06 Ephesians 1:15-17 A Pastor's Prayer Part 1

Title: “A Pastor’s Prayer” Part 1

Text: Ephesians 1:15-17

FCF: We often struggle growing in our faith in perceivable ways.

Prop: Because God’s redemptive plan continues to work in true believers, we must continue to grow.



Scripture Intro:

[Slide 1] Turn in your bible to Ephesians chapter 1. In a moment we will read from the Legacy Standard bible starting in verse 15. You can follow along in the pew bible or in whatever version you prefer.



Last week we closed out the second sentence of the book of Ephesians. I know I had mentioned that I would perhaps, do a final sermon over the entire sentence, but I think, I hope, I was able to keep all the thoughts together last week and we got the broader picture of Paul’s opening doxological eulogy. So rather than go over it again, I think we are free to move on.



Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately depending on how you see it, we face ANOTHER long sentence to complete chapter 1. In our English classes, we are taught that a paragraph isn’t complete unless there are at least 4 sentences. I don’t think modern English Grammar rules take into account Paul’s sentences. 😊



Verses 15 through 23 are, again, one sentence in Greek. Fortunately, it is not nearly as long and the themes here are, in some ways, a recapitulation of what we’ve already seen.



Today we will bite off what is essentially the introduction to the sentence’s main idea, and then next week we will look at some of or the rest of the sentence. I’m not actually sure how much I’ll try to cover next week.



But today we get to see Paul’s heart as a pastor. We get to see his compassion and love for the Ephesian church. We get to see his desire for them to know God more. Every Shepherd desires this for their flock. I can confidently say that this is the prayer of every Elder here… for you.



So, let’s get into it. Please stand with me to give honor to and to focus on the Word of God as it is read.



Invocation:

Faithful Father, You have done all to save us. Therefore, we are not our own, we have been bought with a price. Because we belong to You, our future, our life, is Yours. And You will not abandon us. You have given us Your Spirit and You have ensured that we will grow. My prayer, Loving Father, is that You will continue to grow us in our love for other believers, that You will continue to help us to endure in our faith, that You will continue to give Your Spirit’s wisdom and revelation to us to know You more accurately, so that we may worship and serve You rightly. I pray this in Jesus’ name… Amen.



Transition:

[Slide 2] “Let us not cease to do the utmost, that we may incessantly go forward in the way of the Lord; and let us not despair because of the smallness of our accomplishments.” John Calvin



“True saving faith clings to Christ and His Word, regardless of the consequences caused by that faith.” Henry Mahan



[Slide 3] “As soon as the love of God was shed abroad in my soul I loved all, of whatsoever denomination, who loved the Lord Jesus in sincerity of heart.” George Whitefield



“The fact beats ceaselessly into my brain these days that there is a world of difference between knowing the Word of God and knowing the God of the Word.” Leonard Ravenhill



[Slide 4] “When you come to knowing God, the initiative lies on His side. If He does not show Himself, nothing you can do will enable you to find Him.” C.S. Lewis



“There is no such thing as genuine knowledge of God that does not show itself in obedience to His Word and will.” Sinclair Ferguson



Let these words help to prepare your hearts for the exposition of the Word this morning.



I.) God’s redemptive plan is still working in true believers, so we must continue in faith and love. (15-16)

a. [Slide 5] 15 - For this reason

i. Paul begins his third sentence in this letter with a prepositional phrase outlining that what follows was caused by what came before it.

ii. But that does leave us with a little bit of uncertainty. To what exactly is Paul pointing as the cause for what he is about to say?

iii. It is most certainly the entirety of what he just said.

iv. God the Father is worthy of praise because by predestining us to adoption as sons, he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be united to Him as the head of a new covenant through faith, so that we may have redemption and forgiveness of sins through His blood, and so being united to Him and by being predestined, we have been claimed as God’s own possession, and sealed with His Spirit which is a guarantee for our salvation that we may be part of the restoration and reordering of the world under Christ.

v. Because of ALL OF THIS…

vi. What must Paul do?

b. [Slide 6] I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints,

i. But before we get to what Paul must do in response to this, he actually adds one more element to the cause.

ii. What else forces Paul to respond?

iii. It is his hearing of their faith and their love.

iv. We saw similar things when we studied 1 and 2 Thessalonians.

1. Although we are sealed and given the Spirit as a guarantee of our redemption, as we said last week, this will produce fruit in us and growth in Christ. We will be more and more pressed into the mold of Christ.

2. Our fruit and our growth do not save us, but they provide evidence that we have been indwelled with God’s Spirit.

v. Notice here Paul’s hearing about their faith.

1. This is one aspect that some use to suggest that Paul did not know his audience, and therefore, this is not a letter sent to Ephesus but to several churches.

2. However, Paul has not been in Ephesus in 5 years. How much has changed or happened in our church in 5 years? And saying that he has heard of their faith does not suggest necessarily that he doesn’t know some or many of them personally.

vi. Instead, it speaks to the public display of their faith.

vii. Notice also that their faith is in the Lord Jesus

1. Here we see that the content, the object, the location of our faith rests in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

2. It is inside or into Jesus that our trust is placed.

3. We don’t trust in our trust. We don’t trust in our prayer. We don’t trust in our works. Ultimately, we trust in who Christ is and what He has done.

4. And since He is the object of our faith, it is not a one-time faith, but an ongoing faith.

viii. This faith in Jesus is found among you. We must again ask the question of the pronouns.

1. The last time we saw the second person plural pronoun, I tentatively assigned it the meaning of gentile Christians in Ephesus.

2. Does the second person pronoun continue to inherit that?

3. It does not. And the reason it doesn’t is because Paul changes the paradigm by using the first-person plural to describe his reaction to all that has been said. He says “I too”.

4. Therefore, we should only take this “you” to refer to the Ephesian church as a whole. Not necessarily the gentile Christians there.

ix. Finally, notice that Paul is commending their love for all the saints.

1. Paul once again uses the word all with the article implying all in an absolute sense.

2. Of course that is sharpened by the word saints.

3. Meaning of course that Paul has heard of their enduring love for the universal body of Christ.

4. This cannot merely mean Jewish Christians but must refer to all believers universally.

x. So, given that God has done everything in salvation, and given that they possess enduring faith in Jesus and love toward the universal church… what must Paul do?

c. [Slide 7] 16 - do not cease giving thanks for you,

i. “Do not cease” is the main verb in the clause so far, Paul cannot stop doing something as a result of all that he has said and the public fruit of the Ephesian church.

ii. And the thing he cannot stop doing is giving thanks for them.

iii. The entire second sentence is about praising God for His glory, and Paul too cannot stop praising God for His glory which has been displayed in saving the Ephesian church which is most evident in their enduring faith and their deepening love for al believers.

iv. As a pastor I can say that some of the sweetest prayers for me to offer up to God are those of thanksgiving for His redemption and His people growing in the Lord.

v. But Paul is not just unceasingly giving thanks. There is one more participle that modifies the main action.

d. [Slide 8] while making mention of you in my prayers:

i. This participle modifies the main verb to explain when the action of being unable to case giving thanks occurs.

ii. It is specifically when Paul remembers them in his prayers.

iii. Paul seems to be a man of prayer. In several of his letters, he mentions praying for those to whom he writes.

iv. Being under house arrest, I am sure that he had plenty of time to write, pray, and meet with local believers.

v. Here the Ephesians are told that he prays for them and when he does, he cannot stop thanking God for what He has done and specifically what He has done in them as evidenced by their enduring faith and love for all believers.

e. [Slide 9] Summary of the Point: After feverishly expressing deep praise to God for His work to redeem His people, Paul now brings his letter to a much more personal level. He expresses his need to express his thankfulness to God every time he prays for the Ephesian church, primarily because of God’s work to save them and the ongoing effect that has had on them to be a people of enduring faith and deep love for all believers. In this, we see that God’s redemption doesn’t stall out. He continues to redeem us, growing our faith and deepening our love for one another. This then becomes our application. We must continue to grow in faith and love.



[Slide 10(blank)] Transition: But what is the content of Paul’s prayer for them? We know that he doesn’t stop thanking God for them when he mentions them in prayer… but what is the main thing Paul enters into prayer for them about?



II.) God’s redemptive plan is still working in true believers, so we must grow in the full knowledge of God. (17)

a. [Slide 11] 17 - that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,

i. Once again Paul uses the title of God the Father as the God of our Lord Jesus Christ.

ii. We saw this when we looked at verse 3, Paul repeats it again.

iii. This is covenantal language. Similar constructions occur in the Old Testament.

iv. “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” or “The God of Israel.”

v. It establishes the covenantal representative of particular promises that God has given through that covenant figure.

vi. But calling Jesus Lord in addition to this, puts a heightened priority on Jesus’ place in the covenant over which he presides.

vii. Jesus presides over the New Covenant. He is the Last Adam. He is THE seed of Abraham. He is the prophet greater than Moses. He is the crusher of the serpent’s head. He is the Davidic heir to the eternal throne of Israel. He is the High priest in the order of Melchizedek. He is the King of King and He is the Lord of Lords and all things will be brought into order under Him.

viii. But this also communicates something special about the God of Jesus.

ix. This God, is the one making the covenant. He is the one giving the promises and blessings through that covenant. He is the one who graciously and lovingly has entered into promises and covenant blessings with humans. Which is quite odd, since He is also the one offended and slighted by human sin.

x. This God is the Father of glory.

xi. The title Father can sometimes mean origin or source, but here it is unlikely that it takes that meaning. Instead, it is referring to the first person of the godhead who is given a quality… and that quality is glory. We could even see this as an adjective, Glorious Father.

xii. Paul mentioned three times that all that God did in salvation is for the purpose of the praise of His glory or the praise of the glory of His grace. And he began the sentence saying that God the Father is blessed or praiseworthy.

xiii. Therefore, the title Father of glory, points us back once again to all that God has done.

xiv. Glory has the idea of honor, fame, radiance, splendor, recognition or renown.

xv. God deserves highest honor, fame, recognition and renown, for His radiance and splendor displayed in His character and in His work.

xvi. And so, to put all the pieces back together, Paul, while praying in gratefulness to God for them, is seeking this Father who gave them all of this, to give them something more.

xvii. What?

b. [Slide 12] may give to you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation

i. This Father of Glory and the One who set up a covenant with His Son with whom we become joint heirs as we are untied to Him through faith, Paul seeks out to give even further gifts to the Ephesian church.

ii. For what gifts does Paul ask?

iii. First, is the spirit of wisdom. There are three ways to view this and they are all represented in various popular translations.

1. The Holy Spirit of wisdom, meaning a work the Spirit does in us as He indwells us.

2. Spiritual wisdom, meaning a wisdom specifically about spiritual matters from a spiritual source.

3. A human spirit of wisdom whereby God enlightens the spirit within us to be wise.

iv. In the end, since God is sought for this, I don’t see a huge difference between the ultimate meaning of the passage. Even if it is a human spirit, God is being sought for it to be granted to the Ephesian church. Meaning they don’t have it naturally.

v. So, one way or another, Paul is seeking God, probably through His Spirit, to illuminate the minds of the Ephesian church.

vi. We know from other passages of scripture that this is indeed a role that the Holy Spirit occupies for believers. This seems to be the best view, especially since the other two do not eliminate the Spirit from being involved in that process.

vii. But it is not only the Spirit of wisdom but also The Spirit of revelation.

viii. This word gives us another aspect of divine or supernatural communication from God to us.

ix. This actually makes an even stronger case for the Third person of the Godhead being in view here, since revelation must come from God and not from man.

x. If Paul was asking for God to give them a human spirit of revelation, this would mean that man produces revelation. Which is not even what modern “apostles and prophets” believe. They still claim that their messages are from God.

xi. God uses His Word and the Spirit along with His word to illuminate and reveal Himself to His people. People who are Spiritual people. Meaning not natural people.

xii. But what is the wisdom and revelation being requested for? What is its mission?

c. [Slide 13] in the full knowledge of Him,

i. The expression full knowledge here probably does not express that Paul’s prayer is that they know everything there is to know about God.

ii. This is not how this expression is normally used and it actually contradicts some theological ideas we have about God being infinite and we being finite.

iii. Instead, this most likely means that they have an accurate or purely true understanding of God.

iv. There is some disagreement as to which person of the Godhead “Him” is referring. A case could be made for all three, but the scriptures seem to put priority on knowing the Father through the Son and by the Spirit. So, we should see this as the knowledge of the Father of glory.

v. If God can only be worshipped in Spirit and in truth, having an inaccurate or erroneous view of God precludes individuals from worshipping Him.

vi. Paul’s prayer is that their knowledge of God is precise and without error. And the only way that can happen is when God Himself gives Spiritual wisdom and revelation of Himself to His people through the Spirit which has sealed them and indwelled them.

vii. What knowledge about Him specifically? Well, we will get to that next week.

d. [Slide 14] Summary of the Point: Paul continues to the basic idea of his prayers for the Ephesian church. It is not just one of thankfulness, but it is also that this God who gives so much… so many Spiritual blessings… would continue to give, through the indwelling of the Spirit, wisdom and revelation of Himself to His people. True believers, those who are truly sealed and indwelled by that Spirit, desire to know God more and more. To know Him accurately so they can worship Him rightly. Paul’s prayer for the Ephesian church becomes our application today. We too must grow in our knowledge of God.



Conclusion:

So, what have we learned CBC that refines our beliefs and guides our lifestyles?



Basics of Faith and Practice:

[Slide 15] After the first very long sentence describing all that God has done to save us to be His possession, Paul now brings all that to bear upon the Ephesian church as he reveals his prayerful desire for them. Paul prays thankfully that God has redeemed them and is continuing to manifest fruit in their hearts. And his prayer is, generally, that God would grant to them Spiritual wisdom and revelation to know God the Father accurately. That their knowledge would continue to grow. Not just so they become scholars or theologians. But so their hearts and lives would be shaped by His glory and His grace.



So how must we respond to the prayer of this pastor? How must we apply this text to ourselves?



1.) [Slide 16] Mind Transformation: “What truth must we believe from this text?” or “What might we not naturally believe that we must believe because of what this text has said?” We must affirm that God’s redemption of us is ongoing.

a. Even a cursory look at the New Testament affirms that God is not done with us once we are converted.

b. So much so, that many practices in the church, like church discipline, rest on continual repentance and belief unto obedience being the predictable norm of the believer.

c. Even children’s songs reflect this idea. He’s still working on me, to make me what I ought to be.

d. This reflects the reformation doctrine of being declared righteous vs. being made righteous.

e. If we see ourselves as being made righteous at conversion, then we have the problem of sin to deal with.

f. We can redefine what sin is, making it easier for us to avoid being accused of it, and therefore maintain a version of perfection.

g. We can establish remedial ways to purify ourselves of sin through penance and purgatory.

h. But if we are declared to be righteous, that gives us the understanding that in a legal sense, God has given us the verdict of righteous. Not because we actually are, but because Christ is and Christ has taken our place, and we have been put INTO Him.

i. The reformers said that we are simultaneously justified and still sinners. And this is a conclusion formed from the New Testament teaching on the subject. Paul assumes the people he writes to are not yet perfect. Paul assumes he himself is not yet perfect. And yet he also says that we become the righteousness of God.

j. This is a perfect doctrine to remind the Ephesians of immediately after saying they have been sealed and given the guarantee of the Holy Spirit Himself.

k. We, in 21st century Christendom, need a similar reminder.

l. Just because we are sealed and guaranteed of a future redemption, does not mean we sit at the bus stop and wait for Jesus to roll in and pick us up.

m. This assumes that the only reason God saved us was to spare us His wrath.

n. But Paul has already told us that the reason God saved us was to the praise of His glory.

o. We have been saved to continue to praise Him and also to see to it that others do the same.

p. Jesus said that by our good works we will make it so unbelievers would be forced to glorify our Father in heaven.

q. Since God’s purpose to save us is for us to be restored image bearers living among other broken image bearers… we must look like God. We must act like He would act, talk like He would talk, think like He would think, and be what He would be.

r. How do we know what that is?

s. Jesus said if you have seen Him, you have seen the Father. We must live more and more like Jesus.

t. Our salvation is simultaneously done, ongoing, and in the future.

u. There is a past aspect, a present aspect, and a future aspect of our salvation.

v. Therefore, as those who have been sealed by the Spirit, we are continuing to be conformed to Christ while we wait for Him to complete our redemption.

w. So what does this mean for us?

2.) [Slide 17] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don’t naturally do or aren’t currently doing?” Elders must be unceasingly thankful for God’s work to save and grow His people.

a. As Elders caring for the souls of God’s people, we face many dangers.

b. On the one hand, since it is our job to look after, lead, teach, and disciple God’s people, we can allow success to dilute us into thinking that it is us.

c. People are coming to Christ, people are holding fast to their faith, people are deepening in their love, growing in their knowledge of God… because we are especially good at what we do.

d. We might be tempted with pride to assume that because we are such great speakers, or teachers, or because we are so humble, or knowledgeable… that we really are the special sauce that makes the church grow in converts and maturity.

e. And it isn’t just the Elders that could be swept away with that idea. Church members too can think that without Pastor so and so or without Elder this and that… I would never know God or I would be half the Christian I am today.

f. But when Pastor so and so fails or when Elder this and that falls – it’s like the world has ended because their little g god has failed them.

g. But we Elders face the other side too, when people aren’t growing as we’d like them to. When they are still struggling with something after several years or when they seem to be making really unwise decisions…

h. We might be tempted to get frustrated or even angry with them and with ourselves.

i. Brothers when we confess that God is the one who saves and God is the one who grows His people… we start to put our role into perspective.

j. When people are growing we thank the Lord. When people aren’t growing, we seek the Lord.

k. We play an important but ultimately very small part in all of this.

l. Paul knew this. That is why He didn’t stop thanking God for the salvation and sanctification of the Ephesian church. And that is why Paul sought the Father to send His Spirit to give more wisdom and revelation of Himself to them.

m. We would do well to follow his example.

3.) [Slide 18] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don’t naturally do or aren’t currently doing?” We must stand firm in our faith.

a. Our faith being in Christ, means that we put our trust and our hope into the sphere of Christ trusting on His work and His person.

b. That faith must be accurate in that we believe the right things about Christ’s person and work, and that faith must be enduring in that we hold fast and do not waver.

c. Having doubts is not the end of our faith, but ultimately our faith must be in Christ.

d. In this we must be sure that our faith is not in something that is Christ adjacent.

e. We can’t depend on our obedience to Christ.

f. We can’t depend on our faith in Christ.

g. We can’t depend on our church.

h. We can’t depend on our ritual practices.

i. We can’t depend on the sacraments.

j. We must depend on Christ alone. His person and His work.

k. We must depend on Christ as the God-Man and we must depend on His sacrificial atoning death on the cross. His righteousness. His advocacy. His future return.

l. This is what our faith must rest in and on.

m. All our issues with sin are ultimately not a behavioral issue. It is an issue of faith. Are we truly trusting IN Christ?

n. If we are, we trust Him enough to depend on Him and submit to His commands.

4.) [Slide 19] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don’t naturally do or aren’t currently doing?” We must deepen our love for one another.

a. Because we begin to look like God by looking like Christ, we must also observe the new command Jesus gave to His disciples.

b. To love one another as He loved them.

c. Christ demonstrated what it meant to love other believers.

d. Certainly, Christians ought to be characterized by our love for all humanity – but Christ calls out especially our love for one another.

e. Love doesn’t mean tolerance. Jesus rebuked Peter.

f. Love doesn’t mean acceptance. Jesus corrected doubt in His followers.

g. Love does mean selfless unconditional giving of oneself for others. Jesus selflessly, unconditionally gave His life for His disciples. He informed them that Satan wished to sift them like wheat but He interceded for them.

h. And our love should be directed toward all believers. Not just those who are here in our local assembly… but believers universally.

i. I’ve been pastoring here for 10 years. And in that time, I’ve made no bones about it, there are churches out there that aren’t good churches. Organizationally, they are not churches that we should affiliate with or stand with.

j. But that doesn’t mean that we are the only church who has it right! Quite the opposite actually. We might disagree on some things, some things which make it impossible to be gathered in the same local congregation. But that doesn’t mean we do not love believers in these churches and fellowship with them.

k. I actually did an interview this week for a pastor in Imlay city. He is getting his masters degree and as part of that he had to interact with another person who disagreed with him on a secondary doctrine. We talked about a few doctrines that would be challenging or impossible to be in the same church and hold in disagreement.

l. But my conversation with him was full of grace, kindness, love, and comradery as we talked about what we agreed on and what we disagreed on… in peace and in love.

m. I think of the friendship of Dr. R.C. Sproul and John MacArthur. Both are in glory now. But their friendship was deep in spite of having VERY different views on baptism.

n. We as believers should deepen in our love for all believers. And that love must transcend denominational boundaries without thinking it a necessity that we all join in one local assembly.

o. Are there churches and people we must stay separated from? Certainly. But that is usually those who hold to beliefs that make them… unchristian. In other words – they are false teachers. We love false teachers but in a different way. Not as brothers… but as lost people who are teaching others to be lost too.

p. As we grow in Christ – our love for other believers must deepen. We must fight the urge to compete with other churches, or be overly picky on doctrine before fellowshipping with them.

q. And of course, we should have an even greater intimacy with those in our local assembly. We should be closer than family. We should be ready to forgive, love, invest in, strive for, serve and support every single member of this church.

r. Do you see the universal church this way? Do you see this local assembly this way? It’s time for you to deepen in your love.

5.) [Slide 20] Exhortation: “What actions should we take?” or “What is this passage specifically commanding us to do that we don’t naturally do or aren’t currently doing?” We must seek the Lord for Spiritual wisdom and revelation to know God more accurately.

a. This is not the last time Paul is going to make the case for deepening our knowledge of God in the book of Ephesians.

b. In fact, the purpose of the church is to grow in their knowledge of Christ to grow up into His full stature.

c. What is the point of knowing God accurately?

d. Doctrine produces practice. And right doctrine produces right practice.

e. In 1st Timothy Paul corrects the idea that Christ has already returned because it had led to people not marrying, not eating certain foods, and allowing women to pastor the church. They had assumed they were in the eternal state where people were no longer given in marriage and where there was no more male or female.

f. Paul makes the case that not only are we not in the eternal state but we are still under the created order of husbands leading their wives.

g. The early church took great pains to outline God’s nature as a triune God and Christ’s God-Man status. Far from unnecessary doctrines the church agreed that these teachings were absolutely necessary for any to be a follower of Christ.

h. Understanding God accurately helps us to worship Him better and to live for Him better. But understanding God inaccurately distorts our worship and lifestyles.

i. The good news is that the Holy Spirit helps us by illuminating the scriptures to us and revealing God to us as we study His Word, as we hear His word preached, and as we sharpen one another.

j. Now we can grieve the Spirit in this. We can fight the Spirit in this. But when we enter humbly to the text of scripture and seek Him, He will show us the truth so we may believe the right things about God and live in response to that. When we submit to the preaching and teaching of the Word of God The Spirit will show us ways that we must believe or live differently.

k. And the cool thing is that this is never really done.

l. I’ve been a Christian for over 30 years. Some of you have been a Christian for much longer than that.

m. I can tell you that God is still working on me. He is still showing me NEW things and more accurate ways to understand Him. He is still showing me ways I need to be more like Him.

n. The same will be true for you.

o. We all need to stay humble and teachable. God isn’t done with us yet. He has a lot more to show us.

6.) [Slide 21] Comfort: “What comfort can we find here?” or “What peace does the Lord promise us in light of this passage of scripture?” God is the giver of our salvation and His Spirit will grow us.

a. Salvation is not something we earn or maintain.

b. It is something God gave and preserves.

c. Because it is something God gave – we have no room for boasting.

d. Because it is something God preserves – we should see the fruit of His preservation.

e. Jesus said that He is the vine and we are the branches. Without Jesus we are nothing – that is the aspect of God giving and not us earning.

f. Then Jesus in that same passage says that the Father is the gardener who prunes the branches to bear much fruit. This is the aspect of God’s preservation.

g. What a comfort to know that our salvation is not earned or maintained by us.

h. Certainly, we must grow… and that is where we must strive and work hard… but God has us and will keep us and that is a comforting thought.

7.) [Slide 22] Evangelism: “What about this text points us to Jesus Christ, the gospel, and how we are restored?” God does not save us and leave us unchanged. We are saved from sin’s penalty and power.

a. This is a common twist we see in some people who profess to follow Christ today.

b. They think that they can believe on Jesus and live how they wish. That they can add Jesus to their lives and all the competing passions and lusts they have.

c. They think that they can seek Jesus for salvation but skip out on sanctification.

d. But my friends, salvation is a package deal. No one will be saved from sin’s penalty who is not also saved from sin’s power and eventually even sin’s presence.

e. No one who doesn’t die to self can be a follower of Christ.

f. No one can follow Christ who does not leave behind all other priorities to make Him the first priority.

g. Jesus said that if you do not hate your mother and father, then you cannot be my disciple. This is the Jewish idea of hate which is in contrast to the love of Christ. If your love for your parents does not look like hate by comparison to your love for Christ, then you cannot be His disciple.

h. Many seem to think that you can believe in a more moderate form of Christianity today.

i. Where you can be a Christian without being too rigid on faith and practice. And those who hold to rigid beliefs and practices are all zealots and extremists.

j. My friends… true Christians are supposed to look like that. They are supposed to be Christ fanatics. They are supposed to have reorganized their entire life around the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

k. That is what a Christian is.

l. And that form of Christianity is the only form that actually saves. Repentance of your former ways and idols and belief and hope in the person and work of Christ alone.

m. That is the only gospel that saves.

n. All other moderate forms… will leave you outside the kingdom.

o. Christ is either Savior and Lord or He is neither Savior nor Lord.

p. So, if you are here today and have either never received faith in Christ alone or you have a faith that has not produced change in your life. I implore you to turn from your sins and trust in Christ in such a way that He completely reorders your life.



[Slide 23 (end)] Let me close with a prayer from the Reformer Meno Simmons



“O merciful, gracious Lord, enlighten the eyes of all who are blind, that they may see your heavenly brightness and confess the majesty of your honor.



May the true heavenly light, Jesus Christ, be eternally blessed.



Enlighten every dark, unschooled heart with your eternal truth and the clear and brilliant ray of your Holy Spirit. May they view the eternal brightness of Christ in sincere pure faith to the praise and honor of his great name, and to the salvation of many souls.



Your word remains invincible and firm “The word became flesh” (John 1:14)



Grant also that the wrathful dragon may not entirely devour your poor little flock, but that we, by your grace, may in patience conquer by the sword of your mouth. And may we plant a seed that lives on – people who keep your commandments, preserve your testimony, and eternally praise your great and glorious name.



Amen, dear Lord, amen.



Benediction:

May the God who shouted, Moab is my washbasin

Upon Edom I toss my sandal

Over Philistia I shout in triumph,



Lead you to always triumph in Christ

And spread through you everywhere

The fragrance of the knowledge of Him.



Until we meet again – grace and peace to you.