Wednesday, August 29, 2007
He Will Not Fail Them
Psalm 78:65-72
12/31/06 D. Marion Clark
Introduction
365 days ago I preached on the first day of the year from Psalm 78:1-8. Of course, you remember that! No doubt my words remain as though spoken yesterday! It was a message about passing on to the next generation the glorious deeds of God. Here is how I closed:
“We must be careful not to exhibit complaining spirits before our children. Do they see that in us? What will your children hear from you today – how wonderful it was to worship God with his people or complaints about parking or room temperature? What will they hear from you this week – your sharing of God’s glorious deeds or grumblings about how tough life is? Will they remember best your prayers with them or your complaining about them?
“And these are not just questions for parents. Everyone here, you need to know that you are being watched and listened to by children. They see and hear you when you don’t notice them. They are learning from you whether worship in the house of God is boring as it seems or something that they too should be delighting in. They are learning from you by your attitude in worship and your attitude towards them if the gospel is something to really believe; if it is something for them. What are you teaching them?
“Today is the first day of a new year. Brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers, let us resolve today that we will not hide the sayings from of old in the Scriptures; rather, we will tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done. Let us make known the faithfulness of the Lord to all generations.”
So, here is my question on the last day of the year. How did you do? Can you look back over 2006 and with satisfaction say, “I’ve been a good witness to my children and the children of Tenth Presbyterian Church this year; by my words and actions, they know better the glorious deeds of God and his faithfulness”? Before we answer such a question, let’s do as one noted commentator liked to say and give the “rest of the story.”
Text
As you of course remember, I covered most of Psalm 78, giving warning not to follow the example of the Israelites who were unfaithful to God. They rebelled against God in the wilderness after his miraculous deliverance from Egypt and preservation in that same wilderness. Then, even after entering into the Promised Land, they continued to rebel. The result was God’s rejection of them and their deliverance into the hands of their adversaries. But the psalm does not end with rejection. Let’s pick up with verse 65.
65 Then the Lord awoke as from sleep,
like a strong man shouting because of wine.
66 And he put his adversaries to rout;
he put them to everlasting shame.
Here is what the psalmist Asaph is referring to. During the period of the judges’ rule over Israel, the tabernacle that had moved with the people during their wilderness journey, had been located at Shiloh in the territory of the tribe of Ephraim. This was the tribe, descended from Joseph that had risen to prominence over the other tribes.
According to the psalmist, Israel’s idolatry during the period of the judges led to Shiloh’s destruction and the downfall of Ephraim from its position of prominence as the location of government and worship. The soldiers fighting against the Philistines turned the very ark of God into an idol by taking it into battle as a talisman to secure victory. Instead of victory, they were defeated and the ark taken into captivity, never again to return to Shiloh. Indeed, Shiloh would eventually be destroyed and become an example of the destruction that comes to those who fail to keep God’s covenant.
At the battle of the ark, the two ungodly priests “fell by the sword,” as verse 64 notes, and the widow of one of them died while giving childbirth when she heard the news of her husbands death and the ark’s capture. She just had time to name the child – Ichabod, which means “inglorious”; for, as she said, “The glory has departed from Israel!”
This was the legacy of the Israelites who centuries earlier at the foot of Mt. Sinai had vowed, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do” (Exodus 19:8). What they did was break all the commandments that the Lord had spoken and passed on that same trait to their descendants. And so the day of shame finally came that the glory departed in the form of the ark from Israel. The ark, which represented the presence of God among his people, was taken away.
But that was not the end of the story. “Then the Lord awoke as from sleep.” He put his adversaries, in this case the Philistines to rout and everlasting shame. How did he do it? He gave them hemorrhoids! Or a plague like it that disfigured and killed many men. After seven months of passing the ark around their cities, they returned the ark to Israel by letting it be pulled on a cart by unmanned cows. A generation later, King David would bring the ark to Jerusalem on Mt. Zion in the territory of Judah. As the psalmist Asaph explains:
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68 but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 He built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
like the earth, which he has founded forever.
It was Jerusalem that God had destined to be the dwelling place of his Presence. There the ark would reside in the temple built as the place of worship for all of God’s people.
Furthermore, God chose a servant to shepherd his people so that they would not fall into the disobedience of which they had been so guilty.
70 He chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
71 from following the nursing ewes he brought him
to shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his inheritance.
72 With upright heart he shepherded them
and guided them with his skillful hand.
Let’s recap the story as presented in this psalm. By glorious deeds, God delivered the people of Israel from captivity in Egypt. He made a covenant with them and appointed a law by which they were to keep that covenant. They promised obedience but far from obeying God they tested him time and again in the wilderness with their discontent, and yet again in the Promised Land with their idolatry. God, in turn, delivered them over to their enemies and yet would rescue them whenever they showed sign of repentance. The twist in the story comes when the very ark of God – the symbol of his Presence – is taken into captivity. It returns but to a new location. The favor once shown to the tribe of Ephraim shifts to Judah. The ark is given a securer home in Jerusalem, and the people are provided a skilful, godly shepherd.
For the sake of full disclosure, I should note that the author of this psalm, Asaph, served under David. Who knows, maybe this psalm was written on an anniversary of the occasion of bringing the ark to Mt. Zion? This explains why the psalm ends with the reference to David and presents such a pleasant image of David leading God’s sheep. The days of discontent and idolatry are behind them.
But we know the rest of the story, don’t we? Yes, David was a good shepherd who was a man after God’s own heart. But David had his own lapses. His moral lapse led to adultery then murder. His failure to exercise discipline in his family led to a bloody rebellion. His folly led to a plague that killed thousands.
The nation was obedient enough. But within two generations it would divide in two, and the northern kingdom led by Ephraim would never again return to true worship. With possession of the temple and the ark, the southern kingdom of Judah would fall into idolatry then return to the Lord, fall into idolatry then return to the Lord, and so on, all dependent on the particular guidance of their shepherd-king at the time.
Whatever the condition of spiritual fidelity in the land, the nation of Judah had one thing in which it placed its security – the temple of the Lord. Like their ancestors in the days of the judges who placed their confidence in the tabernacle, they believed that no matter how bad times could get, complete defeat would never take place because God’s temple dwelled in their land.
The prophet Jeremiah addressed this vain deceit:
Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord…’ (7:5).
Now God did intend for his people to look to the temple as a visible sign of his presence. When their faith in God grew weak, it was in the temple where it would be renewed; it was at the temple where they worshipped God; when they sinned, it was to the temple they came and offered their prayers and sacrifices to God. But they turned the temple itself into a talisman that would protect them even as they sinned. As Jeremiah went on to admonish:
8 “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. 9Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, 10 and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations? 11 Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the Lord.
And then he pointed back to Shiloh:
12 Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel. 13 And now, because you have done all these things, declares the Lord, and when I spoke to you persistently you did not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer, 14 therefore I will do to the house that is called by my name, and in which you trust, and to the place that I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh. 15 And I will cast you out of my sight, as I cast out all your kinsmen, all the offspring of Ephraim.
And so the story of God’s covenant people came full circle. Judah became Ephraim; Jerusalem became Shiloh. The glory of the Lord again departed and the people were sent into exile.
Except, the story does change slightly. As you know, the people returned from exile to Jerusalem. The temple is rebuilt and the law of God is restored. Indeed, the law would rise to a prominence it had not achieved through the rise of scribes beginning with Ezra. In time the temple would be completely rebuilt to an even greater scale than that of Solomon’s temple. And though Israel was occupied territory, the people were free to worship at the temple. And though there was no David on the throne to shepherd his people in the way of the Lord, they had Moses and the prophets through the faithful preservation and teaching of the law.
But another prophet exposed their sin. He said they neglected justice and the love of God. He said that they honored God with their lips but their heart was far from him; that they left the commandment of God and held to the tradition of men. He claimed that within their hearts were evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness.
They had unknowingly come back full circle. Within a generation Jerusalem would again be destroyed and the temple permanently. Never again would it rise. The people would be scattered around the world and a Jewish nation would not return for centuries.
But there is more than a slight twist in this story. For this prophet was the long-awaited Messiah of whom all the other prophets had foretold. This was the Son of David who was the supreme Shepherd-King. And he would bring forth a redemption that could never be lost. He would open the way into the heavenly temple that will never be destroyed. He is the Good Shepherd who lay down his life for his sheep; who raised it up again; who ascended into the heavenly temple to serve as High Priest for his people. He still shepherds his people with an upright heart and guides them with a skillful hand.
As the glory of the Lord moved from Ephraim to Judah, so it moved from Judah to the Church. It is not that Judah is rejected, or even Ephraim, but that the Church encompasses all people from every tribe who follow Jesus Christ, the Shepherd-King. And the temple of earth is not to be found in a geographical location, but in the hearts of all true believers. Surely then the rest of the story is one of faithfulness to God!
Well…, sort of. When we review the history of the church over the last 2,000 years there are wonderful, inspirational stories to tell. And then, there are not-so-good stories – stories of persecution and wars carried out in the name of Christ; stories of immorality, theft, murder, coveting… why, the very things that Jesus spoke of against his generation!
And that leads us to the question raised at the beginning of this message: How did we do this past year in being good witnesses to the glorious deeds of the Lord? Did we keep the command to faithfully pass on to the next generation in word and deed what the Lord has done?
Judging by the spiritual health survey that was taken in March, the answer is “sort of.” We speak often of God’s goodness to us and of his faithfulness. We enjoy coming to worship; we read our Bibles and pray daily. We can see ways that we are growing in spiritual maturity. But…there is still that temper problem, especially with the family; and we did say some things we wish we could have taken back, especially that email we wrote hastily. There was more than one instance of indiscretion, and we suppose what we did with our money could fall under cheating or stealing. Probably some of our behavior could be classified as legalism; and yes, we did do good works thinking they would earn favor with God; and we have to admit there is a bit of pride in our thinking. No, we can’t really say we’ve paid much attention to encouraging the children.
And…I think I’ll stop there. That’s enough of my list; you can add your own. It seems that however much resolved I am the first day of the year to be a good witness for the Lord, I’m back on the last day confessing how much I’ve failed. I’ve come full circle. And yet, I would be a poorer witness if I presented such a picture as the rest of the story.
For the story has never been about the faithfulness of me or you or anyone else. It has never been about how well we have lived up to our potential or the personal reforms we have made. It has never been about our achievements. The story is about…well, let Isaiah tell you what it is about:
9 Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good news;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good news;
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
“Behold your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord God comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young (Isaiah 40:9-11).
Conclusion
Behold your God! Behold the God who redeems you; the God who shepherds you. You have fallen many times this year, but he has lifted you up every time. And for all your sins, there are surprisingly numbers of times that you have withstood sin because your King shepherded you. There are more times than you know that you were protected from sin because your High Priest interceded for you and his Holy Spirit worked in you. There are times that you can recall and other times you know nothing about in which you served as a good witness for your Lord because of your Shepherd’s skillful hand in guiding you.
That is the rest of the story. You are not destroyed for your sins. Your Shepherd took that punishment. Your guilt is removed forever. The glory of the Lord will not depart from you because the Holy Spirit will not leave you.
And actually, that is not the rest of the story. There is “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” There is no circle of time dooming us to an endless story of sin and failure. Time is marching on to the day of the Lord’s return when there will be a new heaven and a new earth, when the heavenly Jerusalem will come down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. But there will be no temple in this Jerusalem, for “its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb” (Revelation 21:22). This will happen because the Lord is faithful to all generations.
12/31/06 D. Marion Clark
Introduction
365 days ago I preached on the first day of the year from Psalm 78:1-8. Of course, you remember that! No doubt my words remain as though spoken yesterday! It was a message about passing on to the next generation the glorious deeds of God. Here is how I closed:
“We must be careful not to exhibit complaining spirits before our children. Do they see that in us? What will your children hear from you today – how wonderful it was to worship God with his people or complaints about parking or room temperature? What will they hear from you this week – your sharing of God’s glorious deeds or grumblings about how tough life is? Will they remember best your prayers with them or your complaining about them?
“And these are not just questions for parents. Everyone here, you need to know that you are being watched and listened to by children. They see and hear you when you don’t notice them. They are learning from you whether worship in the house of God is boring as it seems or something that they too should be delighting in. They are learning from you by your attitude in worship and your attitude towards them if the gospel is something to really believe; if it is something for them. What are you teaching them?
“Today is the first day of a new year. Brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers, let us resolve today that we will not hide the sayings from of old in the Scriptures; rather, we will tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done. Let us make known the faithfulness of the Lord to all generations.”
So, here is my question on the last day of the year. How did you do? Can you look back over 2006 and with satisfaction say, “I’ve been a good witness to my children and the children of Tenth Presbyterian Church this year; by my words and actions, they know better the glorious deeds of God and his faithfulness”? Before we answer such a question, let’s do as one noted commentator liked to say and give the “rest of the story.”
Text
As you of course remember, I covered most of Psalm 78, giving warning not to follow the example of the Israelites who were unfaithful to God. They rebelled against God in the wilderness after his miraculous deliverance from Egypt and preservation in that same wilderness. Then, even after entering into the Promised Land, they continued to rebel. The result was God’s rejection of them and their deliverance into the hands of their adversaries. But the psalm does not end with rejection. Let’s pick up with verse 65.
65 Then the Lord awoke as from sleep,
like a strong man shouting because of wine.
66 And he put his adversaries to rout;
he put them to everlasting shame.
Here is what the psalmist Asaph is referring to. During the period of the judges’ rule over Israel, the tabernacle that had moved with the people during their wilderness journey, had been located at Shiloh in the territory of the tribe of Ephraim. This was the tribe, descended from Joseph that had risen to prominence over the other tribes.
According to the psalmist, Israel’s idolatry during the period of the judges led to Shiloh’s destruction and the downfall of Ephraim from its position of prominence as the location of government and worship. The soldiers fighting against the Philistines turned the very ark of God into an idol by taking it into battle as a talisman to secure victory. Instead of victory, they were defeated and the ark taken into captivity, never again to return to Shiloh. Indeed, Shiloh would eventually be destroyed and become an example of the destruction that comes to those who fail to keep God’s covenant.
At the battle of the ark, the two ungodly priests “fell by the sword,” as verse 64 notes, and the widow of one of them died while giving childbirth when she heard the news of her husbands death and the ark’s capture. She just had time to name the child – Ichabod, which means “inglorious”; for, as she said, “The glory has departed from Israel!”
This was the legacy of the Israelites who centuries earlier at the foot of Mt. Sinai had vowed, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do” (Exodus 19:8). What they did was break all the commandments that the Lord had spoken and passed on that same trait to their descendants. And so the day of shame finally came that the glory departed in the form of the ark from Israel. The ark, which represented the presence of God among his people, was taken away.
But that was not the end of the story. “Then the Lord awoke as from sleep.” He put his adversaries, in this case the Philistines to rout and everlasting shame. How did he do it? He gave them hemorrhoids! Or a plague like it that disfigured and killed many men. After seven months of passing the ark around their cities, they returned the ark to Israel by letting it be pulled on a cart by unmanned cows. A generation later, King David would bring the ark to Jerusalem on Mt. Zion in the territory of Judah. As the psalmist Asaph explains:
67 He rejected the tent of Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68 but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he loves.
69 He built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
like the earth, which he has founded forever.
It was Jerusalem that God had destined to be the dwelling place of his Presence. There the ark would reside in the temple built as the place of worship for all of God’s people.
Furthermore, God chose a servant to shepherd his people so that they would not fall into the disobedience of which they had been so guilty.
70 He chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
71 from following the nursing ewes he brought him
to shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his inheritance.
72 With upright heart he shepherded them
and guided them with his skillful hand.
Let’s recap the story as presented in this psalm. By glorious deeds, God delivered the people of Israel from captivity in Egypt. He made a covenant with them and appointed a law by which they were to keep that covenant. They promised obedience but far from obeying God they tested him time and again in the wilderness with their discontent, and yet again in the Promised Land with their idolatry. God, in turn, delivered them over to their enemies and yet would rescue them whenever they showed sign of repentance. The twist in the story comes when the very ark of God – the symbol of his Presence – is taken into captivity. It returns but to a new location. The favor once shown to the tribe of Ephraim shifts to Judah. The ark is given a securer home in Jerusalem, and the people are provided a skilful, godly shepherd.
For the sake of full disclosure, I should note that the author of this psalm, Asaph, served under David. Who knows, maybe this psalm was written on an anniversary of the occasion of bringing the ark to Mt. Zion? This explains why the psalm ends with the reference to David and presents such a pleasant image of David leading God’s sheep. The days of discontent and idolatry are behind them.
But we know the rest of the story, don’t we? Yes, David was a good shepherd who was a man after God’s own heart. But David had his own lapses. His moral lapse led to adultery then murder. His failure to exercise discipline in his family led to a bloody rebellion. His folly led to a plague that killed thousands.
The nation was obedient enough. But within two generations it would divide in two, and the northern kingdom led by Ephraim would never again return to true worship. With possession of the temple and the ark, the southern kingdom of Judah would fall into idolatry then return to the Lord, fall into idolatry then return to the Lord, and so on, all dependent on the particular guidance of their shepherd-king at the time.
Whatever the condition of spiritual fidelity in the land, the nation of Judah had one thing in which it placed its security – the temple of the Lord. Like their ancestors in the days of the judges who placed their confidence in the tabernacle, they believed that no matter how bad times could get, complete defeat would never take place because God’s temple dwelled in their land.
The prophet Jeremiah addressed this vain deceit:
Do not trust in these deceptive words: ‘This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord…’ (7:5).
Now God did intend for his people to look to the temple as a visible sign of his presence. When their faith in God grew weak, it was in the temple where it would be renewed; it was at the temple where they worshipped God; when they sinned, it was to the temple they came and offered their prayers and sacrifices to God. But they turned the temple itself into a talisman that would protect them even as they sinned. As Jeremiah went on to admonish:
8 “Behold, you trust in deceptive words to no avail. 9Will you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make offerings to Baal, and go after other gods that you have not known, 10 and then come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’—only to go on doing all these abominations? 11 Has this house, which is called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I myself have seen it, declares the Lord.
And then he pointed back to Shiloh:
12 Go now to my place that was in Shiloh, where I made my name dwell at first, and see what I did to it because of the evil of my people Israel. 13 And now, because you have done all these things, declares the Lord, and when I spoke to you persistently you did not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer, 14 therefore I will do to the house that is called by my name, and in which you trust, and to the place that I gave to you and to your fathers, as I did to Shiloh. 15 And I will cast you out of my sight, as I cast out all your kinsmen, all the offspring of Ephraim.
And so the story of God’s covenant people came full circle. Judah became Ephraim; Jerusalem became Shiloh. The glory of the Lord again departed and the people were sent into exile.
Except, the story does change slightly. As you know, the people returned from exile to Jerusalem. The temple is rebuilt and the law of God is restored. Indeed, the law would rise to a prominence it had not achieved through the rise of scribes beginning with Ezra. In time the temple would be completely rebuilt to an even greater scale than that of Solomon’s temple. And though Israel was occupied territory, the people were free to worship at the temple. And though there was no David on the throne to shepherd his people in the way of the Lord, they had Moses and the prophets through the faithful preservation and teaching of the law.
But another prophet exposed their sin. He said they neglected justice and the love of God. He said that they honored God with their lips but their heart was far from him; that they left the commandment of God and held to the tradition of men. He claimed that within their hearts were evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness.
They had unknowingly come back full circle. Within a generation Jerusalem would again be destroyed and the temple permanently. Never again would it rise. The people would be scattered around the world and a Jewish nation would not return for centuries.
But there is more than a slight twist in this story. For this prophet was the long-awaited Messiah of whom all the other prophets had foretold. This was the Son of David who was the supreme Shepherd-King. And he would bring forth a redemption that could never be lost. He would open the way into the heavenly temple that will never be destroyed. He is the Good Shepherd who lay down his life for his sheep; who raised it up again; who ascended into the heavenly temple to serve as High Priest for his people. He still shepherds his people with an upright heart and guides them with a skillful hand.
As the glory of the Lord moved from Ephraim to Judah, so it moved from Judah to the Church. It is not that Judah is rejected, or even Ephraim, but that the Church encompasses all people from every tribe who follow Jesus Christ, the Shepherd-King. And the temple of earth is not to be found in a geographical location, but in the hearts of all true believers. Surely then the rest of the story is one of faithfulness to God!
Well…, sort of. When we review the history of the church over the last 2,000 years there are wonderful, inspirational stories to tell. And then, there are not-so-good stories – stories of persecution and wars carried out in the name of Christ; stories of immorality, theft, murder, coveting… why, the very things that Jesus spoke of against his generation!
And that leads us to the question raised at the beginning of this message: How did we do this past year in being good witnesses to the glorious deeds of the Lord? Did we keep the command to faithfully pass on to the next generation in word and deed what the Lord has done?
Judging by the spiritual health survey that was taken in March, the answer is “sort of.” We speak often of God’s goodness to us and of his faithfulness. We enjoy coming to worship; we read our Bibles and pray daily. We can see ways that we are growing in spiritual maturity. But…there is still that temper problem, especially with the family; and we did say some things we wish we could have taken back, especially that email we wrote hastily. There was more than one instance of indiscretion, and we suppose what we did with our money could fall under cheating or stealing. Probably some of our behavior could be classified as legalism; and yes, we did do good works thinking they would earn favor with God; and we have to admit there is a bit of pride in our thinking. No, we can’t really say we’ve paid much attention to encouraging the children.
And…I think I’ll stop there. That’s enough of my list; you can add your own. It seems that however much resolved I am the first day of the year to be a good witness for the Lord, I’m back on the last day confessing how much I’ve failed. I’ve come full circle. And yet, I would be a poorer witness if I presented such a picture as the rest of the story.
For the story has never been about the faithfulness of me or you or anyone else. It has never been about how well we have lived up to our potential or the personal reforms we have made. It has never been about our achievements. The story is about…well, let Isaiah tell you what it is about:
9 Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good news;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good news;
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
“Behold your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord God comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd;
he will gather the lambs in his arms;
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young (Isaiah 40:9-11).
Conclusion
Behold your God! Behold the God who redeems you; the God who shepherds you. You have fallen many times this year, but he has lifted you up every time. And for all your sins, there are surprisingly numbers of times that you have withstood sin because your King shepherded you. There are more times than you know that you were protected from sin because your High Priest interceded for you and his Holy Spirit worked in you. There are times that you can recall and other times you know nothing about in which you served as a good witness for your Lord because of your Shepherd’s skillful hand in guiding you.
That is the rest of the story. You are not destroyed for your sins. Your Shepherd took that punishment. Your guilt is removed forever. The glory of the Lord will not depart from you because the Holy Spirit will not leave you.
And actually, that is not the rest of the story. There is “an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” There is no circle of time dooming us to an endless story of sin and failure. Time is marching on to the day of the Lord’s return when there will be a new heaven and a new earth, when the heavenly Jerusalem will come down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. But there will be no temple in this Jerusalem, for “its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb” (Revelation 21:22). This will happen because the Lord is faithful to all generations.
Monday, August 06, 2007
The Tithe
Deuteronomy 14:22-29
8/5/07 D. Marion Clark
Introduction
As you know, the theme for the summer series of sermons is stewardship. For those of you who have attended each Sunday, you may have concluded that it is a subtle theme, especially if you were waiting to hear about giving money to the church. Well, tonight’s sermon is not subtle! We are going to look together at the biblical notion of tithing. We will explore three questions: What is a tithe? What is its purpose? Does tithing still apply today? Our passage from Deuteronomy lays the foundation for the answers.
What is a Tithe
Verse 22 presents the command to tithe: “You shall tithe all the yield of your seed that comes from the field year by year.” The word “tithe” means a tenth. The Israelite community was an agricultural community. Most men were farmers and herders, and it is understandable that the specific reference for tithing is produce and animals, which are also mentioned in verse 23.
Even so, it interesting that there is no command to tithe anything else. No instructions to merchants or builders or tailors to tithe their income. No instructions to tithe money. On the other hand, before the law was given by Moses, tithing was carried out which did involve income. Abraham tithed the spoils of the battle he fought to rescue Lot. Jacob, after his dream of the stairway from heaven, vowed to give back to God a “full tenth” of all that God gave him.
Considering these things, we can say that to tithe is to give a tenth of one’s income or what one uses to produce income. The farmer gives one tenth of his produce; the herdsman gives one tenth of his animals.
What is the Purpose of Tithing
What was done with these tithes? To whom were they given and for what purpose? Let’s go on with our passage in verse 23. “And before the Lord your God, in the place that he will choose, to make his name dwell there, you shall eat the tithe of your grain, of your wine, and of your oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.”
They ate the tithe! In fact, they had a party with it at the temple! Moses goes on in verses 24-25 to give instructions to those who lived far away and could not practically transport their full tithe of produce and animals. They could redeem the products with money, travel to Jerusalem, and then buy whatever they wanted to party with. Read with me verse 26: “and spend the money for whatever you desire—oxen or sheep or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.”
I like this command! Maybe we should try this. We get together at the church once a year and have a big party. Do you think we could have wine and other fermented drink? As the verse says, “whatever your appetite craves.”
Before I go too far (and have the elders escort me off the pulpit), let me note a few particulars. This was a family event. The whole household was included. They couldn’t get too out of hand. Secondly, they had to invite guests who were clergy or involved in some kind of ministry work. Verse 27 says, “And you shall not neglect the Levite who is within your towns, for he has no portion or inheritance with you.” The Levites of today would be the clergy, the church support staff, missionaries, and ministry workers. Thirdly, they had to have the feasts at the temple. No private parties. Deuteronomy 12:17-18 make clear that the place of the celebration is not optional: “You may not eat within your towns the tithe of your grain or of your wine or of your oil, or the firstborn of your herd or of your flock, or any of your vow offerings that you vow, or your freewill offerings or the contribution that you present, but you shall eat them before the Lord your God in the place that the Lord your God will choose,” i.e. Jerusalem.
Now we are getting to the point of these feasts. Deuteronomy 12:7 explains what they were about: “And there you shall eat before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your households, in all that you undertake, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.” This was the Thanksgiving Day meal. The rejoicing was rejoicing in the blessings of the Lord, which sprung from the labor of their hands. Tithing, which was the product of their labor, testified to the blessing of God. It was a way of saying, “See how God has blessed me,” or more accurately, it was a way for God to say to his people, “See how I have blessed you. Rejoice in the blessings I have given you. Delight in them.”
The rejoicing in God’s blessings were also an acknowledgement that he alone was the provider. Go back to verse 23 to the phrase “that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.” The farmers may have grown crops and the herders raised their sheep and goats out in the fields and countryside; the production may have occurred in the communities throughout the country, but it all came from the hand of the Lord whose presence was represented at the temple in Jerusalem. Therefore, his people were to make their pilgrimage in acknowledgement the all they had came from the Lord. That is what is involved in fearing the Lord.
So, the first purpose of the tithe we see here is that thankful joy may abound, acknowledging the Lord to be the Giver. There is another. It is the practical purpose of providing for the ministry of the Lord.
In Numbers 18:21 God says, “To the Levites I have given every tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service that they do, their service in the tent of meeting.”
When the Israelites entered the Promised Land, land was apportioned to each of the tribes. Within each of those tribes, each family was allotted land, which they farmed and provided for themselves. The tribe of Levi, however, was given no land, and, thus, members of the tribe, the Levites, had no means to provide for themselves. Their jobs all had something to do with service for the temple. They may be priests; they may be temple musicians; they may be temple sextons. They lived throughout the land and would go to Jerusalem at appointed times to do their work. The tithes were the means by which they were supported. They, by the way, were instructed to tithe the tithes they received.
So, we have as a second purpose the support of the Lord’s ministry. The third purpose was to help the needy. Verses 28,29 read: “At the end of every three years you shall bring out all the tithe of your produce in the same year and lay it up within your towns. 29 And the Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance with you, and the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, who are within your towns, shall come and eat and be filled…”
It appears that each third year, all of the tithes were reserved to provide for the ministry workers (the Levites) and the needy (foreigners who have no land inheritance, and orphans and widows who could not work the land). The yearly tithes would also be used for such support, but the third years were devoted to providing for the needs of others.
And then, there was a fourth reason, to be blessed. Verse 29 ends with the phrase, “that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands that you do.” Tithing was a means of receiving blessing. Remember the verse in Deuteronomy 12:7: “and you shall rejoice…in all that you undertake, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.” Because God has blessed your labor you give. Because you give, God will bless your labor. It is the same principle presented in Malachi 3:10 where God says, “’Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘ if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.’”
We have now answered two questions about tithing. First, what is it? It is giving a tenth to the Lord of what one produces or receives as income. Secondly, what purpose does it serve? It serves several purposes. One, it is a means to rejoice in the blessings of God and acknowledge him as Provider. Two, it is a means to support the ministry of the Lord. Three, it is a means to provide for the needy. Four, it is a means to receive further blessing from the Lord.
Does Tithing Still Apply
That is what the Old Testament presents about tithing. What does the New Testament tell us? Well, we learn that the Pharisees tithed hypocritically. In a moment of anger Jesus lashed out at the Pharisees for a number of hypocritical acts, the first one involving tithing. “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others” (Luke 11:42).
Luke 18:12-14 records a parable Jesus told about a Pharisee and a tax collector who go to the temple to pray. The Pharisee’s prayer went like this: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.” Jesus was criticizing the Pharisee for lack of humility.
There is one other reference to tithing found in Hebrews 7:4-10. The writer uses the occasion of Abraham giving his tithe to Melchizedek to demonstrate how great Melchizedek was. Here you have Abraham to whom the covenant promise was given tithing to a priest who was not of God’s covenant lineage.
That’s it. There are no other references. There is no instruction to tithe, no reference to it at all. To be sure, there is instruction about giving that cover the bases of tithing. 2 Corinthians 8 speaks to the joy that we should have in giving, especially in thanks for what we have received from Christ. 1 Corinthians 9 is an argument for why preachers of the gospel should be supported. The very office of deacon arose out of the early church’s need to provide for widows in an organized way. The church presumed that it was to help the needy among its people.
But there is no direct teaching to tithe, which leads to our third question, “Does tithing still apply today?” The answer is clearly “yes and no!”
It does not apply in the same way as the Old Testament. Giving ten percent to the Lord was a law. It does not carry that status in the New Testament. Jesus did not disparage tithing, even when making reference to the Pharisees. Yet, on the other hand, he did not instruct his disciples to tithe. In the passages that teach about giving, tithing is not even named, much less taught. There is no reference to an annual thanksgiving feast in any location. On the other hand, it is hard to imagine the first Christian, who were Jews, giving up the practice. If anything, the book of Acts shows the early Christians being more liberal in their giving than less. Even so, no standard of amount is ever given or taught. We are to be generous; we are to give as we prosper; we are to give joyfully. But no percentage is forthcoming.
Having said this, I exhort you to tithe. Let me explain why. We may not be commanded to tithe, but we cannot escape the benefits to God’s people through tithing.
One, tithing is a significant, solid method of providing for the Lord’s ministry and the needy through the church. I cannot think of a better method of supporting the church and its ministry. Many people give without a plan. If they are in church and remember to write a check or have some cash on hand, they give. Or they may have a fixed amount of what they should give weekly which seems about right to them, and probably amounts to two or three percent of their income, so studies of churches have reported.
Sometimes people are moved to give more. A dynamic speaker inspires them; a tearful speaker moves them; or a stern lecturer fills them with guilt. Something happens to tug on their hearts and the money comes forth. The problem with this method is that so much relies upon the skills of a good speaker. I think highly of our senior minister but he’s not a very good weeper. Our trustees will get time from time to report on the finances, but they are not into guilt lecturing. We bring in dynamic speakers for our conferences, but they get more caught up expounding on God’s greatness rather than how much God needs us. Until Tenth takes lessons from the churches and preachers on TV, we cannot expect more money through motivational speeches!
Another method among churches to encourage giving is pledging or faith promise. Whatever the variation, the principle is that you commit to a certain amount of dollars. Members are to “pray about” how much the Lord would have them give and then trust him to provide. The difficulty with the concept of giving is that it is not taught in Scripture, and it encourages people to make a vow, the very thing Scripture cautions us to be careful of.
By consistent tithing, the church is ably supported and you are able to give significantly. Ten percent is a lot of money. You know it is. Why else is it so difficult to give? Whether you are comparatively wealthy or poor, it is a big dent out of your funds. And it is a significant amount for the church. Let’s say you earn ten thousand dollars. You could give a thousand dollars. That’s a lot of money that can make a difference. Tithing allows you to give significantly.
The other reason for tithing is the blessing you receive. The better the tithe the better the party the tithers good afford at the temple. They benefited from their own tithe. So do we. We worship, fellowship, and receive spiritual care in the facilities our giving pay for. We have as good as what we are able to give.
I understand that what I just said sounds rather selfish. We are not here for ourselves but for God, and we should consider what more we could be doing for others if we didn’t spend so much on ourselves. That is all true, but we have got to admit, what Moses instructed the people to do with their tithes was extravagant. We could even say wasteful. To take their tithe and spend it on “whatever your appetite craves” borders on hedonism, wouldn’t you say? We can offend God by going overboard in spending on ourselves, but we can also offend him by discounting his bountiful gifts.
And there is the blessing of giving itself. I think most of us would agree that the more we give the more blessed we are. We are blessed by the very act itself. We feel good. If that is the case, the more we give the better we will feel. I know Christians who struggle to tithe, but I don’t know any who feel bad about tithing; whereas, many who do not tithe do feel bad that they are not putting more in the offering plate.
Furthermore, we will most likely reap reward. Remember the principle: Because God has blessed your labor you give. Because you give, God will bless your labor. It may seem self-serving, but in reality it is a principle we approve of. Proverbs 11:24 says, “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.”
Again, if by tithing we give more, then all the more we can expect God’s blessing. This is not a hard-fast rule: I give x amount of dollars, I can expect x amount return on my investment. But for us to tithe, we to a degree have to sacrifice our own selfish desires and trust God to provide. Generally, God’s principle for himself in such instances is not merely to provide for such givers, but to bless.
Finally, it is a wonderful way to testify to the world our love for God and our faith in Christ. “See the joy and trust I have in my God.” I am encouraging you to tithe, not because it is a law – it is not – but because it is a joy to do so. Our neighbors need to see that. They need to see that we give liberally, because we give intentionally and with joy. To speak of being blessed by God and then to give no more than an unbeliever gives for the good of others belies our testimony.
We should demonstrate in this very practical way how rich we are in Christ. To borrow from 2 Corinthians 8:9, we need to be saying through our action, “See the grace of my Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for my sake became poor, so that I through his poverty might become rich. And in Christ I am rich indeed.”
(If you want to tithe, but you don’t know the practical steps of getting there, help is available. Tithing, you will quickly find out, is not about giving 10 percent of your money away. It forces you to think what you do with 100 percent of your money. If you would like practical help, the diaconate has a financial committee of men and women trained to give that kind of help. They will meet with you to help work up a budget to either tithe immediately or get you to the point where you can tithe. They will keep your information confidential, even the fact they are meeting with you, if you want.)
8/5/07 D. Marion Clark
Introduction
As you know, the theme for the summer series of sermons is stewardship. For those of you who have attended each Sunday, you may have concluded that it is a subtle theme, especially if you were waiting to hear about giving money to the church. Well, tonight’s sermon is not subtle! We are going to look together at the biblical notion of tithing. We will explore three questions: What is a tithe? What is its purpose? Does tithing still apply today? Our passage from Deuteronomy lays the foundation for the answers.
What is a Tithe
Verse 22 presents the command to tithe: “You shall tithe all the yield of your seed that comes from the field year by year.” The word “tithe” means a tenth. The Israelite community was an agricultural community. Most men were farmers and herders, and it is understandable that the specific reference for tithing is produce and animals, which are also mentioned in verse 23.
Even so, it interesting that there is no command to tithe anything else. No instructions to merchants or builders or tailors to tithe their income. No instructions to tithe money. On the other hand, before the law was given by Moses, tithing was carried out which did involve income. Abraham tithed the spoils of the battle he fought to rescue Lot. Jacob, after his dream of the stairway from heaven, vowed to give back to God a “full tenth” of all that God gave him.
Considering these things, we can say that to tithe is to give a tenth of one’s income or what one uses to produce income. The farmer gives one tenth of his produce; the herdsman gives one tenth of his animals.
What is the Purpose of Tithing
What was done with these tithes? To whom were they given and for what purpose? Let’s go on with our passage in verse 23. “And before the Lord your God, in the place that he will choose, to make his name dwell there, you shall eat the tithe of your grain, of your wine, and of your oil, and the firstborn of your herd and flock, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.”
They ate the tithe! In fact, they had a party with it at the temple! Moses goes on in verses 24-25 to give instructions to those who lived far away and could not practically transport their full tithe of produce and animals. They could redeem the products with money, travel to Jerusalem, and then buy whatever they wanted to party with. Read with me verse 26: “and spend the money for whatever you desire—oxen or sheep or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.”
I like this command! Maybe we should try this. We get together at the church once a year and have a big party. Do you think we could have wine and other fermented drink? As the verse says, “whatever your appetite craves.”
Before I go too far (and have the elders escort me off the pulpit), let me note a few particulars. This was a family event. The whole household was included. They couldn’t get too out of hand. Secondly, they had to invite guests who were clergy or involved in some kind of ministry work. Verse 27 says, “And you shall not neglect the Levite who is within your towns, for he has no portion or inheritance with you.” The Levites of today would be the clergy, the church support staff, missionaries, and ministry workers. Thirdly, they had to have the feasts at the temple. No private parties. Deuteronomy 12:17-18 make clear that the place of the celebration is not optional: “You may not eat within your towns the tithe of your grain or of your wine or of your oil, or the firstborn of your herd or of your flock, or any of your vow offerings that you vow, or your freewill offerings or the contribution that you present, but you shall eat them before the Lord your God in the place that the Lord your God will choose,” i.e. Jerusalem.
Now we are getting to the point of these feasts. Deuteronomy 12:7 explains what they were about: “And there you shall eat before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you and your households, in all that you undertake, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.” This was the Thanksgiving Day meal. The rejoicing was rejoicing in the blessings of the Lord, which sprung from the labor of their hands. Tithing, which was the product of their labor, testified to the blessing of God. It was a way of saying, “See how God has blessed me,” or more accurately, it was a way for God to say to his people, “See how I have blessed you. Rejoice in the blessings I have given you. Delight in them.”
The rejoicing in God’s blessings were also an acknowledgement that he alone was the provider. Go back to verse 23 to the phrase “that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always.” The farmers may have grown crops and the herders raised their sheep and goats out in the fields and countryside; the production may have occurred in the communities throughout the country, but it all came from the hand of the Lord whose presence was represented at the temple in Jerusalem. Therefore, his people were to make their pilgrimage in acknowledgement the all they had came from the Lord. That is what is involved in fearing the Lord.
So, the first purpose of the tithe we see here is that thankful joy may abound, acknowledging the Lord to be the Giver. There is another. It is the practical purpose of providing for the ministry of the Lord.
In Numbers 18:21 God says, “To the Levites I have given every tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service that they do, their service in the tent of meeting.”
When the Israelites entered the Promised Land, land was apportioned to each of the tribes. Within each of those tribes, each family was allotted land, which they farmed and provided for themselves. The tribe of Levi, however, was given no land, and, thus, members of the tribe, the Levites, had no means to provide for themselves. Their jobs all had something to do with service for the temple. They may be priests; they may be temple musicians; they may be temple sextons. They lived throughout the land and would go to Jerusalem at appointed times to do their work. The tithes were the means by which they were supported. They, by the way, were instructed to tithe the tithes they received.
So, we have as a second purpose the support of the Lord’s ministry. The third purpose was to help the needy. Verses 28,29 read: “At the end of every three years you shall bring out all the tithe of your produce in the same year and lay it up within your towns. 29 And the Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance with you, and the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, who are within your towns, shall come and eat and be filled…”
It appears that each third year, all of the tithes were reserved to provide for the ministry workers (the Levites) and the needy (foreigners who have no land inheritance, and orphans and widows who could not work the land). The yearly tithes would also be used for such support, but the third years were devoted to providing for the needs of others.
And then, there was a fourth reason, to be blessed. Verse 29 ends with the phrase, “that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands that you do.” Tithing was a means of receiving blessing. Remember the verse in Deuteronomy 12:7: “and you shall rejoice…in all that you undertake, in which the Lord your God has blessed you.” Because God has blessed your labor you give. Because you give, God will bless your labor. It is the same principle presented in Malachi 3:10 where God says, “’Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘ if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.’”
We have now answered two questions about tithing. First, what is it? It is giving a tenth to the Lord of what one produces or receives as income. Secondly, what purpose does it serve? It serves several purposes. One, it is a means to rejoice in the blessings of God and acknowledge him as Provider. Two, it is a means to support the ministry of the Lord. Three, it is a means to provide for the needy. Four, it is a means to receive further blessing from the Lord.
Does Tithing Still Apply
That is what the Old Testament presents about tithing. What does the New Testament tell us? Well, we learn that the Pharisees tithed hypocritically. In a moment of anger Jesus lashed out at the Pharisees for a number of hypocritical acts, the first one involving tithing. “But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others” (Luke 11:42).
Luke 18:12-14 records a parable Jesus told about a Pharisee and a tax collector who go to the temple to pray. The Pharisee’s prayer went like this: “God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.” Jesus was criticizing the Pharisee for lack of humility.
There is one other reference to tithing found in Hebrews 7:4-10. The writer uses the occasion of Abraham giving his tithe to Melchizedek to demonstrate how great Melchizedek was. Here you have Abraham to whom the covenant promise was given tithing to a priest who was not of God’s covenant lineage.
That’s it. There are no other references. There is no instruction to tithe, no reference to it at all. To be sure, there is instruction about giving that cover the bases of tithing. 2 Corinthians 8 speaks to the joy that we should have in giving, especially in thanks for what we have received from Christ. 1 Corinthians 9 is an argument for why preachers of the gospel should be supported. The very office of deacon arose out of the early church’s need to provide for widows in an organized way. The church presumed that it was to help the needy among its people.
But there is no direct teaching to tithe, which leads to our third question, “Does tithing still apply today?” The answer is clearly “yes and no!”
It does not apply in the same way as the Old Testament. Giving ten percent to the Lord was a law. It does not carry that status in the New Testament. Jesus did not disparage tithing, even when making reference to the Pharisees. Yet, on the other hand, he did not instruct his disciples to tithe. In the passages that teach about giving, tithing is not even named, much less taught. There is no reference to an annual thanksgiving feast in any location. On the other hand, it is hard to imagine the first Christian, who were Jews, giving up the practice. If anything, the book of Acts shows the early Christians being more liberal in their giving than less. Even so, no standard of amount is ever given or taught. We are to be generous; we are to give as we prosper; we are to give joyfully. But no percentage is forthcoming.
Having said this, I exhort you to tithe. Let me explain why. We may not be commanded to tithe, but we cannot escape the benefits to God’s people through tithing.
One, tithing is a significant, solid method of providing for the Lord’s ministry and the needy through the church. I cannot think of a better method of supporting the church and its ministry. Many people give without a plan. If they are in church and remember to write a check or have some cash on hand, they give. Or they may have a fixed amount of what they should give weekly which seems about right to them, and probably amounts to two or three percent of their income, so studies of churches have reported.
Sometimes people are moved to give more. A dynamic speaker inspires them; a tearful speaker moves them; or a stern lecturer fills them with guilt. Something happens to tug on their hearts and the money comes forth. The problem with this method is that so much relies upon the skills of a good speaker. I think highly of our senior minister but he’s not a very good weeper. Our trustees will get time from time to report on the finances, but they are not into guilt lecturing. We bring in dynamic speakers for our conferences, but they get more caught up expounding on God’s greatness rather than how much God needs us. Until Tenth takes lessons from the churches and preachers on TV, we cannot expect more money through motivational speeches!
Another method among churches to encourage giving is pledging or faith promise. Whatever the variation, the principle is that you commit to a certain amount of dollars. Members are to “pray about” how much the Lord would have them give and then trust him to provide. The difficulty with the concept of giving is that it is not taught in Scripture, and it encourages people to make a vow, the very thing Scripture cautions us to be careful of.
By consistent tithing, the church is ably supported and you are able to give significantly. Ten percent is a lot of money. You know it is. Why else is it so difficult to give? Whether you are comparatively wealthy or poor, it is a big dent out of your funds. And it is a significant amount for the church. Let’s say you earn ten thousand dollars. You could give a thousand dollars. That’s a lot of money that can make a difference. Tithing allows you to give significantly.
The other reason for tithing is the blessing you receive. The better the tithe the better the party the tithers good afford at the temple. They benefited from their own tithe. So do we. We worship, fellowship, and receive spiritual care in the facilities our giving pay for. We have as good as what we are able to give.
I understand that what I just said sounds rather selfish. We are not here for ourselves but for God, and we should consider what more we could be doing for others if we didn’t spend so much on ourselves. That is all true, but we have got to admit, what Moses instructed the people to do with their tithes was extravagant. We could even say wasteful. To take their tithe and spend it on “whatever your appetite craves” borders on hedonism, wouldn’t you say? We can offend God by going overboard in spending on ourselves, but we can also offend him by discounting his bountiful gifts.
And there is the blessing of giving itself. I think most of us would agree that the more we give the more blessed we are. We are blessed by the very act itself. We feel good. If that is the case, the more we give the better we will feel. I know Christians who struggle to tithe, but I don’t know any who feel bad about tithing; whereas, many who do not tithe do feel bad that they are not putting more in the offering plate.
Furthermore, we will most likely reap reward. Remember the principle: Because God has blessed your labor you give. Because you give, God will bless your labor. It may seem self-serving, but in reality it is a principle we approve of. Proverbs 11:24 says, “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what he should give, and only suffers want.”
Again, if by tithing we give more, then all the more we can expect God’s blessing. This is not a hard-fast rule: I give x amount of dollars, I can expect x amount return on my investment. But for us to tithe, we to a degree have to sacrifice our own selfish desires and trust God to provide. Generally, God’s principle for himself in such instances is not merely to provide for such givers, but to bless.
Finally, it is a wonderful way to testify to the world our love for God and our faith in Christ. “See the joy and trust I have in my God.” I am encouraging you to tithe, not because it is a law – it is not – but because it is a joy to do so. Our neighbors need to see that. They need to see that we give liberally, because we give intentionally and with joy. To speak of being blessed by God and then to give no more than an unbeliever gives for the good of others belies our testimony.
We should demonstrate in this very practical way how rich we are in Christ. To borrow from 2 Corinthians 8:9, we need to be saying through our action, “See the grace of my Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for my sake became poor, so that I through his poverty might become rich. And in Christ I am rich indeed.”
(If you want to tithe, but you don’t know the practical steps of getting there, help is available. Tithing, you will quickly find out, is not about giving 10 percent of your money away. It forces you to think what you do with 100 percent of your money. If you would like practical help, the diaconate has a financial committee of men and women trained to give that kind of help. They will meet with you to help work up a budget to either tithe immediately or get you to the point where you can tithe. They will keep your information confidential, even the fact they are meeting with you, if you want.)
As Christ Loves the Church
Ephesians 5:25-33
8/5/07 D. Marion Clark
Introduction
When you preach sporadically, all kinds of factors can lead to your sermon choice. As Tenth’s Executive Minister I typically try to think of a timely subject either related to the time of year or the circumstances of the church. I must confess a personal reason for choosing this morning’s message. Today is the day after mine and Ginger’s 28th wedding anniversary. Why not a sermon on the husband’s responsibility to his wife? (That seems safer after an anniversary than preaching on the wife’s responsibility to her husband!) As I considered our particular passage, it struck me further that it presents a vital doctrine regarding the church’s relationship with our Lord. To understand the relationship of a husband with his wife, we must understand that of the Lord with his church.
Text
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church
The Ephesians passage on marriage actually begins at verse 22 where wives are first told to “submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.” We regard the instruction to the wives as the radical and controversial portion of the text. But in the ancient world, it would have been the instructions to the husbands that provoked controversy. There was no question of who was the head of the marriage and the respect that the wife was to accord her husband. No, it is the expectation placed on the husband that would have shocked the hearers. It was commendable for husbands to be tolerant with their wives. They should be courteous and even kindly towards them. But wives were primarily seen to be the bearers of their children. If they proved to be good companions, that was a bonus. It might even be considered commendable for there to be real love between them, but the Scripture here expects all husbands to love their wives and, furthermore, takes the expectation to another realm when the model of Christ is brought into the picture. How then does Christ love the church?
He died for her: and gave himself up for her. Jesus himself said that there is no greater love than to die for one’s friends. There is no greater way to show your love to your loved one. And this is what Christ has done for the church whom he loves. I’m not sure we grasp emotionally this truth about Christ’s motivation. Christ died for us out of love – love for his Father and love for his church. He did not die begrudgingly. He did not walk to Calvary bemoaning his fate. Out of love he gladly laid down his life.
We understand such love or think we do. We can imagine ourselves laying down our lives for those whom we love. Indeed, we would think it ignoble of a person not willing to do so, especially a bridegroom for his bride. We would question if he truly loved her.
But Christ’s love is different because of who he is. We are no better than one another. My life is not more valuable than your life. But here truly is one of infinitely more value than we are. Here is our Creator. Here is the Almighty God. Here is the God of glory. Here is a person of the Three-Persons God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This one God in Three Persons has existed for eternity and for eternity dwelt in perfect love. It is this one who sheds his precious blood for us in death. Take time to meditate on that love.
Furthermore, consider the ones for whom he dies. That was nice of Jesus to refer to his disciples as his friends. They were also sinners; indeed, they were his enemies. Romans 5:6-10 makes clear that it was while we were sinful enemies that the Son reconciled us to God. Meditate on that love.
Our passage takes us further into Christ’s love: 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.
A superficial presentation of Christ’s work is that people were bad, God got mad, and so his Son had to appease his angry Dad to get the people back into his graces. The Son is the Mediator between God and his people. His death did avert God’s just wrath and brought those who would believe into God’s good graces. But our Lord is not a mere third party brought in to reconcile other parties. The people he saved, he wants for himself. He wants to present the church to himself. He wants to marry them. Meditate on that love.
Consider his intent for the church. Do you know what brides want on their wedding day? They want to be perfect. At least they want to look perfect. They want their hair just right, their faces with clear complexions. “Please no blemishes on my wedding day!” They want their dress to be perfect – no wrinkles, definitely no spots. You know what the bridegroom sees when his bride walks down the aisle? A perfect bride. He’s actually not paying much attention to her hair or dress. He sees the one he loves and for a moment has the illusion that she is perfect.
On the day of the church’s wedding with our Bridegroom, he will see a perfect bride who actually is perfect because he himself has sanctified her. He himself will have cleansed her from the pollution of her sins, just as he illustrated when he knelt at the feet of his disciples and washed their feet. Our Lord is cleansing us now by his Holy Spirit. He is cleansing us through his means of grace – through baptism, through the Lord’s Supper, through the teaching of his Word. I may have raised questions about the sacraments, but the only point to be made now is that all that our Lord gives to us is for the purpose of sanctifying us. What he gives is for our growth in holiness. And he does so for the day when we – we who have been sinners dressed in filthy rags – we will appear before him holy and dressed in splendor. Meditate on that love.
But there is more. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.
This mystery is profound. We are members of Christ’s body! With all the ado about the elements of the Lord’s Supper and what it means for them to be called the body and blood of Christ, the mystery is that the church is the body of Christ, that each of us are members of his body. That is a profound mystery that should send us to our knees in awe, not so much for how this occurs but that our Lord desires for it to occur. It seems almost blasphemous to contemplate. We sinners are one with our glorious, holy Lord. And how does he feel about us? He loves us as he loves himself! He nourishes us. He cherishes us. That term for cherish is used elsewhere in the New Testament only in 1 Thessalonians 2:7 where is speaks of Paul and his companions being gentle with the Thessalonians, “like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.” Its literal meaning is to warm something and is used to refer to a bird sitting on her eggs. You see then the association Paul intends with his words – that of gentle care and nurture. Meditate on that love that Christ has for his church.
Lessons
Now we come to application and all the married men know what to expect. Paul presents the love of Christ for the church as the model for how husbands are to relate to their wives. Let’s go through that.
First, Christ gave himself up for the church. Some have said this means that husbands should be willing to die for their wives. We husbands should, but the point is not that Christ was willing to give himself up, but that he did it. What did he give up? His life to be sure, but more to the point is that he gave up his rights and privileges for the sake of his bride. Philippians 2:6-8 expresses this well:
though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
The cross was the final expression of Christ’s sacrificial love, but it began when he gave up his position of glory and in the incarnation took on our flesh, becoming our servant. It began when he chose our well-being over his own. So husbands are to place the well-being of their wives over their own and do so gladly. A man gets married thinking about the great deal he is getting – a helpmeet who will be devoted to making his life easier and happier. He is surprised to find this helpmeet, not just wanting some support of her own (fair enough), but complicating his life with insisting on “meaningful conversations,” wanting to “share in” all his experiences, and the list goes on. He was willing to make his share of sacrifices; he didn’t know how much would be expected. Husbands, however great you may think your sacrifices are, you are to consider those of Christ for you. Meditate on that model.
Next, Christ’s intent is to sanctify his bride and to present her to himself in splendor without blemish. What he wants for us is no less than glory emanating from holiness. Husbands are to want the same for their wives and to help their wives towards this end. Our real goal, however, is to “sanctify” our wives to be more pleasing to us. It is not holiness we want, but wives who are more attentive to us. We may claim, for example, that we are concerned that our wives are disobeying God in not fulfilling the command to submit to us. If we are truthful, our true concern is over the personal trouble we experience. Christ’s concern for his bride is purely for her welfare and God’s glory. Meditate on that model.
And then there is how Christ relates to the church now. He nourishes and cherishes her as his body. One husband explained to me that he was quick to point out the faults of his wife to her precisely because he took to heart this teaching to sanctify one’s wife and remove her blemishes. How would she know what needed changing if he didn’t bring it to her attention? He missed Paul’s intent, which is to teach husbands to be tender in their treatment. That is the point of verses 28-29. We don’t beat our bodies; we are not harsh with our bodies; rather we take the effort to protect and care for them.
In Colossians 3:19, he specifically says, “Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.” Peter likewise says, “…husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel…” (1 Peter 3:7). What does this attitude mean? It means, husbands, that you do not help your wives deal with fearfulness by getting angry with them. It means that you do not address the failings of your wives by demanding obedience and showing indifference to their worries. Instead, you take the time to get to know your wives. You take the time to think how to honor her. And should she need correction, you take the time to do it in “a spirit of gentleness” as Galatians 6:1 tells us to do so with anyone. It means to be gentle with our wives as Christ is with us, the one who will not break a bruised reed or extinguish a faintly burning wick. Meditate on that model.
Husbands, there is a lot for us to meditate on. I think most men listening agree that we need to do better. There is nothing here really to argue with, but if we could say something, it would be like this: “I know I have my share of faults, but it seems that my wife overreacts. I’ll say something I should not have said. I know it hurt her, but I didn’t mean it. I apologized, but she can’t seem to get over it. She won’t forgive, or least not forget. She won’t trust me even when I change. Doesn’t she have her own responsibility?”
She does. Our passage ends with these words: However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. Perhaps for another sermon I can give attention to her responsibility. But for now I want to explain to husbands what is going on inside your wives. I think if I can do this, and you can understand, then you will find the wisdom to know what to do.
Why then do wives make such a big deal about the offenses of their husbands? It is because of what it means to a wife to regard her husband as the church regards Christ. When we men read verses 22-24, the image of Christ that comes to our mind is that of commander. He is the leader to whom we subordinates are to submit and obey. Wives pick up on the submission part, but they also focus in on verse 23 depicting Christ as “the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.” Christ is the church’s Savior who gave himself up for her, loves her, nourishes and cherishes her. If I had cautioned you to be aware of your Savior striking you, you would have rightly responded to me in anger. That anger would have risen not merely out of my teaching false doctrine, but out of the mere horror of such a thought. “How could my Savior, the one person I can trust to nourish and cherish me, turn on me?” Understand then the feeling of a wife when her husband – the man whom she is to count on to nourish and cherish her, turns on her with a hurtful remark and even a striking hand. Men, we can say we did not mean it; we can say we will never do it again, but the knife blade went in and it struck deep. It will be when we understand the pain of being hurt by the one we are to trust the most that the wisdom will come to win that trust back. It is then we will attain the patience needed. It is then that we will have attained the love needed, for love itself must be a love with knowledge. We cannot fully love our wives until we can understand them.
This is a lot to think about, isn’t it? But remember the knowledge that is a pleasure to explore. Meditate on the love of your Savior who knows you completely – your sins, your fears, your weaknesses, your hopes – and in that knowledge is preparing you to be joyfully received by him in splendor.
8/5/07 D. Marion Clark
Introduction
When you preach sporadically, all kinds of factors can lead to your sermon choice. As Tenth’s Executive Minister I typically try to think of a timely subject either related to the time of year or the circumstances of the church. I must confess a personal reason for choosing this morning’s message. Today is the day after mine and Ginger’s 28th wedding anniversary. Why not a sermon on the husband’s responsibility to his wife? (That seems safer after an anniversary than preaching on the wife’s responsibility to her husband!) As I considered our particular passage, it struck me further that it presents a vital doctrine regarding the church’s relationship with our Lord. To understand the relationship of a husband with his wife, we must understand that of the Lord with his church.
Text
Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church
The Ephesians passage on marriage actually begins at verse 22 where wives are first told to “submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.” We regard the instruction to the wives as the radical and controversial portion of the text. But in the ancient world, it would have been the instructions to the husbands that provoked controversy. There was no question of who was the head of the marriage and the respect that the wife was to accord her husband. No, it is the expectation placed on the husband that would have shocked the hearers. It was commendable for husbands to be tolerant with their wives. They should be courteous and even kindly towards them. But wives were primarily seen to be the bearers of their children. If they proved to be good companions, that was a bonus. It might even be considered commendable for there to be real love between them, but the Scripture here expects all husbands to love their wives and, furthermore, takes the expectation to another realm when the model of Christ is brought into the picture. How then does Christ love the church?
He died for her: and gave himself up for her. Jesus himself said that there is no greater love than to die for one’s friends. There is no greater way to show your love to your loved one. And this is what Christ has done for the church whom he loves. I’m not sure we grasp emotionally this truth about Christ’s motivation. Christ died for us out of love – love for his Father and love for his church. He did not die begrudgingly. He did not walk to Calvary bemoaning his fate. Out of love he gladly laid down his life.
We understand such love or think we do. We can imagine ourselves laying down our lives for those whom we love. Indeed, we would think it ignoble of a person not willing to do so, especially a bridegroom for his bride. We would question if he truly loved her.
But Christ’s love is different because of who he is. We are no better than one another. My life is not more valuable than your life. But here truly is one of infinitely more value than we are. Here is our Creator. Here is the Almighty God. Here is the God of glory. Here is a person of the Three-Persons God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This one God in Three Persons has existed for eternity and for eternity dwelt in perfect love. It is this one who sheds his precious blood for us in death. Take time to meditate on that love.
Furthermore, consider the ones for whom he dies. That was nice of Jesus to refer to his disciples as his friends. They were also sinners; indeed, they were his enemies. Romans 5:6-10 makes clear that it was while we were sinful enemies that the Son reconciled us to God. Meditate on that love.
Our passage takes us further into Christ’s love: 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.
A superficial presentation of Christ’s work is that people were bad, God got mad, and so his Son had to appease his angry Dad to get the people back into his graces. The Son is the Mediator between God and his people. His death did avert God’s just wrath and brought those who would believe into God’s good graces. But our Lord is not a mere third party brought in to reconcile other parties. The people he saved, he wants for himself. He wants to present the church to himself. He wants to marry them. Meditate on that love.
Consider his intent for the church. Do you know what brides want on their wedding day? They want to be perfect. At least they want to look perfect. They want their hair just right, their faces with clear complexions. “Please no blemishes on my wedding day!” They want their dress to be perfect – no wrinkles, definitely no spots. You know what the bridegroom sees when his bride walks down the aisle? A perfect bride. He’s actually not paying much attention to her hair or dress. He sees the one he loves and for a moment has the illusion that she is perfect.
On the day of the church’s wedding with our Bridegroom, he will see a perfect bride who actually is perfect because he himself has sanctified her. He himself will have cleansed her from the pollution of her sins, just as he illustrated when he knelt at the feet of his disciples and washed their feet. Our Lord is cleansing us now by his Holy Spirit. He is cleansing us through his means of grace – through baptism, through the Lord’s Supper, through the teaching of his Word. I may have raised questions about the sacraments, but the only point to be made now is that all that our Lord gives to us is for the purpose of sanctifying us. What he gives is for our growth in holiness. And he does so for the day when we – we who have been sinners dressed in filthy rags – we will appear before him holy and dressed in splendor. Meditate on that love.
But there is more. 28 In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, 30 because we are members of his body. 31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” 32 This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.
This mystery is profound. We are members of Christ’s body! With all the ado about the elements of the Lord’s Supper and what it means for them to be called the body and blood of Christ, the mystery is that the church is the body of Christ, that each of us are members of his body. That is a profound mystery that should send us to our knees in awe, not so much for how this occurs but that our Lord desires for it to occur. It seems almost blasphemous to contemplate. We sinners are one with our glorious, holy Lord. And how does he feel about us? He loves us as he loves himself! He nourishes us. He cherishes us. That term for cherish is used elsewhere in the New Testament only in 1 Thessalonians 2:7 where is speaks of Paul and his companions being gentle with the Thessalonians, “like a nursing mother taking care of her own children.” Its literal meaning is to warm something and is used to refer to a bird sitting on her eggs. You see then the association Paul intends with his words – that of gentle care and nurture. Meditate on that love that Christ has for his church.
Lessons
Now we come to application and all the married men know what to expect. Paul presents the love of Christ for the church as the model for how husbands are to relate to their wives. Let’s go through that.
First, Christ gave himself up for the church. Some have said this means that husbands should be willing to die for their wives. We husbands should, but the point is not that Christ was willing to give himself up, but that he did it. What did he give up? His life to be sure, but more to the point is that he gave up his rights and privileges for the sake of his bride. Philippians 2:6-8 expresses this well:
though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
The cross was the final expression of Christ’s sacrificial love, but it began when he gave up his position of glory and in the incarnation took on our flesh, becoming our servant. It began when he chose our well-being over his own. So husbands are to place the well-being of their wives over their own and do so gladly. A man gets married thinking about the great deal he is getting – a helpmeet who will be devoted to making his life easier and happier. He is surprised to find this helpmeet, not just wanting some support of her own (fair enough), but complicating his life with insisting on “meaningful conversations,” wanting to “share in” all his experiences, and the list goes on. He was willing to make his share of sacrifices; he didn’t know how much would be expected. Husbands, however great you may think your sacrifices are, you are to consider those of Christ for you. Meditate on that model.
Next, Christ’s intent is to sanctify his bride and to present her to himself in splendor without blemish. What he wants for us is no less than glory emanating from holiness. Husbands are to want the same for their wives and to help their wives towards this end. Our real goal, however, is to “sanctify” our wives to be more pleasing to us. It is not holiness we want, but wives who are more attentive to us. We may claim, for example, that we are concerned that our wives are disobeying God in not fulfilling the command to submit to us. If we are truthful, our true concern is over the personal trouble we experience. Christ’s concern for his bride is purely for her welfare and God’s glory. Meditate on that model.
And then there is how Christ relates to the church now. He nourishes and cherishes her as his body. One husband explained to me that he was quick to point out the faults of his wife to her precisely because he took to heart this teaching to sanctify one’s wife and remove her blemishes. How would she know what needed changing if he didn’t bring it to her attention? He missed Paul’s intent, which is to teach husbands to be tender in their treatment. That is the point of verses 28-29. We don’t beat our bodies; we are not harsh with our bodies; rather we take the effort to protect and care for them.
In Colossians 3:19, he specifically says, “Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.” Peter likewise says, “…husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel…” (1 Peter 3:7). What does this attitude mean? It means, husbands, that you do not help your wives deal with fearfulness by getting angry with them. It means that you do not address the failings of your wives by demanding obedience and showing indifference to their worries. Instead, you take the time to get to know your wives. You take the time to think how to honor her. And should she need correction, you take the time to do it in “a spirit of gentleness” as Galatians 6:1 tells us to do so with anyone. It means to be gentle with our wives as Christ is with us, the one who will not break a bruised reed or extinguish a faintly burning wick. Meditate on that model.
Husbands, there is a lot for us to meditate on. I think most men listening agree that we need to do better. There is nothing here really to argue with, but if we could say something, it would be like this: “I know I have my share of faults, but it seems that my wife overreacts. I’ll say something I should not have said. I know it hurt her, but I didn’t mean it. I apologized, but she can’t seem to get over it. She won’t forgive, or least not forget. She won’t trust me even when I change. Doesn’t she have her own responsibility?”
She does. Our passage ends with these words: However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. Perhaps for another sermon I can give attention to her responsibility. But for now I want to explain to husbands what is going on inside your wives. I think if I can do this, and you can understand, then you will find the wisdom to know what to do.
Why then do wives make such a big deal about the offenses of their husbands? It is because of what it means to a wife to regard her husband as the church regards Christ. When we men read verses 22-24, the image of Christ that comes to our mind is that of commander. He is the leader to whom we subordinates are to submit and obey. Wives pick up on the submission part, but they also focus in on verse 23 depicting Christ as “the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.” Christ is the church’s Savior who gave himself up for her, loves her, nourishes and cherishes her. If I had cautioned you to be aware of your Savior striking you, you would have rightly responded to me in anger. That anger would have risen not merely out of my teaching false doctrine, but out of the mere horror of such a thought. “How could my Savior, the one person I can trust to nourish and cherish me, turn on me?” Understand then the feeling of a wife when her husband – the man whom she is to count on to nourish and cherish her, turns on her with a hurtful remark and even a striking hand. Men, we can say we did not mean it; we can say we will never do it again, but the knife blade went in and it struck deep. It will be when we understand the pain of being hurt by the one we are to trust the most that the wisdom will come to win that trust back. It is then we will attain the patience needed. It is then that we will have attained the love needed, for love itself must be a love with knowledge. We cannot fully love our wives until we can understand them.
This is a lot to think about, isn’t it? But remember the knowledge that is a pleasure to explore. Meditate on the love of your Savior who knows you completely – your sins, your fears, your weaknesses, your hopes – and in that knowledge is preparing you to be joyfully received by him in splendor.
