February 27th - Count the Cost

Prayer Requests
Pastor Aaron Preaching
Swift Cantrel Preaching
Indian Christians murdered
David - College
Kyle - Mt. Paran
Greyson - Mom health, Uncle health, Job interviews
Tyler - Job interviews
Kari - Friend in hospital, Dance teacher's husband cancer
Tyler McIntosh's collar bone
Jennifer - Magnet Decisions

Text - Nehemiah 1

We're starting this morning the book of Nehemiah. There are many different types of writing in the Bible, the Epistles are letters which are to instruct and edify. Zechariah, which we just finished, is prophetic, it is teaching through dreams and visions and word-pictures. Other types are the poetry of Psalms, the wisdom of Proverbs, and the Narrative of the Gospels and Acts of the Holy Spirit. Each of these requires a slightly different teaching style, and Nehemiah, which is a Historical Narrative, will be best taught not line-by-line, but so that you see the major theme of each major event. If you get lost or confused it is imperative that you ask questions, because something that may seem totally obvious to me might be lost on you, since I've spent so much time already in this book.

Nehemiah comes as a package deal with Ezra, so much so that sometimes this book is called Ezra-Nehemiah. They are split up mainly because of scroll length when they weren't written in books, but on scrolls. The reason we are not going to Ezra right after Zechariah is because Ezra is an extremely fast paced, numbers-based, book which is really useful for giving us the timeframe of Zechariah, Haggai, Nehemiah, and Esther, but with not a lot of didactic material of its own. It would literally take us years to get through Ezra because every chapter would have us going to another minor prophet.

The reason we chose to do Nehemiah after Zechariah is because in Zechariah the major rebuilding effort was the Temple, now the major rebuilding effort in Nehemiah will be the wall of Jerusalem. Both of these books happen after the Babylonian exile, Zechariah in 522-518BC, and Nehemiah quite a bit later in 445BC. Remember that Jerusalem was burned in 586BC, so the fact that Jerusalem lay in rubble for so long is a very important point as we get a little farther into Nehemiah.

After the Jews were allowed to go home after the Babylonian exile, starting about 535BC, there were two major returns. The first was when Zechariah and Zerubbabel and Joshua led many back. The second was led by Ezra, quite a bit later. During this time there were trickling of Jews back in, but even as we see in the book of Acts in the AD40's that many Jews had not come back but had lived in foreign lands for hundreds of years.

It is very important to remember that God dwelt in a temple in Jerusalem during this time, so to have no interest to be near to Jerusalem was to have no interest to be near to God. In our days though, we remember that Jesus Christ, God the Son, created for himself a temple of flesh and dwelt in it; that if anyone is born again then the Holy Spirit dwells in them and they are a temple of God.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

It is massively important that we recognize that a Jew living willingly outside of Jerusalem in the 5th century BC was rejecting God. To the contrary, Daniel was forced to live outside of Jerusalem and he reacted this way,

Daniel 6:10 When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.

Daniel knew where God dwelt, and prayed towards him, not at all happy that he was a prisoner in a foreign land. Remember this point, because it will be very important for our application at the end.

So that brings us to Nehemiah. Nehemiah is a man born outside of Israel in Persia (Modern Day Iran), he is probably about 60 years old, and many think he was probably a very smart and handsome man, because of his job he had as the Cupbearer of the king of Persia. A Cupbearer isn't just a waiter, it is a much more trusted position. It can be so high as to be the second in command of a nation. The Cupbearer is responsible for making sure the king is not poisoned, so it is a very trusted position. There have been no lack of Cupbearers in history who have betrayed their kings to death in order to try to steal the throne.

The Cupbearer is privy to all manner of military and kingdom secrets, and his advice is readily sought and desired by the king. So the first thing we learn about Nehemiah is that he has done very well for himself in the world, he is probably the richest and most powerful Jew in the world at this time, more so than even the governor of Jerusalem.

At this time, the land of Israel/Judah aren't even called by their names, but are called the "Province Beyond the River." Which river do you think it's beyond? The Jordan. It is a dark, dark day for Jerusalem, but Nehemiah seems to be oblivious, so let's start into Nehemiah,

Nehemiah 1:1-3 The words of Nehemiah the son of Hacaliah. Now it happened in the month of Chislev, in the twentieth year, as I was in Susa the capital, that Hanani, one of my brothers, came with certain men from Judah. And I asked them concerning the Jews who escaped, who had survived the exile, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said to me, "The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire."

The twentieth year is the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, so that definitively dates this book to 445BC. The month of Chislev is November, this will be more important in a bit, but not right now. There was constant traffic from Jerusalem to Susa, a capital city of Persia, some of whom would be Jews. Nehemiah talked with his brother named Hanani, who was either just coincidentally in Susa where Nehemiah was, or more likely perhaps Hanani sought Nehemiah out to try to improve the condition of Jerusalem. Nehemiah asks, basically, "How is the rebuilding of Jerusalem coming?" I don't think he gets the answer he was expecting at all, he is told they are shamed, in great persecution from surrounding peoples, and that their walls are still in shambles and the gates are wide open to any oppressor. The Holy Spirit greatly convicts Nehemiah and Nehemiah instantly goes into mourning.

Nehemiah 1:4-5 As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. And I said, "O LORD God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments..."

Nehemiah goes into great mourning, both for the condition of Jerusalem, but I think more so for his own sin of being so affluent in a sinful place.

His prayer is fantastic, he starts here by quoting Daniel's prayer in Daniel 9. He shows himself to be well versed in the Hebrew scriptures, he quotes Daniel, Moses, and Ezra, and I love his beginning to this prayer, to the Lord God of Heaven. This prayer is asking both for forgiveness of the people Israel, and also for Nehemiah, and I think his opening shows that he has not mixed any of the Persian gods into his worship, but sees that God is the only God and Saviour. His prayer continues,

Nehemiah 1:6-7 Let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned. We have acted very corruptly against you and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, and the rules that you commanded your servant Moses.

Nehemiah confesses great sin before God, starting with the nation, then to his own house, then even himself. He is totally broken over this sin, as evidenced by his fasting and weeping for days, not just minutes. He continues now by appealing to God's faithfulness and that he responds to repentance,

Nehemiah 1:8-9 Remember the word that you commanded your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples, but if you return to me and keep my commandments and do them, though your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there I will gather them and bring them to the place that I have chosen, to make my name dwell there.'

Nehemiah confesses that Israel's sins led to the exile and the condition of Jerusalem now, but he continues the verse from Deuteronomy, that if they repent then they will be returned to a place where God dwelt. Nehemiah is hoping for this repentance to lead to God turning his eyes and ears back in favor towards Jerusalem.

At this point we see that it was very clearly the sins of Israel that led to their great pain and destruction. Sometimes when bad things happen, it is the result of sin, especially in the context of a whole nation. But it is not always the result of sin. Like if you stub your toe you shouldn't go to try to figure out, "Which sin was it that God is punishing me for in the stubbing of my toe?" As children of grace, we do not expect every sin to receive a retribution, since they have been paid for on Calvary's cross. But we also have to see in the falling of nations and bad things that happen to cities can be seen to be punishment from God,

Amos 3:6 Does disaster come to a city, unless the LORD has done it?

Does that mean that cities that have disaster in them are worse and cities that are safe was better? No, Jesus answered that question by saying, "Unless you repent, you shall likewise perish." (Luke 13:1-5) Disaster is a punishment for sinners, and also a warning. This is a complex issue and I encourage to read Psalm 73 when you get a chance, which tackles it a lot deeper. Not everything bad that happens is a result of sin, but some things are. Like the condition of Jerusalem right now in Nehemiah's day is definitely a result of sin. Nehemiah is praying that God will forgive them and build them back up,

Nehemiah 1:10-11 They are your servants and your people, whom you have redeemed by your great power and by your strong hand. O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man."

This is recognized as one of the greatest intercessions in the Bible, asking God to listen and save and rescue his people. We'll see much more next week on how Nehemiah brings it to fruition, but we need to remember that the beginning of all success starts with prayer. When I'm witnessing I like to remember that we have to talk to God about people before we talk to people about God.

John 9:31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him.

We see in this case that Nehemiah is a worshipper of God, but he needs to do his will. It is impossible to be a follower of God and not be changed. Nehemiah at this point is a great sinner, he lives in absolute wealth and extravagance while his people perish. We'll see next week that he does God's will, he is changed, he does act on his worship of God.

This is very similar to one of my favorite conversations Jesus had in Luke 18,

Luke 18:18-30 And a ruler asked him, "Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.'" And he said, "All these I have kept from my youth." When Jesus heard this, he said to him, "One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." But when he heard these things, he became very sad, for he was extremely rich. Jesus, seeing that he had become sad, said, "How difficult it is for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." Those who heard it said, "Then who can be saved?" But he said, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." And Peter said, "See, we have left our homes and followed you." And he said to them, "Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life."

There is a young man very like Nehemiah who has the world by the toes, he has every good thing, wealth, food, respect, power, and yet he is confronted with the fact that these things have become his idol. You can't go to Heaven by selling everything you own and giving it to the poor, what you must do is love God more than anything else, and we see that this young man wouldn't repent, and walked away sad, walking away from the greatest treasure in the universe. Jesus said that it was easier to get a two-ton dromedary through a 1 millimeter hole than to get a sinner into Heaven.

Jesus' followers recognized that they wouldn't make it either, so they said, "That sounds impossible." This is similar to Nehemiah's condition, in that he is the Cupbearer of the king, he cannot leave. He has all sorts of classified information, he knows where armies are, how big they are, how major campaigns are being waged, the tactics of the Persians, building projects and weaknesses of cities and provinces...if he asks to leave, it is very unlikely that the king will let him go. We'll see next week that what is impossible with men, is possible with God. After four months of praying, Nehemiah is allowed to return to Judah, leaving all manner of wealth behind him.

And this is not a call to leave all money and comfort, but it is a call to love God more than money and comfort. In the New Testament we see Christians with families and houses and wives and parents and children and even some with great wealth (Lydia), but these must not be your idols, or they will keep you out of the kingdom. Whatever you lose in this world will be repaid many times over in Heaven, Jesus calls us thusly,

Matthew 6:19-21 Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

None of us should enter lightly into following Christ. He does not say, "Try it for a little while and if you don't like it, then go on your way." He does not say as many have dubbed "Pascal's Wager" that "It is better to believe in God and be right than not to believe in God and be wrong." or "If I'm right, then I'm fine, but if you're right, I'm fine."

No, Jesus calls for a much deeper and more committed discipleship. It is a discipleship that says if your own brother hates you for being a Christian, that you continue to be a Christian. It is a discipleship that says if you lose your life you will rejoice, if you lose your house you will continue to follow, if none go with you, you will walk alone with Christ.

Luke 14:25-33 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.' Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.

So your application today is to not love the world or the things in the world, but to recognize that there is salvation and hope and everlasting happiness in only One. He requires much, but he also promises much, do not enter into his discipleship lightly, endeavor to be the best disciple he has ever had, or don't claim to be a disciple at all. Nehemiah prayed for 4 months before he decided to leave his worldly paradise to do the work of God, please be likewise praying and counting the cost, knowing that whatever you lose in Christ will be repaid to you many times over in Heaven.

Also, pray for your nation, for your church family, for your biological family, and for yourself, that you would be strengthened to withstand the temptations of the world, that you would be accurate representations of Christ in the world, and that through your life and ministry many would be saved. When we pray we don't pray towards Jerusalem, but towards Heaven, knowing that through Christ we are heard and that our prayers have great power because of him who has effected them.

Finally, as we'll look at next week, that Nehemiah is a type for Christ, he shows us some things about Christ which wouldn't take place for almost 500 years. Jesus Christ, God our Comforter, (Nehemiah means God comforts), stepped out of the kingdom of Heaven to be poor, to exchange our spiritual poverty for his spiritual affluence, he came to save his people, and he has secured salvation for those who once were exposed to the world without hope. Set your affections on this Christ, know that he always lives to make intercession for his saints, know that he has paid for all of your sins, both confessed and unconfessed, that he took our sins on himself and confessed them for us, so if we follow him, repenting towards him, and placing our full faith in him, then we are totally forgiven and will be welcomed into the kingdom of Heaven.

December 19th - the Humility of Christ

Prayer Requests
Pastor Aaron Recovery and Preaching
Todd Love Recovery
Doomsday Outreach Results
The Henley’s leaving
Tina's job search
Shelby's Aunt
Musical Yesterday and Today
Car Accident - Taylor
Relatives and Friends Traveling

Text – Philippians 2:1-11

Last week we looked at a topical lesson on Christmas. This week we’re going to look at an expositional lesson on how Christ’s birth (& life and death) calls us to live. We’re going to be in Philippians 2; we need to know some things about this letter before we fully understand the passage.

Who wrote Philippians? The Apostle Paul. Does anybody know where he was when he wrote Philippians? He was in prison, in Rome. Any guesses as to what his punishment may be for saying that Caesar is not God, will it be light or harsh? Paul very much expects to die in Rome for his claim that Christ is God and Caesar is not.

This letter was written near the end of his life, he’s been beaten, persecuted, hated, betrayed, and rejected for thirty years now, all for the sake of Jesus Christ, but he still loves Jesus and the church. This ought to be your first lesson, that a genuine saving faith perseveres to the end and thrives in persecution, I want to read two important verses which start and finish this thought.

Philippians 1:6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

Paul rejoiced in his sufferings, and he was able to do so because just as Christ suffered for him, he had suffered for the gospel; he is able to tell us that everything outside of Christ is the equivalent of garbage and that we set our affections on Christ and Heaven and this will produce in us fruitful and Christ-honoring lives. He wants us to live lives with Christ as our example, and that is what chapter 2 of Philippians charges us to do.

Philippians 2:1-11 if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

This is one of my favorite passages in scripture, it has such a humble beginning, such a perfect example, and such an amazing application that it should rock your world, it should leave you with no option but to do what it says; let’s see if this Christmas passage can do exactly what Paul hopes for it to do in the audience at Philippi.

v.1 if there is any encouragement in Christ,

If Christ’s life and sacrifice encourages us to live godly lives,

v.1 (if there is) any comfort from love,

If the great love by which Christ loved us and gave himself for us comforts us, driving out all fear,

v.1 (if there is) any participation in the Spirit,

If the Spirit dwells in you and leads you, he who is our helper and promise of Heaven and glorification, who grows in us the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control,

v.1 (if there is) any affection and sympathy,

If there is any love in the church and empathy towards weakness and hope of sanctification, then verse 2:

v.2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

If Christ and the Holy Spirit are true, and Paul knows from experience and scripture that they are, then he calls for the church to rally around Christ’s perfection, to abound in love, and to set their goals on glorifying Christ, preaching the Word, and seeing souls saved and discipled.

This introduction calls us to look at the great promises of love and hope that Christ has given us through his death and resurrection, and then calls us to live these out. Since Christ loved us and gave his life for us, we’re called to the same for his church. Christ doesn’t need our good works, but beloved, our friends and our neighbors do!

1 John 2:16 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.

And this of course is not just in death, but also in life. For many people say they would die for their children or friends, but beloved, they don’t need you to die for them, they need you to live for them. The next verses tell us how to do so:

vv.3,4 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit; look not only to [your] own interests

Paul was facing a new type of false-teacher at this point in his ministry. Certain people were preaching the gospel for the sake of trying to rub it in Paul’s face that he wasn’t able to go where he wanted or preach freely because he was in prison. They wanted to be seen as super-apostles and be exalted for their preaching. It was a strange way to try to insult him, but we see in this that it is more than possible to do everything from the wrong motives, even preach the gospel.

Let’s let this be our next application, that it is possible to preach the gospel from a wrong motive, to share Christ and him crucified for the forgiveness of sins only because your pastors tell you to, or because you want to earn favor with God by sharing the gospel, or because you only want to be blessed or for others to think you’re a super-Christian for doing it. Will you receive blessings for sharing the gospel? Absolutely, it is more blessed to give than to receive, but we ought to share the gospel because it is the power of God to salvation, and because just as Christ loved us first, now we love others with the great love by which he loved us, not just to get things.

Philemon 6 I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ.

At Christmas we see presents given, and this can be very good, or very bad. If you only give gifts so you get presents, or only get presents and that’s all Christmas is to you, then you’re doing it wrong and you need to repent.

Proverbs 30:15 The leech has two daughters: Give and Give.

What is a leech? It’s a bloodsucking little bug, or it’s a person who only takes and never gives and is hugely greedy and lustful and covetous. It says that sort of person basically only has two offspring, twins, that just say, “Give and Give” all the time. They’re like those sea-gulls on Finding Nemo that say, “Mine, Mine, Mine” all the time. The Bible speaks disparagingly of people like that.

So how do we not be those people?

vv.3-4 Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

We count others as more significant that ourselves, looking after the interests of others. How can we do that? Paul here is speaking of sin and godliness and worth, not of learning or gifts. For example, Jimmy shouldn’t esteem me as a better musician than himself and let me sing this morning, neither should Leon count one of the sixth graders as better at Greek than himself, or anybody count Tyler as a better driver than them.

But we shouldn’t look at anybody and say, “They are such a sinner, or such a poor Christian, and I myself am so much more deserving of spiritual blessings and honor than them.” No, we ought to always consider others as more significant and more graceful than ourselves, not abandoning them for their sin, but looking after them and loving them as though they were ourselves. Let’s see if Paul follows through with this,

1 Timothy 1:15 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.

Ephesians 3:8 To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ,

Beloved, I am the chief of sinners, but I have become the least of saints. We all ought to say as much, knowing our own hearts better than anyone else and being amazed that Christ would die to save sinners such as us anyways.

Now we’ve looked at the fact that we should live lives of love and holiness, esteeming others as worth more than ourselves, now we’ll look at our great example:

v.5-7 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

Christ is our greatest example, he has replaced our sinful hearts which cared only for ourselves, and given us a heart that seeks after godliness that loves others, one just like his. For though he certainly was worth more than all of his creation combined, he did not make that excuse not to come. He made himself nothing, he emptied himself of any pride (which he had every right to have), and took on the body of a man, even a body with no majesty or beauty, being born into abject poverty, and was born not as a prince in a palace, but as a pauper in a stable. Instead of being laid in a golden crib, he was laid in a wooden feeding trough.

2 Corinthians 8:9 You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.

Christmas time is a great reminder of the humility we are called to for the sake of Christ, that even if we are the greatest king, wisest counselor, most talented painter or architect, that we must empty ourselves of all pride to realize the will of God. Let me boast briefly in Jesus Christ; I haven’t done nearly so much homeless ministry as I probably should, but I’ve done a decent amount. Beloved, in all reality these men and women have made very poor choices in their lives, loved their sin to the point that it has destroyed them, become addicted to all sorts of drugs and alcohol, and rejected all sorts of offers of help. In all reality the world would tell me that I have no business or call to help them, but truthfully Jesus Christ found me in a very similar spiritual state, that if it weren’t for the work of the Holy Spirit in my life, his restraining grace, then any one of us could quickly and easily end up in the receiving line of the homeless ministry rather than the serving line. When I leave those places, drenched in an indescribable odor, it reminds me of my sinful, yet redeemed, state.

If you feel you are of a certain estate above that of your classmates and/or other sinners, or that you are a great saint among lesser saints, then beloved, I encourage you to meditate on the statement of John Bradford, who said so beautifully, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.”

Christ’s emptying of himself culminated in his death on the cross, which is Paul’s next point:

v.8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

I can’t say this any better than Paul says it in Romans, it is utterly amazing the humility Christ showed in dying, not to save good people who were afflicted or righteous people who were in peril, for the well have no need of a physician, but dying for the sick and sinful, for the Son of Man come to seek and save the lost.

Romans 5:7-8 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

And not only did Christ die for a people who didn’t ask for it, could never repay him, and would constantly need chastening, but he did so by dying on a cross. Beloved, this is the most heinous of execution methods, it was specifically formulated to take days to die on, to cause agony at every opportunity, to be utterly humiliating. And yet Christ endured it, forsaken by men and God, so that we who are in Christ will never face such hellish pain, shame, and abandonment.

Isaiah 50:6 I gave my back to those who strike, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting.

And this calls us to hate sin and love Christ, one of my favorite verses, and I bet some of your favorite verses is in Hebrews 12:

Hebrews 12:1-3 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

We see two things that pertain to us especially in this passage, but I wanted to read the whole thing. First of all, it says he despised the shame. He hated the spitting and the pulling out of his beard, that no-one recognized him as the King of the Universe, that they crucified him because he claimed to be God. But beloved, this was due to show that he is a gracious Creator, an impeccable Man, and a perfect Saviour.

The next thing I want you to see is where it says that for the joy that was set before him, he endured the cross. Christ was laying down his life for many reasons, to save his saints, to defeat the devil, to crush death underfoot in his resurrection, but the main reason he endured the cross was for the joy of accomplishing his Father’s will, for proving that his Father is both the perfect Judge and the Loving God, that he will not overlook sin, but is also gracious to provide a substitute. This is where Philippians 2:1-11 wraps up.

v.9-11 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

For his obedience and humility Christ has received a glorious reward, the name that is above every name. That on that final day, both sinners and saints will cease their sinning and fall to their knees in recognition that Jesus Christ is the only Saviour, that he was dead but he is yet alive, that he is holy sinless and undefiled, that he is Lord of all.

It is amazing where is says these things will happen, both in Heaven, and on earth, and under the earth: Hell. Beloved, on that final day Christ will receive all honor and power and glory, and he will receive it willingly from those who bow in submission and love for him, or he will receive it by force as those who will not bow willingly are put on their faces by innumerable angels.

If we have this mind in ourselves, counting others as worth more than ourselves, pouring out our pride and esteeming our neighbor as in great need of salvation, living for them, dying for them if need be, then we have such a great promise that just as Christ has been elevated, so too will be elevated, for God exalts the humble, but he casts the prideful to the ground.

2 Corinthians 10:17-18 "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord." For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends.

And Paul concludes this thought in Philippians calling us to work out our salvation, making sure we’re trusting in Christ’s finished work in his death and resurrection, not trusting in our deeds, knowing that anything we do that is good has been worked in us from God. Let us do these things more and more throughout our lives, starting just as Jesus did, at Christmas.

Philippians 2:12-13 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

November 28th - Enemies to Heirs

Prayer Requests
Thanksgiving and safe travels
Brianna flying home
Shell - Church Stuff
Tyler's Social Security
High School Applications - Jennifer
Tyler's Awesome Half-Time Lesson
Christmas Party - December 3rd

Text - Zechariah 9

Our passage this morning is one of the most prophecy rich passages in all of scripture. It has near and far prophecies, as well as mid. There is a ton of history here, and names abound. The history of this chapter is quite interesting, but I want to focus on how it all points to Christ's ultimate purposes in coming to seek and save the lost, to exalt the humble and cast down the proud.

Chapters 7 and 8 can be summed up basically as contrasts, what would you call the religion of chapter 7? Worthless. And the religion of chapter 8? True. What is the difference between true and worthless religion? Worthless religion is doing things for God in order to make him be on your side, true religion honors God in action because it's the right thing to do. I think this quote sums up true religion better than any other quote, it's by Paris Reidhead:

"Lord Jesus, I’m going to obey you, and love you, and serve you, and do what you want me to do as long as I live, even if I go to Hell at the end of the road, simply because you are worthy to be loved, obeyed, and served; and I’m not trying to make a deal with you."

How does the Word of God interact with these two? How is the Word to people in worthless religion? It is a curse and is against them. How is the Word to people in true religion? It is a blessing and is called amazing things. For example, in the New Testament it's called the Word of God, the Word of Christ, the Word of Promise, the Word of Faith, Living and Active, and it is Holy, Good, and Righteous.

Today we're going to start out looking at the Word being a curse on a lot of people. Let's look at some that God is really angry with.

Zechariah 9:1-6 The burden of the word of the LORD is against the land of Hadrach and Damascus is its resting place. For the LORD has an eye on mankind and on all the tribes of Israel, and on Hamath also, which borders on it, Tyre and Sidon, though they are very wise. Tyre has built herself a rampart and heaped up silver like dust, and fine gold like the mud of the streets. But behold, the Lord will strip her of her possessions and strike down her power on the sea, and she shall be devoured by fire. Ashkelon shall see it, and be afraid; Gaza too, and shall writhe in anguish; Ekron also, because its hopes are confounded. The king shall perish from Gaza; Ashkelon shall be uninhabited; a mixed people shall dwell in Ashdod, and I will cut off the pride of Philistia.

So verse 1, God is against the land of Hadrach. We're not exactly sure where this is for several reasons, but based on the description of the cities we have a good idea of the size and scope of this country or alliance. It is basically Modern Day Lebanon. The capital is Damascus, and some of its major cities are Hamath, Tyre, and Sidon. These are amazingly wealthy cities on important trade routes. Tyre is super rich because they are the only natural port on this side of the Mediterranean. They have more money than they know what to do with, the richest part of the city is on an island just off the coast, and it has walls up to 150 feet tall in some places.

Because of the wealth and frequent travel through there it has attracted all sorts of people; rich people, smart people, greedy people, and all sorts of people great and small. Tyre at this point was an amazing city. Because of the amazing wealth and wisdom in this city the king elevated himself far beyond the position he rightly held, turn to Ezekiel 28 with me. In verses 1-10 we see the king as man:

Ezekiel 28:1-10 "Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre, Thus says the Lord GOD: "Because your heart is proud, and you have said, 'I am a god, I sit in the seat of the gods, in the heart of the seas,' yet you are but a man, and no god, though you make your heart like the heart of a god— you are indeed wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you; by your wisdom and your understanding you have made wealth for yourself, and have gathered gold and silver into your treasuries; by your great wisdom in your trade you have increased your wealth, and your heart has become proud in your wealth—therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because you make your heart like the heart of a god, therefore, behold, I will bring foreigners upon you, the most ruthless of the nations; and they shall draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom and defile your splendor. They shall thrust you down into the pit, and you shall die the death of the slain in the heart of the seas. Will you still say, 'I am a god,' in the presence of those who kill you, though you are but a man, and no god, in the hands of those who slay you? You shall die the death of the uncircumcised by the hand of foreigners; for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD."

And we're going to see in verse 11-19 that the true king of Tyre is none other than Satan himself.

Ezekiel 28:11-19 Moreover, the word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man, raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus says the Lord GOD: "You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was your covering, sardius, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, emerald, and carbuncle; and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings. On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were an anointed guardian cherub. I placed you; you were on the holy mountain of God; in the midst of the stones of fire you walked. You were blameless in your ways from the day you were created, till unrighteousness was found in you. In the abundance of your trade you were filled with violence in your midst, and you sinned; so I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I destroyed you, O guardian cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground; I exposed you before kings, to feast their eyes on you. By the multitude of your iniquities, in the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuaries; so I brought fire out from your midst; it consumed you, and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you. All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you; you have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever."

How the angel Satan interacted with the king of Tyre is hard to say, but either way God's anger is kindled against both.

In 332 BC Alexander the Great razed Tyre and cast her into the sea. The swiftness of Alexander astounded all, Daniel said he moved so quickly his horses' feet didn't touch the ground. All who saw this great bastion of worldliness destroyed were terrified and rightly so, for they were the next to be conquered by Alexander. All of this happened almost 200 years AFTER Zechariah was prophesying this.

Our first application is that God has created examples of his wrath to remind the world that setting our affections on things that perish, and especially considering people as gods and idols, is foolishness and only ends in destruction. It is not at all wrong to see God 's vengeance come on a city and hence forth tell the people to repent or they likewise will perish.

Amos 3:6 Is a trumpet blown in a city, and the people are not afraid? Does disaster come to a city, unless the LORD has done it?

This verse says that disaster does not come unless God has done it. But if people will turn, and look to God for salvation:

Zechariah 9:7-8 I will take away its blood from its mouth, and its abominations from between its teeth; it too shall be a remnant for our God; it shall be like a clan in Judah, and Ekron shall be like the Jebusites. Then I will encamp at my house as a guard, so that none shall march to and fro; no oppressor shall again march over them, for now I see with my own eyes.

Even though God is putting an end to many of his enemies, he is still saving some of them. They will be like the Jebusites, the people who were in Israel before the Israelites, who were assimilated into the covenant. When they are saved God will put away their idols. I love that God says he sees with his own eyes. This is a direct assault on the false gods whom don't see, don't hear, and don't speak.

Psalm 135:15-18 The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; they have eyes, but do not see; they have ears, but do not hear, nor is there any breath in their mouths. Those who make them become like them, so do all who trust in them!

One of their greatest idols is their love of bloodshed, and in this verse we see that God will remove this idol from them. It's powerful when we consider it in light of Psalm 11:5,

Psalm 11:5 The LORD tests the righteous, but his soul hates the wicked and the one who loves violence.

Even those these enemies of God were totally hated by him, he chose to save some anyways. God has a salvation coming, let's read verse 9-13 as to how it is going to happen.

Zechariah 9:9-13 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim and the war horse from Jerusalem; and the battle bow shall be cut off, and he shall speak peace to the nations; his rule shall be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; today I declare that I will restore to you double. For I have bent Judah as my bow; I have made Ephraim its arrow. I will stir up your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and wield you like a warrior’s sword.

When Christ came, this prophecy was grossly misunderstood, they expected him to come into Jerusalem with flaming sword swinging it and totally taking over. Reading this I can see why they thought that, but I think they totally missed the humility part, that Christ was going to defeat evil in the most amazing of ways, by substituting himself for it so that he could be both the just and the justifier of his saints. This was a well known prophecy for the Messiah in the first century, everyone knew what it meant when Christ arrived on a colt.

Matthew 21:1-11 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord needs them,' and he will send them at once." This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, "Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'" The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, "Who is this?" And the crowds said, "This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee." And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons.

This prophecy was amazing for Zechariah's time, saying that the Messiah would cut off the war horse from Jerusalem. Certainly the people would understand this to mean that there would be no more need of war horses after the Messiah came, but in the first century it would have had an even more personal meaning that Roman soldiers were stationed all throughout Jerusalem, than an alien government was oppressing the Jews.

Verse 11 is utterly amazing, it's my favorite, "because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit." Jesus quotes it in Matthew 26:27-28.

Matthew 26:27-28 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

The original hearers of this prophecy would have expected this coming King to offer a sacrifice instituting his new covenant. From chapter 6 they would have known the Messiah would be both priest and king and could offer a sacrifice to God. I don't know how many of them possibly could have expected that it would be himself he was offering as the perfect sacrifice. Certainly none who called for his crucifixion expected as much, since they crucified him for claiming to be God. His purposes were to set the captives free, those who were slaves to sin, which was all of us, loving ourselves more than anything, utterly wrecking the lives of many, failing to turn people towards everlasting life, and in this, God saved us anyways. We were his enemies, just like those in the beginning of the chapter, yet he saved a remnant out of his enemies.

Colossians 1:21-23 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.

Instead of slaves to sin, prisoners of the Devil (2 Timothy 2:26), now we are prisoners of hope, slaves of Christ. Verse 13 is beautiful too, because it reminds us that God is ultimately in control, using people as he so intends. Hebrews 4:12 speaks of God's Word as a sword, when you have it committed to memory or you read it and proclaim it to people, you are a sword in the hand of God. These Greeks and Hebrews would have been used for war, but beloved, we are peacemakers, declaring peace between God and man, a sword meant for peace.

Now in verse 14 we transfer to Christ's second coming. It is just a picture of the coming Armageddon that will be described much more fully in chapter 14.

Zechariah 9:14-17 Then the LORD will appear over them, and his arrow will go forth like lightning; the Lord GOD will sound the trumpet and will march forth in the whirlwinds of the south. The LORD of hosts will protect them, and they shall devour, and tread down the sling stones, and they shall drink and roar as if drunk with wine, and be full like a bowl, drenched like the corners of the altar. On that day the LORD their God will save them, as the flock of his people; for like the jewels of a crown they shall shine on his land. For how great is his goodness, and how great his beauty! Grain shall make the young men flourish, and new wine the young women.

This passage beautifully describes Christ's second coming, that he will appear in the sky like lightning, similarly to how he describes himself in Matthew 24, and that there will be a conquering army with him that are impervious to stones slung at them, who are able to step easily over missiles fired at them. The effect of this army is amazing, just like Christ is covered head to toe in the blood of his enemies in Isaiah 63, so will this army be drenched in their victory.

I love this verse 16, it is your major application, that your total purpose is to shine the light of Christ on the world and be a trophy of his grace.

In all of this we see that God has enemies, that he is more than capable of utterly destroying them, but that he also chooses to save some and sanctify them, that he did that by sending his Son the first time to have a humble entrance riding on a colt, that he poured out the blood of the covenant for the forgiveness of sins, that he rose on the third day, and he is coming back to judge the world and rescue his saints. He came on a colt the first time, as he comes back to conquer he will come on a white steed.

Revelation 19:11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.

Be a light shining in the darkness, proclaim the excellencies of Christ, explain to people that they are either prisoners of sin, or prisoners of hope, that there is no other option, that they will face this Christ as either an enemy or as a reconciled friend. They must repent or perish.

November 21st - True Religion

Prayer Requests
Pastor Aaron Preaching
Todd Love
Open Air Preaching Monday
Students Traveling

Text – Zechariah 8

Zechariah 8 is a great chapter to look at for Thanksgiving this year. We have such a beautiful look at promises of God in this chapter, some of which are fulfilled, some of which are yet to be fulfilled, probably in Heaven, and we have much to be thankful for.

This is complex chapter, quite long, with a LOT of information in it. It was very tempting to teach it over two or three weeks, but the theme of this passage is that true religion is very rewarding and that God is faithful, so I’m going to try to teach it all at once. This lesson is probably going to feel somewhat disjointed because there is so much to teach and we have so little time. It will also be kind of strange because some of these promises are hazy as to when and how they will be fulfilled.

I think you could adequately summarize chapter eight with one sentence, “Because of the coming Messiah you will someday somehow get an amazing gift which you will love!” It doesn’t give us the exact timing, the exact present, or the exact means, it only tells us it will be amazing.

This is a direct contrast to chapter 7. Does anyone remember what Zechariah 7 was about? Worthless religion. What is worthless religion? Doing things from a selfish motive, obeying God only to receive blessings. What then is true religion? Obeying God because he is worthy whether we get anything or not. What is the irony of true religion? When you do things from the right motive not expecting to receive anything, you receive much.

We see that worthless religion ends in desolation, ultimately in Hell, but today we’re going to see where true religion ends. Let me take this moment to say that it is becoming popular today to say that “Christianity is not a religion, it’s a relationship.” That is half true. Christianity is a relationship with Christ, but it is certainly also a religion, it is the only true religion. Let’s look at the verse that says so.

James 1:27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

Let’s look really quickly at the etymology of religion…if you know one thing about me, it’s that James 1:27 is my favorite verse, and that I LOVE etymology. Religion either comes from Re-logeo, or Re-ligare; Re, meaning, of, and logeo, meaning word. Or Re, of, ligare, something that draws together. Either way, we see that we are people of the Word, or people drawn. I want you to see very clearly that there is false religion and true religion, that true religion is loving people and hating sin. What happened in Zechariah 7 when the people of Bethel were told this? They got angry and wouldn’t listen! Why? Because they aren’t being rewarded directly for their works. And last before we go into chapter 8, what are we rewarded for? Christ’s works.

Let’s read chapter 8 in sections:

Zechariah 8:1-8 And the word of the LORD of hosts came, saying, "Thus says the LORD of hosts: I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am jealous for her with great wrath. Thus says the LORD: I have returned to Zion and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem, and Jerusalem shall be called the faithful city, and the mountain of the LORD of hosts, the holy mountain. Thus says the LORD of hosts: Old men and old women shall again sit in the streets of Jerusalem, each with staff in hand because of great age. And the streets of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in its streets. Thus says the LORD of hosts: If it is marvelous in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, should it also be marvelous in my sight, declares the LORD of hosts? Thus says the LORD of hosts: behold, I will save my people from the east country and from the west country, and I will bring them to dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God, in faithfulness and in righteousness."

The first thing we see is that in chapter 8, Zechariah says, “Thus says the Lord of hosts…” over and over and over and over again…in chapter 7 the people wouldn’t listen to the Word of God through the Holy Spirit, and so God wouldn’t hear them; in Zechariah 8 we are hearing the Word of God through the Holy Spirit and we must listen because God speaks no idle words.

For time’s sake we’re not going to read Hebrews 12, but let me paraphrase it for a moment. It says if we try to approach God via the law, it’s like walking up Mount Sinai with blazing fire and lightning and God’s booming voice, and we will surely die. If, however, we approach God via the grace of Christ, we are welcomed into the New Jerusalem: Heaven. This here is certainly meant where God says that old men and women shall live in the city, and children will be playing all over the place, because it will be a city of peace; a city of grace.

Remember at this point that Jerusalem is utterly in shambles. It is a very dangerous place to live because it has no walls, and at this point because of the return from the Babylonian exile there would likely be very few old people, because the journey would just be too hard on them. In view of Heaven we see that we will be without fear of danger, and we will live to exceedingly old age. We have a great privilege over Zechariah here because we understand the resurrection much better than he, knowing that we will inherit imperishable bodies that will never die. Zechariah, and Isaiah, looked into the future and saw people living for eons and eons, and used some amazing language to describe it, Zechariah saying the age must require they use staffs to walk, and Isaiah says it this way,

Isaiah 65:20 No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.

In Heaven Isaiah sees that our lives will last so long that at 100 years old it will be like we’ve just started life. He also sees that anyone cut off from Heaven will be condemned. I love that God’s language, saying that it will be marvelous in his sight, just as it will be marvelous in ours, since he will be our God forever more having put away all sin and unfaithfulness for his saints.

Our next passage is wonderful, knowing that if we have such a promise coming as Heaven, how ought we to live? Before we read it, what do you think? Let me ask you this, what is one thing which you won’t be able to do in Heaven? Tell someone how about the excellencies of your Saviour. Therefore if we have a promise of glory, Glory-land as Heaven is translated in Africa, we ought to live godly lives with affections set on Heaven.

Zechariah 8:9-13 Thus says the LORD of hosts: "Let your hands be strong, you who in these days have been hearing these words from the mouth of the prophets who were present on the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, that the temple might be built. For before those days there was no wage for man or any wage for beast, neither was there any safety from the foe for him who went out or came in, for I set every man against his neighbor. But now I will not deal with the remnant of this people as in the former days, declares the LORD of hosts. For there shall be a sowing of peace. The vine shall give its fruit, and the ground shall give its produce, and the heavens shall give their dew. And I will cause the remnant of this people to possess all these things. And as you have been a byword of cursing among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing. Fear not, but let your hands be strong."

God reminds the people that during the exile they did not work for reward because there was no reward to be had, and that they were always in danger for their lives. He gives now the opposite, stating that his people will be like fruit trees, one tree producing tons of fruit. Check this out, Jesus is going to paraphrase this in Matthew 13, knowing that most fruit trees and vines only produce about six times themselves, but he’s going to say that his people are so much more fruitful:

Matthew 13:23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.

Let’s pause here for an application. The gospel of peace has been sown in your heart, you have found reconciliation with God, yours is the kingdom of Heaven purchased for you on Calvary’s cross. Now Christ is saying that you should go forth and bear fruit, and not just a little fruit, but at least thirty times whatever someone does nice for you, even as much as one hundred times. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, but we only have one life, and it will soon be past, and only what is done for Christ will last. Live a life of fruit bearing, fruit of love and joy and peace and patience and kindness and goodness and faithfulness and gentleness and self-control and seeing others come to faith in the Living Christ.

How many of you feel like the world really respects Christ’s church as much as it deserves? The church has never been respected, despite the fact that without the light of the church, the world would be in abject darkness, and we are the byword of the world, the joke of humanity; Vladimir Lenin, the communist, called Christians, “Useful idiots.” The atheist community calls us “dims”, television constantly makes fun of Christianity, and often they are genuinely making fun of stupid traditions, but we have no reason to fear living an unfruitful life if we’re genuinely redeemed, because in this passage God says he will save us and make us a blessing. Live as a light in the world, even when the world ridicules you, let the work you do be done well and so that it will last.

Think about it this way, God’s name is constantly used as a curse word, it is the only name blessed forever and yet the world tries to drag it down into the mud. Does that limit the amount of good which God does, causing it to rain both on the just and the unjust? No, because they don’t respect his name doesn’t limit him at all, just as a lack of respect towards our efforts won’t dampen their impact at all.

How can we know that God’s future promises are true and that he has given us a task to do which will not be in vain? That’s what comes next:

Zechariah 8:14-15 For thus says the LORD of hosts: "As I purposed to bring disaster to you when your fathers provoked me to wrath, and I did not relent, says the LORD of hosts, so again have I purposed in these days to bring good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah; fear not.

We can trust God’s promises for the future because we see that he has always been faithful in the past. When he told Israel he would punish them, he did, when he said he would save them, he did. God’s faithfulness is shown in his past actions and we can trust that in the future he will remain faithful, because there is no shadow of change in him.

In the next passage he points us once again towards the truth, not towards us earning his favor, but since we have his favor in Christ we now ought to do these things;

Zechariah 8:16-17 "These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace; do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the LORD."

God wants us to tell the truth, judge rightly, love justice and peace, not plot against one another, and hate lying, because he hates lying. Let’s camp out on this idea for a minute, does God just hate lies, or does he hate the one who lies? As Pastor Aaron said last week, does God send lies to Hell, or liars? Check our Proverbs 6:16-19, this is one of the most amazing passages in scripture:

Proverbs 6:16-19 There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.

These aren’t sins, though God does also hate sin, these are the person that sins. Haughty (proud) eyes are people that think too highly of themselves, lying tongues are obvious, Proverbs 12:22 says that lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, hands that shed blood are violent at least and murderers at most, the heart is the core being of a person and Jeremiah tells us that ours is desperately wicked, feet are nothing without the brain that direct their path, the false witness is the liar, and the divisive one is a gossip or other such person who seeks to incite argument where no argument should exist.

I don’t know if you’ve broken all of them, beloved, I know I have; but thanks be to God that I have been washed in the blood of Christ and sanctified by the Spirit of our God. Therefore, as new creatures, the Apostle Paul gives us one of my favorite exhortations in all of scripture.

Ephesians 4:25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.

Finally, we see if we should be doing things just to earn Heaven or get closer to God. The modern church would do well to read this passage because in Christianity today (astray?) we have ever manner of person telling us we need to read our Bible or pray or fast or do a quiet time to get nearer to God; one person on facebook even claimed they were drawn closer to God through Yoga, which is utterly ridiculous because Yoga is satanic and a tool of the devil. Complete this sentence, “You who were far off have been brought near by”... the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:13) What brought us near? Was it fasting, Bible reading, or prayer? It was Christ; you can’t be any nearer than IN the kingdom, which we are if we are in Christ. So God through Zechariah finally answers the question of whether we should fast to earn his favor:

Zechariah 8:18-19 And the word of the LORD of hosts came to me, saying, "Thus says the LORD of hosts: The fast of the fourth month and the fast of the fifth and the fast of the seventh and the fast of the tenth shall be to the house of Judah seasons of joy and gladness and cheerful feasts. Therefore love truth and peace.

We have rested in Christ from trying to earn Heaven, knowing that he has utterly earned it for us. So instead of fasting on Yom Kippur like the Old Testament saints would, now we celebrate days like Thanksgiving, even though not all people remember to thank God always, we ought to especially during feasts remember that Christ has done all of the work and all that is left for us is to enjoy the fruits of his labor.

In everything we are doing, we ought to be loving truth, and peace, seeking to exalt the name of our Saviour who in Revelation 3 and 19 is called Faithful and True, and who is the Prince of Peace.

Matthew 5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

This isn’t to say that there isn’t a time for fasting. We just don’t do it to earn God’s favor, because we already have God’s favor. Providentially the first time I ever fasted was for something we looked at in this lesson. I couldn’t understand how God can both hate and love a person, so I fasted about it and studied by Bible diligently over 25 hours. At the end of the fast I was amazed at how focused my mind was and how I was consumed with the Bible, and I discovered that God’s hatred is in emotion, but his love is in action. Check this out, if I were in a war and captured an enemy soldier who the day before had killed my friend, there is no way I’m going to call him friend or give him a hug or love him in emotion, truly I hate him in emotion, but I am going to love him in action by ensuring his safety, shelter, and sustenance. God loves his children who have been saved in emotion, but he utterly hates his enemies; extending to them a love in action, a charity, that if they will repent and believe they will be reconciled to him since his Son was crushed in their place.

So you can still fast, just do it for the right motives, because you’re already justified, not to become justified. Hopefully we’ll be doing a youth-group fast sometime in the spring.

Last point, we see that as we live these God glorifying and thankful lives, that it will draw others to the kingdom. This is ultimately what we want, for God gets a little glory by crushing his enemies, but he is greatly exalted in converting an enemy into a friend. We seek repentance rather than wrath, since Christ has already faced an infinite wrath in substitution for his saints.

Zechariah 8:20-23 "Thus says the LORD of hosts: Peoples shall yet come, even the inhabitants of many cities. The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, 'Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the LORD and to seek the LORD of hosts; I myself am going.' Many peoples and strong nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the LORD. Thus says the LORD of hosts: In those days ten men from the nations of every tongue shall take hold of the robe of a Jew, saying, 'Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'"

The world, seeing the joy and hope in us, will enquire of our beliefs. We must be ready in season and out to tell them of Christ’s atoning death and resurrection. We must not turn them away when they seek diligently for God, rather we ought to be answering their questions and telling them the truth, explaining that there was hatred from God towards them, but that Christ has appeased it so that there is peace now if they will repent and trust in Christ.

Finally, I heard an amazing sermon once by an old dead guy, who unfortunately I couldn’t find the sermon for you. It was either by Whitefield, Wesley, or Spurgeon, or the like. They preached to a large group with many children in it, they preached basically, “Oh children, if your parents will not come with you to Christ, then you must leave them and come on your own.” This is similar to what Zechariah is preaching here, that we should seek God, but if you won’t go, I myself am still going.

Beloved, let this be your life, exhorting everyone you meet to enter Heaven with you by the narrow gate, but if none go with you, you still will go to him who loved you and gave himself for you. This is true religion.

October 24th - Worthless Religion

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Text – Zechariah 7

As I was preparing today’s lesson, I got furiously angry at the people in Zechariah 7, cheered for God in his response, and then felt convicted because I have been in the past, and am today, one of the people in Zechariah 7. Today we are going to look at the marks of worthless religion, of traditional ritualism, and how much it makes God mad. Our audience of Zechariah 7 today are on the receiving end of even more anger because not only are they doing religion wrongly, but they are ignoring the words of prophets who had preached before the exile.

So, instead of reading Zechariah 7 first, let’s go to before the exile, to Isaiah 58. Isaiah was preaching about 150 years before Zechariah; he predicted both the exile and the return, he named Cyrus by name as the king of Persia who would save the Israelites from Babylon.

Isaiah 58:3-11 'Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?' Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD? "Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry, and he will say, 'Here I am.' If you take away the yoke from your midst, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness, if you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday. And the LORD will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.

The point of this passage is that the Israelites ask God, “Why isn’t our fasting and humiliation impressing you?” God gives them the reason that their fast is marred by their bad motives and actions, they are beating their employees during the fast, they are in bitterness towards their friends during the fast, and they are fasting not for the sake of God, but for their sake. Basically, they are saying, God, I really really really really want something, so I’m going to do something for you so you’ll do it for me. There is so much wrong with this it’s tragic, because it elevates our own understanding of what we need above God’s, and turns God into our divine butler or puppet.

God tells them that what he wants is not a fast, but action done in love. He says that when these things are accomplished that the people will be greatly blessed by what he knows they need, not what they think they need. Basically this whole scripture can be summed up by what Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” I love one of the illustrations that God uses here in Isaiah 58, that a people who love others will be so blessed that even when they are depressed, they will still be happier than anyone else on earth.

Hey look, a rabbit trail, let’s follow it. God is angry in Isaiah 58 and in Zechariah 7 because the only reason people are repenting is for themselves, not because it’s the right thing to do or because they love God and others. Imagine a husband and wife, how well do you think the relationship is going to go if the only time they do something nice for each other is when they want something from the other? Is that love at all? A husband should be doing nice things for his wife because he loves her, whether he gets anything out of it or not, and so should the wife do nice things because she loves her husband, not just to get him to buy her stuff.

So should be your relationship with your parents, so with your friends, so with God. Really the only reason I prepare lessons and teach you guys and care about your lives is so you’ll grow up and get really good jobs and become ridiculously rich and then hopefully send me a massive check as thanks, or mention my name so that some publisher calls me and offers me a massive book deal… Wow, that would be the worst motive ever, it would be all about me and not about you or God at all; my wrong motive would utterly wreck any benefit I may be expecting to receive, even if the teaching is good it doesn’t make God love me anymore. The true reason I teach this class is first and foremost because God said if I love him, to feed and tend his lambs; not take care of his lambs and then he’ll love me, no he loved me long before I loved him by sending his Son to die on a cross for me. The second reason I teach this class is because I love you and want to see you grow up in the fear and admonition of the Lord, proclaiming the excellencies of him who called you out of the darkness into his marvelous light.

Are you seeing that God is pretty upset with people who only do things to get blessings in return? This is going to be the major point of Zechariah 7, so let’s read it; this is two years after chapter 6, a lot has happened, Jerusalem is becoming a very godly place, the temple is well on the way to completion, God is dwelling in their midst, and blessings are well on their way. But we’re going to see some punks from Bethel who are utterly missing the point,

Zechariah 7:1-14 In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, which is Chislev. Now the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regem-melech and their men to entreat the favor of the LORD, saying to the priests of the house of the LORD of hosts and the prophets, "Should I weep and abstain in the fifth month, as I have done for so many years?" Then the word of the LORD of hosts came to me: "Say to all the people of the land and the priests, When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these seventy years, was it for me that you fasted? And when you eat and when you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves? Were not these the words that the LORD proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, with her cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?" And the word of the LORD came to Zechariah, saying, "Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart." But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear. They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the LORD of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great anger came from the LORD of hosts. "As I called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear," says the LORD of hosts, "and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they had not known. Thus the land they left was desolate, so that no one went to and fro, and the pleasant land was made desolate."

So here’s what happened, Bethel is a city about a day’s walk north of Jerusalem. The people had probably gone into the exile and only recently returned, though if they hadn’t been exiled, they would have been in a great depression for the time of the exile. At this point they have been thoroughly chastened, corrected, for their wrong beliefs before the exile. They come to pray and ask a question of God, and unfortunately we’re going to see that they’ve learned nothing.

v.3 "Should I weep and abstain in the fifth month, as I have done for so many years?"

They are speaking of July 7th, the day of remembrance for the destruction of the temple in 586BC. For 70 years now they have been fasting every July 7th in sorrow for the destruction of the temple, but now that the temple is well on its way to being rebuilt, they want to know if they can stop weeping and fasting. God doesn’t answer this question, because really they had no command to weep and fast to start with, they had invented a religious ritual which they felt would bribe God.

v.4-6 Then the word of the LORD of hosts came to me: "Say to all the people of the land and the priests, When you fasted and mourned in the fifth month and in the seventh, for these seventy years, was it for me that you fasted? And when you eat and when you drink, do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves?”

God asks two questions, the first is, “What were your motives in fasting, were they for me?” and the second, “When you were living your lives, were they for you or for me?” Look at it this way, it’s like if we go to church on Sunday and give lip service to God, but on Monday through Saturday, we live like there is no God, and yet we say, “God, you owe me because I went to church on Sunday.” That’s what these punks from Bethel were doing.

I want to give you the first application here, though it’s going to be reiterated in a bit, but because Christ is our righteousness and our rest (Sabbath), we honor and live for him every day, not to earn something, but because he is worthy. Let’s look at a group of people in the New Testament who were doing it wrong,

Philippians 3:18-19 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.

I want to make sure you see that this problem is not just a new problem, it’s not just an old problem, but it is a long running and growing problem that has existed for millennia and will seek to sneak into your life today; the way we kill it is by recognizing the majesty of God, and by reading his Word about what God wants.

v.7 Were not these the words that the LORD proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and prosperous, with her cities around her, and the South and the lowland were inhabited?"

The major former prophet that God is referring to here is definitely Isaiah in chapter 58 which we read earlier, but it’s also Ezekiel, and Hosea, and Jeremiah, and Micah, let’s read the Micah verse:

Micah 6:6-8 “With what shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?" He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”

This sounds a lot like the greatest commandment, doesn’t it?

Mark 12:29-31 Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."

Yet the people are radically misunderstanding God’s commandments and thinking that God needs and wants them to do weird things in order for him to give them good things, namely Heaven. This is alive and well in EVERY religion except for pure Christianity. Catholics believe that if you walk in Fatima on your knees, you earn merit, Eastern Orthodox Catholics believe by looking at old stuff that belonged to saints they are making God happy, Muslims believe by reciting a rote prayer five times a day, they are pleasing God, and Hindus believe by being nice to people, they will earn a greater state in their next life.

Impure Christianity believes that God wants you to pray a prayer and ask Jesus into your heart in order for you to go to Heaven. This is none more than ritual and it is exactly what these unrepentant people from Bethel were doing. You don’t go to Heaven by praying the sinner’s prayer, if you go to Heaven you go because Jesus Christ has paid your debt and given you his righteousness and he has received all of the glory for saving you; therefore you trust in him because it is the right thing to do. Beloved, in reality, if you place your faith in Jesus Christ and his righteousness is credited to you, then your ultimate destination is Heaven, even if you sat around and never did another thing. However, because Christ is worthy to be obeyed, and we obey him because we love him, we will go out and do justice and love kindness and walk humbly with God. Not to earn his merit, which we’ve already received through Christ, but because it’s the right thing to do.

Similarly, there are a huge number of false teachers saying that in order to get closer to Christ, you must pray and read the Bible. These are no better than Pharisees and legalists, and they have neither part nor lot in the kingdom of Christ. We who were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. We now pray and read our Bibles because we are near, not to become near. We honor Christ as holy by knowing his Word and sharing our faith, but again if we just sat around, we would not lose our nearness.

Final example, a few weeks ago I was driving to church with Tyler and we passed a broken down motorcycle. Tyler said, “We should stop.” I didn’t want to, and by doing so, it didn’t improve my relationship with Christ, but because it was the right thing to do, we stopped and found out the guy was fine and his friend was coming to pick him up. Any other religion would say that by doing this, it brought me nearer to Heaven, but beloved the true reason I did it is because I’m already IN the kingdom of Heaven, you can’t be any nearer there already in it, it was earned for me 2,000 years ago on a cross and three days later through an empty tomb.

Here is God’s response to those who want to earn God’s love through doing weird things, telling them rather to love him and people instead of ritual.

v.8-10 And the word of the LORD came to Zechariah, saying, "Thus says the LORD of hosts, Render true judgments, show kindness and mercy to one another, do not oppress the widow, the fatherless, the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you devise evil against another in your heart."

Every religion besides Christianity fails to do this, and so are worthless, even though some Christians fail to do this, check out what James says,

James 1:26-27 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

The law of God can be summed up in one word: love. If you love someone, you won’t lie to them, you won’t steal from them, you won’t murder them, you won’t tell them to follow something besides God, you won’t use their name as a curse word. True religion is both avoiding sin and doing right; here God tells these false believers to do right, and they don’t like it, let’s look at their response, it makes me SOOOOO mad!

v.11-12 But they refused to pay attention and turned a stubborn shoulder and stopped their ears that they might not hear. They made their hearts diamond-hard lest they should hear the law and the words that the LORD of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets.

They refused, they didn’t want God’s love unless they could earn it, they turned away, they plugged their ears, they hardened their hearts to the consistency of diamond so that they would not have to submit to God. They refused to hear the Word of God, and check this out, it says that his Spirit was the one speaking through the prophets. As angry as I am, look at God’s response,

v.13 Therefore great anger came from the LORD of hosts. “As he called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear," says the LORD of hosts,”

Before we look at this, check this out real quick, in Zechariah we have the Trinity. We have Christ as the messenger of God, we have God the Father, and we have the Holy Spirit here speaking through the prophets. God says, “As the Spirit called...” He refers to the Spirit as a person here, it’s awesome. Come to Pneuma in November to learn more about the Person of the Holy Spirit.

God is furious, so because the people would not hear his Word, he promises not to hear their words. This is reminiscent of a man with worthless religion who died and went to Hell, turn to Luke 16, let’s read 26-31,

Luke 16:26-31 Between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.' And he said, 'Then I beg you, father, to send him to my father’s house—for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.' But Abraham said, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.' And he said, 'No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' He said to him, 'If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.'

God’s Word is God’s Word to us, it is how he speaks, for in times past he spoke in many ways to the prophets, but in these last days he speaks only through his Son, the Word. Jesus says that if any has ears to hear, let him hear; so beloved, today, hear the Word of God and forsake worthless religion, don’t rely on ritual, but rely on Christ and when he makes you born again, see that faith in him is genuine because it brings forth fruit keeping with repentance. The Bible says there are two types of religious people, people who are sorry because their sin has hurt them, and those who are sorry because their sin has offended God and hurt others.

2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.

Let your repentance be from and towards Heaven, so that you love God and love your neighbor, seeking to do things that will lead others to Christ not to earn his favor, but because you already have his favor, and you love him and wish to keep his commands. The last verse of Zechariah would cause me to rejoice in God’s justice, if it weren’t pointed at me. Beloved I have utterly sinned against Heaven, no doubt that God should punish me a hundred times worse than we are going to see in a moment, but a true repentance is one that can say, “God, for your glory sending me to Hell would be justified, I deserve it for blaspheming your name, for misrepresenting your character, for failing to love you and my neighbor, and for causing so much damage through my sin.” So as we read this last verse, I know it should be me, and beloved, it should be you too, but we have a grace from God which will be revealed more fully next week,

v.14 "and I scattered them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they had not known. Thus the land they left was desolate, so that no one went to and fro, and the pleasant land was made desolate."

Fortunately for us, though we should be included in these people, desiring to earn God’s favor, he has transformed us from children of the darkness into sons and daughters of the day. He has taken our diamond hardened heart and replaced it with a heart that loves him,

Ezekiel 36:26-27 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

The neat part is that verse 28 will be quoted in chapter 13 pointing it definitely at God’s people. So beloved, forsake worthless religion, don’t do rituals because you think God wants you to do rituals or because you think it will earn you something. Rather know why you’re doing things, do them out of love and out of a renewed heart, do them because they are the right thing to do and they glorify Christ, whether you get anything out of them at all. And beloved, the great irony is that if you do nice things not expecting to get anything out of it, then you will get a huge amount out of it.

Proverbs 11:23-25 The desire of the righteous ends only in good; the expectation of the wicked in wrath. One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want. Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will himself be watered.

This Proverb says that as you give then you will receive, if you hide things for yourself you will lose them, but of course this has to be done in the motive that if you receive nothing in return, you won’t feel bad for rightly representing your King, for ultimately his glory should be your reward. These things will always be keeping in the will of Christ, don’t expect to give a dollar and get back ten, rather give freely and be repaid bountifully in blessings.

And finally, we started this with fasting, let’s conclude it with fasting, should we give God one day out of thirty in a fast, and eat and live for ourselves the rest of the days? Or should we give thanks to God in all circumstances and fast and eat for his glory, loving people for Christ’s name’s sake, and pointing everyone towards the goodness and mercy of God? Let’s let Paul answer this one:

1 Corinthians 10:31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

July 18th - Psalm 62 - The Sola Psalm

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Text –Psalm 62

Since we’ve completed Second Peter and are still a few weeks away from welcoming the new sixth graders to class, I want to take a few weeks to look at some topical things. Do you have any questions that it seems like we never talk about? Which topics would you like us to look at?

Today we’re going to look at Psalm 62, which has been called the “only” Psalm because it talks about our hope being “only” on God. This is one of my favorite Psalms, but it’s not one that gets taught on a lot because it’s not really a stand-alone Psalm, it would be hard to give you a direct application from it, especially in one day, so today I’m going to teach it in relation to Second Peter. In order to understand how we got here, let’s do probably our last review of Second Peter.

In Second Peter it talks about how we know we are Christians trusting in the finished work of Christ, that the Bible being our sole authority on matters of God, it warns us of false teachers who do damage to the truth, and finally it gives us an assurance of victory by Christ.

In that assurance, are we supposed to just stand around gazing upward waiting for Christ? No, we are to be living lives of godliness and holiness, and Peter says we ought to be hastening the day.

So how can we hasten the day? By preaching the gospel. What did Peter say people would do with Paul’s writings to pervert the truth? They would twist his words to say things he didn’t mean. Let’s look at a good example before we get to Psalm 62.

Colossians 1:24-25 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known…

Paul literally says there is something that Christ’s suffering did not accomplish! This is utterly amazing and if it weren’t written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit I would say it is blasphemy! But when we understand Second Peter, this makes perfect sense, Christ lived the perfect life and died for our sins, and was raised for our justification, but if we look at Ephesians 2:8-9, that we are saved by grace, through faith, then we see Jesus took care of the grace part in his death and resurrection, but the faith part must also be accomplished, which Jesus will do through his church.

This is one of the verses that gets twisted to destruction, many think that Christ did a lot, but he didn’t do everything, therefore we must work for our salvation. However, Paul is saying that Christ does everything, just in two different stages, first on the cross, and second through ministry.

At the time of the Reformation and at many other times throughout history, especially today, the church has added all sorts of weird works into salvation and have really added weird things to plain scriptural readings. So one of the reasons I chose Psalm 62 for today is because it is called the “only” Psalm, or for our purposes today, the “sola” Psalm, because it shows us that our hope is to be on nothing less than Christ. One of the reasons God did such a mighty work during the Reformation was because he set men’s affections solely on his word and the work of his Son. This has been summed up beautifully in six solas, and I want to teach them to you today because if you remember these six, you will have a very firm foundation in Christ for your entire life and ministry. Some people think some are more important than others, but they really come as a group.

They are:

1. Sola Scriptura
2. Sola Gratia
3. Sola Fide
4. Solus Christus
5. Soli Deo Gloria
6. Sola Sacerdos

Sola Scriptura

This means that scripture is our sole authority on God, that God does not speak apart from his word and doesn’t need to. Many false teachers today say that they receive “words” or messages from God, and they say, “Well check it against the Bible to see if God really spoke to me.” Verses in the Bible say that God no longer speaks but that we refer to the Bible, but if God were to speak and we checked it against the Bible and the Bible already said it, then we would have to ask why God said it again if it’s already in the Bible?

Hebrews 1:1-2 Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.

It could be argued that this is the most important one because when you lose it, you lose all, but just holding to this one while ignoring the others would be disastrous.

Sola Gratia

This means we are saved by grace alone, not as the Mormons and Catholics believe that after everything we do then Christ will add the rest, or as antichristian preacher Joel Osteen says, “If you do your best, God will do the rest.” No, we bring nothing to the table, not a scrap of goodness, for even our best works are stained through with our sin like a clean white bandage laid on a gaping wound. We are not saved because of anything we’ve done, but in spite of everything we’ve done. Grace is unmerited favor, so anything we could add would make it merited and therefore it wouldn’t be grace anymore.

Galatians 5:4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.

Sola Fide

We are saved by grace, and that is received through faith, and faith alone. If you jump out of an airplane with a parachute on, and you decide that instead of using the parachute, you’re going to flap our arms, you will face the consequences. The parachute is going to do the entire work of saving you from the effect of gravity. Once the parachute is deployed you can flap your arms, but it’s not going to add anything, and if we want to boast in our salvation then we have a very firm threat from God.

Romans 4:2-5 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness." Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness…

Solus Christus

Our salvation was purchased solely by Jesus Christ. His mother Mary is doing nothing to intercede for us, there are no men in Heaven who can give us merit they had left over, I cannot help to save you, it is totally Jesus Christ and his righteous life, propitiatory death, and life-giving resurrection which has reconciled us to God and given us a future and a hope.

Romans 4:22-25 That is why his faith was "counted to him as righteousness." But the words "it was counted to him" were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

Soli Deo Gloria

The effect of the Christian religion is not our sakes, though we gain a lot, it is for the glory of God. When we stand in Heaven we will not be able to say, “I am here because I’m so awesome…” we’ll gladly say, “I am here because Christ is so awesome. I had gone astray, I refused to seek Heaven, and Jesus Christ sought me and bought me and to him belongs dominion and victory and majesty and power and honor and glory forever and ever.”

Isaiah 43:25 I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.

Sola Sacerdos

This is the one that always gets left of. This means that Christ’s church is made up of one priesthood of believers, that there is no hierarchy of believers in his sight, but that we are all one in Christ Jesus. You had a direct line to God through your mediator Jesus Christ, your prayers are as efficacious as mine because they are filtered through Christ’s righteousness.

Galatians 4:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

So all that to say, let’s read through Psalm 62 quickly and we’ll see that when we set our hope in God alone then we will see that ultimate victory when Christ comes to judge the world in righteousness, and that we will be in his favor instead of facing his wrath.

This Psalm is written by David, some people have tried to determine when this happened, many think it was when Absalom as trying to take the kingdom, and I see evidence for that, but ultimately David was in trouble so often from his enemies that this really can fit in many places in his life. We’re going to look at mostly how it relates to us.

Psalm 62 For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
How long will all of you attack a man to batter him,
like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
They only plan to thrust him down from his high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse.
Selah

For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us.
Selah

Those of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.
Put no trust in extortion;
set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, set not your heart on them.
Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God, and that to you,
O Lord, belongs steadfast love.
For you will render to a man
according to his work.

The word in Hebrew for “only” is ak, it’s a short little word, but it’s repeated six times in this Psalm. The first verse is cool because it shows us that David, who was under the Old Covenant, was trusting wholly in God. Many people think that under the Old Covenant people were saved by their works. But that’s crazy because the law hasn’t changed and it’s as impossibly holy today as it was then. Just as we can’t keep it because our wills are bound to sin, neither could David. In his great despair he reached upwards towards Heaven and was assured of salvation both from his sins, and from his enemies.

V3 How long will all of you attack a man to batter him, like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?

The writing in verse three is neat, and while you can’t see it in English in Hebrew it is associating both the attackers and the attackee as vulnerable and able to be toppled. The ESV doesn’t capture this very well, but David is saying that in leaning out to push him over, his attackers are about to be toppled.

V4 They only plan to thrust him down from his high position. They take pleasure in falsehood. They bless with their mouths, but inwardly they curse. Selah

David’s enemies, and ultimately Christ’s enemies, made the effort to pull him off his throne in order to enthrone themselves. Think of how many people today sing worship songs and say they love Jesus and then do things blatantly and without repentance that dishonor his name. Various other places in the Bible God expresses his disgust over people who claim to love him, but inwardly are filthy and unregenerate and his enemies. Jesus paraphrases Psalm really well in his beautiful parable of building a house:

Luke 6:46-49 "Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great."

At the end of the verse is a Selah, which means pause here and think about whether or not you are honoring Christ in your actions or just with your words.

In the first stanza David says his soul waits on God, now he turns to talking to his soul and ours:

V5-8 For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah

The Selah here calls us to check ourselves to see if we are hoping in Christ, that he is our only hope of salvation and not anything else.

Verse 9 is going to tell us why we ought not to trust in ourselves:

V9 Those of low estate are but a breath; those of high estate are a delusion;

None of us is closer to Heaven on our own than anyone else. We don’t trust in our genealogies or church membership or good name, because this verse literally tells us that they are a lie.

The Hindu religion would do very well to read this verse and take it seriously, because they operate under a caste system where they believe people are born into a Karmic level based on their past goodness and march towards Nirvana. So they see people who are princes and princesses are better people than beggars, and it is taboo for a beggar to seek a better lot in life because they are being punished for their past life… But if they would read this verse, that there is no such thing as a high estate, then they would see that they need to seek salvation in God, not in themselves, because they will be weighed in the balances and found wanting.

V9 in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath.

In order to understand this verse as the Hebrews would understand it you need to know that God’s glory is described by a word, Kbod, which means weightiness. The Kbod of a thing is how it stands up in a scale, a bowling ball has more Kbod than a feather. God’s Kbod is so magnificent that when our “good” deeds are weighed the scales go up as though they weren’t even there, lighter than air, in fact they even help the scales go in the opposite direction!

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the kbod of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

For those who trust in Christ though, we partake in Christ’s Kbod which is credited to our account through our faith alone.

V10 Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them.

I was reading an atheist recently who said if he can find one place where God is not perfect then he won’t be accountable on Judgment Day, which ironically is true, but we know that there is no place where God is not true. The atheist, who really there is no such thing, only angry delusional agnostics, was trusting in deceit instead of God. Our hope is not in robbery, but in Christ.

Now check this out, is being poor a sin? No. Is being rich a sin? No. IF riches increase, we don’t set our affections on them, but we know that if God gave us an increase it is so that we can share out of our abundance. God may very well give you billions of dollars in your lifetime so that you can do billions of dollars worth of good for his kingdom. But you won’t be able to say, “I should be allowed into Heaven because of how much money I spent on Christianity.” Rather, you will be allowed into Heaven on the grace of Jesus Christ.

V11-12 Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God,and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love. For you will render to a man according to his work.

We’ve got less time to spend on this than it deserves, but the important point of this psalm is not this verse, albeit there is a ton in this verse. God has spoken and we ought to pay extra close attention. We don’t read the Bible once through and then are done, rather we ought to read little bits every day, so that we are reminded that to God belongs the power and steadfast love, which is my Bible’s sort of weird translation of grace.

There is debate on what the last sentence means but the entire Psalm basically sums it up well for me, that for the one trusting in himself he will be judged for the merits of his work and be found wanting. For the one trusting in Christ he will be justified in Christ and given work to do for the kingdom, which we’ve seen in the past results in rewards of holiness and crowns both on this earth and in the world to come.

Luke 19:17,26 And he said to him, 'Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.' 'I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.

So in conclusion, trust wholly in Jesus Christ and his saving work on the cross. His grace is the only thing that can save you, and we know that only through his Word, and the result is ultimately for his glory. Strive to be faithful in his work, not to earn your way to Heaven, but to glorify his name empowered by his Spirit, knowing that you have the priestly duty of proclaiming his excellencies, for he has called you out of the darkness into his marvelous light.