Pastor Marty Friday, April 23, 2021 at 8:33AM This is a 13 week series that will not be posted on our website. If you would like an audio of the sermon or a written article on the sermon contents then please contact the church at AbundantLifeEverett@frontier.com. You can also leave a message at 425.438.1500. Thank you for your interest.
Pastor Marty Tuesday, January 26, 2021 at 12:26PM John 20:21-22; Mark 16:15-18; Luke 24:46-49; Acts 1:8; Matthew 28:18-20. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty on January 24, 2021.
Last week, we talked about the importance of making the good confession to the world around us. In short, it is a declaration of our faith in Jesus and his teachings. We stand with him.
Today, we are going to recognize that this confession and testimony that we should give about Jesus is part of a larger task, or commission, that Christ has given us.
Let’s look at our passage.
We will look at each of the Gospel’s version of the Great Commission. They all highlight various things. Ultimately, Jesus had been crucified and resurrected. Over the course of 40 days, he appeared to them in order to prove the reality of the resurrection before he ascended into heaven, and to leave the apostles and his Church, that they would help build, with a task, a mission. Thus, we speak of Christ commissioning his Church and call it the Great Commission.
John emphasizes sending. We have been sent by Jesus as he was sent by God the Father. We are sent for a purpose, to do what he tells us to do. This is not a cultural thing. Jesus is not trying to spread first century AD Israelite culture all around the world, much less white culture. It is beyond culture. In fact, if we must use the term, it is the spread of heaven’s culture. All cultures are found wanting in the face of the Gospel and its obligation upon us all. Christians must never confuse the Gospel with their own native culture. Yes, some cultures have been impacted by Christianity more than others, but still, we are not representing our country, but rather Jesus and The Father.
John also shows Jesus breathing on his disciples and telling them to receive the Holy Spirit. The receiving is emphasized, but it is not explained why. We will save this for later.
Jesus also says that they, and we, will be a conduit to the forgiveness of sins for others. This statement sounds like the apostles can keep some people from being forgiven, but that is a misreading. Only Jesus can forgive sins, and thereby also refuse to forgive sins. However, we are sent by Jesus as his ambassadors with his words. We will be the representative of Jesus to those that we meet. We don’t create forgiveness or deny it to those who desire it. Rather, we announce it according to God’s Word, and the Holy Spirit’s wisdom. Like the prophets of old, we can speak to people because of the authority of the Word of Jesus. We can confidently tell people how to be forgiven of their sins, and how they cannot be forgiven. The emphasis is not on their inherent ability, but in the function, they serve in being sent by Christ.
Mark focuses on our proclaiming the Gospel, or good news. The NKJV uses the word “preach,” but the connotations of this word would be better translated as proclaim. It is not about standing behind a pulpit in a church, but about sharing the Good News with anyone anywhere. Mark’s gospel also emphasizes the scope of this mission, “all the world.”
A second aspect that we see here is the fact that powerful signs would follow Christ’s representatives. Jesus doesn’t command them to do powerful signs. Rather, the signs would follow them, and the signs listed are not an exhaustive list. As God’s people commit themselves to this task of proclaiming the Gospel, signs would follow them. Signs are not the focus, nor our job to make happen. Our job is to be faithful to the task of sharing the Good News with people.
I will take a moment to clear up the passage about taking up serpents, due to the fact that some Christians believe they should prove their faith in Jesus by handling poisonous snakes. Jesus is not talking about a means of proving your faith to onlookers, and neither is he talking about a test that all believers must do. The best example of what Jesus is talking about happened to the Apostle Paul on the Island of Malta in Acts 28. He was a prisoner on a ship going to Rome. The ship was wrecked by a storm and they all jumped ship and swam to nearby Malta. The natives met them on the shore and people began foraging for wood along the shore to build a fire and warm up the soaked men. While gathering a bundle of sticks to throw on the fire, the apostle Paul was bitten by a viper on the hand and he shook it off into the fire. The Bible tells us that the natives saw the viper hanging from Paul’s hand and figured that he would die, and that it was a punishment for some evil that he had done. Over time, it became clear that Paul was not harmed by the poison. This opened the people up greatly to hearing the Gospel. The point is not invulnerability of believers to poison, but that these kinds of signs would follow them as a whole as they took the Gospel to the nations. We too should expect that amazing things will happen from time to time as we are faithful to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
In Luke, we have some of the content of the Gospel described. First, Jesus had to do all of the things that he did. They had been prophesied in Scripture, and they were functionally important for the saving of people. Jesus lived a perfect life, and perfectly revealed the Father’s love by dying in our place, and being resurrected as proof that his sacrifice on our behalf was accepted. It is also proof that he has the power to resurrect us at the last day.
For those who believe the message about who Jesus is and what he has done for us, repentance from sin is in order. Those who believe and repent of their sins will have their sins remitted from them. Luke also records that this is for all nations, not just one people group.
Lastly, Luke also records that they were to wait for the Promise from the Father to come upon them and empower them before going out to accomplish this commission. The Promise from the Father is talking about the pouring out of the Holy Spirit upon all of God’s people, instead of just a select few. This is a task that is not intended to be done only by our power, strength, and abilities. God Himself will work through us and assist us by His Holy Spirit. Thus, we are not to hang back in fear, nor are we to rush forward in self-confidence. We are to be a people who are led by the Holy Spirit, and empowered by Him.
This should remind us of Acts chapter 1 verse 8. The book of Acts is technically Luke’s second volume. It is not a second Gospel, but rather describes the apostles doing what Jesus told them to do. We could think of Luke’s Gospel as the good news of what Jesus did, and his second volume as the good news that the apostles faithfully walked in his footsteps. Another way to look at these to books is to see Luke as the acts of Jesus and the book of Acts as the acts of his apostles.
Regardless, verse 8 emphasizes why we are to wait for the Holy Spirit and what the Holy Spirit would help us do. The Holy Spirit would fill their whole being and enable them to be witnesses of Christ everywhere. They would be empowered by God Himself. A person cannot believe the Gospel without the influence of the Holy Spirit in their life. He is the one who convicts us of the judgment that hangs over our head. The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit takes up residence or dwells inside of those who believe on Jesus and repent of their sins. However, we are to also open up our hearts and minds to Him through prayer so that He can fill our whole inner being. This is not a one-time thing, but a daily empowering experience that we can have to help us in our battle against sin, and our task to proclaim the Gospel.
John emphasized our being sent, but in Matthew we are shown why that is so important. Jesus has authorized us to go to all nations and call them to repentance and faith in him. What gives Christians the right to tell Romans that the idols they serve are lies and they need to repent? We could ask the same question today. Multiculturalism has some good to it. It reminds us that we should not look down upon styles of life simply because they are different from our own. However, Christianity is not supposed to be a cultural oppression.
The Spirit of God started with Israel and challenged the sin in their culture. It then moved to all other cultures. We are authorized by the God who made and loves all people. All of our cultures were, and still are, full of sin and ignorance. Satan wants to make people feel that they are doing something wrong when they tell people that God commands all people everywhere to repent of their sins and believe on Jesus. We must not give into this persuasion.
Next, we are to disciple those who believe by teaching them the commands of Jesus. The disciple is a student who is learning to become like their master teacher. Another image that is used in the Bible is that we are children of God. God’s people are a family that baby Christians are born into. We help the spiritually young to grow up and become more like our heavenly Father, which has been perfectly imaged to us by Jesus.
Lastly, Jesus tells us that he will be with us even to the end of the age. How important it is to know that Jesus is still with us through the Spirit of God that is within us. He hasn’t forgotten us no matter how difficult it may get at times. We must hold onto this promise.
When we put all of these things together, we end up with a lot of powerful concepts, so I have broken this up into two statements.
First, we have been authorized and sent by Jesus to proclaim the Gospel to all nations that only He can forgive and remove their sins because of his life, death, and resurrection.
Second, we are to be empowered by the Holy Spirit, which will have powerful signs as we teach people the commands of Jesus.
All of this emphasizes the task and purpose that Jesus has given us, and so it is missing an important component found elsewhere. God so loved the world that He sent His One and Only Son that whoever believes on him shall not perish, but have eternal life. God’s love for you, for me, and for those lost in this world, could not sit by as we destroyed ourselves through sin. The love of God and the demonstration of its depth by Jesus on the cross are the foundation of a relationship that we can have with our Lord and invite others to join. This is the Great Commission.
Email Article | Print Article | Share Article | tagged Authority, Crucifixion, Disciple, Forgiveness, Gospel, Great Commission, Holy Spirit, Power, Repentance, Resurrection, Signs, Witness Pastor Marty Tuesday, January 19, 2021 at 8:26PM 1 Timothy 6:11-16. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on January 17, 2021.
For the next six weeks, we are going to put a pause on our study through the Gospel according to Mark. We have reached chapter 15 which details the crucifixion and then chapter 16 details the resurrection of Jesus. We will pick them up so as to ramp up to our Easter service.
Today, we will go to First Timothy. I want to talk about making the good confession in the modern world. We are in a spiritual battle that requires faith in Jesus, in his teachings, and his actions.
Jesus came into the world to testify to the Truth. All others before him could really only confess what the Holy Spirit had told them. Jesus is unique in that he is the only one who is an eye-witness of the Truth and who actually came from heaven to give that witness to the world. He has told us the truth about the world’s plight, about each of our sin, about the way that it can be fixed, and about the only one who can do the fixing (Jesus himself).
If the Christ had a true testimony that all Christians are to confess before the whole world (that is, speak the same testimony as he) then know this. The antichrist system of this world has a false testimony that it pressures and forces all to confess. It is the anti-confession in regards to Jesus, and it will find its climax in the whole world worshipping the Beast through taking a mark, a loyalty pledge that is just as much a confession as it is an economic choice.
Let’s look at our passage.
In this passage, we have an older minister, Paul, making sure that a younger minister, Timothy, has a full understanding of how to teach the believers in the churches that were under his care. Paul was not sure when he would be able to visit Timothy again.
Thus, Timothy is not a new convert and most likely the words here are not new to Timothy either. Paul actually addresses him as “man of God” in verse 11. These words are the encouragements and commands of a general to those fellow solders under him in the midst of battle. We too must understand that we are on a battlefield that has progressed for millennia. What is the pursuit of my life? If I am truly a man or woman of God then I will hear the commands of the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul and respond in kind.
Before Paul reminds Timothy of his pursuit, he reminds him of what he must flee. It is hard to go after something when another thing, or things, has our hearts. Thus, Satan has filled this world with philosophies and lies that seduce our hearts into false pursuits. He leverages the desires of our flesh against the call of the Holy Spirit. They are things such as: riches, power, pleasure, fame, pride, and the list goes on. We must flee these things because our lives depend upon it, and the lives of those we influence. It is not that these things should not be had, but that they can never be the pursuit of our life.
The anti-confession of this world draws us into these anti-pursuits. In this passage, Paul has been warning against the teaching of those who think that godliness is a means of gain (vs. 5). He says that they think this way because they are full of corrupt desires and their minds are destitute of the truth (vss. 4-5). It is in this context that we are given the statement, “the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows (vs. 10).”
Godliness is not a means of obtaining riches, it is gain in and of itself. You cannot obtain anything greater than being more like God, like Jesus. The Gospel is not about making us rich and powerful in this world, but rather about taking on the image of our Father in heaven. We do not live godly in order to get salvation, or natural blessings in this life. No, we pursue a godly life because He has already saved us, while we were yet sinners, and has blessed us beyond belief. We just couldn’t see it before we believed in Him. Just as we are to flee sexual immorality, so we are commanded to flee the love of riches, and those who would pervert the Gospel into a means of riches.
With our hearts free from false-pursuits, we are then enabled to pursue what is true, God Himself, His image, and His character. In truth, we cannot accomplish this on our own. We cannot even accomplish it with the help of well-meaning believers who come alongside of us. Without the powerful work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, we would be lost to the seduction of The Lie, the lie that we don’t need God, or Jesus, to satisfy our hearts and minds.
Paul lists righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. These are all fruit, or evidence, of the Holy Spirit within us. Yes, we are to pursue them, but our obtaining of them to any measure is enabled by His presence. This world cannot obtain true righteousness because it lacks the Spirit of God. It can only redefine righteousness to match exactly what it wants to do. We have seen over the decades the raising up of a false-righteousness that is now being used to condemn those who cling to the righteousness of God found only in Jesus Christ. Christian, never forget that we are not called to pursue the desires of the flesh, but rather to pursue the image of God in our life.
In verse 12, Paul then commands Timothy, and us, to fight the good fight. It involves a battle in which we will face enemies and contestants that desire to defeat us. Some of them are sentient (spirits and humans), and some of them are abstract such as our internal weaknesses. The false pursuits are the “bad fight.” Too many people are fighting the wrong battles, and thereby, they are being used by Satan to become useful idiots in his plan to destroy God’s people and the Truth to which they cling.
It is called in the passage, “the good fight of faith.” Eternal life is offered to all who will fight the good fight of faith. In fact, the fight of faith is all about “laying hold of eternal life.” When we believe upon Jesus, eternal life takes up residence within us through the Holy Spirit. This eternal life continues to work within us to make us fit to dwell in the direct presence of God in eternity. However, our faith will be tested in this world. Just like love is tested by our experiences with others, so our faith is tested by the things we face in life. This battle, both to keep believing and to agonize over what faith should do now, does not end until we finish this life. It is in that day of resurrection that we will once and for all lay hold of eternal life. Each difficulty begs the question, “Will you continue to believe and follow Jesus now?”
Yes, it is a battle, but the battle is worth it. We have been called to eternal life! Sin has put us under a death sentence, but Jesus came that we might have eternal life, and life more abundantly. Jesus told his disciples to take possession of their souls by faith, and in so doing, we strengthen our grip upon eternal life. No one can take it from you, but you can surrender it by shipwrecking your faith in Jesus. May our faith be strengthened in Jesus, and not just a redefined Jesus that the world can accept. No. It must be the same Jesus that this world crucified 2,000 years ago, and would crucify all over again if he appeared again. Can the world see the true Jesus in me?
Paul reminds Timothy that he had made the good confession before many witnesses (vs. 12). All faith is expressed and is activated through confession. We believe in our heart and confess with our mouths (hands, and feet) that Jesus is Lord. Paul most likely has Timothy’s initial statement of belief in Jesus. The many witnesses were other believers who are rejoicing in his confessing the truth of Jesus. However, life always leads us to places where we must confess before witnesses who are hostile. Just like Jesus before Caiaphas, and Peter before the servant girl, we will be faced with the opportunity to deny or confess Jesus, and thus the Father, before all men. We must do the spiritual work now so that we are prepared for those moments. Otherwise, we will crash and burn just as Peter did.
In verse 13, Paul reminds Timothy and us that Jesus testified the good confession before Pilate. Most Gospels only have the question, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus then answers, “It is as you say.” However, John 18 adds that his kingdom is not of this world, now, which implies that it will be one day. Jesus came from heaven to testify to the Truth so that we can confess, agree with and stand by, his testimony, and thereby participate in his victory. This sounds wonderful until you are face to face with a hostile enemy challenging you to deny Jesus.
Paul ends this part with a charge, a statement of strong urging, to believers. We must hold fast to these things. Paul reminds Timothy that he is in the presence of God and Jesus Christ. In fact, everything that we do and hear is in the presence of God. The Latin phrase is, coram deo. How careful we should be of the things we flee and the things we pursue. He who will judge all men looks upon us now. How will we choose and how will we respond now? The past is important, but the present is always what matters now. Yes, I had faith yesterday. Praise God! But, what will I do today, now that I face this, whatever this may be?
When Jesus testified before Pilate, he was going before us blazing the way. Jesus testified to the Truth as in a legal witness. He knows the truth as an eye-witness because he is from heaven. However, he knows the truth because he is Truth and one with Truth. He went before us as a great captain of our salvation. And, so, we must learn to follow him and agree with his testimony with our own confession before the people and powers of this world.
Ultimately, we are to keep this command to pursue the image of God and fight the good fight of faith without spot and blameless (vs. 14). This is not about never making a mistake, but taking responsibility for our mistakes through repentance and turning back to Christ. The daily maintenance of faith is a daily cleansing of our lives before our Lord Jesus.
We are not released from this command until Christ appears at the Second Coming. Paul’s description of the Lord as the Potentate, or Sovereign over all things, is to encourage us. We are on the right side when we stand with Jesus. It may not look like it in this world, but all other sides, even those of the “new and improved Jesus,” will fail.
What truths of Christ are being contested today and in what way? Over and over again, we see the Scriptures being re-interpreted and obvious meanings cast aside for more modern, acceptable ones. Will we stand with Jesus, or will we fold like an adulterous spouse? O friend, hang on to your faith and go to work strengthening it, because you are going to need it in the days ahead!
Email Article | Print Article | Share Article | tagged Confession, Eternal Life, Faith, Godliness, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Riches, Spiritual Battle, Witness Pastor Marty Tuesday, September 8, 2020 at 12:27PM Ephesians 2:1-3; 6:10-13. This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on September 6, 2020.
We have reached Mark chapter 13, which is a big transition in the book. We will also have a visiting evangelist next Sunday. Therefore, I have decided to go a different direction today and talk about the Spirit of this Age.
Throughout history, it has been noticed that people groups can be infected by an idea that seizes them to such a degree that they are caught up into something that is bigger than themselves. The group energy often pulls the individuals that comprise it beyond where they would go on their own.
Fyodor Dostoevsky, among others, saw this happening in his country of Russia, and, at the end of the 1860’s, published his novel The Possessed (depending on how it is translated it could also be called The Demonized). At one point in the book, some revolutionaries have started a poorer part of town on fire. During the pandemonium of trying to put the fire out, one character that has been a bit of a goof, even borderline mental, shouts one of the best lines of the book. “You can’t put out the fire; the fire is in the minds of men!”
We similar activity in our own country today, and must ask ourselves the question. Just what has seized the minds of not just 21st century Americans, but people all over the world? The Bible refers to it by many names, but we are going to use “The Spirit of the Age.”
In the opening verses of Ephesians 2, the Apostle Paul points out the reality of a spirit that is influencing this world. Satan loves to mimic God. If there is something that God has done then he will mock it with a false version of his own. Just as there are true prophets of God so, he sends false prophets. Those who pretend to speak on behalf of God, but delude the people. Just as there is a true Christ so, he sends all manner of antichrists, or false Christs, in order to deceive the people. The Bible warns of a coming, ultimate Antichrist who will deceive the whole world with the help of the ultimate False Prophet. It should be no shock that there would also be the work of an unholy spirit, which represents the whole force of spiritual wickedness led by Satan.
Notice how Paul portrays those who do not follow Christ. Yes, they are walking in their sins, but they are also under the influence of the “prince of the power of the air.” In fact, he says more pointedly that this unholy spirit is presently “working in the sons of disobedience.” They are those who refuse to follow the Holy Spirit of God and believe upon Jesus Christ.
There are some who disobey the Holy Spirit knowingly. They believe that the God of the Bible and Jesus of the cross have misled the world. They work directly against the Truth of God. However, the great majority of people in this world participate in disobedience unknowingly. They are simply following the course of this world that was laid out in front of them, and going with the overall flow of this Age.
Paul explains that this spirit uses the lusts of our flesh and the desires of our mind to influence and direct us. Like a harness on a horse, we can be pulled around away from truth and towards the destructive ends of our own desires.
Satan didn’t make Eve want the fruit of The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. He only influenced her towards the idea of rebellion against God’s command. The Bible tells us, “when the woman saw [who saw?] that the tree was good for food [good for whom?], that it was pleasant to the eyes [whose eyes], and a tree desirable to make one wise [which one?], she took of its fruit and ate.” The strong desires and appetites of our flesh do not want to be limited by the Truth of God. The willfulness of our mind wants to go in particular directions that God warns against. On top of all of this, there is a spiritual realm with beings who are working overtime to influence and manipulate us towards rebellion against God, whether knowingly or unknowingly. This is the Spirit of the Age.
You should go ahead and read all of Ephesians 2. When reading verses 1-3, it seems a rather dark image with little hope. However, verse four says,
“But God, rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us to sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come, He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.”
Christians are no longer a part of the “walking dead.” Instead, we have been delivered and made alive. The biblical picture is not one of Zombie movies, or games, in which we are trying to slaughter all the zombies created by the evil spirit of this world. Rather, we are the hand of Christ to touch the minds and hearts of the zombies so that they may have a renewed mind. Everywhere he went, Jesus touched people and healed them. He has given us the antidote to the greatest wound, the direst disease, that this world has. We have compassion because, “we too were zombies once.”
Let us never forget the battle that is going on all around us. If we merely go through life trying “to get ours,” or trying to change the world according to the philosophies of this world, then we will find ourselves part of a fire that may promise a better future by which to warm ourselves, but in the end only leaves mankind in cinders and shackles.
Later in the letter, Paul touches on this spiritual dimension again.
In Ephesians 6:10-13, we are reminded of our real enemy. Jesus has given us a clear directive, but it is easy for us to lose sight of the one we should be fighting. Paul reminds us that our battle is with the spiritual powers that are enslaving people by their own lusts and self-will.
An important part of any battle is one’s protective gear. Paul tells us to put on the armor of God. The things that he lists involve the very things that often make us afraid. The Spirit of the Age (SotA) warns us not to tell the truth because it will cause us trouble. The SotA tells us that doing the “right thing” will only get us into trouble. The SotA tells us not to share the Gospel because we will look stupid; don’t trust God because He doesn’t exist; don’t trust Jesus to save you, take your salvation into your own hands. And, the antibiblical messages never stop. Through fear, the Spirit of this Age convinces people to lay aside the only things that can protect them from it.
Christians, we cannot put our faith in Jesus without also trusting his armor. Too many Christians are wearing the armor of Saul, the armor of this world. However, Christ calls us to wear the armor that the world can’t see and it can’t understand. It is an armor that protects our hearts and minds from the lies of a deceptive enemy. Now is the day to stand on the Truth of God’s Word even when the world says it isn’t true. Now is the time to do what God says is right rather than what the world says is right. We need to be a people of the Gospel, walking in faith, and holding onto the salvation of Jesus through prayer. This is the only protection we have against an enemy that is to us much more than Goliath was to little David. However, always remember that is sufficient for the task.
Paul does list one offensive weapon, the sword of the Spirit. He makes it clear that he is talking about the Word of God, the Bible itself. It is powerful and able to cut to the hearts and minds of people. It is the Good News of Jesus, which is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes. Becoming a student of God’s Word, and a follower of the Holy Spirit of God, will enable us to both stop attacks against ourselves, and rescue others from the grip of the spirit of this world.
Jesus said that you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. This world tells us that our problem is that we don’t have stuff that other people have. But, the truth of God tells us not to covet anything that belongs to our neighbor, much less steal or destroy it. It tells us to love our neighbor like we love ourselves. Yet, the spirit of this age stirs up envy, jealously, resentment, and then anger and rage. It seeks to light a fire of passions in you that can be used to destroy you and your neighbor (and our communities, nations, world).
The spirit of this age tells us that our problem is all the differences that we have: gender, race, economic status, etc… But, the truth of God tells us that there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. It is not that these distinctions and affect on our lives aren’t real, but that they are used to manipulate us. Men and women fighting against each other, blacks and whites, the have-nots against the haves, these are the things that only destroy us further. In Christ, believers are to cease living for their distinctions. They are to lay down the bloody flag of earthly revolutions in the flesh, and join God’s revolution against the spirit of this age. If we will do this then we will truly find life.
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