The Eternal Covenant

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:20-21)

Now, notice the first half of the above the verses: “Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will,” Now, people in the Bible writing down a prayer that God would equip someone, is nothing new. In fact, its down right common in some sections of the Bible. Except, this part is somewhat new: “by the blood of the eternal covenant,” Now what is this doing here?

Just what it should be doing: pointing to Jesus. Well, specifically, it’s pointing to the “eternal covenant” of Christ’s blood. A covenant, which apparently is how God equips us with, “everything good” that we may, “do His will”. “The blood of the eternal covenant” (which by context, we can see is the “eternal covenant” of Jesus’ blood. i.e. that if we believe in Jesus, that God no longer has reason to seek justice for our sins) is how God chooses to disarm the powers and authorities of Satan, and it’s how He chose to equip us with everything good.

Now, we’ve talked about this several times, but that doesn’t make it any less true. Christ and His death is all-important! This is just another confirmation of that. Our goal should be to look for Christ in everything, in doing that; in studying the eternal covenant, God will give us “everything good” to do His will.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

Note: I’ve decided to close this post to comments (track-backs, etc., are excluded from this). I appreciate everyone’s point of view, and you can still contact me at this address: mikes_son_joshua@yahoo.com Thank you for your understanding.

 

Acceptable Worship

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire. (Hebrews 12:26-29)

We should indeed be thankful that we have an unshakable kingdom. – After all, Christ gave His life up as a sacrifice, so that we could have that kingdom (along with many other things). However, the bit after ‘let’s be thankful’ may seem a little confusing. “Let us offer to God acceptable worship”. At first glance, it’s really quite straightforward: we’re to offer up acceptable worship to God. Not much to it. Yet, we must ask, what is acceptable? What is the distinguishing mark between unacceptable, and acceptable worship? Is not all worship, worship? And as such, acceptable in any and every form which it comes in?

God doesn’t want just any kind of worship. He doesn’t want pagan forms of worship, in which He is put level with all the fake “gods”. He doesn’t want false worship, which is not worship at all. No, He wants worship which He can delight in; which He finds acceptable. So, again, what is acceptable?

Well, we know for a fact that Christ offered acceptable worship when He was crucified. – Jesus’ crucifixion was an act of worship, because there has never been, nor ever will be, a time which brought more glory to God. And bringing glory to God, is pretty much what worship is. – Otherwise God would’ve never raised Him from the dead. So let’s look to Him for an example. There are a couple of specific points about Christ’s worship to focus on:

1. His act of worship involved sacrifice. Jesus’ type of sacrifice only had to be made once, and could only be made by Him. Thus, our sacrifices are on a far less dramatic scale. An acceptable act of worship now, would involve “sacrificing” time, money, or energy.
2. His act of worship served others. As with His sacrifice, Jesus’ act of worship at the cross only needed to be made, and could only do what it did, one time. Thus, anything we do to serve others, can at most, involve Earthly things. Unlike Christ, who served others by giving up His very Spirit. But we are still to serve others, in whatever way which God calls us to.
3. His act of worship spread the Gospel. Granted, Jesus’ act of worship was the Gospel, but, in that, it was also the greatest spreader of it. That aside though, any acceptable act of worship, spreads that which saves, and gives glory to God: the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

So then, the point is this: we are commanded to offer acceptable worship. Acceptable worship, is not comfortable worship (which is unacceptable). God wants us to grow up into Christ [Ephesians 4:15], and one way which we do that, is by offering worship like Christ’s. – Sacrificial service which spreads the Gospel (along with, no doubt, many other attributes).

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Discipline

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? (Hebrews 12:4-7)

God will discipline us when we do wrong. Not because he’s cruel, just the opposite, because He loves us. He doesn’t like seeing us falling back into a pattern of sin, and so will stop us, and give us a little reminder that that’s the wrong way to go. He gives us the “reminder”, by disciplining us. The discipline could be something as dramatic as actual death; such as when the Corinthians were mistreating the communion [See: 1 Corinthians 11:29-30], or it could be something else entirely, but God will make it known to us that we’re on the wrong track. – Note: Not all deaths, or sickness, is a result of sin! [See: John 9:1-3] - But to be sure, He will make it known.

God sent His son to die for us, and to rise again three days later, to free us from slavery to sin, and to become our Abba, Father. It is the height of arrogance to think that after making such a sacrifice for us, that God would simply ignore His children! No, He watches out for us, and applies due discipline to keep us on the way He wants us to go. God could force us to obey Him. Just like a father could have a robot for a son. But He doesn’t, because He wants us to make “the right choices” of our own “free will”. Now, granted, He’ll put us into circumstances where we have no choice other than the correct one, but He still wants us to choose it ourselves.

So rather than face God’s discipline, let’s use the strength which God gives us to stand firm.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

The Sermon Today

Hello again!

Now, the thing to know before you read this sermon, is that my dad, as well as another person, are only temporary pastors at The Fountain of Grace. Currently, they’re looking for a permanent one, which somewhat influences this particular sermon. — That aside, this is what my dad preached today:

Psalm 107:17-22 ¹⁷ Some became fools through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction because of their iniquities. ¹⁸ They loathed all food and drew near the gates of death. ¹⁹ Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. ²⁰ He sent forth his word and healed them; he rescued them from the grave. ²¹ Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men. ²² Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy.

Romans 15:23-33 ²³ But now that there is no more place for me to work in these regions, and since I have been longing for many years to see you, ²⁴ I plan to do so when I go to Spain. I hope to visit you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while. ²⁵ Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the saints there. ²⁶ For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. ²⁷ They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings. ²⁸ So after I have completed this task and have made sure that they have received this fruit, I will go to Spain and visit you on the way. ²⁹ I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ. ³⁰ I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me. ³¹ Pray that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea and that my service in Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints there, ³² so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and together with you be refreshed. ³³ The God of peace be with you all. Amen.

Let’s pray together:

Well we’re concluding our study of the Book of Romans, today we’ll finish chapter 15, and then in the first two weeks of June, Lord willing we’ll complete chapter 16. And last week and this week we’re looking at the characteristics of a faithful preacher. But please remember, that these apply to all of us. Because all Christians are ministers of the New Covenant, so these traits apply to you and to me today, not just to preachers. From last week, a faithful preacher does not take credit to himself (vs. 18), he emphasizes obedience (vs. 18), he has personal integrity (vs. 18), he has divine approval for his ministry (vs. 19), and he has a laser like focus on the gospel (vss. 19-20).

This week the Bible adds to that list as we consider the ministry of the Apostle Paul. And let’s look at this passage under two headings: #1—Paul’s plans for ministry, and #2—Paul’s plea for prayer. So let’s look first at Paul’s plans for ministry and we’ll see more characteristics of a faithful preacher.

First, Paul did a thorough job. We saw that in verse 19 where he said “from Jerusalem, and round about to Illyricum, I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.” He didn’t just say “I preached the gospel” but rather I fully preached the gospel. He preached it everywhere. And now in vs. 23 he says there is no place for him to work, and what he means is that he has preached everywhere, and no place remained unreached for the gospel. In Colossians 1:23 he says that the gospel “was preached to every creature under heaven.” Paul went to so many places, but wherever he was, there was a thoroughness to his work, he left nothing undone in the region where he was ministering and he could say “there’s no longer any work for me here.” One of the characteristics needed for blessing in ministry, or even in our jobs, is to be thorough and to finish the work God calls us to do.

And notice in vs. 24 that Paul’s plans for ministry were to go to Spain. He said, “I hope to visit you while passing through and to have you assist me on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while.” We don’t know if he ever made it to Spain, but he made plans to go. Paul probably would be considered an evangelist because he went to this place and stayed awhile and then passed through that place. These words characterized Paul, “passing through” and “for awhile.” Which brings us to our second point.

Second, Paul evangelized. Just in the past two weeks we’ve seen Paul ministering in Jerusalem and Illyricum (this is the country that used to be called Yugoslavia), Macedonia and Achaia, his plans now were to go to Spain via Rome, but first he was headed to Jerusalem again. And he preached the gospel everywhere. He wanted to reach people everywhere. He had a world-wide vision. He knew what Psalm 22 verse 27 says “All the ends of the world Shall remember and turn to the LORD, And all the families of the nations Shall worship before You. Paul had a vision of every knee bowing before the Lord, and every tongue confessing that Jesus is Lord, so he went here and he went there always preaching the good news of what Jesus did for them when He died and rose again.

A faithful preacher absolutely must have a heart for evangelism. He must crave to get the Word of God out far and wide through all available means. He must feel that it’s not right to keep such good news to ourselves. The need is too great and the news is too good. It’s not right to keep it to ourselves.

To illustrate this point, I invite you turn with me in your Bibles to 2 Kings chapter 7 and let’s just look at a story in the Bible. This chapter starts by showing us there is a famine in the land, and the nation of Israel is in great need because there’s no food. But Elisha the prophet has some good news. He says in verse 1, “Hear the word of the LORD. Thus says the LORD: ‘Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.” In other words, food would be plentiful. There would be an abundance, tomorrow. What good news.

But some people just find it hard to believe good news. And in verse 2 “an officer on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God and said, “Look, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, could this thing be?” He didn’t believe it was possible. How could we go from famine today to plenty tomorrow? He didn’t know the power of God. And so Elisha says “In fact, you shall see it with your eyes, but you shall not eat of it.” There is a danger in unbelief, that you might see your friends or family enjoying the gospel, becoming saved, but because of unbelief you don’t get the benefits.

Well how did God bring this about? You have to admit this has got to be a miracle. Watch what God does. Notice verse 3: “³ Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate;” They were at the gate because they weren’t welcome in the city. Lepers were outcasts, unclean, and couldn’t live with the people. They were despised by others. “and they said to one another, “Why are we sitting here until we die? ⁴ If we say, ‘We will enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. Now therefore, come, let us surrender to the army of the Syrians. If they keep us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall only die.” ⁵ And they rose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians; and when they had come to the outskirts of the Syrian camp, to their surprise no one was there. ⁶ For the LORD had caused the army of the Syrians to hear the noise of chariots and the noise of horses–the noise of a great army; so they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us!” ⁷ Therefore they arose and fled at twilight, and left the camp intact–their tents, their horses, and their donkeys–and they fled for their lives. God is able to change everything. He made the Syrians here noises and run for their lives and these lepers, who had given themselves up to die, are about to sit down to a feast and find treasure. Let’s learn something: God is able to work everything out for good for His people.

⁸ And when these lepers came to the outskirts of the camp, they went into one tent and ate and drank, and carried from it silver and gold and clothing, and went and hid them; then they came back and entered another tent, and carried some from there also, and went and hid it. Isn’t it amazing that God chose lepers to discover the food and the gold and the clothing? Those who were despised by others became the recipients of all of God’s blessing. They had abundance where others were in famine. God chooses the weak, lowly, miserable and despised.

Jesus said to some very religious people of his day, “prostitutes and tax collectors are entering the kingdom of heaven ahead of you.” It’s sinners who find riches and treasure and food and the blessing of the gospel of Jesus Christ. If I could I would just invite you to come to the cross as a leper: impure, unclean, and there find forgiveness of your sins and cleansing, and healing and new life. Feed on your acceptance, put on the robe of Christ’s righteousness; right there at the cross receive your Treasure; one blessing after another, grace upon grace.

But we shouldn’t keep it to ourselves. That would be wrong. The gospel is a day of good news and we shouldn’t be silent. Notice verse 9 “Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news, and we remain silent. If we wait until morning light, some punishment will come upon us. Now therefore, come, let us go and tell the king’s household.” See there is a danger in keeping the good news for ourselves.

Every church needs to have Sunday night evangelistic preaching. This is just taking the Scriptures and explaining clearly what God requires of people. That’s evangelistic preaching. Remember, 1 Corinthians 1:21 says that it is by the “foolishness of preaching that God saves those who believe”.

There is a danger that churches face when they keep the good news to themselves and they don’t focus on outreach. Remember, the very nature of the kingdom of God is to spread and grow. Jesus described it as yeast that makes bread grow and rise. Yes, keep our small groups, for sure, but please, look for ways to get evangelistic preaching going. That’s critical. We should do what they did in vs. 11: “The gatekeepers shouted the news, and it was reported within the palace.”

When you think about Romans 15, think about Paul going all over the world shouting the good news, spreading the gospel, fulfilling the great commission to go and make disciples of all nations. And remember these words, “this is a day of good news…let us go and tell.”

So back in Romans 15, we’ve seen that Paul was thorough, and Paul was evangelistic. Thirdly, Paul is compassionate. In verses 25-28, he explains that he is taking a gift to the church in Jerusalem that was poor, and Paul wanted to meet the physical needs of that church.

Now by the way, it was Paul who persecuted that church, he was taking part in their deaths. And now he wants to bring them a blessing. When someone repents they want to make right their previous wrongs if possible. Paul wanted to help out the poor.

Again, this is just the character of Jesus. 2 Corinthians 8:9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich. Think of Jesus taking off His royal robes, left all the riches of heaven behind, coming to the cross, pouring out His life for you, to make you rich in grace, to open up heaven to you, if you’ll just repent and believe. And Paul is likewise concerned about the poor. He’s compassionate. A preacher must be concerned about the needs of people.

And in vs. 26 it was two Gentiles churches, Macedonia, and Achaia had heard about the poverty of the Jerusalem church and so gave Paul a financial gift to take to them. And Paul said they did this because they had benefitted from the Jews spiritually. In other words, as Jesus said, “salvation is from the Jews”; they had the Word of God that told of the coming Messiah that would save the Gentiles. So the Gentiles benefitted spiritually from the Jews, and so they had an obligation to support the Jews financially. There’s an important principle here: whoever we benefit from spiritually, we need to support financially. So Paul’s plans were to go to Jerusalem to deliver this gift, which would foster good will between Jew and Gentile. That was his plans for ministry.

As we’re talking about Paul’s plans for ministry, I want us to notice point number 4. Paul was bold. Notice verse 25: “Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the saints there.” Where do we see Paul’s boldness here? Remember, the unbelievers in Jerusalem wanted to take his life. In vs. 31 Paul wanted the Romans to pray that he would be rescued from the unbelievers there. The Jews there would make a starvation pact to not eat anything until Paul was dead. And he knew they were after him. Yet he resolved to walk right in to that death trap to minister. What boldness. What courage. He didn’t fear man.

One of the characteristics of a faithful preacher is boldness and courage. He should not be timid, scared, or have the fear of man. Acts 4:13 “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.”  True gospel preaching will astonish somebody. That word can be translated either “shock” or “awe”. And they ought to be able to trace it to the fact that we’ve been spending time with Jesus.

You see boldness characterized Jesus, too. Luke 9:51 says that Jesus “set His face like flint to go to Jerusalem.” He marched right into the death trap, boldly, and with great courage. He was determined to go straight to the cross and to suffer and die to pay for your sin and to purchase your eternal life. And so His followers who spend time with Him and get to know Him become bold. It says of Paul in Acts 28:31 Boldly and without hindrance he preached and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul had been with Jesus. He’s bold. Proverbs 28:1 “the righteous are bold as a lion.” We have courage and bravery and audacity. When one of my daughter’s was young she drew a picture of a lion, but it had no hair. I said what’s that? And she said, the Bible says the righteous are bald as a lion. I had to explain that it was bold, not bald.

Look with me for a moment at the book of 1 Samuel. Look at chapter 17. Goliath is taunting Israel, and all Israel’s fighting men are terrified. Notice verse 10: 1 Samuel 17:10 Then the Philistine said, “This day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other.” Notice what that did to the Israelites in vs. 11: 1 Samuel 17:11 On hearing the Philistine’s words, Saul and all the Israelites were dismayed and terrified. They were shaking in their army boots. But David gets word of this giant who was mocking God and taunting his armies. And notice what David does in verse 48: When the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine.” He was bold. He was unafraid. No timidity. He ran to the battle. Jesus ran to the cross, that great battle where he destroyed the giant Satan and won the victory for us. And Paul is running to the battle. A preacher must be gentle and humble, yes, but also fearless, courageous, unafraid.

Then he says in 28: Romans 15:28-29 ²⁸ So after I have completed this task and have made sure that they have received this fruit, I will go to Spain and visit you on the way. ²⁹ I know that when I come to you, I will come in the full measure of the blessing of Christ.

Point number 6 is that Paul operated in the blessing of the gospel of Christ. He didn’t come in his own strength and gifts and abilities, no but in the blessing of Christ. I remember hearing from Alistair Begg that sometimes it’s better for a preacher not to be too gifted, so that everyone can see that he’s operating in the blessing of Christ.

That’s Paul’s plans for ministry, and we finish with Paul’s plea for prayer. Notice vs. 30:

Romans 15:30 I urge you, brothers, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me.

Point number 7 is that Paul was dependent on prayer. Paul struggled in prayer. The word means to agonize. Paul agonized in prayer, he wrestled in prayer. The mental picture we have here is Jacob wrestling with God all night, and Jesus sweating drops of blood as He prayed in the garden. Paul wrestled with God in prayer and asked the Romans to join him.

Faithful preachers are first of all faithful prayers. Psalm 127:1 Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.

And he wanted prayer for 2 specific things: Vs. 31 he wanted to be delivered from unbelievers, and for his ministry to be acceptable to the believers. Paul was thorough, evangelistic, compassionate, bold, operated in the blessing of Christ and was dependent on prayer.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Looking to Christ

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. (Hebrews 12:1-3)

Now, notice the very first thing the author says here: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,” Now, the identity of the “witnesses” he’s referring to are fairly obvious; their the people who he talked of in the previous chapter. i.e. Samson, Abram/Abraham, Jacob, and the rest. We can see this by the authors use of “therefore”: when-ever we see a “therefore”, we’re to see what it’s there for, and in this particular case, it’s to point us back to the previous chapter, where the author talks about the afore-mentioned.

But, the next part of that sentence may seem a bit confusing: “let us also lay aside every weight,” Are our memories of their stories supposed to somehow compel us to set aside “every weight” (every “weight”, meaning everything which slows us down from running towards Christ. i.e., sin)? Well, something like that, actually. Their faith should encourage our faith; should encourage us to do as Abram did, and leave behind our sin and run to Christ (or in Abram’s case, leave behind part of his family, and follow God’s directions).

You could summarize all those verses something like this: we’re to lay aside our sin because of Jesus (so that we can run to Him). We’re to run to Jesus (you run towards where-ever you’re looking). We’re to look to Jesus, and we’re to consider Jesus, and in so doing, we’ll not “grow weary or fainthearted.” The author makes it quite clear that in everything we do, we’re to be focusing on Christ. – He’s what let’s us run the metaphorical race of life.

The point being this: we should be looking towards, and “considering” Christ in everything we do, and in so doing we’ll draw, it could even be said that we’ll  run, closer to God, and the closer we grow to God, the more He’ll show Himself to us; the more we’ll have to consider of Him.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Faith

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. (Hebrews 11:8-9)

Now, perhaps you remember that story. But if you don’t, one key bit of information is that Abraham didn’t actually obey God fully. God told him to leave his family behind. In fact, His exact words were,

“The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household^(A) to the land^(B) I will show you.^(C)” (Genesis 12:1)

Now let’s look at verse four, to see whether or not Abram obeyed: ⁴ So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot^(I) went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old^(J) when he set out from Harran. (Genesis 12:4)

He didn’t truly obey, in fact, he outright disobeyed… And yet he’s still commended here in Hebrews, and his children still got the land promised to them. His faith counter-balanced his disobedience. The same is true for us today: through our faith in Christ, and in that He did indeed die for our sins, and now lives and intercedes for us before God, our past sins are nullified. – Forgotten, and never to be remembered again. We, and Abram, are forgiven through faith. Which is why the author of Hebrews devotes an entire chapter to it.

Faith is a fundamental part of being a Christian. We can’t believe in Christ if we don’t believe He exists. Even though we don’t see Christ now, we are to still have faith that He does indeed exist. In fact, that’s what the author said was the definition of faith, in verse one:

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1)

So, let’s not be like the apostle Thomas, requiring to touch and feel Jesus (though I wouldn’t suggest complaining if He decided to allow us to do that) in order to believe.  But rather, let’s continue in the faith which He’s given us.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Purification

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. (Hebrews 9:11-14)

Christ purifies us, and then He sanctifies us, through His death. By ourselves, as we’ve all no doubt found out, we’re pretty hopeless… and useless… and all those other lovely adjectives used to describe those trying be good by their own volition. e.g., “bad”, etc.. A little more simply, we were “defiled persons”, as the author puts it.  But Christ is able to purify all.

The sacrifices the Israelites used to make were really quite meaningless, except to serve as a foreshadow of Christ’s sacrifice. They had no real power to take away sin, or to relieve guilt. Rather, God looked on them, and was reminded of the sacrifice which He had planned before time; the sacrifice of His son, which actually could take away sin and guilt.  Christ didn’t come before God with, as the author says, ”the blood of goats and calves”, but with His own blood, to forgive the sins of the people; us.

Jesus didn’t only forgive our sins, though that in of itself would of been enough. He has also purified our consciences “from dead works to serve the living God.” All who believe in Christ as their savior are free from the slavery of sin and guilt, and are under a commission to “serve the living God.”  I believe I’m serving God, albeit in a very small way, through my blog. As are numerous others through their blog. Pastors serve God when they preach, deacons do when they serve, and so forth. But ministry doesn’t have to stay in the Church, or for that matter in the blogopsphere. In fact, it shouldn’t stay just in the Church (or blogopsphere). Rather, however it is we can serve, we should serve God in that way. Whether in the Church or not.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Hope

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. (Hebrews 6:18-20)

Now if there’s one message which Disney has tried to convey in several of its productions, I’d say it would be hope. If there was one thing I bet most of the lower castes in India want, it’s probably hope for a better reincarnation. Hope is something we all want, and need. We need hope for a better future, if the one we currently have is bleak. We need hope that one day everyone in the World will stop fighting and get along. But what Disney doesn’t realize, is that there is no such thing as hope outside of Christ. Christ is our hope. He died on a cross to become our hope. He lives now to continue giving us hope, by interceding on our behalves before God.

He, and He alone is able to give us not only a hope, because He alone had all hope taken from Him. So in every issue, let’s turn to our “anchor of the soul”; our hope. – Jesus Christ.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

Lord of the Sabbath

Hello again!

This is what God gave me today in His word:

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. (Hebrews 4:9-11)

There remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. I believe that’s rather definitive: the author states quite clearly, in no uncertain terms, that there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God… But, how does this solution fit into the context of the surrounding verses?

For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” And again in this passage he said, “They shall not enter my rest.” Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.” (Hebrews 4:4-7)

We see here that some people apparently failed to enter God’s rest, “because of disobedience.” How hard can not doing any work one day out of the week really be? It seems like such a simple thing. Perhaps the author means they didn’t “enter” the rest because of their disobedience, in the sense that they simply didn’t stop working on the Sabbath. i.e. Perhaps the author simply means they disobeyed God’s command. Yet, context tells us that the author is speaking about the Israelites (we see this in verse 3, where the author quotes Psalm 95:11, which in its own context we see is in reference the Israelites.), a people who kept the Sabbath day holy all the time. How could it be that they didn’t “enter into” this rest?

Because the Sabbath rest the author is talking about, isn’t the Sabbath of old. Rather, we see (In Matthew 12:8) that Jesus is the “Lord of the Sabbath”. Jesus Himself is our Sabbath rest. Paul confirms this for us:

¹⁴ having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. ¹⁵ And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

¹⁶ Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. ¹⁷ These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ. (Colossians 2:14-17)

The Sabbath finds its fulfillment in Christ. He is the one that gives us rest now: We no longer have to stop all work on the Sabbath, or else risk God’s wrath. Rather, now we have to accept Jesus as our savior, or face Hell.

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland

 

The Sermon Today

Hello again!

Today my Dad preached at The Fountain of Grace Church, here’s what he said:

Psalm 107:10-16 “¹⁰ Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom, prisoners suffering in iron chains, ¹¹ for they had rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High. ¹² So he subjected them to bitter labor; they stumbled, and there was no one to help. ¹³ Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. ¹⁴ He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains. ¹⁵ Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men, ¹⁶ for he breaks down gates of bronze and cuts through bars of iron.” Let’s sing together:

Romans 15:14-22 “¹⁴ I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another. ¹⁵ I have written you quite boldly on some points, as if to remind you of them again, because of the grace God gave me ¹⁶ to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. ¹⁷ Therefore I glory in Christ Jesus in my service to God. ¹⁸ I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done– ¹⁹ by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ. ²⁰ It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation. ²¹ Rather, as it is written: “Those who were not told about him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.” ²² This is why I have often been hindered from coming to you.”

Let’s pray together:

We have now completed the major doctrinal teachings of the Book of Romans. And what we come to now is an epilogue, where Paul makes 3 comments about the Romans and then 3 comments about his ministry. Then he talks about his future plans, gives some personal greetings, and he closes with a benediction. That’s all that’s left in Romans.

And today we’re going to study Romans 15 verses 14-21 and this passage could be summarized by these three points having to do with the Apostle Paul: 1—Paul the Priest (vs. 16), Paul the Preacher (vss. 17-19) and finally we have Paul the Pioneer (vss. 20-21). Let’s see what we can learn, and what we can apply by studying Paul in these 3 roles.

Now in verse 14 Paul says the following things about the Romans: that they are, 1—full of goodness, 2—filled with all knowledge, and 3—able to admonish one another. Now it would really benefit us to look at these things together this morning.

First, Paul said the Romans were full of goodness. They had high moral character and were living righteously. Shouldn’t this be the aim of every Christian, to have character and conduct that represents Christ? Maybe you’ve heard that Ghandi said, “I like your Christ, I don’t like your Christians.” Well this should never be said of us, our character should be such that people see we’re full of goodness. Jesus said to “let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

But wait a minute, Paul taught in chapter 3 that all people are sinners and fall short of God’s glory; that we’re born in sin and that we practice unrighteousness. So how did these Romans get to be full of goodness? We’re not born that way. Well this is simply part of the great exchange that happened at the cross, where people who were previously full of evil become full of goodness. Picture for a moment, Jesus Christ dying on the cross. What do you see there? You see that God has taken your sin away from you and put it on His Son, that’s why Jesus is dying. He is taking your place, suffering your punishment, making payment for your sin. Your sin is now nailed to a tree and buried in a tomb. And look what He is giving you in its place: His righteousness. This is the great exchange that happens for all believers at the cross. As a believer you are full of goodness because you are full of Christ.

And the believers in Rome genuinely hated evil and loved righteousness, they were full of goodness, and so they showed by their very lives that they were transformed, that their old lives had gone and the new had come.

Question: if people look at our lives, would they see that we are full of goodness? Have we consciously turned away from sin and burned all our bridges to it, and radically amputated all access to it? Can they see that we’re living in the light, that we’re not in bondage to any habitual sin? That we live in truth, in love, in holiness, in purity? The Romans were not perfect in their lives, but they were full of goodness.

But notice also from verse 14 that the Romans were filled with all knowledge. They clearly had a hunger for the truth, they searched it out, they gave themselves to studying, to learning, to gaining knowledge. Maybe they read what God said in Hosea, that “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” so they said, “that’s not going to be me” and they set out to learn. Oh what a blessing it is to want to learn.

But what Paul means here is not that the Romans had general knowledge and information about their world that they lived in (that they knew mathematics and science and history, etc.), but that they had the full knowledge of the gospel. They were learned in the gospel. They were doctrinally sound. They saw all the Bible as pointing to Christ, because in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. You see? They were filled with Christ.

They were filled with goodness and knowledge, or virtue and truth. They had “a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith”. They knew God, they knew His truth, and, by the power of His Spirit, they were committed to living holy lives.

The third thing Paul says about the Romans in verse 14 is that they are able to admonish, or competent to counsel one another. They were qualified by the first two: they full of goodness and full of knowledge, therefore competent to counsel. Paul is talking about the responsibility that every believer has for encouraging and strengthening other believers.

You know what is so sad? Many people today are convinced that competent counseling can only be done by a person who is trained in the principles of secular psychology—despite the fact that the various schools of psychology are at extreme odds with God’s Word and with each other. But this passage tells us exactly what qualifies us to counsel one another: spiritual maturity; that is, being filled with goodness and truth.

So God has set down for us how counseling is to happen: it is to be Christian counseling Christian. If we have a problem in our lives we are supposed to go to a wise and mature brother and sister in the Lord; not someone trained in worldly wisdom but someone who is mature in Christ, and has character, and especially who loves the gospel. They can counsel us, admonish us, instruct us.

So Paul made these three comments about the Romans, now we’ll see him as priest. He says in Romans 15:16 that he was “a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles with the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” See how Paul compares himself, in preaching the Gospel, to the priest performing his sacred duty—preparing his sacrifice to be offered, arranging it on the altar, adding the oil, so that the sacrifice would be acceptable to God.

See what is being taught here? It is preaching of the gospel that makes people acceptable to God. If you’re here today and you believe this message that I’m giving you from the Bible, that Christ died in your place and rose for your justification, you are acceptable to God.

Now this is such an important point and I want to illustrate it. If you would, look with me in your Bibles to the Book of 2 Kings, chapter 4. This is a story from the history of the nation of Israel. A story about the prophet Elisha. 2 Kings 4:38-41 ³⁸ Elisha returned to Gilgal and there was a famine in that region. While the company of the prophets was meeting with him, he said to his servant, “Put on the large pot and cook some stew for these men.” ³⁹ One of them went out into the fields to gather herbs and found a wild vine. He gathered some of its gourds and filled the fold of his cloak. When he returned, he cut them up into the pot of stew, though no one knew what they were. ⁴⁰ The stew was poured out for the men, but as they began to eat it, they cried out, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it. ⁴¹ Elisha said, “Get some flour.” He put it into the pot and said, “Serve it to the people to eat.” And there was nothing harmful in the pot.

Now notice, the stew was not acceptable. There was poison in it, there was death in the pot. It was unacceptable. So what did Elisha do, did he tell the people to start pulling out the poison, just reach in and take out the bad? No, you could never do that, it’s all mixed in together. Instead, Elisha said to put in the flour, the substance. And this flour acted like a sponge, and soaked in all the poison, and left the stew perfectly acceptable. As if this flour took all the poison into itself, and left nothing but pure stew. It took the death to itself and left life for those who ate it.

Now let’s not miss the point. We were all like that stew: born with poisonous sin in our hearts, unacceptable to God. And what did God do? Did He tell us take out all that sin, clean up your life, you better remove lying and lust and greed and selfishness, etc. NO! He sent His Son to die for us, thereby taking all our sin to Himself, and giving us life. Jesus is the substance that makes us acceptable to God.

Now this passage has very practical teaching for us. A family can have sin in it, poison in the pot: father and mother yelling at each other, the kids disobeying, and what needs to be done? Focus on the bad and try to remove it? No, add Christ. Add the substance of the gospel. Fathers add Bible study to your home. Add singing of hymns and worship songs. Bring your family together for prayer. Add Christ and there will be nothing harmful in the pot.

Churches can have sin: gossip, people speaking ill of other people, slandering, backbiting, dissention, division. And what is needed? And what role should the pastor take? Point out everyone’s faults and failures? How about preach the gospel, add the substance of Christ and there will be nothing harmful in the pot.

It is preaching of the gospel that saves people, and sanctifies people, and in the next chapter we’ll see it is preaching of the gospel that stabilizes people (16:25). Do you see how extremely important preaching of the gospel is?

So we’ve seen Paul as the priest, next we see him in the role of preacher. And this is very important: why? Because we’re looking for a preacher for this church. And so I want to give us five features of a faithful preacher. Let’s remember these as we’re looking for a preacher:

First, the preacher should take no credit for himself. Paul says in Romans 15:18 “I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me.” In other words, he was not boasting in what he accomplished, but rather in what Christ accomplished through him. Look for a preacher who has accomplished a lot, but who knows that it was Christ who accomplished all that through him. “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.” We have no right to take any credit for any spiritual effect that we have had. Paul refused to boast in anything, except his weakness. The preacher should take no credit for himself.

The second feature of a faithful preacher is that he emphasizes obedience. See in verse 18 “…leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done.” See the gospel calls people not only to faith in Christ as Savior but to obey Him as Lord. Notice Romans 6:17 “But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted.” A faithful preacher must call people to, and emphasize the need for, obedience to God.

The third feature of a faithful preacher is personal integrity. Look at the end of verse 18: “by what I have said and done.” Paul led people to obey Christ through both his words and his life. His life was totally consistent with his message, without hypocrisy or self-righteousness. There should be no difference between the message we proclaim and the life we live. A preacher must have integrity. No hidden sins, nothing that could come out and cast shame on the name of Christ or the church.

The fourth feature of a faithful preacher is God’s approval of his ministry. Look at verse 19: “¹⁹ by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit.” God attested to Paul’s ministry. A preacher ought to have conversions; people who have turned from sin and are now following Christ because of his influence. This is God’s hand of approval on him. We ought to be fruit inspectors when pastors come to us—where are the conversions, the baptisms, the real spiritual influence?

The fifth feature of a faithful preacher is a laser-like focus on the gospel. Notice Romans 15:19 (NIV) “¹⁹ …So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ.” The message should never change, no matter where he preaches. Let’s not be as interested in whether or not he is funny, intense, relevant, significant, but let’s ask ourselves one question: does he preach the gospel? I remind you of Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 2:2 “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” This is a laser like focus on the gospel. That’s what preachers are supposed to preach.

So Paul was not only in the role of priest, and a preacher of the gospel, but also a pioneer. He says in Romans 15:20 “It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else’s foundation.” And he quotes Isaiah 52:15: that “those who were not told about Him will see, and those who have not heard will understand.”

So Paul was a partner, a priest a preacher and a pioneer. He was someone who didn’t take credit to himself, someone who emphasized obedience, someone who had personal integrity, someone who had God’s approval on his ministry and who focused squarely on the gospel. May we be the same!

You are Loved!

Joshua Cleveland