faith – Page 3 – Christ the Truth

Why does faith save? 7

GlenAugust 16, 20107 Comments

Why is it that faith saves? What's so special about faith that it brings such benefits?

Because here's how the whole deal is usually set up:

First we insist that God does not save us by our works. No sir, we believe in 'justification by faith alone.' Therefore it's not that God is armed with a clipboard and some binoculars waiting for an external moral act in order to flick the 'justification' switch. How ridiculous. No, no. Instead we imagine God (with clipboard and brain scanner) eagerly seeking for a certain mental act within us. And then He'll zap righteousness into our account.

Yeah. That's much more reformed...

But honestly, for many, that is the doctrine of justification by faith alone in a nut-shell.

Yet for the thoughtful who've been reared on such teaching it raises big questions. Like, why faith? Is it just that 'faith' keeps us humble and God simply wants to remind everyone who's Boss? In which case why give us Christ's righteousness at all? Why not just leave us in a sort of righteousness limbo forever - that'd keep us humble right? And what's the link between this act of mental assent and that imputation of saving stuff?? It all seems so arbitrary.

And it would be completely arbitrary so long as we keep Christ out of the discussion. But once Jesus is central - and by that I mean the Person of Jesus (not just the Provider of a Perfect Righteousness) - then things start to fall into place.

Because faith is receiving Jesus Himself (John 1:10-12). He gives Himself to the world in life and death, He pledges Himself to us (marriage style) in the gospel. When we hear the gospel rightly we are swept off our feet by such a proposal and find ourselves saying "Yes." That is faith. And by faith we are united to Christ. In that union we have our salvation because salvation is all in Jesus.

So there's nothing at all arbitrary about the connection between faith and salvation. Because there's nothing arbitrary about the link between a marriage vow and marriage union. Once we are united to Christ by faith, then of course we instantly have His name, His wealth, His family connections. Of course then instantly we have the righteousness of Christ imputed. But it's not an impersonal imputation in response to an impersonal faith!

Justification by faith does not mean "being zapped because of mental assent." But we'll never get that unless we put union with Christ at the centre.

Why it's vital to preach faith alone – James 2:14-26

GlenAugust 14, 2010Leave a comment

¹⁴ What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ¹⁵ Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶ If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷ In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ¹⁸ But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder. ²⁰ You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? ²¹ Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²² You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. ²³ And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend. ²⁴ You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone. ²⁵ In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? ²⁶ As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

As a teenager I approached a minister, full of doubts and struggles and a thousand misunderstandings. My question was, Why doesn't God seem to accept me? I've prayed the prayer a thousand times, why does heaven seem to be silent?

He told me that I shouldn't worry about whether I was accepted, I just needed to get on and really live the Christian life.

So I went off and tried that (or at least what I imagined the Christian life to be). And I failed even by my own standards. And, despondently, I slinked off from Christian things for a good few years.

What kind of faith did I have at that time? I'd have probably articulated the gospel as something like: God's big. You're small. Behave.

I didn't have gospel faith. I had demon faith (v19). I believed God was one. I believed Jesus was God's Son. But little more.

Now what would James counsel at this point? Is James chapter 2 the encouragement to add good works to such rudimentary faith? Is he exhorting those with demon faith to top up their merit levels until they hit salvific proportions?

No. James is discussing the kind of faith that saves . In v14 the word "such" (or "that" in ESV) is important. James is not making a calculation: Demon faith plus good deeds equals salvation! Instead this is about discerning what kind of faith is true saving faith.

And the answer is - true saving faith is the kind of faith that's always being fulfilled in active service. In other words, saving faith (Genesis 15 style) always leads to obedience (Genesis 22 style).

So what should that minister have said to me? I wish he'd said this:

"Glen, I don't think you really know the gospel. I don't think you could have the slightest understanding of Christ for you while harbouring these doubts. I don't think the kind of faith you have is really the active, life-giving, always-leading-to-loving-service kind of faith. So let me tell you the gospel again, and drive it home to you until assured, authentic, vital faith is birthed in you. Let me preach the gospel of faith alone to you once more, knowing that the faith that saves will never be alone. Let me overwhelm you with the promise (Genesis 15) and then you'll bear fruit in obedience (Genesis 22)."

I think that's the approach to a dead faith: preach faith alone. And I think it's completely mandated by James chapter 2.

Why it’s vital to preach faith alone – James 2:14-26 4

glenscrivAugust 14, 20104 Comments

¹⁴ What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? ¹⁵ Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. ¹⁶ If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? ¹⁷ In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. ¹⁸ But someone will say, "You have faith; I have deeds." Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do. ¹⁹ You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that--and shudder. ²⁰ You foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? ²¹ Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? ²² You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. ²³ And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend. ²⁴ You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone. ²⁵ In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? ²⁶ As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

He told me that I shouldn't worry about whether I was accepted, I just needed to get on and really live the Christian life.

What kind of faith did I have at that time? I'd have probably articulated the gospel as something like: God's big. You're small. Behave.

I didn't have gospel faith. I had demon faith (v19). I believed God was one. I believed Jesus was God's Son. But little more.

So what should that minister have said to me? I wish he'd said this:

I think that's the approach to a dead faith: preach faith alone. And I think it's completely mandated by James chapter 2.

Impersonal faith means no assurance

GlenAugust 12, 2010Leave a comment

If "grace" is held out as a state of affairs - God saves believers apart from their works - then faith becomes an appreciation of a doctrine - I trust that God saves people through faith not works.

What then is assurance? It becomes something like - God has saved me because I have trusted the doctrine of grace. Where then is my confidence? It lies in that phrase "I have trusted." I'm having faith in my own faith.

But what if grace was specifically the Person of Jesus freely held out in the gospel? Well then faith is a receiving of Him. And if I have Him my confidence does not come from me at all. I don't trust my faith, I trust Jesus. And in Him I have full assurance.

In the impersonal state of affairs I build my assurance on having 'true faith'. But where will I find 'true faith'? In me?

When I know Jesus as my salvation then my assurance is based on having Him. How do I verify this? I look away to Christ clothed in the gospel - "Come to me and I will give you rest." My assurance therefore depends on His faithfulness (not on my flimsy faith).

'Anti-works' never works 12

GlenAugust 11, 201012 Comments

This morning I led a little bible study in Philippians 3:1-11. We went away feeling that we shouldn't build or glory in our spiritual CVs. Instead we should count them as loss - dung even.

So we resolved once again to be anti-works-of-law, anti-flesh, anti-the-circumcision-sect, anti whatever is anti-grace.

But of course that's not really Paul's point is it? Paul's not interested in going from circumcision to anti-circumcision. Anti-circumcision is also rubbish (Gal 5:6; 6:15). You can be a determined opponent of works righteousness and still know nothing of Christ. All you've done is erect another basis for your right standing with God (understanding grace).

The opposition Paul makes is not between works-of-the-law and anti-works-of-the-law. Instead it's the difference between works-of-the-law and knowing Christ (which is a synonym for faith).

Paul doesn't compare his legalistic righteousness with an abstract ideal called "grace". He compares it with the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus his Lord, in Whom he is hidden. That's what made him consign the spiritual CV to the dung-heap.

If we try to consign our own boasts to the dung-heap by will-power we'll never achieve it. Being 'anti-works' never works. The only solution is, v7 - the sake of Christ, v8 - knowing Him and v10 - continuing to want to know Him.

I walked away from our study thinking, Why didn't I ask the most obvious question when considering Philippians 3? The most obvious question is, What's so great about knowing Jesus?

In answering that, the rest falls into place.

‘Anti-works’ never works 4

glenscrivAugust 11, 20104 Comments

This morning I led a little bible study in Philippians 3:1-11. We went away feeling that we shouldn't build or glory in our spiritual CVs. Instead we should count them as loss - dung even.

So we resolved once again to be anti-works-of-law, anti-flesh, anti-the-circumcision-sect, anti whatever is anti-grace.

The opposition Paul makes is not between works-of-the-law and anti-works-of-the-law. Instead it's the difference between works-of-the-law and knowing Christ (which is a synonym for faith).

I walked away from our study thinking, Why didn't I ask the most obvious question when considering Philippians 3? The most obvious question is, What's so great about knowing Jesus?

In answering that, the rest falls into place.

Faith is the opposite of self regarding [repost]

GlenAugust 5, 2010Leave a comment

I've posted quite a few long-winded reflections on faith in the past. (And how we shouldn't reflect too much on it!) Here, here, here and here.

But they're all summed up and vastly surpassed by one paragraph of John Stott's Romans commentary:

"Further it is vital to affirm that there is nothing meritorious about faith, and that, when we say that salvation is ‘by faith, not by works', we are not substituting one kind of merit (‘faith') for another (‘works'). Nor is salvation a sort of cooperative enterprise between God and us, in which he contributes the cross and we contribute faith. No, grace is non-contributory, and faith is the opposite of self-regarding. The value of faith is not to be found in itself, but entirely and exclusively in its object, namely Jesus Christ and him crucified. To say ‘justification by faith alone' is another way of saying ‘justification by Christ alone'. Faith is the eye that looks to him, the hand that receives his free gift, the mouth that drinks the living water. ‘Faith... apprehending nothing else but that precious jewel Christ Jesus.' (Luther's Galatians). As Richard Hooker, the late sixteenth-century Anglican divine, wrote: ‘God justifies the believer - not because of the worthiness of his belief, but because of His worthiness Who is believed.' (John Stott, The Message of Romans, IVP, 1994, p117-118).

Isn't that brilliant?

He goes on a bit later...

"...The antithesis between grace and law, mercy and merit, faith and works, God's salvation and self-salvation, is absolute. No compromising mishmash is possible. We are obliged to choose. Emil Brunner illustrated it vividly in terms of the difference between ‘ascent' and ‘descent'. The really ‘decisive question', he wrote, 'is the direction of movement'. Non-Christian systems think of ‘the self-movement of man' towards God. Luther called speculation ‘climbing up to the majesty on high'. Similarly, mysticism imagines that the human spirit can ‘soar aloft towards God'. So does moralism. So does philosophy. Very similar is the ‘self-confident optimism of all non-Christian religions'. None of these has seen or felt the gulf which yawns between the holy God and sinful, guilty human beings. Only when we have glimpsed this do we grasp the necessity of what the gospel proclaims, namely ‘the self movement of God', his free initiative of grace, his ‘descent', his amazing ‘act of condescension'. To stand on the rim of the abyss, to despair utterly of ever crossing over, this is the indispensible ‘antechamber of faith'." (John Stott, The Message of Romans, IVP, 1994, p118. Brunner quotes from The Mediator)

In the debates on justification - don't ever lose those two paragraphs!!

Responding to sin [Thawed out Thursday]

GlenJune 10, 2010Leave a comment

How should we respond to sin in our lives?

One response is to think 'Come on Glen, I'm better than that.'

Another is to think 'Come on Glen, Christ is better than that.'

The first may produce a very moral life. But the devil is more than happy to concede to you a Christ-less morality. Self-righteousness is a far muddier swamp than unrighteous living. I am not better than my sin. I am not even better than the foulest evil I've imagined.

Instead, when I sin I am revealed as the person I've always been. Psalm 51:5 has often struck me. Here is David with blood on his hands. Yet his confession is that the man who committed adultery and murder is the man he had always been.

We think when we've sinned that it was just a blot on our otherwise acceptable record. The word of God says our sins simply express the person we have always been (Matt 7:17f). My gross sins are not 'out of character' - they are me with the hand-brake off.

No sin can shock me. Not my own, nor the sins of my brothers and sisters who confess to me. If the blood of God was shed for my sin (Acts 20:28) - then my sin is infinitely heinous. No, I'm not better than sin. But Christ is.

This is true in two senses.

First it's true in the sense that Christ is more desirable than sin. In the wilderness of temptations, Satan can only offer me a bucket of salt. Christ always stands before me with living waters (John 4:10; 7:38; Rev 7:17). The father of lies tells me life is found in this sin. Jesus tells me it's a broken cistern that can hold no water. Only His waters are truly life-giving. (Jer 2:12-13) I forsake even my precious sins because I have learnt that Jesus is more desirable.

But Christ is better than sin in another, much more important, sense. For He is the good person that I fail to be. He is the reality that stands before the holy Father - not my sin.

My sin, though it clings to my bones and sinks to the depths of my heart, does not define me, Christ does. When the Father looks to find me, He does not look in the record that stands against me (Ps 130:3; Col 2:14). He looks to His Beloved Son and finds me hidden there.

Which means even as the diseased tree of my flesh produces in me the very worst fruit, Christ is my Plea, my Status, my Righteousness. Even as the chief of sinners, even in the act of my worst rebellion, Christ - the One who is infinitely better - defines me and not my sin.

So Christ is better in both these senses. But - and here's where this post has been heading - without being utterly convinced of this latter sense, the former sense could easily lead to a Pharasaism not unlike the 'I am better than sin' response.

How so?

Well if I respond to sin simply by saying 'Jesus is more desirable' it basically throws me back on myself. I am left with my own heart and its ability to desire Jesus. The work of annihilating sin becomes simply my work of destroying my heart idols. The work of liberation is simply the work of my affections desiring Christ with sufficient ardour. Where is the locus of this redemption? Me.

Now do my heart-idols need crucifying? Yes. Do I need Christ uppermost in my affections? Yes. But by golly, if I found it hard to reform my outward behaviour - how hard is it going to be to reform my inner world??! Impossible.

So, you say, that's why we need the gracious work of the Spirit and diligently to employ the means of grace, etc, etc. Well... there's a time and a place for that. But let's think. If that's our bottom line, doesn't it sound exactly like the Catholic view of grace? "It's all of grace" says the Catholic "... supernatural, infused grace worked in us, with which we cooperate, making us better and better over time." Doesn't that sound very similar to "We fight sin by enflaming our affections for Christ - flames stoked by the Spirit via His means of grace"?

It's not that there's no place for the 'Christ is more desirable' approach. It's that we must recognize it's true place - i.e. after we're assured of the extrinsic work of Christ. "Grace" is not basically a supernatural empowerment to work at my salvation or to enflame my Christian affections. "Grace" is the work of Christ alone on behalf of sinners who contribute nothing. (This is similar to the points I made here - grace is not so much the bread David provides as the victory David wins).

Therefore my first reponse to sin is this - even in the very midst of sin, Jesus has been carrying me on His heart before the Father. Even ensnared in the darkest selfishness, the Spirit has been calling 'Abba' from within me. Even as my heart desired worthless idols, the Father loved me even as He loves Christ.

This is the truth that really changes us. It reveals to us that not even our sin can separate us from the love of God in Christ. We realize again that our darkness is not a locked basement to the Lord. Even our self-willed rebellion cannot remove us from His embrace. We sin in His face - this drives us down in contrition. And at the same time He is lifting us up to the Father.

The truth that really changes us is that our lives are not our own. Jesus has taken possession of us in spite of ourselves and wills to do us eternal good. The Spirit of sonship is already praying 'Abba' in you. The affections you are so keen to enflame are already ablaze - and that, even as you quench Him!

Now surrender. Now be conquered. Now receive what is entirely beyond you. And see if you don't love Him with renewed and supernatural vigour! But don't begin with your heart for Christ. Begin with His heart for you.

We love because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19

What is faith? A sermon on John 4:43-54 6

GlenApril 26, 20106 Comments

Audio here

What is faith? Perhaps this is one of the most misunderstood words, not only in the English language, not only in the world at large, but in the church too. People do not understand what ‘faith’ truly is.

And so, probably the most famous example of ‘faith’ in the popular imagination is this: Indiana Jones in the Last Crusade. He has to get across this seemingly bottomless chasm. His dying father, Sean Connery, is whispering “You must believe boy, you must believe.” And so Indiana Jones summons up this heroic amount of faith, and he courageously extends his foot out and falls into the chasm. But then, thud, his foot lands on solid ground. The camera pans around and you can see a rock bridge that had been invisible to him before. Indiana Jones had summoned up enough faith to get across the chasm.

And people think, that’s faith! It’s a leap in the dark. Is that how you have thought of faith? A leap in the dark?

Well if that’s what faith is, most people say – that’s not for me. And people either feel superior to that kind of faith or inferior to that kind of faith.

You’ve met the superior types I’m sure. “I’m so happy for you, that you’ve found faith. But for me... I guess I’ve grown up a bit and learnt to depend on myself. But it’s sweet that you have that crutch, I’m too mature for a blind leap in the dark.”

You’ve probably met the inferior types too: “I so envy your faith. I wish I had your faith. I just can’t seem to trust myself, but I think it’s so brave of you to leap in the dark like that.”

Have you met those kinds of people – those who feel superior to the leap in the dark, and those who feel inferior to the leap in the dark.

Well John’s gospel is here to tell us what real faith is. Do you see in our passage how often the idea of faith comes up?

⁴⁸ "Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders," Jesus told him, "you will never believe."

Verse 50:

The man took Jesus at his word and departed. [Literally, the man believed Jesus’ word]

Verse 53:

⁵³ Then the father realised that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." So he and all his household believed.

It’s a passage all about faith. Because, v54, this whole incident is a miraculous SIGN.

As we’ve thought about with the kids this morning – Jesus performs signs so that we might believe in Him. He doesn’t want our faith to be a blind leap in the dark. In John’s Gospel faith is walking into the light with our eyes wide open. And we do it because we’ve seen the signs and followed them to the true Light of the world.

John tells us at the end of His Gospel why he wrote it:

³⁰ Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. ³¹ But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Do you see – the whole book of John is a book of signs pointing to Jesus. And as we see the signs we are directed to the truth about Jesus. And the truth is – He is “The Christ”. That means He is the One especially anointed (or you might say) filled with the Holy Spirit. And He is the One who is especially the Son of God the Father. So Jesus is Christ – He has a unique relationship with the Holy Spirit, and He is Son of God – He has a unique relationship with God the Father. Jesus is one of the trinity. He is a divine Person. And John’s gospel begins by calling Him God and ‘the Word of God’ and it tells us He made the universe with His Father and the Holy Spirit.

Now – when you see that about Jesus, that is faith. It’s an awed, loving recognition of the truth of Jesus. You look at Jesus and you say “Here is the true Master and Owner of heaven and earth. Here is the Maker and Saviour of the world. I don’t know much, but I know that Jesus is Lord.” That’s faith and as soon as you realize “Jesus, you’re the One” He shares with you His life and blessings. When you trust Jesus, He adopts you into the divine family – and you have eternal life. Life in relationship with the trinity. Life that begins now and will go on for eternity. All of that comes when you have FAITH in Jesus.

So having true faith is very important I think you’ll agree. John’s Gospel is written that you may believe. That means if you don’t yet believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God – this is written to convert you, that you may believe. And it means that if you do believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God – this is written so that you might keep trusting, keep believing, keep looking to Jesus.

So that’s our hope as we study Jesus’ second miraculous sign in John chapter 4. That we would believe in Jesus this morning.

We’re just going to examine four things about true faith from this passage:

Faith is common – that means universal. Everyone has faith. The atheist has faith, the Buddhist has faith, the Christian – everyone. You have never met anyone who was not a person of faith. What we have faith in, well that’s the important difference.

Second, faith is converted. To have true faith in Jesus we have to switch our allegiances from old dependencies to Jesus.

Third, faith is contemplative. Faith is a response to seeing and knowing Jesus. When we contemplate Him we trust Him.

Finally, faith is continual. We move out in faith and find confirmation for our faith as we go, it’s a continual and never-ending process of trusting Jesus, stepping out on the basis of that faith, finding confirmation, gaining more faith and stepping out again. Faith is continual.

But first, faith is common. Everyone has faith.

Look down at verse 42, the verse immediately preceding our reading this morning. Here are some Samaritans that Jesus has been spending time with. And they conclude:

⁴² They said to the woman [of the well], "We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Saviour of the world."

Here are pagans, not Jews, but they see in Jesus that He has the answer to the whole world’s needs. He is the Saviour of the world. True faith says ‘Jesus is the Saviour’. But the world has many other Saviours.

This week I was thinking about all the things the world trusts in to save us. The bible warns us about loads of them. Here’s just a selection:

Politics (Ps 146:3f) – ³ Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save. ⁴ When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing. ⁵ Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God.

riches – 1 Tim 6:17 ¹⁷ Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

Wisdom – Prov 3:5-7 ⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; ⁶ in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. ⁷ Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.

man (Isaiah 2:22) “²² Stop trusting in man, who has but a breath in his nostrils. Of what account is he?”

Family – Psalm 27 ¹⁰ Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.

religion – Jer 7:4 ⁴ Do not trust in deceptive words and say, "This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD!"

false gods – Ps 115 - ⁴ But their idols are silver and gold, made by the hands of men. ⁵ They have mouths, but cannot speak…⁸ Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them. ⁹ O house of Israel, trust in the LORD.

Politics, riches, wisdom, human power, family, religion, false gods – people trust in these every day. There is not a human being on planet earth who does not count on something like these as a Saviour.

Faith is common to all.

Which means when we talk about true faith in Jesus, you’ll see that faith must be CONVERTED.

Having faith in Jesus is not about beginning to trust for the first time in your life. Having faith in Jesus is about switching your faith from something else that has been your Saviour.

Look with me at verses 46 and 47:

⁴⁶ Once more Jesus visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum [Capernaum was over 20 miles from Cana – a day’s journey on foot]. ⁴⁷ When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death.

Here is a powerful man. “Royal official.” Perhaps he’s royalty himself or he’s high up in King Herod’s court . This man is used to getting things done. Power is being able to turn aspirations into action and this man had it. He was used to getting things done. So here’s a powerful man and his son gets sick. What do you think his first response will be? To what saviour will he turn?

Well I’m guessing here, but I imagine the story went a bit like this. His son got sick and he thinks, Well I’ll pay for the best doctor and we’ll get this sorted. His doctor comes, his doctor fails. His son gets worse. So he pulls a few strings and gets the king’s own physician. Still no improvement. Instead his son gets worse. Where does he turn? Well, maybe he’s got a contact at the imperial court who can put him in touch with the best of Roman medicine. Surely the Romans can sort this out. But they can’t. And his son is now on his death bed. It’s hard to think of something as tragic as a father planning the funeral of his son. It should be the other way around. Can you put yourself in the shoes of this otherwise powerful man?

The royal official is brought to the end of his powers.

And when you come to the end of yourself, that’s where faith comes. Because faith must mean you shift your allegiance. You used to trust something else, now you trust Jesus.

Do you remember the famous story Jesus told? A foolish man builds his house on sand. And of course, for a while a house on sand looks fine. Until the storm hits. And then your house comes crashing down.

Well a storm has hit this man, and his own powers are shown to be shifting sands.

So where does he turn?

Well remember, this is a Jewish man. A man who knows the Old Testament Scriptures. He knows the expectation for a Messiah who, when He comes, will bring heaven to earth. The deaf will hear, the blind will see, the lame will leap for joy. He knows about the Messiah. And he’s heard about Jesus. He’s heard that everywhere this man goes, He’s like a little pool of paradise. Everyone who is sick who comes in contact with Him gets well. He’s doing everything they promised about the Messiah. Could he be the one?

Well that’s what he must have been thinking as he left his son’s death-bed and made the long journey to Cana. He had begun to make the journey from the shifting sands of his own resources and to put his trust in the solid Rock of Jesus.

But let’s face it – if his son was not ill, he probably wouldn’t be seeking Jesus. If he hadn’t been brought to the end of his powers, you wonder whether he’d be looking to Jesus.

What about you? What are your saviours? Where do you turn? What do you trust in? The truth of Jesus and the storms of life are all designed to turn you (convert you) towards true faith.

Well what does true faith look like? Here’s one word for it – contemplative.

Verse 50 is such a surprise. A day’s journey for this royal official, the worry about his son, the expectations about Jesus – what’s going to happen? Jesus simply dismisses him again in 7 words. "You may go. Your son will live."

That’s not what the royal official expected. Verse 47, he wanted Jesus to come back with him to Capernaum and heal his son. And I wonder whether he expected Jesus to bring with him some magic ingredients, or at least some special words or prayers. In the Old Testament, there’s a story of Elijah the prophet raising a boy from the dead (1 Kings 17). And Elijah does all this elaborate stuff. He picks him up and lays him on his bed and he cries out to the LORD and then he stretches himself out on the dead boy three times and each time he uses a special prayer. Maybe the royal official was expecting that. Jesus does none of it. He just says “Go. Your son will live.”

And in that moment, the royal official saw the truth about Jesus. Jesus is not some shaman wrestling with the spiritual powers. He doesn’t work up a sweat trying to conjure up a healing. He doesn’t just engage with the mighty power of death – He towers far above it. “Go. Your son will live. I’ve said it, it will happen.”

And the royal official suddenly realizes – I’m not just dealing with an amazing man here. Jesus is the One who speaks and it comes to be.

Does that phrase sound familiar? It was in our Old Testament reading this morning. Psalm 33 talks about a Person called “the Word of the LORD” who created all things. It’s very like John’s Gospel. The Word of the LORD who creates all things is so powerful, v9:

⁹ For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm.

This is what the Creator does. He speaks and it happens. “Let there be light. And there was light.” He speaks realities into existence. Genesis 1 doesn’t say, “Let there be light, and then He went off and made light.” The speaking and the making are not two different things. He speaks and it comes to be. That is the mark of the Creator Word of God.

And here is Jesus – even in the face of that great enemy death. He’s not phased, He doesn’t work up a sweat, He doesn’t even pray. He’s not calling on a higher power – He is the Higher Power. Here is the One the whole Old Testament has been proclaiming. The Messiah who makes the blind see and the lame walk – who restores heaven to earth and He does it by the power of His word.

That’s why v50, the royal official takes Jesus at His word. He recognizes in Jesus the Absolute Trustworthiness of the Creator God. And when He contemplates the truth of Jesus – faith is born.

Because faith is contemplative. By that I mean, when you contemplate your true Saviour, you SEE in Him things that are SO compelling, SO beautiful, SO trustworthy, that you simply must trust Him. True faith comes when you contemplate Jesus – when you see Him for who He is.

Which is why, if anyone says to me “I wish I had your faith”, I’ve got to reply – well just contemplate Jesus. Look at Him, read about Him in the bible, see Him for who He really is, and you too will have faith.

Someone who says “I wish I had your faith” is a bit like a man who comes late to a conversation, a cracking joke has just been told, everyone’s laughing and the man says “I wish I had your laughter.” What? “I wish I had your gift of being able to laugh. I don’t really feel able to laugh, but here you are – you obviously have a talent for laughter.” What do we say to that? We say ‘listen to the joke! Contemplate what we’ve been contemplating. Then you’ll laugh.’

Or a woman who comes late to a concert and the audience is giving a standing ovation. The woman says “I wish I had your talent for applause.” What? “I wish I had your gift of enthusiastic clapping. I don’t feel able to applaud, but here you are clapping – you obviously have a talent for applause.” What do we say? We say “Listen to the music! Contemplate what we’ve been contemplating. Then you’ll gladly applaud.”

Or the ten year old boy who says “Girls smell. I will never ever fall in love.” What do we say? We say, “You just wait. When you meet the right girl, it’ll happen.” Once you contemplate the right person, love will come.

Faith is like laughter, it’s like applause, it’s like falling in love. It’s not a talent I have or a power I exercise. It’s a response to something out there. I’ve encountered something fantastic and once I’ve contemplated it, it’s changed me – He’s changed me, swept me off my feet. Something – someone – overwhelmingly solid and trustworthy has captured my heart and I trust Him. That’s faith.

Well there’s one final thing about faith – it’s continual. Look down at v51:

⁵¹ While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. ⁵² When he enquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, "The fever left him yesterday at the seventh hour." ⁵³ Then the father realised that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live." So he and all his household believed.

In v50 the royal official believed Jesus. And in v53 he believed Jesus again. Faith is continual. We don’t trust Jesus once and then get on with our life. Our life is a life of trusting Jesus. And we do it like this royal official. You see he had an initial faith – he took Jesus at his word – and he acted on the basis of that faith. Then later this faith was confirmed – Jesus really was able to do what He said. And so with this added confirmation, the man believes again. And he believes more, because now he has contemplated more of Jesus’ power and grace. He’s seen it up close and personal.

This is how faith works. You trust Jesus. You move out in faith. You see how trusting Jesus makes sense of life and in that confirmation your faith increases and so you trust Him a bit more. And on it goes. Faith is continual.

Do you realize that your biggest need this week is to trust Jesus? Think now: what do you think of as your greatest need for this week? ... Now think of all the possible saviours you might look to, to provide you needs. Money? Power? Intelligence? Beauty? Charm? Hard work? Family? What saviours might you look to? Well Jesus offers Himself to you again this week and says trust ME – I am the God who speaks and it happens. I am the God who raises the dead. I can handle this week, trust me. Continually. Our biggest need this week is to trust Jesus.

So let me close by trying to help us trust Jesus. How do you think I should get you to trust Jesus more? Indiana Jones style? Summon up the courage for a blind leap of faith? No – faith will come as we contemplate Jesus. So while you still have your concerns for this week in mind, let me tell you about Jesus.

Before the universe existed, He was there – full of the Holy Spirit, the beloved Son of God the Father. He made all things even the starry host by the Breath of His mouth. He said “Light shine” and light was. He spoke and it came to be. He rules and upholds the entire universe by the word of His power. And yet, He’s not too big for your problems and mine. He is concerned for our problems. He saw us perishing in our sins and He decided to do something about it. He came to planet earth. He was born as a weak and speechless baby – the Creator of heaven, laid in a manger. He grew up and lived a life of such utter love and self-giving it continues to astonish the world. And then for you and for me He laid down His life, was lifted up on a cross to suffer hell in our place. He shed His own infinitely precious blood – the blood of God – so much does the Creator of the cosmos love you. He was laid in the tomb but three days later He burst out again the conqueror of death and of sin, of wrath and of evil. He has ascended to the throne of God and He rules the universe as our Brother, as our Priest, as our Lamb, as our Lord, as our Jesus. And soon He will return to raise the whole creation to new, perfect, resurrection life. And so soon we will be feasting at His table and praising Him – the One who loves us more than His own life. This Jesus – He rules the universe. And He rules your week. Will you trust Him?

Exodus 23:10-32 – Jacky Lam

GlenMarch 22, 2010Leave a comment

After some very feeble posts by myself (sorry I've had no time recently!), Jacky brings things back to the boil. This is really great stuff - enjoy!

Read Exodus 23:10-32

The Israelite Calendar

We approach the three significant appointed times of the year according to the Israelite ecclesiastical calender:

(i) Feast of Unleavened Bread: also known as the ‘Passover‘ (Pesach) in the first month (15th to 21st day), the month Nisan/Abib (v.15); the Paschal Lamb killed on the 14th, and the Paschal feast from 15th to 21st

(ii) Feast of Harvest: 6th day of Siwan/Sivan, the third month of the ecclesiastical calender (this is also known as Shavuot/the Pentecost/Firstfruits of Wheat Harvest)

(iii) Feast of Ingathering: known as Sukkot, or Feast of Tabernacles (firstfruits of wine and oil) occuring from 15th to 21st of the month Tishri, the seventh ecclesiastical month

These are the three memorable days where all the males appear before God. Unsurprisingly, these three festivals mark important dates in Scripture: the year opens with the reminder of Jesus’ death on the cross; followed by the Pentecost in the middle of the year, reminding us of the firstfruits of the Holy Spirit given to all men (Acts 2) which also occured on the Shavuot. This being in the sixth month, on the sixth day, is the mark of man equipped and blessed by the Holy Spirit to spread the gospel, and also to be sanctified (as day six represents that of the creation of man and woman, just as the Spirit is given to all men and women. For six days shall man labour; and so for six days shall we labour with the Holy Spirit for God’s Holy Work of salvation. This is closely followed by the seventh month, symbolising a time of reaping of rewards, the firstfruits of wine and oil, and unlike the Feast of Weeks, this is similar to the Passover, a seven-day celebration.

Interestingly, following the Feast of Ingathering there is approximately 5 months before the next Passover… and this contributes to the seasonal cycle of Scripture – through death, comes life, and returns to death again, comes life again. This is no Buddhist samsaric realm – rather, this is an observation of our life on earth, a shadow of the great event of Christ being thrown into the pit, rising as a new creation and ascending as our present Intercessor before the Heavenly Father. Just as we are made from dust, we are given the firstfruits of new life by the Spirit; then we return to dust. But we will rise again, breaking away from all seasons in new creation, and will eternally live in the Feast of Tabernacles where there is eternal wine and oil of gladness, where there is the eternal Tabernacling of the Lamb with us in New Jerusalem.

Perhaps there is something more I’d like to note: Three times the male appears. Why?

The first festival relates to CHRIST, in memory of the death of the firstborn.

The second festival relates to the SPIRIT, in memory of the giving of the Spirit to all who stand in the Son.

The third festival… relates to the FATHER – whom we will no longer conceive as invisible, but visible when we are given new bodies:

Job 19:25-27 For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. (26) And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, (27) whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. My heart faints within me!

And thus, the three periods of the year bear witness to the Triunity of the God in becoming, the cyclical nature of His outpouring love for us taking us from Christ, in the Spirit, to the Father from the victorious opening of the year to the even more glorious close of the greater hope in seeing the Father in our new creation bodies, in the new heaven and earth.

Conquest of Canaan in the Name of the Angel

From the great establishment of the yearly reminder of the Triune glory, we move on to vv.20-21 which speak of the divine archangel which Philo considered to be God the Father’s chief messenger, and no doubt, Jesus is the Father’s chief and foremost messenger. The Angel of the LORD, who has the name of GOD himself, has the power of pardoning one’s transgressions. The Father tells Moses to relay to the Israelites that this Angel must not be disobeyed (v.22).

Vv.23-24 then relate to the essence of Christian proclamation – v.24: “you shall not bow down to their gods nor serve them, nor do as they do, but you shall utterly overthrow them and break their pillars in pieces”. Indeed, Christ, the Angel, is the one who brings the victory – God the Father is the one who blots them out (v.23), but WE are the ones who invoke the Angel’s Name to destroy the idols according to the victory won by the Redeemer. Such is the stuff of the Christian faith, when we are brought into the warm embrace of the Triune love! Glen has written another great post on faith here.

And that fight of faith, by the victory of the cross and by the power of the Spirit (explained by the festivals), shall result in the symbolic treasures of Canaan. The land will be enlarged, the people will no longer be barren… but v.33 ends on an important caution: “They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against me; for if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.” Yet, the irony is the prophetic nature behind this statement – STRAIGHT after Moses speaks to the Father, Israel is already serving their self-made calf. Will the Israelites ever inherit such blessings, with their terrible track-record of being dissatisfied with the symbolic quail, manna and living water? It is so laughable that we, like the Israelites, would however always promise God – “All the words that the LORD has spoken we will do” (chapter 24v.3).

Clearly, the answer is found in the victorious Angel. The answer is found in the annual reminder of the three-fold festivities. The answer is found in the perfect fulfillment of the law. What is the meaning of the law? It is to bear witness to the Christ Who can do these things. What is the meaning of the law? It is to bear witness to the Seed, the God-man, who is the Redeemer of the ancient Christians. What is the meaning of the law? To display how utterly fallen we are, and our utter incapability of fulfilling it by ourselves, except in the eternal Mediator alone. Through Him, we will see the Father, and inherit the blessings of New Jerusalem in true Canaan (v.23-32).