that defines us as disciples of Christ. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">(We would do well to remember that disciples are those who believe in Christ, and because of their faith, are made righteous, saved, justified and headed for heaven. Go <a href="https://loveandthelawofgod.blogspot.com/p/were-glad-that-youre-visiting-love-and.html" target="_blank">HERE</a> to read more about this.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>So, what about love?</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Well, if it is what we are commanded to do, and if it defines us as disciples, we should probably know what it means to love our brothers. What does it look like? How do I know for certain if I am loving my brother?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Let's also point out that we won't and can't love apart from God's grace. Only by grace do we do anything Jesus commands us to do. <i>Ps 18:36 You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">How then do we love our brothers? <b>The law of God tells us exactly, every time and in every situation what we should do to love</b>. It is a compass that always points in the direction of love. That's right - the law of God tells us this. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Just a reminder that I am only referring to disciples of Christ who are already justified by faith alone (See Romans 1).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>The law of God informs us as to what the loving thing to do is - in every circumstance</b>. The Psalmist knew this. That's why he declared, "Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors." (Psalm 119:24) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Because the law always informed him of the way that is loving, the Psalmist loved the law of God. <i class="">Psalm</i><i> 119:97 Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day. 98 Your commandment makes me wiser than my enemies, for it is ever with me. 99 I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation. 100 I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts.</i> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">If you're a believer, you should love the law of God too. Do you think that Jesus, the lawgiver (James 4:12), doesn't love his own law? (He does and we'll prove it in posts to come.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">It's a curious thing that many in the church today "love" Jesus, but don't love his law. That's a real problem in the church today (and more on this later too.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Anyway, this role of the law of God (informing us as to the loving thing to do) is important, because, without it, we will quickly substitute our own terms. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">It's the way of our flesh, to do what we think is right. But God wants us to keep his law instead. <i>Prov 21:2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart. 3 To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice</i>. (Doing "righteousness and justice" mean obeying the law of God.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Do you want to love your brethren, truly, sincerely, actually? We should because the word says this - <i>1 John 3:18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The word, "deed" is the Greek word <b><i>ἔργον érgon</i></b>, er'-gon; from a primary (but obsolete) ἔργω érgō (to work); toil (as an effort or occupation); by implication, an act:—deed, doing, labour, work. (Strong's Concordance - taken from <a href="https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=G2041&t=KJV" target="_blank">THIS REFERNCE</a>)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The way to love "in deed" actually, is to keep the law of God towards your brethren. <i>1 John 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, <b>when we love God and obey his commandments</b></i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Now that we have done the work (by grace alone) to be saved (which is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ - see John 6:29), we should do the work of love - which is to keep the law of God. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We need to understand and believe this so that we consult the law of God to figure out what the loving thing to do, and not our own opinions, our own desires, church tradition, culture, habit or anything else. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">You see, it's the law of God which instructs us as to the loving thing to do, if we want to love our brothers in deed and not just in word.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">How often have we uttered, "I love the church" or "I love you brother..." while we are doing something other than what God's law says. This ought not to be. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">If we are disciples of Christ, we must love our brethren - <b>actually and actively</b>. If we don't think we need to do that, we need to hear the gospel again. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">We will fail at this. We will fall short. And thanks be to God that when we do, as believers we are always forgiven (See Acts 10:43). But we should understand that love is not optional. It's not a choice. <b>It's a defining characteristic of disciples.</b> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Let us then get in the habit of seeking counsel from his law. Am I loving my church right now? Am loving my spouse right now? Am I loving my neighbor right now? Am I loving my employer right now? Am I loving my Lord right now? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Well, am I doing what the law says towards them? That's how we know - every time.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Let us understand this clearly. If we are not doing what the law says, we are not loving our brethren - period. Let's not be deceived in that way. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>The only place we can find out how to love our brethren in the way God wants is to consult the law of God.</b> <i>Prov 6:20 My son, keep your father's commandment, and forsake not your mother's teaching. 21 Bind them on your heart always; tie them around your neck. 22 When you walk, they will lead you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; and when you awake, they will talk with you. 23 For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life</i>,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">If we are disciples, we will love our brethren, and that means that we will obey God's law towards them. Let us seek his grace to understand and do that - and so prove to be his disciples.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-37989693332817112612018-09-26T16:54:00.000-07:002018-09-26T16:59:46.262-07:00Fully and Forever Forgiven!<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Acts 10:43 To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">As we look at our lives, we can easily recall things we've done wrong. And the pain that goes with those wrongs is usually not far behind.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Everyone has this - regret. Things we wish we hadn't done or said. We wish we could have them back. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">It gives us no comfort to know that God is perfect in his recall of these very same things. Considering the words we say, the Lord said this, "<i>I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak...</i>" (Matt 12:36)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">And the Bible also tells us that Jesus will be the one judging for all of these things said and done. <i>James 4:12 There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Where can we turn to find relief? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>To the very same one - Jesus Christ!</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Not only is he the righteous judge, he is also the Savior! <i>1 Tim 1:15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Yes he will judge, <b>but he also will save</b>. And for us this is good news - that Christ died for sin, for our sin, for your sin if you believe in him. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">The judge of sin died for sin and when believed, forgives sin.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And if you believe in him, you will be fully and forever forgiven for every single thing you've ever done wrong. You will be forgiven for every careless thought, word and deed. You will be forgiven for every sin committed - (sin is any transgression of or lack of conformity to God's law).</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">This is the testimony of every writer in the Scriptures, from Moses, in Genesis to John in Revelation. <b>Acts 10:43 <i>To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name</i>."</b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Forgiveness is when we are pardoned for any sin committed. The word "forgiveness" in the above verse is the Greek word, which means "pardon." To be pardoned is to be forgiven for an action or offense. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Here it is, see for yourself...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Word: afesij</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Pronounce: af'-es-is</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Strongs Number: G859</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Orig: from 863; freedom; (figuratively) pardon:--deliverance, forgiveness, liberty, remission. G863</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Use: TDNT-1:509,88 Noun Feminine</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Heb Strong: H657 H663 H1865 H2010 H2670 H3104 H5310 H5799 H6388 H8029 H8058</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>1) release from bondage or imprisonment </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>2) forgiveness or pardon, of sins (letting them go as if they had never been committed), remission of the penalty</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Believe in Christ and you have forgiveness of sins. Which sins? All sins! </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Everyone who believes (truly) has forgiveness. It doesn't matter how often you've sinned, how awfully you sinned, whether intentional, by accident, with knowledge or without, no matter how scandalous, no matter how hurtful - if you believe in Christ, you have forgiveness of sins. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">And notice that you have forgiveness. Have faith in Christ? Have forgiveness!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">You are already pardoned - period. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Thanks be to God that the very same judge of sin, died for sin and paid the price for sin, and forgives sin! Jesus Christ is that one.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Believe in him and you <b>are</b> forgiven. Right now! You are pardoned and will never be anything but pardoned. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">What happens if you sin tomorrow (and you will)? Here's your anaswer.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <b style="font-size: x-large;">Acts 10:43 <i>To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name</i>.</b><br />
<b style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></b> <b style="font-size: x-large;">Believe in Christ and you will be fully and forever forgiven!</b><br />
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Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-74309074079660442712018-09-23T09:29:00.000-07:002018-09-23T10:45:07.807-07:00What is the Purpose of the Sabbath Day?<span style="font-size: large;">There is sadly much debate about the Sabbath day today in the church, whether it applies to the church and so on. We will not address the debate yet, but instead simply look at the original purpose stated in Genesis, when it was created by Jesus Christ. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We should remember that fact - that the Sabbath Day <b>was a day created by Jesus Christ</b> for particular purposes. In Mark 2:28, Jesus himself said, "<i>And he said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath</i>." And Paul tells in <i>Col 1:16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through him and for him</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">God made the world in six days. Everything that he was going to create, he did create in those days. And then he created the seventh day.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">On this seventh day (in succession), in Genesis 2, we begin to see the Lord's purpose for this day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Gen 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Before one can draw conclusions about the day (whether it still applies or not), they must first understand the purpose of it. From the above, we see a number of things which teach us God's intent for the Sabbath.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>One, we see that he had been working the first six days.</b> We know this because we are told that the heavens and earth "were finished." By whom were they "finished?" By the Lord. He finished them. He finished "his work that he had done." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Three times were are told that he was working. "God finished his work that he had done..." </span><span style="font-size: large;">And again, "...and </span><span style="font-size: large;">he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. And again, "because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Clearly, one cannot separate the Sabbath day from the fact that it is a cessation of work. In the case of the Lord, it was his work "in creation," that ceased on the Sabbath day. If someone wants to define the Sabbath Day, they must include in it a relationship to work - or they are not referring to the biblical Sabbath.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Two, we see that he rested from the work he had been doing.</b> In fact, two times he tells us he rested from his work. Gen 2:2 ...and he rested on the seventh day from all his work t</span><span style="font-size: large;">hat he had done. 3...because on it God rested from all his work.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">He "rested" on the seventh day, which does not mean that he was tired, but rather that he ceased doing the good work he had been doing the first six days. Moses plainly tells us this, stating that God "rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done."</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Sabbath Day then must a day where the good work that is done the other six days ceases. The word, "rested," literally means to cease. Here is Strong's Concordance's reference:</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Word: ZAY </span>Pronounce:<span style="font-size: large;"> shaw-bath' </span><span style="font-size: large;">Strong: H7673</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Orig: a primitive root; to repose, i.e. desist from exertion; used in many implied relations (causative, figurative or specific):--(cause to, let, make to) cease, celebrate, cause (make) to fail, keep (sabbath), suffer to be lacking, leave, put away (down), (make to) rest, rid, still, take away.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Use: TWOT-2323, 2323c Verb</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Grk Strong: G142 G373 G526 G622 G654 G851 G853 G1587 G2270 G2616 G2618 G2647 G2664 G3870 G3973 G4937</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1) to cease, desist, rest </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1a) (Qal) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1a1) to cease </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1a2) to rest, desist (from labour)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1b) (Niphal) to cease </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c) (Hiphil) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c1) to cause to cease, put an end to </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c2) to exterminate, destroy </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c3) to cause to desist from </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c4) to remove </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c5) to cause to fail </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">2) (Qal) to keep or observe the sabbath</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So, again, any definition of the Sabbath day must include the fact that it is a cessation of work. It is to cease work, to desist or to rest from work.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We might want to briefly include the fact that work was created before the fall by God. It is not the result of the fall. We know this for certainty because God worked in creation before the fall. And when he made Adam, he gave him work to do. <i>Gen 2:15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.</i> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Work is a God-given gift and therefore must be something good. It didn't result from the fall. What did result from the fall was the difficulty, pain, unpleasantness, and sin in work. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Gen 3:17 And to Adam he said, "Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you, 'You shall not eat of it,' cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; 18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field. 19 By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return</i>." </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We will see why we need to make this distinction about work in a few minutes. But let's continue with the purpose of the Sabbath. Here is our passage from Genesis again.</span><br />
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<i style="font-size: x-large;">Gen 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. 2 And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation</i><span style="font-size: large;">.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Three, he blessed the day. </b> Gen 2:</span><i style="font-size: x-large;">3 So God blessed the seventh day. </i><span style="font-size: large;">We've seen that God worked the first six days and that he rested from his work on the seventh day. Now, on top of it being a rest from work, it is a day of blessing. We will write more about this in future posts, but for now, it is enough to know that God intended the day to be a blessing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This was Jesus' meaning when he was attacked by the Pharisees in Mark 2, when he said, "<i>The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath</i>." It was made for man, meaning for the benefit of man or the well-being of man. It was meant to be a blessing to man. This is why Jesus had no problems healing one person after another on the day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Hardly could God's mercy and grace upon suffering souls, by healing them, be considered a violation of his own law. The Pharisees, who in large part were not believers, and did not have the Holy Spirit, could not possibly understand the law or the day properly. <i>For we know that the law is spiritual.</i> (Romans 7:14) But this too is another topic for another day. God blessed the Sabbath day which he made, intending it to be a blessing to man.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Four, he made the day "holy."</b> </span><i style="font-size: x-large;">3 So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy." </i><span style="font-size: large;">The word "holy" means to be "set apart." Here is Strong's reference to this word </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Word: YCW Pronounce</span>:<span style="font-size: large;"> kaw-dash' </span><span style="font-size: large;">Strong: H6942</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Orig: a primitive root; to be (causatively, make, pronounce or observe as) clean (ceremonially or morally):--appoint, bid, consecrate, dedicate, defile, hallow, (be, keep) holy(-er, place), keep, prepare, proclaim, purify, sanctify(-ied one, self), X wholly.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1) to consecrate, sanctify, prepare, dedicate, be hallowed, be holy, be sanctified, be separate </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1a) (Qal) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1a1) to be set apart, be consecrated </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1a2) to be hallowed </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1a3) consecrated, tabooed </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1b) (Niphal) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1b1) to show oneself sacred or majestic </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1b2) to be honoured, be treated as sacred </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1b3) to be holy </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c) (Piel) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c1) to set apart as sacred, consecrate, dedicate </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c2) to observe as holy, keep sacred </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c3) to honour as sacred, hallow </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1c4) to consecrate </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1d) (Pual) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1d1) to be consecrated </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1d2) consecrated, dedicated </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1e) (Hiphil) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1e1) to set apart, devote, consecrate </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1e2) to regard or treat as sacred or hallow </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1e3) to consecrate </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1f) (Hithpael) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1f1) to keep oneself apart or separate </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1f2) to cause Himself to be hallowed (of God) </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1f3) to be observed as holy </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">1f4) to consecrate oneself</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">To make the day "holy" means to sanctify it, to set it apart from the other days. It is a day that is set aside from the other days, not simply to rest from labor, but to be blessed by God and enjoy him. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Consider carefully now this question. <b>Is there anything better in life than enjoying Jesus Christ? </b>You must seriously consider and answer this question if you are to understand the purpose of the Sabbath day. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In sum, the purpose of the Sabbath Day, from the beginning, was to have a day <b>free of the good labor God gives us the other six days</b>, to enjoy Jesus Christ, and be blessed by him. It is a day free of labor and earthly pursuits, so that we may set our minds and hearts and behavior fully upon our Lord, who is both worthy of it, and desires it from us. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">This is stated more definitively in Isaiah 58 as follows,</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Isaiah 58:13 "If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your pleasure on my holy day, <b>and call the Sabbath a delight</b> and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, or seeking your own pleasure, or talking idly; 14 then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken."</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Once we understand the purpose of the Sabbath, we can understand the Fourth Commandment properly. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">God gives us six days to complete the good work he has given us to do. But the seventh day (in succession) is a day of rest from that good labor. It is a day set apart from the others, to worship and enjoy the Lord. See now the Fourth Commandment through this lens. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Exodus 20:8 "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. 11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">From the beginning, the Sabbath was intended to be a blessing to man, whereby he could cease from his good (but now difficult) labor, to enjoy and be blessed by his Lord and Savior. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">In the future, we hope to explain the above truths in more detail, that you would see the Sabbath Day for what it was and is - a wonderful gift of God to his people, for their joy, their strength and encouragement, and their love. </span><br />
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Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-47537146675324920052018-09-22T08:40:00.001-07:002018-09-22T08:40:08.806-07:00What Would Jesus Do?<span style="font-size: large;">Remember WWJD? What would Jesus do? It was a slogan we heard a few years back; we saw it on hats and t-shirts and such. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">But have you ever thought about it? What would Jesus do?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Bible supplies the clear answer, which is this - he would keep his Law!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">No doubt about it, what Jesus would do is obey his own law, and that is in fact what he did. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Heb 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, <b>but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin</b>. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Sin is any transgression of God's law (1 John 3:4). Jesus never sinned, which means what he always did was keep his law.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">And thanks be to God that he did. Because he kept the law perfectly, he was qualified to be our sin-bearer. Also, his perfect keeping of his law (or his righteous behavior) was put on to our account the moment God saved us. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The righteousness that we now have, in position, by faith alone, is the righteous deeds of Christ. He took on our sin. We took on his righteousness by grace. <i>2 Cor 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God</i>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We can rejoice because God looks at us and sees Christ's perfect obedience to the law. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">WWJD? The answer is the law of God. And because of that, we may stand before the Lord. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><i>Isaiah 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. </i></span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-34150765033092743072018-09-18T16:00:00.004-07:002018-09-18T16:00:51.485-07:00The Law of God is a Compass (Part 1)<span style="font-size: large;">A compass is defined as an instrument containing a magnetized pointer that shows the direction of magnetic north and bearings from it (Google Dictionary). No matter where you are in the world, or whatever circumstances, it will always point north.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The law of God is like that as well. It obviously doesn't point north, but it does point in certain directions all of the time, no matter where we are in life, or in whatever circumstance we are in presently. We can depend on it to give us the correct spiritual heading every time. And as will be shown, this can be quite the blessing. We are, of course, referring to the Moral Law of God. (Go here to see why.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Now the law of God does not save or it does not have power to save. But for the believer, the one already justified by faith, it is amazingly beneficial. Let's see how.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The law of God is a compass that always points in the direction of happiness and blessing. Psalm 119:1 Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD! The word "blessed" is also translated "happy." It is a blessing of God to walk in his ways, and apart from his grace, we would never do so. John 15:5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Any time, and every time, we obey the Lord, it is due in whole to the grace of God. Our flesh is not only no help at all, it is actually opposed to the law of God (Romans 7:18). But when we do obey the Lord, by grace, the Lord bestows blessings upon us. As we will see below, we will have the blessings of love, great peace, safety and delight. As these blessings are all promised and clearly stated in God's word, we can rest assured that the path to these blessings will always be in the direction the law of God is pointing.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Take any situation in life, and the law of God addresses it in some way. Either in command or in principle, it tells us what is the holy, righteous and good thing to do (Romans 7:12). And as we have the declaration from Psalm 119:1 shown above, we can rest assured that it is telling us the way to be blessed in the situation we are in at the moment - every time.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The law of God will never be wrong, will never mislead us, will never lie to us, will never point us in the wrong direction. What a blessing it is that the Lord gave us his law, not to save us by it, but to show us (as justified believers) how we ought to live in a fallen, sinful world. No wonder David rejoiced in the law of God. <i>Psalm 119:24 Your testimonies are my delight; they are my counselors</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-68390160603726770372018-09-17T18:35:00.000-07:002018-09-17T18:35:00.794-07:00If it pleases the Lord...<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Psalm 135:6 Whatever the LORD pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps. </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Due to some recent trials, I was reminded of this truth - that God does whatever pleases him on earth. This includes whatever happens in our lives.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Having the comfort of knowing that God uses all things to mold us into his image (which is the good Paul is referring to in Romans 8:28-29), we should remember this...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Whatever happens in our lives is what pleases the Lord. It might encourage us to remember this before grumbling.</span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-22202735424932050362018-09-16T11:29:00.002-07:002018-09-16T19:01:19.841-07:00Glad in the House of the Lord<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Ps 122:1 I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the LORD!" </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We should be very happy to go to the house of the Lord, which is to say the public assemblies of our church. And we should be happy when encouraged to do so.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">The psalmist was. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So many reasons for this, but here are just a few.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">1. <b>Jesus is there</b>. <i>Matt 18:20 For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">2. <b>He wants us there</b>. Song of Solomon 2:14 <i>O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the crannies of the cliff, let me see your face, let me hear your voice, for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely.</i> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">3. <b>We have been made acceptable to be there (which cost Jesus his life and torment on the cross)</b>. <i>1 Peter 2:5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.</i> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">4. <b>He intends to bless us while we are there</b>. Psalm 36:8 <i>They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">5. <b>There is no better place to be in the world</b>. <i>Psalm 84: 10 For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness. </i></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">6. <b>Our brothers and sisters, who we are to love with our very lives, will be there</b>. <i>Psalm 116</i>:<i>12 What shall I render to the LORD for all his benefits to me? 13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD, 14 I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">7. <b>We get to praise and thank God for all that he has done for us</b>. <i>1 Peter 2:5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ</i>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">8. <b>We enter the holiest place every time we assemble and for as long as we are assembled - a very rare privilege</b>. <i>Heb 10:19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water</i>. </span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5723057936693799206.post-91234390513930700302018-09-15T16:59:00.002-07:002018-09-16T11:02:59.869-07:00Why Love and the Law of God?<b><span style="font-size: large;">Why are we creating a blog about <span style="color: #b45f06;">Love and the Law of God?</span></span></b><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Simply because love and the law are inseparable. </span><span style="font-size: large;">If you consider this for a few minutes, we think you'll agree. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Before we get started, and to avoid confusion, we need to separate the doctrine of <i><b>how</b></i> we should love God and others from <b>our ability</b> to do so. <b>These are two separate issues</b>. The first is <b>what</b> are to do to love God and others (and what that means). The second is <b>how</b> we only love God and others. (The answer is that we only obey <b>when by grace alone he empowers us.)</b> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">We also need to say that loving God and others, or obeying his law, <b><u>comes only after</u> <u>a person is saved by grace alone</u>, through faith alone, in Christ alone, by hearing the Scriptures alone, to the glory of God alone.</b> We are saved, made righteous in position, justified, forgiven all by faith in Christ alone, apart from works of the law. <i>Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. </i><b><u>We don't believe in works salvation as this is taught nowhere in Scripture</u></b><i>. </i></span><span style="font-size: large;">More on this later.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Justification is one thing. Obeying God <b>as a justified believer</b> is another. Both are by grace, but they are two different things. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">OK, so why do we believe love and the law of God are inseparable?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>First, consider that God IS LOVE!</b> <i>1 John 4:8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, <b>because God is love.</b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span> <span style="font-size: large;">He doesn't just love, he doesn't just show love; he isn't just loving in his nature - he IS LOVE! He is love itself. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><b>Second, since he is love, any command of his must be loving.</b> It must be the loving thing to do. A simple question will make this clear. If God is love, is there any way he could command his people to do something (morally), which is not loving?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Imagine the Lord commanding us to do something that is not loving.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Of course, he wouldn't do this. In fact, he commands us to "<i><b>Owe no one anything, except to love each other,</b> for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. </i>" (Romans 13:8) In other words - always and only do the loving thing to others. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">If you love someone, you're fulfilling the law, meaning you are fulfilling what the law requires to do. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Putting it another way, Jesus said that the whole law is summarized by the two love commandments - love God and love your neighbor as yourself. This is found in Matt 22 as follows:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Matt 22:34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" 37 And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 <b>On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets</b>."</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">What he meant by this is simple. The whole law of God - every commandment, every statute, every righteous rule towards God and every one towards our neighbor <b>is summarized</b> by the two love commandments. Note that these two don't replace, <b>but simply summarize the whole law</b>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">In the passage in Romans 13 noted above, Jesus said the same thing.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet," and any other commandment, <b><u>are summed up in this word</u></b>: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." <b>10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law</b>.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">In other words, if you keep the commandments towards your neighbor, you are loving your neighbor. Pretty simple and true!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Need more convincing (there's plenty of it in Scripture)? How do we know if we are loving God and our neighbor? The Apostle John told us in 1 John 5 as follows,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;"><i>1 John 5:2 <b>By this we know that we love the children of </b><b>God</b>, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome</i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">How do we love God? By keeping his commandments. How do we love our neighbor? By keeping his commandments towards our neighbor.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Need more? Jesus put it this way. John 14:15 <i>If you love me, you will keep my commandments. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-size: large;">We love God when we keep his commandments.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">More proof? How did Jesus show that he loved his father? He obeyed his Father. He declared this in the same chapter. <i>John 14:31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, <b>so that the world may know that I love the Father</b></i>. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">Now, of course, we are equating the Lord's commandments with his law. We'll show later why we do this, but to not do this simply plunges the believer into confusion. His law is the collection of all that he requires of us as believers, everything from not having idols to being a cheerful giver. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span> <span style="font-size: large;">God is love. He commands us to love. <b>What</b> he commands is loving - always. This is what we hope to prove to you, so that you will, like David, like Paul, and like the Lord Jesus Christ, see the law of God for what it is for believers - a roadmap on how to love God and our neighbor. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>Great Commission Reformed Church AZhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00589240802958203606noreply@blogger.com0