PASTOR'S PAGE
As the Lord wills, during the upcoming weeks I will expose the Truth in the Word of God regarding "What is the Church?". For obvious reasons, it is essential that we keep this and the gospel message close to our hearts. But allow me to provide a few practical reasons for understanding what the Church is:
My objective is the same as Paul's for the church in Philippi (1:27), that we "stand firm in one spirit".
CHRONICLING OUR LESSONS
ABOUT DIVINE ELECTION
On January 2, 2002 Ephesians taught us that the formation of the Church was an expression of God's manifold (diverse) wisdom to the spiritual realm where angels execute His rule over spiritual causes. These causes have supernatural effects upon the universe in which we live (i.e. miracles, answered prayers, blessings).. Ephesians further expounded on the fact that this mystery "The Church" is to be the fullness of Christ. That is why Jesus promised that the Church will do more earthly ministry than He had performed on earth (John 14:12).
On January 6, 2002, we learned that Paul had the call from God to preach the gospel message to the Gentile - Romans 15:15-16, Galatians 2:7-8, Ephesians 3:6-11. He alone had this awesome responsibility, but he needed some semblance of structure and order in the churches (Acts 6:1-7, 1 Corinthians 14:26-40, 1 Timothy 3, 1 Corinthians 16:1-4) that he established. Why? To free him to do the missionary work (Acts 13:1, 14:28, 16:1, 18-22, 18:23, 21:17 and 21:18) of planting Christian churches throughout Asia Minor. Paul's ministry infrastructure afforded him the freedom to administer the Mystery of the Church without being "hamstrung" by mundane cares of day to day operations. We learned that infrastructure affords those whom God has called with clear reception of His voice, for the whole church's benefit. The benefit of clear direction from God, to both those serving in the infrastructure, as well as those hearing from heaven is immeasurable. If we are to experience real ministry at HBF, the very next thing we need is an infrastructure that provides (not clogs) our spiritual leaders with a clear and direct reception from the Lord.
On January 9, 2002, we learned from Ephesians 1:4, 5, 9, 11 we were elected to be God's children before the world was created; not because we were holy or on our way to become holy, rather He elected us out of His pleasure to make us holy. This is called divine election. It is an eternal act of God, by which in His sovereign pleasure, and on account of no foreseen merit in us, He chooses certain out of the number of sinful, guilty and condemned humanity to be recipients of the special grace of His Spirit (That is grace.... God as the original cause of love). God's election then is the enabling needed to voluntarily place one's faith in Christ and be saved. In 2 Timothy 2:10 and 2 Thessalonians 2:13, Paul demonstrates his earnest desire for the elect to be saved, through faith. So in order to benefit from our election, we must have faith in Christ. What if the elect never place their faith in Jesus Christ? Rest assured that God is infallible in His ability to woo the elect to surrender to the Holy Spirit's regeneration of their will, resulting in faith in Christ. We have only scratched the surface. This biblical principle of divine election has far reaching ramifications on how we understand the Kingdom of God. The Lord has shown me that HBF is ready to receive another key to the kingdom. Take a look at the guiding principles for understanding divine election.
On January 13, 2002, through 2 Timothy 1:8-9 God showed us that our names came upon in heaven -for a divine purpose- before the beginning of time. And unlike the massive automotive layoff occurring, when God elects He keeps His promise to "never leave us or forsake us". Since God equips those He elects, we have His assurance that will rise to the task (of His good works set in advance Ephesians 2:10). Therefore, we don't have to settle for where this world tries to relegate us, nor to we have to believe the negative talk that Satan puts in our head about being unworthy and inadequate. Why not? Because our sense of worth is wrapped up in God's election. But we are not isolated while in this world! As God's elect, we stand upon the shoulders of the elect who have gone before us - Hebrews 12:1.
On January 16, 2002, in Romans 8:27-30 Paul provides a view of the elect's life from the side of divine care and ordering. Without a doubt, as God's elect, we are predestined to succeed at God's purpose (yet still free to choose right or wrong). Also, God's foreknowledge of us was more than "advance awareness". Instead, having looked upon us before time, He elected some to conform to Christ. Hence, conformity to Christ is the result of election, not the foreseen condition making us worthy of election. Any teaching which suggest that before time God foreknew our conforming to Christ and therefore elected us, is heresy because it contradicts scripture (1 John 4:19, Ephesians 2:8-9). What God foreknew was all of humanity's rebellion and rejection (Romans 3:11-18) yet still took the first step of love (Romans 5:6-8).
On January 20, 2002, much of what passes as Christian teaching today is skewed toward an emphasis on the Fatherhood of God. It is this back drop which make divine election difficult for some to swallow. But in Luke 4:25-27 Jesus reveals that God's sovereignty is not lost in God's Fatherhood. Rather it becomes a source of joy for some believers, as well as a source of consternation for others believers. Christians for years have embrace God's sovereign as their basis for defying religious order, or as an excuse to do "end around short cuts" in lieu of obeying God's normative order for His Church. God wants no part in such contrariness. His sovereignty is His right to exempt Himself from His normative order in nature, as well as exempt Himself from our expectation of Him. He can answer prayers of those who are undeserving (this includes me), as well as not answer us when we feel we have a legitimate prayer. God's sovereignty smacks the face of our senses. To our sense of fairness He finds the death of His saints precious (Psalms 116:16) and as much as we believe the Apostle Paul sacrificed, God still refused to remove his thorn in the flesh (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). To our sense of reasoning, we often interpret God's election of some to imply His condemnation of others. This is due to our faulty reasoning. The truth is that some guilty sinners were enticed into a pardon through faith in Christ, while other guilty sinners remained in their just state of condemnation. God's sovereignty also smacks the face of the belief that something we did is responsible for our position in Christ. Without God's initial act of election and subsequently drawing us to Christ, all of us would still be in the throws of Adamic Sin and our own rebellion.
On January 23, 2002, we allowed God's Word to answer 4 objections to divine election. #1 - It is unjust to those who are not included in the purpose of salvation. We must keep in mind that election is from the beginning of time. It deals, not simply with creatures, but with sinful guilty condemned creatures. Should any one of them be saved, is a matter of pure grace. The real issue here is not whether as Father God will treat His children alike, but whether a sovereign God must treat condemned rebels alike. Besides in Matthew 20:11-15 Jesus advocates for God's right to do what He wants with what's His. #2 - It represents God as partial in his dealings and a respecter of persons. God is partial, but not toward anything that has to do with us, rather towards how His purpose can be served. In Luke 4:25-27 Jesus presents God as partial, while in 1 Corinthians 4:7 we see that it has nothing to do with respecting any quality in those He elects). We are very comfortable with God be partial to fallen humanity by providing salvation for us, yet we don't complain He has provided no salvation for fallen angels - 2 Peter 2:4, Psalms 8, Hebrews 2:16. Nothing in sinful humanity determines God's choice of one person versus another. #3 - It represents God as arbitrary - Acts 9:15-16, 1 Timothy 1:15-16 reveals that His reasons are too awesome to be subject to our scrutiny; John 15:16 shows that God is big enough to know who He wants and what He wants them to do. It's not that He is arbitrary, rather what we see is God exercising His free choice of a wise and sovereign will, in ways and for reasons not subject to our scrutiny and comprehension. To deny Him possibility of free choice is to deny God personality. And to deny that God has reasons for His choice is to deny His wisdom. #4 - It encourages immorality by representing men's salvation as independent of their own obedience. The bible doesn't teach this. Our salvation is ordained only in connection with regeneration (God reviving our spirit) and sanctification (us surrendering to the Holy Spirit's cleansing), and that the certainty of our final triumph is the strongest incentive to strenuous conflict with sin. 1 Peter 1:1-2 teaches that it's "through the sanctifying work of the Spirit" for these foreknown people, and "....for obedience to Jesus Christ....". 2 Thessalonians 2:13 teaches that the elect must still be cleansed by the Spirit, as well as believe in the truth.
On January 27, 2002, we heard Part 2 of the Sovereignty vs Fatherhood saga. This time we learned that God's Fatherhood is not lost in His Sovereignty either. In detailing the signs of the end of the Age of Grace to His disciples in Mark 13, the subject of God's Fatherhood was bound to surface. After all, what will become of His living elect on earth elect in the end? Jesus reveals three ways that God the Father uses His sovereign power to care for His elect. The first way is Father God's sovereign manipulation of time and incidence as not to distress those He foreknew - vs 20. The second way is God the Father's special provisions to protect His elect from deceit - vs 21-23. The third way reveals that God the father wants His children (the elect) with Him - vs 24-27.
On January 30, 2002, we continued our discussion on answering objections to election. #5 - It inspires pride in those who think themselves elect. One would have to distort what God's Word says about divine election, in order to take pride for their election. Rather election humbles the heart. God saw us before time began, when we were an enemy of His. But instead of permitting us to die, through divine election, He took us captive. So now, as believers in Christ, we are absolutely dependent upon His mercy - Psalms 115:1-3. The never ending love that He has for us invokes our gratitude, assurance, and humility, but not pride - Jeremiah 31:3, Romans 8:31-39. #6 - It discourages effort for the salvation of the unsaved, on the part of the unsaved themselves or on the part of Christian evangelists. Since no one can discern whether a unconverted sinner has been elected or not, what the bible teaches about election cannot hinder or discourage anyone's movement towards saving him/her. We are oblivious to which unconverted sinners are God's elect. Therefore God sends us throughout the world preaching to all people - Ezekiel 2:7, 2 Corinthians 2:15-16, Luke 2:34. Read Jesus' parable about the wheat and weeds again (Matthew 13:24-30). God's election of some does not negate their need to elect God. #7 - The decree of election implies a decree of condemnation. Election is not a decree to destroy, it is only a decree to save. Since we admit that we are sinners saved by grace, then we would have to admit that if simply left alone, like water, as sinners we will run down hill to ruin (without God's active involvement in our falling). In fact, God never prepared a place to condemn sinners to, because He never condemned the rebeliious to a life of sin - Matthew 25: 34, 41. God doesn't even have a Book of Death for those who are perishing, as He has a Book of Life for those trusting in Jesus - Revelations 21:27. God's positive intervention accounts for election, but humanity's rebellion and rejection is responsible for its condemnation (carefully read what Jesus says in John 3:17-18). Romans 9:22-23, identifies God as the active agent affecting vessels of mercy notice that "whom He prepared in advance". There's no reference to God as the active agent for the vessels of wrath "prepared unto destruction". They have prepared themselves for destruction.
ABOUT GOD'S CALLING
On February 3, 2002 we looked at the Call of God. We saw that "Calling" was that act of God by which men are invited to accept, by faith, the salvation provided by Christ. There is a general, or external, call made to all people through God's providence, Word, and Spirit. And there is the special, efficacious call of the Holy Spirit upon the elect. Though the sermon was focused on God's General Call, the reason and purpose for two calls were given: 1) the general call is for all humanity to repent and believe in the gospel (Matthew 11:28, Matthew 22:3, Luke 14:16-20, Mark 16:15, John 12:32, Revelation 3:20). It is what God foreknew all of humanity would rejected, and still are rejecting; on moral grounds (Romans 3:9-19), 2) God's special call has the capacity to makes effective, in the elect, what God's general call was intended to do in all people. This is grace: only those whom God elected are enabled to respond in faith, due to God's Special (efficacious) Call.
Don't misunderstand. God doesn't delight in the death of sinners (Ezekiel 33:11); nor has prepared a place for them (Matthew 25: 34, 41), but desires "all men to be saved" (1 Timothy 2:3-4). However, His desire to save all may not be accompanied by His will to exert special influences to save them all. Especially given their rejection after the high price that Jesus paid to make the General Call possible (suffered, bled and died for the forgiveness of sin). God extends the offer of salvation regardless. WHY? Though He foreknew their rejection of His General Call, due to humanity's perverse and evil will, He still offers salvation (which they indeed reject). By doing so, there can be no debates at the Great White Throne of Judgement - Revelations 20:11-15.
On February 6, 2002 we saw that God's sincerity has been consistent from Genesis through Revelations. His General Call to all men to repent and to believe the New Testament Gospel (Mark 1:15) is no less sincere than His Old Testament command that all men love Him with all their heart (Deuteronomy 6:5-6, 10:12-13, 11:13). If it is proper for God to issue the commands of the Law (though foreknowing Old Testament disobedience), then it is proper for God to issue a General Call to repent, believe the Gospel and be saved (though foreknowing New Testament disobedience). God's sincerity is not an issue. The reality that all of humanity has rejected God's offer (Jeremiah 31:32, Ezekiel 2:4-5, 3:7, 11, Matthew 21:32, Romans 3:9-19) due to our entrenched perverse and evil will is the obstacle here. There is no obstacle in the way of humanity's obedience to the Gospel that did not also exist to prevent their obedience to the law. God is perfectly sincere in giving an invitation that he knows will be refused. WHOSOEVER WILL & WHOSOEVER WON’T: God may desire to have the invitation accepted, while for reasons of justice or dignity, he may be unwilling to put forth special efforts other than putting forth the invitation (General Call) itself. Especially, given the fact that the invitation was made possible solely by the suffering, bleeding and death of His Only Begotten Son. Therefore, God's desire for all of humanity to be saved may not be accompanied by His will to exert special influences to save us all.
On February 10, 2002 we learn about God's Special Efficacious Call. With this call, God accomplishes the response from His Elect, what His General Call intended to solicit from everyone. Due to His awesome grace, this call is only upon those He elected from the beginning of time - Romans 8:30. In this "holy call" 2 Timothy 1:9 the Holy Spirit works in concert with our mental makeup to affect the surrendering of our will. It neither coerces, compels or imposes itself upon the us. It is irresistible. By not in the sense of an outward force acting upon the will of the elect. But that there is the indiscernable activity of the Holy Spirit, whereby we seem to be doing all the contemplation. Though we might resist it for a while, we can never successfully resisted. The Holy Spirit’s indiscernable activity upon our soul is the original cause of; 1) a new dominate disposition of our heart, and 2) a new activity of our will. This new heart of ours is not our response to the Spirit’s activity! Nor is the new activity of our will, our willful cooperation with the will of God. Rather both are due solely to the act of God upon our heart and will. As a result of the Spirit’s indiscernable activity, our freedom to choose God is restored, and rightly exercised - John 1:12-13. It is through our response to this call that Christ enters our soul and we become a new creature. What was sinful, guilty and condemned, now becomes holy - Romans 8:2. This change is called Regeneration.
On February 13, 2002 we learned that God's Special Call gives us the Capacity to be Victorious. God works in all things for our good because of this call - Romans 8:28-29. We can credit receiving this call to being predestined, or elected - vs 30. Also, our becoming Christ-like is credited to us being predestined not our effort. Paul asks six rhetorical questions intended to emphasize the fact that we are set up to be victorious. Who is greater than the one who predestined us, that we ought to obey him? - vs 31; What need that we have that the Father will deny us, considering that He wouldn't even spare His Son for our sake? - vs 32; What sin is so gross that it disqualifies us from His favor, given that while He foreknew our sins, He still sent His Son to die for us? - vs 33; Isn't Jesus the Judge anyway? And isn't He sitting next to the one who loves and elected us? - vs 34; Who can break up this "Fab 4" (the Trinity and me)? - vs 35; With a relationship like this, who would want to severe it? - vs 36. So, we're done more than conquered sin, we have been assured a victory in our predestined purpose - vs 37. And nothing can severe us from such assurance - vs 38-39. This Special Call is efficacious in that with it comes the capacity to believe, mature spiritually, and become victorious. Jesus foreshadowed this dimension of God's Special Call in when His call gave Lazarus victory over death in John 11:43.
On February 17, 2002 and on February 20, 2002we learned that God's Special Call gives us the Capacity to be Saved. In his introduction in Romans 1:1-7 Paul reveals how he understands himself as one who has been called. This is important because it give us deeper insight into the message God gave him about our salvation. Between the lines of these passages we can see the extent to which Paul surrendered. In vs 1, he surrendered to obeying orders (as a good servant) from another - Jesus; and He surrenders to the external source (God) who called him into his occupation and purpose. In vs 2-4, Paul jumps theological on us to reveal that this external source has a prophetic and holy origin; which points to the Son (of God) who is all human and all God. In vs 5 he makes it clear that his purpose did not originate in himself, but reveals Christ as the source, means, and main objective of his purpose. And identifies the Gentiles as the target of his purpose. Finally in vs 6-7, Paul reveals that saints are saints because they have been called to be saints. "Those who are loved by God" is referring to the love God had towards those He foreknew and acting upon that love He elected them. This is the stuff of which saints are made. But like Paul, in order to benefit from it we must allow God to use us.
We are no longer saved by human activity (descendant of Abraham and in a circumcise household), but are saved by God's activity (Ephesians 2:8-9) in His election and call. It is His grace that saves. Our faith must access the gift of grace! We are no longer drawn to monuments like in the Old Testament (Altar, Tabernacle, Temple), but are called to submit and be instruments - 2 Corinthians 6:16. Israel's highest spiritual expression occurred in the Temple, our highest spiritual expression occurs within - Romans 12:1-2. Old Testament saints were called the altar to make sacrifices. New Testament saints are called to be vessels and living sacrifices - 2 Corinthians 4:5-7, Romans 6:12-16. God is not looking for more monuments for His people to awe over (Mark 13:1-2). God is calling for saints to be use as instruments to fulfil His purpose, according to His good pleasure - Ephesians 1:11. We have a picturesque illustration of this from when the resurrected Christ sanctified His disciples by breathing the Holy Spirit (giving them new life) into them in John 20:22.
On February 24, 2002 we learned that God's Special Call gives us the True Standard for Assessing Value. What happened to Jesus on Calvary's Cross not only upset the balance of earthly powers, but established true standard for virtue. 1 Corinthians 1:18-21 lets us know that the wise men in the Roman-Greco could not predict the cross's ability to accomplish its profound results. Not could philosophers afterwards explain how the cross obtained its results. Even their scholars could not find a precedent in history comparable to it. All the secular world knew was, that when people trust in it (not merely believe it), they behaved differently, they had a new motivation, and their lives were transformed virtuously. Paul knew that those who don't trust in it, regardless of their status in life, their guilt and condemnation in the eyes of God remain. That's why the bible refers to them as "they who are perishing". The question to us today is "While God is making a mockery of the world's power and wisdom, where are you?" Are you enamored by what the Cross promises you? or Are you enamored by what the world promises you?
In vs 22, Paul gives us two fundamental standards used in his day to assess virtue, 1) its miraculous in origin (Jewish so-called wise teachers and scholars), and or 2) it results from some philosophical model for living (Greek philosophers). Jesus said that those who look for signs are wicked - Matthew 12:38-39.
But Miraculous Sign Seekers come in two varieties: Carnal and Deceitful. Carnal Sign Seekers are religious and devout who passively and prayerfully insist that their flesh (eyes and cognition) be satisfied with seeing God work before they will believe. They walk by sight, not by faith. So Jesus describes them as wicked. These sign seeker are also very judgmental. If they don't see you act out your piety or hear you talk the religious jargon, as far as they are concern, you are carnal. Because for them, like Doubting Thomas, if they don't see it... it's not there. Then there's the Deceitful Sign Seekers. Their interest in a sign has to do with it not wanting to refrain from sinning too soon. They want the sign to cue them when to start living right. God forbid that they jump righteous too soon, and have to live the rest of their life that way. They want to sin as long as they can get away with it. Preaching Christ Crucified to the sign seeking Jewish was their stumbling block (vs 23) according to their Torah (in Deuteronomy 21:23) Jesus on the cross was the ultimate proof that He had been cursed by God for some sin of his own.
The other fundamental standard used in Paul's day for assessing virtue was Wisdom Seekers. They also come in two varieties: Pleasure as the goal of philosophy and Happiness as the goal of Reasoning - Acts 17: 18-21. Epicurean and Stoic Philosophies had saturated Athens well over 350 years before Paul's arrival. Epicureans philosophy states that we should live the good life by seeking moderate pleasure and avoiding pain. So Paul's Christ crucified message, living sacrifice message stood against everything that Epicureans stood for. Epicureans reasoned for pleasure and comfort. So God's call to be used as His instruments of righteousness is foolish to them. Stoic philosophy states that all people have within themselves reason, which relates each person to all other people and to the Reason (God) that governs the universe. Therefore, people achieve their greatest happiness, by following reason, freeing themselves from passion, and concentrating only on things they can control. Paul's teaching about Jesus' death, burial and resurrection affording the believer a new life, to the Stoic was laced with illogical conclusions and missing proofs. It does not compute to preach that Christ crucified foolishness. Preaching Christ Crucified to the wisdom seeking Greeks was seen as foolishness by them because the notion of a Messiah getting tripped up by His own people and nailed to death on a cross is ridiculous. The oxymoron of a "Crucified Messiah" or a "Criminal Messiah" or the "Perfect way to God destroyed" seemed foolish.
But to those whom God has called, the preaching of Christ Crucified is the power of God and the wisdom of God. With God's Special Call come the a new standard of power and wisdom to rely upon (vs 24). We are able to achieve our purpose because our "power plant" can not be sabotaged nor our "central intelligence" infiltrated (vs 25). God can use the lowly, weak and despised of the world to transform the world (vs 26-31). Jesus foreshadowed this infusion of new power and wisdom in lowly and weak people by calling fishermen and using them to establish the Christian faith, which lasts through today and into eternity - Acts 4:13.
On March 3, 2002 we learned that God's Special Call gives us the Capacity to Hope. In Ephesians 4:4 the Apostle Paul tells the Church that they were called to one hope, then he describes this hope of the elect to Titus (1:1-2). This hope of the elect differs from secular hope, in that it is based upon the activity of God; whereas, secular hope is based upon chance, "the odds are" or statistics. This Special Call of God not only gives us the capacity to hope for that which is eternal, but it also provides hope for that which comes from the Eternal God. Through our obedience in everyday life situations, God shape our character and nurtures this hope into which we are called (Psalms 25:21). Jesus foreshadowed this call to a new hope when calling Peter out of the boat. Jesus was the hope that enabled Peter to miraculously walk on water - Matthew 14:28-31. Apart from Jesus call, Peter had no basis for hoping he could walk on water. This Special Call of God is efficacious in that it enables us to both hope in Jesus and because of Jesus.
Guiding Principles For Understanding Divine Election: