Month: October 2015

Gospel Community

/ bmoore121 / Leave a comment

Last week, we read of the Holy Spirit coming in power on Pentecost and essentially creating the church. What happened to all those people after they were saved? Did they just go on living the same lives they always lived? No, something changed. In fact, there whole lives were turned upside down.

Here’s what happened:

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the templetogether and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
-Acts 2:42-47

Luke explains that the church was devoting themselves to four things: apostles’ teaching, the fellowship, the breaking of bread, and the prayers. Some of these are more obvious than others. The apostles teaching is both Old Testament Scriptures and much of what would become our New Testament. The fellowship is the living out of the “one another’s” that we often talk about: love, care for, rejoice with, rebuke… one another. The breaking of bread is gathering for the taking of the Lord’s supper, and of course, prayers meant… praying together.

Essentially, the church can be summed up as devoting themselves to: Scripture, Fellowship, Worship, and Prayer.

Every church will do these things to one degree or another. Some are strong in areas that others are weak. The key is that a healthy church will be pursuing faithfulness in each of these. Certainly, it may look different than the context of Acts 2, but all these things serve as the foundations of a healthy church.

So take some time to reflect on your church or small group community.

How are you living out a devotion to Scripture, fellowship, worship and prayer? How can you begin pursuing these things and leading others to do the same?

Pentecost: The Holy Spirit & His Purpose

/ bmoore121 / Leave a comment

The Holy Spirit is too often left on the sidelines in the circles of the church that I run in. Unlike Jesus, who we can picture in our mind’s eye as he walked the earth in a physical human body, the Holy Spirit is a mysterious being that makes us feel a little uneasy and leaves us confused—kinda like the smoke monster from Lost.

OK, so maybe you don’t picture the smoke monster when you think of the Holy Spirit, but I’m sure each of us has had moments of confusion and unease as people talk about the Holy Spirit. There is a lot of confusion and passion swirling around discussions on the Holy Spirit. Spiritual gifts, tongues, and baptism in the Spirit each incite passionate debate, but if we jump to these topics, we’ll miss what is absolutely clear concerning the Spirit in Scripture.

He’s the third person of the Trinity, and we certainly shouldn’t ignore Him. In fact, Jesus actually said it was better for him to go away so we could live with the Holy Spirit. So while we may not be able to describe some aspects of the Spirit, God has revealed why the Spirit has come to the earth to fill His people. We can be sure of His purpose, and His mission is incredibly good news for us.

The Holy Spirit reveals Christ to us through the Word and empowers our witness for Christ.

Throughout the book of Acts, but especially in this week’s small group passage [Acts 2 – Pentecost], one finds that the Holy Spirit isn’t into doing crazy miraculous things for the WOW factor. Instead, each and every time, His actions are meant to point back to Jesus.

In Acts 2, Peter makes that incredibly clear when he explains in his sermon that the Old Testament told about the day that the Holy Spirit would come upon and save “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord.” Who is that Lord? Peter quickly transitions from a focus on the Holy Spirit’s work of tongues to WHO that miracle was meant to lead people to call upon: Jesus, the Savior the Jews had been waiting for.

Ultimately, it’s the work of Christ that the Holy Spirit brings attention to and the people find themselves embracing. Sure, they were still amazed by what happened there that day, but they were changed by the good news of Jesus Christ.

The Holy Spirit revealed Christ through the sharing of Scripture, and without His work in the sharing of the Gospel, people will not be “cut to the heart” (Acts 2:37), people will not see Jesus for who He really is, and they will not call upon the Lord and be saved.

Paul makes this very clear in the following passage:

For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you, because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction. You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.
-1 Thessalonians 1:4-5

We can share the Gospel all we want, but unless the Holy Spirit is with us, we have no hope of anyone responding. The good news is that the Holy Spirit is with every single believer in Jesus Christ. We can share the Gospel confidently, knowing that He is the one that will do the work on people’s hearts. We don’t get people into the Kingdom of God through our charisma or tightly wound intellectual arguments, but rather by simply witnessing to the Gospel of Jesus Christ by the power of the Spirit. For, this is the very reason He has come to be with us: empowering us for mission.

So may we go with confidence and witness to our Savior, knowing that we’re united in purpose with the Spirit of the Almighty God.

Jesus’ Ascension: Why Does It Matter?

/ bmoore121 / Leave a comment

We often skip right over the next major event in Jesus’ life after the resurrection: his ascension. We don’t really get why it matters, so we just move right past it. But Jesus explained that it’s better for us if He ascends to the Father than stays physically with us (John 16:7). Why is that?

There are actually a host of reasons: Jesus’ rule and reign over all things has been established (Philippians 2:9-11), His sending of the Holy Spirit as a result (John 16:7-15), His intercession for us before the Father (Hebrews 7:25), etc.

But one of the greatest benefits is…

Our Access to God in Prayer

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
-Hebrews 4:14-16

Jesus ascended, “passing through the heavens,” in order that we might go to God through Him. Specifically, the author of Hebrews encourages us to pray in full confidence that God will hear us and help us in our time of need.

We don’t have to pray in a certain direction, at a certain time of day, or with a certain person. Instead, the good news of Jesus’ ascension is that we simply go to God through Jesus who sits in heaven with the Father.

God will hear our prayers because of Jesus’ work and righteousness as he intercedes for us.

So let’s listen to the author of Hebrews and go confidently and regularly to God in prayer.

From Fear to Peace

/ bmoore121 / Leave a comment

Can you imagine what it must have been like? Pouring everything you have for three whole years into one single endeavor and suddenly it all seems to be a wash. Everything you have been working for has just been swept right out from underneath your feet.

Overwhelming angst—emotional numbness—excruciating anxiety—debilitating depression—paralyzing fear.

Right now, I’m working on a PhD, and I don’t say that to brag in any way… I’ve barely hung on most of the way. In fact, exhaustion and many of the above feelings have come and gone through this process, but the reason I bring it up is that if I were to suddenly flunk out, or even worse, if I were to get to the end—defending my dissertation—and I lost the whole thing, I’d be utterly devastated. Every single one of those would crash over me one after another. I wish I could say that wasn’t the case, but after all the work and effort that has gone into this degree, failure would be devastating.

In the whole scheme of things though, a PhD is relatively meaningless compared with what the disciples had been pursuing with Jesus for about three years. They were under the impression—rightfully so—that they were witnessing first hand the setting up of God’s kingdom on earth and the Messiah accomplishing our salvation.

Maybe, you would have been like John sitting at the foot of the cross with some last bit of hope that Jesus would break loose of the nails and finally set up his kingdom in the way you imagined it. But no one, not even John, had a hint of hope after Jesus was shut up in that tomb. Fear overwhelmed each and every one of Jesus’ followers.

All this effort, all this excitement, and all this suffering… for nothing!

BUT THE STORY DOESN’T END THERE!

Praise God, there is more to this story! Jesus defeated death. He overcame the evil one. And He defeated sin once and for all. Jesus rose from the dead, and it’s in the hope of Jesus’ resurrection that we find both the disciples’ fears and ours turned upside down.

In John 20, the fear of the disciples is evident. Peace is nowhere to be found, that is, until Jesus arrives on the scene. Each encounter he has with his followers (Mary, the eleven minus Thomas, and Thomas) comes with profound joy and peace. Jesus proclaims peace over His disciples that is firmly grounded in the clear power of the resurrection.

As we read this story, we find our hope for salvation secure and we can look forward to the day when our bodies are restored to perfection like Jesus’.

But on top of all that, as we face chaos in this world, situations that seem hopeless, adversity that strikes overwhelming fear in our heart, we can look to the resurrection to remind us that Jesus brings us ultimate peace. He has overcome the greatest of obstacles, and we can count on his omnipotent presence with us from now until eternity.

The Cross: Our Hope for Reconciliation

/ bmoore121 / Leave a comment

After three years of teaching and ministry, Jesus heads to the climax of the story: the cross. It’s toward this point that the entire story and most every promise has pointed, and it’s from this point that every blessing flows.

Jesus’ entire life and ministry have headed toward this single work. He would die to bear our sins and God’s just wrath toward us. The gifts that he offers us as a result of his sacrificial death on the cross are beyond compare. Possibly the greatest blessing he provides for us through faith in his work on the cross is a reconciled relationship with God.

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
-Romans 5:1-2

Jesus overcame the greatest injustice there ever was: our sin against a holy God. We deserved to be the who experienced God’s punishment for our sins, but instead, Jesus took that on and brought peace to our relationship with God.

Not only does this radically change the way we relate to God, but it also shifts the way we approach relationships. Certainly, we have all been wronged by someone else in our lives. Whether its a simple insult or a significant betrayal, we’ve all experienced this kind of relational pain, and to varying degrees, those relationships are broken once we experience that pain. But this incredible blessing of the Gospel reminds us that there is hope for reconciliation.

If Jesus and his work on the cross can bring us peace between us and God, then certainly He can do the same between two broken human beings. Sure, it will be painful. And it will definitely take time, but the reconciling power of the cross gives us hope for every broken relationship in our lives.

May we seek reconciliation and approach our relationships with the same grace, love, and forgiveness that Jesus did toward us.