Discussion at minister’s fraternal –
if Jesus came to earth today, which denomination would He join?
Roman Catholics – maintained continuity with Apostles
Anglicans – combined that continuity with Reformation “justification by faith”
URC – combined Reformed theology with Congregational government
Pentecostals – Responded to leading of Holy Spirit in every age
New churches – retained balance of evangelical truth and charismatic openness.
Baptist – “I don’t understand the question”
You mean you don’t understand what is the distinctive Baptist contribution to the churches?
“No – its this business of “joining a denomination” – I don’t understand why Jesus would want to stop being a Baptist in the first place!

Nicene Creed: I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

One church – and so it was for the first 1000 years – until Eastern Orthodox churches split from Rome. Two holy catholic and apostlic churches. And so it was for another 500 years until the Reformation and the Protestants split off from the Roman Catholics. And then 100 years ago the Pentecostals split off from the protestants. And 40 years ago the charismatics started splitting off from everybody. So now we have thousands and thousands of different churches – all claiming to be the one true holy catholic and apostolic church. All convinced they are right and everybody else is wrong. Or at least, they are more right and less wrong than everybody else. So many groups of Christians ignoring Paul’s commands to the Corinthians and falling into the sin of looking down on others and excluding others.
20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don’t need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honourable we treat with special honour.

Churches have split and stayed split over all kinds of issues and for all kinds of reasons, some good, some bad, some ugly. . The most obvious differences between denominations today are these.

Differences in forms of worship
Liturgy or sponteneity
Strengths of each,
Weaknesses of each
ALL ACCEPTABLE
Worship leaders workshop – worship is heart attitude, not externals

Differences in attitudes to leadership and “priesthood”
Priests set apart, or priesthood of all believers
Strengths of each
Weaknesses
ALL ACCEPTABLE

Differences in organisation – hierarchy or congregational independence
Bishops and oversight or government by church meeting
Strengths of each
Weaknesses of each
ALL ACCEPTABLE to God

Ruth said, “Don’t take the bishop out of your brother’s eye until you have first taken the church meeting out of your own eye!”

Underlying differences in approach to authority
Roman Catholics = Scripture interpreted by tradition
Protestants = Scripture alone
Pentecostals and charismatics = Scripture interpreted by experience

Some people would suggest that Christians disagree and fall out and part ways for good doctrinal reasons. In fact, church history tells us that churches have split because of empire building. The key issue has not usually been truth, or the glory of God, or effective mission. Most often the issue has been “who’s in charge.”
For 1500 yrs church was in control of elite – priesthood and theologians, who used to be one and the same individuals.
Then Bibles for everybody came along, ordinary believers could study scripture for themselves. Reaction against priestly dominance, and hierarchy of church as an institution – protestant reformation and self-governing congregations.
Pentecostals and Charismatics and New Churches – power passed not the traditional pastors and elders and leaders but to the individuals blessed with particular spiritual experiences, prophecy, speaking in tongues etc.
The key question has often been “who’s in charge?” Us or them? If we don’t like who’s in charge we’ll go off and form a new church for us where we can be in charge!

Once Christians stop caring about who’s in charge – once we stop empire building – then we can see the wood for the trees when it comes to issues like styles of worship, priesthood, church government, even charismatic vs non-charismatic issues. And we see that in God’s eyes there IS only one church.

And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.

The one holy catholic and apostolic church is that community in every place in every age who are united by the fact that they all agree and proclaim the same creed, the Nicene Creed, or even the earliest and simplest Creed – Jesus is Lord.
12 The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptised by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
The Body of Christ is that community united by the fact that they are believers, they are saved, they are born again, they are God’s children, His forever family, the church
Holy = set apart, belonging to God, different from the world around
Catholic = all inclusive, all embracing – not Roman Catholic
Apostolic = built on the foundations of the apostles – not “apostolic succession”

We are not allowed to look down on brothers and sisters for whom Christ died. There is only one Church. And we are theologically and morally obliged to love and worship with and work with all true believers. Styles of worship, role of priests, church government, attitudes to charismatic experience. These things don’t matter. If they are saved and we are saved – then we are ALL ONE IN CHRIST JESUS.

But there is the most important point. One church – but which church? The answer is, the church which is the fellowship of believers, the community of the saints. The believers’ church. Is there any other church, you might ask?

Well yes. There are people who say that we can never know who is truly saved this side of heaven, so the church will always be mixed – believers and unbelievers all jumbled up. They point to the parable of the sower and the different kinds of seeds, or the parable of the weeds growing amongst the wheat in the field. The church will always contain a mixture of believers and unbelievers and we should always be charitable, and never judge others, so people say.

So on the one hand this “mixed view” of the church can lead to some denominations with people in positions of responsibility who actually don’t believe even in the Nicene creed – who don’t believe Jesus is God or who don’t believe Jesus was raised from the dead. People who don’t believe Jesus died on the cross to save us because they don’t believe we need to be saved. Some believe everybody will get to heaven, and some would say heaven doesn’t exist anyway. A mixed church.

Then on the other hand there are those in some of the very new churches, emerging churches, fresh expressions of church, who similarly say that we mustn’t put barriers to people who are on the way to faith by demanding that they express that faith in ways such as baptism or church membership. For some “emerging churches” the church is anybody who wants to come along – whether they believe anything or not. A mixed church.

And here I want to say that the one thing we must insist on is the Bible definition that the church is the community of believers. There is only one church – we are all one in Christ Jesus – but those who make up that church are those who are truly saved.

My thinking on these things was very much helped by visiting Canada on Sabbatical back in 2008. For four days I took part in a conference at the Canadian Mennonite University in Winnipeg on “Congregationalism, Denominationalism and the Believers’ Church”. This brought together mostly academics but also pastors from the Baptist, Mennonite and other Brethren traditions from Canada and the Northern USA. The whole time there reminded me most helpfully that my theological understanding is not merely broadly “evangelical” but specifically Baptist. And there are at least three beliefs at the core of Baptist identity which I want to defend and affirm: the central authority of Scripture, what it means to be a Christian, and what it means to be the true church, “the Believers’ Church”.

The supreme authority for faith and practice in the Christian life is the Bible, God’s inspired Word as received by the Churches and correctly interpreted. Christians are “the people of the Book”. Whatever the relativising Post-Modern world around may say, we Baptists are committed to the authority, reliability and sufficiency of Scripture. And on two further matters, Scripture is very clear.

Firstly, every person either is a Christian or they are not. A Christian is somebody who has been born again to a living hope, they have passed from death to life and from darkness into light. They are in Christ and there has been a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come. Either a person is a Christian or they are not. Just as either they are in England or they are not in England, but they cannot be in some strange place in between. They are either alive or dead. They cannot be “on the way to being alive.” Either they are saved or they are not saved. Either Christ is in them and their destiny is to spend eternity with Christ in glory, or it is not.

Secondly, the Bible makes clear that the true church is the gathered community of all true believers, those who are “called out” of the world to be the Body of Christ which is made up of all who are truly saved. The church is the Living Temple, the Family of God and the Household of faith. The true church is the fellowship of true Christians. It is “the Believers’ Church.”

In this life, we may not be able to tell who actually is saved and who is not, who is a true believer and who is not. I agree that the Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds tells us that we will not know for certain who is saved until the final judgment. The Parable of the Sower tells us that some who initially seem to be strong Christians actually will prove not to be so. Nevertheless, the true Church is defined and delimited by the company of true believers.

So are religious organisations which allow unbelievers to occupy positions of power and influence really truly churches? Are Emerging Churches actually churches? Most instances of Emerging Church deliberately consist of a mixture of those who are already saved and those who are not. Indeed the blurring of boundaries, so that folk “belong before they believe” is a major feature and strength of Emerging Churches. But according to the Biblical definition embraced by “Believers’ Church” traditions like the Baptists, such mixed groups are not “churches”. They are most valuable “outreach communities” or “missionary congregations” but they are not “churches”.

So we believe in one church – but which church? The most important issue is not forms of worship, or the existence or absence of a set-aside priesthood. The most important issue is not forms of government, hierarchy or church meeting. The most important thing is to recognize that the true church is not a human organization but the community of the saved, the fellowship of believers. I believe in the one church – the believers’ church.

For more than 1500 years Christians have been using the Nicene Creed in their worship. Towards the end, it says this. I believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. That was alright in the Fifth Century because at that time there was only one church, the catholic church (catholic meaning all-embracing) and that was centred on Rome. And there was only one pattern of baptism practised anywhere – the baptism of infants by sprinkling.

But nowadays there are literally thousands of branches of the one church. And on top of that we Baptists have a problem because the pattern of baptism we practise is not the baptism of infants but the baptism of believers. So here’s the question: “One church, one baptism: but which church, which baptism?” Let’s start for this week by focussing on just one issue – what do we believe about baptism? For Baptist Christians like us, believer’s baptism can be summed up like this.

“Baptism is an outward sign of an inward reality”

Baptism is like a wedding ring; they both symbolize things that have happened. A wedding ring symbolizes a marriage which has taken place. Baptism symbolizes salvation which has been received. Wearing a wedding ring does not make you married any more than being baptized makes you saved. But even nowadays if a woman is not wearing a wedding ring you can almost always assume that they aren’t married. So it was in New Testament times. If a person had not been baptized, you could reliably assume that he or she was not a believer.

Baptism is an outward sign of an inward reality =
SIGN OF BECOMING A CHRISTIAN

Matthew 28:19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
The NT way of showing that you want to become a disciple of Jesus is to be baptised.

Acts 8:36 As they travelled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be baptised?”…. 38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptised him.

PAUL TO CROWD IN JERUSALEM: ACTS 22:12 “A man named Ananias came to see me. He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there. 13 He stood beside me and said, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very moment I was able to see him .
14 “Then he said: ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. 15 You will be his witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. 16 And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptised and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’

Baptism is a sign of salvation – in fact it represents the two sides of salvation – God’s side, and man’s side.
MAN’S SIDE OF SALVATION
REPENTANCE

Mark 1:4 And so John came, baptising in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptised by him in the Jordan River.
FAITH
Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptised, both men and women.

Acts 16:15 When she and the members of her household were baptised, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.”

Acts 16:31 Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved,” ….. 33 At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptised.

Acts 18:8 Crispus, the synagogue ruler, and his entire household believed in the Lord; and many of the Corinthians who heard him believed and were baptised.

GOD’S SIDE OF SALVATION
FORGIVENESS AND CLEANSING

Acts 2:38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 22:16 (Risen Christ’s words to Saul on the Damascus Road) 16 And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptised and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’
UNITED WITH CHRIST

Baptised INTO Christ – “In Christ” sharing all the benefits of Christ’s death and resurrection life, God’s gift of eternal life to all who believe.

Romans 6:3 Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.

Galatians 3:27 for all of you who were baptised into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Colossians 2:12 having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead.

THE GIFT OF THE SPIRIT
It is the Holy Spirit, the Helper, God living inside us, who unites us to Christ and brings us all the blessings of salvation.

Matthew 3:11 “I baptise you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

Matthew 3:16
16 As soon as Jesus was baptised, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him.

Acts 2:38
38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 10:47
47 “Can anyone keep these people from being baptised with water? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” 48 So he ordered that they be baptised in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.

Man’s side of salvation – repentance, faith
and God’s side of salvation – forgiveness and cleansing, union with Christ and the free gift of eternal life, and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

But then there is a third side to salvation (one we often neglect) and a third side to baptism:-

SIGN OF JOINING THE CHURCH

Acts 2:41 Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

1 Corinthians 12:13 For we were all baptised by one Spirit into one body- whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free- and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

So baptism is an outward sign of an inward reality, God’s gifts of forgiveness and new life and the Holy Spirit, received by repentance and faith, which at the same time bring a person into God’s forever family, the church.

SO IN THE NICENE CREED WE SAY: I believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins
One church. But which church? And one baptism? But which baptism? When we recall that none of the churches who agreed that Nicene creed in 5th century were “Baptist” churches – all of those churches practised infant baptism and none practised believer’s baptism! None at all.
What does the Bible say about INFANT BAPTISM?

Nothing! Some denominations – RC, Anglican, Methodist, URC, practise infant baptism. They say that infant baptism is a declaration of God’s promises – so it is a symbol of God’s side of salvation. Then years later they have a service of confirmation, or reception into membership, where the person declares their repentance and confession. So when a person who has been baptised as an infant becomes a Christian in later life, these denominations will NOT baptise them again as a believer. They believe that their combination of “infant baptism plus confirmation” is equivalent to NT baptism of believers. Is that valid? I am not persuaded that it is. I don’t think it is Biblical to separate God’s side of salvation and man’s side of salvation in that kind of way.

Baptism in NT is a sign of an inward change which has already taken place. It does declare God’s promises of salvation. But baptism in NT, and in church history for the first hundred years at least, is only ever given to those who show in their lives the conditions for man’s side of salvation – sincere repentance and saving faith. Baptism is for believers, not babies. Indeed I heard of a Church of England Vicar who would ask his congregation, “can you remember your baptism?” If a person was too young to remember their baptism they could not have shown sincere repentance and saving faith – and so he offer’s his Anglican congregation believer’s baptism.

Does a person have to be baptised before they can be saved. Some people think so, especially because of the words of Jesus in Mark 16:16.

Mark 16:15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptised will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.

In fact, read it carefully and this passage does not say you HAVE to be baptised in order to be saved. But it does imply that baptism is the normal sign that a personal has been saved. Unless there is a very good reason why not, the NT expects that a Christian WILL be baptised.

Baptism is a SIGN of salvation. Baptism does not BRING salvation. We do not believer that a person is saved at the moment they are baptised. We do not believe in “baptismal regeneration”. A person is saved at the moment that they first truly believe. But the New Testament pattern is that somebody will demonstrate that saving faith by being baptised at the earliest opportunity.

Some time during the first century that practice was modified, when the church discovered that too many baptised people were turning away from Christ. So they introduced baptism preparation classes, to make sure that those who were baptised really did understand what baptism was all about and so to try to make sure that all who were baptised were truly born-again believers. But baptism was always only for people who believed in Jesus for themselves! And the New Testament pattern is always SUBSEQUENCE. People made a confession of Christian faith and THEN were baptised at a later stage. An outward sign of an inward reality – a salvation which had ALREADY been received, a new life which had ALREADY begun.

So what do we say to somebody who has been baptised as an infant in another tradition, then confirmed or received into membership in another tradition? I don’t think the Bible lets us recognise as baptism an act where the person being baptised is not capable of witnessing to a personal faith in Jesus Christ. On the other hand, do we then say to such a person that they MUST be baptised as a believer? I don’t think we should say that either. Although believer’s baptism was the norm in the New Testament, I don’t believe that baptism is necessary for salvation. Normal – but not essential. So what do we say if a believer with a background in another denomination asks, “Why SHOULD I be baptised?

Baptism, like communion, is an ordinance – a ritual ordained by Christ Himself for our benefit. They are both “means of grace” – ways that God promises to bless us. They are also expressions of obedience “do this in remembrance of me”, “repent and be baptised”. Can a person be Christian without ever taking communion? Yes, but they miss out if they do! Can a person be a Christian without being baptised as a believer? Yes, of course they can, and the vast majority of Christians throughout church history have done so because they belonged to churches which didn’t practise believer’s baptism. So I will never tell a brother or sister in Christ, you MUST be baptised. But I will share with them what the Bible teaches about baptism. That baptism is the outward sign of an inward reality. If a person has experienced the inward reality, WHY NOT have the outward sign? Remember Philip and the Ethiopian official. As they travelled along the road, they came to some water and the official said, “Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be baptised?”

Does a person have to be baptised to be saved? No. But it is always very interesting when I discuss this question with Christians and especially clergy from other denominations. Different churches may disagree about what form baptism should take – but all the denominations agree that a person who is a Christian SHOULD show that they have accepted Christ as Saviour by being baptised. Baptism is not an option for Christians – baptism is an obligation.

Or so it has been for around 1950 years of the church’s existence. But something strange has been happening in churches in recent years. It isn’t true around the world, but only in the Western world a new kind of Christian has emerged – a Christian who professes faith in Jesus Christ but who is not baptised either as a believer or as an infant. In the 30 years or so, some churches have become so worried about scaring away new Christians that they have stopped making demands of their new Christians. Some Churches have shown so much understanding and consideration for new Christians that they have not expected them to attend church regularly. And some churches have stopped demanding that a new Christian shows their saving faith by being baptised. Only in the individualistic West – only over the last few decades, new Christians have been given the impression that baptism is optional. But I want to be very clear, in the New Testament and in the history of the church, baptism is not an option! It is God’s way for Christians to show they are saved.

The story is told about the baptism of King Aengus by St. Patrick in the middle of the fifth century. Sometime during the rite, St. Patrick leaned on his sharp-pointed staff and inadvertently stabbed the king’s foot. After the baptism was over, St. Patrick looked down at all the blood, realized what he had done, and begged the king’s forgiveness.
“Why did you suffer this pain in silence?” the Saint wanted to know.
The king replied, “I just thought it was part of the ritual.”

Being baptised is God’s way of showing we are saved. I believe many Christians are missing out on the fullness of the blessings of salvation because they are refusing to be baptised. A public confession of faith may be costly, it may seem embarrassing and difficult especially if your friends and family are not Christians and wouldn’t understand. But if a person doesn’t feel that all the wonderful blessings of salvation are worth a little difficulty, then they really haven’t begun to experience the joy of true salvation!

What happens to us when we die?

Many people have a mistaken idea about what happens to us when we die. They think that when our body dies there is a part of us called the soul which lives on and goes to be with God in heaven. That is the picture many Christians have of life after death. Disembodied souls floating around on clouds with the angels.

But that is not our Christian hope. Our Christian hope is much more wonderful than that! We believe in the resurrection of the dead.

Our hope of heaven is the hope of resurrection- that one day just as Christ was raised from the dead so we will be raised from the dead.

1 Cor 15:47 The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. 48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.

We will bear the likeness of the man from heaven. We will have resurrection bodies just like Christ’s resurrection body!
PHILIPPIANS 3:20 But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
Christ’s resurrection body:-

Think about Christ’s NEW resurrection body – Physical – can touch and be touched – eating and drinking

Not limited by time and space, physical but not limited by physical – entering rooms through locked doors. In the resurrection WE will have bodies like that!

Remember reading from Good Friday
Matthew 27:50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. 51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. 52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

Those saints were brought back to life. Like Lazarus. Like the widow’s son. But they returned in the bodies they had died in. That was not resurrection. That was just resuscitation. Resurrection is different. Resurrection is being born anew to eternal life – with eternal bodies like Christ’s resurrection body.

RESURRECTION
20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.

Just as Christ was raised from the dead, the new life we receive from him is like HIS new life.

35 But someone may ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?” 36 How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. 37 When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. 38 But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body. 39 All flesh is not the same: Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another and fish another. 40 There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendour of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendour of the earthly bodies is another. 41 The sun has one kind of splendour, the moon another and the stars another; and star differs from star in splendour.

So we will each be raised in a new kind of body which will be perfectly suited to the new earth where we will live.

42 So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
The new body will be free of the limitations of this earthly body. No tears. No suffering. No pain. No death. No decay.

If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 45 So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit. 46 The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual. 47 The first man was of the dust of the earth, the second man from heaven. 48 As was the earthly man, so are those who are of the earth; and as is the man from heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. 49 And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.

So God will remake us in the image of Christ in His glorious resurrection body. Like we are now – but free of our limitations and imperfections. Free from the consequences of sin.

50 I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.

How can this be? How will this work? We only have picture language. One story appeals to me because in a former life I was a chemistry teacher. A story is told about the assistant of the great chemist, Faraday. One day he knocked a little silver cup into a jar of acid. It disappeared, being eaten by the acid. The great chemist came in and put some chemical into the jar, and in a moment every particle of silver precipitated to the bottom. He sifted it out as a shapeless mass, sent it to a silversmith, and the cup was restored, shining even brighter than before.

If Faraday could precipitate that silver and recover his cup God can certainly restore our sleeping and scattered dust. The miracles of God are so much greater than the works of men.

My other picture of resurrection comes from science fiction and the world of Star Trek amongst others. It is the picture of teleportation. In that fictional universe, objects and people can be moved from one place to another using what Star Trek calls a transporter beam. The object or person is scanned and the pattern and arrangement of all their atoms is converted into energy. That pattern is sent somewhere else and is then converted back into matter again so that all their memories and even their thoughts are preserved. But the transporter beam is also able to make subtle changes, for example removing infection or contamination during the process. Assuming that fictional process could actually happen? Is the person who materializes the same as the person who de-materialised? That is the kind of question philosophers love to debate. Mostly they would have to say yes. Same body, same memories, same thoughts. Even though there was a finite time when that person no longer existed, but had been converted into a stream of energy. When the person materialized again, they certainly believed they were the same person, just in a different place.

That is a picture, and only a picture, for us of the resurrection of the dead. We die and our bodies may decay. But one day, God will raise us back to life. Same memories, same thoughts, bodies similar in many ways but actually more glorious bodies, transformed to be more like Christ. And to us in our new bodies, we will not be aware of time having passed. It will be as if we have blinked at the end of this life, and when we open our eyes we will be in God’s presence, in glory, on the new earth God has promised to create.

New bodies in a new earth

21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

A new earth – a heavenly city where God walks among his people

Community

22 Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.

A new city with a river of God’s blessing running through it, lit by the presence of God Himself. Picture language – but a glorious picture of God in the midst of his people, where they can see him face to face.

THIS is our Christian hope – the hope of the resurrection of our bodies to eternal life. Our new bodies will be more like our present bodies than most of us imagine. And life in glory will actually be MORE SIMILAR to life in this world now than most of us expect!

Poet John Donne- I shall rise from the dead, from the prostration of death, and never miss the sun, which shall be put out, for I shall see the Son of God, the Sun of Glory, and shine myself as that sun shines. I shall rise from the grave, and never miss this city, which shall be nowhere, for I shall see the city of God, the new Jerusalem. I shall look up and never wonder when it shall be day, for the angel will tell me that time shall be no more, and I shall see and see cheerfully that last day of judgment, which shall have no night, never end, and be united to the Ancient of Days, to God Himself, who had no morning, never began.

In a cemetery in Hanover, Germany, is a grave on which were placed huge slabs of granite and marble cemented together and fastened with heavy steel clasps. It belongs to a woman who did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. Yet strangely, she directed in her will that her grave be made so secure that if there were a resurrection, it could not reach her. On the marker were inscribed these words: “This burial place must never be opened.” In time, a seed, covered over by the stones, began to grow. Slowly it pushed its way through the soil and out from beneath them. As the trunk enlarged, the great slabs were gradually shifted so that the steel clasps were wrenched from their sockets. A tiny seed had become a tree that had pushed aside the stones.

The dynamic life force contained in that little seed is a faint reflection of the tremendous power of God’s creative word that someday will call to life the bodies of all who are in their graves. He will also bring back every person drowned at sea, cremated, or destroyed in some other way. This is no problem to the One who made something out of nothing when He spoke the universe into existence. Unbelief cannot deter the resurrection. But faith in the risen Christ opens the door to blessings that His resurrection guarantees — a glorious new spiritual body and a home in heaven. In new bodies we will be reunited with saved loved ones to live with Jesus throughout all eternity.

This is our Christian hope. Not to drift around for eternity as disembodied souls. But to be raised from the dead in new resurrection bodies. We have lived like Adam with the likeness of the man from earth – one day we will be transformed to share the likeness of the man from heaven. THIS is our Christian hope!

It was this blessed hope of unending bliss that rendered D. L.Moody triumphant in life and all-glorious in death. Before his home-going, he said, “Some day you will read in the papers that D. L. Moody is dead. Don’t you believe it! At that moment I shall be more alive than I am now. I shall have gone up higher, that is all. I was born of the flesh in 1837; I was born of the Spirit in 1856. That which is born of the flesh may die, but that which is born of the Spirit will live

Is the Holy Spirit really a person?
Should we pray “Come, Holy Spirit”?
How should we refer to Holy Spirit? He or it?
Should we worship Holy Spirit? No verses of people worshipping the Holy Spirit.
Should we pray to Holy Spirit? No examples of people praying TO the Holy Spirit.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS CERTAINLY GOD
The Spirit has the attributes of God :
eternal, without beginning nor end (Hebrews 9:14),
omnipotent, nothing is impossible for the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35);
omnipresent, being everywhere at the same time (Psalm 139:7); and
omniscient, understanding all things ( 1 Corinthians 2:10,11).
“The deity of the Holy Spirit ought to be clearly recognized in Scripture. Look at these facts: He is called the Spirit of God; the Spirit of Christ; the mind of Christ; the Spirit of the Lord; the Spirit of adoption; the Spirit of truth; the Spirit of liberty; the Spirit of wisdom; the Spirit of understanding; the Spirit of counsel; the Spirit of might; the Spirit of knowledge; the Spirit of godliness; the Spirit of the fear of God. This only begins to show how unlimited He is.”
Gregory of Nazianzus C4th

SOME REFERENCES TO THE HOLY SPIRIT APPEAR IMPERSONAL

Giving life to Creation, bringing order out of chaos (Genesis 1: 2) giving life to man (Gen 2: 7)
Genesis 1:1 ¶ In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters
The RUACH of God – the wind, or breath of God was there at creation.
Later in the Old Testament we read the Holy SPirit came upon particular people at particular times for particular tasks, eg:
a) Bezalel – for artistic work (Exodus 31: 1-5)
b) Gideon – for leadership (Judges 6:14-16, 34)
c) Samson – for strength (Judges 15: 14-15)
d) Isaiah – for prophecy (Isaiah 61: 1-3)
God promises that one day He will put His Holy Spirit into ALL His chosen people, bringing a deeper quality of life to them. God promised that ordinary men and women would experience even more of the life-giving power of the Spirit.
Ezekiel 36:25 ¶ I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. 28 You will live in the land I gave your forefathers; you will be my people, and I will be your God. PROMISE FULFILLED IN SALVATION
THROUGHOUT the Old Testament it is unclear whether the Spirit of God is a person or not. The Jews believed above all that there is only one God. They also believed God was holy, and transcendent, and so when God’s power broke into human experience they would often refer to that as “the Spirit of God”, the breath of God or the wind of God working in His creation. The Jews were so committed to monotheism that could not have thought in any sense about the Spirit of God as a person separate from God Almighty.
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
John the Baptist links the Holy Spirit with Jesus. (Luke 3:16)
16 John answered them all, “I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.
– in Greek baptidzo = to overwhelm, immerse, plunge, drench
Comparison with being immersed in water – not necessarily a PERSONAL Holy Spirit
Same kind of picture when Jesus predicts the Spirit’s presence (John 7: 37-39) (N.B. “not yet given”)
John 7:37 Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive.

The Lord, the Giver of life, THE SPIRIT GIVES US NEW LIFE IN NEW BIRTH

John 3:5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no-one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, `You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
PICTURE of WIND or BREATH – could be personal, could be impersonal
The New Testament teaches us that it is the Holy Spirit who brings to each believer all the blessings of new life which Christ offers us as we share in His death and and in His resurrection.
Different references to the POWER of the Holy Spirit, could be impersonal, could be personal.
Jesus, the Spirit filled man – Jesus received power through the anointing of the Holy Spirit at His baptism – Luke 3: 22, 4:1, 14, 18
Jesus tells his disciples to wait in the city until they are clothed with power from on high (Luke 24: 49) (Acts 1: 4, 5, 8)
“When the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be filled with power, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all Judaea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
Power = dunamis – dynamo and dynamite!
At Pentecost the disciples were filled with the Spirit and received new languages (Acts 2: 4-12) new boldness (Acts 2:14) new power (Acts 2: 37-41) especially power to be witnesses for Jesus.
The Holy Spirit makes us Sons and Daughters of the Living God, sonship instead of slavery/
Romans 8: 14 Those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.
The Holy Spirit helps us in our relationship with God. He helps us to know Jesus better, helping us to pray (Romans 8: 26) and helping us to understand the Bible (Ephesians 1:17-18, 2 Peter 1:20-21)
And the Holy Spirit is the GUARANTEE of our eternal life and a foretaste, the firstfruits of heaven.
2 Cor 5:5 God … has given us the Spirit as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
Eph 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession- to the praise of his glory.
Rom 8:23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
But none of what I have said so far shows us conclusively that the Holy Spirit is a person.

THE HOLY SPIRIT IS DEFINITELY PERSONAL
The trinitarian baptismal formula found in Scripture ( Matt 28:19): “in the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. It dates to the church’s earliest days and implies an equivalence between Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

2 Cor 3:17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
The Spirit “metamorphoses” us into the image of Christ. He is the HOLY Spirit and His work is to make us holy too. That process is called “purification” or “sanctification” depending on which book you read. Oswald Chambers “Sanctification is not something our Lord does in me; sanctification is himself in me.”
“Now the Lord is the Spirit,” “which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”
These verses show us that, alongside the Father and the Son, the Holy Spirit should be addressed as Lord. And for that reason it is appropriate to worship God the Holy Spirit. The Spirit IS both Lord and God! The third person in the Holy Trinity. The Lord who along with Father and Son is to be worshipped and glorified, not neglected or ignored.
In John’s Gospel the Spirit is the agent of New Birth (3:5ff) Who brings eternal life, a personal relationship with God (17:3, c.f. 7:37ff) and with the Shepherd who knows and speaks to his sheep (10:16; 27). Distinctive to John 14 – 16 is Jesus’ teaching on the Spirit as Paraclete, “another Counsellor / Helper” (14:16), with an implied similarity to Jesus Himself as Logos, revealer of God. The background to the “Paraclete” concept may be forensic, as prosecuting attorney, or the idea of spokesman for the absent Jesus, or the figure of Personified Wisdom. R.E.Brown also identifies the Old Testament “prophetic spirit” (c.f. Acts 2) 10 as a possible origin. All these possibilities surely imply unmediated revelation to men.
The Spirit is the Paraclete, “another Counsellor / another Helper” (14:16), who continues Jesus’s work of revealing God and bearing witness to Jesus.
ANOTHER of the same kind – another one like Jesus, continuing the work of Jesus from INSIDE our lives. The Father is God above us. Jesus Christ is Emmanuel, God with us. The Holy Spirit is God INSIDE us.
John 14:15-18, 23.
It is in the person of the Holy Spirit that the Risen Christ returns to believers. The Spirit as Helper represents the Risen Jesus Christ in the world and He is the personal presence of Jesus in our lives!
Roman Catholic theologian R.E.Brown concludes, “John presents the Paraclete as the Holy Spirit in a special role, namely, as the personal presence of Jesus in the Christian while Jesus is with the Father”. The Paraclete’s activites include teaching (14:26), testifying (15:26) and guiding into truth (16:13). He will “speak what He hears … tell you what is yet to come … take from what is mine and make it known to you” (16:13ff).
John 16:12-15

All these are activities of the Spirit who inspires prophecy bringing believers into direct communication with their heavenly Father – THE COMMUNICATING SPIRIT
Words of knowledge and Words of Wisdom Acts 5:3; Acts 10:17-23
Discerning the spirits Acts 16:16-18, 1 John 4:1-6
Speaking in tongues 1 Cor 14:1-5,13-19, 22-23, 27-28
Dreams (Deut 13:1, Joel 2:28) –
Visions (Dan 7:15, Acts 7:55-56; 16:9-10; 18:9-10))
Pictures (Jer 18:1-6) – should be much more obvious than many!
Voices (1 Sam 3:4, Acts 9:4)
“He who has ears let Him hear what THE SPIRIT is saying to the churches.” Revelation

The Holy Spirit is a full person of the Trinity. Some Christians think that the Holy Spirit is “a symbol of God’s presence or power, but is not a living entity”. Scripture shows that the Holy Spirit is a person. The Holy Spirit is not merely a symbol or an impersonal “force”. The Holy Spirit can and does
communicate (‘speak’) (Acts 13:2),
intercede (step in on behalf of someone) (Romans 8:26),
testify (John 15:26)
guide (John 16:13),
command (Acts 16:6,7),
appoint (Acts 20:28),
lead (Romans 8:14),
reveal to someone how wrong, foolish, or sinful he/she was (John 16:8).
seal God’s promise in believers’ hearts (Ephesians 1:13-14)
shape the life of each person and community to Christ’s (Romans 8:1-17)

In the Bible, the Holy Spirit has intellect, passions, and will, and can be grieved. The Holy Spirit has a personality.
The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. 13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. (1 Corinthians 2:10-13)
CONCLUSIONS
The ecumenical Council of Chalcedon in 451 AD, to what is know as the Nicene Creed which says.
“We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son He is worshipped and glorified.”
—— A. W. Tozer, *The Counselor*
“Spell this out in capital letters: THE HOLY SPIRIT IS A PERSON. He is not enthusiasm. He is not courage. He is not energy. He is not the personification of all good qualities, like Jack Frost is the personification of cold weather. Actually, the Holy Spirit is not the personification of anything…… He has individuality. He is one being and not another. He has will and intelligence. He has hearing. He has knowledge and sympathy and ability to love and see and think. He can hear, speak, desire, grieve and rejoice. He is a Person.”

In the 260 chapters of the New Testament, there are 318 references to the second advent of Christ—an amazing 1 out of every 30 verses. Twenty-three of the 27 New Testament books refer to this great event. For every prophecy in the Bible concerning Christ’s first advent, there are 8 which look forward to His second!

The Rapture

Matt 24:38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.

1 Thess 4:15 According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud
command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we
will be with the Lord for ever.

Literal? Or symbolic?

Dispensational Premillennialists:-

Hal Lindsey – Late Great Planet Earth (1960s)

Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins – 11 books in the Left Behind series including Left Behind, The Remnant, Armageddon, The Rapture – In the Twinkling of an Eye

What did Jesus actually say??

Mark 13: 5-8; 18-20; 24-27 then 32-37

Things the Bible makes absolutely clear and ALL Christians agree about

1. Jesus Christ is going to return, visibly in glory

2. Judgment Day is coming – dead will be raised and we will ALL have to give an account of ourselves before God – and the eternal destiny of every one of us, heaven or hell will rest on God’s Judgment and God’s mercy!

3. We must be ready WHENEVER Christ returns – comes as a thief in the night –at the hour we least expect Him!

Read Revelation 20. How do you understand this chapter? This one Bible passage has caused more controversy and division than almost any other. There are FOUR main interpretations of the “thousand years” – the “millennium”. Remember, many equally godly Christians have held each of these views. They can’t all be right!

Rapture – Christians are “snatched up” out of the world – Matt 24:38-41, 1 Thess 4:15-18

Tribulation – a period of persecution and suffering for Christians (or for everybody else)

Millennium – a period of one thousand years when different things may or may not happen!

Historic Pre-millennialism (Christ comes PRE = before the Millennium)

Dates from the earliest Church. An interim kingdom will be set up on earth at Christ’s return, lasting 1000 years while Satan is bound. Then Satan will be loosed for a final rebellion before ultimate judgement and the new creation. A literal interpretation of Revelation 20.

Post-millennialism (Christ comes POST = after the Millennium)

Christ’s Kingly rule increasingly breaks into this Present Age and ushers in the millennium, a golden age not necessarily literally 1000 years long, before Christ’s returns. More optimistic than Pre-millennialisms, but a less Biblical view of world and tribulation. Liberalism identifies the inbreaking Kingdom with social action, rather than God’s activities.

Dispensational Pre-millennialism (Dispensationalism)

J.N.Darby, the Exclusive Brethren and the Scofield Reference Bible, mid-19th Century and NOT EARLIER. History is divided into periods or Dispensations of Innocency, Conscience, Human Government, Promise, Law, Grace (from Christ) and Kingdom (Millennium). Christians will be removed from the world in a “secret rapture” (Matt 24:40) escaping Tribulation. Christ will rule for 1000 years in Jerusalem before Satan is loosed for a final rebellion before final judgement of the wicked. Requires TWO comings of Christ!

A-millennialism (A = NOT- there won’t be a distinct Millennium )
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Understands Revelation symbolically (from Augustine onwards) with 1000 years representing a period of completeness and perfection of Christ’s victory over Satan. So the “Millennium” = “the Last Days” = whole period from Christ’s First Coming until His Return.
This fits best with the rest of the N.T. because there is no need for gaps of a millennium between This Age and The Age to Come, or between Christ’s Return and Final Judgement.
Satan was bound from the beginning of Christ’s ministry (Mark 3:27) and remains so. On Rev 20:4-6; those who reign with Christ do so already in heaven, but the rest of the dead are unbelievers who are not raised for judgement until Christ’s Return.

Polishing crystal balls

Many zealous Christians find the topic of Christ’s Return very exciting (as we all should!) but for the wrong reasons. Wishing to stress the vital importance of the Second Coming, and convinced that it is imminent (which it surely is!) some are easily side-tracked. They read the Bible to find “the signs of the times”, prophecies fulfilled in national and international events. Some are in danger of treating the Bible as little more than a crystal ball which can help us predict the future.

Prophecy, apocalyptic and eschatological language

Most misunderstandings about the Second Coming of Christ arise from a wrong approach to interpreting the Bible. Many different kinds of literature go together to make up the Scriptures and the different genres must each be read and understood in their own terms. Old Testament Law or New Testament Doctrine in Paul’s letters are very different from the poetry of the Psalms or from Jesus’ parables or from the imagery we find in Revelation. We cannot interpret every verse of the Bible in the same way. It is as unhelpful to read the metaphors of poetry literally as it is to read direct statements of theology as symbolic and allegorical. And we must never take verses out of context!
We should always let the simple straightforward portions of Scripture explain the difficult verses. The greatest disagreements arise when we try to understand apocalyptic language such as Revelation and Daniel. We must walk the tightrope between excessive literalism and letting the imagination run away as we interpret the symbolism. Our guiding principle must be the author’s intended meaning – what did the original writer expect his original readers to understand by what he wrote. Any further or “deeper” meanings must be consistent with the author’s meaning. Much of the Book of Revelation was written in a kind of code (a bit like the symbolism in political cartoons today where e.g. America is the Eagle, Russia is the Bear and Britain is the Bulldog). This code was to intended to confuse Roman persecuters but the meanings would have been very clear to the original Christian readers. It can be very confusing to try to interpret code which represents first century events and people as detailed predictions about our world situation today.

SO when is Jesus coming back? JESUS SAID no-one can know in advance! See Mark 13:32-37; Acts1:7. We must all be ready!

“(He) was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.”

We often think of the birth of Jesus Christ. We often think of His earthly ministry, full of wisdom and miracles. Even more often we think of Jesus’ death on the cross for us, and His glorious resurrection from the dead. Sometimes, not often enough, we think about our Lord’s Second Coming. We look forward to His return in glory, the prospect of Judgment and our wonderful Hope of Heaven. Tonight we will look at two neglected questions.
Where is Jesus now? What is Jesus doing right now?

Sometimes we live and act as though the Lord Jesus Christ the Son of God wasn’t actually doing ANYTHING between His first and His second coming! As if this present age is just an interval – half time in the great history of salvation. But the Bible teaches us that the Lord Jesus Christ is very busy right now. In fact He is exercising two wonderful ministries – one to the whole world, and another especially towards believers.

1. Ministry to the Whole World – Jesus is reigning now on high!

The earliest and simplest declaration of Christian faith is this. “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Not – one day Jesus Christ will be Lord. But Jesus is ALREADY Lord!

PHILIPPIANS 3:9
(Christ was) in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
7 but emptied himself,
taking the very nature of a servant,being made in human likeness.
8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

Jesus is already Lord. The humble Son of God who emptied Himself for a season has returned to the Father. He has ascended on the clouds and returned to the glory He had before the creation of the world. He came from God – and He has returned to God!

Sometimes we talk about the reign of Jesus Christ as of it hasn’t begun yet – as it if is something in the long distant future which will begin when Jesus returns in glory. Something yet to happen when one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. But Jesus is ALREADY Lord – He is Already ruling the universe!!!

SUSTAINING

Col 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Hebrews 1:1 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.

The one in whom all things hold together IS holding all things together!
REIGNING

Where is Jesus Christ right now? He is seated in the place of highest honour and greatest glory – At the right hand of the Throne of Almighty God!

Matt 26:63 (Caiaphas) The high priest said to him, “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.”
64 “Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

ACTS 7:55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. 56 “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”

The right hand of God must be a wonderful place to be! When a person is described as being “the right hand man” of another person, it means someone who is important, indispensable, reliable. It is somebody who can be trusted and has the authority to deputize for the top man. In many cultures and governments and businesses, the most trusted adviser sits at the right hand of the leader. The leader makes the decision – the right hand man makes the decision happen. And sometimes when you need to approach the leader for help, the way to do it is to make an appeal to the right hand man. The right hand man may be more accessible than the leader. When you have his ear, it is as good as having the ear of the leader himself.

Where is Jesus right now? Jesus Christ, the Son of God, occupies that glorious position at the right hand of God, with every single one of the angels and authorities and principalities and powers all in submission to him!

So the exalted Lord Jesus Christ is our example and inspiration

Hebrews 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Jesus Christ is the reigning King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And as just one PART of that divine rule He has sent the Holy Spirit into the Church!

ACTS 2:32 God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact. 33 Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear. 34 For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said,
“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand 35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” ’
36 “Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”
We do not necessarily see the Lord Jesus as great as He is, because He chooses not to reign visibly and publically yet. But Jesus is Lord nevertheless!

The writer to the Hebrews goes on: In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to him. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him. 9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honour because he suffered death,

Jesus – seated at the right hand of Almighty God – Jesus, crowned with glory and honour! THAT is where Jesus is right now! Sustaining and reigning – that is His ministry to the whole world at this time. But The Lord Jesus Christ has a second ministry at this time, especially for the benefit of us who are believers.

2. Ministry to believers – Jesus is our great HIGH PRIEST

Hebrews 8:1 We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven,

The Son who humbled Himself for a season has returned to the Father. He has returned to the glory He had before the creation of the world. But in some amazing way, God has been changed by the incarnation. Jesus brought divinity into humanity – now He has taken humanity back into divinity. All the experiences of Jesus earthly ministry, even His death and resurrection, are now and forever part of the Godhead!
HEAD OF THE CHURCH

EPHESIANS 1:19 (God raised Christ) from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fulness of him who fills everything in every way.

Jesus is ruling and guiding and sustaining the church right now! He is Head of the Church.
MEDIATOR

1 Tim 2:5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 6 who gave himself as a ransom for all men—the testimony given in its proper time.
The mediator, the man in the middle, the one who bridges the gap and brings peace. Christ is our Mediator.
ADVOCATE

1 John 2:1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defence—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.

When we sin, the ministry of our Great High Priest Jesus Christ is to remind the Father that His blood has been shed for us. He reminds the Father that we are forgiven, not because of our own merits but because of His eternal sacrifice. And even more than that, whenever we need grace and help our Great High Priest is there speaking to God on our behalf. He is our Advocate.
INTERCESSOR

ROMANS 8:33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

Jesus is not sitting idly at the right hand of God. That is not in his nature. Even when he was here on earth, all his waking moments were either spent praying, preaching, healing or doing good works. In heaven right now, Jesus is busy interceding for us before God the Father.
When we pray in the name of Jesus he hears us and he pleads with God the Father on our behalf. He is in the best position to do this because he has lived on earth as a human being. He has gone through the whole range of human emotions. He has experienced pain [he was crucified on the cross at Calvary] and anguish [when his friend Lazarus died]. He knows what lack, loss, affliction, oppression, false accusation and death all mean from first hand personal experience. Christ has met needs before [he fed the multitudes] and he knows all about disappointment and rejection and betrayal [denied by Peter, betrayed by Judas]. He was the man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. With all this experience, Jesus our High Priest is the best advocate we can possibly have. He knows exactly how we feel when we call to him for help, and with the same feelings and emotions he intercedes for us before our Father in heaven.

And this great high priest is also God’s right hand man! Seated at the right hand of God on high!! So he has unique access to God on our behalf. And He also has God’s authority to act in mighty power and help us when we need help!

HEBREWS 7:24 but because Jesus lives for ever, he has a permanent priesthood. 25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Right now – at the throne of grace, God the Son is interceding with God the father for the saints – for the needs of ordinary Christians everywhere – even for you and for me!

Centuries ago, Ambrose put it this way. “A child,” saith Ambrose, “That is willing to present his father with a bouquet, goes into the garden, and there gathers some flowers and some weeds together; but, coming to his mother, she picks out the weeds, and binds the flowers, and so it is presented to the father.” Thus, when we have put up our prayers, Christ comes, and picks away the weeds, the sin of our prayers, and presents nothing but flowers to his Father, which are sweet-smelling savor.

Robert Murray McCheyne (1813-1843), pioneer missionary and preacher, wrote, “If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies. Yet distance makes no difference. He is praying for me!”

So where is Jesus Christ right now? He is seated at the right hand of Almighty God. What is Jesus doing there? He is reigning on High. He is sustaining the universe. He is Sovereign – He is Lord. And He is also our Great High Priest, Head of the Church, our Mediator, our Advocate, interceding for the saints, on our behalf.

Hebrews 4: 14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. 16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Over the centuries there have been different understandings of just how Christ’s death on the cross brings salvation and forgiveness to those who put their trust in Him.

A. CHRIST THE VICTOR (Early Church on)
When Adam and Eve sinned, Satan gained rights over human beings. Christ has paid the ransom which sets us free from being Satan’s slaves “Satan’s fish-hook” – trying to catch Christ’s humanity, Satan was caught on His Divinity
B. MORAL INFLUENCE (Abelard 12th century)
“The human problem” is that we reject God. Christ’s death is the supreme demonstration of God’s love for us. The Cross draws out of us a response of love and repentance in return – we are saved.
C. SACRIFICE FOR SIN (Reformation on)
God’s holiness and justice demand punishment for human sin. Christ died as a sacrifice to pay that penalty for sin which we could never pay. Christ died in our place – penal substitution.
OBJECTIONS to the different understandings
A. CHRIST THE VICTOR
Our sin problem is not just due to Satan – Christ defeating Satan doesn’t deal with our sin and the punishment we deserve to pay, or with the anger of the holy God.

B. MORAL INFLUENCE
Our repentance could only deal with future sins, doesn’t deal with past sin. And our repentance
C. SACRIFICE FOR SIN
This is too mechanical and impersonal. God is love- He could just choose to forgive sin.
BUT what does the Bible say? THE BIBLE TEACHES US that
Christ’s death is central to our salvation
Christ’s death is vicarious – for our benefit
Christ’s death is representative – He repents and obeys on our behalf
Christ’s death is sacrifical – voluntarily offering Himself for our benefit
Christ’s death is atonement – the sacrifice offered to take sin away
Christ’s death is “expiation” – dealing with the consequences of sin in our lives
Christ’s death is “propitiation” – dealing with God’s wrath against sinners
Christ’s death is substitutionary – in MY place

Mark 10: 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Hebrews 2: 14 Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— 15 and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. 16 For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. 17 For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people.
1 Peter 2: 21 To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22 “He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.” 23 When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 25 For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
1 Peter 1:18 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. 20 He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
1 Peter 3 18 For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.
Underlying Christ’s death is whole of the Old Testament system of sacrifices and also prophecies:
Isaiah 53: 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. ….8 …. For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken. …
10 Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. …. 12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,and he will divide the spoils with the strong,because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
1 John 2:1 My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. 2 He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.
Hebrews 9: 14 How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! 15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.
Romans 3: 22 This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25 God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.
2 Corinthians 5: God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
“penal substitution” = “substitutionary atonement”
Only this is sufficient to deal with the problem of sin and bring us salvation. It is NOT the angry Father punishing the loving son. It is NOT unjust, because GOD was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. ( 2 Cor 5:19)
“The burdened conscience does not find satisfaction in cheap pardon.” (J.Denney)

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.
Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man;

How could Jesus really be both God and man? We have taken two weeks to begin to understand what God is really like, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and Earth. Now we are going to begin to grapple with what Christians believe about the Incarnation – how God became man in Jesus Christ.

A few weeks ago we asked what the God of the Bible is really like? And we saw that the God we worship and believe in is almighty, all-knowing, ever-present, eternal, holy, all-loving, TRANSCENDENT! REPEAT – almighty, all-knowing, ever-present, eternal, holy, all-loving, TRANSCENDENT! It is totally impossible and beyond any human understanding how that transcendent God who is SO different from us, and so much greater than we can possibly imagine, could actually become a human being, limited in space and time and knowledge and mortality. This is the paradox and the total contradiction of the Incarnation! So let’s begin by reminding ourselves just why we Christians believe that Jesus Christ was indeed God born as a human being, Immanuel, God with us.

Let’s remember that it took the Early Church a couple of centuries all to agree on the truth that Jesus was actually divine. The reason for this was simple. The Jews believed there was only one God. Every day they recited in their prayers, “Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one.” (Deut 6:4) Jewish monotheism stood out against the polytheism of Greeks, Romans and Eastern Mystery Religions. So it was very difficult for Jewish Christians to recognise that Jesus of Nazareth was not only human but also divine. Indeed it took almost four centuries for the whole church to recognise God as Three in One, a Holy Trinity. Bear in mind that when the gospels speak of Jesus as “the Son of God” NOBODY during Jesus’s lifetime would have understood that title to mean “God the Son, the Third Person of the Holy Trinity”.

Remember as well that before the resurrection NOBODY who saw and listened to Jesus immediately said, “This man is God”. Jesus’s miracles, for example, were not taken as proof of Jesus’s divinity. Indeed Jesus refused to give any such proof or sign. The only sign he would offer was the “sign of Jonah”.

MATTHEW 12:40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The resurrection of Christ is God’s ultimate proof that Jesus was indeed the Son of God. So the apostle Paul can begin his letter to the Romans talking about the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord,
Romans 1 2 the gospel (God) promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3 regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, 4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God, by his resurrection from the dead:.

Only this side of the resurrection, with hindsight and the eye of faith, can we see the glimpses in Jesus’s ministry and His teaching that He was more than a man – that He was indeed God incarnate.

But the Bible does give us other compelling evidence that Jesus is indeed divine, “the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father,”

And we find that evidence principally in the gospel of John. This is how John introduces Jesus – in those words so familiar to us at Christmas.
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning.
3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
18 No-one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.

Looking back on the life of Jesus, John recognised that Jesus was indeed the One and Only Son, the Word made flesh, the one who had created the world.

And we find the apostle Paul echoing that understanding of who Jesus is when he writes to the Colossians expressing the faith of the Early Church, and possibly quoting an early Christian hymn.

COLOSSIANS 1:15-20

We can best see why John and all the disciples, and Paul and the Early Church came to recognise Jesus as God by looking at the words of Jesus Himself.

Some people would start with the seven great “I am” statements in John’s Gospel.

See John 6:35; . “I am the bread of life.
8:12; “…I am the light of the world.
10:7; … “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. ,,,,
11:25; “I am the resurrection and the life.
14:6; …. “I am the way and the truth and the life.
15:1. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.

All these great “I am” declarations certainly reveal that Jesus had a unique relationship with God. But they do not necessarily imply that Jesus was God. Two others however are almost certainly claims to be divine.

10:11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
Remember that in the Old Testament God was the shepherd of Israel. Psalm 23 – the Lord is my Shepherd. So a claim to be the Good Shepherd could well be a claim actually to be God.
8:58; “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” 59 At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.
Here is is very significant that “I am” was the name by which God revealed Himself to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14). That name of Yahweh is usually translated in our Bibles as “the LORD”. Those Jews who picked up stones to punish Jesus for blasphemy certainly understood “before Abraham was, I am” as a claim to be older than Abraham, and probably actually a claim to be God.
So the “I am” Jesus claims of Jesus do point to the idea that Jesus was indeed God. But there is a different saying which is even more important – when Jesus said in John 10:30, “I and the Father are One”.

Can you imagine the scene? Every day for more than a thousand years the Jews had prayed that same prayer, The Shema: “Hear O Israel the Lord your God, the Lord is One.” Then one day Jesus of Nazareth, said that most amazing thing. JOHN 10:30 I and the Father are one.” There was an outcry!
31 Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, 32 but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” 33 “We are not stoning you for any of these,” replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”
If we think it was easy or obvious for the first Christians to recognise that Jesus was God, remember that Jesus was executed for blasphemy for claiming to be God! “I and the Father are One”, Jesus said. 79 times in John’s Gospel Jesus talks about the relationship between His Father and Himself. And in those sayings Jesus revealed His divine nature in a number of ways.

PERFECT SERVANT OF GOD
TEACHING GOD’S WORDS

Jn8:28 28 I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me.

Jn12:49 49 For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. 50 … So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”

Jn14:23 24 …These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

Jn15:15 Everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.

Jesus brought us God’s teaching. He claimed to speak His Father’s words with His Father’s authority,
But what about the miracles?

DOING GOD’S WORK

Jn5:19 19 “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

Jn5:36 36 “The very work that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the Father has sent me.

Jn14:31 31 I love the Father and … I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.

According to the gospels, Jesus’s miracles were not done in his own strength, by His own divine power as Son of God. The miracles were the work of the Holy Spirit through Jesus. So the miracles are not proof that Jesus was God – and nobody at that time took them as proof that Jesus was God. But the miracles do demonstrate that Jesus had a very special relationship with The Father.

Jesus was the Perfect Servant of God – teaching God’s truth and doing God’s Work. But more than that, Jesus was
UNIQUE REVELATION OF GOD
EXPERIENCE OF GOD

Jn10:. 38 …. the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”

Jn8:38 38. I am telling you what I have seen in the Father’s presence,

The reason Jesus is able to reveal the Father to us is because of his unique relationship with God – his unique “one-ness.”

REVEALING GOD

Jn8:19 “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.”

Jn14:7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”

Jn14:9 9 Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, `Show us the Father’? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11 Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me;

What Jesus is saying time and again is this. “If you want to know what God is like, look at me!” That claim could be bold, outrageous, arrogant, insane, evil – if it is not true. But with Jesus it IS true! Jesus IS the Song of God who brings salvation to rebellious human beings by revealing God to us.
THE SOURCE OF LIFE

Jesus is“the resurrection and the life,” the source of eternal life – the source of life in all its fulness

Jn6:37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away. …. 44 “No-one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.

“I am the bread of life” – the source of grace and daily strength for all believers.
Jn6:57 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me.

Jesus is the unique way to a relationship with the Father – the only way of salvation.
Jn14:6 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.

We share God’s life – because Jesus share’s the Father’s life and we share the life of Jesus.
Jn14:20 20 On that day you will realise that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21 …. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”

The life which we have comes from God THROUGH Christ. The Holy Spirit makes that life real to us – and it is Christ who gives us the Spirit.
Jn15:26 26. “When the Counsellor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father, he will testify about me.

Jn16:15 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.
So it is the Holy Spirit who comes and shares Christ’s life with us. All the blessings of Christ’s death and resurrection are brought to us by the Holy Spirit – and it is Christ who gives the Spirit.

So – Jesus is the perfect Servant of God. More than that, from His unique experience of God He brings a unique revelation of God and is the Source of eternal life. He can do this only because He is indeed much more than a man. Jesus is the

UNIQUE SON OF GOD

SENT BY GOD

Jn8:42 42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and now am here. I have not come on my own; but he sent me.

Jn20:21 21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

Jesus of Nazareth the man was fully human. Yet he was also conscious that God had sent him. More than that – Jesus was conscious that He had existed before his earthly life had begun. That He was indeed the Word become flesh!

THE PRE-EXISTENT SON

Jn16:27 27 I came from God. 28. I came from the Father and entered the world; now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.”

Jn17:21 Jesus PRAYED 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
One – just as you are in me and I am in you – a unique closeness to God

Jn17:24 24. “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me.

Beyond His death and resurrection, Jesus knew he was returning to His Father.
Jn20:17 17 Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, `I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”

Jn10:17 17 The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life- only to take it up again. 18 No-one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

We can see that Jesus is more than a man from this power he had over his own life and death. He was the Son of God – God, the Son, born as a human being for us and our salvation. And all these claims Jesus makes about Himself and His understanding of his own identity are confirmed for Him and for us by God the Father.

GLORIFIED BY GOD

5:37 And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me.

Jn8:54 54 Jesus replied, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me.

In Gethsemane Jesus prays Jn17:5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.

So here we see Jesus Christ as HE describes Himself in John’s gospel.
The Perfect Servant of God – teaching God’s words and doing God’s works
The Unique Revelation of God – having a unique experience of God, revealing God, indeed being the source of life itself
The Unique Son of God – sent by God, coming from the Father and returning to the Father, given glory by God Himself.

And at the end of John’s gospel, the apostle Thomas gives us a pattern for the way we should respond to Jesus, God’s own Son.
JOHN 20:26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

The Perfect Servant – the Unique Revelation – The Unique Son of God. Jesus allowed Thomas to worship him – “My Lord and My God!

How CAN Jesus be BOTH God and man? Three questions to stretch our understanding.
1. Could Jesus have used His divine power to overcome the Temple guards when they came to arrest Him?
2. Did Jesus know everything God knows?
3. Was the Divine Word holding the whole universe together at the same time as He was dying on the cross?

How can Jesus be BOTH God and man?

Beware of the “superhero” heresy!
Jesus was God only APPEARING to be a man –
like Superman disguised as Clark Kent, or
a King disguised as a beggar.
1 John and 2 John challenge this heresy of “docetism”.
“This is how you can recognise the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.” (1 John 4:2-3)

How can Jesus be BOTH God and man? The clue lies in Philippians chapter 2:6-7

who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave,being born in human likeness.
Phil 2:6-7 New Revised Standard Version.
he gave up all he had, (Good News Bible)
He laid aside His mighty power and glory
(New Living Translation)
He made Himself nothing (NIV)

1. “DIVINE SUICIDE”

“He EMPTIED HIMSELF” – “Kenosis”
God becomes man and ceases to be God
BUT that is also heresy!
“God was pleased to have all his fulness dwell in him,” “For in Christ all the fulness of the Deity lives in bodily form.” Colossians 1:19, 2:9

2. “DOUBLE LIFE”
God the Son became human and at the same time continued to sustain the universe.
2 sets of relationships in parallel
“The Word” as God with the universe
“Jesus of Nazareth” as a man in the world

3. “SELF-RESTRAINT”
Deity “retracted” into humanity – God the Son voluntarily contracted His divine life to the form and dimensions of human existence.
So Jesus did not necessarily know that He was actually God – the King living as a beggar because he had amnesia .
But what about “cosmic chaos”? Who then was sustaining and ruling the universe while Christ was dying on the cross. PT Forsythe – “The resources of the Trinity are adequate”!

How can Jesus be BOTH God and man? Some final thoughts:

“God into man won’t go – and yet has gone!”

“Human logic is not omnicompetent.”

“Our metaphysics is not adequate to cope with the incarnation.”

Deity and humanity are NOT mutually exclusive – “a mathematician AND an englishman” – perhaps they are “orthogonal”.

Circle is intersection of cone with plane – so Christ is intersection of God with humanity.

WE BELIEVE in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.

How could Jesus be both God and man? Bow down and worship – for this is your God!

Do we really believe that God created the Earth? Lots of people don’t. The media don’t. Most scientists don’t. In July 2006 the science academies of 67 countries including our own Royal Society spoke out very strongly against the idea of a seven day creation, and in favour of the theory of evolution. They were particularly critical of teaching of what is called “Young Earth Creationism” in universities, and even to schoolchildren in “faith schools” in the north east of England. You may have read about that debate at the time. The best coverage was in no less than four articles in the newspaper for academics, The Times Higher Educational Supplement, with another article and six letters to the editor in the following issue. A significant chunk of the longest article was based on an interview I gave at the time to Steve Farrar, the Opinions Editor of the Times Higher Ed. This evening I want to share what I said in that interview about what I believe about Creation and Evolution, Science and Faith. I want to make six simple points. I want to tell you all the points right at the beginning, so you know where I am going, and then unpack them one by one.
1) All Christians believe that God created the universe
2) Science assumes that everything came into existence by natural processes and random chance
3) Science will never prove decisively whether God created everything or not
4) Science gives us evidence which is consistent with intelligent design
5) The debate between 7 day “Young Earth Creationism” or “guided evolution” “Old Earth Creationism” is a matter of Biblical Interpretation for Christians
6) Focus on proving a 7-day creation distracts people from the more important task of pointing to God as Creator

So there are my six points – let me explain them in more detail. Some of them, like the first, will take a while to explain. Don’t worry because others are very short.

1) All Christians believe that God created the universe
i) The Nicene Creed:I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible
ii) Bible teaches that God is Creator: Creation out of nothing AND forming/shaping/designing

In Genesis 1-2 we read God created/made everything:
Gen 1:1 heavens and the earth
1:21 creatures of sea and every living and moving thing
1:25 wild animals and livestock
1:26-27 human beings, male and female in His image

2:4 heavens and earth
2:19 “formed out of the ground” all the beasts of the field and birds of the air

We also find God specifically named as Creator in Genesis 5, 6 and 14, Exodus 20 and 31, Deuteronomy 4 and 32 Psalms 89, 104, 148 Ecclesiastes. Prophets like Amos, Habakkuk and Malachi also call God creator, but it is a special theme in Isaiah 43, 45, 57:

Isaiah 40:26 Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. … 28 The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.
Isaiah 42: 5. This is what God the LORD says- he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes out of it, who gives breath to its people, and life to those who walk on it:

God is creator in PAUL: Romans, 1 Corinthians, Ephesians, 1 Timothy 4:4
And in letters of James 1:18, 1 Peter 4:19 and Hebrews and in Revelation

Jesus calls God Creator in Mark 10:6 and Mark 13:19

Jesus Himself is named as Creator –
Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.

God is our Creator – this is at the heart of what ALL Christians believe! So ALL Christians are Creationists!

2) Science assumes that everything came into existence by natural processes and random chance

From the subtle unchallenged assumption of evolution in David Attenborough’s natural history films, to the explicit anti-theism of Richard Dawkins and Steve Jones, science and the media are united in rejecting the idea of a Creator. Possibly the greatest Science Fiction author Isaac Asimov made the same mistake as very many people – “I am an atheist, out and out. I don’t have the evidence to prove that God doesn’t exist, but I so strongly suspect he does not that I don’t want to waste my time.”
The large majority of scientists close their minds to the evidence for God’s existence – so in the end he can’t see what many others can! But Christians HAVE seen that evidence. We have experienced the power of God and seen him at work! Scientists should NOT ignore that evidence, but rethink their scientific assumptions until their science fits with the real world! It was Albert Einstein who said “Science without religion is blind. Religion without science is lame.”

“Posterity will some day laugh at the foolishness of our modern materialistic philosophy. The more I study nature the more I am amazed at the Creator.” – Louis Pasteur

3) Science will never prove decisively whether God created everything or not

i) Knowing God as creator is a matter of faith Hebrews 11:3

Heb 11:3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

This verse says to me that science will never ever give conclusive proof about the process of creation or even the existence of God. We will always need faith to interpret the scientific evidence correctly.

“God is not discoverable or demonstrable by purely scientific means, unfortunately for the scientifically-minded. But that really proves nothing. It simply means that the wrong instruments are being used for the job.” J. B. Phillips (1906–1982)

ii) God is by definition outside/beyond/before the universe

iii) We need a “change of mind” to see God

Two people were walking along a river bank one day when they saw a man across the river. “How can we get across?” They shouted. “Why would you be wanting to do that then?” The man asked. “We want to get to the other side” they explained patiently. “Don’t be daft,” the man replied. “You’re already on the other side!” What we see depends on our point of view, on where we are standing to begin with.

Many people are so blinded by the way the media suggests that science has replaced God that they simply cannot see God. Some scientists are so locked into their way of looking at the world that they genuinely cannot see the evidence for God which is all around them. But for anyone who looks for it with the eye of faith, that evidence is plain to see. Scientists just need to switch their way of looking at the world – to move from a world which excludes God to a world which allows the possibility of God in it.

4) Science gives us evidence which is consistent with intelligent design

i) Examples of design – “Irreducible complexity”

Consider the wonders of nature; the complexity of human brain and eye, the action of enzymes, the interplay beween DNA, RNA and proteins in replication and inheritance, and countless other phenomena. It is so unlikely that these marvels “evolved” by pure chance, and sometimes in opposition to so-called natural selection. Design points to the existence of a Designer, the Architect of the Universe, “God”.

ii) The origins of spirituality

In Genesis 1:27 and 2:7 man is created in the (spiritual) image of God by the inbreathing of the breath (or spirit) of life. Many Christians understand this as God giving the dimension of spiritual experience to animals which had already developed through evolution, making them “Man” by giving them rational, moral and spiritual qualities. Psychologists and philosophers find it impossible to explain how human beings developed consciousness and conscience, and appreciation of beauty and the desire to pray and worship. Evolution never claims to explain these things, and never could! The Christian explanation is simple – God made us this way, in His image!

iii) A “finely-tuned” universe

Design/Guidance could be step by step interventions, or could be in the “fine-tuning” of universal constants creating a universe where life as we know it would come to exist. If we believe miracles happen (or have happened) then there is no problem in an old earth / guided evolution, God steering the development of life at key stages.

iv) The improbabilities of evolution by random chance alone

Even if evolution was the mechanism by which life as we know it came into existence on earth, it seems obvious to many people that the probability of such complicated beings as ourselves evolving by random chance alone is infinitesimally small. But we did! So that suggests to the eye of faith that God had a hand in our development now and then!

5) The debate between 7 day “Young Earth Creationism” or “guided evolution” “Old Earth Creationism” is a matter of Biblical Interpretation for Christians

i) Whole weight of Young Earth Creationism rests on interpreting Day as literal 24 hours

ii) You don’t have to believe in a 7-day creation to believe in the infallibility of the Bible
“Young Earth Creationists” say that if you don’t believe in a 7-day creation then you don’t believe in the authority of the Bible! That is just rubbish! Old Earth creationists like me are as committed to the authority and reliability of the Bible as anybody else – we are actually disagreeing over the interpretation of just one word as it is used in just three passages of Scripture.

iii) Events of creation were revealed, not observed

Until Day 6 no humans around so not from human observation, had to have been revealed in some way – revelations subject to interpretation – more often symbolic than literal

iv) There are different kinds of language in the Bible: some is symbolic or metaphorical

When we approach a Bible passage we must try to work out what kind of language it is written in. Eternal and spiritual truths, things we can never fully understand or adequately describe, often can’t be expressed in literal language. So religious truth is usually expressed in words used symbolically or poetically, using similes and metaphors, sometimes bending language almost to breaking point. We make a big mistake if we try to understand literally language which was intended to be understood symbolically.

For example, think about when Jesus told his parables. Was the “Good Samaritan” a real living person? Did a genuine “Prodigal Son” ever leave his father? Were the parables history? These carefully constructed stories convey powerful spiritual truth without necessarily relating to historical events. We have to ask similar questions about the Creation Narratives in Genesis chapters 1-2. Are they intended to be “scientific truth” in 20th century terms? Is the language literal or is it instead symbolic or poetical language?

“Old Earth Creationists”, like me, are just as committed as anybody else to the reliability of the Bible as the Word of God. But we believe that Genesis is teaching religious and not scientific truth. Therefore we believe that the language of the Biblical account of creation is symbolic rather than necessarily literal. Genesis teaches WHO it was who created the earth (God) and WHY, but not scientifically HOW it all took place.

Old Earth Creationists regard the “days” in Genesis as long periods of time. Other parts of the account are SURELY symbolic – God “said” (what language did God say it in?) God “breathed” into Adam’s nostrils. When we’re talking about what God “says” and “does” human language HAS to be symbolic. When it says “days” surely these are God’s days. It’s not necessarily right, and probably wrong, to insist that the days in Genesis 1-2 have to be understood as literal 24 hour periods. (There were not even a sun or a moon until the third day!)

Notice how well the order of creation in Genesis 1 and 2 actually fits with scientific ideas of evolution, ideas which did not come alone till thousands of years after Genesis was written. So we can accept the idea of development or evolution. There could well have been were dinosaurs, living and dying out before humans were created in that long long period of the fifth “day”.

v) So the word “day” does not necessarily refer to a 24-hour period:
(a) 2 Peter 3:8 (quoting Psa 90:4) But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.
(b) Phrases such as “the Day of the Lord”

vi) Day could be from God’s perspective not human – no more problem!!!

vii) Language of Science or History as we know it is only 18th century onwards

It seems very unlikely that the writers were trying to produce a textbook of science and history. For one thing science and history as we know them have only been invented over the last few hundred years! Everything in Genesis 1-2 must have been revealed by God to those writers in ways that the people THEN could understand, not in the language of history and science which weren’t going to be invented for thousands of years. The Bible accounts need to be read in the context of the kinds of literature which were around when they were written, not as if they were written today just for us. Let me tell you a story.

Man walks into a doctor’s surgery.
Doctor, Doctor, I keep on singing “The Green Green Grass of Home all the time.”
Doctor says, “You’ve got Tom Jones syndrome.”
Man asks, “Is that common?”
Doctor replies, “It’s not unusual!” Boom Boom.

We know what kind of story that is by the formula, beginning, “Doctor, Doctor” and ending “Boom Boom”. It’s a joke.
The joke only works if we know certain key facts – Tom Jones is a famous singer and two of his greatest hits are “The Green Green Grass of Home” and “It’s not unusual.”
To “work” as a joke it is completely irrelevant whether an actual man ever did walk into a specific doctor’s surgery or not. It is a funny story. The “genre” of joke does not demand historical accuracy.
We wouldn’t find that story in the Bible because elements of it would be outside their time – anachronistic. In the same way, to find literalism, or scientific details or even historical language as we use it today in Genesis 1-2 talking about events before human beings were around, would be anachronistic. It is a misunderstanding of the genre of the language.

The problem which I have with Young Earth Creationists is that they are fighting the wrong war on the wrong battleground! The challenge is NOT to prove to the scientific world that the earth came into being in 7 days only 8000 years ago. The challenge which the Young Earth Creationists keep dodging is to prove to the wider world and the mainstream Church that the word “day” in chapters 1 and 2 of Genesis HAS to carry the literal meaning of a 24 hour period of time, and cannot possibly in any way shape or form be symbolic language. That is not a question of science but a question of Biblical interpretation and systematic theology. The so called “creation scientists” don’t have enough training or competence in theology or linguistics or hermeneutics to begin to give a decent answer to that question. Until the 7 day creationists actually address that issue, mainstream scientists and competent theologians will have problems with the idea of seven literal days of creation!

6) Focus on proving a 7-day creation distracts people from the more important task of pointing to God as Creator

Almighty God is Creator of Heaven and Earth! Whether the earth was created in seven 24 hour days is an issue of Biblical interpretation, not science. The debate between science and seven day “Young Earth Creationism” is a red herring from the vital Christian message we have to proclaim about God as Creator.

i) Creation in 7 days is only mentioned in THREE places

Creation in seven days only THREE places –

Genesis 1-2, Genesis 2:3

Then the seven days of creation are given as the reason for the 4th commandment in Exodus 20 repeated in Exodus 31

Ex 31:17 the Sabbath, …. will be a sign between me and the Israelites for ever, for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he abstained from work and rested.'”

But there is an interesting CHANGE of reason in 10 cmdmts as listed in Deuteronomy 5:14 where the reason given for the Sabbath is NOT the seven days of creation but instead Deut 5: 15 Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. Therefore the LORD your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.

NO other references to 7 days of creation apart from one reference to the Sabbath quoting Exodus in Hebrews 4:3-4.

ii) Battle for “young earth” is a major barrier for some, especially scientists

Public arguments over Young Earth Creationism is likely to drive people away from God, not bring them to God. That certainly happened to some of my friends who today are eminent scientists.

So, “Has science disproved the Bible, specifically creation?” You must make up your own mind. Science casts some doubts on whether creation took place over the space of seven 24 hour days just 8000 years ago. But it seems to me that good principles of Biblical Interpretation cast doubt on whether the Bible really teaches Young Earth Creationism anyway. That all hinges on whether one single word should be interpreted literally or symbolically!! What the Bible DEFINITELY teaches is that Almighty God is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. With the eye of faith, we can see the Hand of the Designer, the eternal architect, in all He has made. And science which studies the wonders of creation will never ever be able to prove or disprove the existence of the Creator who is beyond and above His creation.

Revelation 4:11 “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honour and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”

This sermon series takes a deep look at the truths Christians believe and why we believe them. We will be looking at different issues arising from that early declaration of Christian faith, the Nicene Creed.

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made.
Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceeds from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.