WORLDS COLLIDE: Week 43 – Guaranteed to Succeed (Acts 28)

This morning I want to talk to you about Baptism. Baptism is one of those things we talk about here at PBCC - but I don’t remember the last time we had a study on the basics of baptisms. This is one of those issues that was clearly important to the early Church. In the New Testament book of Acts, for instance, it might surprise you to see that there are absolutely NO unbaptized believers. Baptism is brought up time and time again by the writers of the New Testament, beginning with the gospel accounts and going through Paul’s letters and Hebrews and Peter.

Paul likens baptism to the death, burial, & resurrection of Jesus and says things like: Rm 6:3-4: “...all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death…in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.”

Peter likens baptism to the saving of Noah and his family when God destroyed the world through the flood. 1 Pt 3:20-22 “In it only a few people, 8 in all, were saved through water, and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also - not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God…”

Jesus himself was baptized, as he said: “To fulfill all righteousness” (Mt. 3:15) and then he instructed his disciples to baptize in the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20a: Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[b] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…”

When it comes to baptism, I’m not sure why there’s so much debate because it seems to me that the Word of God - if we are to trust this book as the Word and Will of God - the Word of God is clear. Baptism is a part of what it means to be a disciple. Make disciples, Jesus said; TEACH them what I have taught - a part of which is the importance of obedience through faith into the waters of baptism.

What I want to do mostly today is to show you from scripture itself that baptism is something that is part of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus and that it really is, more than anything else, an amazing piece of evidence of one’s faith in the saving power of God’s grace.

I want to start this morning with a question. Does your faith have any value at all? In other words,  once you come to faith in Jesus, does that mean anything?

Once I become a follower of Jesus, should there be anything different about what I do with my life? Should there be a different focus for the way I live than what I had before I confessed my faith?

FAITH in Jesus can not just be something to acknowledge. FAITH should have a profound effect on our lives. This is at the heart of Hebrews 11, which we looked at briefly last week. This chapter, this Hall of Faith, is one of those great passages that lifts up the example of people who came to truly KNOW God, to LOVE Him, and to TRUST Him to the extent it caused them to surrender their own wills to God’s will, and to live a life characterized by obedience to the leading of God’s Spirit.

This past week I was doing a lot of thinking and meditation and discussing with other people about the concept of faith. You know, even if you claim to be a person without faith, the fact remains that you have faith in SOMETHING. And you can have 100% of faith in something.
 
Don’t believe me? People do it everyday when they get on an airplane…this multi-ton metal tube that hurtles through the air at an insane speed. And it comes to land on three points of rubber… don’t tell me you don’t have faith. Obviously you do - otherwise you’d never get on a plane.

We live by faith. In fact, I don’t think you can get through a single day without demonstrating faith in SOMETHING. When you flip a light switch you put faith in the electrical wiring. When you turn the ignition switch in your car, you trust the motor. When you mail a letter you have faith in the US Mail Service. Well….okay….maybe there’s a limit with somethings. 

I KID! But, seriously…when you THINK you can trust things, and it turns out bad, there is a better chance that you just placed your faith in the wrong thing rather than that thing doesn’t exist. IOW, faith SEEMS to be only as valuable as WHAT (or WHO) you put your faith in.

Now that’s true in human relationships, in commercial companies; and it’s ALSO true when it comes to SPIRITUAL faith. And there are many, many things and entities that people have put their faith in over the course of human history. Buddhists have put their faith in the idea of getting to do things over and over and over until you get it right, according to the teaching of the Buddha. Muslims have put their trust in Mohammed, the prophet, and his insights into God (whom they call Allah). Hindus have put their trust in thousands of gods. Even when people claim no religion at all, they still live by faith. Faith that their system of belief is actually real.

And at the heart of most religions, interestingly enough, is the faith that people are by-and-large generally GOOD. Humans seem to have faith in human potential. And that may manifest itself in the preeminence of science or politics, or it may well be expressed as a harmony with nature.

Last week we began a mini-series in the New Testament Book of Hebrews based on what the Author of Hebrews refers to as “the elementary” things of God - the Basics, if you will. Things that you should probably understand before moving on to some deeper understanding of how God works in our lives, and how He leads us. In fact, the Author of Hebrews is frustrated that the Hebrew converts to Christianity to whom he is writing aren’t able to withstand the temptation to go back to try to be justified by the Old Testament Law, rather than to trust in the sufficiency of Jesus for their right standing with God.

He tells them that by this time, they ought to be teachers (Heb. 5:12), but instead they are on shaky ground because they still need someone to teach them the basics yet again.

The basics shouldn’t be shunned or thought less of. That’s why I decided we should pause our Hebrews study to go back to the basics. And for some of you, that might be frustrating; you want to get past all this elementary stuff and get to the Master’s courses. But please note there are others here who have never even heard about the basics EVER - and this is the first time they are hearing about things like repentance, and faith, and baptism, and the Holy Spirit, and Eternal Life.

And then there are the majority of us who find ourselves somewhere in the middle of those extremes; folks who THINK they know the game, but who need to be sat down every once in a while and have a coach pick up a Bible and say, “Church, this is the Gospel. This is the Faith.”

For the next two weeks we are looking at the second foundational truth the Author of Hebrews mentions in chapter 6, verses 1-3. Last week we talked about repentance, this week and next will be all about

I want to begin by mentioning an important event that will happen this week for many, many churches around the world. Now, in our tradition, in the Restoration Church, where we don’t follow many of the High Church events on the Church calendar (i.e., Epiphany, All Saints’ Day, etc.), we haven’t ever really focused on this event - much less ever really mentioned it; BUT it is a day that has been held as sacred for many Christians over the past centuries.

The day is Ash Wednesday - a commemoration not specifically commanded in Scripture - but a day where the intention is very much connected to the principles that we read of in Scripture.

What is Ash Wednesday? Well, Ash Wednesday originated somewhere between the sixth and eighth centuries (in the Year of our Lord - A.D. - Anno Domini). It was a day for the Church to gather to remember the sinfulness of mankind and the need for repentance. And as a sign of the sorrow for sin and the decision to be made clean, believers would sprinkle ashes over their heads.

Last week I showed you from Hebrews 5 and 6 the FOUNDATIONS of our faith. Remember the Author of Hebrews is concerned that the Hebrew converts to Christianity would not be strong enough to withstand the temptation that they faced to go BACK to trying to be justified by the OT Law, rather than through their faith in the sufficiency of Jesus’ perfect life and perfect sacrifice to pay the penalty for their sins,

He scolded them for not growing past the basic, elementary doctrines of the faith, knowing that if they still were having trouble with the foundations, they wouldn’t get the deeper stuff that is involved in living out one’s faith through obedience to the Spirit of God.

And, if you recall, this prompted me to decide that perhaps, before we continue in our study in Hebrews, we would do well to pause and take a look at those foundational truths of the Gospel: The truths of repentance from dead works, of faith in God, of the teachings of baptism, of the laying on of hands - which is the yielding to the Spirit of God, and finally of matters of eternal life.

So this morning I have set the scene for us (and I think it’s quite timely since this Wednesday will be a time where Christians around the world will be focusing on repentance) for us to also consider the basic, foundational truth of repentance, and what that IS, what is MEANS, and what it LOOKS LIKE for believers today.

When people don’t mature like they should, we recognize that there is something wrong with that. What’s even worse is when people experience a real psychological phenomenon called Personality Regression.

Personality regression is a mental state in which one suddenly adopts an identical or similar personality, thought structure, mannerisms and behaviors to that of their past self from a younger age. During this state, the person will often believe that they are literally a child again and begin outwardly exhibiting behaviors which reflect this belief. These behaviors can include talking in a childlike manner, engaging in childish activities, and temporarily requiring another person to act as a caregiver or guardian.

Now…what could be unhealthy in a physical sense (because there is the truism that healthy things grow, right? And if you’re not growing - or if you’re regressing - that’s NOT healthy)... what could be called unhealthy in your physical life, I can argue that it’s just as unhealthy when you are regressing or not progressing in your spiritual life as well!

We now come to a section in the NT Book of Hebrews - this letter that we have been in since back in the Fall - where the Author (remember, we don’t know WHO wrote the letter, we just know it was written to Jewish converts to Christianity - religious people who were being tempted to go back to trying to earn their salvation by works of the OT Law, rather than on the sufficiency of Jesus as the one who didn’t abolish the Law, but fulfilled it by his perfect life and sacrifice on the cross) - this section is where the Author is bemoaning the spiritual maturity level of these people.

We can suppose that in the Author’s mind, if the Hebrew converts were well past the fundamentals of the faith, the “elementary truths,” he will call them, if they were more mature in their faith then they wouldn’t be tempted to regress!

Apparently the Author of Hebrews is concerned that these believers remain ALIVE in their faith - not dead and unproductive. DEFINITELY NOT regressing, but moving forward. Because if we aren’t, well, then, there is something wrong.

What makes a King? Is it merely the title? Some people operate like that. Not great leaders. What makes a King is the power he has AND HOW HE USES THAT POWER…

Today’s culture - LOTS of politicized things. Driving a wedge between people, where there doesn’t seem to be much middle ground. There’s an explanation - and it has a lot to do with the kind of leaders we have in power…

Today as we approach the Christmas story, we will take a look at power and how things haven’t really changed much in human history. And, this is the week we will look at the three Kings. 

Today I want to talk about words. Words are powerful ways to communicate ideas. And some words are beautiful. Majesty. Creation. Life. Forgiveness.

Home’s a good word . Some of you have confirmed that word for me in the last few weeks.

There are some beautiful words. There are also words that make us a little uncomfortable, aren’t there? Tests. Moist.

Submission. Obedience. LORDSHIP. Start using these terms with people and they tend to bristle… or not even truly understand what you’re talking about. Lordship? What’s that?

We don’t have Lords anymore. We have bosses – and that’s KINDA like a Lord. But there was a stronger bond connecting a vassal to a Lord in olden days, more so than an employee’s connection to a boss at work. You can quit your job, tell your boss to take a hike, if you don’t like what has been told you to do. And yes, you’ll have to find another job, sure… BUT you don’t HAVE to do what the boss said if you would rather walk away to perhaps be your OWN boss.

The Bible speaks of submission and obedience and Lordship. And because of our culture, those things aren’t popular words or ideas to many American believers. And yet they are characteristics of a lifestyle that biblical faith leads believers into.

This morning we are looking at the baby in the manger and his advent, his coming into this world, as the Lord of Lords - a title that we read of throughout scripture:

 Last week we closed by looking at a passage in Revelation - Revelation chapter 5, where we read about how the Lion of the tribe of Judah had the strength to open the seals of the scroll of eternal life. This was the Lion of Judah prophesied in Genesis 49 by the patriarch Jacob as he was blessing his sons on his deathbed.

And I told you that we would be continuing to look at that passage this week. So, let’s finish up the thought there in Revelation 5.

The Lion of Judah had the strength - and now that strong Lion SEEMS to have taken the form of a Lamb looking as if it had been slain. And all the creatures around the throne were worshiping the Lamb, giving it all praise and honor and glory - because as the Lion was strong enough to open the scroll, the Lamb was WORTHY enough to open the scroll.

And with that we begin the second week of Advent, focusing on the newborn Messiah as not just the strong Lion of Judah from prophecy. We now see him also as the Lamb of God worthy enough to bring peace between God and mankind.

Many of you know that I am involved in the theater scene in Bend. 

One famous playwright that I have never done a play by - nor really even have the desire to do so - is a Russian playwright named Anton Chekov. He is famous for plays like Uncle Vanya and Three Sisters. But he is also famous in the theater world for a literary device known as Chekov’s Gun. In a nutshell he was saying that it was important for the playwright to strip everything down to the bare essentials - get rid of anything you don’t need in the play.

So for instance, if there is a rifle hanging on the wall in the first act, then that gun absolutely MUST go off in the second or third act. Here’s a quote: “One must never place a loaded rifle on the stage if it ISN’T going to of off; it’s wrong to make promises you don’t mean to keep.”

This is the first Sunday in Advent. Advent comes from a Latin word that means “to come.” We sing the Christmas hymn: O Come, O Come Emmanuel. Emmanuel is a title that the prophet Isaiah attached to the promised Messiah. And the hymn depicts the longing of the people of God to fulfill His promise to deliver them. O Come, O Come. Advent. We need you. We cannot do it on our own.

Advent has been celebrated by churches for centuries. It’s designed to be a time leading up to the celebration of Jesus’ birth where believers prepare their hearts to recapture the meaning of that birth into our world. And in these four weeks that lead up to Christmas (five, this year, if you count Christmas Eve day when we gather at 9:30 for the Children's Christmas Pageant and at 6pm for the Candlelight Communion Service)...in these four weeks, churches have come to focus in on several aspects of the story of Jesus’ birth.

Sometimes you take characters from the story and focus on them. Sometimes you take concepts like Joy, Peace, and Love - and THAT’S what you focus on each week. Here at PBCC we have gotten creative as we have looked at Christmas Songs, or Christmas Movies, things like that. I think it’s cool when we can find a fresh perspective on a story that can - unfortunately for some - lose some of its wonder because it feels so routine and boring…the same old story told the same old way.

This year, as I mentioned last week, I want to use these beautiful banners you see behind me to guide our preparation for the celebration of Jesus’ birth. So we will be looking at Jesus as the Lion of Judah, the Lamb of God, the Lord of Lords, and the King of Kings: all titles that are found in the narrative of the nativity.

But we start today with the Promises of God - “Chekov’s Gun,” if you will, when God hung the loaded rifle up on the wall in Act 1, and promises that the gun WILL go off before the story is finished (of course, this is all metaphor! 

Ever have a job where you feel like the conveyor belt just gets faster and faster and you can’t keep up with the demands? Ever feel like that when it comes to other areas of life? Like maybe your religious experience, where the rules just keep coming at you, and you feel overwhelmed by all the things you THINK you have to do to please God?

This morning I hope to clear the air of what God has called you and I as believers into - the kind of relationship that benefits us and pleases Him. And it might just surprise you what God DOESN’T want of us…