Excedrin Headache #1

Excedrin Headache #1
Judges 4

We have, at the beginning of this year begun a journey through a study of the great judges of Israel.
While this is no week-to-week series, we will, by the end of the year, visit every judge and see what challenge we can glean from their lives.
Today we come to a unique entry in the list of Jewish deliverers.
It is the only woman in the list.
Our text begins with a quick review of the condition of the nation of Israel.
Israel is once again in a backslidden condition and under the judgment of an angry God.

READ TEXT Verses 1-5
Judges 4:1 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, when Ehud was dead.
2 And the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, that reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, which dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles.
3 And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.
4 And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.
5 And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.

PRAY

The scene is set for us with Israel under the control of a neighboring area within Cannaan.
King Jabin has reassembled a great army strengthened by nine hundred iron chariots.
Under the command of his general, Sisera, that army had put Israel to subjection.
It appears from the record here that Sisera has complete control of Israel and, for twenty years, has exacted heavy taxes of tribute.

Also, in our text, we were introduced to Deborah.
She was Israel's moral authority in a dark time.
She judged Israel from Mount Ephraim.
When people had civil issues among themselves, they brought those issues before her to decide.
As a prophetess, a woman whose special ministry was to declare God's words, she was eminently qualified to be a judge and a discerner among her people.

Some find it distasteful that a woman is here in a position of authority and great responsibility.
To them I say, "Your insecurities are showing."
God has often used a woman's wisdom to balance a world naturally ruled by men.
Note, it is not her womanhood that qualifies her for this task, but rather her relationship with God.
No woman or man whose actions betray their disrespect for God's word is fit to rule or judge.

From a practical perspective, it is possible that Sisera had allowed Deborah's rule when he would have been threatened, and rightly so, by a man in her position.
Certainly a man would more likely have the ambition to rebel against the enemy.
He sorely misgauged Deborah's courage, however.
Deborah had received a special revelation from God to call upon Barak and deliver a message to him.
____
Judges 4:6 And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?
7 And I will draw unto thee to the river Kishon Sisera, the captain of Jabin's army, with his chariots and his multitude; and I will deliver him into thine hand.

The message from God was clear and demanded courage from Barak.
He was commanded to lead.
He was to go to mount Tabor with 10,000 men and fight with Sisera.
From the verses that follow, it seems Barak was not concerned with gathering the men.
He never questioned his ability to gather people around himself.
He questioned the aspect of leading them to battle.
Here was an appointed leader with a loyal follower-ship and not enough courage to take them where they needed to go.
____
Judges 4:8 And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go.
9 And she said, I will surely go with thee: notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honour; for the LORD shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh.

Now God has given Barak the opportunity to lead.
Another reason why we find Deborah in the position of leadership is no man was willing to stand up and be the leader God had asked them to be.
Men, don't complain that women are usurping authority if you are unwilling to be a leader.

Perhaps Barak was so insecure in his own relationship with God, that he felt God's blessing would only follow if Deborah was there.
Whatever, the reason, clearly Barak missed an important opportunity to lead.
So often, the stories of the Judges are stories of opportunity.
The situations of need presented opportunities for leadership and heroism.
Here we see, more than with any of the other judges, that God is an equal opportunity employer.
This does not mean that He insists upon women and men doing the same type of work or surrendering to the same callings.
God is smarter than that.
He has obviously given woman many powerful abilities that men do not have, and to men He has granted certain tendencies that make him more apt in certain areas of life.
This is the beauty of His great plan.
He has opportunities of equal importance for both men and women.
Let us not shirk those opportunities for whatever reason the flesh or the devil may bring up.

Barak, was told that, since he was unwilling to take the lead as God had asked, he would receive none of the glory for the victory.
That is the way it works.
If we insist on having things our way we will find that God puts the spotlight on someone else.

Now the next few verses give a little background concerning another aspect of our story.
There was a man of the Kenites whose loyalties were with Israel.
Since most of the Kenites were neutral in their loyalties, this is not something Sisera would suspect.
______
Judges 4:10 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; and he went up with ten thousand men at his feet: and Deborah went up with him.
11 Now Heber the Kenite, which was of the children of Hobab the father in law of Moses, had severed himself from the Kenites, and pitched his tent unto the plain of Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.
12 And they shewed Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to mount Tabor.
13 And Sisera gathered together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people that were with him, from Harosheth of the Gentiles unto the river of Kishon.

The battle is described for us in the following verses.
It looks like Sisera's army is soundly beaten and Sisera himself runs away on foot to hide from the victorious Israelites.
_______
Judges 4:14 And Deborah said unto Barak, Up; for this is the day in which the LORD hath delivered Sisera into thine hand: is not the LORD gone out before thee? So Barak went down from mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after him.
15 And the LORD discomfited Sisera, and all his chariots, and all his host, with the edge of the sword before Barak; so that Sisera lighted down off his chariot, and fled away on his feet.
16 But Barak pursued after the chariots, and after the host, unto Harosheth of the Gentiles: and all the host of Sisera fell upon the edge of the sword; and there was not a man left.

Now we see the last chapter of our story as Sisera hails what he believes to be an ally in his flight from Israel.
And once again we see the opportunity for heroism.
_______
Jg 4:17 ¶ Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite: for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite.
18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him, Turn in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he had turned in unto her into the tent, she covered him with a mantle.
19 And he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him.
20 Again he said unto her, Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come and enquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou shalt say, No.

So Sisera has come into the house of Jael.
This cruel and powerful man is hoping to live to seek retribution on Israel.
He hopes to rest in safety at Jael's tent and then escape home to rally more troops against Israel.

Jael has now a distinctive opportunity to do something great for her country and for God.
She plays her part well and doesn't miss the opportunity that God places before her.
_______
Judges 4:21 Then Jael Heber's wife took a nail of the tent, and took an hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died.

Now we see that Sisera was completely shocked by Jael's actions.
You might say that nothing like that had ever entered his mind before.
In all seriousness, what Jael did was a gruesome task but one that may have saved Israel from twenty more years of servitude.
Her courage inspired Israel to throw off the yoke of the oppressor.
_______
Judges 4:23 So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the children of Israel.
24 And the hand of the children of Israel prospered, and prevailed against Jabin the king of Canaan, until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.

I wonder how many people you might impact by deciding to accept the challenge that God has placed before you this morning.

God may be asking you to surrender the ministry.
Whether you are a man or a woman, you can be sure of this, that God has a great plan for your life.
He is intent on doing great things with you if you will accept His challenge.

Maybe you are here today and you do not know Him personally.
You are merely an onlooker, one interested in a relationship with God.
The greatest challenge of all is the surrender of the heart.
You must trust in Jesus Christ alone as your Saviour and begin a relationship with Him today.

Will you accept the challenge?
Will you take the opportunity?

Where is the Love? Part 1

I Corinthians 13:1-3
Ø “agape” vs. “filew” Love
Ø “Phileo – [a love] that arises from a sense of pleasure found in the object loved”
Ø “Agape – [a love] that arises from a sense of the preciousness of the object loved”
Kenneth S. Wuest

I Corinthians 13:1-3

Ø Above speaking in tongues
A temporary gift that only a few had to show the authority of God upon the church and to evidence His work among the Gentiles.
It was especially a sign to the unbelieving Jew until the word of God was compiled as absolute proof of God’s authority and as evidence of His work among the Gentiles.
Ø Above the gift of prophecy
The temporary sign gift of Foretelling the future as evidence of God’s authority and to prepare God’s people for coming events when the Bible was not yet written to do so.
Ø Above understanding all mysteries
The Mystery of the Kingdom of God – Mark 4:11
The Mystery of the Gentile position in the Bride of Christ – Romans 11:25
The Mystery of God’s wisdom in man’s heart – I Corinthians 2:7
The Mystery of the Rapture of the saints – I Corinthians 15:51
The Mystery of the will of God – Ephesians 1:9
The Mystery of the Bride of Christ – Ephesians 5:32
Etc….
Ø Above having all knowledge
Although we must study – 2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Ø Above mountain-moving faith
Without which one cannot please God.
Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Ø Above well-placed generosity
Your gifts mean nothing if you do not give out of love.
Your sacrificial generosity is to no avail if you do not love those to whom you give, recognizing their preciousness to God.
Ø Above a martyr’s courage
Surely something is to be said for the courage to go to the stake like Huss or Tyndale and not deny the faith.
Without Love? – Nothing

Seeing and Believing

Seeing and Believing
John 20:1-10

Our text this morning is one that has been accurately attributed to John, who has referred to himself in a typically humble fashion throughout the book by the terms, "that other disciple" and "the disciple whom Jesus loved."
John understood that the most important of all realizations was that Jesus loved him.
It mattered not to him how he felt about himself or how any other human felt about him.
All that diatribe of secular humanism is subjective and apt to change.
What was important to John was that Jesus loved him because that will never change.
This was who he was, his identity was wrapped up entirely in who he was in Christ.

It is clear from a faithful study of the Gospel of John that he is the penman.
None other could fit the profile that the Scriptures provide.
One thing that is especially powerful in all of John's writings is his clear intent to instill faith in the reader.
All of John's writings have this constant theme, that the reader might believe as a result of having read John's testimony.
Part of John's method of instilling belief in the reader is to trace his own faltering steps into faith, and he does so to some extent in our text.

In order to prepare ourselves for the text this morning, let us recap the events of three days previous:
> In Chapter 13 John revealed himself as one of the disciples whom Jesus loved.
The setting was the day before Passover when Jesus sat to eat a special meal with His 12 disciples according to the Gospel record.
Jesus then said that one would betray him that night.
John, at the request of Peter had asked Jesus who this might be.
Jesus had responded by privately signaling to Judas that he knew it was him.
> Later that Tuesday evening Jesus walked in the garden and prayed while his disciples dozed.
Suddenly the band of men and officers from the temple, bearing torches and swords, rushed in and took Jesus into custody.
> As Wednesday drew on, Jesus was pulled from one hurried court trial to another.
From the high priests to Pilate, then drug before Herod and back before Pilate, Jesus was finally condemned to die on the cross.
> Jesus hung on that cross for six hours on Wednesday from 9AM to 3PM, until He finally gave up the Ghost.
His death was confirmed by a Roman soldier whose spear thrust into Jesus side resulted in the tell-tale flow of separated blood and water.
> Since Passover was quickly approaching, Jesus was hurriedly taken from the cross, wrapped in a linen cloth and put into a borrowed tomb.
The next day the tomb was sealed lest anyone might try to steal the body for the next three days.
> Imagine the disciples' consternation as they stayed in hiding for those three days and three nights that Jesus was in that grave.
They must have suffered tremendous sorrow and loss since their master was gone.
Wednesday Night and Thursday passed.
Thursday Night and Friday passed.
Friday Night and Saturday passed.
Finally, Sunday came, by Jewish reckoning this Sunday began at 6PM the previous evening.

As we read our text this morning, and John's account of the discovery of the empty tomb, pay special notice to John, "that other disciple" whose personal reactions are described in a powerful way.

READ TEXT
PRAY

John gives us some distinctive detail of the event that we can find in none of the other Gospels.
First we see Mary Magdalene arriving at the tomb early in the darkness of the night.
She must have first been taken aback by the absence of a Roman guard.
Then she notices the stone is rolled away from the door of the tomb.

She immediately runs back to Peter and John with the suspicion that someone had stolen Christ's body away.
Peter and John reacted as one would suppose, by running to the sepulchre themselves to verify the story of the woman.

John gives even greater detail as the great scene unfolds:
He outran Peter and arrived first at the tomb.
For some reason he did not step into the cramped tomb but he did see the linen clothes lying where Jesus' body would have been.
While he caught his breath and waited for Peter to catch up John must have thought about why the linen clothes were lying there.
- If someone were to steal a corpse, why would they undress it first? Why would they strip it from the linens and leave them there?
While John stooped and peered into the tomb, he probably contemplated these things briefly.

Peter came up next and blew passed John and entered the tomb.
He also saw the linen clothes and then another item, the napkin that covered the face of Jesus.
The napkin was not thrown aside in a hurry, but neatly folded and set apart from the grave clothes.

When John entered in, he must have seen the napkin arranged as it was and thought about the significance of it.
- There could be only one explanation for this, Jesus had risen from the dead, carefully folded up the napkin to prove He had left the tomb under His own power and in His own timing.
No grave robber would have stopped to fold the napkin.

The impact of this sight was so powerful in John's heart that when he saw it, he believed. Verse 8

John saw folded grave clothes and believed.
He believed that Jesus had risen from the dead.

I want to pose a question to you this morning.

What will it take to make you believe?

In our text we have seen perhaps the first recorded believer in the resurrection of the Lord.
In contrast, Peter saw the same thing and did not express faith in the resurrection.

It seems that different people reach faith on different timetables.
One other disciple, heard the testimony of the others, saw the empty tomb, noted the folded grave clothes and still insisted that he would not believe unless he put his fingers into the nail holes and touched the scar where the roman soldier had thrust the spear.
Verse 24, 25:
John 20:24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came.
25 The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe.

This same Thomas, confessed his belief in the deity of Christ just 3 verses later:
John 20:26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.
27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.
28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.

Finally Thomas believed!

What will it take to make you believe?

Are you waiting for something you can see?
Thomas’ early philosophy was as common then as it is now,
“I will believe it when I see it.”

Why is this such a popular view of religion?
Ø It doesn’t seem to apply to the world of science: The very smallest of the elements of matter are yet to be seen even with a microscope, and yet no scientist denies their existence. Some have even swallowed the hoax of evolution without seeing any real evidence of its processes.
Ø It doesn’t apply to relationships: My wife committed to a lifelong relationship with me without seeing a fraction of what she now knows of all my personality quirks.
Ø It doesn’t apply to the business world: Investors rarely see 100% solid proof of a sure return when they commit their investment dollars.
I submit to you that the Gospel is more sure than any investment.
A relationship with Jesus is more certain than any human commitment.
The veracity of John’s claims regarding the resurrection are more substantiated than any unproven scientific theory.

Jesus encourages us in His discourse with Thomas to place our faith in Him before we see.
John 20:29 Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

Every person must believe in the resurrection of Jesus before seeing proof.

1.) Because Sight is Overrated.

2.) Because of the Testimony of John.

3.) Because of the Blessings of Faith.

John 20:30 And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book:
31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

There is no greater thing than to believe.
It frees the soul from the bondage of sin.
It liberates the mind to accomplish what the faithless mind cannot.
It gives joy in the heart that comes from no other source.

Do you believe that Jesus died, was buried and rose again?
Would you like to hear more about why he died and what His resurrection means to you?
Come forward during this invitation hymn.

Newness of Life

Newness of Life
Romans 6:1-14

Every Christian must walk in Newness of life.

Because of the Picture of Baptism. verse 3-4
Baptism shows the death of the old man.
Baptism shows burial/washing away of our sin.
Baptism shows a new man arising. verse 4-5
This new man is raised by and for the glory of the Father.
This new man has the responsibility of walking in newness.

Because of the Victory of the Resurrection. verse 6-7
The Resurrection claimed victory over sin.
The evidence is gone. verse 6
The chains are gone. verse 7
The Resurrection claimed victory over death. verse 9
His resurrection is proof of his ability to raise me from the dead.
2Co 4:14 Knowing that he which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall present us with you.

Because of the Indwelling Spirit of Christ. verse 6 - Galatians 2:20
Christ lives in me.
Galatians 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
Colossians 1:27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:


Every Christian must walk in Newness of life.

By Reckoning yourself dead to sin and alive to Christ. verse 11

By Rejecting the old master of sin and surrendering to the new master, Christ. verse 12-14

By Redirecting the passions of your life from sinfulness to Christ-likeness. verse 19-22

The True Vine

The True Vine
John 15:1-11

The discourse in our text this morning is recorded only by John and takes place directly after Judas leaves the room on that evening of Christ's betrayal.
It is part of a larger discourse of encouragement and instruction that Jesus leaves with His disciples before they join Him for prayer in the garden of Gethsemane.
As John, the "Beloved Disciple" is known to do, he record's one of Jesus' special "I AM" statements, in which Jesus identifies Himself in a metaphor that tells us something of His character and His qualities.
In this instance the Chapter begins with the "I AM" statement, and we will read this as we look at our text:

READ TEXT
PRAY

It is a beautiful picture that Christ has painted for us here in John 15.
We are given the distinct image of God the Father as a Husbandman.
Now a husbandman is one whose responsibility it is to care for and nurture the growth of the vine.
We see this great, infinite Husbandman, looking down over His vineyard with much concern for its well-being.
The whole picture then opens up to us as we see that the particular interest of the Husbandman is the continuation of the fruit-bearing that characterized His Son's ministry.
This brings us to the second person in the analogy - Jesus Himself.
The Husbandman is not interested in wild vines from different vineyards.
He has no responsibility to them.
He is concerned only with those branches who stem from the vine.
God's perspective then becomes very clear:
There are those who are in the vine and those who are not in the vine.
The only claim that we have to the care of the Husbandman is that we are a part of the vine.
This is not flattering to us but is glorifying to the One by Whose great virtue we find favor with the Husbandman.

However, this passage is not one primarily about Salvation - but is about the believer who must abide in the vine or become useless to its greater purpose.
The taking away of the fruitless vines is no indication that the believer can lose his salvation - this analogy is about growing and pleasing God not keeping or losing salvation.
The imperative of the passage is very clear:

EVERY BELIEVER MUST ABIDE IN THE VINE

1.) Because of the Possibilities of much fruit-bearing (Verse 5)

2.) Because of the Provision of answered prayers (Verse 7)

3.) Because of the Purpose of a fulfilled joy (Verse 11)


1.) By Abiding in His Work (Verse 2, 4, 5, 6)
The emphasis is on production.

2.) By Abiding in His Word (Verse 3, 7, 10)
The Word cleanses - Verse 3
The Word teaches - Verse 7
The Word instructs - Verse 10

3.) By Abiding in His Ways (Verse 8, 9, 10)
His Way is disciplined - Verse 8
His Way is loving - Verse 9
His Way is obedient - Verse 10

We cannot abide in the Vine until we have been grafted into Him.
This means you must surrender your old root system and take on His root system.
We must leave our old life and partake of the life He gives.
It is only by being grafted into the True vine we will ever please God.

An Act of Worship

AN ACT OF WORSHIP
John 12:1-8

The events of our text take place just six short days before the very day that Jesus would die on the cross.
We see that timing specified in the first verse.
It was a Thursday afternoon in the small town of Bethany.
Bethany is now a suburb of Jerusalem.
In the days of Jesus it was a close outlying town from which one could see the Mount of Olives, and beyond that was the royal Jewish city of Jerusalem.
In this passage Jesus is at the home of a family wherein dwell Lazarus and his two sisters, Martha and Mary.
The events of our text come on the heels of one of the most thrilling miracles in all the Bible, and we will explain that as we cover the background of the text a little later on.
It is also mentioned in the very first verse.

Let us read our text:

READ TEXT
PRAY

The scene is set with a great celebration dinner laid out before Jesus and the disciples.
Newly resurrected Lazarus is sitting at the table with Jesus, while Martha is serving the food.

It is to Mary our attention is directed in the third verse.
She enters the room with seemingly little fanfare and great humility and breaks open a container of fragrant ointment.
Perhaps it is the odor of the spikenard that first catches everyone's attention.
Maybe it is the sound of her shuffling feet as she moves toward Jesus and falls to her knees where He is reclining at the table.
However it was, everyone in the room took notice of her public display of love and adoration for her Saviour.

I want to point out this one thing:
Mary committed a public act of worship.
Let us define worship for our use this morning:
Worship comes from the old Anglo-Saxon word "worthship" which indicates the worthiness of the recipient of worship.
Worship is an acknowledgement of God's attributes and His worthiness.
Our lives should be a constant reflection of this acknowledgement.
We must have the worthiness of God so deeply impressed upon our minds and our hearts that everything we do is for Him and honestly reflects our love and adoration.
However, Mary's actions are above and beyond the normal.
She certainly is living a life of faithfulness and holiness, even taking special care to sit at the feet of Jesus when the opportunity arises and learn more of Him quietly in the congregation as you all are this morning.
This is worship to be sure, but she was moved to break out of her daily routine of worship and do something extravagant!

For her, it was important that people knew how she felt towards Jesus.
It was not enough that she loved Him in her heart.
She was moved to break through her pride and the boundaries of her comfort zone and publicly display her adoration.
This was a public act of worship.
This morning I want to challenge you with Mary's example.

I could chose from several characters in the Bible who committed public acts of worship.
We could look to David, whose public acts of worship drew the attention of a disdainful wife. He had lowered his own dignity to show how much he was caught up in his love for his God.
We could look to Daniel, whose public acts of worship got him thrown into the den of lions. He had risked his life to publicly display his faithfulness to God.
We could point out the woman with the alabaster box in Galilee who drew the criticism of the Pharisees with her similar testimony of adoration for Jesus.
We could move closer to the home of Mary and Martha and Lazarus and show an unnamed woman whose similar testimony of the worthiness of Jesus drew the criticism of all the disciples.
I have pointed out these few of many examples in Scripture to show the importance of committing public acts of worship.

In each case there was a risk to the worshipper, a risk of drawing the criticism of the convicted.
I would also challenge you today to not be critical of those who are led to commit public acts of worship.
The crowd in the room, for the most part, took in the greater lesson of the act of worship.
They smelled the fragrance and saw the devotion of the woman.
They listened to Jesus interpret the act of worship to be a precursor to His own great sacrifice.
They must have been moved deeply by Mary's actions.

However, there was a critic in the room.
He had a dark heart and was clearly convicted by what he deemed a spectacle.
He points out from his unemotional pragmatic perspective that this could have been handled better.
Mary would have been better to quietly sell the spikenard and give the money to the poor. (Verse 4-6)

Judas had a point of course.
Mary could have kept her love for Christ more to herself and just handed over the money to Judas to distribute as he saw fit.
It would have been the more dignified approach and would have been much less risky.
It certainly would not have drawn any criticism.
But we would have been robbed of the beautiful lesson of her devotion to the person of Jesus.

The mandate of the text which I would like to point out this morning is:

Every Christian must commit public acts of worship.

As usual, there are clear motivations here in the Bible for obeying this principle.
These motivations are all about the worthiness of Jesus.
When you ask the question, "Why must I commit public acts of worship?"
The answer is always, "because He is worthy of them."
Our text shows a few of the ways in which Jesus warrants the worship of Mary and, of course, that of us as well.

Because Jesus gives life to the dead. Verse 1
Mary committed this public act of worship because Jesus raised her brother from the dead.
The whole story is in the previous chapter.
Chapter 11 Verse 43-44 give the actual resurrection event.
Jesus called forth dead Lazarus in much the same way He gives every man and woman the opportunity to come out of their own dead state to receive new life in Him.
When Lazarus came staggering out of the tomb, Jesus concerns himself with removing the trappings of death from Lazarus.
So it is when we respond to the life-giving call of Jesus, we are to rid ourselves of the trappings of the old life and put on a new man which is born in holiness.
We then have much for which to praise Him, for He has given life to the dead.
He is due our public acts of worship.
Has Jesus given you new life?
Has he warranted a public act of worship?

Because Jesus is faithful to His own. Chapter 11
The second motivation that we see from the text is Mary’s own journey towards recognizing the faithfulness of Jesus.
We know that she was always close to Jesus.
In the other gospels we see her sitting at the feet of Jesus learning from Him while Martha busies herself in the kitchen.
She was convinced then that it was important to attend the service that Jesus was giving.
Then Jesus was away and her brother got very sick.
She and Martha sent for Jesus to come and heal him.
Jesus had other priorities and Lazarus had died.
When finally Jesus did come, the word reached Mary and Martha's home, but only Martha ran to meet Him. (John 11:20-22)
Only Martha expressed faith that Jesus could make this tragedy into something beautiful.
Mary, it seems, was so broken by the disappointment that she stayed home.
Jesus had to send specifically for her (Chapter 11 Verse 28).

Have you ever lost faith and harbored bitterness toward God for some tragedy that was allowed to befall you?
Jesus is calling for you.
He want you to see what He has planned.
He can make something beautiful from your sadness.

Imagine the shame of having doubted Jesus and spurned His coming into town.
Mary had some powerful motivation to commit a public act of worship.
She had been through a great tragedy and great sorrow and found Jesus to be faithful.

Because Jesus gave his life for all. Verse 7,8,32,33
The third motivation that I see is the one that Jesus Himself points out.
The fact that Jesus was willing to lay down His own life was motivation enough to lay down her pride and her dignity and commit this public act of worship.
Jesus indicated that He would publicly display His love for the world.
He would be lifted up in shame on the cross and then would draw all men unto Himself.
When we look at the selfless character of Jesus and we see his public act of love for us, how can we respond in any other way than to commit public acts of worship of Him?


As with any command we can derive from the pages of Scripture, this one has some clear and powerful instructions by way of example that we can follow in our public acts of worship.

This is important because if you just decide that you are going to commit public acts of worship without following the example of Mary in our text, you may result in a flesh-led display that distracts from the object of your worship instead of a Spirit-led display that lifts up the Lord.

By giving God what is precious to you. Verse 3
Mary did not give something cheap.
She pulled out all the stops and gave something very costly.
I don't know what is most costly to you.
Maybe you have something precious that you know God could use for His glory.
You know He values thing a bit differently than we do.
It may be your pride that He wants.
It may be your dignity.
It may be your wallet.
It may be your car.
It may be your most precious relationship.
Whatever it is, be willing to part with it for His sake, and you will find that He makes something greater of it than you could have imagined.

By humbling yourself before God. Verse 3
Mary did not dance around and draw attention to herself in the small room.
She did not lift herself up in her act of worship.
This was about lifting up Jesus and humbling herself.
Try to imagine the humility that she must have felt to have doubted Jesus and even perhaps harboring bitterness towards him when her brother died.
She came to Jesus and fell to her knees.
She broke open the extravagant gift and then wiped His feet with her hair.
What a display of humility!
There was a time when it was common to come forward after a service and fall to the knees and quietly confess sin at the altar.
It wouldn't hurt to do that more often.
Have you doubted God?
Come confess that to Him at the altar.
Have you fallen short of His expectations for you?
Humble yourself before Him and beg His forgiveness.
He certainly has that in great supply.

By displaying your affection for God. Verse 3
The last practical step that I can see in Mary's example is her clear display of affection.
Let us not be ashamed to say how much we love Him!
Let us not be ashamed to witness of His great sacrifice.
When you are moved to commit an act of worship, stop and think of how you might show your love for Jesus.
Think about how you might lift Him up and humble yourself.

So often what passes for worship in some churches today is more of a spectacle of self than a display of affection for Jesus.

Let us not fall into that trap.

He has laid down his life so that you might live.
Won't you commit a public act of worship to Him?

Putting On The New Man

Putting on the New Man
Ephesians 4:17-32

As you turn to the text this morning you may remember that the church at Ephesus, to whom Paul is writing, is mostly a Gentile church.
They were a rather large group of born-again Christians who had come from a background of idolatry and worldliness.
They had been introduced to Jesus and had believed on Him for their salvation.
Now they are members of the church at Ephesus and are growing in their relationship to the Lord.
It is to this end that the Apostle Paul writes to them.
He is encouraging them to do those things that are befitting a Christian.

READ TEXT
PRAY

In mapping out the text I see verses 17-19 as the warning signs at the beginning of the long perilous road.
These warning signs are meant to grab our attention and prepare us for the difficulties that lie ahead.

Our text begins with an encouragement in Verse 17 to be different.
God has called us to be different than the world.
Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote a similar challenge to the Corinthian Christians:
2Corinthians 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

We must not be like we used to be, guided by the vanity of our minds.
We have a higher calling, to be led by the Holy Spirit and subject to His rules.

Verse 18 continues with the particular characteristics of the world that we must avoid.
They have a darkened understanding -
They are alienated from the new life by their ignorance of God -
They have a certain blindness in their hearts, only seeing what they want to see -
Is it possible that a Christian could be like this?
The answer is YES!
We have the same fleshly tendencies inside of us and can surrender to them until they rule our lives.
We can drift away from the enlightenment of the Word and we can alienate ourselves from the fullness of life that we should have in Christ simply because we do not know enough about it.
We can also blind our own hearts to see only the application of the Word on others and not ourselves.
Then we are living like the world.

Verse 19 continues with the potential wickedness into which we can fall.
Some have so blinded themselves to the convicting Holy Spirit that the do not feel remorse for their sin any more, "past feeling."
At that point they have given themselves completely to a life od selfishness, sin and greed.

Now we get to verse 20 - we know all of this type of living is not what Christ has taught us.
Rather, as verse 21 says, we have heard how we are to live and have been given some specific instruction concerning a separated life:

Let us look at the primary command in the text, the imperative that is the main message of the text:

Every Christian must put on the New Man.

Now as we work our way through the text it will become more and more clear that this is indeed the primary mandate of the passage.

Let us look for the two items that we always find in Scripture with a command:
MOTIVATION
INSTRUCTIONS

First, Motivation, Why must every Christian put on the new man?

Because the Old Man is Corrupt V22b

Because the New Man is righteous and holy V24b

Because we are connected to each other as one body V25b

Because the New Man can minister to others in word and in deed V28,29

Because the New Man doesn't Grieve the Holy Spirit V30

These motivations are compelling and powerful.
We must put on the new man!
How then can we do this?
Let us look for the practical instructions that God has provided:

By First Putting off the Old Man V22a

By always speaking the truth V25a

By controlling your anger V26

By refusing the Devil a foothold in your life V27

By putting your energy into ministry V28

By speaking only to lift up and minister grace V29

By putting away the old ways with all malice V31

By forgiving others. V32

Some clothes are more difficult to don than others.
So it is in the Christian life.
Some of these items of the New Man are difficult - specifically those related to the tongue.
However, the encouragement of our text is not phrased as a suggestion.
It is a command.
Let us determine that we will submit ourselves to the Lord and put on the new man.

This new man, according to verse 23 and 24 is not a man we make up.
He is a man that God creates inside of us when we take Jesus as our Saviour.
2Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
If you have never trusted in Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, I challenge you to do this today.
Remember, what I am without Christ is not enough to please God.
I must be made new.