1 Timothy 1
Reformed/Charismatic/Missional Conference - Session 6 - Terry Virgo
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Session 6
The Gospel of Grace
Terry Virgo
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Terry Virgo leads the Newfrontiers team, which is currently serving over 700 churches in over 60 nations. He travels widely and has written several books, including No Well Worn Paths. he and his wife, Wendy, are based at Church of Christ the King, Brighton, UK.
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2 Timothy 1:1 ff.
1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God according to the promise of the life that is in Christ Jesus,
2 To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
3 I thank God whom I serve, as did my ancestors, with a clear conscience, as I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day.
4 As I remember your tears, I long to see you, that I may be filled with joy.
5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.
6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands,
7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
8 Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God,
9 who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,
10 and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
11 for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher,
12 which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.
13 Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
14 By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.
The focus here is elements in the relationship between Timothy and Paul which are applicable to us today.
1. The history begins when Paul took notice of Timothy on a missionary journey, employed Timothy in the mission with him, and eventually sent him to lead the church in Ephesus. Timothy's tasks were scary, to be sure, including much confrontation of false teachers and church-splitters, as well as much teaching to instruct God's people how to live in light of the gospel (including church leadership, widows, and the rich), and how NOT to live in light of the law of God, but in the gospel of grace instead. This was a hard task Timothy was called to do, and on top of that doing the work of an evangelist. The challenge to him was phenomenal and no doubt he was overwhelmed as the bar was set higher and higher.
2. The second thing we see are the weaknesses he undoubtedly felt through his own limitations. Paul tells Timothy not to let anyone despise his youth (2 Tim. 2). Paul was probably around 40 years old or less when he was addressed as a "youth," regarded as young and inexperienced in the ministry, despite his service under Paul for so many years. So he needed to be aware of the constant challenge to his leadership. In addition, he was also timid, according to 1 Tim. 1.
He was prone to expressing a timid style, and was not to be ashamed of the Lord. Boldness was the need of the hour, despite how he felt. And when we look at who God chooses to serve His people, they are usually not the smart or wise or "leader-type" guys. In 1 Corinthians 16:10, Paul had to explain to the congregation not to frighten Timothy, which leads us to see a man who was timid in leadership. Did Paul pick the right man? Why does he send a man like this? Because there were values in this man Paul knew about, and Timothy was a man who didn't care for his own interests, but for the interests of the people he served. He didn't seek himself but was generally concerned for the people.
He was also prone to frequent ailments, according to 1 Timothy 5. So here's a guy whose young, timid, and often sick! This makes a man like Timothy ask, "who am I to serve God? I am scared, I'm young, and I'm frequently sick!" This can lead to despair and discouragement, eventually leading to defeat. So what do we think of this man in light of his task to represent the apostolic leadership of Paul.
The Provision for the Need: "fan into flame the gift of God that was given to you through the laying on of hands." Treading slowly through this phrase we find much that is helpful.
1. Look first at "the gift." It is not an expectation that presumably is a part of one's personality. It is a gift, therefore something someone does NOT deserve. A gift has nothing to do with worth. It has to do with grace. It's not a natural thing which comes as a result of one's education or experience. It is a GIFT! It is not natural, but other than you.
Terry recalled an encounter of seeing some paintings of Samson some time ago. In each of the paintings, he is painted with bulging muscles, calling our minds immediately to his muscles. Yet the Word of God clearly teaches that his strength came from God...it came from outside of himself. He was a walking enigma. He was especially undeserving, as we see in his lifestyle. Yet God's Spirit was poured out on him undeservedly and in overwhelming measure. The outpouring of the Spirit on Samson was a scandal of grace in every sense of the word.
Fan into flame the gift. "But I haven't done well." What's that got to do with it? "But I don't deserve this!" Of course, you don't. That's why it is a gift. Thinking of Simon Peter at the gate of the temple listening to the crippled beggar asking for money. Simon told him, "Look on me" and then commanded the man to get up and walk. Then later the man is told, "Don't look at me" which, though confusing, actually points to the truth that Simon Peter had nothing to do with that healing. God had everything to do with it. This came from the man who three months earlier denied three times that he knew Jesus. He got the gift of the Spirit based on grace, and nothing else.
Too often we look with adoration on others with a grand platform of ministry and suppose that they must have that platform because of their great teaching. It is a gift of God, and most of the time as very little to do with the natural abilities.
2. Look second at the gift "of God." It comes from God, and that makes the gift supernatural. It ONLY comes from God, and that makes it available from only one Source. We can't go anywhere else to get this gift. No books that we read or seminars that we attend can give it. Only God can.
Terry recalled his listening to a Bill Hybels tape one day as he was walking around. Hybels made a statement that God had given him a great gift of leadership. Terry responded with, "who do you think you are?" God reminded Terry that Hybels said that he'd received a "gift." Let's not belittle things that God gives.
3. Look finally at the phrase, "which was given to you by the laying on of hands." Timothy was reminded not to neglect or ignore this gift. People can be gifted but not take full advantage of the gift, and end up disregarding it, in the awareness of their timidity even.
Paul says that this gift was "in" Timothy. This recalls Jesus offering the woman at the well in John 4, not just a drink but a well itself of living water springing up inside of her. We can have a well inside of us, and that is given to us in the laying on of hands at the baptism of the Spirit. That baptism must be fanned into flame regularly, as Paul teaches in Ephesians 5 that we must keep on being filled with the Spirit. That supply is within us, on the inside, and we are to fan it into flame, singing to it, calling it to fresh life and action.
When we don't do this we don't cultivate a relationship with what God has put inside of us. Another passage that comes to mind is Luke 4 where Jesus preaches that the Spirit of the Lord had come upon Him and anointed Him. He wasn't describing a subjective feeling like, "I feel so anointed." Rather He was describing a historical fact. He was flooded with the Spirit. He went out in the power of the Spirit. He wasn't describing an experience He was currently feeling. He was proclaiming a reality about Himself.
When we have received the Spirit we must be aware of what God has given to us and not live as though we don't have the Holy Spirit with us. Learn to engage with the Spirit, communining with Him, having fellowship with Him. Jesus taught multiple times that He would only be with His disciples a little while longer. But one wonders how the disciples must have perceived that and felt about it. But Jesus' point was that when He was gone, the Spirit would be given and He could then commune with them all the time, fellowshiping with them forever.
So stop to review what like must have been like living with Jesus for three years. Everyday was an adventure, filled with wonder and excitement. To hear that He would no longer be around would easily leave a disciple to see life after Jesus as glum and despairing. Instead, the gift of the Spirit promised that such a lifestyle would simply continue, yet in more power and in greater effectiveness! "In the coming of the Spirit, Jesus Himself is returning" (Hendrickson, The Gospel of John). That is why it was better for them, as Jesus said, that He left them. Omnipresence does not mean a little bit of Jesus spread around everywhere. It means an overwhelming unleashing of the very presence and power of God for every person who follows Jesus.
This need of the Spirit is why Paul told Timothy, "Fan into flame..." There are times in a leader's life when, like David at Ziklag, the very people we lead will be ready to stone us to death. But how did David respond? He strengthened himself in the Lord. He fanned into flame, within his soul, the truth about God's promises and presence. As leaders we become burden-bearers who can faint beneath the pressure without comforting ourselves and strengthening ourselves in God. Fanning into flame this gift of the Spirit, this present-tense reality of being filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18), is what is necessary in order to stay strengthened for the labors of ministry.
It comes freely to us, despite our lack of deserving it. This produces unspeakable joy. It will never be taken away from us. This produces immeasurable confidence. Like George Mueller we must make it our chief duty everyday to make ourselves happy in God. The simplicity of this is even understood in the context of airplane instructions regarding the oxygen masks that fall from the ceiling in case of emergency. As adults we affix the mask to our own heads first so that we can see straight to help the children under our care. In the same way, we are responsible to strengthen and comfort ourselves first and foremost before helping others, or else we are really no good to them at all!
Conclusion
For Timothy it was not enough that Paul laid hands on him. This should show us that it doesn't matter WHO lays hands on you. What matters is the responsibility to fan it into flame. We must have partnership with it and engage in it. This is the final responsibility of the leader.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:N Starr St,Tacoma,United States
Acts 29
Reformed/Charismatic/Missional Conference - Session 5 - Elliot Grudem
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Session 5
The Gospel of Grace
Elliot Grudem
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ELLIOT GRUDEM is the network coordinator for the Acts 29 Network and a pastor at Mars Hill Church. Prior to his work with Acts 29, Elliot served as the senior minister at Christ the King Presbyterian Church, a church he replanted in Raleigh, NC. He has worked for an urban ministry in New Orleans. He worked for a Fortune 100 company prior to seminary. He is the editor of Christian Beliefs, a book he completed with his father Wayne. Elliot holds degrees from Miami Univeristy (BA, History and English) and Reformed Theological Seminary (M.Div.).
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What is most noticeable in this one of many meals we see in the gospels, is that the meal with Jesus provides an opportunity to experience God's grace. This just what we observe in the meal between Jesus and the Pharisees in Luke 7.
36 One of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee's house and took his place at the table.
37 And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment,
38 and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment.
39 Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner."
40 And Jesus answering said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you." And he answered, "Say it, Teacher."
41 "A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.
42 When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?"
43 Simon answered, "The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt." And he said to him, "You have judged rightly."
44 Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair.
45 You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet.
46 You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment.
47 Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven-for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little."
48 And he said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."
49 Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, "Who is this, who even forgives sins?"
50 And he said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
This story is unique to Luke's account of Jesus' life. Like most stories there's conflict and resolution, peppered with conversation. There are two conflicts in this story. First, there is a conflict over Jesus relationship with sinners. Second, there is conflict over Jesus' authority to forgive sins. Both conflicts are resolved in the gospel of grace, summarized like this: "God saves sinners...God saves big sinners." No matter where we are in our spiritual journey, God will reveal something about ourselves and His gospel in this story.
Resolving the Conflict of Jesus' Relationships
In verse 34 Jesus is said to be a friend of sinners...friends with gluttons and tax collectors. Yet how ironic is it that in verse 36, Jesus is asked to have dinner with Pharisees, the very same people who hated His relationships. They were men who defined themeslves by their scrupulous adherence to God's laws...separating themselves from those unfavored, from sinners. As a result, they hated those who didn't measure up to their standards. These were high and lofty standards, to be sure, totalling some 613 additional principles and standards accessorizing the law.
For example, they were rigid about their generosity. They knew God required giving 10% of their harvest. So just to be saved, they tithed from their spice cabinet. And in whatever they ate, they made sure it was tithed off of. And when they ate, they saved 10% of what they were eating for the priests. Yet how strange that they never invited to their table to eat those who really needed food to eat: the ritually unclean, the morally unclean, the sinners, the marginalized, those on the fringes. So Jesus is accused of being a glutton and drunkard, a friend of prostitutes and tax collectors, and He comes to the table of a Pharisee's house and does nothing to help His reputation at all.
A prostitute decided to visit the house while Jesus was eating there at the table that night. She came in and broken open an expensive jar of perfume and anointed Him with it. However, she was demonized by the Pharisees as they idolized their holiness and righteousness. Mark Driscoll says that when we idolize one thing we must also demonize something else by necessity. The Pharisees idolized their view of God's Word, and therefore demonized Jesus and the people He hung out with.
This woman was a "woman of the city," and it appears everyone in town knew who this woman was. But she complicates things when, in verses 37-38, she opens up this jar of perfume and anoints Jesus' feet, and stood there weeping, her tears wetting His feet...a veritable rainstorm of weeping on His dirty feet. So she wiped His feet with her hair, and kissed His feet, and then anointed His feet with the perfume. Luke is very, very careful to describe this scene act by act for the singular purpose of contrasting her treatment of Jesus with that of the Pharisees.
If you're a guest at this meal, you're feeling very awkward at this moment. It even appeared erotic no doubt, to the Pharisees. He engages in a scandalous intimacy with the profoundly immoral. This is why Luke records the thoughts of the Pharisees in verse 39. They call His prophetic ministry into account by wondering whether or not He even realized who this woman was and what she is guilty of, thinking that if Jesus really knew He wouldn't be allowing this. But He knew. And this is where we find the inherent disturbing scandal of the gospel.
Jesus came to reconcile profoundly, unholy sinners to a profoundly, holy God. Jesus knew her reputation. He says in verse 47, "her sins which are many." He knew all about it, and He was approachable by sinners. Sinners knew this, and when they looked at Him for forgiveness of sins, they experienced it and responded in love...the kind of scandalous love that displays itself in humility and generosity. Who wants to interact with a woman like this? God does. Jesus did.
Resolving the Conflict of Jesus' Authority to Forgive
So Jesus tells the Pharisee a story in answer to his thought. He does this to present an opportunity to contrast the Pharisee's lifestyle with that of His own, in the story of the money lender and the debtor. In this story, there are two persons, niether of whom can pay what they owe. So which one person would love Jesus MORE? Simon the Pharisee answered correctly: the one who had the bigger debt.
So Jesus turns to the woman, but is really speaking to Simon. He compares what this woman did with what Simon did. The contrasts were amazing and many. Washing, cleaning, anointing were all done by a prostitute, none of which was done as a good host by the Pharisee. They weren't required, and Simon didn't do them at all. The prostitute wasn't required either, but she went overboard. Going overboard in love shows a heart filled with forgiveness for a life filled with overboard sin.
Hospitality wasn't the issue here, for Jesus. It simply provided an opportunity to describe the state of one's heart. It's an opportunity to respond with thanksgiving, as we are reminded of His promises. Simon responded with no treatment at all, except judgmentalism, despite his love for the law of God. The prostitute responded with overflowing love and worship, despite her sin against the law of God.
Simon was offended for one simple reason: all of this revealed his own self-righteousness. This led him to demonize God's scandalous, disturbing, amazing grace. Simon didn't see his sin as offensive. He didn't believe God was offended by his sin. He was in love with his own righteousness and saw no need of God's grace. But if God is offended with Simon's self-righteousness, he stands in need of the very same thing the prostitute does. But her response, saying nothing about her forgiveness, simply stands as a manifestation of the forgiveness she knows she has already received.
Jesus' assurance of her forgiveness is troubling to the other Pharisees at the table, according to verse 47. He is the One most offended by all of the sin at the table, and therefore is the Only One who can offer forgiveness to anyone He desires. He gives it to those who know they need it, and in response we see stories like this of this prostitute's response. This is why Simon responded the way he did. He remained blind because he would not turn his shoe over to discover that he had the same waste on the bottom of his shoes that the woman did. She realized it and wanted forgiveness. He didn't realize it and did not want forgiveness, because he didn't think he needed it.
Conclusion
Jesus came to save profoundly, unholy sinners to a infinitely, holy God. In order for your debt to be forgiven, your sins forgiven, several options are available, though only one is realistic. It is the option which says, 'I simply can't pay it.' And that option earns forgiveness of the debt. Otherwise, the person is left owing what they owe and having to pay for it on their own. But if Jesus paid the debt He did not owe, because we owed a debt we could not pay, then in Jesus the wrath of God against our sin was satisfied and forgiveness can be offered freely.
Grace is meant to be scandalous. If it doesn't appear scandalous, then our sins do not appear equally as scandalous in contrast to a holy God. The scandal is that my scandal has been written off and forgiven when it justifiably deserves wrath. This scandalous plan of forgiveness finds men like the women here, blind and helpless to do anything about their plight, and wipes their slate clean, reconciles them to God, and awards them with the wealth of heaven.
GOD saves sinners. Sinners do NOT save themselves. It's by GRACE you've been saved, through FAITH, which is a GIFT of GOD. This makes grace disturbing, as it is meant to be. God saves sinners, not because of what they will do or want to do, but because of what Christ has done. He didn't save us out of a good look into our future with the realization that we were gonna be a great guy one day. He took a good look at our present reality and saw a life that was an affront to the infinite holiness of God.
At the new member interview Elliot does in their church membership process, each candidate took two vows, both of which publicly acknowledged the need for grace (because of sin) and the means of grace (Jesus' death). These vows are representative of the person's actual need to see their actual condition so that they can receive the only actual solution to their problem.
In the end we must ask ourselves: "Would we or could we respond like Jesus to that woman?" That's the wrong question to start with, however. The right question to start with is the one asked to Simon: "How are you gonna deal with Me?" The prostitute is not the issue here, nor his response to her. The issue here is Jesus Christ and Simon's response to HIM!
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:N Starr St,Tacoma,United States
Session 3
"You Will Receive Power When the Holy Spirit Comes Upon You"
Terry Virgo
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Terry Virgo leads the Newfrontiers team, which is currently serving over 700 churches in over 60 nations. He travels widely and has written several books, including No Well Worn Paths. he and his wife, Wendy, are based at Church of Christ the King, Brighton, UK.
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Acts 1:4 ff.
1 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach,
2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.
3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, "you heard from me;
5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now."
6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?"
7 He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.
Many have said that verse 8 is the key to understanding the book of Acts. And in fact, in light of the history we see, it is the key. How else can a set of people who just days before were huddling in fear in an upper room go from that mindset to a people totally unafraid and filled with boldness?
When Jesus said, "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you," it was not a totally foreign thing to Jews. They would have recalled a story like that of Gideon who was called out of fear and into a warrior mindset, after having experienced the coming of the Holy Spirit upon Him, clothing him as it were with power. So he is transformed from being a frightened, hiding man into a bold warrior leading a people into triumph.
The story of Samuel would have also come to mind, when he anointed David as king. The David was filled with power, and we have subsequent stories like David and Goliath. There is power there when the Holy Spirit comes upon a person. This is what happened when God took a portion of the Spirit in Moses and gave it to the 70 elders. It happened also to Joshua who received the same power in order to lead the same people Moses did, into the promised land. The bottom line is that an actual change occurs when the Spirit's power comes upon us.
As a young man Terry asked, "Is that something I should covet? I feel very ineffectual." So he began to read. Later his sister led him to attend John Stott's church where he was eventually converted. However, Stott's answer to Terry's question was that he had already received it all at salvation...the Spirit, His power, everything...at conversion. This was contrasted later with the ministry of Dr. Lloyd Jones who asked Terry the question, "If you've got it, then where is it?" Thus the question, "If Stott and Lloyd Jones disagreed, where does that leave me?"
Terry's lifestyle continued on and ended up in backsliding, living the same sort of bad life he had already been living before conversion. Later however, Terry felt God asking him, "Are you with Me, or not?" This led Terry to throw himself into church life. But as he tried to live the Christian life, he felt more and more his own inability to do what God wanted. This was brought home particularly one day when he had led a Bible study that morning, and in preparation for a meeting that night, his walk along the beach one day led him down a different path. He saw a crowd, shouting, throwing things, and investigated the scene. He saw old ladies singing gospel songs, holding banners, and receiving persecution. Terry felt, "That's terrible." God seemed reply, "Why is that terrible? I've led young men to do that!"
Terry was the young man of moment who also needed to join in and participate with the ladies. However, despite the pressure of the Spirit, he felt he simply could not. There was just no power to do it. And Jesus said we would be His witnesses after receiving power. It's hard to bear witness boldly with Jesus without Spirit power. This led Terry constantly to miss opportunities to minister because of the lack of power.
He contacted someone the next day for help in answering this plaguing question. The answer his friend gave him was found in Acts 1:4 and following. The first thing Jesus told them to do was to wait in prayer to receive it. This however is the only place where Jesus commanded disciples to do this. And this was, of course because it preceded the most significant moment in history next to the cross, which was Pentecost.
Should we build doctrine from narrative then? If Jesus said wait only once, in a story about church history, should we look to that part of the story to build a pattern? Not necessarily. The story simply gives us a beginning point. The giving and receiving of the Spirit was repeated throughout the book of Acts. Waiting in an upper room for Him was not. Therefore, while this narrative does not teach us normative practice, the pattern that emerges in other narratives does in fact do this for us. So let's look at Acts 1 and see how this unfolds.
When Do We Get the Spirit's Power?
Some say we get it all at conversion. Others say everyone gets it after conversion. But a look at the Scriptures reveals it can sometimes be both.
First, look at Acts 8 in the narrative about Philip.
Acts 8:14 Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John,
15 who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit,
16 for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
17 Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.
If you were to ask a Samaritan's testimony, he would simply respond that hands were laid on him/her and they the Spirit fell upon them. It's that simple.
Second, look at Acts 9, in Paul's conversion experience on the Damascus Road.
17 So Ananias departed and entered the house. And laying his hands on him he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus who appeared to you on the road by which you came has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit."
18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and he regained his sight. Then he rose and was baptized;
19 and taking food, he was strengthened. Saul Proclaims Jesus in Synagogues For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus.
A regular, ordinary disciple...no one particularly remarkable...was led by God to call Saul brother, meaning he was already converted, and then led by God to pray for the receiving of the Spirit.
Third, look at Acts 10, in the case of Peter and Cornelius.
44 While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.
45 And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles.
46 For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared,
47 "Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?"
We see a sudden coming upon with the Holy Spirit for these people. On that one day, they are converted and then receive the power of the Spirit all at one time.
Finally, in Acts 19 we have the situation of the Ephesians.
1 And it happened that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul passed through the inland country and came to Ephesus. There he found some disciples.
2 And he said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" And they said, "No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit."
3 And he said, "Into what then were you baptized?" They said, "Into John's baptism."
4 And Paul said, "John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus."
5 On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
6 And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.
7 There were about twelve men in all.
These twelve had only been baptized into the message John the Baptist preached, which was simply a message that prepared them to follow Jesus. Yet they had never been baptized into Jesus Christ, and therefore had not received the Holy Spirit yet. That's why they had never even heard of the Spirit. Yet when Paul laid his hands on them, perhaps dripping with baptismal water, the Spirit fell upon them. So here, as in Acts 10, there is this simultaneous activity of conversion and Spirit-empowering occuring.
What also is evident in EVERY case is that when ALL of the people in these narratives did receive the Spirit, it was evident and noticeable, both to them and to others around them. The evidences are manifold: miracles, tongues speaking, signs and wonders, etc. All of these things came by the hearing of faith, as Paul taught in Galatians 3, and not by doing works of the law.
So what about the doctrine that teaches that when we've been saved, we must move into making Jesus Lord of our lives later on in life...rededicating our lives to Him...emptying ourselves to be filled with fresh commitment, etc.? But as with the other view, this happening doesn't fit the narratives we read in Acts. There is no later crisis every Christian must experience in life in order to be freshly renewed and redidicated. That is much akin to getting a soldier excited about going into battle, and later on when they have come to the end of themselves, telling them that now they will get a gun!
What about the doctrine that teaches tarrying, or waiting and waiting to receive the Spirit? Well, we see that once on the days before Pentecost. But afterwards, no one is ever told to wait again. How does that fit? The key lies for us in John 7.
37 On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'"
39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
Notice the text doesn't say that the Spirit wasn't given yet because they had not come to the end of themselves, or because they weren't mature yet. Rather, it was clearly because Jesus had not yet been glorified, meaning He had not yet ascended to heaven. But when that would and did occur, the prophecy of Joel would be fulfilled. The fulness of the Spirit would be poured out on all those who were thirsty for Him. It was also the prophecy of John the Baptist who promised that Jesus would come Who would baptize us with water and fire, referring to regeneration by and empowering through the Holy Spirit.
Today, if there were someone who desired to push through the crowds and take Jesus up on His offer for something to drink, He would not turn around and say, "Not Yet...you're just not ready." No! He would say, "Not yet...because I'm not glorified yet...I haven't ascended to heaven yet." But after He DID, the first group waited, received the drink He promised, and no one else was ever told to wait again. Now that the drink had been offered, no one needs wait anymore, because Jesus has been glorified.
Terry's Recollection of Thirsting for the Spirit of Jesus
Terry recalls his frequent cries of, "I just can't do it!" referring to the change he knew he needed. He was very thirsty and he wanted something to drink. He recalled being around a friend who with unfettered freedom handed out tracts and witnessed...while Terry sat aside asking himself, "Why can't I do that?" He went to that guy's church the following Sunday and saw the laying on of hands to receive the Spirit. They laid hands on Terry to receive the Spirit, his heart growing greater in thirst for this power. He stood in line asking, "Can I receive this?" As he waited in line, he got his eyes off Jesus and said, "This guy's gonna do it for me." However, all the guy did was lay his hands on Terry and went to the next person.
This discouraged Terry. He went away feeling that nothing had happened, after having travelled all that way to get what he wanted. However, he realized that Jesus had said, "Come to ME..." and Terry had gone to the man laying hands on people. That is hugely important because we are to come to JESUS to receive, and not other people. Other people simply become a mode through which Jesus gives what He promised.
Terry found himself waiting for a funny feeling of some sort. This led him to back away for a while out of discouragement. But he came back to the promise of Jesus again, realizing he had to believe in Jesus, and not in anything else...no feeling...no great preacher or prayer warrior...no one else and nothing else. It is believing in Jesus, and believing in the promise of His Spirit.
What About Speaking on Tongues?
The promise in John 7 also speaks of an abundant lifestyle. It is a lifestyle that is vastly and evidently different from whatever it was before. One of the greatest evidences of this lifestyle is reflected in the book of Acts as speaking in tongues. This is not to say that if you don't speak in tongues you haven't been filled with the Spirit. But it is to say very simply that speaking in tongues is something that happens to those who are filled with the Spirit. You don't get filled BY speaking in tongues. You come a take the drink Jesus offers, and THEN then the abundant lifestyle begins flowing, usually with the gift of tongues.
So how does this thing work? The Bible says that we speak in tongues, not God. God doesn't speak through us. WE speak by God's power. In short, if YOU don't speak in tongues, you WON'T speak in tongues. This excludes passivity. It is not about tarrying until God somehow divinely lifts our heads up and opens our mouths and putting words in them.
What we find often in the Bible is that God's people do something out of faith and belief and what they had faith in actually happened to them. When Joshua put his foot in the river, it parted. When Peter stepped out of the boat, he walked on water just like Jesus. When the leper Jesus pronounced healed presented himelf to the priest, he was healed.
This is not an attitude of, "it'll happen to me any minute now." No! It is stepping out by faith and doing what is normal, but in another dimension. Peter used his own legs, but in a different dimension. When we speak in tongues we use our own voices and tongues, but in a different dimension. There is a spiritual dimension to this which opens up by our active faith.
Opening our mouth begins with praising God. But arguments will seem to prevail in our minds that we are making this up. However, as all the tension disappears in praising God, the words begin to flow. Terry recalled that one woman said, "If you're making this up, you're doing a great job of it!" The sense of closeness with God and a feeling of His great love for us is overwhelming. His presence produces and promotes power in this way.
When Terry returned to his Baptist church, they had noticed by his countenance that something had happened to him. He told them he had been to a Pentecostal church, hands were laid on him, and he was filled with the Spirit and spoke in tongues. The pastor and brothers were listening. When he was done sharing the pastor said, "Terry, you must lay hands on all of us, and I will be the last in line to receive it." From that day forward he had the privilege of laying hands on many more to receive the Holy Spirit.
Conclusion
Location:N Starr St,Tacoma,United States
Session 2
"What Kind of House Will You Build For Me?"
Terry Virgo
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Terry Virgo leads the Newfrontiers team, which is currently serving over 700 churches in over 60 nations. He travels widely and has written several books, including No Well Worn Paths. he and his wife, Wendy, are based at Church of Christ the King, Brighton, UK.
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Acts 6:11 ff.
11 Then they secretly instigated men who said, "We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God."
12 And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council,
13 and they set up false witnesses who said, "This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law,
14 for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us."
15 And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel.
Acts 7:45 ff.
45 Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they dispossessed the nations that God drove out before our fathers. So it was until the days of David,
46 who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling place for the God of Jacob.
47 But it was Solomon who built a house for him.
48 Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says,
49 "'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house will you build for me, says the Lord, or what is the place of my rest?
Acts 11:19 ff.
19 Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews.
20 But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists also, preaching the Lord Jesus.
21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.
22 The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.
23 When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose,
24 for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.
25 So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul,
26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.
27 Now in these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.
28 And one of them named Agabus stood up and foretold by the Spirit that there would be a great famine over all the world (this took place in the days of Claudius).
29 So the disciples determined, everyone according to his ability, to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.
30 And they did so, sending it to the elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.
Acts 11:25 - 12:1 ff.
And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had completed their service, bringing with them John, whose other name was Mark.
1 Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."
3 Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.
This new international community called the church was finding its way into the life of the culture at that time. It was a new wine that would not fit into the old wineskin. So it spills outward to the nations becoming the emerging people of God. Outside of Jerusalem, the most prominent place in which this emerging people of God began to build a new house of God was Antioch. Jerusalem was soon to be destroyed and a different kind of house of God would be constructed, one made of living stones, the people of God.
1. What do we find about this house in Acts 13? In Antioch we find first of all prophets.
There were people who prophesied. A supernatural element was found in this house. Indeed this was the beginning of the age of the Spirit. The dispensation of the law was over, and the dispensation of the Spirit had begun. Condemnation was gone and righteousness was ushered in.
This was all a part of the prophecy of Joel spoken hundreds of years earlier with regard to the outpouring of the Spirit on all people. That prophecy was fufilled at Pentecost and has not been consummated yet. Under the Old Covenant, you might be fortunate to run into the prophet Samuel while he was doing his prophetic rounds and receive a word. But a new day came in which the Spirit was poured out on ALL people who followed Jesus. It was a widespread outpouring, which was the mark of the age we are living in. Surprisingly it is NOT an age of committees and meetings!
God had come back to dwell among His people, not in a glory cloud found in a temple or tabernacle, but in a glory that dwelt among and in His people by means of the Spirit. Thus the significance of the question that Paul asked at Ephesus in Acts 19, "Have you received the Holy Spirit." They had no earthly idea what he was talking about. So he explained it to them, prayed for them, laid hands on them, and they received the Spirit. What resulted was a planted church and a whole culture undermined...all because the Holy Spirit's presence was manifested among His people. And this continued to repeat itself by means of unlearned, uneducated fisherman.
Even when Paul goes to Galatia and plants a church, he moved along only to have the Judaizers follow behind him and deceive the believers into moving AWAY from the Spirit, and back to the Old Covenant. This infuriates Paul and he writes his angriest letter, asking the most crucial question in the entire letter: "Did you receive the Spirit by faith, and were miracles done among you by doing the law and proving yourself as lawkeepers externally?" This was the stamp of the early church then: the Holy Spirit and His miracles and faith among His people. The coming of the Spirit was the mark of the new age, and the church was the place where it was worked out, the place where God dwelt on earth by His Spirit.
Returning again to the first mark of the presence of the Spirit, we find the presence of men through whom the Spirit spoke, or prophets. This included the presence of miracles by which the Spirit authenticated His presence and communicated God's love. People were attracted to this because they wanted to meet God personally. God was among them prophetically and miraculously. He was among them in the prophet Agabus, who would come up from the church in Jerusalem to Antioch who seems to resemble something like an OT prophet in the New Covenant. He was among them in the four daughters of Philip who were noted prophets in the early church. This was an ongoing ministry that continues in His church even today. That is the model which we followed today.
2. The second mark of this new house of God is the presence of teachers.
These are men who are filled with the Spirit to instruct and teach the people of God "many things" just like Jesus did in His earthly ministry. We find His example in His journey with the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Starting from Moses and the Prophets, Jesus explained how the entire OT spoke of Him, teaching them how all of it pointed to Him. He stayed later with them over dinner and continued His Bible study. He got them lined up with the truth which was the background against which their minds were opened to see that it was Jesus, when He broke the bread with them.
"The problem with most Christians is not their lack of effort, but their lack of acquaintance with their privileges" (John Owen).
3. The third mark of this new house of God was the presence of apostolic representation.
In 1 Corinthians 3 Paul explained his work as that of building the foundation of the local church. This is in keeping with what he wrote in Ephesians 2 that apostolic men build foundations. In Ephesians 4 they are given by Jesus Himself to build up the body of the church until they are mature.
"But didn't they have to see the resurrected Christ?" Several others were named apostles who did not see the resurrected Christ.
"But don't they have to have written Scripture?" Luke didn't, and he was referred to as part of the apsotolic representation.
This is how we see Barnabas depicted in Acts 13. He was an apostolic representation sent to ensure a firm foundation was laid for the local church. This is ensuring that a church is taught true gospel conent in order that people may have a solid foundation on which to build their lives. This is the work of laying and building, of caring and shepherding. His care and concern for the church had a ripple effect to the nations because the results directly impacted his apostolic sphere of ministry. This is a radically different kind of house than what we see in the Old Testament.
4. The fourth mark of this new house of God was the presence of multi-cultural, multinational, unifying leadership.
Barnabas was a Cyprian. Simeon and Lucius were black Africans. Manean was educated with the prince, the son of the King. And Saul (aka Paul) was a Jewish rabbi converted to Jesus. The Spirit gives us this description through Luke to show us that He marks His presence by the calling of men from all different backgrounds and cultures. He is no longer the Spirit just of the Jews, but now He is an every-nation Spirit, filling men whose only common denominator is that they have been washed in the blood of Jesus. These men were knit together in love.
We see the same thing in the instance of Cornelius' house. Peter receives the vision, goes to a Gentile's home, and begins to speak to them. While he was speaking the Spirit fell on all of them and they began speaking in tongues. This proved that they had the same Spirit as Peter and the 120 originally received. They were drinking of the same Spirit, even though they were hated Romans, whom God now seemed to love so much! The unity that comes from the Spirit bound them together in Christ. And the Spirit became the force which actually splashed these people of various nationalities together into one people.
This also included gender...and cultural status. Men and women were filled with the Spirit and unified with each other. Slaves and free were filled with the Spirit and unified with each other. Men and women were unified with slaves and free. They gathered together to pray and ask for the Spirit's presence and power. His presence was primary for them as a unified people.
5. The fifth mark of this new house of God was the people of God on a mission.
This group of leaders gathered together and heard the Spirit's call to send out two for the mission. The continuation of Jesus' great commission is seen clearly here in this situation. The Spirit's presence among His people swells to its peak in the missional planting of more churches where the whole process can start again and again.
At Antioch we have one of the most glorious model churches. It was formed from people who came from Stephen undoubtedly asking the same question he did: what kind of house will you build for me? One with prophets, teachers, apostolic representation, multi-cultural leadership, and a constant missional focus.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:N 4th St,Tacoma,United States
Acts 29
Reformed/Charismatic/Missional Conference - Session 1 - Jeff Vanderstelt
Friday, March 04, 2011
Session 1
What is the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
Jeff Vanderstelt
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About the Speaker: Jeff is a Church Planter who leads Soma Communities, a body of church planting churches in the South Puget Sound. He also serves as Vice President (West) of Acts 29 as well as the Church Planters Advisory Council for the Conservative Baptist NW Association. Jeff spends most of his time equipping church planters and church leaders in gospel-centered leadership and missionally focused methodology. He has been planting churches for seven years. Prior to that he was a youth pastor in four different churches over the span of 14 years, the most recent being Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago, IL. Jeff has been married for 18 years to Jayne and together they love and shepherd three beautiful children in the gospel and mission of Jesus Christ.
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What is the gospel of Jesus Christ?
Romans 1:16-17 - "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith" (ESV).
Are your people gospel-fluent? Does it live and breathe in everything they do? Do they hear the gospel and translate it into behavior that is in keeping with the gospel? One who is fluent in a foreign language dreams in that language. One who is fluent in the gospel sets their hearts and minds on the things above so that they set their hearts and minds on things above and think Jesus. They have an entirely different way of seeing things and doing things. And conversely when they hear something that is not gospel, they are alerted to it and avoid it. This is largely the task of leadership as the apostle Paul presented it in various parts of his teaching.
If you were to summarize the people of God it is found in the last phrase of Romans 1:17: they "live by faith." That faith is in the gospel, which is the power of God for salvation to those who believe. That's the whole point Paul spends the rest of Romans unpacking. The gospel is all about God's saving work all the time. Believers live in that truth. They live by that truth. They have been saved FROM something, INTO something, and FOR something. That's God's rescue plan. In the grammar of this text there are three tenses here that require attention.
1. Past Tense: God HAS saved us from the penalty of sin FOR the purpose of being HIs beloved children.
In Romans 1:18 and following the righteousness of God is said to have been already revealed from heaven against those who swap the glory of God for their own. This is sin its most basic form. Consequently this inherently makes people "children of wrath," according to Ephesians 2. This wrath is a necessary component of the gospel because God's holiness and glory have been offended and affronted. Sin is treason and it must be punished as such. The punishment is God's wrath. Jesus suffered and absorbed and satisfied that wrath on the cross so that we might be loved and accepted as dearly loved children, and no longer children of wrath anymore.
According to 2 Corinthians 5 Jesus became sin FOR us so that we might become the righteousness of God. When God looks at us it is as though He is looking at His Son, Jesus. That's the good news. So the question is begged, "Do we believe this?" How do we know that we believe it? How do we know our people believe it?
2. Present Tense: God IS saving us from the penalty of sin FOR the purpose of being His beloved children.
Primarily, we/they no longer live in shame. We/they are no longer motivated by guilt. We don't serve God out of guilt of what will happen to us if we don't do something. Rather, we serve God motivated by the love He has put within us for Him and His purposes. We love because He has first loved us. If He hasn't first loved us, then we won't love Him...or His purposes. This love is the foundation for grace which is THE greatest motivator. We choose not to sin NOT because we will be ashamed of it when found out. Rather, we choose not to sin BECAUSE we simply love God!
Shame-motivated Christianity results in nothing more than self-worship, because we live by beating ourselves up for our sin. Grace-motivated Christianity results in Jesus-worship, because we live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me (Gal. 2:20). It is living by faith in what Jesus has already done about my sin. It is living by faith in a mindset that is absorbed entirely with the love of God in Christ for us.
Paul teaches us in 1 Corinthians 15:1 and following that the gospel is the thing "in which we stand." It holds us firm. And in that place it continues to demonstrate its power to save...continually. This power is granted by virtue of the resurrection. The power demonstrated there was the most miraculous power ever demonstrated by God. THAT power is the power that saves...the power that gives the theology of the cross its authentic meaning.
In Romans 8 Paul also teaches that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead also gives life to our mortal bodies. The power of the gospel rooted in the resurrection is the power that continues to save me and enable me to overcome sin...day by day...continually...all the time. This happens by the presence of the Holy Spirit within. He was installed there by God Himself inside of us. And He works in us the very same power He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead.
In John 20:21 the presence of the Spirit is inseparable from the purpose of the mission. This Spirit-power in the gospel is absolutely necessary for the mission Jesus has called us to. This brings our minds back to Luke 3 and 4 where Jesus begins His ministry with the power of the Spirit.
Luke 3:21-22 - "Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."
Luke 4:18 - "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor" (ESV).
Jesus was filled with the Spirit. He needed this filling for His ministry. He needed it to experience victory over temptation. He needed it to preach the good news to the poor. He was raised by the Spirit from the dead. Then He gave that same Spirit to us for the mission. That same Spirit does for us what He did for Jesus: filling us, empowering us for ministry, enabling us to conquer sin, empowering us to preach the good news, equipping us to raise up and send out more Spirit-filled people to repeat the same thing over and over again.
This theology is necessary to dispel the common myth that once we are saved by the Spirit it is up to us to carry on in the Christian life all by ourselves. Paul asks in Galatians 3, "Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?" (ESV). Salvation is accomplished by GOD...not by me. If the salvation for me that happened in the past was accomplished by God, then the salvation for me that happens each and every day is also accomplished in the very same way. NOTHING CHANGES! It's the same salvation and the same power of God...from start to finish.
The identity of a Christian is inseparably linked to this doctrine. Philippians 2:12-13 teaches us two truths. On the one hand we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. On the other hand, we work hard knowing that God Himself is actually within us working to influence our motivation and our wills to do what is pleasing to Him. He does this by the Holy Spirit. This is how the Holy Spirit continues to demonstrate His present-tense salvation in our lives. The gospel is the power of God for salvation to anyone who believes. Believing that GOD is the One who changes...not me...is the golden key to this whole deal.
3. Future Tense: God WILL save us from the penalty and presence of sin for the purpose of living in His presence eternally.
God will finish what He has started in us. The past-tense work of salvation accomplished by His power is a work that continues in the present...and therefore will and MUST be fulfilled and finished in the end. This promise is given to us in 1 Peter 1:3-5
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, toan inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith-more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire-may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,
obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
Nothing is going to stop this promise from being fulfilled. We will suffer through this life with the guarantee of the hope that is laid before us in heaven. Nothing can stand in the way of this hope: no suffering, no sin, no demon, no nothing. Right now our perception of this is so dim. But when we see Him, it will be more awesome than we could ever imagine...in absolute awe of Him. And it will take eternity to fully comprehend how glorious He really is.
This future hope of what we have motivates us to mission...not to self-security and comfort. The hope of what we have becomes our mission, our life-calling. It enables us to endure whatever life throws at us with a joy and hope that attracts others to come along with us. Does this future hope drive you into a passive apathy and comfort? Or does it capture your heart so that you feel so captured by His love, that you would want everyone to taste heaven now in the way we live?
I am not ashamed of this gospel. It is the power of God to save.
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