Song of the Drunkards

JESUS FACED A CONSIDERABLE AMOUNT OF OPPOSITION FOR HIS HARD WORDS AND UNFLINCHING DEVOTION TO YAHWEH. NO SURPRISE THEN IF WE FIND OUR NAME FESTOONED IN BARROOM BALLADS (CF. PS 69:12).

Church Discipline: Suspension

February 18, 2018 in Bible - NT - 2 Thessalonians, Discipline, Ecclesiology, Meditations, Sin

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.

Several weeks ago we spoke of the biblical rationale for practicing church discipline. In our text today, Paul commands the Thessalonian church to implement the first stage of that public discipline, a stage we commonly refer to as Suspension from the Lord’s Supper.

Paul begins with an exhortation to the congregation at large, “brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.” Paul’s command presumes that it is a temptation to grow weary in doing good – after all, we don’t warn against things that aren’t threats. The temptations of the Evil One, combined with the allurements of the world and the sinful desires of our own hearts, often make the task of doing good challenging. So Paul commands us never to grow weary.

Paul then commands the Thessalonians to practice a particular good – to take seriously disobedience to God within the congregation. Paul knows that if a congregation permits blatant sin to go unchecked, then that sin will spread. As Paul says elsewhere, a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough (1 Cor 5:6). So Paul writes, “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 – that is, mark, point out, or publicly identify – that person. Second, they are to refuse to keep company with him – that is, they are to suspend normal fellowship with that person, including sharing in the Lord’s Supper. Why? Note Paul’s words: “that he may be ashamed.” In other words, the purpose of the 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 in keeping with Paul’s words here and elsewhere (1 Cor 5:4) that the elders announce the Suspension of ——– from fellowship in the Lord’s Supper. Despite private counsel and warnings for the last year and more, ——– has hardened his heart in opposition to the wife of his youth, has ceased marital counseling, and has declared his intention to seek a divorce, something that God hates (Mal 2:16). Because ——– has failed to give heed to our private exhortations, we are now announcing this to the church, praying that God will use this to convict and restore him to his family and to the church.

In so announcing, we would remind you of Paul’s exhortation, “do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.” Your duty is to pray for and, as occasion permits, admonish ——– as a professing Christian to repent of his sinful conduct and to strive for reconciliation with his wife and with this body. And remember that you are to do this in a spirit of gentleness, taking care lest you also be tempted (cf. Gal 6:1-5). So how might you be tempted at this time?

  • Pride – Imagining that you are above such sins and morally superior to ——–. Such is not the case. Were it not for the grace of God, we would all be in like circumstances. So please pray for ——–, asking God to show him mercy.
  • Gossip – Using this as an opportunity to speak uncharitably about ——– or about his wife and children rather than as an opportunity to pray for him and them, expressing a longing for his restoration and love and affection for those he is hurting by his sin.
  • Slander – Making or entertaining false accusations against the elders, accusing them of heavy-handedness or insensitivity in disciplining him.
  • Flattery – In conversations with ——–, permitting him to blame others for his plight rather than urging him to take responsibility for it. We should want him to deal with his sin in a godly fashion – by confessing it to the Lord and forsaking it (2 Cor 7:8-12).

All this reminds us of our susceptibility to sin and our need of God’s grace and mercy; reminds us of our need to humble our hearts regularly and to confess our sins to the Lord. So let us confess our sins to the Lord and, as you are able, let us kneel as we do so. We will have a time of private confession followed by the corporate confession found in your bulletin.

The Mouth as a Well

February 12, 2018 in Bible - OT - Proverbs, Meditations, Tongue

Proverbs 10:11 (NKJV)
11 The mouth of the righteous is a well of life, But violence covers the mouth of the wicked.

After Ishmael mocked the young child Isaac, he and his mother Hagar were cast out of Abraham’s tent and wandered for a time in the wilderness. Soon their skin of water was used up and the two were dying of thirst. So Hagar placed Ishmael under a shrub and went away from him a short distance lest she see him die. Then she lifted up her voice and wept.

The Angel of the Lord heard their cry. He spoke to Hagar. “What ails you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. Arise, lift up the lad and hold him with your hand, for I will make him a great nation.” Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water. She filled her waterskin with water, and gave the lad a drink and they lived. This well in the wilderness was a well of life.

As that well in the wilderness was to Hagar – preserving her life, rejuvenating her strength, and restoring her hope – so is the mouth of the righteous to those who hear him. The mouth of the righteous is a well of life. As those who live in a fallen world, the paths we travel are often dry and thirsty. We face doubts, discouragements, disappointments, and even death. Scattered throughout the world are wells, put there by God to refresh our souls. As a follower of Christ, you are to be one of those wells. Paul commands you, “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers” (Eph 4:29). Be a well of life.

Because wells are so precious in the wilderness, because they are the only places where one can obtain water, they were often chosen as a place of ambush. Thieves and marauders would prey upon unsuspecting travelers, pillaging their property and often taking their lives. Wells were often places of violence.

So too are the mouths of many. Violence covers the mouth of the wicked. Travelers come seeking water, seeking refreshment on the journey. But what they find instead is violence. They are confronted by bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, evil speaking, filthiness, foolish talking, and coarse jesting. Their souls are ravaged, their hope diminished, their dignity destroyed.

So what are you? Are you a well of life? Or are you a bandit? Do your words bring refreshment, strength, and hope? Or do they rob others of dignity and hope? How do you speak to your spouse, your children, your parents, your siblings, your neighbors, and your friends? Do you build up or do you destroy? The mouth of the righteous is a well of life, but violence covers the mouth of the wicked.

Reminded of our calling to use our mouths to bring life to others, let us confess that we often use them to bite and devour and destroy. And as we confess our sin to the Lord, let us kneel as we are able. We will have a time of silent confession followed by the corporate confession found in your bulletin.

He who winks the eye

February 4, 2018 in Bible - OT - Proverbs, Meditations

Proverbs 10:10 (NKJV)
10 He who winks with the eye causes trouble, And a prating fool will fall.

The sin highlighted in our text today is that of the troublemaker or schemer – the one who plots against others because he boasts in his own strength. He winks with the eye, causing trouble for others perhaps by signaling to his compatriots to execute their plot against the innocent. He has no regard for the law of God but instead delights to air his own opinions. He is a prating fool.

These figures of “winking the eye” and “a prating mouth” are fairly common in Proverbs. For example, Solomon describes the wicked man in Proverbs 6:12-15:

A worthless person, a wicked man, Walks with a perverse mouth; He winks with his eyes, He shuffles his feet, He points with his fingers; Perversity is in his heart, He devises evil continually, He sows discord. Therefore his calamity shall come suddenly; Suddenly he shall be broken without remedy.

Notice Solomon’s description of the gestures that characterize the wicked man: his mouth speaks perversely, he winks with the eyes, he shuffles his feet, he points with the fingers – in other words, he is shifty and unreliable, he is a schemer and a plotter, he refuses to accept responsibility for his own sin, pointing at others as though he is the victim. So why do these things characterize him? Because perversity is in his heart. His fundamental problem is that he is alienated from God. Consequently, because he is alienated from God, his actions are evil. He devises evil continually, He sows discord. The one who winks the eye sows discord among brothers, exaggerates faults, and plots destruction.

What all this indicates is that God despises the plotter and the schemer. God despises the one who uses his mouth and his eyes to cause trouble rather than to bless. Consequently, the troublemaker shall fall. God will bring him down – whether through humbling him or humiliating him or exposing him or destroying him.

So what of you? God has given you the gift of eyes – are you using them to plot evil or to accomplish good? God has given you the gift of a mouth – are you using it to cause trouble or to bring peace? Are you shifty? Are you a troublemaker? Do you constantly point the finger at others, portraying yourself as the victim, meanwhile winking at your compatriots who know the truth? If this is you then hear God’s warning: you shall fall. God will bring you down. So cease blaming others and confess your own sin.

Reminded of the high calling that God has placed upon our eyes and our mouths, let us acknowledge that we often misuse them to dishonor God and to injure our neighbor rather than to bless him. And as you are able, let us kneel together as we do so.