WSC Q&A #24

Q: How does Christ execute the office of a prophet?
A: Christ executes the office of a prophet, in revealing to us, by his word and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation. 
Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

A prophet, in the Biblical sense, was someone who brought the Word of God to the people. Jesus Christ, of course, is the ultimate revelation of God's Word. We might think of John's words at the beginning of his gospel when he writes of Jesus, "the Word became flesh". Christianity teaches and believes that Jesus Christ is the center of all biblical revelation. Christ is the center of God's revealed word. Every page of the Bible is either pointing to Christ, or reflecting back upon him. 

Jesus Christ himself talked about his prophetic office. Matthew 11 has Christ declaring that he has come to reveal the Father. In Luke 22 he says that he came to do the Father's will. John 8 records that Jesus stated, "I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me." All these statements show us that Jesus was fulfilling a prophetic office by showing us and revealing to us who the Father is and what his will for his people is. 

Others in Scripture talked about Christ's prophetic office as well. Moses spoke of another prophet who God would raise up (Deut. 18:15). The Apostle Peter would use the words of Moses in his sermon in Acts 3: "Moses said, 'The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.'" Peter boldly declares that Jesus Christ is the prophet Moses spoke of, and that in Jesus Christ alone is salvation found. 

Jesus Christ, therefore, is not merely a prophet, as many false religions would teach. He is the prophet. He is the prophet that all other prophets spoke of. He is the ultimate revelation of God's will, God's Word, God's plan for salvation, God's character. There is no prophet now apart from Jesus Christ, for no prophet could possibly reveal more or add to what Christ has already revealed to us in himself. It is because of this that the author of Hebrews would write, "Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high..." Who would ever dare try to add to such a divine, such a complete, such a beautiful revelation of God!?

WSC Q&A #23

Q What offices does Christ execute as our redeemer?
A: Christ, as our redeemer, executes the offices of a prophet, a priest, and of a king, both in his estate of humiliation and exaltation.
Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

This is an introductory to the next several questions of the catechism, as we examine more closely the ministry of Jesus Christ, not only in his life and death, but even now as he is seated at the right hand of the Father.

There can be, however, some confusion around terms as we begin thinking of Christ as our prophet, priest, and king. The confusion is not so much around the idea of Jesus as our king (the great and sovereign ruler who reigns over the hearts of his people, over the kingdoms of this world, over the church, and over all creation), but perhaps people aren't so clear as to what is meant when we speak of Christ as a prophet and as a priest. Here, it is important to remember the Old Testament offices of prophet and priest. In the Old Testament, a prophet was the mouthpiece of God. He was one who brought the word of God to the people. He made the will of God known to the nation of Israel. A priest, however, was one who went to God on behalf of the people. He was an intercessor on behalf of God's people, pleading their case before the throne of God. As we think of Christ fulfilling these roles, keep these Old Testament offices in mind.

WSC Q&A #22

Q: How did Christ, being the Son of God, become man? 
A: Christ, the Son of God, became man, by taking to himself a true body and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin.
Philippians 2:7: but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 

I once read a popular "evangelical" author and pastor explain his faith this way. He said for most Christians, their faith is like a brick wall. Remove any of the doctrinal "bricks" in the wall, and the entire wall collapses. He went on to boast how his faith is like a trampoline. If he were to find out that, say, the virgin birth was myth and not true, his Christian faith would not collapse on him, but rather he would simply bounce right back up. 

I found it remarkable that this person would use the virgin birth as an example. Why not pick a doctrine like infant baptism, or election, or an issue of church government? Surely, if we were to find out that our understanding on these doctrines were wrong, our faith could stand as well. But the virgin birth? It highlighted to me that this person did not grasp how essential the virgin birth is to Christianity. If it is not true, then our entire faith should collapse!

The incarnation of Jesus Christ (Christ becoming a true, living, breathing, fleshly man) is absolutely essential to our redemption. Only a true man could make atonement for the sins of man. The Old Testament sacrificial system shows us this. The animals could not satisfy completely for the sins of men. They could offer temporary atonement, but they could never atone in an eternal sense. They could not satisfy the justice of God concerning sinful men. Only a man, a man who was without sin, could satisfy God's justice. But man is not without sin, and therefore could have no hope in making atonement for himself. So God would, if he were to redeem man and uphold the covenant of grace, have to provide a way for a true man to make atonement for the sins of God's elect. And he did. God himself became man, took on our flesh, lived the perfect life we could not live, was obedient even to the point of death on a cross, and then died, spilled his own sinless blood, took upon himself the wrath of the Father for all the sins of God's people, and made a perfect, once-for-all-time atoning sacrifice. 

And the virgin birth is the means by which God becomes flesh. It is the vehicle of the incarnation. It shows us that Jesus Christ was a true man. He was, as Karl Barth would say, a "real son of a real mother." He didn't simply resemble man, he was man. And yet, he was conceived by God the Holy Spirit. His birth comes directly from God himself. Because of this, he can be fully man and fully God. He can stand in solidarity with sinners, and yet he can be the sinless sin-bearer. 

Take away the virgin birth, and you take away our once-for-all-time perfect sacrifice. You take away our hope. You take away our atonement for sin. You take away the idea of God being both the judge and the justifier. Were the virgin birth simply a myth, were it not true, then yes, the entire "brick wall" of our Christian faith would indeed collapse. There is no bouncing back from this reality!
 

WSC Q&A #21

Q: Who is the redeemer of God's elect?
A: The only redeemer of God's elect is the Lord Jesus Christ, who, being the eternal Son of God, became man, and so was, and continues to be, God and man in two distinct natures, and one person, forever. 
Acts 4:12: And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

Forgive the lateness of this post. It was a busy week, as Troy and I had the privilege of attending the Banner of Truth's annual Minister's Conference at Elizabethtown College. For those unfamiliar with the Banner of Truth, it's a publishing company that works very hard to republish and keep in circulation great writings of the Puritan and Reformed tradition. The conference was on Suffering in the Church, and as a young church plant, as many of you are aware, we've all shared quite a bit in suffering in our young church life. Troy and I were encouraged and lifted up this week as we heard sermon after sermon exalting Christ in our sufferings and callings as ministers of the gospel. It is our prayer that the encouragement and strength we received this week will be passed onto the people of Proclamation so that you too can be encouraged and lifted up by the great hope we have in the gospel. 

But onto this week's catechism. It's another week where there is so much meat packed into a short question and answer! First, we have the truth that Jesus Christ is the only redeemer of God's elect. We live in a world that hates exclusive claims. But the heart of the gospel is that Jesus Christ is the only way to reconciliation with the Father, the only way to eternal life. It flies in the face of our so-called "tolerant" and "inclusive" culture, and yet, it is an inclusive truth! Anyone who calls on the Lord Jesus Christ in faith for the forgiveness of sins, and trusts that he is the only redeemer of mankind, the only way to have the forgiveness of sins and eternal life shall and will be saved! As Troy often says, "Anyone can get in on this!"

Secondly, we get a glimpse into how the Father and Son work together in salvation. Notice that Jesus is called the "redeemer of God's elect". Do not miss this. Each person in the Trinity plays a very distinct role in salvation. The Father elects a people. The Son dies to redeem the elect. And as we'll see in coming weeks as we continue our study in the catechism, the Spirit regenerates and gives new life to those whom the Father elects and the Son redeems. Salvation is an act of the Triune God.

Thirdly, we see in this week's catechism a clear statement of the nature of Jesus Christ. He is the eternal son of God. The Nicene Creed stresses this point, that Jesus Christ is the eternally begotten son of God, "begotten from the Father before all ages". There was never a point where Jesus Christ did not exist, and there was never a time where he did not exist as the Son of the Father. The Father and the Son have enjoyed perfect fellowship with each other from all eternity. Furthermore, Jesus, having come to Earth in the form of a baby, taking on the nature of mankind, is now both fully God and fully man. He retains both his natures. He ascended into Heaven in the flesh, and lives there now as fully God and fully man. "Two distinct natures, and one person, forever."

These are truths that theologians for 2000 years have pondered and debated, and are important in understanding both salvation and the nature of our Lord. They help us understand God's plan to save men. They show us how Jesus Christ could atone for man, being a man himself. But let us not miss the main point of this catechism. Jesus Christ is our only hope in salvation. Jesus Christ is the solution to the fall. He is the solution to our original sin. He is the solution to our sinful actions that flow from our condition in Adam. He is the second Adam, our new federal head. He is the only hope, the only redeemer, the only name under heaven by which we are saved!

Sermon Follow Up

Nathan Lino has an interesting post over at For the Church which fits in nicely with Troy's last couple of sermons from the book of Mark:

It is curious that we as believers take no time to think about how to listen to a sermon. In fact, it makes no sense.

One would think we’d be naturally motivated to learn how to develop the spiritual discipline of listening to a sermon. Even just for a very practical, utilitarian reason–to not waste our time. Get this: If you attend Sunday morning worship 45 out of the next 52 Sundays, that is 45 x 40 minute sermons. That is 1,800 minutes or 30 hours of sermons; a significant amount of your time. If you are an adult that has been in church for many years you have spent hundreds of hours of your life sitting through sermons. Just the sheer amount of time we spend listening to sermons should at least spark curiosity in us about how to listen to a sermon effectively.

But of course, there is a far greater motivation for a believer to want to listen to a sermon well: the fact that we know preaching is God’s design and a great gift of His to us. We find it in passages like 1 Corinthians 1:20-25, 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, Ephesians 4:7-16, and 2 Timothy 4:1-5: Christ’s appointed shepherd, delivering a message from God’s Word to God’s gathered people, all under the anointing and power of God. Natural or unnatural, easy or difficult, we know at a basic Christian level that regularly sitting under the preaching ministry in our Sunday morning services is God’s plan and a great gift from Him.

Listening to a sermon is a learned discipline that can be developed in you.

So listen: if we know this is God’s plan for us and we are going to spend countless hours doing it, why wouldn’t we want to get really good at it? What if I told you listening to a sermon is a learned discipline that can be developed in you and will maximize the effect of preaching upon your life?

Here are some pointers to get you going:

First, just knowing that listening to a sermon is a spiritual discipline that must be developed is a game changer. This tells you it’s ok if you struggle to concentrate listening to a monologue for forty minutes; it doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. It also tells you that it is possible for you to develop the ability to listen to a sermon well. But, this also tells you that if you don’t put forth effort to work at it, you won’t ever develop the ability to concentrate through a sermon.

Second, I preach through books of the bible. So, most Sundays, you know in advance what passage I’ll be preaching from. Take a few moments during the week to read the text and familiarize yourself with it so you aren’t starting from scratch when the sermon starts. The more ambitious could even do a little research and bone up on some background information on the passage.

Third, pray in advance for the sermon time. Preaching is a very spiritual phenomenon: God revealed through Christ revealed through the Scriptures revealing a particular message through His appointed, earthly messenger to a particular audience on a particular Sunday. It is a highly spiritual phenomenon and if you don’t approach it spiritually, you won’t experience its full effect upon your life. So, in advance, pray for the Holy Spirit to give me His message for NEHBC and to help me deliver it. Pray for the congregation and yourself to hear and understand it. We need the message delivered effectively and we need the message received effectively. Both require the work of the Holy Spirit in us.

Fourth, know your learning style and prepare for the sermon time accordingly. Here are some examples of how I do it: I am easily distracted by people around me. So, my solution is to sit in the very front and center of the room. Even when Nicole and I were 22 year old newlyweds without children, we sat in the exact same seats as lay people in the church to which we belonged in North Carolina that we sit in as lead pastor couple now: second row, front and center. If my pastor has a message for me from God, I want to be able to concentrate, which for me means sitting up front. I also know my mind wanders; a laser like focus I do not have. My mind resembles the attention span of a Labrador puppy more than a King Cobra. So, my solution is to take notes when I listen to a sermon. By taking notes, it forces me to concentrate more, and it keeps my mind on message.

Finally, here is a basic technical aspect of a sermon that can help you focus: a sermon has a “big idea;” a main, central truth or principle. Everything the preacher says is going to be about that principle: he will show it to you in the text and then flesh it out, argue for it, defend it, apply it, etc. Different preachers use different approaches to showcasing the big idea of the sermon. Some build up to it as the sermon unfolds so it doesn’t come out until later in the sermon, or some announce it at the beginning of the sermon and then unpack it as the sermon goes along–you know, the whole “tell them what you are going to say, say it, then tell them what you told them” approach to teaching. Here’s a tip for finding the central truth of the sermon: generally, it is a sentence that the preacher keeps saying repeatedly for emphasis. Once you find it, write it down, and lock it down in your mind. Everything the preacher says in the sermon is about this one main, central truth or principle. Knowing this, go into the sermon seeking the big idea–this will really help you concentrate and understand Christ’s message to you.