Sentence of Excommunication

April 2, 2012 in Bible - NT - Matthew, Discipline, Ecclesiology, Meditations

Matthew 18:15–20 (NKJV)
15 “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. 16 But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ 17 And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.
In the passage before us Jesus lays out the general pattern for church discipline. Private, individual confrontation is to be followed by increasing levels of accountability culminating, if necessary, in exclusion from the covenant community.
There are a variety of purposes served by such accountability but one of them is to make clear that Jesus really is Lord. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday he was correctly acknowledged as king and His kingship had ramifications in time and space – Jesus entered the Temple and cleaned out the corruption. We cannot spurn God’s law, reject His authority, and continue to comfort ourselves with the assurance that all is well. “Do you not know,” Paul writes to the Corinthians, “that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God” (1 Cor 6:8-10). Jesus really is Lord.
Approximately two months ago the elders, in obedience to Jesus’ command, informed the church that —-, a member of this church, was living in sin. Despite repeated admonitions and encouragements, accompanied with fasting and prayer on —- behalf, —- still obstinately refuses to hear the Church, and has manifested no evidence of repentance: Therefore, in the name and by the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ, we, the Session of Trinity Church do pronounce —— to be excluded from the Sacraments, and cut off from the fellowship of the Church.
Such action reminds all of us how susceptible we all are to the deceptions of the Evil One, the corruptions of our own flesh, and the allurements of the world. But for the grace of God we too would turn from Him. And so Paul warns us, “Beware brethren lest there be in any one of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the Living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.” (Heb 3:12-13)
Paul insists that we need one another – we need our brothers and sisters who will encourage us, pray for us, exhort us, rebuke us, comfort us, console us. And one of the ways that we help one another is by coming here every Lord’s Day and acknowledging together how much we need the grace of God. We gather together, bow the knee to God and confess our sins, pleading the cleansing blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for our sins. And so reminded of this, let us kneel and confess our own sins to the Lord.

Suspension from the Supper

January 24, 2012 in Bible - NT - 2 Thessalonians, Discipline, Ecclesiology, Meditations

Public Suspension of —– —–
2 Thessalonians 3:13-15 (NKJV)
13 But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good. 14 And if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed. 15 Yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
Paul closes his letter to the Thessalonians with several exhortations to the congregation at large. He begins by urging them, “brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.” Note that Paul’s command presumes that it is possible to grow weary in doing good – after all, we don’t warn about things that aren’t possibilities. In endeavoring to do good we face much opposition – both from within and from without – and so Paul commands us to never grow weary. The temptations of the Evil One, combined with the allurements of the world and the lusts of our own flesh, often make the task of doing good challenging, the temptation to grow weary alluring.
Because of the strength of this temptation, the temptation to give up doing good and simply start doing whatever, Paul exhorts the church to take seriously those who refuse to obey the Word of God. As Paul remarks elsewhere, a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough. If a congregation permits sin to go unchecked, then that congregation cannot be surprised when such sin spreads. So notice that Paul urges the Thessalonians to act – “if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed.” Paul’s command involves two parts – first, the Thessalonians are to “note” – mark – point out – publicly identify such a one. Second, they are to refuse to keep company – refuse to enjoy communion, including normal fellowship at the Lord’s Supper – with such a one. Why? What is the purpose of this marking? This suspending of normal fellowship? Note Paul’s words: “that he may be ashamed.” In other words, the purpose of this discipline is to awaken the sinner to the seriousness of his sin. As Solomon writes in Proverbs 20:30, “Blows that hurt cleanse away evil, As do stripes the inner depths of the heart.”
It is with sober hearts that the elders inform you today – in accordance with Paul’s words that such things are to be announced in the public assembly (1 Cor 5:4) – that —– —– is being suspended from fellowship in the Lord’s Supper.
For some time —– has been wavering in her service of Christ. During this time numerous folks have endeavored to encourage her and come alongside her. Within the last two weeks, however, she has made clear that she is turning away from Jesus and embracing a life of sin. It has become plain that for many months she has been lying to and deceiving her parents and others, using them to further her own selfish ends. She has been committing and is continuing to commit sexual immorality. She has rejected the Bible’s authority, declaring that it is not relevant for today. She has intentionally absented herself from corporate worship and avoided accountability.
—–’s parents and the elders have spoken to her and urged her to turn back to Jesus, to beware trampling under foot the blood of the covenant by which she was distinguished from the world. She has rejected these overtures. Our Lord commands us in Matthew 18:15-17:
““Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’ And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church…
In accordance with these words of our Lord, that when a brother or sister will not hear the exhortations of two or three witnesses the matter is to be brought before the church, the elders are bringing —–’s sin to your attention. Our purpose in so doing is twofold: first, that you would pray for —– and her family that the Lord would give —– eyes to see and ears to hear, that she would return to the Lord and flee from the foolish and destructive path that she is choosing. We know that all of us by nature are frail and prone to sin and deception, that but for the grace of God we would turn from him and serve self, and so let us pray that He would indeed have mercy upon her, bringing to her mind and heart the many things which she has been taught over the years.

Second, our purpose in bringing this to your attention is that you would consider writing to —–, expressing your love for her as a member of this body and urging her to repent and return to Jesus. The elders will provide you with contact information in the week to come should you choose to do so.
Suspending —– from the Lord’s Supper is an act of love, “For whom the Lord loves he disciplines even as a father the son in whom he delights.” —– is our sister and so as we admonish her we treat her “not as an enemy but as a beloved” sister who has lost her way. And these reminders of the deceitfulness of sin remind all of us of our need to confess our sins to the Lord. So let us kneel as we confess our sins and pray for our sister.
Our Father,
We are prone to sin, tempted to grow weary doing good. The temptations of the Evil One distract us, the enticements of the world draw us away, the lusts of our own flesh incline us toward evil. But for your sustaining grace we would each pursue our own way rather than the way of Jesus. We none of us by nature desire to take up our cross and follow Jesus – for following Jesus means dying to sin and self and none of us relish the prospect. We pray your mercy upon us. Remember your lovingkindness and mercy toward our sister —–. Restore her to her knees that she would bow before you and seek your forgiveness, that she would abandon the path of sin and destruction on which she has set herself and that she would return ot the narrow way that leads to life. We pray also that you would keep all of us from sin and deception, pour out your grace upon us that we would hunger and long for righteousness and purity and every good way. Through Jesus Christ our Lord and by the power of Your Spirit,
Amen.


With Reverence and Godly Fear

December 19, 2011 in Bible - NT - Hebrews, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Worship

Hebrews 12:25–29 (NKJV)
25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire.
Today in this final Sunday of Advent we close our meditations upon Paul’s words to the Hebrews. Paul reminds us that as Christians we have received the unshakeable kingdom; that the temporary kingdom of the Jews has given way to the eternal kingdom of the Messiah. Therefore, as members of the Messianic kingdom, we are to approach God in corporate worship in a way that is acceptable, in a way that is pleasing to him. Note Paul’s words, “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.”
Last week we insisted that Paul’s use of the word “serve” in this passage is specifically addressing corporate worship. Latreuwmeans ‘to perform religious rites, to worship, to venerate.’ We also saw that Paul insists that there is a right and wrong way to worship God. He says that by grace we may worship God acceptably – implying, of course, that there is an unacceptable way of worshiping him. So what does it mean to worship God acceptably? Paul does not leave us to answer this question on our own – for he immediately qualifies his exhortation.
We are to worship God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire. Paul’s language leaves us in no doubt of his reference point. Ages ago when God appeared to Moses and called him to rescue Israel from Egypt, he appeared to Moses in the burning bush. And when Moses became curious and would have searched out the secrets of the burning bush God declared, “’Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals from off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground…I am the God of your father – the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God” (Ex 3:5-6). Moses’ response to the awe-inspiring presence of the Lord in the burning bush is the paradigm that Paul uses to describe acceptable worship.
First, acceptable worship is reverent worship. The word that Paul uses here alludes to Moses hiding his face. It is the word used elsewhere to be ashamed, shame-faced, or embarrassed. By extension it means to bow one’s head with a self-conscious acknowledgment of inferiority or fault. When we come here week in and week out to worship, we come to meet with the high and holy one – the very one with whom Moses met on the mountain, the very one whose presence was transfigured on the mount such that Peter, James, and John couldn’t look upon him. So as we come, we are to come remembering that the One we worship is a consuming fire and so we are to be reverent.
Second, acceptable worship is fearful worship. When Moses was confronted by the living God, he was in awe, afraid to look upon him. Knowing that God is not to be trifled with, not to be treated lightly, we are to worship with this due sense of awe. And awe will manifest itself in obedience – when we hear the voice of the one we fear we listen attentively. God rebukes the Jews in Isaiah’s day for fearing men rather than fearing Him: “I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you should be afraid of a man who will die, and of the son of a man who will be made like grass? And you forget the Lord your Maker?” (Is 51:12) So when we come to worship we are to have godly fear.
So why do we do what we do? Why isn’t our worship hip and trendy? Why do we sing stodgy old psalms and hymns? Why don’t we dance and skip in the aisles? Why do we kneel? Why do we raise our hands together? Why do we recite creeds, pray sober prayers, greet one another with promises and even warnings? Because we are called to worship the Lord with reverence and godly fear.
And so, reminded that this is our calling, reminded that we come this morning into the presence of the same God before whom Moses quaked in fear, let us kneel and confess that we are unworthy in ourselves to be here and that we stand in great need of the sacrifice of Christ to cover our sins.

What is Acceptable Worship?

December 12, 2011 in Bible - NT - Hebrews, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Worship

Hebrews 12:25–29 (NKJV)
25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire.
This advent we have introduced a number of changes to our Sunday worship, to our liturgy. At such times it is good and right to take note of why we do what we do – and so I have been spending the last couple weeks meditating on this passage from Hebrews.
Paul reminds us that as Christians we have received the unshakeable kingdom. The temporary kingdom of the Jews has given way to the eternal kingdom of the Messiah. And the consequence of this change is not lesser accountability – as many wrongly believe, “we are not under law but under grace” – but greater accountability. Therefore, we stand in constant need of the grace of God to enable us to do that which is pleasing in His sight, including to worship the Lord faithfully week in and week out as His covenant people.
And it is this precise application which Paul makes in our passage today. He writes, “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.” Since we are members of the Messianic Age, let us be diligent to possess the grace of God and in that grace to serve God acceptably with reverence and awe.
First, note that Paul wants us, in the grace of God, to “serve” God. The word that is translated “serve”doesn’t mean service in the sense of labor on behalf of another. Frequently we are called upon to serve the Lord in that sense, but that is not what is being mentioned here. Instead Paul uses the Greek word latreuw which means “to perform religious rites as a part of worship—‘to perform religious rites, to worship, to venerate.’” In other words, Paul is explicitly addressing the nature of corporate worship, the religious rituals that we use to approach our God. Even as the old covenant community, priests and people alike, served God by worshiping Him in accordance with His Word, so the new covenant community is to serve God by worshiping Him in accordance with His Word. By grace we are to worship God.
Second, note that Paul immediately gives parameters to describe what this worship should look like. He says that we are to worship God acceptably; we are to worship God in a way that pleases Him. This implies, of course, that there are ways of worshiping God that do not please Him, ways of worshiping Him that are unacceptable. You will recall that at the beginning of the old covenant era God struck down Nadab and Abihu for offering strange fire to the Lord – their worship was not pleasing to the Lord.
Why not? First and foremost, Paul is implying here, because they did not worship God in the grace of God. “…let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably…” It is only by grace that we can worship in a way that pleases God. We cannot approach God acceptably on the basis of our own merits; we cannot approach God acceptably on the basis of our righteousness; we cannot approach God acceptably on the basis of our wisdom. It is only by gracethat we can serve Him acceptably. And this is what Nadab and Abihu fundamentally missed. They did not worship God mindful of the One to whom all their religious rites pointed – Jesus Christ. Nadab and Abihu thought they could tweak the religious rites because they were just conventions of men and any way of worship is acceptable as long as it is sincere. But God had explicitly designed these rites to point to the One and Only Sacrifice through whom human beings can approach God – Jesus.
As we come to worship today, therefore, the message that God delivers to us is that we must approach him acceptably by resting upon His grace in Christ. We must come to worship clothed in the white robes that only He can give. And the only way to worship God acceptably in this fashion is to kneel and confess our sins to God, beseeching mercy through Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
So let us kneel and seek the forgiving grace of our God.

Let us Have Grace

December 5, 2011 in Bible - NT - Hebrews, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Worship

Hebrews 12:25–29 (NKJV)
25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire.
Last week we learned that in these verses Paul contrasts the temporary, shakeable kingdom of the Jews, the period of the old covenant, with the eternal, unshakeable kingdom of the Messiah, the period of the new covenant. He insists that it is this latter kingdom of which we, in the Lord Jesus, are members. With the final dissolution of the Jewish kingdom, followers of Christ have received a kingdom which cannot be shaken.
Therefore, Paul insists, we must be careful how we respond to this kingdom. We must not refuse Him who speaks. Because God has revealed Himself even more clearly, even more certainly in the life of His only begotten Son, the Christian era is a time not of lesser accountability but greater. To reject the unshakeable kingdom is to invite the cornerstone to fall upon you and grind you to powder. If God took seriously our fathers’ transgressions in the old covenant, how much more seriously will he take ours.
But all of this could lead us to respond incorrectly – to imagine that having begun by grace, having been delivered from our sins by the sacrifice of Christ and the gift of faith, we are now left on our own to live lives of righteousness and purity. Like the British monk Pelagius we can begin to fancy that holiness is our own doing. Sure God has been gracious – after all, he has given me the Bible, he has given me Jesus’ life as a role model, he has given me other believers for accountability – look how gracious God has been. But having received these graces, holiness of life is something we must achieve by our own will power.
It is certainly true that all these things Pelagius mentioned are signs of God’s grace. But none of them in themselves are sufficient. After all, our problem as humans beings is not that we fail to will and choose and even, at times, to make great sacrifices. Our problem is that our nature is inclined toward sin and so even when we choose these great things we do so not for the Living God but for some other object of devotion. Even our most righteous acts are tainted, marred by sin.
For this reason, Paul begins his practical exhortation in our text this way: “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverance and godly fear.” Paul clearly understood that the foundation of Godly worship is the grace of God – grace that does not merely give us good gifts externally but grace which sets our hearts free from the clutches of sin. “Wretched man that I am, who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” It is God Himself, the same God who patiently endured the failings of our fathers in the Old Testament, the same God who sent His Son to rescue us from our sin on the cross, the same God who sent His Spirit to open our hearts and eyes so we could embrace the Gospel, who gives us grace to escape our sinful pollution and to worship Him with reverence and godly fear.
So as we come to worship Him together, as we enter into His gates with thanksgiving and praise, let us be diligent to enter there clothed in the blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. And the only way to enter clothed in His blood is to kneel and confess our sins to God, seeking His forgiveness. So let us kneel and do so.

Members of the Unshakeable Kingdom

November 28, 2011 in Bible - NT - Hebrews, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Worship

Hebrews 12:25–29 (NKJV)
25 See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, 26 whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.” 27 Now this, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. 29 For our God is a consuming fire.
After the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Jewish kingdom with its bloody sacrifices, priestly rituals, and frail kings, was replaced by the Kingdom of God – a kingdom that Paul describes in our text today as unshakeable.
This picture of an unshakeable kingdom harkens back to the prophet Daniel. Hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth, Nebuchadnezzar had seen the kingdoms of men as a great and impressive statue made of different metals. But as Nebuchadnezzar was admiring the statue, a rock made without hands struck the feet of the statue and caused those kingdoms to shake and totter and crumble. The rock itself became a huge mountain that filled the entire earth. It was unshakeable. And what was that rock? The kingdom of God.
In Paul’s day this rock had just struck the feet of the statue: Jesus had come and fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament: he was the long awaited king who would reign on earth, the lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world, the rock that struck the feet of the statue. Through his earthly ministry he established the kingdom of God but the remnants of the old covenant system were still around. The Temple still stood; the priests still offered sacrifices; the feasts of the old covenant were still celebrated. But Paul knew that all this was going to change – the old covenant was ready to disappear, to be destroyed and in its place would stand the kingdom of Christ, the unshakeable kingdom. Paul’s prediction came to fruition as God destroyed the temple and the rest of the old covenant system; the kingdom of the Jews came to an end and the kingdom of the Messiah was begun.
It is this kingdom of which we are members; we have received the kingdom which cannot be shaken – we are members of Christ’s body, subjects of His sovereign rule. And so our responsibility, like our fathers before us, is to respond to this kingdom in a specific fashion. And the first thing that we are to do is listen and obey. Paul exhorts us,“See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven…” In other words, if God took seriously the transgressions committed under the old covenant, the shakeable and temporary kingdom (and he did), then how much more seriously will he take the transgressions committed under the new covenant, the unshakeable and lasting kingdom.
Today is the first Sunday in Advent, the time of year that we call to mind the transition from the old covenant to the new, from the age of immaturity to the age of maturity, from the kingdom of the Jews to the kingdom of Christ, from the shakeable kingdom to the unshakeable. As we recall this transition, let us remember that the Lord who spoke to our fathers in the old covenant continues to speak to us in the new and that this means not less accountability but more. We are called upon to approach the Lord with reverence and awe – for our God is a consuming fire.
Reminded that the Lord has given us the great privilege of being members of the unshakeable kingdom and that there is forgiveness with him that he may be feared, let us kneel and confess that we have treated this privilge lightly. 

Called as Homemakers

November 21, 2011 in Bible - NT - Titus, Ecclesiology, Meditations

But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that … the older women … be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.(Tit 2:1-5)
Last week we considered once again Paul’s admonitions to the younger women in the congregation at Crete. We found that Paul expects them – along with all other Christians – to orient their lives around the Triune God. They are to be discreet, chaste, and good – all traits which point to the Triune God and urge us to put Him and His Word at the center. Rather than orienting our lives around what Eugene Peterson calls the modern Unholy Trinity of our Holy Needs, Holy Wants, and Holy Feelings, Paul urges younger women to orient their lives around the Holy Trinity.
Today we consider the orientation that Paul expects from younger women. He commands that younger women be instructed “to love their husbands, to love their children, to be…homemakers, obedient to their own husbands.” Notice that each of Paul’s admonitions orients the life of younger women around the home. Paul admonition assumes, of course, that these younger women are married and that they likely have children. So let us make a few observations from this text for those of you women who are married and/or have children at home.
In the beginning, when God created them male and female, he created the woman to be a help to the man in his calling. God had given the man and the woman together an immense task – to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it. In short we were to exercise dominion over the earth. Both the man and the woman were designed to fulfill this task but were designed to fulfill the task differently. By design, the man was oriented to various tasks and the woman was oriented to helping her man fulfill those tasks.
This is the understanding that Paul reflects in his admonition that the older women teach the younger women to be “homemakers.” Literally the word is home-energizers, women who are busy working at home doing all that they can do to bless their household and assist their husbands to fulfill the divine commission that has been given to both of them.
This design difference between men and women leads Paul to deliver specific admonitions to the married women and the women with children in the congregation. Notice Paul’s commands: first, to married women. If you are married, then Paul’s admonition to you is that you love your husband – be devoted to him, committed to his well-being, and manifesting the same type of love for your husband that the church is called upon to manifest for Christ. You are to be your husband’s suitable helper and – though feminists rage and foam – be obedient to your own husbands. By fulfilling these mandates you will be blessed and, what’s more important, the Word of God will be adorned with glory rather than blasphemed.
Second, Paul gives commands to women with children. If you have children at home, then Paul’s admonition to you is that you love your children – care for them instruct them, cherish them, serve them. Your calling is not to care for them alongsidevarious other tasks that you view as more important. Your calling is to care for them preeminently.
Notice, therefore, that Paul insists that your husband and your children are to get your best thoughts, your most intense care, your most ardent devotion – for this is how God has designed you.
And husbands, your responsibility is to make sure that your wives can fulfill these tasks. Guard them, protect them, provide for them so that they in turn can love and cherish laboring at home.
Reminded that God has designed men and women differently and that our calling as human beings is to go with the grain, let us kneel and confess that we often rebel again his design.

The Unholy Trinity

November 14, 2011 in Bible - NT - Titus, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Trinity

But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that … the older women … be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.(Tit 2:1-5)
Today we approach the last of two exhortations on the lessons that women are to teach us as the people of God. As we consider Paul’s admonitions to the younger women we see two primary concerns expressed. First, Paul is concerned that younger women be oriented in a specific direction. Second, Paul is concerned that younger women possess a certain character.
So let us take the second concern first. Paul wants younger women to possess a certain type of character. Whether you are single or married, young or old, the character qualifications that Paul places before us help us to see what it means to be a real woman. Our modern culture has made a full frontal assault on femininity and so women are terribly confused. And this frontal assault has been aided and abetted by abdicating men who would like nothing better than to shun responsibility for the women in their lives.
Paul commands younger women to be discreet, chaste, and good. He wants them to live lives grounded in and oriented around the Triune God. So God is the Creator of all; therefore, Christian women are to be discreet – to order their lives in a way that reflects how God designed the world. God is Holy and therefore Christian women are to be chaste – distinct from the scandalous behavior of the women around them. Cretan women were the ancient equivalent of skanky Hollywood actresses and Paul wants the Christian women to be separate. Finally, God is goodness itself and so Christian women are to be good – embodying the character of Jesus in their own lives by the power of God’s grace.
Each of Paul’s admonitions puts the Triune God at the center of our life and consciousness. In order to be discreet, chaste, and good, Christian women must know who God is and what He is like. Your minds and hearts must be engaged and attune to God Himself. And this necessitates that Christian women know and understand the Word of God for this is where the Triune God has revealed Himself.
Contrast this mindset with what Eugene Peterson calls the Replacement Trinity of modern culture, a Replacement Trinity that women in particular are greatly tempted to worship and obey:
…the three personal Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is replaced by a very individualized personal Trinity of my Holy Wants, my Holy Needs, and my Holy Feelings… The time and intelligence that our ancestors spent on understanding the sovereignty revealed in Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are directed by our contemporaries in affirming and validating the sovereignty of our needs, wants, and feelings….
          It is clear that we live in an age in which the authority of Scripture in our lives has been replaced by the authority of the self: we are encouraged on all sides to take charge of our lives and use our own experience [our own needs, wants, and feelings] as the authoritative text by which to live.
         The alarming thing is how extensively this spirit has invaded the church. I more or less expect the unbaptized world to attempt to live autonomously. But not those of us who confess Jesus as Lord and Savior. I am not the only one to notice that we are in the odd and embarrassing position of being a church in which many among us believe ardently in the authority of the Bible but, instead of submitting to it, use it, apply it, take charge of it endlessly, using our own experience as the authority for how and where and when we will [submit to] it.
         One of the most urgent tasks facing the Christian community today is to counter this self-sovereignty by reasserting what it means to live these Holy Scriptures from the inside out, instead of using them for our sincere and devout but still self-sovereign purposes [serving our Holy Wants, Holy Needs, and Holy Feelings].(Eat This Book, 31,32,59)
So how are you orienting your life? Are you orienting it around the Triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? Or are you orienting it around the Unholy Trinity of your Holy Wants, Needs, and Feelings? Paul challenges you to put the Triune God at the Center – to be discreet, chaste, and good.
Reminded that this is our calling, let us kneel and confess that we have often fallen short.

Teachers of Good Things

November 7, 2011 in Bible - NT - Titus, Ecclesiology, Meditations

But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that … the older women … be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.(Tit 2:1-5)
After taking a hiatus for several weeks, this morning I would like to return to our text in Titus and Paul’s description of the lessons that we as the people of God are to learn from the women in our midst. After all, the reason that Paul gives these specific admonitions to older women and younger women is that he desires them both to be models of Christian character for the entire congregation. So what do we learn today?
Paul urges older women to be “teachers of good things” and to use their age and maturity to instruct the younger women. Paul then goes on to specify what these “good things” are – loving husbands, loving children, etc. For the moment let us reflect on the fact that Paul calls all these things good.
Historically, Christians have been concerned to uphold the three great virtues of truth, goodness, and beauty. Truth points us to that which corresponds with the way the world actually is. Jesus came, we learn in the Gospel of John, to testify to the truth, to point us to what is really real, ultimately pointing us God’s revelation of Himself in His Word and in His Son. Goodness points us to that which is right and virtuous, reflecting the character of God Himself, which is, again, revealed both in the pages of Scripture and in the life of our Lord Jesus. God is goodness itself – and the law and Jesus’ life point us toward this goal. Beauty expresses those things that have a sense of proportion, order, and glory. The garments of the priests in Israel were made “for glory and for beauty” indicating that beauty is not just in the eye of the beholder but a reflection of the character of God. God is Beauty itself and has woven it into creation to point us to Him.
In labeling these things “good”, therefore, Paul is directing older women to the Word of God written in the law and incarnate in Christ. He is urging these Cretan women to be models of biblical living, models that reveal the wonder of God’s work in redeeming the most mundane duties of life. Increasingly we are surrounded and seduced by alternative definitions of the “good”, definitions that have little to do with the character of God and much to do with our own selfish drives and impulses. Increasingly, therefore, we meet men and women and children suffering the ravages of evil choices.
And so Paul wants the Christian community, and Christian women in particular, to be a haven of peace and righteousness and stability in the face of such suffering. Therefore, the challenge that Paul issues to us, issues to you, is this: are you so attached to what is good, so fond of it and experienced in its application in daily life, that you are able to model it to others. You older women, in particular, have you embraced the good and fulfilled your God-given calling to pass that good down as a heritage to the next generation?
Our God is the fount and source of all goodness and He has revaled that goodness in His law and in His Son – so how passionate have we been in pursuing both? How eager are we to read and understand and feast upon the Word of God? How zealously do we present ourselves before the Son of God and seek from Him an abundant supply of goodness?
Reminded that this is our calling – a calling that older women are to embody and that the rest of the congregation is to learn – let us kneel and confess that we have often fallen short.