How are you Engaging in The Gospel Work of Praying & Learning (not arguing & criticizing) Part 1
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Dear Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,
In our first two sermon’s on this Pastoral letter, we have seen that Paul’s great concern is that we stweard the gospel, and that stewarding the gospel requires using both God’s law in our lives and God’s gospel well. We hit the firsto fthe trustworthy sayings, as Paul said those who don’t think they need God’s law, turn it and faithinto moralistic rule keeping, or asthtic, myths andg enaologies - they are missing how God’s law leads us into an expeirnce of Christ as Saviour, the Spirit as the one granting faith , and purifying the heart and the conscience so we live freely in step with God’s will. The trsutworthy saying is: .
And look at the end of that reason that “in me the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience” Can you imagine that - by knowing the law and the gospel of Jesus - you’re life a living billboard , a demonstrable experiment to your neighbour, your family, of god’s love his incredible patience, his incerdeible project of GRACE. But the end of the verse tells us who this example is for:
But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.
There are those who God is bringin to eternal life, and our grasp of God’s law and the necessity of the gospel, is ordained tool - they are to read our gospel-trandformed lives and say - Hey there’s hope forme, Hey there’s something so attractve to their God, His way of life, His kingdom. Hey there is a solution to my wandering heart, amy aching sense of guilt. The theme verse of the e I think is Paul’s reason for opposing the false teachers, the positive reason at the end:
nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.
This is why Paul is writing this letter. Recently out of prison, he is in his 70’s health failing, many abandoned him, churches’ seem in danger, aespeciaily this prized geogprhaic group of Christian around Ephessus. But he can only quickly visit for a short time must press on. Can’t address everyting, and feel Timothy who will come and stay on will need - apostolic backing and clear direction. This is what we’ve got here, and really like a manual how as Harry Reeder, PCA, flame a church that is in embers , flickering light about to be snuffed out, to glowing fire. Chapter 1 ended with what to avoid, a bad approach to law and gospel, and witht he sad news of Hymenaeus and Alexander - whose faith completely shipwrecked, and others in dagner. But chatper 2 begins with the positives of what must be happening in ou churches. The first command of the letter to LEARN QUIETLY we will lok at next week, but this week Paul begins his positive commands on doing church with this:
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people,
Now some people on both the left and the right, liberal and conservatives, zoom in and just narrowly look at these passages for some moralistic, legalistic commands for male/female relationships roles. Or what we were in worship. Some say abiding principles others just cultural accommodation and dealing with a local problem that only applies to Ephesus in the first century. Others just zero in on the theological message of the grounding of prayer - huge theological issues of God’s desire to save all and what that means. But what I must get you to see first, is that these positive instruction are all about the theme verse - about the stewardship of the gospel. Do you remember this word - administration, the economy, the household operation of God’s embassy of grace. - remember how that must result in LOVE operating from a pure hear and good conscience and a what kind of faith - SINCERE AUTHENTIC. Well after addressing the problem of the false teaching in the church that resulted in speculation, shipwrecks people faith - doesn’t produce love. Paul says the place we got to start putting and keeping this economy in order - isn’t in small groups, the first being the family, nor in diaconal ministry of mercy, or in evangelistic outreach out there. All important things for a church to engage in but the first place is public worship! And it is shocking that the learning of the word isn’t first,but prayer!
A. Address the Problem of a Prayer-less Church
And the problem Paul is addressing here is twofold - instead of men leading in prayer, we have men with anger quarreling; We see this too in times of new teaching entering - times of controversy - more concerned about our view wining then hearing God, and certainly than depending on God in prayer for real kingdom advance, progress. In Corinth early addressed this party spirit. Controversies will come, even necessary to test our faith, but are we holding true to God or just our ideas of God? That’s revealed in how we come together in worship, and especially in our prayer!
But secondly, instead of women in prayer adorning themselves with inner character of modesty and self-control, in other words more concerned about coming with gospel good works, and good attitude to the gospel and other people’s lives, what had happened in Ephesus, since he had been gone? False teachers come in - men arguing and quarreling about all these new ideas, and these false teachers preyed on women - like pagan religion Artemis and __________. Men used to going up there prostitutes, seems to be sexual overtone, but more pointedly, in Greek culture height of obsession with outward beauty - hair, braided in gold, with ornaments with silver gold pearls. Had people coming to church, house service, dressed to impress others - more like dresses we see in Hollywood gala - Golden Globe awards,.
So when we come to this passage, maybe consumed with curiosity and sides of feminist vs. complementarian, how to apply - but must come first with this passion of Paul’s that real prayer and real gospel learning is at the heart of our public worship! Let’s begin with prayer:
Key Truth: In God’s economy of grace his people’s prayers are central to the well-being of the saved, and the salvation of the lost!
Now this surprises us, that the church, the New Covenant Temple of the Living God, is first of all a place of essential prayer! The world needs this place, this people to be a people of essential prayer. That may surprise you because of how much emphasis we lay on the church being a pillar and buttress of truth. But we must never forget that Truth is unto Holiness. Doctrine is for Life. All light but no heat is as big a problem as all heat and no light. And the action that is to be built on the foundation of gospel truth is first and foremost prayer. A living fellowship and communion with God. A two-way conversation that is like being in God’s living room Do you see our services as that two-way dialogue conversation with God. We ought to, when the Old Covenant’s temple was set up as a symbol like the tabernacle before it of eternal realities, that ultimately pointed to Christ, what was the action that was built on the doctrine of atonement, forgiveness, the ultimate sacrifice in the holy of holies.
if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time.
Do you get that is the heart of what the teaching of the gospel brings not only to insiders, but it is the promise that the gospel is to extend to outsiders:
“Likewise, when a foreigner, who is not of your people Israel, comes from a far country for the sake of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm, when he comes and prays toward this house,
And why
“If your people go out to battle against their enemies, by whatever way you shall send them, and they pray to you toward this city that you have chosen and the house that I have built for your name,
hear from heaven your dwelling place and do according to all for which the foreigner calls to you, in order that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your people Israel, and that they may know that this house that I have built is called by your name.
“If your people go out to battle against their enemies, by whatever way you shall send them, and they pray to you toward this city that you have chosen and the house that I have built for your name,
And jesus comes and he fulfills all that Temple stands for,sacrfice, atonement, the adoption as son, the making you and me servants and priests in God’s kingdom - and he says just before he accomplishes that fulfillement, as he cleanse the Temple and restoresit to it purpose:
And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.”
And Paul gets out of prison and returns to this central church in God’s mission, and says can you really say as the temple of god in worship - that this is a house of prayer for all nations. When you have more conversation with each other horizontally than real conversation, and real transaction between God and humanity. Earlier to the Corinthians Paul had said when a stranger comes into worship here - they are really to sense that God is among us, by the gospel-worship, they are to sense - stuff of heaven happening on earth here, God is addressing them, and they can address Him, in Christ and with His people! Do we have that kind of worship here? Is that what you are engaging in here. If not we can’t really say like Jesus - My Father’s house - and we are about the Father’s business here!
Paul says this is the first step in getting back to being a gospel flame here instead of a flickering wick about to be extinguished.
B. Expand our pleading with God, in Four Kinds of Prayer
Imagine for a moment that the only talk you had with a significant other - was small talk - how would you feel? Imagine no small talk - how would you feel. They say its like junk food. But also like oil of conversation. Well here Paul is outlining the type of prayer we as God’s temple must lift up, not just in personal prayer, which may have more of the small talk , spontaneous arrow prayers in it, but our corporate prayer -when Gathered formally and praying in one accord, in the Spirit. And Paul is urging us in such gathering to have four types of concentrated prayer that we join in together:
Supplications are for our dialy needs. Pryaer more general onging and always needs - pray better, for grace, guidance, help in temptations, Intrecessions for other people, euchariteo thanksgiving - eye on how God has answered passt prayers, what we’ve asked for, what he has provoided, to come back to him and say thank you - to acknowledge the Sover3eign King has his yeye on us, even the trials he allows working good prupsoe
C. We must pray for all people, and especially rulers.
Now this is the connection Jesus underlined in , not an assembly for asking just stuff for ourselves, what Solomon wonderfully declared and experienced in part - this place was for outsiders too. We’ve got a real problem if we think our prayer here is just for health and material concerns and comfort of our private lives. yes- daily bread, but first the kingdom. Our prayer is not just the shopping list. Listen to John Stott: visiting a church and congregational prayer came: He prayed that the pastor might enjoy a good vacation (which was fine), and that two lady members of the congregation might be healed (which was also fine; we should pray for the sick). But that was all. The intercession can hardly have lasted thirty seconds. I came away saddened, sensing that this church worshiped a little village god of their own devising. There was no recognition of the needs of the world, and no attempt to embrace the world in prayer.
False teachers presented Christianity as a religion for an elite group, would our prayers at home and offered up here indicate that too? Why hand illustration for prayer, why book marks - all kinds of people here, around globe!
Thursday morning… confidential , - but official time … neighbours, needs, kingdom, evangelism, … I am going to email or call you next year as we pray for you. Cowroker, family member, neighbour… This place a place of prayer for our neighbours and our nation.
That’s the second and the especial instruction Paul gives in this passage about the who of our corporate prayer as a church is to include. Kings and all who are in high position. We are to pray for good leaders whom we know are Christians, but as Calvin put it in a time when there were a lot of bad leaders, even in Geneva, we are to pray for all our leaders, even the bad ones. We are to pray that god would make bad leaders. good. Even earlier as Chrysostom put it - there is no way you can remain in hatred fro someone that you are truly praying for. In concert with what Paul had written before to the Romans in Chapter 13 we are to see all legitimately placed leaders, even unconverted ones as God’s ministers for the common good,. We are to give respect for their position, expecting that they will reward the good and punish the bad. We are to see a connection between praying for good government and God’s people having the ability to what?
for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way.
That word quiet is going to come up again, in terms of how learning is to happen when God’s appointed herald, proclaimer, preacher is the one teaching the Word. The word doesn’t mean silent, passive, but is a word that means without disturbance, engaged - We are to pray for each other and this nation to have the ability to lead peaceful, quiet godly lives with dignity. Part of this is to understand that the most powerful testimony that many people will hear is the testimony of our changed, transformed, gracious lives, That’s a lot harder in places where basic rights, securities are not guaranteed. Some of those are challenged today - ie RP couple fostering to adopt, said wouldn’t be celebrating Easter with a bunny but Christ. … children taken away. Other couple husband, refused to id his young pre-adolescent daughter as a boy, Bethany Christian services, defines marriage as husband and wife, but states force to comply or revoke licence. We are to pray people for those in government that government do it’s job and not overstep - so that we can lead our life faithfully in every way!
In last years, Evangelical prime minister of Ethiopia, made peace3 with Eritrea! May 1989, Nicolai Church where exactly 450y before Reformation introduced, small group met in small room read the Sermon on the Mount and pray for peace. Larger room, church’s nave, arrested some, On prayer nights blocked the city’s largest Autobahn off ramp - to stop them from coming; Oct 9th 2000 crowded into pray, and 10,000 gathered outside. Guess what Berlin Wall came down, communism imploded!
And that every way -pointing to the grounds of our prayer. Our prayer for each other and for our government ultimately has peeople salvation in mind.
D. The Ground & Goal for our Prayers is Christ’s Work for All Kinds of People
Why should we make sure that our worship is prayer to our living God for others and our world? Why should we as God’s temple be that place/people on earth where prayers are truly heard and through Christ get into the holy of holies.? Why should we share in Christ’s work of intercession for others?
Not just so someone gets temopral healing, or a job, or whatever incompletness - but look at the ultimate reason. Verrse 3-7 are not a mere detour - but you need to see that a) prayer has salvation as its goal. And b. the fact taht there is only One God, and one Mediotr, both for jews and Gentiles, Rich and Powerful peoope and common people like you and me, barabaian, men and women - it means we all need the one Mediator - not just of men 0 but comon word for humanity, anthropos,
And he truly is a man - do you get the connection in prayer, - a man tempted and tried ain every way like you - full fellowship of our suffering and weakness - he has communioin with us down here, but also fully God with full commmunion withthe aFather in the \fulness and lgory of heaven - made peace - when you lift up all those people all those concernes through Christ, - doing so to the one who - antilutruious - ransom in our stead!
Do you see the connection between this palce being a place where we really pray for and about people all kinds of peole andthis whole world, and your needs family neighbours, and salvation? Our prayers are part of the economy of God’s saving family. The administration of grace, you and I praying in the Siriti and in one accord, publically in worship: Look at the grounds in
As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith.
This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
That is not God’s eternal decree Sovereign will taht every indivudal will be saved, clearly those stuck in sins, refusing Christ, without faith or repentance ont elect. And clearly those god made alive - So how can we say God desires all people to be saved. in same way he so loved this world, whole world, not just one race ethniciity, Jews and Gentile, not jsut worship for men in temple, women in the outer court, draw us all a sone into the holiei of holies in Christ. Not just freedmen or citizens, but slaves and outcast on equal footing. The church isn’t in charge of God’s eternal decreee, but it is entrusted and tasked with this administration of the gospel - to Go to all - because God is saving from every type of people - and it si the truth as it goes out will set them free, pray for all and for conidition in our land, and in our church - not just for comfy life - but slavationreally come to opepoel and home and families, and kingdom really grow. Outgoing to Gentiles yet without God, but now in seaons of gospeling, evangelizing,hearld - not just Paul’s ideas about God, not creative writer with his own twist, - but proclaimers sent by king to get go to every village meet with people and the leaders - declare God’s way in Christ!
Pray for peace of the city - so that we can quietly faithfully sincerely live out godly lives and godly witness.
Pray for peace of the city - jeremiah
E. The How-to of Public Prayer in God’s New Temple: Sincerity
Not talking about private prayer, nor about well we be talking about our personal or private teaching and learning next week. But in the assembled people of God Men and Women, no longer talking about man in genral humanity, different word, but assembly of God’s poeople and all creation - men and women two different and beautifully complemnatary sexes, with two different and complementary characteristic and roles. That’s not the most basic thing about us, our differences, we are equally image beareres of God charged together to have dominion , but needing each other, not independnet of each other toboth image God and exercise the dominion.
And he is charging the men to lead in this kind of coroporate prayer - not so much the outward standing, and outstreched arms - but what that reperesents: humble dependence, and open hands a real asking. Like frescoes painted in the catacombs. An Paul says, with anger or quarreling, not seeking our own narrow will, but truly lifting up prayers that say Thy Will be Done, i’ve serached it out, I blievei t and I bolfdly ask it, wait on it!
Venn diagram - our wants and needs and God’s will wehere overlap wonderful thing Reaching in depenbedance on God and his will forthat in prayer. See next week why particularly men ought to take the lead in this kind of prayer and in the teaching that happens in the service. But for today notice that this kindo f prayer stands as oppsoition to anger and quarreling - James says man’s anger can’t accomplish God’s righteousness.. But prayer for God’s will will accopmlish that.
But then Paul says women, ought to adorn themselves with what - respectable apparel, not drawing attention to themselves, certainly not saying drab, terribly out of ashion, but not caught up in consumerism, rather as Peter elsewhere says, life adorned with the beauty of our inner spirit, character, Paul elsewhere says, all to adorn our lives with good works. DO you understand what Paul is getting at in both directions to men and women. There is to be a sincerity in our life that qualifies what we are really praying for. If not seeking godliness in our own lives, hard to pray for it in others. It was a sad state of affairs the way these false teachers had led certain women astray:
For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions,
Paul with the rest of Scripture is saying, when we live week-to-week, in selfishness, even if we are saved, it puts a barrier between God and us. It can be areason our prayers not answered, and is a major road block in the progress of the gospel and GOd’s kingdom.
If says the
If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.
Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of his praise be heard,
Do you see what Paul is instructing the church first of all to get back on track. Imagine he says if we had men - stretching toward God for his will in our comjunity more than jabbering and arguing with each other about their will, political preference, more prayer than even talking about theology! Imagine wi they led us in earnest prayer for people and situations around ud. Imgine if we who are led in this kind of corporate prayer, came with a week of purising God’s will, doing those good works that we are praying and saying we want accomplished. Imagine if not governed by selfish materialism, our lives wre adorned with godliness.
Paul is saying, the economy the administration of grace in this world works with that kind of stewarding , with that kind of praying as a community of believers.
Now I don’t doubt that you lift up prayers individually for some big things about people’s slavation in your life, about stuff in our nation, but Paul is saying we have got to be led inthat togeher - and I recovery of powerful gospel minsitry in our lives and the lives of unbelivers will happen when we do. We can’t preict or control the results, but we are to be faithful in tools, the means that God promises to use!