How can we be holy?

This morning's message at The Master's Seminary chapel was delivered by Dr. Bill Barrick on "Sanctification: The Work of the Holy Spirit and Scripture."

To answer his question, "How can we be holy?" he answers from Scripture:

1. The Initial Sanctification

First Corinthians 6:11 says, "And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God."

First, remember that you were made completely and perfectly holy by the regeneration of your soul and the washing of the stains of your sins. In Christ, we have been positioned as holy before our holy God. That should ALWAYS motivate you to become holy out of the gratefulness of your heart.

2. The Exhortation of Sanctification

Second Corinthians 7:1 says, "Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God."

Since you are clean (number 1 above), therefore be clean! We have the promises of God to bring us out of every defilement of body and spirit. We have been exhorted to purge out that which is inconsistent with our holy calling.

3. The Imperative of Sanctification

Hebrews 12:14 says, "Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord."

We are to strive for holiness, making it our ambition to seek a holy life. Can it be observed of your life that you strive for or pursue holiness?

4. The Process of Sanctification

Second Corinthians 3:18 says, "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."

Be assured of this, that becoming holy like Christ is a process. You won't be done with all former sins in four minutes. You won't walk through temptations like they never phase you. You are a "work in process." God has so wisely and wonderfully designed in His Word that you may be forgiven as you repent of your sin, that you'd be shown grace when broken over your sin, and that you'd be shown mercy when you are feeling like a failure. God is patient. Endure the process, for it is God who began a good work in your and He will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ (Phil 1:6).

So go. Be holy, as He is holy.

Christ's Ascension...So What?

What do you know about the Ascension of Christ? Is it deep to you? Was it really that significant? Does it have any relevance to us now? Kenneth Alan Daughters expounds on this often overlooked, yet Biblically significant, aspect of Christ's earthly ministry in his article: The Theological Significance of the Ascension.

For the sources of the quotations below, please check the Emmaus Journal, Vol 3 (1994) 163–177. He begins, in part...

"Easter is incomplete, Pentecost is impeded, and the Second Coming is impossible without the ascension...Where is Christ now?...If he is not on the right hand of God the Father, he does not reign, and we have no King."

1. It marks the end of Christ's self-limitation (Phil 2:1–8)

2. It is the occasion for Christ's exaltation and glorification (Jn 17:5; Phil 2:9–11; Eph 1:20–22)

"He is reigning as King in heaven, sitting at His Father's right hand and soon His rulership will extend to this earth when He returns in judgment to set up His kingdom...It also demonstrates the Father's acceptance of Christ's earthly work...God the Father set the seal and crown upon His resurrection, and upon His whole earthly ministry...He rose to ascend; he ascended to reign."

3. It marks the entrance of resurrected humanity into heaven

"Jesus was the first man to enter heaven with a glorified body. He is our forerunner (Heb 6:20). His presence there is our guarantee that we too will be resurrected and taken to heaven."

4. It marks the beginning of Christ's new ministry of intercession and advocacy (Heb 7:25; 1 Jn 2:1)

5. It allowed Christ to send the Holy Spirit to indwell and empower us (Jn 16:7; 14:12)

"Unless Jesus returned to the Father, we would not be empowered to do these 'greater works'...Our works are not greater in quality, but greater in quantity. Greater works can be accomplished because the Spirit indwells each one of us. Jesus has shared Himself with us more by sending His Spirit than if He had stayed personally."

6. It served as the opportunity for Christ to give us spiritual gifts (Eph 4:8)

7. It allows the preparation of our future heavenly home (Jn 14:2–3)

8. It anticipates His return (Acts 1:11)

The Ascension is a significant aspect of not only Christ's life here no earth, but also His present ministry from heaven's throne to those who believe today. BUT, how often do we spend time to contemplate and really mediate on the significance of this culminating and forward-looking event of Christ's ministry?

May we appreciate the Ascension of Christ more than before and in every day until He returns in the same fashion He left.

Who is Worthy of Worship?

Take a look at Scripture at a few examples...

Is Peter?

Acts 10:25–26 "When Peter entered, Cornelius met him and fell down at his feet and worshiped him. 26 But Peter lifted him up, saying, 'Stand up; I too am a man.'"

How about Paul? And Barnabas?

Acts 14:11, 14–15 "And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, 'The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!' 14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out, 15 'Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.'"

Try Angels?

Revelation 19:10 "Then I [John] fell down at his feet to worship him [the angel that spoke to him], but he said to me, 'You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.'"

Jesus?

Matthew 13:31–33 "Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, 'O you of little faith, why did you doubt?' 32 And when they [the disciples] got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, 'Truly you are the Son of God.'"

Matthew 15:25 "But she [the Syrophoenician woman] came and knelt before him, saying, 'Lord, help me.'"

Matthew 28:9 "And behold, Jesus met them [women after His resurrection] and said, 'Greetings!' And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him."

John 9:35–38 "Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, 'Do you believe in the Son of Man?' 36 He answered, 'And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?' 37 Jesus said to him, 'You have seen him, and it is he who is speaking to you.' 38 He said, 'Lord, I believe,' and he worshiped him."

Surely if Jesus was only a man like Peter, Paul or Barnabas, or even if He was an angel, He would have rejected the worship offered to Him throughout His life. Rather, Jesus accepted worship and commended men and women for their faith in Him.

Logical conclusion: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, so worship Him and Him alone for He is God!

Frazier Park Snow Day-Part 3

Darrin raises the bar with his famous face plants, many of which have left evidence and debris in his mustache.

Tyler puts us all to shame when perfecting the standard sled jump, though only moments after he would be found cold, curled up on a log, tending to his frozen, ice-burnt wounds with no shoes on.

HAD to try "The Train" at our last stop of the day. Pretty much cleared out the whole park with our superior performance, but left with no regrets knowing that we left our best on the slopes.

Frazier Park Snow Day-Part 2

Today was an incredible day of fun AND fellowship! God is so good for having kept us all safe up in the mountains as we thrashed our bodies on sleds in the snow AND He is so good for having provided wonderful opportunities to get to know other brothers--and sister ;)--in Christ better, to talk about things of His Word and creation, and to relate to one another over eternal and personal matters...when we weren't discussing who had frostbite the worst (a very personal matter indeed...just ask Tyler T)!

Our arrival at Frazier Park, as Paul shows us how much air he wants to get.

First order of business...find the steepest slope with the most jumps and "Go big or go home!"

Where others find "dead ends" we come alive with our finest tricks!

Frazier Park Snow Day-Part 1

Paul and Tim (whom we had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know) made haste to drop in and book it to the bottom.

Paul takes a plunge from unparalleled heights! See as he pulls a sudden and unexpected, yet skillfully successful, trick on his way over the "speed bumps."

Daniel, under the impression that this was a smoothly-carved out half-pipe, finds himself being lodged into the opposing embankment.

Mark Those Observations!

I have been teaching through the Gospel of Mark on Friday nights for the college ministry for a couple of years now. My Expository Preaching professor, Dr. Ardavanis, is also preaching through the Gospel of Mark in his church at Placerita Baptist in Santa Clarita. One of the joys of my preaching class, which has also become a source of personal embarrassment at times, is hearing how he has preached through the sections of Mark and what the propositional statements were for his texts when I didn't necessarily see them that clearly. For instance,

1. The "Compassionate Goodness of Christ" is NOT the main point of Mark 7:31–37, in which Jesus heals a deaf man.

2. "Christ's Compassion and Miraculous Provision" are definitely aspects of Mark 8:1–10, but NOT the main point to emphasize, which I also did.

3. I generally have been teaching each paragraph, or section of thought, observing Who Christ is, what He has said/done, and how people respond to His actions. They make for great little devotions, but seem--to me now--to have been missing something that unified them all.

One of the greatest mistakes I feel like I have made is teaching through the Gospel of Mark, without the overarching theme of the whole book, and the major theme of the larger sections of Mark's writing.

For instance, 1:1 says, "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God." THIS is the purpose statement of the book of Mark. Therefore, my steady appeal to those who hear my messages should be something along the lines of "This is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and here in this passage it is clear that He is the Son of God. Will you receive Him by faith and follow after Him?"

Also, if you look closely you will find the theme of Jesus' authority threaded in and out of the context of chapters 1–8. You will see His authority over sickness, Satan, demonic possession, forgiveness of sins, creation, sickness, death and disbelief. Surely Mark comes out strong in his Gospel providing evidence for the authority that Jesus Christ has as the Son of God.

And, if you look to the next large context of Mark, you will find an "inclusio," which is a body of thought inclosed with one main purpose. The inclusio spans from chapters 8 to 10. On either end of the body of thought, there are two similar miracles performed by Jesus that function as the passage's "book ends." At the center of these three chapters lies the three different foretellings of the death, burial and resurrection of the Son of Man. Not only that hard news to hear for the 12, but also a model for the way in which they would live following after Him--if you are to follow Him, you are to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Him. If you are to follow Him, then forsake it all to find it all in Him. If you are to follow Him, you will not be ashamed of Him in this adulterous and sinful generation. If you are to follow Him, you will be last of all and servant of all. If you are to follow Him, you must be servant, slave, and sacrificially selfless to all. These are the terms or requisites of authentic discipleship.

What is interesting in the first bookend, when Jesus heals the blind man at Bethsaida, is that He heals him in two phases. Why? It was not because Jesus was warming up and improving or practicing on him. It was not that anything was limiting Him from healing this man's blindness. It WAS an illustration for the doubting disciples for them to have the eyes of their hearts opened to the truth of who Jesus really is. In 8:17, 18, and 21 say, "Having eyes do you not see, and having ears do you not hear? And do you not remember?...Do you not yet understand?"

And what is unique about the second healing of Jesus restoring sight to blind Bartimaeus, is that He does it without touching him. Just the commendation of Bart's faith and the power of Christ would suffice. For Bart had seen/believed something about Jesus that others were slow and partially blind to see about Him--"Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" Bart got it right! He knew that this man was the promised Messiah through the line of David! And it was his undivided faith that healed him.

So lesson learned: Preach the biblical text propositionally with the support, flow and force of the context.