Thoughts
on Devotions – LD25
Q.
65 It is by faith alone that we share in Christ and all His
blessings: where then does that faith come from? Q. 66 What are the
sacraments? Q. 67 Are both the word and the sacraments then intended
to focus our faith on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross as
the only ground of our salvation? Q. 68 How many sacraments did
Christ institute in the New Testament?
DeYoung,
in The
Good News We Almost Forgot,
titles
this chapter “Visible Signs of Invisible Grace.” He points out
that the sacraments “do not 'accomplish' anything, because Christ's
work is already finished.” - but they are signs and seals.
Sacraments do not add to, earn or secure our salvation – they are
signs and seals that confirm our faith and help us to understand the
Gospel promises more clearly and assure us of salvation. The whole
point as signs and seals is that we can see the sacraments – they
are a visual proclamation of the Gospel that we hear preached.
Monday:
Faith
is the means by which we receive the blessings that Christ has
earned. If salvation is a refreshing drink, faith is the cup. The
Holy Spirit produces faith in our hearts - we were dead in our sins
and needed regeneration (the work of the Spirit). The Spirit uses the
preaching of the word, prompting us to respond in faith. The
sacraments are tools that the Spirit uses to confirm our faith.
Romans
10:14, 17
How are they to call on one they have not believed in? And how are
they to believe in one they have not heard of? And how are they to
hear without someone preaching to them? ... Consequently faith comes
from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the preached word
of Christ.
1
Cor. 10:16
Is not the cup of blessing that we bless a sharing in the blood of
Christ? Is not the bread that we break a sharing in the body of
Christ?
Ephesians
2:8
For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from
yourselves, it is the gift of God;
Tuesday:
What
are the sacraments? They are the preaching of the Gospel in visual
form. They are also a seal and a visual assurance that something is
true and has actually taken place. The sacraments are ordained by
Jesus – they provide a mark of authority. They also are something
that we experience when we participate in them. We remember our own
baptism when we see a baby or believer baptized; we taste the
elements of communion and ingest them – the elements are real, the
promises are real. We are assured of what we cannot see by that which
we see, hear, touch and taste.
Luke
22:19-20
Then he took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it and gave it
to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this
in remembrance of me.” And in the same way he took the cup after
they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the
new covenant in my blood.
Acts
2:38
Peter said to them, “Repent, and each one of you be baptized in the
name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will
receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Wednesday:
The
promises of the Gospel are for those who are in Christ. When we are
in Christ God sees us as though he is looking at Jesus – through
Jesus' payment for our sin he sees us as without sin, and in the
righteousness of Christ we are seen as perfect, even though we
continue to struggle with sin all our life. It is a gift that we have
in spite of what we deserve, not because of what we deserve.
Acts
10:36-43
You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, proclaiming the
good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all) - you
know what happened throughout Judea, beginning from Galilee after the
baptism that John announced: with respect to Jesus from Nazareth,
that God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went
around doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil,
because God was with him. We are witnesses of all the things he did
both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a
tree, but God raised him up on the third day and caused him to be
seen, not by all the people, but by us, the witnesses God had already
chosen, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He
commanded us to preach to the people and to warn them that he is the
one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. About him
all the prophets testify, that everyone who believes in him receives
forgiveness of sins through his name.”
Thursday:
Both
the Word and the Sacraments are “intended to focus our faith on the
sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross as the only ground of our
salvation.” Faithful preaching of the Word, no matter where the
Bible text comes from, will focus on and proclaim the good news of
what Jesus has done and what this has accomplished for us. This is
good news for all people – even if we have heard it a thousand
times we need to be reminded, we need to be called back from our
wandering – it is so amazing that we tend to doubt that it can
really be true, or begin to think that we must somehow do something
to be worthy of this gift or add to it. The preaching of the Gospel
must convince us again and again that it is true and that it is
freely given. The Holy Spirit uses the preaching of the Word to
strengthen our faith and to help us to respond with thanksgiving
“doing the works that God has prepared in advance for us to do.”
Ephesians
2:10
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good
works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
1
Cor. 1:18-24
For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are
perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For
it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will
thwart the cleverness of the intelligent.” Where is the wise man?
Where is the expert in the Mosaic law? Where is the debater of this
age? Has God not made the wisdom of the world foolish? For since in
the wisdom of God the world by its wisdom did not know God, God was
pleased to save those who believe by the foolishness of preaching.
For Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks ask for wisdom, but we
preach about a crucified Christ, a stumbling block to Jews and
foolishness to Gentiles. But to those who are called, both Jews and
Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.
Friday:
The Holy Spirit focuses our faith on who Jesus is and what he has
done for us. In baptism water symbolizes cleansing, it also is a
replacement for the OT practice circumcision marking a child as being
in the covenant of God's people, and in immersion symbolizes burial
and rebirth, death and resurrection. It also hearkens back to Bible
stories in which God saves his people by taking them through water –
Noah and the flood, Israel's exodus from Egypt, crossing the Jordan
into the promised land. In the Lord's Supper we are reminded of
Christ's broken body and shed blood, and that his sacrifice is for me
(each of us) personally. The preaching of the Gospel, in word or in
sacrament, points to Christ alone as the one who has accomplished
all – and is a guarantee that we can confidently trust.
Colosians
2:12-15
Having been buried with him in baptism, you also have been raised
with him through your faith in the power of God who raised him from
the dead. And even though you were dead in your transgressions and in
the uncircumcision of your flesh, he nevertheless made you alive with
him, having forgiven all your transgressions. He has destroyed what
was against us, a certificate of indebtedness expressed in decrees
opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross.
Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace
of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
1
Cor. 11:23-26
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you, that the
Lord Jesus on the night in which he was betrayed took bread, and
after he had given thanks he broke it and said, “This is my body,
which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way,
he also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new
covenant in my blood. Do this, every time you drink it, in
remembrance of me.” For every time you eat this bread and drink the
cup, you proclaim the Lordʼs death until he comes.
Saturday:
Why
do we have 2 sacraments? Because that is how many Jesus himself
instituted.
Luke
22:14-20
Now when the hour came, Jesus took his place at the table and the
apostles joined him. And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired
to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will
not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” Then
he took a cup, and after giving thanks he said, “Take this and
divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will
not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”
Then he took bread, and after giving thanks he broke it and gave it
to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this
in remembrance of me.” And in the same way he took the cup after
they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the
new covenant in my blood.
Matthew
28:19-20
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the
name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you
always, to the end of the age.”
Reading
between the lines...
What
can we tell by the gift given? If we give generously, it is often
because if is not costing us a lot or impinging on what we normally
do. The other option is that we greatly value the recipient – the
gift expresses great emotion or great thanks-giving. We give
cautiously or to the well deserving. God is diffenent – he gives
profligately and only to the undeserving. He gives his very best to
the very worst. Think of the way John 1 describes Jesus: 1) God's
Word, 2) the everlasting expression of the Father's heart, 3) the
co-creator of the universe, 4) the light of the world, 5) the
glorious grace and truth of the Father, 6) the beloved one, eternally
abiding in the Father's arms. The Father is father because of the Son
– this further defines the magnitude of the gift. That the Son and
Father are closely related in the Trinity expands on the relationship
and the giving of the gift. God not only gives us a piece of himself,
he gives us himself. God gives his Son to the world. John describes
the world as organized opposition to God. The world hates the light
and ultimately murders God's Son. God is giver though it cost him
everything. In his incarnation Jesus became one of us – and
eternally maintains that close connection with us. God does not love
us because of what we are like, but because of what he is like. Do
you feel that God loves you? Don't look within, do not examine
whether you have been a worthy Christian – we have not, we are
unlovely and rebellious, and yet God loves us. He gives his very
best; God so loves me.
John
3:16
For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only
Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have
eternal life.
John
3:35
The Father loves the Son and has placed all things under his
authority.
What
does God want from you? We spend a lot of time thinking about what we
want, but if God exists what he wants must be one of the most
important questions of life. This answer will depend on who you think
God is. Many of the world's gods are takers – wanting humans to do
their dirty work. The God of the Bible is a giver – his being is
found in giving. If God is giver, how do we relate to him – as
recipients. God is sender of his Son – we must be welcomers of his
Son. God is lover – we must be beloved. That is what it means to be
a creature of the giving, loving, sending God. If we are not
receivers of the Son, then we cannot relate to this God. If we think
we correspond to God but envision that we are his benefactors, always
giving to him, it is not this God we are relating to. If we define
ourselves as giving our lives to god, then it cannot be the biblical
God. Only the empty handed child knows the heavenly father – we can
relate to him only by faith alone. By receiving him we become
children of God. To receive him is to believe in his name – this
is how we become children of God. God sends his Spirit filled Son
into the world and any who receive him receive life and adoption into
the family. Jesus is the center of John 3:16 and defines all of the
terms. What is it to believe? Accepting the Father's gift. What is it
to perish? To exist apart from Jesus. What is eternal life? Having
and knowing the Son of God. It begins now and stretches on into
eternity by receiving his Son. What does God want from us? We are not
in a position to give anything.
John
3:16
For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only
Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have
eternal life.
John
3:35
The Father loves the Son and has placed all things under his
authority.
John
1:12
But to all who have received him - those who believe in his name - he
has given the right to become Godʼs children
1
John 5:11-12
And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this
life is in his Son. The one who has the Son has this eternal life;
the one who does not have the Son of God does not have this eternal
life.
God
is giver; we then must respond as receivers, to trust and believe.
But Jesus is frequently found in the NT saying, “Oh you of little
faith.” Only 2 people are described by Jesus as having great faith
– the Roman centurion and the Canaanite woman – neither are
disciples or even Israelites. Usually his disciples are described as
having little faith, characterized by fear. An example is Jesus
walking on water, Peter's tentative steps and need for rescue. The
story is a picture of the suffering and chaos of life. What does
Jesus do? He joins us in the storm to lead us out. Christ treads on
the abyss. Peter does not simply get out of the boat, he asks Jesus
to command him – he knows the power of Jesus' word. He does the
impossible because Jesus' word commands it. But he takes his eyes off
of Jesus and begins to sink. Even Peter after seeing Jesus walk on
water and doing it himself has little faith. Do we have little faith?
Yes! What should we do? In Jesus' calling out Peter's little faith,
it is in the context of reaching out his hand to save him. It is not
Peter's faith that saves him, it is Jesus who saves him – despite
doubts and faithlessness. It is only after they have been safely
carried through their faithlessness that they can rightly respond.
Faith does not come by trying to be faithful. It comes when we take
our eyes off of ourselves and look to Jesus.
Matthew
14:30-33
But when he saw the strong wind he became afraid. And starting to
sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached
out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith,
why did you doubt?” When they went up into the boat, the wind
ceased. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly
you are the Son of God.”
Matthew
14:27
But immediately Jesus spoke to them: “Have courage! It is I. Do not
be afraid.” -> alternate translation: Don't be afraid, I AM.
Matthew
14:32
When they went up into the boat, the wind ceased. Then those who were
in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
2
Timothy 2:13
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, since he cannot deny
himself.
Three
occasions on which Jesus said “Be of good cheer.” 1) to storm
tossed sailors about to sink, 2) the night before he died and had
predicted terrible trials for the disciples, 3) to a paralyzed man
who needed four men to carry him. It seems that “cheer” would
have been the last thing on people's minds. Why would he say “Be of
good cheer” to a paralyzed man? What reason does he have to cheer
up? - his sins are forgiven. We may be shocked because we focus on
the physical – the man needs to be able to walk. Jesus' priority is
forgiveness. The crowd is shocked because Jesus claims to be able to
forgive sins – blasphemy! How can Jesus offer forgiveness? Only the
offended party can offer forgiveness. The authorities were outraged
because Jesus was essentially claiming to be God. The man probably
appreciated being able to walk for many years. But ask him today and
he would be able to say that the gift of forgiveness was the more
valuable gift. Jesus backs up his divine claim with a divine act. Be
of good cheer! Jesus message of forgiveness is for us too! If you
have that you have everything.
Matthew
9:2
Just then some people brought to him a paralytic lying on a
stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic,
“Have courage, son! Your sins are forgiven.” i.e., "Have
courage" -> "be of good cheer" KJV
Many
people feel too sinful to enter church – what would Jesus say? He
enjoyed going to the homes and having dinner with some of the most
notorious people of his day - a very unchurchy environment. The
Pharisees complain about this – Jesus says it is the sick who need
a doctor. The doctor will not spend much time with those who are
well. Jesus is, similarly, for sinners. We all are sick with the same
disease. The symptoms may look different – sometimes more obvious
or more gross, but the underlying issue is the same. It is sin. If we
do not come to Dr. Jesus that sickness will go on forever. Hell is
allowing the sickness to go on, never taken to the doctor and healed.
Hell is for the righteous – for those who consider themselves
healthy, for those who refuse the doctor's care. The gateway to
heaven could have a sign: Sinners only, the righteous need not apply.
Thinking that you are too sinful for Jesus is like thinking that you
are too sick for the doctor.
Matthew
9:10-13
As Jesus was having a meal in Matthewʼs house, many tax collectors
and sinners came and ate with Jesus and his disciples. When the
Pharisees saw this they said to his disciples, “Why does your
teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When Jesus heard
this he said, “Those who are healthy donʼt need a physician, but
those who are sick do. Go and learn what this saying means: ʻI
want mercy and not sacrifice.ʼ For I did not come to call the
righteous, but sinners.”
What's
it like to reach out with the good news of Jesus, to share your
faith? Jesus sends his disciples/apostles out on mission. They have
no earthly power, money or accommodations. They are like the the Lord
who sends them. They have access to heavenly power but they are weak
– their mission is not one of force or coercion. They go with a
simple message that their listeners can either take or leave. If the
message is not received they are to move on. Christianity is spread
by faith, not by force. Therefore Christ's missionaries do not go out
from a position of strength, but from a position of weakness. Jesus
sends his witnesses as sheep among wolves. This is the pattern of all
ministry. That is why it feels so difficult. But we have been warned.
Actually there is power in this weakness – Revelation tells a story
about a battle between a lamb and a dragon. What hope does a lamb
have in that situation; what hope does the Prince of Peace have
against the violent forces of hell; what hope do we have against
principalities and powers? Revelation tells us that we have great
hope – the lamb who was slain conquers the world. He was still
slain – he triumphs through weakness. In the end he slays the
dragon with the sword that comes out his mouth. The word of Christ
proves victorious over the powers of evil. What about his people?
Revelation 12:11 tells us that we triumph over the Dragon through the
blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony. In the battle
between the Dragon and Lamb there is no contest; in our battle, sheep
among wolves, with the Lamb on our side an with his word on our lips
we cannot lose!
Matthew
10:5-16
Jesus sent out these twelve, instructing them as follows: “Do not
go to Gentile regions and do not enter any Samaritan town. Go instead
to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, preach this
message: ʻThe kingdom of heaven is near!ʼ Heal the sick, raise the
dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely
give. Do not take gold, silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for
the journey, or an extra tunic, or sandals or staff, for the worker
deserves his provisions. Whenever you enter a town or village, find
out who is worthy there and stay with them until you leave. As you
enter the house, give it greetings. And if the house is worthy, let
your peace come on it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return
to you. And if anyone will not welcome you or listen to your message,
shake the dust off your feet as you leave that house or that town. I
tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for the region of Sodom
and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town! “I am
sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, so be wise as
serpents and innocent as doves.
Revelation
12:11
But they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of
their testimony, and they did not love their lives so much that they
were afraid to die.
Sheep,
wolves, serpents and doves, oh my! The weakness of sheep, the
ferocity of wolves, the wisdom of serpents, and the innocence of
doves. “Witness” is the same word as “martyr” in Greek.
Witnesses, to Jesus, are martyrs – they do not love their lives so
much that they shrink form death. If it is that dangerous to be
public about Christianity, what advice does Jesus give? He says, “be
as wise as serpents and as innocent as doves.” The only place
where serpents are held up as positive role models, and its pairing
with the dove is surprising. Be clever, think! But at the same time
be pure. Both the serpent and the dove are wise – need for careful
thought when speaking up for Jesus. We don't need the cunning
underhandedness of the serpent, but we do need the purified wisdom of
the Spirit. Jesus had this wisdom, but it did not prevent him from
being torn like a sheep among wolves. The wisdom Jesus prescribes is
not a way to avoid suffering – often Christians think that is the
case. There is no trouble-free course for sheep among wolves. Since
we can only be martyred once, let us sheep pray to the good shepherd
that we may know his dove-like purity in the midst of our trials and
his serpentine wisdom to pick the right battles and make them count.
Matthew
10:16
“I am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, so be wise
as serpents and innocent as doves."
