Why Preach through entire Books of the Bible?

As we prepare to go through the Book of Jonah at Perryville Second Baptist, it's a good time to revisit this question. Why preach through entire books of the Bible?

Here are my thoughts: 

1. It’s how we operate with all forms of communication. You don’t get a letter from someone and just read the middle paragraph and think you have a good grasp on the letter. Yes we are in the “digital” age where we just like to consume bits and pieces of communication at a time but we also are unable to communicate properly without context. It would be odd to pick up a book, randomly go to page 142 and read a sentence and actually believe you could understand all that was behind that particular sentence.

2. It’s how the Bible was meant to be read. Let’s say you disagree with #1 and you say “Well, I grab books and only read the important sections and then toss ’em.” I would say to you, fine, but the Biblical authors wrote with the intention of having their work read in its entirety (example, Col. 4:16).  Moses did not write in hopes that someone would read 5 chapters from the Pentateuch. He wrote with the intention that all 5 books would be read and studied. If this is how the Bible is meant to be read, then why not teach your people this by modeling it through your sermons?

3. It’s a testimony to belief in the sufficiency of Scripture. Is Scripture sufficient? Does it contain everything we need for salvation, knowing God, obedience to Him, understanding His will? If it is sufficient, then we want to know all of it, not just the parts that we believe are important and skip out on the rest. Does man live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God or not (Deut. 8:3)? Scripture interprets Scripture. Therefore, we need to let the Bible itself speak on what it is that we need to know about God and man.

4. It allows you to cover the whole counsel of God’s Word. Related to the above point, preaching through books allows you (andforcesyou!) to cover all that the Bible says; even things that are controversial. You can’t dance around Jesus’ teaching on divorce, or repentance, or conversion for example if you are preaching verse by verse through Matthew. It also keeps the Pastor from just hounding away on his favorite topics or soap boxes.

5. It’s what your people want need. I have heard and do hear complaints from time to time from lay persons about Pastors preaching through books of the Bible. But, if the above points are true, then if you’re a pastor, this is what your people need. And I believe this is what mature Christians want. Why? Because our desire as Christians is more of Christ. What better way to give your people more of Christ than preaching His own very Word in its fullness?

6. It allows the Pastor and the people to know what’s coming. You don’t have to scramble Monday mornings to find what to preach on. Your people can read, reflect, meditate, pray about, and discuss with family members the next set of verses that are going to be covered. This will help congregations master certain books of the Bible which will only help them to master other Books of the Bible when studying on their own. If done properly and consistently it teaches sound hermeneutics without ever having to say the word “hermeneutics” from the pulpit!

7. The benefits far outweigh the “cons.” Yes, you must be disciplined in preaching through books because each sermon must be in context while at the same time able to stand on its own. Also, you should be flexible because there may be local or global events that occur (good things, bad things, ugly things) that your people must hear a Word from God on and it may not match up well with your specific text (although sometimes it may). However, I believe God will bless Pastors who are resolved to preach expository sermons through books of the Bible as the main dose of their preaching simply because this is how God’s Word was meant to be preached to His people (see above statements!).

8. Use this in other areas of the Church's teaching. We are so dependent on curriculum in Sunday School, VBS, Wednesday night classes, etc. It's not that curriculum is bad! However, why don't you consider just using the Bible as your curriculum in Sunday School for a season? Or even in VBS, Wednesday night, or other teaching opportunities. Yes, even in Youth Ministry! God is faithful to His Word and it will not return void. This doesn't mean you can't ever use other curriculum or do topical studies. But it does mean we need more exposition, even in Sunday School.

9. It's ok (and good!) to be flexible at times. At Perryville Second Baptist we Just finished a topical series on discipleship.  It's ok to be flexible, and this can be helpful to the church. But for the above reasons I think the lion's share of preaching should be expositional through books of the Bible. We just want to make sure we are preaching and teaching the Bible as it was inspired to be preached and taught!

All I have is Christ

Résumés. Think about how many thousands of years the human race existed without the need of these minions! And yet, in our day, they have become a necessary evil. If you've ever had to write one, or go through an endless stack of them, then you know exactly what I'm talking about.

I wonder, given the opportunity before God, what you might want to put on your spiritual résumé.

Like, if you were applying for acceptance into heaven, what kind of qualifications do you have to get there?

Perhaps God is looking for someone with some experience in doing good deeds? Or maybe He prefers a person who hasn't had too many mess ups? Is your education enough? Or does your lack of education disqualify you? Do you have enough volunteer hours?
I wonder if God gave an entrance exam, if you could pass it?

What if I told you the only résumés accepted in heaven are those that contain just one word? Follow with me here for a moment.

There are only 3 kinds of people really when it comes to our hypothetical spiritual résumés.  There are those who write their résumé with all of the sin and wickedness they've done, knowing that when God sees it, He will place it in the discard pile. Their guilt and shame permeates every page, and frankly, if they were honest enough, there wouldn't be enough paper in the world to write out all their sin. Then there are those who think they've got a lot of things to merit God's favor: Their good works, their gifts to charity, their kind attitude. Sure, they know they're not perfect, but they've got a lot of good stuff on the résumé that outweighs the bad. Maybe if they don't put it in print, God won't remember about some of the sins of their youth, or how sometimes they like to indulge in their secret sins every now and then. Of course, they don't realize that God places those résumés in the discard pile as well.

The third group of people are the ones who think along the lines of the Apostle Paul:

If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:4b-14)

The third group of people have only that one word on their résumés: Christ.

• All my evil deeds, all my wicked thoughts, all my breaking of God's Holy Law, all my lack of kindness toward my wife, all of my hateful words, all of my sin, and shame, and sorrow: It has been dealt with on the cross. For these sins and countless others I can put just one word: Christ
  
• All of my 'good' deeds, all of my church attendance, all of my financial contributions, all of my bible reading and knowledge, all of my leadership of my family: I am only enabled to do these things because of Christ's mercy, and even in them my motivations are not quite pure enough, my zeal isn't fervent enough, my love isn't lovely enough, my worship isn't honoring enough, and yet, in all of this, just one word: Christ. 

The worst that I am isn't beyond the blood of Jesus.  The best that I am isn't beyond the blood of Jesus. All I have to claim before God is the work of His Son on my behalf. Hallelujah! All I have is Christ! And He is enough.

No, really.  All I have to claim on my spiritual résumé is Christ. And that is precisely what (Who!) God joyfully accepts. I am accepted by God in Christ.

Is there any better news in the Universe!?

When I wake up tomorrow and don't feel like a pastor, God accepts me in Christ.  When I am not the parent I need to be, God accepts me in Christ.  When I 'hit a home-run' sermon, God doesn't love me more. When I strike out, or hit into a double play, God doesn't love me less. When I read the Bible hungry for more of God, I am holy loved and loved wholly.  When I read the Bible fearful of its conviction, I am holy loved and loved wholly. I am accepted in Christ, clothed in His righteousness (http://goo.gl/BLfmGY). 

My spiritual résumé is almost blank.  No work experience. No volunteer hours. No education. No awards. No accolades. No letters behind my name. But just because it is almost blank doesn’t mean it’s empty.  That one word speaks eternally for me. All I have is Christ. All I have is Christ.

If you are a Believer, let this sink in this very moment.  All you have is Christ, and that's the most glorious news in the universe. You have Him.  He looks at you and says 'Mine!' 'MINE!' 'A blood bought rebel washed in My blood and clothed in My righteousness!' Believer, you have a spotless resume, an impeccable work experience, and not an ounce of sin to pay for - you have been forgiven in Jesus and cleansed. Be who you are Sister! Be who you are Brother! All you have is Christ!

If you are not a Believer, you too can have Christ.  The question is not can you or can you not have Him, but do you want Him? No one who wants Christ is turned away from Him. But will you come to Him in faith? Will you trust His atoning blood as the only payment possible for your sin? Will you, by faith, trust that His righteousness is the only thing that can fit you for a perfect eternity in the presence of God and His people forever? Will you repent, turning in your heart from your love of sin, and come to Christ in faith as your only suitable and all sufficient Savior?

All I have is Christ.  He is all satisfying.  And He is enough.

Jesus is God, our infinite sacrifice

God is infinite. Therefore, any transgression against Him is of infinite evil. Let me illustrate it this way:

If I slap a mosquito no one bats an eye. If I slap a dog a few people might be upset with me. If I slap a child I will most likely be in trouble. If I slap a police office I'll probably get arrested. If I slap the president I may even be tried for treason!

The action is the same. But what's the difference? The person I have committed the action against. So, God is an infinite being, therefore any sin against Him is of infinite evil. 

How can I pay an infinite debt against God? I never can. This is why hell is eternal. 

Yet, Christ bore our sins in His body on the tree (1 Peter 2:24). The question must be asked: How could Christ pay for the infinite debt owed? Not just for my sin either! But for all the sins of all those who would ever look to Him in faith! 

I submit to you that this is an impossibility if Christ is merely a good man. If Jesus is anything less than the infinite God in the flesh, He cannot bear the full weight and penalty for my sin. 

But be of good cheer! Jesus is God! The 2nd person of the Trinity. He and the Father shared glory before the foundations of the world (John 17:5). And He will receive glory for all eternity (Revelation 5:9-13). 

Any person who denies the Trinity denies the atonement. If one says Jesus is less than God then His sacrifice cannot be enough to actually pay the full price for my sin. If one is a modalist then it is impossible for the Father to impute my sin to the Son so that He can pay for my sin (2 Cor. 5:21). 

The Father is God. The Son is God. The Holy Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4). Each is fully divine. Yet, God is not 'chopped' up. Trinity means 'Tri-Unity'. He is ONE God who eternally exists in Three distinct Persons. This is not a contradiction, but it is a mystery! It is no trifle thing to deny God's own revelation of Himself as God in three persons, blessed Trinity.

Judging Knot

It was a Sunday night bible study a number of years ago when I was discussing the necessity of a local church practicing church discipline. A church member raised his hand and, when acknowledged, said to me "Read Matthew 7:1!"

I was a little taken back and in the moment couldn't collect my thoughts enough to know what he was talking about. So, I turned to Matthew 7 and read the 1st verse. He wasn't finished:

"Read it again."

So, I read it again. And then he proceeded to accuse me of judging. When I asked if he was judging me for judging, he wasn't very pleased. As a side note my 3 year old son was sitting next to my wife and asked "why's that man being mean to daddy?"

It certainly was one of the more uncomfortable situations in which I've been involved in ministry. 

Fast forward to January 2015. 

On Facebook there was a professing Christian promoting the movie 50 Shades of Grey. Being a public forum in which many people I care about are friends with this person, I felt compelled to comment on why Believers ought to have nothing to do with filth like 50 Shades. 

Can you guess what the overwhelming majority of responses were?

"We can't judge!" "Jesus says in Matthew 7:1 'Judge not!'"

This is what I consider the judging knot. 

Between the idolatry of autonomy, poor hermeneutics, love of sin, and the mixing in of self righteousness, you get a knotted mess when it comes to understanding the proper application of Jesus' teaching in Matthew 7:1-6. 

For these reasons, and more, I am looking forward to addressing this subject tomorrow as we continue our journey through the Sermon on the Mount. 

While Jesus did mean for His followers to avoid a hypercritical and hypocritical spirit of judgmentalism, He does not intend for us to never confront sin and to practice poor discernment in the church. Hopefully I'll post some more notes and the audio of the sermon next week. 

Until then let us remember a basic rule of biblical interpretation: context is king. May your Lord's Day gathering bring glory to the King and edification to your church...

UPDATE: You can listen to this sermon by clicking here: Judging Judgmentalism 

Sermon Outline: Kingdom Focused Faith, Matthew 6:25-34

WARNING! - Some of this might not make sense because of various abbreviations, etc. I don't recommend everyone doing their preaching notes like this. I just copied and pasted this from word and tried to clean up a few things but basically left it as is.

If you want to actually hear the message you can click here.

Ok, you've been warned. Here are sermon notes from Matthew 6:25-34 below:

_______________________________________________________________________________

Bobby McFerrin had a little song he wrote, in which he said we might want to sing it note for note:

Don’t Worry Be Happy

It’s a catchy tune. Don’t Worry. Be Happy.

But, as catchy as it is, it lacks any gravitas. It’s got no foundation to support it. The gist is “Hey, we all have troubles sometimes, things will pass, just be happy.” Ok. So how does that work with say Job? “Hey Job, all your children are dead, your cattle are destroyed, your wife tells you curse God and die, and your friends have rejected you…but

Don’t worry be Happy!

Or hey, we get a call that a missile is on its way to Clinton right now. What should we do? Don’t Worry. Be Happy! There’s really no substance there in that command is there? At the end of the day it’s found wanting! It’s not enough to actually sustain us in times of difficulty.

But the Christian worldview offers something much better. Would you turn to Matthew 6? Jesus tells His follower to not worry. However, He argues for us in a logical way and asks us to trust His promises and the goodness of our Heavenly Father.

For the Believer to not worry isn’t baseless at all. It’s what it means to have a Kingdom Focused Faith.So, this is what we want to explore today as we digest Matthew 6:25-34

Kingdom Focused Faith                         Mt. 6:25-34                             January 24, 2016 am

Theme: A Believer’s life is characterized by lack of anxiety toward earthly needs & a pursuit of God. OR:
Saving faith spurns fretfulness & seeks the Father

SotM deal w/ not just ‘outward bx but inward thoughts/motivations/attitudes of the heart!

We have some work to do before we get into our text today b/c of one little word (LOOK W/ ME): v.25a therefore

We can’t forget the context. Essentially, Jesus has just finished telling us of:

1)Two Treasures (v.19-21)     2)Two Views (v.22-23)     3)Two Masters (v.24)

We might call the section we are in now ‘Two Dispositions’. But I want to make the point that everything lines up.

You have to place your life in one column or the other. Either you long for earthly treasure, see the world in a materialistic way, serve the god of money, and are anxious about the cares of this world

-OR-

You long for heavenly treasure, see the world through Christ’s eyes, serve Jesus, and trust the Father

This isn’t the buffet line at the Chinese restaurant where you get to pick and choose. Where are you at?

So, Jesus says, since BELIEVERS store up treasure in heaven, see the world with a healthy eye, and are serving God as their master…v.25a

Now, before we get into the outline let’s just observe this text again and I want to point out to you the commands and promises contained therein. And of course we will examine them more as we move through the message: v.25-34

Commands:

1.       Don’t Be Anxious (3x – 25, 31, 33)

2.       Look at the birds of the air (26)

3.       Consider the lilies of the field (v.28)

4.       Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (v.33)

These are all commands. As Believers our King has commanded these things of us. Who do we serve?

Promises:

1.       Anxiety can’t add time our life (v.27)

2.       We are of more value than the animals God takes care of (v.26)

3.       God knows our needs (v.32)

4.       God will provide for our needs (v.33)

So, a cursory look at the text reveals to us that anxiety at it’s basic level is a sin because it is disobedient to God’s command and a lack of trust in God’s promises…

This word translated ‘anxiety’ is used 6x in these 10 verses! What does it mean?

to have an anxious concern, based on apprehension about possible danger or misfortune

It doesn’t mean be lazy as we’ll see. So, what then is the big deal about worry? Let’s look at 6 things:

I.                    To NOT worry is a Precept – (command) v.25

Jesus actually commands us 3x in this passage to not be anxious.

Isn’t our savior good? Doesn’t He know just what we need? It’s almost like He understands that anxiety can be a real issue for us can’t it?

Even though we have His Word, even though we have His promises, even though we have seen His faithfulness, we are still prone to the sin of fretfulness aren’t we?

We need little Lucy up here every week singing ‘Fret Not’ don’t we?

But Jesus has actually given us something better in the fact that He’s commanding His followers to not be anxious.

See, there is a direct correlation between anxiety, and faithlessness: v.30

So, Jesus commands us to not worry. Of course, He’s not asking us to be irrational is He? This isn’t some arbitrary command is it? He’s not saying “Hey, don’t eat yellow jellybeans on Tuesdays.” “Why Jesus?” “B/c I said so!”

No, this isn’t like that at all. In fact, the very Author of Life asks us this question: v.27

It’s like if you were playing the game Monopoly and you are like super worried about landing on the utility spaces, and the make of the game comes and says “Hey, uh, you know this game is about more than just paying the measly amount for landing on the utility spaces right?”

Wldn’t we say that the very Author of Life knows what life is really a/b?

Christ says to us “I am the King and I am what life is about”. Too many are so worried about living that they never experience LIFE.

II.                  To Worry is Powerless – v.27

This is actually true even from a secular standpoint.

I grew up traveling the U.S. w/ my family b/c my dad was a bullfighter. I remember one time distinctly when we were in Kansas, I was probably around 8 or 9, and there was a tornado warning. We were all huddled in this gym, and I was super worried.

But I remember my dad, who wasn’t a Christian at the time, and he was like ‘Cuatro, what can you do about this? What can worrying about this tornado do? Will it make it go away?’

Well, there is truth in that. V.27

There are many lost people who show great courage in trying situations. This ought to convict us who are Believers! To worry is powerless.

What will anxiety do about the situation you are in other than simply waste your time and cause you to sin against our heavenly Father?

Stonewall Jackson Quote - “Captain, my religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God has fixed the time for my death. I do not concern myself about that, but to be always ready, no matter when it may overtake me....That is the way all men should live, and then all would be equally brave.”

III.                To NOT Worry is to trust God’s Providence – v.26-28

Now, I want to be clear about something: To NOT worry doesn’t mean we are lazy or careless does it?Two things to think about:

1. Jesus just got through telling us to ask for daily bread: v.11

So, Kingdom Faith isn’t carelessness is it?  Like “Ah, God’s in control I won’t wear my seatbelt today.”We ask for daily bread in faith that God will provide it as we need it. And think about this: We aren’t asking for tomorrow’s bread yet are we? V.34

But the point is, Jesus isn’t instructing us to have a frivolous attitude here. I mean I think a lot Christians sort of think like “Well, if it works out, it works out.”

But, I’m not sure that’s the faith discussed in the SotM. The faith in the SotM is not a passive faith but an active one. We do care that we eat! And we do care to provide for our family and to contribute to society! But we are called to trust in a God who works all things for God for those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose….

2. Think about the birds – v.26 (God’s testimony in General Rev.!)

Birds aren’t lazy are they? Birds don’t sit around and think “Well, I wonder if God will feed me today?”What do they do? They go out and they search for food and they work as hard as a little bird can work.So are they working or is God providing? The answer is yes!

Now, we want to be very clear that God is their provider, but He is providing through the means of their working isn’t He?The Heavenly Father feeds the birds and the Heavenly Father clothes the flowers. He is in control of all things, and not just control of all things:

He is active in His creation working in it to bring about His good purposes. And so, to not worry is to trust God’s providence.It’s to seek Him for our needs, and to not be lazy about the work we are to do, but driving these things is a faith in His providential care.

IV.                To Worry is Pagan (v.32) We were made for God.

God has ransomed us in Christ. The greatest need you or I have is not food or clothing, it’s that we stand justly condemned before God because of our sin.

But guess what? The gospel says Christ has dealt with that need on the cross by taking God’s wrath that stood against us, on Himself.

Now, Christ is teaching us throughout the SotM that the King has come and with Him, His Kingdom. And those who are in His Kingdom live differently than those outside His Kingdom.

v.32a – The Gentiles represent those who are outside of Christ. Those who don’t trust Him. Those who haven’t come to Christ in faith.

The word ‘seek’ carries the connotation of ‘desire’. The Unbeliever’s desire is food, drink, clothing…

But aren’t these natural desires? Of course! But unbeliever’s seek after these things, their life is consumed with these things, b/c they reject the God who made them. And I believe we can extend the application further:

v.25b (Jesus’ question): Isn’t life more than food or clothing?

Ø  Did you know life is more than college as well?

Ø  Did you know life is more than a job?

Ø  Did you know life is more than power or popularity?

Ø  Did you know life is more than marriage?

Ø  Did you know life is more than children or grandchildren?

Ø  Did you know life is more than family?

Ø  Did you know life is more than retirement?

Ø  Did you know life is more than money?

It’s not that all of these desires are bad. It’s that Unbelievers make the sum of life those things and it’s that Unbelievers make these thing their chief desire

The point is like last week, as Believers we have a whole new perspective. We aren’t just living. We have life! We are living in Christ’s Kingdom, trusting His provision. This leads me to my next point:

V.                  To NOT Worry is a Priority – v.33

What is the priority of a Believer’s life? Jesus doesn’t just suggest what it ought to be, He commands what it is: v.33a first

Again, this is an active participation on our part. Believer’s actively seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness.

Anxiety reveals our treasure. Anxiety reveals our priority. You can only be seeking one thing first. There can’t be two first things in your life.

The entire SotM is a/b the Kingdom isn’t it? We’ve entitled the whole series Kingdom Living.

Christian, I know something about you that you may not even know yourself. I know God’s will for your life! I know exactly what God wants you to do with your life!...”Well, what is it!?” -> v.33a

Seek God’s rule and reign over your life. Seek to submit yourself even further to His Lordship. Resign yourself wholly to Him in all things.

Live, and work, and play, and laugh, and weep, and eat, and drink, and be clothed in such a way that you show God’s rule over your life

 Seek God’s rule and reign over the lives of others. Ah man, pray for that! I was praying this week: God set up your Kingdom right here in Clinton! Let’s see this town and community joyfully living under God’s reign

So, that means we’ve got to talk about Jesus and His Kingdom don’t we?

That may be uncomfortable in our culture but we want to see His Kingdom expand don’t we?

v.33a – and His righteousness - This is reminiscent of 5:6

Believers are justified by faith alone. Through faith God imputes the righteousness of Christ to us. Just like He clothes the lilies of the field with beauty, for those who come to Christ in faith, He clothes them in the perfect righteousness of Jesus.

For those clothed in the righteousness of Jesus we actually seek for our ways to be righteous. IOW, we actually strive for holiness. (Heb 12:14 quote)

To worry is a wrong priority. We are to seek God’s Kingdom and His righteousness. And what’s the promise? V.33 (God will provide what we need – maybe not always what we want, but we can trust Him right?)

I wonder what you are doing to tangible seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness? Right now answer that in your mind: What am I doing to seek the KofG and His righteousness?

Here’s the thing. I think a lot of us have more anxiety about the body than we do the soul.

We need to do a better job at showing people we ought to care for our souls.

I mean, if we aren’t seeking the KofG and His righteousness, how are we diff than unbelievers? And if we aren’t diff than unbelievers, why do we think we have any hope of heaven?

B/c we say prayed the sinners prayer and now we are automatically Christians? Look, if you are saved, you’re saved, but do you know one way to know that your saved? This is your priority: v.33a

U don’t just say it’s ur priority. You don’t just know it ought to be ur priority… No, it actually is your priority to seek first the KofG and His righteousness.

So, what thought have you given of your soul lately? Are you seeking the KofG and His righteousness this morning?

VI.                To Worry is to distrust God’s Promises – v.34

Do you believe this? Do you believe all the promises we’ve discussed today?

Anxiety is the antithesis of faith. To worry is to distrust these promises we’ve discussed today.

“No, no, I do believe these promises, I just get worried sometimes.”

Let me push back on that. When we find ourselves in this state of sinful anxiety, we are by definition NOT trusting God’s good promises!

Jesus promises trouble doesn’t He? V.34

There is going to be trouble. There is going to be tough situations. But as Believers, Jesus calls us to have Kingdom Faith.

Ø  Faith that if our Heavenly Father has provided our greatest need in Christ with the forgiveness of sins that He is willing and able to provide for these other needs

Ø  Faith that our Heavenly Father cares for us and that our lives actually have meaning and value in His Kingdom

Ø  Faith that our priority really should be seeking the Kingdom of God and His righteousness

Let me also make a plug here for the reason we must be in the word daily. In Scripture is where our doubting hearts are constantly reminded of God’s goodness and His gospel promises for us!

You can say all you want, but if you are not in the Bible daily, you heart is being primed to distrust God all the more…

Let me conclude in this way:

Don’t waste your life on just living. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Kingdom Living is not just to live here like the world does and then die and go to heaven. Kingdom Living is seeking first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness!

Let’s do this corporately (discuss)

Top Ten Reasons Why People Don't Go to Church

First off, we are probably fighting a losing battle with language here, but technically we don't 'go' to church.  We gather with the church and we assemble with the church, but it's not precise to say we go to church in the sense of the 'church'being made the bricks, carpet, and pews. The church regularly gathers on the Lord's Day. It may be in a home, a shop, a traditional building, or underground secret place. Wherever the church may be gathering, we aren't going to it, as much as we are gathering with it. It is important to keep in mind that we do go to the the assembly. It's not 'church' that you have out on the lake just because you say "hey I am the church!" 

I do think this is vital in understanding why people don't gather with the church. And in fact, I'm not going to follow through with my title. I'm not going to give 'ten reasons' why people don't gather with the church. Instead, I'm just going to give the reason why people don't gather with the church. This theological truth is so mind blowing, you may need to brace yourself.

Are you ready?

The number one reason people don't gather regularly with the church:

1. They don't want to

The church is Christ's bride. He sought her. He bought her. He owns her, and He loves her with an eternal love. The church is comprised of those who by grace have turned from their sin and trusted Christ for their salvation. They have been clothed in His righteousness. And because of this grace upon them they love Christ.

This is very simple to understand, but so hard for us to accept sometimes because of those we know who don't assemble regularly with the church: Those who love Christ love to gather with His church. Those who love Christ are part of the church. Those who don't love Christ, do not love to gather with His church. Those who do not assemble regularly don't love Christ (although many who don't love Christ may gather, and even serve in church leadership, it's not because they love Christ. Rather they feel they 'have' to, or they enjoy the popularity, or they love a false idea of God, or there are various other reasons...).

1 John 3:14 says We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death.

We often think of love as simply a feeling. Now, love does involve feeling, but it's deeper than that. It's more than just 'I hope nothing bad happens to them' or 'I hope something good does happen to them.' Rather, it's actually taking an active part in seeking the good of another.

Can lost people love? Of course! Even a ravenous wolf loves her cubs. But that's the issue. A lost person loves himself and his own. He has no true desire to love those not like him.

So, with a good desire I believe, many people have thought 'how can we get 'unchurched' people in church?' (Something I've blogged about recently HERE).

But see, lost people don't want to come to church. Not for the right reason anyway. Not because they  love Christ and love the brothers. They aren't 'coming to church' because they don't want to. And no amount of lights, smoke, lattes, cowboy hats, guitar solos, or chainsaw juggling will get them to gather with the church for the right reasons. (Again, I'm not saying that every person who does attend regularly is saved. It's obvious this is not true from the New Testament and from what we see in our current predicament in the Bible Belt.)

Oh, but if we do those things lost people will come and hear the gospel!

What gives you the right to make the local church gathering into an evangelistic event? What gives you the right to offer strange fire so that 'lost people' can be 'won' to Christ?

See, there is a better way.

What if we gave our entire church service over to pleasing God first? What if we made the church attractional to the church, meaning we set Christ as preeminent over every aspect of the service? What if we intentionally did not care if 'church' was boring to lost people since we know they don't love Christ nor the brethren?

And then, what if instead of making our 'church service' an evangelistic event, we actually went out and evangelized?

When we make our churches 'attractional' to the lost, it actually hurts everybody. It hurts the church because she is not being fed properly. It hurts the lost because it creates false conversions. Finally, it hurts those who may actually be genuinely converted since they are starting out with a wrong mindset of God's church.

Spurgeon puts it this way:

To introduce unconverted persons to the church, is to weaken and degrade it; and therefore an apparent gain may be a real loss.

There's not 10 reasons why people don't gather with the church.  There's only one.  They don't want to. But God's grace through the power of the gospel can change that. Go tell somebody today.

Semper Reformanda

Clothed in His Righteousness

But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? - Matthew 6:30

You're not good.

Well, that's as long as you fall anywhere in the 'none' or 'not one' category of Romans 3:10 where Paul tells us None is righteous, no, not one. If somehow 'none' means everyone but you, and 'not one' means not anyone except you, then feel free to stop reading now. Of course, if language means anything you see that we all fall in this category.

All worldviews have to answer these questions*:

1. Why is there something other than nothing?
2. What is wrong with the world?
3. How can it be fixed?
4. Where is the world headed? 

In a quick summary the Christian teaching is this: Our Triune God (Father, Son, and Spirit) created the heavens and the earth out of nothing. He made man in His own image. Our first parents, Adam and Eve, willfully rejected God and as the representatives of all mankind plunged themselves and their posterity into guilt and under God's wrath.

You're guilty before God because Adam represented you (sort of like how a whole team is penalized for one person's personal foul).  And you're not a good person because you love to be the god of your own life rather than worshiping the God who made you. You're a sinner by nature and by choice.

But now we are back to Matthew 6:30: But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

I'm not attempting to allegorize this text, but to let is serve as an illustration for us. The God who made the world and everything in it, who clothes the flowers in all of their beautiful splendor, has something even better to clothe us in, if we come to Christ in faith.

Jesus, who wasn't guilty of Adam's sin like everyone else, is the exception (the only exception) of Romans 3:10. He is the spotless Lamb. The 2nd Person of the Trinity who lived righteously as the God-Man on the earth before the Father. He then died on the cross for our sin. In a sense, He became us as our sin was laid upon Him (- our being those who will come to Him in faith).

See, you, the not good one, the unrighteous one, the one who stands guilty and condemned before God can actually be counted as good and righteous. Not because deep down inside you have something intrinsically good or righteous but because the righteousness of another is offered to you. And how do you get this righteousness?

By doing something righteous? If so, you're out, since you don't have the capacity to do anything righteous in and of yourself since you are in the category of "none is righteous, no not one." You can't receive righteousness by doing anything righteous. Baptism, the Lord's Supper, gathering with the church, reading your bible, praying, giving money, trying to be a good person....None of these things will get you the righteousness you need because not one of your acts in doing any of these things is righteous.

But, the offer still stands. You can receive this righteousness, but it is offered in the only way we can receive it: by faith alone. We must spurn trust in any of our deeds to merit God's favor upon us and we must go to Christ alone. Go to Him! Run to Him! Leave behind any thought of you earning God's favor with your life and flee to the finished work of Christ alone. Close with Christ today!

Wait. It's got to be more complicated than that! For all my sin and shame and rebellion, there's not anything for me to make up or fix? This is the glorious news of the gospel: Christ has taken care of that for us through His cross and resurrection. If you will come to Christ in faith today, God will clothe you in Christ's righteousness. Before God you will be legally declared as though you had always obeyed every Law of God, perfectly, even with the perfect motivation. Not because you have actually obeyed (in fact, you've failed miserably), but because Christ has obeyed in your stead, and just like you're declared guilty because of you're first representative Adam, you can be declared righteous because of your second representative, Christ.

You're not good. But Christ is! And by faith, you can have His goodness today. By faith God can and will clothe you in the righteousness of His Son**. What prevents you today? Jesus says all those who come to Him, He will never cast out. What an offer! If you wait until your life is worthy of coming to Christ, you will never come, because the essence of the gospel of grace is that we are not worthy, nor will we ever be worthy. But He gives more grace. Come to Christ this day and rest your weary and sin sick soul in the life giving wounds of our Savior. Be clothed in His righteousness by faith.




*Thanks Dr. Mohler and the Briefing for such clarity on these questions!

** The technical term we use is imputation. Adam's guilt was imputed to us, our sin is imputed to Christ on the cross, and His righteousness is imputed to us by faith