Advent 2023 (Wk 2)
God So Loved the World
14 As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; 15 so that whoever a]believes will in Him have eternal life.
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Advent 2023 (Wk 1)
A Return to Bethlehem
And the government will a]rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace,
On the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From then on and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish this.
Quotes from a version by Casting Crowns (verse 4)
The little Lord Jesus, lay down His sweet head
Lord of all creation, lay down His sweet head
The Savior of the nation, lay down His sweet head
at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
For one will hardly die for a righteous man;
though perhaps for the good man
someone would dare even to die.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us,
in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Much more then, having now been justified by His blood,
we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.
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Grow Strong in God’s Grace – Wk 29
Learning How to be a Faithful Farmer for God’s Harvest!
Reap a Harvest of Praise!
(Part 2 of 2 of Series Conclusion)
Hebrews 12:1-3 (NASB)
The full title of today’s sermon is, “Reap a harvest through the faithful strategy of a hardworking farmer.” Today, I am finishing our 2023 sermon series called, “Grow Strong in God’s Grace: Learning How to be a Faithful Famer for God’s Harvest!” Allow me to continue the conclusion of this sermon series, which I began on October 22. Listen to the poem, “How Great the Yield from a Fertile Field”:[1]
The farmer ploughs through the fields of green
And the blade of the plough is sharp and keen,
But the seed must be sown to bring forth grain.
For nothing is born without suffering and pain.
And God never ploughs in the soul of man
Without intention and purpose and plan,
So whenever you feel the plough’s sharp blade
Let not your heart be sorely afraid.
For, like the farmer, God chooses a field
From which He expects an excellent yield –
So rejoice though your heart is broken in two.
God seeks to bring forth a rich harvest in you.
How true this poem is, in each of our lives – “God never ploughs in the soul of man without intention and purpose and plan, so whenever you feel the plough’s sharp blade let not your heart be sorely afraid.” God’s intent for your life is that you would reap a harvest of praise to His glory. To participate with God’s work in us, we must follow the faithful strategy of the hardworking farmer. Paul taught in Philippians 2:12-13, “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” God is at work in us through His Holy Spirit’s indwelling presence. Hope in God’s work for us, and in us, is the key ingredient when following the four steps that every hard-working farmer must follow to experience a large crop yield:
- Cultivate the soil.
- Sow the good seed.
- Care for the maturing plant.
- Reap a harvest.
To be a fruit-bearing branch, we must maintain our focus on Jesus Christ, the vine through which all the life-giving nourishment of the Holy Spirit flows, as Jesus testified in John 15:1-5:
I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
As hardworking farmers, abide in Jesus and He will bear much fruit upon your branch! As C. H. Spurgeon preached in 1871, “Preaching is sowing, prayer is watering, but praise is the harvest.”[2] It is my desire to see First Baptist Church of New Castle, Indiana witness a large crop yield of praise to the glory of God. That we will be an epicenter of revival. Until all worship, let us continue to be faithful to the Lord of the Harvest and respond to His call upon our lives to be hard-working farmers!
As we learned in part 1 of the conclusion, the faith stories of God’s people summarized in Hebrews 11 inform our lives and our lifestyles by calling us to live according to Hebrews 12:1-3:
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Let’s take a couple of minutes to review Hebrew 11, and the lessons from the transforming stories of faith we have learned this year. Learn from these men and women of faith how you can be a witness to the transforming power of faith in your life. This is the faith we get to live when we are set free from sin to live with our eyes on Jesus:
- a faith, which pleases God.
- a faith, which gives substance to your life.
- a faith, which trusts God’s promises.
- a faith, which bears fruit.
- a faith, which passes the test.
- a faith, which blesses the next generation.
- a faith, which gives us a limp.
- a faith, which lifts us out of the pits.
- a faith, which makes us humble.
- a faith, which toots God’s horn.
- a faith, which saves the day.
- a faith, which takes God at His Word.
- a faith, which invites partnership.
- a faith, which invites us to be weak.
- a faith, which overcomes obstacles.
- a faith, which demonstrates God’s own heart.
- a faith, which listens and obeys.
- a faith, which calls people home.
If you minimize the Bible to a moralistic rule book filled with one-dimensional people, then you miss God’s extravagant love and scandalous grace. If you miss love and grace, then you miss Jesus, who is the only way to know the Father (John 14:6). Jesus didn’t die on the cross so that you can make a good human effort at living according to the Ten Commandments, doing and saying all the right things by your own strength. Jesus did not die on the cross so that you can go around living a good moralistic life and be filled with pride and self-righteousness. Jesus died on the cross so that you could be free from sin to love others as God first loved you; not to earn anything, but from the fertile field of a transformed heart.
Working hard, like a faithful farmer, we are to strive to be like Him and like those who have come before us to show us the way of faith – the great cloud of witnesses. Jesus gives us our right standing by grace – a relationship with God that comes with the responsibilities of righteousness. As Paul taught in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” This is our calling; we have been made new by His love to join with Jesus in His ministry of love to reconcile all people to Him. Listen to Paul explain this in 2 Corinthians 5:17-20:
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
Does your life tell the story of Jesus Christ and how He is seeking to transform stories through His gospel of love and grace? You are being invited into the next class of the great cloud of witnesses. Until the Day you are inducted into the great cloud of witnesses and join with the saints that we have learned about in this sermon series, you are called to “not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:3). No matter the struggle, and the fight is real, we are to keep our eyes on Jesus, just as He told a better story with His life and death – “who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).
When all our stories point to Jesus Christ as the main character of each of our stories, then we will find unity in the body of Christ, and each of us will mature so that the entire body will be built up on love (Ephesians 4:11-16). Jesus is the only Hero of this story! Paul testified to this in 1 Corinthians 3:5-9, and I conclude with this appeal:
What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field….
Today, God is calling to you, choosing you, extending His love to you. Trust Him today and experience the joy of why Christ endured the cross and despised the shame. For the joy set before you, live strong in God’s grace and reap a harvest of praise to the glory of God. Never forget, that what we do in this life is a witness to what Christ did to give us the life we live, once for all.
What does your transforming story of faith look like? Jesus is interceding for you at the right hand of the Father, so do not grow weary and do not lose heart. Go from this place telling a better story, His Story, the transforming story of God’s grace, and together we will see our communities thriving to the glory of God!
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FOOTNOTES:
[1] Written by Helen Stiner Rice. This poem was reproduced from the memorial folder for Avon Dwight “Scotty” Scott, an Indiana dairy farmer (February 5, 1929 – October 28, 2023). His daughter, Delora Hartsock, found this poem in his hymnal along with instructions for his funeral. I had the honor of doing his services on Saturday, November 4; he was a faithful follower of Jesus and a Korean War veteran.
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Grow Strong in God’s Grace – Wk 28
Learning How to be a Faithful Farmer for God’s Harvest!
A Life that Witnesses to the Transformative Power of Faith!
(Part 1 of 2 of Series Conclusion)
Hebrews 12:1-3 (NASB)
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
If you started reading your Bible in Hebrews 12, you would automatically ask yourself, “Who are the people in this ‘so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us’?” The answer to this question is found in Hebrews 11, so let’s review the inaugural class of the great cloud of witnesses, and see what we have learned from each of them over the last 6 months of sermons:
- Abel and Enoch taught us how faith pleases God (4-6).
- Noah taught us how faith gives substance to your life (7).
- Abraham taught us how faith trusts God’s promises (8-10).
- Sarah taught us how faith bears fruit (11-12).
- Abraham taught us how can pass the test of faith (17-19).
- Isaac taught us how faith blesses the next generation (20).
- Jacob taught us how faith gives us a limp (21).
- Joseph taught us how faith lifts us out of the pits (22).
- Moses taught us how faith makes us humble (23-29).
- Joshua taught us how faith toots God’s horn (30).
- Rahab taught us how faith saves the day (31).
- Gideon taught us how faith takes God at His Word (32-40).
- Barak taught us how faith invites partnership (32-40).
- Samson taught us how faith invites us to be weak (32-40).
- Jephthah taught us how faith overcomes obstacles (32-40).
- David taught us the faith of a person after God’s own heart (32-40).
- Samuel taught us how faith listens and obeys (32-40).
- The prophets taught us how faith calls people home (32-40).
- In verses 33-40, other members of the inaugural class of the great cloud of witnesses are alluded to, various judges, kings, and prophets of Israel’s history, but specifically Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, Abed-nego, Hezekiah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Elijah, Elisha, Uriah, Zechariah, and possibly even foreshadows of John the Baptist and others found in the New Testament.
The emphasis of Hebrew 11 is faith. Each of these people had a relationship with God. How they believed not only affected their own lives, but each of their stories sent a ripple effect through history. That’s the power of faith! There is an important pattern found between the transforming stories of faith, found in Hebrews 11, and the exhortation of Hebrews 12:1-3. It is the biblical rhythm of “indicative-imperative,” simply meaning, “IF you believe this about God (the indicative about faith), THEN live this way (the imperative of faith).” This is what it means to believe; there is no false dichotomy between the indicative and the imperative.
Hebrews 12 starts with a “therefore” and the common thing you do when you see a “therefore” in Scripture is to ask yourself, “What is it there for?” Don’t devoid God’s commands of their meaning, nor reject the grace being extended to you, by just reading what comes next. Instead, go back and see what the Bible teaches you (the indicative of the imperative). In the Bible, God’s grace (His choosing) always precedes the call of obedience (God’s divine demands upon His children); in other words, “Relationship comes before responsibilities!” If you don’t get this, you can easily become a legalistic Christian (works-based religion), insecure and unstable because your focus is on your own ability to obey the commands of God. If you give yourself to this misapplication of Scripture (imperatives devoid of indicatives, or responsibilities without relationship), then all your effort will miss the mark and you will not know the heart of God. How can any righteous act please God if it is lacking love? Hebrews 11:6 teaches this clearly, “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him” (cf. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3).
God does not call you to strive for acceptance through your own efforts; rather, He invites you to rest in His relationship with you. It is only by grace that you are even in a relationship with Him, nevertheless, able to live according to His divine responsibilities as a member of His family. Allow me to be clear, grace is not opposed to the effort you put into your relationship, but grace is opposed to merit – you think you can earn anything by your efforts. Hebrews 12:1-3 transitions from the previous chapter’s descriptions of faith to the responsibilities of faith. Hebrews 12 leans heavily on the faith relationship between God and His children. We have been investing these last six months to truly know the heart of God; to know He is good and that we can trust Him in all our circumstances. Who was the God of these people? What does it look like to live by faith; to believe? How does God transform stories through a faith relationship with Him? Can I grow strong in God’s grace and reap a harvest of praise to the glory of God?
God calls by grace – you are His by His loving choice! Relationship precedes but does not preclude responsibilities. We see this best illustrated for us in the most ancient of places: the Ten Commandments (the Decalogue). For many, it is whitewashed as moral decrees to be obeyed to be found acceptable in God’s eyes. But I want to illuminate the most important part of the Ten Commandments; it is the word of grace that comes before the responsibilities of relationship. What is the first thing God declares in Exodus 20 before launching into His covenantal expectations? In Exodus 20:2, God says, “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.” This is a word of grace where God is saying, “I chose you! I rescued you from slavery and death, not because you deserved it, but because I love you! Therefore, as my dearly beloved children, follow these 10 commandments and you will grow strong in grace (our relationship), bearing the good fruit of my grace, living in such a way that proves to the world that you belong to me!” Do you see the indicative-imperative pattern? Never forget that every promise of God comes with a praxis to live.
God has established your identity in Him, now live like it! This is the teaching of the fruit-bearing branch abiding in the vine of Jesus Christ, found in John 15:7-11, and 16:
If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. … You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.
This is who you are, as the beloved of Jesus taught in 1 John 3:1-3:
See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
Do you remember the first time you were chosen for something? Maybe it was a glance across the classroom, the request for a dance, the acceptance to a college, the selection for promotion at work, or the diamond engagement ring. How did that make you feel?
Being chosen changes everything! Grace changes everything! Let us grow strong in God’s grace today so that we may witness to the world the transformative power of faith! How? By extending the same grace to others, just as Jesus commanded a new command in John 13:34-35, “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.”
How do you witness to the transformative power of faith in your everyday life?
- When you give generously without thought of getting anything in return.
- When you love for the benefit of the other and not for yourself.
- When you forgive a debt.
- When you invite someone to go for a walk or to sit around the fire together.
- Whenever you break bread with some around table fellowship.
- When you send a card, make a phone call, send a text of encouragement.
- When you make a visit or deliver a meal.
I try to teach my children to give good gifts; not to give away something they don’t need or want, but to give their very best. Love doesn’t give spare change; it gives the best of the first fruits. This is the principle behind how we give back to God. All things come from Him and all that we have is His; we are not giving anything to Him, we are returning it to Him because He is the source of abundance! Love doesn’t keep its commitment just when it feels good, because it’s easy, or because it’s reciprocated; love “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:7).
The faith stories of God’s people summarized in Hebrews 11 inform our lives and our lifestyles by calling us to live according to Hebrews 12:1-3:
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Paul echoed this in Philippians 2:1-4:
Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. [5-11 then give the example of Jesus in the Christ Hymn]
Take the next month and review Hebrew 11, and the lessons from the transforming stories of faith we have learned this last six months. Learn from these men and women of faith how you can be a witness to the transformative power of faith in your life. This is the faith we get to live when we are set free from sin to live with our eyes on Jesus:
- a faith, which pleases God.
- a faith, which gives substance to your life.
- a faith, which trusts God’s promises.
- a faith, which bears fruit.
- a faith, which passes the test.
- a faith, which blesses the next generation.
- a faith, which gives us a limp.
- a faith, which lifts us out of the pits.
- a faith, which makes us humble.
- a faith, which toots God’s horn.
- a faith, which saves the day.
- a faith, which takes God at His Word.
- a faith, which invites partnership.
- a faith, which invites us to be weak.
- a faith, which overcomes obstacles.
- a faith, which demonstrates God’s own heart.
- a faith, which listens and obeys.
- a faith, which calls people home.
If you minimize the Bible to a moralistic rule book filled with one-dimensional people, then you miss God’s extravagant love and scandalous grace. If you miss love and grace, then you miss Jesus, who is the only way to know the Father (John 14:6). Jesus didn’t die on the cross so that you can make a good human effort at living according to the Ten Commandments, doing and saying all the right things by your own strength. Jesus did not die on the Cross so that you can go around living a good moralistic life and be filled with pride and self-righteousness. Jesus died on the Cross so that you could be free from sin to love others as God first loved you; not to earn anything, but from of a transformed heart, striving to be like Him and like those who have come before us to show us the way of faith – the great cloud of witnesses. Jesus gives us our right standing by grace – a relationship with God that comes with the responsibilities of righteousness! As Paul taught in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” This is our calling; we have been made new by His love to join with Jesus in His ministry of love to reconcile all people to Him (2 Corinthians 5:17-20).
In your story, as in every story, grace matters! Do you remember when God chose you?
Today, God is calling to you, choosing you, extending His love to you. Trust Him today and experience the joy of why Christ endured the cross and despised the shame. For the joy set before you, live strong in God’s grace and reap a harvest of praise to the glory of God. Never forget, that what we do in this life is a witness to what Christ did to give us the life we live, once for all!
What does your transforming story of faith look like? Jesus is interceding for you at the right hand of the Father, so do not grow weary and do not lose heart!
YOU CAN LISTEN TO THIS MESSAGE BY CLICKING HERE.
In part 2 of the conclusion, schedule for November 19, we will learn how we can be inducted into the next class of the great cloud of witnesses. Live strong in God’s grace today by applying the faithful strategy of the hardworking farmer!
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Grow Strong in God’s Grace – Wk 27
Learning How to be a Faithful Farmer for God’s Harvest!
A Faith that Calls People Home!
Hebrews 11:32-40 (NASB)
God is in the business of transforming stories through the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are to grow strong in God’s grace as active participants in the world He created. God has entrusted His creation to His people to work as His Harvest workers – “All the world’s a field, and all the disciples of Jesus Christ merely farmers!” Therefore, let’s be faithful farmers by following the four-step strategy of a hard-working farmer: 1) cultivate people with faith; 2) sow the good seed of God’s grace (the gospel) into their hearts and minds; 3) care for them as their stories are transformed into fruit-bearing plants; and 4) reap a harvest of praise as the church of Jesus Christ. This strategy must be empowered by the Holy Spirit because apart from God we cannot bear any good fruit (John 15:5). Therefore, harvest workers of God’s kingdom are called to grow strong in God’s grace. Let’s take the first step by learning from the transforming stories of the Hall of Faith, found in Hebrews 11.
STEP #1 OF THE FARMER’S STRATEGY: CULTIVATE THE SOIL WITH FAITH
Today’s story is about the prophets of God, who are named explicitly as an office, and then many of their number are alluded to in Hebrews 11:32-40:
And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets, who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions [the prophet Daniel in Daniel 6], quenched the power of fire [the prophet Daniel’s entourage of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego in Daniel 3], escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong [Hezekiah recovered from sickness by the Word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 38], became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection [the prophet Elijah with the widow of Zarephath in 1 Kings 17 and the prophet Elisha with the Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4]; and others were tortured [the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 20], not accepting their release [the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 40], so that they might obtain a better resurrection; and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment. They were stoned [Stephen in Acts 7], they were sawn in two [the tradition of the prophet Isaiah’s death by King Manasseh], they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword [the prophet Uriah in Jeremiah 26]; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins [Elijah, Zechariah, and John the Baptist], being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect. [emphasis added]
The prophets are found throughout the Bible, as I briefly illustrated in the above passage. An excellent definition of a prophet is “a person inspired to proclaim or reveal divine will or purpose.”[1] I prefer this definition because it is inclusive to both forthtelling and foretelling. Today, a prophet is often, and wrongly, limited to the activity of divinely forecasting the future (foretelling), but there is so much more to it – prophecy is a calling forth of God’s will in a specific time and place, with a divine purpose in mind. When done properly, preaching is a prophetic work of the Spirit, in the forthtelling way, regardless of whether there is foretelling. That is important to realize as we learn from the prophets a faith that calls people home. We cannot foretell who God has chosen, and who will be saved, but we are called to forthtell to all, for Jesus died “once for all,” as Hebrews 7:25-27 proclaims:
Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.
It is our calling to make known the great love of God, made accessible through Jesus Christ (John 3:16). Let’s take the next action step so that we may learn how to have a faith that calls people to faith in Jesus Christ, calling them home to a right relationship with God through the forgiveness of their sins.
STEP #2 OF THE FARMER’S STRATEGY: SOW THE GOOD SEED OF GOD’S GRACE
The prophetic ministry is important to the church of Jesus Christ today, as Ephesians 4:11 includes them in the list of gifts to the church that Jesus gave as He ascended to the right hand of the Father, “He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ.” All five spiritually-gifted persons has the same purpose – to build the body of Christ in love through the equipping of the saints. Therefore, we cannot see “prophets” as a ministry of the past; they are a current reality, a function of the eldership of the church today – we must hear the message of the prophets, which has been unchanging through the millennia: “Come Home – Return to Me!” A powerful example of this is from Joel 2:12-13:
“Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “Return to Me with all your heart, and with fasting, weeping and mourning; and rend your heart and not your garments.” Now return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness and relenting of evil.
Other examples of the prophets declaring this message are the following:
- Jeremiah 4:1-2: “‘If you will return, O Israel,’ declares the Lord, ‘Then you should return to Me. And if you will put away your detested things from My presence, and will not waver, and you will swear, ‘As the Lord lives,’ In truth, in justice and in righteousness; then the nations will bless themselves in Him, and in Him they will glory.’”
- Ezekiel 33:11: “Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares the Lord God, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’”
- Hosea 12:6: “Therefore, return to your God, observe kindness and justice, and wait for your God continually.”
This is the same message of the last prophet of the Old Covenant, John the Baptist, who forthtold in Matthew 3:1-3:
Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said, “The voice of the one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, make His paths straight!’”
As we transition to the next action step, be clear that John the Baptist and Jesus the Christ fulfilled the message of the prophets, as foretold by Malachi in Malachi 3:1-7:
“Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts. “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap. He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness. … For I, the Lord, do not change; therefore you, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed. From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of hosts. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?’
STEP #3 OF THE FARMER’S STRATEGY: CARE FOR THE MATURING PLANT
Did you hear the God’s emphasis in Malachi 3? From the days of their forefathers, from the beginning of their rebellion, God has been calling His people to return to Him – to come Home! We hear this longing in Jesus’ words in Luke 13:34, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!” Therefore, Jesus intentionally added His voice to the tradition of the prophets, in Matthew 4:12-17:
Now when Jesus heard that John had been taken into custody, He withdrew into Galilee; and leaving Nazareth, He came and settled in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet: “The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles – the people who were sitting in darkness saw a great light, and those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, upon them a light dawned.” From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
This is the gospel message by which we are saved, as we see clearly portrayed in Jesus’ prophetic ministry to the rebellious and far away, in Matthew 11:20-30:
Then He began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day. Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you.” At that time Jesus said, … Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
The message is to come Home to a right relationship with God through Jesus. Home is a place of rest, safety, peace, joy, and comfort – all the promises of God are ours in Christ! Without the call of the prophet, there could be no way for the wayward to return home, which means there would be no way for any of us to have salvation in the first place; nevertheless, mature into fruit-bearing trees who reap a harvest of praise. Let’s turn to the last action step.
STEP #4 OF THE FARMER’S STRATEGY: REAP A HARVEST OF PRAISE
In the parable of the lost son in Luke 15:11-32, Jesus emphasized the heart of God through the prophetic message – Come Home! Through it, He called all prodigals (wayward children of Israel and gentiles) to return to a right relationship with the Father, and He reminded the church that this is our prophetic task to call the nations home. Siblings, brethren, we cannot allow ourselves to become older sibling – the religious elite, and self-righteous saints, who become an obstacle to the throne of grace through tradition and regulation. We are called to be like Jesus, who came “to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). We are called to be “ambassadors of Christ,” entrusted with the “ministry of reconciliation,” as Paul prophesied in 2 Corinthians 5:18-20:
Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.
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