Just Another Melodic Monday - Before the throne of God above

It's funny - I was just looking back over the Melodic Monday blog posts since I began them in October 2015, looking for inspiration for a song for this week, and I realised that there is a classic hymn that we haven't featured but one that has become popular over the last couple of decades.

"Before the throne of God above" was written by Charitie Lees Smith in 1863.  It's original title was "The Advocate" as the song expresses the role of Jesus Christ "who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us" (Romans 8:34).  It was given a new melody in 1997 by Vikki Cook from Sovereign Grace Music, and this acoustic version is performed by Mark Rasmussen and friend.

Some Words for Wednesday - How do you remember someone you've never met?

(Some notes from the message shared when we gathered as a church last Sunday.)

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said "This is my body which is for you.  Do this in remembrance of me."  In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood.  Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." 1 Corinthians 11v24-25

Today, we're taking a brief look at the Lord's supper.  We'll be considering it in more depth next week.

1. At this supper, we remember the Lord.  Jesus tells his disciples to share the bread and wine "in remembrance of me".  But how do we do that today?  How do we remember someone we've never met?

Note first what Jesus doesn't say - he doesn't say anything about his physical appearance.  If I wanted someone to remember me, I might tell them to look closely at my face, or at my overall appearance, or take a photograph.  In the case of a very famous person, we might consider making a statue.  But Jesus doesn't tell them to remember how he looks, nor to use pictures or images as an aid to remembering him.

What is his reason?  I believe it's because he wants to be remembered in his glory (John 17v24), and glory cannot be captured in a copy.  Where do we see his glory?  By faith, we see it at the cross.

This revelation of glory at the cross is intimated by Jesus in John 12.  As he approaches the hour of his death, he says: "Now is my soul troubled.  And what shall I say? "Father, save me from this hour"?  But for this purpose I have come to this hour.  Father, glorify your name." (v27-28)

Jesus' intention was to reveal the glory of God through his death.  His Father's answer confirms this: "I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again." (v28)

What does Jesus receive for this obedience?  In heaven, the angels cry "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honour and glory and blessing!"  Jesus receives glory because he is the slain Lamb.  So the author of Hebrews writes that "we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honour because of the suffering of death" (Heb2v9).

The glory of Jesus is most visible in his death on the cross.  This is how we remember a person we've never met.  We remember Jesus time after time as, by faith, we see the glory of Jesus in the simple symbols of his sacrifice for us.

2. The bread reminds us of the death that takes away our sins.  Peter writes: "He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness." (1 Pet.2v24).  Christ dies to take away our sin and guilt - to remove the barrier between us and God.  By his death, we are restored to a right relationship with God - by his wounds, we are healed (1 Pet.2v25).

3. The wine reminds us of the death that promises the undying love of God.  Jesus speaks of a "new covenant" - a new relationship with God based on promises.  By his death, we can come into the presence of God.  We can be His people, and He can be our God.

A couple of weeks ago, we looked at the role of Jesus in heaven as our high priest.  In the Old Testament, only the high priest could enter the Most Holy Place, the place where God dwelt among His people.  So in Hebrews we read that "the priests go regularly into the first section, performing their ritual duties, but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people." (9v6-7).

But Jesus came to be our high priest! "He entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption" (9v12).  Jesus secures a redemption that lasts forever through his death.  

With this eternal redemption comes eternal life and eternal sonship.  The death of Jesus promises the undying love of God.

Finally, how are we to practice the Lord's supper?  We'll consider this in more depth next week, but here are some brief points:

a. It is for those who believe.  The Lord's supper is for those who are able to remember the Lord - for those who, by faith, see the glory of Jesus in his death for their sins.

b. We are to acknowledge each other.  The issue Paul deals with in his letter to Corinth is that people weren't waiting for each other!  Clearly, a group was arriving later than others, but the others weren't willing to wait.  Instead, they ate and drank, and left little or nothing for the rest!

What is Paul's response?  "It is not the Lord's supper" (1 Cor 11v20) and those who do not wait "despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing" (v22).  What should they expect?  Judgment (v29)!  So Paul's answer to this issue is simple - "wait for one another" (v33).

We are to recognise the church community at the Lord's supper.  We are to acknowledge those who sit with us at the Lord's table.  We are to "discern the body" (v29) or it is no longer the Lord's supper, but a profanity (v27).

One simple way of encouraging that acknowledgment is by sitting around a table and looking at each other, similar to what the disciples did at that first supper.  Another way is for people to all move to the front rows and sit together. (That is what we did last Sunday - we also had the rows in a semi-circle, so that we could see each other more easily.)

c.  We are all equal at the Lord's supper.  No one takes the place of Jesus at the table.  I do not take the place of Jesus as I break the bread.  I am not the mediator between you and God - I am not the high priest.  Jesus is our high priest, and he is not absent from the table.  He is present by his Spirit.  Only 2 or 3 of us have to gather under his authority and he promises to be present (Matt 18v20).

As believers, we are all equal at the Lord's supper, because we share equally in the blessings that come from his death for us.

Next week, we'll return to this topic, and consider the answer to the following question:  What could be so special about a meal?

Some Words for Wednesday - Corporate worship has left the building

(These are some notes from the message shared last Sunday when we gathered as a church.)

"I appeal to you, brothers, in light of the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship." (Romans 12v1)

Last week, we recognised that Jesus is now alive in heaven, acting as our high priest.  In the presence of God, he is always presenting the sacrifice for our sins, and praying for his people's salvation.  If you have trusted him as your lord and saviour, you are alive in him.  In him, therefore, you are always in the presence of God.

In light of this, I asked a question: If, in Christ, I am always in the presence of God, when should worship stop?  The answer is obvious: never!  Paul makes this point in a different way at the start of Romans 12.  He writes that "in light of God's mercies" we should present ourselves as "a living sacrifice".

In other words, I am to place and keep my life on the altar as an offering to God.  Worship, Paul tells us, is a whole-of-life response to the mercy of God revealed in the gospel.

So, for example, I am not to think that I have a church life, a work life, a home life, and so on, and worship takes place in my church life, but nowhere else.  Nor am I to think that even within my church life, worship only really happens when I'm singing or praying, or using certain gifts, and it doesn't happen when I'm listening, reading or encouraging.

Worship is a response to God that only makes sense if it involves the whole life of a person.  But here, Paul doesn't present his view of worship as the unconnected responses of a group of individuals.  Instead he presents it as the corporate response of a body of believers.  We present "our bodies" together as a single "living sacrifice".  Corporate worship, therefore, does not begin and end at the door to a church's building.  It is a community's whole-of-life response to God's mercy revealed in the gospel.

So what does a worshipping community look like?  Paul goes on to describe elements of this community as he gives guidance and instruction in the rest of the letter.  We'll look only at chapter 12 in this post.

1. In a worshipping community, everyone is important, but nobody acts like it (12v3-8).  The church is like a human body, where individuals are like different parts of the body.  We therefore do not all have the same role or function (v4).  As the Lord builds the church, the Holy Spirit distributes gifts and abilities according to his will (1 Cor 12v11).  

What is his will?  His will is that everyone joins in!  The church is like a boat, on which everyone is a member of the crew.  That means there will be participation - each person should seek to use their gifts (v6).  And if the Holy Spirit is the one who distributes gifts, we must be careful not to pigeonhole people into particular areas of ministry because of their age, appearance, where they live etc.  Instead, we should enjoy being surprised as God uses people in ministries we would never have anticipated.

This type of participation encourages humility.  No individual can do everything (v4-5): no single person keeps the boat afloat.  Just as the parts of a body must work together to be most effective, so we must work together within a church.  I must learn that I am not always the answer.  God has designed the church so that we must always rely on the gifts of others if we are to function most effectively.

So Paul says I am not to think of myself more highly than I ought (v3).  I can always learn from others, because they are gifted in ways I'm not.  I can always anticipate that you will have something to teach me - and vice versa.  

This approach towards each other will encourage humility and gratitude.  Everyone will be important, but no one will act like it.

2. In a worshipping community, we are committed to loving each other (v9-13).  There are some ways in which we will all be different because of our gifts.  But there are other ways in which we will all be the same.  A body of believers will have a certain character, and at the core of that character will be love - a compassion that circulates throughout the body.

What will that love look like?  Paul offers some examples in this passage.

There will be genuine affection between believers (v9).  Within this context of loving relationships, there will be a rejection of what is sinful, and instead we will seek to embrace and encourage that which is good and pure (v9).  There will be a feeling of family, and in humility we will think of others more than ourselves (v10).

We will aim to be excited about Jesus.  That excitement will be particularly visible in the use of our gifts as we serve the Lord (v11).  We'll be joyful that we have a home in heaven.  We'll need patience, because there'll be hard times now, but we won't forget that our Father in heaven is able to help us all the time.  So we'll seek His help all the time in prayer (v12).

We will support Christian brothers and sisters when they're in need, and our homes and timetables will make room for each other (v13).

We won't look for excuses to not love each other, but instead, as a community, we will express sincere, widespread compassion. Love is not a gift, but a fruit of the Spirit.  If the Spirit lives within a community, then love must also live there.

3. In a worshipping community, we treat all kinds of people with kindness (v14-21).  Paul writes that we must show kindness even to those who persecute us (v14, 17-20).  That doesn't mean we shouldn't report crime - God provides such authorities as a way of revealing His anger against wrongdoing (13v4).  However, we are to strive to be kind to all, and not to "repay evil for evil".  We should seek peace, and do what is honourable.

As an example, do you think about that when you post on social media?  Do you think about how your comments on Facebook are part of your worship?  When someone writes a post that offends you, do you remember your online life is part of your whole-of-life response to God's mercy?  Do you still strive to seek peace and do what is honourable as you write your response to that post?

Paul also repeats his call for humility and compassion.  We are to share in each other's joys and sorrows - God has designed the church body in such a way that when a limb breaks, the heart breaks (v15).  We are to seek harmony, and not be deliberately disruptive (v16).  I mustn't think that I am "too good" for certain kinds of people (v16).

In summary, then, Paul writes that a worshipping community has these characteristics:

Everyone is important, but nobody acts like it.
We are committed to loving each other.
We treat all kinds of people with kindness.

The noticeable thing is that, while all of this will feel wonderful, it will probably look unspectacular.  This type of community will rarely hit the headlines.  If we want the world to notice this kind of corporate worship, we mustn't hide it within a building.  It has to leave the building, and be visible as part of a church's whole-of-life response to the gospel.

In fact, that is the only kind of corporate worship that makes sense.  If, in Christ, we as a church are always in the presence of God, our corporate worship should never stop.  It has to leave the building and become the lifestyle of an uncontained community of believers as we use our gifts to serve; as we demonstrate love to our church family; and as we show kindness to all kinds of people.

Some Words for Wednesday - Calvinism and Hobbes

(Some notes from the message shared last Sunday when we gathered as a church.  In this post, we'll be touching on one of the five points of Calvinism - "The perseverance of the saints".)

"Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them."  

Hebrews 7v25

We've come to the end of our series!  We have previously recognised:

Jesus lived a sinless life so that he could die for the sins of other people, and cover those people with his sinless life.

Jesus died on the cross so that God's anger could be absorbed, and God's love be outpoured.

Jesus rose from the dead to secure an eternal promise of a temporary grave.

Now we reach the final part, the ascension of Jesus, and find:

Jesus now lives in heaven as a high priest, interceding for his people and saving them forever.

Why did Jesus rise to heaven?  You might think the answer is simply that he had to go somewhere to wait until he returned.  We worship him now, and he appreciates that, but essentially his work is done.  When you try to imagine him in heaven, probably you imagine him looking very peaceful, serene and silent.

But that is not the case.  He has not gone to heaven to have some peace and quiet, but to work; to be a priest for us.

What was a priest in the Old Testament?  He was a bridge between people and God.  Unlike the typical Old Testament priest, Jesus has a permanent priesthood because "he continues forever" (7v24).  His priesthood is also notable because he is a "high priest" (7v26).

What is special about a high priest?  In the Jewish Temple, there were lots of different areas, which you were or were not allowed to enter depending on what type of person you were.  E.g. Gentiles could not enter some areas where Jews could.  There was one room that only the high priest could enter, and only once a year - a room called "The Holy of Holies", which was the place where God particularly dwelled among His people.

In other words, the Holy of Holies was the closest you could get to the presence of God, and only the high priest could go in there.  In Christ, therefore, we are able to draw near to God (7v24) - to enter the holy places (10v19).  Remember, when you trust your life to Jesus Christ, there's a sense in which you begin to live in him.  What happens to him, happens to you.

When he dies, you die in him.  When he rises, you rise in him.  When he ascends to heavenly places, you ascend in him.  So if he is in the presence of God, then you are in the presence of God in him!

Colossians 3v1-4 is a great example of this way of thinking, mentioning Christ's death, resurrection and life in heaven.  The apostle Paul tells us that "your life is hidden with Christ in God."  In Christ, you are in God's presence!

Jesus is the bridge between us and God.  If you are in Christ, you are in God's presence.  No one has a password that lets them in, but keeps you out.

The comic strip Calvin and Hobbes can provide an illustration for this.  In one of the strips, Calvin wants to go up to the tree house where his tiger, Hobbes, is waiting.  He asks Hobbes to lower the rope ladder.  Hobbes instead asks for the password!

Calvin then has to recite a long poem, all about how wonderful tigers are!  By the end of the strip, he still hasn't reached the end of the poem!  Instead, he turns to the reader and says: "Hobbes can climb the tree without the ladder, so he got to make up the password."

You might be applying that way of thinking to people in your church, particularly church leaders.  They might dress differently, or speak differently, and you start to believe they have access to God that you can't have.  You place them on a pedestal - you believe they are higher up the tree than you - you believe that they must have the password.

But there is no password!  In Christ, we can all draw near to God!  In Christ, we can go where only the high priest can go!

Here's a question to think about:  If, in Christ, you are always in the presence of God, when should worship stop?

The answer must be "never"!  Your whole life must be offered as a living sacrifice - this is the only worship that makes sense in the light of what Jesus has done (Romans 12v1).  We'll consider next week what a worshiping community looks like.

We draw near to God in Christ - but we do so "by his blood" (Heb 10v19).  As our high priest, Jesus must offer a sacrifice for our sins.  He offers himself (7v27) - he is the priest and he is the sacrifice!  For as long as he is in God's presence, he is presenting the sacrifice that takes away our sins.

As our high priest, he also intercedes for us by speaking on our behalf.  He prays for his people, and defends us against accusations of guilt.  "Who can condemn us?  Christ Jesus is the one who died - more than that, who was raised - who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us." (Romans 8v34)

By his prayers, he continues to protect my relationship with God.  What happens when Jesus prays?  In John 14v12-14, Jesus tells his followers that if they pray anything in his name - anything that has his seal of approval, anything that he himself would pray - then it will happen.  That is the level of authority that he has.

So what happens when Jesus prays?  Whatever Jesus prays happens!  And right now, he prays for the salvation of his people.

So the writer of Hebrews can state "he is able to save to the uttermost all those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them." (7v25)  My relationship with God is protected by the intercession of Jesus as my high priest.  I will persevere as a Christian for as long as Jesus perseveres as a high priest - and he perseveres forever!  He is a faithful high priest (Heb 2v17) - he will never give up and he will never die!

So, Jesus now lives in heaven as a high priest, interceding for his people and saving them forever.  How should this affect my life?

1. Recognise that God's concern for your life is not sporadic.  God does not tune in and out of your life.  When things get tough, it is not because God has been distracted and allowed something to slip through the net.  He is still working in and through your life.  One of the reasons you can be sure of God's attention to your life is because Jesus always brings you to His attention - he is faithfully and continually praying for you.

2.  You can pray with confidence in Christ.  You can approach boldly because of Jesus.  When you have times of open prayer as part of corporate worship, do not remain silent because you lack confidence in yourself, or because you think others have learned the password.  Find your confidence in Christ - as you speak up, trust in his intercession for you, and approach God with boldness.

3.  Trust the safety of your soul to Jesus Christ.  When you trust Jesus to save you and lead you through this life, he covers you with his sinless life; protects you with his sacrificial death; promises you a resurrection by his resurrection; and prays for you as a high priest in heaven.  

Why does he do all this?  Because of love.  "God so loved the world that he sent his Son" - to do all this!  Glory be to our God and our saviour the Lord Jesus Christ!