New Testament Archives - Page 30 of 208

Christ’s Piercing Wit (The Inescapable Story of Jesus #7) (CCD)

Grace Sensing on May 12, 2024

INTRODUCTION

Have your words or past actions ever come back to haunt you? Perhaps you once said, in your youth, “When I’m a parent, I will never (fill in the blank).” And now that you’re a parent you find yourself regularly doing that thing. There are really only two responses to such a moment of revelation: laugh at yourself or burn with vindictive anger.

THE TEXT

Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem. And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault. For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders […]

Mar 7:1ff

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

A Jerusalem embassy of Pharisees, likely tasked with keeping tabs on Jesus (3:22) launch a fresh legal assault upon Jesus’ disciples (v1). The infraction is that the disciples are eating without washing their hands (v2,5). Mark provides a bit of insider baseball for his Greek audience. The Pharisees had taken the Levitical cleanliness codes and extrapolated them past the point of possible obedience; they taught that hands must be washed often, along with eating vessels, or else you will not only defile yourself but you’ll defile others (vv3-4). Jesus responds to their accusation with Isaiah’s rebuke (vv6-7, Cf. Isa 29:13), and explains that they are the epitome of replacing God’s clear command with man-made tradition (vv8-9). Jesus tightens the screws further on these accusers by demonstrating that they’ve broken Moses’ command to honor father & mother by inventing a legal loophole to avoid financially supporting their parents while appearing to honor God (vv10-12). Their traditions have not resulted in fulfilling the Law; rather, they’ve undermined the very basis of their authority (v13).

Jesus then tells a joke to the crowd at the expense of the Pharisees. What goes in you doesn’t defile; what comes out the other end is what’s unclean (vv14-16). The disciples ask Jesus to explain the joke parable; and He reproaches them for needing the joke explained (vv17-20). Man thinks holiness resides in himself, but Jesus’ punchline is that our show holiness is just raw sewage. What’s in man? Nothing good (vv21-23).

Jesus now goes to a predominately Gentile area, and His presence once more can’t be hidden, the Word is getting out, even amongst the Gentiles (v24). A Syrophoenician woman comes to fall at His feet, and requests deliverance for her daughter from a devil (vv25-26). This will be the second to last demon Jesus encounters in Mark’s Gospel. Jesus responds with a quip: it isn’t right to take the children’s (Jews) bread (Him) and feed it to the little dogs (Gentiles) (v27). She replies with a faith-filled plea: even dogs get some scraps (v28). Jesus responds to her witty faith with an assurance that the devil will be expelled; the woman returns home and finds just that (vv29-30).

Mark whisks us back to where Jesus performed the exorcism of a legion of devils (v31). Some folks bring a deaf mute to Jesus for a healing touch (v32); Jesus takes him aside and Mark gives a more detailed description than usual of what Jesus does to heal the man. Jesus pokes his fingers into the man’s ears, spits and then touches the man’s tongue, looks to heaven, sighs/breathes heavily, and commands the closed ears and mouth to be opened (vv33-34). Mark (like he’d done with Jairus’ daughter) preserves the Aramaic word which Jesus spoke. Straightway the man’s ears are opened and his tongue loosed and he begins to speak; Jesus requests that they not spread the word but to no avail (vv35-36); instead, they lift songs of praise: He does all things well (v37).

EARS TO HEAR

Jesus has already shown that even touching the hem of His robe will bring healing. So why the seeming exaggeration involved with this healing? This healing is the first of a pair. Jesus will soon face off against the last demon recorded in Mark’s Gospel (Mk. 9:25), which causes a boy to be deaf & dumb. Jesus has been sowing the Word all throughout Israel. But many are still hard of hearing. Even His disciples grapple with His words and fail to comprehend. The Pharisees have, in a sense, stuffed the cotton of manmade tradition into their ears and seem entirely unable to hear the Word they claim to be the stewards of.

Jesus resorts to telling a parable, which is more like a joke. He accompanies that parable with a charge for Israel. This is a charge which is still necessary for us all: he who has ears to hear, let him hear. Man’s condition is fatal. Christ’s Word is a seed which brings about life. But we need our ears opened. How does Jesus open our ears? He wields piercing wit to shock us awake. Ironically, His piercing wit will get Him pierced.

GENTILE DOGS

The disciples unwashed hands provide more than just cause for the Pharisees to squabble over. Mark has hinted in a certain direction, but from this cycle of his Gospel onward it will get clearer and clearer: the Gentiles will be blessed by the coming of the promised Seed of Abraham. If you didn’t wash your hands you defiled other Jews, so this had led the Pharisees to teach that to even enter a Gentile home would make you unclean. But Jesus says it isn’t what goes in you that defiles but what comes out of you.

The disciples, within a few decades, will be breaking bread with Gentiles because both are washed in baptism. These unwashed hands are like the faint introduction of an instrument in the midst of a symphony. But in the rest of this chapter and especially the next it will swell and become too big to ignore. For example, Jesus goes to an area full of Gentiles; He playfully banters with the Syrophoenician woman; He agrees to let the dogs enjoy the crumbs; and He delivers the Gentile girl from a demon. Jesus has been driving out unclean spirits from Israel, but now, notice is served that the demons will not find safe haven outside of Israel. Jesus has come to take possession of the ends of the earth, filling it with His worshippers, feeding them with the bread of His body. Additionally, the healing of the deaf and dumb man is in a predominately Gentile area (the Decapolis), this healing is followed by Christ being praised among the nations (Mt. 15:31).

The Pharisees had hidden the Word, but Jesus is coming to fling the Word far and wide, opening even Gentile ears to hear this life-giving Word of His Salvation (Cf. Is. 29). And when they hear, they will also sing. The Word of Jesus’ universal reign is proclaimed, and the fitting response is always songs of praise (Ps. 72:16-19).

WHAT’S IN YOU?

What Jesus is doing is going to land Him on a cross. He is putting our sin on a billboard. He is mocking our foolish scruples. He is shaming our holiness. You think your holiness is found in taking your kids out of public schools, a good thing; but have you exploded with anger at them, neglected to train them in the Word, or been permissive in the entertainment you allow? You claim to be defenders of traditional marriage, but what’s in your browser history, where have you failed to submit to your husband or be loving to your wife? You despise the government printing money on demand, but is your work ethic is outpaced by a moss covered sloth?

Jesus did not come to drive out a pagan oppressor from Israel. Jesus came to show us the sewage that comes out of the human heart. Jesus came to show us we are dogs. Jesus came to show us where we’ve voided God’s Word. But He also came to truly wash us by baptism into Him. He came so that dogs could become children. He came to open our ears so we could hear the joke and loose our tongues so we could laugh at our folly and then trust in Him alone for our holiness.

Water Into Wine (Troy)

Grace Sensing on May 12, 2024

SERMON TEXT:

John 2:1-11

INTRODUCTION

There are some things in scripture that are very easy to understand. There are some things that are very difficult. Some passages qualify as milk for the baby Christian. But God also provides meat for the mature. For those who came to know the Lord later in life, you can attest to the fact that when you first started to read God’s Word on a daily basis not everything was clear. Some things were disturbing, some things were confusing. But there also was a sense that there was more to be discovered. Many of us have benefitted from a study-Bible, where the commentator explained the historical context or brought to life a connection from the old testament. And even for those who have read through the Bible multiple times we understand that there are many biblical treasures yet to be discovered, insights that are not readily apparent on the surface. How can we truly understand the Lord’s supper, if we know nothing about the passover? If we don’t know about Zechariah’s prophecy, how can we fully appreciate the triumphal entry? How can we venerate Jesus as High Priest, if we know nothing about the priesthood. But scripture will often drop us hints that the passage conceals deeper truths waiting to be uncovered. And I believe that is what John does in our text this morning when He says, “Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification.”

WORSHIP IN THE OLD COVENANT

To understand John 2, we must begin with the levitical system. And the levitical system had at its center a sacred space. And this sacred space contains sacred objects, holy implements, used to perform various rituals. The tent of meeting is a portable sanctuary characterized by a series of meticulously crafted elements. First, there is a wooden frame that makes the shape of a rectangle. The frame was covered by woven fabric and constructed in such a way to facilitate efficient assembly and disassembly; it needed to be mobile. God had consigned the jews to a nomadic life. They wandered for 40 years in the wilderness due to their lack of faith. Now the frame which acted as fencing, establishes the first principle of jewish worship, separation. There’s an inside and an outside. The inside has the main courtyard, which was accessible to all the Israelites, and it contains the main sacrificial altar with a large ramp that led up to the fire. Next to that is the bronze laver for ablutions, where they would perform ceremonial purification washings. About halfway in, stood the shrine proper, where a small screen would admit only those of the tribe of levi. Inside is where the lampstand, the table of showbread, and the incense altar were housed. And then there is a shrine, within a shrine, The Holy of Holies, an inner sanctum in the shape of a perfect cube.

TRANSITIONING TO THE NEW COVENANT

Let’s look at Mark chapter 1. At this time, the disciples of John the Baptist were fasting. This is likely due to the fact that it had become customary to fast, on occasion, especially during periods of mourning. The prophet Isaiah drew this connection in Isaiah 58. And so the disciples of John were in mourning as John had recently been imprisoned. And the Pharisees were also fasting, but for a completely different reason. In the old testament, the only day where fasting was a requirement was the day of atonement according to Leviticus 16. But a pharisaical tradition had arisen and the Pharisees were fasting every Monday and Thursday. The genesis behind this practice remains a mystery as does its significance in their religious devotion. But similar to the hand washing tradition, the Pharisees were adding more and more unprescribed, external displays of righteousness to the religion.

CONTRAST #1: EXTERNAL WATER / INTERNAL WINE

The water is external, the wine is internal. if you had a skin disease, if you came into contact with an unclean animal, if you came into contact with a corpse, if you had a bodily discharge, if you touched the bed of someone with a bodily discharge, if a man lies with a woman, you had to wash your external body with water to obtain ritual purity. In contrast, the wine isn’t used for your skin; it is not a surface cleanser. The wine is ingested; it goes in your body. Christ is concerned about truth in the inward parts.

CONTRAST #2: WORK / REST

The water is characterized by toil, work, and labor. The wine is characterized by rest. The six stone jars would’ve held 20-30 gallons each. To try and visualize how much water that is, it’s approximately 6 bathtubs full. How many trips to the well would it take to fill all those? How many times per week would you have to use that water? Ritual washing had become such a chore that people avoided being made unclean at all costs.

CONTRAST #3: SORROW / JOY

Thirdly, unlike the toil characterized by the water, the wine represents joy. I love this interaction between Mary and Jesus. It says, “When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ I don’t know exactly what happened, but it seems to be written in a way where Mary doesn’t even acknowledge Jesus’ statement. There’s an unspoken mother/son connection.

CONCLUSION: NEW COVENANT JOY ROOTED IN HOPE

Jesus wept at the death of his friend. The truth of this fallen world and the reality of death reigning over this planet cut Jesus to the heart. Grief and sorrow brought him to tears. But he did not lose his joy because Jesus knew that joy thrives and flourishes and feeds on the hope of the promises of God. The death of death is near. The promise of Isaiah and Hosea says, “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” Jesus foreshadows his mission by raising Lazarus from the dead. The professional mourners and wailers have nothing to cry about anymore. Mary and Martha have their brother back. And we have an example to look at. Bad things will happen in this life. People will do evil things and get away with it. Loved ones will die. Natural disasters will destroy things. We’ll be strapped with incompetent leaders. But the difference is, our joy is not diminished by any of these things because we have hope in the promises of God.

Real Roman Trouble (The Continuing Adventures of Jesus #28) (KC)

Grace Sensing on May 12, 2024

INTRODUCTION

In 42 B.C. in the fields of Philippi in Macedonia, Greece, the armies of Brutus and Cassius collided with the armies of Mark Anthony and Octavian, and the latter soundly defeated the former. Octavian would become the emperor of the Roman Empire, taking the name Caesar Augustus and eventually lavish a great deal of prominence on the colony of Philippi as the site of that historic battle.

Around 80 years later, in that same city, Paul and Silas began proclaiming the reign of another King, the Lord Jesus Christ, and a new way of being Roman. And as is the case wherever this gospel goes, it caused trouble – trouble that sets prisoners free.

The Text: “And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brough her masters much gain by soothsaying…” (Acts 16:16-40

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

After a possessed slave girl followed Paul around in Philippi for many days, crying out that they were servants of the Most High God, Paul commanded the demon to leave her, and when it did, this ruined her soothsaying abilities, and Paul and Silas were brought up on charges to the magistrates (Acts 16:16-21). With some mob pressure in the background, the magistrates stripped and beat Paul and Silas and imprisoned them (Acts 16:22-24). At midnight, while Paul and Silas were singing praises to God, a great earthquake broke open the prison, but the prisoners remained and Paul saved the jailer’s life, preached the gospel to him, and he and his whole family were baptized immediately (Acts 16:25-34). The next day, the magistrates asked Paul and Silas to leave town quietly, but appealing to their Roman citizenship, they requested an official release and visited Lydia and the fledgling church before leaving (Acts 16:35-40).

PRINCIPALITIES & POWERS

Literally, it says that the girl had the “spirit of a python,” which refers to the Greek god Apollo and his shrine at Delphi. This may be a general description of the kind of soothsaying she was doing, or it may mean that she was from that shrine or received her power from there. Regardless, she made her masters money and after Paul commanded the demon to leave her, she no longer could (Acts 16:19). What do we make of this?

In 1 Corinthians 8, Paul says that idols are nothing and there is only one God, but then he goes on to say that pagan sacrifices are offered to devils and we must not have any fellowship with them (1 Cor. 10:20-21). Likewise, the phrase “principalities and powers” sometimes refers to human authorities (Tit. 3:1) and clearly at other times refers to spiritual beings (Eph. 6:12). And Daniel referred to spiritual beings ruling Persia and Greece (Dan. 10:13, 20). Putting this together, we should say that there are more material explanations for some things than we realize, but there are also sometimes spiritual forces at work. Superstition, illusions, science, and fear can do a lot, and sometimes the spirit of Samuel gets called up from the dead (1 Sam. 28). But in the resurrection and ascension, Christ has triumphed over all principalities and powers in heaven and on earth (Eph. 1:20-21, Col. 2:15).

EARTHQUAKES & BAPTISMS

While Luke seems to describe the earthquake as a simple providence, worship is described in the Bible as an earth-shaking reality (e.g. Ps. 29). Regardless, Paul and Silas singing followed by an earthquake is a fitting picture of what the gospel is doing in Philippi: ‘exceedingly troubling the city’ (Acts 16:20). This is what the gospel does: it shakes heaven and earth, so that “those things which cannot be shaken may remain” (Heb. 12:27). It is shaking Philippi so that only the true Philippi may remain. The gospel addresses the spiritual realities at the core of human life and society, and in so doing, transforms all of human life (business and commerce, entertainment and arts, politics and law, education and recreation) into what it was created to be. We a see microcosm of this principle in the salvation offer Paul gives the jailer in the middle of the night: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house” (Acts 16:31). We might add: and thy business, thy neighborhood, thy hobbies, thy city, and thy nation.

CITIZENS OF ROME & HEAVEN

This episode contrasts rival visions of what it means to be “Roman.” The masters of the slave girl protest Paul’s disruption of their customary way of “being Romans” (Acts 16:21), but Paul is actually embodying a new way of “being Roman” in Jesus Christ and requires the Philippian magistrates to at least partially acknowledge that (Acts 16:37-39). Later, when Paul writes the Philippians, he exhorts them to reckon their citizenship according to the gospel of Christ (Phil. 1:27) and as primarily rooted in heaven (Phil. 3:20). Being an imperial colony, they would have understood that this didn’t mean they were not loyal or patriotic citizens of Rome, but rather the true form of that citizenship was being impressed upon them from Heaven. By preaching and casting out demons and baptizing, Paul was teaching the citizens of Philippi how to be true Romans.

APPLICATIONS

This is Ascension Sunday, and so we celebrate Christ seated at the right hand of the Father, far above all principalities and powers, and we set our affections on Him there so that we will be truly affective here in this world, in our city and nation (Col. 3:1-4). This is how we learn to be true Americans, true men, true women, true husbands and wives, businessmen and members of our various tribes. Christ restores our humanity.

We ought to fight the temptation to see demons behind every tree, and this includes the need for governing our thoughts to think about those things that are good, true, noble, and lovely (Phil. 4:8). But we should also pay close attention to the warnings in Scripture about where the Devil likes to creep in: do not let the sun go down on your wrath (Eph. 4:26-27); spouses, do not deprive one another sexually (1 Cor. 7:5); women, watch out for idle chatter (1 Tim. 5:13-15), and men, watch out for pride (1 Tim. 3:6).

In a world gone mad, sanity is trouble. We are gospel-trouble makers, not out of spite or a desire for chaos. We are here to establish the worship of the Triune God, set prisoners free, teach true justice, and establish the customs of Christ in the marketplace, home, and governments for human flourishing.

Discipline as Genuine Love (Biblical Child Discipline in an Age of Therapeutic Goo #5) 

Grace Sensing on May 5, 2024

INTRODUCTION

In our message last Lord’s Day, we defined what we mean by the word discipline. Our subject this week is “discipline as genuine love,” and so it is important to begin with a definition of love. What does it mean to love God, and what does it mean to love our neighbor? These are the two great commandments, and so we should know what they summon us to.

To love someone is to treat someone lawfully from the heart. To love God is to do what He calls us to do, and to do it from the heart. Nowhere does Scripture identify love with our emotional “feels,” that approach being an error that is currently destroying millions. At the same time, we are called to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength (Dt. 6:4-9; Mark 12:30), and this would certainly include our “feels.” But this simply means that our emotions must be obedient, along with the rest of our being. But obeying commands is not the same thing as issuing commands.

So loving God means doing what He says to do, from the heart. “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). And His commandments include bringing up our children in the nurture and admonition, applying physical correction when necessary, and providing loving instruction all the time.

THE TEXT

“He that spareth his rod hateth his son: But he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes” (Proverbs 13:24).

“And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, my son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? 10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness” (Hebrews 12:5–10).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Words like love and hate are to be defined by the Scriptures, and not by our emotional frame of mind. There are sentiments that we would call kind, or loving, or tender, but which are toxic by the standard of the Word. A man might mix up a batch of cyanide or arsenic, and it does not much matter how much emotional sugar was put into the recipe.

And so Proverbs defines hatred of a son—a form of disowning a son—as withholding the rod. But when we think of all the people who withhold this form of correction, what is it that motivates them? Is it what we normally call “hate?” No, it would be what we would normally call sentimentalism or, in its true colors, hatred.

The Hebrews passage teaches us something similar. One of our assurances of our adoption as sons is the fact that God chastens us. He doesn’t spank the neighbor kids, but rather His own (vv. 5-6). We should endure chastening, knowing it to be a mark of sonship (v. 7). If you don’t receive this kind of correction, then that is a sign that you are a bastard, and no legitimate heir (v. 8). If we revere our earthly fathers who do this, then how much more should we do the same with the Father of spirits (v. 9)? Our earthly fathers did it with temporal goals in view, but God has our holiness in mind (v. 10). Notice that while the goals may differ, the process of discipline is the same.

THE COLD CONCRETE OF COVENANT

The illustration here is aimed at the relationship between parents and children, but it actually applies to all your relationships. But settle it in your minds first with regard to your marriage, and the children God has blessed you with.

You build your household the same way you build a house. Go down into your basement and look at the concrete walls. They are hard, cold, straight, and gray. There is no warmth to them at all. And because there is no warmth there, it is possible to have warmth elsewhere. Now go upstairs and look at the living room—pillows on the sofa, curtains, soft carpet, pictures on the wall. The surroundings there are truly pleasant. But the only reason anything is pleasant is because the concrete is where the concrete is, and the living room stuff is in the living room. Roll up the carpet, gather the cushions, throw on the sofa, and try to erect a stud wall on it. It will be the wobbliest thing in the world, and this explains why your family interactions are so full of so much unedifying drama.

THE GREATEST ACT OF LOVE

What was the greatest act of love ever rendered by a human being? The answer to that question has to be the love that Christ showed for us when He laid down His life as a sacrifice for sin—doing this when we were still in rebellion, still in our sins. “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). This was the greatest act of love ever, and it is the template for measuring every other act of love (Eph. 5:25) .

And yet, Christ didn’t feel like it. “Then saith he unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me” (Matthew 26:38). And on the basis of what He felt, He prayed earnestly in the Garden of Gethsemene—asking His Father three times if the cup could pass from Him. “And he left them, and went away again, and prayed the third time, saying the same words” (Matthew 26:44). And so He obeyed the will of His Father, from the heart, and He did so for the joy that was set before Him. The joy was not behind Him, pushing, but there before Him, beckoning—the way a field of grain beckons a farmer doing the hard work of plowing the field months before (Heb. 12:11).

“Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not” (1 John 3:1).

The love we experience in our salvation is a triune love. God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son (John 3:16). Everything the Son sees the Father doing, He also does, love included. “As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love” (John 15:9). And the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Rom. 5:5). The persons of the Godhead always work together in harmonious unity.

So there was love in the assignment of the mission, there was love in the execution of the mission, and love in the application of the mission. It began with love, and it ends with love, but there was agony in the middle. Our Savior was no sentimentalist, and neither should you be.

The Wisdom of God (The Continuing Adventures of Jesus #27) (KC)

Grace Sensing on May 5, 2024

INTRODUCTION

The wisdom of God is foolishness to man, and we must understand deep in our bones that one of the central missions of God in the history of the world is to destroy the wisdom of man (1 Cor. 1:19). This doesn’t mean that we cannot grow in God’s wisdom, but it means that we must be incredibly skeptical of human wisdom. The goal of the history of the world is that no flesh would glory in His presence but that all would glory in Him (1 Cor. 1:29-31).

This wisdom is on display in Paul’s circumcision of Timothy, and in his obedience to the Holy Spirit leading him to the Philippian riverside to preach to a few Jewish women.

The Text: “Then came he to Derbe and Lystra: and behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek…” (Acts 16:1-5)

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

After parting ways with Barnabas, Paul and Silas began visiting the cities from the first missionary journey, coming first to Derbe, where Paul and Barnabas had ended that first trip, where Paul recovered after being stoned in Lystra (Acts 16:1, 14:20-21). This time in Derbe, Paul recruited Timothy to join them, whose mother was a believing Jew but whose father was a Gentile, and so Paul had Timothy circumcised to prevent giving offence (Acts 16:2-3).

Together, they visited and encouraged the churches in Phrygia, delivering the decision of the Jerusalem council, before heading north and then west to the coast by the leading of the Spirit (Acts 16:4-7). There in Troas, Paul saw a vision of a man from Macedonia calling for help, and Luke apparently joined them, as they sailed to northern Greece and came to the chief imperial city Philippi (Acts 16:8-12). On the Sabbath, since there were apparently not enough Jewish men to form a synagogue, they went down to the river side where Jewish women gathered for prayers, and God opened the heart of a woman named Lydia to believe the gospel, she and her household were baptized, and she invited the missionaries to lodge with her (Acts 16:13-15).

CIRCUMSISING TIMOTHY

At first, this might seem confusing for Paul to circumcise Timothy, but this is a glorious illustration of gospel wisdom. Remember, prior to this, Paul had worked closely with Titus, a Greek, and had specifically resisted the implication that he needed to be circumcised (Gal. 2:3). And now, the Jerusalem Council has just explicitly ruled that circumcision is not necessary for Christians (Acts 15), and he’s reporting that to the churches and then the first thing Paul does is circumcise Timothy (Acts 16:3). A reasonable person might ask: What is up with that? The answer is in Galatians: “For brethren, ye have been called to liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another” (Gal. 5:13). Paul was willing to sacrifice his freedom to avoid giving offense in order to help build up new Christians into maturity (cf. Rom. 15:2, 1 Cor. 8:1). But when people began demanding circumcision, Paul drew a fierce line, and called that a “yoke of bondage,” and being in one of his more winsome moods, wrote that he wished those who made that kind of trouble would castrate themselves (Gal. 5:1-3, 12).

But this decision with Timothy really is remarkable. This goes against everything in our flesh. And no doubt, a bunch of the “based bros” would have snickered amongst themselves and said things like “Ok, boomer,” as though Paul was losing his edge. But far from it: this was Paul demonstrating that he understood the wisdom of the gospel. And underline this point: he didn’t have to do it. And circumcision was no little, painless thing. Paul was willing, happy even, to lay down freedom and comfort for the sake of avoiding offense. It was only at the point where a preference was turned into a mandate, that Paul absolutely refused. This wisdom applies to drinking alcohol, dietary preferences, educational methods, health care decisions, and liturgical details, among others.

THE GOD WHO CLOSES DOORS AND OPENS HEARTS

The Holy Spirit is cited several times in this passage: not allowing them to go further into Asia or Bithynia (Acts 16:6-7) and He is implied in the vision of the man from Macedonia (Acts 16:9). John Calvin points out that it might have felt like a significant let down to have ended up in Philippi after such a fruitful ministry in Asia Minor and for there to be no synagogue to preach in, only a group of Jewish women gathering for prayer at a river side. But undaunted, they preach the gospel, and the Lord opened Lydia’s heart (Acts 16:14). We are not apostles and we are not ordinarily led with the same kind of direct instructions or visions, but we do have the Spirit’s authoritative word in the Bible and we have witnessed the same powerful miracle every time someone comes to faith in Christ. It really is incredible that the Lord of Universe is so dedicated to using human means: the Spirit directs Paul and Paul preaches, and God opens hearts. But the reason is so that we will understand more profoundly His wisdom and His glory, and our foolishness and weakness.

APPLICATIONS

So much here is about wisdom: when to defer, when to change course, and following the Spirit. We need wisdom, and James says that we should ask since God gives wisdom generously to those who ask in faith (Js. 1:5-6). Later, James contrasts the meekness of wisdom from above with the carnal wisdom that is full of bitter envying (Js. 3:13-17). So this is the fruit of the kind of wisdom you actually have versus what you might think you have.

Wisdom is not esoteric mysticism. It is not irrational or pure luck. Wisdom is the skill or art of living well in obedience to God for the edification of His people (cf. Ex. 35:30-36:2). Edification means “building up.” God gave His Spirit of wisdom to Bezalel for the construction of the tabernacle, and the Spirit has now been poured out for the construction of the Church (1 Cor. 3). Edification is not doing whatever seems best to us or even what anyone prefers. Edification is growing in holiness. We are artisans working on God’s house, for the salvation of the world, which seems kind of silly if you think about it. And the principle means that God is using is the preaching of Christ crucified for sinners.