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Envy Rises (Acts of the Apostles #30) (Christ Church)


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INTRODUCTION

We know that the Lord Jesus was turned over to the Romans by the Jewish leaders because of envy. Pilate had been around political posturing long enough to be able to detect it when he saw it. Pilate wanted to release Jesus, in part because he could see what was going on. “For he knew that the chief priests had delivered him for envy” (Mark 15:10).

We have come to the point in the story of the expansion of Christianity where the Spirit-blessed kingdom was starting to provoke the same kind of response. This is as it should be.

THE TEXT

“And when the Jews were gone out of the synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them the next sabbath. Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God. But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming . . .” (Acts 13:42–52).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

We have just concluded the sermon preached in the synagogue at Pisidian Antioch. Remember that the congregation included both Jews and God-fearing Gentiles. When the Jews left the building, the Gentiles clustered around and asked for more on the following sabbath (v. 42). As the congregation was dispersing, Paul and Barnabas also spoke to two other groups—Jews and proselytes, urging them to walk in the grace of God (v. 43). The proselytes would have been Gentiles who had converted to Judaism. So when the next sabbath came around, almost the whole town turned out (v. 44). When the Jews saw the crowds, envy took them by the throat, and they began opposing and blaspheming (v. 45). Paul and Barnabas then “waxed bold” and said that going to the Jews first was necessary, but because they decided to thrust grace away from them, counting themselves unworthy, Paul and Barnabas were going to turn and go to the Gentiles (v. 46). The Lord had commanded them to do this—seven centuries earlier—when He said this: Restoring Israel would be far too easy. “I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth” (v. 47; Isaiah 49:6). The Gentiles were glad when they heard this, and glorified God’s Word. And as many as were ordained to eternal life believed (v. 48). The Word of the Lord spread through that whole region (v. 49). But the envious Jews stirred up some of the God-fearing aristocratic women, along with some leading men, and ginned up a persecution. They succeeded in running Paul and Barnabas out (v. 50). Paul and Barnabas then shook off the dust of their feet, and came to Iconium (v. 51). But the disciples left behind in Antioch were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit (v. 52).

PISIDIAN ANTIOCH AND ICONIUM

Iconium was about 100 miles from Antioch, and both cities were in the region of Galatians. If you recall what we covered with regard to provincial Galatia versus ethnic Galatia, we have now been introduced to the people that Paul was writing to in the book of Galatians. We are in south central Turkey.

Note that in the face of settled persecution, the disciples there responded the way Jesus instructed us to (Matt. 5:12). They rejoiced with great joy (v. 52).

ORDAINED TO LIFE

When the gospel was preached, who responded in faith (v. 48)? The passage is very clear. The cause of their faith was the fact that they had been ordained to life. It did not go the other way around. They were not ordained to life because God had looked down the corridors of time, saw them believing, and then decided to ordain them to life. No. Our response of faith is because God set His electing love on us, by name, before time began.

“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” (2 Tim. 1:9).

ENVY AND THE GOSPEL

Before outlining the biblical treatment of the relationship of envy and the gospel, we have to be sure to mortify something in our own hearts first. There are two carnal lusts that must be absolutely mortified. The first is our tendency to envy others. “Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another” (Galatians 5:26). The flip side of this is to strive for the vainglory of wanting to be the envy of others (Phil. 2:3)—wanting to be the richest, or the prettiest, or the smartest. When you notice anything like that stirring in your heart, show no mercy.

But having said this, the apostle Paul tells us that the conversion of the Jews is the linchpin for world evangelization (Rom. 11:12,15). Not only so, but the linchpin of the conversion of the Jews is them watching Deuteronomic blessings come down upon Gentiles—which is what is barely starting to happen in our text. “I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy” (Romans 11:11).

CHRIST IN ALL

When we draw the ire of envious attacks, this is not a sign that something has gone terribly wrong. This is God’s appointed strategy. Those who live in hot pursuit of this world find that it is a bauble that constantly recedes from them. Those who give themselves away, and worship someone outside the world, and who set their minds on things above (Col. 3:1-4) . . . find all these things added to them (Matt. 6:33). You lose what you worship, and you are given what you refuse to worship. And why? Because Christ is all.

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Potent Worship (Practical Christianity #9) (King’s Cross)


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INTRODUCTION

Many modern Christians simply equate “praise” and “worship.” But the Bible teaches that praise is one component of worship, not the whole thing. The word “worship” literally means to “bow down.” It is an action and posture from the heart of complete surrender and ascribing all worth and value. But how do you do that for the Lord of the Universe? Our existence compared to God is like a gnat before the Sun. How do we do that?

Worship is doing in God’s presence what He has commanded us to do in sincerity and truth, which is not whatever makes us feel good or whatever we come up with. God has a plan to grow us and this world up into a mature glory we cannot even imagine, and obedient worship is one of the central ways God is accomplishing that plan.

The Text: “Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings, as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ…” (1 Pet. 2:1-10).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Having been born again by the word of God (1:23), Christians are to lay aside all malice, envy, and hypocrisy, and like newborn babies desire the milk of the word to grow – which is evidence that you really know the Lord’s grace (1 Pet. 2:1-3). As you grow up into Christ, you are drawing closer to Christ, but you do this by coming to Him as a living stone, rejected by men, by chosen by God and precious (1 Pet. 2:4). As you come to Him as that precious, living stone, God builds us all together as living stones and priests into His temple, as we worship God through Christ the living Cornerstone (1 Pet. 2:5). This was the prophecy of Isaiah that the Messiah would be the chief cornerstone of a new building – which becomes a precious-honor for those who believe, but, as was also foretold, a rock rejected and offensive to those who refuse the word (1 Pet. 2:6-8). Those who believe have been appointed to be a royal priesthood, a new Israel of God’s mercy (1 Pet. 2:9-10).

So those who see Christ as the most precious living cornerstone become living stones and share in His glory, but those who reject Him are broken and offended by Him. It is as we see Him as precious and perform our priestly duties from the heart that God sets us in our places and makes us into the glory we were made for. This is the potency of worship.

WORSHIP IS CENTRAL

When we say that worship is central, one way to think about this is simply as Christ as our Cornerstone. A cornerstone is the first stone laid in a foundation that establishes the integrity of the entire project: it must be solid, secure, plumb, and square. If the first stone is off, the rest of the foundation and building will be off. We gather on the Lord’s Day, the first day of the week, every week, to align (and re-align) ourself and our families to Christ our Cornerstone. And God uses this worship service as the primary way of shaping us as to fit into His building project rightly.

Because we are made in the image of God, people are naturally builders/makers. We are all building/making something with our lives. The only question is whether we are building something worthwhile, something good or not. Solomon spent many years and great resources building the temple, but when he was old his many wives turned his heart away from the Lord and he built shrines and altars for all of their false gods (1 Kgs. 11). Not only were they worthless; they became snares for generations to come. What are you building? You are building whatever orients your life. You are building on whatever is actually your cornerstone. What orients your days? Your life? What is your security? Your peace?

COMING TO HIM AS PRECIOUS

That which is precious to you is carefully guarded, protected, and planned for. If worship is our formal, corporate gathering to Christ, it should be guarded, protected, and planned. It is precious. It need not be stuffy or fussy, but like a carefully planned wedding or a military formation, worship is a liturgy (an order of service) because Christ is precious to us. We plan out what we are going to say, sing, and do here because Christ is worthy.

After the Fall, the only way for fallen man to draw near to God is through sacrifice. In the Old Covenant, the three main sacrifices were the Sin Offering, the Ascension Offering, and the Peace Offering, and when they were offered together, they were done in that order, most clearly in the ordination of the priests (Lev. 9, cf. Num. 6:13-17, 2 Chron. 29:20-35). The Sin Offering focused on the removal of guilt and corresponds to our Confession of Sin. The Ascension Offering focused on the dedication of the entire body which was burned and ascended in smoke to God, and that corresponds to our Scripture Reading, Prayers, and Sermon. Finally, the Peace Offering was the one sacrifice that ordinary worshipers could eat a portion of in the presence of God, and that corresponds to our Lord’s Supper. Throughout Scripture, we see that God calls His people to worship Him and then sends them out with His blessing, and so we call this structure of worship Covenant Renewal Worship (or the 5 C’s: Call, Confession, Consecration, Communion, Commission).

CONCLUSION

To renew covenant is to remember and re-align with Christ our Cornerstone. We do this by doing the main things He requires of us, which are confession of sin (1 Jn. 1:9), consecration of our entire lives to Him (Rom. 12:1), and communion with Him full of joy and thanksgiving (1 Cor. 10:16-17, 11:23-26). And by this means, He is building His temple in this world and His Kingdom will fill the earth.

By drawing near in sincere obedience, we are bowing down and we are ascribing to Christ His great worth. Some traditions try to gin up the sincerity with highly emotional music and think that if they have “spiritual feelings” they must have worshiped. Other traditions know that can’t be it and emphasize the liturgy, but God does not want us merely going through the motions. He is here, and He is real. And He knows our hearts.

And this is why our only hope is Christ. God does not accept our worship because we “did it right” or had “the right feelings.” He accepts our worship because it is offered up in Christ and through Christ. But true worship is sincere. God receives us gladly as the easily distracted children that we are. But are you looking to Him? Are you hoping in Him? Come to Him as your Cornerstone and you will never be ashamed.

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