Christ Church

Joseph (Profiles in Christmas #1)

Christ Church on

INTRODUCTION

There is comparatively little that Scripture tells us about the man who raised our Lord Jesus as his own son. He leaves the stage almost as soon as he entered it. We have no dialogue from him. But while he is a silent character of Scripture, he still speaks volumes.

THE TEXT

And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations… (Matthew 1:16-21).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The “begats” of Matthew run along as expected until it runs into the most unexpected thing that ever happened: Jesus born of Mary, not by natural conception but by the Holy Ghost (vv16, 18). Joseph is reckoned as Jesus father, and thus Jesus shares the Royal lineage back to David, and the covenantal lineage back the Abraham (v17). Matthew tells us that Joseph was espoused to Mary, but before they had consummated their marriage, Mary was found to be with child, and this by the work of the Holy Ghost (v18).

This put Joseph, a righteous son of Kings, in a quandary (v19). While Joseph pondered what to do, the angel of the Lord came to him in a dream to reveal God’s mighty deeds and glorious purposes to him (v20). Joseph is given his marching orders: fearlessly take Mary as his wife, and name the son which would be born Jesus (v21). This all is what Isaiah prophesied to King Ahaz (Cf. Mt. 1:22-23, Is. 7:14), and Joseph did as he was told (Mt. 1:24-25). Though Joseph has no recorded dialogue, the one word we know he spoke was Jesus, when he named the firstborn son of Mary.

THE CARPENTER

The professional trade of Joseph was that of carpentry, and of course Jesus would later be Joseph’s apprentice in this trade. There’s a wide range of skills which this likely encompassed; it wasn’t just wood-work, but also stone-work. Herod built his palace just outside of Bethlehem. The Magi arrived within the first two years after Christ was born; meaning, Joseph probably was employed in the construction of Herod’s vanity project. David’s heir was right under the imposter king’s nose, in other words.

Jesus came to be known as “the carpenter” (Mk. 6:3) as well as being referred to as Joseph’s son (Lk. 4:22, Jn.6:42). Joseph clearly took seriously his role to raise this divinely begotten son of God as his own son. Though David’s royal line was humbled and obscured, the Angel of the Lord greets Joseph as a son of David. To paraphrase one commentator, by greeting him with a great title, great deeds were expected from this humble carpenter.

A JUST MAN

Perhaps the most significant thing we learn from Scripture about Joseph is that he is called “a just man.” This is the same language that is used of OT heroes of the faith, like Noah, Abraham, Job, and David. Joseph stands in the ranks of just men made perfect.

This declaration of his being a righteous man is in the same breath as describing his contemplation of divorce from Mary his betrothed. Hardliners on divorce and no-fault divorce advocates both are confronted with a rebuke in Joseph’s action. His desire was to be faithful to the ordinances of God as respecting adultery, but also desiring to show mercy to Mary. It would seem that Joseph was deeply puzzled that Mary (who he knew only as a virtuous woman) was pregnant out of wedlock. At last, he determined to divorce her as privately as was possible, laying no charge of unfaithfulness upon her. It would become known eventually, but she would be spared the worst of any scandal.

His righteousness is, like all the righteous, by faith alone. His faith is seen in his swift obedience in response to the four times an angel came to him in his dreams. Our text gives the first instance of this swift, obedient faith, he is told of the divine conception and does as the angel instructs. The next instance is when the angel warns Joseph of Herod’s wicked design to massacre Bethlehem’s infant boys (Mt. 2:13-14). The third dream takes place after Herod died, the angel informs Joseph that it is now safe to return from Egypt (Mt. 2:18-21). But in the final dream Joseph is warned not to dwell in proximity to Archelaus, but to go and dwell in Galilee, and it would seem that Joseph had the fulfillment of prophecy in mind (Cf. Is. 11:1) and selected Nazareth as the hometown of his son (Mt. 2:22-23). Joseph walked by faith.

Joseph also demonstrates this life of faith in at least three other episodes. Even under the Roman oppression, Joseph is a dutiful citizen (Lk. 2:4-6). He brought Jesus to be circumcised according to Moses’ Law, along with the proper sacrifice for their poor estate (Lk. 2:22-24). Joseph took his family to Jerusalem for the customary feasts (Lk. 2:42).

ANOTHER DREAMING JOSEPH

Looking back at the genealogy, there is something which might easily escape our notice, but which Matthew uses to spark our remembrance. A Jacob begets a Joseph who fathers a Joshua. Remember that Joshua was descended from Joseph (by Ephraim, Cf. Num. 13:8). Here again is a dreaming Joseph, used to bring about the salvation of the world. Here again is a Joshua, raised up to save God’s people from their sin.

It is easy to see Joseph as a prince of David’s line. This fulfills one aspect of the anticipated Messianic reign. But we also see another thread, and Joseph ben-Jacob is the typological link. Ironically, when Israel was split into two Kingdoms, Judah is how the Southern Kingdom came to be known, but Israel was sometimes called Ephraim. In other words, in this son of Joseph, all Messianic types and shadows terminate.

Here is David’s heir. Here is a conquering Joshua. Here is the Scepter rising out of Judah. Here is the multitude of Ephraim. Here is Joseph’s fruitful bough and the crown on his brow (Gen.49:22-26). Here is the shepherd and stone of Israel. Here is the reunification of Israel. And Joseph called his name Jesus, by faith.

Two applications should be drawn out of the example of Joseph. We walk by faith, not by sight. You must not try to demand of God more explanation than His Word plainly declares to you. Do not be merely a hearer of the Word revealed to you, but do it. Secondly, you are not the main character of the story, just as Joseph was not. But you must, in the same faithful humility, do your duty. Believe the revealed Word, and proclaim the name of Jesus.

Read Full Article

The End of the World is Just the Beginning: Part 1

Christ Church on

INTRODUCTION

The coming of the Messiah Jesus at Bethlehem was in many ways the end of the world. It was the end of an old world and at the same time the beginning a new world. In the old world Satan, Sin, and Death had a fierce power. The god of that age blinded many, and they served many idols and false gods viciously. The light of God was relatively faint and shadowy, largely limited to a tiny nation in the middle east.

But with the coming of Christ, Satan has been struck with a fatal blow, and now sin and death are on the run. Satan has been cast down and now Christ is seated at the right hand of the Father. This means that we live in a radically new world, a new heavens and a new earth, and we are witnesses of a New Jerusalem coming down out of Heaven.

THE TEXT

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken…” (Mt. 24:29-35)

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

We call this passage the “Olivet Discourse” because Jesus gave this message on the Mount of Olives (24:3, cf. Mk. 13, Lk. 21). While Jesus had just called down a great curse upon Jerusalem and the temple (23:35-38), His disciples pointed out how beautiful the temple was, and Jesus says every single stone will soon be cast down. This provokes the disciples to ask when these things would take place, when Christ would be coming, and when the end of the world would be (24:2-3).

While they may have assumed that the destruction of the temple/Jerusalem would coincide with the final return of Jesus and the final end of the world (24:3), Jesus proceeds to answer these questions like an Old Testament prophet, describing the destruction of the temple as a cataclysmic, world-ending event with the sun and moon going dark and the stars falling out of heaven (24:29). He describes a coming of the Son of Man on the clouds of heaven (24:30) and a gathering of the elect by angels and sounding trumpet (24:31). But Jesus insists that the disciples understand that these things are very near, like they know summertime by the leaves on a fig tree (24:32-33). Jesus says that what He is describing will happen during that present generation (24:34). Heaven and earth will pass away, but His words will not pass away (24:35).

COLLAPSING SOLAR SYSTEMS

It’s important to remember that when God created the sun, moon, and stars, they were created in part for “signs,” and the sun and moon were created to be rulers of the day and the night (Gen. 1:14-16). This is why when Joseph dreamed that the sun, moon, and 11 stars were bowing down to him, everyone knew what the dream implied (Gen. 37:9-10). When the great darkness covered the land of Egypt, God was warning Pharoah that his world-empire was about to come to end if he didn’t relent (Ex. 10:22).

So when the prophets take up descriptions of collapsing solar systems, we should read the contexts carefully: Ezekiel 32 addresses Egypt centuries later, and in addition to other plague-like language, says, “And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light. All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord GOD. I will also vex the hearts of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, into the countries which thou hast not known” (Ez. 32:7-9). We see the same thing in Isaiah 13 describing the destruction of Babylon and again in Joel 2 regarding the destruction of Jerusalem. So when Jesus says the sun and moon will go dark and the stars will fall from the sky, He is describing the apocalyptic end of the world of Jerusalem.

THE SON OF MAN COMING

When Jesus says that a sign will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will see the Son of man coming in the clouds, He is quoting Daniel: “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom thatwhich shall not be destroyed” (Dan. 7:13-14). Notice where the Son of Man is coming to: He is coming to the Ancient of Days in heaven. Jesus is talking about His Ascension, not His final coming at the end of history. What’s the sign that all the tribes will see? Pentecost: the pouring out of the Spirit upon all the nations represented there. This would be the most natural reading of the angels gathering the elect: these are the apostles and evangelists preaching the gospel (Mt. 24:31, cf. Acts 6:15, Gal. 4:14).

CONCLUSION

Jesus says that “this generation” will not pass away until all these things take place (Mt. 24:34). Many Christians attempt various exegetical gymnastics to make “generation” mean something longer than the usual 40 years or else some way of selectively choosing which things happened in the first century and which things are still awaiting fulfillment. But the words of Christ are clear, and He did ascend to the Father where He was given all authority and power and that was proven by the gift of the Holy Spirit. And about 40 years later, in 70 A.D., the city of Jerusalem was burned to the ground and the temple was destroyed.

We must not underestimate what the first coming of Christ accomplished. What was only foreshadowed in the tabernacle and temple has been accomplished by the crucifixion of Jesus: the curtain in heaven has been torn open and a new and living way has been opened through the flesh of our Lord (Heb. 10:20). The old heavens and earth truly were dark, but the Sunrise from on High has visited us (Lk. 1:78). And a new heavens and a new earth have been inaugurated by the coming of Christ. “Arise, shine, for your light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon us” (Is. 60:1). We have come to a New Jerusalem that is coming down out of Heaven; Immanuel has come and the dwelling place of God is with men (Heb. 12:22, Rev. 21:1-3).

Read Full Article

The Glory of Parenthood

Christ Church on

Download Audio

INTRODUCTION

The word “glory” means heavy, and so it is, but then when you receive the glory of God, you find that you can- not imagine it any other way. The yoke of Christ is light and only gets lighter, but the burden of the world, the flesh, and the devil is crushing. The gift of children and parenthood is heavy, but it is heavy like a table full of food, like a basket full of fresh fruit.

THE TEXTS

“…and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: and lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mt. 3:16-17).
“…though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered…” (Heb. 5:7-9).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXTS

God the Father is the perfect Father and Jesus is the perfect Son, and yet we see here at least two principles that we can apply in our families. The first is the glory of parenthood and the parent/child relationship. While the Trinity is certainly a mystery, and the Father and the Son are one God in a way that parents and children are not, our covenantal union with our children is a true analogous union. And if God the Father was right to proclaim His love for His Son, and His pleasure in His Son, how much more so is it important for us to do so in a fallen world? And the fact that the Spirit descends at the same moment, highlights the glory of that love and pleasure. Second, in Hebrews, we see that even the perfect Son learned obedience through the things He suffered. Adam was cut open before he met Eve and there was a dragon in the Garden, before any sin entered the world. If Jesus endured discipline to learn obedience, how much more must our children, if we want them to come into His glory?

OBJECTIVITY OF THE COVENANT

The world loves to talk about “unconditional love,” but there is no coherent foundation for that notion in an evolutionary worldview. If you are in charge of making your own world, your own meaning, your own happi- ness, your own identity, then nothing is fixed, nothing is given (including family). This is the goal of the Leftist revolution of the last 60 years: seeking to redefine human life, marriage, gender, and therefore, parenthood, but this means that if the Federal Government is now the final arbiter of what any of these things mean, it is functionally also claiming to be the judge of what a family is, what parents are, and whether a child actually belongs to certain parents or not. Always remember that a rejection of God’s authority is the first move in vy- ing for His job. It is not whether there will be a god; but which god will it be.

The true and living God has created the world with fixed realities, and one of those is the covenantal nature of all things. All things are objectively in a covenantal relationship with God. You do not get created by God and then exist in a neutral space, with the universe waiting breathlessly to see whether you “consent” to reality. Even if most Christians reject that radical version of existentialism, there has still been a strain of it in modern evangelicalism, where we put all the emphasis on “deciding” for Christ. But Christ is risen from the dead, and our children are “holy” to God (1 Cor. 7:14). Paul does not say that the Ephesian parents should wait and see whether their children want to be Christians before bringing them up in the nurture and admonition of the

Lord (Eph. 6:4). We are not waiting to see if they “consent” to Christ, any more than we wait around to see if they consent to food or air or love. It is absolutely true that they must embrace all of these good gifts, including a personal, vibrant faith in Jesus, but they are objectively members of the covenant by baptism. You do not wait to see if they choose to be your children or members of your family, and neither does God. So the question is: can you look down at your son or daughter right now and say the same words the Father said of His Son? And do those words echo in Heaven? You must, and they do, by faith alone in the Father, Son, and Spirit.

SOME BASICS OF DISCIPLINE

Hebrews says that the Lord chastens and scourges every son that He receives, and therefore, if you are not chastened, then you are bastards and not sons (Heb. 12:5-8). Discipline is how parents prove that their children belong to them, and when they discipline their children in the Lord, they are also proving that they belong to Jesus. The Bible clearly teaches that the opposite is also true: failure to discipline is a form of hatred and therefore a false gospel (Prov. 13:24). Hebrews also says that this discipline must be painful, and it must yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness (Heb. 12:11). The particular requirement of the Bible is the use of a rod of discipline: “Folly is bound up in the heart of a child, but the rod of discipline drives it far from him” (Prov. 22:15). “Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you strike him with a rod, he will not die. If you strike him with the rod, you will save his soul from Sheol” (Prov. 23:13-14). The rod is not the only tool in a parent’s tool- box, but it is an important one. All discipline must be done calmly, cheerfully, and with biblical justice. Another basic principle of parenting is that it is easier to teach and train the younger they are: “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” (Prov. 22:6).

Parenting should consist of lots of joyful teaching and training and practice. Think of yourselves as coaches: lots of praise, lots of drills, show them how to do it, run it again. The rod is particularly for acts of defiance, refusal to obey when you are sure they know exactly what you are requiring and know how to do it. Many children will give you at least one good battle (sometimes multiple battles), and parents are required by God to win because God commands our children to obey their parents so that they may be blessed (Eph. 6:1-3).

CONCLUSION

Zephaniah 3:17 says: “The Lord your God is in your midst; the Mighty One will save. He will rejoice over you with great joy; He will quiet you with His love. He will rejoice over you with singing.” The prophet says that when God comes, He comes singing. But He doesn’t just come singing, He comes singing a song of rejoicing, a song of celebration. But this is the mind-blowing thing: it’s a song of rejoicing over sinful people. And this is exactly what happened in Jesus.

The song is boisterous, flamboyant, abundant, and loud. It’s like a father standing on a table in a public place, announcing his love and joy over his family. It’s so loud and joyful and embarrassing and wonderful. And this is how God determined to save the world. He determined to save the world through singing a sea shanty, a rollicking bar tune, with fiddles and drums and dancing over His Son in the water, on the cross, and now at His right hand. He is still singing, and the words go like this: free grace, free grace, free grace. And that’s our glory.

Read Full Article

Hidden from the Wise, Revealed to Babes

Christ Church on

Download Audio

THE TEXT

Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent: 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum,who[a] are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.”

25 At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. 26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 27 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. 28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am[b]gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light (Matthew 11:20–30).

Read Full Article

Permit the Children

Christ Church on

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

INTRODUCTION

This is a remarkable period in the history of our congregation. We have never seen growth like this before, and all of us are getting used to the new situation. Of course, those of you who have moved across the country to join us—welcome. In one sense you are refugees, but in a more fundamental sense, you are reinforcements. This is a new community for you, a new setting, a new set of friends, the works. Your experience of church is very different from what it was. But the same thing is true of all you old-timers. You are attending a very different church also.

Believe it or not, there are some things about Christ Church that take some getting used to. Some of them are trivial, and some of them are practices that we consider to be very important. Consider this message as an orientation to one of our customs that we believe to be crucial, and it is the one that has to do with the relationship of our children to the congregation.

THE TEXT

“And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them” (Mark 10:13–16; cf. Matt. 19:13-15; Luke 18: 15-17).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

This is a famous incident, recorded in all three of the synoptic gospels. Young children were brought to Jesus, so that He might “touch” them. What touching meant to Jesus is seen in how He responded. He took the children into His arms, placed His hands on them, and blessed them (v. 16). In Matthew, He laid hands on them (Matt. 19:15). In the Luke account, we see that coming to Jesus can be accomplished when someone carries you there because the word used of the children there is brephos, the word for infants. In all three accounts, the disciples were busy grown-ups and rebuked those who brought the children. “The Rabbi is a very busy man . . .” In the Mark account, it says that Jesus was greatly displeased with this. If you want to get that reaction from Christ, then try to get in between Him and a child being brought to Him. In all three accounts, Jesus requires us to allow the children to be brought to Him. The reason He gives is that “of such is the kingdom of God” (v. 14). He does not say anything like “children are a theology-free zone.” And in addition to all that, He teaches us that children do not have to become more like adults to come, but rather that adults need to become more like children in order to enter the kingdom (v. 15). Like the disciples in the story, we often get this backwards.

SOME QUICK BACKGROUND

You will have noticed that our children gather to worship the Lord together with the rest of us. We all gather together. Your children are most welcome, fidgets and all. On those occasions when you need to deal with any moral disorder that broke out in your row, then please feel free to escort your child outside. That is the sort of thing that we take in stride, and pretty much everyone here has been in your shoes.

The keys of the kingdom are held by the elders of the church, and not by the fathers. It is the responsibility of our session of elders to guard the purity of the Word and the integrity of the sacraments. If your child is baptized, he is welcome to come to the Table together with the rest of us. If your baptized child is three months old and conked out in the car seat, don’t feel like you have to wake him up for the Supper. But when he is on your lap, tracking with the service, and he notices the tray going by and wants to partake, please don’t restrain him. But at the same time, because this is not a unilateral family decision, please let your parish elder know that your child is now partaking. And if you have a child who is not baptized, but who believes in Jesus, he is still welcome to the Table with us—but he should be baptized first. He is welcome to sit at table with us, but the way to the dining room table is through the front door—which is baptism.

OUR BAPTISMAL COOPERATION AGREEMENT

The Confession of Faith for Christ Church is the Westminster Confession, but in addition to that we have what we call a baptismal cooperation agreement, which stipulates an allowed exception. In other words, for about 25 years we have successfully navigated and allowed for our differences on baptism, those differences being Presbyterian and Baptist. But at the same time, we have also cultivated a church community that is a welcoming place for the children. This issue is related to the doctrine of baptism, but it is not identical with it. One of the things we want to insist on is that all of you join with us in welcoming the children.

Some of you newcomers come from generic Baptist backgrounds, and others from a more defined Reformed Baptist background. You are most welcome here, but to get straight to the point, so are your kids. We can accommodate differences on baptism, but we don’t want to accommodate ungodly extrapolations from Baptist premises, or from Presbyterian premises, for that matter. An example of the latter would be, “Yes, he is serving 5 to 10 for armed robbery, but he is a good boy. He was baptized once, and we are hopeful that something good will kick in sometime.” An example of the former would be, “Daddy, I love Jesus . . .” “Let us be the judge of that, kid. Don’t you remember that lie you told three years ago?”

COME, AND WELCOME, TO JESUS CHRIST

This is not a religion club or a theology society that meets on Sundays. We are the body of Christ, and so coming to worship the Father here means that we are coming to and through Christ. We come to the Father in the power of the Spirit, traveling the road who is Christ. We are traveling Christ the Way all together. And as we travel in that way, we want to take great care not to place a stumbling block in the road for any of our little ones.

“And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea” (Mark 9:42).

Quite apart from the doctrine of baptism itself, it is therefore a baseline assumption for our congregation here that it would be far better for us to admit a false professor to our membership than it would be to exclude a true brother. This is an assumption that we want to see cultivated throughout the congregation—because we don’t want Christ to be greatly displeased with us.

Read Full Article