Colin S. Smith's Blog, page 19

Three Gifts to Behold in the Birth of Christ

The presents are under the tree; they are wrapped. We know there is something good there, and we think that we know what it is. But we haven’t seen it, and we don’t know what it is, until we get to tear the paper off. Then the gift will be revealed. That’s the idea in Isaiah 40:5-9:

And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together… Behold your God!

When something great and glorious is revealed, you want to look at it. Imagine a person who is given a diamond. She opens the box, sees the sparking jewel, but then she puts it aside, and opens another box that turns out to be candy. You would say, “Look at what you have just opened! Nothing else that you open will come close to this!” In Christ, there is both a revealing of the Lord’s glory and a beholding of it.

Glory Revealed

The glory of the Lord is the full wonder of who God is, the splendor of God Himself. In the book of Exodus, we read about how Moses said to God, “Please show me your glory” (33:18). Now here’s the fascinating thing about that prayer: something of the glory of God had already been revealed to Moses. But it had been revealed in cloud (Ex. 16:10), which means it is unknowable, and in fire (Ex. 24:17), which means it is unapproachable.

So, Moses comes before the Lord and says, “I’ve seen the reflections in fire and the cloud, but I want to see the full wonder of who you are! I want to see your face! Show me your glory!” God says, “You cannot see my face and live” (Ex. 33:20).

Now think about what Isaiah says in 40:5: “The glory of the Lord shall be revealed.” What Moses longed to see will be put on display. And this glory will be displayed for everyone—not just Moses.

The same prophet tells us how this will happen. “The virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name will be called Immanuel [God with us]” (Isa. 7:14). When Jesus Christ was born into the world, John wrote: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory” (Jn. 1:14).

Glory to Behold

To “behold” means “to look at.” Since the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, at what should we look?

1. Look at your God.

Behold your God (Isa. 40:9)!

Here is the miracle of Christmas: God became man in Jesus Christ.

Christ is the “image of the invisible God, the exact representation of his being” (Heb. 1:3). God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Jesus Christ (Col. 2:9). We have the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 4:6). The full wonder of all that is God has been revealed in Jesus Christ, so that Jesus says, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (Jn. 1:4:9).

How can you know God? Where can you find God? Who is He? What is He like? These are the greatest questions of life, questions that will shape your eternity. And God has not left you to make up your own answer.

When you want to know who God is, look at Jesus Christ. When you look at Him you will see holiness, compassion, justice, truth, mercy, kindness, patience, and love.

If people should tell you that they hate God, ask them to tell you about the god that they hate. Then talk to them about Jesus, who is the image of the invisible God, the exact representation of Him.

2. Look at His strength. 

The Lord GOD comes with might, and his arm rules for him (Isa. 40:10).

The glory of the Lord has been revealed, and He is awesome in strength.

You see this in His life as He endured temptation, opposition, and the relentless demands of people in need pressing in on Him day after day. And you see this in His death as He endures suffering beyond anything we can grasp or describe. You see it most of all in His mighty power by which He raises Himself from the dead: “Nobody takes my life from me: I have power to lay it down and power to take it up again” (Jn. 10:18).

Think what a Savior with this kind of power could do for you! There are things about yourself that you have not been able to change. You have found, as the Bible says, that “the leopard cannot change its spots.”

You would like to turn over a new leaf, to be a new and better person. You have tried, but you’ve found that it’s harder than you thought. You need a power that is greater than yourself. Look! Behold! The Lord God comes with might. The glory of the Lord has been revealed! The Savior has come! He reaches out to you with strong hands and with a mighty arm.

3. Look at His reward. 

His reward is with him, and his recompense before him (Isa. 40:10).

This verse reads, literally, “Behold! His wage is with him: His work is before him.” Christ comes to do a work and to earn a wage.

What is the work? Why did Jesus come into the world? Listen to his own answer to that question: “The son of man has come to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mk. 10:45). Here is the great work for which he came into the world. When Christ took our flesh and was born on that first Christmas, the cross was before him. Becoming the sacrifice and substitute for sinners was before him. Paying the price, the ransom, was before him.

What is the wage? What does Christ want so much that he would leave heaven’s glory and stoop to take to Himself the frailty of our human flesh? What is the reward He desires so much that He earns it through unspeakable agony on a cross? The answer is: “He will tend his flock like a shepherd” (Isa. 40:11). What does Christ get from all that he endured in this world? What are these wages that he so desired? A flock of dirty, smelly sheep! A flock that needs tending and gathering and carrying and leading.

Brothers, sisters, we are that flock.

Jesus says it so clearly: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (Jn. 10:11). That’s why Jesus Christ came into the world. The flock are his wages. Redeeming you is his reward.

You can be sure that having purchased His flock at such a cost, Christ will tend and gather and carry and gently lead His flock (Isa. 40:11). He says about his sheep: “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand” (Jn. 10:28).

Isaiah says later, “He shall see the fruit of the travail of his own soul and he shall be satisfied” (Isa. 53:11). What is the fruit of all that Christ endured in His soul and in His body? Answer: The flock. When you grasp what Christ did to make you His own, you will not doubt His love.

The glory of the Lord has been revealed in Jesus Christ. Look at Him. Behold your God! Trust Him with your life. Worship Him with all that you are and with all that you have, and follow Him all your days of your life.

O, come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.

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This article is an adaptation of Pastor Colin’s sermon, “Behold Your God”, from his series, Waiting for the Lord.

 

Standing Strong in the Fight Against Sin

Though most of us may not be engaged in physical warfare, God’s word tells us we are always battling “against the spiritual forces of evil” (Eph. 6:12). We sometimes forget this reality when day to day tasks consume us. We rarely take time to think about eternal things because we are caught up in the here and now. We are prone to forget that we are in the middle of a spiritual battle, but this doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

Our forgetfulness leaves us vulnerable to attack. We need to remember that a war is waging, and a real enemy seeks to destroy us. Spiritual warfare is our ongoing fight against sin—anything that opposes God and his purposes. Though this sounds dramatic and a little scary, we need not despair because God is with us in the battle.

Psalm 144:1-2 says,

Blessed be the LORD, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle; he is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield and he in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.

In physical warfare, a soldier must train well before he is ready to fight. And during battle, there are times when he must find rest in a safe place. This is also true for believers engaged in spiritual warfare. As Psalm 144:1-2 reminds us, we are called to both train for battle and to take refuge in God, our fortress.

Train for Battle

Throughout his Word, God has graciously warned us about the reality of spiritual warfare, and he has offered himself as the one who trains “[our] hands for war, and [our] fingers for battle” (Ps. 144:1). God also provides armor that will help us to “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” and be able “to stand against the schemes of the devil” (Eph. 6:10). Putting it on means to practice using the tools that God has given: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes of readiness from the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit, and prayer. Putting on the armor of God helps us to both train for and stand strong during attacks from our enemy.

In his first letter, Timothy reminds us of another kind of preparation for battle: training ourselves for godliness. We can do this by watching our teaching (1 Tim. 4:6-8). We must know what God’s Word says in order to determine if the teaching we receive is biblical. Listening to unbiblical teaching will not help us wage war on our sin. Since our hearts are naturally deceitful and wicked (Jer. 17:9), we can be easily overcome by the temptations of this world. Just as the powerful ocean currents cause the tides to shift, so our hearts can drift from the truth if we are not persistently training ourselves according to God’s Word.

Take Refuge in God

There are times when a soldier at war must take cover—find refuge in a safe place. Where do we go for refuge during spiritual attack? Psalm 144:2 says, “[the LORD] is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield and he in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.” God is our dependable refuge, unlike any other person or place on which we might be tempted to put our trust. He is steadfast, loving, strong, and able to save. This and many other Psalms proclaim God as a rock—a safe refuge. Here are just a few examples:

Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us (Ps. 62:8).

How do we take refuge in God? We do so by trusting him—putting our faith in him alone—and pouring out our hearts to him in prayer. Spending regular time in God’s Word and prayer will help us to trust him and will guard us from weariness. If we neglect these means of grace, over time our spiritual strength will diminish, and we will likely not stand strong under temptation. If we regularly hear from and call upon the Lord, we will be able to draw from a well of strength in the day of great battle.

This God—his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him (Ps. 18:30).

How do we take refuge in God? We do so by believing the truths of God’s word. Sin often begins when we listen to lies and believe the false promises that Satan makes to us. Instead, when we call to mind a promise of God, which is truth, it acts as a shield of refuge for us. God’s word always proves true. His word is dependable and strong to shield us.

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble (Ps. 46:1).

How do we take refuge in God? We do so by remembering that the Lord is with us. When we who are in Christ were born again, we “were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13). The Lord, who is the Holy Spirit, is now with us at all times. In moments of temptation and attack, the Holy Spirit aids us in the battle by providing strength and refuge with his presence. We can take rest by drawing near to him, knowing that we are not alone in the fight against sin.

Win Some Battles

For those who are born again in Christ, a war wages within us, and the greatest struggle is with our own sinful nature. Though we will always be battling sin on earth, we can make progress. Though we will give in to temptation at times, our goal is to win some battles. Our ability to fight well doesn’t come from our own strength or skill. Instead, our success is rooted in the reality that Jesus Christ has already won the ultimate victory through his death and resurrection. Through his Spirit, the Lord Jesus is training us into his image and offering himself as an ever-present refuge. We can stand strong because this Savior is on our side!

 

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When You are Discouraged in December

With just one week till Christmas and all that has to be done, you are probably feeling that you have more on your plate than you know how to handle.

This is the season of joy, but it is also a time when the cumulative weight of all that has happened in the course of the year catches up with you. I’ve had several conversations this week in which people have said to me, “This has been a really difficult year for our family.”

In this last month of the year there is a sense of being worn out, run down, or stretched thin. Someone described it to me as a “collective weariness.” I think that’s a good description.

What is the answer to collective weariness? Where would we look in the Bible for help when we feel jaded, discouraged, and generally worn out?

Lean into the Truth You Know About God

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable (Isa. 40:28).

God reminds His people of what they already know, what they have often heard, because faith is strengthened, not by learning something new, but by coming back to what we have heard and known.

There are four things right here in Isaiah 40:28 that every believer knows and has heard about God, and that we need to lean into in these times of weariness.

God is our Creator.

God does not grow weary.

God works on an everlasting timescale.

No one can fathom His understanding.

Lean into the Truth You Know About Yourself

He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted (Isa. 40:29-30).

Notice the words that are used here: faint, no might, weary, fall exhausted. That’s us! And notice that this is us at our best: “even youths shall be faint and weary, and young men shall fall exhausted.” The phrase “young men” literally means “picked men.” This is like athletes who are in peak condition, the ones who catch the eye of the Olympic selection committee.

At the end of the marathon, even athletes in peak condition are weary. Some fall exhausted. Others look faint. Why? Because their bodies have been through a test of endurance that has pushed them to the limits.

There are limits to all human endurance. Paul describes our bodies as tents (2 Cor. 5), not palaces made of stone and held up by marble pillars, but tents made of canvas and held up by ropes that stretch, sag, and fray. So, no Christian should be surprised at this experience of weariness.

John Calvin said that nearly all the wisdom we possess can be divided into two parts: The knowledge of God and knowledge of ourselves. Lean into the truth that you know about God and about yourself.

God is your Creator and He will never abandon you. He does not faint or grow weary. He works on a vast timescale with outcomes still to be revealed. You are not God. You are a created being with limits to your own strength and endurance. You will become weary. You will know what it is to feel spent and exhausted. This should not take you by surprise. Lean into the truth that you know.

Lay Hold of the Hope That You Have

He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength (Isa. 40:29).

Notice the word “gives.” This is an action of God in relation to His own people at times when we feel our strength is depleted, and our faith is burning low. He “gives power” and He “increases strength!”

How does God do this? The way He gives strength to the weary is that He gives himself to you. This is not some zapping with power that moves an exhausted Christian into bionic overdrive. The effect of this strength is that God’s people keep pressing on. They keep running. They keep walking.

Listen to how Paul puts this:

We have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies (2 Cor. 4:7-10).

The energy of God does not make Paul feel that he is soaring above the clouds. No! He says, “I toil and labor (Col. 1:28-29). I sometimes feel discouraged and exhausted. But here’s why I don’t give up. Here’s why I keep struggling on… God puts the ability to do that in me.”

Receive Strength from the Lord

They who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength… (Isa. 40:31).

What does it mean to wait on the Lord? It means to look expectantly in eager anticipation.

When I was a boy, my grandparents would come and visit every Wednesday. My grandmother, (we called her Nana) always had sweets in her bag. I liked it when she came! I would watch at the window for her blue car to arrive. That’s what it means to wait on the Lord. Hope in him. Count on him. Look expectantly for his help.

Laying hold of the hope that you have is the natural result of leaning into the truth that you know. When you lean into what you know about God, you will look to Him and, as you do, He will give you strength.

In His humanity, the Lord knew what it was to be weary. He knew what it was to stumble and fall exhausted from bearing the weight of His own cross. But he is beyond that now! He has ascended to the right hand of the Father and he is there for us.

Christ gives His Spirit to those who hope in Him so that something of His divine power may touch us in our human weakness. Strength comes as we ascend by faith into the presence of the Lord and commune with our living Savior. Here’s what will come from that: You will keep running. You will keep walking. You will keep pressing on.

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Photo: Unsplash
This article is adapted from Pastor Colin’s sermon, “Collective Weariness”, from his series, Waiting for the Lord .

All I Want for Christmas is Hope

Large family gatherings filled with hugs and laughter. Shopping trips in bustling, crowded stores. Children excitedly counting down the days to December 25. For me, these are some things that signal Christmastime is here—a whole month covered in delicious anticipation. Like the turkey and cranberry sauce running together on my holiday dinner plate, the days pass with one taste after another of cheery goodness. Normally, it’s the most wonderful time of the year.

But a normal Christmas doesn’t seem possible while the world battles a global pandemic. What hope do we have at this now anxious and fear-filled time of the year?

Sure, we can hope to celebrate Christmas with loved ones in good health. We can hope that an effective COVID-19 vaccine will soon be available. We can hope that 2021 will be better than 2020. But there is no guarantee that any of these good things will actually happen. Hope in the things of this world is nothing more than wishful thinking.

The Bible describes something drastically different: hope that is based on promises. Hope that comes with guaranteed outcomes. As we are tossed by waves of change and instability, we need to hold fast to what is solid and certain.

Secure Hope

Romans 8:38-39 offers two promises that can anchor our insecure hearts in true hope.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

1. Find Hope in the Love of God

“…[nothing] will be able to separate us from the love of God…” (Rom. 8:39).

As news and information change daily, even by the minute, God’s love is unchanging. His affection for his children is not moved by the ways of this world. Christian believers can be certain that nothing can take away God’s love for us. Not diseases or death. Not demonic forces. Not the circumstances of today. Not the trials of tomorrow. Nothing in this world can alter or remove God’s gracious, unwavering love for his people.

God’s loving commitment to us means that he chooses our present circumstances according to his love for us. Because “God is love” (1 Jn. 4:8), he will use these circumstances to accomplish his purposes for our good and his glory. At Christmas, we celebrate the birth of Christ, the one who makes it possible for us to be eternally loved by God—and never separated from that love. “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him” (1 Jn. 4:9).

2. Find Hope in the Lordship of Christ

…the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:39).

Believers are able to call Christ Jesus our “Lord” because Jesus became our High Priest, the perfect sacrifice required by the most holy God. When we understand this sacred transaction, we recognize that we now belong to this Lord Jesus. Not only does he love us, but he also owns us. He has full authority over our lives. We can find hope in the Lord who has full control of all creation—even during a pandemic.

Jesus is Lord over the brokenness and disease that plague our world. While we continue to endure the challenges of COVID-19, the future may seem bleak with little hope of a return to normalcy anytime soon. But when we put our hope in Christ Jesus our Lord, we take comfort in the fact that our Lord has already determined the end of the pandemic. He has already claimed the ultimate victory over sin and death, and we can anticipate a future that is utterly secure and certain in his hands. This future has already been promised to us and purchased for us by our great High Priest.

Christmas Hope

Celebrating Christmas may look different this year. Our usual ways of gathering and gift-giving may not be possible. Our usual counting-down to Christmas Day may be tinged with worry and fear. Instead of hoping for the temporary comforts or pleasures of this world, let’s put our hope in the love of God and the Lordship of Christ. This is the true hope of Christmas that we celebrate! Because God will never remove his love from us, and because Jesus Christ is Lord, our hearts are anchored and our hope is secure.

Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful (Heb. 10:23).

 

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Do You Feel Loved by God?

Several years ago, I heard about a professor at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School who posed this question to her class: Do you believe that God loves you?

Out of these 120 Christian students preparing for ministry, how many do you think said, “Yes?” Two! The rest gave answers like this:

“I know I’m supposed to say, ‘Yes.’”

“I know the Bible says He loves me, but I don’t feel it.”

“I’m not sure I can really say I believe it.”

How can this be? 

Surely every Christian knows the love of God. Did we not learn this in Sunday school? “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”

Jonathan Edwards used a simple analogy to get to the heart of this:

There is a difference between having a rational judgment that honey is sweet, and having a sense of its sweetness. [1]

You can know honey is sweet because someone tells you, but you don’t really know its sweetness until you’ve tasted it. You can know God loves you because your Sunday school teacher told you, but you don’t really know God’s love until you’ve tasted His love.

Many Christians live at a great distance from this felt experience of the love of God. So much Christianity in the West is shallow and satisfied. It affirms a creed but it so often lacks spiritual life.

Across the country there are millions of people who have a faith, who’ve been brought up to believe Jesus died and rose, they’ve gone to church, but they have no living experience of God’s love.

We need this prayer:

May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance (2 Thess. 3:5, NIV).

This is Paul’s prayer for the church. It’s a prayer that God will do something in us who believe but do not always feel that God loves us. He’s speaking to Christians going through great difficulties, and he says, “My prayer for you is that God will direct your hearts into the love of Christ.”

That means it’s possible to endure persecution and not to feel the love of Christ. It’s possible to go through seminary and not to feel the love of Christ. It’s possible to worship in the seats of an evangelical church for 20 years and to not feel the love of Christ.

I don’t want to be there! And neither do you. People who are not Christians endure great pain and carry great sorrows. They do it by gritting their teeth. They do it in Britain with a stiff upper lip.

Paul is saying to these believers, “I want something better for you. I want your soul to be filled with the love of God.”

Three Ways to Experience More of God’s Love and Christ’s Patience
1. Become dissatisfied with your present spiritual experience.

Cultivate a holy discontent. The person who prays the prayer of 2 Thessalonians 3:5 is looking for something more than he or she already has: “Lord, direct my heart into Your love.”

We live in a “been there, done that” culture, and the great danger is in developing a “been there, done that” form of Christianity: “I know God loves me, that Jesus died for me, and that my sins are forgiven. So, what’s next?” Then one day someone says, “Do you really believe that God loves you?” And your shallowness is exposed.

A.W. Tozer says:

We have been snared in the coils of a spurious logic which insists that if we have found him, we need no more seek him… In the midst of this great chill there are some who will not be content with shallow logic. They want to taste, to touch with their hearts the wonder that is God. I want deliberately to encourage this mighty longing after God. [2]

Don’t settle for a faith in which you cannot feel the love of God and the patience of Christ.

2. Ask God to direct your heart into His love.

2 Thessalonians 3:5 is a prayer, so use it. Make it your own. The Scriptures tell us what we should pray for.

Yet, some of you carry a lot of baggage on this. Whenever you think about God, your first instinct, though you believe, is to picture Him with a frown on his face. You feel that HGe is angry with you and that He is condemning you. You need this prayer.

Listen to this wise counsel from John Owen:

So long as the Father is seen as harsh, judging and condemning, the soul is filled with fear and dread every time it comes to Him… But when God… is seen as a Father, filled with love, the soul is filled with love to God in return… If your heart is taken up with the Father’s love… it cannot help but choose to be overpowered, conquered and embraced by him. [3]

Some of you think God is cold and aloof and harsh and demanding, and these thoughts are deeply rooted in your mind.  Ask God to direct your heart into His love, and go on asking until—like snow melting in the warmth of the sun—your heart begins to thaw in the warmth of the love of God.

3. Gaze into the love of God in Jesus Christ.

Have you ever noticed that people who don’t like each other will merely glance at one another? People who like each other will look at one another. People who are desperately in love will gaze at each other.

As the Psalmist says, “One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple” (Ps. 27:4). Survey, gaze, ponder, and meditate on the love of God and the patience of Christ.

What is Your Response?

How would you describe your current experience of God’s love and Christ’s patience?

Perhaps 2 Thessalonians 3:5 awakens something in you—deep calls to deep. Maybe you’re thinking, “I want more of what Paul’s talking about.” For you, this Scripture sounds like a church bell drawing you in, calling you to seek after God.

If this is you, settle it today, in your heart and mind, that you will pursue a sweeter taste, a deeper experience, a clearer glimpse of the love of God and the patience of Christ. Go after it. And don’t ever stop.

Or, maybe you are thinking that Paul’s prayer is not so much like the sound of a church bell drawing you in as the sound of an alarm clock waking you up.

If you are not awake to the love of God, shouldn’t you be concerned about the condition of your soul? I hope you’ll ask, “What is wrong with me? I have no interest in the love of God. Why am I so satisfied, when others are hungry and thirsty for God?” I pray you’d ask these questions.

Perhaps God will use this to rouse you from the deadness of spirit in which you have been sleeping for far too long.

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1. Jonathan Edwards, “A Divine and Supernatural Light” (sermon delivered in 1734), http://www.monergism.com/thethreshold/articles/onsite/edwards_light.html.
2. A. W. Tozer, “The Pursuit of God” (Christian Publications, 1982), 16-17.
3. John Owen, “Communion with God”(Banner of Truth, 1991), 18, 32.

 

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This article is adapted from Pastor Colin’s sermon, “The Love of God and the Patience of Christ”, from his series, Staying the Course (When You’re Tired of the Battle) .

 

What Does the Bible Say about Church Online?

Search for the word “online” in any Bible version and you’ll get zero results. Search for the word “church”, however, and you’ll quickly realise the Bible has a lot to say about that! And whilst we could have a lively debate about whether you can break bread online, or whether singing on your own at home is worship, let’s focus less on what we do in a church service and more on the way we do it. What does the Bible say about the way believers should do church?

In the book of Acts, Luke gives us a beautiful summary picture of the community God is building. There are three words in this passage that help us understand what makes up a biblical church community: Together. Day by day.  Devoted. Exploring the meaning of these words will help us to pursue such community even in the face of pandemic restrictions, fears, and frustrations.

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved (Acts 2:42-47, emphasis mine).

Together

In the original language of the text, the word translated “together” literally means “in the same place at the same time.” Coupled with the fact that the word “church” in the Bible means “gathering”—an assembly of believers—this helps us to see how integral to church community is the physical gathering. Indeed, the word church is repeated twenty-one times in Acts alone. You get the picture: the early believers physically met together!

In our culture, the geographical spread of families and increase of daily life spent online and on-demand mean our society no longer defaults towards together, same-place and same-time, activities. Attending church used to be an exception to this, but the restrictions imposed by the pandemic have motivated most churches to pursue some degree of online presence.

Indeed, church online has been necessary in the pandemic, but we must beware of it becoming on-demand, at our convenience. We must fight against this and seek as far as possible to do church together, at the same time and in the same place as others.  Now for some who are clinically vulnerable (or supporting those who are), it may not be wise to physically gather in person at the height of the pandemic. But Hebrews 10:24-25 warns us:

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (emphasis mine).

Where we can, we must commit to meeting with other believers. Whether two, or more, we meet so that we can encourage one another and spur one another on.

Day by Day

In Bible times, meeting day by day was easy because of frequent shared routines. Fetching water from the well or going daily to the market for food (because there were no refrigerators) did not necessarily make life easier or better, but these daily things meant relationships formed quicker and went deeper than they seem to do today.

Day by day living has become harder as the pandemic leads us to increasingly shop online. Delivery services are one of the few industries thriving in the pandemic! With fewer day by day shared routines, we need to find new ways of cultivating day by day friendships within the body of Christ. At the very least, we can commit ourselves to a local church, regularly attending worship services and meeting midweek for prayer or Bible study with others. The depth of our friendships is directly proportional to how much time we spend together. To put it starkly: if we don’t make time we won’t make friends.

Let’s be like John, who craved face to face over the inferior methods of “pen and ink” (3 John 13-14), or Paul, who said in Romans 1:11, “I long to see you.” Why do Paul and John want to meet with the church physically? Is it because they didn’t have Zoom? Perhaps, but I suspect it is because, however sophisticated your means of communication, physical distance inevitably creates some degree of relational distance. Paul longs to see the other believers. Longs to be able to meet with them day by day. If we don’t long for this, too, let’s confess that to God and ask that he would help us see how much we need one another day by day.

Devoted

I love this word because it speaks of giving yourself completely to something, spending time, giving attention. It also carries undertones of loyalty, love, and passion.

It’s hard in our culture to be devoted to anything. Now that it’s possible for many to work whenever and wherever it suits us, it’s hard to be fully present anywhere. We always have one eye on our notifications, one earphone in. So, it is harder to be devoted because we are constantly bombarded by our connections to other times and places.

What does the Bible say about church online? Church is not about passive, on-demand consumption. Our Lord was so devoted to the church that he made himself nothing, taking the nature of a servant, being made in human likeness, humbling himself even to death on a cross to save us (Phil. 2:7-9). How could our response be anything less than complete devotion to him? This includes devotion to his church.

There is a struggle with our flesh in order to make this sacrifice: saying no to our comfort and yes to God. But as we express our devotion by setting the alarm, getting out the door, struggling for a parking space, masking up and showing up, we will find great blessing in the physical gathering with other believers. Luke 2:47 reminds us of the rewards of making in-person church a priority: glad and sincere hearts, the praising of God, and the enjoyment of all the people.

Though we grieve many painful losses and difficult changes caused by COVID-19, we can praise Jesus Christ for continuing to build his church. Online worship services may be one of the means by which he is doing so. But let’s also look to Christ to renew our longing for the day when we all meet face to face again, a flourishing community overflowing with gladness, sincerity, and praise.

 

Photo: Unsplash

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Simple Strategy for Meditating on God’s Word

May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance (2 Thess. 3:5, NIV).

My wife, Karen, and I have enjoyed visiting Mackinac Island on several occasions. When you cross the Mackinac Bridge, you can look to one side and see the vastness of Lake Michigan, and look to the other side and see the vastness of Lake Huron.

2 Thessalonians 3:5 is like that, bringing together—not two lakes—but two oceans, two worlds, two galaxies: the love of God and the perseverance of Christ. The word “perseverance” can also be translated “patience.” If you have a King James Bible, that is what you will find there—“the love of God and the patience of Christ.”

Paul prays that God will direct the hearts of Christian believers into the vast depths of God’s love and Christ’s patience. But where can you go to receive that direction? God speaks to you directly through His Word. He directs your heart as you read it and meditate on it. Here is a simple strategy that can help you to feed on God’s Word directly.

Restate and Apply

There are three simple observations we can make by restating and applying just one verse of Scripture, 2 Thessalonians 3:5:

1. We need love and patience, especially when we are tired of the battle.

2 Thessalonians was written to Christians who were experiencing the draining effects of the difficulties of life.

You may say, “Well, that’s me.” You have difficulties at home, tensions at work. You’re experiencing endless visits to the doctor, the wearing effect of ongoing pain. You have difficulties in your marriage, a wayward son or a wayward daughter. And you find yourself saying, I need love, and I need patience!

2. God can give us the love and patience we need.

Notice something wonderful about this verse. Paul is not asking Christians to do something for God. He’s asking God to do something for them!

He’s saying to these Christians, who are being persecuted, “I see what you’re up against, and I’m asking God to do something special for you. May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s patience.” The whole point is that our heavenly Father is able to give His children the love and patience we desperately need.

3. We can ask God to give us what we do not have.

If these Christians were brimming with love and overflowing with patience, there would be no need for this prayer. So, what’s the point of this prayer? Paul is asking God to give them what they do not have: “Lord, give us the love and patience we need. You have love and patience in abundance. We don’t. Give us what we do not have.” This is a wonderful prayer.

You, too, can ask God to do this for you by praying: Lord, fill my dried-out heart with Your love. Fill this frantic life with the peace and the patience of Christ.

These observations form a very simple meditation on this one verse of Scripture.

Feed Your Soul

I want to encourage you to make simple observations for yourself as you read the Bible every day. Read a few verses. Then pick one, and write out two or three sentences to restate and apply what it says. Children can do this!

Get a hardback notebook. Write out the verse. Then write out, in your own words, what the verse says and how it helps you. As you begin this practice, twenty years from now it will be your joy to look back on what God has taught you.

Don’t just read the Bible and rush on. Take what God is saying into your life. Do this for a few minutes every day, or at least start by doing this a few times a week. As you do this, you will get better at it. God’s Word will bear fruit in your life.

Some of you are in the habit of reading devotionals. That’s good, but if you have been doing that for many years it may be time for you to move beyond feeding your soul on other people’s thoughts.

Try feeding your soul on the Word of God directly. Ask God to help you. Get a friend to encourage you. A year from now, you will be amazed at how much you have grown.

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Photo: Unsplash

This article is adapted from Pastor Colin’s sermon, “The Love of God and the Patience of Christ”, from his series, Staying the Course When You’re Tired of the Battle.

Reasons to Sing at the End of 2020

I love singing Christmas carols, and the earlier in November the better! Music lifts our souls and expresses our hope. Though 2020 has been a crazy year, Christians have reasons to sing that no virus can ever take away, and the world needs to hear why.

Why do Christians sing with joy at Christmastime? Luke’s account of the night Jesus was born gives us something we can sing about at the end of every year, no matter what it has been like.

A Promised Savior

Two thousand years ago, the Roman Empire stretched around the entire Mediterranean Sea, and Caesar Augustus was on the throne. His empire established the “Pax Roma,” the Peace of Rome, and people sang songs to him as the savior of the world. However, Augustus was not the savior of Israel. Caesar could not bring the glory or peace God’s people were looking for. They longed for something greater.

To the surprise of humble shepherds watching flocks outside of Bethlehem, an angel of the Lord appeared and declared to them:

Fear not, for behold I bring you good news of great joy… For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (Lk. 2:10-11).

The angels announced Jesus’ birth to humble people in need of hope, and it was the best news in the world. It was the gospel—good news: God’s promised savior had arrived! While these shepherds were afraid under Rome and before the angels, this message brought the hope they needed. Their hope of a Messiah was fulfilled in Jesus Christ, and his arrival turned their fear into faith.

God always keeps his promises to his people, and his promises can give us confidence in any circumstance. It was “unto us”—for God’s people—that Jesus came into the world, and he came to bring peace and blessing to all who love and follow him. God promises and delivers the best news, and he does it to give us hope.

Peace and Favor

God promised that Israel’s savior would also bring peace. When the Bible talks about peace, it refers to far more than just quiet and tranquility. The night of Jesus’ birth was anything but silent. After the angel’s announcement, a heavenly choir joined the solo angel, and together they sang:

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth,

peace among those with whom he is pleased!  (Lk. 2:14).

The hope of the gospel is grace and peace. Biblical peace comes from having a right relationship with God, and God shows blessing and favor to those who are righteous. Sinners cannot receive these gifts unless they receive grace from a savior. Jesus came into the world to establish righteousness in the hearts of God’s people across the earth, and he accomplished this on the cross. Though our sins were as scarlet, in Christ, we are pure as snow–– pleasing to God the Father. Christ suffered and died, then rose from the grave, to fill his people with all joy and peace in believing, that they would abound in hope (Rom. 15:13). These are gracious gifts of God’s favor, and through the Holy Spirit, God gives them “unto us”—his people—in every age. God came among his people, bringing grace and peace, so that he can show them his favor forever.

God with Us

The ultimate promise of the Bible is that God will dwell with his people. Though Jesus Christ is God in the highest heaven, the most glorious and majestic and powerful, he was born of a poor virgin and laid in a barn trough. He later submitted himself to the oppressive rule of a sinful, pagan empire. The wonder of Advent is this: God in the highest became the humblest, and he did so to unite his people with himself.

The irony of the angel’s song in Luke 2 reflects the prophecy of Isaiah, who said:

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given…and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end (Isa. 9:6-7).

This child is Immanuel, which means “God with us,” and Jesus Christ, as God, is pleased to dwell with man. First, he came in humility, in order to give us his righteousness. In the future, Jesus will come a second time to fulfill this promise in its entirety. On that day, the heavenly hosts will appear again, and Christ Jesus will be with them in power and glory. His kingdom and everlasting peace will be established upon the earth, for the sake of his people, and he shall reign forever and ever.

The term “advent” means “coming,” and it applies gloriously to both times Christ comes to the earth. We can celebrate Christmas because we have living hope, joy, and peace now, even if it has been a tough year. Believers look forward to the day when our faith will be turned to sight, and when our joy and peace will be made full. But no matter the season or trial, Jesus is still the Wonderful Counselor and Prince of Peace, to whom we bow. Christians have hope, grace and peace because God is with us, and we will be with God forever.

Join Heaven’s Choir

No matter what the year has been like, Christians can rejoice at Christmastime because we have heard and believed the gospel. Though our best years are still ahead of us, we celebrate now! In Christ, we have everything we need. God is with us through the Holy Spirit. The Father’s smile shines on every Christian because Christ fulfilled our need for a savior. Jesus gives us the peace and righteousness we are longing for. One day, we will experience God’s favor in Christ’s presence. But for now, Christians have every reason to sing praise to God, and our world needs to hear it—especially in hard times.

In spite of all the changes COVID-19 brings to us this Christmas, sing anyway! Whether you’re wearing a mask in your church building or you’re worshiping each Sunday in your living room, stand and sing with great joy and peace! Even take your joyful voice outdoors, and share why you have such peace despite the struggles in this world. Remembering and proclaiming the birth of our savior is good news worthy of great joy for all the ages. Let the last word of 2020 be a song!

 

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Cultivate a Godly Appetite

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matt. 5:6).

The mark of a true Christian is not that he feels righteous, but that he longs to be more righteous than he is. When it comes to righteousness, the blessed people are not those who think they have it, but those who feel their need of it. It is not the realization of the desire, but the desire itself that Christ pronounces blessed.

How can you develop more of this desire for righteousness?

Five Strategies for Cultivating a Godly Appetite
1. Gain momentum from the first three beatitudes.

Blessed are the poor in spirit… Blessed are those who mourn… Blessed are the meek… blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness… (Matt. 5:2-6).

The Beatitudes are progressive. Each beatitude assumes the ones that have gone before. You can’t just hunger and thirst for righteousness, you have to start from the beginning. You can picture them like rings that are reached by the momentum you gain from swinging on the previous ones. If you become poor in spirit, mourn your sins, and submit your life to the will of God, you will find that a true hunger for righteousness springs from these roots.

2. Practice fasting from legitimate pleasures.

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me (Mk. 8:34).

One sure way to spoil your appetite is to snack between meals. Let’s apply that obvious principle from the world of the body to the world of the soul: Legitimate pleasures at the wrong time and in the wrong amount will spoil your appetite for holiness. They can make you dull and sluggish in following after Christ, spoiling your hunger and thirst to be all that you can be for God.

How do we keep the legitimate pleasures of life—like sports and travel and hobbies—in their proper place? One answer is to periodically fast from legitimate pleasures. Fasting is a means of heightening self-control—a special gift that can help you master something that otherwise might master you.

Suppose you see that legitimate pleasures have become your default pattern, holding you back from a more useful life. Take a month without TV or computer games, or without golf, or six months without buying new clothes, or without leisure travel. Drop a sport for a semester. You’ll be surprised at the freedom it brings to you.

Fasting has the effect of cleansing out the body, and the same thing can happen in your soul by choosing to deny yourself a legitimate pleasure for a season. This is a great way to bring appetites that have become inordinate back under control.

3. Make yourself vulnerable to the needs of others.

Train yourself for godliness (1 Tim. 4:7).

How do you work up a good appetite? By getting some good exercise. Go for a brisk walk or a run, and when you come back, you find yourself ready for a good meal. This is true when it comes to nourishing your soul. Extend yourself in serving others, and especially when you are serving others in great need, you will find that your hunger and thirst for righteousness will increase.

Think about this in relation to our Lord. How did the Righteous One practice this fourth beatitude? Since He has all righteousness in Himself, how could Jesus hunger and thirst for what He already had? The answer lies in the incarnation. Jesus left the comforts of heaven and came into our world where righteousness had been lost. He humbled Himself and became a servant. He saw that the people were like sheep without a shepherd, and His own heart was moved with compassion.

Simply seeing yourself as a Christian who needs to receive all the time will make you spiritually dull. But serving others will stimulate your spiritual appetite.

4. Use your blessings and troubles as incentives to feed on Christ.

I am the bread of life… If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever (Jn. 6:48, 51).

Thomas Watson, the pithy Puritan whose writing I have found so helpful, asked the question: How can we stimulate a spiritual appetite? His answer was two-fold: Exercise and “sauce”! [1] Watson was right. What makes food more attractive? Sauce! God increases our hunger and thirst for righteousness by the “sweet sauce” of our blessings, the “sharp sauce” of our troubles, and the “hot sauce” of our persecutions.

When blessings come, learn to say, “God is so good, I want to know more of Him.” When trouble or persecution comes, learn to say, “My flesh and my heart may fail but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever” (Ps. 73:26).

5. Trust Christ especially for your sanctification.

Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely… He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it (1 Thess. 5:23-24).

Some Christians feel they can trust Christ to forgive their sins and to get them into heaven, but when it comes to becoming a more loving and more effective Christian—one who is more like Jesus Christ—they feel completely hopeless. They trust Christ for their justification and their glorification, but they do not trust Christ for their sanctification.

Remember that Christ didn’t come just for the guilt of your sins or the consequence of your sins. He came to save you from your sins (Matt. 1:21) and to deliver you from all that holds you back from a better life.

Why is it so difficult for you to trust him to help you change by cultivating a new hunger and thirst for righteousness?

Hope is the key to all change.

Somewhere deep inside, you may believe that you will always be the same, that you can never be different. Without hope, change never happens.

Let me shine the light of hope into your discouraged heart. Why are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness blessed? Because they will be satisfied. When you see Christ, you will be like Him (1 Jn. 3:2). You’ve trusted Christ for this. Think what it will mean for you to be like Christ! Think of His wisdom, compassion, patience, kindness, righteousness, and strength.

If you can trust Christ to complete His redeeming work in you then, why should you not trust Him to advance his redeeming work in you now? If you can trust Him to make you completely like Christ on the last day, why should you not trust Him to make you more like Christ on earth?

Trust Christ for your sanctification today. Change begins when you say, “There is hope for me to be a better person, to live a better life in Jesus Christ.” Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for God and for righteousness. They will not be disappointed.

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This article is adapted from Pastor Colin’s sermon, “Cultivating a Godly Appetite”, from his series Momentum, Volume 1 .
1. Thomas Watson, The Beatitudes: An Exposition of Matthew 5:1-12 (Smith: 1660).
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Encouragement for Hard Times from Saints of Old

Let me tell you a story about a pandemic, lockdown and social distancing. Sound familiar? Yet this is a story not from 2020, but from 1665.

That year, the so-called “great plague” broke out in southern England – part of a global pandemic of bubonic plague. At some point a bundle of flea-infested cloth arrived in the village of Eyam in the Derbyshire Dales. The package was opened by a tailor’s assistant called George Viccars. Within days he was dead. Other members of the household fell ill, and the people of Eyam realised they had an outbreak on their hands.

What happened next is an amazing story of courage and self-sacrifice. Three years before, the Rector of Eyam, Thomas Stanley, had lost his ministry during the Great Ejection when around 2,000 Puritan leaders were forced out of the Church of England. The new rector, William Mompesson, remained within the established Church but shared Stanley’s living faith in Christ. Under their combined leadership, the village made the decision to self-isolate. It made sense for people to escape the plague by leaving the village. But that risked spreading the disease to other parts of the north of England. So instead they chose a self-imposed lockdown. No one came into the village and no one left.

To this day there’s a stone on a footpath out of the village with natural indents which, during the plague, were filled with vinegar so villagers could safely leave coins in exchange for supplies. No funerals were held; instead families had to bury their own dead. Church services were held outside so people could practice a seventeenth-century version of social distancing. The plague ran its course over fourteen months. How many people died is disputed, but it’s thought to have been over half the village. The dead included the rector’s own wife, whose grave is still in the churchyard.

Sustained by the truth

COVID-19 has certainly led to strange and challenging times. But, as the story of Eyam reminds us, they are not without precedent. In 1665, the great plague left around 100,000 people dead—a quarter of London’s population. Just as someone can think they’re the centre of the world, so we can think we’re the centre of the ages—as if our challenges are special. But the people of God have faced crises again and again across the centuries. This is one of the great values of church history: the gospel truths that sustained the saints of old are the same truths that will sustain us today.

The writer of Hebrews says,

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith (Heb. 12: 1-2).

The Christian life is a long race, he says, and if we want to make it to the finish line we need to do two things. First, we’re to turn away from distractions, especially the distraction of sin, and “throw off everything that hinders” (v 1). Second, we’re to turn instead to look at and “[fix] our eyes on Jesus” (v 2).

To help fix our gaze on Jesus, we are surrounded by “a great cloud of witnesses” (v 1). For the first readers of Hebrews, these witnesses were the saints of the Old Testament, whose faith in God’s promises had sustained them through troubling times and had enabled them to achieve great things in God’s name. But as readers today, we can add names from across the pages of church history to that crowd of cheering spectators. Two thousand years on, the cloud of witnesses is larger than ever.

The key thing is that such people are “witnesses.” Like the witness in a law court, they have evidence to present and, in this case, their testimony concerns Jesus Christ. Their purpose is not to draw attention to themselves but to him. Their lives may inspire and their words may inform, but their true value is that they point us to Jesus.

The best of Christian writers from across the centuries keep on directing our gaze to Christ and his work. The seventeenth-century Puritans wrote book after book about Christ, perhaps because it was the glory of Christ that sustained them through their hardships. Here, for example, are the Christ-centred words of Puritan William Bridge in his book, Lifting Up for the Downcast:

Be sure that you think of Christ in a right way and manner as he suits your condition and as he is held forth in the gospel … The Scriptures hold forth the person of Christ in ways that make him very amiable to poor sinners. Are you accused by Satan, the world or your own conscience? He is called your Advocate. Are you ignorant? He is called the Prophet. Are you guilty of sin? He is called a Priest and High Priest. Are you afflicted with many enemies, inward and outward? He is called a King, and King of kings. Are you in dire straits? He is called your Way .

Our Puritan brothers and sisters in Christ wrestled with God through hard times, and the fruit of their labour can help us through the hard times we face. Sometimes the language and emphases of the past seem strange to us. But this very strangeness is actually a key reason to read old authors. They present familiar truths in a different way—a way that can capture our imaginations anew. Moreover, the strangeness of their world becomes a vantage point from which to view ourselves with a fresh perspective, potentially exposing the strangeness of our own preoccupations and prejudices.

When we listen to heart-warming wisdom from the saintly witnesses of old, we are encouraged to fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.

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Tim Chester’s new book is An Ocean of Grace: A Journey to Easter with Great Voices from the Past, a collection of devotions and prayers for Lent from writers across church history.

 

1. Lewis Allen and Tim Chester (eds.), The Glory of Grace: An Introduction to the Puritans in Their Own Words (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 2018), 48.
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