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Spiritual Child Rearing 4: God as our Father

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The Text

“. . . who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered.  And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, called by God as High Priest ‘according to the order of Melchizedek’ . . .” Hebrews 5:7-14

Remember that the theme in this series has been to “look” at our relationship to God as our Father through the lens of our relationship to our family. In Matthew 7:11, Jesus tells us that we can use parental examples (here) to multiply (how much more) to get to a better picture of how God relates to us. He uses relationships we can understand to leverage our ability to understand His relationship with us.

Marks of a Teenager

We are talking about a stage in life where suddenly our children have the capacity and will to either put into practice everything wrong that is beaconing them from our culture like the foolish woman of Proverbs 9:15-18. Or, they exercise their new found capacity in obedience. This is the issue.

How did Jesus Learn Obedience?

In our sermon text, Jesus prayed with such intensity that sweat formed as great drops of blood on his forehead. And we are told that He was heard because of His godly fear. Jesus prayed with complete trust in both the power and goodness of the Father — that childlikeness that I talked about in the previous message. The problem was not relationship — Jesus was the SON. The problem was not sin — Jesus was sinless. The answer was not due to an improper request or heart attitude — Jesus prayed with godly fear. The answer from the Father was given that Jesus would learn obedience through His suffering.

The Outcome of Jesus’ Obedience

The outcome of Jesus’ suffering had a number of effects: His perfection; the salvation of the world; AND the anticipated perfection of all those who follow Him! How is this? What do I mean by the anticipated perfection or obedience of those who are followers of Jesus, who are found “in Him”? Having the same mind as Christ — submitting to the Father — and suffering in the flesh result in the ceasing of sin or to say this positively — holiness (1 Peter 4:1).

Authority and Submission

The Centurion in Luke 7:6-8 was a powerful man and righteous in the sight of the Jewish elders. He was a compassionate man, seeking the welfare of his servant. Still, he humbles himself personally before Jesus and further demonstrates by his faith and words that he believed that Jesus was not only the higher authority but THE authority over the earth. And, here we have Jesus acknowledge that this is the faith of the Centurion was just the kind of faith that impresses Jesus.

Laying the Groundwork

Then He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them, but His mother kept all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. Luke 2:51-52

What Jesus “learned” in Hebrews 5 (submission to death), began with submission to parents. This is just the simple principle that if you want to be faithful in big things, you need to start being faithful in little things. Jesus was subject to his parents. This means he was under the rule of his parents in the same sense that rulers have subjects who obey them.

Conclusion

  1. Submission is not easy, because real submission is tested when we have to do something we don’t want to do. Jesus demonstrated real submission when His request that his cup be removed was denied. Paul experienced real submission when his thorn was not removed.
  2. Submission is not an option. In Romans 6, we learn that we are either slaves to sin or slave to righteousness. In any case, we are submitting to someone. It is just that one leads to death and one to life.
  3. Submission is freeing. When we submit, we are handing over the responsibility for the outcome to the other party. A wife to her husband. A young person to their parents. Jesus to the Father. Men to leaders in the church or their organization. When we take the decision into our own hands, then we carry the full responsibility.

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The Apostles Creed 21: And the Life Everlasting. Amen.

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What we now know as the Apostles Creed descended from an earlier form of the creed, known as the Old Roman Symbol. The beginning of the creed dates from as early as the second century. We do not have any direct evidence that it was penned by any of the apostles, but it is an admirable summary of the apostolic teaching.

Introduction

The gospel is given to us so that fellowship with God might be restored. God created us without fault or failing, and yet through our father Adam we all grasped for the fruit, and fell into spiritual death. When we reached for the knowledge of good and evil, we were attempting to seize the rule prematurely. We were already eating from the tree of life, but on account of our rebellion, we were banished from the entire Garden, which included the tree of life. In the gospel, we are invited back to the tree of eternal life (Rev. 2:7).

The Text

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord.  He was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the virgin, Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.  He descended into Hades. On the third day He rose again from the dead, ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.  I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Summary of the Text

“Paul, a servant of God, and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect, and the acknowledging of the truth which is after godliness; In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began; But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour” (Titus 1:1–3).

As part of his preamble to the letter to Titus, Paul summarizes his calling and his mission. He is a servant of God, and He was sent out as an apostle by Jesus Christ (v. 1). This lines up with the faith of God’s elect and the knowledge of the truth which is in accordance with godliness (v. 1). All this is undertaken in hopes of eternal life, which God—who cannot lie—promised before eternal times (v. 2). But now, in due time, God has manifested His Word through His preachers, which was committed to Paul through the commandment of God our Savior (v. 3).

Sorting Out the Words

What is the difference between eternal, everlasting, and forever? Is there a difference?

We are pursuing eternal life, hoping for it, and the word for eternal here is aionios. The word means ages, or world, or era. In v. 2, using the same word, God promised this before the timeless ages, or perhaps before eternal times. In English, everlasting and eternal are distinct—everlasting means temporal succession without end, and eternal means timeless—a forever is like everlasting. One refers to duration and the other to quality. But our English translations are working from the same word in both Hebrew and Greek (compare John 3:15 and 3:16), and so the meaning of the word in Scripture is largely contextual. There is only so much juice that can be squeezed from a lexicon.

“Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began [before eternal times]” (2 Tim. 1:9). In short God gave His grace to us before there was such a concept as before. The one thing we can be sure of is that God’s temporal dealings with us are anchored in decisions He made before the foundation of the world.

Begin with Hope

Calvin dismisses those men who want us to limit our spiritual considerations to this life, saying they “reduce men to the condition of cattle.” God has put eternity into our hearts (Ecc. 3:11), speaking of our yearning, and if anyone believes in the Son of God He also puts eternal life there (John 3:15-16; 6:54; 10:28; 17:2-3)—speaking of the fulfillment. So what are you yearning for? What is your hope? “To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life” (Rom. 2:7).

The God of Amen

“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel from everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say, “Amen! “ Praise the Lord!” (Ps. 106:48)

In Scripture we find three basic uses of amen. The first is that it has the force of a covenant oath (Num. 5:22; Dt. 27; Neh. 5:13). This far stronger than a simple, “Yes, I agree with that.” The second use is a benediction. “Brethren, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen” (Gal. 6:18; Phil 4:23; 2 Tim. 4:22; Rev. 22:21). And last is the doxological use. Justified men have also been given the privilege of blessing God. When God is solemnly blessed and praised, we conclude it with amen. “. . . the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen” (Rom. 1:25; 9:5; Eph. 3:21; 2 Tim. 4:18; Heb. 13:21; 1 Pet. 5:11). When we say Amen in this context, we are tasting eternity.

In both Old and New Testaments, God identifies Himself with this word. Speaking of the time of the New Covenant, Isaiah prophesies in this way: “So that he who blesses himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth [lit. “God of Amen”]; and he who swears in the earth shall swear by the God of truth [same] (Is. 65:16).

And John the apostle records, “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God . . .’ (Rev. 3:14). And Paul teaches, “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us” (2 Cor. 1:20).

The Final and Ultimate Hope

“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:3).

And so all the promises of God culminate in this living and triune Amen. And so we believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and earth . . . and in the life everlasting. Amen.

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The Father Seeks Worshippers

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The Text

“When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John,2 (Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,)3 He left Judaea, and departed again into Galilee.4 And he must needs go through Samaria.5 Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.6 Now Jacob’s well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink . . . “ (John 4:1-26)

Christmas Desires

While the Samaritan woman does not usually make the list for Advent passages, this story illustrates the deep longings of humanity and the One sent from God to satisfy these desires. This woman desired water, and Jesus offers water that provides eternal life. She wanted men, and Jesus reveals God as a Father. She sough to worship rightly, and Jesus explains that God is seeking her as a worshipper. The story of the Samaritan woman forms part of the larger story that begins at Christmas with the good news of great joy that the Father is seeking people to worship him in spirit and truth.

Journey to Samaria (vs. 1-6)

Jesus along with his disciples trek from Judea to Galilee in northern Israel. Verse 4 states that “Jesus had to go through Samaria.” In a practical sense, Jesus did not have to pass through Samaria. Many strict Jews avoided Samaria, but Jesus intentionally travels to Samaria and rests at a well outside Sychar.  Since it’s around lunchtime, Jesus sends all the disciples to the town for food. He arranges

A Samaritan Woman at a Jewish Well (vs. 7-9)

A Samaritan woman comes alone to the well to draw water. Culturally, most women draw water in the cool of the morning. Her arrival at noon reveals a clue of her situation. She’s on the outskirts of the Samaritan social scene. If the Samaritans shun you, you’re really hurting. Then Jesus asks the woman for a drink. She responds. “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a Samaritan woman?” About 750 years of hatred are bearing down on this request for a drink of water.

Living Water and Cracked Cisterns (vs. 10-15)

Jesus continues with his surprises, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that said to you ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water” (vs. 10). Notice that Jesus initiates with a known desire of the woman––water. This woman is an expert on the water in this well. She knows the stats. She knows the urban legend of Jacob. But this woman who everyday lugs her pot to the well knows the need and preciousness of water.

Jesus is offering the woman not something that can be put in  a bucket, but he is offering himself. Jeremiah the Prophet compares living water and cracked cisterns, “Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, declares the Lord, for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water” (Jer. 2:13-14). Living water is found in the Lord, and in him alone. But those who refuse to drink from this source must dig from their own cisterns that can hold no water. Jesus now identifies the cracked cistern of men that has left her soul thirsty.

Husband Thirst and Wrong Worship (vs. 16-22)

“Go, call your husband, and come here.” She becomes a linguist, “I have no husband.” Jesus confronts her spiritual thirst by pointing out that she has had five husbands and now a live-in boyfriend. The woman is dumbfounded that Jesus knows the details of her life and assumes he is a prophet (vs. 19). A prophet reveals a person’s place in the eyes of God and the way to make things right between God and man. The woman recognizes her sin and the necessity of repentance, but she has been worshipping wrong.

Worship the Seeking Father (vs. 23-26)

Worship of God is possible because the Father is seeking people to worship him. When was the last time this woman experienced a father? Over the years, she had experienced men as husbands, but not a father. God the Father is not distant or scornful but actively seeks to find people. God’s desire for you realigns the desires of your life. What does God want? He wants you to know him as your Father. He wants you to worship him as your God in spirit and truth. This woman has a deep thirst that can only be satisfied in the worship of the Triune God and by the work of the Triune God.

What does the Father want? A world of worshippers. And so the Father has sent his Son Jesus to a world full of people with messed up desires and wrong worship. This is the joyful announcement the angels shouted to the scruffy shepherds, “I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord” (Lk. 2:11) This great news of great joy came to the Samaritan woman. And we join in this celebration even now in the season of advent that the Messiah, the Savior of the World, the Desire of the Nations, has come.

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The Apostles Creed 20: The Resurrection of the Body

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What we now know as the Apostles Creed descended from an earlier form of the creed, known as the Old Roman Symbol. The beginning of the creed dates from as early as the second century. We do not have any direct evidence that it was penned by any of the apostles, but it is an admirable summary of the apostolic teaching.

Introduction

We began by confessing that God the Father is the Maker of heaven and earth. This means, among other things, that the material created order is good. There is nothing wrong with being made of matter, and there is nothing wrong with being finite. The difficulty that has plagued our race since the Fall has been ethical and moral, and not any essential problem with matter. God likes stuff. He invented it. And this is why we look forward to the rsurrection of the body. We are not yearning to become ethereal spirits.

The Text

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord.  He was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the virgin, Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.  He descended into Hades. On the third day He rose again from the dead, ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.  I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Summary of the Text

“So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body” (1 Cor. 15:42–44).

The apostle outlines a grand metaphor, comparing our present life to the time of seeds and planting, and the day of resurrection to the time of glorious harvest. Following the metaphor, seeds can look pretty nondescript—tiny, little dried up things. The comparison is particularly apt, because there is complete continuity between the seed and the plant that will come from it, and yet at the same time there is apparently a complete discontinuity in appearance.

The seed is corrupt, but the plant has no corruption. The seed goes down into the dirt in dishonor, and in the springtime of resurrection it comes up in glory. The seed is weak, the plant is powerful and full of life. The seed is natural, the resurrection plant is spiritual. This is because there is a body dominated by the soul (psyche) and there will be a body dominated by the spirit (pneuma). We currently live in our soulish bodies, our seeds. We will live in our spiritish bodies, in power, glory, and vibrant life.

“For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself” (Phil. 3:20–21).

An Old Testament Hope

It is common for us to hear that in the Old Testament there was no real awareness of an afterlife. This is false, but we have to begin by acknowledging that in the Old Testament the resurrection is not as much in the foreground as it is in the New Testament. But it is plainly and evidently there. Let the New Testament tell us what can accurately be gleaned from the Old Testament.

Martha, an ordinary believer with just an Old Testament, knew that her brother would be raised on the last day. “Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day” (John 11:23–24). The Pharisees were the orthodox party, and the Sadducees were the liberal party. “For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both” (Acts 23:8). And in what they taught, Jesus said that they sat in Moses’ seat (Matt. 23:2), which means that they were hypocritical, not heterodox.

The Messiah would die and not see corruption (Ps. 16:10). Job knew that in his flesh he would see God (Job 19: 26). Daniel predicted the glory of the resurrection. “And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever” (Dan. 12:2–3).

And right after our text, where Paul has taught us that our bodies are so many seeds, he takes us right back to Adam. “And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit . . . The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven” (1 Corinthians 15:45, 47).

“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease” (Gen. 8:22). From the Fall to the Resurrection, human history is seedtime. And the seed nature of man has been evident to the faithful for millennia.

Rot and Rise

But let us bring this home. Look at your hand. A time is coming—at a rate of 60 seconds a minute, 60 minutes an hour, 24 hours a day—when that hand will have no flesh on it. It will be the hand of a skeleton. You will die, and you will decay. You are full of life and plans and purposes now, just as the people living three hundred years ago were.

Now hear the gospel. As certain as that day of death is, it is just as certain that the day of resurrection is advancing toward us at the same rate of speed. In fact the day of resurrection is more certain that the day of death because there will be a generation overtaken by resurrection, a generation that will not have to experience death, but will rather be clothed in immortality.

“Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live” (John 5:25).

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The Apostles Creed 19: The Forgiveness of Sins

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What we now know as the Apostles Creed descended from an earlier form of the creed, known as the Old Roman Symbol. The beginning of the creed dates from as early as the second century. We do not have any direct evidence that it was penned by any of the apostles, but it is an admirable summary of the apostolic teaching.

Introduction

One of the central features of the new covenant is the glorious reality of forgiveness of sins. In Hebrews 8, Jeremiah’s prophecy of the new covenant is quoted at some length (Heb. 8:8-12). But several chapters later, it is quoted again, but this time in abbreviated form. This abbreviation shows what aspects of the new covenant are being emphasized as central. There are two such aspects—they are the internalization of the law (Heb. 10:16) and the remission of sins (Heb. 10:17-18). It is therefore not surprising to find the forgiveness of sins included in the Creed.

The Text

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord.  He was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the virgin, Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.  He descended into Hades. On the third day He rose again from the dead, ascended into Heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He will come to judge the living and the dead.  I believe in the Holy Ghost, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

Summary of the Text

“And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me” (Acts 26:15–18).

The apostle Paul is recounting his conversion, and how the Lord Jesus appeared to him. He asked the Lord who He was (v. 15), and received the answer that it was Jesus, the one he was persecuting. Jesus then told Paul to stand up so that He could make him a minister and a witness, both of what he had seen and what he would in the future see (v. 16). The Lord promised to deliver him from the people and from the Gentiles, those to whom he was being sent (v. 17). As he preached to them, there would be three aspects to their coming into their salvation, which is described as “forgiveness of sins” and an “inheritance among the sanctified.”

Three Stages of Conversion

The first thing is that his preaching would “open their eyes.” The second is that they would be turned “from darkness to light.” The third is the transfer; they are moved from the power of Satan unto God. This is what it means to be ushered into the forgiveness of sins.

To have your eyes opened is here to be made aware of your need. A person in the dark who has had his eyes opened becomes aware of the fact that he is in the dark. But to be in dark despair is no solution; it is simply the awareness of the need for a solution. The second thing is to turn them toward the light, which is the gospel message. At this point they are made aware of the fact that they are in the dark here, but the light is over there. The third stage effects the actual change, where the person is moved from the dominion of the dark into the dominion of the light. That dominion of light is described as receiving forgiveness of sins, and the inheritance of the saints.

Intelligent Evangelism

Giving the gospel to people who have not had their eyes opened is like turning blind people toward the light. Giving the law to people without preaching grace is like healing a blind man down in the depths of a dark cavern. How would he know he was healed?

The holiness of God’s law, God’s righteousness, is what opens eyes. The message of Christ crucified and risen is what shines the light. When the person’s eyes are opened, then they should be turned. The last step is

What Forgiveness Entails

Forgiveness does not mean that God will now accept your excuses. Forgiveness does not mean that God has somehow lowered His standards. Forgiveness does not mean that things weren’t that bad to begin with.

Forgiveness, being grounded in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, has to be complete and total. You are cleansed. You are washed. There is nothing in between you and God. In the Book of Life, there is no asterisk by your name. If someone is forgiven at all, they are forgiven completely. There is nothing shaky about it. All your sins, past, present, and future, have had anvils tied to them all, and have been thrown into an ocean of mercy, there to drown at their leisure (Micah 7:19). In the resurrection, you will be at the eastern end of forever, and your sins will be at the western end (Ps. 103:12).

“In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace” (Eph. 1:7).

“In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Col. 1:14).

Freely You Have Received

Those who are recipients of God’s gifts truly are people who are prepared to give in the same way they have received (Mark 10:8). If we received forgiveness, but are surly when required to extend it, this demonstrates that we never really grasped the concept. A man who refuses to forgive is not a man who has had his eyes opened, or who has been turned from darkness to light, or from the power of Satan to the power of God. No, he is just a man who said that happened. We can see whether it happened or not in the forgiveness he shows.

“And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors” (Matt. 6:12).

“For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matt. 6:14–15).

So is forgiveness of others a “work” we must perform in order to earn our own forgiveness? Not a bit of it. Rather, it is simply a recognition of the truth that when God rescues a man from drowning He does not leave him on the bottom of the pond.

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