Memorial Day -- Freedom!

 

Memorial Day 2024


Tomorrow is Memorial Day, the day set aside to honor the U.S. military personnel who died while serving in our country’s armed forces. Across America people will visit cemeteries to honor our deceased and place flowers or American flags on their graves.

 

Those who died did so to secure freedoms for Americans, freedoms many of us take for granted. The freedoms bought for us by their blood include the freedom of speech, freedom to own and legally use firearms, the freedom of religion, and the freedom to peacefully assemble. The Bill of Rights lists other freedoms that we will not take the time now to enumerate – but the point needs to be reiterated: Those men and women fought and died to protect the freedoms we enjoy.

 

As I reflected last week on this upcoming national holiday, I realized Memorial Day is also a very good day to remember another casualty of another war – a war which was the worst ever fought in history since Genesis chapter one. And the loss of this particular life resulted in a cost incomparable to the cost of any conflict since the Garden of Eden.

 

I’m speaking of the war waged in heaven and on earth for the eternal souls of men and women. You probably have guessed that I am speaking of the battle that took the life of God's only begotten Son. I’m speaking of the battle in which Jesus sacrificed His life to secure for us freedoms which are far more vital than even of those critically important freedoms gained for us by our military.

 

Americans who know our history recognize the names of places where Americans died for our freedom, places like Bunker Hill, Gettysburg, the WW1 Battle of Marne, the WW2 battles of Iwo Jima, and Normandy.

 

But the battle that cost the life of God's Son occurred in what was then often referred to as a backwater town of Jerusalem. However, with Christ’s death and subsequent resurrection – and let us never forget that last point because without that resurrection, the death of Christ would mean absolutely nothing for our freedoms – with Christ’s death and resurrection, He alone won for all humanity freedoms which only HE could secure.

And so, the question which we ought to ask on this day before Memorial Day – and the question I hope to adequately answer – is this: What FREEDOMS did Jesus’ death bring to us? For the sake of time, I will talk briefly of only four. You can probably think of others yourself.

 

First, Christ’s death for us procured for us freedom from the devil’s lie that we have to earn our salvation, that we have to somehow and in some way warrant God's grace, the lie that our salvation depends in large part or in small part on something WE have to do.

 

Listen to what Jesus said about the so-called ‘righteousness of works’ and the Biblical truth of the righteousness of humble faith: Luke 18:10-14 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

 

Listen: If righteousness was obtainable by keeping the Law, Jesus would never have had to die. Here is St Paul speaking infallibly: Gal 2:21 “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”

And again, Paul to the Christians at Colossae: (Colossians 2:16,17,20-23) Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day, things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ. . . . If you have died with Christ to the elementary principles of the world, why, as if you were living in the world, do you submit yourself to decrees, such as, “Do not handle, do not taste, do not touch . . . in accordance with the commandments and teachings of men? These are matters which have, to be sure, the appearance of wisdom in self-made religion and self-abasement and severe treatment of the body, but are of no value against fleshly indulgence.”

Not long after Jesus ascended to the Father, a heresy circulated among the believing Jewish priests and Pharisees who taught that obedience to the Law of Moses was a requisite for salvation. At the heart of this issue was circumcision. Because of the spiritual damage this heresy was causing, the apostles came together at what is known as the first Jerusalem council. Luke records it this way (Acts 15:7-11):

 

“After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brethren, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.”

 

The heretical idea that our salvation is based on something WE have to do is a Satanic lie that remains with us to this very day, it is a lie designed by our mortal enemy to keep even Christians in bondage.

 

So, the first freedom Christ’s blood bought us is freedom from the idea that we can do anything to secure our own salvation. And that freedom brings us to what I am labeling the second freedom for the Christian (and only for the Christian): The freedom from God's wrath for our sins.

 

The Lord Jesus said to the very religious Nicodemus: (John 3:18) “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

 

Listen also to Peter, speaking of Jesus: (2 Peter 2:24) “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed.” 

 

Many of you recognize Peter was quoting from Isaiah 53:5-6 “But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.”

 

Christian – please hear this: God will never make you suffer after death for your sins. Never. The apostle Paul didn’t believe in a place called Purgatory. I have shared with you in the past portions of his other letters that ought to put that terrible idea of purgatory to rest – such as Philippians 1:21 and 2 Corinthians 5:1-8.

 

And neither did St John believe in punishment for the Christian after death. Here is what he wrote in his first epistle: (1 John 4:18) “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love.”

 

I know I am quoting a lot of Scripture, and I will be quoting even more as I continue this message. And if you have been with me for more than a few months, you know I often quote from God's word. I do so because you should not at all be swayed by my opinions – unless my opinions are rooted and grounded in God's infallible word.

 

And second, I so often quote scriptures in my sermons and studies because ‘it is only GOD’S truth that can set us free from bondage. As the Lord Jesus said: (John 8:31-32): “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;  and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”  

 

So, the freedoms Jesus’ blood bought for us on Calvary’s hill included the freedom from the lie of a works-based salvation, and freedom from the fear of God's wrath for our sins. The third freedom Jesus secured for us, and related to the first two, is this: The Christian – and only the Christian – now is free from the fear of death.

 

Listen to Hebrews 2:14-15: “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”

 

Death is an unknown – but it is not a completely indecipherable unknown. God in His graciousness has given us information in Scriptures that should allay the Christian’s fear of death.

 

For one thing, as we have already seen, death for the Christian is not a time of judgment, But as for what heaven is like, God has given us sufficient glimpses into our future in heaven in verses such as these:

 

Revelation 21:3-4 “And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

 

Revelation 22:3 “There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever.

 

What will heaven be like? I don’t know. But I like to imagine colors to be so much more incredibly vibrant than we see them now with human eyes. Greens greener. Reds redder. Blues bluer. The colors of the rainbow surrounding us in the nature of heaven all shimmering, sparkling, yet blending while each remains clearly distinct.

 

And heaven’s sounds? The psalmist wrote: “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord” (Psalm 150), and maybe that also works in heaven. EVERYTHING that breathes – animals, insects, mammals – everything that breathes, and each mingling their breath and voice into an incredible soul-stirring celestial symphony of praise to God.

 

I like to also imagine, as Isaiah tells us (55:12), “The mountains and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands” – The whole of heaven’s landscape raising voice, and even the wind rustling through trees and flowers and across my ears will whisper a melody of worship in which all of creation joins to raise to its Creator.

 

And for a moment, in my fun speculations, I wondered if after a millennium of such resonating choruses and beauty – would I get bored with it all? I wondered that because I know how quickly I get bored with things in life that once startled me. But then I thought of Jeremiah’s words in Lamentations: “The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning.” (Lamentations 3:22-23a). I thought, God's infinite combinations of sounds and colors and sights are – well, they’re infinite.

 

So, how could I get bored when His glories and wonders are new every morning?

 

A local poet, Betty Smith, thought of it this way: “There will be joy and laughter – no tears or woes, and we will all be dressed in the finest of robes, pure white, without spot or blemish, I’m told. And wine will be served in goblets of gold, the food will be sumptuous, fit for a king; the music will be heavenly – we’ll hear angels sing. There will be plenty of time to visit and talk, and after dinner, You and Jesus can walk.”

 

It is true that no one knows what heaven is actually like. But I think we can rest on what we DO know for certain, because God's word tells us what is certain: “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)

 

I need to start bringing this message to a close with the fourth freedom bought and brought to us by the precious blood of our Savior Jesus: Christians, and only Christians, have the freedom to call God, our Father.

 

Listen again to the apostle John: (1:10-13) “He [Christ] was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

 

Have you ‘received’ Jesus? Have you asked Him to cleanse your sins, to control your life, to make you His own, and to deepen your life in holiness? If so, then you ARE a child of God and He has given you the right to call Him your Father.

 

But – and this is very important – if you have never personally asked His cleansing and control over your life and lifestyle, and if you do not humbly confess to Him your sins and repent, then you might be religious, and you might be a good person, and you might participate in all the religious rituals of your church – but you might not actually be a child of God and do not have the right to call Him your Father.

 

If what I just said causes some sense of concern in your heart – then I am glad because this issue of salvation is far too important to dilute or soft-peddle God's truth. No one will want to say to the Lord Jesus at the Judgment: ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets’ (Luke 13:26) and then hear Him say in response: ‘I tell you, I do not know where you are from; Depart from Me, all you evil doers.’ (Luke 13:27).

 

In other words, it won’t matter at the Judgment if we received Holy Communion every day and listened attentively to great sermons and homilies. What will matter is this: Were we born again through faith in Jesus as our sacrificial atonement for our sins, and did our lifestyles reflect an ongoing, day by day desire to live according to His commandments? Did we confess our sins and repent each time the Holy Spirit told us we’d done wrong?

 

Memorial Day is set aside in our nation as a day to remember with thanksgiving the men and women who died in battles to secure the freedoms we enjoy in this country. But Memorial Day is also a good day to remember the One who died in a battle on Calvary’s mountain – who died a death to secure our freedoms often taken for granted – even by those of us in the pews: Freedom from Satan’s lie that we have to do something to earn our salvation; Freedom from God's eternal wrath for our sins; Freedom from the fear of death; and freedom to be able to call God our very own Father.

 

No wonder the apostle Paul exclaimed: “Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15)

 

Pentecost Sunday Part two

 

Today is Pentecost Sunday. As l said last week in part one of this message, the festival of Pentecost didn’t originate in the first century. It dates to the Exodus of Israel from Egyptian bondage. The festival is known in the Old Testament by several synonymous titles: The Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Harvest, and also the Feast of the First Fruits (Exodus 23:15-17; Leviticus 23:10-16; Numbers 28:26; Deuteronomy 16:16).  

 

The word ‘Pentecost’ comes from the Greek word meaning ‘fifty.’ According to Moses, Pentecost was to be celebrated 50 days after the Passover Lamb was slain. Many (but certainly not all) Jews today still celebrate Pentecost – called in Hebrew, ‘Shavout’ – even though Jews no longer sacrifice a lamb on the first night of Passover.

 

Since the days of Christ’s crucifixion on Passover, many Christians have recognized Pentecost to be the final brushstrokes – so to speak – of the painting God began in Exodus. Those final stokes occurred when God's Passover Lamb was slain on Calvary, and with it, protection and salvation from the angel of death in much the same was as Israel was spared the death of the firstborn on that first Passover night in Egypt.

 

On that first Pentecost after God's Lamb was slain on Calvary, Peter and the others stood on the Temple grounds to proclaim to the assembled priests and laity that Jesus is God's sacrificial Lamb who alone could remove their sins.

 

As an aside, let’s remember that shortly before this event, Peter and the others cowered in terror in that small room. Their hopes which centered around Jesus as their Messiah lay buried in a borrowed tomb. They knew the Romans and Pharisees would be looking for them also.

 

But something happened to the disciples after Jesus rose, ascended, and sent them His Holy Spirit. Luke records Peter’s fearless declaration this way: “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit . . . And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” (Acts 2:36-38, 40)

 

Something happens to a man or woman who suddenly realizes what Peter and the others realized: “In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?” (Psalm 56:11)

 

Of course, what happened to Peter and to the others happened again and again throughout the book of Acts and throughout church history. Saul of Tarsus is a great example. At first, he was a feared and murderous religious terrorist. He made it his all-consuming goal to destroy Christians and the fledgling church. But then he met Christ – and the terrorist became a passionate flame for Jesus the Christ. And like Peter and the others, Paul quickly began to proclaim this same Jesus as mankind’s only hope for the forgiveness of sins and for eternal life.

 

Listen to what he wrote to the Christians at Rome: (Romans 1:16-17): “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

 

We looked at that text last week, and I want us to return here for a while because of its critically important message for you and me in the 21^st century. We are SURROUNDED by pagans – even in many of our churches and pulpits. Pagans who deny the supernatural. Pagans who deny the divinity and simultaneous humanity of the Lord Jesus. Pagans who turn the grace of God into an opportunity to remain sexually immoral. Pagans who kill babies in the womb. Pagans who mock our biblically based faith. Pagans who hold to the form and rituals of religion, but by their lifestyles deny the Holy One who gave His Son as a sacrifice for our sins.

 

“I am not ashamed of the gospel.”

 

Like I said a moment ago – something happens to a person who suddenly realizes what the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth has done for us. Something had happened to Peter before he stood fearlessly toe to toe with those who murdered Jesus. Something happened to the apostle Paul before . . . well, Chuck Swindoll wrote it this way as he reflected on Paul’s trial before King Agrippa and Governor Festus as Luke records it in Acts 26:

“Momentarily forgetting the difference in rank and status, Paul now spoke face to face with Agrippa . . . . In unguarded abandon, he exclaimed, "I would wish to God, that whether in a short or long time, not only you, but also all who hear me this day, might become such as I am, except for these chains" [26:29].

 

In another reflection related to Paul’s unashamed and fearless boldness and how that boldness applies to our time, Swindoll referred to when Mother Theresea of Calcutta spoke at the 1994 National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. In attendance were numerous dignitaries, including then President Clinton and Vice-President Al Gore. Swindoll writes:

 

“The gracious nun from Calcutta spoke plainly and courageously about the evils of abortion and the devastation that dreadful lapse in morality continues to have on our already splintered culture. While she read from a carefully prepared manuscript, no one in the room moved a muscle. In fact, many of the well-dressed dignitaries smiled nervously, appearing cool and collected on their refined exteriors, but churning wildly within.”

 

“As the ancient political officials had sat glaring at Paul, so the nobility of Washington sat silent, their consciences throbbing in their chests.”

Characteristically of Swindoll, he again brought home the application of the ancient message which is ever current: “The challenge [to us] comes in those private, unguarded moments when you face opposition to truth—in the halls of the university, in a company board room, at the school PTA meeting, in the athletic director's office, or while seated on a plane. . . .

 

You may never be summoned to stand before kings and queens or be invited to address the political elite or high-ranking military officers; but you will have your own opportunities to stand and deliver.”

 

I end here his quote, but I reiterate Swindoll’s point: You and I will have our own opportunities to stand tall for Jesus – even when we least expect it.  And oh, God help us remain bold in the face of darkness, whether in our families, or in the dining room, or the doctor’s office, or the supermarket, or wherever else it might be.

 

Neither Peter, the other apostles, nor Paul were ashamed of the gospel. Why? “Because they knew it to be POWER of God to salvation to everyone who believes.”

 

Christian! It was the power of God that made the former terrorist what he became for Jesus. It was the power of God that made a small, frail nun in Calcutta what she became for Christ on that day in Washington. It was the power of God that made the heroes of faith in that 11^th chapter of Hebrews what they became for God. And it is the power of God that makes me AND YOU what we are for Christ when we stand toe-to-toe and nose-to-nose with the forces of darkness.

 

The power of God. Since He stands with us in every circumstance, who can stand against us? Listen to His promise through the prophet Isaiah [51:12-13b]:

 

“I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies and of the son of man who is made like grass, That you have forgotten the Lord your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, that you fear continually all day long because of the fury of the oppressor, as he makes ready to destroy?”

 

God's power. Power to defend. Power to go on the offensive against the enemies of the gospel message. And power to change lives.

 

Christian! If we are today the same as we were before we got saved – we’d better check ourselves to see if we are, indeed, saved. Furthermore, if our walk with Christ has gone into a slow idle and we are content to remain as we are – we’d better check ourselves to see if we are, indeed, saved.

 

The good news of Jesus Christ is the good news of the complete and utter erasure of our sins from God's memory. The good news of the gospel is never-ending life of incomprehensible joy and peace and love for all who die in Christ. And it is the good news of the gospel message that ought to compel us to desire God more and more as we grow older. From eternal death to eternal life. The gospel is the power of God to salvation to EVERYONE who believes.

 

You might remember the ‘Dry Bones’ prophecy of Ezekiel 37. I repeat it now because it so well illustrates what I’ve been talking about – the

power of God even over the spiritually dead like Saul of Tarsus who became the apostle Paul. It illustrates the power of God over the spiritually dead like Richard Maffeo whom God made as he is. It illustrates the power of God over the spiritually dead like everyone else in this room before you called Jesus your savior, lord, master.

 

Ezekiel writes (Ezekiel 37:1-6): “The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; and it was full of bones. . . . and behold, they were very dry. He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, You know.” Again He said to me, “Prophesy over these bones and say to them, ‘O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.’ Thus says the Lord God to these bones, ‘Behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life. I will put sinews on you, make flesh grow back on you, cover you with skin and put breath in you that you may come alive; and you will know that I am the Lord.’”

 

Dry bones raised to vibrant life. Oh, how the world needs to hear this. How our families and acquaintances need to hear this: Eternal life offered to all.

 

BUT God adds a caveat, doesn’t He? He adds a stipulation to life from dry rot, doesn’t He? The gospel is the power of God – for everyone who BELIEVES.

 

We are not at all talking about a mere intellectual assent – “Yes, I believe Jesus is God, I believe Jesus died for my sins, I believe Jesus rose from the dead. Oh, and pass the biscuits please.”

 

Mere intellectual assent does NOT equal salvation. You will remember the words of St James: (James 2:19-20) “Demons also believe, and tremble with fear. But are you willing to recognize that faith without works is useless?” (My paraphrase)

In other words, saving faith is OBEDIENT faith to God's commandments. If we are not striving to obey Christ, if we even marginally dallying with sin, enjoying its passing pleasures – we’d better beware. The gospel is the power of God for eternal salvation, but ONLY for those who obey the gospel, who repent of their sins, and who strive against their sin nature to please their Savior.

The gospel is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes; Everyone. Regardless of our backgrounds, our past histories, current sins, regardless of what we have done or have not done – nor how often we have failed to do right.

 

God imputes to those who come to Him with obedient faith with HIS own righteousness. The sacraments do not save us. Church attendance does not save us. Memorizing scripture does not save us. Doing good works does not save us. What saves us in our faith – the same faith Abraham had. Hear it again from the apostle’s pen:

 

(Romans 4:2-5) “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness.”

 

Faith. Faith that God sent His Son to die in our place, to bear on Himself God's utter wrath for our sins. Faith that God is true to His promise of eternal life for all who trust Christ as their atonement for their sins. Faith that God will be true to His word to utterly and forever forgive and forget our confessed sins.

 

It was that incredible truth of salvation by faith that seems to have exhilarated the former pharisee who thought he had to meticulously follow Moses to please God. Listen to what he wrote to the Christians at Philippi:

 

(Philippians 3:7-9) “But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.”

 

The good news of the gospel is this and more: Our salvation is a GIFT from God. Period. We can do nothing to earn it. And God alone declares us righteous, not because we are in ourselves righteous, but because God credits Christ’s righteousness by and through our obedient faith in who Jesus is, what He has done for us, and WHY He has done it. Again, I will remind us all what Paul wrote to the Christians at Corinth: (2 Corinthians 5:21) “[God] made [Christ] who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

That is one reason Paul continues in this text from Romans: “For in [the gospel] the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

 

Oh, may God make it so in each of our lives that we never be ashamed or embarrassed or shy about such good news as the gospel message. The good news that God's undefeatable in unfaltering power for a changed life-trajectory, the power of God to receive from Him a clean slate not just once at an altar, but every day, moment by moment, as we confess and repent of our sins.

 

On that first Pentecost after the Lord’s sacrificial death that Peter and the others proclaimed forgiveness of sins and eternal life in the Lamb of God. It was after that first Pentecost that the former religious terrorist proclaimed he was not ashamed of that gospel.

 

God loves you. We cannot say it often enough: God loves you. God Himself forgives you of every sin you have ever brought to Him in confession. No one has to remain outside of His embrace as long as we still have breath. His salvation is always as close as our desire to pray for His mercy.

 

So, won’t you pray – if not the first time, then the 100^th time? Pray for His mercy and grace to forgive you and to save you.

Pentecost Sunday Part One - Not Ashamed

 Next week is Pentecost Sunday. The festival of Pentecost did not originate in the first century, but rather it dates to the Exodus of the Jews from Egyptian bondage. The festival is known in the Old Testament by several synonymous titles: The Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Harvest, and also the Feast of the First Fruits (Exodus 23:15-17; Leviticus 23:10-16; Numbers 28:26; Deuteronomy 16:16). In Hebrew, Pentecost is known as Shavuot (meaning, ‘Weeks’).

 

The word ‘Pentecost’ comes from the Greek word meaning ‘fifty,’ and so, in Scripture, Pentecost occurs fifty days each year after the first day of Passover when the Passover lamb was slain. Of course, Christians today recognize the fulfillment of the picture God began to paint in the Books of Moses and which would eventually be finished fifty days after the Passover Lamb of God was slain on Calvary. As the former Pharisaical rabbi Saul – better known as the apostle Paul – wrote to the Christians at Colossae:

 

(Colossians 2:16-17) “Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day, things which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ.”

 

And I hope you can already see the connection between the crucifixion of God's Lamb and the feast of the ‘First Fruits’ of the Church on Pentecost Sunday as it occurred in the second chapter of Acts. But more on that in part two of this message.

It was on that first Pentecost after the Lamb of God's crucifixion that Peter, along with the other apostles and disciples stood on the Temple grounds proclaiming the Christ and His resurrection to the thousands of Jews gathered from across the land. Luke records it this way:

“Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.” Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brethren, what shall we do?” Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit . . . And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation!” Acts 2:36-38, 40)

So, this week before Pentecost Sunday, I want to begin a short series on the messages exploring how Pentecost can – and should – apply to the Christian’s life in 2024. To do that, I will draw attention from time to time to Peter’s words as he spoke to those thousands of Jews gathered in Jerusalem. But for the most part I want to focus today on the letter the former Pharisee wrote to the Christians at Rome. We focus there because what Paul wrote about the gospel is simply an extension of what Peter preached to the crowd in Jerusalem on Pentecost.

 

My text is a familiar one – nearly as familiar, I suspect, as John 3:16 - (Romans 1:16-17): “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “But the righteous man shall live by faith.”

 

Let’s look a moment at that first sentence: “I am not ashamed of the gospel.” Now think for a moment again of Peter’s declaration to the crowd. He made it not very long after he and the rest of the apostles and disciples cowered in that small room in desperate fear for their lives. Their hopes which centered around Jesus as their Messiah lay buried in that borrowed tomb.

 

But on that first Pentecost Peter and the others fearlessly trumpeted the news – the good news – which we know as ‘the gospel.’ And it should be clear to us that something very odd had happened to them. And what happened to them is precisely what happened to the former religious terrorist who wrote to the Christians at Rome: “I am not ashamed of the gospel.”

 

As many of you know, Saul (later known as Paul) went out of his way – quite literally – to find Christians. When he found them . . . well, hear it in his own words: (Acts 26:10-11) “Not only did I lock up many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief priests, but also when they were being put to death, I cast my vote against them. And as I punished them often in all the synagogues, I tried to force them to blaspheme; and being furiously enraged at them, I kept pursuing them even to foreign cities.”

 

But just as something stunningly incredible happened to Peter and the others, something happened to Saul on that road to the city of Damascus that changed his trajectory forever. He’d met the risen Jesus. If you don’t know the story, you can find it easily enough in Acts chapter 9. And so, the religious terrorist who made it his all-consuming ambition to murder Christians now proclaimed the One whose very name he hated. He was not ‘ashamed’ of the gospel message. Some modern synonyms of the word are ‘embarrassed’; ‘apologetic’; and ‘shy.’

 

Are we embarrassed by the gospel message? And why might a person be ashamed of that message?  

 

Well, for one thing the gospel declares itself to be exclusive of all other messages related to salvation and eternal life. The gospel message declares unequivocally that obedient faith in Jesus Christ alone is the Creator’s inflexible requirement for eternal life. Jesus alone is the only door for the remission – the erasing – of our confessed sins.

 

Paul’s text here in Romans chapter one cuts to the heart of a growing problem facing many of today’s Christians in America who are increasingly ashamed or apologetic or shy about the gospel message. The media, our educational systems, the courts, the marketplace, Hollywood, and even many churches (of all places!) have been slowly squeezing Christians into the mold called ‘religious pluralism.’ That ought to frighten us because that mold has the inevitable effect of reducing Jesus the Christ to just one of many religious teachers and prophets.

 

The mold called Religious Pluralism promotes the devilish lie that different religious worldviews are equally valid, equally true, and equally acceptable to God. Therefore, all religious roads lead to God.

 

But when anyone thinks that thought through, he or she will realize that philosophy doesn’t make sense on any level. There can only be one truth, not a half-dozen. The claims of Christianity and every other religious belief are not only diverse in their views of sin, righteousness, and judgment, but they are wildly diverse in their understanding of the nature of Jesus the Christ.

 

Either Islamic faith about Jesus is true, or Christian faith is true. Either Hindu faith about Jesus is true, or Christian faith is true. Either Buddhist faith about Jesus is true, or Christian faith is true. Either Jewish faith about Jesus is true, or Christian faith is true.

 

To say EACH can be true would be like saying 2+2 does not always equal four. Can you imagine architects using 2+2=4 on Monday, and 2+2 = 3 on Tuesday?

Is it not utterly tragic that a growing number of today’s Christians in the pews, in pulpits, and in seminaries are becoming increasingly reluctant to draw a proverbial line in the sand, and unapologetically declare what Peter and Paul declared to be ‘truth’ about Jesus, about sin, judgment, and eternal life? Is it not heart-rending to know how quickly even those in churches are moving away from God's infallible definition of Truth?

 

God has never been one to mince words. He has never been one to equivocate or be ambiguous. And neither should you or I, His servants, when people ask us the reason for our hope of eternal life.

Listen to God speak through Jeremiah (23:8b-30): “But let him who has My word speak My word in truth. What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the Lord. “Is not My word like fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock? Therefore behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the Lord, “who steal My words from each other.”

And hear God speak through the apostle Paul: (1 Thessalonians 2:3-4) “For our exhortation does not come from error or impurity or by way of deceit; but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts.”

 

Or again in Galatians 1:(8-10) “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed! For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.”

 

Only TRUE Christianity – which is synonymous to Bible-based Christianity – only true Christianity holds the definitive answer to the question about the Person of Jesus, and of sin, eternal judgment, and eternal life.

 

Let me repeat that for emphasis. There are not multiple truths about these eternally central questions. There is only ONE truth. And that truth is rooted in God’s love for all of humanity AND is evidenced by His sacrificial offering of His Son Jesus as substitutionary payment for our sins. No other religion portrays the Creator taking on human flesh, living life as a real man, dying as a real man for our sins, and being raised from the dead for our justification.

 

And that means ALL other religions, when held up to the light of the Creator’s truth, ALL other religious are false, and their satanic origin becomes clear as glass.

 

I don’t know how to be more clear.

 

The former Jewish pharisee was not ashamed of the gospel. As many of you remember from my earlier sermons and Bible studies, the word ‘gospel’ means in Greek: “Good news.” So, what is the good news of which the apostle was not ashamed? To better understand what is the ‘good news’ – let’s first look at the ‘bad news’ – which makes the good news all that much ‘gooder.’

 

The bad news is this – Almighty Holy God has inflexibly deemed, “All have sin and fallen short of the glory of God. He has declared, “There is none righteous, no, not one.” (see Romans 3:10-12 and Romans 3:23).

 

The ‘all have sinned’ and fallen short of God's required holiness applies to every one of the 8 billion people on this planet in 2024 – including the hundred or so in this building right now.

 

Of course, and not surprisingly, most men and women scoff at the idea that they are sinners who justly and rightly deserve eternal punishment. Many of us think of ourselves as not-so-bad, especially when we compare ourselves with sinners like rapists and murderers. But when we compare ourselves with others, we demonstrate our total ignorance of the infinite holiness of God. The sun itself, in all its noonday brilliance, is as dark as night when placed next to God’s holiness. And because God demands our holiness be as HIS holiness – without His intervention, we all are lost. Listen: Jesus was not speaking in hyperbole when He commanded us, “Be ye perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48).

And listen: God's word tells us there is nothing ANYONE can do to fix our terrible dilemma. Not our parents, not our pastors . . . no one.

 

Well . . . no one but the One who set the standard for salvation in the first place. Listen to Paul again as he writes to the Christians at Ephesus:

 

And you were dead in your trespasses and sins . . . But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ.  For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:1,4-5, 8-9)

The bad news is that without Christ we live helpless and hopeless. And without Christ we die helpless and hopeless. Were it not for the merciful and gracious intervention of God Himself, we are all under the horrible condemnation of a just and holy Creator God.

 

That’s the bad news. But the ‘good news’ – the gospel which Peter preached on that first Pentecost and of which Paul was not ashamed – and of which neither should we be ashamed – is this: “But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7) 

 

Oh, may God bury this good news deep in our souls. When we were helpless and hopeless, God did what no one in the universe could do. He opened our blind eyes so that we could turn “from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that [we] may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in [Christ].’ (See Acts 26:18).

 

It was the gracious and merciful intervention of the Creator God who ‘rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-14)

 

How – why – is anyone ashamed of THAT good news? That GREAT news? That unparalleled, incomparable news? We can be born again, receive a clean slate – and not just once in our lifetime when we come to Jesus as our savior – but every day, every day, when we confess our newly committed sins, we find His forgiveness such that He chooses to no longer remember those sins! Surely, as Jeremiah told it: “The Lord’s lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23, NASB)

 

Oh! Be not ashamed of the gospel. Call its truths what they are: Absolute and unchangeable. Not surprisingly, then, the first recorded words of Jesus in Mark’s gospel are these: “Repent and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:15)

 

It’s what Peter told the assembled crowd in that second chapter of the Acts of the Apostles: “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit . . .”

 

And it is the message of repentance that forms the basis of Paul’s words to the Christians at Rome: “I am not ashamed of the gospel.”

 

Please, do not fall for Satan’s deceptions spread by men and women of high titles and degrees and popularity. God's truth remains: Unless a person repents of their sins and receives by faith God's promise of the remission of those sins through the sacrificial blood of Christ, that person cannot ever, throughout eternity, ever enter heaven.

 

An absolute truth? And unchangeable truth?  Yes. It is and forever will be.

 

We will come back to this text in Romans next week as we celebrate Pentecost Sunday 2024.