Let me talk about what transpired last Sunday, during our service.
In the portion where we observe Holy Communion, we were reminded by the person assigned to exhort that Christ was crucified and He was raised up, cross and all, just as the bronze snake was raised up in the wilderness in the time of Moses.
Those who looked at the snake were healed of the venom… and those of us who look to Christ see our salvation – our absolute forgiveness of sin, and the proclamation of our guaranteed righteousness.
We also were reminded, during the offering or giving portion, that it’s not merely money or material wealth that is given and shared – People in the congregation and those watching online were also reminded that by their joining the service and the fellowship, they’ve already given a valuable resource of theirs – time.
It was then my turn to share, and I led the congregation into thanking God for our wins as a church, before going into announcements for upcoming events.
I went ahead and gave a recap of what was discussed prior, starting way back 2 weeks ago. I simply stated how we talked about fire, and its consuming nature.
In the same way that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were not burned in a furnace made seven times hotter, so we would not be burned though the fires and flames of the world rage and consume – The same ‘son of the gods’ whom Nebuchadnezzar claimed to be with the three men is Christ, who is with us.
But we are not merely protected by fire. To say that we are not consumed is only half of the claim we make – See, the Holy Spirit presented Himself in the form of tongues of fire, resting upon the heads of the apostles in the upper room, in the events we now know as Pentecost.
After these tongues of fire settled upon their heads, they boldly went into the marketplace and spoke in the tongues of all those who were there – Parthians, Medes, Jews, Romans, Phrygians, and so on – and the people were astonished: I take that these Galileans were not expected to be educated, so I could imagine the surprise on the faces of all in the marketplace when they were not only speaking their languages, but speaking them so fluently…
…and they all came into agreement, that all of them, no matter what language was pouring out of their tongues – all of them were speaking of the wonderful works of God. I dare say that they were all speaking the goodness of God, which would lead these folks into repentance; They were, after all, ‘cut to the heart’ after they gathered in curiosity, and Peter spoke to them all.
What am I saying here? We shouldn’t just say that we aren’t consumed by the flames of the world, but the fire of the Holy Spirit poured upon us allows us to captivate the nations. Christ is with us in the fire, because the Holy Spirit is as a fire upon us.. and vice versa.
Last week, we spoke about wine, and I merely reminded our folk about how Christ is the end of the Law unto righteousness for those who believe – precisely as Christ said Himself that He came to fulfill the Law, and not to abolish it. And we see this, again, at the cross:
See, the same Christ who was raised as the bronze serpent, said He was thirsty. The soldiers then soaked a sponge in sour wine, pierced it with a spear and raised it to His mouth. When He had drank, it was only then that He said, ‘It is finished’.
I took that as a prompt, a confirmation: Christ took the old wine at the cross for the new wine (Holy Spirit) to be poured into us.
When we went into the message proper, I told everyone how things are different here where I live, now that our cousin is on an extended leave. This cousin of mine usually helps us by way of maintaining the house, so we could pursue our other plans and endeavors… but now we’ve had to set aside a good portion of our days and our power, just to ensure that this house stays in one piece.
And I had to specify, I wasn’t complaining – no, on the other hand, all the cleaning, the maintaining made me more thankful for the house that we have. I wanted to say this, but I just forgot to: With great house also comes great responsibility.
But it wasn’t the house, more than my cousin who I wanted to focus on. I pointed out that we only realized the extent of her impact when she was away, and we were thankful for everything she had to put up with.
I thought I wasn’t going to mention it, but I did – I told this… more traditional congregation that I wept more than I expected when news of the passing of Akira Toriyama really sank in.
I tried (and for the most part, failed) to tell the people about the virtues of Dragonball Z beyond the beautiful artwork and the apparent passion Mr. Toriyama had in creating and maintaining his craft… But I did point out that I cried.
In my crying, I told them that I asked myself questions: Why was I crying? Shouldn’t Christ have the same, if not greater impact upon me? Upon all of us, to bring us to tears? What impact do we leave upon the world?
And here’s where I read out more of what Peter was mentioning… in fact, what he told the people in the marketplace when they were ‘cut to the heart’:
Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.”
Acts 2:36-41
First of all, I emphasized that last line: ‘Everyone whom the Lord our God calls to Himself’. I emphasized how Peter mentioned ‘everyone’, without giving preference to Jew or Gentile, but everyone… before pointing out ‘the Lord our God calls to Himself’; Not ‘to bless’, not even ‘to save’, but ‘to Himself’
Now that I’m writing about it I imagine that it’s in the same league with where it was mentioned that it’s the will of God for none to perish (in line with calling everyone), but for all to come to repentance…
…And what would ‘all’ come to change their mind about? Not merely about who God is (a loving Father, and not ‘a hard man, who takes wages he does not work for’), but we’re also to change our mind about the great expanse of what we should understand is our salvation – that is, not merely for us to be saved, but for us to heed the call – God wants us not merely to be blessed, more than He wants us ‘to Himself’: He wants to be with us, and us to be with Him. That is the origin and destination of God’s absolute grace towards us.
Regardless of how we are impacted in this world, or how we impact others, we ought to know that whether we are aware of it or not, we are impacted by an absolute blessing: God’s grace upon us.
I then brought out attention to where Peter responded: Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Here’s where I brought out congregation back to the Truth of Christ’s finished work, and, again, how it guarantees the total forgiveness of our sins, and our absolutely being righteous, as Christ is righteous.
No matter what status we have in life, we are impacted by another absolute blessing: The finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We understand that God’s grace is upon us because of Christ’s finished work, just as Christ’s finished work was all because of God’s grace… and besides the forgiveness of sins, Peter mentions something: Our sins are taken away, and the Spirit is poured out upon us. At the point of believing in Christ, and God’s grace (or vice versa), we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, Himself.
No matter what struggles we’re enduring, or what victories we have at the present that may throw us off, God’s grace and the finished work of Christ have guaranteed yet another absolute blessing for each and every one of us in the body of Christ: The power of the Holy Spirit.
And I brought the point home:
We are blessed, in nothing and everything:
With the Grace of the Father,
With the finished work of the Son,
With the power of our Holy Spirit.
And if all of this persists to sound foreign to us, may the Spirit lead us to sing, as we incidentally sang earlier in the service:
‘Hear my cry, my deep desire to know You more’
All in all, the service went well, despite all the surprises and setbacks that presented themselves. Thank God for His faithfulness upon us.
Now, again, I don’t know what to talk about next Sunday, but I’m thankful – By God’s grace, by the finished work of Christ, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we’re sure to come up with something of value, something substantial.
God bless us all.
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