Life, liberty, and the pursuit of holiness: becoming what you are

Romans 6:1-14

What shall we say then? mAre we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can nwe who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. 6 We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that ythe body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. 7 For zone who has died has been set free from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. 9 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. 10 For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. 11 So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. 13 Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but ipresent yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. 14 For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

Rev. Dwight Yoo

If our standing with God is secure in Christ, why should I do anything?

That is the question answered by Paul. The response is the most emphatic way to say no, without cursing.

What are you without Christ

Romans says there are two groups: slaves to sin our slaves to Christ (Romans 6:17-18). Those who do not follow God will seek out another master. There is no one sitting on the fence. If you are not worshiping God, if you have something above God, then you will worship and devote your life to something else. Without a love for God, all we can do is sin. No matter what we do, if Christ and God is not a reference point, we cannot live rightly.  Those without christ are blind to God and brainwashed into serving idols. How do we know we are serving idols? An idol promises much and delivers little or temporary satisfaction. What do we get for chasing these idols? The wage of sin is death. So we only get death as our award.

What happens to you in christ

God needs to break through to us to show us reality. We are brainwashed and mindless slaves to sin. Those who think otherwise are deluded. When God breaks through, we are in union with Christ. We have been given everything through Him.

In our union, Christ and our old self died. The part that is a slave to sin is now dead. We are now no longer slaves to sin. Because of this, the wages of sin have been paid. We no longer owe anything to death or sin. We are free. We are now new creations.

Another way to think of this is domains. Colossians and Ephesians speaks of our transfer to the kingdom of God.

Practical implications for change

What does all this have to do with my day to day? We must consider ourselves dead to sin. This does not mean we are perfect and sinless. We are free from sin's power and mastery. We can now choose to serve God. We no longer call sin our master. So why do we find our lives still mired in sin? There is a difference between being given a status or position and acting like it. People who have been slaves for so long, still act like slaves...even when they are free. We cringe at the sound of our old master's voice. But that is the old master, we have a new LORD and KING. That is Jesus.

If you are bothered and discouraged, take heart. God is at work. If there is only apathy, then worry. Those who see sin and are bothered, be encouraged: God has started the good work!

First, remember that you are children of light.
Then act like it.

In the specific moment of temptation, talk to yourself. Don't listen to yourself. Preach to yourself. You can tell yourself that sin is not your master. You can tell yourself that you are God's and need sin and idols no more.

"A precious Wife, A Precious Life"

Proverbs 31:10-31

This us not just for those who are dating, nor is it solely for women to imitate. We should look at this in context of the book of Proverbs. There are two women in the book: Wisdom & Folly. This book gives all these wise sayings. And the ending of the book is a picture of what wisdom looks like. This noble wife is an example to everyone on how to live a wise life. A wise life is full of joy and blessing.

She fears the Lord.

This is what makes her life precious. This is where joy, a blessed life, and a blessing life comes from. Fearing God means recognizing who He is and that life is for God. God is the life-giver. The one who is most important is God, not us. We are not to include God in our plans; rather we should include ourselves in God's plans.

She's diligent in the details.

This women is put as an example of God's wisdom. Wisdom is about knowing how to handle the details of our mundane life. The passage covers everyday things. The original hebrew is an acrostic poem. And it spells out the entire hebrew alphabet. What does this mean? It means that this woman has it all covered. Everything. That not only would her children and husband would praise her...but God would praise her. Consider how it contrasts with the celebrity stars we think are so great. The christian may idolize the great preacher, theologian, our the martyr... But God sets this rather mundane example as praise-worthy. God is pleased with this as well. Don't despise the mundane details of your life.

She spends herself for others

She does good to her husband. She helps the needy. This is counter-intuitive. We are not called to chase our own dreams, we are called to lose it for Christ's sake. A life lived serving others is a life of worth.

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The Gospel: Hope for the Crushed

[John 11:1-44]

Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to him, saying, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." But when Jesus heard it he said, "This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it."

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him." After saying these things, he said to them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him." The disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover." Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, "Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."

Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world."

When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?"

Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me." When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out." The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go."

{Rev. Dwight Yoo}

A passage from "Too Good to be True" by Michael Horton...

"At the age of seventy-eight, James Horton had been diagnosed with a benign brain tumor that required immediate surgery. At first, a shunt released some of the fluid on his brain, but a further surgery was necessary to excise the rapidly growing lump before it interrupted vital brain functions. This surgery failed, and before long we realized that my father would not recover.

He lived for nearly a year, however, almost paralyzed from head to toe. Since even his face had lost muscular control, his eyelids drooped, exposing their red interior. It was as if his whole face had melted like wax, and we could hardly recognize him-except for the eyes, which were always filled with emotion, usually unspeakable pain. But occasionally, and more frequently toward the end, they evidenced hope and a confidence that came from another place.

We prayed for weeks that the Lord would take him home. We would place our son, just a few months old, in his namesake's listless arms and watch my dad's heaving chest signal his delight. Even then, it was always a bittersweet visit for my father, and for us.

The Gibraltar of the family, my mother, fussed over his bedside, nervously fluffing his pillows at fifteen-minute intervals, ensuring that the intravenous fluids were properly calculated, and organizing edifying visits from friends and children from church. In between, she read quietly in her chair while holding Dad's hand. For years, I had witnessed the remarkable care that these two people provided in our home, first to their own parents and then to fifteen elderly folks in our residential care home as I was growing up. But now she was caring for her best friend, and there was almost nothing she could do for him but fluff his pillows-and try to hide her own daily grief. Although my mom always looked ten years younger than her actual age, these months acted like time-lapse photography, working my father's pain into her own face and wearing her body down.

Then, just two months before my father's death, Mom suffered a massive stroke while I was driving her from her sister's funeral, where she had delivered a moving eulogy. This strong and compassionate woman who had given her life to disadvantaged city kids and abandoned seniors was now herself dependent on others.

I recalled a couple of times in the past when my parents had mentioned their worst fears about old age. For my dad, a debilitating disease would be the most horrible way of death, he said; for my mom, it was being a burden-and from their caregiving experience they knew both well. In my darker moments, I wondered why God would allow them to experience their worst scenarios in the last act of their play, especially when they had done so much for so many others. They had moved close to Lisa and me in our first year of marriage to be of help when they learned of our first pregnancy. Always running to the side of those who needed a strong arm, my mom was now partially paralyzed and disabled, while my dad was succumbing to an agonizing death.

I told God that it all seemed too calculated, that he seemed all too real, too involved, too present in our lives, especially my parents', as if he had cruelly dished out the very end that each most feared. Shouldn't people whose lives were all about giving to others, especially to the elderly, have a break when it comes to how they leave this life? It seemed to challenge the whole "reap what you sow" principle: does this apply only when people deserve bad and not when they deserve good?

My wife, recovering from several especially difficult miscarriages, found that her visits to my dad's bedside only aggravated her questions about God's goodness. It was strange to see her go through this. After all, Lisa was a Bible study teacher who devoured pretty deep theology books. Now it was all being put to the test of real life.

I had experienced death up close in our home growing up, not only with my grandparents but also with the adopted "grandparents" in our home for the elderly. Still, Lisa and I both struggled with the usual doubts. People suffer and even die from natural causes every day, we tried to tell ourselves. Furthermore, old people eventually die. We all die. This doesn't mitigate the tragedy, but its inevitability and universality at least prepare us for the fact.

But why do some people suffer so much in their death? Why is it often so slow and painful? Is death itself not horrible enough that we also have to fear dying-a wasting and withering that threatens our cherished expectations of a good and orderly providence? Just to look at my father over the course of those ghastly months, those long and torturous weeks, was to face the most serious, existential, concrete challenges to our deeply held Christian convictions."

Hope is found in Revelation, NOT Human Reason

Mary, Martha, and Lazarus loved Jesus and Jesus loved them. It is plainly spoken in the passage. When Jesus hears that Lazarus is deathly ill, Jesus stays two days where He is. He does not go to them. By the time Jesus shows up, Lazarus has been dead four days. What can those who know Him think? The one who can heal blindness and can work miracles... where is He? And how can He be good when He is silent in the darkest hour of need. Put yourself into Mary & Martha's shoes. Our prayers appear to fall on deaf ears.

What can human reason lead to?

1) We look at death and we think... there is no God. How can God let this be? That means He does not exist. There is only us and the natural way of things. Everything dies.

2) We think there's a God and we think God is powerless against death and destruction.

3) Or we think there's a God who is powerful, but He doesn't care. He isn't loving. God chose to let things happen to us. He cannot be good!

In the passage, Mary & Martha are not quite that far. But look at what they said. Martha said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." But it is a weak faith... because when Jesus asked them to open the tomb later, Martha said, "Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days."

There's a very puzzling verse in the passage: "Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was." Jesus loved them, therefore He stayed where He was. He stayed where He was BECAUSE He loved them. This is not human logic. Anyone who hears that a dear family member is deathly ill would run to them, right away. But someone who reads the story would also realize that Jesus was four days away. Lazarus would still have been dead by the time Jesus arrived. But there was a tradition that said people who died might be resuscitated within four days. Jesus added some days to his trip back to this family so that Lazarus would be dead for four days by the time He came back. Beyond resuscitation. And THEN Jesus would raise him. And those who saw it would be dumbstruck. Someone who is totally dead, beyond the hope of any strange circumstances in those days. Jesus raised a person who was by any expectation dead and rotting.

For Mary & Martha, it is clear why Jesus waited instead of hurrying to their side. They had the privilege of knowing. But sometimes, we will not understand what happened. There will not be an explanation of horrible things. Mike Horton says in his book, "God has revealed everything we need to know but not everything we might like to know" Jesus died on the cross for us. It is God's love displayed for us to see.

Hope is knowing Jesus will remove the 'crushing-ness' of life

One of the things about life is that it doesn't turn out how we hope and expect. It's painfully obvious that things don't happen the way we think it should turn out. The man who cuts corners and is dishonest... makes money. But the Christian man can barely make ends meet. Sometimes we suffer because we follow Christ. People will hate us because we follow Him. Other times, we will suffer because of our own stupid decisions. But there's a third kind... the world is broken and we share in that. This world is not as it should be. Christians are not shielded from the brokenness of this world. But we live in the hope that life will not always be that way. We do not mean hope as in wishful thinking. For the christian, hope means we know for sure that it will happen. Jesus was troubled... He was angry. Jesus wept... He was saddened. Jesus already knows Lazarus will be raised. Why? Most commentators think that Jesus is angry and saddened by the brokenness of creation. The original goodness of creation is scarred and twisted. When Jesus raised Lazarus, it was a miracle. And when miracles show up in the bible, it is not for us to focus on the miracle, but rather the miracle is to teach us something. Lazarus' resurrection is telling us that Jesus wants to bring restoration to everything.

Hope is experienced by keeping Jesus central

When Jesus describes the sickness, death, and resurrection of Lazarus: "This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." When glory is used here, it isn't glory given to God. Rather it is that God's glory will be revealed. When Lazarus came back, it was not just for the family and those close to the family... It was to show that Jesus IS the resurrection. People back then believed in resurrection. Everyone was talking about raising people from the dead. But Jesus did this miracle to show that HE is life. No matter what happens, Jesus is our life. In the darkest and most painful times of our lives, we still have hope in Him.

The Power of Doing the Word

[James 1:19-27]

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.

But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

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.

{Rev. Charles Han}

There is a book called, "In The Land of Believers" by Gina Welch. The author went undercover to investigate believers. She went for two years in a church and pretended to be a Christian. It's an interesting read, but not exactly our main point. It's very easy to blend into the church. The book of James is being very pointed on addressing this point. It is really showing us how we really know we are Christian.

Verse 18 sets the tone about the word of God, "Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures." Those of us who are believers have been given new life. The Word of God has become alive in our lives. There is plenty of scriptural support for this: Psalm 19:7; Hebrews 4:12; John 17:17. For those of us who are spiritually asleep or dead... we need the Word. It is how God revives us. This is the point of the passage today. This is authentic Christianity.

Be desperate for the Word of God, and receive it with humility. (Ver 19-21)

We should be hungry and have the right posture to receive. But flip the attitude over, and you will see the tendency of our hearts. We are quick to speak and slow to listen. Quick to anger. This does NOT result in what God wants. If we know someone who always has something to say or a word for someone else, this person is the hardest to learn. They are too proud to receive the word of God with meekness. Godly people have the posture to receive more. They do not know enough. Isn't that the paradox of the Christian life? Those who know more, feel like they know nothing? Those who pray so often, feel like they pray so little... For those of us who sit in these pews, day after day, with hard hearts... our pride grows and poisons us.

Be doers of the Word of God and not just hearers. (Ver 22-25)

Isn't this a cycle in our lives? We hear God's word, day after day, but we never apply it into our lives. When the author talks about looking into the mirror intently, he is referring to a bronze mirror. In those days, you would need to focus intently to see our reflection. But the author says, we forget after looking... The mirror is there to help us to fix ourselves. We are supposed to examine ourselves and apply God's word to our lives. This is the height of foolishness. Spiritually speaking, you're a mess. Spiritually out of shape and flabby. Look into our lives. Do you see a living prayer life? Or does it only happen when we feel like it? This is why we do not spiritually mature. Where are our convictions, our resolve?

Is this you? Spiritually, out of shape and flabby? Then resolve to walk in the Word this year. Let me get practical.

Here are some ideas...
* Have a plan to read the Bible regularly
I have a few caveats.
ONE, pick a plan that you can sustain. Don't try to read the whole bible in one year... That's a hectic pace for someone who never reads. How about reading the bible in 2 years? 5 years? a decade? The point is not to finish in a year. That's just an arbitrary number. The point is to be in the Word regularly.
TWO, it's not about checking it off your list. The reading plan should be a guide. Don't keep restarting on Genesis 1. If you miss a week, don't get guilty. Just start again where you left off.

* Learn the discipline of meditating on the Word
It is not about just reading the Word. We should not just read the Bible in the morning and completely forget about it for the rest of the day. It never comes up for the rest of your life. Consider this a slow meal of the Word. Do NOT just inhale your food. Chew it. Savor it. Take it slow and finally swallow it.

"One sentence of the Bible prayed over and bedewed with the Spirit, and made alive, though it is only a short sentence of six words, will profit you more than a hundred chapters without the Spirit..." - Charles Spurgeon

* Live out the Word in community
Everything in the New Testament is done in community. This is not just about personal and private study. Join into studies with a friend. Share the word together and seek to apply the Word into our lives with one another.

Remember the gospel: we obey God not for his acceptance but from his acceptance. (Ver 25)

What happens when we start studying the Word and praying? Someone asks us how we are doing? We feel like ZERO. Like a spiritual FAILURE. But the author doesn't want this, he wants us to stand on Christ. Not studying the Word as if our salvation depended upon it. We are saved by Christ. He is our Rock. This is not some sort of performance standard we must adhere to. This is not a law of bondage. It is a law of liberty.

God is not one who is hard to please. C.S. Lewis said, "God is easy to please and hard to satisfy." A good parent is thrilled by every step their child takes. They aren't like... I think you can do better. It is the same for God. Maybe last year, we didn't open our bible. Maybe, this year we read a little more. God isn't going to say... That's terrible. He is pleased with every incremental step we take. How about being hard to satisfy? God wants to perfect us and He will not stop until we are perfect in the likeness of Christ.

Building a Discipleship Community

[Mark 3:13-14]

And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach

{Rev. David Skinner}

If you are interested in the Men's trip to Haiti, please send me an email.

My dad had pastored alot of churches. And he said his most successful church was the last one. He told me he didn't do much different, but he made a commitment to invest in eight men. He invested his life into these men.

Jesus invested in 12 men. That was how he started a world-changing movement. Jesus, God incarnate, Emannuel, lived with these 12 men. God could have changed the world any way he wanted, but the way He chose was incarnational discipleship. They followed Him and watched Him and became like Him. The end goal of discipleship is trying to change the world. But it is not the flood-the-market, event-driven, attempt to change the world. It is the slow, steady, & regular investment of people into other lives.

1) Building a discipleship community begins with a calling.

Jesus comes to Levi and he says, "Follow me." After Jesus dies and comes back, He comes to Peter and restores him with these words, "Follow me." Jesus is saying follow me and I will show you how to live in my Father's kingdom. Jesus comes to save and show His disciples how to live.

If you call yourself a Christian, then you have accepted this call. Being a Christian doesn't mean just a relationship with Jesus, but also a relationship with the church. We aren't supposed to imitate everything of our fellow christian, but when we see Christ, we should imitate those things. Not everything, but the Christ-likeness we see in others.

Discipleship is like interference. It means letting people nose around in our lives. To speak into our lives.

2) Building a discipleship is a journey.

Verse 14 says, "so that they might be with him." What does this mean? It means Jesus was going to teach them. He was going to invite them to live with Him. They would see how He ministers, see how He lives, see His life. Jesus would also ask them to do things. To get a donkey, to get a room for Passover, to make disciples, to cast our demons...

you know, that trip to Haiti... I don't know any Haitians. I want to reach out to them and minister to them. But one of the reasons I want to go on this trip with men, is that 12 men from Devon campus have signed up to go. I get several days to spend time with these guys. We need discipleship. When you come to church on Sunday, we are getting re-calibrated. It's a great thing. But there is no back and forth, no interaction.

a) Word-centered

But where are we supposed to find Jesus' commands? It is in the bible. The bible records all the things Jesus has done and commanded. The Word is powerful. We need to pray the Spirit will reveal the meaning of the Word. We need to pray for God to change our lives to be more like Christ. All discipleship needs to be word-centered.

a) Gospel-centered

Discipleship shows us how to apply the gospel to our lives. It shows us places where we are not applying or are misapplying the gospel in our lives. How we are not living out the gospel in our lives.

c) Mission-centered

"I will make you fishers of men." The catalyst is not that Jesus would do this. But that God has come incarnate and walked with them. He fished for their heart. By doing this, He was showing them how to fish. He showed them how He cared for them. After He had done this, He told them, ok... you go do some fishing yourself. So this fishing for souls can manifest itself in many ways. But this fishing is one of the goals of discipling. He taught people to fish; to prepare them to fish. We are to do this until there is fullness...

Summary

To those who are called to discipleship, they are called to die. It is not self-centered. We are not saved just for ourselves. We are called to die. We are not called to suffer without purpose. We are to deny ourselves and follow Christ. This self-denial kills our plans, drives a stake through our ego, our desires to control everything & everybody. But isn't it our plans, our goals, our desires that drive us crazy? Jesus tells us to hand all these over to Him... Die, and He will give us life.

"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." - Matthew 11:28-30