Worship

06
Jul
2022
The Only Saviour of Sinners

The Only Saviour of Sinners

THE ONLY SAVIOUR OF SINNERS

 

When Christ was born, via a virgin birth

The skies were filled with angelic mirth

Who couldn’t give praise, or not be thrilled?

The ancient prophecies were now fulfilled

And central to redemption’s plan

The Son of God was born a man

He came from heaven, to earth to dwell

God with us – Emmanuel

Some shepherds came to see the sight

They paid their homage, that first Christmas night

And wise men too, travelled from afar

Gave gifts to the Christ – guided by His star

The Saviour was reared in a normal family

Living in Nazareth, near the Sea of Galilee

He laboured away in the carpentry trade

From stone and wood, various items He made

His divine identity was largely concealed

Until the time came, to be revealed

Then on one day, to John’s surprise

Jesus came to the Jordan, to be baptised

And the Spirit descended, like a dove

And God the Father, expressed His love

He was in the wilderness for forty days

But to Satan’s wiles, He never gave way

And then He began His public ministry

And with very many miracles, He proved His deity

He turned plain water into wine

He cast out demons – they entered the swine

With just two fish and five loaves of bread

Five thousand plus, were miraculously fed

Peter’s wife’s mother lay sick in bed

But one touch from the Saviour, and the fever fled

Lepers were cleansed, and the dead were raised

Lives were transformed, to the Saviour’s praise

With just a word, He calmed the sea

It all begged the question ‘Who could this be?’

At Caesarea Philippi, He asked this question

‘You’re the Christ of God’ was Peter’s confession

Then furthermore, on Hermon’s height

He was transfigured before them – turning dazzling white

And heaven again spoke, to the disciples’ fear

‘This is My Son – It is He you should hear’

Then some months later, the appointed time drew nigh

For the purpose of His coming – to suffer and to die

On trumped up charges, being unjustly tried

They nailed Him to a Cross: He was crucified

On Calvary’s tree, He shed His precious blood

To reconcile us sinners – to bring us back to God

He bore the sins of others, when He died on that tree

When we put our faith in Jesus, from God’s fearful wrath we’re free

At the moment when a sinner, is enabled to believe

A present, full salvation, is God’s promise to receive

For God’s own Son alone, can make us truly whole

And impart God’s salvation, to the needy, human soul

Christ died, and then His body, was laid in Joseph’s tomb

The disciples locked themselves away, in sorrow, and in gloom

Their hearts were very broken, yet, they were so very wrong

In thinking that their Greatest Friend, was now just dead and gone

For three days later, as He’d said, to them the Christ appeared!

Their sadness now was turned to joy, their souls were greatly cheered

He was alive, as prophesied – now risen from the dead

‘Come touch and handle Me, for real’ were the words to them He said

The Saviour conquered death and the grave

He arose victorious – He’s mighty to save

In Him there’s full salvation, for no money and no price

For all who realise their sin – and trust in Jesus Christ

He commissioned His disciples, He commanded proclamation

The message of salvation is for each and every nation

He ascended on a cloud to heaven – to the glory in the sky

And promised to return one day, in the future, by and by

Yes the sceptics always scoff, and the scornful have their say

But it can’t be refuted that Christ Jesus lives today

Seated there in the Glory now, enthroned at God’s right hand

He’s building up His Church on earth – the saved from every land

God’s purposes will triumph – not by force, and not by sword

But the preaching of the gospel – by the Spirit, through the Word

The church, it needs no gimmicks, it needs no special effects

Through simple gospel preaching, God will save His own elect

The Saviour’s final words to us were ‘I am coming soon’

Yes the trumpet of the Lord shall sound, to this fallen world of gloom

Our broken world needs fixing – Christ alone can make amends

And this will surely happen, when to earth He next descends

His people will dwell with Him, they’ll delight to see His face

And rehearse salvation’s story ‘I’m a sinner saved by grace’

So ensure you’re trusting Christ today, or you will be but lost

Believe in Jesus, while you may – He paid redemption’s cost

His invitation still avails – you still can hear Him say

That ‘Every one who comes to Me, I’ll never turn away.’

Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Bible, Salvation, Worship, 0 comments
13
Nov
2019
Keeping Body and Soul Together

Keeping Body and Soul Together

Physical and Spiritual Necessities

 

When the Apostle Paul found himself both in a Roman prison cell and approaching the end of his earthly life, he wrote the following request to my namesake Timothy: ‘When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments’ (2 Timothy 4:13). The request divides neatly into two. i. Paul requested his ‘cloak’ for his physical well-being and ii. Paul requested ‘the books and … the parchments’ for study – for his mental and spiritual well-being.

1. The Cloak

‘When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas …’ The cloak referred to here was a heavy, outer garment, made of Cicilian goats’ hair. Simple in design, it would have been sleeveless and circular in shape when laid flat, the only notable feature being a hole for the head. 2 Timothy 4:21 suggests that winter was approaching. Paul’s prison cell would have lacked our central heating! His thick cloak would have helped maintain a degree of bodily warmth and comfort.

According to the Bible, we are ‘bi-partite’ beings. That is, we are constituted of body and soul. Almighty God made us this way. ‘The LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being’ (Genesis 2:7). We should take care of our bodies, as they are the vehicle in which we glorify God our maker. This will always be so, for the ultimate Christian hope – that is, our confident expectation based on the sure promises of God – is not the salvation of the soul, but the resurrection of the body. Even now though, we should be good stewards of the bodies God has given us. They are actually – if we belong to Jesus – the temple of God Himself. ‘Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God? … (1 Corinthians 6:19).

Food and clothing are basic requirements for our body well-being. The Lord Jesus – God’s own Son – assures us that God our Father will ensure that His adopted children will never lack  either whilst their earthly life lasts. Jesus said ‘Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? … Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O men of little faith?’ (Matthew 6:26,28-30).

2. The Books and the Parchments

‘When you come, bring … the books and above all the parchments …’ The consensus is that Paul was here requesting the Holy Scriptures that were extant in his day – our Old Testament which foretold the coming of Christ, and perhaps the sayings of the Saviour which had been written down, similar to the kind utilised by Luke when he researched and compiled his Gospel (Luke 1:1-4). ‘The books’ refer to papyrus scrolls. ‘The parchments’ refer to the more expensive animal skins on which the scribes carefully and reverently copied the sacred Scriptures.

It is evident from our verse and its context that the Apostle Paul prized the Scriptures very highly. He knew that they were no ordinary writings but the very Word of God written. He had stated to Timothy a little earlier ‘All Scripture is inspired by God (that is ‘God-breathed’) and profitable …’ (2 Timothy 3:16). Paul was aware that his remaining time on earth was short. Nevertheless, he wished to use the time had had left profitably – and nothing was more profitable to Paul than the Scriptures. He was a life-long disciple of Christ – and the name ‘disciple’ means ‘learner.’ Thus Paul, vastly experienced in the ways of God though he was, never lost the desire to learn in the school of Christ.  Paul loved the Saviour. Paul longed to know the Saviour better and make Him better known. The means by which he did this were the Scriptures – ‘the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus’ (2 Timothy 3:15). The inspired Word and the incarnate Word are, of course, distinct. Yet in our Christian experience they co-alesce and are less distinguishable. Jesus Himself said that ‘the Scriptures (are) they that bear witness to Me’ (John 5:39).

So one of Paul’s final requests on earth was for i. A cloak for his bodily warmth and ii. The Scriptures for the warmth of his soul. His desire for the Word of God surely finds an echo in every believer. A desire for and love for the Bible is one evidence that we have been truly born again. A new life has to be fed and sustained. Hence Peter – Paul’s colleague in the Faith – could write to believers ‘As new born babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby’ (1 Peter 2:2, KJV). If we love the Saviour, we will love the Book which draws us closer to Him. As clothing is essential for our physical well-being, so the Bible is indispensable for our spiritual well-being. It will be so until we see the Saviour fact to face, and the Word in Person renders the Word in print obsolete. It is only when we see Jesus that we will need our Bibles no more.

Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Bible, Prayer, Providence, Worship, 0 comments
13
Nov
2019
Darker Days of the Soul

Darker Days of the Soul

When the hour goes back at the end of October each year, the daylight begins to get shorter, and the long, dark nights return once more. I have to confess that, whilst each season of the year has its compensations, this is my least favourite time of the year. A bit of me almost envies those animals that are able to hibernate until the brighter days of Spring! Living in the UK though, we cannot avoid dark days – the days when the clouds don’t go away, and the whole atmosphere seems uninviting and gloomy.

Physical darkness is one thing, but what of the dark days of the soul? How do we cope with the darker seasons of our lives – the times of sorrow and suffering, disappointment, discouragement and depression which come upon all God’s people at some time? Consider the following thoughts from the Bible:-

The Providence of God

The Bible teaches that darkness is part of God’s created order. Darkness therefore – both physical and personal – is not accidental but providential. It is ordered by God Himself. ‘God’s works of providence are His most holy, wise and powerful preserving and governing all His creatures and all their actions’ (Shorter Catechism). The Bible reminds us ‘While the earth remains … summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease’ (Genesis 8:22). ‘Thou makest darkness, and it is night …’ (Psalm 104:20). And in Isaiah 45:6,7 God Himself pronounces ‘‘I am the LORD, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness …’’ Remembering then that the dark days of our lives are as equally from God as the bright ones makes them much easier to accept. God is on the throne of the universe! He is infinite in His wisdom and love. He knows how to balance both the seasons of nature and the seasons of the soul for our ultimate blessing and His eternal glory.

The Purpose of God

The Puritans used to say that ‘Grace grows in Winter.’ Darkness necessitates our walking by faith and not sight. We do not always know what God is doing in our lives – but He does, and He is infinitely worthy of our trust. With Job we may affirm ‘But He knows the way that I take … What He desires, that He does. For He will complete what He appoints for me … (Job 23:10,13,14). What is dark and puzzling to us is as clear as day to Him Who is all-knowing. Hence David’s confession that ‘even the darkness is not dark to Thee, the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light with Thee’ (Psalm 139:12).

The Presence of God

The Bible assures God’s children that He will never leave them alone in the dark. He is a God of covenant faithfulness, Who stands by His people through thick and thin, through light and darkness. His love will not let us go! There is a well known hymn which includes the lines:-

Days of darkness still come o’er me

Sorrows paths I often tread

But the Saviour still is with me

By His hand I’m safely led.

The comforting presence of God with us in our darkness is surely superior to any explanations. And in His Word God promises ‘I will never fail you nor forsake you’ (Hebrews 13:5). Small wonder then that the promises of God in the Bible are often pictured as a welcome light in a dark place. ‘Thy Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path’ (Psalm 119:105). ‘You will do well to pay attention to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts’ (2 Peter 1:19).

The Praises of God

The Bible teaches that it is actually possible to sing cheerfully even in dark times, that is, to delight to continue to give God the praise He alone deserves. He ‘gives songs in the night’ (Job 35:10). ‘At night His song is with me’ (Psalm 42:8). We recall a certain dark, dingy, dirty, dank and disgusting prison in Philippi. Two Christian prisoners were once held captive there. Acts 16:25 though tells us that ‘about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.’ It goes to show that it really is possible to sing during dark and dreary days. The God of the Bible has not changed. He is ‘unchangeable in His being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth’ (Shorter Catechism). In dark days He is still the God ‘Who accomplishes all things according to the counsel of His will’ (Ephesians 1:11). And even in dark days the truth still stands that ‘in everything God works for good with those who love Him’ (Romans 8:28), for His love towards His people cannot be extinguished by any darkness. When we realise these precious truths, a song of praise and thanksgiving is elicited from our hearts. By His grace we may ‘Rejoice in the Lord always’ (Philippians 4:4). Behind a frowning providence He surely hides a smiling face. So we may trust and praise Him on both cloudy days and clear days, in day time and in the night.

The Pre-eminence of God

Finally, the Bible teaches that, for the Christian, dark days and night time are only temporary. ‘The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day’ (Proverbs 4:18). Christians alone are children of light. ‘He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son’ (Colossians 1:13). On the cross the Lord Jesus suffered both physical, spiritual and eternal darkness. He bore our sins and God’s judgement upon them so that all who believe in Him may bask in God’s eternal light one day. So if we belong to Jesus, better, brighter and glorious times are coming. Yes, this world has its darkness. But in God’s kingdom darkness will be banished, and banished eternally. In God’s kingdom it will always be light. ‘And night shall be no more; they need no light or lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they shall reign for ever and ever’ (Revelation 21:5).

So, dear Christian friend, do not be surprised if you experience dark days. They are part of God’s all-wise ordering of the universe. Remember that the Lord Jesus is ‘the light of the world’ (John 8:12) and seek His grace to live with whatever circumstances He sends your way. And never forget that brighter days are surely coming, for ‘the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us’ (Romans 8:18). Your testimony will yet be ‘the LORD my God lightens my darkness’ (Psalm 18:28).

Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Advent, Prayer, Providence, Worship, 0 comments
23
Jul
2019
The Holy Trinity

The Holy Trinity

The Holy Trinity

 

Glory be to God the Father

Glory be to God the Son

Glory be to God the Spirit

Great Jehovah, Three in One:

Glory, glory

While eternal ages run!

 

The doctrine of the divine Trinity is a Fundamental Christian belief and Christian distinctive. The doctrine of the divine trinity is often regarded as the touchstone of Christian orthodoxy. All false religions, cults and heresies are a denial of the Trinity in some way or other.

The final authority for Christian faith and practice is the Word of God, the Bible. It may then  surprise you to know that the word ‘Trinity’ is not actually used in the Bible to describe the Deity revealed there. Yet paradoxically, the word ‘Trinity’ could not be more biblical. Christian theologians coined the word as a way of describing the Tri-une nature of the One Who is revealed in the pages of Scripture. The Bible teaches that God is one and God is three. The Shorter Catechism  reads:-

 

Are there more Gods than one?

There is but one only, the living and true God.

 

How many persons are in the Godhead?

There are three persons in the God-head, the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one God, the same in substance, equal in power and glory.

 

The Unity of God

The unity of God is a basic axiom of Scripture. If the Old Testament has a ‘creed’ it is Deuteronomy 6:4 which affirms: ‘Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. The Faith of the Bible is strictly – even intolerantly – monotheistic. God alone can declare ‘I am God, and there is no other; I am God and there is none like Me’ (Isaiah 46:9). It is the strict monotheism of the Old Testament which is the rationale behind the first and foremost of the ten commandments where God states: ‘I am the LORD your God … You shall have no other gods before Me’ (Exodus 20:1,3). Jeremiah 10:10 declares ‘The LORD is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King.’ Hence both the seriousness and the folly of idolatry, that is, giving allegiance to anyone or anything other than the one, true God.

The Tri-unity of God

Whilst the Bible is very strict in its monotheism, it also reveals a distinction of Persons within the One true God – a Tri-unity. This is evident from the very first page of Scripture. The Bible begins ‘In the beginning God …’ (Genesis 1:1). The word for ‘God’ here is the plural word ‘Elohim.’ We then get a glimpse of this plurality when we read on and see that ‘the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters’ (Genesis 1:2) and also read that ‘God said …’ (Genesis 1:1 et. al.). The latter refers to God’s Word. John 1:1-18 – with its echoes of Genesis 1:1 – describes this Word of God as none other than the eternal Son of God Who, in the fullness of time became Man in the Lord Jesus Christ. We thus glimpse both the unity and the trinity of God – His tri-unity/diversity in unity – on the very first page of Scripture. The account of creation in Genesis 1 reaches its climax with the creation of man. The plurality within God’s unity is seen in that epochal event when we read that God said ‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness’ (Genesis 1:26). The first chapter of the Bible tallies with the first chapter of the last book of the Bible, for Revelation 1:4,5 contains the opening greeting: ‘Grace to you and peace from Him Who is and Who was and Who is to come, and from the seven spirits Who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.’

The New Testament

It is in the New Testament, however, that the Trinitarian nature of the one true God comes into sharper focus. We see this notably in the baptism of the Lord Jesus by John the Baptist in the river Jordan – an event related by all three synoptic Gospel writers, Matthew, Mark and Luke. Taking Matthew’s account as our example, we see that:-

 

  1. ‘Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptised by him’ (Matthew 3:13) – a reference to God the Son, the second person of the Trinity.
  2. ‘When Jesus was baptised … the heavens were opened and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting on Him’ (Matthew 3:16) – a reference to God the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, and:-
  3. ‘lo a voice from heaven, saying ‘This is My beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased’’ (Matthew 3:17 – a reference to God the Father, the first person of the Trinity.

The divine Trinity is thus seen at the outset of Jesus ministry, as it is also seen at its end, when Jesus gave His final ‘Great Commission’ to His disciples so: ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name (singular) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit’ (Matthew 28:19).

Triune Salvation

We have seen that the Bible reveals the divine Trinity in action at the creation of the universe, as related in Genesis 1: The universe was created through the action of both God’s Word – the Lord Jesus Christ  – ‘all things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made’ (John 1:2) – and God’s Spirit moving over the face of the waters.

The Bible also reveals that all three members of the Trinity cooperate in the sinner’s salvation – the new creation. Each divine Person has His distinct role in the divine economy in achieving the sinner’s eternal blessedness. 1 Peter 1:2, for instance, reads that Christians are ‘chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit for obedience to Jesus Christ and for sprinkling with His blood. Then Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:13 says to the believers in Thessalonica that ‘God chose you from the beginning to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.’ Christian salvation is thus a tri-une salvation. If we are saved it is because we have been chosen for salvation by God the Father in eternity past. He then sent His Son to procure our salvation through the shedding of His precious blood on Calvary’s cross. The Holy Spirit of God then applies this work of redemption to our hearts, convicting us of our sin and enabling us to trust in the crucified Christ, and so be reconciled to God the Father.

Christian salvation therefore is a result of the working of God the Holy Trinity. And Christian experience continues to be tri-une. Prayer is one of the Christian’s highest earthly privileges. Whilst all three members of the Trinity may be invoked in prayer, as all three are persons, normally prayer is a matter of coming to God the Father, through God the Son, in the power of the Holy Spirit – ‘through Him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father’ (Ephesians 2:18).

Every Christian grace and blessing therefore is a result of the operation of God the Holy Trinity. The Christian Faith is Trinitarian in doctrine, practice and experience. Hence, since the first century, it is fitting that public Christian worship has invariably been concluded by quoting the famous benediction of 2 Corinthians 13:12: ‘The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.’

The Christian Faith then – as revealed in Scripture, and defined in the subordinate standards of the Christian church – is distinctly, distinctively, distinguishingly and definitely Trinitarian. It is against this touchstone that all counterfeit faiths may be weighed in the balance and found wanting. True Christianity is Trinitarian in its doctrine, salvation, experience and praise:-

 

Almighty God to Thee

Be endless honours done

The undivided Three

And the mysterious One

Where reason fails, with all her powers

There faith prevails, and love adores.

 

Copyright Timothy Cross

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Worship, 0 comments
23
Jul
2019
The Severn Bridge

The Severn Bridge

The Severn Bridge

I used to work on the fifteenth floor of a tower block in Cardiff. On a clear day you could see both Severn bridges from the window. The first Severn Bridge was opened in 1966. The second one was opened in 1996. The latter is 5,128 metres in length – just over three miles.

The Severn Bridge links England and Wales. If it wasn’t for the Severn Bridge, you would have to make a fifty-seven-mile detour around Gloucester to get in or out. Before the first Severn Bridge, you would have used the Aust Ferry to cross the waters of the River Severn. The Aust Ferry began operating in 1926, but we are told that ferries across the Severn go back even to Medieval times.

If a remarkable feat of engineering was needed to literally bridge the distance between England and Wales over the River Severn, what would it take to bridge the infinite distance between you and me and God our Maker? God is surely above and beyond us. He is high and holy. We are small, and we are sinners, and it is our sin which especially and particularly separates us from God and enjoying His fellowship, and will do so eternally unless it is dealt with. Isaiah 59:2 states ‘Your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you so that He does not hear.’

The Christian gospel proclaims that, in His great mercy, God Himself has built a bridge between Himself and us, and we may travel on that bridge, and reach Him, and be assured of a welcome and acceptance. That bridge is the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s own Son and the only Saviour of sinners.

In 1 Timothy 2:5 we read the statement ‘For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.’ A mediator is a ‘go-between’ – or, if you like, a bridge. How is Jesus this mediator? Scripture teaches that He is so in both His person and His work – by who He is and by what He has done.

The Person of Christ

Jesus is the one mediator between us and God because He is the God-man – God incarnate. In Christ, God came down to our human level. Philippians 2:6,7 says of Christ that ‘though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.’

The Work of Christ

Secondly, Jesus is the one mediator between God and us because He has dealt with the cause of the great separation between God and us, namely our sin. On the cross, He, the sinless one, was made accountable for our sins. He is ‘the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world’ (John 1:29). 1 John 3:5 states ‘You know that He appeared to take away sins and in Him there is no sin.’ When we put of faith in Jesus then, our sin problem – the sin which separates us from God – is dealt with. Through Jesus we may be reconciled to God. His cross is the bridge – the bridge which reconciles sinners to God.

The Gospel of Reconciliation

‘Reconciliation’ therefore is one of the key words of the Christian faith and integral to the Christian gospel. To reconcile means ‘to bridge’ – to bring together two sides which were previously separated or to bring together two sides which were previously at enmity or at odds. Romans 5:11 reads ‘we … rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ through whom we have received our reconciliation and 2 Corinthians 5:19 explains ‘in Christ (that is, by means of Christ) God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.’

The ‘message of reconciliation’ is thus a synonym for the Christian gospel. The gospel by implication has an evangelistic appeal. It urges a response. So the apostle continues on an urgent note ‘We beseech you, on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God’(2 Corinthians 5:20) – that is, acknowledge you are separated from your Maker by your sin; put your faith in Jesus Christ and Him crucified, and through Him know the forgiveness of your sins, peace with God and restored fellowship with Him for time and eternity.

So, just as the Severn Bridge enables the tidal waters of the Severn to be crossed without danger, Jesus Christ alone is the one bridge between us and a holy God. ‘He to rescue me from danger, interposed His precious blood’ goes the hymn. Why not memorise 1 Timothy 2:5. It is a key verse of the Bible: ‘There is one God and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.’ And if you have never done so, put your faith in this one Mediator while you may.

 

Copyright, Timothy Cross

 

 

Posted by Site Developer in Providence, Salvation, Worship, 0 comments
20
Jan
2016

The Faith of Christ Crucified

 

The apostle Paul takes us to the heart of the Christian gospel when he writes, ‘We preach Christ crucified’. Nothing could be more central and fundamental to the Christian Faith than ‘Christ and him crucified’ (1 Corinthians 1:23; 2:2).

 

But the expression contains an astonishing paradox — a paradox readily understood in the 1st century, but perhaps less so today — for the expression ‘Christ crucified’ contains at the same time both something gloriously wonderful and something indescribably horrible.

 

The Christ of Calvary

 

‘We preach Christ crucified’. The title ‘Christ’ or ‘Messiah’ was one which warmed the hearts of Jewish people. The Old Testament is replete with promises that one day God would send his Special Agent into the world to save his people and put its wrongs to right.

‘Messiah’ and ‘Christ’ both mean ‘God’s anointed’. It has a wide area of meaning and connotation. It speaks of a longed for deliverer and redeemer. It speaks of God’s own prophet, priest and king. It speaks of the ever-blessed Son of the ever-blessed God. It speaks of God’s suffering Servant — ‘Behold, my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights’ (Isaiah 42:1).

Jesus’ title of ‘the Christ’ thus speaks of all that is wonderful — the fulfillment of the promises of God; the satisfaction of deep human longing; the deliverance from sin that we so desperately need; God’s own special envoy, sent from heaven to earth on a mission of divine mercy; God’s incarnate Word.

‘Christ’ is a word and a reality of indescribable wonder.

 

The cross of Calvary

 

In our verse, though, the apostle also declares, ‘We preach Christ crucified’. Crucifixion — simultaneously and paradoxically — speaks of all that is horrific and horrendous, for crucifixion was a barbaric and ghastly form of capital punishment invented by the Romans.      It would not have been talked about openly in polite circles. Crucifixion entailed the victim being stripped naked, nailed to a plank of wood, and losing control of bodily functions — of being hung up to die a slow, degrading, agonising death by asphyxiation.

So while Christ is a wonderful word, crucified is a horrible word. It evoked visions of pain and agony; abject misery; screams of horror. It evoked shed blood and broken bodies; public humiliation, scorn and ridicule.

For the Jew, though, crucifixion meant something even worse than the horrors to which we’ve just alluded. It spoke of the very curse of God. The law of Moses was clear: ‘If a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is accursed by God’ (Deuteronomy 21:22-23).

‘We preach Christ crucified’. Here, then, is the paradox which lies at the heart of the Christian Faith. Little wonder that, according to Paul, this gospel of ‘Christ crucified’ was ‘a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles’. Knowing what we know about crucifixion, we can understand why this was so.

 

The comfort of Calvary

 

Why then are Christians so enamored with both the cross of Christ and the Christ of the cross? Why is this the overarching theme of Christian preaching and Christian praise? Paul’s very next verse — 1 Corinthians 1:24 — tells us why.

Having said, ‘We preach Christ crucified’ and stated that this message is a stumbling block (a scandal) to Jews and folly to Gentiles, Paul continues, ‘But to those who are called [that is, enlightened by God’s Holy Spirit] both Jews and Greeks, Christ [is] the power of God and the wisdom of God’.

In the crucified Christ, then, we experience the power of God. The blood of Christ shed at Calvary is potent enough to cleanse us from all our sins and make us fit for heaven. Through the divine condemnation of Christ at Calvary we actually escape from divine condemnation, for he has ‘redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us … that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith’ (Galatians 3:13-14).

Christ’s suffering has wrought our salvation; his agony has bought our atonement; his blood has brought our blessing; and his death has secured for us eternal life.

In the crucified Christ we also see the wisdom of God. God has to punish sin, for he is infinitely just. He is incapable of overlooking the slightest infraction of his law. Yet if God condemned all sinners to hell, where would be the mercy and love which is also integral to his nature?

In his wisdom, God solved this dilemma at the cross of Christ. At Calvary, God both condemned sin and pardoned the believing sinner. At Calvary, God’s love and justice met. Calvary then is the supreme manifestation of the divine wisdom — ‘to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies him who has faith in Jesus’ (Romans 3:26).

 

The centrality of Calvary

 

‘We preach Christ crucified’. Here, then, is a statement of both wonder and horror. Humanly speaking, the cross of Christ was and remains repulsive. Yet to an enlightened Christian, the cross of Christ is the most attractive of all sights.

Every Christian has experienced the attraction of Calvary and been drawn personally by God to the foot of the cross — enabled by grace to trust the crucified Christ for full and eternal salvation. Jesus actually prophesied that this would be so, for he said ‘I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself’ (John 12:32).

‘Christ crucified’. Christ’s person and work are inextricably bound. His worth affects his work. His divinity secures the vitality of his cross — ‘for by one offering he has perfected for ever’ those he has set apart for himself (Hebrew 10:14).

None but the eternal Son could offer his life as an atoning sacrifice to save sinners. The Bible says there is no other Saviour — ‘There is salvation in no one else’ (Acts 4:12). Nor can there be any salvation that by-passes the cross of Christ. With Thomas Kelly we are constrained to say:

 

We sing the praise of him who died,

Of him who died upon the cross.

The sinner’s hope let men deride,

For this we count the world but loss.

 

Inscribed upon the cross we see

In shining letters ‘God is love’.

He bears our sins upon the tree,

He brings us mercy from above.

 

© Timothy J Cross; originally published in Evangelical Times, reproduced with kind permission.

Posted by Site Developer in Prayer, Providence, Worship, 0 comments
23
Nov
2015

John Knox on Prayer

John Knox Wikipedia ImageWhen John Knox, the Scottish Reformer, was laid to rest in his grave, the Regent of Scotland said of him ‘There lies he who never feared the face of man.’ This reminds us of the paraphrase of Psalm 34: 9, which reads:-

Fear Him (that is, God) ye saints and you will then

Have nothing else to fear

Make you His service your delight

Your wants shall be His care.

I came across the following gem of a quote from John Knox. It concerns John Knox’s view of prayer. John Knox defined true prayer as:-

 

An earnest and familiar talking with God, to whom we declare our miseries, whose support and help we implore and desire in our adversities, and whom we laud and praise for our benefits received (cited in the Evangelical Times book review of August 2015).

 

Let us ponder and unpack this definition a little further:-

 

Talking to God

 

Prayer is ‘An earnest and familiar talking with God …’ said Knox. If that is true, it is indescribably wonderful and astonishing. If relatively few of us are granted the privilege of an audience with the Queen or the Prime Minister, how on earth can we ever get the ear of Almighty God – He who is the highest, unsurpassed and unsurpassable Authority of all? The Bible’s answer is that we can ‘through Jesus Christ our Lord’ – specifically ‘through our Lord Jesus Christ through whom we have now received our reconciliation’ (Romans 5:11). Jesus, by His death on the cross for our sins has reconciled all who believe in Him to God Himself. He has dealt with the enmity and alienation which separated us, namely our sin. ‘He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree’ (1 Peter 2:24). Amazingly, ‘through Him we … have access in one Spirit to the Father’ (Ephesians 2:18). Perhaps even more amazingly, through Christ, we are able to know and address God as ‘Father.’ ‘Adoption’ is one of the Bible’s many synonyms for Christian salvation:-

 

Adoption is an act of God’s free grace whereby we are received into the number and have a right to all the privileges of the sons of God (Shorter Catechism).

 

One of the Christian’s ‘adoptive privileges’ is being able to talk to God in prayer, coming to Him confident in His love, just as an earthly child comes to its father.  Prayer then is, as Knox said ‘an earnest and familiar talking with God.’ Christians know Him as ‘Father.’ The word ‘Father’ connotes authority, and the word ‘Father’ also connotes dependence, intimacy, affection and love. The God of the Bible is never reluctant to hear His children’s prayers!

 

Receiving from God

 

Secondly, according to Knox, in prayer ‘we declare our miseries’ to God and ‘implore and desire His support and help in our adversities.’ John Know himself certainly lived through difficult – even perilous – times and circumstances. But he turned to God in his difficulties and knew His help, support and mercy in and through them. Every Christian will also know difficulty and experience troubles. Ease is guaranteed in the next life, but not this life! It is ‘through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God’ (Acts 14:22). Yet in all our difficulties and troubles, we have a God to whom we can turn for help and support. His wonderful invitation still prevails: ‘Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you and you shall glorify me’ (Psalm 50:15).

Our God and Father is more than able to deliver us from whatever ails us. If though, in His superior wisdom, He sees fit not to do so, He will surely give us grace to live within the boundaries of the providence He has ordained for us. He has promised ‘My grace is sufficient for you’ (2 Corinthians 12:9). Prayer is a chief means of ‘tapping in’ to the all-sufficient sustaining grace of God. Finally, according to Knox, true prayer is also a matter of:-

 

Giving praise and thanks to God

 

When Knox states that prayer entails ‘lauding and praising God for our benefits received’ he was reiterating the teaching and exhortation of Scripture. The Psalmist wrote ‘Bless the LORD O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits’ (Psalm 103:1,2).

If we were to write down on paper all the benefits which almighty God, the ‘fount of every blessing’ bestows on us, we would be in danger of clearing the world of trees! Our God has given us life. Our God has sustained our lives to the present moment. He has fed us, clothed us, protected us and led us. He has bestowed on us infinite earthly blessings – and if we are Christians, we know that He has bestowed on us eternal blessings: the ‘solid joys and lasting treasures which none but Zion’s children know.’ We refer here to ‘the unsearchable riches of Christ’ (Ephesians 3:8) – the benefits which accrue to us by the death of Christ at Calvary: the forgiveness of sins, His imputed righteousness, peace with God, the sure hope of eternal life ET CETERA! God Himself is the one ‘whom we laud and praise for our benefits received.’ And when we numerate our blessings, we realise that we have just cause for doing so.

John Knox then knew a thing or two about prayer. His definition is not the final word on prayer, but it is well worth weighing and pondering. Let us have it in full again. True prayer is, he said:-

 

An earnest and familiar talking with God, to whom we declare our miseries, whose support and help we implore and desire in our adversities, and whom we laud and praise for our benefits received.

 

© Timothy Cross

 

 

Posted by Site Developer in Apologetics, Prayer, Reformation, Worship, 0 comments
23
Nov
2015

Taking on New Things

Snowflakes

Underneath the surface jollity, Christmas can be a sad time for some. At Christmas-time we can be more aware of loved ones who are no longer with us. This is the case with my family, where my late father no longer joins us around the Christmas dinner table.

Losing a loved one though is not without compensations. Since my father’s death my mother has been released from the twenty four hour care he needed, and able to take on activities she was prevented from doing when my father was alive. She is now more involved with her church and has also joined a choir and a reading group. She is also now free to travel.

Did you know that the Lord Jesus – He whose birth lies at the centre of Christmas – at certain moments in time, took on matters which He had never taken on before? As the second person of the divine trinity, in eternity past, Jesus lived in the glory of heaven, in the ineffable fellowship which exists in the trinity of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. On earth, He could speak to His Father of ‘the glory which I had with Thee before the world was made’ (John 17:5). Yet Scripture reveals that at crucial moments in the divine plan of salvation, Jesus, the eternal Son of God, took upon Himself i. Our human flesh ii. Our human sin.

1. The Divine Incarnation

In Jesus, God became man, taking upon Himself our human flesh. In Jesus, God actually shared our humanity. John wrote ‘the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth’ (John 1:14), and Paul explained that ‘in Him (Christ) the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily’ (Colossians 2:9). It is the incarnation – God’s real, actual, historical and historic ‘enfleshment’ – which takes us to the heart of Christmas:-

 

‘Christ the Son of God became man, by taking to Himself a true body, and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin’ (Shorter Catechism).

 

The real, humanity of Jesus reminds us that we have a God who really does understand our human lot from ‘the inside.’ He can never be accused of being far removed from our daily struggles in this fallen world. ‘Jesus wept’ (John 11:35), and Jesus slept (Mark 4:38). He experienced fatigue (John 4:6), hunger (Mark 14:33) and thirst (John 19:28). Jesus also experienced mental turmoil (Mark 14:33) and received the barbs of those who sought to inflict psychological damage on Him (Matthew 27:39). Christians thus hold to the full humanity of Christ as much as they do to His absolute deity, for Scripture teaches both. His real humanity tells us ‘we have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin’ (Hebrews 4:15).

But why did the Lord Jesus take on Himself our humanity? The answer of the Bible is: So He could die. His incarnation was with a view to His immolation. Unusually, His birth was with a view to His death. Scripture teaches that Jesus’ birth was a case of His taking on Himself our human flesh. But His death was a case of His taking on Himself our human sin.

2. The Divine Imputation

In a verse of infinite profundity, 2 Corinthians 5:21 states ‘For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.’ Hebrews 9:28 similarly tells of ‘Christ having been offered once to bear the sins of many.’

The Christian gospel proclaims that the sins which prevent our fellowship with God and access to heaven may be fully and forever forgiven. But they may be forgiven only because Christ took them and their consequences on Himself when He died on the cross. Our sins may be forgiven because Christ bore them. When we speak of Christ ‘bearing’ our sins, we mean that He paid the price for them; He paid the penalty for them; He endured the punishment which we should have borne for them. He became the sinner’s substitute. Divine ‘imputation’ is the word which encapsulates this. Our sins – in the mercy of God – were ‘put to Christ’s account.’ He ‘paid the bill’ that we might be exonerated. On the cross of Calvary, He endured the wrath of God on our sins to save everyone who believes in Him from the wrath of God on their sins:-

 

All Thy sins were laid upon Him

Jesus bore them on the tree

God, who knew them, laid them on Him

And believing, Thou art free

(J Denham Smith 1817-1889)

.

So at two key points in the saga of redemption, God, in Christ i. Took upon Himself our human flesh and ii. Took upon Himself our human sin. The two may be distinguished, but cannot be separated, as the former was with a view to the latter. Christ was born to save us. ‘You shall call His name Jesus for He will save His people from their sins’ (Matthew 1:21). And salvation was actually procured, not by Christ’s birth but by His death, in the very last hours of His earthly life, when He died as an atoning sacrifice for sinners. Christ’s taking on Himself our humanity was with the sole purpose of taking on Himself our sin. Christmas Day was with a view to Good Friday, for Christ’s cradle was with a view to His cross when ‘He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree’ (1 Peter 2:24).

 

Jesus, my Saviour to Bethlehem came

Born in a manger to sorrow and shame

O it was wonderful – blest be His Name!

Seeking for me, for me!

 

Jesus, my Saviour on Calvary’s tree

Paid the great debt and my soul He set free

O it was wonderful – how could it be

Dying for me, for me!

(Anon).

 

© Timothy Cross

 

 

 

 

 

Posted by Site Developer in Bible, Salvation, Worship, 0 comments
10
Oct
2015

The Virgin-Born Saviour

 

Therefore the LORD Himself will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel (Isaiah 7:14).

The Prophecy of Christ’s Virgin Birth

That Isaiah’s words here – addressed originally to King Ahaz of Judah some 800 years BC – had their ultimate fulfilment in the Lord Jesus Christ is the clear testimony of the New Testament. Isaiah prophesied of One to come Who, incredibly, was to be born without the normal instrumentality of a human father. When the Lord Jesus – God’s eternal Son – was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the virgin Mary and born of her, this prophecy was fulfilled.

As the Christian Church grew, and her fundamental beliefs came to be encapsulated and defined in her creeds and statements of Faith, the ‘Virgin Birth’ of Christ – by which we mean the ‘virginal conception’ of Christ – came to be regarded as fundamental to the Faith, and hence included in the church’s creeds. If we deny that Christ was virgin born, we are at odds with the historic Christian Faith and cannot really claim to be a Christian. The Apostles’ Creed  states:-

I believe …in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary …

 

The Shorter Catechism  states similarly:-

Christ, the Son of God, became man, by taking to Himself a true body and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin.

The Mystery of Christ’s Virgin Birth

Virgin births are, of course, humanly speaking, impossible. In dealing with the virgin birth of Christ though, we are dealing with God, and with God nothing will be impossible (Luke 1:37). In Christ, no mere human was born but the pre-existent and eternal Son of God – the Second Person of the blessed Trinity.

People sometimes speak of ‘the miracle of life.’ Whilst we know what they mean, the term ‘the miracle of life’ is actually something of a misnomer. A new-born baby is wonderful, yet not really miraculous. Miracles are, by their nature, unusual, one-off events – but babies are born every day. New life is certainly mysterious and marvellous, but not, strictly speaking, miraculous. As you do not know how the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God Who makes everything (Ecclesiastes 11:5).

In the virgin birth of Christ though we are dealing with a unique, unusual, one-off, never to be repeated, incomparable miracle. Miracles present no problem to omnipotence. Christ’s conception was not a natural one but a supernatural one. His conception was not by an act of man but by an act of God.

The Reality of Christ’s Virgin Birth

When the virgin Mary – a young Jewish girl, living in Nazareth in Northern Israel –  was enabled to conceive the Lord Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit, she was engaged to be married to one Joseph. Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18). The intensely human details which Matthew records next, show that the account of the virgin birth of Christ is the plain, sober truth, rather than a clever and creative story spun by man. Virgin births were just not in Joseph’s mental framework at all – let alone in relation to his own wife to be. On realising that the woman to whom he was engaged was pregnant, Joseph was horrified and devastated. Although he loved her, he thought the worst of her. Surely Mary had been unfaithful and broken her sacred pledge. Surely now his marital hopes had ended almost before they had begun… Sadly, divorce seemed to be Joseph’s only option. Reading the account, we can almost feel the disappointment and depression descending on Joseph, but… But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins’ (Matthew 1:20ff.). It took an envoy from heaven to make Joseph change his mind!

Matthew next notes carefully that all of this was part of God’s redemptive plan, hence it was in complete accord with what God had already prophesied hundreds of years previously. He thus quotes the very verse from Isaiah with which we opened to prove his point: All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and His name shall be called Emmanuel’ (which means, God with us) (Matthew 1:22,23). In the virgin birth of Christ then Isaiah’s prophecy was most certainly and most gloriously fulfilled.

Luke’s account

Interestingly, significantly and fittingly, it is Luke’s Gospel which gives us the most detail in its recording of the virgin birth of Christ. We say this, as Luke was a medical doctor. Luke the beloved physician (Colossians 4:14). Luke alone relates the virgin birth of Christ from the angle of Mary His mother. It would seem that Mary had the confidence to confide in Dr Luke, and disclose to him the details withheld from the other accounts. The divine inspiration of the Scriptures apart, it is as though Luke had taken Mary into his surgery, from whence the material for the first chapter of his Gospel – with its detail concerning Christ’s virgin birth – was ascertained. Luke thus recorded for posterity how:-

The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary … And the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favour with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High…’ And Mary said to the angel ‘How shall this be, since I have no husband?’ And the angel said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God’ (Luke 1:26 ff.).

Christ’s birth then cannot be explained apart from the supernatural agency of the Holy Spirit. He had no human father. God was always His Father. Christ existed before His birth on earth. In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God … And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:1,14). How did the latter occur? By His conception by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the virgin Mary, in fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy.

The Necessity of Christ’s Virgin Birth

From a Biblical perspective, the virgin birth of Christ was an absolute necessity as much as it is an assured reality. Put negatively, if Jesus had been born of a human father, He would not have been a sinless Saviour, for He would have inherited our sinful nature. Had Christ not been sinless, He would have been unable to redeem sinners. Only a sinless One could offer up His life as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of others. Had Christ been born as a mere son of Adam – and not the Son of God – His death at Calvary would have been of no avail to us. We are sinners. We are so by nature and practice, being descendants of Adam. Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned (Romans 5:12). We have inherited Adam’s sinful nature. Christ though did not. He is the ‘Last Adam.’ His conception by the Holy Spirit ensured that no taint of sin was transmitted to His human nature. He is the sinless Son of God, hence His qualification to be the Saviour of sinners. He was born, not of the will of man but of God. His human nature was free from sin, hence His blood alone, shed at Calvary’s cross, has the power to save others from sin. Christ’s supernatural birth and Christ’s supernatural blood are inextricably linked. Redemption is only to be found in the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot (1 Peter 1:19).

What stream is that which sweeps away

My sins just like a flood

Nor lets one guilty blemish stay?

Tis Jesus’ precious blood.

The Glory of Christ’s Virgin Birth

The Christian marvels at the virgin birth of Christ, a virgin birth in total fulfilment of Isaiah 7:14: Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a Son.  The virgin birth of Christ elicits our humble adoration. The virgin birth of Christ though is just one facet of the incomparable person and work of the incomparable Saviour. Christ certainly entered into the world supernaturally – yet He also exited from the world in a supernatural way too. Christ certainly did inhabit a virgin womb for a season – but He also inhabited a virgin tomb too, from which He conquered the grave on the third day.

In dealing with Christ we are dealing with God. A true Christian, knowing His power to save, will never ever cast aspersions on either Christ’s virgin birth or any of the other miraculous phenomena connected with our Saviour.

Christ was, as Isaiah said He would be, ‘conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary.’ Christ’s virgin birth is both a doctrine to be believed and a hymn of praise to be sung. It was by this method that the pre-existent Son of God became incarnate ‘for us men and for our salvation.’

Christ by highest heaven adored

Christ, the everlasting Lord

Late in time behold Him come

Offspring of a virgin’s womb

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see

Hail the incarnate Deity

Pleased as Man with men to dwell

Jesus, our Immanuel.

Posted by Site Developer in Bible, Providence, Worship, 0 comments
06
Jun
2015

He Ascended into Heaven …

 

Heaven

The day known as ‘Ascension Day’ by Christians who follow a church calendar, usually falls in May. It commemorates Christ’s glorious ascension into heaven, forty days after his victorious resurrection on the first ‘Easter Sunday’.

 

Luke provides the fullest description of this particular milestone in the work of the Saviour. He takes us, some two thousand years ago, to the Mount of Olives on the eastern side of the city of Jerusalem, and relates: ‘as they [that is, the disciples] were looking on, he [that is, the Lord Jesus] was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.

‘And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven”’ (Acts 1:9-11).

 

Mission accomplished

 

The Ascension reminds us that in dealing with Jesus we are dealing with no mere man, but with God himself in human flesh. The Lord Jesus entered our world in a supernatural manner, being conceived by the Holy Spirit in a virgin’s womb. It was thus most fitting that he should also exit from our world in a supernatural way, ascending into heaven on the clouds.

Picture the scene in heaven when the Son of God returned home to glory. What triumph and jubilation! He had perfectly fulfilled his Father’s plan of salvation and accomplished his mission.

He had left heaven for earth. He had died to save God’s elect from their sins, paying their penalty in full by dying on the cross in their place. He had triumphed over and defeated the grave when he rose victoriously from the dead on the third day. Now he was returning home.

The ascension is therefore rightly though of in terms of Christ’s coronation. Ascending into heaven, he took his seat at God’s right hand — the place of supreme approval and pre-eminence.

Psalm 24 may well give us a prophetic glimpse of this when it says, ‘Lift up your heads, O gates! And be lifted up O ancient doors! That the King of Glory may come in. Who is the King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory’ (Psalm 24:9-10). Christ the crucified is now Christ crowned King:

 

The head that once was crowned with thorns

Is crowned with glory now;

A royal diadem adorns

The mighty Victor’s brow.

 

The highest place that heaven affords

Is his by sovereign right;

The King of kings and Lord of lords

And heaven’s eternal light.

 

Kingly office

 

Christ’s ascension and enthronement reminds us of his kingly office. As the Messiah, he fulfils the threefold office of prophet, priest and king in his one person. As King, he sits enthroned at God’s right hand. Christians contend for Christ’s crown and covenant, for our Saviour is the Lord of heaven and earth. He is due the worship, allegiance, obedience and obeisance appropriate to his worthy Name.

Our Saviour possesses unsurpassed authority, for he is the King of kings and Lord of lords! As the Shorter Catechism puts it, ‘Christ executeth the office of a king, subduing us to himself, in ruling and defending us, and in restraining and conquering all his and our enemies’.

 

An on-going ministry

 

Paradoxically, the ascension of Christ also teaches us about the continuation, as well as the conclusion, of Christ’s ministry. Ten days after his ascension, as he promised, Christ poured out his Holy Spirit on the infant church.

The Holy Spirit of God, although a divine person in his own right, can also be thought of as the presence of Jesus with his people on earth. He continues Christ’s ministry by applying to us the benefits of Christ’s redeeming work. The Shorter Catechism, again, states: ‘We are made partakers of the redemption purchased by Christ by the effectual application of it to us by his Holy Spirit’.

Thank God that we are not left to our own unaided devices when it comes to the essential matter of believing in Jesus, but that redemption is as divinely applied as it was divinely accomplished.

Thank God also that because Jesus sits at God’s right hand, his people have a much-needed ‘advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous’ (1 John 2:1). The Bible teaches that the Lord Jesus is currently active on his people’s behalf, praying and interceding for his own — for ‘He ever lives to make intercession for us’ (Hebrews 7:25).            This, of course, refers to Christ’s high priestly ministry: ‘we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God’ (Hebrews 4:14). Paul tells us that ‘Christ Jesus … is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us’ (Romans 8:34).            It is a great comfort to know this. Without the Spirit’s advocacy on earth and the Saviour’s advocacy in heaven, no Christian would ever persevere in the Faith to the last. Our divine salvation is also a divine preservation.

 

Christ’s coming majesty

 

Finally, Christ’s ascension reminds us that he is coming again to this earth — to make all things new and put all things right. To quote Luke’s account once again: ‘This Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven’.

According to the Bible, history is linear, and is and will remain ‘ his-story’. The great culmination of history will be the Second Coming of Christ — and what a day it will be! When the Lord Jesus comes again, visibly in the clouds of heaven, to gather his church and judge the earth in righteousness, he will destroy all evil and put all his enemies under his feet.

Paul calls it ‘our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ’ (Titus 2:13). It will certainly be a day of eternal consolation for those who, by God’s grace, have been brought into a personal saving-faith union with the Lord Jesus. But it will also be a day of remorse and eternal calamity to those who would have nothing to do with Jesus and have hardened their hearts against his saving rule.

 

Christ ascended into heaven …

 

Whether we follow a church calendar or not, the ascension of the Lord Jesus is not to be passed over lightly. Jesus is the incomparable Christ. He is the eternal Son of God. He was born miraculously, he lived miraculously, he died miraculously, and he rose from the grave miraculously.

He ascended into heaven miraculously and, miraculously, even today, is still at work in the world, bestowing salvation on lost sinners and building his church. He is also coming again — miraculously. The Bible tells us so, ‘For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet’ (1 Corinthians 15:25).

‘Ascension Day’ reminds us that there is no-one like the Lord Jesus — the Christ of the Scriptures, the head of all principality and power, in whom dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily and in whom we are complete (Colossians 2:8-10).

 

Triumphant, Christ ascends on high,

The glorious work complete.

Sin, death and hell low vanquished lie

Beneath his awe-full feet.

 

There, with eternal glory crowned,

The Lord, the Conqueror reigns.

His praise the heavenly choirs resound

In their immortal strains.

 

© Timothy Cross

Featured image from www.publicdomainpictures.net

Posted by Site Developer in Providence, Salvation, Worship, 0 comments