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The Consequences of Self-Deception

(For a version of this devotion that is easier to print, follow this link.) Consider this phrase from Isaiah 44:20: "A deluded heart has led him astray." Note that it does not say, "He was deluded about the truth." Unquestionably that is the case. But the phrase says more: After being deluded about one matter, that very delusion leads us yet further astray from the truth. In Isaiah 44, this is the case with idol worship. The prophet here mocks the man who takes a block of wood, cuts it up, then uses some pieces to cook food and calls the rest a god. Verse 20 concludes: "He cannot deliver himself or say, "Is there not a lie in my right hand?" Having turned away from the One Who is the First and the Last, the one true God (verse 6), the idol worshiper eventually becomes unable to escape the delusion he willingly chose. He acts foolishly, but can't recognize it. His chosen delusion leads him further and further from the truth. He is trapped. This is a great danger that Scripture warns against again and again. Indeed, all fallen humanity is caught in this trap.
July 31, 2008

Are You a Runner? Discipline and Consistency in the Race of Faith

(This sermon on 1 Corinthians 9:19-27 was preached 7/27/2008. For a version that is easier to print, click here. The audio is available here.) What is your favorite biblical image of the Christian life?
  • We are soldiers in the army of God?
  • We are the bride of Christ?
  • We are God's ambassadors, proclaiming His Truth, speaking His Word to the world?
  • Or perhaps the image from John 15: Christ is the vine, we are the branches, connected to Him, getting sustenance from Him.
I love all these images - but my favorite biblical image is that of running the race of faith. As I wrote in this week's email, I love this image in part because of when I grew up. As a 16 year old just beginning my second cross country season, I watched the 1972 Munich Olympic games. There were numerous thrilling moments, especially Dave Wottle's come from behind victory in the 800. But what most impressed me - the event I can still see most clearly in my head - was Frank Shorter's win in the marathon, destroying an excellent field. Shorter's victory inspired hordes of new runners in the US, all wanting to complete a marathon; for me, the previous, vague idea that one day I might run a marathon became the certainty that I would. My interest in running carried over to Bible reading. I scoured my Good News New Testament for running images. I well remember underlining 1 Timothy 6:12, which reads in that translation, "Run you best in the race of faith. " I also encountered the other biblical running images, including the 1 Corinthians 9 passage we will consider this morning. I began to see, dimly, that as wonderful as competing in races was, it's major benefit, even it's major purpose, was to display spiritual truth. Over the next five weeks, I will share with you these biblical truths that I began to glimpse as a teen. Running in and of itself, like God's other good gifts in this life, can be both a blessing and a curse. If we put running right at the center of our lives, if we allow it to dominate our lives, it will become an idol that drinks up our lifeblood, as it diverts us from the only source of true life, Jesus Himself.    But if we see this gift, this challenge, as a picture, an analogy pointing us to God, displaying spiritual truths in human form, then running can be the gateway to a closer walk with God. May God be pleased to use this series to that effect.
July 31, 2008

What are Elders and Why Do We Have Them?

(This is a summary of the second sermon in the six-part series, “God Gave Pastors and Teachers,” preached on June 15. The audio is available here.) Why do we exist as a church? The glory of God is our goal. This is the reason we exist. We as a church are not able to glorify God in some ways:
  • We won't create galaxies or planets
  • We won't raise up kingdoms and bring them down
But what can we do, by His grace, through His power? Basically there are three ways we glorify God: 1) We worship God corporately: proclaiming and singing and delighting in the glory of God This gives God glory DIRECTLY 2) We proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who don't know Him
  • Through Missions: Reaching ALL NATIONS with the Gospel of the glory of God
  • Through Evangelism: Reaching our neighbors with the Gospel of the glory of God
3) We build up the body of Christ
  • In knowledge
  • In love
  • In faith
  • In Christlikeness
  • In perseverance
We can summarize these three ways in short phrases: We glorify God through:
  • Expressing joy in Christ
  • Spreading joy in Christ
  • Deepening joy in Christ
Thus, elders exist to help the church fulfill the reason for its existence.
  • Through worship
  • Through outreach
  • Through edification
God gives pastors and teachers as gifts to the church, so that the church might become what He intends it to be. The growing, strengthening, thriving, worshiping bride of Christ.
July 25, 2008

What is Preaching and Why is it Important?

(This is a summary of the first sermon in the six-part series, “God Gave Pastors and Teachers,” preached on June 1. The audio is available here.)

The title of this sermon series comes from Ephesians 4:11-14, which says, in part:

He gave the . . . pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,

Note that God gives pastors and teachers to the church.

  • They are His gifts, His presents, tokens of His love for the church.
  • They play a key role in equipping God’s people to minister as God intends.
  • They play a key role in guarding the church from waves of false teaching.
  • Thus they play a key role in enabling the church to become the interdependent, smoothly functioning body of Christ Paul describes in Ephesians 4:16.

Five main points:

July 25, 2008

Running the Race of Faith

(For a version of this devotion that is easier to print, follow this link.) The Bible is full of images that help us to understand the Christian life: we are part of the army of God, engaged in battle; we are part of the body of Christ; we are Christ's ambassadors, his envoys, representing him in this world; we are a building, being built up into Christlikeness; we are branches, Christ is the vine; we are the bride of Christ; we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. All of these analogies are rich and useful. My favorite analogy, however, compares the Christian life to running a race. This analogy is not common throughout the Bible, but Paul loves it, as he uses the running and racing image at least nine times in his epistles. In addition, the author of Hebrews uses the analogy once. The analogy is particularly rich for me because I am a product of the running boom. I grew up during a period when mile world records would be the lead headline of the sports section; when an American set two of those world records; when 100,000 fans filled a stadium to witness a track meet between the US and the Soviet Union. Then came the 1972 Munich Olympic Games. That summer, as a 16 year old who had been running competitively for less than two years, I watched Jim Ryun, the mile world record holder and my boyhood hero, fall in his 1500 meters heat and thus fail to make the final; I watched Steve Prefontaine, an American runner only five years my senior, make a game effort to win Olympic gold in the 5k; and, most importantly, I watched Frank Shorter demolish the field to win the Olympic marathon. After those Olympics, millions of Americans began running, many hoping to complete a marathon. Every teenage boy in the country who was already running competitively began to dream of mile world records and marathon victories. I was no exception.
July 25, 2008