“In what ways do men show leadership that encourages you as women?” That was my question to some sisters I interviewed a number of weeks ago. This post picks up where the second one left off, enumerating and reflecting on their responses.
Previously…
1. Initiating Substantial Discussions
2. Making Firm Decisions
3. Owning Up to the Consequences of Our Decisions
4. Correcting When Needed
5. Encouraging Lady-like Behavior
6. Being Consistent
7. Taking Leadership Roles in Ministry
Our sisters would love to see us take leadership roles in ministry. In fact, some would say it's discouraging if only women are working. They feel there’s something missing. That should be both encouraging and challenging for us men. It reminds us that, under God’s wise plan for manhood and womanhood, we really do have something unique to contribute as men.
At the same time, men who own up to their God-assigned roles in the church also protect sisters from two temptations: being prideful about their greater devotion to the ministry, and looking down on men (which will subtly but effectively lead them to despise God’s plan for manhood and womanhood).
8. Being Patient & Concerned
What about when a sister is behaving poorly (for whatever reason), what can guys do that’s helpful. Each of the women I asked gave different answers. Guys, we’re on our own here. Just kidding. The general idea was that they appreciate it when we are patient and show genuine concern for them. Try to find out what’s really bugging them, if you can.
And here’s a special tip from the ladies: start with a kind gesture like food or coffee. Even candy would be better than nothing! (A sister tried this on me once by buying me ice cream before confronting me about something. I appreciated the gesture, but it had less effect on me as it seems to have on them!) But in the absence of any and all comfort items, said one sister, just create an encouraging environment. Ask, listen, and try to remember what they say.
9. Discipling Others
Lastly, it encourages our sisters to see guys leading younger guys in discipleship. It’s great to be consistent in leadership. But it’s even better to develop leadership in others.
Conclusion
Let me end this series with something from Albert Mohler’s book, Conviction to Lead:
The Believers are driven by deep and passionate beliefs. They are heavily invested in knowledge, and they are passionate about truth. They devote themselves to learning truth, teaching truth, and defending truth. They define themselves in terms of what they believe, and they are ready to give their lives for these beliefs.
The problem is, many of them are not ready to lead. They have never thought much about leadership and are afraid that thinking too much about it will turn them into mere pragmatists, which they know they shouldn’t be. They know a great deal and believe a great deal, but they lack the basic equipment for leadership. As one proverbial deacon said of his pastor, “Oh, he knows a lot, but he can’t lead a decent two-car funeral procession.”
Brothers, may this encourage us to grow in our leadership. Not only would it please God, but it would make our sisters in Christ very happy!
Leadership is a privilege and responsibility that all men have from God. Many won't hold positions of public leadership, but they're still called to lead in the private sphere (Eph. 5:23)
Some time ago, I asked some of the young, single women of Higher Rock (heretofore referred to as 'the sisters') to enumerate ways that men lead that encourages them. Below are some of their responses. (I'll include the rest in a later post.)
1. Initiating Substantial Discussions
The guys and gals are enjoying dinner together. The conversation is light and full of laughter. It could go that way all evening, but many young women (and sensible young men) would really appreciate something more substantial, and it would be great if one of the guys steered the conversation in that direction. This might involve talking about last Sunday's preaching, or sharing news about the ministries of the church, or swapping prayer concerns.
When men deliberately do this, they show that they're intellectually mature enough to think about such things. When they do it in a skillful and engaging way, they also show that they're socially mature enough to do so.
When men do this, it also gives women the opportunity to fulfill their own roles in supporting godly leadership.
2. Making Firm Decisions
According to the sisters, it's encouraging when men make firm decisions. These include things ranging from ministry decisions to where to eat. We should be able to think clearly, make good decisions, and not be easily swayed by others.
Mind you, "decisive" doesn't mean "stubborn". What's the difference? The decisive man is considerate of other people's concerns, and shows that he really has understood and valued them. His attitude is completely compatible with Christ's model of servant-leadership.
What if, after all this, the sisters still disagree with the decision? Then it would help, they say, if he explains his reasons. One sister explains,
Though it's not required for leaders to always explain their decisions—and yes, it's valid that sometimes the obedience needs to be immediate and calls for trust on our part—but there's something to be said for communicating to us [women], and not just having a master and servant relationship. Rather, if you [men] want us to know how to support you even in ways you didn't articulate or think of, it benefits a lot to communicate your reasons and thinking. For me knowing how you reason and what factors were weightier to you not just builds trust but it also helps me know you and anticipate what's important and therefore even more quickly take cues and support [your] leadership. One can't assume that just because you're being asked about your reasons that it is equal to being scrutinized or assessed but rather we want to know how you thought about it and have a better grasp of your priority and goals so that we might come alongside and not just be utusan but actually be able to help think and support. We each can't read the other [person]'s mind. Of course, us asking about your thoughts shouldn't be conditional to our willingness to support. That has to be clear on our part.
On the rare occasion that the two sides still can’t come to an understanding, according to the sisters, it’s enough to be reassured by the man’s character, his track record. This should remind us that it’s crucial for men to establish a pattern of sound reason that is firmly grounded by Scripture and upheld by prayer.
It's great to be back after a long hiatus! One of the things that loaded up my schedule was preparing to speak to my church's youth about homosexuality. That's what I'm sharing in this post.
It was an hour-and-a-half message, which I subdivided into five segments, as follows:
I hope you'll be as encouraged listening to these, as I was preparing them.
1. INTRODUCTION
We can’t ignore the LGBT issue. The question isn’t whether we will respond, but whether our response will be biblical or unbiblical.
Christian groups have adopted very different stands on this. But what is the right response? As we think about the answer to that, there are two things that we need to be concerned about.
Our first concern is the truth. Homosexuality is part of much larger issues, like sin, purity, and God’s glory. We want to avoid isolating homosexuality from these bigger concerns
Our second concern is the heart – our hearts. God wants us to glorify Him in how we think, how we talk, and how we act. We need to love LGBTs and faithfully share the gospel with them.
This is our goal: to have a biblical attitude toward homosexuality and LGBTs.
The LGBT movement has ballooned in our generation. We should be concerned, but not too much. The church has been in similar situations before.
LGBT IN ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS
Homosexuality and similar blurring of the sexes isn’t new or recent. It was practiced during Abraham’s time, about 2,000 B.C., in the Shang Dynasty (16th-11th century B.C.), by the ancient Greeks and Romans, in New Testament Times, and even in Pre-Hispanic Philippines! So, we shouldn’t be surprised that it’s an issue today.
But why is the LGBT movement of today is so aggressive and hostile toward biblical Christianity?
LGBT IN THE WAKE OF MORAL RELATIVISM
During the Enlightenment Period in Europe (17th-18th centuries), many great scientists like Galileo, Kepler, and Newton pursued science from a Christian worldview. But others wanted to use science as a weapon against God, the Bible and the institutional Church. They claimed that reason and science could explain everything, so people didn’t need God or the Bible.
Of course, if human reason is the standard for morality, then morality is just human beings finding reasons to do what they want. This is the essence of moral relativism.
Fast forward to the present day, and we see that moral relativism has taken over Europe and America, and it’s becoming more and more prevalent here in the Philippines. More and more, people are embracing the lie that you can create your own truth.
One of the reasons that the LGBT movement has become very strong in recent decades is that society has lost the ability to look at homosexuality and say, “that’s wrong.”
In fact, people have devoted a lot of money and expertise to explain homosexuality in purely naturalistic terms.
WHAT ARE THE CULTURAL ELITES SAYING ABOUT HOMOSEXUALITY TODAY?
“Homosexuality is GENETIC.” In 1995, Time Magazine published an article entitled, “Search for a Gay Gene”, about scientists’ search for genetic causes for homosexuality. These studies, however, far from proved that homosexuality was predetermined by one's DNA.
“Homosexuality is caused by the environment.” Others have focused on how a person’s environment can influence homosexual behavior. But these studies often don’t distinguish between causation and indirect relation. To put it simply, they misinterpret the data, or make the data say more than it actually says.
Despite the limitations of these studies, they've have been sensationalized by the mass media, so that nowadays, people just assume that science has “proven” that homosexuality is completely natural, and therefore ok. This has allowed the movement to grow rapidly, even in the Philippines.
In light of all these developments, we as Bible-believing Christians might be tempted to worry. But homosexuality and cultural support for homosexuality aren’t new. The Church has faced this before. The reason we don’t know that is because for a long time, Christianity was the biggest moral influence on modern civilization. We’ve gotten used to that, but things are changing back to the way things were before Christianity became dominant. We have to be ready: ready to obey God on this matter; ready to accept whatever consequence society may impose on us; and ready to do it all, not out of hate, but out of love: love for God, love for the truth, and love for people who need Christ just as much as we do.
Does the Bible really say that homosexuality is a sin?
Some professing Christians would answer that question with a resounding No! They claim that the common proof-texts against homosexuality are either misinterpreted or mistranslated because of prejudice. This is the revisionist view. Are they right?
GENESIS 19 – SODOM AND GOMORRHA
Revisionist View: Sin of gang rape. This is not a universal condemnation of gay sex, but a bad form of gay sex. Sin of inhospitality.
Biblical Response: Sodom was condemned for a whole bunch of sins, not just homosexuality. But homosexuality was definitely included in that list. (Compare Ez. 16:50 and Lev. 18:22)
DAVID AND JONATHAN
Revisionist View: David and Jonathan were lovers. (2 Sam. 1:26; 1 Sam. 18:1,4; 20:41)
Biblical Response: We read these texts with hyper-sexualized lenses. Cf. Jacob's soul was “knit to” Benjamin his son = favoritism, not sexual (Gen 44:30). David and Jonathan not said to lie together. And if you know David's life, his issue was women.
JESUS’ TESTIMONY
Revisionist View: Jesus never said anything about homosexuality!
Biblical Response: Jesus came to correct false teaching, so if the traditional view of homosexuality was wrong, He would have addressed it when we spoke about sexuality. Rather, He affirmed the traditional view. (Mark 10:6-9)
“ARSENOKOITAI” - 1 Corinthians 6:9-10; 1 Tim 1:9-10
Revisionist View: Arsenokoitai appears for the first time in NT, so we have to figure out what it means. Therefore, it refers to sexual and economic exploitation (pedophilia).
Traditional View: Paul didn't pull this word out of nowhere. He pulled a word from the LXX of Lev 20:13 where we find arsen and koite, right beside each other. There's no other place where these two words occur together, beside each other. Any Hellenistic Jewish convert who came across this word would have recognized the reference. Moreover, if Paul had wanted to refer to pedophilia, there was a specific word for it: paiderastes.
In conclusion, the Bible does say that homosexuality is a sin in God’s eyes.
Isn’t homosexuality natural to homosexuals? How can it be wrong to be yourself?
The answer to that is simple: we’re all sinful and God calls all of us to be completely changed. Everyone – heterosexual or homosexual – is a sinner, and more specifically, sexually impure. We are sinful by nature, and that's why we need a new nature. Without that new nature, we’re spiritually dead – we’re cut off from God who is the source of all spiritual life. (John 3:3; Eph. 2:1-6; 2 Cor. 5:17)
Many believe that whatever is natural is good. But the Bible says that we live in a world that has been distorted by sin. So nature is a bad standard for deciding what’s good or bad. The only truly reliable standard we have is God’s Word. And it tells us to reject our sinful nature, to seek God’s forgiveness through Jesus Christ, and to be transformed into new creatures.
4. How Can I Minister to Those Who Struggle with Homosexual Desires?
RESOLVE TO DO IT! ... or you probably never will.
PROVIDE A SAFE ENVIRONMENT. We have a natural tendency to excuse the sins that we struggle with, even while we condemn sins that we don’t see in ourselves. But let’s be humbled over our own brokenness. Let’s be consistent in addressing all kinds of sins.
FOCUS ON RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST. We have to clearly and consistently communicate that God’s first concern for people struggling with homosexual desire isn’t that they become heterosexual. His first concern for them is that they have a living relationship with Him through Jesus Christ, so that they surrender all of their lives to Him, including their sexuality.
SET REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS. On the one hand, let him know that he’s not struggling alone. We all struggle. It’s just that most people struggle with heterosexual impurity, while a few struggle with homosexual impurity. But we’re all in this together (1 Cor. 10:13). On the other hand, don’t give false promises, like “Read the Bible, pray more and your homosexuality will go away.”
ENCOURAGE SAME-SEX FRIENDSHIPS WITH MATURE BELIEVERS. This will help the person see and experience for themselves God’s beautiful plan for same-sex relationships.
Should Christians support LGBT “rights”? Before answering that question, there’s a more basic question that needs to be addressed. As Christians, what is our place in society?
We're called to be salt & light. (Mat. 5:13-16)
We're called to serve society. (Eph. 4:28)
We're called to love our neighbors... even our enemies. (Mat. 22:39; Mat. 5:43)
We should be particularly concerned for the poor and helpless. (Luke 14:12-14)
We're called to submit to the government. (Rom. 13:1)
In light of these points, I think we can rephrase our question this way: Is it loving to support pro-LGBT laws?
The simple answer is NO, because we must “Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them” (Eph. 5:11). To support any law that supports homosexuality is to support homosexuality itself.
Another reason we shouldn’t support pro-LGBT laws is that they would do more harm than good. Let's look at the pending Anti-Discrimination Bill (ADB), for example.
THE ANTI-DISCRIMINATION LAW
At first glance, the Anti-Discrimination Bill (ADB) sounds good. According to him, it’s about equality for all. He talks about LGBTs as if they’re victims of society. But the evidence doesn’t support that. Just look around you. Are LGBTs under attack in our country? Just the opposite, actually. If, by and large, LGBTs aren’t being victimized in our society, why would we need the ADB?
In fact, the ADB in its current form would do more harm than good, because it would suppress freedom of speech and religion. We see this in the way the bill defines "discrimination". The danger has already been realized in other countries that have passed their own versions of the ADB (ex. Canada, England, US).
SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
We can't support this bill for many reasons.
It will require government to redefine, not only marriage, but sexuality and family as well. That’s more than an administrative adjustment. That’s a social revolution, right there.
For government to approve such changes in the law would mean that it supports the LGBT lifestyle, which has proven to be extremely harmful to people. The damage it has caused to people’s health and social relationships is staggering.
The typical pro-LGBT argument is, “We’re not hurting anyone, so just let us do what we want.” But they are hurting people, just not in an obvious way. To redefine sexuality, marriage, and family is to attack the institutions that have made civilization possible. It is also to deprive children of the stability provided by a household with a real father and a real mother.
And which sector of society will be affected the most? It will be the poor -- the ones who can least afford to play around, who don't have social and economic safety nets. If we destroy the institutions of marriage and the family, we can only guess how much harm it will cause to the poorest and most vulnerable members of our society.
We as Christians should be very clear on where we stand with regard to the LGBT rights movement. We stand against it, not because we hate LGBTs, but because we love them and we love our neighbors.
Only seventeen, Jane was deeply devoted to the Lord and His Word. But it had gotten her into very serious trouble.
A Privileged Upbringing
Jane was born into one of the most powerful families of England (in stark contrast to our previous hall-of-famer, John Brown). She was the grand-daughter of Princess Mary Tudor, the sister of King Henry VIII.
But she was privileged in another way. Her father, Henry Grey, Duke of Suffolk, was a strong supporter of the Protestant Reformation in England. He made sure that Jane learned the Scriptures, and by God's grace she developed a deep love for Christ and strong biblical convictions.
In Over Her Head
Noble-born and strong in faith, young Jane was sure to be a great help to the Reformation in England. But before she had the chance, crisis struck.
Her uncle, King Edward VI, was dying. He and Jane were about the same age, and shared the same love for the gospel. During his reign he had championed the Reformation in England. Now, he wanted to secure its future even after his death.
But he had to act quickly. His half-sister, Mary, was next-in-line to the throne, and she was a staunch enemy of the gospel. So, on his deathbed, Edward nominated Jane as his successor.
Though this caught Jane completely off guard, she bravely accepted her duty. The people, however, rejected her in favor of Mary. After only nine days of being queen, Jane was dethroned and Mary crowned the new queen. Poor Jane was convicted of treason and sentenced to death.
Standing Firm in the Faith
While Jane awaited execution, Mary sent a priest to convert her. She stood firm, however, in a way that would have made the Apostle Peter proud (1 Peter 3:15) When the priest insisted that she ought
to believe in the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, she replied,
No, I ground my faith upon God’s word, and not upon the church:
for if the church be a good church, the faith of the church must be
tried by God’s word, and not God’s word by the church....
She writes, "my faith had armed my resolution to withstand any
assault that words could then use against me."
A Brave Death
Soon, execution day came. Jane testified to the people gathered in front of the scaffold, saying,
I pray you all, good Christian people, to bear me witness, that I die a good Christian woman, and that I do look to be saved by no other mean, but only by the mercy of God in the blood of his only Son Jesus Christ: and I confess, that when I did know the word of God, I neglected the same, loved myself and the world, and therefore this plague and punishment is happily and worthily happened unto me for my sins; and yet I thank God, that of his goodness he hath thus given me a time and a respite to repent and now, good people, while I am alive, I pray you assist me with your prayers.
Then she recited a Psalm and prepared for the end. The executioner kneeled down and asked for her forgiveness, which she gladly gave. She had only one request: "I pray you, despatch me quickly." She leaned over the executioner's block, and seconds before the blade fell, she said, "Lord, into thy hands I commend my spirit."
Lady Jane died when she was only seventeen years old, but her steadfast love for the Lord and strong convictions were a breathtaking testimony to everyone who witnessed them.
The 4:12 Series presents biographical sketches of godly young people throughout history. The purpose? To encourage myself and other Filipino evangelicals to keep setting the bar high for our youth. Spiritual maturity and fruitful ministry aren't just for "older people".
It's true that biblical maturity takes time and experience to acquire. I don't want to endorse brashness, overconfidence, or delusions of grandeur among those whose primary posture should be that of a learner. But even as young people need to recognize their immaturity, they also need to passionately pursue maturity. Sadly, modern culture has no understanding whatsoever of what biblical maturity looks like, and can offer little help (and a ton of hindrances) to young believers.
Hopefully, this series of posts will serve to kindle the imaginations and stir up the passions of our youth and those who minister to them.
Christians know how much importance the Bible gives to wisdom (Psa. 90:12; Pro. 4:7; Luk. 21:15; 1Co. 2:7). But how does one grow in wisdom?
What Wisdom Is
What is wisdom, anyway? Merriam-Webster defines it in terms of "knowledge that is gained by having many experiences in life," or "the natural ability to understand things that most other people cannot understand," or "accumulated philosophic or scientific learning," or a "generally accepted belief," or simply "good sense".
Those are modern definitions, but the definition that Christians should be most interested in is the Bible's. The Hebrew word that is most often rendered "wisdom" in our English translations is ×—ָ×›ְמָ×”(hakemah), which refers to thinking informed by technical skill, aptitude, experience, and good sense. To the Hebrew, wisdom meant "skill for living".
This might appear the same as common sense and experience. But we have to remember that for the faithful Hebrew, the goal of life was to know and serve the Lord. So "skill for living" includes more than the how-tos of everyday life such as cooking, cleaning, livelihood, relationships, and all those other things that common sense and experience help us with. Skill for living is also concerned with the more profound questions of who God is, what He's doing in the world, and how we should therefore live.
Bible Knowledge = Wisdom?
Hopefully, that gets us on the same page on the biblical meaning of wisdom. Now we can return to our original question: how does one grow in wisdom?
It's not enough to accumulate a lot of knowledge about the Bible. A lot of us tend to think that listening to sermons, memorizing Scripture, studying the Bible diligently, and reading commentaries and Christian books will automatically make us wise. (And for those who are wondering, 2 Timothy 3:16 and Romans 12:2 are not proof texts for this.)
Sadly, it just isn't so. You probably know this intuitively. You've met people whose doctrine is as straight as a doctor's needle and just as sterile. They can write commentaries but are sorely lacking in the application department.
Living off Godly Counsel = Wisdom?
Another mistake is to think that one can grow wise by relying almost entirely on the wisdom of one's pastor, discipler, parents, and other people who are more mature in the faith. The rationale behind this approach is, "Well, this person knows the Bible better and has more experience than I do, so instead of investing so much time and effort in thinking through the Bible myself, I'll just take his/her word for it."
But that is not what the Bible teaches. Yes, it puts a high premium on godly counsel (Proverbs 11:14). More pointedly, Hebrews 13:17 tells us to "obey your leaders and submit to them." As the youngest and most junior associate pastor of my church, I've had to submit to my leaders even when I didn't understand or disagreed with them. But submission to authority doesn't mean we turn our brains off. It doesn't relieve us of our duty to wrestle with Scripture ourselves.
Perhaps the best examples of what can happen when a person makes godly counsel a substitute for a personal knowledge of Scripture are the Roman Catholic Church and cults like the the Iglesia ni Cristo. Case in point.
Skill for Living
We need both Bible knowledge and godly counsel, but these aren't enough. We also need a personal grip on Scripture. Or better yet, Scripture has to grip us in a personal way. The Puritans spoke of an "experimental" faith, that is, a faith that is always testing, always experimenting, with the objective of experiencing or witnessing biblical truth for oneself. This is something similar to what Job meant when he declared, "I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you" (Job 42:5).
In short, one becomes wise by continually deepening his knowledge of Scripture, and then living according to that knowledge. Wisdom comes through walking by faith.
Partnering with OIC (Overseas Instruction in Counseling) for the Bilical Counseling Training was no small privilege. Praise God for Dr. Wayne Vanderwier, Ptr. Rod Huber, Bro. Tarkus Mosberg, and their godly and supportive wives! May the Lord enable OIC, Higher Rock and all of the represented churches to see this endeavor through to the end. Module 1 is finished. I can't wait for Module 2 in January!
Part 4.2 of an ongoing Bible study on ecumenism. See links to other lessons at the bottom of this post.
taken from http://tiffanyannlewis.com/wp-content/uploads/At-the-foot-of-the-cross-small-sf2.jpg
TEXT:
Acts 2:14-36
14
But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and
declared to them...
22
"Men of Israel, listen to these words: Jesus the Nazarene, a man
attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God
performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know —
23 this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and
foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless
men and put Him to death. 24 "But God raised Him up
again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible
for Him to be held in its power. ...
29
"Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch
David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to
this day. 30 "And so, because he was a prophet and
knew that GOD HAD SWORN TO HIM WITH AN OATH TO SEAT one OF HIS
DESCENDANTS ON HIS THRONE, 31 he looked ahead and spoke of
the resurrection of the Christ, that HE WAS NEITHER ABANDONED TO
HADES, NOR DID His flesh SUFFER DECAY. 32 "This Jesus
God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. 33
"Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and
having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He
has poured forth this which you both see and hear. 34 "For
it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says:
'THE
LORD SAID TO MY LORD,"SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, 35 UNTIL
I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET."'
36
"Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God
has made Him both Lord and Christ — this Jesus whom you crucified."
Exegetical
Data.
This is Peter's first sermon, delivered during Pentecost to the
crowds that had been attracted by the disciples' tongue-speaking.
Although most of the crowd were sincerely amazed at the manifestation
of the Spirit's power in the Church, certain mockers dismissed the
miracle by saying that the disciples were simply drunk. Peter, now
filled with the Holy Spirit, used this opportunity to preach the
gospel.
His
sermon deserves our close attention because it's the first sermon in
the history of the Church. It established a pattern that would be
followed by subsequent teachers of the church, and should be
practiced in our churches today.
WITNESS
BEGINS AT THE CENTER
For
our purposes, I just want to draw out one point from Peter's sermon:
witness begins at the center.
What “center” is that?
Q:
What were the main points of Peter's sermon?
Jesus
the Nazarene is the Messiah spoken of in Scripture
You
crucified Him, but God raised Him from the dead
God
has made Him Lord
Repent,
be baptized, receive forgiveness, receive the Holy Spirit
This
message is for all whom God will call
Q:
What did Paul deliver “as of first importance,” according to 1Co
15:3ff?
Christ
died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures (v.3)
God
raised Him from the dead in accordance with the Scriptures (v.4-8)
God
has made Him Lord (v.24-28)
Repent,
receive salvation, receive forgiveness, persevere in the faith,
pursue the kingdom (v.2-3)
Did
you notice that Peter's message in Acts 2 and Paul's writing in
1Corinthians 15 have the same points? The wording may be different,
but their main points are the same.
This
similarity is striking, since Paul wrote 1 Corinthians twenty years
or more after Peter delivered his message on Pentecost. Much had
come to pass during that time. The Church had grown much larger. The
gospel had been taken to the Samaritans, then the Gentiles. In fact,
by this time, it's possible that there were already more Gentile
believers then there were Jewish believers. And yet, the message
remained the same, and the center of the apostle's preaching
remained the same, and that center was the things “of first
importance.”
The
apostles never departed from these first things, but continually
built their theology and practical applications on these things.
Challenge.
Let us therefore beware, lest our churches take for granted the first
things. Let's take heed, lest the gospel lose its centrality in the
ministries of our churches.
One
indicator that this is happening is when the pastor and other
teachers of the church no longer explain the word of God to the
people, but prefer to string verses together in order to come up
with light, upbeat, “practical” messages. Instead of wrestling
with issues of eternal significance first, these preachers are often
distracted with “how tos”--how to have a happy family, how to do
well in college, how to pursue courtship, etc. Please don't
misunderstand me. There's nothing wrong wanting to know about these
things. But the pastor's job is much like the job of the prophets of
old: to set before the people the whole counsel of God (Acts
20:27). Need we point out
that the Bible was not written in order to answer people's “how
to” questions
Q:
The apostles followed a certain order when teaching doctrines and
practical applications to the churches. What was it?
Practical
applications were always derived from doctrine. This is one of the
distinctives of evangelicalism, and is expressed very concisely in
Paul's exhortation in Rom
12:1,
“I appeal to
you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your
bodies as a living sacrifice”.
This is the pattern that biblical preaching should follow.
A
further indicator of this error is when the church invests a
disproportionate amount of resources into projects that deal with
issues that are not central to the gospel. For example, I know of a
church that has invested much in promoting Asian and Filipino pride.
As part of their program, a few years ago, they set up a temporary
museum called “The Asian Century,” which basically glorified
Asian cultures and achievements, and prophesied that the 21st
century would be the time when Asia would rise up to become
prominent in the world. What a waste of the church's resources!
Challenge.
The principle we can learn from this and apply to ecumenism is that a
church may have what we would call “solid” or “good”
doctrine, it may have a orthodox creed, but that won't stop it from
losing its sense of the centrality of the gospel in the whole life
and ministry of the church. Any church that dabbles in secondary,
peripheral issues instead of proclaiming the gospel has lost its
balance, and is flirting with disaster. If such a church will take
the counsel of Scripture seriously, it will address its internal
crisis before looking outward to ecumenical minsitry.
CONCLUSION
Today
we looked at the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples on
Pentecost and how His presence was manifested in a very visible way
through tongue-speaking and bold preaching.
First,
we drew the point that the most important manifestation of the
Spirit is proclamation, not mystical experiences, or even displays
of external power. Unfortunately, many evangelicals misunderstand
Scripture on this very important point. On the other hand, it is
possible that sincere Christians are seeking charismatic, mystical
experiences because they want something more than what cold
orthodoxy can offer. Clearly, reformation is needed from both ends,
and ecumenical efforts must therefore have a
reformatory approach.
Second,
we learned from Peter's sermon that faithful
witness begins at the center, that is, the gospel.
Applying this principle is essential for the health of the church,
and any church that has lost its bearing in this regard should focus
on fixing its internal crisis before attempting ecumenical ministry.
Part 3.2 of an ongoing Bible study on ecumenism. See links to other lessons at the bottom of this post.
taken from http://www.cpcsschools.com/talon/files/2012/10/bible-study-group.jpg
TEXT:
Acts 1:14-26
14All
these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together
with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
15In
those days Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons
was in all about 120) and said, 16"Brothers,
the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke
beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide
to those who arrested Jesus. 17For
he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this
ministry." 18(Now
this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and
falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels
gushed out. 19And
it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the
field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of
Blood.) 20"For
it is written in the Book of Psalms, "'May his camp become
desolate, and let there be no one to dwell in it'; and "'Let
another take his office.' 21So
one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the
Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22beginning
from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from
us--one of these men must become with us a witness to his
resurrection."
23And
they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called
Justus, and Matthias. 24And they prayed and said, "You,
Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you
have chosen 25to take the place in this ministry and
apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place."
26And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on
Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
Exegetical
Data.
We discussed this passage in part last week, pointing out how
damaging apostasy and heresy can be to the church. Today, let us look
at the occasion for which Peter's recounted of Judas' betrayal.
They
were to appoint a replacement for him in order to fill up the number
of the Twelve, as they continued to pray and wait for the coming of
the Holy Spirit. Once the Church was born on Pentecost, the Twelve
would be its shepherds, those devoted to “prayer and to the
ministry of the word,” as Peter said in Acts 6:1-4.
GODLY
LEADERSHIP A PREREQUISITE
The
timing of this event is important. It happened before the birth of
the Church, as recorded in Acts chapter two.
This
gives us an important example that we need to heed and follow, and
it is this: God-appointed and properly ordered
shepherds were deemed necessary for the health and effectiveness of
the Church.
This
is a top priority in the life of the local church, and a
prerequisite for ecumenism, because it is the shepherds who are
called to keep, feed, protect, guide, heal, and if necessary,
discipline the sheep. Just like Paul (2Tm 2:10),
just like Jesus the Good Shepherd (Jn 10:15)
faithful shepherds will lay down their lives for the sheep because
they know that they will have to give an account to God for the
spiritual state of the flock (Heb 13:17).
The
Scriptures illustrate how important the role of good leadership is
when it says, “Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be
scattered” (Zec 13:7;
Mt 26:31).
Remember the Galilean crowds that Jesus took pity on, in Matthew
9:36? How did Matthew
describe them? He said they were “harassed and helpless, like
sheep without a shepherd.” Clearly, Scripture teaches that good
leadership is a prerequisite for a healthy church. The primary
reason this is so is because sheep need to feed on God's word, and
it is the shepherds' responsibility to feed them.
One
commentator explains: “The
Christian Church is primarily a communion of faith, and hence
essentially needs instruction, a knowledge of the truth, and the
ministry of the word. Any attempt to edify without instruction and
doctrine as the basis, is neither in accordance with the example and
command of Jesus, nor with the practice and principles of the
apostles, and
is therefore unevangelical.”
If
the leaders of a church do not handle the word well—whether it's
because they are unskilled, or because they lack reverence for the
word—or if they are morally unfit for this duty, then the church
and its members will have to make a tough choice.
If
the church wants to keep its unfit leaders, it will be at the cost
of its health and faithfulness. If it wants to be healthy and
faithful, it must lose its unfit leaders.
Q:
Is it ok for a church with unfit leadership to enter into ecumenical
ministry? Conversely, is it ok for a healthy church to partner with
an unhealthy church?
A
poorly led church needs to fix its internal problems before
it enters into ecumenical
ministry.
A
healthy church probably shouldn't partner with a church that has
unfit leadership, unless
the purpose of such partnership is to help the other church address
its leadership issues.
Q:
Churches can be divided over issues of doctrine and leadership.
Isn't this contrary to Christ's command to be united in one Spirit?
Isn't this contrary to the spirit of ecumenism?
There
are secondary issues that need to take a backseat to unity. I
believe this is the principle taught by Paul in Romans
14.
However,
if the issue is about genuineness of faith and obedience to the
God, then division is necessary.
To the divided Corinthian church, he said in 1Co
11:18-19,
“18For,
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, 19for
there must be factions among you in order that those who are
genuine among you may be recognized.” In other words, if we're
faced with an either-or choice—either
truth or
unity—we must always choose truth, because a unity based on
falsehood is not worth having. The kind of unity Christ demands is
unity among people who are like-minded and like-hearted in their
commitment to Christ (Phil 2:1-2).
CONCLUSION
We'll
stop here for today. Just to recap, we've done a quick runthrough of
the first chapter of Acts, and learned many things about the nature
of the worldwide Church and the local church that are relevant to our
discussion of ecumenism. We've made the following points:
First,
there are foundational truths of our faith (as revealed in the
gospels and the resst of the NT) that we cannot compromise, such as
the Godhood of God, the Trinity, the perfect union of the divine and
human natures in the person of Jesus Christ, salvation by grace
alone through faith alone in Christ alone, the necessity of the Holy
Spirit's work in the life of the Christian, and the full authority
and reliability of Scripture.
Second,
we must be vigilant to guard the truth, because one of Satan's most
effective strategies is to raise up wolves from within God's flock.
Ecumenism, while it may be a means for churches to strengthen one
another, may also help to broaden the influence of false doctrines.
Third,
false teaching germinates best in churches and organizations that
have a low view of Scripture. Conversely, maintaining a high view of
Scripture—in creed as well as deed, in profession as well as in
practice—will help to ensure that our churches and organizations
stay healthy and that ecumenical efforts are pleasing in God's
sight.
Fourth,
Christ's commission to the Church can be summed up in one word:
“witness.” The Church's mission is to bear witness to the
gospel. This includes proclaiming the gospel to unbelievers on the
one hand, and on the other hand explaining or expounding the gospel
more and more to believers while training them to live it out.
Therefore, a local church has no business investing the Lord's
resources in a so-called “ministry” that has nothing to do with
witnessing about the gospel.
Fifth,
godly and orderly shepherding is essential for the health and safety
of a local church. If a local church falls short in this regard, we
came to the conclusion that...
Next
week, we will look at Acts chapter two, and see what we can learn
there.
Part 3.1 of an ongoing Bible study on ecumenism. See links to other lessons at the bottom of this post.
taken from http://www.lhbionline.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/bible_study_group.jpg
We've
spent the last two lessons talking about foundational truths of the
Christian faith, and the heresies that attack these truths. The idea
was to establish the lowest baseline possible for Christian
ecumenism. Anyone who self-consciously rejects any of the truths
we've discussed is not a fitting partner for Christian ministry, let
alone membership in the church.
Now,
in order to move forward, I want to look at what the book of Acts
tells us about Christian ministry. And the stand that I have taken
since my college days is that all Christian ministry must be closely
tied to the local church. Hopefully you're all with me on this issue,
and if you're not, I hope that by the end of our lessons I would have
convinced you through Scripture to change your views. Now that's my
premise.
If
all Christian ministry must be closely tied to the local church, then
we should not be able to talk about ministry without talking about
the local church, and we should not be able to talk about ecumenism
without talking about the local church. At the same time, our notion
of the local church would be incomplete if we didn't recognize that
every true local church is part of the worldwide Church (big “C”).
So if we want to “do” ecumenism correctly, then we need to
understand God's plan for the local church. And this is exactly what
Acts will help us to do.
Turn
with me to Acts chapters 1 and 2 and keep your finger there, because
we'll be coming back to those chapters for today's lesson.
TEXT
– Acts 1:6-11
“6So
when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at
this time restore the kingdom to Israel?"7He
said to them, "It is not for you to
know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.8But
you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and
you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria,
and to the end of the earth."9And
when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted
up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10And
while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood
by them in white robes, 11and
said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven?
This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the
same way as you saw him go into heaven."”
Exegetical
Data.
If Acts
1:1
sets the literary and doctrinal context of the book of Acts, the
passage we just read sets the historical context.
The
Church exists in what theologians call the “Messianic Age,”
which was innaugurated by Christ's First Coming and will be
consummated by his Second Coming. During this time, the kingdom of
heaven is “here but not yet.” That is to say, Christ's
incarnation, ministry, atoning sacrifice, ascension and sending of
the Holy Spirit has brought about certain aspects of the kingdom of
heaven, but much remains to be done. The world continues to be under
the control of Satan, and sin and death remain unconquered. But all
that will change when Christ returns to fully establish the kingdom.
Then, all of God's enemies will be put under His feet. Death and
Hades will be thrown into the lake of fire, all unrepentant sinners
will be judged, and believers will reign as co-heirs with Christ in
the light of God's presence forever.
But
that hasn't happened yet, and until it does, the Lord has given the
Church a mission to fulfill. That mission can be summarized in one
word: “witness.” Jesus commissioned the disciples to be His
witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the
earth. And the rest of the book of Acts shows us that this is
exactly what the disciples did.
WITNESS
AND THE CHURCH
Now,
when we read Acts 1:8,
the first thing we probably think about is evangelism and missions.
This is correct, since this is the clear thrust of the verse.
However, in recent decades, with the disenchantment of a significant
number of Christian leaders with the local church and the rise of
large, international parachurch ministries, I think we need ask
ourselves
Q:
How does this commission fit
in with our idea of the local church? What is the primary purpose of
the local church?
“The
church exists to carry out missions.” Then what place do we
assign to ministries like counseling, cell groups, Sunday school,
music ministry, technical ministry, and other such localized,
inward-oriented ministries?
If
we compare the commission in Acts
1:8
to that in Mt
28:19-20,
I think we will get a more balanced idea of what it means to be
Christ's “witnesses.” Certainly, it means to proclaim
the gospel to all people. But it also means to explain
or expound
the
gospel more and more to those who have believed, and to train
them to live in light of the gospel. As the apostle Paul advised
Timothy in 1Tm
1:5,
“The
aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good
conscience and a sincere faith.” This more balanced understanding
of Christ's commission fits well with Acts. Notice that the first
chapters of the book are concerned with the growth of the church in
Jerusalem in terms of number as
well as maturity.
Even when the focus shifts to Paul and the spread of the gospel to
the Gentiles, notice that Paul—the quintessential frontier
missionary—also devoted much of his time and energy to
discipleship.
My
point is simply this: we shouldn't miss the value that this verse has
for the ministries of the local church, and therefore for ecumenism.
All
of the church's ministries should be oriented towards this thing
called “witness,” which involves gospel proclamation to
unbelievers, and explanation and training for believers. By
implication, then, any partnership between Christian churches and
organizations should be gospel-oriented.
This
then begs the question, “What qualifies as gospel-oriented
ministry?”
It
is the gospel that the kingdom of God has been innaugurated in
Christ. This was the warp and woof of Peter's sermon to the crowd
during Pentecost in chapter two. We don't have time to study the
whole sermon, but thankfully, Peter himself summarized his thrust in
a single statement. Acts 2:36,
“Let
all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made
him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
The
Messiaship and Lordship of Jesus was the theme of Peter's teaching,
and of Paul's teaching. It was the theme that all of the NT holds up
as central to sound doctrine and the life of the local church.
Challenge.
This is why I have to question some ecumenical activities that have
been promoted by certain evangelical groups.
Interfaith
prayer rallies.
Recently, a certain evangelical organization hosted a National
Prayer Assembly. The promo poster had this for its come-on: “Maging
bahagi ng dakilang pagkilos ng Diyos sa ating bansa! Dumalo sa
'Mahal ko ang Pilipinas' National Prayer Assembly, with His
Excellency President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III and other
leaders, artists, celebrities, and children.” A note at the bottom
read, “In cooperation with various interfaith groups, NGOs and
Community-based organizations.” Does that sound like a
gospel-oriented ministry to you? The church is called to bear
witness to the gospel, which involves repentance and faith in the
exclusive claims of Christ. How can an interfaith prayer rally
accomplish that, when non-Christians are being given the false
assurance that they already have a right relationship with God,
since they can pray just as well as Christians? It may be
politically correct, but it obscures the gospel and undermines the
real purpose of Christian ecumenism.
Politics.
Some evangelicals argue that it is the church's duty to fight
injustice through politics. One author I read argued that part of
the kingdom of God is to overcome social injustice by changing the
power structures of corrupt and unjust government. She used a lot of
verses to prove her point, too. Unfortunately, she used isegesis
instead of exegesis. Instead of explaining what the passages really
meant, she just used them to prove her point. Look, it's not that I
don't want social justice, or think that our government is not
corrupt. In fact, I'd be glad to see more Christians taking on the
corrupt system in the name of Christ. Politics may be God's calling
for an individual Christian, but it is not his calling for the
church! Even though sometimes I personally would like my church to
be more involved with evangelical organizations that take political
action, that doesn't matter at all because I'm not the one who sets
the agenda for the church. It's Christ's Church, and he
sets the agenda. You and I need to know it, and embrace it. And even
when we can't understand the reason why he commands certain things
to be done in a certain way, we are called to obey wholeheartedly.
The agenda is clearly taught in Scripture. It involves “witness,”
not politics.
Charitable
Action without Evangelism.
There are evangelicals who like to quote Francis of Assisi, saying
“Preach the gospel. Use words if necessary.” Francis of Assisi
didn't actually say that, but anyway the implication is that the
gospel can be preached simply by doing good deeds and sharing the
love of Christ with people even without explaining the Christian
faith. Some might even use a spiritual sounding phrase like
“incarnating the gospel” to describe this kind of no-evangelism
approach. This can take shape in many ways: a feeding program for
the poor, ministering to orphans, maintaining a free clinic in a
poor baranggay, or gathering relief goods for flood victims. While
such altruistic projects are good in themselves, again, they're not
the primary mandate of the local church. Charitable deeds should be
undertaken in order to manifest God's love alongside
or
as an adornment
to
the preaching of the gospel (Tit
2:10).
We want to remain faithful to Christ's commission and be good
stewards of the finite resources He has provided us by properly
allocating them.
1. Initiating Substantial Discussions 
