Tag: Sunday

Calvin on Christ’s Death and Resurrection

~ Bob Hayton ~ 2 Comments

Christ is Risen! Happy Easter everyone. I encourage us all to spend some time contemplating Christ’s death and resurrection today.

The following excerpt is from Coffee with Calvin by Donald K. McKim (Westminster John Knox Press, 2013), a book of devotional thoughts excerpted from Calvin’s Institutes.

Christ’s Death and Resurrection

Therefore, we divide the substance of our salvation between Christ’s death and resurrection as follows: through the death, sin was wiped out and death extinguished; through his resurrection righteousness was restored and life raised up, so that — thanks to his resurrection — his death manifested its power and efficacy in us. (Institutes 2.16.13)

The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ go together. Jesus’ resurrection follows his death in the Gospels. Jesus’ death is the necessary prelude to his resurrection. Theologically, each is important for salvation to occur.

Calvin indicates ways the death and resurrection of Christ are key for believers. Through Jesus’ death, sin is obliterated and the power of death is broken. Somehow, through the death of Jesus, God forgives our sin and wipes away its power to hold us in its clutches. The ultimate result of sin — death — is snuffed out by the death of Christ. Jesus underwent death and through his death the power of death over us is taken away. This is why the cross is so central in Christianity. In the cross of Christ we find that sin’s power is wiped out and death’s power is extinguished.

The death of Christ has these effects because of Christ’s resurrection. God raised Jesus from the dead so that Christ’s death can have its sin-forgiving, death-defeating power. The resurrection established God’s power in Christ over the powers of sin and evil, restoring righteousness for the world and raising Christ to new life so that from now on, new life for believers can be real. This is the celebration of Easter and all days when the resurrection of Christ is remembered. “Thanks to his resurrection,” says Calvin, Christ’s death works its power in us. Sin is forgiven; death is conquered. This is the glad news of salvaion. (Kindle loc. 684-693)

You can pick up a copy of Coffee with Calvin at the following online retailers: Christianbook.com and Amazon.com.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by the Westminster John Knox Press. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

Music Mondays: “Hosanna (Praise Is Rising)” by Brenton Brown and Paul Baloche

~ Bob Hayton

Music Monday posts highlight the music which touched my heart on Sunday. I pray the message of these songs will help us all to live in the spirit of worship all week long.

I haven’t highlighted any songs here for quite some time. I’ve long enjoyed this song, especially on Palm Sunday. We sang this yesterday at our church and so I thought I would highlight the song here today for my readers. May it help us meditate on the meaning of Passion week all week long.

Hosanna (Praise Is Rising)

by Brenton Brown and Paul Baloche

Verse 1:
Praise is rising
Eyes are turning to You
We turn to You
Hope is stirring
Hearts are yearning for You
We long for You

Pre-Chorus:
‘Cause when we see You
We find strength to face the day
In Your presence
All our fears are washed away
Washed away

Chorus:
Hosanna hosanna
You are the God who saves us
Worthy of all our praises
Hosanna hosanna
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here Lord Jesus

Verse 2:
Hear the sound of
Hearts returning to You
We turn to You
In Your Kingdom
Broken lives are made new
You make us new

CCLI Song No. 4662491
© 2005, 2006 Integrity’s Hosanna! Music | Thankyou Music (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing) | (Admin. by EMI Christian Music Publishing)

You can listen to the entire song by watching this video clip of a studio version of the song sung by Paul Baloche. Or you may be interested in this clip of a choral performance of the song. Paul Baloche tells the story behind the song here, on an mp3 interview, (which also includes the song after the interview).

The sheet music is also available online for free here: chord chart, lead sheet, or piano score. This link will take you to several versions of the song available for purchase from Amazon.com (you can get the CD or just the song).

Learn more about Paul Baloche and his music at leadworship.com, and be sure to also check out Benton Brown’s site as well: brentonbrown.com.

Rest for Your Souls

~ Bob Hayton ~ 1 Comment

I had the privilege to fill in for our pastor this past Sunday, and deliver the Sunday sermon. It’s available now for free download or to listen online.

Place: Beacon of Hope Church, St. Paul
Date: July 24, 2011
Title: Rest for Your Souls
Text: Matthew 11:25-30
Theme: Jesus’ unbelievable promise to provide us true and lasting rest. (Includes a short biblical theology on rest.)

Listen online or download (right click and save it to your computer)

Quotes to Note 13: Frank Thielman Summarizing Ephesians

~ Bob Hayton

In the last several months, I’ve been working my way through Frank Thielman’s Theology of the New Testament (Zondervan). It is the most readable and enjoyable discussion of theology I have ever seen. I’ll be reviewing it in the near future, but on this Sunday morning I thought I’d share the conclusion to his chapter on Ephesians. May this warm your soul as it did mine.

In an effort to encourage dispirited Christians in southern Asia, Paul has reminded them of God’s plan for the universe and of the critical place of the church in that plan.   His letter paints a picture of a new creation in which the invisible and hostile forces of the heavens lie conquered beneath the feet of Christ.   In this picture, a church that consists of both Jews and Gentiles sits alongside the risen Christ in the heavens, sharing his triumph.   This is the goal, Paul says, toward which God is moving the universe–to sum up all things in heaven and on earth in Christ.

Before “the times” reach this “fulfillment,” however, the hostile cosmic powers continue to wage war against the church, and so Christians must clothe themselves in an armor that will be able to resist their onslaught–truth, righteousness, the gospel of peace, faith, and salvation.   By standing united with one another in this armor, they will make “known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms” God’s “manifold wisdom” in reconciling Jews and Gentiles to form one new human being through the gospel.   The church will therefore proclaim to these hostile powers that in the death, resurrection, and heavenly session of Christ, God has defeated their efforts to frustrate his purpose in creation.

The church plays a critical role, therefore, in God’s plan to bring the times to their fulfillment by summing up everything in Christ.   They are the new humanity that replaces the old, disintegrated humanity, and they are the evidence  that  God’s plan to sum up everything in Christ is rapidly coming to its end.   The church in Roman Asia should take heart that God, in his great love and rich mercy, has done so much for them.   They should pursue with renewed zeal their vocation to stand strong and united against the devil and his realm as God brings his cosmic purposes to their glorious end. (pg. 407)

Approaching a Fearsome God — through Christ

~ fundyreformed ~ 3 Comments

Sunday Mediations — posts encouraging us all to meditate on the things of our Savior, on His day.

I don’t have a healthy enough view of God. I’ll be the first to admit that. I don’t comprehend his ultimate greatness, his “otherness” and transcendence. His awful holiness. Yes “awe-ful” and terrifying, holiness.

The Bible repeatedly calls on us to fear God. Yet fearing God is foreign to our nature. We live and breathe as if God isn’t. No wonder we don’t fear him.

And for those raised in Christianity (like me), we assume that we can approach God. We assume that we shouldn’t have to fear Him. And isn’t Christianity all happy-go-lucky anyway? What’s this about fear? Why should we tremble before God, don’t we have our ticket to heaven already?

With these thoughts in mind, lets approach a text this morning:

And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for your sake, who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. (1 Pet. 1:17-21)

I’ve been teaching through 1 Peter in our small group class every other Sunday night. This passage was a bit perplexing.

“Conduct yoursleves with fear” is one of four commands in this passage (“set your hope”–v. 13; “be holy”–v. 15; and “love one another”–v. 22 are the others). And I knew that the passage beautifully illustrates the relationship between Biblical imperatives and indicatives. Each command is expressly connected with facts that are true because of who we are in Christ.

So I was puzzled by the connection between vs. 17 and the verses that follow. In light of the preciousness of your redemption, fear God? That didn’t seem to follow, unless we are talking a debtor’s ethic where because of Christ’s sacrifice we should go on and labor in fearing God out of debt.

In looking at the text, it also seems to be disconnected. Fear God, knowing you were ransomed, not with perishable silver and gold, but with Christ. And Christ is like a lamb without blemish, foreknown and manifest for you, who believe in God. The main point of all this is still “fear God” so how does it all fit?

As I scanned through Calvin’s comments on this passage, his discussion of vs. 21 grabbed me. Here’s an excerpt:

…as faith unites us to God, we shun and dread every access to him, except a Mediator comes who can deliver us from fear. For sin, which reigns in us, renders us hateful to God and him to us. Hence, as soon as mention is made of God, we must necessarily be filled with dread; and if we approach him, his justice is like fire, which will wholly consume us.

It is hence evident that we cannot believe in God except through Christ, in whom God in a manner makes himself little, that he might accommodate himself to our comprehension; and it is Christ alone who can tranquillize consciences, so that we may dare to come in confidence to God.

As I really grasped the glory of what was being said in vs. 21, everything clicked. We are to fear God, and this is impossible in ourselves. So we are reminded that we’ve been ransomed from our futile ways. And not just ransomed with a fool’s gift of gold, we’ve been ransomed by the precious blood of Christ. The very Christ who like the Paschal Lamb of old, was foreknown and chosen to suffer wrath in our place. This Jesus came and died “for [our] sake”. And thus through him we believe in God. And God’s resurrection of Jesus was all designed “so that [our] faith and hope [would be] in God”.

We can fear God, and reverence him, not as a vanquished foe trembles before Him. Rather because of the sacrifice accomplished for us, and because God himself has worked so that our faith and hope are in Him, we reverently fear God with Christ at our side. Because of our mediator we can approach this fearful God. And from Jesus, we can learn the true extent of God’s wrath which should cause us to tremble, while we also learn that all of that wrath was taken away for us in Jesus.

Oh how happy we are to have such a glorious mediator! Let us respect and reverence, yea fear, our Holy God more. Yet we need never shudder at this command, because we remember that God is accepting us, yea welcoming us to come boldly before His throne (which for us is a throne of grace) by the new and living way of Christ our crucified and Risen Savior! (Heb. 4:16, 10:19-21).