Light in the Darkness: Abridged

Rapport:

My family

RCC story- planting a church centered on Christ and his word, not programs.

Temptation in ministry: give into the culture’s demands in order to build a relevant church fit for the culture and not a biblical church that impacts The culture. I am thankful for Providence Reformed because I know Pastor Joey builds his ministry in such a way. My challenge from us this morning is not to bend to cultures demand to revise or refuse the word or God in order to appease others. Instead, my challenge to us all is to stand fast and be immovable , ways abounding in the work of the Lord and his word!

SOLA SCRIPTURE;Scripture alone is needed for spiritual life and practice. No need for tradition and teachings of failliablie to added as authority to the scripture. Scripture alone is our authority!

I want to encourage you this morning in thIs shared vision for ministry that we both possess as we stand upright against the current of the great river of idolatry and sin. We will find this encourag,ent from the passage read in 2 Tim from the apostle Paul to his fellow laborer in the harvest, Timothy.

Timothy was from Lystra, saved under Paul in the first missionary journey in Acts as Paul ministered the gospel in Lystra. The church can learn much about ministry and personal discipleship from the relationship with the two men of God. Timothy, a young convert of the faith, accompanied Paul on his missionary journeys. Along the journey of his faith, Timothy walked and learned from Paul about his knowledge and his application of the word of God in ministry.

After traveling with Paul in ministry, learning from this great teacher of the faith, Paul sends Timothy to numerous churches to encourage them in the Scriptures. We know through the NT letters how Paul sent Timothy to Thessalonica, Corinth, Phillipi and Ephesus. It would be the church at Ephesus that is the context of Paul’s letters to Timothy.

In the context of 2 Timothy, Paul is writing to Timothy during his second Roman imprisonment. His first imprisonment is recorded in the book of Acts, but his second is believed to be under the reign of Nero, a fierce opponent of Christianity and one who brought severe persecution to the early church.

Paul writes to Timothy as Paul nears the end of his journey of faith, with some understanding that He will not leave that imprisoned state Alive. His final words to his dear friend is gloriously encouraging for the church today because in the end, Paul emphasizes to Timothy how necessary a Biblically centered life and ministry is in this world of affliction and suffering.

In the final two chapter of 2 Timothy, Paul gives his young friend one of the greatest statements about the word of God and its power to bring about change in the church and in the world. he encourages his to not to get caught up in the winds of controversies but to set his feet firmly upon the rock of Christ and the revelation of Him in the word of God so that he would have solid footing as He ministers the word of God in a dark world full of sin and corruption.

As I began to dream of planting a church, I read 9 Marks of a healthy church by Mark Dever and found this quote helpful,

Mark Dever (9 Marks of a healthy church)

“if you get the priority of the Word established, then you have in place the single most important aspect of the church’s life, and growing health is virtually assured, because God has decided to act by His Spirit through His Word.”

2 Timothy 3:16–17 (ESV)

16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

The whole of Scripture is the full revelation of God that is beneficial for the world.

The GK language is clear here that Paul wants Timothy to trust that all of God’s word that had been given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit is useful and beneficial for his life and ministry. it is beneficial because all of Scripture reveals Christ as the light that shines in the darkness. John 1 reminds us that Jesus Christ is the living word of God, the divine logos that is the eternal God revealed to man through the incarnate Son. This man, the Christ Jesus, is the God in the flesh that has been revealed through the whole of Scripture as the source of life for a world corrupted with sin. Jesus told the disciples in Luke 24 that all of the writings of the law and prophets point to him and are about his coming into the world as the promised Messiah to save sinners. The Holy Spirit then inspired all writers of the Old and New testaments to testify of Jesus Christ and to give wisdom and truth to the world about Him.

‘Having the inspired word of God then means that God has spoken to us revealing himself and will so that we might find him, know him, and live for him in this world for his glory!

Calvin writes,

Commentaries on the Epistles to Timothy, Titus, and Philemon Chapter 3

This is a principle which distinguishes our religion from all others, that we know that God hath spoken to us, and are fully convinced that the prophets did not speak at their own p 249 suggestion, but that, being organs of the Holy Spirit, they only uttered what they had been commissioned from heaven to declare. Whoever then wishes to profit in the Scriptures, let him, first of all, lay down this as a settled point, that the Law and the Prophets are not a doctrine delivered according to the will and pleasure of men, but dictated by the Holy Spirit.

With false teachers in Ephesus and throughout the church, Timothy a young pastor must be confident in God’s word and the truth it contains. He must hold fast to its totality and He must preach it in its totality. Throughout history, we have seen a failures in the church when people move away from trusting in the totality, authority, and suffciency of God’s holy word and instead move towards trusting in man’s opinions and man’s wisdom. Our trust must be in the revelaed will of God as the source by which we derive what we need for spiritual life and practice.

I appreciate the words of the Westminster Confession of Faith concerning the inspiration of Scripture in Ch 1, art 5:

We may be moved and induced by the testimony of the Church to an high and reverent esteem of the holy Scripture; and the heavenliness of the matter, the efficacy of the doctrine, the majesty of the style, the consent of all the parts, the scope of the whole (which is to give all glory to God), the full discovery it makes of the only way of man’s salvation, the many other incomparable excellencies, and the entire perfection thereof, are arguments whereby it doth abundantly evidence itself to be the Word of God; yet, notwithstanding, our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority thereof, is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit, bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts.

Paul does not just state that the word of God is beneficial, but he instructs this young pastor exactly how he must wield the sword of truth in his life and ministry. Notice how Ch 3:16-17 comes before chapter 4:1 where Timothy is commanded to Preach the word. It is as if our verses of study this morning are to instruct the heart of Timothy to trust the word of God and to love the word of God before He is instructed to teach the word of God. It first must do its work in Timothy’s heart and life before He can preach it effectively to others under his leadership.

Paul states that God’s word is beneficial for our doctrine or teaching.

The word of God has been given to instruct us and teach us about God and his work in the world. The writer of Hebrews tells us that the word of God is living and active because it is the source of our understanding of life that is found in Jesus. Paul told the Romans

Romans 15:4 (ESV)

4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.

The doctrine contained within the pages of Scripture form the foundation for our hope and encouragement in this world. They teach us about the great sovereign plan of God to save sinners and reconcile the world to himself. It instructs us about the deep depravity of sin that has consumed us in our nature and therefore we are separated from God. It brings us hope to see Jesus as the way of escape from the wrath of God. It informs of faith in Jesus as our savior and Lord and repentance from sin as the only genuine response of the believer. It gives us wisdom to live daily as God’s people in this world. It lays out the return of Christ and the hope of heaven.

At RCC where I pastor, we have been studying through the book of Ezra and we are about to move into Nehemiah. I ask Pastor Joey to include chapters 7-10 of Ezra in your notes because I want to use the overview of these chapters as an illustration of the power of God’s word that goes forth in this world.

Review of Ezra

The first wave of Jewish exiles return under Zerrubabbel 539 BC

Temple foundation is laid 537 BC

Temple work resumes after stoppage 520 BC

Temple work completed 516 BC

Second wave of exiles return under Ezra 458 BC

Ezra’s preaching ministry of the word

ezra 7:8-10 “8 And Ezra came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. 9 For on the first day of the first month he began to go up from Babylonia, and on the first day of the fifth month he came to Jerusalem, for the good hand of his God was on him. 10 For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the Lord, and to do it and to teach his statutes and rules in Israel.”

Ezra was a scribe and priest and he was sent by a pagan King of Persia to reestablish Jerusalem after the Babylonian Captivity. After 70 years of being separated from their homeland, away from the regular practice of worshipping YHWH at the temple, God sovereignty stirs the heart of this pagan to comply with His good and perfect will. After the first wave of exiles arrive, God sends a preacher to them to instruct them according to the word.

Ezra 7:25 “25 “And you, Ezra, according to the wisdom of your God that is in your hand, appoint magistrates and judges who may judge all the people in the province Beyond the River, all such as know the laws of your God. And those who do not know them, you shall teach.”

Ezra 8 documents the Jews as they travel back from captivity to Jerusalem.

God saw fit that as the Jews returned to the land, they be reminded once again of what the Law of God said and how they should live in covenant with God under the instruction of his word. This reminds the church how the word of God and its instruction is the sustenance that we need for life and godliness. It instructs us with wisdom about our salvation in Christ, our daily walk with Christ, our marriages and parenting for Christ, our work place and community influence that reflects Christ, and the world that needs Christ.

But what we will see from Paul and from Ezra, that when the word of God goes forth, God’s power is manifested so that change happens.

God’s word goes forth and always brings about transformation!

The change that the word brings as it instructs our souls and minds, according to Paul, is that “reproof and correction.” The word reproof means to expose, to enlighten, to shine light in the darkness. The word brings conviction of the heart because it has brought the instruction of God’s word in conflict with the sin in our hearts and lives.

Hebrews 4:12 (ESV)

12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

As a youth pastor for 10 years, I took multiple groups of students to go adventure caving. This is where we would follow a guide through small cracks and crevices in a cave system, usually crawling at times on our bellies to make it through. In these tours of the less traveled areas of the cave, we would usually get to a place where the guide would have us stop, turn off all our lights and wait. After a few minutes, once our eyes adjusted from the lights being removed, we would experience total darkness. it was surreal because you literally could not see your hand in front of your face.

After about 5 minutes of that, you invited the light to return. You wanted to see again because you knew how much you needed it to leave this cave system. The world does not understand this. The world love the darkness it lives in and it does not understand the truth that God is light and that we need that light in our lives. It is only after the transforming power of the word of God to go forth does the light shine forth into our dark hearts and we are reproved by it.

Once it is exposed, once our sin is declared before our eyes and hearts, then comes the “correction” where what was once crooked, is made straight again. The GK word for correction comes from the root word, ORTHOS, like orthopedic and orthodontist. The word makes straight that which is exposes as crooked.

For the Jews, the preaching of Ezra led to a clear demarcation of their sinfulness. Preaching the law exposed that the Jews had once again violated the law of God and married foreign women. In Deut 7, Moses told the people that God commanded them to inherit the land that he would give them and to avoid marrying foreign wives for it would lead to idolatry. As Ezra preached, the sin was exposed.

Ezra 9:1–3 (ESV)

1 After these things had been done, the officials approached me and said, “The people of Israel and the priests and the Levites have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands with their abominations, from the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Jebusites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Amorites. 2 For they have taken some of their daughters to be wives for themselves and for their sons, so that the holy race has mixed itself with the peoples of the lands. And in this faithlessness the hand of the officials and chief men has been foremost.” 3 As soon as I heard this, I tore my garment and my cloak and pulled hair from my head and beard and sat appalled.

First, the news of this sin was revealed to Ezra which he mourned over in chapter 9, but eventually in chapter 10 the people saw that sin as well and wanted to turn from sin and be right in God’s sight again. Look in Ezra 10

Ezra 10:10-12

Ezra 10:10–12 (ESV)

10 And Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have broken faith and married foreign women, and so increased the guilt of Israel. 11 Now then make confession to the Lord, the God of your fathers and do his will. Separate yourselves from the peoples of the land and from the foreign wives.” 12 Then all the assembly answered with a loud voice, “It is so; we must do as you have said.

Notice the power in which Ezra proclaims the truth of God’s word with apology and the power of it as it falls to convict hearts and correct their crooked way.

By God’s grace, the word had its effect on the people and they repented of their sin against God. They put their faith in God once again through their covenant with him and they obeyed the word of God to separate themselves from their wickedness. When God’s word goes forth, it penetrates the heart that God has prepared beforehand and it has its effect according to his will.

When we are rebuked by the word and our sin is exposed by its sharp penetrating blade, the wound is open to also be soothed and healed by the same word that stung us. That word which offends also provides correction that is needed.

That transformation process continues with the word as it teaches, convicts, corrects and now it disciples us in righteousness. The last word used in this four word portrait about Scripture is training. Again the GK language is beautiful here because the root word used is like the training of children. In innocence and like a blank slate, children learn from those influencers around. My 7 yr old daughter and 10 yr old son are sponges....soaking up what we teach them about God and life. Similarly, for Timothy, he is reminded of the process of training that is needed for those whom He shepherds, like sheep, or children, He needs and they need continual care and guidance by the word of God. We never cease as students of the word of God, always being instructed, always growing more and more in our understanding of God’s truth.

Spurgeon writes,

He who has been taught in Scripture, steeped in Scripture, saturated with Scripture, is conscious of its permeating influence and it gives him permanence of conviction. Like the crimson dye in cloth, the tint of Scripture is not to be got out of the soul when once fixed there. It is dyed ingrain; it enters into the very nature of the man. Bible truth influences his thoughts, words, and deeds: it is all pervading. He begins to eat, and drink, and sleep Holy Scripture. The man’s heart is fixed on God, fixed in the truth, fixed in holy living. He will stand fast, however evil the days. Though all the rest should apostatize, this man cannot. The divine Word through faith has bound him to the altar of the Lord, and in the truth he must and will both live and die, come what weathers there may.

Finally, a message of hope for Timothy and for us this morning. Verse 17 instructs us that the word’s transforming work will see its completion in each of the lives of believers in Jesus as He shapes and molds our lives for His glory. In that transformation, he is completing his work in us by his spirit and his word so that we might be given the adequate tools necessary to carry out the good work of God in this world.

This message encouraged Timothy in his personal walk with Christ as he, being a young minister of the gospel, possibly had lack of confidence because of his limited experience in ministry. He faced great threats in the churches he ministered in and he needed to be assured that God’s powerful and inspired word would have its effect in him to equip him for the task as well as work in those environments for God’s glory.

Philippians 1:6 (ESV)

6 And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Application: So we as followers of Jesus know that whatever the circumstances of our lives, whether suffering in evil or sin, or revealing in the blessings of life, God’s word is there to instruct, convict and equip us for the next moment, the next day until our years are complete on this earth and we enter into glory.

This is encouraging to my family as we pray fervently for the word of God to have its effect in our loved ones who are lost. It gives us hope that his word will guide and bring change in the hearts of our children as we disciple them in their walk with Christ.

Psalm 119:33–40 (ESV)

33 Teach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes; and I will keep it to the end. 34 Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart. 35 Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it. 36 Incline my heart to your testimonies, and not to selfish gain! 37 Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in your ways. 38 Confirm to your servant your promise, that you may be feared. 39 Turn away the reproach that I dread, for your rules are good. 40 Behold, I long for your precepts; in your righteousness give me life!