Faith in the miraculous Jesus (some thoughts on Jesus, miracles and faith)

John 4:46 "Therefore He came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a royal official whose son was sick at Capernaum."

Introduction:

As one begins to study John's Gospel, the main purpose of the writing is found in John 20:31. As we approach this particular account of Jesus' healing of the nobleman's son in John 4:46-54, we note how much space is devoted to not only the miracle itself, but in the authentication and testimony of it. John's goal is to demonstrate that this Jesus is indeed the eternal Son of God in human flesh. He does so by a variety of means: personal recorded conversations, sermons preached or teachings taught by Jesus, testimonies by others and by what he calls "signs" (i.e miracles). John 20:30-31 attaches this latter method of miraculous attestation to the overall purpose of the book: "Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name."

What is a miracle?

So then, what is a miracle? A miracle is an infrequently occurring, direct act of God that is performed in a religiously significant setting to confirm God's messenger and message. In John's Gospel we find seven particular signs or miracles mentioned:

1. Water to wine at Cana. 2:1-12

2. Healing of Nobleman's son. 4:46-54

3. Healing of man at Pool of Bethesda. 5:1-17

4. Feeding of 5,000 6:1-14

5. Walking on Water 6:15-21

6. Healing of man born blind. 9:1-34

7. Raising of Lazarus. 11:1-46

Each of these miracles communicate something particular about Jesus, whether it be His ministry, His majestic Deity, His marvelous identity or His manhood of humanity. Concerning the first miracle at Cana and this second one, we find Jesus' identity as the Mediator is the focus of the first (water into wine). The second miracle or "sign" demonstrates to us His majestic Deity. In this particular account we come to understand the relationship between miracles and faith. 

Contrary to popular opinion, miracles are not  "violations of the law of nature". 18th century Scottish skeptic David Hume had popularized this definition about miracles being violations of the laws of nature. Hume's project included denial of not only God's direct intervention in the world, but also the impossibility of being able to identify one. In effect, Hume's work influenced many agnostic and atheistic conceptions as to how our world works exclusively by natural laws and forces. Even though the last half-century of philosophical thought and mathematical inquiry has shown Hume's theories about miracles to be inadequate and inaccurate, a good number of people still find them convincing. 

The problem with Hume's ideas and objections against miracles is several-fold. For one thing, C.S Lewis notes that with respect to nature and the place of miracles: "In calling them miracles we do not mean that they are contradictions or outrages; we mean that, left to her own resources, she could never produce them." Lewis shows that the laws of nature are not opposed to the possibility of miracles. The problem with Hume's definition is that it makes the laws of nature "prescriptive" rather than "descriptive". In other words, on Hume's definition, the laws of nature necessarily prescribe how things ought to behave in nature, as if they were in a closed system. 

Again, Lewis illustrates this problem by having us imagine a dresser drawer with six pennies placed in it on a Monday. Then on Tuesday, we would place six additional pennies in the same drawers. When we would open the drawer on Wednesday, we ought to expect to find twelve pennies, since the laws of mathematics describes 6 plus 6 equals twelve. Lewis then describes a person coming into the room and taking some pennies between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. If we open the drawer on Wednesday, expecting to find twelve cents, and instead find a different amount, what are we to conclude? Have the laws of mathematics been "violated". No. Instead, an agent has intervened, changing the expected resulted. 

So we come back once more to our definition of a miracle: A miracle is an infrequently occurring, direct act of God that is performed in a religiously significant setting to confirm God's messenger and message. 

How does Jesus' "signs" compare to our suggested definition of a miracle?

Jesus' nearly four-year ministry saw a total of 35 miracles recorded in our four gospels, 7 of which are listed in John's Gospel. Miracles in scripture did occur relatively infrequently, clustering in three major time-frames: Moses, Elijah/Elisha and Jesus/the apostles. Although Jesus did perform quite a few miracles, His ministry emphasized mainly His teaching and preaching. 

Concerning God's direct activity, we can say this fits Jesus' ministry. John's point is to show that Jesus is the incarnation of the Divine Son, hence His performing of miracles by the power of the Holy Spirit means that strictly speaking - God is directly doing the miracles (whether we credit the Son or the Spirit, both Persons share in the one, undivided, Divine nature).  

So what about religiously significant contexts? Certainly the setting of Jesus' miracle was in and around the place He had performed His first miracle, which was to prove that He was the Mediator of the New Covenant. The point of Jesus' healing of the royal official's son was to attest His message and Himself. So we can say that what we see happening is a miracle. But what about the testimony of it?

How John demonstrates the reality of Jesus' miracle

When we find the royal official inquiring about the day and hour when his son was healed, we may wonder why John would include such a detail? Dr. Timothy McGrew, Chairman of the Philosophy Department at Western Michigan University and a prominent Christian apologist, has noted that when a testimony of a miracle is used as a way of screening whether or not a miracle has occurred, the probability for us to identify a miracle increases. It seems here at least, John is purposefully using this nobleman's series of questions to show the reader that Jesus' miracle was undoubtedly real, and thus Jesus' power as God in human flesh was truly attested. 

How we see the Nobleman exercising true faith in the miraculous Jesus

We read in John 4:53-54 "So the father knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives”; and he himself believed and his whole household. 54 This is again a second sign that Jesus performed when He had come out of Judea into Galilee." The man's faith in Jesus was due to Jesus, with the miracle functioning as a way of attesting Jesus' identity. When we first meet this man, we find him only focusing on the need and Jesus' miracle working power. 

Indeed, this man's need was great and he recognized Jesus' as a miracle worker, but so did Nicodemas in John 3. Although miracles can attest to the message and the messenger, they cannot confer faith in the observer. The Holy Spirit working in the heart by the Word of God is the only way in which anyone will believe in Jesus. Jesus had spoken the word for the man to "go". That word had the Spirit's signature power attached to it, opening the man's eyes to behold Jesus not as merely some "miracle worker", but as God-incarnate, Savior, Lord. 

What it means to have the fruit of joy

Galatians 5:22-23 "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

Introduction:
What does it mean to have the fruit of joy in the Christian life? In past posts, we looked at the fruit of the Spirit that is described in Galatians 5:22-23, with specific focus upon the first of such fruit: "love" (see the link to that post here: http://www.growingchristianresources.com/2016/08/understanding-fruit-of-spirit-love.html). We labored in that post to grasp how the Holy Spirit connects the Christian to the love of God and its varied expressions that we find throughout scripture. We also noted that in so far as the fruit include love and the other eight virtues supplied by the Spirit, the responsibility of the Christian is to exercise these virtues by obedience and service to others. The Holman Christian Standard Commentary on Galatians 5:22 notes the following about the fruit of the Spirit: "This fruit the Holy Spirit produces in the life of a faithful Christian. In other passages of Scripture, we are commanded to fulfill the individual characteristics. The answer to this seeming paradox, I believe, is that only the Holy Spirit can produce the fruit; but he will not do so unless we are striving to the best of our ability for them in faithful obedience."

Today we want to consider the second "fruit of the Spirit" mention in Galatians 5:22-23, "joy". As we already mentioned, we want to grasp what it means to have the fruit of joy. What is it that the Holy Spirit does in connecting us to such joy in the Christian life? What does such joy look like when I am regularly walking in it? Such questions are practically important, since there are times even in my life when joy seems to elude me. If we understand joy to be more to do with an internal condition of the heart regulated by the Spirit, then perhaps one's experience of joy has more to do with how aware one is of the work of joy the Spirit is operating within them. Hence, perhaps it is not so much the fruit of joy that eludes me as it is my day-to-day partaking of His work or being more distracted by the things around me. At any rate, let's note the following headings:

1. Joy in God
When we talk about "joy" in the spiritual Christian walk, we must begin with the fountain head "joy of all joys" - namely joy in God Himself. Pastor John Piper has defined the idea of Christian joy as follows: "Christian joy is a good feeling in the soul, produced by the Holy Spirit, as he causes us to see the beauty of Christ in the word and in the world" (see link: http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-do-you-define-joy ).

When we do word studies on "joy" in the original languages of the Bible, ideas emerge such as "delight", "shouts of praise", "thrilling exuberance" and "delightful contentment". God Himself is the only being that can bring cause for joy apart from whatever benefits He may be able to do for us. In other words, the source of joy for the Christian is found in God Himself. If God were never to do one other thing for us, we would find just as much joy in Him as when He does the countless things of goodness towards us. Hannah, the mother of Samuel, begins her prayer by saying in 1 Samuel 2:1: "My heart exults in the Lord...". In the New Testament, we find Mary beginning her "Magnificat" in Luke 1:46 "My soul exalts in the Lord". The Apostle Paul urges us in Philippians 4:4 "Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say, rejoice".  

God is worthy of rejoicing. God is the source of joy due to the fact that He possess great-making properties such as omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, all-goodness and beauty. It requires the Person of the Holy Spirit to convince us and make clear to us that this is so. Once the Holy Spirit comes to us in conversion, the grace He brings includes this component of rejoicing in the Lord. Jesus notes in John 7:37-39 "Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." As Jesus was asserting this truth, He undoubtedly was referring back to Old Testament promises and predictions such as Isaiah 12:2-3 “Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the Lord God is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.” 3 Therefore you will joyously draw water From the springs of salvation." The Holy Spirit connects us to God, which brings us joy in God. Thus to have the fruit of joy means we have the ability and desire to rejoice in God, which supplies the believer with strength for daily living (Nehemiah 8:10). 

2. Joy in salvation
As we rejoice in God, we find scripture urging us to rejoice in His works. We could talk about His work in creation, which can indeed be cause for joy due to how creation demonstrates His power, glory and honor (Psalm 10:1-6; 104:1-4). We could also talk about the victories He grants as cause for joy (1 Samuel 19:5; Isaiah 41:16). God's works are often appealed to by the Biblical authors to encourage further joy in God (Psalm 66:3-5). The particular work which seems to elicit the greatest cause for joy is God's work of salvation. In 1 Samuel 2:1, we find Hannah rejoicing in God and in the salvation He brings. Psalm 40:16 states - "Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; Let those who love Your salvation say continually, “The Lord be magnified!”  In Luke 10:21, Jesus Himself rejoices in His Father and the unfolding purposes of salvation He is revealing through Him: At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight."

So many more passages could be cited, but the point is well made with respect to rejoicing in God's salvation. Joy marks the converted heart (Romans 5:1-5) and is delivered to us by the Holy Spirit. He is the One who delivers such joy not only in conversion but in the Christian's growth in sanctification. Paul writes in Philippians 3:3 "for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh." So we see that having the fruit of joy entails joy in God, His salvation and thirdly...

3. Joy in His Word.
The scriptures are ever needed when it comes to converting the human soul (Psalm 19:7; James 1:18) and sanctifying the Christian (2 Timothy 3:16-17). But what about our joy? Do the scriptures deliver to us the joy of the Lord or joy in the Lord? We find the following verses that assert the link between the Christian's joy and the scriptures:

Job 23:12 “I have not departed from the command of His lips;
I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food."

Psalm 112:1 "Praise the Lord!
How blessed is the man who fears the Lord, Who greatly delights in His commandments."

Psalm 119:14 "I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, As much as in all riches."

Psalm 119:111 "I have inherited Your testimonies forever, For they are the joy of my heart."

Psalm 119:162 "I rejoice at Your word, As one who finds great spoil."

Jeremiah 15:16 "Your words were found and I ate them, And Your words became for me a joy and the delight of my heart; For I have been called by Your name, O Lord God of hosts."

Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field."

Acts 2:41,47 (41) "They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." (47) "praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved."

Closing thoughts
Today we considered that second virtue that is listed by Paul in his presentation of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23, namely "joy". We first of all considered that such joy, as delivered by the Holy Spirit, connects us to joy in God. Since the Holy Spirit is a member of the blessed Trinity, as well as being Himself truly and fully God, then it follows that He could directly connect us to joy in God. Second, we saw that the fruit of joy also leads to joy in our salvation. Then lastly, we noted how the scriptures, and our rejoicing in them, feeds and cultivates our joy. 

A proposed outline of 1 Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians 13:4-7  "Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."

Introduction
In our last post we had aimed to understand the thrust of 1 Corinthians 13. Today we offer a suggested outline of the chapter. 

1. The Priority of God's Love. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

Without God's love, I'm no better than...

A. The finest speaker
B. The most faithful saint
C. The most fervent martyr

These three categories were prized in the cultures of Corinth and 1st century Judaism. In the Greco-Roman world, were speakers that practiced what was called "rhetoric". Rhetoric entailed the finely skilled art of communication. Certain philosophers in Greek history would had been respected, since they had followings and in some cases (like Socrates), died for their teachings. Judaism had its share of Martyrs (such as the Jews who died in the Maccabbean revolts of 168-165 b.c) and saints (like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Moses).  If God's love is not included in these efforts, such actions are useless. God's love is prioritized. To apply what Paul is saying here, are we as Christians cultivating our love for God, and allowing His love to flow through us by our obedience, surrender and exercise of the gifts.

2. Practice of God's love. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a

Compare what love "is" and what love "is not"...

Love is...patient, kind, rejoices in truth, bears all, believes all, hopes all, endures all (7 positives).

Love is not...jealous, bragging, act in unbelief, self-seeking, provoked, counts wrongs, rejoices in unrighteousness, never fails (9 negatives).

3. Power of God's love. 1 Corinthians 13:8b-13

A. Enduring quality of God's love. 13:8b-10

B. Maturing quality of God's love 
13:11

C. Illuminating quality of God's love. 13:12-13

Now as we think of the priority, practice and power of God's love, additional cross references can be used to shed light on 1 Corinthians 13.

1 John 4:15-19 "Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. 16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 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. 19 We love, because He first loved us."

We can also note how the love here is spoken of in 1 Peter 4:8 "Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins." 

God's love, poured through the Christian and the gifts He gives, can be likened unto a mighty river flowing through an otherwise dry river bed. Consider for example John 7:37-39  "Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” 39 But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified."

Closing thoughts
Today we have offered a brief outline of 1 Corinthians 13, along with some appropriate cross references. May the reader use this for the glory of God to the betterment of their spiritual lives and others. 

Understanding the great love chapter of 1 Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians 12:31-13:3  "But earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I show you a still more excellent way.
13:1  If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.2 If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing."

Introduction

In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul introduces his readers to the subject of spiritual gifts. We find him describing the various Spirit-given abilities to be God-given empowerments of grace given to Christians so that they can do the will of God. In past posts we have noted four general categories of spiritual gifts found in 1 Corinthians 12-14 and elsewhere in the New Testament (see Ephesians 4:11-17; Romans 12:6-8; 1 Peter 4:7-10). Those four categories of spiritual gifts are: motivational, leadership, service and occasional (or miraculous). We've also noted too how spiritual gifts function as spiritual-fingerprints for each individual Christian and the local church. Today we want to understand what is often called "the great love chapter" of the Bible - 1 Corinthians 13. 

The reader may had noticed that I started today's opening passage in 1 Corinthians 12:31. The chapter and verse divisions of our Bibles were not introduced until the Middle Ages. On occasion, wherever a chapter division begins may not be where the text itself ends or begins. 1 Corinthians 12:31 is a transition verse between Paul's foregoing discussion on the spiritual gifts and what will be his communication of God's love through the gifts. 

What kind of love is found in 1 Corinthians 13?

Over the years I have heard 1 Corinthians 13 used in wedding ceremonies. It is most often the case taken to mean the type of love shared between a husband and a wife. For sure, certain applications about human love could be gleaned, however that does not appear to be the thrust of 1 Corinthians 13. This writer would submit that the type of love featured in 1 Corinthians 13 is none other than God's love expressed through and by the Christian to God and to others around them. 

Without getting into the technicalities of the underlying Greek text of 1 Corinthians 13, the way in which the word "love" is rendered suggests that a certain quality of love is the focus in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3. In addition, Paul then uses another grammatical feature to specify the type of love he is talking about to not be just any love in general. 

Note: For those readers who want to explore the technical reasons as to why we can say that God's love through the Christian is the focus of 1 Corinthians 13, click the following link to the post:
https://biblicalexegete.wordpress.com/2016/08/31/1-corinthians-131-4-in-greek-and-english/

Several commentators over the years have noted the following about the type of love we find in 1 Corinthians 13:

Ellicott's Commentary notes: "The more excellent way is “Love.” Without it all moral and intellectual gifts are valueless. If there be love—the love of God, and the love of our brethren—in our hearts, all will be well." 

James-Fausset-Brown note in their commentary: "The New Testament psalm of love, as the forty-fifth Psalm (see Ps 45:1, title) and the Song of Solomon in the Old Testament." This particular remark is telling, since virtually all commentators have noted how Psalm 45 and Song of Solomon portray or illustrate the relationship of love God has for His people through the lens of marriage. 

More recent commentators indicate that the love spoken of by Paul in 1 Corinthians 13 cannot be reduced to mere "human love" or sentimentality. The Bible Knowledge Commentary for example notes: 

"Paul shifted from the first person to the third person and replaced himself with a personification of love. Some have seen in verses 4–6 the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22–23); others have seen here a description of Christ Himself. As different sides of the same coin, both are applicable and provided a solution to the many Corinthian problems." 

With respect to the Christian, the type of love expressed by such is explained in the Holman Standard Commentary on this text: 

"Paul’s deep concern for the unity of the church at Corinth caused him to address several aspects of Christian love. The first quality Paul listed was love is patient. Patience is a quality of love that the New Testament frequently mentions by this or closely related terminology. It signifies forbearance, slowness to repay for offenses. God is patient because he does not immediately punish those who offend him. God’s patience slows down the judgment process and opens the way for reprieve from punishment altogether. Believers should behave similarly because of their love for one another."

Oftentimes we will find God's attributes described as being "incommunicable" or "communicable", with the latter referring to those traits with which He and His people share in common. Thus, God is a God of love, with the communication of such love carrying forth in the way the Christian loves other people with His love. One final contemporary resource stems from a sermon Pastor John MacArthur preached on 1 Corinthians 13:1. MacArthur notes the following summary of Paul's point in 1 Corinthians 13:1 - 

"Now, that is precisely the kind of thing Paul is pointing out in 1 Corinthians 13.  No matter what a person is like, no matter how he behaves, no matter how he relates to you, seek his highest good.  That’s what God did.  As God sends His rain on the just and the unjust, so you are to shower acts of self-sacrificing service on the deserving and the undeserving equally.  Now, you’ll have to remember that this is not related to emotion but related to will.  It is not an act of the emotion, it is an act of the will.  To love somebody in terms of an act of self-sacrifice is not a feeling but it is a determination that you make in your mind that this is right and this is what you will do."

Closing thoughts

Today we aimed to understand the great love chapter of 1 Corinthians 13. Our goal was to grasp what kind of love Paul is speaking of in the chapter. We concluded that this is nothing less than God's love expressed through the Christian in the exercise of their gifts. Without God's love flowing like a river through the Christian's obedience and gifts, the outcome will end up being nothing. 

What the Lord's Table and Spiritual Gifts have in common

1 Corinthians 10:16-17 "Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a sharing in the body of Christ? 17 Since there is one bread, we who are many are one body; for we all partake of the one bread." 

1 Corinthians 11:29 "For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly."

1 Corinthians 12:12 "For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ."

Introduction:
Paul is writing to the church at Corinth on a host of various topics. In 1 Corinthians 10-11 he addresses various issues relative to the observance of the Lord's Supper. Then, in 1 Corinthians 12-14, we find Paul addressing the important topic of spiritual gifts. Although the Lord's supper and spiritual gifts may be different subjects, there is a vital common ground shared by both - namely in how the gifts and the supper relate to the church as the body of Christ. Moreover, to consider the body of Christ must necessarily include it's head and Lord - Jesus Christ. Today's post aims at meditating on this common ground shared by the Lord's Supper and the spiritual gifts.

1. The Lord's Supper demonstrates the body of Christ, the gifts define the body of Christ - thus both depict Christ and His church
As we consider 1 Corinthians 10-11, we note how Paul reminds his readers of the importance of the Lord's Supper. In 1 Corinthians 10 we find him paralleling the Lord's Supper as a sign for demonstrating the reality of Christ and His church, just as the various festivals in the Old Testament signified the reality of God's covenant with Israel. Concerning Israel in this regard, the commentator Albert Barnes notes: 

"Behold Israel - Look at the Jews. The design here is to illustrate the sentiment which he was establishing, by a reference to the fact that among the Jews those who partook of the same sacrifices were regarded as being one people, and as worshipping one God." 

With respect as to how the Lord's supper demonstrates the reality of the body of Christ connected to its head - Jesus Christ, Matthew Henry comments: 

"Did not the joining in the Lord's supper show a profession of faith in Christ crucified, and of adoring gratitude to him for his salvation ? Christians, by this ordinance, and the faith therein professed, were united as the grains of wheat in one loaf of bread, or as the members in the human body, seeing they were all united to Christ, and had fellowship with him and one another."

The Lord's table serves to demonstrate the reality of the church that is composed of all who have been truly born again, who profess faith in a Risen Lord as their head. So then, how do we define the organic life of the church body. If the supper demonstrates such, then we find the gifts given by the Holy Spirit as a means of defining the body. In the opening passages quoted in today's post, 1 Corinthians 12:12 indicates how the gifts serve to highlight the church's diversity and unity among the members. Each member is distinct with regards to their gifts, and yet they all form one harmonious whole. Such gifts outline the spiritual gift finger-print of each local church, which in turn points to the head - Jesus Christ. 

When we consider the Lord's supper and the gifts together, we find that they work in respectively demonstrating and defining the body of Christ as in connection with its risen and ascended Lord. Let's note one more point of common ground between the Lord's table and the spiritual gifts....

2. Both the supper and the gifts show the church's dependence upon the Lord Jesus Christ
We've seen how 1 Corinthians 10-11 and 12-14 depict the relationship that Jesus Chris t has to His body - the church. Jesus of course retained his human nature and physical body (albeit a glorified, resurrected one) following His resurrection and ascension (see Luke 24; Acts 1:11-14). The metaphor of the church as the "body of Christ" represents the logical and mystical union all Christians have with the Lord Jesus Christ. Such truths as that of the Lord's supper and the spiritual gifts highlight the Lordship of Jesus over His church. 

In this second point, we now see our dependence upon Jesus Christ in both the Lord's supper and the gifts. Such dependence is communicate by the language of "eating and drinking". The Apostle Paul unifies both the Old and New Testaments by first commenting on how Israel of old ultimately depended on Christ as He was in His pre-incarnated presence among them in 1 Corinthians 10:3-4 "and all ate the same spiritual food; 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink, for they were drinking from a spiritual rock which followed them; and the rock was Christ." Then Paul uses this same "eating and drinking" language to describe the church's dependence upon Jesus Christ in 1 Corinthians 10:16 "Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a sharing in the body of Christ?" 

Jesus Himself would often use this imagery to describe the disciple's relationship of dependence and union with Him in texts such as John 6:51 "I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.” So the Lord's supper is a sign that signifies this mystical reality shared between Christians and Christ. When we partake of the elements, it is we ourselves in whom Christ dwells by the Person of the Holy Spirit. They are symbols for sure, but not just bare ones. We are as it were participating in and with our Lord Jesus Christ, performing what the Psalmist describes as the walk of faith in this "eating and drinking" language of Psalm 34:8 "O taste and see that the Lord is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!" The Lord's supper unquestionably shows the dependence the church has upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

But now do the spiritual gifts communicate this same idea of dependence? They do. When one comes to 1 Corinthians 12:13-14, this language of "eating and drinking" is found yet again with respect to the gifts: "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
14 For the body is not one member, but many." The great Baptist commentator John Gill notes: 

"(I)f they are regenerated and sanctified, they appear equally to belong to Christ, to be of his body, and have an equal propriety in all immunities and blessings belonging to his people (see Colossians 3:11). And have been all made to drink into one Spirit; are all partakers of the same graces of the Spirit, as faith, hope, love, &c. and daily receive under his guidance, direction, and influence, out of the same fulness of grace in Christ, from whence they draw and drink this water with joy; and all drink the same spiritual drink, the blood of Christ, whose blood is drink indeed."

Closing thoughts
So in meditating on the common ground shared between the Lord's supper and spiritual gifts, we have found two main themes between them:

1. Both depict Christ's relationship to and over His church.

2. Both show the dependence the church has upon her head - the Lord Jesus Christ

Both the Lord's supper and the gifts remind us that we cannot separate our understanding of the church from the head - Jesus Christ. He is the Lord and Savior of His people and they ever depend upon Him. May we as followers of Jesus Christ look to Him today as Savior, Lord and treasure as we exalt Him as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

Treasure, Savior and Lord - Reflections on the Woman at the Well in John 4:7-42

John 4:7-10 "There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus *said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Therefore the Samaritan woman *said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

Introduction:
Today we want to briefly consider the account of the woman at the well in John 4, and how it is she came to grasp Jesus Christ as Treasure, Lord and Savior. We will discover certain applications to our own lives as we consider her testimony of salvation recounted by John in his Gospel.  

As the account begins, we find Jesus and the disciples travelling and Jesus purposefully leading them through Samaria. Normally Jews avoided that part of Israel, since Samaritans and Jews had deep hostilities that were of a historical and religious nature. Samaritans derived from the union of Assyrians and left over Jews following the Assyrian exile of 722 b.c. The centuries of Jewish hostility toward the Samaritans, with the Samaritans developing their own religious traditions centered around the first five books of the Bible - resulted in the tensions.

As Jesus neared the city of Samaria, he told his disciples to go into the city to get some food. While they left, He came to a well that the Samaritans taught had been hand dug by Jacob (see Genesis 33:19; 48:22; Joshua 24:32). According to R.C Sproul's St. Andrews Commentary on John, this particular well is still present in that area (see picture below):
 
According to Sproul, this woman's timing for drawing water from the well (12 noon or the "sixth hour" - John 4:6) was abnormal, since the women of that era and location would had came together in groups during early morning and late in the day. Her isolation and timing indicates that she was an outcast among outcasts. Undoubtedly, Jesus' timing was nothing less than a divine appointment with this woman. 

More could be noted about the background, but lets dive into the overall narrative of John 4:7-42. What was there about Jesus encounter with her that led her to see Him as Treasure, Lord and Savior? Below we see the following progression and outline of the text:

She was brought to see Jesus as her Treasure. 4:1-26 
We can see in Jesus' interaction with her a series of progressive insights which led her to treasure Him:

John 4:9 "How is it that You, being a Jew"

John 4:12 "You are not greater than our Father Jacob, are you?"

John 4:19 "Sir, I perceive that You are a Prophet"

John 4:25 "I know that Messiah is coming"

John 4:28-29 So the woman left her waterpot, and went into the city and said to the men, 29 “Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done; this is not the Christ, is it?”

The underlined words tell us all we need to know. The woman's conversion occurred officially in John 4:28-29, with the prior statements indicating what looked to be the Spirit's working. We are reminded of John the Baptist's statement in John in John 3:27 "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven."

She urged others to follow Jesus as Lord. 4:27-38
In John 4:29 this woman raises a question that, in the Greek text, would lead us to expect her audience to respond in the negative. The woman saw the dots all connect. As far as she was concerned, this had to be the Messiah. Whether they ascended to embrace and trust in this Messiah as Lord would not affect her identification of Him. Sovereign grace had achieved its work in her heart. The Spirit's work had circumcised her heart, pealed off the layers of unbelief, shame and guilt. This, mind you, was an Old Testament salvation, with all the constituent elements of N.T salvation. In other words, this woman was saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. The "circumcision of the heart" was the O.T version of the fuller N.T reality of the New Birth (see Deuteronomy 30:6; Romans 2:29). What would the response of the Samaritans be to this thunderbolt out of the blue sky?

Her testimony led to a confession of Jesus as Savior. 4:39-42
The underlying Greek text, as we already noted, would have us to expect the Samaritans to view her claims as preposterous. No way could this Jesus be the Messiah, the Treasure, the Lord. Yet, just as the Spirit of God had worked in her life, so He did in theirs. We read in John 4:39-42:

"From that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, “He told me all the things that I have done.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they were asking Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. 41 Many more believed because of His word; 42 and they were saying to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world.”

This startling confession of Jesus as "Savior of the World" could only be attributed to the Spirit's working. Paul later on writes in 1 Corinthians 12:3 "Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the Holy Spirit." Undoubtedly we have the necessity to utter such a confession of Jesus' Saviorship and Lordship (Romans 10:9-10). Nevertheless, lest the Spirit is at work in our hearts, such a confession will never issue forth from an otherwise spiritual dead heart (see Ephesians 2:1-9; Romans 10:8-10). 

Closing thoughts
As we saw today, the woman at the well was met by Jesus. He acknowledged her as Treasure, Lord and ultimately Savior. The response of the Samaritans to her message tells the same story. I leave you dear reader with this thought: have you done the same? Would it be that we would, by grace, through faith, ever see Jesus as the Treasure we desire to follow as Lord and Savior. 

Explaining a Christian Worldview from a Southern Baptist Perspective

1 Peter 3:15 "but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence."

Introduction
Yesterday we offered a brief explanation of a Christian worldview.  We noted first that any worldview addresses the so-called "big questions", with appropriate headings from the Christian worldview:

1. Where did I come from (hence the origins question)? 
Doctrine of God & Doctrine of Creation


2. Why am I here (hence the meaning question)?
Doctrine of God & Doctrine of Creation


3. What kind of world is the world (hence, the nature of reality question)?
Doctrine of Creation & Doctrine of God

4. What explains the problems I see around me, and is there a solution (hence, the problem of suffering)?
Doctrine of sin & Doctrine of Christ

5. Is their a point to life? Where are we heading? (hence, the ultimate purpose of life question)
Doctrine of last things

Thus we used the following five main headings to summarize what we mean by this subject:

1. Doctrine of God
2. Doctrine of Creation
3. Doctrine of Sin 
4. Doctrine of Christ
5. Doctrine of last things 

Today we want to consider what the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 has to say with regards to these main headings. Doctrinal confessions and creeds provide summaries of what Christians believe and teach about the Bible. Such statements are designed to equip Christians to engage with the culture from a Biblical worldview. The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 functions in this capacity. The Introductory section of the Baptist Faith and Message 2000 explains this function as follows:

"Baptist churches, associations, and general bodies have adopted confessions of faith as a witness to the world, and as instruments of doctrinal accountability. We are not embarrassed to state before the world that these are doctrines we hold precious and as essential to the Baptist tradition of faith and practice."

We then read on: "As a committee, we have been charged to address the "certain needs" of our own generation. In an age increasingly hostile to Christian truth, our challenge is to express the truth as revealed in Scripture, and to bear witness to Jesus Christ, who is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life."

Below I will simply list the five main headings with the appropriate quote from the Baptist Faith and Message. 

1. Doctrine of God
"There is one and only one living and true God. He is an intelligent, spiritual, and personal Being, the Creator, Redeemer, Preserver, and Ruler of the universe. God is infinite in holiness and all other perfections. God is all powerful and all knowing; and His perfect knowledge extends to all things, past, present, and future, including the future decisions of His free creatures. To Him we owe the highest love, reverence, and obedience. The eternal triune God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence, or being."

2. Doctrine of Creation
We find three statements as follows:
"God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the flow of the stream of human history according to the purposes of His grace. He is all powerful, all knowing, all loving, and all wise." (Article 2)

"Man is the special creation of God, made in His own image. He created them male and female as the crowning work of His creation. The gift of gender is thus part of the goodness of God's creation. In the beginning man was innocent of sin and was endowed by his Creator with freedom of choice." (Article 3)

"God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. It is composed of persons related to one another by marriage, blood, or adoption. Marriage is the uniting of one man and one woman in covenant commitment for a lifetime. It is God's unique gift to reveal the union between Christ and His church and to provide for the man and the woman in marriage the framework for intimate companionship, the channel of sexual expression according to biblical standards, and the means for procreation of the human race." (Article 18)

3. Doctrine of Sin 
"In the beginning man was innocent of sin and was endowed by his Creator with freedom of choice. By his free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. Through the temptation of Satan man transgressed the command of God, and fell from his original innocence whereby his posterity inherit a nature and an environment inclined toward sin. Therefore, as soon as they are capable of moral action, they become transgressors and are under condemnation. Only the grace of God can bring man into His holy fellowship and enable man to fulfill the creative purpose of God." (Article 3)

4. Doctrine of Christ
"Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus Christ He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. Jesus perfectly revealed and did the will of God, taking upon Himself human nature with its demands and necessities and identifying Himself completely with mankind yet without sin. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His substitutionary death on the cross He made provision for the redemption of men from sin. He was raised from the dead with a glorified body and appeared to His disciples as the person who was with them before His crucifixion. He ascended into heaven and is now exalted at the right hand of God where He is the One Mediator, fully God, fully man, in whose Person is effected the reconciliation between God and man. He will return in power and glory to judge the world and to consummate His redemptive mission. He now dwells in all believers as the living and ever present Lord." (Article 2, section "B")

5. Doctrine of last things
"God, in His own time and in His own way, will bring the world to its appropriate end. According to His promise, Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly in glory to the earth; the dead will be raised; and Christ will judge all men in righteousness. The unrighteous will be consigned to Hell, the place of everlasting punishment. The righteous in their resurrected and glorified bodies will receive their reward and will dwell forever in Heaven with the Lord." (Article 10)