Christ Died For Our Freedom

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 29th of June, 2025, the Sunday before Independence Day in the United States.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

In mid-April of 1775, a small group of men – shopkeepers, farmers, and the like, including a number of young teenagers - wielding their own firearms stood face-to-face against British Army regulars… and opened fire.  The Battles of Lexington and Concord marked the start of the American War for Independence.  At this time each year we put out flags and hang bunting to celebrate our independence from foreign rule, documented by our Declaration of Independence, formalized on July the 4th, 1776.

Men and boys, and women, too, faced off against the mightiest army on earth at the time.  And they won.  The leaders of this ragtag band, most notably George Washington, knew and understood that this victory would not have been possible without divine intervention.  Washington gave all the glory and praise to God, who saw us through our efforts to defeat tyrannical forces, that we might become that light of the world, the city set on a hill.  Our fight for independence, our freedom to rule ourselves and determine our own future, was only won with God’s helping hand.

But there was another hard-fought battle, many years before this, against an even greater enemy, that was won only through God’s intervention.  In a war that began shortly after man’s creation from the dust of the ground, Satan and his evil forces have sought to undermine and overthrow God’s kingdom.  He tempted Adam and Eve to sin, and has been tempting mankind ever since.

That original sin brought death into the world.  God created us to live forever, because He wanted us to be with Him forever.  But when we sinned, that all changed.  God took away our immortality so that we would not be forever separated from Him.  We would die to this life in our sin.  In this way, we can see our time here on earth is limited, we’re just passing through for now.  But God still wanted us to be with Him forever, so He gave us a way to be forgiven of our sin, to be freed from the bonds of sin.

Please listen and follow along to what the Apostle Peter has to say on the subject of freedom, from the 2nd chapter of his 1st letter to the early church, verses 11 through 25, and I’ll be reading from the Contemporary English Version of our Holy Bible this morning…

11 Dear friends, you are foreigners and strangers on this earth. So I beg you not to surrender to those desires that fight against you. 12 Always let others see you behaving properly, even though they may still accuse you of doing wrong. Then on the day of judgment, they will honor God by telling the good things they saw you do.

13 The Lord wants you to obey all human authorities, especially the Emperor, who rules over everyone. 14 You must also obey governors, because they are sent by the Emperor to punish criminals and to praise good citizens. 15 God wants you to silence stupid and ignorant people by doing right. 16 You are free, but still you are God's servants, and you must not use your freedom as an excuse for doing wrong. 17 Respect everyone and show special love for God's people. Honor God and respect the Emperor.

18 Servants, you must obey your masters and always show respect to them. Do this, not only to those who are kind and thoughtful, but also to those who are cruel. 19 God will bless you, even if others treat you unfairly for being loyal to Him. 20 You don't gain anything by being punished for some wrong you have done. But God will bless you, if you have to suffer for doing something good. 21 After all, God chose you to suffer as you follow in the footsteps of Christ, who set an example by suffering for you.

22 Christ did not sin

or ever tell a lie.

23 Although He was abused,

He never tried to get even.

And when He suffered,

He made no threats.

Instead, He had faith in God,

who judges fairly.

24 Christ carried the burden

of our sins.

He was nailed to the cross,

so we would stop sinning

and start living right.

By His cuts and bruises

you are healed.

25 You had wandered away

like sheep.

Now you have returned

to the One

who is your Shepherd

and Protector.

--1 Peter 2:11-25 (CEV)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for helping us gain freedom from foreign rule, foreign tyranny.  And thank You for also giving us freedom from eternal death, for providing a way for us to not live forever separated from You.  You want us to live forever with You, but You also want us to be a beacon, a light onto the world, shining through the darkness of sin to show the truth of Your Word.  You and Jesus ask so little of us, yet we often fail to follow through with what You command.  Too many things in life distract us, trying to pull us away from You.  Please forgive us our lapses, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your word so we can grow ever closer to You and our Lord Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

A sign once posted in a textile mill instructed, “When your thread becomes tangled, call the foreman.”  A young woman was new on the job.  Her thread became tangled and she thought, “I’ll just straighten this out myself.”  She tried, but the situation only worsened.  Finally she called the foreman.  “I did the best I could,” she said.  “No, you didn't,” the foreman replied.  “To do the best, you should have called me.”

Too often, we try to straighten out the tangles in our lives by our own hands, in our own way.  We do the best we can, we say, but things only get worse.  We should have called upon the great Foreman in heaven to clear up the mess.  That would be the best thing to do.

It's as Ruth Bell Graham noted in her book, Prodigals and Those Who Love Them, when she quoted this comment made by Lady Culross to John Livingston of the Covenanters:  “Since God has put His work into your weak hands, look not for long ease here: You must feel the full weight of your calling: a weak man with a strong God.”

We are weak but God is strong.  Through Him, anything is possible.  But we must put it all on Him.  We must acknowledge our dependence on Him.  Weak though we may be, God has given us the mission of carrying on His Son’s work of reconciling mankind back to Himself.  Especially in this effort, we depend on God’s help.

Now, if we pay close heed to Peter’s words, we would never have rebelled against British rule, cruel and capricious as it was, for Peter tells us to obey all human authorities, even the cruel.  He also tells us to always do what is right.  In the case of our war for independence, one can easily see that our founders were doing the right thing in freeing us from foreign rule that held us in servitude for a debt we had long since repaid.

God blessed us in that effort, and then we gave thanks and showed our loyalty by doing something pretty much unheard around the world: we made a friend of our defeated enemy.  This trend continued in US history – we have turned our defeated enemies into our allies and our friends.  So even though we may not have always obeyed human authorities, we tried to obey God.

And I believe Peter is trying to emphasize that point.  He uses Jesus as our example.  Jesus never sinned, or told a lie, or made threats, or sought revenge for harms He suffered.  Instead, He had faith in His Father God.

We should be more like Jesus.  He was nailed to a cross, gave up His earthly life, so that we would stop sinning and start living more righteously.  He washed us clean of our sin with His own blood.  He defeated death, so that we too can defeat eternal death and not be separated from God forever.

Family, thanks to Jesus we enjoy freedom from death!  Not mortal death, not death from this life, but the second death, everlasting death, the death of separation from the One who loves us and created us.  Jesus stood face-to-face with our greatest enemy – Satan – and defeated him.  And when we accept Jesus as Lord, we get to share in that victory.  By His sacrifice on the cross, Jesus freed us from the burden of sin.

The Apostle Paul speaks to this freedom in the 5th chapter of his letter to the Galatians, in the 1st verse and then verses 13 through 25, when he writes…

1 Christ has set us free! This means we are really free. Now hold on to your freedom and don't ever become slaves of the Law again.

13 My friends, you were chosen to be free. So don't use your freedom as an excuse to do anything you want. Use it as an opportunity to serve each other with love. 14  All the Law says can be summed up in the command to love others as much as you love yourself. 15 But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you had better watch out or you will destroy yourselves.

16 If you are guided by the Spirit, you won't obey your selfish desires. 17  The Spirit and your desires are enemies of each other. They are always fighting each other and keeping you from doing what you feel you should. 18 But if you obey the Spirit, the Law of Moses has no control over you.

19 People's desires make them give in to immoral ways, filthy thoughts, and shameful deeds. 20 They worship idols, practice witchcraft, hate others, and are hard to get along with. People become jealous, angry, and selfish. They not only argue and cause trouble, but they are 21 envious. They get drunk, carry on at wild parties, and do other evil things as well. I told you before, and I am telling you again: No one who does these things will share in the blessings of God's kingdom.

22 God's Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, 23 gentle, and self-controlled. There is no law against behaving in any of these ways. 24 And because we belong to Christ Jesus, we have killed our selfish feelings and desires. 25 God's Spirit has given us life, and so we should follow the Spirit.

--Galatians 5:1, 13-25 (CEV)

Jesus set us free from the tyranny of the Law that was handed down by Moses, the Law that humankind is incapable of fully obeying.  Jesus came to free us from the chains of the Law, and the first step was to free us of our sin.  He washed away our sin with His precious blood.

But it’s just so easy to sin again, isn’t it?  It’s so easy to becomes slaves of sin, turning our backs on the One who saved us and doing whatever we want to do, as if we didn’t know better.  But we who were saved have God’s own Holy Spirit living within us, trying to guide us, prodding us in the direction of righteousness and away from sin.  We just need to pay better attention to Him.  He’ll continue the work in us that Jesus began if we let Him, if we heed His still, quiet voice.  We need to let the Spirit do His work, making us more loving, happy, peaceful, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled, just like Paul says.

Let’s kill our selfish feelings and desires.  Jesus gives us a second chance, God’s Spirit gives us life, so let’s obey Jesus and follow the Spirit.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for giving us victory over tyranny, freedom from foreign rule so that we can govern ourselves.  But more importantly, thank You for sending Your Son to free us from sin and death, and for sending Your Spirit to continue Your work within us.  By Your mercy, You offer salvation to all who will accept Your Son as Lord.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the souls who will never recognize Jesus as Your Son or obey Him as their Lord.  There are many who have not heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  And there are even those who deny Your existence, and the existence of Your Holy Spirit.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, thank You for freeing us from sin and death!  By Your sacrifice and our faith, we are given eternal life.  You died to mortal life so that we can avoid the second death.  You died for our freedom.  Thank You, Jesus, for giving Your all for us.  Lord, we know it disappoints You, but sometimes we struggle to do as You commanded us.  You told us to love others, even our enemies.  But it's so hard to love all people, to give of ourselves to those who don’t care about us.  It’s not even all that easy to love some of our fellow believers.  It hurts to admit it, be we let too many simple, foolish things get in the way of our love.  And too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel, making more disciples.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Then Came Faith

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 22nd of June, 2025.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

“Faith” is a word we banty about a little too easily sometimes.  Like when we’ve got a really difficult task facing us and someone says, “You can do this – I’ve got faith in you.”  But what if we can’t do it?  What if we fail?  Was that person’s faith misplaced, or was there any real faith to begin with?

The author of the Book of Hebrews claims that “faith is being sure of what we hope for, being convinced of what we do not see” (Hebrews 11:1 (NET)).  Someone may hope that we can complete that task, but can they really be sure of it?  No, they can’t, because we humans are imperfect.  Anything we do, anything we make, is subject to fail.  We too often disappoint others, and ourselves, when we can’t do something they, or we, think we should be able to do.

No, we’re not perfect.  But our God is, and so are His Son and His Spirit.  Anything they set out to do, anything they promise, gets done.  We see evidence of this often, especially from Jesus in the accounts of the men who walked with Him during His short ministry.  He healed people of all manner of illnesses and infirmities, even raising some from the dead.  He made the lame to walk, the blind to see, the dumb to talk, the deaf to hear.  And He freed tortured people from their demons and evil spirits.

Most times these miraculous feats were met with wonder and awe, even from His disciples who had seen Him do wondrous signs many times now.  There was one time, though, when the people reacted quite differently.  Please listen and follow along to this report of a rather frightened crowd, as recorded by the Apostle Luke in the 8th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 26 through 39, and I’ll be reading from the New English Translation of our Holy Bible this morning…

26 So they sailed over to the region of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. 27 As Jesus stepped ashore, a certain man from the town met Him who was possessed by demons. For a long time this man had worn no clothes and had not lived in a house, but among the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and shouted with a loud voice, “Leave me alone, Jesus, Son of the Most High God! I beg You, do not torment me!” 29 For Jesus had started commanding the evil spirit to come out of the man. (For it had seized him many times, so he would be bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard. But he would break the restraints and be driven by the demon into deserted places.) 30 Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” He said, “Legion,” because many demons had entered him. 31 And they began to beg Him not to order them to depart into the abyss. 32 Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and the demonic spirits begged Jesus to let them go into them. He gave them permission. 33 So the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd of pigs rushed down the steep slope into the lake and drowned. 34 When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran off and spread the news in the town and countryside. 35 So the people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus. They found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. 36 Those who had seen it told them how the man who had been demon-possessed had been healed. 37 Then all the people of the Gerasenes and the surrounding region asked Jesus to leave them alone, for they were seized with great fear. So He got into the boat and left. 38 The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with Him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 “Return to your home, and declare what God has done for you.” So he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole town what Jesus had done for him.

--Luke 8:26-39 (NET)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for inspiring Your Son’s followers to take note and write down many of the things Jesus said and did while He walked among us.  And thank You for saving them for us today.  Through these records, we can see how our faith in Jesus will never be misplaced.  He can do anything, and will always keep His promises.  You and Jesus ask so little of us, yet we often fail to follow through with what You command.  Too many things in life distract us, trying to pull us away from You.  Please forgive us our lapses, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your word so we can grow ever closer to You and our Lord Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

St. Augustine is said to have written that, “Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that thou mayest believe, but believe that thou mayest understand.”  And at some point he added, “Faith is to believe what we do not see, and the reward of faith is to see what we believe.”  That’s two rewards of faith, one now, and one later.  Our faith helps us understand those things we cannot see, and if we keep our faith strong and vital, when the end of our days on this earth comes, we will see, face-to-face, the One in whom we believe.

One of the benefits of that enhanced understanding through faith can be seen in this statement by J. G. Machen who said, “The more we know of God, the more unreservedly we will trust Him; the greater our progress in theology, the simpler and more childlike will be our faith.”  It’s that childlike faith Jesus is looking for, the unquestioning, simple yet assured faith of a child.

And I think George Muller adds some solid logic to our discussion when he says, “Faith does not operate in the realm of the possible. There is no glory for God in that which is humanly possible. Faith begins where man's power ends.”  If God only did things any human could do, where would be the reason for glory?  We don’t necessarily glorify each other for the things we can do, unless we’re trying to butter someone up.

And to give a little more insight into this subject of faith, some now unknown person once noted that, “Little faith will bring your soul to heaven, but great faith will bring heaven to your soul.”  As believers, we are assured that our soul will head to heaven when we’ve breathed our last.  But ah how sweet it would be, to have heaven in our soul right now, while we still draw breath.  So let’s keep our faith strong.

So, you may be thinking that our scripture reading didn’t have much to do with faith.   In one respect, you’d be absolutely right.  Usually, when Jesus healed someone or cast out an evil spirit, it was because of faith in Jesus, faith that Jesus could heal them or rid them of their demon, the faith of that person or of someone who loved them.  This wild man of the Gerasenes didn’t exhibit much faith in Jesus, nor did anyone else come forward and plead for him.  Yet Jesus knew he was afflicted and immediately, as soon as He stepped ashore, started ordering the evil spirit to leave the man.  The man respond with a plea that Jesus leave him alone and not torment him.  We don’t usually think of Jesus tormenting anyone – well, maybe the Pharisees – but we have to remember that it was the demon speaking through the man.

Now here’s a very interesting and extremely important point that we must not miss.  The demon in the man cried out, “Leave me alone, Jesus, Son of the Most High God!”  Did this demon believe in Jesus and acknowledge Him as the Son of God?  Yes, most definitely!  So by believing in Jesus, is the demon assured salvation?  Absolutely not!

I’ve tried to stress before that we need to be careful with that word “believe”.  To believe in Jesus involves more than just acknowledging His existence, or even recognizing His parentage.  If we truly believe in Him as the Son of God - as God - then we will do as He commands us, we will follow Him and His example.  Demons won’t do that, even though they know who He is, and what He is.

Getting back to our passage, faith in this case is the total lack of it.  The legion of demons in the man – by the way, the name “Legion” probably alludes to a Roman legion, which was comprised of a thousand men, and we’re told that this man was possessed by “many demons”.  Anyway, the demons in the man, once they realized that Jesus was going to command them out, begged Jesus to let them go into the herd of pigs feeding on the nearby hillside.  Jesus agreed, He called the demons out, and they entered the pigs.  And immediately the whole herd ran downhill into the sea and drowned.  So much for the demons.

The pig herders who witnessed all this ran away and told everyone they came across what had happened.  The townsfolk came out to see for themselves, and rather than being grateful that the formerly wild man was now calm and coherent, they were afraid.  I can understand that the herdsmen might be a little upset, for their livelihood had just stampeded into the water and drowned.  But why the townspeople?  Why were they so frightened of Jesus that they asked Him to leave them, to leave the region?  Why did Jesus scare them so much?  Because they had no faith.  Faith had not come to them.  He made what they thought was impossible possible, and it scared them.

The thing is, faith is a gift from God.  It’s not a trait or characteristic that we just have, it is given to us.  What we do with that gift is up to us.  We can use it, exercise it, let it grow and thrive, or we can ignore it, set it off to the side, and watch it shrink to nothingness.  But either way, faith came to us from our generous Father God, who in His mercy chose us to receive it.

The Apostle Paul tells us of the time before God bestowed this gift upon us.  Hear what Paul wrote in the 3rd chapter of his letter to the Galatians, in verses 23 through 29…

23 Now before faith came we were held in custody under the law, being kept as prisoners until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 Thus the law had become our guardian until Christ, so that we could be declared righteous by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. 26 For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God through faith. 27 For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female — for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to the promise.

--Galatians 3:23-29 (NET)

When Paul writes of the law being our guardian, he is using the term like we would speak of the legal guardian of a young child.  Before faith came to us, we were subject to the Law of Moses, the Ten Commandments along with all the extras, the law that it is impossible for us to fully obey and follow (otherwise we wouldn’t have needed Jesus).  But now faith has come, and we no longer need a legal guardian because God has adopted us – we are His children, we are one with Christ Jesus.  We are united through Jesus.

Paul also notes that even we Gentiles can count ourselves among the descendants of Abraham, heirs to God's kingdom, joint heirs with Jesus, because we are all one with Him.  This is what faith, that wonderful gift from God, does for us.

Faith and trust walk hand-in-hand.  Our faith in Jesus allows us to trust Him, to trust in His promises.  When we trust Him, we put everything in His hands, we quit trying to do everything on our own.

There’s a saying: “Let go and let God”.  That’s trust.  That’s faith.  Faith is our ticket to heaven.  Let’s not lose it.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for this wonderful gift of faith.  You knew we fallen humans could never fully obey Your law as handed down through Moses, so You sent Your Son to wash us clean of our sin and provide a path to salvation.  And You gave us the faith to believe in Jesus and accept Him as our Lord.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the souls who will never recognize Jesus as Your Son or obey Him as their Lord.  There are many who have not heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  And there are even those who deny Your existence, and the existence of Your Holy Spirit.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, we know You are the one true Son of the Most High God and we accept You as our Lord and Master.  You left Your home in heaven to come to earth to redeem us of our sin.  Thank You, Jesus, for giving Your all for us.  Lord, we know it disappoints You, but sometimes we struggle to do as You commanded us.  You told us to love others, even our enemies.  But it's so hard to love all people, to give of ourselves to those who don’t care about us.  It’s not even all that easy to love some of our fellow believers.  It hurts to admit it, be we let too many simple, foolish things get in the way of our love.  And too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel, making more disciples.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Father, Son, and Holy Spirit

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 15th of June, 2025 - Father's Day and Trinity Sunday.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

Family, today is Father’s Day, but it’s also the first Sunday after our celebration of the Pentecost event in Jerusalem.  Reading the Old Testament, we can see where God would send His Spirit to help certain people carry out a specific mission for a limited time.  In today’s lingo, we’d call these “one-off” events.

At Pentecost, that all changed.  Now, God - at the request of His Son Jesus - sends His Spirit to dwell in any and all believers when they accept Jesus as Lord.  This is the promise Jesus made before leaving us to go home, and the promise our good Father kept.

Our heavenly Father, His Son, and His Holy Spirit.  You may have guessed by now that while today is Father’s Day, it is also Trinity Sunday.

There are a number of places in our bible where we can find references - hints, in some cases – to the three persons of God.  And yes, even in the Old Testament, as we can see in the passage from Genesis.  In those cases, Jesus, the Son, before He became flesh, oftentimes came into the world, but was referred to then as “the Angel of God”, with a capital “A”.

The New Testament passages clearly identify Jesus by name, as the Son of God, even though He usually called Himself the Son of Man.  That particular title rankled the Pharisees and scribes, because it is a description the prophet Daniel used to describe the future Judge and King as “One, like the Son of Man”, coming with the clouds, given all authority and power by God.  Jesus probably also used the title to remind people of His own humanity, so they could better relate to Him.

At any rate, we could easily pick from several passages from either Testament to examine the Holy Trinity, but I was led to one that I think most clearly points to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, their interaction with each other, and their importance to us.  Please listen and follow along to this momentous event as recorded by the Apostle Matthew in the 3rd chapter of his Gospel account, and I’ll be reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible this morning…

1 In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying:

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

‘Prepare the way of the Lord;

Make His paths straight.’”

4 Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him 6 and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins.

7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, 9 and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 12 His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized by him. 14 And John tried to prevent Him, saying, “I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?”

15 But Jesus answered and said to him, “Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then he allowed Him.

16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. 17 And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

--Matthew 3 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Your Son Jesus to redeem us of our sin.  And thank You for sending Your Holy Spirit to be with us always, our constant Companion and Guide.  You are such a good Father to us, so it hurts us to admit that we are not the most obedient or appreciative children like we should be.  You do so much for us, yet we often fail to follow Your most basic command.  Too many things in life distract us, trying to pull us away from You.  Please forgive us our lapses, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your commands so we can grow ever closer to You and our Lord Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Dr. Bruce L. Shelley, in his book Christian Theology in Plain Language, explains the Holy Trinity in this way:  “Within His own mysterious being God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  The designations are just ways in which God is God.  Within the Godhead there are three ‘persons’ who are neither three Gods nor three parts of God, but coequally and coeternally God.”

The Trinity has long been a concept that confuses people, even good solid Christians.  But if we think of it more along the lines of three distinct functions, or duties, or responsibilities, it may be easier to grasp.

Most of us have, or had multiple roles in our lives.  Husband, father, breadwinner, provider.  Wife, mother, nurturer, comforter.  Myself, I am a father, while my parents lived I was a son, and I have a spirit within me that gives me life, and that joins with God’s Spirit to keep my faith alive.

God our Father is our Provider, seeing to our needs in this life.  Our Father God’s Son Jesus does the will of His Father and provides redemption for mankind’s sin.  And God’s Holy Spirit guides us, and even prays for us when we can’t find the words.  Our God, in His Three Persons, sees to all our needs.

We’re all familiar with this story in our scripture reading this morning.  John the Baptizer is busy at work at the River Jordan, preaching a message of repentance, baptizing people, harassing Pharisees…  the usual.  And then Jesus walks up for His turn to be baptized.  John resisted this, thinking that Jesus should be baptizing him rather than the other way around.  But Jesus responds that it has to be done, that He must be baptized in fulfillment of righteousness and Messianic prophecy.  So John consents and baptizes Jesus there in the river, and next comes the Happy Father’s Day moment.  As Jesus rose from the waters, the heavens opened and God’s Holy Spirit descended, alighting onto Jesus.  And then the voice from heaven: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

That was a proud Papa, acknowledging this Man, Jesus, is His Son.  Very few things bring a father as much joy as acknowledging their child, and their child’s accomplishments.  God left no doubt whatsoever that Jesus is His Son, His Christ, sent to work His plan.  Father and Son.

The Holy Spirit had a role in this passage, too.  He came down from His heavenly home to live in Jesus, to help Him through the coming times.  As I mentioned earlier, we can view this as one of those “one-off” visitations of the Spirit, except in this case the Spirit stayed with Jesus until the end.

But before that time, before Jesus left us, He promised another Helper would come to us, God's Holy Spirit, sent from the Father.  Please hear the words Jesus spoke as recorded by the Apostle John in the 14th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 15 through 17…

15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever — 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.”

--John 14:15-17 (NKJV)

If we truly do love Jesus, we will keep His commandments, do what He told us to do.  And it we do love Him, it means we believe in Him and have accepted Him as our Lord and Savior, that we recognize Him as the Son of God, the Christ.

So the promise is that when He returns to heaven, He will ask His Father, God, to send His Holy Spirit to us, and God fulfilled this promise beginning at Pentecost.  The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Now Jesus knew how much trouble His followers had in fully understanding things He told them of the future.  So He often repeated Himself, maybe changing how He expressed His message, making it as easy as He could to still get the point across.

This issue of the indwelling Holy Spirit is no exception.  A little later in chapter 16 of his Gospel account, verses 12 through 15, John again captures the words Jesus spoke, clarifying what the Spirit will do for them, and for us…

12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 14 He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. 15 All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.”

--John 16:12-15 (NKJV)

We have the benefit of 2,000 years of study and the witness accounts of the men who walked with Jesus for three years, yet there are still things Jesus could say to us that we cannot bear, things we still are not able to understand.  And we’re not meant to understand everything, not yet, not until we meet Jesus face to face.  But we do have God’s Spirit to help us through this life, even through the things that we don’t understand.

Right now, in this life, we can only wonder why God allows evil to run helter-skelter through the world.  Someday, He’ll explain it all to us.  For now, though, the Father will provide for our needs, the Son will cover our sins, and the Spirit will keep trying to guide us around all the pitfalls and lead us into righteousness.  The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – they’ve got our back.

In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for being such a good Father.  You watch over us, You provide for us, You listen to us, You love us, even when we misbehave.  We are saved because of Your love.  We are redeemed because of Your Son.  We live because of Your Spirit.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the souls who will never accept Jesus as Your Son.  There are even those who deny Your existence, and the existence of Your Holy Spirit.  And there are many who have not heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, You left Your Father and Your heavenly home to come and live among us, as one of us.  You came to offer us salvation and redemption of our sin.  And You arranged it with Your Father for Him to send the Holy Spirit to live within us and be with us as long as we draw breath.  Thank You, Jesus, for giving Your all for us.  Lord, we know it disappoints You, but sometimes we struggle to show our love by doing as You have commanded us.  You told us to love others, even our enemies.  But it's so hard to love all people, to give more of ourselves to those who don’t care about us.  It’s not even all that easy to love some of our fellow believers.  It hurts to admit it, be we let our worldviews get in the way of our love.  And too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel, making more disciples.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Happy Father’s Day, God.  Amen.

Our Lord's Prayer

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 1st of June, 2025.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

I have a test for you this morning.  What is the Lord’s Prayer, how does it go?  “Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name”, right?  Would you believe me if I told you that is not the Lord’s prayer?  It is the prayer our Lord taught us

According to the Apostle Luke, Jesus had been praying off by Himself.  When He finished, one of His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray like John the Baptist had taught his disciples.  Jesus then proceeded to teach them what we now call the Lord’s Prayer.  The Apostle Matthew also recorded this prayer, but he includes it as part of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount.

And don’t get me wrong - it is a good prayer.  But Jesus intended it as an example for us in how to pray, how our prayers should be structured.  That’s why you’ll sometimes see it referenced as the Model Prayer.  Jesus prayed a lot.  We see this in the Gospel accounts, not necessarily the words He spoke but that He often went off to pray.

So yes, this is the prayer Jesus gave us, but there is another that more closely fits the title of the Lord’s Prayer.  And it must have been overheard by His beloved disciple John.  Please listen and follow along to when our Lord Jesus prayed to His Father God, as recorded in the 17th chapter of the Apostle John’s Gospel account, and I’ll be reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible this morning.  This is our Lord’s prayer…

1 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, 2 as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. 4 I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.

6 “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. 7 Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You. 8 For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me.

9 “I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours. 10 And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.

20 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

24 “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. 26 And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

--John 17 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for listening when we pray.  Thank You for listening even when we don’t follow the model Jesus gave us.  Father, we admit that we don’t always take the time to just stop and talk with You.  That’s all You want from us, that we just talk with You, tell You how our day has been, ask for Your help with our troubles.  But too many things in life distract us, demand our attention, keep us from talking to You and listening for Your reply.  Please forgive us these times, Father.  Help us make the time to spend with You so we can grow ever closer to You and our Lord Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Jean McMahon once wrote this amusing little tale for Reader's Digest:

"Attending church in Kentucky, we watched an especially verbal and boisterous child being hurried out, slung under his irate father's arm.  No one in the congregation so much as raised an eyebrow -- until the child captured everyone's attention by crying out in a charming Southern accent, 'Y'all pray for me now!'"

Smart kid - seeking intercession from a higher authority, asking for prayer when events got out of his control.  I can only imagine that laughter ensued, and I bet the preacher had to work hard to get the service back on track.  It’s always a challenge to work with children and animals – you never know what they’re going to do.

You know, though, the kid took a great path in asking for folks to pray for him.  At that particular point, he was not in a good situation.  His father was obviously not feeling very merciful right then, and his patience had completely dissolved.  The boy was in trouble and he knew it.  So he asked everyone to appeal to God on his behalf.

Of course those prayers might not go exactly the way he would want.  Sure, some could pray that the father wouldn’t be too rough on him, but others might pray that the boy learn from this little episode and start behaving better.  Either way, God would listen and answer in the way He knows would be best.

In the first part of our scripture reading, Jesus prays for Himself.  But there’s two things I want you to note here.  The first is that there are only five verses in this section.  Of the 26 verses in this prayer, only five are devoted to Jesus for Himself.  And second, the only thing Jesus is asking for is that He be glorified so that His Father God will be glorified.  That’s pretty selfless, which pretty much defines Jesus.

There’s also an interesting description of eternal life in that short section: to know God.  To know the only true God, and Jesus who was sent from God, is eternal life.  To know Them in the fullest sense, understanding the truth of Them, the way of Them, can only come once we have come to Them in heaven, when everlasting life is indeed ours.

In the second section, Jesus prays for His disciples, those alive at that time and walking with Him.  Jesus was worried about them, worried about how they would handle what was about to occur.

The end is now at hand.  Jesus and His eleven – Judas had already left to put his scheme in play – had just finished their last supper together, left the upper room, and headed to the Mount of Olives.  This is when Jesus went off by Himself to pray, to open up His heart to His Father.  His arrest, trial, torture, and execution would follow in the coming hours.  He sought God’s protection over His followers, His friends, that the Father watch over them and keep them safe, that they be shielded from Satan and his deceitful attacks.  Jesus loved His followers and wanted them to be cared for after He was gone.

I’d like to take just a moment to pick apart the last section of our Lord’s prayer, because this is for us.  This is what Jesus prayed to God for us.

In verse 20, He adds, “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word”.  In the previous section, Jesus prayed for His disciples, primarily for the apostles, but also for all those who were following Him at that time.  Now He is adding in all those who will come to believe in Him through the witness – both verbal and written – of all those living disciples.

We have their words, their witness reports, right here in our Bible, contained in the four Gospel accounts and the many letters written to the early church and to certain individuals by these disciples.  We have read these words, or heard them read, and they have led us to believe.  We – right now, today, 2000 years later – we are the ones Jesus prayed for!

Verses 21, 22, and 23 tell us what He prayed, that we may be one with Him and with our Father God.  If we are all one with Jesus and one with God, then we will also be one with each other!  And truly all believers are one, because we have God’s own Holy Spirit within us, within each of us.  That is our common tie: God’s Holy Spirit.  Jesus prayed that all believers will live, think, and act as one body, one church.

Verse 23 tells why: that we may be made perfect, and that the world may know that Jesus was indeed sent by God.  And also that the world just might see His love at work in us, through us.

In verse 24, we see a hint of the promise of eternal life in heaven, that we may be with Jesus wherever He is.  Jesus wants us to be in heaven with Him, so He asks God to make this happen.  If we’re with Him, then we can behold His God-given glory for ourselves, no longer hidden from our sight, not just something we’ve read about but can now see.

Verses 25 and 26 acknowledge that, while the world does not know God, the truth of God, we do, because Jesus has revealed the truth to us.  He brought us the truth – He is the Truth!   And He closes that prayer with the plea that the love of God - the love with which He loved His own Son - may be in us, with us, and Jesus in us as well.

These are the words that our Lord Jesus prayed to His Father God.  He did not instruct us to pray in this manner, because He had already given us an example to follow.  This was a private conversation between Jesus and God.

Remember how Jesus told us to go into our private room and pray in secret, not as a public spectacle?  Well, this is what He was doing.  I don’t know how John was able to overhear it and record it in his Gospel, but I sure am glad he did, or we would not know how Jesus Himself prayed all those times He went off alone.  It also shows us the even greater depth of Jesus’ love for us.

This prayer was an intimate conversation, concerned more about the welfare of others than for Jesus Himself.  This is how we should pray.  This can be another model for our own prayers, even though Jesus wasn’t using this as an example.  So let’s be sincere in our prayers, remembering how much Jesus loves us, thinking of others more than ourselves, seeking to glorify God in all we do, giving Him the honor and praise He deserves.  All in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for listening to and answering our prayers.  We understand that You don’t always answer us the way we might want You to, but we trust You that You will do what is best for us and everyone else involved.  We know that You work all things to good for those who love You and are called to Your purpose.  We do love You, dear Father, and we try to do as You call us.  It saddens us when we think that there are so many souls who will never accept Jesus as Lord.  And there are many who have not heard of Him, have not been told of all He did and taught.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, You gave us an model of the manner that we can structure our prayers, but too often we use it as our only prayer rather than just an example to follow.  Your prayer to Your Father, made in private, gives us an even better example of how we should pray.  Thank You, Jesus, for being so selfless, for putting others ahead of Your own needs.  Lord, we know it disappoints You, but sometimes we struggle to follow the example You gave through Your own life and interactions.  It's so hard to love all people, to give more of ourselves to those who don’t care about us.  And it hurts to admit that too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

And Jesus, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  This we pray in Your blessed name, Christ Jesus our Lord and our Savior.  Amen.

Parting Words

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 25th of May, 2025.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

Family, I’d like you to think for a moment about what you would do if you knew you only had 40 more days on this earth, 40 more days to do stuff you’ve put off, 40 more days to enjoy special times, 40 more days to maybe fix a wrong or get something right.  What would you do, what would you say?

40 days seems like a long time, especially if we’re waiting for something we want.  That’s almost six weeks, but I bet it would pass quickly.  Time can really go by fast when we have something we need to do.

This coming Thursday, the church will observe Ascension Day, when Jesus left this earth and returned home to heaven.  This occurred 40 days after His resurrection on Easter morning.  So as of this morning, we are still within that 40 day span while the risen Jesus walks among us, appearing in the flesh to His followers and hundreds of witnesses.  He had 40 days to finish His work on earth, 40 days to show God’s intent, 40 days to establish the foundation of His church, 40 days to get His chosen Apostles to finally understand what He had been trying to tell them for three years.

Now while we only have a few days left of the 40, I’d like to reset the calendar back to that first day, to Resurrection Day itself.  Jesus has risen from the dead and left the tomb empty.  He appeared to Mary Magdalene first, and a little later in the day, He appeared to two disciples who had left Jerusalem and were walking on the road to Emmaus.  His identity was hidden from them as they walked and talked about the events of the last few days and the death of their Rabbi. This gave Jesus the opportunity to explain why the things that had happened had to happen.  He started with the prophets and reminded them of all that the scriptures said must happen to the Messiah.

When they got to town, the two disciples invited their walking companion to join them for dinner.  It was only then, when He blessed the meal and broke the bread, that the men recognized Him.  And immediately He vanished from view.  They were so excited to see their Master alive again, they got up and walked the seven miles back to Jerusalem rather than stay the night in the inn.  Please listen and follow along as the Apostle Luke tells of what happened next, which includes some of the last things Jesus said and did, His parting words before going back home to heaven, as recorded in the 24th chapter of Luke’s Gospel account, verses 35 through 53, and I’ll be reading from the New Living Translation of our Holy Bible this morning…

35 Then the two from Emmaus told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road, and how they had recognized Him as He was breaking the bread. 36 And just as they were telling about it, Jesus Himself was suddenly standing there among them. “Peace be with you,” He said. 37 But the whole group was startled and frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost!

38 “Why are you frightened?” He asked. “Why are your hearts filled with doubt? 39 Look at My hands. Look at My feet. You can see that it’s really Me. Touch Me and make sure that I am not a ghost, because ghosts don’t have bodies, as you see that I do.” 40 As He spoke, He showed them His hands and His feet.

41 Still they stood there in disbelief, filled with joy and wonder. Then He asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” 42 They gave Him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and He ate it as they watched.

44 Then He said, “When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about Me in the law of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. 46 And He said, “Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. 47 It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of His name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’ 48 You are witnesses of all these things.

49 “And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as My Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”

50 Then Jesus led them to Bethany, and lifting His hands to heaven, He blessed them. 51 While He was blessing them, He left them and was taken up to heaven. 52 So they worshiped Him and then returned to Jerusalem filled with great joy. 53 And they spent all of their time in the Temple, praising God.

--Luke 24:35-53 (NLT)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for Your loving mercy.  Thank You for sending Your Light into the world to show us the way to salvation when we were stumbling around in the darkness of our sin.  You arranged for our sin to be redeemed and provided a path to eternal life.  Father, we hate to admit it, but we don’t always show appreciation for the gift You’ve given us.  We don’t act in ways that distinguish us from the world.  Too many things in life distract us, demand our attention, keep us from doing what we should do in service to You.  Please forgive us these times, Father.  Strengthen our faith, and our resolve to grow ever closer to You and Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Our parting words can not only convey our final thoughts, but also reveal our true inner character.  Samuel Clemens, better known as author Mark Twain, might best be described as agnostic in his belief.  Although he grew up in a Christian household, he became quite skeptical of organized religion and expressed doubts about conventional Christianity, especially in his later writings, when he became morose and weary of life.  Shortly before his death, he wrote, "A myriad of men are born; they labor and sweat and struggle; ... they squabble and scold and fight; they scramble for little mean advantages over each other; age creeps upon them; infirmities follow; ... those they love are taken from them, and the joy of life is turned to aching grief. The release comes at last - the only unpoisoned gift earth ever had for them - and they vanish from a world where they were of no consequence, ... a world which will lament them a day and forget them forever."

That’s such a tragically sad view of life.  This sounds like someone who apparently never really knew Christ Jesus.  Contrast this to the last thoughts of Herman Lange, a German Christian who was to be executed by the Nazis during WWII.  In his cell on the night before he was to be killed, Lange wrote a note to his parents.  He said two feelings occupied his mind: "I am, first, in a joyous mood, and second filled with great anticipation."  Then he made this beautiful affirmation: "In Christ I have put my faith, and precisely today I have faith in Him more firmly than ever."  Finally he urged his parents to read the New Testament for comfort: "Look where you will, everywhere you will find jubilation over the grace that makes us children of God.  What can befall a child of God?  Of what should I be afraid?  On the contrary, rejoice!"

And then there’s Hudson Taylor, founder of China Inland Mission, who, in the closing months of his life, is quoted to have said to a friend, "I am so weak.  I can't read my Bible.  I can't even pray.  I can only lie still in God's arms like a little child and trust."

What else can we do, when we are too weak to go on, but snuggle up into the loving arms of our heavenly Father, trusting in Him for all our needs?  There we will find safety and solace, unlike Clemens, who shunned God’s embrace and found only cold bitterness and darkness in life and in death.  What have we to fear?  Man may be able to hurt us and take away our mortal life, but God will heal us and give us eternal life.  So let us rejoice.

Now, over the last few weeks, we’ve looked at the visits Jesus made to His disciples using the Gospel account of the Apostle John as our source.  This morning we’re using the report of this Resurrection Day visit as provided by the Apostle Luke in his Gospel account.  If you were paying close attention, or are familiar with the Gospels, you’ll notice some differences between these two accounts.  And that’s OK, it’s understandable.  Each of the four Gospel authors wrote from a slightly different perspective, seeing Jesus and His works just a little differently.  It’s just like if we were to ask any four witnesses to an accident what they saw, we’d likely get four slightly different stories.  So this time we’re looking at what Luke reported as Jesus’ last moments.  In this account, there are no 40 days, or hundreds of witnesses mentioned.  Luke has condensed it all, as if everything occurred this one day, when Jesus rose from the dead.

What I find interesting about this is that Jesus, in what would be His parting words, is still reminding His followers what the scriptures say about Him, still telling them what was going to happen next.  And here He gives us the promise of yet another great gift from God: His Holy Spirit.  “Wait here in Jerusalem”, He instructs, “and I will send the Holy Spirit who will fill you with power from heaven.”

We know that the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, and that anyone else will receive Him the moment they accept Jesus as Lord.  But that meant that Jesus needed to leave us so that the Spirit could be sent.  So He led His followers out to Bethany, where He lifted His hands to bless them.  These would have been His last words while on earth in the flesh, but Luke did not record them for us.  As Jesus was giving His blessing, He ascended into heaven.

Luke's Gospel account was his first book written and sent to Theophilus.  The Book of Acts was the second.  He opens this second book with a recap of the ending of the first, giving more detail and recalling a few more of Jesus' parting words.  Please hear the account Luke wrote for Theophilus in the first 14 verses of the Book of the Acts of the Apostles…

1 In my first book I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day He was taken up to heaven after giving His chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit. 3 During the forty days after He suffered and died, He appeared to the apostles from time to time, and He proved to them in many ways that He was actually alive. And He talked to them about the Kingdom of God.

4 Once when He was eating with them, He commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift He promised, as I told you before. 5 John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

6 So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking Him, “Lord, has the time come for You to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”

7 He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere — in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

9 After saying this, He was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see Him. 10 As they strained to see Him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday He will return from heaven in the same way you saw Him go!”

12 Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, a distance of half a mile. 13 When they arrived, they went to the upstairs room of the house where they were staying.

Here are the names of those who were present: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon (the zealot), and Judas (son of James). 14 They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.

--Acts 1:1-14 (NLT)

So here is a repeat of how Luke closed his Gospel account, but with a bit more information.  For one, he now mentions that 40 day span between Jesus’ resurrection and His ascension.  Luke also adds that Jesus told the disciples that they would soon be baptized by the Holy Spirit.  This would be in fulfillment of the Spirit being sent to them.

And this time we hear more of Jesus’ parting words, spoken just before He is “taken up into a cloud”, spoken to all His followers, then and now.  “You will be My witnesses, telling people about Me everywhere — in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Our parting words are the things we say as we are leaving a place, or leaving a person.  Jesus was preparing to leave earth, to leave us.  He had only walked this sod for 33 years, but now it was time to go.  He had accomplished what He had been sent here to do, He had already died and conquered death, and He had made a way for mankind to be saved.

And after all that, what did He determine was the most important thing to tell us as He was leaving us?  “You will be my witnesses… to the ends of the earth.”  This is our job: to tell other people all about Jesus, about the things He taught and did, making more disciples as we continue our walk through this world.

If we follow those words, when our time on earth is finished and we meet Him face to face, we’ll hear His welcoming words: “well done, good and faithful servant”.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for all the gifts You have blessed us with, and especially for Your Son and Your Spirit.  Through Jesus, we have been redeemed of our sin, and through our faith and belief in Him, we have been granted eternal life.  Thank You, dear Father.  It saddens us when we think that there are so many souls who will never accept Jesus as Lord.  And there are many who have not heard of Him, have not been told of all He did and taught.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal friend.  Help us be more like Your Son in our interactions with the world.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, Your parting words to us were that we would be Your witnesses, telling people all about You, helping to lead them to You and to salvation.  This is what You felt most important to impart to us.  Thank You, Jesus, for giving us so important a job.  Lord, we’re ashamed to admit it, but sometimes we struggle carrying out this mission.  It's so hard to love all people enough to want to see them rewarded with eternal life in heaven.  It hurts to admit that too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel.  Please help us in our struggle to be better servants.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

And Jesus, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  This we pray in Your blessed name, Christ Jesus our Lord and our Savior.  Amen.

We Will Follow

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 18th of May, 2025.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

Family, through the Lenten season and Easter and even the last few weeks after Resurrection Day, I’ve mentioned how Jesus kept trying to tell His disciples what would happen soon.  Right up to the very end, at the last supper they all shared together, He gave hints and glimpses of the near future, even clearly stating His upcoming fate.  They just never could seem to get it.

For one thing, they couldn’t understand when He talked about Him having to die.  From their questions and actions, it seemed that they were still waiting on Him to destroy the Romans and end their subjugation, restoring the nation of Israel.  I feel that maybe they had fully embraced that Jesus was the Son of God, was God in His authority.  But they lost track of the fact that Jesus was also human - fully God, yes, yet fully Man, too.  Surely God couldn’t die.

At that last meal together, there in the upper room, Jesus again tried to impress His followers with the truth of what was to come in the next few days.  As He passed a cup of wine for all to share, He mentioned that this would be the last time they would eat and drink together, until the kingdom of God comes.  He foretold of the cruel beating and execution He would suffer when He broke the bread and told them it was His body, broken for them, when He again passed the cup and said it was the new covenant with God, sealed by His blood which would be shed for them.  And He spoke those words to us across the span of time – His body broken for us, His blood shed for us.

Then Jesus claimed that one of them – one of His chosen twelve – would betray Him over to the authorities.  He didn’t name names, but Judas Iscariot suddenly left the room, going to make a deal with the Pharisees and chief priests.  Please listen and follow along to the Apostle John’s reporting of the discussion that followed Judas’ departure, between Jesus and the remaining eleven, as recorded in the 13th chapter of John’s Gospel account, verses 31 through 36, and I’ll be reading from the New Living Translation of our Holy Bible this morning…

31 As soon as Judas left the room, Jesus said, “The time has come for the Son of Man to enter into His glory, and God will be glorified because of Him. 32 And since God receives glory because of the Son, He will give His own glory to the Son, and He will do so at once. 33 Dear children, I will be with you only a little longer. And as I told the Jewish leaders, you will search for Me, but you can’t come where I am going. 34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. 35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are My disciples.”

36 Simon Peter asked, “Lord, where are You going?”

And Jesus replied, “You can’t go with Me now, but you will follow Me later.”

--John 13:31-36 (NLT)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, we thank You for making sure that we would have Your Son’s life story to read and study, even after all these years.  Thank You for inspiring the men who recorded the events in Jesus’ life, especially during His ministry.  But Father, we admit that we usually don’t take the time to study what has been saved for us.  Too many things in life distract us, pulling us away from what is really most important.  We’re more like Martha, busy and worried and troubled about many things, than Mary, who chose the good part, to listen to the word of our Lord.  Please forgive us these times, Father.  Strengthen our faith, and our resolve to grow ever closer to You and Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Back in 1994, the little “Our Daily Bread” magazine had a story about Eli Black, a brilliant businessman best known for two events in his life: one, that he masterminded the multimillion dollar takeover of the United Fruit conglomerate, and two, that he jumped to his death from the 42nd floor of the Pan Am building in New York City.  The story went like this:

In the book An American Company, an executive described a business lunch he had with Eli Black.  When the waitress brought a plate of cheese and crackers as an appetizer, Black reached out and took them, placed them on the table, blocked them with his arms, and continued talking.  The executive hadn't eaten for hours and hinted that he would like a cracker.  But Black acted as though he hadn't heard him and went on with the business meeting.  After a while, Black placed a cracker and cheese on the tips of his fingers and continued to talk.  Several moments later, Black placed the cracker on the executive's plate and then blocked the rest as before.  It was clear that Black was in charge, manipulating others as he pleased.  When you play "follow the leader", check to see who is at the head of the line.  Eli Black, for all his power, ended up in suicide. Jesus Christ, in all His humility, ended up the Savior of the world.

A number of studies over the years have found that Christians tend to be among the happiest people.  They are among the most content with their station in life, better able to deal with tribulations.  And it kind of makes sense if you think about it.

For one thing, we take it as truth, a promise that will be fulfilled, when Jesus said we will have life eternal through Him.  He also said we’d have trials and tribulations in this life, so we expect them to happen, we are mentally prepared to deal with them.  Which all means that all we have to do is get through this life so we can enjoy the next, with Jesus.  Knowing what awaits us keeps us strong, content, and happy.

Eli Black apparently believed only in himself.  He was power hungry, always had to be in control, pulling strings and manipulating people for his own benefit alone.  Without an anchor, a solid foundation, he ultimately had no hope, no tomorrow, no reason to continue walking through this life.  So he threw himself out a skyscraper’s window.

Then we see Jesus.  Although God in the flesh, He acted as the most humble of men, seeking only to serve others rather than to be served.  And though His life on earth was short, His impact on humankind has endured for 2000 years, and will continue to endure forever.

Brothers and sisters, we are the called.  At the start of His short ministry, Jesus called twelve men to follow Him.  He has called us as well, called us to follow Him, to be His disciples.  And He promised that we will follow Him, follow Him to heaven once our life on this earth is finished.  Follow Him to live with Him forever.

This is just one of the ways Jesus promised us everlasting life with Him and God in heaven.  Another time He assured us of this wonderful future was spoken not to one of His twelve, but to someone who had just come to believe in Him, in the last minute as it turns out.

Jesus was crucified alongside two common criminals.  One of the two joined in with the crowd mocking Jesus, while the other defended the Lord.  Jesus’ words to this man include the promise that heaven awaits those who believe, even if they turn to Christ with their last breath.  Listen to how the Apostle Luke relates this brief back-and-forth in the 23rd chapter of his Gospel account, verses 39 through 43…

39 One of the criminals hanging beside Him scoffed, “So You’re the Messiah, are You? Prove it by saving Yourself — and us, too, while You’re at it!”

40 But the other criminal protested, “Don’t you fear God even when you have been sentenced to die? 41 We deserve to die for our crimes, but this Man hasn’t done anything wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when You come into Your Kingdom.”

43 And Jesus replied, “I assure you, today you will be with Me in paradise.”

--Luke 23:39-43 (NLT)

Add this to what John recorded in the 14th chapter of his Gospel account where Jesus said, “...that where I am, there you many be also” (John 14:3b (NKJV))

Now this man understood that he deserved his fate, but he also saw that Jesus didn’t.  And more than that, he also recognized that Jesus was more than just a man.  Before his own death on the cross, he accepted that Jesus was Lord, and was saved.

I’d like to briefly look at one more time we are promised that we will follow Jesus to heaven, to live there with Him for all eternity.  This comes from the last book in our bible, when Jesus revealed to John what will happen at the end of the age.  In the first 7 verses of the 21st chapter of the Book of Revelation, John reported…

1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

3 I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among His people! He will live with them, and they will be His people. God Himself will be with them. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

5 And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then He said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” 6 And He also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega — the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. 7 All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be My children.”

--Revelation 21:1-7 (NLT)

All who are victorious, all who get through this life with their faith intact, will share in the inheritance with Jesus of God’s heaven and all His blessings.  God will be with us, and we – His children - will be with Him, forever.

We follow Jesus now, as we walk this broken road.  And when our time comes to leave this sod, we will follow Jesus again.  We’ll follow Him to heaven, and eternal life.  Stay strong, and keep the faith.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our King.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for sending Your Son to the world, that the world might be saved through Him.  Through Jesus, through our faith and belief in Him, we have been redeemed of our sin, freed from our chains, ransomed even from death.  Thank You, dear Father.  Sadly, though, there are so many souls who will never accept Jesus as Lord.  And there are many who have not heard of Him, have not been told of all He did and taught.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal friend.  Help us be more like Your Son in our interactions with the world.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, You promised us that if we will follow You now, we will follow You to heaven when our days in this life are at an end.  And we see this promise repeated, in different forms maybe, throughout our bible and especially in the New Testament, including in the letters to the early church.  Thank You, Jesus, for assuring us of a blessed future.  You also promised that in this life we would have trials and tribulations.  But it’s the promise of a greater future, of everlasting life in paradise, that is our hope, that makes this life bearable.  Lord, we’re ashamed to admit it, but sometimes we struggle to do as You commanded us.  It's so hard to love all others.  And too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel.  As the Apostle Paul said, we seem to do the things we shouldn’t do, and we don’t do the things we should.  Please help us in our struggles, Lord.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

And Jesus, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  This we pray in Your blessed name, Christ Jesus our Lord and our Savior.  Amen.