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In the final sermon of the “Stand-Out Church” series, I preached through Ephesians 1:3-14. In verses 3, 4, Paul tells us that God is blessed or ought to be praised for choosing the faithful in Christ “to be holy and blameless in his sight” (NIV 1984). In other words, God is blessed when we are made holy. When God calls his faithful people to be holy as he is holy (Leviticus 11:44, 45; 19:2; 20:7, 26; 1 Peter 1:15, 16), he makes us holy and God is blessed. So we ought to take the time to let him make us holy.

This reminds me of the hymn, “Take Time to Be Holy,” by William Longstaff (1822-1894). In this hymn we find great instruction through which the church can encourage one another to let God make us holy as he is holy. Consider these words of the first verse:

Take time to be holy,/ Speak oft with thy Lord;/ Abide in Him always,/ And feed on His Word./ Make friends of God’s children;/ Help those who are weak;/ Forgetting in nothing/ His blessing to seek.

We need to put effort into being holy. Certainly, it’s God who makes us holy, but he’s not going to do that against our will. When Paul tells us that it is God’s plan to make the faithful “holy and blameless in his sight” (Ephesians 1:4, NIV 1984) he reminds us that we receive this blessing because we are “in Christ,” which he reminds us happens when we hear the Gospel and believe it and respond to it (Ephesians 1:13, 14). So, our efforts to be holy begin when we respond to the Gospel in faith. From that time on, we continue to grow in our faith, pursuing holiness, allowing God to make us holy, and again, the song gives us guidance in how we can do that throughout our lives.

It tells us, “Speak oft with thy Lord,” reminding us that we need to spend time in prayer. How much time? How often? Paul encourages us to “Pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17, NIV 1984). Since it’s God who makes us holy, we need to keep in constant communication with God. He speaks to us through his Word, and we speak to him through prayer.

The song also tells us, “Abide in him always.” We learn what it means to abide in the Lord through Jesus’ teaching in John 15, where Jesus refers to himself as the vine and to his followers as branches who abide or remain in him. Jesus said, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me” (John 15:4, NIV 1984). To abide in Christ means to stay in him, to remain attached to him for strength and sustenance. As we remain in Christ, we become more like him, and he enables us to bear fruit, to develop the blessings he will grow in us, namely holiness.

As the song continues, it tells us to “feed on his Word,” reminding us to read the Bible, to study it and internalize it, that is to know it and to make it part of our everyday thinking, speaking, and acting. In Psalm 119:101-103 we read:

I have kept my feet from every evil path so that I might obey your word. I have not departed from your laws, for you yourself have taught me. How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! (NIV 1984)

This shows us that God’s Word has always sustained and transformed those who trust God and “feed on his Word.”

In addition to pursuing God’s holiness for our own sake, we do so for the sake of those around us, both inside and outside the church. The song goes on: “Make friends of God’s children; Help those who are weak.” As we abide in Christ and feed on his Word, we understand that the two greatest commandments – “Love God” and “Love others” – are foundational to our identity and activity as God’s children, the church. We cannot seek God and his holiness without loving and serving others.

When we focus in these ways on seeking God’s blessing to make us holy as he is holy, we will find many opportunities to live in holiness, and he will help us. Take the time to pursue God and he will bless you with his holiness.

First, these thoughts are not original with me; I’ve been prompted to respond to something I read recently. So giving credit where credit is due, I’ve been reading The Pursuit of Holiness by Jerry Bridges (NavPress, 1978); it’s a “modern classic” of Christian writing about discipleship, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to do a biblical deep dive into God’s holiness and our own.

The title of chapter three is “Holiness Is Not an Option,” and I have to admit that’s a scary thought, considering I know my own struggle with pursuing holiness as a Christian. While I understand that our salvation is not a matter of working to achieve perfection or a certain degree of personal holiness, I am concerned that my efforts don’t always reflect a desire for holiness, much less achieve it. To underscore that concern, the chapter begins quoting Hebrews 12:14: “Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord” (NIV 1984). The text tells us, very simply, holiness requires an effort and without holiness we won’t see God; in other words: holiness is not optional.

Again, just to be clear, we cannot earn our salvation – our righteousness before God – by anything we might do. Our holiness depends upon Jesus’ death on the cross, which the writer of Hebrews tells us is by God’s will: “And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10, NIV 1984).

Yet, because we have been made holy by God’s will through Jesus’ death and resurrection, God calls us to be holy, which Paul emphasizes in his greeting to the church in Corinth:

To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ – their Lord and ours. (1 Corinthians 1:2, NIV 1984)

Paul makes it pretty clear that our holiness doesn’t end with our salvation; it begins there. When we are forgiven in Christ – here Paul says “sanctified” – there’s a call to holiness that follows. Sometimes when I baptize someone, as I lower them into the water and then bring them up out of it, I will say, “Buried with Christ and raised to new life.” As we join with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection, he makes us holy; as we are raised with him, we begin a new life of striving to be holy, to be more like Jesus. Peter said it this way:

But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:15, 16, NIV 1984)

God expects us to live holy lives because he has made us holy through Christ.

Since holiness isn’t optional and because it’s a result of our salvation, God also gives us what we need to pursue holiness and live holy lives: the Holy Spirit. Hebrews 12:14 tells us to “make every effort” to be holy, and to that end the Holy Spirit lives within us to empower us and encourage us to pursue God’s holiness in our everyday lives. Even though Jesus makes us holy, even though the Holy Spirit empowers us, we must still make the effort because holiness is not optional. Peter gives us an idea of how we ought to pursue holiness so that it might grow in our lives:

Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. (2 Peter 1:5-7, NIV 1984)

Don’t be discouraged from pursuing holiness because you know you can’t do it on your own. That’s the point! That’s what makes Jesus’ sacrifice Good News. That’s what makes receiving salvation and the Holy Spirit a gift from God. As you grow in your faith in God, trust that he will give you exactly what you need to accomplish what he requires.

As I have been preaching through this series of messages about worship, I have emphasized that worship is not simply what we say and do on Sunday mornings in the church building. My concern is that we must not reduce our appropriate response to who God is and what he has done to mere rituals that we perform without thought or actual devotion to God. We must understand that simply showing up on a Sunday morning, singing the songs, listening to the words, even taking the bread and cup in the Lord’s Supper, is not worship unless we are actively and intentionally acknowledging that God is worthy of our presence and participation. So even though worship is more than the worship service, it is also not less than the worship service.

Part of our problem with understanding this gathering of the church – that is, the body of Christ – is the fact that there is no single biblical passage that specifically defines what we do and how we do it. However, the Bible gives us plenty of information about what the early church did together in worship, and we should understand this to be instructive for our own gatherings. The church met together regularly, both in their homes and in other common places, such as the temple courts (Acts 2:42); in fact, this was not merely a common occurrence but an expectation, as we read in Hebrews 10:25: “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (NIV 1984). They met purposefully on Sundays to share in the Lord’s Supper together (Acts 20:7). They met to do many of the same kinds of things we do in our weekly worship services: sing, teach, encourage, and give (1 Corinthians 14:26; 16:2).

While these examples and instructions do give us both direction and freedom, our worship must not be casual or flippant. Jesus himself indicated that God does have expectations for those who worship him; in John 4:23, 24, Jesus said:

“A time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” (NIV 1984)

In these words, Jesus cuts away peripheral issues and points the focus of worship on God himself, both in manner and content. In addressing specific issues within the church at Corinth, Paul makes a universal appeal: “Everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way” (1 Corinthians 14:40, NIV 1984). Certainly, there’s a practical value to making sure things go smoothly in any gathering of people, but Paul’s primary concern draws us back to worshiping God because he is worthy, because of who God is; he reminds the church (1 Corinthians 14:33, NIV 1984), “For God is not a God of disorder but of peace.” This perspective ought to help us ensure that we’re worshiping God appropriately, which ought to be among our concerns in worship; Hebrews 12:28, 29 tells us,

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.” (NIV 1984)

In the next several weeks, we are going to be faced with decisions and changes regarding our weekly worship services. If we keep our focus on who God is and what he has done for us – especially through Jesus – we will continue to worship God in spirit and in truth because he is worthy.

Holiness is hard. When we talk about holiness, we know that God is the standard; God defines holiness. As we consider the ways in which God is holy – in purity, in truth, in power, in righteousness, in justice, in mercy, and more – we become acutely aware that we are not like God in any of those ways. So when we read a text like 1 Peter 1:15, 16 – “But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: ‘Be holy, because I am holy’”(NIV 1984) – we struggle with feelings of doubt and inadequacy and fear. We know that we are not holy and we fear that we will never be holy as God wants us to be.

Having just finished a sermon series through Ezekiel, it’s hard not to second-guess your words, actions, and motives without considering how they might undermine the reputation of God’s holy name. Throughout the book of Ezekiel, God reminded Israel that their punishment – their exile, the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, the loss of God’s presence among them – was the result of defiling God’s name: “They defiled my holy name by their detestable practices. So I destroyed them in my anger” (Ezekiel 43:8, NIV 1984). With that perspective, it’s no wonder that we struggle with holiness, both God’s and our own.

Since we know God’s expectations are for us to be holy and since we know that we are not holy and that our unholy thoughts, words, and actions are an offense to God and defame his reputation, how can we be holy as God is holy? We need to be made holy. By ourselves, because we are sinners (Romans 3:23), we cannot simply “be” holy; we need to be transformed to be holy. The only way we can be holy is to be made holy by the one who is holy, and this is God’s will. Hebrews 10:10 tells us: “By that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (NIV 1984).

One important aspect of that statement is the grammar of the phrase “have been made holy”; it indicates that our condition of holiness began in the past and continues in the present. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, all believers were made holy and continue to be holy before God and continue to be made holy, as we read a few verses later in Hebrews 10:14, “Because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy” (NIV 1984). The one-time event of Jesus’ death on the cross was the moment when the debt of all sins was paid, and when each of us was joined with Jesus in faith was the exact moment when we were made holy before God, as Paul tells us in Colossians 1:22, “But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (NIV 1984). These are precise moments in time that have ongoing effect; in those moments, we were made holy, and we continue to be made holy.

The theological words here are justification and sanctification. Justification is the condition of being declared innocent, righteous, and holy. Sanctification is the ongoing process of being made holy. Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross and because of our faith in his sacrifice, Jesus has made and continues to make us holy.

As we approach the season when we remember Jesus’ death and resurrection, knowing that it is by his sacrifice that we are made holy, we begin to understand how we can celebrate Good Friday. We know that Jesus died for our sins, and that leads us to repent. We know that Jesus rose to give us new life, and that leads us toward worship, service, and obedience. As God makes us holy through Christ, we are transformed so that we grow out of our doubt and fear and grow to be more like him, to be holy as he is holy. Holiness is hard, but praise God that he has done the hard work to make us holy through Jesus!

While preparing and preaching a sermon from Ezekiel, I recently found myself fixated on this verse: “You will know that I am the LORD, when I deal with you for my name’s sake and not according to your evil ways and your corrupt practices, O house of Israel, declares the Sovereign LORD” (Ezekiel 20:44, NIV 1984). Throughout Ezekiel’s illustrations and messages to Israel in exile, God constantly reminded Israel about his holiness and their unholiness – in their sin and rebellion, especially idolatry, from their leaders down to the people. In chapter 20, God, again, recounts Israel’s history from their time in Egypt to their time in Babylonian exile, and each time he identifies their idolatrous rebellion, God states that he did not destroy them – even though he had every reason – but instead withheld his judgment “For the sake of my name” (Ezekiel 20:9, 14, 22). Ultimately, God’s purpose for upholding his name and withholding his immediate judgment of rebellious Israel was so that, as in verse 44, “You will know that I am the LORD.”

Throughout Israel’s history, then, we can see that God’s grace reveals his holiness.God did not judge Israel as they deserved; that’s God’s grace. God did not judge them, he says, “For the sake of my name,” that is, for the sake of his holy reputation. God dealt with Israel and their sin not just because they were sinful but because he is holy. Certainly God judges because he is holy, but God reveals that he is gracious because he is holy. This is a lesson for Israel and for the nations that surrounded them – and for us as well.

Paul explains this as a foundational truth about our salvation through Jesus. In Titus 2:11, 12, Paul writes, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” (NIV 1984). God’s grace to Israel was to teach them about who God is, that God is holy, and God’s grace through Jesus teaches us the same thing, holy godliness. Not only does God’s grace save repentant sinners, it trains them to be more like God, to be holy as he is holy.

Many folks in the world – and many within the church – misunderstand God’s holiness to be all about purity that leads to judgment and destruction of sinners, but that’s only partial truth. Certainly, God’s holiness – that he is wholly unique and wholly pure – creates a contrast between himself and his created people, but it also establishes the foundation for his grace. Because God desires to have a relationship with the people he created, despite our sin – made evident by his holiness – he offers forgiveness to those who recognize his holiness and their own sinfulness and who turn back to him. Then, God again deals with people not because of our sinfulness but because of his holiness, because of his holy grace, for the sake of his name.

Here’s where discipline coincides with grace in God’s holiness. Hebrews 12:6, 7 tells us, “The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?” Even though it might not feel like it, discipline isn’t destruction; it’s an expression of God’s holiness as he deals with us for his name’s sake. That’s why the writer continues in Hebrews 12:11 “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” God’s discipline, his grace, trains us to be more like him in his holiness.

Yes, we need to recognize our sinful attitudes, words, and actions, but we won’t recognize them as sin until we recognize God’s holiness, and we won’t recognize God’s discipline as more than judgment until we recognize God’s holiness. As we continue to seek God through his Word, in worship, service, and obedience, let’s keep focused on who God is in his holiness.

With Valentine’s Day approaching, the greeting card industry reminds us of the value of having the right words when you’re trying to communicate an important message, especially to the ones you love. Not to be left out, the confectionery industry reminds us that one of the quickest ways to a sweetheart’s heart is through the sweet tooth. It’s no secret that our senses affect our emotions. That’s why we talk about comfort foods and why chocolate seems to make so many people happy when they smell and taste it. Pulling words and senses together is a powerful combination to tell someone how much you love them.

The writer of Psalm 119 understood this and many times expressed his love for God and his Word, as in these words from Psalms 119:97-104:

Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long. Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for they are ever with me. I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes. I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts. I have kept my feet from every evil path so that I might obey your word. I have not departed from your laws, for you yourself have taught me. How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth! I gain understanding from your precepts; therefore I hate every wrong path. (NIV 1984)

Not only does the psalmist reveal how much he loves God’s Word and how the Word draws him closer to God and makes him a better man, but he describes God’s Word as a delicious, delicate delight: “How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (vs. 103). The connection between the psalmist and God, through God’s Word, is practical and emotional and even sensational.

More than that, God’s Word is vital. It gives life and sustains life, but only if you trust it, internalize it, and respond to it. God has given his Word to people throughout history, but only those who trust God and his Word have find life; those who reject God’s Word reject God and die. This was the promise and warning God gave Israel before he led them into the Promised Land in Deuteronomy 7:9, 10. This was the promise and warning Israel ignored throughout their history until, finally, God allowed his people to be exiled from the Promised Land and from his presence.

That’s where we find Ezekiel, as we study through his book of prophecy. While God is punishing his people, he also prepares them for deliverance and restoration by giving Ezekiel his Word:

“But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.” Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll, which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe. And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat. Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth. (Ezekiel 2:8-3:3, NIV 1984)

Even though the scroll was covered with “lament and mourning and woe,” when Ezekiel ate it, “It tasted as sweet as honey” (Ezekiel 3:3, NIV 1984).

Hard words taste sweet when they’re spoken in love, even in discipline. Hebrews 12:6 reminds us, “The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son” (NIV 1984). As we read, study, hear, memorize, and internalize God’s Word, even when it disciplines us, it will sustain us by God’s love. If you want to know God’s love, even when times are tough, stay in God’s sweet, sustaining Word.

Of all of God’s attributes, holiness seems to be the ultimate, overarching descriptor of who God is by his very nature. In their visions of God’s splendor both Isaiah and John have recorded the angels praising God saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty” (Isaiah 6:3; Revelation 4:8). Nowhere else in the Scriptures is God described in such a repetitive way, this three-fold praise amplifying the magnitude of God’s holiness.

Of course God’s holiness is the greatest of his attributes. God’s holiness describes his transcendence, the fact that God is completely separate and different from all others. He alone is unique in all his qualities. God’s transcendent holiness, therefore, defines all other characteristics of all others by who he is. Because God is holy, he defines love, righteousness, justice, mercy – and more – by who he is, not merely by even his own decree.

With all that in mind, let us not forget that God created people in his image: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27, NIV 1984). Created in God’s image, then, we are created to be holy. Throughout the book of Leviticus, God made it clear that his holiness compels us to be holy as well: “I am the LORD who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:45, NIV 1984). To be honest, the idea of God’s holiness is a terrifying thought for many faithful people, primarily because we know that we simply are not holy and surely not as God is holy. The prophet Isaiah was nearly undone when he came face-to-face with our holy God:

“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” (Isaiah 6:5, NIV 1984)

Yet, despite our sinfulness, the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is that God not only calls us to be holy but enables us to be holy – as he is holy – by his grace through our faith in Jesus:

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will – to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. (Ephesians 1:4-6, NIV 1984)

Because God is holy, his nature compels us to respond to him, to seek him, to seek to please him, to revere, honor, and worship him and him alone. As we pursue God’s holiness, he makes us wholly holy, becoming more like him, as Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 3:18: “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (NIV 1984).

As disciples of Jesus, we are called to holiness, to be transformed and conformed to the image of God through our faith in Jesus. As we grow in our faith and knowledge of Jesus, God transforms us by the Holy Spirit, through the Word, and with the help of brothers and sisters in Christ to be more like Christ, to be holy. This will be my theme for writing, teaching, and preaching in 2021. Throughout this coming year, we will look to our holy God and his plan and work to make us holy through Jesus, and we will work together to be wholly holy together. Prepare yourself to approach our holy God in worship, in prayer, in service, and prepare yourself to be transformed.

One of my favorite Christmas carols is one we don’t often sing, “How Great Our Joy!” It’s an old German carol that’s fun to sing, especially a cappella. The song retells that part of the story of Christ’s birth that we read in Luke 2:8-11:

And there were shepherds   living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” (NIV 1984)

Here are the words of the song:

While by the sheep we watched at night,
Glad tidings brought an angel bright.

Chorus:

How great our joy! (Great our joy!)
Joy, joy, joy! (Joy, joy, joy!)
Praise we the Lord in heaven on high!
(Praise we the Lord in heaven on high!)

There shall be born, so he did say,
in Bethlehem a child today. [Chorus]

There shall the child lie in a stall,
this child who shall redeem us all. [Chorus]

This gift of God we’ll cherish well,
that ever joy our hearts shall fill. [Chorus]

What makes this song stand out to me is how each of the three phrases of the chorus is initially sung strongly or loudly and then echoed softly. Every time I sing it, I imagine the words and music reverberating off mountains, streaming down valleys, rolling across vast plains, filling the air with the Good News of the birth of Christ.

The angel brought “good news of great joy.” When the angel made the announcement, more angels appeared and praised God, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests” (Luke 2:14, NIV 1984). Then, after the shepherds went to Bethlehem to investigate, we read, “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told” (Luke 2:20, NIV 1984).

This Good News of great joy prompted praise from the angels and praise from the shepherds, and it prompts praise from believers today. Very simply, disciples rejoice.

Disciples of Jesus rejoice not only because of Jesus’ birth but because of the new life his birth foretells. Because of Jesus’ birth, life, ministry, death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus’ disciples rejoice in the new life, the eternal life we receive through our faith in Jesus. Paul draws it all together in Romans 5:1, 2:

Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. (NIV 1984)

Because of our faith in the one whose birth was “good news of great joy,” we have been forgiven and found peace with God. So, we are the people whom Paul tells, again very simply, “Be joyful always” (1 Thessalonians 5:16, NIV 1984).

This past year, and longer, I have focused my preaching, teaching, and writing on what it means to be disciples of Jesus who make disciples of Jesus. That kind of focus can and does easily turn into practical lessons of what to do and how to do it, but at the heart of recognizing, believing, and accepting Jesus is a simple, transformational response of joy. As disciples of Jesus, we have been given a great gift: God’s favor, the forgiveness of our sins, righteousness, new life. This Good News of great joy has changed us and continues to change us, and for that we can’t help but rejoice. “How great our joy! Joy, Joy, Joy! Praise we the Lord in heaven on high!”

Thank you! Thank you for your continued faithfulness in giving. Whether you give a traditional tithe of 10 percent of your income or more than that or less than that in cheerful offerings, your giving is evidence of faith. I am humbled and inspired by your generosity.

While our monthly giving records show that we are covering our expenses, not every church can say that these days. This viral pandemic has affected many people and their finances, and therefore, it has affected many churches. I know several churches who are struggling to pay their ministry and support staff, as well as their mortgages and utilities. In the couple of preacher groups I participate in, I know several preachers who have had their salary reduced and a couple who have been let go because the church cannot afford to pay them. I know of many churches who have had to reduce or cancel programs because of budget cuts.

Please understand, that’s not an indictment against anyone’s faithfulness, but it is a harsh reality for many. I praise God that we have not had to respond to the pandemic in this way, but I’m not so naive to think that it cannot happen with us.

I continue to praise God because faithful giving reflects God’s generosity and Jesus’ sacrifice. As we give, we are witnesses of Jesus; that is, disciples give. Paul encouraged the Christians in Corinth to reflect Jesus in their giving:

But just as you excel in everything – in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us – see that you also excel in this grace of giving. I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich. (2 Corinthians 8:7-9, NIV 1984)

Jesus gave; so Jesus’ disciples give. Giving is just as much a characteristic of Jesus’ disciples as our faith, our speech, our knowledge, our zeal, our love. In fact, Paul tells us that our giving is a test of our love.

Our giving is a test of how much we’re becoming like Jesus. Earlier in the same letter, Paul wrote, “Christ’s love compels us” (2 Corinthians 5:14). As we become more like Christ, we give like Christ, who gave his own life for our sake. Even though giving our time, talents, and money doesn’t compare with Jesus’ death on the cross, it is evidence of the same kind of sacrificial love.

In fact, Paul’s encouragement to the Corinthians to excel in giving in 2 Corinthians was in the context of an offering being collected by many predominately Gentile churches for the sake of the church in Jerusalem, who were suffering. Paul described this offering in Romans 15, where he told the Roman Christians that since they owed their faith to the Jews, through whom Jesus the Messiah was born, it was right for them to give their material blessings to the Jewish Christians. Just as Jesus gave his life so that we might have eternal life, we also give so that others might find life in Jesus.

Yes, our tithes, offerings, gifts help us keep the lights on, the temperature just right, and the preacher fed (again, thank you!), but that’s all for the sake of accomplishing our mission: to make disciples of Jesus. We give as disciples to make disciples who make disciples. Let’s follow Jesus’ example together.

Disciples of Jesus must love the world. No, I’m not saying that we must love the things of the world, the sin of the world, the brokenness of the world. I’m saying Christians must love the people of the world – sinners, the lost, “those people.” It’s important to make this distinction because far too many Christians are quick to say, “Hate the sin, but love the sinner,” yet approach “those sinners” with caution. Worse, perhaps, is the sterile environment we typically find in many churches, where judgmental indifference is the silent, invisible bouncer at the door. Sure, we have an open invitation to any who might join us, but unless “they” get their act cleaned up, they find no reason to stay. Even when strangers slip in and just fade away, far too often, we’re OK with that.

We often take that indifference with us into the world. Because Jesus told his disciples that we are not of this world (John 15:19), many Christians choose to disconnect from the world. We keep our homes as sterile from sinful outside influences as we do the church (never mind our own secret struggles with sin; that’s another article for another time). We streamline our relationships, giving up the people we won’t see if they don’t follow the church’s calendar. Somehow we even reduce our interactions with other people to the bare essentials for getting what we need, responding only to their questions – “A half pound of bologna,” “Credit,” “Plastic” – eliminating even simple pleasantries with cashiers, servers, and other people in line with us. The sad thing is, we often interact with the same people from day to day, and we hardly notice. Even though it’s not outright hostility, it’s not love.

As I’ve mentioned several times in sermons and articles, my yearlong theme for preaching, teaching, and writing has been discipleship, what it means to be and make followers of Jesus. The most recent sermon series has focused on being witnesses of Jesus, based on one of the iterations of the Great Commission; Jesus told his disciples in Acts 1:8, “You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (NIV 1984). The primary idea of the sermon series is that as followers of Jesus, we are sent to be witnesses of Jesus; we are sent to show and tell others what Jesus said and did so that we might accomplish his mission, which is, in part, to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). This is our mission because it was Jesus’ mission; again, Jesus told his disciples, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

God sent Jesus because of his love: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16, NIV 1984). God sent Jesus to demonstrate his love: “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him” (1 John 4:9, NIV 1984). Jesus sent his disciples to demonstrate his love: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34, 35, NIV 1984). And before anyone gets distracted, thinking that Jesus commanded us to love only each other within the church, remember, Jesus also said, “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39, NIV 1984).

As disciples of Jesus, we must be witnesses of his love. The self-righteous religious leaders of Jesus’ day insulted Jesus, calling him a “friend of sinners,” but Jesus turned it around and justified his lifestyle of loving others saying, “Wisdom is proved right by her actions” (Matthew 11:19, NIV 1984). Do the people around you know that you’re a disciple of Jesus by your love for others? Prove Jesus right by your actions.