Christ Church

Herald of the Kingdom (CC Downtown)

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MATTHEW 3

1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judaea,

2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.

4 And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.

5 Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan,

6 And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?

8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:

9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.

10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance. but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:

12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.

13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.

14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?

15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

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In the Place of Moses (Acts of the Apostles #15) (Christ Church)

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INTRODUCTION

One of the hallmarks of worldliness is when the curators of museums subvert the legacies of the men they are ostensibly honoring. The Lord Jesus referred to this common pattern when He said that the men who build memorials to deceased prophets are the descendants of the men who murdered the prophets. As the stage is set for the martyrdom of Stephen, we see the very same dynamics in play.

THE TEXT

“And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and miracles among the people. Then there arose certain of the synagogue, which is called the synagogue of the Libertines, and Cyrenians, and Alexandrians, and of them of Cilicia and of Asia, disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake. Then they suborned men, which said, We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses, and against God. And they stirred up the people, and the elders, and the scribes, and came upon him, and caught him, and brought him to the council, And set up false witnesses, which said, This man ceaseth not to speak blasphemous words against this holy place, and the law: For we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us. And all that sat in the council, looking stedfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel” (Acts 6: 8-15).

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Along with six other men, Stephen had been elected and ordained as a deacon. But he was given more in his ordination than perhaps was anticipated. Full of faith and power, he began to do wonders and miracles, and all out in public (v. 8). This brought about a verbal confrontation between Stephen and certain men from the Synagogue of the Freedmen (v. 9). These men were from various places around the empire Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia. In modern parlance, they were from Libya, Egypt, and various places in Turkey. In this confrontation, they were unable to deal with Stephen’s wisdom or spirit as he spoke (v. 10). Rather than give up, they then secretly induced some other men to lie about Stephen, testifying that they had heard him blaspheming both Moses and God (v. 11). With that lie started, they then stirred up the people, elders, and scribes, and then came upon Stephen, arresting him, and bringing him to the council (v. 12). They had false witnesses prepared beforehand here as well, who said that Stephen never stopped blaspheming the Temple and the law (v. 13). They reported that Stephen had said that Jesus was going to destroy the Temple, and that the customs delivered by Moses would be changed (v. 14). But when the members of the council looked at him, they saw that his face was radiant, like that of an angel (v. 15).    

DISCIPLES OF MOSES WHO WEREN’T 

In their back and forth with the man born blind, the Pharisees had this to say. “We know that God spake unto Moses: as for this fellow, we know not from whence he is” (John 9:29). But how had Moses established his authority in Israel initially? God gave him power to work wonders (Ex. 4:1-5). But what had Stephen been doing at the beginning of our passage? Great wonders.

But there is more. When Moses came down off the mountain, having met with God, his face was radiant and shining (Ex. 34:29-30). And when the council here looked at Stephen, just before his defense, they saw that his face was radiant, like the face of an angel (v. 15).

In short, the defenders of the ways of Moses had a Moses return to them, and he began to minister in their midst. And so what did they do? They arrested him, in the name of Moses, and put him on trial for blaspheming Moses.

BLASPHEMY CHARGES 

One of the great contemporary topics is that of Christian nationalism. And one of the first objections that is raised is brought up on the basis of a fear that Christian nationalists would start arresting freethinkers in order to charge them with blasphemy—as though our biggest concern would be the village atheist who puts out a newsletter with a circulation of 153.

But one of the central goals of any true-hearted Christian nationalism would be to radically reduce the power of the state? And why? Because in Scripture you deal with beams and poles before you deal with specks and floaters (Matt. 7:3). In Scripture, the greatest threat when it comes to blasphemy is found in the ruling authorities. The beast from the sea had the name of blasphemy on its head (Rev. 13:1) The great Harlot was full of the names of blasphemy (Rev. 17:3). When Saul of Tarsus was a persecutor, he would force believers to blaspheme (Acts 26:11). The rich men who control the courts blaspheme the name (James 2:7).

Not only do they blaspheme, but they do so while charging faithful believers with blasphemy. Never forget that the Lord Jesus was convicted on a blasphemy charge (Matt. 26:65). And here, in Acts 6, this same terrible travesty is happening over again. Convicted of blasphemy by blasphemers.

When we have ensured that this can no longer happen, then would the time to worry about the village atheist.

THE INFLUENCE OF STEPHEN ON SAUL

We know more about Saul of Tarsus than we think we do. First, his hometown of Tarsus was located in Cilicia. Note that this was one of the regions mentioned when the Synagogue of the Freedmen was being described. Second, we are introduced to Saul by name for the very first time when he was watching the cloaks of those who were stoning Stephen (Acts 7:58). In Jewish law, those who testified in a capital case were required to participate in the execution. But the men throwing stones in this case had been suborned by the synagogue men who had lost their debates with Stephen. These synagogue men were the agents of this judicial murder, and one of them was clearly Saul. He consented to the death (Acts 8:1).

But we know from all our available information that Saul was a zealous man, and a world class intellect, far surpassing other men of his generation (Gal. 1:14). We also know that he was insolent, conceited, and proud, as he acknowledged later (1 Tim. 1:12-13). Now how do you think such a man would react to losing a debate with a Christian soup kitchen guy? Not well, we can pretty much guarantee. But someone with such a mind would also know that having a man set up and murdered is not the same thing as answering him. So after the execution of Stephen, when Saul erupts in a rage (Acts 8:3), we know that internally he is wound tight. That was his condition, exhaling threats and murder (Acts 9:1) on the Damascus road. This was just before the Lord appeared to him, and humanly speaking, it was all thanks to Stephen.

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Christ the Nazarene (The Continuing Adventures of Jesus #43) (Kings Cross Church)

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INTRODUCTION

As we have seen throughout out study of the Book of Acts, Jesus is pleased to build His kingdom through the adventures of controversy, mobs, near escapes, false accusations, beatings, and trials.

Our duty is to be faithful to Christ. There are certainly wisdom calls along the way, but faith sees Christ ruling and reigning over history and then obeys even when the path is through the storm. He rules the wind and the waves, and He turns the hearts of kings. Christ is the Nazarene – the Nazirite, the devoted servant of God, our Judge and the Governor of all Time.

The Text: “And he wrote a letter after this manner: Cladius Lysias unto the most excellent governor Felix sendeth greeting…” (Acts 23:25-35)

SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

Remember, a plot to murder Paul was just uncovered and Claudius Lysias has ordered an armed escort of 270 soldiers to take Paul in the middle of the night to Caesarea (Acts 23:23-24). This letter accompanies Paul to the governor, explaining the plot (Acts 23:25-27). Claudius Lysias claims to have rescued Paul since he was a Roman citizen (Acts 23:27), neglecting to mention that he had initially commanded him to be scourged without a hearing (Acts 22:24). Claudius Lysias explained the Jewish council, his judgment, the plot, and his invitation to Paul’s accusers to present their case before Governor Felix (Acts 23:28-30). Having arrived and reading the letter, Felix agreed to hear the case when Paul’s accusers arrived (Acts 23:31-35).

Five days later, the Jews arrived with their lawyer Tertullus to present their case (Acts 24:1). Tertullus is a Roman-trained lawyer and layers the flattery thick, crediting Felix with “great peace” and “worthy deeds” and “providence” and “kindness” (Acts 24:2-4), despite the fact that extrabiblical sources indicate his harsh suppression of the Jews. Tertullus accused Paul of being a “plague,” involved in sedition among the Jews, and a ringleader of a sect of “Nazarenes” (Acts 24:5). Like Claudius Lysias, Tertullus spins the story of Paul’s arrest, claiming that they were only in the process of following their Jewish law, when Lysias seized Paul “violently,” which Felix can confirm if he asks the Jews himself, and the Jews all agreed (Acts 24:6-9).

BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES OF JUSTICE

Despite manifest corruptions and paganism in the Roman system, there was nevertheless a semblance of biblical justice: a fair trial required the presence of both the accused and accusers, multiple witnesses, evidence, testimony and cross examination of both sides. “One witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of three witnesses, shall the matter be established” (Dt. 19:15). “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him” (Prov. 18:17).

Related, is the biblical requirement of “equal weights and measures” “Thou shalt not have in thy bag diverse weights, a great and a small. Thou shalt not have in thine house diverse measures, a great and a small. But thou shalt have a perfect and just weight, a perfect and just measure shalt thou have: that thy days may be lengthened in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee” (Dt. 25:13-15, cf. Lev. 19:35-36). This applies formally in a court of law, but it also applies informally in how we work out disagreements. God requires His people to treat one another the way they want to be treated and prohibits all spin, lies, flattery, and lynch mobs, whether in person, voice, text, or online. Biblical principles of justice also err on the side of mercy.    

NAZARENES AND NAZIRITES

While Tertullus supplies no evidence, his central accusation against Paul is that he is a leader of a cult called the Nazarenes (Acts 24:5). There’s always been a fair bit of discussion and confusion over this title “Nazarene,” first appearing in Matthew’s gospel, “And he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, He shall be called a Nazarene” (Mt. 2:23). The trouble is that there is no verse in the Old Testament that says that exactly. Some take it as something of a pun on the description of the Messiah “branch” [netser] (Is. 11:1), which Child was associated with the northern region of Galilee (Is. 9:1-2) where Nazareth was located.

Others suggest some connection with the Old Testament Nazirite vow (Num. 6, cf. Num. 13), in which a man was “separated” to lifelong or temporary priestly service to the Lord (e.g. Samson). And Paul was sponsoring Nazirite vows in the temple when the riot broke out (Acts 21:24, cf. 18:18). Perhaps the city of Nazareth in Galilee was named after this office and the Messianic themes, blending both into the associations of “Nazarene.”

It is also likely that there were thousand year animosities and rivalries at work: remember the northern and southern kingdoms divided after Solomon’s death and there was periodic civil war until the northern kingdom was conquered in 722 B.C. The Samaritans were syncretistic Jews from the northern kingdom (2 Kgs. 17:27ff). And by the first century, Galilee was a bustling marketplace of trade and productivity with ongoing antagonisms with the wealthy priestly classes associated with the temple in the southern region of Judea. In other words, “sect of the Nazarenes” was probably something of an ethnic and/or political slur. This likely played some part in the blindness of their persecution.

APPLICATIONS

Flattery is a form of lying malice, clothed in a veneer of kindness, either avoiding a topic that needs to be addressed or else trying to get something from them. It is double-minded or what we call ulterior motives (Prov. 12:2). “A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it; and a flattering mouth worketh ruin” (Prov. 26:28). Flattery can be a justification for real evil. But Paul was careful not to use flattery in his presentation of the gospel (1 Thess. 2:5).

When “providence” is assumed to be the prerogative of man, the only recourse is human manipulation, flattery, lawfare, and various forms of tribalism and animosity. And all of this is only intensified when real and perceived harm has been done. “They” and “we” and “friend/enemy” distinctions quickly become polarizing and weaponized. But Jesus is the Lord of history – the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End – and He was guiding this story in order for Paul to preach the gospel, even in the midst of the machinations of unbelievers. And the same thing is still true for us today. Christ is the true Chief Captain, our Great Nazarene. So tell the truth, do justice, and love mercy.

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Advent #1 (Survey of Isaiah #38) (CC Troy)

Lindsey Gardner on

THE REDEMPTION OF ISRAEL

In that day the Lord with his hard and great and strong sword will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan the twisting serpent, and he will slay the dragon that is in the sea. 2 In that day, “A pleasant vineyard, sing of it! 3 I, the Lord, am its keeper; every moment I water it. Lest anyone punish it, I keep it night and day; 4 I have no wrath. Would that I had thorns and briers to battle! I would march against them, I would burn them up together. 5 Or let them lay hold of my protection, let them make peace with me, let them make peace with me.”

6 In days to come Jacob shall take root, Israel shall blossom and put forth shoots and fill the whole world with fruit.

7 Has he struck them as he struck those who struck them? Or have they been slain as their slayers were slain? 8 Measure by measure, by exile you contended with them; he removed them with his fierce breath in the day of the east wind. 9 Therefore by this the guilt of Jacob will be atoned for, and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin: when he makes all the stones of the altars like chalkstones crushed to pieces, no Asherim or incense altars will remain standing. 10 For the fortified city is solitary, a habitation deserted and forsaken, like the wilderness; there the calf grazes; there it lies down and strips its branches. 11 When its boughs are dry, they are broken; women come and make a fire of them. For this is a people without discernment; therefore he who made them will not have compassion on them;  he who formed them will show them no favor.

12 In that day from the river Euphrates to the Brook of Egypt the Lord will thresh out the grain, and you will be gleaned one by one, O people of Israel. 13 And in that day a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were lost in the land of Assyria and those who were driven out to the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain at Jerusalem.

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Gratitude and Culture War (King’s Cross Church)

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INTRODUCTION

As we celebrate Thanksgiving this week, it’s worth considering how gratitude is at the center of the great war against evil and the particular battles we face in our day. The basic divide that runs through the center of the human race throughout human history is gratitude versus spite. The unrighteous are those who know God clearly revealed in Creation but refuse to glorify Him as God or be thankful, and those foolish hearts are darkened and make idols and are given over to uncleanness (Rom. 1:21-24).

THE TEXT

“For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1 Cor. 4:7)

THE SUMMARY OF THE TEXT

The wisdom of this world is carnal and is marked by envy, strife, divisions, and rivalry (1 Cor. 3:3-4, cf. Js. 3:14-15). And the root of it all is a wicked pride in man. Like arrogant toddlers waddling around in Huggies, people can get puffed up about almost anything, and they do. But the wisdom of God is primarily marked by gratitude since in Christ all things are yours (1 Cor. 3:21), the Lord will judge and make manifest all the counsels of all the hearts (1 Cor. 4:5), and all that we have is from the Lord (1 Cor. 4:7). Who gave you everything that distinguishes you from anyone else? God. What do you have that wasn’t a gift? Nothing. Why do you strut like you had something to do with it?

HE MADE US

“Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is He that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture. Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise: be thankful unto Him, and bless His name” (Ps. 100:3-4). In Him, we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). Christ is before all things and in Him all things consist (Col. 1:17). All things were not only created by His Word, but all things are held together constantly by His Word (Heb. 1:2-3).

All of this magnifies His kindness and mercy: upholding wicked men, giving life and health and good things to sinners, and then making us alive together in Christ, forgiving our sins, and granting us an inheritance that will never fade. Whatever our duties toward our families, our churches, and our nation, it is all grounded in this thanksgiving and praise and humility. Everything is a gift. And while we must stand against all evil, we must learn to do so with a grin on our face because our Father plays with dragons (Job 41).

NO GRIEVANCE FARMING

Despite all this grace, it is still the temptation of sinners to complain, murmur, and nurse grudges, which are all ultimately directed at God Himself. When Israel murmured about the lack of food and water, they were rebelling against God (Ex. 17:7, Num. 14:22, 1 Cor. 10:10).

In the name of “justice,” sinners plant resentment, spite, and wrath, and expect to reap a harvest of righteousness. But Scripture is clear: “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God” (Js. 1:19-20). You can’t build a healthy family, community, business, or nation with wrath welling up in your chest. That is the fuel of the enemy.

Righteous, godly anger is very slow and deliberate: it took God hundreds of years to finally destroy Israel and Judah. But many disciples would call fire down on clueless Samaritans and the animals of Nineveh. Godly anger is like the Ents that hold counsel to determine whether to become angry and go to war. Godly anger is surgical, precise, and altogether holy and productive.

NO MARXISM

Marxism is the modern cult religion of class envy. It imagines that peace and prosperity will magically appear in the aftermath of violent revolution, when the oppressed victims overthrow their oppressors. This was initially pitched in economic terms (working class vs. business owners), but it was repackaged in the last 75 years to include sex, race, and then sexual perversions. But the engine that drives it all is spite and resentment for the way God made the world. There are real injustices that get weaponized, but since the “problem” is God and His world, this so-called “social justice” plays fast and loose with the truth, designating classes of people in unbiblical categories.

God created the world hierarchically and diverse. And He created a world where virtue and hard work are generally rewarded, and sin has created thorns, weeds, pain, enmity, and death. The problem is not power, wealth, sex, or skin color. The problem is sin infecting those things, and sinners are tempted to rage and hate, fixating on those things. And the Devil loves it so because he can keep people locked in cages of resentment and false victimhood.

CONCLUSION

So be thankful for your grandma, the turkey, pumpkin pie, how tall or short you are, the color of your skin, and rejoice before the Lord. No guilt for any of His gifts and love your people they way you have been loved in Christ. But no throwing elbows; no wrath in your chest.

We want true gratitude without any whining, true thanksgiving without any spite, true grace without any rivalry.

There is a marked difference between gratitude that simply sees the gifts and bows the head in gratitude on the one hand, and the faux-gratitude that flexes in front of a mirror, while stealing sidelong glances down the table.

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