Jump Start # 1850

Matthew 5:43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.’”

My sermon yesterday morning, for Mother’s Day, was a look at the role of women in the kingdom. Within that we took a look what role culture has in shaping the New Testament message. Modern academia and the actions of most modern churches reflect a belief that society influences and shapes the will of God. One example of this is the role of women in the modern church. Before the 1960’s hardly any church used women in the pulpit, leadership roles or in the direction of the church. Today, it’s just the opposite and very common to find women in every role possible in the modern church. When pushed to explain the reason for the change, the most common explanation is “culture.” As society has opened up it’s understanding and views of women, the church has adopted those views. The same could be said about the use of practicing homosexuals within the modern church pulpit and leadership. Just a short time ago, that was never heard of. Society and culture has shifted it’s stance and the modern church has followed.

Multiple doctrinal and moral issues have been changed because of this cultural shift. Look at the history of divorce and remarriage, you’ll see modern churches following the steps of society. Look at the use of alcohol, and you’ll find the modern church following society. This has become so accepted and so normal that people do not see what is taking place. Even among God’s people this thinking is beginning to show itself.

There are a few basic principles that we need to understand concerning culture and the word of God.

First, as our verse illustrates, God never used culture to shape His word. God stuck a stake down in the ground and declared that this is what He says. This is true of a woman’s role in the kingdom and it’s true of what God says about divorce. Our verse today, loving your enemy and praying for those who persecute you, didn’t fit with the Jewish mind and it didn’t set well in the Gentile world. It was “counter cultural.” It wasn’t the common thought of the day. God didn’t take a poll of what people thought or wanted and then revealed His will. He placed His word into the world, whether it fit or not. The fact that women are included in the genealogy of Jesus and it was women who first saw the empty tomb shows how counter culture God’s word is. The fact that Peter tells husbands to “honor” their wives and the Galatians were told that the husband and wife were one and heirs in God’s eyes certainly didn’t flow well with the modern thinking of the first century world. When people declare that the reason men were preachers and elders in the first century world was because of the culture of the times, they really do not understand what they are saying. God never used the current culture to form or flavor His will.

Second, God’s word transcends all cultures. What God says in Romans 13 about the citizens responsibility toward the government, extends to all times and all governments. When those words were written, it was not a democracy that was in place, but dictators of Caesars ruled the world. Forms of governments have changed, but those principles remain valid and true.

Third, culture is always changing, and most times, it moves away from God. We see that in our times. Things are not getting better. People are accepting wrong more and more. States are legalizing drugs. Our times have moved past same-sex marriages to the transgender issue. A man looks like a man, but on some days, he feels like a woman, whatever that means. One day he is a she and the next day, he is back to being a he. Before long, he will be a dog or a tree. This goofy, mixed up, liberal, stand-for-nothing society is marching away from God. Do you really believe that God would allow a godless society, such as Rome or America to form His will? That’s where many people are today, even in the thinking of the modern church. Instead of changing our ways, we are changing the Bible. It’s easier for folks to say, “That doesn’t apply today, because times have changed. That was written for them and not for us.” And the sad thing is, folks are buying into that nonsense. If the Bible is shaped by culture, then it means the Bible is always changing. Jude said, “Contend for the faith once delivered…” And Peter wrote, “God has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness…” How could that be if the word of God is continually evolving and changing?

Fourth, not all cultures are the same, even at the same time. The freedom that women have in America, is not the same for women today in Iran. So which culture shapes the Bible? Is it possible that the message changes from nation to nation? So in America, women could be in the pulpit because our culture accepts that, but at the same time it would be wrong for a woman to be in the pulpit in Iran, because their culture does not allow that. Does that make any sense? How can God’s word be right in one place but wrong in another place?

Following the pied piper of culture is not the direction we need to go. We need to look at the Bible as it was written and understand and believe that God knew what He was talking about and accept that the Bible is not a fluid, ever changing message and means one thing to one person and something else to someone else. That’s goofy. Folks that say that need a backbone to stand where God wants us to stand.

Paul said that we are not to be conformed to the world. Friendship with the world, James wrote, is enmity with God. With such drastic passages, do you think that God would then go against that Himself and allow the feelings of modern man to dictate His doctrine and will?

It’s time we flushed modern thinking out of our minds, and out of the modern church. It’s time we got back to reading, studying and understanding the message of the Bible. Holiness. Commitment. Faithfulness. These are the themes throughout the N.T. Moderns have changed those themes into self awareness, happiness and doing whatever you feel like. Their message is without Biblical support. Their message may fill the heart and the church buildings but it doesn’t match what the Bible says. Modern authors have filled bookstores with this poison. Liberal professors who really do not understand the Bible message themselves are teaching gullible young minds this cultural theology. Modern preachers spend less time with an open Bible and more time trying to capture the flavor of the current culture. Stop being cute. Stop quoting MTV, modern movies and songs and dressing like you are going to the beach. It’s time to be a man of God. It’s time to stand up, stand up for Jesus. It’s time to stand upon the word of God.

If you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything. And we see that. The old black and white Superman shows would begin with, “look, up in the sky…it’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Superman.” The identity of the modern church is, “Look, it’s a coffees shop…it’s a homeless shelter…it’s a school…it’s a church.” No one knows. It’s changing all the time.

Stick with God. Stick with what God has said. Don’t change the message. Change your heart.

Roger

Jump Start # 1849

Matthew 20:20 “Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him.”

With Mother’s Day upon us I thought it would be good to look at this story of the mother of James and John. This was a mother who believed in her sons. We are not told if she did this on her own or if she and her boys had been talking about this. She comes to Jesus and asks if her two boys can sit on the right and the left in His kingdom.

We have to take a step back and look at what is taking place here. James and John are not in the fourth grade. They are grown men. They have their own jobs. If they are close to Jesus’ age, then they are in their 30’s. Can you imagine your mom going to your place of work and asking your boss to promote you?

Our passage shows that she had respect in what she did. She came and bowed to Jesus. She requested, not demanded. Jesus would not grant this request. The context ends by stating the other ten apostles became indignant with James and John. Tensions flared.

There are some commendable things about this mother.

First, she believed in what Jesus was doing. Jesus had just told the disciples that He was going to be crucified in Jerusalem and be raised up on the third day. Her request follows those words. She believed that Jesus was doing something good. She wanted her boys involved in that work. Rather than saying, “Don’t get too close to that Jesus, He’s going to be killed,” she wanted her boys right beside Him.

Second, she wanted her boys to be actively involved in the Kingdom work. Sitting on the right and left hand, meant positions of authority. She wanted her boys to be engaged deeply in the Lord’s kingdom. No sitting on the sidelines. No sticking your big toe in the water. She wanted them right there, right where Jesus was. Of all the things a mother could ask, she didn’t ask for her boys to be safe. She didn’t ask for a long life for her boys. She wanted her boys to be right beside Jesus.

Third, she had big expectations for her boys spiritually. The Lord’s work wasn’t paying off financially for the disciples. They weren’t getting rich. They weren’t dealing in real estate. They weren’t rubbing elbows with Jerusalem’s upper class. There were no limo rides. No banquets. No celebrity red carpet walks. That wasn’t the way of Christ. The multitudes that first heard Him were common folks, mostly poor. They didn’t have anything to give the Lord other than their devotion and their hearts. Requesting that her boys sit on either side of Jesus was not going to secure their future financially. She saw something more important.

I am impressed with this mother. Although she didn’t fully understand what she was asking, her heart was in the right place and she was wanting her boys to do well spiritually. She saw goodness with the Lord. She wanted her boys close to Jesus.

I look at what this mother requested, and wonder if parents today would feel the same. Do we push our kids to be stars on the stage and on the field, knowing that the price that they will have to pay to succeed often will pull them away from the Lord. Instead of being beside the Lord, we are leading our kids the other way. Go for the scholarship. Go for the full ride. Get to a university and little thought is given if there is a decent church for them to attend. The demands of college sports and staying up with classes can result in kids skipping worship services. Their teammates usually are not high spiritual fiber people. Absence from God’s people and worship and hanging around those that do not know or care about the Lord, and after four years they leave the school spiritually weak or dead. James and John’s mother wasn’t after that. She wanted her sons next to Jesus. The inner circle. Close. Involved.

When you look into that little 8 year old’s eyes, do you think, I hope someday he’ll serve God’s people as an elder or a preacher? Do we share those dreams with our kids? Do we have spiritual hopes and dreams for our children? Do we “talk up” God’s kingdom? Do we place a high value on spiritual things? Or, do we think, and maybe even say, “You can do better than preach.” “Why would you want to be an elder?” So different, than a mom who wanted her boys on the right and left side of Jesus.

Here are a few suggestions:

• Your kids need to have their own Bibles. Have visiting preachers sign those Bibles. My kids still have theirs. Looking at those signatures is like walking down memory lane of many godly men who loved and preached God’s word. Several have passed on. In our home, preachers were heroes.

• As your kids get older, let them know the elders personally. My youngest two, when in high school, used to take one of the elders out on a regular basis to get root beer floats and hear his war stories. I was not invited. It was something that they wanted to do. To this day, that dear man is very close to their hearts. There was generations separating those conversations, but there was goodness and appreciation for the Lord that bound them together.

• Get your family actively involved with the congregation you attend. Participate. Attend. Have people over. Help out. Do what you can. On a work day, bring the kids down to the church house and pull weeds. Get them to the Gospel Meetings, VBS and other things. Showing them that the kingdom is important will raise the bar on what you will see in their lives. I don’t think Jesus randomly picked the first twelve men he saw to be his apostles. Although the apostles had some trouble grasping what all Jesus said, the Lord never had to get on them for moral issues. We never find Peter drunk. We don’t find John spending the night with his girl friend. These were quality spiritual people that Jesus chose. They loved God. All of this began, not when they started walking with Jesus, but as they were raised by their families. Congregations need to provide opportunities for young Christian men to serve. This is where they first get a taste of helping and teaching. Talk it up.

• Help guide them into fields of study that will serve others. Making the most money isn’t the main thing. Finding something that you have a passion for, can glorify God with and make a difference in the lives of others is essential. Help them. Talk about the ups and downs of different jobs. Keep the spiritual picture before their eyes.

• Pray for the spiritual success of your children. We can’t go to Jesus as James and John’s mother did, but we can bow to the Lord in prayer. We pray for our children’s health and safety, what about their spiritual wellbeing? Pray that they grow in the Lord. Pray that they can help others spiritually. Pray that they will be strong and powerful in the Lord. Pray that they will make wise spiritual choices in their lives.

Do you remember what happened to James and John? James was the first apostle to be martyred. John was the last apostle to die. First and last. A mom who wanted her boys to stick close to Jesus, be involved in the kingdom and participate in the greatest work in the world. Not a bad ambition. Maybe if more moms wished for that, the world would be a better place.

Roger