Archives
Tag Cloud
Abandonment Abomination of Desolation Abortion Abraham’s Bosom Abuse Acceptance Accounting Accusation Activism Adoption Adultery Adversary Adversity Affection Affliction Afterlife Allegory Alliances Altar Ambition America Analogy Angel of the Lord Angels Anger Anointed One Anointing Antichrist Anxiety Apologetics Apostasy Apostles Armor Armor of God Arrest Ascension Ashamed Assembly Atonement Attitudes Authorities Authority Baal Babylon Bad Baptism Belief Believer Believers Benevolence Bethlehem Betrayal Bible Bitterness Blasphemy Blessing Blessings Blindness Boasting Body of Christ Boldness Bondage Book of Life Borders Born Again Borrowing Bottomless Pit Bride Bride of Christ Bridegroom Brokenness Brother Burden Caesar Calling Capital Punishment Care Cares Carnal Cast Away Casting Lots Caution Celebration Chaos Character Charity Childbirth Children Children of God Choice Choices Chosen Christ Christian Life Christianity Christians Christmas Church Circumstances Citizenship Civil Disobedience Clay Cleansing Comfort Commands Commune Communion Community Comparison Compassion Complacency Complaining Conception Condemnation Conduct Confession Confidence Conflict Conformity Confrontation Confusion Connect Connection Conscience Consecration Consequences Contempt Contention Contentment Contrition Conversion Conviction Cornerstone Correction Cost Counsel Courage Covenant Coveting Creation Creator Crisis Cross Crowd Crowds Crowns Crucifixion Cults Culture Curse Darkness David Davidic Covenant Day of the Lord Deacons Deaf Death Deceit Deception Decisions Defense Defilement Delegation Deliverance Demon Demon Possession Demons Denial Dependency Design Desire Desolation Desperation Destruction Devil Direction Disaster Discernment Disciple Disciples Discipleship Discipline Discontentment Discouragement Disease Disgrace Dishonesty Disputes Dissension Distraction Diversity Divine Divine Appointment Divinity Division Divorce Doctrine Dominion Donation Double Fulfillment Doubt Drought Drugs Duties Duty Earth Earthly Earthquakes Easter Edification Edom Education Elders Elect Elijah Elohim Emmaus Emotions Employment Encouragement End Times Endurance Enemies Enemy Environment Environmentalism Envy Equality Equipped Esteem Eternal Eternal Life Eternity Evangelism Everlasting Life Evil Evil Spirits Evolution Exaltation Exalted Example Exclusion Excuses Exorcism Expectations Eyes Failure Fairness Faith Faithful Faithful Servant Faithfulness Fall Away False Christs False Conversion False Doctrine False Gods False Prophet False Prophets False Religion False Religions False Teachers False Teaching Family Famine Fasting Father Father God Father’s Day Fathers Favoritism Fear Fear of the Lord Feasts Feasts of the Lord Fellowship Female Fervor Fig Tree Fights Finances Fire First Coming First Resurrection Firstborn Flattery Flesh Flock Folly Foods Foolish Foolishness Foreigner Foreknown Forgiveness Fornication Forsaken Foundation Free Will Freedom Friends Friendship Fruit Fruit of the Spirit Fruitful Fruitfulness Fulfillment Function Future Gehenna Gentile Gentiles Gentle George Wood Gifts Giving Globalism Glorified Body Glory God God’s Will God’s Word Godliness Godly God's Will Golden Rule Good Good News Good Shepherd Good Works Goodness Gospel Gospels Government Grace Gratitude Great Commission Greatness Greed Grief Grow Growth Guilt Hades Hardship Harvest Hate Hatred Healing Heart Heaven Heavenly Heavenly Father Hedonism Hell Help Herod Hidden High Priest Holiness Holy Holy Spirit Home Homosexuality Honesty Honor Hope Hopelessness Hostility Human Frailty humanity Humility Husband Hypocrisy Hypocrite Hypocrites Identity Idolatry Ignorance Image Image of God Immanuel Immigration Immortality Impossibility Incarnation Individuals Indulgences Indwelling Infilling Inheritance Injustice Inner Battle Innocence Instruction Instructions Insults Integrity Intercession Intermediate State Interpretation Intervention Intoxication Israel Jerusalem Jesus Jewish Temple Jews John the Baptist Joy Judas Judge Judging Judgment Judgment Day Judgments Justice Justification Justify Key Keys Kids Kindness King Kingdom Kingdom of God Kingdom of Heaven Kinsman Knowledge Labor Lake of Fire Lamp Last Days Law Law of Moses Law of the Lord Lawlessness Lawsuits Leader Leaders Leadership Leading Leftism Legal Legalism Leprosy Lies Life Life-Span Light Like-minded Listening Lonely Lord Lost Love Lowly Loyalty Lust Lusts Luxury Lying Magdalene Magic Malachi Male Manipulation Marriage Martyr Martyrdom Martyrs Mary Master Materialism Maturity Meditation Men Mentoring Mercy Messiah Metaphor Millennium Mind Mind of Christ Minister Ministry Miracle Miracles Mission Missionary Missions Mocking Money Morality Mortal Mortality Mother’s Day Mothers Mother's Day Mt. Sinai Murder Mystery Nations Natural Natural Gifts Naturalism Nature Nazareth Near-Far Fulfillment Necessities Neglect Negligence New Birth New Covenant New Creation New Earth New Jerusalem New Man New Testament Oaths Obedience Obstacles Obstructions Offense Offenses Offering Old Covenant Old Man Old Nature Old Testament Omnipresence Omniscience One Mind Others Outcast Overseers Pagan Pain Palm Sunday Parable Parables Paradise Paranormal Parenting Passion Passover Path Patience Patriotism Peace Peer Pressure Pentecost People of God Perception Perfect Perfection Persecution Perseverance Persistence Personal Injury Personal Testimonies Perspective Perversion Perversity Pestilence Peter Petition Pharisees Philosophy Piety Pilate Plans Pleasure Politics Poor Pornography Position Possession Possessions Posture Power Praise Prayer Preach Preaching Preparation Presence Pretense Pride Principles Priority Prison Privilege Prodigal Profane Profession Promise Proof Prophecy Prophet Prophets Prosperity Protection Protestant Reformation Proverbs Providence Provision Pruning Punishment Purgatory Purity Purpose Purposes Questions Racism Ransom Rapture Readiness Reason Rebellion Rebuke Receiving Reconciliation Redeemer Redemption Refuge Regeneration Rejection Rejoicing Relationship Relationships Relativism Reliability Religion Remember Remnant Renewal Repentance Reputation Resolve Rest Restoration Resurrection Retribution Revelation Revenge Revival Reward Rich Riches Ridicule Righteous Righteousness Rights Riot Risk Ritual Rivalry Robbery Roman Catholic Church Rule Rulers Rumor Sabbath Sacred Sacrifice Saint Saints Salvation Sanctification Sanctuary Sarcasm Satan Satisfaction Savior Schemes Science Scoffers Scripture Seal Seasons Second Coming Secret Sedition Seed Seek Self Self Control Self-centered Self-Control Self-Denial Selfish Ambition Self-Preservation Self-Righteous Servant Servant-Leadership Servants Serve Service Serving Sexual Immorality Sexual Sin Sexuality Shame Share Sharing She’ol Shepherd Shepherds Sickness Signs Signs and Wonders Silence Simplicity Sin Sincerity Sinful Nature Singing Singleness Sinner Sinners Slave Slavery Sober Socialism Society Sojourner Sojourners Son Son of God Son of Man Sons of God Sorcery Sorrow Soul Source Sovereignty Speech Spirit Spirit Baptism Spirit Beings Spirit Realm Spirit-Led Spirits Spiritual Spiritual Adultery Spiritual Battle Spiritual Birth Spiritual Condition Spiritual Death Spiritual Gifts Spiritual Growth Spiritual Maturity Spiritual Rulers Spiritual Warfare Stewardship Storms Strength Stress Strife Strong Stumble Stumbling Block Subjection Submission Suffering Suicide Supernatural Supper Surrender Survival Swear Symbols Syncretism Tabernacle Tags: Patience Taxes Teacher Teachers Teaching Teachings Tears Technology Temple Temptation Temptations Terminal Illness Test Testimony Testing Tests Textual Issues Thankfulness Thanksgiving The Beast The Curse The Day of The Lord The End The Faith The Fall The Gospel The Grave The Great Tribulation The Holy Spirit The Lamb of God The Law The Law of Moses The Secret Place The Way The Word The World Theft Theology Thought Life Threats Throne Time Time of Visitation Times of the Gentiles Timing Tithing Tongues Tower of Babel Tradition Tragedies Tragedy Training Transfiguration Transformation Traps Treachery Treasure Tree Tree of Life Trial Trials Tribulation Trifles Trinity Triumphal Triumphal Entry Trouble Trust Trustworthy Truth Tyranny Unbelief Unbelievers Uncertainty Underground Church Understanding Unfaithfulness Ungrateful Unity Unpardonable Sin Utopia Value Vengeance Victory Vigilance Vindication Virtue Virtues Vision Visions Visiting Ministries Voice of God Volunteer Vow Vows War Warning Warnings Wars Watch Watching Water Baptism Water of Life Weak Weakness Wealth Weary Wicked Wicked Plans Wickedness Widows Wife Will Wineskins Wisdom Witness Witnesses Witnessing Women Word Word of God Word of Knowledge Word of the Lord Work Works World World View Worry Worship Worth Worthy Wounds Wrath Yahweh Yeast YHWH Yoke Zion

Weekly Word

Entries in Witness (31)

Tuesday
Sep062022

The Acts of the Apostles 16

Subtitle: They Had All Things In Common

Acts 4:32-37.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on Sunday, September 4, 2022.

Today, our passage deals with a theme that we saw back in chapter 2, verses 44-45.  There Luke was giving a summary of the daily life of those who believed in Jesus, and how they took care of one another.

Essentially, Luke is showing that they took care of one another like family.  Yet, it was more than that.

This was a special time in the Church in which the Messiah had come and the promised Holy Spirit was being poured out.  This Holy Spirit was moving powerfully among God’s people.  It was quite common for people to stay in Jerusalem even though they lived somewhere else.  They did not want to miss out on the almost incredible things that God was doing.  Similarly, they were gathering every day in the temple where the apostles preached Jesus and encouraged the believers.  This dynamic led to a period of time where there were many reasons why people would put off normal matters of business, work.

How we need to once again become a people who are led and impassioned by what the Holy Spirit is doing.  Don’t be so sure that you have the same kind of heart.  The Holy Spirit is not inactive in our day and age, and yet many act as if He is.  Only through prayer can we get to a place where we recognize what the Holy Spirit is doing, and where He is leading.  God help us not to settle for a good life that is ignorant of what the Holy Spirit is doing in our day and age.

Let’s get into our passage.

The believers care for one another (vs. 32-37)

The issue of lacking what one needs from day to day is front and center in this passage.  Jesus spoke about this in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 6:25-34.  He basically tells believers not to be anxious about their daily food, clothing, or shelter.  If they would seek the Kingdom of God first in their life, then they would find God supplying these things as needed. 

Notice that the emphasis is on our primary focus.  Of course, we will need to work, budget, and buy food.  However, we should never let this become our priority.  Jesus is speaking to people who often found themselves in poor circumstances.  They could have all kinds of reasons to become anxious and then be led into complaining against God (remember Israel in the wilderness).

In desperation, we can often live life at a very surface level that is focused upon survival and our fleshly needs.  Don’t get me wrong.  A person needs to eat, and be clothed, and have shelter.  Yet, when our life first worries about these things and then becomes consumed with them, then we are never happy.  People, who are eating and dressing quite luxuriously, people who are living in houses, or apartments, that are orders of magnitude higher than kings in the past had, can still find themselves anxious about that stuff because it has come to mean more to them than God and His kingdom.

Only Jesus and his purposes can satisfy our inner needs.  We have a promise from him that we don’t need to worry; we just need to put his kingdom first.

In this passage, we have a practical expression of how the early Church was making sure that no one among them fell into circumstances where they were going hungry, without proper clothing, or without shelter from the elements.

We should also note that there are two sides to this issue.  In Matthew 6, Jesus was speaking to the needy (really all of us).  The person in need is not told that they shouldn’t worry because the Church will cover all their needs.  They are told to make the Kingdom of God their focus, and then God would make sure that they had enough to eat, etc.  However, God wants to help us is His business.  Our job is to refrain from worry, and trust God to provide, as we do our best.

However, the other side of the issue is about those whom God wants to use to meet those needs.  God is amazing.  Whenever somebody lacks anything, God always makes sure that there is somebody who has plenty enough to meet that need.  This is not a matter of law or commandment.  God’s people are called to be volunteers out of love for Christ.  We give as the Lord Jesus puts it on our heart.  That said, this can become a cop-out for the person who is greedy and doesn’t want to give.  We can say that God hasn’t told us to help anyone, all the while our fingers are deep in our ears.  God is calling us to maturity.  If God has blessed you with anything, then you need to be asking for what purpose has He done this?  Only for you to consume?  This is more than unlikely.  We will be accountable for how we have used God’s things that He has entrusted to us, within this life that He has given to us.

Lastly in this matter, a person who lacks financially still has areas in their life where they can be used of God to help others.  Also, a person who is financially wealthy still has areas in their life where they have needs that only others can meet.  No one is wholly in one category or another.  This takes spending time in prayer in order to understand the ways in which we can meet others needs, and the ways in which we are still quite needy ourselves.

In verse 32, Luke says that the believers were of one heart and one soul.  This is similar to the phrase “in one accord,” which focuses on having a singular passion for God’s purposes.  The words heart and soul have lots of overlap and basically point to that inner life as opposed to our body.  The heart is pictured as a kind of control center of our thoughts on one hand, and of our desires on the other.  In essence, the believers were living in a way that was as if one person was doing all of the thinking and desiring.

The only way that a group of people can have one heart and one soul is by the help of the Holy Spirit.  Tyrants will use brute force and manipulation to control the people, but God doesn’t operate in this way, and neither should the leaders of the Church.  This can’t be done in the flesh.  Paul tells us to let the mind of Christ be in us (Philippians 2).  With this in mind, we can see our need as believers is to let the Holy Spirit direct our heart and soul to be like that of Christ.  He needs to direct our heart.  We need to have our thoughts conformed and our desires conformed to those of Jesus daily.  This is not an internal taking over by God, but a cooperation.  The only way this can successfully be done is through reading the Word of God, daily times of prayer, and walking with Jesus in obedience.  This is where we fight the giants internally in our soul.

Let’s look at verse 33 before we talk about the way the early Church dealt with financial needs in their midst.  It is pretty common in Acts to have a specific story about something that happened, and then follow it up with a general summation of what God was doing in the Church.  This verse is one of those summary style verses that lets us know that God was answering the prayer of the early Church.  We are once again reminded that God was working powerfully through the apostles as they preached about the resurrection of Jesus.  The great power is the dunamis power of God’s amazing work.  It is literally mega-dunamis.  God did extraordinary things through these apostles.  Just like the man lame from birth being healed in his 40’s, we are going to see more amazing miracles in the book of Acts.  These powerful demonstrations would not only let the leaders of Israel know that Jesus was multiplied in his followers, but it would also let Israel know that God had not abandoned them.  He was still pouring out His mercy and grace upon them.

This is an amazing thought.  They had taken the greatest gift of grace possible, God’s only Son, and crucified him.  Yet, here is God; here is Jesus showing them great and powerful signs and wonders.  He was essentially saying, “Even now, I will forgive.  Simply put your faith in my Son, Jesus!”

Just as there was great power through the apostles, so too, there was great grace upon the believers.  This is literally saying that grace, and that greatly (mega grace) was upon them.  It is easy to only think of grace in terms of salvation, but this term is broader than just salvation here.  It speaks to the favor, or good-will, of God resting upon them.  Jesus was not only dispensing mega powerful works by the disciples, but he was also pouring out mega grace upon his Church.  Jesus by his Spirit is the source of this overall atmosphere of God’s favor upon these believers.  This would be a supply in which they would display God’s grace among themselves, and it would then overflow into the larger community around them.

The early Christians were a people marked by the favor of God.  We can be mistaken in such judgments.  Perhaps, we may believe that the American Church is the most favored of God in every generation.  If we use the mind of the flesh to determine God’s favor, then we are guilty of the same sin of Job’s comforters, and the disciples themselves who thought wealth was a sign of God’s favor.  This was not the case with the early Christians.  The favor of God was upon them as obviously as the pillar of fire was to Pharoah that day.

Now let’s talk about the fact that the early Church took care of those who were needy in their midst.  When verse 34 says, “Nor was there anyone among them who lacked,” it does not mean no one ever had a need.  This is not some declaration that you will never have a need if you really trust Jesus.  No, many of them did have a need, a lacking.  However, those needs were being met by other brothers and sisters in the faith of Jesus.  Just like an adult son would take care of his aged mother when she is widowed, so they took care of those who encountered difficulties in life.  Most likely, they saw this number increase as persecutions led to many being arrested, imprisoned, and even executed. 

Down through the ages, the righteous have always wrestled with such things.  We are told that John Bunyan (author of The Pilgrim’s Progress, and The Holy War) spent years in the Bedford County Jail.  It bothered him that his wife and child were home penniless.  However, God used believers to care for them during this time.  It was humbling, but John knew that he was doing God’s work.  So, his family lacked in the sense of having need, but they didn’t lack because God laid it on the hearts of believers to supply their needs.

Luke describes further why these needs would be taken care of.  In Acts 6, we are going to see that they had a daily distribution of food for widows, for example.  Verse 32 says that their attitude towards their possessions was not a selfish one.  Instead, they had all things in common.  This doesn’t mean that they liquidated everything and joined a commune as some cults promote today.  It doesn’t even mean that they treated all their property as belonging to the poor.  In truth, they knew that their wealth was God’s in every way.  Therefore, they were merely stewards of God’s stuff in this life that He had given them.  It is much easier to give when your heart is not stingily clinging to the things “you have amassed by your hard work.”

In verse 34-35, we see how they were covering the needs.  When it says, “all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them,” it does not mean that no one had houses anymore.  It simply means that, as it was needed, those who had an excess of possessions would sell them from time to time.  This money was then given to the apostles, and they distributed it to those in need.  This was all done voluntarily and as God moved on their hearts.

Luke gives an example of a man named Joses.  This is not the ½ brother of Jesus mentioned in Matthew 13:55. This man is a Levite who was from the Island of Cyprus.  The name Joses is a diminutive form of Joseph.  Clearly, Joses had been in Jerusalem early on.  Was he one of those people in the crowd hearing Peter’s sermon on the Day of Pentecost?  Or was he one of the 120 who were filled with the Holy Spirit in the upper room?  Some even speculate that he was one of the 70 sent out by Jesus.  Of course, those possibilities are merely conjecture.  Yet, Joses became a very influential person in the early Church. 

We are told that the apostles called him “Barnabas.”  In fact, this is the name that will be used of him from here on in the New Testament.  Barnabas is Aramaic and means “Son of Encouragement.”  Interestingly, the term encouragement is from the same root as the term Paraclete that is used of Jesus to refer to the Holy Spirit.  It is essentially one who comes alongside of another to help in whatever manner that will help.  It is a very broad term.  In this passage, Barnabas encourages people by giving money to the apostles so that no one in the Jerusalem Church will lack what they need.  Later, we are going to see Barnabas standing alongside of Saul of Tarsus when he believes on Jesus.  Barnabas came alongside of Saul, who came to be known as Paul, and helped the apostles to accept Paul into their fellowship.

Just as there are cautionary tales in the Bible (think of Cain, King Saul, Nebuchadnezzar, Judas, and many others), so there are many who are encouraging examples to us, even exemplars of what we should aspire to be.  Clearly, Jesus is the Exemplar of exemplars, but it is good to see righteous individuals who do particular exploits in the name of Jesus.  Pay attention to the negative examples in Scripture that we should avoid becoming, and the positive examples that we should allow to inspire us to follow Jesus more avidly.

So, what about us today?  Our culture is not as conducive to being aware of everyone’s needs.  In fact, 1st century Jerusalem was a far different culture than 1st century Rome, or Thessalonica.  Paul actually tells the Thessalonians that some of their people were being lazy, not working, going from house to house eating food, and being busybodies.  Paul said that such people need to work hard and eat their own food in quietness.  This corrective teaching has a fine edge put on it in the statement, “If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat.”  (2 Thessalonians 3:10 NKJV).

Our culture loves to give lip-service to concepts like love and grace.  However, it often becomes perverted and twisted into something that is contrary to what God calls us to do.  It is not the Church’s job to make sure that no one ever goes hungry.  Sometimes a person has to experience powerful hunger pains in the natural before they ever come awake to the powerful, spiritual hunger pains that they have been running from.  It is our job to follow Jesus in truth.  It is our job to be led by the Spirit of Christ as we minister to and care for those who are believers and those who are lost.

May God help us to be open enough that others in the body would know if we are hurting.  This is nothing to be ashamed of.  It is an opportunity for Christ to demonstrate his compassion in us and through others.

All Things In Common audio

Tuesday
Apr262022

The Acts of the Apostles 1

Subtitle: Jesus Promises The Holy Spirit

Acts 1:1-8.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on April 24, 2022.

Today, we begin a journey through the book often called Acts.  We will take our time to go verse by verse, which will make this a long journey.  From time to time along the way, we will pause the series for special occasions.

The setting of the book (1:1-3)

First up, let’s talk about the setting and situation that gave rise to this book of our New Testament.

The author is not identified, but there is basically no dispute that the author is Luke the physician.  This is attested within the 2nd century and there is no dispute from anyone at the time. 

We should note that even the Gospel of Luke does not identify the author in its verses.  However, the oldest copy of the Gospel of Luke that we have dates back to the 2nd century (AD 100’s) and has written on it in Greek “According to Luke.”

In verse 1, the author refers to a former account, “The former account I made…”  He explains the subject matter of the earlier account.  It was about “all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up…”  This clearly describes a gospel account, and makes Acts a second volume that essentially starts where the Gospel of Luke leaves off.

As for the title of the book, there is no title given by the author.  It is simply an account describing what happened from the ascension of Jesus forward.  Thus, it is historical with a theological emphasis throughout it, much like the gospel.  Since the Gospel is about what Jesus did and said, so this book has been referred to as The Acts of the Apostles, and the shorter form Acts.  Of course, we should recognize that Jesus is still acting through his disciples by the help of the Holy Spirit.

Both the Gospel of Luke and the book of Acts are addressed to an individual named Theophilus.  The name means “friend of God,” and is used only in Luke 1:3 and Acts 1:1.  It is a Latin name, so the person is most likely a gentile convert.  I say this because Luke states that he wants Theophilus to be certain of the things in which he had been instructed (Luke 1:4).  Also there, Luke states that he had a perfect understanding of all things from the very first that he was writing about.

All of the Gospels portray a transitional period after the Resurrection of Jesus.  There are 50 days between the feast of Passover and the feast of Pentecost (called the feast of Weeks in the Old Testament).  Note that Pentecost is a Greek word for 50.  During the first 40 days, Jesus appeared on multiple occasions giving them commands, proving that it was really him, and that he was not just a spirit.  Luke states in Acts 1:3 that Jesus gave them infallible proofs of his resurrection to establish its reality beyond a doubt.  We see this with Jesus having them touch him and eating food in their presence and yet appearing and disappearing within locked rooms.

These first appearances happened in and around Jerusalem.  Then, there was an appearance in the area of Galilee.  This seems to be the situation that Paul speaks of in 1 Corinthians 15:6 in which he mentions Jesus appearing to “over 500 brethren at once.”  The end of the Gospel of Luke places the ascension of Jesus on the east side of the Mt. of Olives near Bethany.  This is a short distance from Jerusalem towards the east.

Verse 3 also tells us that Jesus used this transitional time to speak of things pertaining to the Kingdom of God.  This would be particularly important to the disciples because they were perplexed at how the crucifixion, and now resurrection, of Jesus would connect to the awaited Kingdom of God.

Jesus instructs the disciples (1:4-8)

This opens with the last appearance to them in this transitional period.  Jesus is giving them his last instructions before going into heaven.  Jesus commands them to wait in Jerusalem for the “Promise of the Father.”  This idea of waiting may seem strange or unimportant to us.  However, the followers of Christ (and even the followers of God throughout history) are to be characterized first as a people who have waited on God the Father. Isaiah 40:31 reminds us that those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength and be able to fly, run, and walk without growing weary.  We are not an inactive people, but we are not driven by the mission or task itself.  We wait upon the Lord and follow His leading like the righteous of every age.

The Promise of the Father is a reference to the prophecies regarding the pouring out of the Holy Spirit.  In Joel 2, the Father promises that a time will come when He will pour out His Spirit upon all flesh.  This is as opposed to being poured out on a few individuals hear and there, which was how it was experienced before then.

If there is any doubt about what promise Jesus means, it is put to rest in verse 5.  John the Baptist baptized people in water, but they were about to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.  We should remind ourselves of Matthew 3:11 at this point.  John himself said, “I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.”  (NKJV). 

Salvation is sometimes pictured as the Spirit of God putting or baptizing a person into Christ.  The disciples present were all saved members of Christ and his body.  Here the picture is reversed and Jesus will immerse his disciples into the Holy Spirit.  Notice that this picture shows a person being completely surrounded by the Holy Spirit.

There is another picture that is used of the Holy Spirit and that is being filled with the Spirit.  At salvation, Christ dwells in the believer through the Holy Spirit.  However, being filled with the Spirit pictures the Spirit flooding forth and filling our whole inner being until it overflows.  Both these inner and outer pictures are pointing to the same idea. 

Of course, salvation and Spirit baptism can happen simultaneously or separately.  The reason the disciples had to wait was mainly about the fact that the coming of the Holy Spirit in this new outpouring needed to coincide with the feast of Pentecost.  Just as the death of Jesus happened on Passover and conceptually tied to the sacrifice they made in Egypt, so the coming of the Holy Spirit conceptually tied to Pentecost.  This was a celebration of the harvest that God had given up to that point and the further harvest that would be realized in the months ahead.  The baptism of the Holy Spirit is connected to the harvest of believers who would come into the Kingdom of God through the work of the apostles and the Early Church.  They would be like a rock in the pond causing ripples down through history to our very hour. 

We see in verse 6 that the disciples are more concerned about Israel and what Jesus was doing in regard to reestablishing the kingdom.  Old Testament prophecy pointed to a time when the Anointed One of God (Messiah/Christ) would: break off the Gentile dominion over Israel, bring back those of Israel who had been dispersed to Gentile lands, fix all that was wrong with Israel, and bring the world under his righteous administration.  They believed that this would happen up until the cross, where their hopes were dashed.  Yet, these hopes were now restored since the Resurrection of Jesus.  They are like kids often are, asking the Lord, “Are we there yet?” 

Jesus tells them that it is not for us to know the times or seasons that are under the Father’s authority.  The Father would determine when that would happen and He was not giving the disciples more information.  It is important that Jesus expects it to happen.  He doesn’t berate them for not understanding that the Kingdom was only a metaphor and would never happen literally.  This is the approach that many liberal Christians take with such prophecies.  However, Jesus refocuses them.  Our focus is not to be on the “when” of God’s Kingdom restoration of Israel. 

Instead, their focus is to be on receiving power to be witnesses of Jesus to the ends of the earth (verse 8).  This power would come when they were filled with the Holy Spirit.  We will talk more about this when we get to chapter 2.  However, we must always remember that the power behind our activity must always be the Holy Spirit.  We must not let the lesser power of institutional momentum and pride of a brand fuel the task of taking the gospel to the ends of the earth.  The pouring out of the Holy Spirit would essentially be about giving a witness to the world of who Jesus is, what he did, what he has made available to us presently, and what he will do in the future.  We can be filled with the presence of God because of what Jesus has done.

In verse 8, Jesus highlights the concentric circles of the expansion of this witness.  It would start in Jerusalem, move to Judea and Samaria, and then to the ends of the earth.  Imagine, here we are today at the ends of the earth from Jerusalem talking about Jesus!  Yet, there are still many who need to hear about Jesus, and they also need to see Jesus in us.

May God help us not to run ahead without the help of the Holy Spirit in doing this work.  Without Him we will fail, but with Him we will succeed at doing the work!  That said, neither do we want to hang back when the Spirit of God begins to move.  May God help us to walk in step with His Spirit, and to stop in sync with His Spirit.

Acts Jesus Promises audio

Tuesday
Sep282021

The Things that God Hates 7: A False Witness who Speaks Lies

Proverbs 6:16-19; 1 Kings 21:4-16; John 3:35-36; Revelation 3:14.

This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on September 26, 2021.

This morning we will look at the 6th thing on the list of things that God hates, and we find it in verse 19 of Proverbs 6.  God hates a false witness who speaks lies.

God hates a false witness who speaks lies

The word for “speaks” is literally breathing out, or exhaling, lies, which is a metaphor for speech.  It should remind us of the fact that breath, wind, and spirit are linked conceptually in the Bible.  Thus, it pictures a man who is breathing out lies.  His spirit is not a good spirit and is in league with the work of evil spirits, irrespective of the idea of possession.

Another grammatical thing that we should look at is the phrase “false witness.”  The word false can refer to the testimony itself, but it also speaks to the intent and character of the person who is witnessing.  This is a witness who is not committed to the truth and God.  They are a deceiver.  If a false witness says anything that is true, it is twisted and part of a deception, even if just to throw you off the scent of their deception.

In order to highlight this abominable issue, we are going to look at an event that is recorded in 1 Kings 21.

Ahab is king of the northern tribes of Israel.  About sixty years earlier 931 B.C., Israel had split into two kingdoms with the southern portion taking the name Judea, and the northern portion taking the name Israel.  The Bible tells us in 1 Kings 16:31 that Ahab was more wicked than any other northern king before him.

What did he do to deserve such a description?  He continued the worship of the golden calves at Dan and Bethel to keep his citizens from going to Jerusalem and its temple.  He also married Jezebel who was the daughter of a Sidonian King, a Baal worshipper.  This leads to Ahab building a temple to Baal in his capital city Samaria, and promoting Baal worship.  In fact, he begins to persecute the true prophets of Yahweh by imprisoning them and putting some to death.

Our problem in this chapter has to do with a vineyard next to Ahab’s summer palace in Jezreel.  He offers its owner, Naboth, either money or another field in trade, but Naboth refuses.  We will talk more about why later. 

Now, Ahab is a wicked man, but through his wife, we see that there are different levels of wickedness.  Ahab is more apt to pout and throw fits when people don’t go along with his plans.  Whereas, Jezebel has no boundaries and no qualms with using lies and murder to get what she wants.  When Jezebel finds out what Ahab is pouting over, she upbraids him and promises to get the vineyard for him.

A couple of week ago we talked about people who devise wicked plans in their hearts.  Well, this is exactly what Jezebel does.  Of course, Ahab knows what kind of woman he has married, and later God holds him accountable for her actions.  Jezebel is a leader who sees her position (and Ahab’s) as a means for her own benefit, and not for the people’s.  The people are just sheep, food, and assets to leaders like this.  Everyone is expendable for the sake of the great ego of such a leader.  Jezebel’s plan involves two scoundrels, worthless individuals, who will lie and say that they heard Naboth blaspheme God and the king.  This is a capital crime in Israel, and notice how she uses a cloak of morality to keep the populace going along with the ruse.

Wicked plans often need others in power to go along with it.  These others didn’t hatch the plan, but they knowingly carry it out.  Some do this out of fear because they don’t want to lose their life, power, and authority.  Others may simply do it out of their own lusts.  Perhaps they see themselves getting ahead or getting in the favor of the king, which could come in handy down the road.  Jezebel uses the kings seal to send a message to the elders of Jezreel.  This message tells them to have a fast and seat Naboth in a very public place where to scoundrels can accuse him of blaspheming God.  They are then to take Naboth out and execute him.  Regardless of what they were thinking, the elders of Naboth’s town sell him out in order to please the king.  They know it is all a lie, and yet they go along with it. 

Such wickedness is bad enough between nations, but for a leader to do such a thing to their own citizen is unconscionable.  God deliver us from such leaders, but it is not only kings that can abuse their power.  Every level of power over others down to our job and families can be abused in wickedness.  The wrath of God is coming for such things, and woe to the person who is found by him doing it.

Wicked plans always crush innocent people in order to satisfy the lusts of the wicked.  However, Naboth is not just innocent of the lies against him.  The story pictures him as a godly man.  In general, it would be his right not to sell to Ahab, but in Israel land was a birthright that was passed down from your ancestors, and ultimately it was a portion given by God.  To sell it would be seen as the same as Esau selling his birthright for a bowl of beans.  Naboth knows that the land has been given to his family by God, and he will not sell it for any price.  A gift from God meant more to him than mountains of money.

Ahab and Jezebel have nothing on Naboth because he has lived a godly life.  They then concoct bald face lies to pin on him.  Did anybody from Jezreel protest that day?  Who were these scoundrels accusing their friend Naboth of something they knew could never be?  In fact, although it is not mentioned in this story, 2 King 9:26 makes it clear that Naboth’s sons were killed with him, so there would be no heirs.  All of this because Ahab thought it would be nice to have a vineyard that was close to his palace.

Ahab didn’t enact the plan, but he knew it was going on, and was all too happy to rise up and take possession of the land after the heinous deed.  This was an abomination to God on Jezebel’s part, Ahab’s part, on the part of the leaders of Jezreel, and on the part of everyone who remained silent in the face of obvious wickedness. 

God then sends Elijah who just happens to catch Ahab as he is in Naboth’s field.  What is God’s message?  In short, Ahab will die in the same place that the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth and his sons, outside the city like an outcast.

Of course, the Pharisees tried this ploy on our Lord Jesus.  In their midnight phony trial, several witnesses were put forward as false witnesses against Jesus, but their testimony didn’t match and would stand the light of day.  However, the Lord knew what would give them the charge they sought.  When he declares that they will see him sitting at the right hand of the God, and coming on the clouds of heaven (a direct reference to Daniel 7:14), they believe that he has blasphemed, and that is what he was tried for, blaspheming God and the king (Caesar). 

Yes, in this world, wicked men seem to get away with wicked plans.  However, do not go along with them, no matter how afraid you are, or how much you will get ahead in this life by it.  This is an abomination to God and a righteous man will do his best to expose them.

So, what does God love?  I want to look at John 3:35-36 and then Revelation 3:14

God loves one who witnesses to the truth

If we are to carry out the imagery in Proverbs, we see that Jesus is animated by a pure spirit, wind, breath.  It is a holy spirit that is truth itself, and gives witness to the truth without fault.  This is the one who is loved of God.

Yes, it seems obvious that the Father loves the Son, but He loves us too because we have put our faith in the Son.  Jesus is the perfect image of God.  For all of the lies that Satan has spread against God, Jesus hanging on the cross shuts the mouth of all accusations for all eternity.  How can you question God’s love and motives after that?  Jesus became our template, but he also is our leader.  We will never get to being like him without his direction and help.  He is also the one who empowers us by his Holy Spirit.

The main purpose of this life is for us to learn to become more like God the Father through Jesus.  Of course, there are many who are trying to be gods in this world, and it will only get worse until the One True God ends it.  You cannot separate God’s power from His character.  You can’t try to obtain that power and reject His character.  It will never work.  There are two paths presented to us in this world.  The first is from the spirit of this world and it encourages humanity to follow its lusts, and pool its gifts in order to make ourselves gods.  God’s path requires us to turn away from our lusts and to embrace Jesus.  Of course, we won’t become God, but we will be like Him; we will be the Sons of God.  No matter how god-like humans become, we will one day have to give an account to the One who truly is God.  No one who is unprepared can survive that moment. 

Christians must not become tempted by that path, no matter how successful it may look.  Keep your eyes upon Christ and become more like him, not this world.  If we believe in the Son, we will see eternal life, and the wrath of God will not remain upon us, but His love will rest upon us.

In Revelation 3:14, I want to focus on two of the Titles that Jesus uses for himself.  The first one is The Amen.  It may seem to be a strange title, but it really isn’t.  “Amen” basically means that something is true and trustworthy.  Jesus used this to emphasize his statements to his disciples.  It is translated as “verily” in the KJV, and “most assuredly” in the NKJV.  Twice, Jesus doubles up the word, “Verily, verily I say unto you.”  This is a way of doubly intensifying the meaning.

Jesus is a metaphorical Amen to the Father’s will.  He not only assents that the Father’s plan is true and trustworthy, but he gives his strength to carrying it out.  He is not just declaring true and trustworthy things.  He himself is the Truth and Trustworthiness!  When we stand in Christ, we stand alongside the greatest one of all creation declaring a cosmic “Amen!” to the Father.  When we follow Christ and obey his commands, we are shouting “Amen!” to the Father in heaven with our lives.  Father, we praise you for you are True and Trustworthy regardless of what we see and experience down here!

He is also called The Faithful and True Witness.  I mentioned this earlier, but think of all the slander that the enemy whispered about God the Father throughout history.  Jesus came down to set the record straight.  His death on the cross makes it clear that the Father does not want people to die in their sins and go into the Lake of Fire.  Jesus did not just give a faithful and true witness about God.  He was Faithful and True in all that He said and did, faithful and true to his Father in heaven.

Yes, you and I have a lot of work to do to become like Jesus, and there are many in this world who are witnessing of Jesus, using his moral credentials, but they are not being faithful and true to God’s Word.  With the help of Jesus, this work will be finished in us, if we will just believe him and his word.  Let us be faithful and give a true witness of Jesus, and in so doing, become more like our Father in heaven!

Tuesday
Jan262021

The Great Commission

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.

John’s Gospel

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’s Gospel

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.

Luke’s Gospel

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.

Matthew’s 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.

The Conclusion

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.

Great Comm audio

Page 1 ... 2 3 4 5 6 ... 8 Next 4 Entries »