Posted by Pastor Pat on March 29, 2009
Read Mark 2:13-17
This is the rub. How can we be “in the world” but not “of the world” (John 17)? What are we protecting? We must protect the purity of the gospel without isolating it from the purpose of the gospel.
How have we come to this point in our lives where “church” is identified by a structure or building and not the living body that meets in the building? How have we come to the point where contact with the unbelieving or association with the non-churched is something to be avoided? Why are we so guarded about what people might think of us? When we are more concerned about our “image” rather than our “audience,” we have become Pharisees. How we understand the idea of “being in the world” and not “of the world” will shape our purpose as a church.
Sunday morning services are “for the people of God whereby we gather to worship Him.” But from our worship comes life and in the context of living, we demonstrate and declare the gospel to everyone, everywhere, at all times. Going where the sinner lives, does not make you a sinner. Our Lord’s appeal is to be who you are where you live.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 27, 2009
Read Mark 1:40-45
As I work through Mark’s Gospel and the life of Jesus Christ, I have been challenged to become more aggressive in emphasizing the role of the local church in mercy ministries. It appears unfortunate but we fail to hold in tension evangelism of soul and ministries of “healing.” We must become the cup of cold water to the thirsty, we must become fathers to the fatherless, and we must become a shelter to the homeless. How do we come alongside those who are buckling under the weight of life? To have the mind of Christ without His hands or feet is restrictive and one dimensional. We must maintain the gospel, we must engage our culture, and we must build His church. None of these three items are capable of being neglected.
Our involvement in our community should be a real ministry expression of this local community. Our community is already trying to address these issues, but all attempts on their part are one dimensional. We must not deceive ourselves. It is only Christ and His church that can address the souls of these individuals. The church fails when it focuses on only one area and not both. It is never either or. It is always both the soul and the body. William Barclay notes how there are three pairs of things which Jesus never separated and we would do well to consider his observations.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 25, 2009
There are certain vocations that expose the practitioner to those who suffer and are in pain. All those within the medical profession encounter people in ill-health and chronic pain. Those in the ministry of the church are likewise regularly faced with those who suffer either emotionally and/or physically. Everyone inside those professions must wrestle with the nature of suffering and pain.
John Stott has said that “the fact of suffering undoubtedly constitutes the single greatest challenge to the Christian faith.” It is unquestionably true that there is no greater obstacle to faith than that of the reality of evil and suffering in the world. Indeed, even for the believing Christian, there is no greater test of faith than this — that the God who loves him permits him to suffer, at times in excruciating ways. And the disillusionment is intensified in our day when unrealistic expectations of health and prosperity are fed by the teachings of a multitude of Christian teachers. Why does a good God allow his creatures, and even his children to suffer? (“The Problem of Evil: How Can a Good God Allow Evil?” Rick Rood)
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 23, 2009
You would think with the ease in which the word “heresy” is used an understanding of it would be apparent. Unfortunately, such is not the case. The word is used carelessly of those who do not conform to another person’s position.
In the New Testament, it is used in Titus 3:10, “A man that is a heretic after the first and second admonition reject.” Our English word is a transliteration of the Greek. It means, “A schismatic.” It is used of a person who stirs up division. The noun form is used only here.
The verb form is only used in Matthew 12:18, “Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.” The idea of “setting apart” is clearly seen.
The noun is used negatively and the verb is used positively. The heretic is not necessarily the one who differs from us in our theological position, but rather the one who makes the theological position a point of contention. If this is true, then perhaps there should be a greater level of tolerance toward those who differ with us on issues that are of no eternal significance. This would force us to determine what is primary and what should be considered secondary.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 21, 2009
Read Mark 1:14-15
All of Scripture points to this singular idea: God reigns over all He creates. There is no area, anywhere, at anytime that does not fall under His reign. Although this reign shows itself in various ways, there can be no question that He reigns. Often we are found struggling against the idea that God’s kingdom is present. Our Lord offered a simple prayer to guide His disciples in prayer, “Our Father who is in heaven, holy is your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth even as it is done in heaven.” Such a request suggests that there is a kingdom that is yet future. If future, then it cannot be present. This thinking, however, diminishes the “already-not yet” theology of the New Testament.
The Gospels clearly portray Jesus Christ as king and His kingdom as present. His miracles and teaching all speak to this idea. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ secured for Himself the citizens of His kingdom, and His rejection and death did not stop the kingdom from existing. The kingdom Jesus brought still exists today. It looks differently than it did before Jesus came, when Jesus came, and will look differently when He comes again, but there is still a present kingdom.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 19, 2009
Read Mark 1:12-13
“Calvin: Do you believe in the devil? You know, a supreme evil being dedicated to the temptation, corruption, and destruction of man?
Hobbes: I’m not sure that man needs the help”
With tongue in cheek, Bill Watterson captures the dilemma faced by all. Temptation is an undeniable experience of anyone living. In the narrative of Mark, four thoughts come to the forefront concerning temptation, with two more offered by Matthew and Luke. I would like us to consider this for our personal edification.
First, there is a purpose behind every temptation (“the Spirit sent Him out”). Regardless as to how we might understand this thought, it was the Holy Spirit who drove Jesus into the wilderness in order to be tempted of the devil. The temptation of Jesus and His willingness to resist the devil and obey His Father was directly tied to the death He was to die. If He would have failed in His temptation, then the sacrifice He offered would be blemished and would not have the power to forgive sin. Whenever we are tempted, we must understand that the temptation is neither random nor arbitrary. There is a purpose behind it even if we cannot see it or understand it.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 11, 2009
Read Mark 1:9-11
There is no greater statement in all of Scripture than the approval by the Father of the Son. The Father identifies Him as His beloved Son in whom He is pleased. All three gospels note this statement. The grammatical structure is equally telling as to the nature of this event. One grammarian gives us the following statement:
“The verb ‘I am well pleased’ may be taken as a timeless aorist or perhaps as representing the Hebrew stative perfect. The meaning then would be that God is always pleased with the Son.” (Walter W. Wessell, “Mark,” EBC, [Zondervan, 1984], 8:622).
Another concurs,
“It is a delight that never had a beginning, and will never have an end.” (Kenneth S. Wuest, Wuest’s Word Studies, [Eerdmans, 1973], 1:25).
Who He was and what He was about to do received the Father’s full approval. The overarching idea reaches beyond the person and into the work He will accomplish. The Father will accept the sacrifice His Son offers in behalf of sin.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 8, 2009
(1) Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty expanse. (2) Praise Him for His mighty deeds; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness. (3) Praise Him with trumpet sound; Praise Him with harp and lyre. (4) Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe. (5) Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals. (6) Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!” (Psalm 150)
The Psalm before us accents four truths about worship.
First, we see the place of worship (v.1). Both within the “sanctuary” and without the “sanctuary” our God is to be praised. Corporate worship is a wonderful time of coming together to praise our God, yet regardless as to our location He is to be praised. Worship is the vehicle enabling the worshipper to glorify God. True worship is a fruit of the Spirit. It is not something I can do apart from Him. God is served in the unexpected, the mundane and the routine expressions of a life humbly lived (Mark 9:41; 1 Cor. 10:31). It is not the size of the service, but the motive of love for Christ that is worship
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 7, 2009
Resurrection truth is a deep and settling expression of God’s richest grace. In the absence of such truth our own selfish desires and appetites would consume us. Life would cease having sunrises of hope
(1 Cor. 15). The despair would be oppressive and mankind would become more cannibalistic in their greed and self-indulgence.
Without a resurrection from the dead this life would be a “period” instead of a “line.”
It is all too easy to allow this truth to slip away from our psyche. In so doing, we are robbed of a compass in the midst of life’s storms. It is the resurrection from the dead that feeds the hungry and quenches the thirst of the parched. Hope . . . the word has lost much of its punch. What is hope? Hope is hearing the news of a child’s safety, of a positive doctor’s report, of a financial need being met. Jesus Christ is hope.
This hope was declared with an exclamation point in His resurrection from the dead. As we consider the resurrection there are several truths we need to be reminded of.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 6, 2009
“How sweet are Your words to my taste! Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103)
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 5, 2009
25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, which if they *were written in detail, I suppose that even the world itself *would not contain the books that *would be written.” (John 21:25)
Who is Jesus Christ? The Scriptures answer this question consistently and plainly. However, space and time prohibit us from sounding it out completely. Yet John provides for us a revealing look at our Lord Jesus Christ in what is commonly entitled, “The ‘I AM’ statements of our Lord.”
The first of the seven statements is found in John 6:35, 41, 48, and 51. Jesus Christ identifies Himself as, “The Bread of Life.” His promise to those who partake of Him is that they will never hunger nor thirst again. In 6:35 John uses a double negative. One Greek grammarian correctly notes how, “With the double negative and the subjunctive Paul is “ruling out even the idea as being a possibility: [the double negative] is the most decisive way of negativing something in the future.” (Wallace, Beyond Basics, 468).
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Posted by Pastor Pat on
I would like to begin this short study on noting the relationship of the cross to the Lenten season. Like most things surrounding us, familiarity causes them to lose their significance. We become so accustomed to all things “Christian” that we fail to see beyond the shadow and believe the thing it represents is the shadow itself. It is like the plastic fruit sitting comfortably in the middle of the dining room table. What the plastic fruit represents is real fruit, but the illusion exists to make those who see it for the first time to think it is real. The cross in our “Christian” culture is like plastic fruit. It exists only to represent. In many ways, we have allowed the cross to collect dust as it sits comfortably in the middle of our lives; to become familiar, and in its familiarity, our view of it diminishes and we rob it of its intrinsic value. Albert Mohler captures this idea in his thoughts on, “The Foolishness of the Cross.”
Paul’s language is familiar to us because we have read and heard these words so many times. In fact, we have probably become too familiar with them, because what Paul says here, as the Corinthians would have heard it, is a revolutionary message, a counterintuitive message, a counter-cultural message, and in all probability, the Corinthians were not quite prepared to hear this. For what Paul says is that the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to those who are being saved, it is the power of God.[1]
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 4, 2009
The historical intent of Lent is to place the modern reader into the storyline of the Bible. If we consider the biblical storyline and three corresponding “holy-days,” it is perhaps easier to understand why Lent is notable. First, the season of Advent celebrates the foretold and pre-figured Hero’s arrival. In Advent, God’s Hero arrives. Second, the season of Lent celebrates the foretold and pre-figured Hero’s work. It is not simply the Hero’s arrival that fulfills the promise; it is His work. Lent notes the Hero’s work by marking Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday. Finally, the season of Pentecost celebrates the expansive and continuing legacy that His church is left with as a consequence of the Hero’s work. Pentecost marks the certainty of God’s promise and story in the carrying out of His mission in and through the church.
Yet part of the initial question is, “What is Lent?” I would like to begin by noting what Lent is not. First, Lent is not a means of meriting divine favor. Whatever Lent is, it is not this. Those who have distorted Lent and mutated it into a means of meriting favor from God have grossly erred. Second, Lent is not a time for fleshly introspection. No one need look far if their desire is to find hidden sins. We cannot afford to forget that within the “flesh” there dwells no good thing. Third, Lent is not to determine whether one is or is not worthy of the Lord. Those whose identity is in Adam will never be worthy in and of themselves. And those whose identity is in Christ will never be anything less than worthy in and of Christ. There is no action on the introspective that can cause them to be more or less worthy than they already are in Christ.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 3, 2009
(Advent, Lent, Pentecost)
Why Does Waukesha Bible Church
Mark Certain “Religious” Holidays?
Or
How We Participate in the Global Community and Conversation
Without Losing Our Theological Distinctiveness
As lead pastor and co-elder, I am sensitive to the unique personality we have as a local church. I am also aware of our part inside the global body of Christ. Neither one can be denied without doing great harm. I was raised religiously as a Roman Catholic. I left the Roman Catholic Church and became an Independent Baptist. Apart from the “New Birth,” my movement from Roman Catholicism into becoming an Independent Baptist was not intentional. It simply existed, and it was where I ended up. Although the move was providential and not necessarily intended by me, looking back I believe it was necessary and important that I break with the Roman Catholic Church. After I left Catholicism, I began attending a Bible College. My religious training took me further into a subset of Christianity called, “Fundamentalism.” The brand of Fundamentalism I engaged in practiced an idea called “secondary separation.” Inside of this context, I opposed all forms of doctrine that did not line up with my (“our”) system of thought. This ideology produced a separation and isolation from the larger expressions of professing Christianity.
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Posted by Pastor Pat on March 1, 2009
What is the role of the Christian, the local church, and the pastor as it relates to issues of morality, legislation and the government? Do we have a role? Do we have a voice? Is there a responsibility laid on us by God toward those who would perpetuate evil?
Before our nationalism and patriotism “lurches forward,” Christians have a first and primary responsibility to God. When Peter found himself questioned by the local government authorities and was pressured to end his activity, he responded with, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
As United States citizens we have marked such events as “Roe versus Wade,” “Martin Luther King, Jr. Day,” “President’s Day,” “Holocaust Remembrance Day,” “Earth Day, Labor Day,” “National Day of Prayer,” “Memorial Day,” “Flay Day,” “Independence Day,” “Labor Day,” and “Thanksgiving,” to name just a few. All of these “holidays” touch critical issues such as the sanctity of life, racism, equality, slavery, government, just war, environmentalism, patriotism, civil disobedience, work, and welfare.
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