Paul saw his whole identity as a Christian as summed up in being a serving slave of Jesus Christ.
Most of his epistles begin with a simple statement of introduction: Paul, a slave of Jesus Christ. Our Lord Himself took on the form of a servant being made in the likeness of men. He did not come to be served, but rather to serve and give His life as a ransom for sin.

The word “serve” in the Bible translates a Greek word: diakonia. From this word we get the English transliteration: Deacon.
We also see this word translated many times by the word: ministry. It is a broad term that speaks widely of service and care for others.

As we have been studying the gifts of the spirit we have seen that they fall broadly into two main categories: speaking gifts and serving gifts. Today we look at these serving gifts. Paul mentions four: serving, leading, giving, mercy.

We will see that leading, giving and mercy are really explanations of some of the main ways we serve others. We serve as leaders, we serve by giving resources to those in need, and we serve by showing mercy to those in distress.
Jesus taught us that the way leaders lead in His kingdom is not by rank and power but rather but stooping low to serve.
Jesus taught that giving to others is an important part of our stewardship and Jesus taught us by His example what it looks like to show mercy to those who are hurting and in distress.

All Christians are to be growing in the grace of serving. Serving is a nonnegotiable of Christ likeness. It is not only a gift, it is also a command to be obeyed: serve on another as I have served you.
However, there are also certain believers who have specific aptitudes by the Spirit that enriches their service to a higher degree than most. These are high callings and special endowments.
Let us look on them as such.

Because of grace,
Tim

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“…waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of glory of our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ.”
Titus 2:13
Our study in Romans 11 takes us out into the future. Events that are yet to come, but nevertheless foreknown by our Sovereign Father.

In Acts 1 the apostles asked Jesus a question: “Will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” Obviously, this indicates an expectation on their part that Jesus was going to restore the Davidic throne and kingdom as had often been foretold in the Old Testament prophets.Jesus did not correct their question by telling them- “no, you got it all wrong. The prophesies about Israel in the Old Covenant are now going to be spiritually fulfilled by my new Covenant people- the church.” Rather He simply said: “It is not for you to know the times and seasons that the Father holds in His hand.”
This reply indicates that the premise of their question was correct: He will restore the Kingdom to Israel. He simply says, the timing is none of your concern- just go and be my witnesses after the Holy Spirit has come upon you.

So when will Jesus restore the Kingdom to Israel? Well, the time is not ours to know. But this we do know: preceding His glorious appearing Israel will “look upon Him whom they have pierced and they will mourn because of Him.”
This mourning will translate into faith as multitudes of ethnic Israelites receive Jesus as their Messiah.

Accompanying this great outpouring of God’s Spirit upon the nation of Israel, a great harvest will sweep through the nations. Parallel to this great revival Satan will be sowing rebellion and hatred toward Jesus.
War will break out, Christ will win, the Kingdom will come.

Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus!

Because of grace,
Tim

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“The Spirit Himself helps us in our weakness…”
Romans 8:26a
Reading Martin Lloyd Jones’ book on the Person and work of the Holy Spirit, I came across a gem.
Jones was talking about how the early church was characterized by the dynamic working of the Holy Spirit. As he developed this theme he reminded us that that is exactly why early church life was so messy.
The more life there is, the more there will be evidences of God’s power at work in weak human vessels.
He put it like this:

“Take your New Testament as it is. Look at the New Testament Christian, look at the New Testament church, and you see it vibrant with spiritual life, and, of course, it is always life that tends to lead to excesses. There is no problem of discipline in a graveyard; there is no problem very much in a formal church. The problems arise when there is life. A poor sickly child is not difficult to handle, but when that child is well and full of life and vigor, well, then you have your problems. Problems are created by life and vigor, and the problems of the early church were spiritual problems, problems arising because of the danger of going to excess in the spiritual realm.”

Hmm. This paragraph made me muse for a while. Living, breathing, healthy churches can get a little messy.
It’s easy for church leaders like myself to just want to tone down the mess to make life a little bit more manageable. Less messy. Kind of like putting a hyper active boy on Ritalin to keep him manageable.
Makes life easier on a tired mom and dad, but in reality not the answer.

Maybe boogers on the wall, noise in the sanctuary and a ruckus in the hall are signs of good things not just annoyances?
Maybe struggling marriages, addictions and financial woes are all signs that God is doing something in people’s lives? Maybe we should embrace the messiness a little more realizing that God’s Spirit is the One who orchestrates and build’s Christ’s church.
Maybe we shouldn’t focus on just reaching perfect people- the ones who have it all together? Didn’t someone once say: those who are well don’t need a doctor only those who are sick? Maybe He was on to something.

Because of grace,
Tim

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“I am under obligation both to Greek and to Barbarian” Romans 1:14
When we hear the word “barbarian” we immediately think of someone who is crude, rude and probably violent. When the ancients used the word barbarian it did not immediately have that connotation.
It is true that by the time of the fall of the Roman Empire there was extreme violence by the barbarian hordes, however, this was not the violence of terrorist mobs- rather it was outright invasion by neighboring states that were sick and tired of Roman expansion and were set on ending it.

The word “barbarian” comes from the Greek word “barbarous”. Barbarous is what we call an onomatopoeia- a word that sounds like what it means. Another onomatopoeia would be the word “buzz”- it sounds like what it means. Essentially the word means “to babel”. Thus the concept behind barbarous is someone who speaks a language I can’t understand.
This is evident by Paul’s use of the word in I Corinthians. In 1 Corinthians 14:11 Paul says: “but if I do not know the meaning of the language, I will be a foreigner (barbarous) to the speaker and the speaker will be a foreigner to me.”

The entire Roman Empire was united by its use of the Koine (common) Greek language as the trade language of the empire. Every people group maintained its ethnic dialects for interaction in everyday life. However, everyone learned Greek from childhood.
From the gospels, it is clear that Jesus, and most of his contemporaries, were fluent in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. This was common practice all over the empire.

Paul’s statement in Romans 1:14 implies that it is right and proper for Christians to translate Scripture into various languages so that each people group can read Scripture for themselves. It also implies that as language evolves and changes it is proper to contemporize its message into language that is understandable by that generation.

In the last decades there has been a lot of well-meaning push back by conservative Christians against new translations of Scripture. They argue for the use of the old KJV as a matter of conviction fearing that God’s Word is being changed in these new translations.
Now, to be sure, there are many new translations that are sloppy at the least and downright deceptive at the worst. These need to be rejected by serious Bible believers. However, translations produced by solid Biblical Scholarship that upholds a belief in inerrancy are not to be feared, rather they should be embraced as helpful to the growth of God’s kingdom.

We have an obligation to make God’s Word understandable to all- Greek and barbarian.
Because of grace,
Tim

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“First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is proclaimed in all the world.”
Romans 1:8

In the Lord, I could not be prouder of a church than I am of EBC. I know I’m a little bit partial, but seriously I thank my God through Jesus Christ for each of you and all of you. You all are my joy and crown!

To be sure we have our problems, sins and failings. There are things we need and can do better. There are areas of growth we need to be stretched into. But your faith is evident and you have been the source of blessing and much good to many people- not only in Star Valley but all over Wyoming, the U.S. and even the world. For the obscure place in which we are planted we have had tremendous fruit for the kingdom.

I don’t say this to blow up your pride and cater to your flesh- I say this to encourage you. Sometimes in the midst of pressing duties and responsibilities we lose track of the big picture. We get discouraged and wonder if the sacrifices we make are worth it. We get weary in doing good. But do not faint, for we shall reap.

Your love for each other is evident. O yeah, we sometimes have our family squabbles and tiffs, but by God’s grace not only have these been rare but they have also been a source of growth for all of us. As a pastor I have grown much through the years- learning what is truly important- what are hills to die on and what aren’t.

You’ve been gracious with me through much. For these things I am truly thankful to my God through Jesus Christ for all of you. I pray you will indulge more grace my direction in the years that lie ahead- and I in turn to you.

Because of grace,
Tim

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“What would it look like to stop treating Jesus as simply a role model and start serving Him as our sovereign king?” Blog post Reasonable Theology

Good Question.
Jesus is the ruling Monarch (Sovereign) of the universe.
His rule is established in His humanity by the fact that He was born of David. His rule is demonstrated by the fact that death could not hold Him. Death is man’s greatest foe-yet even death could not defeat Jesus.

So what does this mean to me?
When it comes to government, we Americans tend to think in terms of a constitutional Republic. We are grateful we have the chance to vote in our rulers to represent us (supposedly). We are grateful we have a voice in the establishment of laws that govern us. We are thankful we can even run for elected office if we so choose.

The Kingdom of Heaven is not a Constitutional Republic. Jesus doesn’t reign because we vote Him into office. Mankind can’t impeach Him either. He rules by the power of His own person- Jesus is King.

Now, in one sense His rule is not complete. Yes the battle has been won and the victory is His. But death is not yet completely abolished and so for now this earth is still enemy held territory (Hebrews 2). One day this will change- he will return and abolish death and win the final victory.

Until then how do we view Him? Kind of like a big brother that we look up to and is sort of a role-model for our behavior? Or rather as the Sovereign Lord who commands our allegiance. When He says “follow me” He’s not simply speaking like a big brother inviting us to follow in His shoes; no He is speaking like a battlefield general who leads His men over the top and into the fray.

Follow me is the command of the Sovereign Lord of the universe. Are we huddled in the trench fearing the conflict? Or are we climbing the ladder and leaving the trench and engaging the foe?

Because of grace,
Tim

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