Category Archives: Exposition

How to Tell the True Shepherd from the False (5)

August 22, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , , 2 Comments

Today’s sermon on John 10:11-21 is now on the web. You can listen to it here.

We only managed to cover aspect #4 of the death of Christ that makes Jesus supremely excellent as the good shepherd – a global sacrifice. Jesus died for the world, Jew and Gentile alike, people without distinction, from every tribe, tongue, nation, and people group.

Here is the quote from John Piper and the story from him about Peter Cameron Scott, founder of the Africa Inland Mission,  that I shared to illustrate the powerful motivation that v. 16 is to global and local evangelization:

He had tried twice to serve in Africa but had to come home both times with malaria. The third attempt was especially joyful because he was joined by his brother John. But the joy evaporated as John fell victim to the fever. Scott buried his brother all by himself, and at the grave rededicated himself to preach the gospel. But again his health broke and he had to return to England utterly discouraged.

But in London something wonderful happened. We read about it in Ruth Tucker’s From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya.

He needed a fresh source of inspiration and he found it at a tomb in Westminster Abbey that held the remains of a man who had inspired so many others in their missionary service to Africa. The spirit of David Livingstone seemed to be prodding Scott onward as he knelt reverently and read the inscription,

OTHER SHEEP I HAVE WHICH ARE NOT OF THIS FOLD; THEM ALSO I MUST BRING.

He would return to Africa and lay down his life, if need be, for the cause for which this great man had lived and died.

Lord willing, next Sunday we will finish the discourse with a look at the last two aspects of the death of Christ that make Him so very good a shepherd of His sheep!

How to Tell the True Shepherd from the False (4)

August 15, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , Leave a comment

This morning’s message from John 10:11-21 in now on the web. You can listen to it here.

Here’s how I concluded things, minus the quote by Matthew Henry, which I forgot to share:

We have three more specifics regarding the sacrificial death of Christ and what makes it supremely good to come – global, voluntary, and designed. These will have to wait for next time. Jesus claims to be the good shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep. That which makes Him definitively good is that He lay down His life in a most loving, certainly substitutionary, purposefully particular death for His sheep that makes possible their abundant life. Have you believed in Jesus the Good Shepherd? He invites you to come by faith to Him. Turn from your sins, your trust in self, good works, or any false shepherd and put your trust in Him. You will know Him and He will know you even as the Father knows the Son and the Son knows the Father. If you already belong to His flock, then give thanks in light of this theological survey from the lips of Jesus in the good shepherd discourse, this commentary on the laying down of his life, that He has gifted you with so supremely good a sacrifice.  As Matthew Henry put it: Jesus Christ is the best of shepherds, the best in the world to take the over-sight of souls, none so skilful, so faithful, so tender, as he, no such feeder and leader, no such protector and healer of souls as he.

May you walk this week in the shadow of your good shepherd as He leads you along with the rest of His sheep.

How to Tell the True Shepherd from the False (Part 3)

August 1, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , , Leave a comment

The third sermon on the Good Shepherd discourse from John 10:11-21 is now on the web. You can listen to it here.

Continuing to expand on the figure of speech He used in vv. 1-5, Jesus tweaks the allegory a third time in v. 11ff by uttering another of his rousing declarations – I am the good shepherd.

John would persuade us to believe in Jesus as the Messiah and follow Him as opposed to false and self-serving impostors (see the “hired hands” in the context). The two main thoughts we unpacked from v. 11 this morning before Communion had to do with what the good shepherd designation implies regarding Christ deity – He is equal to Jehovah God who frequently compares Himself to a shepherd in the Old Testament – and His integrity – He is good, supremely good, particularly in the fact that He lay down His life for the sheep.

Someone asked me where I got the quote at the end of the sermon. It comes from sermon 2919 by Charles Spurgeon called Whose Goodness Never Fails.

Here is the copy:

Then one dark night did He give His life for His sheep in the sense, I doubt not, intended here. On that dread night—you know it—that night to be remembered, for it was the night of God’s Passover, the Shepherd went round His flock and the sheep were sleeping, but there came the wolf and the Shepherd knew his snarl. The sheep, all startled at the howls, were scattered—they forsook the Shepherd and fled. That night He had enough to do to meet the wolf. But He stood at the fold to watch the sheep and let them all go in safety. And then He confronted the grim monster who leaped into the fold thirsty for the blood of the sheep, but the Shepherd caught him and then came a desperate struggle between the two. The shepherd did bleed and sweat, did bleed and sweat and bleed again. Great drops of blood fell to the ground, but He held the monster fast and firm. Our Great Shepherd was wounded on His head, on His shoulders, on His hands and feet—and one awful fang tore open His side, but He held the wolf—held Him till He had slain him! Then, dashing down his body to the ground and putting His foot upon him, He shouted, “It is finished!” But in the same moment, the Great Shepherd fell. In slaying our foe He had, Himself, been slain! But scarcely had the Shepherd touched the earth than, as if reanimated, up He sprang again and said, “I lay down My life that I might take it again; therefore does My Father love Me because I lay down My life for the sheep.” You know that story and need not that I tell it again at any length. But, oh, love Him! Love Him! Kiss His wounds! Worship this blessed Shepherd who has conquered your foe and delivered you from the jaw of the lion and from the paw of the bear—and set you forever safely in His fold! “The Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”

For the next two sermons we will consider six ways Jesus is preeminently good as our shepherd in His sacrificial death as a loving, substitutionary, particular, global, voluntary, and designed sacrifice.

Amazing love how can it be that You my King should die for me!

How To Tell the True Shepherd from the False (Part 2)

July 25, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , 2 Comments

This morning’s sermon on John 10:7-10 is now on the web. You can listen to it here.

Here is the story from the Bible scholar Sir George Adam Smith that so well illustrates what Jesus meant by His astonishing statement, I am the door of the sheep (v. 7 & 9).

He was one day traveling in Palestine with a guide, and came across a shepherd and his sheep. He fell into conversation with him. The man showed him the fold into which the sheep were led at night. It consisted of four walls, with a way in. Sir George said to him, “That is where they go at night?” “Yes,” said the shepherd, “and when they are in there they are perfectly safe.” “But there is no door,” said Sir George. “I am the door,” said the shepherd. He was not a Christian so he was not speaking the language of the New Testament. Rather, he was speaking from a Mid-Eastern shepherd’s point-of-view. Sir George looked at him and said, “What do you mean you are the door?” Said the shepherd, “When the light has gone, and all the sheep are inside, I lie in that open place, and no sheep ever goes out but across my body, and no wolf comes in unless he crosses my body; I am the door.”

Because Jesus is the door of the sheep, we should believe in Him as the Messiah and follow Him as opposed to false and harmful impostors. There are two implications that result. As the door Jesus alone dictates legitimate access to the sheep (7-8) and Jesus alone enables maximum benefit for the sheep (9-10) – salvation, security, sustenance, and satisfaction. This is the abundant life Jesus came to give!

How to Tell the True Shepherd from the False (Part One)

July 18, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , 2 Comments

Today’s message from John 10:1-6, the setup to the Good Shepherd Discourse, is now on the web. You can listen to it here.

Here’s how I summarized the message at the end:

Because Jesus is the true and Good Shepherd, we should believe in Him as Messiah and follow Him as opposed to false and harmful impostors.

You can tell the difference between the true and false shepherd by the true shepherd’s positive intent, legitimate access, and authoritative voice to call out effectively and lead out exclusively.

Have you been called out by Jesus?

If you have, understand that He goes before you as one who leads. Whatever you are facing maritally, parentally, vocationally, economically, whatever, He knows every detail about your situation and means to do you well as your good shepherd.

If you haven’t, you may need to come out of Judaism even like the man born blind. Or maybe materialism, or humanism, or philosophy, or mysticism or a host of other false shepherds that climb up another way and take sheep captive and do them harm. Come John 10:11 He will tell us how He came to calls us out and leads us into what Psalm 23 describes as green pastures and beside quiet waters – The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He dies in their place. He bears their punishment before a holy God so they might be forgiven. Do you hear this message? Jesus the true shepherd is calling. Believe, come out, follow.

May He give us grace to hear His voice as we move into another week of following Him.

How to Be Certain Your Faith Is Certifiably Genuine (Part 2)

July 11, 2010 By in Exposition, Sunday Morning Tags: , , , Leave a comment

Today’s message is now on the web. You can listen to it here.

Here is the quote from Charles Spurgeon with which I led off in the message:

Assurance of your salvation will bring you “the peace of God, which passeth all understanding.” If you know that you are saved, you can sit down in poverty, or in sickness, or under slander, and feel perfectly content. Full assurance is the Koh-i-noor (Persian for “Mountain of Light” – a 105 carat diamond that was once the largest known diamond in the world) amongst the jewels wherewith the heavenly Bridegroom adorns his spouse. Assurance is a mountain of spices, a land that floweth with milk and honey. To be the assured possessor of eternal life is to find a paradise beneath the stars, where the mountains and the hills break forth before you into singing.

Here’s how I summarized this two part sermon on the genuine faith of the man born blind who was made to see by the light of the world, Jesus:

Genuine faith bears the marks of steadfast allegiance to Jesus – growth of insight, boldness of witness, perseverance through suffering, and admission of need. How do you stack up? When you examine your own faith, do these things present themselves as evidences as to its certifiable genuineness? If so, enjoy the Kohinoor of assurance of salvation and give thanks to God for His indescribable gift!

Next week, Lord willing, we move into John 10 and the Good Shepherd discourse, one of the most precious and beloved sections of Scripture to believers throughout the centuries.

The Best Possible Gift You Can Give Your Parents

June 20, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , , Leave a comment

My Father’s Day sermon is now on the web. You can listen to the audio here.

I ran out of time before I could cover these items of application following a brief summary.

So these are some thoughts this Father’s Day for the best possible gift to give your parents – their joy in your heart’s desire to go the way of the wise all your days. Do all you can to get and keep their wisdom. Always treat them with respect. Take care with whom you associate. Let me finish with some thoughts for application.

First, become an expert in the state of your heart. Don’t neglect it. Be rightly suspicious of it and ask others you trust to tell you what they see in your heart and listen carefully.

Second, beware pride and the all-too-easy tendency to be wise in your own eyes, particularly when it comes to dismissing your parents’ judgment and wisdom in a situation. Understand that humility and submission are prize virtues in the way of the wise.

Third, regularly appreciate and praise your parents with genuine affirmation not insincere flattery. Write them a tribute at some point. Get Dennis Rainey’s book. You won’t regret it.

Fourth, heed the sober warnings of the Scripture about dishonoring and despising your parents. If you have done so, go humble yourself and ask forgiveness.

Fifth, if you are hanging out with the wrong crowd on the path to destruction realize what that says about your own heart and determine to get yourself out of there as fast as possible and start hanging out with the wise. Remember the blessedness promised in Psalm 1:1 -2. If you need help getting untangled from bad associations ask for it.

May we be a cause of great gladness to our parents and certainly no “life sentence.”

Making War on Anxiety When War Is Made Upon You

June 15, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , , Leave a comment

I had hoped to finish volume two of Ian Murray’s biography of D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones these three weeks in Idaho. I made it past page 500. There are still another 300 or so to go.

As with volume one, the Lord challenged me on several fronts with this portion of the life of arguably Britain’s greatest preacher of the 20th century.

Particularly fascinating to me were accounts related to the man’s ministry during WWII in London. He served alongside the spiritual giant G. Campbell Morgan, for whom he later took over in the pulpit at Westminster Chapel.

The two met weekly. Not much got recorded of their conversations. But Murray does relate on pp. 11-12 of volume two how Morgan feared in the early years of the conflict with Germany for the end of the work of his church and that nothing would remain for Lloyd-Jones to pastor.

For fifty-seven nights in succession, an average of two hundred German bombers were over London every night. Churchill later wrote, ‘At this time we saw no end but the demolition of the whole metropolis.’ Before the end of October, 1940 the Bishop of London was to state that in his diocese alone 32 churches had been destroyed, and 47 seriously damaged. What hope had Westminster Chapel, standing as it did so close to Buckingham Palace and other primary targets for German bombing? . . . The old veteran did not hide his dismay over the situation into which his friend had been brought. It was not so much that Morgan was concerned for himself. “Although I confess it is not easy,’ he wrote, ‘I am constantly hearing in my own soul the words: “In nothing be anxious, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God”.’ But he did fear that Lloyd-Jones might be left without work and without a pastorate.

I find it difficult to imagine living night after night under such perilous circumstances. The temptation to worry would certainly threaten to overwhelm the best of servants. How did this man of God wage war on anxiety while the Third Reich made war upon him, his church, and all of England? He took up an all-important weapon in his spiritual armor to keep worry at bay. He brandished the sword of the Spirit, the word of God (Eph. 6:17).

The words Campbell constantly heard, of course, come from the Bible in Philippians 4:6-7. Or he could have heard Matthew 6:25 as we had preached on Sunday. Or he could have heard 1 Peter 5:7 or any number of other texts.

But God brought to mind the Philippians passage in particular perhaps because it contains in its two short verses a seemingly complete package for waging war on worry.

First, there is the prohibition against worry, at all. The Greek text reads literally, Nothing be anxious. The object comes before the imperative for emphasis. God commands us not to worry about anything, including life-threatening danger.

Second, there is the prescription to fight against worry with prayer. The same word order emphasis holds true for the prescription as for the prohibition. The ESV reflects the literal version perfectly: but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God (emphasis added). As one writer put it, Anxiety and prayer are more opposed to each other than fire and water.

Third, there is the promise of God-given, beyond-all-human-comprehension peace in v. 7. Those who refuse worrying in favor of praying relentlessly can count on a supernatural peace that stands guard at the door of their heart even on the 57th night of pounding by the 200th bomber in the middle of a world war.

On what front presently do you find yourself tempted to give way to the sin of worry? You can’t fight against it unarmed. Take up the sword of the word and do battle with it. Put off your anxiety. Kill it. Put on in its place specific, continual, faith-filled petitions to God about your concerns all the while making certain to surround your requests with the sweet fragrance of thanksgiving for His many gifts to you and His sovereign control over all things that concern you. And take the massive promise of supernatural peace to the bank of your soul and let it stand guard over the contents therein.

If G. Campbell Morgan could do it in the middle of a global conflict, we can do it in the middle of whatever battles we must fight.

Precious Promises for Warding Off Debilitating Discouragement

May 9, 2010 By in Exposition Tags: , , Leave a comment

Capital Fund Campaign Sunday #3 has just about passed. You can listen to the third sermon from Haggai 2:1-9 here.

Here is the summary of the message, including theme, main points, and applications:

Encouragement for kingdom building work comes from taking God at His word in His powerful promises – the promise of God’s presence in the present as before (2:1-5) and the promise of God’s provision in the future beyond before (6-9). So as we persevere with this campaign and anticipate commitment Sunday on week five, May 23, I urge us to keep on considering our ways, evaluating our priorities. Let’s not waste this season. And let us claim these precious and powerful promises about His abiding, covenant keeping presence and His provision of all our needs, even beyond what we can ask or think. These are the antidotes for any debilitating discouragement that may come our way.

Two more Sundays left in this historic season in our church’s life!

How Not to Waste a Serious Call to Consider Our Ways

May 3, 2010 By in Exposition, Uncategorized Tags: , , Leave a comment

Sunday #2 of 5 in our capital fund raising campaign for our building program is now history.

Praise God for fourteen intercessors that evening seeking God at the church office. We pleaded with Him to help us as a people not waste the serious call to consider our ways as commanded by the prophet in Haggai 1:5 & 7.

The second sermon in the series is now available on our website. You can access the audio file here. The text is Haggai 1:12-15. Here is a synopsis of the message:

Here is the banner we need to wave high over our capital campaign and eventually, Lord willing, over our construction project – Zech. 4:6 – Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. Church, we are no more equipped or strong or numerous or rich to pull off a 2.5 million dollar building effort than these poor rabble were to rebuild Yahweh’s glorious temple, unless God stirs us up for the task. I can’t do that for us. The elders and deacons can’t. God alone can do this. This is what we need to ask for and see if we are to move ahead and succeed. Move ahead or not, I beg of you, let us not waste this serious call to consider our ways, even as the people of Israel did not. Make the most of this opportunity. Respond positively to the invitation. Listen for God to speak through His word. Look for God to support through His promise – I am with you. And live for God to stir up through His Spirit. Make these five weeks count. Exchange hours on Facebook for time on your face before God in His word. He will speak. However He does, through whatever promises He encourages, and in whatever way He stirs us to act, let us do all for His pleasure and glory and our great joy.

Be encouraged church of God. I received a gift of $1000 from OUTSIDE our church this week toward the campaign. This is only the beginning. God is working. He relishes the faith upon which we are acting and praying (Heb. 11:6).