Called to Christ

Quotes are taken from the New American Standard Bible

Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

John 20:30-31

 

As I mentioned in last week's sermon, when the Apostle John wrote, his goal was to lead others to faith in Christ, to "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name" (John 20:31b).

 

Jesus proclaimed that He had come to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10); John the Baptist testified that Jesus was sent to earth to take away the sins of the world (John 1:29); and Jesus further testified that no one can come to the Father except through Himself (John 14:6). Given all of this, we have little choice but to share John's motivation, for the condition of those who do not yet know Christ is dire. Much of the time, however, I have trouble motivating myself to get out of the bed in the morning let alone tell someone about Jesus. The thought of walking up to a complete stranger and communicating the Gospel so effectively that they'll fall to their knees and pray the “sinner’s prayer” is terrifying. Of course, that is a complete distortion of what we are called to do.

 

The deceiver tries to bend God’s Word to his own advantage (see Eve in the garden or Jesus at His temptation), and this is what he does when it comes to evangelism. We convince ourselves that it's our job to win others to Christ, and that the only way to witness is to wander from door to door with a Bible, directly confronting strangers with the Good News. In truth, however, that form of evangelism is not something all of us are called to.

 

Most of the people I have led to Christ are ones I’ve known for years - my brother and sister, kids I’ve prayed with at camp or Youth Fellowship, even the drunken man I prayed with one day right on North Main street here in Berlin. All of these interactions happened naturally and flowed from relationships that were built-up over time.

 

When it comes to those we don’t know, we're more likely to witness to them indirectly. A few years ago I came upon a man struggling to change a flat tire. After initially declining my offer of help, the man quickly realized that his attire (white shirt and silk tie) wasn't suitable for car repair, and before long I (in my sweats) was changing the tire. While we made small talk, I shared that I was a pastor and, as the man prepared to go, I told him I would pray for him.

 

Although it would have made for a much more interesting story, I didn't win that gentleman to Christ that day. I’m certain, though, that I used what influence I had in a way that honored my call to Christ.

 

You may not have regular opportunities to pray with someone as they answer their call to Christ, but you will undoubtedly get many chances to answer your call - to share your faith as you live in a way that brings Him honor and glory. In living a quiet life, behaving properly toward outsider, you can be Gospel-centered, and in doing so answer your call to Christ.

 

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The Price of Service

Quotes are taken from the New American Standard Bible

Now there were some Greeks among those who were going up to worship at the feast; these then came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and began to ask him, saying, "Sir, we wish to see Jesus." Philip came and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus. And Jesus answer them, saying, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal. If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.

John 12:20-26

As is true for any passage of Scripture, there are several interesting notes that could be made about John 12:20-26. What we're going to concentrate on, though, is something that most of us may have never before noticed.

Until this interaction, Jesus had asserted that His hour had not come (John 2:4, John 7:6). When approached by Philip and Andrew, however, He said, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified." It was time for Christ to turn His attention to the cross, where He would, like a kernel of wheat, die and bear much fruit. And because of His love for His followers, Jesus prepared to perform the ultimate act of service - to sacrifice Himself that they might live forever.

Jesus also used this opportunity to remind His disciples (and us) that if anyone wishes to follow after Him, they must deny themselves just as He would do; if they wish to be where Jesus is, they must “hate” their life in this world; and if they wish to be honored, they must serve as Jesus served. In doing all of this, Jesus' followers have enmity with the world (just as Jesus did), but they also have eternal life, and in the process of following after Jesus, they bear much fruit.

Serving Jesus requires us to love Him more than we love the world, our families, even life itself. As His disciples, we are called to put Jesus ahead of everyone and everything else, freeing ourselves to follow after Him fully and become servants who will be honored by the Father.

That is the cost of serving Jesus as His disciples. It is the cost Peter was called to pay in John 21:18-19. Having reinstated him by the sea, Jesus told Peter, " 'Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go." Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death [Peter] would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, 'Follow Me!' ".

As we follow Jesus today, seeking to serve Him, the price of that service should not be overlooked. It will certainly lead to conflict with the world, and may even cause friction within our families. It could lead us to great suffering. Yet in that service is life, for it leads us to where Jesus is, that there we may be also.

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Called to Unity
Quotes are taken from the New American Standard Bible.

“I and the Father are one.”
John 10:30

In John 14:10-11, Jesus answered a question from Philip by saying, “Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves.”
 
Jesus wants us to have the same relationship that He enjoys with the Father and the Spirit; one in which we work together to fulfill God’s will and purpose as we serve Him here on earth, bringing God honor and glory. That unity is founded on our shared faith, “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:13). The glory that was given to Jesus by the Father has been given to us so that, together, we can help the world understand that Jesus was sent by the Father, and that Jesus loves us.

United as Disciples 
The people in our church have many different backgrounds and widely divergent life experiences, but we are called to use our spiritual gifts in building-up the church, bearing much fruit to God's glory. When we work together, it testifies to the truth of Jesus’ teaching and demonstrates that He was sent from God, that the Lord loved Him “before the foundation of the world,” and that He loves us even now. That love is also to be shown to one another, uniting us and marking us as Jesus’ disciples.

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
John 13:34-35

Think of that! When together we accomplish the work God has set before us here in Berlin, we not only bring glory to the Father, we also make known the love God has for His people, and in that way proclaim the Gospel. For what is the Gospel but the message that “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16)? That is what unity does, and that is why Jesus called us to unity.

Have You Been Vaccinated?

Quotes are taken from the English Standard Version of the Bible.

Recently, Jon Gerstel and I traveled to Zambia to train Seventh Day Baptist leaders enrolled in the T. I. M. E. (Training in Ministry and Extension) program. Before we could get on the plane, Jon and I needed to be vaccinated against Hepatitis A and Typhoid; we also had to take Malaria pills immediately prior to and during our trip.

Thankfully, neither Jon or I have shown any signs of Hepatitis, Typhoid, or Malaria following our visit to Zambia. Whether this is the result of having been vaccinated or simply because we were never exposed to those diseases, I am glad we had the peace of mind that comes with being vaccinated.

As I was reading Psalm 119:9-16 recently, I reflected on my Zambian experience. In that passage, we come to understand God’s Word as a sort of “vaccination,” helping us remain both pure and close to the Lord.

Staying Pure

How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.
Psalm 119:9

The likelihood of contracting any of the above-noted diseases while visiting Zambia is fairly remote. The likelihood of being tempted to sin, however, is guaranteed. Every day--and sometimes it seems every moment--we have an opportunity to dishonor God. In our culture, staying pure is a tremendous challenge to say the least.

King David knew what it was like to be tempted (and to fail), but he also knew that one way to protect himself (to “vaccinate” himself, we might say) was to guard his way according to God’s Word. King David used the Word of God to help him stay pure.

In Ephesians 6:17, Paul wrote, “and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” Like David, Paul knew that, although staying pure is difficult, if we arm ourselves with God’s Word, we can protect ourselves when temptation comes.

Straying Prevented

With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!
Psalm 119:11

It can be hard to feel the Lord’s presence at times, but that difficulty is multiplied when we do not spend time with Him, when we fail to listen to Him and go our own way.

When we study God’s Word, we learn His voice and are able to stay close to Him. We also are able to use that Word to turn temptation into opportunities for obedience. When Jesus was tempted, He used Scripture to defend Himself. His close relationship with the Lord and knowledge of God’s Word helped Him overcome temptation so that He would not stray from the path that had been set before Him. That's why Jesus was able to answer Satan, “It is said, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ And when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:12-13).

Remaining pure and close to the Lord are just two of the many things daily Scripture reading can help us do. The Word of God is powerful and also provides us with encouragement while teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training us in righteousness (see 2Timothy 3). That is why we study God’s Word - to store it up in our hearts, declaring those rules with our mouth and delighting in them as much as in all riches. By studying God's Word, we fix our eyes on God’s way, and remain pure and close to our Savior.

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The Fruit of Worship Is Glory (1 Peter 1:3-9)

Note: This is the first in a new style of blog post from Pastor Matt. From this point forward, Pastor Matt will make a single post to the church blog each week; members are encouraged to comment as they feel led. Quotes are taken from the English Standard Version of the Bible.

You might wonder why we emphasize regular worship attendance at the Seventh Day Baptist Church of Berlin. The answer lies in our intention: When we gather together for worship, our goal is to glorify God as we remember what God has done for us in the past, ready ourselves for what He will do for us in the future, and rejoice in what He is doing for us at present. We emphasize regular worship attendance because the fruit of worship is glory!

Remember

After Jesus had prayed over and broken the bread at the Last Supper, He gave it to the disciples and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19b).

Worship helps us remember all that God has done for us. Peter reminded us of this when he wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).

We gather together for worship because of what Jesus has done for us. We were dead in our sins, but have been made alive through Jesus Christ; to Him be the glory forever!

Ready

In the parable of the ten virgins, Jesus taught His disciples the importance of being ready for His return. He provided the application of that parable when He said, “Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour [when I will return]” (Matthew 25:13).

Worship helps us prepare for what God will do for us in the future, for Jesus is even now preparing a place for us. Peter reflected on this when he wrote, “to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through the faith for a salvation ready to be received in a little while” (1 Peter 1:4-5).

Our relationship with God was restored at the cross - even now we are being made into Jesus’ likeness here on earth - and there will come a day when our salvation will be fully realized, when we will witness the Son of Man’s return to bring us home to be with Him forever, to His glory.

Rejoice

Jesus’ will for us is to know His joy fully and completely as we bear fruit in His service. He said, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:11).

Worship reveals our joy as we celebrate all that God is doing in our lives in the here-and-now. Peter put it this way: “In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials” (1 Peter 1:6).

Peter wasn’t blind to the fact that following Jesus brings with it hardship - Jesus promised us no less. But our circumstances do not produce our character, they reveal it, “so that the tested genuineness of your faith – now more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire – may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:7).

When we gather for worship, we rejoice that God is at work in us, no matter our circumstances, thus giving Him glory.

 

We set aside time for worship each week because we wish to glorify God, and the fruit of worship is glory. As we worship we remember what He has done for us, we ready ourselves for His return, and we rejoice that He is at work within us, knowing that when we do that we are fulfilling God’s purpose for His people: “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls” (1 Peter 1:8-9).

APRIL 2 SCRIPTURE - ATTEND: BEARING FRUIT IN WORSHIP

2 Corinthians 3:12-18

MARCH 26 SCRIPTURE - RESURRECTION SABBATH

John 20:1-18

Additional Texts to Consider:

Psalm 118:14-24

Isaiah 65:17-25

1 Corinthians 15:19-26