Search Results

Protect Life Sermon Series: Words To Live By Ryan Kimmel Lead Pastor Peace Church Main Passage: Proverbs 24:10-12 Transcript Today is the day that the Lord has made, so let us rejoice and be glad in it. And everyone said extremely loudly, Amen and Amen. So if there's one thing that life, marriage and ministry has taught me, it's that it's easier to speak than it is to listen. Everybody got something to say. Not everybody got a listening ear. And for Christians, this should not be the case. I mean, the good book has told us for 2000 years, something pretty clear here. James one nine says, Know this, beloved brothers, meaning know this fellow Christians, let every person and if you can see this, say it with me, be quick to hear slow to speak. Two thousand years of the Bible have been telling us that. You know, as I said, we are continuing the sermon series today. We're calling it Words to Live By, Wisdom the World Has Forgotten. Last week we looked at how we need to be discerning in this world, and today we're gonna look at what I believe to be a very challenging notion of a call to listen well. Listen well. Please turn in your Bibles to Proverbs chapter 24 verses 5 to 9. If you're gonna stick with us for the sermon series, I hope you do. This is again a verse-by-verse walkthrough of Proverbs chapter 24. So go ahead just put your bookmark in your Bible. If you're unfamiliar with the book of Proverbs, while you're turning there, hear this. It's an Old Testament book. It's really a collection of wise sayings that King Solomon, the son of King David, collected and he probably wrote some of these. But it's clear that this is a book that he wrote for his son. All over the book of Proverbs, he's addressing his son, saying, my son, my son, listen to me, listen to these words, listen to this, my son. It's clear he wants his children to be wise and side note, gonna call us all out here for a moment. This is such a contrast to parents today. Parents today, parents today want their kids to be trendy, cool and well-liked. They want them to go viral. They want them to be athletic. They want them to be intelligent. But how many of you parents can say you are seriously instilling wisdom in your children in a proactive way? That you're sitting with your children saying, my children, my daughter, my son, here's how you'd be wise in such a broken world. How many of you are opening up the book of Proverbs and sharing this wisdom? We are called to share wisdom and to teach our children wisdom, and with that comes a key notion of how to listen well. Do we know how to listen well? And so with that question kind of looming over us, would you hear the word of the Lord? Proverbs chapter 24, verses five to nine. A wise man is full of strength and a man of knowledge enhances his might. For by wise guidance, you can wage war and in the abundance of counselors, there's victory. Wisdom is too high for a fool. In the gates, he does not open his mouth. Whoever plans to do evil will be called a schemer. The devising of folly is sin. And the scoffer is an abomination to mankind. This is God's very challenging word. The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of the Lord remains forever. Thanks be to God. Let's pray and then let's get at it. Let's pray together Father God in heaven above. How amazing are you? Oh God? You are of infinite wisdom and yet you hear us and yet you listen to us Your word tells us that when we worship you and when we follow you you listen to us So father, I would ask this morning that by the power and presence of your Holy Spirit that you would give us ears to listen well, that we might grow in wisdom, to be more like your son and our savior. And it's in his name we pray, in Jesus' perfect name. And everyone said, amen and amen. So as we look at this very challenging and I would say, inditing passage, let me give you a thought for today. And here's your take home. Those who are wise, listen well. Not those who are wise listen well. See the difference there? Do you know that right off the bat in the book of Proverbs, chapter 1 verse 5, it says this, it says, Proverbs chapter 1 verse 5, let the wise hear and increase in learning because the wise person knows they've always got something more to learn. The wise person listens. Jesus Christ himself tells us this in Luke 8 18. He says consider carefully how you hear, meaning how you listen. Why? Because people who are wise are people who know how to listen. Those who are wise listen well. And as we wade into the waters of our passage, we're going to get one coin from two different sides as we break apart our passage. Here's your two thoughts for this morning, listening well is leading. Listening well is leading. The second part of our passage is gonna remind us that listening well is life giving. It's life giving. All right, first thing, listening well is leading. Hopefully you have your Bibles open. Verse five says this, a wise man is full of strength and a man of knowledge enhances his might. Okay, I want you to stop for a moment and I want you to think who is the wisest person that you personally know? Maybe they've passed on to glory, maybe they're here, but who is the wisest person that you have personally, personally known? Number one, I'm praying someone came to mind, which I'm fairly certain for hopefully most of you, someone did, I'm willing to guess that that person is, how do you say, seasoned in life. Maybe their hair is gray, a little salt and peppery. And you know, side note, I spend 10 minutes every morning picking out the gray hairs of my beard. Maybe if I left those in there, you'd all think I was a lot wiser than I am. But you know, when you think about this, like, yeah, when we think about the wise, we think of those who have, who have some life under their belt, right? But even in that, no offense, physical dominance normally isn't their defining feature. So what does the Bible get in that here when the Bible says a wise man is full of strength and a man of knowledge enhances his might? Now like with all things when we come to the Bible and we're unclear, I think one of the first things that we should be doing is, and this is a bonus for you here this morning, keep reading. Keep reading. Because when you do, you'll find something really interesting. Verse 5 is followed by verse 6. And when you read verse six, you'll see this it starts with this very important word for Now just like in English in Hebrew what this was originally written in the word for in Grammar is known as a conjunction a Conjunction is a word that connects two thoughts verse five is explained by verse six Verse 5, a wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might. How or why, you might ask? For or because, for by wise guidance you can wage war. A wise man is mighty because he listens to wisdom. Young men in the house, listen to me. Wisdom makes our strength mean something. And this comes by listening, learning to listen. And as the Bible says, to wise guidance and an abundance of counselors. I'm old enough to begin to realize that our strong backs will fail us, but wisdom will stand the test of time. So listen well. Church, I want to say something. I'm going to say it twice because this is how important I want you to hear this, how much I want you to hear this. Your ability to succeed in the long run is connected to your wisdom to listen well. I'll say it again. Your ability to succeed in the long run is connected to your wisdom to listen well. Men in the house, you may be able by your strength to get people to fear you. But it's by wisdom is how people will respect you. People hear these words, hear these words of scripture, this goes for marriage, business, life, and war. Wisdom is listening well, and listening well is leading. Now I want to hang on verse 6 here, because verse 6 is a very popular verse in the Bible. So let's look at it, verse six. Again, please have your Bibles open if you have them with you. For by wise guidance you can wage war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory. All right, especially for guys like me who are in a leadership position, or if you are in a leadership position, maybe in management, here's what I'd say to you. Everyone needs to grasp this, but I'd say especially those in authority or leadership. Authority or leadership. Wise guidance does not mean popular opinion. Wise guidance does not mean a majority vote. Wise guidance does not mean the easy way. Wise guidance means just that. Guidance that is wise, not mandatory or compulsory. An abundance of counselors. Church hear me on this. The abundance of counselors does not mean everyone with an opinion, because we all have one. So let's just flip this for a moment, because I want to address something that as a pastor, I hear, safe to say, at least on a fairly regular basis. And it's this phrase. I wonder if you've ever said this. They just don't listen. They just don't listen. Have you ever said that? They'll say this about the other person or the other side of the argument, they just don't listen to me. Now church, I'm the one making the argument that most people are terrible at listening, but to make sure that you understand what you are saying when you say the words, they don't listen to me, let me just share some wisdom here for a moment. Just because your spouse, your parents, your pastor, or your boss, just because they don't do what you say or take your advice, that doesn't mean they aren't listening to you. See, people think that the marker of being heard is being obeyed. Listen to me, that's only true for dogs and soldiers. So if you want your relationship to feel like the military or like animals, then you need a two-way communication and you need to understand that just because someone doesn't enact what you say doesn't mean they didn't hear you. Again, I would say this to spouses, children, people who are employed, church members. So it's important to listen well And we're going to talk about this. I want to talk about specifically how we listen. Well, I want to talk for a few moments about active listening How to how to be an active listener? Now if you've ever done premarital counseling with me, then you know how I teach this And if you've ever been married to me, you know how terrible I am at this. Most people think that listening is a passive thing, that listening is doing nothing while you let the other person speak. And do you know how many friendships are broken and how many marriages are ruined because people have that mentality? That's not helpful. When we communicate, and when we listen, we have to be active in this. And I would say that our inability to listen well has led to the political and cultural divide of this country, or at least contributed massively towards it. Listening is not doing anything while letting the other person speak. Listening is an active thing. So let's talk about what we do when we listen with a wise ear, how to listen well, and how to be an active listener. So active listening is listening firstly to understand. When someone is speaking and you're listening, one of the first things you're doing is that you're listening to try to understand this person. What are they saying? How are they saying it? Why are they saying it? You're listening to understand. Also, the other reason that we listen well and we have active listening is not. Active listening is not assuming you know what is going to be said. I don't know if you're like me, but if there are times that you know me and my wife and have friction, we'll call it, she may begin to say something and I will immediately cut her off and say something like, I know what you're gonna say. Apparently, me and Kevin are the only ones. That's not active listening. Active listening is not assuming you know what is gonna be said. And here's the second one, gentlemen. Active listening is not just waiting to respond. Active listening is not just waiting for your turn to speak. Again, if you've done premarital counseling with me, then you know this exercise. I have an engaged couple sit on the couch and they face each other and I instruct one person to share their thoughts or feelings and to be assertive in that. Not domineering or not a jerk, but just assertive. Take ownership of what you want. And so they say, I would like this. I want that. I want more of this. I want less of that. One person. So one person's sharing their thoughts, desires, or opinion. And another person who's listening is to be active listening, actively listening. And this person has a job. And this job is, number one, they need to hear correctly what this person is saying. And so when this person is done speaking, their response is not to immediately give their rebuttal. The first response is to establish that communication has happened. The first job of the active listener is to ensure that they heard this person correctly. So they do that by rephrasing what the person said, not repeating, because anyone can just regurgitate what someone said. You have to rephrase what the person said, which shows that you've internalized it and you understood it. This is also a chance to ask questions and to get clarification because what you want to do is ensure that you have understood what they said and you want to make sure that that person feels understood and feels heard. So once that's established then you can continue to build a conversation and listen to me if you think this sounds clunky in the communication you've just exposed that you're not great at communicating because communication is hard, especially in marriage. And so when we communicate, you need to actively listen. What are they saying? Why are they saying that? And when they're done, what you say is, okay, if I heard you correctly, what I think you mean is X, Y, and Z. And then you give that person a chance to confirm and affirm that. Once that's established, then A, you've done active listening well is leading so men. Men hear me if you want to be the leader in your home in your community in your marriage You must master this And I would say you shouldn't be a leader until you've mastered this ability to listen well. A wise man is full of strength and a man of knowledge enhances his might. For by wise guidance, you can wage war and in an abundance of counselors, there is victory. The assumption there is that that leader knows how to listen. This is not just for kings and generals. This is not just for husbands and fathers. This goes for mothers and daughters, pastors, and for politicians. This goes for progressives and conservatives. This goes for anyone who wants to fancy themselves to be a wise person. Wisdom is listening well, and listening well is leading. And when a leader stops listening, they should stop leading. Hold me to that, people. This leads to the second, or I should say the other side of the coin, that listening well is life-giving. It's how we instill life. Now as we turn our attention to verses 7 to 9, we're going to immediately see a contrast here that Solomon props up. It's a constant contrast that he makes throughout the entire book of Proverbs. You may know it. It's the contrast between the wise and the foolish. Those who are wise and those who are fools. Solomon, as he wrote Proverbs for his son, he's constantly warning his son to put into practice these words of wisdom so that he won't be a fool. He doesn't care if his son is good at basketball, he wants his child to be wise. Now this is important, I wanna remind us of something about the Book of Proverbs. The Book of Proverbs is 3,000 years old. Let me put this in context for you the book of Proverbs was written before English was a language The book of Proverbs was written before the Enlightenment It was written before Rome conquered the world the book of Proverbs was written before Confucius Plato or Aristotle The words here have stood the test of time We are still reading it or at least we should be still reading it, and we still should be challenged and learning from it. How foolish it would be to cast aside this book as having nothing to offer you. In fact, we would all do well to spend more time in the book of Proverbs. And honestly, church, as I envision how this year is going to unfold for our church, there's a reason I wanted to start with the book of Proverbs, we're going to need the wisdom to know how to continue to minister to this broken and wicked culture, and to how to respond faithfully to what God's doing in this world. How foolish it would be to cast aside this book, but some will, some will. And the Bible tells us why. Verse seven, because wisdom is too high for a fool, and in the gate, he does not open his mouth. Wisdom is a lofty thing, and not everyone has the humility to receive it. So let me ask you when was the last time someone gave you godly advice and you took it and you did something with it? Do you have those people in your life sharing those words with you? And do you listen so much that it changed your approach to life? Write this proverb down, it's a good one. Proverb 17:10. I love this. It says a rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool. Meaning, the wise person knows he always has more to learn, but you can't even beat wisdom into a fool. Because wisdom is too high for a fool, verse 7 says. And then verse 7 says something interesting here. It says, in the gate, he does not open his mouth. Now what's that all about? Now, anybody who wants to read the Old Testament understands what the Bible talks about when it talks about the gate or in the gate. It's all over. It's so important. Please don't think of it like a white picket fence with this little door swinging. That's not what we're talking about when the Bible talks about the gate. The gate, as described by Baker Bible Dictionary, is this. In the Old Testament, the city gate has a central role in that city's military, economic, judicial, political, and religious aspects of life. It wasn't just a fence with a door. It was a structure. In the Old Testament, when people talked about the gate, this is what they thought of. They thought of a structure, they thought of a building. It was not just used for protection. The city gate was a building, often two structures with a courtyard space in between them. And in this space is where the official business of the city happened, kind of like modern-day township halls. It was at the city gates where the prophets of old would proclaim the word of God. It was at the city gates where military action was planned, where a city's leaders and elders would convene to make determinations. The gate was not just a passageway, it was a critical meeting space for the life of the city. So the gate is where the official business would happen. Today we might call it the boardroom or the leadership table. And we don't let fools at the leadership table. So when Proverbs says in verse 7, wisdom's too high for a fool, in the gate he does not open his mouth, it's like saying there's no place at the leadership table for fools. When leaders meet, the fool has nothing to say. Not because in wisdom he's listening, but because the fool is out of his league and has nothing to contribute, so he keeps quiet. But here's an interesting thought, but follow me on this. Remaining silent is often the wisest thing to do. Proverbs 17:28 says, "'Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise.'" When do we keep quiet? Because Ecclesiastes 3:7 says, "'There's a time to keep silent and a time to speak.'" So this begs the question, people, when is it wise to keep quiet? Let's look at a few reasons why it would be wise to keep quiet. Reasons to remain silent. First thing is to keep yourself in check. Proverbs 29:11 says, "'A fool gives full vent to his spirit, "'but a wise man quietly holds it back.'" It's wise to keep silent to keep yourself in check, meaning silence is a key indicator of self-control. It's the unwise man who loses control and says things that they need to repent of. And if there's anyone on the hot seat right now, it's yours truly. Proverbs 13:3 says, "'Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life.'" This ties into the whole point that wisdom is life-giving. The second reason it would be wise to keep quiet is as we're talking about because you are active listening because you're listening well. Proverbs 18:13 I would never tell someone the need to get a tattoo but men this might be a good one to put backward on your face so that when you look in the mirror you can read this every single day. Proverbs 18:13 13, if anyone gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame. See, the wise person listens so that he knows how to respond. See, if you are speaking before you are finished listening, then chances are you are just emotionally reacting rather than wisely responding. And everyone said, welcome to social media. That is all that happens. Something happens in this world and immediately people start throwing out their thoughts. And I'm thinking, you've had no time to process this. You're just emotionally reacting. You're not wisely responding. So let's not be that people. Ask my wife, she will tell you this is one of my greatest weaknesses. I respond before I listen. I get charged up, I think I know the answer. The alpha comes out in me and I bowl over people because I think that I Know better and here's what God's telling me that I think we all need to learn the lesson meant is this is that you don't know If you know better until you first listen well My mama used to say something and When she would say this to me, she actually had a hand gesture that went with it Tell me if your mama ever did this for you. When I was little, she would say this, zip it. And she's actually like, making a little gesture like my mouth was actually zipping shut. She'd say, zip it. And you know what? I don't want to overstate this, but my mom was saving my life. She was teaching me that sometimes you just need to shut it. You need to zip it. And that leads to kind of the third thing, a reason why it's wise to remain silent. It's to discern whether or not you are dealing with a wise person or a fool. You listen to this person to discern if you're listening to a fool or a wise person. Proverbs 10, 19. When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent. Meaning, if a person is rambling, chances are there's guilt or foolishness, but we can only know that if we are wise enough to remain silent and listen. And the reason that we need to know this is because foolishness and folly do not lead to life. Do you know where it leads? To sin. It leads to sin. Verse 8 says something really important to us. It says, whoever plans to do evil will be called a schemer. Whoever plans to do evil will be called a schemer. Who here in their life either have children or you have grandchildren who are 10 years old and younger. Anyone? In our venues, online, let me know. Okay, who here has ever been 10 years old or younger? Okay. I'll tell you what, this is what I am so trying to instill into my children, especially my boys. I think the way that we can translate this idea of like, don't be a schemer, I think one of the ways we can say this nowadays, and this is how I say it to my sons, is don't be sneaky. Don't be sneaky. Dad can't stand that. Don't do things behind my back. Don't be sneaky. If you don't want people to know about it, then don't do it. Not because we're trying to seek approval, but because that's a key indicator if something is right or wrong. Do we want people to know about it? Gossiping, backstabbing, or here's something in my time I've seen people do, which is just such a scheming thing, it infuriates me, is they build a coalition. They go and scheme and build a coalition rather than confronting the problem. This is what schemers do. I tell my son, that's not befitting of children of God. That's not befitting of godly men. We don't scheme We stand up and confront if you've dealt like people if you dealt with people like this, you know, they are toxic Don't be a schemer. Don't be sneaky because the Bible says something that it does not mince words in verse 9 The devising of folly is sin and the scoffer is an abomination to mankind. The devising of folly is sin. Now don't sit there and think, oh come on preacher, are you saying we can't have any fun? Listen here, don't confuse folly with fun. That's what man-boys do. Godly men and godly women know the difference. You know the difference between folly and fun. It goes back to the principle of wisdom Which is the fear of the Lord folly has no fear of the Lord fun on the other hand Fun is part of how we live life to the fullest in Jesus' name Christians should be the most joyful fun people because we know how to have real true fun that gives life Folly has no fear of the Lord, but fun is living life to the fullest in Jesus name and there are sinful hearts that plan and devise folly. And the Bible tells us that only sinful people plan to do stupid things on purpose, so be cautious about what you laugh at on YouTube. Because you just may be encouraging someone to sin. The devising of folly is sin; the Bible says the scoffer is an abomination to mankind. You know the scoffers. I know you do. Right, these are the critical people of the world who complain but don't care to make anything better. They'll tell you everything that's wrong, but they'll never celebrate what's right. They're the scoffers. In the Bible, not me, the Bible says they are an abomination to mankind. They don't make things better, they only make things worse. So, my friends, discern wisely what you are critical of, but have nothing to contribute to. I'm going to say that again. Be careful of what you are critical of but have nothing to contribute to. There is no wisdom in the words of scoffers. They are not life-giving, they are life-sucking. Listen, as the leader and as one of the leaders here, I want to be humble enough to learn from every godly critique that I need to hear it. But so often scoffers are only critical and they just suck the life out of you. They kill relationships, they kill pastors, they kill ministries. But those who are wise, but those who are wise are those who give life by their words, even in words of rebuke. The wise person knows how to rebuke in a way that still gives life. Jesus was the master at this. His words were only life-giving and yet at times we see Jesus push back. We see Jesus rebuke, but he was always life-giving. Why? Because Jesus was the master at listening. He listened to the conversation. He listened to people. Jesus embodied how listening well is leading. He embodied how listening well is life-giving. Jesus is the one who shows us that those who are wise listen well. Of all the reasons I follow this guy, this is definitely one of them. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God the Son, who by his own right didn't have to listen to anyone. There's nothing any one of us could say to Jesus that would add value to what he already knows. Jesus didn't need or have to listen to everyone and yet he listened with intention. He listened carefully. He listened compassionately. His response was always wise. Even his rebuke, his words were life-giving because they always came off the heels of listening. If you want life-giving words, turn to Jesus, which is why we all need to ask ourselves right now, who are you listening to and are you listening to the words of the one who has the words of life, Jesus? I wanna end by kind of just looking at a quick story from the Bible real quick. And this is where Jesus has kind of amassed like a following. And he is talking about, he's introducing the concept of communion. And he's talking about how we need to have his life in us. And Jesus goes like real gritty, real vivid imagery here. He says that we need to have his life in us. And the way that we have that is that we actually eat his flesh and drink his blood. Okay, as gritty and vivid imagery as possible. And there's a bunch of people who are following Jesus, who love him, who are like, whoa. I wanna read to you the response. This is from John 6. It says, when many of his disciples heard this, they said, this is a hard saying, who can listen to it? And after this, many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus turned to the 12 and said to them, do you want to go away as well? And Simon Peter answered him, Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. My friend, my friend's life, true life is found in listening, listening to the words of Jesus, whose words were not just life, but eternal life. This is the gospel that Jesus died on the cross in our place for our sins, but that wasn't the end. In His resurrection, He was raised to new life. This is the promise and the guarantee of our new life, eternal life when we believe in the gospel. And the gospel, you know this, the gospel is the good news. You hear the news, you listen to the news, you receive news. So believing in Jesus is listening and receiving the good news of salvation in His name. And Jesus Himself even said in Matthew 7, 24, Everyone then who hears these words of Mine and does them, will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. Amen. Would you please stand. As we prepare our hearts for worship, I want to preface something here for a moment. We're going to sing one of my favorite songs to Old Hymn called Come Thou Fount. And I want to read to you some of the words from this song. It says, Come thou fount of every blessing, tune my heart to sing thy grace. We need to sit in a posture where we are reflecting on what God has done for us, what Jesus has done for us, and what the Spirit's doing through us, and we let Him tune our hearts to His goodness, knowing that our salvation is by grace, the grace of God. So as we sing, we're coming into conformity with God's plan for us, with God's good and loving salvation plan for us. So if you are a saved Christian, then you best be singing out loud. And if you don't know Jesus as your Lord and Savior yet, He's inviting you today, and I'd love to help you with that. Come find me, let's talk. And we can find how you can have life, not just life to the full, but life eternal. So Father God, as we come before you now, Lord, we sing unto your glory in the name of Jesus by the power of the Spirit, we do ask, Lord, that you would tune our hearts to sing thy grace. Fill this place with your Spirit that we may lift up praises to you, our God, who hears and listens because of the blood of Jesus Father you're so good to us and we're so thankful help us now even if we are weak to respond in worship to you God we love you and we thank you we pray this in to respond in worship to you God we love you and we thank you we pray this in Jesus name and everyone say amen and amen

Aaron Lewis Aaron Lewis serves as the Wayland campus pastor at Peace Church. He and his wife and children reside in Wayland, MI. Most Recent Content from Aaron Lewis Get Even Watch Sermon How the Gospel Changes You So to everyone in the chapel or down in the venue, hello to you as well. And then a special shout out to the Whaling Campus peeps. Super... Watch Sermon Test & Testify | Testing Spirits From 1 John All right, well, hey, good morning, Peace Church. Peace Church Wayland, special shout out to you. If you don't know, my name is Aaron.... Watch Sermon

Kevin Harney Kevin G. Harney, pastor, author, and global speaker, passionately inspires believers to deepen their love for God and share Jesus's life-changing message. He holds degrees from Azusa Pacific University, Fuller Theological Seminary, and Western Theological Seminary, and leads Shoreline Church in Monterey, CA. His impactful writing includes the Organic Outreach series, 'No is a Beautiful Word,' and 'The U-Turn Church,' alongside numerous small group study guides with renowned authors. Alongside his wife, Sherry, Kevin offers insights on ministry, marriage, and effective church outreach. Celebrating almost four decades of marriage, they cherish their three sons and grandchildren. Beyond his impactful ministry, Kevin enjoys golfing in summer and snowboarding in winter. Most Recent Content from Kevin Harney Faith & Fruit Well, when you say certain names, things come to people's minds and hearts. And there's people in my life that if somebody were to say... Watch Sermon Marriages You may not notice it and recognize it at any given moment, but you'll see the results of it There's a spiritual battle going on There's... Watch Sermon Myrrh; Jesus is Savior Well, I'm pretty sure you've recognized by now that this is a time where a lot of gifts are given and gifts are received It seems like... Watch Sermon

10 (Quick) Things To Know About The Holy Spirit A Snapshot of the Spirit's Role in the Christian Life Theology Ryan Kimmel Lead Pastor Peace Church Published On: March 18, 2024 For being the third member of the Trinity, many Christian denominations and traditions (and Christians themselves) give embarrassingly little-to-no acknowledgment to the Holy Spirit. This is in part due to a lack of discipleship around the Holy Spirit (even the Apostle Paul ran into some Christians who didn’t know about the Holy Spirit; see Acts 19:2), but this can also be a reaction to some churches’ over-emphasis on the power over the person of the Holy Spirit; confusing biblical theology with emotional expression, and thus, people react by having no solid knowledge or true fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Pneumatology is the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, but make no mistake… He is not just a set of parameters outlined by orthodoxy… He is the person and power of God in our lives. And so, yes, so much more can be said, but let’s look quickly at 10 things you should know about the Holy Spirit… 1. HE IS GOD The single most important thing to know about the Holy Spirit is that He is God. Rather than just some ethereal non-personal power, the Holy Spirit is the third member of the Trinity who is not only present with us personally, but as we’ll see, He both speaks in Scripture (Acts 21:11, Hebrews 3:7) as well as led our Savior while Jesus was on earth (Luke 4:1). Scripture tells us that lying to the Holy Spirit is lying to God (Acts 5:3-4), and blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is the only unforgivable sin (Mark 3:22–30, Matthew 12:22–32, Luke 12:10). When we baptize, we are to baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Spirit (Matthew 28:19). God does not share His name with anyone else and as we baptize into the name (singular) of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we are doing this because we are baptizing in the name of the one, triune God. 2. HE IS CREATOR The Holy Spirit, while more fully detailed, described, and revealed in the New Testament, is present and active in the Old Testament (i.e. 2 Samuel 23:2, Ezekiel 2:2), since the very, very beginning. The Holy Spirit was present at Creation (Genesis 1:2; Job 26:13; Isaiah 32:15, Psalm 104:30). The second verse in the Bible says, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). As we think about God as creator and sustainer of the universe, remember that the Holy Spirit was integral in the formation and life-giving aspects of C reation. 3. HE INSPIRED SCRIPTURES The Word of God was composed by men but inspired by (carried along by) the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:16, 2 Peter 1:21, John 14:25-26, John 16:13-15), making the Holy Spirit the ultimate author of Scripture. While people were allowed to use their own languages and slang, the Holy Spirit was there to ensure consistency through the 40 different authors and the hundreds of years between them, making sure that not only is every word as it should be but that the unifying message of the Gospel is progressively revealed. This is why it is so important to lean on and into the Holy Spirit when we read the Bible because He’s the ultimate author! 4. HE CONVICTS PEOPLE OF SIN As Jesus teaches us, the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin. Yes, we are to share God’s Word with people, helping them to see how they have violated God’s commands and how salvation is found in Jesus’ name… but we are just instruments in this process. For people to truly know the grievousness of their sin and their desperate need of a Savior, we need the Holy Spirit to be the one to open their eyes and hearts to this truth. So, remember – when someone realizes their own sin, this is proof the Holy Spirit is working and this is to be celebrated, nourished, and prayed over! 5. HE COMFORTS THOSE WHO FOLLOW JESUS As the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, He also comforts the people of God. Jesus even said that His departure back into heaven was for our “advantage” because by Him returning to heaven, He would send the Holy Spirit (John 16:7) and in John 14:26, Christ calls the Holy Spirit, “παράκλητος / paraklétos.” As you’ll see in different English translations, this word can be translated as Helper (ESV/NASB/NKJV), Counselor (CSB), Comforter (KJV), and Advocate (NLT/NIV). It’s not that any of those translations are wrong; rather they all go to help us understand in a fuller way how the Holy Spirit is here for our benefit, reassurance, guidance, and peace. Have you let the Holy Spirit help you, either when things get bad, or better yet, on a daily basis? 6. HE INDWELLS CHRISTIANS Jesus tells His disciples that they already know the Holy Spirit, “for He dwells with you and will be in you.” Knowing this and knowing the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, the Holy Spirit is already active in us before we have full knowledge of faith, so that when we come to faith it’s because the Holy Spirit is already at work in us. Paul writes and tells us in 1 Corinthians 3:16, “Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?” You cannot be a true follower of Jesus and not have the Spirit already active in your life. It’s just that too many of us don’t fully recognize or consciously walk in His steps, allowing Him to not only work in our Scripture reading but to lead us in every moment of our lives. So, when you come to those crossroads and you have to ask yourself, “What would Jesus do?”, remember it’s the Holy Spirit who gives you the answer, whether through the Scripture He inspired, or the leading He brings to your mind. 7. HE IS OUR TRUE WORSHIP LEADER The Holy Spirit is our ultimate worship leader, filling us as we worship (Ephesians 5:18-20). The Holy Spirit is present in our worship not only filling us but ensuring that our worship is firstly grounded in God and His truth (John 4:24). We all know that music speaks to the soul and every person has their own musical preference, but the Holy Spirit is not there firstly to ensure our emotions are moved or that our experience is exciting… the Holy Spirit leads us, ensuring our worship remains God-focused and truth-centered! Ephesians 5:18-20 says, “… be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…” So, when we worship, remember who is truly in charge guiding us to give God our adoration and His glory. 8. HE PRODUCES THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT IN OUR LIVES When people asked, “How do we know a person is truly a Christian?”, we need to know there are a number of ways to ask that question, but one key way is to look at the proof of their lives, that is, the fruit of their lives… do they bear the fruit of the Spirit? Galatians 5 tells us that we know we are in step with the Holy Spirit when the fruit He produces is evident in our lives. More than just being a nice person, the Bible tells us clearly what to look for as described in Galatians 5:22-23, “22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control…” Before I look for the demonstration of miraculous gifts, I want to know if a Christian is simply walking in step with the Spirit with a life marked by love, joy, peace, and the rest of the fruit of the Spirit for these are markers of a person being filled with the Holy Spirit. 9. HIS GIVES US THE SPIRITUAL GIFTS Let’s make something clear upfront: The Holy Spirit gives followers of Jesus incredible gifts (1 Corinthians 12:11) not so we can show the world a bunch of magic tricks, but rather – so that the church of Jesus Christ can be built as we serve Jesus and each other (1 Corinthians 12:7, 1 Peter 4:10) so that all credit would go to the supernatural work of God, not the ingenuity of the human mind. The Bible is clear: We are supposed to know about the gifts of the Spirit. Paul says he does not want us to be uninformed about the gifts (1 Corinthians 12:1). These are not physical gifts like we get for Christmas and birthdays; these are spiritual abilities (manifestations of the Spirit, 1 Corinthians 12:7) given to Christians that we may use in tandem with others in the Church (1 Corinthians 12:12, 25) to do the work God has called us to do in this world. The gifts of the Spirit are detailed in passages like 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and 1 Peter 4. If you don’t know your gift or don’t know how to use it in service at your church, talk with your pastor or ministry leaders about discerning and using your gifts! I know that’s a conversation they are eager to have with you! 10. HE GIVES US POWER! The Holy Spirit gives us power. As Jesus said in Acts 1:8, “…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you… So the question is, “Power…to do what?” The way that some act, you would think the Holy Spirit’s power is to put on a spectacle of a worship service or draw attention to a speaker or pastor… but Jesus clarifies what this power is for if we would just finish the verse…. Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” The power we are given from the Holy Spirit is meant to empower our lives, not just our church services or worship experiences, but to empower our day-in-and-day-out daily lives so we can live more fully for God as we embody the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Yes, we are given power from the Holy Spirit to demonstrate a life guided by the fruit of the Spirit, empowered by the spiritual gifts, so that the name of Jesus may be lifted high by our lives, actions, and mission. Acts 4:33 says, “And with great power, the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.” We see here the disciples used the power given to them to share the Gospel. Simply put, the power of the Holy Spirit is given to us so that we can be effective in our mission as we proclaim the name of Jesus and give God all the glory. TO GO FROM HERE The word “spirit” biblically speaking is connected to the word for wind or breathe. It’s this movement that we can’t see, but we feel. When Scripture says that God formed the man and breathed into him and he became a living being, that was God breathing his spirit into man so that we might be both body and soul, not just physical beings. The Holy Spirit is to guide our spirits as we live and breathe to the glory of God. There is so much to be said about the Holy Spirit, so continue to learn about who He is and His place in our faith and lives. Christians, lean into the Holy Spirit, pray in His name and realize – as the disciples were reminded – the Holy Spirit dwells within you, so live into the comfort and power that only He can provide. More Blogs You'll Like What is the Gospel? Why Recognizing Our Sin is Essential to Embracing God’s Gift of Salvation Read More Teaching or Concealing? An exploration of the complexity in Jesus’ parables and His reasons behind them. Read More Beyond the Heart The Significance of Making a Profession of Faith Read More

Teaching or Concealing? An exploration of the complexity in Jesus’ parables and His reasons behind them. Theology Mitchell Leach Community Pastor Peace Church Published On: June 18, 2024 Jesus is the original gatekeeper. Gatekeeping carries a negative connotation in that it is keeping helpful information away from people for the person's own benefit. This — obviously — isn’t the case with Jesus. Jesus spoke in parables for two main reasons. Jesus uses parables to tell a story that points to something greater. He used parables because they made eternal truths graspable for regular people, yet he also used them to hide meanings from people who weren’t ready to hear them. A good definition of a parable’s intentions would be to say, “In a parable, truth is expressed through concrete pictures rather than in abstractions.” [1] We must remember that the bible is an Eastern book more than a Western one. The Bible – especially the parables – doesn’t address a point in a logical progressive argument. But rather speaks around a point to make that point. Context We must remember at this point in the gospel of Mark, Jesus had just been called Beelzebul (Mark 3:22) and been receiving harsh criticism of his ministry. It was clear that there were people who were hostile to the gospel he was preaching. So, as the crowd gathered — mixed with people who were against him and for him — he used this opportunity to both teach his disciples and confuse those who were in opposition to him. [2] Jesus, whether we like it or not, withheld information from people who hated him. And that in itself is proven by the first parable (the parable of the sower) we see in the gospel of Mark. God’s word impacts people’s hearts differently. Some personally, and therefore, it will be fruitful, while others will become distracted and seek after their own gods. Main Idea of Text To summarize this parable into a sentence, you could say that Jesus teaches the crowds through parables, emphasizing the nature of the Kingdom of God and the various responses to His message. The parable of the sower is a powerful passage. It is by far one of my favorite passages in scripture, so much so that my wife and I named our daughter Sower after this section of scripture. This parable describes a scene where a sower (or farmer) throws seeds into a field to plant them (or sow them). The seeds fall on four soils, each better than the next. The Path First, the path, where they don’t take root at all and by far the worst soil. This describes the person who hears the word and rejects it immediately. Rocky Soil Next is the rocky ground. This is not soil with rocks but soil with a shallow rock bed, leaving the ground to get hot fast. This would be the first soil to see growth, but this also creates a problem where the roots cannot grow deep, and therefore, the plant would die fast. This describes the person who hears the gospel and believes it with vigor and passion but doesn’t tie their faith to a deeper doctrine of the faith. As the author of Hebrews said in chapter 6, 'Therefore, let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God.' The Christian faith must be tied to the word of God. Our inward goal is to both know and love God. Those who only rely on feelings will see their faith suffer because when hardship comes, and our emotions play tricks on us, we can be fooled into believing in a new and unbiblical gospel. Weeds Next is the soil with weeds. This seems like a place where the plant can grow, but because it has to compete with plants that shouldn’t be there, it is overtaken and also dies. This describes the person who hears the word and seemingly believes it but allows worldly things to compete for their heart. Good Soil Lastly, we see the proper soil. This describes the Christian who hears the word and bears the fruit of it. Jesus implies evangelism in this passage. This seed should also be a seed bearer and sower. Often, this passage is interpreted and applied like this. “Jesus teaches this parable to show that some people will hear the gospel, yet most people will not become true believers.” While this is not an inappropriate way to interpret it, there is more to this parable than that. This is often popular in Jr. High and Sr. High student ministry because many students at that age will have friends who — as they gain independence from their parents — look like they are “falling away from the faith.” The youth pastor or leader typically concludes his message by saying, “Which soil will you be?” This application, unfortunately, misses the mark of what the text is teaching us. To apply the passage this way to become a moralistic one. We’ll end by saying, “Don’t be like the first three soils; be the last one.” Being the last soil is clearly what we should desire to become as Christians. Teaching a message of trying harder to be better is not the message of the gospel or this passage. I want to argue that this is a passage about how the gospel goes to people and that this is an encouragement to those who are proclaiming the gospel. This would have been primarily helpful for the disciples who would become sowers themselves. Jesus was teaching that it isn’t the soil’s job to change themselves but the gardeners. How does the ground become unrocky? How does soil remove thorns or weeds? How does a path become fertile ground? In short, it can’t. Soils cannot do anything but be who they are. None of us are naturally like the fourth soil. We all naturally reject God and desire to do what we want. Jesus is saying to the disciples and to all Christians today, you will have to proclaim the good news of the gospel to all, and some won’t come to believe in the gospel. Sow the seed of the gospel, knowing God is the gardener. Ezekiel 36:25-26 says “25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” So if you think you might be one of the not-good soils and you’re afraid that God might not have chosen you, don’t try to change yourself. The gardener is the only one who can change the soil. The holy spirit is the only one who can change your heart of stone for a heart of flesh. This is the beauty of the gospel: God is the one who saves and transforms us. We are Christians not because of what we have done or what we do but because of what Jesus has already done. When Jesus goes to the cross, he declares, “it is finished,” not “Now it’s your turn.” Cf . C.H. Dodd, The Pareables of hte Kingdom (London 1961) p.16 “This concrete, pictoral mode of expression is thoroughtly charateristic of the sayings of Jesus…At its simplest the parable is a metaphor or simile drawn from nature or common life, attesting the hearer by its vividness or strangeness, and leaving the mind in sufficent doubt about its precise application to tease it into active thought.” Doriani, Dan, Hans F. Bayer, and Thomas R. Schreiner. ESV Expository Commentary: Matthew–Luke . Edited by Iain M. Duguid, James M. Hamilton Jr., and Jay Sklar. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2021, 524-532. More Blogs You'll Like What is the Gospel? Why Recognizing Our Sin is Essential to Embracing God’s Gift of Salvation Read More Teaching or Concealing? An exploration of the complexity in Jesus’ parables and His reasons behind them. Read More Beyond the Heart The Significance of Making a Profession of Faith Read More

We Villainize the Villains: Mistake #3 in Teaching the Bible A Shift in Perspective on the Villains of the Bible Ministry Shannon Popkin Author & Podcast Host Live Like It's True Podcast Published On: January 18, 2024 Perhaps because Christians know that the Bible is where we find out exactly what is wrong or sinful, we tend to look down on the “bad” people in the Bible, rather than identify with them. We Bible teachers do this particularly well. It’s as if we—those standing in front of a group (of women in my case) holding our Bibles, pointing to a particular verse—are standing on some elevated platform as judge of the one whose sinfulness is smeared across the page. But we aren’t the judge; God is. And our teaching should invite others to bow before Him, not stand in judgment beside Him. When we—Bible teachers and leaders—take pride in wrinkling our noses at sin, we demonstrate an arrogance that mirrors some of the greatest villains in the Bible. Can you think of anyone more villainous than the Pharisees and religious leaders who plotted to murder Jesus? That was the crime of all crimes. Yet think of how they looked down their noses at other “sinners” while ignoring their own sin! As with the Pharisees, it’s impossible to participate in finger-pointing disgust without elevating ourselves. And elevating ourselves will not prove helpful for our own hearts or for the hearts of those we’re sharing Truth with. Instead of looking down on them, it’s far more constructive to help our listeners find common ground with the sinful people of the Bible. Rather than villainizing the villains, let’s put ourselves next to the biblical figure behaving badly, and ask, “Where do I do that?” Here are two examples: Example 1: A whiny king (1 Kings 21) King Ahab wanted the vineyard next door to the palace so he could plant a vegetable garden. But Naboth, the vineyard’s owner, refused. The land had history. It had been in his family for generations. It didn’t matter to Naboth that the king offered him a better vineyard or a large sum of money; to Naboth, this vineyard had no price tag. Upon hearing “no,” Ahab went home and sulked like a toddler. He lay in bed, refusing to eat. His wife came in and asked why he was upset. And he said to her, “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard for money, or else, if it please you, I will give you another vineyard for it.’ And he answered, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’” ( 1 Kings 21:6 ) If you read the words of Ahab out loud, do you want to use your whiniest voice? I do. I want to paint Ahab like a whiny, entitled brat. Yet, doing so is not constructive. It exempts me from the text, rather than opening my heart to its message. Far more helpful—both for me and the women I teach—is to ask, “Is there ever a time that I act like Ahab?” Perhaps I pout when I don’t get my way. Or I storm off when somebody doesn’t give me what I want. I retreat to my room, where I sulk and stew. I recruit supporters by telling my version of the story—just like Ahab did. It’s far better to put myself next to Ahab than to villainize and look down on him. As I open my Bible, I can either look for a villain to criticize or a mistake to avoid. Either way, I’ll be sure to find it. Example 2: The hypocritical leaders (Matt. 6:1–18) When Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount, He didn’t call out the Pharisees and religious leaders by name. Still, everybody knew who He was talking about when He mentioned the “hypocrites,” especially when they heard the three examples Jesus gave: When you give, don’t blow a trumpet to announce it. ( Matt. 6:2 ) When you pray, don’t do so loudly on a street corner. ( Matt. 6:5 ) When you fast, don’t take extra measures to look really awful. ( Matt. 6:16 ) Here’s how I’m tempted to teach that passage: Blow a trumpet? You’ve got to be kidding me. Pray loudly on the corner of Broad and Main? Come on . Walk around looking haggard and gloomy to seem super spiritual? Good grief. Obviously these religious leaders were feeling a little needy, right? They wanted all eyes on them, and craved constant approval. It’s not helpful for me to put myself in some elevated position, standing in judgment over these Pharisees’ hypocrisy—or to invite the women I’m teaching to do the same. Why? Because our churches are filled with people who do the same things and our hypocrisy is far more serious than we might expect. Think of the religious leaders Jesus was warning. They were so invested in being admired and seen that they misinterpreted who Jesus was and why He had come. Instead of welcoming Him as their Messiah, they plotted against Him—the one everyone was looking at instead—perceiving Him as a threat. Rather than collapsing at His feet in repentance, they schemed to have Him nailed to a cross. Again, it’s tempting to think of them as the villains of all villains. But when we point with disgust at their trumpets and street prayers and haggard-faced fasting, we place ourselves above the Pharisees, not among them. We see ourselves as immune to their hypocrisy and pride, not prone to it. We look down on their hearts rather than examining our own. It’s far more constructive—as I counsel my own heart and the women I’m called to teach—to ask, “When do I act like these Pharisees?” Are there times I want everyone to look at me more than I want them to look at Jesus? Do I crave approval and attention—trumpeting the gifts I’ve generously given? Do I pray with flowery language and excessive wordiness, rather than from the heart? Do I call attention to how exhausted I am because of my devotion to church ministry? It’s better to place myself next to the Pharisees than to villainize the villains and point down at them. Placing Myself Among the Villains I love the song, “ How Deep the Father’s Love For Us .” I find these lyrics especially poignant and helpful: Behold the Man upon a cross, My sin upon His shoulders; Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice Call out among the scoffers. Painful as it is, I must find myself among the scoffers at the foot of the cross, because until I see that my sin was the cause of Jesus’ death, I won’t see my need for Him as my Savior. I share the condition of every villain in the Bible. I harden my heart like Pharaoh. I am self-focused like Ahab. I betray like Judas. I deny like Peter. I am a hypocrite like the Pharisees. I scoff like those who crucified Jesus. As I open the pages of my Bible, it’s good for me to see myself among the villains because there I receive the warning and instruction I need. It’s there, among the villains, that I see my desperate need for Jesus—and there my listeners will, too. Here are a few more tips to help you refrain from villainizing the villains in your message prep: Make a list. Start by compiling a list of flaws you see in your Bible villain, then notice how these flaws are common to people today. Cain loathed being outdone. Achan was a liar and a thief. Nebuchadnezzar was his own god. Judas was a lover of money. Your people will be able to relate to each of these. Find yourself first. Humble yourself and find commonality with the villains yourself before asking your listeners to do so. A broken teacher who says, “We should humble ourselves . . .” is more effective than a puffed-up teacher who says, “You should . . .” Don’t sidestep. It might be tempting to skip past some grievous sins of the Bible, painting them as sins of the past but not the present. Think of the story of Lot’s daughters, getting their father drunk so that he’ll sleep with them ( Gen. 19:30–38 ). That one might be easier to skip, but don’t we skip over our own sins as well? Could there be someone in your group who is thinking about compromising sexually rather than waiting for God to provide a spouse in His good timing? Do you see why it would be helpful for them to hear about Lot’s daughters? Be wary of disgust. Don’t teach with a “We would never” attitude. Actually, we would. When we’re tempted to be shocked or horrified by the villains of the Bible, we have to recognize that we’re equally blind to our own sinfulness. Think of Pharaoh, who murdered all the newborn baby boys in Exodus 1:22 . Do you wonder how he could have justified such a ruling? Think about how you have justified some of your own selfish, sinful behaviors. These stories of deeply sinful people of the past are meant to lead deeply sinful people of today to God—where they find grace forgiveness and hope. Always lead the conversation about sin back to Jesus. Yes, sin is grievous and disastrous. But we have a Savior who came to save us. He took every single ounce of our sin’s load and carried it up Golgotha’s hill. Jesus died, was buried, and rose to new life—and we can, too. Are you ready to get back to your Bible study prep? As you encounter the villains of the Bible, don’t villainize them. Instead, help women find common ground with sinful people from the past who needed salvation as desperately as we do today. Read Mistake #1 in Teaching the Bible: Killing the Characters Read Mistake #2 in Teaching the Bible: We Villainize the Villains More Blogs You'll Like Why Church Membership Understanding the Biblical Foundations of Church Membership Read More How to Influence the Control Girls in Your Church Surrender: The Antidote to Control Read More We Villainize the Villains: Mistake #3 in Teaching the Bible A Shift in Perspective on the Villains of the Bible Read More

Unboxing Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:1-9 Encouragement During Hard Ministry Unboxing Scripture Mitchell Leach Got God Questions - October 23, 2024 ​ Got God Questions - October 2, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Are We a Christian Nation? Jon Delger Judah's Mess Stephanie Delger Got God Questions - October 16, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Q+A Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: What Would the Perfect Government Look Like? Jon Delger Joseph's Suffering Ally Mollenkamp Got God Questions - October 9, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here? Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Should Christians Have Anything to do with Politics? Jon Delger Jacob's Striving Cheyenne Werner

What is Justification? What Does It Mean To Be Saved? Theology Jon Delger Executive Pastor Peace Church Published On: November 16, 2023 As you are studying the Bible, you will eventually come across some big words that you don’t use in everyday conversation. Justification is one of those words, and it is an important word, so let’s talk about it. Short Answer: What is Justification? Simply put, to be justified is to be declared righteous. Some key passages include Romans 3:21-26; Romans 4:1-8; Romans 5:1; Romans 8:30; Romans 10:10; Galatians 2:16. When we look at these passages, we see that justification is at the very heart of the gospel, the good news of Jesus. We are sinful people. We have fallen short of God’s perfect standard (Rom. 3:23). As a result of our sin, we are deserving of death (Rom. 6:23). Unlike us, Jesus came and lived a life of perfect righteousness (Heb. 4:15). He then died on the cross not for his own sin, but for our sin as a substitute (Rom. 5:6). What happens on the cross has been called “The Great Exchange.” On the cross, Jesus takes our sin and dies for it, while giving us his righteousness. All of our sin was counted to him, and all his perfection was counted to us. When we put our faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior, God declares us righteous (Rom. 10:10), not because we are perfect but because Jesus has taken away our sin and given us his righteousness. When we repent and believe the gospel (Mark 1:14), trusting Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we are justified. Longer Answer: What is Justification? The gospel is the heart of the Christian faith, and justification is at the heart of the gospel. So let’s go a step further and make sure we understand it accurately by looking at a few of its parts. Justification is a legal change. God is the judge and we stand in the courtroom guilty and condemned. But then Jesus steps up to receive the guilty sentence in our place. As a result, God declares us innocent and righteous. It is a legal declaration. It does not mean that we are actually perfect in our actions or that we will now no longer sin. Justification is part of our union with Christ. When we put our faith in Jesus, Scripture says that we are now “in Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are one with Christ. This is another way to think about how we can be called righteous. It is because we are one with Christ the righteous. Justification has a relational component. God is holy and cannot tolerate sin. How can a sinner have a relationship with God? When we are justified, our sin is wiped off the slate and we can finally have a relationship with God. Justification is related to a specific understanding of the cross. Throughout history, some liberal theologians have said that Jesus died as a great example of love, but that his death did not have to do with taking away our sin. Liberal theology has always struggled to talk about sin, hell, and God’s wrath. However, the idea of justification depends upon understanding the cross as penal substitutionary atonement (John 1:29). Penal = punishment, Jesus took our punishment. Substitutionary = Jesus was our substitute, dying in our place. Atonement = Jesus’ death atoned for or took away our sin. How justification works is at the center of the divide between Catholics and Protestants. Catholics believe that righteousness is not imputed (given/counted) to us by Christ, but rather is infused into us. According to Roman Catholic teaching, we are justified by a combination of Jesus’ death on the cross as well as partly earning our justification through good works. By contrast, Protestants see in the Bible that justification is a gift from God that cannot be earned. Our good works are the fruit of our salvation, not part of the means by which we get saved. Finally, it is important to know that justification and sanctification are distinct but also cannot be separated. For more, see our article on Sanctification. More Blogs You'll Like What is the Gospel? Why Recognizing Our Sin is Essential to Embracing God’s Gift of Salvation Read More Teaching or Concealing? An exploration of the complexity in Jesus’ parables and His reasons behind them. Read More Beyond the Heart The Significance of Making a Profession of Faith Read More

Are Christians singling out the LGBTQ? ​ Video Teaching Jon Delger Got God Questions - October 23, 2024 ​ Got God Questions - October 2, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Are We a Christian Nation? Jon Delger Judah's Mess Stephanie Delger Got God Questions - October 16, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Q+A Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: What Would the Perfect Government Look Like? Jon Delger Joseph's Suffering Ally Mollenkamp Got God Questions - October 9, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here? Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Should Christians Have Anything to do with Politics? Jon Delger Jacob's Striving Cheyenne Werner

Logan Bailey Logan Bailey is the Discipleship Pastor at Peace Church. He and his wife Rachel have a son. Most Recent Content from Logan Bailey The Lord Is Mine Watch Sermon A Psalm of Solomon Watch Sermon New Year New Life Good morning. How are we doing? I've said it before, I'll say it again, the front row is where the fire is at, but there are four front... Watch Sermon Avoiding the Burnout Trap ​ READ MORE Psalm 23 for the Idolatry-Prone Minister When I was young and excited about starting in ministry, my youth pastor gave me a warning: “too many pastors let ministry become their... READ MORE Offering Teenagers Hope for Their Habits Do you watch TV? Like, a lot of TV? I know I am not the only one who frequently finds myself coming home, sitting on the couch, and... READ MORE How to Plan the Next Youth Retreat with Confidence It came quick. This year’s Fall retreat is just around the corner. Questions fill your mind: Did you forget to sign a contract with the... READ MORE

Nate Archer ​ Most Recent Content from Nate Archer Who Needs A Doctor? Watch Sermon

Marriages That Can Stand A Video of That's a Good Question Video Blog Kevin Harney Got God Questions - October 23, 2024 ​ Got God Questions - October 2, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Are We a Christian Nation? Jon Delger Judah's Mess Stephanie Delger Got God Questions - October 16, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Q+A Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: What Would the Perfect Government Look Like? Jon Delger Joseph's Suffering Ally Mollenkamp Got God Questions - October 9, 2024 ​ Christianity and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here? Jon Delger Christianity and Politics: Should Christians Have Anything to do with Politics? Jon Delger Jacob's Striving Cheyenne Werner