Speaker: Scott Pursley

Speaker: Scott Pursley

Speaker: Scott Pursley

Speaker: Scott Pursley

Speaker: Ben Stamper

Note: There is no recording available of this sermon due to technical problems. In it’s place, there is a general transcript below. Sorry for the inconvenience.

“It has been said by someone that “the proper study of mankind is man.” I will not oppose the idea, but I believe it is equally true that the proper study of God’s elect is God; the proper study of a Christian is the Godhead. The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can ever engage the attention of a child of God, is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls his Father.
There is something exceedingly improving to the mind in a contemplation of the Divinity. It is a subject so vast, that all our thoughts are lost in its immensity; so deep, that our pride is drowned in its infinity. Other subjects we can compass and grapple with; in them we feel a kind of self-content, and go our way with the thought, “Behold I am wise.” But when we come to this master science, finding that our plumbline cannot sound its depth, and that our eagle eye cannot see its height, we turn away with the thought that vain man would be wise, but he is like a wild ass’s colt; and with solemn exclamation, “I am but of yesterday, and know nothing.” No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind, than thoughts of God….
But while the subject humbles the mind, it also expands it. He who often thinks of God, will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow globe…. The most excellent study for expanding the soul, is the science of Christ, and Him crucified, and the knowledge of the Godhead in the glorious Trinity. Nothing will so enlarge the intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man, as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity.
And, whilst humbling and expanding, this subject is eminently consolatory. Oh, there is, in contemplating Christ, a balm for every wound; in musing on the Father, there is a quietus for every grief; and in the influence of the Holy Ghost, there is a balsam for every sore. Would you lose your sorrow? Would you drown your cares? Then go, plunge yourself in the Godhead’s deepest sea; be lost in his immensity; and you shall come forth as from a couch of rest, refreshed and invigorated. I know nothing which can so comfort the soul; so calm the swelling billows of sorrow and grief; so speak peace to the winds of trial, as a devout musing upon the subject of the Godhead. It is to that subject that I invite you this morning.”

-C. H. Spurgeon

If only we believed this, what would become of our meager quiet times? Our one minute Bibles and our bite-size devotional life might blossom into a vital and nourishing communion with the living God. The disciplines of the Christian life would be sought after instead of avoided. The weak endeavors such as prayer and fasting would suddenly be recognized as essential to the life of every Christian. Lord! Make it so in our lives!

First, a bit of Review:
What is clear from Proverbs chapters 1-9:
-Wisdom is not bashful and shy, but loud and even aggressively pursuing us, but we often don’t recognize it because…we don’t want it!
Proverbs 8/1 Corinthians 1/James 3:
-There are two types of wisdom – Worldly and Godly. They are forever at war and totally incompatible.
Godly wisdom is foolishness to the world, visa-versa. Therefore no one can accept the wisdom that comes from God while clinging to the world’s wisdom. You must reject the wisdom of man.
-Fear of the Lord is the key to wisdom (as a Pilot flame is to a burner) and you cannot attain God’s wisdom without it. “Fear of the Lord is the beginning…” Proverbs 8.13 states plainly that the fear of the Lord is to hate all evil.
-The wisdom of God is not a matter of the mind: James 3.13-18. It involves the whole person – mind, body, spirit.
(Classic bad examples: 1 Kings 11-12: Solomon, his son Rehoboam)

And now, Onward and Upward:
All through 1 Corinthians I see Paul saying one thing to his beloved but troubled church:

Stop fitting in. You are holy unto the Lord. You are set apart for a greater purpose. You are not of this world. Stop blurring the lines.

And how this message hits us today, as the Western Church is obsessed with minimizing the difference between the sinner and the saint, between the believer and the unbeliever, the Christian and the pagan. Paul takes great pains in highlighting this dichotomy, using comparative language like wise/foolish, weakness/strength, lofty speech/fear and trembling. As you already know, Paul is trying to reason with a group of Christians that are caught between two loves – their Lord, and their life. Perhaps they didn’t anticipate the degree to which the gospel would pit them against their fellow citizens. Remember that the Corinthians put a lot of stock in rhetorical skill and reasoning, and presently they are watching their stock plummeting. It is possible that they underestimated the impact of being a Christian in a very pluralistic atmosphere.
Listen to Paul’s response to this-
READ 1 Corinthians 2.1-2. In other words, from the beginning, Paul never appealed to their Greek side because he knew it would be detrimental for their faith.
READ 1 Cor 2.2. He resolved, decided, chose to know NOTHING but Christ and Him crucified.
Is this our standard operating procedure when sharing the gospel? Have we resolved to know nothing else but this? Or do we dress up the gospel with party favors and enticers and alluring bonuses? Have you ever shared Christ and left out the second half-Him crucified? Have you ever skirted around the death of God in an attempt to make it more palatable?
READ 1 Cor 2.1-5 again. According to Paul, there are two ways to share the gospel:

Christ and Him crucified, or Christ and Him dulcified.

dul·ci·fytr.v. dul·ci·fied, dul·ci·fy·ing, dul·ci·fies

1. To make agreeable or gentle; mollify.2. To sweeten.

Which is your flavor? In an attempt to foster a relevant conversation with the surrounding culture, have we made the gospel totally irrelevant?

If you are in Christ, you are a holy possession. If you are in Him, you are a citizen of another country that isn’t even quantifiable. You are an alien. Embrace your alienhood.
If you are in Christ and true to the gospel message, then you are an enigma to the world:
A stumbling block to the Jew and foolishness to the Greek, but to those who are called, both Jew and Greek, this crucified Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Christ and Him crucified-what does it look like to know nothing but this?
Often, the opportunities that come to us to share the gospel are very non-linear experiences in terms of how they fit into our idea of what evangelism is. Bearing the unadorned gospel is not about sharing the four spiritual laws in perfect sequence, it’s about trusting the message we have been given to speak.
Take a moment and ask yourself: What is the message I am to bear to the world? Do I know immediately what it is and how to articulate it? Or is it kind of hazy and unformulated in my mind? What is the essence of the gospel of Christ and Him crucified if you strip it down to the bare essentials? It would do us all well to reflect on these fundamentals once again, and daily!

How do we bear this message to the world?

Before Jesus was lead to Calvary, he was falsely accused, arrested, beaten, spit upon, scourged, mocked and finally, stripped of his garments. Naked, exposed for all the world to see. There was nothing given to Him to conceal the shame, the weakness, the scandal of the incarnate God hanging on the cross as any criminal. With his hands and legs extended, His skin pulled across his bones like a canvas stretched and pinned to the wooden frame of the cross. Naked. Unadorned. His only ornament was a crown of thorns. This was how He chose to present Himself to the world. Dare we dress Him? Do we dare tell this story any other way?
To know Christ and Him crucified- this is our calling, our goal and highest aim. Is there any wisdom that is greater than this? Is there any science or philosophy more worth investigating?

The Lord is looking for messengers who will be faithful to the message with their life.
Ask yourself: Do I know this message? Has the gospel been dissolved into the tyranny of the urgent, the pursuit of comfort and approval? Have I lost my vision of Christ as Supreme One? Return to your first love. Embrace the greatest wisdom of all-the Naked, unadorned Gospel.

Image:  One of many Nativity etchings done by Rembrandt

Speaker: Ben Stamper

Note: You will find it helpful to visit the link below to know what the visual is that Ben is referring to in the beginning of his sermon.  To navigate, copy and paste this address into your browser window.

http://www.studio360.org/xmas/

Speaker: Ben Stamper

This is the last in a short series looking at the book of Philippians. Below is a summary of Philippians 3.12-4.9. I call it Paul’s prescription to Knowing Christ:
3.12 Seek a humility that engenders action
3.13-14 Don’t give too much credit to the past (for yourself or others)
3.16 Reflection is our best friend
3.17 Study the lives of the saints
3.18-20 Stand firm as citizens of heaven
4.2-3 Strive for unity
4.4 Live lives of rejoicing (Eyes to heaven)
4.5 Live lives of reason, or gentleness (Feet on the earth)
4.6-7 Don’t operate out of anxiety (own strength) but
prayerful peace (His strength)
4.8 Let your mind be renewed by filling it with good things
4.9 Strive for conversion of principles into practice

Portrait of a Genius Child