Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 5:7 --

"By All, he means all superfluous and distrustful care. God bids that we should labor, strive, seek, give all diligence in matters of Salvation, to get Knowledge, Faith, Repentance, &c. therefore must hear, read, meditate, pray, confer, &c. for though God work both the will and the deed, yet he will have us work out our salvation with fear and trembling; he will not save us without us: So for this life, we must be painful; as Adam both before and after his fall: Every man must have an honest calling, and therein take pains (else he must not eat) that he may be a profitable member in his place: As the wise man commendeth diligence, so doth he well speak against idleness; yea, we must have an honest and moderate lawful care; therefore is the sluggard sent to the Ant to forecast, and save somewhat in youth against age, in health against sickness, as Joseph in the time of plenty saved for the years of famine: All this God likes well: When these two meet, as they did in that good woman, Pro. 31. Or when one is husbandly both for soul and body, as either of them is better then not, so both of them are excellent: Who may tend upon the good of their souls, better than the diligent and provident? Why may do more good to others then they? For idle persons and unthrifts, are neither good for themselves, nor any body else."

-- John Rogers, 660.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 5:7 --

"God is not onely able and willing to exalt his humble servants, but infinitely wise to know the fittest time."

-- John Rogers, 655.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 5:2 --

"People must also learn to do their duty, not by constraint but willingly; Thus must they reverence their Ministers, hear them, obey their Ministery, allow them maintenance; but how grudgingly do most pay their Tythes, which is for want of finding good by the Word; They should take part of the Ministers Spiritual things, as they may out themselves into his debt, and see cause to allow him means: O suffer not any of the tenth part to cleave to your fingers, neither seek to enrich yourselves hereby, but by the remaining nine parts: whoso think to enrich themselves by working on the Lords day, or keeping back their Tythes, deceive themselves, they shall not prosper: Be the Minister good or bad, give him willingly all the Law gives him; If he does not his duty, he shall answer for it: Be not you Trespassers also, stoppage is no payment; but if he be a sufficient and painful Minister, your custom will not privilege you from paying him his due by Gods appointment, you must give him his due to the utmost, and he is worthy of it: But O woful covetousness and corruption of men in this behalf! They think any thing enough for a Minister, though it be but from hand to mouth, whereas they look to encrease themselves, and think their Trade bad, and themselves ill Husbands, if they leave not store to their Posterity."

-- John Rogers, 626-627.

"Does Prayer Change God?" Sermon: James 1:16-18

"Does Prayer Change God?"
[James 1:16-18]
February 17, 2008 Second Reformed Church

The answer is "no." If you remember nothing else this morning, please remember the answer to this morning's question is "no."

Last week we began a look at prayer, and we saw that God designed prayer to change us. God uses prayer to make us a people who seek His Will, His Kingdom, and His Glory. God uses prayer as a means to grow us in faith and trust and holiness, making us become more like Jesus, forgiving and loving others, that they, too, might come to salvation in Jesus Alone.

This morning we ask the question, "Does prayer change God?" We have seen that prayer changes us, but does it also change God? Do our prayers cause God to stop doing one thing and start doing another? If we believe that God is sovereignly in control of everything, can we pray that God will stop pursuing one thing and pursue another?

For example: If God is Sovereign, then we believe that the hurricanes that hit Florida do so in accordance with God's Sovereign Plan. Is it possible for us to see that a hurricane is heading towards Florida, pray that God will send the hurricane back out into the sea, and our prayer be the cause of God changing His Plan -- changing the course of the hurricane?

I've already told you that the answer -- the biblical answer -- is "no." Here's why it would be a problem: if our prayer could get God to change His Plan, then God was either doing something wrong or God was ignorant of some information that made there a better course to follow. And, if God sins, or makes mistakes, or doesn't have all the information to make the best possible plan, then there is no God.

And one may object, "But the King James Bible says 'God repented' eighteen times. Doesn't that mean that God will give in to our prayers and do something differently due to our prayers?"

The problem is, in part, one of translation. The Old Testament was written mostly in Hebrew and the New Testament was written mostly in Greek, so it needs to be translated into English for us to be able to read it.

Another part of the problem is that words often have more than one meaning. In our pew Bible, which is the New Revised Standard, eight of those King James texts are translated in a way that they no longer present a problem. However, there are still problems:

"And the Lord changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people" (Exodus 32:14, NRSV).

"But when the angel stretched out his hand towards Jerusalem to destroy it, the Lord relented concerning the evil, ..." (II Samuel 24:16a, NRSV).

"You have rejected me says the Lord, you are going backward; so I have stretched out my hand against you and destroyed you -- I am weary of relenting" (Jeremiah 15:6, NRSV).

"But if the nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will change my mind about the disaster that I intended to bring upon it. ..., but if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will change my mind about the good that I had intended to do to it" (Jeremiah 18:8, 10, NRSV).

"It may be that they will listen, all of them, and will turn back from their evil way, that I may change my mind about the disaster that I intend to bring on them because of their evil doings" (Jeremiah 26:3, NRSV).

"If you will only remain in this land, then I will build you up, and not pluck you up; for I am sorry for the disaster that I brought upon you" (Jeremiah 42:10, NRSV).

"Rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing" (Joel 2:13, NRSV).

"Then the Lord relented concerning this; 'It shall not be,' said the Lord. ... The Lord relented concerning this; 'This also shall not be,' said the Lord God" (Amos 7:3, 6, NRSV).

"Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we will not perish" (Jonah 3:9, NRSV).

A plain reading of these verses gives us the understanding that God can be convinced that there is a better way. God, at times, it would seem, realizes that what He is doing is not the best thing. It seems as though God flies off the handle at times and doesn't always make the best choices, so, sometimes, we have to get Him back on track.

That's blasphemy!

Moses wrote, "God is not a human being, that he should lie, or a mortal, that he should change his mind. Has he promised, and will he not do it? Has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?" (Numbers 23:19, NRSV).

And this morning's Scripture, "Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation of shadow due to change. In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures" (James 1:17-18, NRSV).

So here we have a problem: the Bible tells us that God never, ever, ever changes, and He never changes His Mind. Yet, we have these verse of God repenting, relenting, changing His Mind, and being sorry. What are we to do?

The basic principle of Scriptural interpretation is that Scripture interprets Scripture. This is based on our understanding, as Paul wrote, "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness" (II Timothy 3:16, ESV). The Bible, though it was written by many men over two thousand years, God the Holy Spirit made sure that what was written down is in perfect harmony with all of the rest of the Scripture. There are no contradictions and no errors in the Scripture, because the Holy, Perfect God has made sure it was written down that way.

So, if God is Perfect, Holy, All-Knowing, etc., He cannot err or sin or be lacking information. So, we must do something else with those Scriptures that seem to indicate that He does. In order for us to be consistent, we must understand those Scriptures that seem to be inconsistent in a different way.

And the answer is quite simple: God is All-Knowing and humans are not. All that God knows and plans cannot fit into our minds. So, when faced with a dilemma, as we see in the verses I brought to our attention earlier, we may look at them and understand that God's Plan never changed, but our perception of God’s Plan, or our understanding of God's Plan changed.

For example: Jeremiah 18:8, 10, "But if the nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will change my mind about the disaster that I intended to bring upon it. ..., but if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will change my mind about the good that I had intended to do to it" (NRSV).

A plain reading of this text would have us say that God intended to bring a disaster upon Israel, but, if they obeyed, God would change His Mind and not bring the disaster. That would mean that God's Plan hinged on Israel's actions -- that God didn't know what He would actually do until they responded -- that God didn't have enough information to say whether they would obey or not, so He was waiting to see what He would -- even should -- do.

But if we understand it from the perspective of our knowledge being limited, we could say that God, Who is Sovereign and All-Knowing, knew exactly what Israel would do, and He carried out the Plan He had intended from before the creation. However, neither the prophet, nor Israel, knew what they would do, so to their understanding and their knowledge, there were still two possible options -- two possible ways God's Plan could be worked out.

God's Plan was already worked out; He knew what He would do. But Israel didn't know their future or whether God would bring them judgement or mercy, so both options were still valid based on their lack of knowledge.

Another example: Jesus is returning. He may return tomorrow, or He may not. God knows definitely when Jesus will return -- His Plan is sure. But our knowledge is limited. So, we may only say, "Jesus will return tomorrow, unless God changes His Mind and grants us the mercy of additional time to preach the Gospel and witness His Salvation to the nations, in which case, He will return another day."

If you would like a twenty-five cent word, this is called, "anthropopathism." This is the attributing of human emotions to a non-human. Just like we talk about God's Hands and Eyes, when God doesn't have a body, we also talk about God changing His Mind, and so forth, when such a thing is impossible. This is just the way we speak because our knowledge is limited.

So, what shall we do with this understanding?

First, let us understand that prayer changes us; it does not change God.

And second, let us understand that since God is Unchanging, we can always trust Him. God will always be the same; He will always keep His Promises. We never have to doubt God or worry about whether or not He will do what He has said. Our God is Faithful and Trustworthy. He has a Plan that is unfurling, and He knows our needs before we ask. So we can come to Him, in prayer, to be changed, and with the trust and faith that we always come before that same Perfect and Holy God. And that is good news.

Let us pray:
Eternal God, we thank You that You do not change; we thank You that You can always be trusted and relied on. Remove from our minds any doubt that You might change, or get confused, or not have all the facts. Rather, let us know that the Lord our God is the Great and Only God, Who knows our needs and fulfills every one of them. For it is in Jesus' Name we pray, Amen.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 5:2 --

"If a sitting hen should go much from her nest to seek food for her self, the eggs could not but chill: If Ministers should not be maintained, how could they go on in this great work? Contrarily, how many purloin from their Minister? How many endeavor to get their Tythes at an under-rate, &c? Doth their minister feed them carefully, and should not they allow him to the utmost? Should not they be as careful of him, as he is or ought to be of them? How else shall he maintain himself and his family? How else keep hospitality, and be helpful to the poor? How else succor poor Christians, Schollars, and Strangers that resort to him for succor? A good Minister had need be a Treasurer helping to so many good uses."

-- John Rogers, 621.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 5:1 --

"The Apostle knowing that there are three vices incident and very hurtful to the Ministry and Ministers of the Word of God, namely, Idleness, Covetousness, and Pride, seeketh to prevent these in all Ministers, by exhorting them to diligent and faithful performance of their duties belonging to them; namely, 1. To feed the flock of God, that is, to Preach the wholesome Word of God diligently to them. 2. To take oversight of them, that is, to have a special care of them, and regard all their lives and behavior, applying themselves to them accordingly. 3. To be examples to them of pure, humble, and godly conversation; nor doth he onely exhort to the doing of these, but to the right manner of performing the same: They must be done, 1. Not by constraint, that is, out of fear of Gods wrath, or force of mens Laws, but willingly. 2. Not for fifthly lucre, but of a ready and free minde, seeking Gods glory and the peoples salvation. 3. Not being lordy or haughty in their carriage, but examples of humility and godliness: The Reasons whereby he urgeth the same are diverse: The 1. Taken from his own person, verse 1. Where are three motives to perswade them to obey his counsel, even for that he was a Minister as they were, a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker of the glory to come in Heaven. The 2. For that the people were Gods flock and his heritage. The 3. For they did depend on them for instruction and means of Salvation. The 4. For that hereupon they should receive a Crown of glory that fadeth not away."

-- John Rogers, 613-614.

"Why Do We Pray?' Sermon: Matthew 6:5-15

"Why Do We Pray?"
[Matthew 6:5-15]
February 10, 2008 Second Reformed Church

Today is the first Sunday in Lent. Lent is a "season of prayer, penance and self discipline" (The Christian Year. Metford, 42-44). This season developed out of the practice in the first century of fasting and prayer before baptism. By the late second century, the Church generally practiced a forty day period, (patterned after Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness), before Easter, as a time of preparation for all believers, but especially those who were to be baptized. But, if you count the days, you will find forty-six days from Ash Wednesday through Holy Saturday. That is why we say this is the first Sunday in Lent, not of Lent. We have Sundays of Advent, because they are days of celebration, as every Sunday should be, but we have Sundays in Lent -- they are not part of the season of Lent, because we ought not to be in mourning on the Lord's Day.

With this in mind, and due to the fact that some of you have asked me about prayer, I thought it well to spend the Sundays in Lent looking at prayer, and specifically the Lord's Prayer, which is the pattern of prayer that our Lord gave us. So, if the Lord is willing, we will first look at a few general questions about prayer, and then we will look at the Lord's Prayer in some detail.

Today, let us look at the question: why do we pray? How would you answer that? What is your purpose in praying? What do you look to get out of it?

In verses five and six of this morning's Scripture, Jesus says that we are not to pray to get attention or to impress others. We are not to be like hypocrites, praying on street corners and in synagogues, hoping that others will see us. We ought not to pray to get attention from others or to get others to tell us how great we are at praying.

Instead, Jesus says, we are to pray in private, quietly, out of the sight of others. Our prayer is to be between us and God, our Father. Jesus is not saying that we shouldn't ever pray together. What He is saying is that, when we pray alone, it should be alone, not on display for others to see.

If we want others to hear us pray and tell us how wonderful we pray, we might be able to get that, but then that is all we get. Jesus says that is their reward. It is not prayer. It is hypocrisy, and it does not achieve the purpose of prayer.

"[Jesus] also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 'Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayer thus, "God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all I get." But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breasts saying, "God be merciful to me, a sinner!" I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted'" (Luke 18:9-14).

The Pharisee in this parable felt good about himself, but that was all he got from his "prayer." The tax collector, on the other hand, received the mercy he prayed for; he was justified.

Jesus says that we ought to pray to get a reward from our Father. We are not to pray to impress others or to build our self esteem -- that's not prayer. Yet we are to pray, looking for a reward, but a reward from our Father. And some us may not be comfortable with saying that, and some might ask, "But doesn't that make God that slot-machine/pitiful father that we confessed God is not?" Let's look at the rest of what Jesus said in this morning's Scripture:

In verses seven through thirteen, Jesus says that we do not pray to give God information. We do not pray to enlighten God. We do not pray to convince God that He is mistaken in what He is doing. Jesus said, "your Father knows what you need before you ask him." God has always known everything; God learns nothing when we pray.

Jesus said, in giving the Lord's Prayer -- the prayer we should pattern our prayers after -- that prayer is, first, part of the way we worship God for Who He is. As we pray, we acknowledge Who God is and what He is able to do. Prayer is a type of worship.

Prayer is also a major way in which we align ourselves with God. Prayer is a major way that God makes us into who He wants us to be.

As we pray after the pattern of the Lord's Prayer, we begin by asking that we will, first, look to see that God is glorified for Who He is, that we will look to see that His Kingdom is coming, and that we will look to see that everything we do is according to His Will. We begin by asking that we would become people who seek first God's Glory, God's Kingdom, and God's Will -- that these would be our priorities.

Then we ask that God would make us trust in Him for our needs, and make us thankful for all the needs He has provided, day after day. We pray that our trust and faith in God would grow -- that we would seek our satisfaction, our hope and future, in Him.

And, finally, we ask that we would be delivered from and forgiven for our sin. We ask that God would make it possible for us to say "no" to sin and follow Him in obedience and love, instead. And we ask that when we do sin, that God would provide the Way for us to be forgiven for our sin, that we might be restored to fellowship with Him.

So, we don't pray to give God information or correct His wrong thoughts. We pray to worship God and to learn to become all the more people who seek His Glory, Kingdom, and Will. We pray to increase our faith and trust in God. And we pray for forgiveness and deliverance for sin, that God would continue to make us into the Image of His Holy Son.

Then, in verses fourteen and fifteen, Jesus says that we are not to pray to get even with those who have sinned against us, but we are to pray to learn to forgive and love our enemies. Just a few verses before this morning's text, Jesus said, "'You have heard that it was said that, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemies." But I say to you, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you'" (Matthew 5:43-44).

Is Jesus saying that we should never seek justice? Is Jesus saying that if someone steals your car, you should just say, "Oh well. Now, how can I love him?" No, Jesus was not against the justice system. If your car is stolen, you should report it stolen, and if the person is found, he or she should receive what the law requires. What Jesus is saying is that we are not to seek vengeance. We are not to be out for blood. We ought to be praying for that person, because he or she is someone who is in need of salvation.

Do we now see what the reward of prayer is that we ought to seek from the Father?

Do we know why we pray?

Jesus said we are to pray, looking for a reward from the Father. That reward consists in our glorifying and worshiping God, growing in faith and trust and holiness, becoming more like Jesus. That reward consists in forgiving and loving our neighbor, as God has forgiven and loved us.

Does that remind us of anything? Jesus said the summary of the Law and Prophets is to love the Lord our God with all our heart and all our soul and all our mind and all our strength and our neighbor as ourselves. We love God by becoming more like the Son, and we forgive and love all others.

The reward of prayer is that we love God with everything that we are and our neighbor as ourselves. The reward of prayer is that we become more like the Son, and forgive and love others.

Prayer is not about our getting what we want; it's about our being transformed into the people God has called us to be.

Well, how do we do that? On the one hand, we have the pattern of the Lord's Prayer. On the other, we have the Holy Spirit to lead and guide us, as Paul wrote, "Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groaning too deep for words. And He who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God" (Romans 8:26-27).

Let us pray:
Father, we come before You in prayer not seeking a pay-off, but desiring the great reward that You have for Your children -- that we might be transformed into the Image of Your Son. Teach us to pray. Make us a people who seek Your Glory, Kingdom, and Will. Make us Holy, as Jesus is Holy. And teach us to love that others might come to know that You are the One and Only Savior. For it is in Jesus' Name we pray. Amen.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:19 --

"Whatsoever troubles befal us in this life, either afflictions from the hand of God, for chastisement or persecution from the world, for our tryal, &c. that they come not to us by chance, or the will of the Devil or man without God, but by the determinate purpose and counsel of God:"

-- John Rogers 611.

"What Is Our Greatest Need?" Sermon: Acts 16:16-34

"What Is Our Greatest Need?"
[Acts 16:16-34]
February 6, 2008 Second Reformed Church

The sermon title this evening is, "What is Our Greatest Need?" How would you answer that? What is our greatest need? What do we need above everything else? Might it be food? Water? Oxygen? What is the one thing we cannot live without?

In our Scripture reading this evening, we find Paul and Silas in Macedonia -- Greece -- where the Holy Spirit had sent them. And as they were heading to the temple to pray, this young, slave girl started following them. Now this wasn't just any slave girl: she was possessed by a demon, and her owners would have her tell people's fortunes for pay.

This girl kept following Paul and Silas, and as they went, then demon prompted the girl to cry out, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation." All throughout the town she cried, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation." Day after day like a car alarm, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation."

Paul became fed up. This was not the way he was accustomed to ministering, and he didn't want his ministry associated with demon-possession. So he did an exorcism: "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And the demon immediately came out of her, and the girl was whole again, and she could no longer tell fortunes.

Now this infuriated her owners, so they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace -- they wanted justice -- they had stolen their livelihood from them. And they held and impromptu court, accusing Paul and Silas of trying to get people to do things that were unlawful for Romans to do. These foreign Jews were teaching strange customs that Romans ought not do.

Let us understand from this that having other people believe us is not our greatest need. Certainly, we should live to be trustworthy people, like Paul and Silas lived, but they told the truth, did good for others, and they were not believed when they were accused. Having other people believe us is not our greatest need.

In fact, the people gathered up stones and rods, and they beat Paul and Silas over and over again, and then they were dragged to the prison, thrown in the door and their feet were locked in stocks so they couldn't move.

Let us understand here that being kept from being unjustly abused and imprisoned is not our greatest need. Surely, we should avoid getting into such circumstances if possible -- we should not desire to suffer, but as we have seen again and again, if we are follows of Christ, we will suffer, and some will suffer physically and may even be put to death. Being kept from unjust abuse and imprisonment is not our greatest need.

Paul and Silas were full of joy and hope; they had not lost the fulfillment of their greatest need. They had done the work of God, they had been merciful and delivered a possessed girl. They had been lied about, beaten, and thrown in prison. Yet, what do we find? Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns through the night. They weren't planning an escape. They weren't feeling sorry for themselves. The weren't blaming God for the situation they were in. They were lifting up they voices in prayer and singing hymns!

So, we understand that being free is not our greatest need. Having a comfortable home is not our greatest need. Having good food and water is not our greatest need.

Suddenly, there was a great earthquake, and every door in the jail unlocked, and all the chains and stocks unlocked -- the prisoners were free. The jailer knew that the prisoners could all escape. He knew that he could catch them all. He knew that no one would believe that and earthquake cause all the doors to unlock. He knew that he would be condemned to death for allowing all the prisoners to escape. So he drew his sword to commit suicide.

Suicide should not be encouraged or attempted, but let us remember something that we learned in I Peter -- being alive in this life is not our greatest need. Paul said "to live is Christ, to die is gain" -- we ought to live our lives, joyfully for Christ, but we ought to understand that to die in Christ and for Christ is gain. So, this life, and living it, are not our greatest need.

Paul cried out and told the jailer, "Don't kill yourself; we're all here."
And, suddenly, the jailer realized that keeping his job wasn't his greatest need. He ran into the cell and fell before Paul and Silas, not to worship them, but because he knew what had happened -- he knew how the slave girl had followed them around crying out, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation." His eyes were opened, he knew these were servants of the Most High God, and he knew that their message was his greatest need, so he cried out, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" The jailer understood that his greatest need was salvation.

The theologian, R. C. Sproul, tells of a time when he was a visiting lecturer on a campus where there were a goodly number of students who hadn't heard of him. This was on a Christian college campus, and as he was walking across the campus, zealous young people would come up to him and ask, "Have you been saved?" Dr. Sproul said that, for awhile, he politely answered them so he could get to when he was going, but he finally had been asked so many times, "Have you been saved?", that he asked the student back, "Saved from what?" Dr. Sproul said the student hadn't expected the answer and couldn't quite pull himself together again.

It's an answer we all need to have. If we believe that our greatest need is salvation, then we need to know what it is we are being saved from. And perhaps many of us would say, "Well, we're saved from our sin." And while that is true, it doesn't get at the heart of the matter. Who cares if we sin -- sin is fun. Why do we need to be saved from it? Why is it our greatest need?

Would it surprise anyone if I were to say that our greatest need is to be saved from God? I didn't say that we need to be saved for God -- or by God -- I said our greatest need is to be saved from God.

Listen to Paul, "Since, therefore, we have now been justified by [Jesus'] blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God" (Romans 5:9). Yes, we are forgiven for our sin in salvation. Yes, the righteousness of Christ is imputed to our accounts in salvation. But the big picture answer is that in salvation, the Wrath of God against us is appeased through Jesus Christ. Our greatest need is to have God's Wrath taken away from us -- which includes forgiveness for sin and the imputation of Christ's Righteousness. This is our greatest need, because if the Wrath of God is not taken away from us, we will suffer at His Hand in body and soul for all of eternity.

The jailer understood this -- being executed for losing the prisoners, or committing suicide, was nothing compared with what God caused him to realize before Paul and Silas. That is why he cried out, "What must I do to be saved?" And they give him the lynch-pin of the Gospel: "Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved, you and your household."

After Peter preached his sermon on the day of Pentecost, we read, "Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'Brothers, what shall we do?' And Peter said to them, 'Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself'" (Acts 2:37-39).

So, what happened to the jailer? He repented and believed in Jesus. He took Paul and Silas back to his home and cleaned their wounds and fed them. His whole household hear their words and believed, and they were all baptized. "And [the jailer] rejoiced along with his entire household that he had believed in God." He had had his greatest need filled: He had been delivered from the Wrath of God.

Tonight is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. This is a period of time when we especially consider our sins and repent of them, turning and practicing what is good and true and holy, as we consider all that Jesus did to deliver us and bring us back to God.

We practicing anointing with ashes to remind us of the seriousness of sin, of our greatest need, and our need to avoid sin and always, quickly repent of it.

We also practice anointing with oil, not as a magic cure, but, as James wrote, "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord" (James 5:14). For He is mighty to heal.

Let us pray:
Almighty God, we thank You for sending Jesus, Your Son, to take on Your Wrath for our sin, that we might be delivered and made righteous in Him. In this season of Lent, may we each consider Your Sacrifice and seek all the more diligently after holiness. For it is in Jesus' Name we pray, Amen.

Ash Wednesday Worship

D.V., our Ash Wednesday Worship service will be this evening at 7 PM. Come, worship our Holy God with us. We plan to impose ashes and anoint with oil for all who are willing and desirous.

"And It Was Good" Sermon: Genesis 1:1-2:4

"And It Was Good"
[Genesis 1:1-2:4]
February 3, 2008 Second Reformed Church

Over the past two weeks, we have seen that the Bible confesses to there being One God Who is Eternal. He existed before time and exists outside of time, as well as in time, and He lives forever into the future. He is the Only Uncreated Being: He Alone forever is and was and will be.

This One God exists in Trinity -- in Three Persons, and all Three Persons took part in the creation of everything that is -- except for Themselves. They created everything that is because it pleased them to do so. They did not have any need that provoked their creating.

God spoke everything that is into existence and now uses the reproductive systems of plants and animals to continue His creation.

This morning, as we look at the creation history one more time, we consider these questions: What was the Holy, Perfect God's evaluation of His creation? And what does that mean for us?

We don't have to guess what God thought of His creation, because He tells us: "And God saw that the light was good" (Genesis 1:4). "God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good" (Genesis 1:10). "The earth brought forth vegetation, plants yielding seed according to their own kinds, and trees bearing fruit in which is their seed, each according to its kind. And God saw that it was good" (Genesis 1:12). "And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light to the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good" (Genesis 1:17-18). "So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swim, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good" (Genesis 1:21). "And God made the beasts of the earth according to their kinds, and everything that creeps on the ground according to its kind. And God saw that it was good" (Genesis 1:25). "And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good" (Genesis 1:31a).

God proclaimed everything He had made in the spiritual and the physical realms was "good," and collectively, "very good."

Paul wrote, "Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, through the insincerity of liars whose consciences are seared, who forbid marriage, and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, for it is made holy by the word of God and prayer" (I Timothy 4:1-5).

And St. Augustine wrote, "And thou, O God, didst see everything that thou hadst made and, behold, it was very good. We also see the whole creation and, behold, it is all very good. In each separate kind of thy work, when thou didst say, 'Let them be made,' and they were made, thou didst see that it was good. I have counted seven times where it is written that thou didst see what thou hadst made was 'good.' And there is the eighth time when thou didst see all things that thou hadst made and, behold, they were not only good but also very good; for they were now seen as a totality. Individually they were only good; but taken as a totality they were both good and very good. Beautiful bodies express this truth; for a body which consists of several parts, each of which is beautiful, is itself far more beautiful than any of its individual parts separately, by whose well-ordered union the whole is completed even though these parts are separately beautiful" (The Confessions, chapter 28, paragraph 43).

God created everything that is because it pleased Him. He called everything that He created, "good." He said that taken together the creation is "very good." And we see in Paul and Augustine that when we receive God's creation with thanksgiving it is good for us -- it gives us pleasure.

Still, we may wonder just what "good" means. What does it mean for God to say that the creation is "good" and "very good"?

Francis Schaeffer says this: "This is not a relative judgment, but a judgment of the holy God who has a character and whose character is the law of the universe. His conclusion: Every step and every sphere of creation, and the whole thing put together -- man himself and his total environment, the heavens and the earth -- conforms to myself" (Genesis in Space and Time, 55). In other words, the creation is good because it conforms to God and what God created it to be. When dogs are being dogs and mud is being mud and cherubim are being cherubim, that, God says, is good.

And some will be thinking, "Wait a minute: how can we call a sinful and fallen world good? Is God saying that sin and evil are good?"

Absolutely not. Sin and evil, which came to earth through our choice through our representative, Adam, are acting contrary to creation. Sin and evil are doing that which is opposed to the way and the purpose of creation. It is doing those things that we ought not to do and not doing those things that we ought to do. Sin and evil are against what it means to be who we were created to be.

We see this is Paul's description: "For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we are saved" (Romans 8:19-24a).

Christians understand that sin and evil came into the Garden, into the whole creation, through the sin of our Father, Adam. All of creation -- men, women, animals, plants, inanimate objects -- all of creation was punished and made to suffer for our sin. Why do we die? Our sin. Why are some plants poisonous? Our sin. Why do animals kill each other and humans? Our sin. In the Garden, we were healthy and at peace with all of creation, but sin destroyed that.

And the creation understands that it is not her fault that she suffers and causes suffering. The creation understand that it is suffering because our Father, Adam, chose to bring us into sin. But the creation also understands -- this is what Paul says in the passage I just read -- the creation understands that the day is coming when Jesus returns as Judge, and after the judgement, the elect of God will be perfected and glorified and all of creation will be restored and perfected and set aright -- it will, once again, be good -- in the full meaning of the word.

We share a hope with the creation -- that when Jesus returns, sin will be put away from us, and we will be made into what we were created to be. The living and the dead will stand before the throne, and Jesus will grant everlasting life, perfect holiness, and righteousness, to every human who ever believed in Him and to the whole non-human creation. Carol's dog, Winston, will rise from the dead, and Barbara's dog, Bonnie, will rise from the dead, and they will be made perfect and whole with us, so the whole creation will join in glorifying and praising Jesus.

As will the elect of God be raised from the dead, in their bodies, and their bodies will be healed and perfected to the glory of God.

Now, our bodies will be different -- our bodies will be like Jesus' Resurrected Body. Our bodies will no longer be subject to sickness and disease and death -- like Jesus, we will be in perfect health, unable to sin, and everlasting. But let us not make the mistake and say that we shall not be physical -- Jesus could be touched; Jesus ate food and drank after His Resurrection, and so shall we.

There are modern religions that deny that the physical creation is good. Christian Scientists deny that the physical world exists. For them, one of the greatest sins is to believe that there is any stuff here at all. They say that we can be perfect, holy, and healthy in this life, if we just deny the physical world exists, if we just deny that sickness and disease can bother us.

Jehovah's Witnesses believe that the physical world exists, but they believe that the physical world is corrupted by sin and evil and Jesus will not restore the creation. They deny the physical resurrection and the release from bondage that Paul wrote about. They say that the future life after Jehovah's return will be entirely spiritual.

If they're right, what do we do with Jesus' being touched and eating and drinking and saying we shall be like Him? What do we do with Job's confession: "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!" (Job 19:25-27). What do we do with the fact that God said the creation is very good?

As it was created, God said that the whole creation is very good. What does that mean for us today, in a fallen and sinful world?

It means that we should be thankful for the creation: even amidst the sin and futility of the world, are we not thankful for our pets, for the wonders of the creation, and for other people? Let us be thankful for the creation that we enjoy, despite its being marred.

It means that we should delight in the creation: God has given us the whole creation to enjoy and to know Him better through. Let us enjoy everything that God has given us in the world. Enjoy food and drink and viewing and interacting with creation, listening to the variety of songs and sounds, seeing all the variety of being and color. Let us enjoy what God has given and put around us.

It also means we are responsible for and should act responsibly towards the creation: not just because our sin has corrupted it, but because God, in the beginning, said, "'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth'" (Genesis 1:26). The word, "dominion," in this text, does not mean that we can do what we want with the creation, it means that God has assigned humans the responsibility to care for the creation in His place. We are God’s viceregents; God’s expects us to care for the creation in the same way that He does.

And, since God created the creation very good, we ought to trust God. We ought to trust His Word, be thankful, enjoy the creation, care for the creation, but also look forward with the hope that Paul says the creation has for the day of Jesus' Return when we and the creation will be restored and perfected. (Cf. James Boice, Genesis, vol. 1, 73).

It is appropriate the we consider this hope on a communion Sunday, because Jesus said, "'I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you that I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.' And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, 'Take this, and divide it amongst yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes'" (Luke 22:15-18).

In the communion liturgy, we say that this is a feat of remembrance, communion, and hope. Remembrance of Jesus' Work on earth, communion with that same Jesus Who is spiritually here with us, giving us His Grace through the elements, and hope -- the hope that Jesus wasn't lying -- that the day is coming when He will come to earth again, and we, in real, very good, glorified bodies, will share real bread and a real cup, with the Real Man, Jesus Christ, when He fulfills the kingdom of God on the last day.

Let us pray in hope:
Almighty God, Creator of every good thing, we thank You for the creation and for the promise and the hope that one day it will be fully restored, and us with it. We thank You that You allow us to enjoy and be thankful for all of Your amazing creation. Help us to take responsibility for caring for it as Your stewards. And keep the communion hope ever before us. May Jesus Christ be praised, Amen.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:17 --

"Therefore let us not be against the Lords chastening: Its better to have a strong purgation, then to fall into spiritual diseases and dangers, whereunto we shall else be subject; there's no rule in the world aomng children without rods: Neither use we untimely means, or make overmuch haste to get out of them, but crave rather to be better renewed and inclined in Faith, Patience, Humility, &c. our care is comfortable."

-- John Rogers, 598.

February Sermons

D.V., I plan to preach:

2/3/08 Communion/Transfiguration Genesis 1:1-2:4 "And It Was Good"
2/6/08 Ash Wednesday 7PM Acts 16:16-34 "What Is Our Greatest Need?"
2/10/08 Lent 1 Matthew 6:5-15 "Why Do We Pray?"
2/17/08 Lent 2 James 1:16-18 "Does Prayer Change God?"
2/24/08 Lent 3 Romans 8:14-16 "The Address"

"God Created" Sermon: Genesis 1:1-2:4

"God Created"
[Genesis 1:1-2:4]
January 27, 2008 Second Reformed Church

Last week we began what, if the Lord wills, will be a three week look at beginnings. Last week we saw that God is Eternal and Triune. God existed before the creation and before the creation of time. And we saw that God created because it pleased Him to created -- not because He had any need to create.

Last week we thought about the "when" of creation in the sense of what it told us about God. Keeping that in mind, let us now think about Who created, how the creation occurred, and what was created.

Who created? Well, the sermon title is, "God created," so there is not much mystery in this question. In our Scripture, we are told that "in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." But let's remember that we saw last week that God is a Single Being Who exists in Three Persons -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Which Person created? Or did more than one Person create?

In the first verse of Genesis, we are told that God created. The word that is used for God is Elohim. This is a plural word in Hebrew. Out of context, we would translate this word as "gods," but since we know that the Hebrews only believed in One God, we translate it as "God," yet there is an understanding that there is a plurality in the One God.

Look at verse twenty-six of chapter one: "Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.'" That is a correct translation, God speaks to Himself in the plural because God is One God, but Three Persons, as we know from the doctrine of the Trinity.

So, more than one Person of the Trinity was involved in the creation, but were two Persons involved, or all three?

In II Kings 19:15 we read, "And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said: 'O Lord the God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, you are the God, you alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth, you have made the heaven and the earth.'" In this Scripture, Hezekiah uses the Name, YHWH, to address God -- that most personal, most Holy Name of God.

When we come to the New Testament we read, "And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, 'Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them'" (Acts 4:24). The Hebrew word, YHWH, is replaced with the Greek word, Theos. And in I Corinthians 8:6a, "yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist." Here, we are told that Theos is the Pater. This God is the Father.

The testimony of the Scripture is God the Father created.

Let us look at Genesis 1:2 -- in our pew Bible, we read "the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the waters." You may have noticed a footnote that reads, "Or while the spirit of God or while a mighty wind." Technically, out of context, these are all correct, the word ruach means "life-force, wind, breath, spirit, Holy Spirit," and one must determine which it is from the context.

Other than our pew translation and some modern scholars, Christendom has historically understood ruach to be referring to the participation of God the Holy Spirit in creation. That's why I have altered the reading of this Scripture for the past two weeks. It makes more sense in the context that "God the Holy Spirit was hovering over the face of the deep" than to say that is was windy.

The question of the participation of God the Son is much clearer: "there is...one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist" (I Corinthians 8:6b). "For by [Jesus] all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities -- all things were created through him and for him" (Colossians 1:16).

Thus, all Three Persons of the Trinity -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, created all that is.

But how?

If we believe the science text books in our public schools, billions and billions of years ago, there was this infinitesimal speck of dense matter that always existed, and it blew up. It spread throughout the universe, and accidently, by chance, formed into one-celled organisms, which, over time, accidently, by chance, became human beings. Of course, science also denies that matter is eternal, and there is not one shred of evidence to support a speck of dust accidently, by chance, over time, becoming me...

"By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible" (Hebrews 11:3). The Scripture tells us that God, Who is a Spirit, and always existed, outside of time, before time, before the creation of anything, including matter -- God said, "Let there be..." and there was. By the power of God's Word, time and matter came into existence -- everything that is. God spoke all that is into existence. God didn't take stuff that was and make it into everything that is -- no, once there was God and nothing else, then God spoke the word and creation occurred.

How did God create?

We can believe the textbooks, that scientists say that though they don't believe in the eternality of matter, there was at least once piece of eternal matter that, one day, for no reason, blew up, and accidently, by chance, created everything that is...

Or, we can believe that God is so great a Being that God spoke the Word and brought everything into existence for His Pleasure.

God created everything other than Himself. Hebrews 3:4, "For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God." Revelation 4:11, "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."

Now, let us understand that "in the beginning," God created everything that is by His Word, but let us also understand that God also uses secondary causes to create. In other words, God created and continues to create with matter and through others now. The initial creation was spoken into existence -- creation ex nihilo, we say -- but God now also uses matter and others to create through.

We see this in our Scripture, after God brought the animals and plants into existence, God commanded them to be fruitful and multiply -- the creation was continued through the plants and animals reproducing through their own systems of reproduction, rather than God calling each one into existence.

And God did not call humans into existence, we're told that Adam was created out of the dirt in the Garden of Eden: "Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature" (Genesis 2:7). Also, Eve: "So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man" (Genesis 2:20-21).

But, what exactly did God create?

God created time, space, and matter.

God created light and darkness.

God created water and the heavens.

God created dry land.

God created plants and trees.

God created the sun, moon, and stars.

God created the birds of the air, the fish of the sea, and every other creature that exists on land and sea and sky.

And God blessed all the living and told them to multiply -- God continues His creation through the course of reproduction through plants and animals.

And God created humans -- male and female -- you and me.

God created everything that is -- except for Himself.

What shall we say to this? That the Triune God created everything that is by the power of His Word and continues His Work of creation through natural reproduction?

We've heard the most appropriate response already: "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created" (Revelation 4:11).

Let us praise our God. Let us look at and consider the creation and praise our God.

Let us pray:
Almighty God, Mighty Creator, He Alone Who is worthy of all praise from all creation, we lift up Your Name and praise You and rejoice in You this morning. Great are You, O God, and worthy to receive everlasting praise from us for everything that is, for the love and joy and awe You instill in us through Your creation. May we be a pleasure to You. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:14 --

"For the Spirit of glory and God resteth upon you.] He proves what he affirmeth; If ye suffer for Christs sake, Its an argument ye have the Spirit of God in you, which is a glorious Spirit, and makes you glorious. notwithstanding the ignominy and reproach the world casts upon you, as though you were of all others the vilest; whereupon you must needs be blessed, which Spirit is on their part ill spoken of, but on yours that suffer is glorified; So that as the Spirit makes you glorious, you glorifie it by your constant and joyful suffering."

-- John Rogers, 589.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:14 --

"See that wicked persecuters make Gods Servants happy, yes, more happy then they should be, so that in seeking their hurt, they do them good in many ways; They purge and try them, make them the more dear to God, and set the greater Crown upon their heads; what a privilege have the Servants of God, that all things, even their persecution should work together for their good; Its not so with others, yet are not we to thank the wicked for this, who intend no such thing: The Caldeans and Sabeans were an occasion that Job had twice as much goods given him as he had before, but no thank to them, for they took from him what they could; Its God who blesseth the more those whom the wicked curse."

-- John Rogers, 588.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:13 --

"O how should this [the affliction of God's servants] not make us patient onely, but joyful in persecution: If we sow in tears, we shall reap in joy: If we suffer for Christ, we may rejoyce and be glad, for great is our reward in Heaven: If we forsake father, or mother, or house, or land, &c. for Christs sake, we shall have life everlasting: Is not this an happy change? This made the holy Servants of God set light by all they had, not that they were fools, and knew not what they did, or were senseless; no, the assurance of an eternal joy and inheritance in Heaven, swallowed up all, and so should it be with us."

-- John Rogers, 586.

"In the Beginning" Sermon: Genesis 1:1-2:4

"In the Beginning"
[Genesis 1:1-2:4]
January 20, 2008 Second Reformed Church

It's one of the best known Scriptures: "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." And, if the Lord is willing, as we are at the beginning of a new year, it seemed an appropriate time for us to spend a few weeks considering beginnings, as we find it in the first chapter, or so, of Genesis.

Today, let us consider only one item -- that is, the "when" of creation. We are not going to consider the date or the year of the creation, though there are both good and not-so good arguments about that "when" of beginnings. What we are going to look at is "when" in the sense of what it means -- what it tells us about God -- if creation occurred "in the beginning."

We're going to love God with our minds this morning, so share your heads -- whatever you need to do to get your brain flowing.

If I said to you that I am going to preach this morning, you would understand that I exist before I preach, right? In order for me to preach, I must exist, and I must exist prior to my preaching.

You are here to worship this morning. If you are here to worship, it means that you decided to come to this church -- to this sanctuary -- to worship. It means that you existed before you came to worship, before you decided to come to worship, right?

So, if God created "in the beginning," God existed before the beginning, right? If God created everything that exists "in the beginning," God existed before everything else existed. OK? Before the creation, God is -- God existed.

Moses tells us in Psalm 90, "Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. You return man to dust, and say, 'Return, O children of man!' For a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past, or as the watch in the night" (Psalm 90:1-4).

And the Psalmist wrote, "Your throne is established from old; you are from everlasting" (Psalm 93:2). And again, "You, O Lord, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations. Of old you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; they will wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end" (Psalm 102:12, 25-26).

God speaks of Himself to the prophet Isaiah, "Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, the first, and with the last, I am he" (Isaiah 41:4)

And Paul writes to the young minister, Timothy, "To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. ... he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen" (I Timothy 1:17, 6:15b-16).

All of these Scriptures tell us that God existed before the beginning -- that God is before the beginning. God is An Eternal Being Who has neither a beginning nor an end. God always was, God is, and God always will be. God is immortal.

And we may say, "Yes, that's true, but didn't C. S. Lewis once say, 'You have never seen a mortal man'? And wasn't he making the point that humans beings, though we die, we shall all be raised to live eternally, suffering in Hell, or worshiping before the Throne of God?"

It's true: all of us live, most of us will die in our bodies, and all of us will be raised to life eternal -- in one place or the other. All human beings are eternal creatures. Every human being in the sanctuary will live eternally.

So the question being raised is, "So what's the big deal about God? God is Eternal; God is Immortal. So are you; so am I."

The difference is that at one time, you and I were not. There was a time when you and I did not exist. You and I came into existence in the moment of conception, before that we did not exist. We exist from the moment of conception throughout all of eternity -- present and future.

But God always was and is and will be. There was never a time when God did not exist and there will never be a time when God does not exist. God exists infinitely, eternally, backwards through time -- and before the beginning, before time existed -- and infinitely, eternally, forward through time.

Every human being exists as a arrow from conception onward. But God exists infinitely and eternally, an arrow pointing in both direction from now and forever, and before and before time.

You see, before the beginning, before God created, there was no matter -- there was no suff, and there was also no time. Time is a part of the creation; it did not exist prior to the beginning. God always is, in time and before time, in time and in timelessness. God is the Only Self-Existent Being. Everything other than God is created by God or something that God created. But God is. He just is. That is what these Scriptures tells us.

And you may ask, as people have asked, "What was God doing before the creation?" The great church father, St. Augustine was asked, "What was God doing before He created the world?" And St. Augustine answered, "Creating Hell for people who ask stupid questions." Of course He was speaking tongue-in-cheek.

Before "the beginning," before the creation, God is. God Alone existed, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Before the creation God existed in perfect happiness with His Triune Self. He gloried in His Being, and that was all God needed.

And we find that difficult to conceptualize: we cannot form a picture of the Triune God existing with Himself, outside of time and space, with nothing else in existence. That is the truth that the Scripture teaches us, but it doesn't fit in our brains. It is a point at which we have to just affirm what we are taught and understand that there are things about God that are too wonderful for our understanding.

But then, someone might ask, "Well, if God was perfectly happy with Himself, prior to the existence of space and time and all things, including humans, then why did God create anything? Why did God ever create the beginning -- why did He start the clocks of eternity forward -- if God was completely fulfilled in Himself and didn’t need anything?"

The Scripture gives us this answer: God created because it pleased Him.

Solomon quotes the pre-Incarnate Christ about His Existence and His Relationship with the Father and the joy and pleasure They had in creating, "Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. When there were no depths, I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth, before he had made the earth with its fields, or the first dust of the world. When he established the heavens, I was there; when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, when he assigned the sea to its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundation of the earth, then I was beside him, like a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the children of man" (Proverbs 8:23-31).

God does what God does because it pleases Him.

So, Who is this God Who created "in the beginning"?

God is the Only Self-Existent Being; He has no creator.

God always was and always is and always will be.

God is before time, outside of time, and in time -- forever past and forever into the future.

God is the Triune God Who is always in perfect felicity with Himself.

And God is the God Who created "in the beginning," because it pleased Him to do so.

Let us pray:
Almighty, Eternal, Infinite God. We thank You for the revelation of Your Word. We thank You for the insight Your Word gives us into Your Character and Being. Help us to know You better, to be more amazed and humbled by Your Being, and to know when our minds are too small to say anything more. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:13 --

"If we be so dealt with at any time [to suffer for Christ], we need not think hardly, but rejoyce, not think hardly: He was the glorious Son of God, we poor mortal Creatures, dust and ashes; He most holy and righteous, and perfectly pure, we miserable sinners, which though not at mens hands which wrong us, yet at Gods have deserved all evil, both here and in Hell. If we turn to our opprobrious sufferings here, and perpetual torments of Hell, into a few short glorious sufferings, we have no cause to think hardly; yea, having suffered all for us, we may well suffer for him, we can never lose hereby, nor can ever suffer to much for him, as he hath done for us; nay, not onely we must not think hardly at our sufferings, but we have cause to rejoyce, that we are advanced to be like our Master, made conformable to our head Christ Jesus: He is a bold Servant, that is not content to fare as his Master fares; Those Worthies that have gone before us, have accomplished it their honor, and a special favor that they have drunk of this Cup."

-- John Rogers, 585.

Annual Meeting

This Sunday (D.V.) is our annual meeting and pot-luck lunch. We ask that all members be in attendance -- and bring lots of great food!

"He Will Please His Father" Sermon: Matthew 3:13-17

"He Will Please His Father"
[Matthew 3:13-17]
January 13, 2008 Second Reformed Church

When Jesus was about thirty years old, He left Galilee and went to the Jordan River to be baptized by John the Baptist. When John heard Jesus' request, John was upset and tried to refuse: "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" What did he mean? Why didn't John want to baptize Jesus?

Well, what was John doing? In his own words, "I baptize you with water for repentance" (Matthew 3:11a). John was carrying out the symbolic sacrament of running water over a person to symbolize that, in repentance, a person is forgiven for his sin. Just as water washes away dirt, so repentance washes away sin. John was administering the sacrament of baptism to those who confessed that they are sinners in need of forgiveness and cleansing. Now do we see the problem?

Peter wrote, "Jesus committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth" (I Peter 2:22). Jesus, though He is Completely Human, was not born with original sin, He never sinned Himself -- He never dishonored His parents, He never lied, He never lusted after the girl in school who smiled at Him, and so forth. Jesus never ever committed a sin, yet He came to John to receive the sacrament of baptism for the repentance of sin. Why?

Our Scripture this morning gives us two reasons:

First, Jesus said, "Let it be so now for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness." Well, what does that mean?

That means that Jesus kept all of God's Law perfectly. When we say that Jesus is righteous, we are saying that He not only did not sin, but He kept all of God's Law perfectly. Since we do not keep God's Law perfectly, in order for us to be justified before God, in order for us to be declared innocent and holy at the judgment, Jesus Righteousness must be imputed or credited to our accounts.

Therefore, everything that God requires in the Law must have been kept and never broken by Jesus for us to be righteous. We are required to be baptized as a sign and a symbol of our being saved by Jesus Alone. We are commanded to be baptized in the One Name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So, though Jesus did not need to be baptized due to His sin, He was baptized for our sakes, because we do sin. And in being baptized, Jesus sanctified baptism for us -- He made baptism a sacrament and a means of grace for Christians.

When we say that Jesus was baptized "to fulfill all righteousness," we mean that Jesus was baptized to prove or authenticate John’s baptism. Jesus was baptized so He would have experienced, first, the baptism that is required of every Christian. Jesus was baptized so that in every way it would be known that He kept and fulfilled every part and aspect of the Law of God. Jesus was baptized for our sakes, so we would know that baptism is necessary and commanded by God of all Christians, but only Jesus Alone saves.

In other words, Jesus was baptized to fulfill part of God's Law. He was baptized so we would know that we are to be baptized. (Since Jesus was baptized, baptism is a holy sacrament, and when the elect are baptized, we receive grace from God.) And He was baptized to show that our salvation is in Jesus Alone.

Second, Jesus, in all that He does, will please His Father. The Father spoke from Heaven after Jesus' Baptism and said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased." Jesus was baptized because it pleased His Father. Why?

Jesus' being baptized pleased His Father because in doing so, He kept His Father's Law -- as we have already seen. Jesus kept His Father's Law perfectly and experienced every aspect of keeping the Law before we were required to keep it.

The Father was also pleased because in Jesus' Baptism, the Holy Trinity was clearly seen as being One in Deity and Purpose. Jesus, God the Son, stood in the Jordan to be baptized, God the Father spoke His approval from Heaven, and God the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus and remained with Him.

Similarly, it pleased the Father that Jesus was baptized, because it dramatized the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit that occurs for every Christian. Just as God the Holy Spirit indwells Jesus, so the Holy Spirit also indwells every true believer.

And this also pleased the Father in Jesus' Baptism: since every human being that God elected to believe in Him will come to faith and receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, none of them will be lost, since it is alone the Work of God. As Jesus said, "Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled" (John 17:11b-12).

So Jesus' Baptism pleased His Father because Jesus kept God's Law. It pleased His Father because God's Triune Nature was clearly shown. It pleased His Father because it dramatized and inaugurated the indwelling of God the Holy Spirit in each believer. And it pleased His Father because it sealed the Father's election of His people to salvation.

So what does this mean for us?

It means that every Christian should receive the sacrament of baptism -- once. If you are a Christian this morning and you have not been baptized, obey Jesus' Command -- ask me or one of the elders to schedule your baptism.

It means that we should understand that every Christian who receives the sacrament of baptism receives Grace from God to strengthen and mature him.

And it means that we should know and believe that Jesus was not baptized for His sin, because He is sinless. Jesus was baptized to fulfill all righteousness, to obey God's Law, to make the sacrament holy for us, and Jesus was baptized to please His Father.

Let us pray:
Almighty God, help us to understand the seriousness of baptism. Let us not believe it is something of no means or power. Help us to remember that Jesus was baptized to fulfill Your Law, to sanctify the sacrament, and to please You. Make us and all Christians desire to be baptized, not for our salvation, but as a sign and seal of what Jesus did for us. And may we receive Your Grace, and live all things to Your Glory. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:9 --

"If it be thus [that ministers are to use part of their resources to help others], then it was doubtless Gods minde, That a Minister should have wherewithal, even competent maintenance for himself and his, and to do good to others."

-- John Rogers, 566.

Consistory

The Consistory intends to meet (D.V.) on Sunday, after morning worship. Please plan to attend, Consistory members.

Puritan Wisdom

On I Peter 4:7 --

"Its the fault of Christians, that they seek the world too eagerly, and neglect many good duties for it, run into unwarrantable couries, are unquiet, contentious, &c. whereby they make themselves and their Profession to be ill spoken of: O how ill doth this beseem Christians which have God to be their Father, and Heaven for their inheritance and portion! Fye on it; Is this to behave our selves Pilgrim-like: we should carry ourselves moderately in these things, that we may make the world see and say, we have riches that they know not of, as our Savior said, He had meat his Disciples knew not of; we must labor to grow in grace, and covet the best things."

-- John Rogers, 555.

Where's the Secretary?

Effective January 17th, 2008, the secretary will be in the office on Thursdays.

"He Will Be Worshipped" Sermon: Matthew 2:1-12

"He Will Be Worshiped"
[Matthew 2:1-12]
January 6, 2008 Second Reformed Church

Our Scripture this morning is likely a familiar one to most of us -- the visit of the magi. The magi were astrologers from the area of modern day Iraq and Iran. They were people who would have studied the stars to make predictions and interpret events, and they had seen a star, which was in some way fantastic, or significant, and some number of them -- we're not told how many -- followed the star to Israel. Now this was some time after Jesus' birth.

The magi understood the sign of the star to mean that a new and special king had been born, so they thought the place to look for the king would be in the palace in Jerusalem. They met King Herod, who was not pleased to hear that they were looking for a King of Israel other than he. So Herod called for his priests and scribes to see what they made of the words of the magi, and the priests and scribes thought that this must be a sign of the birth of the Christ -- the Savior of Israel, and the prophets said that the Christ would be born in Bethlehem.

Herod then spoke with the magi in private and asked them when the star appeared and charged them to go and find the Christ and then report back to him so he could come and worship Him. But we know from the verses following this morning's reading, that Herod's actual intent was to find the Christ and kill Him, so Herod would not lose his power as king.

So, the magi went on their way and followed the star, and it led them to the house in which Joseph, Mary, and Jesus were living. Now, we're not told whose house this was, but they were now living in a house -- they were not still in the manger -- despite our beautiful creches, the magi came to the house they were living in some time after Jesus' birth.

And it is at this point in our text that we reach the point I want us to emphasize -- the point I want us to get this morning -- and it is this: Jesus will be Worshiped. He will be Worshiped. It is a matter of His Nature and Being that He will be Worshiped. Our only right response to coming into the knowledge and the presence of Jesus is to worship Him.

The magi, these pagan astrologers, walked into the house and saw Jesus, and what did they do, "they fell down and worshiped him." What an amazing thing! These grown men came into the presence of a very young Baby, and their response was to fall down and worship Him. Why? There can only be one reason -- they recognized that this Little Child was more that a mere human Baby: He is God Himself.

One author wrote, "If then they had been seeking a king of this world and thus had found him, they would have been more perplexed than delighted, because they would have undertaken an effort of so great a journey for nothing. Yet because they were seeking the heavenly king, even if they saw nothing regal in him, they were nevertheless delighted, content with the testimony of the star. Their eyes could not see an unworthy boy, because the spirit in their hearts was revealing him to them as an awesome thing. If, moreover, they had sought him as a king of this world, they would have stayed with him, as is often the case when people abandon one king and transfer their allegiance to another. Instead they adored him and returned home that they might have Jesus the just, heavenly king over their souls and the king of their home country as ruler of their bodies" (ACC, NT 1a, 28).

We also see in this that Jesus is to be worshiped by all peoples -- Jews and Gentiles. Against the idea popular among the Pharisees, the Christ was not coming for the biological Jews, but for the Israel of God which included both Jews and Gentiles -- in other words, every type of person there is on the earth.

Luke tells us of the Jewish shepherds: "And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them" (Luke 2:20). And he tells us of the prophetess, Anna, "And coming up that very hour she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem" (Luke 2:38). In these verse, we see that Christ did come for the Jews, but in verse eleven of this morning's text, we see that He also came for the Gentiles -- for all the other nations of the world and from them He also commands worship.

The magi gave the Baby Jesus three types of gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And if we know what these things are -- what strange gifts to give -- unless God had revealed to them Who Jesus is. Gold we are familiar with -- this would be the type of gift that one king or leader would give for the birth of a king. That is not too strange -- they understood that Jesus is King.

But frankincense is the incense that God commanded to be burned on the altar in the worship of Him: Moses wrote down what God spoke and taught it, "When anyone brings a grain offering as an offering to the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour. He shall pour oil on it and put frankincense on it and bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests. And he shall take from it a handful of the fine flour and oil, with all of its frankincense, and the priests shall burn this as its memorial portion on the altar, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the Lord" (Leviticus 2:1-2). The only reason they would give the Baby Jesus frankincense is that they understood that He is God.

And then, the third gift, myrrh, was, perhaps the most perplexing of all: myrrh was used for embalming. Why would they give a baby materials for embalming the dead? There can only be one reason: whether they understood it or not, God was foreshadowing the death of Jesus in this gift to Him as an Infant. For Jesus would be embalmed, as John recorded: "Nicodemus, also, who earlier came to Jesus by night, came [to bury Jesus] bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight" (John 19:39).

One author wrote: "For they opened their treasure chests, and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Thus, they were fulfilling the acknowledgment of Christ on behalf of all nations. They were signifying the fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy: 'All those who are in Sheba shall come, offering gold and precious stones and spreading the good news of the Lord; all the sheep of Kedar shall be gathered together, and the rams of Nebaioth shall come, and they will offer pleasing incense on your altar.' They recognized him at once. They opened their treasure chests. They displayed their offerings, gifts in themselves fit for nations to give. For, realizing that he was king, they offered him their elegant and costly first fruits, fit for the Holy One. They offered him gold they had stored up for themselves. Moreover, recognizing his divine and heavenly coming to them, they made an offering of frankincense, a beautiful gift like the soothing speech of the Holy Spirit. Moreover, understanding as they did that human life is but a sepulcher, they offered myrrh" (ACC, NT 1a, 28).

So we see that Jesus was worshiped by the magi. He was worshiped as God. He was worshiped as King. And He was worshiped symbolically through their giving of gifts that symbolized His Kingship, His Divinity, and the fact that God would accomplish His Work of Salvation through the Death -- and Resurrection -- of the Christ.

Now, Jesus is seated at the Right Hand of the Father. He is ruling over all things and getting ready to return. And to we who are here this morning, let the magi be an example to us, that Jesus is to be worshiped. He is to be worshiped for His Authority. He is to be worshiped for being the Incarnate God. He is to be worshiped because He Alone has achieved the Work of Salvation that saves His people from their sins and the Wrath of God.

And it is not just the people who believe in Jesus Alone for Salvation who will worship Him. No, the Scripture tells us that Jesus will be Worshiped by every human being who will ever lived. Some will worship Him in the Joy of His Salvation; others will worship Him in the horror and the damnation that comes from never receiving His Salvation. Paul wrote, "For we will all appear before the judgment seat of God; for it is written, 'As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and ever tongue shall confess to God.' So then each of us will give an account of himself to God" (Romans 14:10b-12). And again, "Therefore God has highly exalted [Jesus] and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father" (Philippians 2:9-10).

Throughout the worship service, we worship Jesus through many different acts. We are about to worship Jesus through the receiving of the elements of the Lord’s Supper. We do not worship the bread and the cup; they are merely human elements, but Jesus meets us in those elements when we eat and drink, and He we worship. We worship Him because He has saved us and will bring us to holiness in His Likeness. We worship Him because He is here right now and meets with us and strengthens us as we receive the elements. And we worship Him because He will return again, and on that day, all will worship Him forever.

Let us pray:
Almighty and Worthy God, we come to this place to worship because You are Worthy. You Alone are God and King and Savior. Increase our joy in worship. Led us to tell others that there is a God and King and Savior Who is worthy of worship. And make us ready now to commune with You in this supper, and may You be glorified as we celebrate. For it is in Jesus' Name we pray, Amen.

January Sermons

D.V., I plan to preach:

1/6/08 Communion/Epiphany Matthew 2:1-12 "He Will Be Worshipped"
1/13/08 Baptism of Our Lord Matthew 3:13-17 "He Will Please His Father"
1/20/08 Genesis 1:1-2:4 "In the Beginning"
1/27/08 Genesis 1:1-2:4 "God Created"

"He Will Judge" Sermon: Matthew 25:31-46

"He Will Judge"
[Matthew 25:31-46]
December 30, 2007 Second Reformed Church

We've come to the end of another year. Has anything changed? We celebrated Christmas last week -- we rejoiced in remembering the birth of our God and Savior in history. This week I received my first Valentine's Day and St. Patrick's Day catalogs. Surely, the Easter catalogs will arrive next week.

And let us not think it's just the commercial world -- we in the church can get into a rut of doing the same thing every year, skating from holiday to event to holiday. And remembering is a good and biblical thing to do. But in reality, we don't move in circles, we move in a straight line, and we live, not merely on the surface, I hope, but there is depth and depths to be explored with and for each of us.

Last week, we considered the Baby Who came quietly, in mystery. "What Child Is This?" We thought about God Who lived among us and was not known by His own. And after He had lived among us, He was crucified, died, rose on the third day, and ascended back to His Throne, from whence He governs all things.

Today, we look at one point about His Return -- His Second Coming -- and we have mentioned this in the past few weeks as well -- Jesus is coming back again. And when He does, it will not be quiet, it will not be secret, no one will be confused as to Who He is. Jesus said, "Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other" (Matthew 24:30-31). And we read this morning, "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne."

When Jesus returns, it will be with a shout, with trumpets blaring, He will have His whole retinue of angels with Him, thousands upon thousands, and He will descend on the clouds, on His Throne, blazing with glory, and everyone, all over the earth will recognize Him. And every person who has ever existed will be gathered before Him, and Jesus will judge.

And when Jesus judges, there will only be two, eternal outcomes: Jesus, the Good Shepherd, will separate the people of the earth, as sheep from goats, and to the sheep, He will say, "Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom, prepared for you from the foundation of the world." And to the goats, He will say, "Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels."

Notice, Jesus says that the sheep, the elect of God, are blessed by His Father. Why are the sheep blessed? Why are you and I blessed if we are Christians -- if we believe in Jesus Alone for our Salvation? Jesus said, "I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I come from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those who you have given me, for they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them" (John 17:6-10).

The sheep are blessed because God chose us to be His people and gave us to Jesus, and we have received Jesus and His Word -- His Salvation. The sheep are not blessed because we have done something, but because God chose us and made us willing and able to receive the Gift of the Salvation in Jesus.

And the sheep are given the inheritance of the kingdom -- the new earth and the new Jerusalem that appear at the restoration of all things. And this kingdom God has been preparing for the sheep from the Creation. What will the kingdom be like? Consider this: God created everything that is in six days, yet God has prepared the kingdom for over six thousand years. That's why Paul could confess "But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus Christ my Lord. For his sake I have suffered loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ" (Philippians 3:7-8).

Jesus says the goats, on the other hand, are cursed. Why? Paul explains, "For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse, for it is written, 'Cursed be everyone who does not abide by the things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.' Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for 'the righteous shall live by faith.' But the law is not of faith, rather 'The one who does them shall live by them.' Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us -- for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree' -- " (Galatians 3:10-13). In other words, if you think you can be right with God by keeping His Law, by doing good works, by being "good enough" -- you're cursed -- because no one -- no mere human being -- can keep all of God's Law; it's impossible. The Law was given to us to show us that we cannot keep it, that we need a Savior. And if we choose not to receive Jesus and His Salvation, we are doomed under the curse of the Law.

And those who are cursed -- the goats -- will suffer for all of eternity in fire. And in order for fire to make you suffer, you must have a physical body -- this is another place where we see that our physical bodies will be raised to live eternally, like Jesus. But the goats will suffer physical, as well as all other types of torment, in the fire for all of eternity. And it is all the more pitiful to hear Jesus say that Hell was designed for the devil and his angels, not humans.

And someone will object to all of this and say, "But wait a minute -- the text specifically says that the sheep and the goats are separated by whether or not they have done certain acts -- whether they have fed and clothed the poor, welcomed the stranger, and visited the sick and the imprisoned. Jesus is saying that our eternal destiny is based on what we do or do not do. Our salvation is based on our works."

But that can't be what Jesus means, can it? Paul wrote, "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should do them" (Ephesians 2:8-10).

Paul says, and we see again and again in the Scripture, that our salvation is a Gift of God, God's Work, we add nothing to our salvation, we can add nothing to our salvation. Yes, works must follow our salvation to prove that it is true, as James wrote, "What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother of sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,' without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead" (James 2:14-17).

So, what is Jesus saying? Are we judged based on our works? Is our eternal Salvation based on our works? The problem in considering Jesus' Words is that we have only been considering the works of the sheep and the works of the goats. The problem we run into in reading this text is merely considering the works of the sheep and the works of the goats. The solution is found in understanding that the sheep don't only have their works. Paul wrote, "For [Christ's] sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, that righteousness from God that depends on faith --" (Philippians 3:8b-9).

Understand, when we all stand before the Throne of Christ, the measure of God's Law will be held up against us -- and if we stand before Jesus merely with our works, we are cursed -- but if we have been chosen by God, if we have been saved by Jesus, then we have had Jesus' Righteousness -- His perfect keeping of the Law -- credited to our accounts -- so when Jesus holds the measure of God's Law against the sheep, He sees that -- in Him, through His Salvation, by His crediting His Righteousness to us -- we have perfectly fulfilled all of the Law. Does that make sense?

Look, if I were to stand before Jesus on the Day of Judgment and rely solely on my own good works, on my declaration that I have been "good enough" -- Jesus would hold the measure of God's Law up to me and say, "Not hardly, depart from me, you cursed." But, on that day, I will not confess my own righteousness -- my own good works -- since I have been saved by Jesus and credited with His Perfect Keeping of the Law -- the measure will be held up to Jesus Himself, and I will be welcomed as blessed by the Father -- for Jesus' Sake. Jesus took my place in receiving God's Wrath for my sin and Jesus took my place in keeping God's Law perfectly, crediting that perfection to my account, so, through Him, I can stand righteous on the Day of Judgment.

And some object, "If Jesus took God's Wrath upon Himself and kept God's Law perfectly, so He takes away our sin and credits us with His Righteousness, why should I bother to keep the Law? Can't I just do what I want?"

No. If we have truly believed in Jesus Alone for our Salvation, He has good works planned for us from the foundation of the world and we are to do them -- not for Salvation, but as a response to it.

So what shall we do? Let's begin today -- this new year -- with the categories that Jesus uses in talking about the final judgment. And let us start in the Church -- as Jesus said, "Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of my brothers, you did it to me." We are One Body and Christ is our Head, so, as we do good for our brothers and sisters in Christ, we do it for Him, as well.

First, let us grow deeper in our faith and understanding -- in our belief in Christ. Let us learn from God's Word and each other. Let us come to worship and Bible Study and gather in small groups to study God's Word in each others homes. If you love Christ, if you are a Christian, you will read you Bible and be in study with your fellow Christians. It's good and right to read on your own, but it is also necessary to interact with other Christians. There is no Salvation outside of the Church. There is no Salvation outside of the Body of Christ. If you need help, see me. But let our priority be to grow deeper in our faith and understanding -- in our belief in Christ -- and in helping our fellow Christians to do the same.

Second, let us love each other. We will not always like each other. We will not always agree with each other. But in the Name of Jesus Christ and for the sake of the Gospel, we must love each other -- we must do everything we can to make each other's lives better, and refrain from doing those things that hurt. It won't always be easy -- there is a devilish delight in pulling others down, but we must stop. We can discuss; we can lovingly guide, admonish, and chide. But we must love each other.

And third, let us willingly practice self-denial -- to show contempt for the world -- for the cause of Christ and His people. What does that look like? Let us not hoard and amass the treasures of the world, but share some out of all the blessings God has given us with His Church and those in need. Let us say "no" to that T.V. show, that event, or that sin that would keep us from doing the good works that God has set before us. If God was willing to be slaughtered by human hands, perhaps we can miss our favorite show to visit someone who is sick or to attend a Bible study.

Will this year be any different? Will we be seen as the sheep of the Good Shepherd, now and on that final day? In response to Jesus' Salvation, we must now live for Him. After all, there are only 361 shopping days until Christmas.

Let us pray:
Good Shepherd, we rejoice and look forward to that final day when you come in glory as Judge. We thank You that You have not only taken our sin upon Yourself, but You have credited us with Your Holy Life so we can stand and be received as the blessed by the Father. Cause us to learn and love and live according to the good works You have set before us, and especially for our brothers and sisters in Christ. For it is in Jesus' Name we pray, Amen.