Christ Church

The Honor of Dishonor, the Grace of Disgrace (Acts of the Apostles #13)

Lindsey Gardner on

INTRODUCTION

One of the more remarkable blessings that the presence of the Holy Spirit brings is the ability He gives to believes to suffer scorn gladly. This is a remarkable thing in the moment, but it also serves as a portent of what it is to come. It is a statement in the present and a sign for the future.

 

THE TEXT

“And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them, Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us. Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men . . . (Acts 5:27–42).

 

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

So the apostles were gathered up, set before the council, and the high priest spoke (v. 27). Didn’t we command you not to do this (v. 28)? But you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine (v. 28), and this doctrine includes the bloodguilt of Jerusalem’s rulers (v. 28). Peter and the other apostles replied with the great principle that obedience to God trumps obedience to man (v. 29). The God of our fathers vindicated Christ by raising Him from the grave, but the reason He was in the grave was because you murdered Him and hanged Him on a tree (v. 30). God raised Him exalted to be a prince and savior, to grant repentance and forgiveness to Israel (v. 31). The apostles are witnesses, and the Holy Spirit is a witness (v. 32). He is given to those who obey (v. 32). Hearing this, they were cut to the heart, convicted, and answered the charge of murder by taking murderous counsel (v. 33). Gamaliel, Paul’s former instructor, a famous rabbi, intervened and had them go into executive session (v. 34). Gamaliel kept his head and urged them all to keep theirs (v. 35). Remember Theudas, who thought he was something (v. 36)? Remember Judas of Galilee, and what happened to him (v. 37)? Gamaliel urged them to leave these men alone—if their cause is of men, it will come to nothing (v. 38). But if it is of God, you don’t want to be found fighting Him (v. 39). And so they consented, and brought the apostles back in. They had them beaten and reissued their (plainly empty) command (v. 40). And so the apostles left the council, rejoicing in the honor of being dishonored, the grace of being disgraced (v. 41). And the threats from the authorities didn’t even slow them down. They continued to teach and preach Jesus Christ, both in the Temple and in every house (v. 42).

 

WHERE THE SHAME BELONGS

When we are treated shamefully for the sake of the gospel, we are instructed, very directly, not to be ashamed of the shame we are accorded.

“Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God on this behalf” (1 Peter 4:16). “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). “For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory, and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels” (Luke 9:26).

The shame rightly belongs to the persecutors. As William Gurnall stated, “Paul does not blush to tell, it is for the gospel he is in bonds. The shame belonged to them that put on the chain, not to him that wore it.”

When the proto-Reformed Jan Huss was given a safe conduct to the Council of Constance, he was double-crossed by the Emperor Sigismund and there executed. When Huss reproached the emperor, the ruler visibly blushed at his lack of good faith. When Luther was given a similar safe conduct at the Diet of Worms (1521), the Emperor Charles V was urged to do the same thing, and he said, “I shall not blush as Sigismund did at Constance.”

We are to live in such a way as that our slanderers are forced to glorify God in the day of visitation (1 Pet. 2:12).

 

GRACE IN THE FURNACE

The Lord Jesus gave us explicit instructions in this regard.

“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” (Matthew 5:10–12).

We are sometimes taunted by mockers, as though we think we are persecuted simply because someone differs with us. No, but Jesus here includes being reviled as an aspect of persecution, not to mention the fact that people say “all manner of evil” concerning us. This is a nightmare for PR consultants, but Jesus tells us to maintain a different attitude toward it all.

“But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified” (1 Peter 4:13–14).

 

JOY AS HARBINGER OF WRATH 

This glorious and gracious demeanor is a sign of three things. It is a sign that God is with us in the present, sustaining us. It is a sign that the mojo has entirely shifted. The persecutors are always trying to hang onto a vanishing world, and the persecuted represent the future. And last, this grace is a sign that the God who is with us in this moment will also be with us in the day of wrath. And so what will become of those who are against us in this moment?

Read Full Article

The Unchained Word of Life (Acts of the Apostles #12)

Lindsey Gardner on

INTRODUCTION

The Founder of the Christian faith, the Lord Jesus, was murdered by the authorities. This is a fact that cannot be emphasized too much. After He ascended into Heaven, the second generation of Christian leaders all found themselves in jail within a matter of just a few weeks. This should tell you something about the nature of the faith we profess.

 

THE TEXT

“Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation, and laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison. But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said, Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life . . .” (Acts 5:17–26).

 

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The Sadducees were the dominant party in the Temple establishment. They were theological liberals, but conservative enough when it came to protecting their own power. They rose up together, full of indignation (v. 17), arrested the apostles and threw them into jail (v. 18). This set the stage for the first angelic jail break in the book of Acts. The angel opened the doors, brought them out, and gave a command (v. 19). The command was for them to go back into the Temple and by speaking the words of life to the people to disobey the authorities (v. 20). The apostles obeyed this command, doing this first thing in the morning (v. 21). Meanwhile, the authorities convened their council, and sent to have the apostles fetched from the prison (v. 21). The officers went to the prison, but soon enough came back without them (v. 22). They reported that the prison was locked up, and the guards were there, but nobody was inside (v. 23). When the authorities heard this, they began to worry about what could be next (v. 24). So then a messenger came in and said that the escapees were in the Temple, teaching the people (v. 25). And so then the captain and the officers went to bring them in, but gingerly, because they were afraid of being stoned by the crowd (v. 26).

 

DEALING WITH JESUS MOBS

We do have something in common with first century Palestine. We, like they, are living in a time of violent emotions and high tension. And in that moment, in a time like that, Jesus came into the powder keg of Jerusalem, and did not call for dialog. He came as a supremely effective provocateur. He went up to the Temple, and began flipping over tables.

Were there people in the Israel of that day who were on the side of John the Baptist, and Jesus, but who did not fully grasp the import of the Sermon on the Mount? Why were the religious authorities so careful about their plotting against Jesus? They thought “people will stone us” (Luke 20:5-6). The chief priests and scribes “feared the people” (Luke 20:19). They wanted to kill Jesus, but they “feared the people” (Luke 22:2). This is also said a few times in the second gospel (Mark 11:18, 32; 12:12). And when Peter cut off the ear of Malchus, he also had not grasped the nature of the plan that Jesus was living out (John 18:10).

Jesus did not entrust Himself to men (John 2:23-25), but it is also very, very clear that He did not worry about their misunderstandings. Their confusions did not even slow Him down.

 

THE WORD OF GOD IS NEVER BOUND

One of the things that Luke does for us in the Book of Acts is illustrate in a figure how the gospel cannot be thwarted or imprisoned by the wit of man. The gospel cannot be imprisoned, and Luke shows us this multiple times and in multiple ways.

“Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evil doer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound.” (2 Timothy 2:9). At least five of Paul’s epistles were written from prison, bringing life and liberty everywhere those letters have gone.

Luke shows us this by having two angelic jail breaks (here, and in Acts 12). Then he has an earthquake bust the prison of Philippi wide open, thus liberating the jailer (Acts 16). And then Paul is arrested in Acts 21:33, from which position he evangelizes two Roman governors (Acts 24:25; Acts 26:24), King Agrippa (Acts 26:28), a leading citizen of Malta named Publius (Acts 28:7), and the rabbis of Rome (Acts 28:23-24). The Word of God is not bound.

The gospel runs free when the evangelists do, and the gospel also runs free when the evangelists are chained to the wall.

 

THE UNCHAINED WORD OF LIFE

We see in this passage the total legitimacy of activities like Bible smuggling. Is it against the law? That actually doesn’t matter. We don’t care. The civil authorities do not have the authority to prohibit the gospel from functioning in their realm. What does the Great Commission rest on (Matt. 28:18-19)? “All authority in Heaven and on earth has been given to me . . .” No civil authority has the right to say no to the gospel of free grace.

On top of that, neither do religious authorities have the right to get a bit and bridle on those who preach the word in truth. John Bunyan, author of Pilgrim’s Progress, spent years in prison, and in a Christian country, and for what? Not for preaching, but for preaching without a license. When free grace starts running around freely, it is just a matter of time before some ecclesiastical fussers want to get their foot on the brake. They will come to a man, preaching hot gospel, and they will ask him, as they asked Jesus, “By what authority do you do these things?” Look to your Bibles. Whose question is this (Matt. 21:23; Mark 11:28; Luke 20:2)?

Read Full Article

Holy War: A Post-Election Sermon (King’s Cross)

Lindsey Gardner on

INTRODUCTION

In the aftermath of this most recent election, we have much to be grateful for. Our God is surely merciful and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness. He has not given us what we deserve. But the mercy of God is always a test: hard hearts get right back to sin and apathy, but soft hearts are driven to worship, repentance, and a renewed zeal for holiness.

While our holy war is not primarily or fundamentally fleshly or carnal, our weapons are mighty for pulling down strongholds, “casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; and having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled” (2 Cor. 10:3-6). This does not mean no political action, but it means that obedience to Christ must drive everything we do.

 

HOLINESS AS POWER

Holiness is power. Holiness is that which is set apart, pure, and whole. God is holy, holy, holy, and this holiness drives His omnipotence and power: “Who is like unto thee, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?” (Ex. 15:11) “And [Jesus was] declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:4).

Human beings were created to reflect and share in God’s holiness, and this is what is being restored in Christ (Eph. 4:24). Ephesians says that growing in this means coming to know the exceeding greatness of His power at work in us, which raised Jesus from the dead, far above all principality, power and might (Eph. 1:17-21). If American Christians seem remarkably impotent culturally and politically, it is because we do not understand or care about holiness. We are more concerned about pragmatic, short term gains than long term victory, but God disciplines us so that we might share in His holiness (Heb. 12:10). God cares more about holiness than political freedom because without holiness, there can be no freedom. So how do we pursue God’s holiness?

 

HOLY WORSHIP

“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus…” (Heb. 10:19ff). While all of life and nature proclaim God’s holiness (the whole earth is full of His glory), He designed the world and people such that we participate in God’s holiness by setting time and space apart to worship Him, by “drawing near.” This is why God set apart the Trees in the Garden, holy ground at the burning bush, and the holy places in the tabernacle and temple. He also set apart one day in seven and made it holy for rest and worship (Gen. 2:3, Ex. 20:8-11). In the New Covenant, after the curtain of the Most Holy Place was torn, any space can be set apart for worship, as can any day, but the Lord’s Day is the first day Sabbath and when God’s people gather together they are His holy priesthood and temple (1 Pet. 2).

The Bible calls this obedient, formal, public worship the “beauty of holiness” (Ps. 29:2) on the “mountain of holiness” (Ps. 48:1, cf. Heb. 12). God’s power of holiness is the source of our power (Ps. 110:3). “Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a twoedged sword in their hand; to execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments upon the people; to bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with fetters of iron…” (Ps. 149:6-8). In Revelation, it is the worship of the saints that God uses to send air strikes on the earth.

This also happens as individuals and families are transformed by the renewing of our minds, through offering their bodies in worship (Rom. 12:1-2). Planting churches is the New Covenant equivalent to Abraham building altars in Canaan. Wherever the gospel establishes communities of biblical worship, we are acknowledging that Jesus purchased that land, that nation with His blood and insisting that it must and will bow to Him.

 

HOLY MARRIAGE & HOMES

“Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge” (Heb. 13:4). Holiness is not prudish or sanctimonious. Holiness in the home is earthy, physical, material, and full of joy. The Holy Spirit created the heavens and the earth, and He filled the artisans with skill to build the tabernacle (Gen. 1:2, Ex. 35:31).

Holiness means husbands loving their wives like Christ loved the Church and gave Himself for her and wives submitting to their husbands as the Church does to Christ: so that husbands might present their wives holy and without blemish (Eph. 5:22-27). But this is not merely spiritual, this includes loving and protecting your wife as your own body (Eph. 5:28-29) and raising joyful, obedient children (Eph. 6:1-4, 1 Tim. 3:4-5). This means dealing with sin quickly, forgiving one another, and covering sins in love. We cannot be a force for good in this land, if our homes are not models of order and peace.

 

HOLY WORK

Jesus said clearly that he who is faithful in little will be faithful in much, and this includes faithfulness in justice (Lk. 16:10-12). “And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?” Our vocational labors are the practice field for authority and fruitfulness in the world. Honesty, integrity, hard work, fixing mistakes, learning to communicate, and multiplying your talents is the path to influence and blessing (Mt. 25:14).

“Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men” (Eph. 6:6-7). We cannot establish justice in the land if we are not practicing justice in our daily labors.

 

CONCLUSION

Thank God for a clear Trump victory. Now the Church must gird up our loins to fight. We must fight sin and corruption at every level, beginning in our own hearts, families, businesses, churches, and cities. We cannot be a free or powerful America apart from obedience to Christ, apart from holiness.

So think of this time like Joseph’s seven years of plenty. We have 2-4 years to store up and build strong families, businesses, and churches. May God grant us longer and may He grant a true Reformation and Revival, but we must build houses on the rock that are ready for storms.

Read Full Article

Availing Prayer (CCTroy)

Lindsey Gardner on

The Text
16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit (James 5:16–18 NKJV).

What Kind of Prayer Avails Much?
I. Effective, fervent
II. Righteous

Why the Example of Elijah? (1 Kings 17–18)
I. He was a righteous man, “with a nature like ours”
II. He prayed earnestly

Concluding Applications
I. Be encouraged to pray, not discouraged. If you are seeking to live a godly life through the power of the Holy Spirit, then you have God’s attention.
II. Recognize where you pray already, and do so earnestly and with renewed faith.
III. Take practical steps to cultivate additional times of focused prayer—because God is faithful and kind.

Read Full Article

The Things of Earth

Lindsey Gardner on

As we enter the holiday season, we ought to take a moment to explore the foundation for our love for God and our enjoyment of this world. Many Christians feel a tension precisely at this point. They ask themselves: “How does a single-minded, whole-hearted pursuit of God and Christ fit with a real and deep enjoyment of created things?

Here are some diagnostic questions:

  1. Do you feel a low-grade sense of guilt because you enjoy legitimate earthly pleasures?
  2. Do you ever have a vague sense that you’re not enjoying God “enough” (whatever that means) or that you’re enjoying his gifts “too much” (whatever that means)?
  3. Do you have the sense that as you progress in holiness, your joy in things of earth ought to diminish because you are becoming increasingly satisfied with God alone?

Where does this tension come from? Think with me about the following Scripture passages. Everything is rubbish compared to Christ (Phil. 3:7-8). Don’t set your affections on things below (Col 3:1-2). Desire nothing besides God (Psalm 73:25).

On the other hand: Everything created by God, and nothing is to be rejected (1 Timothy 4:4). Every good and perfect gift is from above (James 1:17). And in our passage, God richly provides us with everything to enjoy (1 Tim. 6:17).

So which is it: Only desire God? Or enjoy everything God richly provides? Count everything as rubbish? Or receive everything with thanksgiving? Set your mind on things above? Or enjoy the good and perfect gifts that have come down from above? That’s the tension.

 

1 TIMOTHY 6:17-19

As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.

Paul gives three exhortations in this passage. First, don’t be haughty. It’s easy for the rich to boast in their riches. Riches easily feed pride. Second, don’t set your hope on the uncertainty of riches. It’s easy for wealthy people to think that their strength comes from their wealth and not from Christ. “I can do all things through wealth which strengthens me.” It’s easy to forget Paul’s words earlier in the chapter (1 Tim. 6:6-10). Third, set your hope on God. He’s not uncertain. Moth and rust don’t destroy him; thieves cannot steal him from you. You can take God with you out of this world. He will never leave you nor forsake you.

And then, Paul surprises us. He reminds the rich that God “richly provides us with everything to enjoy.” That’s not what I would expect Paul to say to the rich. Paul tells us, “Remember rich people, God has given you your wealth so that you would enjoy it.” And so the question becomes: how do you enjoy everything that God richly provides without setting your hope on the uncertainty of riches?

 

TWO APPROACHES

I want to suggest that Paul here is giving us two complementary ways of viewing God’s relationship to his gifts. The first is a comparative approach, in which God and his gifts are separated and set next to each other to determine which is more valuable. Put God on one side of the scales, and his gifts (your wealth) on the other side, and ask, “Which one will I hope in?” And if you’re a faithful Christian, there’s only one answer. “There is nothing I desire beside you.”

The second I call the integrated approach, in which God and his gifts are enjoyed together. When we set our hope on God, we are free to love creation as creation (as gift, and not as God). God’s gifts become avenues for enjoying him, beams of glory that we chase back to the source. In the words of Charles Simeon, we “enjoy God in everything and everything in God.”.

My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste. Know that wisdom is such to your soul; if you find it there will be a future, and your hope will not be cut off. (Proverbs 24:13-14)

The sweetness of honey points beyond itself to the wisdom of God. Our souls have taste buds, just like our tongues, and we can train the soul-buds by exercising the tongue-buds. And this means that we can’t short-circuit the enjoyment of the honey. Neither can you stop with simply enjoying honey. First, enjoy the honey. Taste it; it’s good. And then, press beyond honey to the God who stands behind it.

So then how do we relate these two approaches to each other? My suggestion is that we should seek to live integrated lives (Enjoying God in everything and enjoying everything in God) and we use the comparative separation as a test to ensure that our integration hasn’t become idolatry.

 

TESTING OUR JOY THROUGH SELF-DENIAL

How then do we test our enjoyment of God’s rich provision? We could talk about suffering, and the way that our sovereign God sends both good gifts and hard providences to test whether we treasure him above all his gifts. But I want to talk about the voluntary ways that we test ourselves: self-denial and generosity.

There is an unavoidable strain of asceticism in the Scriptures–Jesus insisting that every one of his disciples deny himself, take up his cross and follow him. This self-denial, such as fasting, serves our joy in God. We temporarily abstain from food in order to increase our physical hunger as a way of confessing to God, “This is how much I want you.” Self-denial serves our joy in God by reminding us that Jesus is better. But self-denial and self-restraint also serves our joy in the gifts themselves. Joy in God’s gifts depends in part on what C. S. Lewis calls resisting the impulse of Encore, that itch to overly indulge our earthly appetites and to have things over again and again and again.

Biblical self-denial puts the lust for Encore to death. By restraining our earthly appetites, we make space for the distinct pleasures of anticipation and memory. Whether we’re talking about a child eagerly awaiting Christmas morning or a married couple planning an anniversary trip, we all know that looking forward to some great event is itself pleasurable. And memories of past joys have a way of growing and maturing and sweetening with time. Again, as Lewis reminds us, a pleasure is only full grown when it is remembered. Resisting Encore makes it possible for us to fully enjoy God’s gifts through anticipation, through enjoyment, and through memory.

 

TESTING OUR JOY THROUGH GENEROSITY

1 Timothy 6 tells us that God richly provides us with everything, and he has purposes for his provision. There are four purposes: 1) to enjoy, 2) to do good, 3) to be rich in good works, and 4) to be generous and ready to share. So how do you test whether you’re enjoying God’s gifts rightly? By your generosity. If wealth comes to you and you’re enjoying it, but it’s not spilling the banks and flooding the lives of others, then something is wrong in your soul.

Gifts are given for our enjoyment, and gifts are given for God’s mission. Every good and perfect gift comes down from above, from the Father of lights. We receive the gift. We enjoy it with thanksgiving, acknowledging that God is the one who gives it to us. This thanksgiving spills over into worship, since we know that as good as the gift is, it’s just a taste of his goodness. And then satisfied with God and enjoying his provision, our lives becomes a tidal wave of generosity—eager to do good, on the lookout for needs and ready with open-handed and big-hearted generosity. Our goal is this—we want to be as generous with others as God has been with us. We want to freely receive—because he richly provides us with everything to enjoy—and therefore freely give—because he richly provides us with everything to share.

Now I can’t tell you precisely how much to give. The Old Testament required a tithe. The rich young ruler was called to sell everything (Luke 18:22). When Zacchaeus was saved, he gave half his goods to the poor (Luke 19:8). Barnabas sold a field and put the money at the feet of the apostles (Acts 4:37). The poor widow put two pennies in the offering box and was commended by Jesus (Luke 21:1–3). The amount varies, but the commitment to use our resources to meet the needs of others is the same.

And doing good and being rich in good works and being generous and ready to share isn’t just about money. Be generous with your time and your efforts and your talents and your skills. Be creative in how you think about what God has given you and how your life can be poured out for the sake of others.

And when you do this, when you set your hope on God, and you enjoy what he richly provides, and you share what he richly provides, you are storing up treasure for yourself. You save up and you gladly spend it. You store it up and you pour it out. This is the true life; this is the true foundation for the future, the true foundation of everlasting joy.

Read Full Article