A New Beginning

Starting today, I am the new pastor at Rosemont Baptist Church in Montrose, Colorado. I am honored that this church has not only voted to have me lead them as pastor, but today the church will participate in an installation service, during which a representative from the church and myself will be signing a covenant outlining our responsibilities to each other. I anticipate being a moving and meaningful part of the service tomorrow.

I will be the one preaching tomorrow so instead of preaching a charge to myself, I will preaching a charge to everyone there. I will preaching from 2 Timothy 3:16-4:5. I will be preaching on four marks of effective ministry.

To have an effective ministry, we must...

Recognize the Character of the Bible (3:16-17)

• It is inspired
• It is profitable
• It equips us

Recognize the Character of Your Ministry (4:1-2)

• Our ministries must be bible-centered
• Our ministries must be prepared
• Our ministries must be discipling
• Our ministries must be patient
• Our ministries must be instructive

Recognize the Character of the Culture (4:3-4)

• The culture rejects sound doctrine
• The culture gathers false teachers
• The culture only hears what pleases them
• The culture refuses to hear the truth
• The culture follows myths  

Recognize the Character of the Minister (4:5)

• We must be counter-cultural
• We must be serious (taking the things of God seriously)
• We must endure hardship
• We must be evangelistic
• We must fulfill our ministry

I pray that God will speak through me during the sermon and that He will be glorified.

Lord, let my beginning and entire ministry at Rosemont lift you up and bring you the honor you deserve. Let the ministry here bring many people into Your Kingdom for Your glory. Thank for you privilege not only to serve you, but to serve you here. 
 
I am looking forward to this new opportunity to serve Christ by shepherding the wonderful people who make us Rosemont Baptist Church. It is my desire to post regularly here in order to encourage the body of Christ at Rosemont as well as anyone else who stops by.

Please post here if there is anything you would like to me to address of even if you just want to say "Hi". I would love to know if anyone is encouraged by this blog.

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The Work of the Holy Spirit - Filling

The final study in our look at the Holy Spirit is the filling of the Spirit. This is another greatly misunderstood aspect of the work of the Spirit. I believe the misunderstanding stems from an emphasis on the work "filling" and focusing in on the idea of quantity. The idea, wrong though it is, is if something is filled then there is more than there was before. Thus, there are some believers who have more of the Spirit than others, and there are those believers who do not have as much of the Spirit as another. This is not only a gross misinterpretation of Scripture, it also produces within the body of Christ different "classes" and thus a type of elitism. It places terrible burdens on those who have not displayed some type of evidence of filling which, in turn, brings many to produce these evidences falsely or to give up on Christianity all together (I have heard many friends give personal testimony to this effect). The idea of filling of the Spirit must be understood for one to be a healthy Christian.

The outline I used for this sermon is as follows:

I. What is filling of the Holy Spirit? (Eph 5:18)
          A. Filling is not maturity
          B. Filling is control

II. What are the conditions in which we can be filled?
          A. Do not quench the Holy Spirit (1 Thes. 5:19)
          B. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit (Eph. 4:30)
          C. Walk in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16)

III. What happens when we are filled?
          A. We will display Christian character (Gal. 5:22-25)
          B. We will truly worship (Eph 5:19-20)
          C. We will engage in service (Eph. 5:21)

I think the crux of this topic is found in (Ephesian 5:18. In short, this verse indicates that filling of the Spirit is not about maturity but it is about control. The picture used in this verse is the similarity between alcohol and the Spirit. When alcohol is in control of people they are no longer in control but the alcohol is. Inebriated people will say things they would not normally say, they will do things they would not normally do, think in ways they would not normally think. The alcohol controls that person while they are drunk. THIS IS THE POINT!

The filling of the Spirit means that someone is not allowing alcohol to control them but instead the Spirit is in complete control. A person, full of the Spirit, will say things he would not normally say, he will do things he would not normally do, he thinks in ways he would not normally thing. The Spirit is in control. Filling of the Spirit is not about acting drunk in front of a crowd, it is not about having more of the Holy Spirit than the guy sitting next to, it is not about how spiritually mature a person is. It is not about quantity. It is about control. It is not how much of the Spirit you have but how much the Spirit has you (I know...a cliché but it speaks the truth).

When a person accepts Christ, they receive the Holy Spirit and they get ALL of the Holy Spirit. However, the person must yield more and more control of their life to the Spirit. It is this process of yielding which can be characterized as filling of the Spirit.

So, if filling is yielding our lives to the Holy Spirit, then there must be some conditions which more easily allows that yielding. This is my second point: what are the conditions which allow the Spirit to have more control of our lives. First, we must not quench the Spirit. In 1 Thessalonians 5:19 the Holy Spirit is pictured as a fire and we are told to not put that fire out in our lives. When we do not allow the Spirit to work in our lives, we are quenching the Holy Spirit. Second, we are not to grieve the Holy Spirit. We grieve the Holy Spirit when we sin. The Spirit wants to work in us but that is prevented when we live in rebellion. This grieves Him and He cannot be in control if we are willing to allow sin to control us. Finally, we are to walk in the Spirit. The point here is that our lifestyle, our habits, our though process, all need to be more and more under the control of the Spirit. Walking in the Spirit does not mean that we will obtain sinless perfection on earth, but it means we are making that our goal.

So if we understand that filling is control of the Spirit in the believer's life, and that there are conditions which allow the believer to yield to the Spirit, then what does that look like? What happens when someone is filled with the Spirit? While there are many characteristics which could be mentioned, I focused on three. First, the person filled with the Spirit will display the fruit of the Spirit. You cannot be an apple tree and not produce apples. A Christian yielded to the Spirit will display Chist-like character. Secondly, Paul tells us in the Ephesians passage that when one is controlled by the Spirit, a godly worship will be produced. Finally, Paul goes on to say that the yielded believer will be subject to others. In short, the person will serve others much like Christ came to serve.

The filling of the Spirit is simply a metaphor for the control of the Spirit in the life of a believer. To the extent one is allowing the Spirit to work and direct one's life, the results are far-reaching.

My denomination does not seem to have historically spent a lot of time preaching on the Holy Spirit, although that seems to be changing. It is good to spend some time and think about the Spirit's work in our salvation, our life, and our eternity. It is amazing thing to think of the incredible gifts God has given those who have trusted in Christ's work on the Cross and have the Spirit of God working within them.

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The Work of the Holy Spirit - Sealing

Another work of the Holy Spirit, and one that may get overlooked sometimes, is the sealing of the Holy Spirit. This work is one which should bring great hope and encouragement to the believer.

Here is the outline I used in this sermon:

I. We are sealed by the Holy Spirit (Est 8:8, Eph 1:13-14)
          A. The seal of the Spirit shows ownership (1 Cor 6:19-20)
          B. The seal of the Spirit gives security (John 10:27-29)
          C. The seal of the Spirit is irrevocable.

II. We are given a guarantee by the Spirit of God (Eph 1:13-14)
          A. The inheritance is kept for us (1 Pet 1:3-5)
          B. We are kept for the inheritance (Phil 1:6)

III. We are marked by the Spirit of God
          A. We have the mark of holiness on us (1 John 3:9)
          B. We have the mark of resemblance on us (1 John 2:6)

To help in understanding what the Ancient Near Easterner heard when the author used the picture of sealing I went to Esther 8:8. We see in this text that the owner of the seal determines how secure that seal is and if it is the king's seal then that seal is irrevocable. This is the picture of what sealing of the Spirit is. When a believer accepts Christ at that moment he or she is regenerated by the Spirit, indwelt by the Spirit, baptized by the Spirit, and at that moment the believer is sealed by the Spirit. That seal shows the ownership of that person. Like the king's signet ring, our heart, our lives, are stamped to show they are God's and God's alone. The Spirit's sealing also gives believers the security that no one will take that mark from them. This is because that seal is irrevocable. Once God stamps the believer with Him mark, the mark can never be removed.

In the Ephesians passage, Paul show a connection with the seal and the guarantee of our hope. This is my second point about the Spirit's sealing. When the Spirit seal us that sealing is a down-payment, so to speak, on eternity. It teaches us that His sealing preserves an inheritance for us. It also teaches us that He will preserve us for that inheritance.

Finally, while I touched on in my first point, I finished this study by focusing on what it means to be marked by God. The seal of God means that there is a mark on His followers. People should look at His people and know they are His people because of His mark on their lives. While there may be many "marks" which one could identify as showing God's ownership, I chose two. First, there should be a mark of holiness on those who have the seal of the Spirit. I am not advocating entire sanctification but I do believe that if someone is truly sealed by the Spirit, if they truly are a believer, their lives should not be characterized by sin. The Spirit working in our lives will result in increased holiness, from God's work and to His glory. Second, there will be a resemblance of believers to Christ. Much like some parents could never disown their children because the children look like little clones of the parents, a believer should have a walk that resembles Christ.

The sealing of the Spirit is usually not spoke of as a dramatic, dynamic work of the Spirit. This might be because 1) people would rather talk about the controversial aspects of the work of the Spirit like baptism or 2) the sealing of the Spirit seems to be mostly internal. The sealing begins as a work of God which He alone sees as a mark of His children. The results of this are more visible, like someone turning from a sinful life and living and loving more like Christ. Nevertheless, the sealing of the Spirit is an incredibly amazing work of God in the live of believers. We are marked as His and that mark is permanent and can never be removed. Because of that, we can know we will be with Him for eternity and eternity will be there for us. All of this should produce in us a desire to live more and more like the One who died for us. What a great God we serve!

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The Work of the Holy Spirit - Baptism

The next post in our study of the Holy Spirit is possibly the most controversial in the study. This is because of the misunderstanding of both Scripture and the practice of baptism. With this study, it is my goal to shed light on this topic so that the believer can be confident where he or she stands in Christ and what the baptism of the Holy Spirit means to the believer.

It is critical to understand what the bible says about the baptism of the Holy Spirit and what difference it makes in the believer’s life. Because so many have been mislead regarding this aspect of the work the Spirit, it is important to stick with what the Scripture plainly teaches regarding this topic.

Here is the outline I used:

I. We must understand its prediction (Matt 3:11, Mark 1:8, Luke 3:16, John 1:33)
          A. We need to understand the words.
                  1. Not water baptism
                  2. Meaning of the word baptism
         B. We need to understand it had not happened before Jesus
         C. We need to understand its parallel with John’s baptism

II. We must understand its fulfillment (Acts 1:5, 11:15-17)
         A. Jesus guaranteed it (Acts 1:5)
         B. Peter remembered it (Acts 11:15-17)

III. We must understand its purpose (1 Cor. 12:13)
         A. Identifies us with Christ (Gal. 3:26-28)
         B. Creates an oneness with Christ (Rom. 6:1-5)
         C. Puts us in the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:12-14)
                  1. All believers have been baptized by the Spirit
                  2. The baptism of the Spirit does not erase racial, social, and sexual differences, but it makes them irrelevant in the church.
                  3. Baptism of the Spirit is something Christ does to us.

To begin with, one must understand the predication of the baptism of the Holy Spirit to understand its fulfillment. John the Baptizer was in the wilderness baptizing people in the Jordan River and Jesus comes to be baptized by John. It is at this time John predicts the baptism of the Holy Spirit. ( Matt. 3:11, John 1:32-33). To understand this prediction we first understand the words used. To begin with, while John was baptizing in water, he made a clear delineation between what he was doing and what Jesus was going to be doing. The point is, the baptism of the Holy Spirit is not related to water baptism. Too many times the two are equated because the same word is used. The Greek word "baptidzo" literally means "to sink, to envelope, to immerse." In short, John is simply saying that he is enveloping, immersing people in water, but Jesus will envelope or immerse people in the Holy Spirit.

To understand the prediction of the Holy Spirit we also need to understand that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is connected to the work of Christ. It is not connected to a religious work or rite but it comes to the believer because Jesus Christ died on the cross, was resurrected, and then ascended to heaven. The prediction of the baptism of the Holy Spirit indicates it is not connected with water baptism and it is not something that people work for or deserve.

Finally, to understand the prediction of the baptism of the Spirit, one must note the parallel to John's Baptism. The "stuff" John baptized with was water; the "stuff" Jesus baptizes with was the Spirit. John plunged people into water; Jesus would plunge them into the Holy Spirit. John would cover those who came to him with water; Jesus would cover those who come to him with the Holy Spirit. The point to all of this is that many today teach that the baptism of the Holy Spirit comes when one is baptized in water. This first point, "We must understand its prediction" shows us that the two are parallelled but are not connected.

After we understand the prediction, we must understand the fulfillment of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. The fulfillment of John’s prediction came at Pentecost. We know this because first, Jesus guaranteed it. In this passage, Jesus has risen from the dead and had been appearing to people for forty days. He is about to ascend into heaven to sit on His throne and he said (Acts 1:5). Jesus ended His ministry on earth they way it began: with John’s prediction of the baptism with the Holy Spirit. My point is that Jesus pointed to Pentecost as the fulfillment of the Baptism of the Spirit. This means when the apostles received the Spirit, they were also baptized in the Spirit. It was not two separate events but one event - receiving the Spirit and being baptized in the Spirit.

In addition to Jesus guaranteeing it, Peter remembered Jesus guaranteeing it. In Acts 11:15-17, Peter is recounting the story of Cornelius receiving Christ after Peter had a vision in which God told him Gentiles could also receive the Holy Spirit. So Peter went to Cornelius’s house, share Christ, they received Christ, and were baptized both with the Spirit and with water. So when Cornelius was saved, it brought to Peter’s mind Jesus guarantee of the Holy Spirit baptism. My point is that when we see the actual baptism of the Holy Spirit in the Scripture, it is an event that happens at salvation. Cornelius’ experience is the normative Christian experience for today’s believers.

In short, when one understands the fulfillment of the prediction of the Spirit's baptism, one will see that when a person accepts Christ, they are baptized in the Holy Spirit AT THAT MOMENT. Many today teach that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is separate event to conversion. Many who teach this indicate that this baptism is evidenced by speaking in tongues. This teaching is not only a misunderstanding of Scripture, it places undue burdens on those who have not spoken in tongues and makes them feel like second-rate believers when, in fact, they have been just as baptized in the Spirit as every other believer the minute they trusted in Christ.

Finally, after understanding the Spirit's baptism and understanding its fulfillment, we must understand the purpose of the baptism of the Spirit. To put if briefly, the baptism of the Holy Spirit identifies us with Christ (Gal. 3:26-28), creates an oneness with Christ (Rom. 6:1-5), and puts us in the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:12-14). The baptism of the Spirit is not about another level of spirituality as compared to other believers. It is about becoming one with Christ and one with the body of Christ.

The points made in this sermon are greatly debated but I believe this is what Scripture clearly teaches. The two main misunderstanding connected to the baptism of the Holy Spirit are 1) the baptism of the Holy Spirit comes when one is baptized and 2) the baptism of the Holy Spirit is a separate event than one's conversion. Neither of these are correct and neither are supported in Scripture. The baptism of the Spirit happens the moment one trusts in Christ. I hope this study helps. Please post any comments and opinions related to this issue.

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The Work of the Holy Spirit - Indwelling

Another aspect of the Holy Spirit's work is that He indwells believers. While I attempted to make each of these sermons an expository sermon, that is, examining one main pericope of Scripture, the rest of these sermons on the Holy Spirit are more like topical sermons. The remaining sermons are biblical and they are theologically sound but are pulled from various passages throughout Scripture.

The Spirit's indwelling is an amazing part of the Spirit's work in the believer's life and is important to understand. Here is the outline I used for this sermon.

I. What is Indwelling? (1 Cor. 3:16; 2 Tim 1:14)

II. What does indwelling provide?

          A. Indwelling makes God’s presence possible. (John 14:16-17)
                  1. The new presence would be their advocate.
                  2. The new presence would bring new knowledge.
                  3. The new presence had not been experience before (John 7:37-39)

         B. Indwelling makes eternal life possible (Rom. 8:9-11)
                  1. The Spirit shows ownership (9)
                  2. The Spirit brings life after death (10-11)

         C. Indwelling makes holiness possible (1 Cor. 6:18-20)
                  1. The temple
                      a. There was great care in the design of the temple
                      b. Great wealth in the construction of the temple.
                      c. The people knew the temple is where God resided.
                  2. Believer’s are the temple of God
                  3. Strength for holiness comes from the Spirit (Eph. 3:16)

This study begins with understanding indwelling. Indwelling is a separate act than that of regeneration even thought it occurs as the same time. Like regeneration, the minute one places their trust in Christ, that person becomes indwelt by the Holy Spirit. "Dwell" in the 1 Corinthians passage is a word which means "to occupy a house, to reside" and by implication it means "to cohabit" with someone. In the 2 Timothy passage "dwell" is made up to two words. The first word is the preposition which denotes a fixed location. It would be the word "in." The second is the word we just discussed: "to reside, occupy, dwell." The Holy Spirit indwells us. When we accept Christ, the Spirit of God comes down and takes up residence within us. He occupies, sets up house, within us.

The word "dwell" or "indwell" in Scripture has a permanency to it. In our culture, there is such a transitory nature of the word "residency." We hear something about occupying a house, we think in a temporary nature. That is not the case for the Ancient Near East. "Dwelling" means permanency we will talk about that more in a moment. My point is that indwelling occurs and it occurs for each and every believer, it happens at the moment of salvation, and it is permanent. There is never an evacuation or expulsion of the Spirit from the believer’s life.

The second part of this study delves into the result of the Spirit's indwelling in the believer's life. The first amazing provision of indwelling is that God is presence is possible. This new presence would be their advocate, or paraklete, a word that It literally means "someone who is called along side" and has the connotation of someone comes along aside to help you through. This new presence would also bring new knowledge. Jesus promises the disciples they will know things they did not really know before. The point is Christ said that He will love and disclose Himself to those who have the Spirit, the paraklete. Finally, the new presence had not been experience before. This presence of the Spirit would be different than anyone had experienced before because Jesus had not been sacrificed and had not been risen from the dead. This means the indwelling we have right now as believers is something Abraham did not have, Moses did not have it. David did not have it. Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel did not have it. Even John the Baptist did not have it. It is a new presence which was brought by the glorification of Jesus. The indwelling provides believers with a unique presence of God in our lives.

The second provision of the Spirit's indwelling is that it makes eternal life possible. Being indwelt by the Spirit means we have eternal life. This is because the Spirit shows ownership. When one receives Christ, the Spirit regenerates that person, and He is poured out upon that person. But this also means the Spirit of God comes and makes His residence within them. This means that person belong to Christ. Therefore, if you have the Spirit, you belong to Christ. If you do not have the Spirit, you do not belong to Christ. Additionally, the Spirit brings life after death. The same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead dwells in believers and doesn’t do death. This fleshly body may fade and die. But first, believers' spirits are alive because of the Holy Spirit in them. But in addition to that, it is not just a Spirit resurrection. The Spirit will raise our mortal bodies from the dead. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit guarantees us eternal life.

The final provision of the Spirit's indwelling covered in this study is that it is only through the Spirit's indwelling that the believer can be holy. By comparing believers and the Old Testament temple, Paul utilized this powerful image to show that God provides holiness to the believer. Like the temple in the Old Testament was holy ground because God indwelt it, the believer is holy because that same God indwells them (please note: I do not hold to sinless perfection or that the believer lives in perfect holiness. Only that God sees Christ's sinlessness in those who have trusted in Christ). The point is that the Spirit is the one who strengthens our inner man for the holiness needed as the temple of God. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit leads us to a holy life.

Once again, this is not an exhaustive discussion on the indwelling of the Spirit but is a nice introduction to the study of indwelling of the Spirit. It is an amazing and awesome idea that the God of Creation and the Sustainer of Life resides in believers and gives them the power needed to live in a way that glorifies him. And if you are believer, all of this is available. You have the presence of God within you. You have eternal life. And you have the power through the Holy Spirit for holiness. If you are not a believer, surrender to Him today.

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The Work of the Holy Spirit - Regeneration

After discussion who the Holy Spirit is and what He does, the next five sermons focused in on specific works of the Holy Spirit. These are not meant to be an exhaustive list or exhaustive sermons on each topic. The list of the work of the Holy Spirit in each believer's life would be a long list indeed, and each topic could be expanded more than what could be covered in a 30 minute sermon. Nevertheless, this session deals with Spirit's work of regeneration. I based the sermon on Titus 3:3-7 and here is my basic outline.

I. The Holy Spirit shows us we need a Savior (3)
          A. Sins of a person nature/Sins of the inner person
          B. Sins of the outer life/Sins of the outer person

II. The Holy Spirit is how God saves us (4-6)
        A. Not through good works but through grace & mercy (4-5a,7)
        B. Through the washing of the Holy Spirit (5b)
                    1. Washing produces regeneration
                    2. Washing produces renewal
                    3. The washing is complete (6)

III. The Holy Spirit is how God adopts us (7)
          A. Adoption begins with justification
          B. Adoption makes us heirs
          C. Adoption gives hope

To begin with, the Spirit shows us we need a Savior. This the first step of the Spirit's work of regeneration. He point out the sins of an internal nature (foolish, disobedient, and deceived) and the sins of an external nature (enslaved to lusts and pleasures). The sins of internal nature could be considered mental or intellectual. It deals in the realm of the mind, like disbelief and deceived. The sins of the external nature are summed up in the word for "pleasures" used here. It indicates this is a hedonistic lifestyle that only is concerned with pleasing self, that is, in a physical way. Hence, the reference to the external nature or flesh.

The point is we all were either there at one point in our lives, or we live there now. In either case, as the previous post on the Holy Spirit discusses, it is the Spirit who convicts one of these sins. Paul begins his discourse on regeneration with the topic of conviction of sin.

Next, we see that when one trusts in the work of Christ on the cross, we are saved through the Spirit's work in our life. He saved us through his grace (getting something we do not deserve) and his mercy (not getting something we do deserve). One is not saved through religious activities, good works, or a sacrificial lifestyle. It is only through God's grace and mercy we are save. Paul states this in an interesting way and enlightens us of the Spirit's work in salvation.

The phrase Paul uses "by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit" is much debated. "Washing" automatically brings to mind for many the act of baptism. But first of all, Paul has JUST SAID that it was not through any work we do but through God's grace and mercy alone. Also, I am not sure why baptism, of any mode, could be considered "washing." Pouring, sprinkling, nor immersion could be describes as one washing. But because of the mistaken belief that baptism can cleanse one of sin, many mistake this as a description of the physical act of baptism. This is wrong and changes the whole tenor of what Paul is saying.

"Washing" here is solely the spiritual act the Spirit works in the believer's life. Through my study I have come to the conclusion that washing describes both regeneration and renewal. In other words, the phrase could read, "the washing of regeneration and the washing of renewing by the Holy Spirit." The Holy Spirit washes us and this washing results in both regeneration and renewal. The word used for regeneration is literally "to be born again." The word "Renewing" is literally the word "renovation." Once a person accepts Christ's sacrifice, the Spirit renovates the person and they are born anew.

Paul finishes his thought by saying that the washing the Spirit provides is complete. He says that God "pours put" the Holy Spirit "richly" on believers. The phrase "pouring out" is in the aorist tense, which connotes a historical act from the past completed in the past. Paul is speaking to believers so they had received the Holy Spirit in their past. They received Him and it was completed in the past.
When we accept Christ, the Holy Spirit is poured out on us. And He is poured out richly, generously. We are not given only part of the Holy Spirit only later to get more of Him. Paul tells us that God’s pouring out of the Holy Spirit is totally complete for each one who receives Him.

The final part of the Holy Spirit's regeneration has to do with adoption. Once regeneration occurs in the believer's life, which happens at the moment of surrender to Christ, that person is justified. The popular definition of justification is "declared innocent" and can be cleverly summed up by saying "being justified is being able to say that God sees me 'just if I'd' never sinned."

Adoption also makes us heirs to the promise God has given His children. In fact,
Romans 8:14-17 tells us that believers are co-heirs with Christ. This is an amazing truth which should produce hope and encouragement to every believe, which is the final point.

Because we are adopted and heirs, this means that we have a hope that the lost do not have. Hope in Scripture is not wishful thinking. Instead, it is expectant waiting. The two are diametrically different and must be understood. The believer, being regeneration is adopted and is now expectantly waiting for the time when he or she will spend eternity with their Creator and Savior.

The Spirit's power in our lives is powerful and amazing. This first lesson on the specific work of the Spirit in our lives should stir the believer to praise, worship, and service of the one who so lavishly loves us.

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What Does the Holy Spirit Do?

Getting back to the topic I was posting on before my missions break, I will be posting on my sermon series on the Holy Spirit. My second sermon was about what the Holy Spirit does. As the first sermon was a general discussion of who the Holy Spirit is, this sermon was a general discussion of what He does. Using John 16:8-14, here is my sermon outline.

I. The Holy Spirit convicts the lost (8-11).
         A. Of sin because they do not believe (9)
         B. Of righteousness Christ is not physically here (11).
         C. Of judgment because Satan has been judged (10).

II. The Holy Spirit helps the believer (12-13)
         A. He guides us in all truth
         B. He guides by speaking (13)
                  1. He does not speak on His own initiative.
                  2. He speaks what he hears
                  3. He discloses what is to come

III. The Holy Spirit glorifies Christ (14)

This passage provides the reader with great overview of the work of the Spirit. To begin with, He convicts the lost of sin. He explicitly says that this is the sin of unbelief. It is the Holy Spirit who convicts the world, a word John uses throughout his gospel to refer to humankind who are opposed to God and His will, of their unbelief. The Holy Spirit convicts the lost that they have rejected Christ. It is the Spirit’s job to convict men of this rejection. The Spirit pricks men’s consciences of their unbelief. We cannot logically argue them into heaven. We cannot provide enough evidence to convict the lost of their rejection. We cannot nag someone until they receive Christ. It is the Holy Spirit’s job alone. We are supposed to have an answer for our faith and being ready to give an answer is a must. But in the end, the Spirit is the one convicting of unbelief and the lost person must respond to that conviction.


The Spirit also convicts the world of righteousness. When Christ was walking on earth, people could look at Him and see the epitome of righteousness. However, Christ rose to heaven and is now not able to be seen. Because Christ’s physical body is not here and cannot be seen, the Holy Spirit is the one convicting of unrighteousness.

You may have seen this when you tell people you are a Christian. They may have been cursing one minute but then after you tell them they immediately clean up their language and begin talking in church-talk. This is a little like what we are talking about. They are convicted of righteousness but are looking at it in relative terms. Imagine if Christ showed up in His glorified body and stood before them or us. I would think our thoughts, words, and actions would change. But since He does not physically show up, the Spirit is the one who convicts of unrighteousness. This gap between our unrighteousness and God’s righteousness teaches us we need a bridge to God, a mediator. It is the first step in our relationship with God. We need Christ and the forgiveness he brings. The Spirit brings that conviction about.

The Holy Spirit also convicts the world of judgment. This is not the future judgment. We know this by the context. Satan has already been judged. This is in the perfect tense, which indicates an act in the past completed in the past, but the results continue on from that completed act. Satan was judged on the cross and was condemned. He may be the prince of this earth right now, but his fate has been sealed already.

"Judgment" here to the lost is that when we examine every thought, word, and action in light of Christ’s absolute righteousness, we realize we are condemned because we do not measure up. John referred to this once already in the His gospel (John 3:16-19). The fact is, the lost have already been on the cross and they have been found guilty. In fact, every one of us have been judged and found guilty. The good news is that if one receives the forgiveness provided for by Christ, that judgment has been paid for by Christ Himself.

So the summary of the first part of the sermon is this: The Holy Spirit is the one who convicts people that they have been judged. It is this conviction that leads people to accept Christ. The Holy Spirit convicts the world they have rejected Christ, their righteousness falls short, and they have been judged and found guilty as a result of this.

The second aspect of the Holy Spirit's work is that He helps believers. He guides the Spirit by speaking to the believer. John tells the reader three things about the Spirit's communication with believers. John first says the Spirit does not speak on His own initiative. Second, John says the Spirit speaks only what he hears from the Father and Son. Finally, the Spirit discloses what is to come. Now, when Jesus said this to His disciples, it is clear he was referring to all the disciples would encounter as recorded in the Book of Acts. But also, in reference to John specifically, the book of Revelation and the end times.

The final aspect John reveals about the Spirit's work is that He glorifies Christ. I believe this is where most teaching on the Holy Spirit goes awry. If we look at the Holy Spirit, we should see him pointing to Christ. The Spirit does not draw attention to Himself but to Christ. In short, the Spirit points to, or glorifies, Christ and Christ shows us what God is really like.

This provides the listener a nice introduction to the to the work of the Holy Spirit. Knowing that I was going to spend the next five week speaking about the work of the Spirit, I was not concerned that this was not an exhaustive study on the work of the Spirit. In fact, there are some very important things the Spirit does which are not brought up in this passage of John. However, it provided a great starting point for delving deeper into the work of the Spirit.

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Who is the Holy Spirit?

My first sermon of the series on the Holy Spirit was about who the Holy Spirit is. This was a general introduction of the Holy Spirit. It was by no means exhaustive but it was the basics of introducing someone to the Holy Spirit. Here is the basic outline I used.

I. The Holy Spirit is a person.
         A. He has a mind (Rom. 8:26-27)
         B. He has a will (1 Cor. 12:11)
         C. He has emotions (Eph. 4:30).
         D. He communicates (Acts 13:2, 16:6-7)
II. The Holy Spirit is Deity (God)
         A. God’s characteristics
                  1. He is omniscient (1 Cor. 2:10-11)
                  2. He is omnipotent (Luke 1:35)
                  3. He is omnipresent (Psalm 139:7-10)
         B. God’s existence
                  1. He is eternal (Heb. 9:14)
                  2. He is part of the Trinity (Matt. 3:16-17)
III. What are the Implications?
         A. We can have a relationship with Him.
         B. We should worship Him.
         C. He is not far off

This provided a nice introduction to the whole series. The main aspects I portrayed through this sermon was first, that the Holy Spirit is a person and not a force nor an idea. Scripture shows He possesses characteristics of personhood which is an important aspect of understanding who the Holy Spirit is. It should be noted that "person" here is used in the classical sense of the word and should be distinguished from "human." Saying the Spirit is a person is NOT saying that He is human but instead it is saying that He is an individual being.

Secondly, while He is a person, He is fully God and possesses the same characteristics as the other two persons of the Trinity. It is important to understand that the Spirit is wholly God and is equal to the Father and Son. While taking a different role, much as the Son took on a different role, the Spirit is still an eternal part of the Trinity and is God.

Finally, I emphasized what different these truths should make in the daily life of every believer. Because the Spirit is a person, we can relate to Him. Because He is God, we should worship Him. Because He is God AND a person, it means that He is not far off but is active in our lives. Again, while not exhaustive, these implications should change how we relate to our God and how we live our lives.

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Wrapping Up With Worship

As we come to the last psalm in our study of the Psalms of Ascents, we come to Psalm 134. A quick review will allow us to see the themes which lead up to the final of these psalms. In Psalm 130, the psalmist prays about the conflict which comes from inside himself. In the next psalm, Psalm 131, the psalmist praises God for the life which God gives him. In Psalm 132, he begins to pray for the whole of God's people by anticipating the restoration of the Davidic line. In Psalm 133, the psalmist praises God for the unity found in the people of God. Not surprisingly, with Psalm 134 this series of psalms ends in a prayer for more worship to flow from God's people.

Read Psalm 134 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

Here is my working outline. I would appreciate any suggestions for improvement.

The Worship of the Lord

I. The continuation of worship (1)

II. The expectation in worship (2)

III. The blessing from worship (3)

It is fitting that the last psalm of this series ends in an exhortation to continue in worship. One can imagine the priest climbing the steps of the temple singing one of these fifteen psalms for every step he takes. Then he stands at the top of the stairs and sings at the top of his voice the words of this psalm.

He begins by first encouraging those who are to serve the Lord into the night to continue to praise the Lord. The priests did not serve 24 hours a day. Instead, they served in shifts. The psalmist came to Jerusalem to participate in one of the yearly celebrations which required all the males to return to Jerusalem. He came to worship and they had been worshipping all day. The psalmist now asks those serving in the temple to continue this worship into the night. The worship of the Lord should and will always continue.

Next, the psalmist tells those who are worshipping to lift their hands to the Lord in their worship. This is a physical posture which indicates a spiritual attitude of expectation. The lifting of hands to heaven shows the worshipper is expecting to receive whatever they have asked for from the Lord. It shows they know the Lord is able and willing to give to His people. The NASB says raise your hands "to" the sanctuary and the NIV says to raise your hands "in" the sanctuary. The NASB is indicating where the receiving is coming from and the NIV seems to connote the place where the worship is taking place. While a minor issue, it is one which needs to be addressed.

Finally, the psalmist asks the Lord will bless the reader. One of the draw backs of the NIV translation is that it translates the word "Bless" as "Praise" as in verse 1. However, the NASB translates this psalm better in showing that verse 1 and verse 3 both have the word "bless" in. In this case, it is almost a reciprocal relationship: you bless the Lord and He will bless you. Whatever the best translation should be, the point is that there is a benefit of worshipping the Lord, specifically, that He will bless His people.

This is a great way to finish our study of the Psalms of Ascents: We should pray for the continuation of the worship of the Lord, we should have expecation that God will work great things when we engage in worship, and there are great benefits of worshipping the Lord.

As I have tried with all these psalms, I want to find a song sung in today's churches which communicates the same theme as the psalm. For this final hymn, I think Amazing Grace communicates the message of Psalm 134. I think the three points of the outline are represented in reverse order in this psalm. The first three verses of Amazing Grace portrays the benefits of worshipping the Lord. The fourth verse relays the expectation of receiving good things from God. The final verse of Amazing Grace pictures the continuation of worship all throughout time.

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me!
I once was lost, but now am found;
Was blind, but now I see.

’Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
And grace my fears relieved;
How precious did that grace appear
The hour I first believed!

Through many dangers, toils and snares,
I have already come;
’Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
And grace will lead me home.

The Lord has promised good to me,
His Word my hope secures;
He will my Shield and Portion be,
As long as life endures.

When we’ve been there ten thousand years,
Bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
Than when we’d first begun.

I will have one more post on the Psalms of Ascents to sum up the whole study. Please let me know if any of these have been helpful.

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My God Will Deliver Me

In our journey through the Psalms of Ascents, we have encountered a couple of psalms which seems a little different and hard to summarize with one thought. That is perfectly normal for psalms, as they were songs and not meant to be analyzed in the fashion in which we are doing. However, because they are additionally the Word of God, we can look at them in a critical fashion and pull out the message we are intended to receive through them. In 127, there seemed to a strange shift from vanity to family. In 128, the issue of family continues only to change into the topic of corporate worship. In 129, the psalmist seems to go back to communicating one idea through the entire psalm. In this case, he is concerned about persecution.

Read Psalm 129 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

Here is my working outline for Psalm 129. Like the many before it, it needs work and I need your help in that. Please help me and those reading through this blog with your comments and suggestions.

Still Working on Title - maybe God Delivers

I. The enemy's persecution...(1-4)
         A. Was often (1-2a)
         B. Has not prevailed (2b)
         C. Was intense (3)
         D. Was stopped (4)

II. God's Retribution...(5-8)
The enemies of the God will ...
         A. Be turned back/put to shame (5)
         B. Wither (6)
         C. Be unfruitful/ineffective (7)
         D. Be un-blessed (8) (I know it is not a word)

The psalmist, with psalm 129, pens a lament of the persecution he faces simply for being one of God's people. He begins by repeating how many times the enemies have persecuted him, ever since he was a child. They continually persecuted him. However, he is clear to point out they have not prevailed. He brings in word pictures of farming to show how intense these persecutions have been. It is as if they have plowed on his back and made their furrows long and deep. This is no light trial. However, even thought they consistently and intensely persecuted him, God in His righteousness puts a stop to it. Using another farming metaphor, the cords indicate the reins one would use on a plowing animal. They have been plowing on my back but God cut the reins and they stopped. The psalmist is lamenting to God concerning the persecution he has faced but then praises God for his deliverance from those trials.

The psalmist moves into a discussion of God's retribution of those who rebel against Him.

Rabbit Trail: hating the Lord does not mean an atheist or a Satan worshipper. Hating the Lord in Scripture is someone who disregards the Creator and Sustainer of life. They are the ones who say "So what if God has said thus and so. I will life my life as I want." These are the haters of God. This principle is affirmed in the New Testament as well. James 4:4 says, "Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." (NASB) Jesus says in John 14:1, "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." (NASB) In the mind of God, one either loves Him and lives in accordance to His word, or one hates Him.

The psalmist looks to God's retribution of those who hate God. God will first put them to shame. "Turning back" and "put to shame" are in parallel here and are used to say the same thing.

God will also cause them to wither like the grass which grew on the their rooftops. In the Ancient Near East, houses were made of clay and had flat roofs. Dirt would collect on these flat roofs and many times grass and weeds would begin to poke up through the ground. However, since the soil was so shallow, the grass would quickly wither. The psalmist says this would be like those who hate God.

Additionally, this grass would not help anyone who was harvesting. the reaper would not be able to harvest anything from this grass. Nor could the one binding the sheaves find anything to bind from this grass. In essence, the reaper and the binder would be ineffective. This is the plea of the psalmist. God will make His enemies ineffective.

Finally, the psalmist indicates that the enemies of God would not receive the blessings which others usually would put forth to others. They are not blessed. Since the psalm ends on this issue, one could place this side-by-side with the previous psalm and see a comparison of those who are blessed by God and those who are not. Perhaps that is the point of this psalm.

I am not sure about a song we know today which captures the point of this psalm. There are not many hymns which sings about God's retribution on those who live their lives independent of them. However, the other side of that coin is the issue of God's deliverance of this people. Thus, perhaps "He Hideth My Soul" would then be appropriate. I will tentatively post it as this psalm's modern equivalent until a better one is brought to my attention (click here to listen).

A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord,
A wonderful Savior to me;
He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock,
Where rivers of pleasure I see.

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That shadows a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life with the depths of His love,
And covers me there with His hand,
And covers me there with His hand.

A wonderful Savior is Jesus my Lord,
He taketh my burden away;
He holdeth me up, and I shall not be moved,
He giveth me strength as my day.

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That shadows a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life with the depths of His love,
And covers me there with His hand,
And covers me there with His hand.

With numberless blessings each moment He crowns,
And filled with His fullness divine,
I sing in my rapture, oh, glory to God
For such a Redeemer as mine!

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That shadows a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life with the depths of His love,
And covers me there with His hand,
And covers me there with His hand.

When clothed in His brightness, transported I rise
To meet Him in clouds of the sky,
His perfect salvation, His wonderful love
I’ll shout with the millions on high.

He hideth my soul in the cleft of the rock
That shadows a dry, thirsty land;
He hideth my life with the depths of His love,
And covers me there with His hand,
And covers me there with His hand.

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Vanity and Children...but Not Related Topics

The next psalm in our journey through the Psalms of Ascents is interesting. It is found in the exact middle of the fifteen ascent psalms. It is the only one of the fifteen written by Solomon. There are seven psalms before it (120-126), two of which were written by David and five which are anonymous. After Psalm 127, there are seven psalms, two of which were written by David and five of which are anonymous. With the Hebrew propensity for chiasms (see here, here, here, and here), and the symmetry that appears to be here, the psalm may be the high point of the Psalms of Ascents. It is not perfect but close enough to take a minute to examine it.

120
    121 David
      122
         123
            124 David
               125
                  126
                     127 Solomon
                  128
               129
            130
         131 David
      132
   133 David
134

Additionally, the psalm seems to be a bit different in that it seems to address two different issues in the psalm: The vanity of life without the Lord, and children.

Read Psalm 127 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

Here is my working outline. Once again, I would love any suggestions which may improve the flow of thought in this outline. This outline needs much improvement.

Still Working on a Title

I. Vanity (1-2)
          A. Vain labor - unless the Lord builds
          B. Vain watching - unless the Lord guards

          still working on #C.
          C. Vain vigilance - because the Lord gives in sleep
          C. Vain to do anything - unless the Lord gives

II. Children (3-4)
          A. Children are a gift
          B. Children are a defense
          C. Children are a blessing

Many people want to make this whole psalm about family. I am not sure the context will allow that. Granted, when the Hebrew author wrote about a "house", as in verse 1, it could mean a literal house or a house as in "family" or even "dynasty." However, the rest of verse one speaks of guarding a city and verse three speaks of work. I am not sure each of these could be figurative for family. It is interesting to note that verse three talks about God "giving" during sleeping and then the next verse says that children are a "gift." Perhaps this is the connection between the two sections of this psalms. However, unlike the previous psalms in this study (120-126, so far), this does not seem to have a unifying theme through the psalm. In that, it is very much like the proverbs, most of which are attributed to Solomon, just like this psalm.

As for explanation of the outline, I think verse one is somewhat self-explanatory. If a person builds or a person guards, and thinks they are doing it in their own power, they are gravely mistaken. It may be human work that builds a building phyiscally but it is God who give the strength to do so, the resources to be able to, the weather which does not blow it down, and on and on. A guard may think he is protecting the city but it is actually the Lord doing so.

Verse 2 give the idea that it is vain to do anything without the Lord. The idea of rising early and going to bed late means when we rise, when we go to bed, and everything inbetween. In fact, even when we are sleeping, God is at work. We sometimes believe that we can do great things and accomplish fantastic tasks. The fact of the matter is, anything good we have done is becasue the Lord has allowed it and He should get the credit. These versed do not discount human effort, but indicate that without the Lord's intervention, it is vain.

The topic shifts to that of children. The real issue in this section is verse 4. The question is, "How are children like arrows?" When dealing with Hebrew poetry, it is good to let the image sink in for a while. What do we think of when we think of arrows? They are long-range weapons and are not used for hand-to-hand combat. In fact, they were used for defense. The archers would not be the on the frontline but would fire a curtain of defense for those fighting on the battle front.

This is like children to those who are aged. The phrase about the "gate" in verse 5 points to the place where legal issues would be taken up with the city's leaders. If someone had wronged you, you could go to the city's gate and plead your case. If you had children, they would go with you and stand behind you to back you up, much like archers would. They would take up your defense and fight with you. Thus, they are blessing to have.

I am not sure of a song from today which would capture the heart of this psalm because this psalm seems to have two "hearts." If anyone has any insight to this, please post so we can all benefit from it.

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Remember the Great Acts of God - Addendum

In my last post, I was working with Psalm 126. This post is an expansion of verses 5-6 of this psalm.

Read Psalm 126 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

The context of this passage is the return of the Israelites from captivity. When they returned to Jerusalem and the promise land, they had to start again. Being an agricultural society, planting seed was of primary importance because they needed food. These farmers weep while sowing in remembrance of the good life before the Babylonian captivity. Sowing is hard work and starting over is never easy. These Israelites had to trust God completely to bless them. They released everything they owned, their seeds, and planted it in the ground. After that, it was up to God to bless them with a great harvest. And that is the promise given here.

Many want to relate this verse to the parable of the soils that Jesus told (Matt 13:1-9, 37-43; Mark 4:1-20; Luke 8:4-15). However, the force of the verse is closer to Romans 8:28, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose" (NASB). This certainly does include evangelism, but it includes so much more.

A loss of a job may be sown in tears but reliance upon God during the time of uncertainty reaps shouts of joy. A child going their own rebellious way brings weeping but when reconciliation with the Lord occurs it comes with rejoicing. A passing of a precious believer may bring sorrow to those left behind but if one comes to the Lord through the witness of the life that deceased loved one there will be sheaves of joy, even in heaven (Luke 15:10).

The Christian can rejoice that whatever valley they are going through, whatever calamity has been brought upon them, whatever it is in their life that has been sown with weeping and tears, God will bring about a joyful harvest. And ultimately, believers, with a "shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him" will enter into God presence.

What in your life today can you identify as being "sown in tears?" Trust God during this difficult time. He will bring about a joyful harvest.

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Remember the Great Acts of God

(See the addendum to this post here)

I have been blogging recently on the Psalms of Ascents and hoping that my posts on them will firm up some of my outlines. I also hope that others will contribute to the process and provide suggestions which will improve the outlines and provide a great skeleton for teaching through these psalms.

To briefly sum up where we have been so far, the psalmist travels to Jerusalem (120-122). He begins his worship by asking God for mercy, praising God for His help in the past, and about the relationship they have currently (123-125). In the next psalm, Psalm 126, the psalmist now remembers how the Lord brought them back to Jerusalem and requests that the Lord will restore them to what they once were.

Read Psalm 126 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

Here is my working outline. It really needs improved so any suggestions anyone could give, please post those in the comments. I know that many will be helped by it (I have notices a little more traffic coming to the posts regarding these psalms so you will be helping many other pastors by posting your thoughts):

Still Looking for a Title

I. Past rescue/redemption (1-3)
          A. Too good to be true/Astonishment (1)
          B. Rejoicing (2b)
          C. Noctice by others/Noticable (2b)
          D. Gratitude (3)

II. Present Request for Restoration (4)

II. Future Blessing/Rejoicing (5-6)
          A. Sow in tears -> Reap joyful shouting
          B. Weeping with bag -> joy with sheaves

One of the reasons I have waited so long between posts is because the incompleteness of these outlines. They really need some serious work, but I thought I could post these and maybe we could get a dialogue going to hone them a bit.

The first three verses is an obvious "flashback" to a time when God brought the people back to Jerusalem. It seems that this is a reference to the Babylonian exile but it could be a reference to the Exodus from Egypt. The issue for me is the term "brought back." While the Exodus did bring the people back to the land Jacob lived in before they moved to Egypt, the fact is they were there 400 years and everyone who came out of Egypt had never lived in the promised land. However, they were only in Babylon 70 years and many of the people remember what living in Judah was like. Additionally, the context (especially verse 4) indicates the psalmist is referring to captivity. While they were slaves in Egypt, they were not captured. They moved there and eventually became slaves. Babylon came and captured them. However, this is really not the main point of this psalm or this section.

The point is, the psalmist is remembering a past rescue God preformed for His people. The psalmist expresses his emotions concerning this act. It was like a dream, they would have never imagined it. They laughed and laughed and shouted with joy. It was such a marvelous act, the lost nations even commented on the great things their God did for them. They just were glad that God had done so many great things for them.

The remembrance of these past acts of God prompts the psalmist to petition God for restoration. He asks God to restore the people to what they were before they were taken captive. The simile used here is that of the seasonal wadis found in southern part of Israel. In the months of little rain, these streams will completely dry up and there will be nothing remaining but a ravine where the water once ran. In the spring, when the rains come again, the streams will fill up again, some almost immediately (if you can find a video clip of this, you should watch it because it is pretty amazing how fast and furious these streams become one the rain begins).

Finally, the psalmist declares his faith in God's activity to bring about the restoration of his people. To 21st-century believers who have both the Old and New Testament at their disposal, and who are familiar with Jesus' parable of the soils, it is easy to read a message of evangelism in these verse. However, these verses speak about broader issues than just evangelism. I will post more about this tomorrow because these two verses deserve a little closer look. The point here is that when God's people returned to the promise land from their captivity, there was sorry for what they had lost (tears, weeping). However, the psalmist is looking forward to the time when God will restore them to what He wants them to be (joyful shouting, shouts of joy).

I think the believer can walk away with from this psalm thinking about the great things God has done for us in the past, the most amazing being salvation. These thing, when recounted, can really astound us at how great God really is. But in times of trouble, or doubt, or struggles, we cry out to God for restoration. And we place our faith in the goodness of God that even though we may be crying now because of our tough circumstances, God will use it for His glory and our refinement.

Calvin said, "The reason why so many examples of the grace of God contribute nothing to our profit, and fail in edifying our faith, is, that as soon as we have begun to make them subjects of our consideration, our inconstancy draws us away to something else, and thus at the very commencement, our minds lose sight of them." Remembering the past acts of God will strengthen our faith as we go through or are coming out of troubled times. If God is has been faithful in the past, and God does not change, then He will be faithful in the present and in the future. We can count on it.

As I have been posting for this psalm, the hymn "Count Your Blessings" has been coming to mind. Perhaps, this hymn conveys the mindset of the psalmist (click to listen).

When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

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I Have Found a Friend in Jesus

In our series of the Psalms of Ascents, we come to psalm 125. to recap briefly, the psalmist travels to Jerusalem (120-122). He begins his worship by asking God for mercy (123) and then recounting how God has been the source of their help in the past (124). In this psalm (125), he sings about the current relationship he has with the Lord.

Read Psalm 125 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

Here is the tentative outline I developed for this psalm. As always, please send feedback. I think they always can be improved. I would like the flow of thought to be better than this. This is just the initial thoughts.

Our Relationship with God

I. A relationship with God provides...(1-2)
          A. Stability (1)
          B. Protection (2)

II. Warning to those who have a relationship with God. (3)
          A. God's people do not have control over this land (3a).
          B. God's people should not be tempted to do evil (3b).

III. Holiness is expected of those who have a relationship with God. (4-5)
          A. Prayer for the good
          B. Warning for the bad

I want to give some of the thought process of my outline briefly. In verses 1-2, the psalmist uses geographical analogies to communicate a truth about the people of God. First, he mentions Mount Zion. This is by no means the highest "mountain" in Jerusalem and is in fact more a hill (I live in Colorado so I may be biased). The point of using Mount Zion is it permanency. Mount Zion was the temple mount and was the center of the Jewish religious system and the center of religious activity in the future (Rev. 14:1, for example). The use of this imagery is to show how God's people are stable in Him. He makes them like Mount Zion: permanent, stable.

The next geographical analogy used is the mountains which surround Jerusalem (although probably still hills by Colorado standards). Here, instead of the analogy being used to describe His people, the picture is used to describe God. His people are like little Mount Zion but God is like those big mountains which surround Jerusalem and protect it from attack. The Lord gives His people protection.

In the next point, point II, there are two warnings given in this psalm. The first half of verse 3 indicates that those that do not trust in God (the wicked) are in control of lands around Jerusalem (septer) but will not rest on the land of God's people. The point here is that in this world, there are evil people who are leaders around the world (most call them politicians) :-) God's people are not in control of this world. While God is ultimately in control of all things, He has temporarily given authority of this world over to Satan. This is a warning to God's people. This world is not home.

The second warning comes in the last half of verse 3: the reason the wicked's septer will not reach the land of God's people is so they will not be tempted to do wrong things. The warning is that God's people should not be tempted to do evil in this world. If the wicked are in charge, they may tempt God's people to engage in behavior and activities which would defile them. Becare, the psalmist says, to not let this happen.

The last two verses, making up point III, are pretty self-explanatory: the psalmist is praying that God will do good to those who are faithful to Him (those who do good) and he is warning those who live as they want (who turn aside to their crooked ways) that God will punish them. In short, the Lord expects holiness (upright in their hearts) from those who are to be in relationship with him.

I think this message is would be a great message for new believers and matures believers, alike. A relationship with God through Christ will bring us stability and protection. However, that does not mean that this life will be easy. Those who are lost are in control for now but we must not be tempted to live like them. Instead, God expects holiness from us. Any Christian could benefit from a reminder like this.

As I was thinking about a song from today which captures the essence of this psalm, my mind when to "The Lily of the Valley" (click to listen) because it tells how we are in relationship with God through Christ and that in temptation he helps us stay pure.

I have found a friend in Jesus, He’s everything to me,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul;
The Lily of the Valley, in Him alone I see
All I need to cleanse and make me fully whole.
In sorrow He’s my comfort, in trouble He’s my stay;
He tells me every care on Him to roll.

He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

He all my grief has taken, and all my sorrows borne;
In temptation He’s my strong and mighty tower;
I have all for Him forsaken, and all my idols torn
From my heart and now He keeps me by His power.
Though all the world forsake me, and Satan tempt me sore,
Through Jesus I shall safely reach the goal.

He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

He will never, never leave me, nor yet forsake me here,
While I live by faith and do His blessèd will;
A wall of fire about me, I’ve nothing now to fear,
From His manna He my hungry soul shall fill.
Then sweeping up to glory to see His blessèd face,
Where the rivers of delight shall ever roll.

He’s the Lily of the Valley, the Bright and Morning Star,
He’s the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

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Whose Side is God On?

Psalm 124 is the fifth psalm of those labels "Psalms of Ascent." After traveling and making it to Jerusalem (120-122), the psalmist begins his worship of God (123), which is why he came to Jerusalem in the first place. In this psalm, he is continuing that worship by recounting how God has helped His people in the past.

Read Psalm 124(NASB, NIV, KJV)

Here is the outline I developed for this psalm. I am happier with this outline than the previous two, but I would still love some comments on them. I would especially like to hear suggestions on making the sub-points of II alliterated. :-)

The Lord is on Our Side

I. God is on the side of His people (1-2)

II. God keeps His people from being... (3-7)
         A. Swallowed (3)
         B. Drowned (4-5)
         C. Prey (6)
         D. Snared (7)

III. God helps His people (8)

A somewhat simple outline with a great message. In today's world, it is popular for the lost to say things like "God is not on anyone's side" or "God does not pick sides" but this is just not the truth. God IS on the side of those who have placed their faith in Christ and are called His people.

How many times have we felt like we have been swallowed by some problem overtaking us. Or that we are drowning in the issues of everyday life. How often do we feel like we have become prey to those who would want to harm us because we carry the name of Christ. Or that someone is trying to snare us, to cause us to fall and do harm to the name of our God. God keeps us from this. If you doubt this, read 1 Corinthians 10:13, where it says that God temptation to overcome us (and that would include the temptation to lose faith in God in the midst of trying circumstances).


I think a hymn that captures the essence of this psalm may be "God Will Take Care of You" (click to listen).

Be not dismayed whate’er betide,
God will take care of you;
Beneath His wings of love abide,
God will take care of you.

God will take care of you,
Through every day, over all the way;
He will take care of you,
God will take care of you.

Through days of toil when heart doth fail,
God will take care of you;
When dangers fierce your path assail,
God will take care of you.

God will take care of you,
Through every day, over all the way;
He will take care of you,
God will take care of you.

All you may need He will provide,
God will take care of you;
Nothing you ask will be denied,
God will take care of you.

God will take care of you,
Through every day, over all the way;
He will take care of you,
God will take care of you.

No matter what may be the test,
God will take care of you;
Lean, weary one, upon His breast,
God will take care of you.

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Finding Mercy

The fourth psalm in the Psalm of Ascents is psalm 123. To recap our travel through our series of the Psalms of Ascents, it begins with the psalmist desiring to go to his true home (ps. 120). It continues with the psalmist praising God for His protection during the journey to Jerusalem (ps. 121). He reaches Jerusalem and praises God for the great things he finds there (ps. 122). In this next, brief psalm, we find the psalmist in Jerusalem and beginning to do what he traveled there to do: worship Yahweh. To begin this worship experience, he asks for God to send His mercy.

Read Psalm 123 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

Because this is such a short psalm, the outline is also short. It is still a rough draft and I really do not like it much but here is what I have.

God is the Giver of Mercy

I. We depend on God's mercy (1-2)

II. We desire God's mercy (3-4)

First, I really need a new title. Actually, I really do not need a title at all but I have been trying to title my sermons for the purpose of summarizing what I going to speak about. If anyone has a thought about a better title PLEASE post it so we can all see it.

Second, it is obvious in the first two verse that the psalmist is talking about his dependency on God for mercy. Verse two is not about the servants looking to their master for orders, but instead looking to them for the necessities of life. The psalmist uses these to show how we desperately need God to give us mercy because it cannot be found anywhere else.

The last two verses of the psalm shows the psalmist desire for that mercy. Because others (namely the proud, who depend on no one for anything) have attacked us (ridiculed and hold contempt for us) we need God's mercy to get through.

It seems to me that this psalm also is like stairs step:

I look to God in heaven (v. 1.)
     until he shows us mercy (v. 2)
        because we have endured much contempt (v. 3)
                from the arrogant (v. 4)

This also could also be an outline for this text. Any help with these outlines would be great.

I love the message of this little psalm: "God is the only place for me to find mercy and I need that mercy greatly."

I still need a "modern" song with which to end this sermon. The first song of thought of (with the help of my wife) was "Mercy Came Running" by Phillips, Craig and Dean, but since I do not not agree with their doctrine, I am hesitant to use this song thinking that someone may see that as endorsing them. Then I thought of the hymn, "At the Cross" where the chorus says, "Mercy there was great, and grace was free...Pardon there was multiplied to me...There my burdened soul found liberty...at Calvary." That may be the right one. Any suggestions?

I will have to update this one later as I continue to work on it.

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When We All Get To Heaven

Continuing my series on the fifteen Psalms which are entitled "Psalms of Ascents," I will be looking at Psalm 122 today. This is the third psalm in this series (you can read my previous posts on 120 and 121 here). In the first psalm of the series, 120, the author communicated a dissatisfaction with living in a foreign place and he longed to go to his true home. The psalm 121 the psalmist wrote about the dangers of traveling to his true home but his God watched over him to keep him safe until he arrived. This next psalm seems to indicate that the traveler made it and rejoices that he is now home.

Read Psalm 122 (NASB, NIV, KJV)

The psalmist essentially tells of the things which he is happy to experience now that he is home. i realize that this was written by an ancient Jew happy to be arriving in Jerusalem, but it seems to me there is some correlation here to a Christian arriving in the heavenly Jerusalem. Here is the sermon (this is still rough - any suggestions you may have to improve it would be greatly appreciated):

When We All Get to Heaven

I. We will experience joy (1-2)
          A. Joy from the community in getting there (1)
          B. Joy at arriving there (2)

II. We will experience unity (3-5)
          A. Unity does not mean uniformity (4)
          B. Unity does not mean licentiousness (5)

III. We will experience peace (6-9)
          A. The peace that comes from security (6-7)
          B. The peace that comes from prosperity (8-9)

I think I probably need to give a rationale for some of my thoughts here. I think the information in point I is probably self-explanatory (if you would like some explanation, just post a comment here and I will happy to respond).

Point II may not be as clear. The psalmist begins in verse 3 by saying that Jerusalem is a city which is compact. We must interpret this no in a Western Post-modern way but in a Ancient Near-eastern way. In today's understanding a city closely compacted together usually brings irritation, crime, rudeness, and many other things which are the antipathy of unity. However, in the psalmist day, a city closely compacted was safe and gave strength in numbers against an attacking enemy. The psalmist was speaking of the unity he felt when entering Jerusalem.

Then in verse 4, he mentions how the different tribes of the Lord all come up and worship in the same manner. The point is, though the twelve tribes of Israel were all different and had their own little quirks, and sometimes they fought amongst themselves, they came together to worship the Lord. There was diversity among the people of God and yet there was unity among the people of God. This produces the sub-point A: Unity is not uniformity.

Yet in balance with the diversity of the tribes, verse 5 mentions the thrones of David, where judgments were rendered. It seems the psalmist is saying that even though there is diversity and unity, this does not mean anything goes. There is still law, and still judgments to be rendered and when all the people come together they acknowledge this. Thus, while there is unity, there is not a licence to live contrary to God's will. Unity is not licentiousness.

Finally, in point III, the issue of peace is brought up. In these four verses (6-9) the word "peace" is mentioned three times. The psalmist wants peace (wholeness, completeness, Shalom) in Jerusalem. For the ancient jew, this is somewhat literal. No more wars and no more fighting amoung themselves; a wholeness for the people of God. To the Christian, peace is found through Christ and Christ alone. However, the peace we will find in heaven must be beyond anything we can fathom in this physical world.

The psalmist finds peace from the walls of Jerusalem which keeps the enemies out. In short, he finds peace through security. Second, he seems to indicating that he finds peace through the prosperity of Jerusalem. PLEASE NOTE: I am not referring to the prosperity that the charlatans called prosperity preachers are talking about. I am talking about how well off we will be in heaven. I do not expect to live like a king on this earth. I am, however, a child of the King of everything and will be living with him forevermore. I do not know how much more prosperous one could get.

In keeping with my practicing of assigning a "modern" song to each of these psalms, the obvious choice for me was used in the title: the hymn "When We All Get to Heaven" (click to listen).

Sing the wondrous love of Jesus,
Sing His mercy and His grace.
In the mansions bright and blessèd
He’ll prepare for us a place.

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

While we walk the pilgrim pathway,
Clouds will overspread the sky;
But when traveling days are over,
Not a shadow, not a sigh.

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

Let us then be true and faithful,
Trusting, serving every day;
Just one glimpse of Him in glory
Will the toils of life repay.

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

Onward to the prize before us!
Soon His beauty we’ll behold;
Soon the pearly gates will open;
We shall tread the streets of gold.

When we all get to Heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!

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My Help Comes from the Lord - Addendum

In a previous post, I wrote about Psalm 121 and gave an outline (please read that post before moving on with this post). I have adapted this outline to make the flow of thought a little more easy. Here is the new outline and then I will share my rationale.

My Protector Watches Over Me

I. My protector is the Creator (1-2)

II. My protector is omniscient (3-4)
     A. He keeps me from slipping (3)
     B. He does not sleep (4)

III. My protector is omnipotent (5)

IV. My protector is omnipresent (6-8)
     A. No matter the time (6)
     B. No matter the situation (7)
     C. No matter the place (8)

The first point is the same in both the previous post and in this one so I will not comment on it here.

Second, one may balk at the use of these theological terms but I think first it will give the pastor/teacher an opportunity to teach these theological truths that EVERY Christian should understand and be able to communicate. Yes, the teacher could use "All-knowing", "All-powerful", and "All-places" in these points, but I do not think we should dumb-down our sermons. We should teach those entrusted to our care what they need to know. If the critics will use these theological terms (and they will) then Christians should be able to know what they mean.

Thirdly, I do not think these are "forced" in as they may first appear. For point II, "omniscient" is communicated, I feel, for his stating that God will not let his foot to slip and God does not sleep. God knows the obstacles coming on the path and helps the author miss them. Even when the psalmist is sleeping, God is watching. He always knows what is going on. The theological term for this is omniscience. What peace comes from knowing our God knows all that will come along our path!

Also, omnipotent is understandably used here as well. Verse 5 speaks of God is the shade on our right hand. First, the right hand poetic for power. Second, shade indicates that something is between the speaker and the sun, namely, God. This is all poetic language to indicate that the psalmist's power is really Gods power. God fights for him. An enemy steps in front of the psalmist and then God steps in between them, casting a shadow over the psalmist.

(RABBIT TRAIL - Sometimes in a Western Post-Modern mindset, shade or a shadow is a bad thing - cold, dark, mysterious. In an Ancient Near-eastern mindset, a shadow is relief from the sun in a place with no air conditioners. It is shade and relief).

The psalmist is singing about God's power and how that helps in in times of trouble. What encouragement comes from knowing that God is not only powerful, but ALL-powerful! He is omnipotent.

Finally, the term omnipresent was used because the psalmist spoke of the circumstances in which God saves. God will protect from the sun during the day and the moon at night. This is a poetic device named "Merismus," which lists the extremes to make the point that whatever being talked about is the extremes AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN.. One of these was used in verse 2, "maker of heaven and earth." THis means God created the heavens, the earth, and everything in them, under them, over them, and, in short, everything. In verse 6, the psalmist here mentions the day and night. This means God is watching all day. We would say 24-7. No matter the time, God is watchinging over you.

Next, the psalmist says God protects from all evil. No matter what evil is going on around you, God is watching over you.

Finally, the psalmist says your coming and your going: another merism. Not only when you come and not only when you go, but anywhere you go.

Anytime, any circumstance, any place. The theological term for this is omnipresence. What encouragement we should have knowing that God is with us everywhere we go!

It is these thoughts which bring to mind the song, "His Eye is on the Sparrow" (see previous post). Our God watches over us. He protects us. And this is all because He loves us.

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