Partakers Christian Podcasts

Highlights in Hebrews 7

Highlights in Hebrews

(with Roger Kirby)

Part 7 - Hebrews 2:17
Jesus atones for us

For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.

A few days ago, as I write, Liverpool football club took on Real Madrid for the Champions of Europe cup. The game is remembered for two awful mistakes made by Loris Karius, the Liverpool goalkeeper. They might still have been beaten but he made sure they were. He threw the ball out far to close to an opponent who was able to score easily from it, then he let a very catchable ball slip through his hands into the goal. One can only imagine what he felt like in the changing room afterwards. He must have sat in a corner and wished the ground would open up and swallow him! Nothing he could do would remedy the situation. Nothing he could do would atone for his awful mistakes. They had lost and that was that. He will have been the outcast of the team. He will have been lucky if anyone was prepared to say anything kind to him. He will not have been at-one with the rest of the team. (Only much later did they realise he may have been concussed in an earlier incident.)
We too have made some awful mistakes. Nothing we can do will make us winners who can appear before the great Lord God. Although we may not have broken any of the greatest laws of mankind such as murder or adultery, we have failed to love the Lord our God with all our hearts and souls and minds. We have lost the game of life.

But we are not as Karius. We, amazingly, have been put at-one with the Lord God. Not through anything we have done or could possibly do, but because of what Jesus has done for us. Jesus has made at-one-ment for the sins of the people. He has done that by his death on the cross; by giving his blood as a sacrifice for us. Later our writer categorically announces that “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (9:22) The reference is, of course, to the blood of animal sacrifices made for the forgiveness of sins. Why that should be is never completely clear but it is a fundamental background understanding through scripture. The writer to the Hebrews is going to go on to explain this background in great detail though he only uses the word ‘atonement’ once more in his book.

Rejoice then! We have been accepted into the favour of the Lord God through the action of Jesus. Charles Wesley’s great hymn starts, ‘And can it be that I should gain an interest in the Saviour’s blood’

 

Its answer is Yes, Yes, and Yes.

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Highlights in Hebrews 6

Highlights in Hebrews

(with Roger Kirby)

Part 6 - Hebrews 2:10
Jesus our pioneer

1 In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.

Our main emphasis here is going to be on that word ‘pioneer’ but before we go there here is another thought from this verse.

Have you fully realised that you are a brother or a sister of the Lord of Creation? He is your elder brother. WOW and triple WOW!

The word translated ‘pioneer’ in the latest NIV or ‘author’ in the older one is quite tricky to get the full meaning of. Authors write down something that has not been written before; pioneers hack a new way through the jungle where no one has been before. I like to think of the word ‘pathfinder’ as a possible translation although I can’t find it in any version. A ‘pathfinder’ is a member of a unit of the British army whose dangerous job it is to go ahead of the main force; to identify where helicopters can land; to locate the enemy and where he can be best attacked. And those are just the things that Jesus did for us - with a bit of imagination.

 

What Jesus did was exceedingly dangerous - he actually had to die doing it. When the Lord God created our world he deliberately made it a chaotic place. It may seem strange to us but earthquakes, tsunamis, thunderstorms and so on are part of the very interesting place in which we live. Otherwise it would be a very boring place! He also ensured that we would not all be perfect, living to a ripe old age without any aches and pains or diseases on the way. But neither of those sets of chaotic problems are the worst part of life on this earth. No, the worst part is what men and women do to other men and women. The sinfulness of humans is the source of all the worst things that can happen to us. As a result suffering is a normal and almost essential part of our life experiences. Only in a comparatively few peaceful and quiet parts of the world can fortunate folk expect to live lives without suffering caused by humans.

It was the great and amazing intention of the Triune God that Jesus, the earthly embodiment of that Trinity, should be the pathfinder to force a way through the jungle of sinful humanity, to search out the enemy, Satan, and to die in doing so. In that victory his true people became his brothers and sisters. So, as the next verses say, “ Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.”(2:11) and “ Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil”.(2:14)

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Highlights in Hebrews 5

Highlights in Hebrews

(with Roger Kirby)

Part 5 - Hebrews 2:9
Jesus as representative man

“we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honour because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.”

Our writer quotes the psalmist (Psalm 8:4–6) in Hebrews 2:6-8:
“What is mankind that you are mindful of them,
a son of man that you care for him?
You made them a little[ lower than the angels;
you crowned them with glory and honour
and put everything under their feet.”

It is a tricky passage as is obvious from the lengthy footnotes in most English versions. The second line seems to be singular while all the other lines refer to mankind in the plural. It is the nearly unanimous opinion of modern translations that this is correct. The quotation refers back to Genesis 1:26 where God says, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” In an astonishing act God put the care of this world of ours in the hands of mankind. We haven’t done very well with it. As I write the main problem seems to be plastic in the seas. For centuries mankind has assumed that the oceans are so big we can dump anything we like into them and they will absorb it. It is now clear that there is so much plastic in the seas, which will break down into ever smaller particles without dissolving, that all the fish and other creatures in the seas will be poisoned by them. We have scarcely done any better with the land. We continue to fight over it with each other and generally mess it up.

But our writer can see good in even these problems. He goes on to say in Hebrews 2:9, “we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honour because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.”

 

Jesus has rescued all mankind from the consequences of their failures if they will only recognize that he has done so. Ultimately we, his people, will all end up in his New Heaven and New Earth. What exactly that means; what it will look like; how it will relate to our present experience; we do not know, but we can have confidence in our Lord and Saviour.

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Highlights in Hebrews 4

Highlights in Hebrews

(with Roger Kirby)

Part 4 - Hebrews 2:3
Escaping salvation

“How shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation?”

Already the writer is warning his readers. This is a recurrent feature of this book. The warnings against turning away from faith having once started to follow Jesus are stronger in this book than any other in the New Testament. They cause considerable difficulty for those whose basic theology is strongly Calvinistic. Those people say: once saved always saved, which this book seems to contradict. We have to take scripture as more significant than any systematic theology so we need to heed what the writer says.

This first warning comes so early in the book it might be thought hard to justify. It raises the question: why do we come to faith? Many people in our culture, and perhaps yours too, come to faith and start to attend church because something has gone wrong in their lives or they feel a gap in the way they live. Those are not good reasons for starting to believe because they are ‘I’ centred. They come from the needs and the thinking of the individual. The true reasons we should come to faith are because of who Jesus was, and is, his death and resurrection. That is what the writer has emphasised in those first few verses of chapter one.

The reality is that most people do not come to faith for that good reason. What is hugely important is that they should then receive teaching that convinces them of the way it actually was. If they know that the Lord had the main guiding hand in what happened, that it was his initiative that brought them to faith in the first place, that the gift of the Hoy Spirit was his doing, then they are unlikely to try to leave faith because it is convenient for them. It may well be that if they are taught to do so they will be able to look back and realise that the Lord had for many years and in a quiet and non-aggressive way been leading them towards faith. Few people take the leap of faith when it is first placed before them. Most need many a nudge and suggestion before they get there. Our God is a gracious and kind God who deals tenderly with his people.

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Highlights in Hebrews 3

Highlights in Hebrews

(with Roger Kirby)

Part 3 - Hebrews 1:8, 9
Jesus on his throne

“Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever;
a sceptre of justice will be the sceptre of your kingdom.
You love righteousness and hate wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy.”
Hebrews 1:8-9

These verses are one of the many places where the very first words of this book are demonstrated. The writer started by saying God spoke through the prophets. In the second part of this first chapter he uses that fact to explain how Jesus was greater than the angels with some 7 quotations from the Old Testament. This is one of the most striking. It is drawn from Psalm 45: 6, 7. The ancient writer of the psalm will have thought he was writing a psalm of praise for a new king, possibly Solomon. It is a thoroughly secular piece, probably written to order, and greatly exaggerating the likely attributes of any earthly king and queen. It is hard to see what those reading it after the complete collapse of the Davidic dynasty after the exile can possibly have made of it.

But the writer to Hebrews can see its meaning centuries later. He can even use the rather curious reference to God in the first line of that quotation that makes little sense in the original. The gross exaggerations of the original make perfect sense applied to the perfect man, Jesus.

Attention is not often drawn to the quite amazing way in which things said centuries earlier referring to all sorts of situations and people suddenly come to life in the person and work of Jesus. Counting only those places where the NIV indents the lines there are 28 references back to the Old Testament in this book of Hebrews alone, most of them before the history of chapter 11. Our wonderful God, knowing what would happen, organised it so that his servants said things relating to their own circumstances that would be of use to other servants writing about his glorious Son.

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Highlights in Hebrews 2

Highlights in Hebrews

(with Roger Kirby)

Part 2 - Hebrews 1:1-3
The real history of Jesus

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

In just these three verses the writer sets out the full story of Jesus. He did not begin in Mary’s womb. He had been around for all the ages since the beginning of this world of ours-and even before that. Jesus was God, part of the Trinity, so he had to have existed before he was born a baby in Bethlehem. In his magnificent opening verses John says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Our writer here says in 1:2. “he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.” Paul, in Colossians 1:16, 17 manages to surpass that when he says:

“For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”

It is very difficult to work out how it all worked. Jesus was, at that stage, not human. He was in heaven, working for the creation and establishment of the universe and, in particular, this world. In the Old Testament there are several ways in which aspects of God, parts of his essential identity, are referred to. He is Word, Wisdom and Spirit. John says Jesus was the Word (John 1:1). Matthew strongly hints that he was Wisdom in his 11:19, “ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved right by her deeds.” He was an integral part of the Spirit as Luke 4:18 says, “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me”. In Proverbs 8: 30 it is said of Wisdom that at the creation that she was ‘at his side’.

From all these glories Jesus descended that he might provide ‘purification for sins’, a very shorthand way of talking about all he did on this world of ours living as both God and man at the same time. The writer could have spoken of his ministry, his death and his resurrection but he chooses just those three words, ‘purification for sins’, to stand for those the greatest moments, probably just 3 years of them, of all time. Only then did he ascend to heaven and sit down at the right hand of God on high. From then on there was, and is, a man in heaven.

His role there is to ‘hold all things together’ (Colossians 1:17), to look after his people, to direct their prayers, particularly when they run out of ability to pray. There he waits the Father’s signal that it is time for him to return to earth and set up the New Heavens and the New Earth that we are promised. I wonder whether he is impatient for that day to come or whether he rests calmly in the confidence of his Father God.

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Highlights in Hebrews 1

Highlights in Hebrews

(with Roger Kirby)

Part 1 - Hebrews 1:3
Jesus: the image of God

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

The word ‘better’ is oft-en seen as dominant in the book of Hebrews (I call it a book because it does not read like a letter or epistle. It is more like a treatise, but that is an unduly posh word!). But it is not the subject of this wonderful book; that is Jesus. The writer (no one knows who that was) starts his thesis with the statement that Jesus was ‘the exact representation of his being’. The ‘his’ is God. Like all good Christian thinking, writing and preaching everything starts with God.

One problem they had in those days was that they had not worked out how to advertise! They had no billboards lining the streets, no newspapers printed every day, no televisions to annoy us with their perpetual breaks for adverts, really very few opportunities to say what they were good at. Only the Emperor had an opportunity and that was with the coins. Everyone knew what the current emperor looked like because his image had been stamped on every coin. The coin was made of a comparatively soft metal. The stamp was made of very hard metal so that it could be pushed down under pressure on the face of the coin and thus you had the face of the emperor. This was what Jesus referred to in Matthew 22: 18 - 21 when he said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. Which rather caught them out because they were admitting that they had the picture of an idol in whatever they used in place of pockets.

The primary reference of the exact representation has to be to the character and actions of Jesus. He was supremely oriented to other people. He cared for them, he healed them; he showed great grace and mercy towards them. He set a completely new standard of human behaviour focused on love. That is what God was, and is, like. Most paintings that attempt to show God get it completely wrong. They portray a big old white man with a long beard looking very stern and judgmental. No! If we want to know what God is like we have to look at Jesus because if he is the exact representation of God that has to be what God is like: Jesus, probably a small brown man looking rather scruffy and dirty because he walked so many miles on dusty tracks is the nearest we can get to what God looked like. But we can get much closer in the non-visual things that matter so much more. He was a God of love indeed he was Love. So all those lovely things that Jesus did as he walked this earth reflect the personality of God himself.

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Sermon - God Comes to Town (Ezekiel 1)

God Comes To Town!

Ezekiel 1:1-4, 24-28 to 2:2

Introduction

I wonder if there anybody here that is 25 years old?  Anybody turning 25 this year?  How about those who wished they were turning 25 this year? Imagine you are a 25 year old and being trained for the family business.  Then suddenly your enemies invade your city and take you away to a foreign land.  That's what happened to Ezekiel 5 years before this passage of Scripture, when the Babylonians, led by Nebuchadnezzar in 597BC took 3000 Jews back to Babylon.  This was the first deportation.

1. Ezekiel - who was he and how did he get there?

• His name means "God is strong"
• He was training to be a priest
• Now 30 years of age, if he had been in Jerusalem, he would have been ministering in the Temple.
• He was married to the woman who is described as the "delight of his eyes".

The reason that God had allowed His people to be taken into exile was because of their wickedness, utter disobedience and the dishonouring of His holy name.  We know from other Old Testament passages that the people of Israel at the time, reacted in four different ways:

• There were those blaming the sins of their parents for their predicament and were totally pessimistic about life and everything.
• Others had abandoned their God, and given over to worshipping the Babylonian gods
• Some were false optimists saying, be happy it will be fine.  We will soon be back in Jerusalem and God will be nice to us again.  So just continue living as you are!
• Finally some were truly repentant of their own sins and yet had abandoned hope that God would rescue them.

This is the first of five visions that Ezekiel has.  This vision is similar to that found in Revelation 1 where John writes while in exile on Patmos.  It is also similar to that portrayed by Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4v16 when God will return again, Jesus will come to judge the antichrist and his followers (Revelation 16v12-16, 19v11-16), bind Satan (Revelation 20v1-3) and judge the nations (Matthew 25v31-46; Joel 3v11-17).

When people find out that I am a Christian, some say "Oh I don't believe in a God or Gods".  I generally ask them "What kind of God don't you believe in?"  They then go on to describe what sort of God they don't believe in and they are generally surprised when I agree with them that I don't believe in the kind of God who they describe as being remote, impersonal, judgemental and delighting in the suffering He or she has probably caused. And I think Ezekiel at this time was out having his picnic at the river and maybe starting to think through all the things that had occurred leaving him in exile. Possibly he was starting to question God and then he sees what appears to be a storm approaching at speed. He just stands there, looking at it approach him. 

I don't know about you, but if that had been me, I would have run in the opposite direction as fast as I could!  But he just stands there and looks. Amazing.  So what was this vision and what does it tell us today, some 2500 years later! It is very easy with this passage to just concentrate on the cherubim angels, which is what the strange creatures are that Ezekiel describes in v4 to v24.  You only have to go to your local bookstore and find a plethora of books on angels and so called angel worship. 

But that would be stop at verse 24 and not proceed further.  We would then miss out on the God these angels are worshipping and obeying. However in order to satisfy any curiosity you may have about these cherubim, for that is what these creatures are, let me explain what the faces mean: .

• They each have four faces and each face is symbolic of a characteristic of a cherubim..
• The human face is to the front. This is to show that mankind is the pinnacle of creation. This shows the cherubim as being intelligent.
• The lion face is to the right and this reflects that the lion is the king of the wild animals. This shows the cherubim as being they are very strong and powerful.
• The ox face is to the left and this shows that the ox is the best of the animals that farmers keep. This shows the cherubim as being strong and patient.
• The eagle face is at the back for the eagle is the leader among the birds of the air. This shows the cherubim as being extremely quick.

2. How does Ezekiel describe this vision of God?

Ezekiel's first impression is the hearing of a voice from above the expanse over their heads. This voice came from a figure on the throne (v26).  This figure was like that of a man.  This should come as no surprise because mankind is made in the image of God. In the Old Testament, whenever God wanted to talk to man He took on the shape of a man such as when He appeared to Moses on Mount Sinai (Exodus 3).  This is what is called a theophany, which is an appearance of God in visible form, temporary and not necessarily material.

Ezekiel describes what he saw as "the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord" (v28).  For he knew that nobody could actually see God and live, such is the nature of God's holiness and glory. Sometimes, even in the evangelical church, we like to put God in a box.  God must act only in this way or in this manner.    Perhaps Ezekiel was thinking like that.  Thinking that God is far away in the Temple of Jerusalem and has abandoned his chosen people. We can see from this passage that God is holy, universal, mission-minded and personal.

3. Holy God

This is seen in the fire, light and radiance described in v27.  Because God is Holy, He is full of glory and majesty. However, it is not without some difficulty that we try to define what holiness is. Here are some of the things holiness is:

• Holiness is what separates God from all His creation.  For God alone is holy and full of glory.  Exodus 15v2 "Who is like you, O God, glorious in holiness!"  Or Isaiah 60v25 "To whom will you liken me, or shall I be equal?" says the Holy One.
• Holiness is also a moral attribute of God, of purity and freedom from the stain of sin.  Habakkuk 1v13 "of purer eyes than to behold evil and cannot look upon sin.
• Holiness is still more than that! It is in fact the sum of all His attributes!
• Perfect holiness, while to us is inconceivable, has been revealed.  Revealed in the sinless man, Jesus Christ.

4. Universal God

He is universal, not just in presence but in absolute sovereign power and knowledge.  In this vision of Ezekiel's, you can feel the power and presence of God.  It must have been quite a sight!  God's presence and power are seen in the throne!  This is the climax of the vision and it seems it is only now that Ezekiel realizes what he is looking at!  He collapses face down!
Omnipresent - God is wholly present everywhere.  God fills the universe in all it's parts without division Psalm 139:7-12; Jeremiah 23:23-24.   God was not only in the Temple in Jerusalem, but God was also in Babylon!
Omnipotent - God has power to do all things that are the object of power.  With God all things are possible Luke 1:37. He is El Shaddai or God Almighty. Jerermiah 32:17-18 Nothing is too hard for you. Omnipotence is an essential to God.  If God were not all-powerful then He would not be God and not be worthy of worship. This is the God who created the universe with His eternal and infinite power!  This God bids his angels to obey and they do!  Just as he is fully present everywhere, He is also all powerful and unlimited in power. This is the God who parted the Red Sea to allow the Israelites to escape the Egyptians army.  This is the God who stopped the sun during Joshua's time.  This is the God who made iron to swim by Elisha's hands.  His power is evident in that the visible works of creation are His handiwork.  He made everything around us, out of nothing!  That is power.  He not only created it, but He sustains it and gives it life! All things are possible with God and nothing impossible.  But there are of course things God cannot do.  He cannot do anything contrary to His own nature.  He cannot for instance declare something infinite if it is finite.

Omniscient - God has perfect knowledge of all things  - actual, past, present, future and possible. O Lord, you have searched me and you know me, You know when I sit and when I rise...You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways (Ps. 139:1-2a & 3). He knows all things, past, present, and future, and therefore he knows all that we do (which includes the remembrance of all that we have done), all that we think (and the record of those thoughts), and all that we say.

The Baptist Confession of 1689, describes God as: "The Lord our God is but one only living and true God; whose subsistence is in and of himself, infinite in being and perfection...", that God is in "every way infinite" and that His knowledge is "infinite, infallible, and independent upon the creature, so as nothing is to him contingent or uncertain." God knows all things, and is able to accomplish all of his most holy will. Israel had forgotten these things about their God:  He is not confined to just the Temple in Jerusalem.  He is all-powerful and able to do all things according to His will. He is all knowing and can see even the hidden sins of His people.  That is why they were in exile in Babylon, because they had not given God the honour due His name.  They had sinned and actively disobeyed Him and the following chapters, God reveals through the visions, words and actions of Ezekiel, just how wicked Israel had become!

Mission minded God He is on a mission. He came to Ezekiel to call him and use him as His spokesperson or prophet to those who were in exile.  Ever since Genesis 3 and the fall of man, God has been on a mission to bring and call people back to Himself.  That was the purpose of the nation of Israel, to be a light to all nations of the goodness and glory of God!  That was purpose when God, who is outside of time and space, entered human history taking on human flesh and restricted Himself in a human body as the man we know as Jesus Christ.  Jesus whole mission was one of calling people back to life in God.

Personal God. God is personal!  He speaks and commands with authority (2v1)!  So often in the church today, God is seen as a father figure or as wanting to be friends.  These things are true, yet of themselves, they are not a full picture and sometimes the stress laid on this approach tends to bring God as a person down to the same level we are - weak, feeble and pitiable.  As we have seen here, God is full of divine majesty and wonder.  Yes God is personal, but He is also great.  Remember that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom! Jimmy Bakker, the disgraced US televangelists was interviewed in jail, and was asked the question "When did you stop loving the Lord?" To which he replied, "I never stopped loving him.  But I did stop fearing him!"

5. What does all this mean?

We have seen through the vision of Ezekiel that God is holy, all-powerful, mission-minded and personal.  Israel had forgotten these things and was now in exile because of it. What does this mean for us, as God's people today, some 2,500 years after Ezekiel?  When you go back to work or to college or where ever you interact with others, what does all this mean? We are to actively worship our God.  By worship I mean living a life worthy of God 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  Worship is not just singing songs on a Sunday but is a whole life devoted in obedience to the God we serve. Borne out of this worship and obedience, we also are on a mission.  We are to honour the name of this all powerful God by living entirely for Him.  That is what evangelism is, and we are all called to do the work of an evangelist, just as Ezekiel was called to speak God's word to people.

What is evangelism? Evangelism is showing and telling others of God's message of reconciliation to all people of all time.  It is not forcing people to adopt Church standards (1 Corinthians 5v12) and nor is it simply a message of join the church as a symbol of good works (Ephesians 2vv8-10).  This gospel says that everybody has sinned against God (Isaiah 53v6; Romans 3vv10-11); nobody can earn their reconciliation with God (Ephesians 2v9); that God sent His Son Jesus to be born, crucified and resurrected so that salvation can be had for all people of all time (John 3v16; 1 Timothy 1v15); and that it is by acquiescing to God by faith in Jesus alone that people are saved (John 5v24; Acts 16v31).

Why evangelize? The prime motivation for evangelism is out of gratitude for what God has done, in that we love because He loved us first.  Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5v14, "For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died."  As His servants we are to tell and live of God's reconciling message As I said before, we are all to do the work of an evangelist, following the example of Timothy (2 Timothy 4v5). Scripture dictates several reasons for members of His church to share their faith.  Jesus commands us to tell others of God's reconciling message.  In the last words of Jesus' earthly ministry, His church was commanded to be witnesses for Him (Acts 1v8).  Evangelism is an expression of love for God, through obeying His commands (John 14v15). So we worship with a life of obedience, which is an act of witness to the Great God we serve and live for, telling others about Him.  We also teach and speak His word.  The authority of the Bible is what we read and teach.

6. We speak God's word.

The Bible is the Word of God, and is the instrument of the Holy Spirit to bring people to faith (Ephesians 1v13) and ongoing sanctification (Ephesians 5v26).  Paul writes that all of it is "God Breathed" (2 Timothy 3v16), in that it is inspired by God and has its origins in God.  It is not just the ideas, but also the words that are inspired by God (1 Corinthians 2v13). The Bible is capable of being understood by all God's people.  God the Holy Spirit enlightens Christians minds, so that they can understand spiritual truths (1 Corinthians 2vv10-16).  Through interacting with the Bible, the church teaches, rebukes, corrects and trains people for the purpose of righteousness (2 Timothy 3v16).  By interacting with the Bible, Christians keep from sinning (Psalm 119v11), are comforted (Psalm 119v52), have their minds focused on God (Psalm 43v3) and are sustained in a daily spiritual life (Deuteronomy 8v3). 

The church also interacts with Bible, as the Bible is a link to the apostles and prophets, who are the foundation of the church (Ephesians 2v20). There are five main ways in which members of the Church can interact with the Bible. Public reading of Scripture was regular in Israel and in the early church (Nehemiah 8v3).  Presently due to high literacy, Scripture can easily be read in private as well as corporately. Memorization of the Bible was commended to "lay up His words in your heart" (Job 22v22).  By reading and memorizing the Bible, meditating on it helps understand the implications of life's occurrences and God's blessings (Joshua 1v8). 

These three interactions lead to a fourth, obedience.  By obeying the Bible, the Christian learns to obey God, because it is His authoritative word (Deuteronomy 31v12) The teaching of the Bible receives the main emphasis in the New Testament, such as at the Church's birth and Peter's address to the crowd (Acts 2).  After they were dispersed due to persecution, the Apostles continued preaching and teaching (Acts 8v4).  Luke gives thirteen different words for preaching, and over thirty are used in the entire New Testament.

Conclusion

I don't know about you, but sometimes I feel like I am in exile.  I don't mean as an Australian living in England, the mother country! Although sometimes it does feel like I am in exile!  We are living in a country, which despite its Christian heritage, evangelical non-compromising Christians are being increasingly marginalized by a society, which decrees that, all religions or none are equal, and that to declare otherwise is simply arrogance and divisive.  How are we to react? When you are faced with a crisis or some trouble, how do you react?  Are you like the ancient Israelites that Ezekiel was sent to?  Do you trust in the holy, all-powerful, all knowing, personal God or do you trust in other things?

• God is coming again!
• Be Holy and be obedient!
• Live a life worthy of the Gospel of Jesus Christ
• Trust fully in the God of your salvation
• Go tell somebody!

Finally, if you need prayer for something related to what I have said today, then find somebody to pray for you.  And if you cant find somebody to pray for you, then come and find me.

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Evangelism - Bible Thought - Words In Scripture Explored

Evangelism

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What is evangelism?

Evangelism is telling & showing others of God’s message of reconciliation to all people of all time. Down through the ages, the church has made two mistakes when it comes to evangelism. Firstly, it is not forcing people to adopt Church standards (1 Corinthians 5v12) and nor is it simply a message of join the church as a symbol of good works (Ephesians 2vv8-10). God has a message for all people. This message from God says that everybody has sinned against God (Isaiah 53v6; Romans 3vv10-11); nobody can earn their reconciliation with God (Ephesians 2v9); that God sent His Son Jesus to be born, crucified and resurrected so that salvation can be had by all people of all time (John 3v16; 1 Timothy 1v15); Because of that, it is only by acquiescing to God, by faith in Jesus alone that people are saved (John 5v24; Acts 16v31). That is the message of evangelism. Finally, evangelism is also lifestyle! Jesus Christ is to permeate every area of your life! You are a messenger of Jesus Christ, and a message from Jesus Christ, whether you want to be or not! The way you conduct yourself, both in public and in private, shows Jesus Christ to people.

Why evangelize?

The prime motivation for evangelism is out of gratitude for what God has done for you, in that the you love God because He loved you first (1 John 4vv10-12, 14,19). It was this sentiment Paul refers to when he writes, “For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died.” (2 Corinthians 5v14). When you evangelise, you reflect something of the character of God, because God Himself is a missionary God. Jesus was sent to save the lost and redeem mankind! The Holy Spirit was sent from the Father and the Son!

You are called to go!

While you may not be called to be an evangelist (Ephesians 4v11), you are called to do the work of an evangelist (2 Timothy 4v5). In Jesus’ last words on earth, His church was commanded to be witnesses for Him (Acts 1v8). You are a member of that church, and as a part of the Church, you are included in the way God has chosen to spread His message of reconciliation (Acts 4v12; 2 Peter 3v9). Remember Paul’s words from Romans 10v14-15: “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"”

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Partakers Prayers - A prayer of Martin Luther

Partakers Prayers

 

Today on Partakers we are praying together a prayer of Martin Luther! As you listen to these words, make them your own! Come and pray!

Behold, Lord,
I am an empty vessel that needs to be filled.
My Lord, fill it.
I am weak in the faith; strengthen me.
I am cold in love; warm me and make me fervent,
that my love may go out to my neighbour.
I do not have a strong and firm faith;
at times, I doubt and am unable to trust You altogether.

O Lord, help me.
Strengthen my faith and trust in you.
In You I have sealed the treasure of all I have.
I am poor; you are rich and came to be merciful to the poor.
I am a sinner; you are upright.
With me, there is an abundance of sin;
in You is the fullness of righteousness.
Therefore, I will remain with you,
of whom I can receive, but to whom I may not give.
Amen

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