Welcome!

For 5 years I was the pastor of Trinity International Church in Strasbourg, France. I created this blog with those people in mind. In mid-November 2018 I will become the Senior Pastor of Word of Life Church in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. The focus of this blog will therefore shift, but I pray that people from the blogosphere will continue to find it helpful wherever they might be found.
The churches' websites includes recorded sermons for those who are interested. Click the links below to access them.

Friday, July 28, 2017

Understanding the Gospel - Part 4: The Atonement

We have come to the heart of the gospel: Jesus died for our sins.
But why did Jesus have to die? What did it accomplish?

Our Hopeless Position

These are important questions to answer, particularly if we have pondered the universal nature of sin, the extensive nature of sin, and its ultimate consequence.

Because of sin:

  • We justly deserve death (Romans 6:23).
  • We are justly objects of God's wrath (Ephesians 2:3).
  • We are justly separated from God (Isaiah 59:2).
  • We are justly in bondage to sin and Satan (Romans 6:17; (Colossians 1:13).
It would have been perfectly just for God to have left everyone in this condition. He did not need to save anyone. Ponder for a moment that Satan and other demons are not going to be saved. They are in rebellion against God and will suffer the eternal consequences (2 Peter 2:4). God could have justly chosen to leave mankind in the same condition, but he did not. God, out of love, decided to create a pathway to salvation. His justice, however, meant that these each of these four consequences of sin needed to be addressed. In the atonement we see the justice and love of God on full and glorious display.

Jesus Christ Meets Our Need

Jesus Christ's death on the cross meets our need in remarkable ways. As we look at them, though, it is important to remember that his meeting our needs was only possible because he did not sin (2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15). Had he sinned, he also would have deserved death, wrath, separation, and bondage.

Jesus Died in Our Place

Scripture is clear that Jesus died for us. Consider Romans 5:8 which tells us that the death of Christ for us a was demonstration of God's love for us. He was sacrificed on our behalf (Hebrews 9:26). Isaiah 52:12-53:12 beautifully prophesies the sacrificial death of Jesus for our sins.

Jesus Experienced Wrath in Our Place

Not only did Jesus die in our place, he suffered the wrath of God on our behalf. The apostles coined a new word to describe this: propitiation. It's an unusal word, that isn't in the vocabulary of most English speakers, nor was the Greek word in the first century. It means a sacrifice that that bears God's wrath and in doing so changes God's wrath to favor. God sent Jesus to be the propitation for our sins (1 John 4:10). 

Jesus Experienced Separation from God in Our Place

Jesus experienced separation from God on the cross. Who can imagine the agony the Son of God was experiencing when he cried out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46). While the mystery of the incarncation will be explored in a future blog post, this cry, a quotation of Psalm 22, is a call of one experiencing the absence of God while undergoing severe trials. Jesus' death on the cross allowed us to reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:18-19).

Jesus Paid the Ransom for Us

"Redemption" is the word used of paying the "bondage price" of a slave. Mark 10:45 notes that Jesus came to give his life as a ransom. We have been set free! We are no longer slaves of Satan (1 John 5:19), nor are we in bondage to sin (Romans 6:-11-14). The idea of being ransomed is a powerful image, but we must be careful to realize that it is an analogy. We were slaves because of our sin. It was part of the justice of God that we be enslaved to sin. Jesus did not pay a ransom to Satan for us. Instead, he removed the legal guilt that held us in bondage. We have been set free.

For Whom Did Christ Die?

When we quote verses that say that Jesus died for the sins of the whole world (like 1 John 2:2) that we make sure that we are clear what these verses mean. They do not mean that everyone will be saved. The offer of salvation can be made to all, but only those who believe will be saved (John 3:16). Thus, we could say that the death of Christ has a theoretical potential to save all, but it is only effective to save those who believe. Because we do not know who will believe, it is important to present the gospel in the hopes that they will believe and be saved. This is why Paul talked about his obligation to all different types of people (Romans 1:14-17). So we can say that Jesus died for the sins of the whole world, but that the forgivenenss of sins is only available to those who repent and believe the gospel. We'll talk about that more in a future post.

As we present the gospel to people we need to keep the cross at the center. Sure, Jesus taught some things that are really beneficial to add to our lifestyles, but our core problem is sin and the central message of Jesus was that he was born to die for our sins. So let us not be ashamed to speak about the  death of Jesus for our sins. It is our only hope!

Thursday, July 20, 2017

Understanding the Gospel - Part 3: Sin and Its Just Punishment

The previous two posts in this series were about sin. The first post dealt with the universal nature of sin. We are all sinners and guilty before God. The second post dealt with the extensive nature of sin. Sin has affected every part of our lives. We are dead in our transgressions and sin. Those are important topics and need to inform both our worship and our evangelism.

This post will talk about the ultimate consequence of sin: the wrath of God. We cannot have an accurate idea of God without considering his attitude toward sin. The writer of Hebrews tells us that it is a "fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Hebrews 10:31). Because God is good, holy, loving, and just, he must act against evil and wickedness. He will judge and execute judgment on sin. This is his wrath and sinners are subject to it (Ephesians 2:3). The ultimate expression of the wrath of God is hell.

Hell is a place of eternal conscious punishment of the wicked. Jesus talked a lot about it. He called it a place of darkness, where people weep and gnash their teeth (Matt. 25:30). It is a place of eternal fire prepared for the devil and demons (Matt. 25:41). It is a place of unquenchable fire (Mark 9:43, 48). It is a place of conscious torment (Luke 16:22-24). The Bible tells us that the sinner will be cast into hell forever.

Some have wondered whether these images are literal or figurative. I think that question misses the point because these images are meant to point to something horrible and the Scriptures seek to depict the horrors of hell in the most vivid way possible. Is it like fire? Yes. Is it like darkness? Yes. Is it like a place where worms are constantly eating your flesh? Yes. It is like all of those things and worse.

It is not a party.

The images of hell are horrifying and the thought of people existing in that awful place should make us shudder. The Bible clearly teaches that hell is the final destiny of sinners who do not accept Christ (Revelation 20:15).


Some attempt to cool the flames.


Considering this doctrine has caused some to try to change it and make it less awful. Some teach that everyone goes to heaven. There are a few variations on this. Some teach that after a period of suffering people will "come to their senses" and accept Christ. Others teach that as soon as a person dies they see the reality of their situation and receive Christ. A careful reading of the Bible, however, eliminates these possibilities. There is no biblical evidence that people have a second chance after death. Even further from biblical truth is the idea that someone can enter heaven without faith in Christ. The only opportunity to avoid the wrath of God is through accepting the gospel (John 3:36).

Another common way to"soften" hell is called annihilationism. This teaches that the wicked will finally cease to exist. Their punishment is severe but temporary. Annihilationists refer to passages that speak of the destruction of the wicked as supporting their position.  After all, a piece of wood in the fire eventually ceases to be wood. The careful analysis of the term destruction demonstrates many uses of the term where the object "destroyed" does not cease to exist, rather it is permanently ruined. In many passages "eternal destruction" is paralleled with "eternal life" and it seems reasonable to assume that "destruction" and "life" are both to be experienced eternally.

No, there is no way to cool the fires of hell.

The Just Consequence


One of the problems that people often voice about hell is that it seems to be out of proportion to the wrong that was done. Is eternal torment for sins committed during a finite life just? It doesn't seem fair. I've struggled with that, too. However, I must affirm what the Bible teaches and adjust my thinking accordingly. If it doesn't seem fair, my thinking about sin must be wrong.

It is helpful to realize that we often think that the just punishment for wrong increases with the importance of the one wronged. For example, when I stop to fill up the car, I take a few moments to clean the windshield because I have killed many bugs while I was driving. Yet no one stops to arrest me or accuse me of doing wrong because they are just bugs. I wasn't trying to kill them.
But what if it was a person that I killed with the car? Then there would be consequences! Particularly if I killed someone intentionally!

What is the difference? A human being is much more valuable than a bug. A crime against a human is much more serious than a crime against a bug. That seems fair.

So what is the just punishment for sinning against the infinite God? It is infinite punishment! Given the gravity of the offense, the judge is right in executing the appropriate judgment: eternal damnation.

Why would a "loving God" allow a place like hell to exist? 


God does everything for his glory. This is good and right because is he is most glorious being in the universe. All of his attributes are beautifully and perfectly balanced and never contradict one another. There are aspects of his character that can only be revealed in action. For example, his power is displayed in his creation (Romans 1:20). How can God display his justice? Only in the execution of it! Therefore it is perfectly reasonable that God would create creatures with free will who would reject him and rebel against him. They committed the ultimate crime and will receive the proper reward for their treason (Romans 9:22-23) and the glory of God's justice will be clearly seen.


Implications


We should weep for the lost. When Paul thought of the many Jewish people that he knew who had rejected the gospel, he was filled with "great sorrow and unceasing anguish in his heart" (Romans 9:2). This is a normal and healthy response. We are to be full of compassion and love towards all.

We should find opportunities to share the gospel. The gospel is the only way of salvation. There is no other way. It is important for us to be witnesses of the gospel and to share the way of salvation clearly and prayerfully.

We should trust God's goodness. Hell is a terrible thing to contemplate especially when we think of those that we know who died without Christ. God has given us a measure of his love for others and the thought of eternal punishment should cause us agony. Yet it is important to understand that when we have the perspective that God has and full knowledge of the wickedness of sinners, we will feel differently about their punishment. God is good, holy, just, loving, and merciful. The judge of all the earth will do right (Genesis 18:25). We can trust Him.

Further Reading:

One of the best recent treatments of the subject is Françis Chan's Erasing Hell. (L'enfer ignoré)
A good article on the topic of hell is found here.
Jonathan Edward's message on the Usefulness of the Wicked is thought-provoking.



Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Understanding the Gospel - Part 2. Sin: How Bad is it?

The conversation was going nowhere. I was doing my best to explain the gospel message. The person seemed interested. We talked about sin and alienation from God. We discussed the cross. We had talked about the evidence of Jesus rising from the dead. He understood, but simply did not comprehend the significance or the implications of the gospel. I was frustrated. I answered all of his questions but still there seemed to be no progress in his accepting the gospel. I felt like I was hitting my head against a brick wall. What was going on?

The Gospel Message...


A look at the New Testament to discover the basics of the gospel presentation finds that it includes several elements. The early Christians included these things as they presented the gospel to people, often using local elements to help people understand. They did not simply repeat a script but sought to help people understand and used appropriate cultural references to aid understanding (See Acts 2:14-41; 3:12-26; 4:8-22; 5:29-32; 7:1-53; 8:26-38; 10:34-48; 13:16-49; 16:28-34; 17:1-4; 17:22-34; 22:2-21; 24:10-27; 26:1-23). These key elements are:
  • All people have sinned (Romans 3:23)
  • The penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23)
  • Jesus Christ died to pay the penalty for our sins (Romans 5:8)
  • An invitation to respond to the gospel (Matthew 11:28; John 1:11-12) that includes:
    • Repentance (Acts 20:21; Acts 2:37-38; Acts 3:19; 2 Corinthians 7:10).
    • Faith (John 3:16; Romans 10:9-13).
It is the task of believers to take the gospel to the nations of the world (Luke 24:47). My conversation was one attempt to see a person hear the gospel message. Yet nothing I said seemed to have an impact.


...meets our condition


The Bible uses several terms to describe people apart from faith in Christ. Perhaps the most helpful is the word "dead." Paul writes that we were "dead in our trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1). The man across the table had a physical life but he was spiritually dead. If I felt like I was beating my head against a wall, it was because I was! He had a spiritual heart of stone (Ephesians 4:16; Ezekiel 36:26)! He could not understand the gospel no matter how "effectively" I presented it (2 Corinthians 4:4-6). His heart was hard because of sin (Ephesians 4:18).

Spiritually dead is the true condition of the human race. We are spiritually dead because of sin. This is what theologians call "total depravity." That's a phrase so often misunderstood that it really needs careful definition. It does not mean that people are as bad as they could be. In fact, people can do many "good" things. They care for their children, they donate clothes to the needy, and they volunteer their time. The phrase refers to the extensiveness of sin in our lives rather than the intensiveness of it. Every aspect of our life is infected by sin, but that does not mean that we always choose the worst sin.

When compared to the acts and thoughts of other humans, some humans appear to be very good. However, when compared to the holiness and goodness of God, all are corrupt (Romans 3:9-18). They may be very religious, but their religion is a means of justifying themselves. This is sinful pride that only God can overcome (Luke 18:18-27). Total depravity means that our whole being is contaminated by sin. We are unable, because of sin, to do anything to save ourselves. We are separated from God and spiritually dead.

In my sharing the gospel with this man it became obvious that I have no ability to bring the dead to life. Through powers of persuasion, I might get him to agree to the "truth" of the gospel. I might be able to talk him into attending church and he might find it pleasing enough to attend regularly. None of this means that the dead person has come to life. My human efforts have no power, by themselves, to bring about such a radical thing as death to life. Only God can do that.

But salvation is from God


Paul went to the Roman colony of Philippi and found some women praying by the river. He stopped there and presented the gospel. There was a woman there from Thyatira named Lydia. The Scriptures tell us that the Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul and...she was baptized" (Acts 16:14-15). Paul shared the gospel, but it was the Lord that opened her heart! This is the way it always works. Jesus himself told us that "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him (John 6:44).

The dead can only come to life by the power of God. This is exactly what the Scriptures say happens for those who come to saving faith. "God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses and sins, made us alive together with Christ..." (Ephesians 2:4-5; see also Colossians 2:13).

The amazing thing is that God brings the dead to life in partnership with us. This is the astounding truth of Romans 10:9-17. Salvation comes through the preaching of the gospel. God takes the preaching of the gospel and uses it to work a miracle: he brings the dead to life! This is called regeneration or being "born again" (John 1:13; 3:2-8). How this happens will be the subject of a future post, but let's look at some implications for us as we share the gospel with others.

Implications


There is no one beyond the power of God to save. We naturally tend to think of people as "more likely" to accept the gospel than others. Often this is because some people are nicer or gentler than others and as a result less likely to immediately reject us. If we understand that it is the power of God that causes the dead to come to life, then we can have confidence that God is able to save even those who appear least likely to us. In the book of Acts and you will see the believers sharing the gospel with those who seemed open and those who seemed closed. They did this because they knew that God would draw those he chose through the preaching of the Word (Acts 13:48).

We do our part and God will do His. Often our fear in sharing the gospel or our testimony comes from the fear that we "won't do it right." This stems from the false idea that if we just say the right words the person will come to faith in Christ. But their salvation isn't dependent upon our saying some magical words. God will take what we say and use it. While it is always good to think deeply about how to share the gospel, it is more important to realize that God will use even our weak and faltering attempts for his glory. We do our best and leave the results to God (1 Corinthians 3:6-8). That takes the pressure off of us in sharing the gospel.

But we must do our part. Too many times we think that if we just live a "life of love" that will be sufficient for the salvation of those around us. Sometimes people say, "I follow what Francis of Assisi said 'Preach the gospel, use words if necessary.'" There's are a couple of problems with that. First, he never said it and it flies against what he actually said and did. Second, and more importantly, it isn't biblical. It is important that our lives demonstrate the reality of the message, but faith comes by hearing (Romans 10:17). We must share the gospel with our mouths!

Prayer is essential. Sharing the gospel is a supernatural thing. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8) and read that the early Christians prayed for boldness (Acts 4:29). Paul prayed that his people come to faith in Christ. He turned that burden into prayer (Romans 10:1). There are many Scriptures that we can use in prayer for those who do not know Christ. 

Too much reliance on man-centered techniques may lead to false "conversions." We must understand that salvation is a work of God in a person's life. We may be able to win intellectual arguments, but this does not mean that the person has been born again because someone more persuasive may talk them out of it.  We may convince someone to pray the "sinner's prayer" to avoid hell, but someone may actually think that it means that they can live like the devil without consequences. When a person has been born again by the Spirit of God, they will see Jesus as their greatest treasure and the gospel as the most important message in the world. It takes the power of the Spirit to make that happen.


Friday, July 7, 2017

What I Wish I Said

Photo by meredith hunter on Unsplash
Do you ever have one of those moments when you walk away from a conversation with and then think of what you should have said? I had one of those moments last Sunday. 

Occasionally at the end of a sermon I give time for questions. I will do this often if an issue is controversial, or if I think that clarification may be helpful. Our church is full of people from various nationalities and we often have discussions about how to apply Scripture to our lives. I usually enjoy these moments of interaction, but sometimes my spur of the moment answer is not the best answer. That’s what happened last Sunday. Let me explain.

The passage we were looking at was 1 Peter 5:1-5. It’s a passage about church leadership. I had talked about the role and risks of being and elder in the previous week’s sermon and now we were focusing on the fact that believers were to submit to the elders of the church. Here’s a link to the sermon. And some study notes from my preparation. 

When we become Christians, we are placed into the body Christ around the world. We are also called to be a part of a local church. It is within this local church that we are to develop deep relationships with other believers. It is primarily where all of the “one another” commands of Bible take place. Too often, we do not take these commands lightly and do not work through relationship difficulties: we simply change churches. The result is that we are stunted in our own spiritual growth, and each local church is made weaker and less effective.

Any group of people needs to have leaders. In the NT, this leadership is placed in the hands of the elders. They are responsible for governing, doctrine and shepherding the church. They are to lead primarily by example. The importance of their leadership, and the importance of their leading by example can be seen in that the primary qualifications for the position are character qualities, not a certain set of skills.

1 Peter 5:1-5 includes one instruction for non-elders: Submission. The sermon described what that looks like, but also what the limits of submission are. What do you when you disagree with the leadership of the church? What if there is sin or spiritual abuse happening? What do you do then? It made for a challenging message, and one which I thought would bring up many issues, so I asked for questions.

"What if an elder persists in flagrant sin, but nothing is done about it?" 


One person asked me what do in a situation where an elder is in persistent sin, does not repent, and other leaders do nothing about it. In my response I pointed to the process outlined in Matthew 18, but I realized afterward that I did not get to the heart of the question. The person wanted to know what to do if the leadership did not follow that process!

Let’s imagine a scenario where there is an elder/pastor who is sexually immoral. 1 Timothy 5:19-20 tells us what we are to do. It largely follows the steps of Matthew 18. If the man persists in sexual immorality he is to be rebuked in front of the entire church. But what if that does not happen? What if the elder is living in open sexual immorality and the elders or denominational leaders do nothing about it?

In this case, 1 Corinthians 5:9-11 comes into play. In this passage, we are told not to associate with believers “who are guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler – not to even eat with such a one.” If we are not to even eat with such a person, how much less should we sit under their ministry! In such situations we should find another local church to belong to.

What about domineering or spiritually abusive leaders?


The second question that I gave a little more thought to had to do with domineering or spiritually abusive leadership. Such systems are often legalistic and insist on unquestioning obedience to church leadership. Leaders in these systems are not good shepherds. They are like the shepherds of Ezekiel 34 who are motivated by their own ego and gratification rather than the health of either the sheep or the flock. In these churches, the leader does not tolerate disagreement, choosing instead to call it rebellion, spiritual immaturity, or the result of someone listening to the devil. According to them, anyone who leaves is backsliding or following Satan.

In the sermon I said that people who find themselves in a situation like this are usually better off leaving and finding a different church to attend. If they stay and work to bring about change, they will be in for an incredible battle.

In the question time, I was asked for a specific passage that dealt with that situation…that “authorized” leaving under these circumstances. None came to my mind at the moment. In fact, I hesitated to say what I really thought because I am always reluctant to criticize other churches. So I said something about the body of Christ being bigger than the local church. It was a pretty bland answer.

Upon further reflection, however, I think that I should have something like this: Legalistic and spiritually abusive churches are not preaching the gospel. They are preaching a religion of works. They are law-based rather than grace-based. Yes, Christ calls us to obedience, but it is always a response to grace, not law. We are called to live holy lives, and elders are to set an example and encourage us toward holiness in our lifestyle. But this holiness must flow from a deep relationship with Jesus. It is based on his death and resurrection. Spiritually abusive and legalistic churches measure people by their performance in meeting their peculiar set of rules. They produce Pharisees, not saints. These legalistic churches fall under the condemnation of Galatians 1:6-9. Those that do not have the teaching of Christ do not have God and we should not sit under their spiritual authority (2 John 1:9-10).