Luke 1:1-4 (A Devotional Commentary)

Intro

No one is like Jesus. The man that lived 2,000 years ago has everything to do with us today. God deserves to be praised by the whole host of angels and the elect for all eternity merely for the fact that He preserved for us the Gospel according to Luke. Here, we see Jesus the Son of God who came for sinners and sufferers. No, Luke is not the only Gospel account but there are those distinct flavors that Luke gives us that leave us in a holy awe. Luke loves to set forth a Jesus who comes for the poor, broken, outcast, and sinner. He loves to highlight biblical-theological themes such as the Sabbath, the Gentiles, and the Holy Spirit. Beale & Gladd, in The Story Retold, say that the purpose of Luke is to show that Jesus is “the Spirit-anointed king, [who] overthrows Satan and his minions that enslave Israel and the nations in bondage of sin” (Beale & Gladd p. 100).

In this devotional commentary, I have decided not to comment on every word or phrase but simply those that seem to stand out and contribute to the main point of the text. The goal is that you might be able to take this and use it for your own devotions. I have tried to provide some exegetical insights but in such a way that is edifying. In other words, I’m trying to ask the question, “Why does it matter that this word is written in this way?” After the commentary, I have written an application section that you can use to apply to your own life.

Commentary

• (v1) Luke writes with certainty that the things of Jesus happened. It’s almost as if he takes it for granted that they’re historical. There is no sense of questioning whether these things happened or not. It’s a matter of what they mean and what they mean for the world. This word for “have been accomplished” is a perfect passive participle meaning that what has definitely happened in the past has everything to do with us today. In other words, the things of Jesus that happened thirty years prior still have massive consequences for Luke, his audience, and even us today. It’s like he’s saying, “Buckle up because everything that I am about to tell you about what was accomplished back then has everything to do with you right now.”

• (v2) The fact that Luke mentions that there were eyewitness accounts strengthens what he is trying to say. There is no doubt that these things happened. It’s not a matter of if they happened but rather how will we respond to them? Luke lived in an eyewitness world. That was their main source of documenting historical events. It was a reliable way of telling the truth. These eyewitness accounts were not to be hidden so that no one could back up what Luke was saying. They were to be sought out, as Luke himself sought them out, in order for everyone to see that this really is true. Remember, as Joshua Foer talks about in Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything, that the art of memory recall was essentially a virtuous trait back then. It was something people highly valued. “A strong memory was seen as the greatest virtue since it represented the internalization of a universe of external knowledge…Indeed, the single most common theme in the lives of the saints—besides their superhuman goodness—is their often extraordinary memories” (Foer p. 96). In other words, if you had a good memory of true events then you were a very important person.

• (v2) These “ministers” are more so “servants” of the word. They serve the truth to us like faithful butlers in the master’s house. 

• (v3) “It seemed good to me also” → This seems to piggyback off of the fact that there were others who “served” the word. Luke is wanting to serve as well. He is not doing this for selfish gain or political power. Indeed, this would most likely only endanger his life. When he says “it seemed good”, he means really that “it seemed best”. What could possibly be better than writing down an account of the most important person who ever lived on this earth? Even more so, what could be better than to write a Gospel account of the only Savior for wretched sinners? It’s so good that we could look over and over and over at Luke’s Gospel account and never get bored. 

• (v3) Also, notice this. Luke says that he has followed all things closely for some time. What does he mean? The BDAG lexicon says this word has been used in phrases such as: “to pay careful attention to something in a segment of time, to follow a thing, to follow a course of events, to take note of”; “one well acquainted with the affairs from the very beginning”; “I bring my charges as one who has accurate knowledge and has followed everything”; “personal acquaintance as opposed to information secured second-hand”. Isn’t that beautiful? Luke is saying that he is not making this stuff up. This word is a perfect, active, participle which conveys to us, once again, that these are past events that have everything to do with us in the future. This Gospel account is not just a history book in which people may approach it with a “take it or leave it” mentality. You are confronted with its truth. You are compelled to make a decision. You are face to face with the ultimate reality of all things. How awesome must this Jesus be?

• (v4) Why is Luke writing to Theophilus? He wants him to have “an orderly account...that you may have certainty”. Theophilus seems to have heard some of this already but Luke is giving him more certainty that it’s true. Luke thinks it’s worth all his hard work to compile this account so that Theophilus might have a thorough understanding of Jesus. Luke wants him to grow in his knowledge of Jesus. Isn’t that eternal life (Jn. 17:3)? Our problem is not that we know too much. Our problem is that we know too little about Jesus. We need to grow in our knowledge of Jesus!

Application

Isn’t this where spiritual warfare from the dark lord can come in? He can tell us that the works of Jesus back then don’t apply to us today. He can say, “That was just for them back then. You’re a different case. You can’t trust what you see in this gospel account.” Doesn’t the world tell us the same thing?

Doesn’t the world say, “How can you know that’s true? You can’t trust that Bible. Our Enlightenment gurus have already shown us that the Bible isn’t accurate.”

Isn’t this also what the flesh tells us? We throw our own doubts and unbelief in the mix as well. “Jesus may have forgiven that woman in Luke 7:36-50 but I don’t know if He will forgive me. I know Jesus told the parable of the Father running after His sinful children in Luke 15 but I don’t know if that applies to me today. I’ve done too much. I’ve used my last straw.”

Don’t you see how important these verses are for us? These things have everything to do with us today. They don’t wait for us in heaven. They apply to this life and this realm. It applies in this world with these people. In other words, by faith, you can claim these. Even more so, by faith, you must claim these! They are yours in Christ! The dark lord knows they are yours and that’s why he wants to keep you thinking that “maybe, just maybe” they don’t apply to you. 

Don't Forget to Remember that God Remembers and God Forgets

Tomorrow is the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day, the Christian Sabbath. God commands us in the fourth commandment to “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8). Every time we gather around the Lord’s table we hear the same language: “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19). Indeed, a large swath of Christian practice can be summed up under the word “remember.” We are to remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, descendant of David, according to Paul’s gospel (II Timothy 2:8). At the Lord’s supper we remember that He is the Son of God and the son of Abraham and David. We remember that He died for our sins and rose again for our justification and sits at God’s right hand as the King of kings ruling over all things for the good of His church, even sicknesses, wars, persecution, economic struggles. We are to remember all the commandments of the Lord, to do them (Numbers 15:39-40). We are to remember our former state in slavery to sin (Deuteronomy 5:15; Ephesians 2:11-12). We are to remember the Lord our God and all the way the Lord has led us (Deuteronomy 8:2, 18). We are to remember the marvelous works that He has done (Psalm 105:5). We are to remember Lot’s wife and avoid her worldliness (Luke 17:32). Psalm 103:2 tells us not to forget all God’s benefits. We’re eleven days into a new year, but it’s still not too late to remember how God was with us in 2019, through the easy times and the hard times, and bless Him with all that is within us.

But if we’re honest, we know how prone we are to forgetting. So how do we remember to remember? One way is by remembering that the Bible teaches that God remembers and that God forgets. Psalm 103:14 tells us that God “knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust.” Obviously, when the Bible speaks of God remembering or not remembering, it’s accommodating itself to human speech and human modes of being. There is no past or future with the great I AM, only an ever-present now. When the Psalmist tells us that God remembers that we are dust, he means that God takes notice of our mortality and is mindful of our infirmities, and deals gently with us. How easy it is for us to forget that we are but dust, or to not keep in mind the infirmities of others as we deal with them! But God remembers our frailty and hears our cries for help. Indeed, if He did so before the incarnation, how much more after it, when the Son of God took to Himself human frailty and weakness, and knows intimately what it is to be dust.

God remembers, and He also forgets. Jeremiah 31:34 tells us that in the new covenant, because of the blood of Jesus, God remembers our sins and lawless deeds no more – that is, He forgets them all, when we believe in Jesus Christ. Again, it’s not that God has dementia – but He deliberately does not bring our sins to remembrance when He deals with us. Psalm 103 puts it this way: “as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us” (103:12). Isaiah 38:17 tells us that He casts all our sins behind His back. Isaiah 44:22 says He has wiped out our transgressions like the sun burning away the thick fog. Micah 7:19 says that He has cast them into the depths of the sea. And He has done this through the cross of Jesus Christ. In Jesus God remembered our sins. In Jesus east and west meet. In Jesus our sins are right in God’s face. In Jesus our sins are the thickest cloud you’ve ever seen. In Jesus our sins are the heaviest anchor, and He bears them all upon His back, suffering the punishment that we deserve. Salvation is free for us, but only because Jesus paid for it at the cost of His life. I love how our Westminster Larger Catechism puts it in question 71: “Although Christ, by his obedience and death, did make a proper, real, and full satisfaction to God’s justice in the behalf of them that are justified; yet inasmuch as God accepts the satisfaction from a surety, which he might have demanded of them, and did provide this surety, his own only Son, imputing his righteousness to them, and requiring nothing of them for their justification but faith, which also is his gift, their justification is to them of free grace.”

And so as this new year begins, don’t forget to remember that God remembers and that God forgets. He remembers that you are dust. And He forgets all our sins. He does both supremely in the person and work of His Son. As you remember these two things, you’ll be enabled more and more to remember everything else that God calls you to remember.  

Top 20 Books From 2019

We are what we read. Whether on the phone, computer, iPad, e-reader, or good old fashioned books (my favorite!), we are what we read. As the Puritan John Trapp once said, “Be careful what books you read, for as water tastes of the soil it runs through, so does the soul taste of the authors that a man reads.”

I’m not going to sugar coat this, I read some awesome books this year! This was a great year of reading for me. The Lord brought so many great books across my desk this year. Some are old and some are new. All of these books were very influential to me this year.

This is not a list of books that came out this year but rather a list of the best books that I read this year. Like everyone’s top 10 list, this is certainly one that is very opinionated and subjective. Nevertheless, I hope some of these books might make it to your bedside table or your bookshelf.

1. Behold Your God: Rethinking God Biblically by John Snyder
   Life-changing. I don’t just throw that out. “Truly, Truly” this book was life-changing. Few books have shown me a bigger God. Although this is more of a study (and a DVD accompanying set if you so choose), I have come across few things that showed me the God of the Bible like this. There are certain seasons of life where certain books start that new chapter. This is one of them for me. This launched me into some of the other books that I read this year (Barrett, Gladd). The Lord used this to give me such a craving to know Him more. This book will plow, plant, and nurture your heart. It’s a phenomenal resource for daily devotions, Bible studies, or for turning it into a Sunday school lesson series. Thankfully, he has come out with another book and, word on the street is that he is working on a third study!

2. None Greater: The Undomesticated Attributes of God by Matthew Barrett
   Stunning book. The cover design (a lion staring you in the face!) really does echo the content of the book. God is seen as an “undomesticated” lion in this book. This is so enjoyable to read and so easy to follow along. As one pastor has said, “It’s easy to understand but hard to swallow.” These truths about who God is will blow your mind! It has been such a refreshing book for me to read and certainly one that I will read again in later years.

3. The Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin
   This is what my Summer Adult Sunday School class went through and this meant that I needed to go through it as well. Yes, this is a big book with many words but that shouldn’t scare you away. Calvin is devotional, clear, accessible. There is a reason why this book has been around for hundreds of years. There is a reason why the Church has poured itself over this book. This is NOT a book merely for pastors and teachers. Actually, it was written for the “common” person! This is one of the original “systematic theologies” and it is still one of the standards. Pick up Calvin and read him! Even if you only need a book to reference, buy Calvin! You’d be surprised how much you could read if you read him for only 15 minutes a day. There is no substitute for this classic.

4. From Adam and Israel To the Church: A Biblical Theology of the People of God by Benjamin L. Gladd (RTS Professor!)
   I was privileged to get an early copy from the man himself! And look, I’m at the point that I’m just going to read everything he writes. He is enjoyable, clear, applicable, and writes in such fresh ways that makes the Bible seem brand new. Every time I listen to his lectures or read his books I see the Bible in a new way. To be sure, Gladd isn’t coming up with anything new but rather pointing out to us what’s been there all along. This is a great book that totally shapes our identity as a people of God and how God has devoted Himself to us. Also, he has some awesome graphics and charts in there.

5. Romans by J.V. Fesko
   This is a book that I have written recommended to many people this year. While preparing for our Youth Large Group sermon series, I picked up this book from one our newest professor at RTS Jackson. This was a great read! I used it for my daily devotions as I read one chapter each morning. Once again, this was so clear and so accessible. I came away each day thinking, “I know this section of Romans better.” It was not only intellectually stimulating but it was also devotionally warm. Fesko makes sure to apply the text to our modern-day situation and he does so in a great way. God is big. Salvation is amazing. Holiness is beautiful. Heaven is sure. These were major takeaways for me from this excellent commentary.

6. Setting Our Affections upon Glory: Nine Sermons on the Gospel and the Church by Martyn Lloyd-Jones
   I read a lot of Lloyd-Jones. Matter of fact, I read everything of Lloyd-Jones. This is, yet again, another series of sermons that are timeless and life-changing. I want to know the God that Lloyd-Jones knew. These sermons were preached when Hurricane Camille (the second most intense tropical cyclone on record to strike the United States) was heading straight towards Pensacola and McIlwain Presbyterian Church where Martyn Lloyd-Jones was to preach. As in typical Lloyd-Jones style, this didn’t alter him at all. He was going to preach and preach he did. If you like reading the sermons of Martyn Lloyd-Jones, you should grab this book. This is a bucket of cold water for our evangelical culture today.

7. The Life and Theology of Paul by Guy Waters
   No, this is not a paid endorsement for my RTS professors. This is genuinely another book from them that I read this year that was in my top 10. The strength of Dr. Waters is doctrinal clarity. I love lists. I love orderly writing. Dr. Waters’ book is full of lists (Ex: “First,…Second,….” etc.). For me, this makes it easy to follow and also easy to use. If you want a short, accessible, yet in-depth book on the life and theology of Paul then you need to pick this one up. If you’re teaching on any of the Pauline epistles then you need to use this as a guide. This is a great resource for book studies as well. Like my other RTS professors, Waters makes you come away with a better understanding of Scripture and a clearer view of God and His marvelous salvation.

8. Revelation For You (God's Word for You) by Tim Chester
   Do you want to understand the book of Revelation in a more simple way? Get this book. This will make you want to teach a Bible study through the book of Revelation. Chester is one of my favorite modern writers and commentators. This is a great resource for devotions (as is the whole series) and this will leave you with confidence that you know the book of Revelation. I loaned this out and that person came away with the same thought!

9. 2 Samuel For You: The Triumphs and Tragedies of God's King (God's Word for You) by Tim Chester
   I could say the exact same thing as #8 but in reference to the book of 2 Samuel. Great read! Great for devotions! Read Chester.

10. Love Walked Among Us by Paul Miller
    This book will help you see another side of Jesus. It’s almost like you have a documentary camera crew following Jesus so that you can see Him up close. Things that are clear in Scripture, but frequently skimmed over, are brought to light. The compassion, honesty, and dependence of Jesus were much needed for me to see. God in the flesh was seen as beautiful! This is a great book to teach me to slow down in my Bible reading (especially in the Gospels) and to notice what the writers are actually saying.

11. The Gospel-Driven Church by Jared Wilson
    I love Jared Wilson’s books. He is a page-turner! This book is a solid addition to the many gospel-centered books coming out. In my opinion, this one has been the best one that I’ve read so far. His chapter on “The Five Metrics That Matter Most” is a reduplication and application of some of what Jonathan Edwards saw in the Great Awakening. This chapter is worth the price of the book. This is a great book not only for pastors but for the average church member. It makes you want to pursue to be more of a gospel-driven church member.

12. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
    This was my first time reading The Hobbit. I know. I know. I’m sorry for the 28-year delay. This was such a great read. Books that take you on a journey are so refreshing to read. There were several times I was reading where I could see the parallel between Bilbo’s journey to The Lonely Mountain and the Christian life. The book is better than the movie (but I definitely watched the movies afterward!).

13. Insecure: Fighting our Lesser Fears with a Greater One by John Perritt
    You just need to take an afternoon or two to read this. Yes, John is writing mainly to youth but don’t let that keep you (if you’re not a youth) from buying this. This is timeless (this will also hilariously remind you of what your teenage days used to be like!). Short, clear, applicable, and biblical. There is a reason why John’s RYM elective class this Summer was one of the biggest classes at all the conferences. There is also a reason why our Youth Ministry Fall Retreat got some much feedback (because he was the speaker!). This is a great resource for those who know they struggle with insecurity and for those who don’t acknowledge it (but trust me, after reading this you’ll realize that you do to some level). I’ve passed out all my copies by now.

14. Pursuing a Heart of Wisdom: Counseling Teenagers Biblically by John Kwasny
    Doctor, Pappa, Father, Sunday School teacher, Christian Education Director, Biblical Counselor, and lover of Chicago White Sox baseball John Kwasny has written a terrific book. There is a lot of popular psychology out there but this gets to the heart. Like Dr. Waters’ book, this is so organized and filled with lists (did I mention that I love lists?). In my opinion, I think the book’s strength is in using it as a reference book. The table of contents is divided up in such a way where you can search for issues by topic. This makes it easy to use over the years.

15. The Rhetoric Companion: A Student’s Guide to Power in Persuasion by N.D. Wilson and Douglas Wilson
    I am teaching a class at CCS on Public Speaking and I was preparing for the class I looked up several books that I could use for teaching the class. This was great! This is a solid resource that shows you the basic elements of speaking but does so from a Christian worldview. The Wilsons (father and son duo) are great writers and teachers. It is a great book to use for all ages. As someone who speaks often, I found it to be one of the more helpful books on speaking that I have read.

16. Simplicity in Preaching by J.C. Ryle
    Short, to the point, and so relevant, this was such a good read for me this year. From the back cover: This is a new and updated edition by H&E Publishing with a helpful addition by Bennett W. Rogers. The early preaching ministry of J. C. Ryle, one of the most powerful preachers of the Victorian era, was an unmitigated disaster. He struggled to keep the attention of his rural congregation, and so he embarked on a series of failed "pulpit experiments." Through this process of trial and error, Ryle learned to "crucify" his style and win the attention of his parishioners. Once he found his voice, popularity soon followed. He filled his churches to suffocation and became a sought after platform speaker. He was repeatedly chosen to be the select preacher for Oxford and Cambridge, and continued to draw large crowds well into his eighties as the Bishop of Liverpool. In Simplicity in Preaching, J. C. Ryle presents the fruit of a lifelong quest to attain a simplicity in preaching for his fellow ministers.

17. Safe and Sound: Standing Firm in Spiritual Battles by David Powlison
    This was such an encouraging book to me in the season that I read it. Outside of William Gurnall’s massive treatment on the Armor of God, this is my go-to read. This is a short book but man is it packed with power! This is why people love reading everything Powlison writes. This book shows you that spiritual warfare is real and more evident than you realize. Powlison also shows you how to fight back and how to live by the power of the Holy Spirit.

18. When People Are Big and God Is Small by Ed Welch
    There is a reason why this is a modern-day classic. If you are struggling with anxious feelings, peer-pressure, codependency, pride, shame, or anything like this then you need to get this book. It took me too long until I finally read this. This was like a fire in the middle of a cold winter.

19. Meet Generation Z: Understanding and Reaching the New Post-Christian World by James Emery White
    Although I don’t agree with several of his suggested responses to the problems of Generation Z, this was a very needed book for me to read as someone working in Youth Ministry. I think the first couple of chapters of this book will benefit any parent, pastor, or youth worker. We cannot think about today’s teenagers through the lens of, “Well, when I was that age _________ .” That doesn’t work. This is a new and different generation. We need to learn what they are like and this book helps us to do so. This is filled with showing us the good things about Generation Z but also the not so good things. The Church needs to take heed of what this generation is like because they are the future elders, deacons, pastors, leaders, and members of the Church.

20. How to Grill Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Flame-Cooked Food by Mark Bittman
    I don’t apologize for putting a cookbook in here. This thing is amazing. No, I haven’t read it from cover to cover but I have looked at every recipe and tried several of them. This is awesome. Definitely a solid Christmas gift for someone you know.

Recommended Reading During Christmas

Each year there are several books that come out dealing with the Christian theology of Christmas. While several of these are great reads there are a few that rise to the top. Here is a list of some of the most helpful books (in other words, you won’t be wasting your time if you pick one of these up):

1. Child In The Manger by Sinclair Ferguson
   See the video to the right to see what Alistair Begg says about it.
   
   ‘The best story ever told in the best possible way. Cumulatively, these chapters provide rich, rewarding and revitalizing expositions that form a perfect addition to a truly Christian, Christ-centered, Christmas.’ — DEREK W.H. THOMAS

   ‘Full of thoughtful exposition, solid theology, winsome gospel presentation, and worshipful adoration of its glorious Subject. Sinclair Ferguson just may be my very favorite pastor-theologian, and this book illustrates why. A sheer delight to read and to recommend. Read and enjoy the Christmas story as for the first time!’ — FRED G. ZASPEL

2. Hidden Christmas by Tim Keller
   From the book sleeve: Even people who are not practicing Christians think they are familiar with the story of the nativity. Every Christmas displays of Baby Jesus resting in a manger decorate lawns and churchyards, and songs about shepherds and angels fill the air. Yet despite the abundance of these Christian references in popular culture, how many of us have examined the hard edges of this biblical story? In his new book Timothy Keller takes readers on an illuminating journey into the surprising background of the nativity. By understanding the message of hope and salvation within the Bible’s account of Jesus’ birth, readers will experience the redeeming power of God’s grace in a deeper and more meaningful way.

3. Repeat the Sounding Joy by Christopher Ash

   "Simply superb. A genuine model of Christian devotional writing—warm, enriching, and exciting application drawn from insightful expository and theological reflection on the biblical text. Each of these brief chapters is an absolute delight to read. This is joyful Christmastime reading for Christians of every age and experience. Very highly recommended." — FRED ZASPEL
   "These devotionals are digestible: they will go down easily in the busy days of Advent. They are profound: they will go down deep. Most wonderfully, they are word-filled: they will feed us with the truth and beauty of the Scriptures, and of the Savior whose advent we celebrate." — KATHLEEN NIELSON

4. Come, Let Us Adore Him by Paul Tripp
   "A rare gem—great theology inspiring great devotion. This book will enrich my family’s experience of Christmas this year, and I believe it can enrich your Christmas too." — RAY ORTLUND
   “This devotional will help us remember the great love with which we have been loved. Read its pages, share it with your family. Enter into that manger scene. And breathe.” — ELYSE FITZPATRICK

Other Books Not Exclusively on Christmas but recommended reading during the Christmas season:

• Ministries of Mercy by Tim Keller
  Pastor Dean says, “Why this book? Because there’s a whole lot of suffering, depression, and other negative experiences/emotions during this time of year. This book moves us to consider how to come alongside those whom God is calling us to serve, in and outside the church.”

• A Christian’s Pocket Guide to Jesus Christ by Mark Jones
  ”This book is gold. I can't remember the last time I read such a small book that has had such an effect on me. At 76 pages I think it's worth almost memorizing! There are lots of really helpful emphases, particularly Jones's treatment of the Incarnation, Christ and the Holy Spirit, and the Threefold Office of Christ. It is Christology from above and is a very helpful introduction indeed. It could be used in a variety of contexts in church life and will leave people wanting, even craving, more. Buy and read.” — Reformation 21- The Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals

The Most Overlooked Mission Field In America...It's In Our Backyard

The following is written by Dean Inserra concerning Christianity in the Southern “Bible belt”:

I felt like a sellout. It was time to leave seminary and begin pastoral ministry, and I was taking the easy road by moving back to my hometown in Northern Florida. My seminary neighbor, I thought, was the true missionary, heading to plant churches in Northern California. I had “missional insecurity,” the way Christians feel when they plan a spring break trip to some resort before learning their friends are going on mission trip. All of this good education and knowledge about the urgency of the gospel . . . and I was going to be a pastor in the Bible Belt?

I tried to make myself feel better by letting my neighbor know how much I admired his boldness. I threw in some self-deprecating jokes about sweet tea, but he quickly interrupted my pity party. “Where I am going,” he said, “people know they’re not Christians. The starting point is clear, whether unbelief, secularism, or some sort of humanistic spirituality. But where you’re going, everyone thinks they’re a Christian. It’s like you have to get people lost so they can see they need to be saved.”

That was all I needed to hear, and he was right.

My neighbor described the largest mission field where I live. It’s called cultural or nominal Christianity. This mission field is primarily made up of people who’d quickly answer “yes” if asked whether they are Christians. But ask any questions about their faith, and you’ll soon realize you’re hearing something other than the gospel of Jesus Christ. In fact, if you asked a nominal Christian why he is a Christian, Jesus Christ himself would likely have little bearing on the answer. For many people, good standing with God is related to heritage, rites of passage, or general morality. Jesus just happens to be a nice mascot.

This disparity requires our attention, because it isn’t unique to the American South. Across the nation, the most dominant religion doesn’t show up on a census, poll, or survey—it’s impossible to detect by those methods. The most common practiced religion in America today is a generic theism that mingles biblical concepts with a hope that one is a good person—all while maintaining autonomy over personal decisions and lifestyle. In this religion, good people go to a “better place” when they die. Going to this better place doesn’t depend on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, yet somehow these beliefs still get classified as “Christian.”

In this way, thousands of people are overlooked in outreach efforts because they may already be sitting in pews. Yet their lives show no evidence of saving faith. Whether the disconnect is the result of poor gospel communication by churches, fear of telling the truth, or a general misunderstanding of what the Bible says, the need is there, and it’s urgent. It can be easy to conclude that cultural Christians just need to get more serious about their faith, and so problems with cultural Christianity are declared discipleship issues.

I don’t believe this to be the case. I believe cultural Christians need evangelism before they need discipleship, since they may be unsaved altogether.

Inserra is a rare bird making an obvious point in our day today in the Bible belt. I have seen by experience that many of the schools that I have been to are filled with “Christian” students who have tried to live a Christian life without any relationship to Jesus. Jesus is not a passion. Jesus is not a model. Jesus is a sidekick. Jesus is a means to a greater end.

This is certainly something that would be wise for us to reflect on in our church, parenting, work relationships, schools, and wherever we interact with others in our lives. Is our mission to bring other people to know the glory, majesty, grace, and love of Jesus and to be devoted to Him in every aspect of life (which is what it means to be “holy”)? Is our “gospel” detached from Jesus or is Jesus the gospel? Is heaven glorious to us because Jesus gives us all we want there or is heaven glorious because it is there where we experience Jesus to the full for eternity? When we ask these questions and more, we might begin to see more of a dividing line in our cultural Christianity and therefore evangelize and disciple more effectively.

For the full article from Inserra, click here.

How To Be Truly Human

The following message is a chapel sermon delivered for the 5th and 6th graders at First Presbyterian Day School on 1/16/19 on John 15:1-7:

Meditations on the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:32-42)

Some of the best advice I have ever gotten for preaching preparation has been from Dr. Elias Medeiros and Dr. Guy Waters at Reformed Theological Seminary here in Jackson. Both of them give the suggestion that the beginning and most important part of all preparation must be to meditate on the verses before jumping to any commentary, sermon, or other helps. Dr. Waters specifically has given us assignments that tell us to give five “insights” for each verse that we go through. This is more than just “Jesus tells Peter to do _____.” This is more so thinking more deeply about what the text means, what it tells us about God, us, our sin, our hope, and the person and work of Jesus. This is the format that these meditations take on. Hopefully, this can be a tool for your own devotions and also something, although greatly flawed, of a model on your own devotional and Bible study/preaching preparation practices. In order to prepare for the sermon preached last night, I tried to give 2-3 meditations per verse in bullet format.

v32a

• Gethsemane is literally “the oil press”. Certainly, many olive trees were in this area. Even without adequate knowledge of how olive oil is made, the meaning of Gethsemane no doubt tells us that olives are “pressed” in order for the juices and oils to come forth. This would be the type of soul anguish Jesus would begin to feel as He would be the one who would be “crushed for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53).

  • How strange this must have felt in that just a day earlier, Jesus was speaking on the Mt. of Olives about how He would be coming with the clouds of heaven with great power and glory (Mark 13). The temptation for Him here would be to take that glory without a cross.

• It is the first time that Gethsemane is mentioned in the gospel. The Mt. of Olives is mentioned many times prior to this but not Gethsemane. Surely, we can presume somewhat that the gospel writers wanted to keep Gethsemane, “the oil press”, for the opportune time. The Mt. of Olives is a reminder of a fruitful and pleasant place but Gethsemane is a reminder of temptation, darkness, and the cup.

• Imagine the familiarity that Jesus felt here. Often He came here to pray to the Father. Often the Mt. of Olives was a vivid reminder of the eternal dwelling He had with the Father prior to His incarnation. What tribulation it must have been to Jesus that in the hour when He most wanted His intimacy with the Father to be known that He then felt the foreshadow of the wrath of God that was to come on the cross.

• It is also worth remembering that Jesus had just instituted the Lord’s Supper here. Earlier, He had just held up the cup which symbolized His blood (14:12-21). What was going on in Jesus’ mind and heart as He held up the cup? As He held it up before His eyes and the disciples’ eyes, what was going on in His mind? Certainly, it must’ve felt like a haunting dream waiting to come true as He uttered the words, “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.” The cup that we would drink out of joy as a means of grace must first be a cup of wrath for Him on the cross. Gethsemane was the foretasting of this cup. Surely, as Jesus held up that cup, He must have had some inward anxieties and tremblings about that which was to come. It would have been like a prisoner sentenced to death by electric chair seeing a replica of it the day before going. It would have been like a man sentenced to death by guillotine shuddering as he saw someone slicing a vegetable the day before.

v32b

• We should notice here that Jesus is enacting that of a High Priest in this moment. He comes the Great High Priest with the other future priests. He comes to meet with the Father through prayer, no doubt should be a reminder of the priestly duties, and He tells most of them to wait in the outer parts of Gethsemane. We will see in the next verse that Jesus tells the other three disciples to wait in the inner circle while Jesus alone goes before the Father to pray. The other three disciples are to be praying as He prays.

• Prayer for Jesus was a private thing says RT France. Jesus did not pray in pomp and showmanship as the Pharisees did. Jesus prayed from the heart. It was an intimate moment for Jesus. No doubt, He did not object to public prayer but He certainly believed in private prayer and the necessity of it.

  • It is also worth noting too that the disciples heard just enough of Jesus’ prayer in the Garden to record the main portion of it. They were no doubt within listening range and yet it is as if they are only allowed to here the beginnings of the prayer before the sleepiness overtakes them. What else did Jesus utter in that prayer? Surely He said more than that during each of the hours that He prayed. We had the prayer of Jesus in John 17 graciously overheard and recorded for us. We know too that the disciples often prayed with Jesus and heard Him pray. They asked Jesus if they could be taught how to pray surely because they heard how He prayed. Yet, we are not giving access into this prayer. This was enough for us. Our sinful minds could not comprehend the battles that the Sinless One had with the temptation to take glory without the cross.

• It is a good question to ask, “Why does Jesus pray?” Maybe it is the question that we must ask if we understand who He is. He does not pray to Himself but He prays to the Father. It is simply this, He is the dependent one. He is the Submissive Suffering Servant. He is the one that Isaiah prophesied of. This Jesus is the one who fulfilled all righteousness and did what Adam failed to do.

33-34a

• This just needs to be mentioned that He took the other three with Him a little bit closer. This should remind us of the tabernacle and temple. Only the High Priest was allowed to go into the Most Holy Place. It could only be Jesus who could bring us into the presence of God.

• This is also a reminder of what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-11). There Jesus was showing His Divinity and here He is showing His humanity. There the disciples saw Jesus’ resurrection glory but here they would see His humiliation.

• Jesus begins to feel greatly troubled, terrified, distressed. This word for  “greatly distressed” is used for seeing something remarkable that has suddenly come upon you. This is a shuddering fear. This is not too unlike a panic attack. If something it is more than that. For surely His suffering is beyond anything any man has ever felt. It is His response to something that is utterly overwhelming. Fear pulses through His body. His heart rate would no doubt have sped up. His mind flooded with thoughts and the temptation to run from the moment. “Just forget about it. Just go back to heaven. Take the glory without the cross. Take the crown without the thorns.” Satan is coming back to tempt Him at the opportune time. Jesus was said to come under extreme anguish, mental and spiritual turmoil. Jesus was so sorrowful that He could’ve died. Literally, “my heart is ready to break with grief.”

• What a stunning scene. Here is the God of Glory in fear. Here is the one who never blinked in the face of evil and persecution nor flinched before His enemies and yet now here, in a familiar garden going before the One who is most familiar to Him, He is totally turned upside down. Yet, He is sinless, perfect, and obedient.

34b

• He asks Peter, James, and John to remain there and watch. This watching certainly involved praying. Jesus had just told the disciples earlier, on the same Mt., to stay awake for the Lord’s return (Mark 13). How much harder would it be to stay awake for the Lord’s return if they could not stay awake amidst the Lord’s presence? Oh, how they would need more than physical strength to stay awake but they needed the Spirit of Christ to come and abide in them to enable them to stay awake.

• Why would Jesus ask for this? What would they add to Him? Once again, I think we see more of Jesus’ desire for company. We see here His desire for close friends to intercede for Him. But, why would they need to watch if Jesus was determined to give Himself over to the Pharisees and to Judas? It is most difficult to stay alert and to watch in the middle of the night. It had been a busy week for them and it was getting late. Jesus asks His closest friends to stay alert and to be like the watchmen in the night. Certainly, their actions were a great contrast to what Jesus was about to do. The disciples, especially the three who said that they would suffer alongside of Jesus (Mark 14:29-31), fail to do that which He does. It is only Jesus who is capable of doing the work of the High Priest. What a moment here where we see the ultimate failure of all other priests before Jesus! There is no one who fears God. There is no one who does good. No not one. All have sinned and turned aside (Romans 3:10-18).

35

• Here goes our Great High Priest before the presence of the Father. Here goes the One who will intercede for us by giving Himself up for us. Here goes the Lamb who is also the Priest. Here goes the Temple embodied who is also the sacrifice. Here goes Jesus by Himself for it must be only Him who goes.

• It is interesting that Jesus here falls to the ground. He does not graciously kneel before His Father. There is a weight upon His shoulders. It is as the one who tries to lift too much weight who then collapses underneath. It is a picture of what happened when He would carry the physical cross on the way to Golgotha. It is also interesting to note that Jesus here falls on the ground in distress of the cup and in just a moment the soldiers would fall to the ground as He would utter, “I am He.”

• Here we see Jesus praying. Here is the one who is like the concubine in Judges 19 that falls before the door for help. She begs for help after being abused all night in the square by worthless men. Here, Jesus is awaiting being abused by worthless men. Here, Jesus is awaiting an even greater wrath--the wrath that was poured out on Sodom and Gomorrah and yet even more.

• Jesus prays that the hour might pass from Him. This hour is the hour of the cup. It is the hour of the crushing the serpent but it is also the hour of the serpent striking His heel (as prophesied in Gen 3:15). Jesus sees here the cross in vivid colors. The Spirit gives Him a vision of the weight of the cross. And what happened on the cross? The wrath of God is poured out on Him. The wrath of God is that righteous and just separation of sinful man from the all-glorious God for eternity. It is a just repayment of what they desire and deserve. Jesus, who only knew eternal communion and infinite pleasure at the Father’s side for eternity is here tasting what He has never tasted before. He is feeling the wrath from His Father. He is feeling the enmity and separation. Yet, there is no one but Jesus who has such a desire to be with His Father and to worship His Father. He longs to give honor and glory to His Father and yet He gets a foreshadow of the wrath to come instead. Imagine this, what father among you, you who are evil, will give him a serpent when he asked for a loaf of bread (Luke 11:11-13)? Will not your Heavenly Father give you much more? The Heavenly Father gives much more to us than our best earthly fathers and we are sinful! Why then does the Heavenly Father here give His perfect Son a serpent (The Serpent!) rather than a loaf of manna from heaven? There is no injustice in the Father here and no rebellion in the Son. This is why the Father sent the Son and this is why the Son obeyed the Father. The mission, should He accept it, was to crush the serpent in order to redeem His elect. What love!

36

• Jesus is never said to have uttered “Abba” until here. Surely, He did at earlier points in His life but not in the recordings of Mark. This is nowhere else in the gospels but only in the writings of Paul in Romans and Galatians. “Abba” is a very familiar term used only for a very familiar and intimate relationship with a father. It is an informal, yet not irreverent (as is often communicated in the Church today it seems), term that only a child would have the privilege of using. This is almost the picture of an orphaned child walking around a city market amongst all the men searching frantically for his daddy. In a way, there is no “Abba” here. It is only the Judge of sinful men. Jesus cries a familiar title to a familiar person in a familiar place and yet is met with only a foreshadowing of what it means to be disowned by God and abandoned by Him on the cross. Here is Jesus taking on Himself the punishment that was due to the children of Israel who abandoned God. Here is the deportation of Israel to Babylon beginning to happen to the Son. He is about to be thrust into the hands of unclean Gentiles rather than taken up into the hands of a loving Father. The gore must happen before the glory. The cross must happen before the crown. The blood must be spilt before the body is risen from the dead.

• All things are indeed possible with the Father but not all things are permissible. It is possible surely for Jesus to remove the cup from Himself, for the Spirit to remove it from Him, and for the Father to remove it from Him but this was the eternal plan of God. The Son voluntarily decided and was determined to take the cup even amidst the height of this temptation. Now, some say that He asked for the cup to be delayed here until the cross for remember He told His disciples that He was sorrowful “unto death”. Maybe Jesus was worried that His frame would not enable Him to make it to the cross and that He would die in the Garden.

• This is what the culmination of world history has boiled down to. This is exactly where God has sovereignly brought all things. This is the moment of all moments and all three persons of the Trinity have agreed passionately upon this plan as a perfect union. Yet, here is the Sinless One feeling the weight upon His humanity to take the cup.

• Jesus does not ask the Father to take away the cup. He uses an imperative. Peter obviously hears Jesus say not only “if it is possible please take it away” but he also hears Jesus pleading with the Father in the imperative tone. What anguish Jesus must feel here! He is praying according to the attributes of God. Jesus understands that He must be the One to take away the wrath of God. He knew from reading the Scriptures that He was the Messiah and that He has come to drink the cup and to take away the sins of the world. So, what is this statement here that Jesus makes? Here is the height of all temptation. Here is the apex of every strategy of Satan culminating here in the face of Jesus asking Him to take the glory without the cross. The temptation is to be the King without being the Suffering Servant. Here, in the height of this temptation, is Jesus fulfilling all righteousness. This prayer is not a weak point of Jesus’ obedience but rather is exactly what He must have gone through in order to give us His perfect righteousness. What wonder this is!

• Derek Thomas has us imagine the utter silence of all creation after Jesus utters this sentence: Remove this cup…All eyes turn to the Father. What would He do? Would He say, “Come Home Son! These wretched vile sinners aren’t worth it. They are only our enemies (Rom 5:6-11). They add nothing to our glory! Retreat from the moment. Let my just wrath come upon them for rejecting me.” God would remain God and gloriously God if He did so. He would still retain His infinite beauty and goodness if He called His Son away from the moment but this is not an arbitrary decision that the Triune God came up with in the moment but rather this was a covenant made. God bound Himself by His Word that He would redeem worthless men and women. The moment could not be denied. It must be fulfilled. What did all of heaven do during the pause between this sentence and the next? Had Satan won? Had God relented? Had Jesus given up? Did God really love us enough to die for us?

• Yet…. Oh, what a wonderful word! How all of heaven must have gained so much adrenaline and the hearing of that word. “Yet”! Amidst all the temptation Jesus was facing to walk away from the wrath that He did not deserve… “yet”. What faith He had in His Father even amidst the Father’s silence. What gracious courage the Spirit gave Him to pursue the eternal plan of salvation. This is the epitome of faith. Against all logic, all feelings, all temptations, all persecutions, all sufferings, all evil assaults, Jesus here gives His life into the hands of His Father out of love for us. Love moves Him. Love for His Father and love for us moves Him. It’s “go time” now. It’s time to move from the locker room and to the playing field. Pre-game warm ups are over and the moment has indeed come. Here is the Lamb led to the slaughter now approaching the cross like a Lion. His soul is distressed and troubled beyond we can ever imagine yet here is faith. Here, we see His body come up off the ground. Here, we see the drops of blood that He sweat be wiped from His face. Here, we see Jesus glorifying His Father. What a Savior!

37

• What a disheartening feeling this must have been. How much this added to the distress. He had gotten some courage back to face the cup and then it seems to go away from Him as He sees His disciples sleeping for “again he went away and prayed, saying the same words.” These were His closest friends. These were the ones who said that they would never leave Him nor forsake Him. These were the three who said they would suffer alongside Him yet the two who surrounded Him on the cross were thieves not disciples. Jesus had asked them to work and stay alert but they had decided to rest. They had acted like the first Adam in the garden when Jesus was acting the way the first Adam should’ve acted in the garden.

• Notice that Jesus looks to Peter and calls him Simon. Why? It is because this sleeping man is not acting like a sturdy rock but more like his old self. Jesus had given Peter his new name which meant rock and yet here he is looking more like a sloth. It is also significant because here is Peter acting more like his old sinful self than the one who mightily confesses that Jesus is the Christ.

• For one hour they could not watch. This means that Jesus prayed for at least one hour. One hour is not a long time to watch but it certainly can be when it is late at night. The disciples couldn’t endure one hour and yet Jesus was about to suffer for the next 10-20 hours. Once again, Jesus is the only one who can perform the atonement for us. He alone is the substitute. He alone is the submissive one to the Father.

38

• What is the temptation that they would enter into? Would it be to betray Him? Certainly this has got to be the closest to it. The temptation that they were facing might have been very similar to the temptation that He was facing--take the glory and not the suffering. This after all is what they wanted. They had asked Jesus to sit at His right hand in heaven (Mark 10:35-45). They had desired Jesus to take the kingdom in an earthly way. They wanted glory but not the suffering. Surely, this temptation had it’s similar root with them as well. Again we see that all others will fail. Only Jesus can withstand the devil’s temptations.

• Surely, Jesus knew first hand about the spirit being willing but the flesh being weak. He was experiencing it in the moment. His sinless soul greatly desired to glorify the Father in redeeming His people and yet the human flesh felt all of the temptation to flee from the wrath of God to come.

39

• Again, Jesus went to the Father no doubt wrestling again as Jacob had wrestled with the Angel of the LORD in Genesis. Again He goes and asks about the cup. Again He pleads according to who God is. Again He submits and says, “Yet.” Again, He sets His face towards Jerusalem and to Golgotha.

40

• Again Jesus found His best friends failing as disciples, failing as friends, failing as worshipers of God. Again, His soul is no doubt filled with anguish. There is no one to help Him. It must be Him alone. This is not like the movies where there is always another person who is eager to stand by someone’s side or to go instead of someone else. No one else wants this job. No one else wants this position. There is only One who is capable of doing this. There is only One who can take in an eternity’s worth of wrath in a matter of hours. There is only One who can reconcile God and man. There is only One who can love sinful man like this.

• Oh, how sin leaves us in a position where we are unable to give an excuse to what we have done. How our own sin leaves us in a position unanswerable to God! All those who do not trust in Jesus will not be speaking back to Jesus on that Great Day. No one will have an answer back to Him. All will be silent as He opens the books. All will be silenced in hell. Jesus is the only one who answers for us in our place before the Father if we trust in Him.

41

• Again, the third time He found them sleeping but this time it was enough. The hour had indeed come. No matter how much we try to delay the time, it inevitably comes our way. The moment is so fixed before His eyes. There is nothing but a Cross ahead for our Lord. It is time to wake up the disciples for the last time. It is time to give Himself over to His enemies. The hour would not be passing away. It was there in that moment. This is the moment why He came. This is why that precious baby, the gift to the virgin and the gift to the world, came. He came to die. He came to give His life up for us. He came to extinguish the wrath of God upon Himself rather than to let His loved ones die. It is for these sleepy ones that He would die. Ironically, it is for these sleepy ones that the Lord of the Sabbath would experience eternal unrest so that they might enter into into His eternal rest.

• The Son of Man has gone willingly but His will was that He be betrayed by yet another close friend. He had chosen Judas to be His friend and disciple and yet Judas here is a picture of all of us. God chose to create us. He chose to have fellowship with us and every day we rejected such fellowship. Every day we sold the infinitely worthy one for the price of a slave. Here goes Jesus into the hands of sinners and of the unclean ones.

42

• A moment ago, Jesus fell before the Father but now it is time to rise and go to the cross. They cannot stay in the Garden forever. They must be thrust out from the Garden in order to enter into the New Garden. He came not to be served but to serve.

The Joy of the Incarnation - What One Great Hymn Teaches Us

This past Sunday evening I had an opportunity to comment upon one of the hymns we sang after the Cherub Choir pageant, Paul Gerhardt’s “All My Heart This Night Rejoices.” This hymn is not as familiar as some, yet its words richly repay our contemplation and meditation. Gerhardt begins by declaring his joy in the birth of Jesus:

All my heart this night rejoices
as I hear far and near
sweetest angel voices.
“Christ is born,” their choirs are singing
till the air ev’rywhere
now with joy is ringing.

In the next six stanzas, Gerhardt give us several reasons why the incarnation of our Savior brings us such great joy.

1 – Because the incarnation was an act of war. Gerhardt sings in the second stanza,

Forth today the Conqu’ror goeth,
who the foe, sin and woe,
death and hell o’erthroweth.

 We probably don’t often think about the incarnation in this way (Herod certainly did when he sent his soldiers to kill all the babies in Bethlehem two and under; see Matthew 2:16-17). Yet we see the connection between the incarnation of the Word of God and His conflict with His and our enemies all the way back in Genesis 3:15, and even more particularly in Hebrews 2:14-15 – “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.” Jesus became a man to deal the deathblow to Satan, sin, the woe and misery of sin, death itself, and the pains of hell forever.

2 – Because the incarnation is permanent. The second stanza continues,

God is man, man to deliver;
His death Son now is one
with our race forever.

Jesus’ incarnate state did not cease with His death, or His ascension to glory. He remains a man, and the dust of earth sits upon the throne of glory. He knows intimately what it is to be human still, and so can sympathize with us in our weaknesses. When the eternal Son of God took on human nature, He was affirming the goodness of our humanity, and He was assuring us that we too will live an embodied existence for all eternity. Though the intermediate state is disembodied, our souls being with Jesus while our bodies rest in the grave till the resurrection, yet for eternity we will walk on a new earth with our Savior.

3 – Because the incarnation was for the purpose of substitution. The third and fourth stanzas are rich indeed:

Shall we still dread God’s displeasure,
who, to save, freely gave
His most cherished Treasure?
To redeem us, he hath given
His own Son, from the throne
of His might in heaven.

He becomes the Lamb who taketh
sin away, and for aye [forever]
full atonement maketh.
For our life his own he tenders;
and our race, by his grace,
meet for glory renders.

We must never separate the birth of Jesus and the death of Jesus. He was born in order that He might die. He became a man not only to be like us and with us, but also to die for us, as our substitute. The incarnation is for the purpose of atoning for the sins of His people. The wages of sin is death, but God cannot die. So the only way for God to reconcile sinners to Himself was to become us them in our humanity, so that He might obey and suffer in our nature. Because Jesus has died, the beautiful truth in stanza three is ours: we have no need to fear the displeasure or anger or wrath of God, for He has poured it all out on His beloved Son in our place. He gave His greatest Treasure for us, to make us wretches His treasured possession.

4 – The incarnation meets our deepest sadness. The fifth and sixth stanza ring out,

Hark! a voice from yonder manger,
soft and sweet, doth entreat,
“Flee from woe and danger.
Brethren, from all ills that grieve you,
you are freed; all you need
I will surely give you.”

Come, then, banish all your sadness,
one and all, great and small;
come with songs of gladness.
Love him who with love is glowing;
hail the star, near and far
light and joy bestowing.

Isaiah 53:3 tells us that Jesus was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. He carried our griefs and sorrows, so that we might be freed ultimately from them forever. Because Jesus was born, we have hope, joy, gladness, and light. In this world we have sorrow, for Jesus has not returned. But by His incarnation, and all that flowed from it in His ministry on earth and in heaven, our sorrows are overwhelmed by the joy He gives us. We are called to banish our sadness from our hearts, for He has freed us from the penalty and power of sin, which cause our deepest sorrow, and promises to give us all we need for life and godliness – even the gift of gladness in times of distress.

5 – The incarnation gives us hope beyond the grave. Gerhardt closes his song with these words:

Dearest Lord, thee will I cherish.
Though my breath fail in death,
yet I shall not perish,
but with thee abide forever
there on high, in that joy
which can vanish never.

As those who trust in Christ Jesus the incarnate Word of God, we have absolute confidence that when we die, we will be with Him forever. And beyond that, as we have already mentioned above, we too will have a resurrected body on the last day. “He will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body or His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself” (Philippians 3:21). And so with this confidence we rejoice with exceedingly great joy, now and forevermore.

The Rest of Jesus (Matthew 11:28-30)

In Matthew 11:28-30 we read these amazing words of Jesus: "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." What a glorious invitation! Invitations to great events or from remarkable people are treasured - and in these words God's Son bids us to come to Him. It is an invitation to be with Him, to be loved as His treasured possession. Do we slow down long enough to hear and accept the invitation, and to go to Him?

Notice first to whom this invitation is given: to the weary, the burdened, the anxious, the troubled - "all who labor and are heavy laden." Which of us does not qualify? All who feel upon our hearts the load, the weight of our own selfishness, our own pride, our own grieving of God, are invited to come. All who feel the load of the world's suffering and grief, the anxiousness of unknown days to come, the weight of a long standing unabating sorrow, the weight of our longings for the not-yet of God's providences, are invited to come. We who know these things in the depths of our heart are bid by the Son of God to fall upon His breast.

See secondly the promise to obtain: rest. Jesus declares, "I will give you rest...you will find rest for your souls." What a priceless promise and gift laid out for us! It is an ark of refuge for the weary, like Noah's ark for the dove. The Lord Jesus is our ark, our refuge, our rest. He promises us the rest of a real, personal, intimate, divine friendship of redeeming affection. He promises to love us utterly and unalterably!

Observe thirdly the means of the promised rest: we must take Jesus' yoke upon ourselves and learn of Him. Every other yoke about your heart - the lesser loves we foolishly crave - will make you even more weary. But Christ's yoke of free grace restores, enlivens, and lifts up. He calls us to yield our souls to His character and righteousness. His yoke is always in our favor and for our good.

Finally, note the way in which Jesus woos us to Himself: "For I am gentle and lowly in heart." How slow we are to believe this about our Savior! He who is the Sovereign King, is also gentle and humble of heart. This is the only place in Scripture where the "heart" of Christ is actually mentioned - and it is a gentle and a lowly heart.

So the question is before you: are you coming to Jesus for rest? Take heart, weary believer! Whoever comes to Jesus, He will in no way cast you out (John 6:37)! Come to Him this day and find rest for your souls!