Tag Archives: Word

How the Spirit Gives Testimony to the Word

09 Sunday Feb 2020

Posted by in Herman Bavinck, Scripture, Uncategorized

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But that must not be understood as if we blindly submit to a thing that is unknown to us. No; we are conscious that in Scripture we possess unassailable truth and feel that “the undoubted power of his divine majesty lives and breathes there,” a power by which we are drawn, knowingly and willingly, yet vitally and effectively, to obey him.60 Calvin knew that in this doctrine of the testimony of the Holy Spirit he was not describing some private revelation but the experience of all believers.61 Nor was this testimony of the Holy Spirit isolated from the totality of the work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of believers but integrally united with it. By it alone the entire church originates and exists. The entire application of salvation is a work of the Holy Spirit; and the witness to Scripture is but one of many of his activities in the community of believers. The testimony of the Holy Spirit is not a source of new revelations but establishes believers in relation to the truth of God, which is completely contained in Scripture. It is he who makes faith a sure knowledge that excludes all doubt.

60 J. Calvin, Institutes, I.vii; Commentary on 2 Tim. 3:16. Ed. note: Bavinck again refers to the literature he cites in par. 21 in Gereformeerde Dogmatiek, which is given above in n. 58.

61 Ibid., I.vii.5. Erasmus also affirms that it is especially the Spirit of Christ who, by his secret working, communicates unwavering certainty to the human mind.” Cf. Martin Schulze, Calvins Jenseitschristemtum in seinem Verhältnisse zu den religiösen Schriften des Erasmus (Görlitz: Rudolf Dulfer, 1902), 54.

 Herman Bavinck, John Bolt, and John Vriend, Reformed Dogmatics: Prolegomena, vol. 1 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003), 583–584.

The Church is Logocentric

02 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by in Acts, Ecclesiology, Ministry, P.T. Forsyth

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(This is the third lesson in the series “The Church and Discipleship”. The previous lesson can be found here: https://memoirandremains.wordpress.com/2013/09/24/the-church-is-doxological-3/

The church is to be centered on this inspired sufficient, necessary, truthful, clear authoritative, and productive Word of God. As P.T. Forsyth urged “If we are not going to use our Bibles, it is of no use building our Churches.” …Paul emphasizes the preaching of good news (vv. 14-16) because “faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ” (v. 17). Accordingly, Forsyth exhorts the church: “Our first business is neither to gather men nor to move them but to preach in the speech of our time …the universal and moving Gospel. Let it gather them, and let it stir them. The first condition of a true revival is a sound Gospel. To revive the Church revive its Gospel as given once for all in its Bible.”  –Allison, 114-115

Introduction.

The trouble:  Sin has created great trouble in the world. Indeed, all our troubles ultimately stem from sin. First, we may sin. Second, we may be sinned against. Third, we will suffer the effects the sin in the world.  (Genesis 3:8-24 explains how sin is the origin of the categories of trouble we face in this world: shame, 3:8, division in relationships, 3:12-13, 16b; spiritual conflict, 3:14-15; physical pain, disease, death, 3:16a, 19; the decay of nature, 3:17-18; pain of labor, 3:117-19; conflict with nature, 3:17-19; loss of communion with God, 3:8-10, 22-24; the loss of Eden, 3:22-24. In Romans 8:18-25, Paul ties together the decay of nature and human sin, together with the restoration of nature and the completed adoption of those redeemed by God.

A.      Culture and civilization seek to respond to the effect of sin.  Consider the purpose of 1) police, 2) fire, 3) doctors, 4) psychologists, 5) lawyers, 6) government of any sort, 7) artists.  In a related manner, there is entertainment, intoxicants, and sexual immorality which dull the pain of the trouble of the world.

B.      The desire to help and alleviate suffering and to make another happy can often lead the Christian into poor choices.

1.   Example: A couple comes to you and says, We have a poor marriage. Please help us.

a.   The “normal” response will be do whatever seems like it will work to help them be “happy”. The focus will be upon techniques. The goal will be to achieve some emotional state.

b.   What is “good” in the normal response?

c.   What is the danger in the normal response? What is the actual trouble in the marriage? Symptom and disease.

2.   Example: Same couple, different advice.

a.   Instruct them to obey the marriage commands (Eph. 5:22-33; 1 Pet. 3:1-7).

b.   What is not contained in the marriage commands per se? How does one relate these commands to Matthew 10:35-39.

3.   What is the “good” in Romans 8:28? Look to the context: Romans 8:18-39. How does the passage begin and end? How is “good” defined in 8:29?

4.   What is the goal of the Christian life? Matthew 28:19-20; Colossians 1:28.

5.   What is the goal of God in his work with the Christian (church)? Ephesians 1:16-23; 2:10; 3:14-19; 5:1-2.

6.   What is the goal of suffering? 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

7.   What is the result of suffering? 1 Peter 1:6-8

8.   What is the good of suffering? 1 Peter 4:12-19

9.   Compare and contrast the difference in counseling and discipleship between the “normal” model and a model based upon Scripture.

10. We will be tempted to respond to the trouble caused by sin in ways that reflect our desire to feel good immediately and to relieve pain (the effects of sin) without removing the sin and without seeking God’s glory. The only way we will be able to properly respond will be by being anchored in Scripture, living by Scripture and instructing from Scripture.

11. In short, the Church–to be a Church faithful to the Lord’s command to make disciples– must be centered upon the Word of God.

12. Read Psalm 135:15-18. If one is not following after the Lord’s instruction, then what must be the source of the instructions which we follow and repeat? 1 Jn. 5:19. Now what is the effect of following such instruction (see Psalm 135; 115).

 

Part One: General Observations on the Word of God.

I.          Genesis establishes the pattern of God’s interaction with human beings. While God performs various actions, he frames and explains his work by means of speaking to human beings.

 

A.   The command to Adam Genesis 2:15-17;

B.   God responding to the primal sin: Genesis3:8-19

C. Counsels and punishes Cain: Genesis 4:1-15

D. Commands and makes promises to Abraham: Genesis 12:1-3

E.   Makes a covenant with Abraham: Genesis 15

F.   Makes covenant of circumcision and promises (again) Abraham a son: Genesis 17

G. Announces the coming birth of Isaac. Genesis 18:1-15.

H. Speaks with Abraham about Sodom: Genesis 18:16-33

I.    Makes promises to Isaac: Genesis 26:1-5

J.   Makes promises to Jacob: Genesis 28:10-17.

K.   Changes Jacob’s name: Genesis 32:26-29; 35:9-12.

 

II.         When God concerns himself with human beings and seeks to change them, he speaks to them.

A.   God creates Israel by means of words. Deuteronomy 4, particularly 2, 6-8 & 12; Psalm 18:13.

B.   God counsels, corrects and encourages Israel by means of words. Ezekiel 2; Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 81:11.

C.        God warns and instructs those outside of Israel by means of words. Exodus 3:16-17; Jonah 1:1-2

Questions: Why does God place such an emphasis on the fact of speaking to human beings? Why could God just not stay silent and act? Think about the fact that God is a Trinity. What do persons do?  Think of our normal human interaction: How can one human convey that which is his soul into the soul of another human being? Think about love and hatred: how are these responses bound up with the nature of speaking? What is God seeking to do? When you look at the list above which sets out the destruction caused by sin, note that sin is atomizing: it tears and breaks relationships between human beings and God, between human beings, between human beings and the rest of nature, between human beings and work, between human beings and their own body. How does speech respond to the nature and effects of sin?

 

III.        God works in the world by means of speech.

A.   The world was created by speech. Genesis 1; Hebrews 1:2; John 1:1-2; Colossians 1:16.

B.   The world is sustained by speech. Hebrews 1:3; Colossians 1:17.

C. The power of God in creating is the same power which brings about salvation. 2 Corinthians 4:1-6.

D. Psalm 29.

 

IV.        The happiness of the human being lies in the word of God.

A.   The blessed man delights in the word of God. Psalm 1:1a & 2.

B.   The transformation and blessing of a human being comes from the word of God. Psalm 19:7-9

Aspect

Adjective

Result

Law

Perfect

Reviving the soul

Testimony

Sure

Making wise the simple

Precepts

Right

Rejoicing the heart

Commandments

Pure

Enlightening the eyes

Fear (Prov. 2:1-5)

Clean

Enduring forever

Rules/decrees

True

Righteous altogether

 

C. The blessings of God’s wisdom all come from listening to wisdom: Proverbs 1:20-33; 2. Et cetera.

1.   What does it mean to trust in the Lord with all your heart? Proverbs 3:5-7. How does this relate to the word of God? What would it mean to be “wise in your own eyes?”

2.  Read Proverbs 4:20-27: What would constitute the means and source by which one would “guard the heart”?  Look at the flow of the argument: what must be done immediately prior to the command to “keep your heart”?

D. How does Psalm 119 correlate, hearing (and related responses) in the word of God and change:

Verse

Command

Result

1

Walk in the law of the Lord

Blessed

2

Keep his testimonies

Blessed

6

Eyes fixed on commandments

Not ashamed

9

Guard life according to word

Purity

11

Stored up word

Not to sin

22

Keep testimonies

No scorn or contempt

42

Trust in your word

Answer for those who taunt (see 1 Peter 3:15)

45

Sought your precepts

Walk in a wide place

50

Hope in promise

Comfort in afflictions

52

Think of your rules

Take comfort

56

Keep your precepts

Blessing

92

Delighting in law

Did not perish in afflictions

93

Not forget your precepts

Received life

98

Commandments is with me

Makes me wiser than my enemies

99

Testimonies are my meditation

Wiser than my teachers

100

Keep your precepts

Understand more than the aged

102

I was taught your rules

I do not turn aside

104

Receive understanding from precepts

Hate every false way

105

(106: Keep your righteous rules)

A light and a lamp

114

Hope in your word

God a hiding place and shield

127-8

Lover your commandments/consider your precepts to be right

Hate every false way

163

Love your law

Hate and abhor falsehood

165

Love your law

Great peace

Do not stumble

171

God teaches me statutes

Praise pours forth

 

E.   One could also study the nature of prayers which come about as a result of hearing the word of God.  See, e.g., Psalm 119:5,10, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25, 26, et cetera.

F.   The act of hearing the word of God leads to a greater level of desire and trust for God’s word. See, e.g., Psalm 119:7, 12, 13, 14, 16, 20, 23, 24, 29, et cetera.

 

 

V.         The Word of God is Both Authoritative and Powerful

A.   God’s word has power over the natural world. 

1.  Creation: Genesis 1:3; Romans 4:17; Psalm 3:6 & 9.

2.  Providence; Hebrews 1:1-3; Psalm 147:15-18; 148:7-8.

B.   God deals with human beings by the power of his word.

1.   Judgment: Psalm 46:6; Joel 2:11.

2.  Salvation: Romans 10:5-17.

3.  Healing: Mark 1:41, 3:5; John 11:43.

C. John Frame The Doctrine of the Word of God:

The power of the word brings wonderful blessings to those who hear it in faith with a disposition to obey. But it hardens those who hear it with indifference resistance, rebellion. In considering this biblical teaching, I often warn my seminary students to pay heed to what God is telling us here. For seminarians typically spend two or more years intensively studying Scripture. It is so important that they hear in faith, lest the Word actually harden their hearts and become a fire of judgment to them. God’s Word never leaves us the same. We hear it for better or worse. So we should never hear or read God’s Word merely as an academic exercise. We must ask God to open our heart, that the Word may be written on them as well as in our heads. (52).

D. God’s Word is Authoritative.

1.   John Frame explains that God’s Word “creates obligations in the hearer. God’s language is authoritative not only in telling us what to believe and do, but in directing our emotions, our preoccupations, our priorities, our joys and sorrows. That is to say, God’s words are authoritative in all the ways that language can be authoritative and their authority is ultimate. (Doctrine of the Word of God, 54).

2.   Frame makes the further observation that since the entire universe exists in the context of God’s Word (both creating and upholding), “the world as a whole is meaningful, its meaning determined by God’s plan” (56). Therefore, “Everything that human beings do or say is a response to God’s Word or a consequence of their response” (56).

 

E.   God’s Word is Distablizing:

Of course the Word of God not only stands against false teachers and their false teachings, it stands over against disobedience faithlessness pride underdevelopment legalism selfishness, xenophobia lethargy and other sins of the church and its members. Appropriately the Bible is “our adversary”; it always confronts with existential demands for reformation. As John Webster notes “Scripture is as much a de-stabilizing feature of the church as it a factor in its cohesion and continuity. Gathered as the community of the Word, the Church draws life and sustenance from Scripture in its midst but it also receives conviction and rebuke from Scripture as it journeys on a pilgrim path that needs constant redirecting in order for the church to reach its ultimate destination. Allison, 115.

 

Part Two: The Church Was Begun and Sustained by the Word Proclaimed:

I.          Pre-Resurrection Reliance on the Word

A.   John the proclaimed repentance and pointed toward Jesus coming. Mark 1:4-8.

B.   Jesus wards off the attacks of Satan by the Word of God. Luke 4:1-12

C. Jesus began his ministry proclaiming the kingdom of God. Mark 1:14-15; Luke 4:16-19

D. Jesus’ words are the words of life and truth

1.   John 6:66-69.

2.   John 17:3, 6-9, 17-19.

E.   Jesus speaks with authority: His words are effective: See, e.g., Luke 7:1-10; Mark 1:21-28; 40-41; 2:1-12 [forgiveness & healing]; 3:1-6.

II.         Jesus’ commands to the church

A.   The Great Commission. Matthew 28:19-20: Teach them Jesus’ words.

B.   The command to be witnesses of Jesus. Acts 1:8

C. One’s well being and life depend completely upon keeping Jesus’ words.  Matthew 7:24-27 [note vv. 28-29]; Luke 6:46-49.

 

III.        The Word of God Creates and Sustains the Church (Acts)

A.   The Holy Spirit gave the initial utterance of the church. “As the Spirit gave them utterance” (Acts 2:4). The crowd came drawn by the words.  Peter filled with the Spirit stood in their midst and preached. At the end of the sermon we read

So those who received his word were baptized. Acts. 2:41

In Acts 3 we read of a man healed at the Gate Beautiful, entering in the Temple. A crowd again comes and so Peter preaches. The priests and Sadducees became 

2 greatly annoyed because [Peter was] teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. Acts 4:2 (ESV)

So they arrested Peter and the others, leaving in jail them for the evening. Now, you might think this would end the trouble. But what the leaders did not realize is that the word was the trouble – not the apostles. The apostles merely proclaimed the Word. The Word kept working even when the Apostles could not:

4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand. Acts 4:4 (ESV)

The Apostles were soon reason. When the church gathered, they prayed:

29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, Acts 4:29 (ESV)

In verse 31, we read that

They were filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. Acts 4:31 (ESV).

Do you see the pattern? The Spirit comes. Their hearts are filled with words and they speak. Those Spirit wrought words which are heard and men and women are transformed.

The enemies of the gospel did not understand the working of the Spirit and Word. Acts 5 records yet another incident of prison. This time, an angel comes and rescues them with this command:

20 “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.” Acts 5:20 (ESV)

Acts 6:2: The Apostles would not give up their primary task of “preaching the word of God.”

Acts 6:7: “And the word of God continued to increase”.

Acts 8:4: “Those who were scattered went about preaching the word.”

Acts 10:36: God sent the word to Israel.

Acts 11:1:  “The Gentiles had also received the word of God.”

Acts 12:24: “But the word of God increased and multiplied.”

Acts 13:5: When Barnabas and Saul arrived in Cyprus, “they proclaimed of word of God.”

Acts 13:16: Paul preached at Pisidia.

Acts 13:45-52: Paul brings the word of God to the Gentiles.

Acts 14:3: “So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.”

Acts 14:24: They spoke the word in Perga.

Acts 15:7: Peter refers to his work of bringing the word to the Gentiles.

Acts 15:36: Paul references the churches as “where we proclaimed the word of the Lord.”

Acts 16:32: When they are brought to the Philippians jailer, “they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who in his house.”

Acts 17:11: The Bereans “received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”

Acts 18:5: Paul was “occupied with the word.”

Acts 19:10: Paul continued in Ephesus for two years, “so that all the residents of Asia heard the world of the Lord.”

Acts 19:20: “So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.”

Acts 20:32: “And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.”

 

B.   The Church’s first actions were based on and flowed out of their continuance on the Apostles Doctrine. Acts 2:42-47

42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

 

IV.        The Epistles Demonstrate Reliance Upon the Power of the Word

A.   The mere fact that we have letters, words given by God demonstrates the reliance of God and the apostles upon words which are the Word.

B.   References in Paul’s letters to the churches:

Romans 1:16-17; Romans 10:11-17; Romans 16:25; 1 Corinthians 1:17-18; 1 Corinthians 2:1-5; 2 Corinthians 5:16-21; Galatians 1:6-9; Galatians 1:16; 1 Thessalonians 1:8; 1 Thessalonians 1:5

      Pastorals

1 Timothy 1:3; 1 Timothy 3:2/4:17; 1 Timothy 4:1; 1 Timothy 4:6-11; 1 Timothy 6:2b-3; 1 Timothy 6:20; Titus 1:2-3; Titus 1:9; Titus 1:10-11; Titus 3:8-9; 2 Timothy 1:13-14; 2 Timothy 2:14-17; 2 Timothy 3:14-17; 2 Timothy 4:1-4

      General Epistles

Hebrews 4:12-13; James 1:21; 1 Peter 1:10-12; 1 Peter 1:22-25; 2 Peter 1:16-22; 1 John 1:1-4; Revelation 2-3; Revelation 22:18-19

 

V.         The Scriptures Include the Old and New Testament:

A.   Christians are not to disregard the Old Testament Scripture.

1.   Christians sometimes deal with the Old Testament by simply disregarding it altogether.

a.   Marcion:  (c. A.D. 100–165). Early Christian heretic. Marcion, an early church leader in Rome, was expelled from the church around A.D. 144 because of his rejection of the OT, his unorthodox views of God and the contradictions that he saw between the OT and the NT. Marcion prefaced his edition of the Scriptures with a series of Antitheses, which set out the incompatibility of law and gospel and the differences between the nature of God in the OT and NT. His list of ten of Paul’s letters (in which he calls Ephesians “the epistle to the Laodiceans”) is the earliest list known today.[1]

2.   There Christians seemingly reject the Old Testament as having anything directly to say to Christians: That is all “Old Covenant” and thus does not apply.  “That is ‘law.’”

3.   Such overt rejection is decidedly unbiblical.

a.   Jesus affirmed the Old Testament was about him. Luke 24:27.

b.   Paul repeatedly affirmed the Old Testament Scriptures for Christian use:

i.    His argument of the nature of saving faith in Romans 1-4 is based upon his exegesis of the Old Testament.

ii.    Romans 15:4

iii.   When Paul speaks of how we are to live as New  Covenant believers he quotes the Old Testament and refers to it as promises: 2 Corinthains 6:14-7:1.

iv. Paul develops his doctrine of salvation by faith based upon a reading of the Old Testament. Galatians 3-4.

v.   Paul quotes the Fifth Commandment as direction to Christian parents. Ephesians 6:2-3. Paul even quotes the promise which goes with the commandment’s obedience.

vi. Paul quotes the Deuteronomy 25:4 when he gives direction on how a pastor is to be treated by a congregation. 1 Timothy 5:17-18.

vii. Paul refers to Timothy’s familiarity with the Old Testament writings which “are able to make you wise unto salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.” 2 Timothy 3:15. In fact, the famous statement in 2 Timothy 3:16-17 of all Scripture being breathed out by God comes in the context of Timothy’s familiarity with the Old Testament.

B.   Christians Must Recognize That There has Been a Change in Covenants.

1.   There are some Christians who think that the Old Testament must be directly applied to both Christians and the government.

2.   However, there has been a change of covenants with the coming of Christ. The book of Hebrews lays this out at length.   An interesting thing to note is that bringing the new covenant did not lessen the standard for sin or holiness – just the opposite. William Barrick in his article, “The Mosaic Covenant” TMSJ 10/2 (Fall 1999) 213-232, explains:

3.   Thirdly, no covenant superseded or nullified any previous covenant (cf. Gal 3:17-19). Each covenant advanced the previous without abrogating it. This is part and parcel of the process of progressive revelation. Thus, when the Mosaic Covenant was established at Mt. Sinai, it did not nullify the Abrahamic Covenant. 

And:

Abrogation of the Mosaic Covenant. To abrogate means “to abolish or annul by authority.” In Hebrews 7:11-28 several principles are enunciated:

(1) Mosaic Law could not perfect the believer in his or her relationship to God(7:11).

(2) A change (:…, metathesis) has taken place in the Law of Moses (7:12).

(3) The ordinance or commandment regarding the priesthood under the Law has been set aside (•…, 7:18).

(4) The reason for the change in the ordinance of the priesthood is related to the New Covenant which is better than the Mosaic Covenant (7:22).

(5) The change provided an unchangeable priesthood (7:24).

The Messianic force of this particular context fits well with the overall focus of the Epistle to the Hebrews: Why would any Hebrew Christian ever consider returning to the levitical system which was about to be replaced? It was merely the prophetic shadow (Col 2:17; Heb 8:5), the preparation for the better covenant.

A change did take place which prepared the way for the subsequent covenant, but it was not an abolishing of the entire Mosaic Covenant. Just as dietary ordinances were altered from covenant to covenant without abolishing the preceding covenants, so also the priesthood ordinance was changed without abolishing the previous covenant.

The matter of abrogating Mosaic Law is unrelated to the topic of salvation because salvation has never been by means of keeping the Law (Rom 3:20). Whether the Law has been abrogated or not, the NT clearly declares that the believer is not under the Mosaic Law (Rom 6:14-15; Gal 5:18; 1 Cor 9:20). Indeed, the stipulations of the Mosaic Law have been replaced with the stipulations of “the perfect law of liberty” (Jas 1:25), “the royal law” (2:8). It is far more strict in its righteousness than the Mosaic Law (cf. Matt 5:19-48). (233)

C. Christians Must Learn to Rightly Understand and Use the Old Testament.

1.   One way that Christians have understood the use of the Old Testament is by dividing the law into “moral, ceremonial, and civil”. They see the “moral” law as continuing with the ceremonial and the civil being set aside.

2.  Another way Christians understand the relationship is by stating that the Christian is bound by the “law of Christ” which is all commandments that appear in the New Testament. Sometimes the command is explicitly repeated (such as the command to honor parents). Sometimes the command is incorporated by reference, such as the command in James 1:27 to “visit” the widow and orphan. This command specifically picks up on the substantial OT teaching concerning the fatherless and is implicit in James’ command (Moo, James, 97). Accordingly, at the very least, the OT commands have been brought forward by James. “James echoes not only the approach of the Hebrew prophets to these issues, he also reflects his brother’s vital concerns, with the poor (here represented by ‘orphans and widows’) being the ones in 2:5 who are rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom” (Varner, James, 82).

3.   Both of these approaches arrive at substantially the same place (the doctrine of the Sabbath being the most fundamental difference in terms of how to understand the Old Testament directives concerning sin as being related to the New Testament believer). What was sin under the Old Testament remains sin under the New. Indeed the promise of the New Covenant was to “put my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts” (Hebrews 8:10). The most fundamental difference between the covenants has to do with how one responds to the law: the civil law and temple work. Jesus explained that the law was summed up with the commands familiar to all Christians:

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 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:34–40 (ESV)

The various actions prescribed by the Mosaic Law were means of demonstrating both love toward God and love to neighbor.

That being so, we cannot disregard the Mosaic law nor the Old Testament – even though we must be careful in our application of various provisions. We do not read of the sacrificial system so that we can make a sacrifice but rather so that we can understand the sacrifice of Christ. Likewise we do not read of how one must care for the sojourner say that care for the poor has no claim upon now. As Dr. Barrick concludes in his article:

At the death of Christ the Temple curtain in front of the inner sanctuary was torn from top to bottom (Matt 27:51), indicating that the Savior had opened direct access to God (Heb 10:20). The NT believer is “free from the Law” (Rom 7:3; 8:2; Gal 5:1). Walter Kaiser warns Christians about “hiding behind the stipulatory covenant of Sinai as their reason for disregarding the whole message of the OT.” His point is well made, but perhaps another warning needs to be given: NT preachers should beware of hiding behind the fulfillment of the Mosaic Law in Christ as their reason for neglecting the exposition of the OT. The NT teaches that the role of the OT in the life of the Christian is to provide admonition (…. 1 Cor 10:11-13), doctrine (…), reproof (…) correction (…), and instruction (…), 2 Tim 3:16). The challenge will be to avoid Peter’s error on the rooftop in Joppa. NT believers dare not live as though nothing has changed.

VI.        The Church is Logo-Centric in that it is Centered Upon the Incarnate Word of God

A.   Ephesians 2:15-23.

B.   1 Corinthians 12:12-31.

C. Colossians 1:18.

 

[1] Arthur G. Patzia and Anthony J. Petrotta, Pocket Dictionary of Biblical Studies (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2002), 76–77.

The Crisis of Word and Truth

17 Thursday Jan 2013

Posted by in Apologetics, Carl F Henry, Genesis, John

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The Crisis of Word and Truth

NO FACT OF CONTEMPORARY Western life is more evident than its growing distrust of final truth and its implacable questioning of any sure word.[1]

The first essay in Henry’s six volumes, God Revelation and Authority is “The Crisis of Word and Truth”. He notes the conflict between two worldviews: The God of revelation who speaks versus a meaningless and incoherent “word”. The sound of words has remained and human beings still function and interact, but Word as a primary and stable truth – the Logos of God – that has come under attack.[2]

He wrote this essay without a discussion of deconstruction (my college copy of Spivak’s English version of Of Grammatology is dated 1974, 1976; the first printing of Henry’s essays are dated 1976) or the (for obvious reasons) the Internet. Thus, his discussions of both distance between meaning and words, as well as the ubiquity of media, not only remain true but have actually become more certain.

On one hand we have the Word of God. Christianity posits Spirit and Word as the primary constitutes of existence. First, God is spirit (John 4:24). As the Westminster Shorter Catechism has it:

Q: What is God?

A: God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

John 1:1 famously explains “The Word was God.” The knowledge of God comes about because God speaks. Nothing would exist apart from the Speaking God: “God said, Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3). The material world of images comes after the Spirit and Word.[3] The world itself exists, because the Word of God upholds it, continually (John 1:3; Colossians 1:15-17; Hebrews 1:3).

On the other hand stands the cacophony of media. Now, Henry does not denigrate or despise the media because it is media. Rather the trouble lies in what it does. It has taken the pre-existing problem of meaning and world (which human beings attempt to escape; Romans 1:18). However, it has “indubitably widened and compounded the crisis of word and truth” (18).

Henry notes the common criticism that the nature of the media is such that it does not respond to matters of significance with significant attention.  He quotes Malcolm Muggeridge, “’the fact that the medium has no message. In the last resort, the media have nothing to say ….’” (18).

The media portray matters for the purpose of gaining attention and thus,

Final truth, changeless good, and the one true and living God are by default largely programed out of the real world. Despite occasional ethical commentary and some special coverage of religious events and moral issues, the media tend more to accommodate than to critique the theological and ethical ambiguities of our time. Their main devotion to what gratifies the viewing and reading audiences plays no small part in eclipsing God and fixed moral principles from contemporary life (18-19).

The barrage of immediate gratification removes the sense of shame and horror that should accompany the sight of such.  Public degradation engenders sports, not shame and sorrow. He again Muggeridge on the matter of “’accustoming us to the gradual deterioration of our values’” (19). While every age has thought itself (at least by some) to be the depths of depravity, it goes without saying that much which would have been unthinkable at the time of the essay would be unremarkable in public media today.[4]

Should I read this morning’s news, I would learn of extraordinary acts of pain and sorrow throughout the world. My view of the matter would be incessant, vivid, personal – and yet, there would be (and is) not easy matter of involvement. Thus, I come to human suffering (and glory) as peeping Tom. I cannot form an appropriate moral response – I cannot really do much. Hucksters will try to take my money. Politicians will use words to gain some immediate attention (and most often do nothing remotely useful).

This process affects human beings spiritually. It is a direct affront to the proclamation of God’s truth. It is an affront to the bare concept of “truth” – which ultimately lies with the primal temptation wherein the Serpent questions, word and meaning and logic:

4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:4–5 (ESV)

While individual actors seek to turn truth word to manipulation and sales-pitch for personal gain (I pity the poor soul who takes political rhetoric at face value, much like one how gives a scorpion a ride[5]), the ultimate object is spiritual: it is an attack upon the very concept of revelation by God in Word – which is the heart of Christianity.

Some may think that little loss. However, the basis of Christian revelation is also the basis of what it is to be human:[6]

To strip words of any necessary or legitimate role as a revelatory resource denies not only the intelligibility of revelation, but also the very rationality of human existence. Nonverbal experience cannot supply today’s generation with fruitful alternatives to the spiritual emptiness of the times; the cavernous silence of a speechless world echoes not a single syllable of hope. To deverbalize an already depersonalized society is all the more to dehumanize it.

How can one engage in either true personal interaction or societal and corporate interaction when words are stripped of stability, and promise of its hold? Robert Frost ends his wonderful poem, “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening” with marvelous point,

            But I have promises to keep ….

What human interaction can there be without promise? Yes, human beings can live and breathe and die. Yes, by sheer force and violence a political entity can force itself along. But what humanity remains? What truth or beauty, what love or charm remain?

Henry ends with the proposition that it is the duty of the Christian to not succumb to the spirit of this age, but rather proclaim the “divine invasion” of the Logos, the truth of God, the prophetic Word.

Robert Frost reading, “Stopping by the Woods”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hfOxdZfo0gs

 

[1] Carl Ferdinand Howard Henry, vol. 1, God, Revelation, and Authority (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1999), 16-17.

[2] Although not discussed in this essay, Nietzsche’s arguments in Genealogy of Morals would certainly have an interesting bearing upon the point.

[3] This does require any Gnostic “fall” into matter. The physical world was created “very good.” The distress of the physical derives from sin (Romans 8:20). The redemption of humanity is not out of the physical world into a purely “spiritual” existence, as if the trouble were physicality. Rather, the redemption is to a resurrection, to a New Heavens and New Earth (1 Cor. 15:42-49; Rev. 21 & 22). Thus, Christianity differs strongly from either a Gnostic spite of the physical or a materialist’s denial of the spiritual.

[4] Some may point to matters of “racism” [I have word in quotations, because as a Christian, I must consider the matter of “races” itself suspect and repellant; there is a single human race; there are various cultural structures which people create, but these have no ground separate grounds of human value and being] as an area of advancement.  However, polite society has in some instances moved around certain discourse markers, the same nonsensical “racial” beliefs still exist. I remember being perplexed as a child that somehow George Washington Carver did not “belong” to me – even though he was a an American (as I was) and Christian (as was I) and a Scientist (which I longed to be), but that his skin color put him into a different and alien category – why is that primary to anything?

[6] As a Christian, I think it obvious that the correlative lies in the fundamental truth of the Christian claim.

Edward Taylor, My blessed Lord, art thou a lily flower?

29 Monday Oct 2012

Posted by in 1 Peter, Colossians, Edward Taylor, Meditation, Puritan, Song of Solomon

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My blessed Lord, art thou a lily flower?

My blessed Lord, art thou a lily flower?
Oh, that my soul thy garden were, that so
Thy bowing head root in my heart and pour
Might of its seeds, that they therein might grown.
Be thou my lily, make thou me thy knot:
Be thou my flowers, I’ll be thy flower pot.

My barren heart thy fruitful valley make:
Be thou my lily flourishing in me:
Oh lily of the valleys, for thy sake,
Let me thy valley, and thou my lily be.
Then nothing shall me of thyself bereave.
Thou must not me, or must my valley leave.

How shall my valley’s spangling glory spread,
Thou lily of the valley’s spangling
There springing up? Upon thy bowing head
All heaven’s bright glory hangeth dangling.
My valley then with blissful beams shall shine,
Thou lily of the valleys, being mine.

The significant aspect of Taylor’s meditation is not a bare desire for Jesus. Such desire is certainly present:

My blessed Lord, art thou a lily flower?
Oh, that my soul thy garden were

However, it is not a mere desire to somehow possess Jesus (the lily flower) but to be transformed by Jesus. He first expresses this desire with the imagery of seeds scattered:

that so
Thy bowing head root in my heart and pour
Might of its seeds, that they therein might grown.

The imagery of seeds is used in the NT of the Word of God as “seed”. Jesus famously gives the parable of the sower in which the scattered seed is the gospel proclamation (Mark 4:1-20). James, while not expressing saying “seed” writes of the “implanted word, which is able to save your souls” James 1:21. Peter writes of being born of seed:

23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God;24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you. 1 Peter 1:23-25.

Thus, scattering of “seed” would be seeking a transformation.

Taylor then speaks of the lily making the valley (the poet) fruitful (line 7).

The reason he desires the transformation is given in line 9, “for thy sake”. This seems to come from nowhere and may easily be missed in importance.

The Christian seeks to be “conformed to the image of” Christ (Romans 8:29). This process will lead to “glory” (Romans 8:30). This transformation process is wrought by Father through the Spirit to glorify the Son, “that he might be the firstborn among many brothers” (Romans 8:29). This doctrine could be drawn elsewhere, but the point is plain: Taylor seeks transformation to glorify the Son, hence this is sought “for thy sake”.

The glory and beauty of the Christian is all of Christ. In forensic terms, it is an “alien righteousness”, that is, a righteousness which derives from and belongs to Christ. In Colossians 3:3-4, the image is that our life and glory are in Christ:

3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

Thus, the life and glory of Christ becomes ours and make us radiant to the glory of Christ:

Upon thy bowing head
All heaven’s bright glory hangeth dangling.
My valley then with blissful beams shall shine,
Thou lily of the valleys, being mine.

Thus, Taylor’s desire is not merely for himself, but rather for the glory of Christ, in which glory Taylor may participate.

The Word in Acts.4 (Good Works)

26 Friday Oct 2012

Posted by in Acts, Good Works, Prayer, Preaching

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1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. 2 And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. 3 Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” 5 And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. 7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. Acts 6:1–7 (ESV)

To rightly understand the bite of these words, we must first read them against the rest of the Bible. In 1 Timothy Paul writes to Timothy to direct him on the working of the church. Paul writes:

But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 1 Timothy 5:8 (ESV)

Thus, caring for the poor – particularly in one’s own family – is of extraordinary importance. One who will not care for his family is “worse than an unbeliever”!

What of widows who have no family? These are to be either cared for by the church or encouraged to become part of a new family by marriage (1 Tim. 5:9-16; this command obviously presents interesting challenges in the current societal structure where marriage is less than universally sought or obtained – particularly for widows).   

When Paul met with James, Peter and John, the pillars gave him “the right hand of fellowship” and left Paul with a single charge:

Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do. Galatians 2:10 (ESV)

Both James and John specifically condemn those who claim faith and yet will not care for the physical needs of the poor (James 2:14-17; 1 John 3:16-18).  Both make plain that who does not actually care for the poor does not possess saving faith and does not bear the love of God!

So here we see that Peter, Paul, James & John all explicitly give commandment for the care of the poor – to the point that caring for the poor is a necessary coordinate of a truly redeemed believer. If we were to canvas the OT we would find repeated exhortations to care for the poor and repeated condemnation of those who refused to care for the poor.  The words of Amos, in particular, have always haunted me:

6 Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals— 7 those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; 8 they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge, and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined. Amos 2:6–8 (ESV)

Without question, care for the poor, for the widow is of supreme concern for the Christian Church: it lies at near the very center of our life. However, there is one element which has even greater importance: prayer and the word.

There are two aspects to this hierarchy. First, without the word of God, without love and faith, such care for the poor fails. It is not the mere transfer of money which is needed. Material poverty, as awful as it is, is not the deepest danger and harm. Even the most wealthy and privileged human being will stand before God.  On that day, wealth will not help:

For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? Mark 8:36 (ESV)

The deepest and most profound need of humanity is reconciliation with God. Our particular troubles are merely symptoms and warnings of the underlying rebellion against God. All human misery flows from the fountain of sin and death. Pain and misery and oppression are merely proof that sin is present – and only in Christ will sin be destroyed.

The grandest anti-poverty program in the world – even if it lived up to its grandest claims – would merely ease the poor into hell.

Thus, the work of the word was of more importance that care for the poor (as extraordinarily important as that is), because the word is the only means to convey life (John 6:63 – interestingly coming at the end of a confrontation where the poor wanted only food and were not interested in the words of life).

Second, even as a practical matter, immediate care for the poor without the sustaining work of true faith and love will fail. The damage to the poor is much more than mere material want.  Giving money may ease one’s conscience but it does little to bring love to another human being.

Even as the welfare state has grown in the West, brutality has grown up alongside of it.  The most old and the most young, the most vulnerable of all are killed to grant momentary comfort to those with more power and strength. 

Along this line, there was an interesting article in the British Press, by Matthew Parris. Christianity Today recounted his argument as follows:

The problems in Africa cannot be solved with aid money alone, but Africans need to know God, contends an atheist journalist and former politician.

 

Religion offers change to the hearts and minds of people – something aid cannot do, argues Matthew Parris, a former conservative MP, in a column for The Times.

 

“Now a confirmed atheist, I’ve become convinced of the enormous contribution that Christian evangelism makes in Africa: sharply distinct from the work of secular NGOs, government projects and international aid efforts,” writes Parris, who was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, but now lives in England. “These alone will not do. Education and training alone will not do.”

 

He went on to say, “In Africa, Christianity changes people’s hearts. It brings a spiritual transformation. The rebirth is real. The change is good.”

 

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/atheist.africa.needs.god.not.only.aid/22223.htm

In conclusion, the word of God is more important than even the best of good work, because only the word of God transforms the heart and reconciles humanity to God. Then, as a wonderful secondary effect, the transformed life in turn flows out in good work. This is precisely the movement which Paul recognizes in Ephesians 2 where he first posits justification on the ground of God’s free grace received by faith – but such faith turns inevitably into good work:

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:8–10 (ESV)

 

The Word in Acts.3 (Work)

25 Thursday Oct 2012

Posted by in Acts, Ecclesiology, Obedience, Preaching, Service

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17 But the high priest rose up, and all who were with him (that is, the party of the Sadducees), and filled with jealousy 18 they arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, 20 “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.”[1] 21 And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach. Acts 5:17–21 (ESV)

In chapter 2, God sends words through the disciples (Acts 2:4). Peter rises and preaches: Men of Israel, hear these words (Acts 2:22). Hearing the words they were cut to the heart (Acts 2:37; Hebrews 4:12-13). In Acts 3, Peter speaks and a man is healed. Peter then preaches (Acts 3:12). An arrest follows, but the word has already done its work (Acts 4:4). When the apostles were released, the church preached, not for ease but for courage to continue to speak your [God’s] word with all boldness (Acts 4:29).

Finally, when the authorities could no longer bear the sight of the effectiveness of the word of God, they arrested the apostles. God then sends an angel to free them. Consider for a moment: God could without question have sent the angel earlier. God could have protected the apostles from trial. Instead, God sent an angel after the arrest.

The angel did not come to protect the apostles from trial, but rather to send them into the lion’s mouth with the word of God:

Speak in the temple. This is the end of their deliverance, that they employ themselves stoutly in preaching the gospel, and provoke their enemies courageously, until they die valiantly. For they were put to death at length when the hand of God ceased, after that they had finished their course; but now the Lord openeth the prison for them, that they may be at liberty to fulfill their function. That is worth the marking, because we see many men, who, after they have escaped out of persecution, do afterwards keep silence, as if they had done their duty towards God, (and were no more to be troubled;) other some, also, do escape away by denying Christ; but the Lord doth deliver his children, not to the end they may cease off from the course which they have begun, but rather that they may be the more zealous afterward. The apostles might have objected, It is better to keep silence for a time, forasmuch as we cannot speak one word without danger; we are now apprehended for one only sermon, how much more shall the fury of our enemies be inflamed hereafter, if they shall see us make no end of speaking? But because they knew that they were to live and to die to the Lord, they do not refuse to do that which the Lord commanded; so we must always mark what function the Lord enjoineth us. There will many things meet us oftentimes, which may discourage us, unless being content with the commandment of God alone, we do our duty, committing the success to him.

 

John Calvin, Acts, electronic ed., Calvin’s Commentaries (Albany, OR: Ages Software, 1998), Ac 5:20.

The incident reminds me of Moody’s 1891 trip home Europe aboard the Spree. Moody had recently met with a heart specialist who warned Moody against working too hard:

Clark asked how often Moody preached.

“Oh, I usually preach three times a day. On Sunday four or even five.”

“How many days a week?”

“Six, but during the last winter seven.”

“You’re a fool, sir, you’re a fool! You’re killing yourself!”

 

John Pollock, Moody, 242.

On board the ship, Moody considered the matter and determined that he would slow down and work less: in particularly he would dial back his planned campaign to coincide with the World’s Fair. On the third day, the weather on the Atlantic was very bad. The engine shaft broke and the ship began to sink.

 Pollock writes:

During the long hours Moody wrestled in his soul. He felt seasickness no longer – the accident cured him permanently – and his mind ran clear.

He heard as it were the voice of his Lord:  “Were you ready to let up, to go slow? Then I will take you to Myself. Yu are no use to Me unless you and out and out.”

“No one on earth,” Moody related, “know what I pass through as I thought that my work was finished, and that I should never again have the privilege of preaching the Gospel of the Son of God. And on that dark night, the first night of the accident, I made a vow that if God would spare my life and bring back to America,” the World’s Fair campaign should be undertaken with all the power that He would give me.”

Pollock, Moody, 244. Soon thereafter, the Candian Pacific freighter Lake Huron appeared and attempted to secure the vessels together, but the storm was such that the rope broke, “‘as if he had been cotton thread’” (Pollock, 245, quoting a passenger).  The storm broke in the morning, cables were attached and Lake Huron towed the Spree to port.

It is often hard to remember, that here God does not seek our ease but rather our good and his glory. We can forget this when we read Romans 8:28. We grasp the word “good” and think that means our current ease.[2] For verse 29 defines “good” as “to be conformed to the image of his Son”. Our Lord came:

And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:8 (ESV)

Here is our model. Yes, I for one, admit that my life has been one of splendid ease compared to my brothers and sisters throughout the world and throughout the ages. My trials for the Gospel have not be as severe as many (if not most). Yet I must see my present ease as an even greater motivation to work even more diligently. I (and many like me) have no excuse for failing to speak to the people all the words of this Life. May God grant us forgiveness for our past failures and strength for future work.

[1] Larkin writing of the phrase, words of this life: “This phrase captures the truths that by God’s Word the blessed life in covenant relationship is appropriated now, and that beyond death there is a life in which God’s salvation will be fully known forever” (William J. Larkin, Acts (Downer’s Grove, Intervarsity Press: 1995), 91).

[2] God often does provide his people with significant comfort and ease along their pilgrimage. However, we must not mistake the Arbo placed by God upon the Hill of Difficulty for Celestial City (“Now about the midway to the top of the hill was a pleasant Arbor, made by the Lord of the hill for the refreshment of weary travelers” Pilgrim’s Progress, The Third Stage, http://www.ccel.org/ccel/bunyan/pilgrim.iv.iii.html ).

The Word in Acts.2 (Courage)

23 Tuesday Oct 2012

Posted by in 1 Peter, 2 Corinthians, Acts, Ben Witherington III, Ecclesiology, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Prayer, Preaching

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In Acts 3, Peter and John come to the Temple. At the gate called Beautiful, they meet a lame beggar. Peter speaks to the man and commands the beggar in the name of Jesus to stand and walk (Acts 3:6). The miraculous healing draws a large, to which Peter preaches (Acts 3:11, et seq).

Acts 4 records that the authorities seek to stop the work of the apostles by arresting Peter and John, however, the Word has already begun to work:

1 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them, 2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3 And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. 4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand. Acts 4:1–4 (ESV)

The authorities were angry because “they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead”. The authorities were seeking to squelch the word. Witherington notes the irony:

Here and elsewhere Luke will emphasize that measures, including the use of force, taken against the followers of Jesus are not effective; indeed, they often backfire and lead to further growth of the Christian group. Thus, in v. 4 we hear that in spite of what was said in the previous verse many heard and believed the word of Peter, and we are told they numbered about five thousand.

Ben Witherington, III, The Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1998), 190.  While the authorities sought to stop the power by arresting the Apostles, they failed to realize the true source of their power:

The force on the side of God’s people is the Holy Spirit. It says that when Peter began to speak he was “filled with the Holy Spirit” (v. 8). When we were looking at the account of Pentecost I pointed out that in Acts, on every single occasion, what follows specific mention of a person being filled with the Holy Spirit is strong verbal testimony to Jesus Christ. When people are filled with the Holy Spirit they always speak about Jesus. That is how you can know whether you are filled with the Holy Spirit.

James Montgomery Boice, Acts, An Expositional Commentary (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1997), 76.

The Word of God, empowered by the Holy Spirit, has a power which supersedes and runs independently of human control. While the Apostles were officially and publicly discredited and attacked, the Word of God brought men and women to salvation. When the Apostles were in custody and vulnerable to physical pain and loss, the Word of God broke out and Peter spoke:

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, Acts 4:8 (ESV)

Not only does Peter speak, but he starts right in one exactly the point which got him into trouble in the first place:

10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. 12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Acts 4:10–12 (ESV)

With 5,000 followers, Peter could have at least caused some sort of physical grief for his captors. But he makes no such play. Rather, Peter continues with words:

3 For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete. 2 Corinthians 10:3–6 (ESV)

When Peter and John were released they are returned to the congregation and there they pray. They do not pray for any ease of persecution, or privilege or security. Instead, they pray specifically for courage to continue to proclaim the Word despite their circumstance. They rehearse the persecution and perseverance of Jesus, and then seek the same boldness in their own lives:

29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, 30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. Acts 4:29–31 (ESV)

The operation of the Spirit and the Word of God brought them to a new and living hope: they were no longer frightened of death and thus could speak with absolute courage:

The Holy Spirit takes from us the fear of death and the grave. The end of unbelievers is certain; the enemy is already doomed; he is living on a lease, as it were. He received that mortal wound when Christ died on the cross, and his time is limited. That is why he is raging. But Christ will come, and with the breath of His mouth He will destroy that arch liar, the enemy of God and of humanity, and send him to everlasting destruction. Do not forget that when the devil plies you with his lies.

Look at the boldness of the apostles as they defied the authorities. They were no longer afraid of death. The early martyrs and confessors went gladly to the lions in the arena, praising God and thanking Him that at last He had accounted them worthy to suffer for the name of their blessed and dear Lord. “They died well,” as John Wesley put it. Why? Because they had a hope of glory; they could see that this is only a transient world. This is not the world of reality; this is the world of appearances. But there is a world that remains.

             There is a land of pure delight

             Where saints immortal reign.

                  Isaac Watts

 

There is a glory yet to be revealed, a day coming when the glory of the sons of God shall be made manifest. A crowning day is coming, a day of ultimate victory and of triumph, when Jesus shall reign from pole to pole. In the light of that day these men and women lived the lives they did and had a joy that persisted even in the midst of tribulations.

David Martyn Lloyd-Jones, vol. 2, Courageous Christianity, 1st U.S. ed., Studies in the Book of Acts (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2001), 284-85. In his letter to the churches, Peter notes that the operation of the Spirit and the Word of God is set one’s hope and life upon an undying foundation. It is to be born again of a seed which cannot fail:

23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you. 1 Peter 1:23–25 (ESV)

Thus, the Word of God by the operation of the Spirit begets an undying, unfading life – which moves one into realms the world cannot touch.

The Words of God are Power

07 Saturday Apr 2012

Posted by in 1 Corinthians, 2 Peter, Biblical Counseling, Jeremiah, Preaching

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1 Corinthians 2:4:

and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,

1 Corinthians 4:20:

For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.

1 Thess. 1:4-5:

4 For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you,
5 because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.

2 Peter 1:21:

For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

Jeremiah 23:29:

Is not my word like fire, declares the LORD, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?

Similarity of Purpose Among Luke, Acts and Hebrews

18 Sunday Mar 2012

Posted by in Acts, Hebrews, Luke, Preaching

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In  Lukan Authorship of Hebrews, David Allen is this similarity of purpose between Luke-Acts and Hebrews. In particular, the purpose clause of Hebrews 2:3-4 explicates the purpose of Luke and Acts:

It [salvation] was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will. Hebrews 2:3-4

Allen explains:

The meeting of Heb 2:3-4 is that there is a solid bridge between the saving activity of Jesus and those who have had no personal contact with Him. This salvation is confirmed sanctioned by God; his His miraculous gifts solidify the bridge between Jesus and his That followers. But it is possible to reject the outcome of this salvation (Christian maturity) through unbelief and disobedience. The purpose of Hebrews is to exhort readers to firmness their faith.

Hebrews 2:3-4 of us becomes an excellent explanation for the link between the Gospel of Luke and Acts. (182)

Allen then works in the opposite direction, beginning with observations on the structure of Hebrews and finding that purpose also present in Luke-Acts:

In Hebrews, considerable emphasis is placed on the concept of the logos as it is spoken by the prophets and heard by the people. Hebrews never uses the quote formula gegraptai  [it has been written] but regularly uses some form of legei [it says]. [Allen then rehearses the theme that God speaks as evidenced  throughout the book of Hebrews.]

This brief survey of the use of “word” in Hebrews confirms that the prologue functions in a programmatic way for the entire letter. The author never loses sight of the fact that God spoke in times past but now speaks through His Son to the readers of the letter. (186-187).

The interesting aspect of this observation is when he turns to the book of acts Acts. I had not noticed how often Luke relies upon the concept of God speaking throughout the book of acts. Quoting O’Reilly, Allen writes the word it be preached is [the word of salvation] (Acts 13:26) which is the theme not only of this speech but it acts as a whole and indeed the entire Lucan writings.

O’Reilly concluded his final chapter regarding the Word of the Lord in acts Acts in a way all too reminiscent of Hebrews:

The ultimate fulfillment of the prophetic word is the personal work. God spoke his Word in the past by the prophets, now He speaks by a Son…. As glorified Lord he is the final word of God to Israel and the world. He is both the Savior and the word of this salvation.  (189).

This certainty and the assurance in the truth of  Jesus which Luke seeks to establish in Luke and in Acts, is the same surety which the writer of Hebrews 6 to establish. In both Luke and Acts and Hebrews, the emphasis is upon a confirmation of the spoken word of God-a prophetic word, spoken by the power of the Holy Spirit. Whether Luke wrote all three books or not, it is still profitable to note the similarity of them and purpose among the books.