Tag Archives: salvation

May 28, 2023 · 12:00 am

Day of Pentecost

The Gathering of the Spirit

Today we celebrate the Day of Pentecost. The importance of Pentecost cannot be overstated. We observe Pentecost as the birth of the Church. It is certainly that. But it also has to do with the birth and rebirth of all humankind.

Let us go back to the beginning. Reading from John’s Gospel:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.   (John 1:1-4)

Our lives began with the Word of God. God spoke us into being. Jesus Christ was and is the incarnation of this Word:

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.   ((John 1:10-13

We were created in his very image. We were made like him, but many did not recognize him or accept him as one of us. But those who did, received his breath and power to become more like him. Pentecost is about receiving God’s breath and power. The psalmist wrote:

You hide your face, and they are terrified;
you take away their breath,
and they die and return to their dust.

You send forth your Spirit, and they are created;
and so you renew the face of the earth.   (Psalm 104:30-31)

Pentecost is about rebirth. This rebirth comes only by the power of the Holy Spirit. We need that rebirth to restore our fellowship with God. Jesus, the agent of creation, became the agent of recreation. His sacrifice has purified us for rebirth.

This Church could only be formed by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit:

When the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.   (Acts 2:1-4)

God calls us to gather in his name. He calls us to anticipate his presence and power. He refines us and prepares us as we offer him our prayers and praise. Then he pours out his power and establishes a taste of his Kingdom on the earth:

Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs– in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”   (Acts 2:5-12)

The witness of the Church began at Pentecost. A powerful community was being built. It attracted people from all corners of the earth. Are we still building upon the outpouring of God’s power? What is our witness today? Do we just celebrate the birth of the Church on the Day of Pentecost? Or do we seek rebirth through the power of the Holy Spirit.

On the Day of Pentecost, Peter preached:

No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

‘In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
    and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
    and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
    in those days I will pour out my Spirit,
        and they shall prophesy.’   (Acts 2:16-18)

God is still pouring out his Spirit. Peter makes it clear that Pentecost includes us:

Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.”   (Acts 2:38-39)

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April 9, 2023 · 8:59 am

The Season of Easter

Unlike any other faiths or religions, Christianity is about the resurrection. Because Jesus was raised from the dead, we too, who believe in Him, shall be raised.

For the Christian the prophetic fulfillment of the Passover occurs when Jesus died on the cross for our sins:

Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.   (Isaiah 53:4-6)

The judgment of God the Father has passed over us and had been placed on God the Son. The resurrection of Jesus is proof that,  by His sacrifice, He has defeated sin, Hell and the grave:

O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?   (1 Corinthians 15:55)

How do we participate in the resurrection of our Lord? We participate in His resurrection by first participating in His death:

Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— because anyone who has died has been set free from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God.In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus.   (Romans 6:3-11)

We  participate in the resurrection by faith in the completed work of our Lord who atoned for all our sins:

Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, “The man who does those things shall live by them.” But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’” (that is, to bring Christ down from above) or, “‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”   (Romans 10:5-13)

While it is true that Jesus died for all the sins of the world, we must choose to participate in His sacrifice and resurrection. Have we called on the name of Jesus? He is calling us. Jesus said that if we profess him before the world then he will profess us before the Father. The Easter faith is a joyous faith, one that we should share with others.

Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. We must be prepared to grow in our faith. The Apostle Paul wrote the Church in Thessalonica:

We must always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore we ourselves boast of you among the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith during all your persecutions and the afflictions that you are enduring.As we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus He will guide us by His Holy Spirit.   (2 Thessalonians 1:3-4)

There will probably be some unchurched people attending Easter services who may be hearing the Gospel for the first time or have not heard it for quite some time. Do we preach a salvation formula for them? I believe that would be a mistake. The best approach is always to preach the word inspired by the Holy Spirit since he knows who will be in the service and what each person might need to hear. This will offer the greatest invitation to salvation and discipleship as well.

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April 9, 2023 · 8:57 am

Resurrection Sunday: Principal Easter Service

A New Heaven and Earth

From the Gospel of John we have this wonderful account of the first witness to the resurrection of Jesus:

Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, `I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.   (John 20:11-18)

It was fitting that Mary Magdalene, whom Jesus had cast out seven demons, was the first witness to the resurrected. (Luke 8:2). Jesus said:

“But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”   (Matthew 9:13)

Mary was faithful to Jesus when many of his disciples deserted him. She had come to his tomb early in the first day of the week. She was not prepared for what she saw. She had a close relationship with Jesus. But he had changed. She did not recognize Jesus at first. When he spoke to her she wanted to reach out to him. Jesus, then said a curious thing: “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father.”

What did this mean? Something remarkable happened to change the whole world. Jesus had risen from the dead. He was not the same as before. He had a glorified body. And his mission had changed. He needed to ascend to the Father before he could meet again with his disciples.  Even his disciples would not be able to hold on to the Jesus they knew.

Jesus had changed. The whole world was about to change. God spoke through the Prophet Isaiah:

For I am about to create new heavens
    and a new earth;
the former things shall not be remembered
    or come to mind.
But be glad and rejoice forever
    in what I am creating;
for I am about to create Jerusalem as a joy,
    and its people as a delight.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
    and delight in my people;
no more shall the sound of weeping be heard in it,
    or the cry of distress.
No more shall there be in it
    an infant that lives but a few days,
    or an old person who does not live out a lifetime;
for one who dies at a hundred years will be considered a youth,
    and one who falls short of a hundred will be considered accursed.   (Isaiah 65:17-20)

This surely does not sound like the world we live in now. We will never live in any utopia in this current world. God is preparing a new world, a new earth, a new heaven. We are destined to be a part of it. But we must choose to enter.

The psalmist wrote:

Open for me the gates of righteousness;
I will enter them;
I will offer thanks to the Lord.

“This is the gate of the Lord;
he who is righteous may enter.”

I will give thanks to you, for you answered me
and have become my salvation.

The same stone which the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.

This is the Lord‘s doing,
and it is marvelous in our eyes.

On this day the Lord has acted;
we will rejoice and be glad in it.   (Psalm 118:19-24)

On the day of the resurrection Jesus opened the gates of righteousness. The righteous may enter but they must enter through the gate that God has provided.

Jesus said:

 I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.   (John 10:9)

Our salvation comes through faith in the saving power of the cross. The Apostle Peter preached:

 All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”   (Acts 10:39-43)

The message of the resurrection of is that the lives of all who believe have been changed. Not only that, but a whole new world awaits us, the Millennial Reign of the Lord Jesus Christ. We must no longer live as though we are a part of this world. This world is passing away. The Apostle John wrote in his Epistle:

Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; for all that is in the world—the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches—comes not from the Father but from the world. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever.   (1 John 2:15-17)

Today, like Mary Magdalene. Jesus is calling each of us by name. He is telling us not to hold on to the past. This world is passing away. Walk through the gate that leads to a whole new world.

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April 8, 2023 · 12:00 am

Holy Saturday

8940635-largeO Grave Where Is Thy Victory?

Job was a good man, but he was aware of his sins. He realized that God had every reason to pass judgment on him:

“I wish you would hide me in a grave!
    I wish you would cover me up until your anger passes by!
I wish you would set the time for me to spend in the grave
    and then bring me back up!
If someone dies, will they live again?
    All the days of my hard work
    I will wait for the time when you give me new life.   (Job 14:13-14)

Jesus died and hid in a grave for us:

At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden. A new tomb was there. No one had ever been put in it before. That day was the Jewish Preparation Day, and the tomb was nearby. So they placed Jesus there.   (John 19:41-42)

Jesus bore our shame. He suffered the consequences of our sins, even to the extent of descending into Hell. His ministry did not stop there. His mission remained the same: “To seek and to save those who are lost.” The Apostle Peter makes it clear that the Gospel was proclaimed even to the dead:

Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same intention (for whoever has suffered in the flesh has finished with sin), so as to live for the rest of your earthly life no longer by human desires but by the will of God. You have already spent enough time in doing what the Gentiles like to do, living in licentiousness, passions, drunkenness, revels, carousing, and lawless idolatry. They are surprised that you no longer join them in the same excesses of dissipation, and so they blaspheme. But they will have to give an accounting to him who stands ready to judge the living and the dead. For this is the reason the gospel was proclaimed even to the dead, so that, though they had been judged in the flesh as everyone is judged, they might live in the spirit as God does.  (1 Peter 4:1-6)

We must be judged in the flesh in order to live in the Spirit. The good news is that Jesus has been judged for us. Jesus does not leave us in our flesh, but lifts us high into the Kingdom of God. The Apostle Paul writes:

Therefore it says,

“WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH,
HE LED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES,
AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.”

(Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.)   (Ephesians 4:8-10)

Are we ready to come out of the grave? Are we ready to receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit? Are we ready to become citizens, no longer of this earth, but in heaven? If so, we must embrace him. Job said:

For I know that my Redeemer lives,
and that at the last he[c] will stand upon the earth;
and after my skin has been thus destroyed,
then in my flesh I shall see God,
whom I shall see on my side,
and my eyes shall behold, and not another.   (Job 19:25-27)

We look forward to the resurrection of the dead. Jesus’ resurrection has become our resurrection.

O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.   (1 Corinthians 15:55-57 KJV)

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