← Back to sermon library

Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to 1 Timothy chapter 3. 1 Timothy chapter 3. Our focus 
this evening will be verses 14 to 16. At this time of the year, 
we more often than not remember the Reformation. And the 16th 
century Reformation was a reformation of the church. Now certainly 
political activism and social justice are noble causes among 
God's people, but the Christians in the 16th century sought to 
reform the church. And it seems to me the best thing 
the church can do in the world is to be the church. And if we 
sacrifice our calling to be something that we're not, then we do not 
please the Lord God, and in essence, we are not effective with reference 
to the people of God or to those outside of the church that we 
are supposed to be reaching. But I do want to read the larger 
context, beginning in verse 1. This is a faithful saying. If 
a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. 
A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, 
sober-minded of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach, not 
given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, 
not quarrelsome, not covetous, one who rules his own house well, 
having his children in submission with all reverence. For if a 
man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take 
care of the church of God? Not a novice, lest, being puffed 
up with pride, he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. 
Moreover, he must have a good testimony among those who are 
outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. Likewise, 
deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to 
much wine, not greedy for money, holding the mystery of the faith 
with a pure conscience. But let these also first be tested, 
then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless. Likewise, 
their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful 
in all things. Let deacons be the husbands of 
one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. For 
those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves 
a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ 
Jesus. These things I write to you, though I hope to come to 
you shortly. But if I am delayed, I write 
so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in 
the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the 
pillar and ground of the truth. And without controversy, great 
is the mystery of godliness. God was manifested in the flesh, 
justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the 
Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory. 
Amen. Well, let us pray. Father, we 
thank You for the Word of God. We thank You for the rich heritage 
that we have as Reformed believers. And we ask God in heaven that 
You would cause us to learn from Scripture and to learn from history 
and to continue to emphasize those things that were brought 
out in the 16th century. God, help us to be faithful. 
Help us to always be reforming. Help us to obey the Scriptures 
and all that we seek to do as a church and as individuals. 
Again, we pray for the ministry of the Holy Spirit as we look 
at the apostles' teaching here. We pray for the forgiveness of 
all of our sins so that we may receive with thanksgiving that 
Word of God that is able to equip us thoroughly for every good 
work. And we pray these things through Jesus Christ our Lord. 
Amen. Well, I basically want to just 
highlight what's going on in this particular section of 1 
Timothy 3, verses 14-16. I want to look at the identity 
of the church in the first place, and then secondly, the confession 
of the church. and then finish with some Reformation 
emphases and their continuing relevance for us. Some of the 
things that were brought out in the 16th century debates and 
discussions concerning the reform of the church and why those things 
continue to be relevant for us today. But note in the first 
place, with reference to the identity of the church in verses 
14 and 15, Paul highlights his plan for ministry. He says, these 
things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly. 
The apostle was instrumental in the founding of the church 
where Timothy was. Remember that Timothy is in Ephesus, 
where Paul has left him to wage the good warfare, where Paul 
has left him to silence the false teachers, where Paul has left 
him to take care of business in that particular situation. 
The visit or the desire to visit him is to provide assistance 
to Timothy and encouragement to Timothy and as well to the 
church in Ephesus. Also, we need to understand that 
Paul's purpose for Timothy specifically. Notice in verse 14, but if I 
am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct 
yourself in the house of God. That is the purpose for which 
Paul writes to Timothy. You need to appreciate the divine 
necessity involved here, the oughtness. Timothy is not called 
to be creative. Timothy is not called to be innovative. 
But rather, Timothy is called to be obedient. Paul writes, 
so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself. In 
other words, Timothy, you need to obey God. You don't obey the 
prevailing winds of change in the society or the culture around 
you. You don't obey the sorts of trends 
that may lead to church growth. But rather, Timothy, you are 
to obey the living God, who has spoken authoritatively in His 
Word. Paul writes to Timothy so that he may indeed know how 
he ought to conduct himself in the house of God. This goes, 
I think, backwards and forwards. The necessity of corporate prayer 
in chapter 2, verses 1 to 7. Paul wrote to Timothy so that 
Timothy would indeed make sure that corporate prayer was being 
conducted in the life of the church. In fact, notice in 2.1, 
I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving 
of thanks be made for all men. When we gather together for prayer, 
it's to pray. We are to come prepared. We are 
to come ready. We are to come with a desire 
to call upon the living and the true God. This is the backbone 
of the church of Jesus Christ. A prayerless church is not going 
to go far. A prayerful church isn't necessarily 
always going to reap benefits, but a prayerful church is an 
obedient church and seeks power from on high where power is granted. Paul says the first order of 
business with reference to the church gathered is prayer. I 
exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving 
of thanks be made for all men." So Paul writes to Timothy so 
that Timothy can make sure that there is a fervent, earnest prayer 
meeting in the context of the church. As well, Paul writes 
to Timothy to give him instruction concerning the role of women 
in the worship of God, specifically in verses 8 to 15. They are to 
be modest in the corporate worship. Paul says, this is how you ought 
to conduct yourself in the house of God. Modesty is imbibed or 
envisaged by the apostle with reference to corporate worship. 
We struggle enough in the world, we ought not to have to struggle 
when we come to the house of God. We ought to engage in modesty. It doesn't mean men can show 
up naked. Men must indeed put on clothes and be modest as well. But the specific direction is 
men praying in the prayer meeting, and then women in their particular 
role. They are to dress modestly, and as well, there's a prohibition 
against leadership for women in the church. This does not 
mean that God is anti-woman. It certainly does not mean that 
Paul is anti-woman. It simply means that in God's 
world, Swim, birds fly, men lead in the house, and men lead in 
the church. And that is the specific emphasis 
of the apostle in this section in chapter 2. So Paul writes 
to Timothy, so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself 
in the house of God. as well with reference to the 
eldership. It's not a popularity contest. 
It's not the man or the men that has the most gift. It is rather 
a spiritual calling. The man must in the first place 
desire the position of a bishop or an overseer. This is synonymous 
with elder. He must desire and he must be 
qualified such that the church is able to objectively see that 
these things are fleshed out in his life. And then with reference 
to the deacons, the selfsame list, a very similar list given 
in terms of spiritual qualification. So Paul writes to Timothy so 
that Timothy may know how he ought to conduct himself in the 
house of God. But it also points forward to 
the things that Paul is going to say in chapters 4, 5, and 
6. This is conduct necessary in the church that is according 
to the will and mind of God. It is not conduct necessary in 
the church that is according to the will and mind of man. 
We don't have better ideas. We don't have better ways. We 
are not more, you know, wise than God in terms of how we are 
to do church, and how we are to approach the Lord God, and 
how we are to function in the world that we find ourselves. 
And then notice, Paul's portrayal of the church. This is the reason 
why the conduct necessary is given. But if I am delayed, I 
write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself. 
And then he gives three descriptions of the church. In the first place, 
it is the house of God. Secondly, he says it is the church 
of the living God. Thirdly, he says it is the pillar 
and the ground of the truth. So you see his logic. You see 
the trajectory or the progression of thought. I write so that you 
may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God. 
You're not dealing with your own house here. You're not dealing 
with someone else's house here. You're not free to come in and 
do whatever it is you like. Use the illustration before. 
If you came over to my house and you started swinging off 
the furniture, I'd be a little perturbed by that. That's not 
our house rules. That's not the way we function. 
We don't swing off the furniture. And so when you come to my house, 
I would gladly ask you not to swing off the furniture. The 
same is true with reference to the church. We're not to engage 
in entertainment. We're not to engage in rock bands. We're not to engage in a whole 
host of things. Why? Because it's the house of 
God. It's God's domain. It's God's 
dominion. It's God's place of residence. The Lord Christ, by His life, 
death, and resurrection, has made us adopted sons and daughters 
unto His God. And He has brought us together 
into the church. And the church is His house. 
He presides over it. He is the ruler over it. John 
Calvin says, there are good reasons why God bestows this name on 
the church. House of God. He says, for not 
only has He received us to be His children by the grace of 
adoption, but He also dwelleth in the midst of us. This idea 
of house of God not only argues for His rule, His authority, 
and His government, but it also indicates that He dwells with 
us. He is present among His New Testament 
people when they gather together in the church. This is the house 
of God. Certainly, if it was a Friday 
night and you were invited over to a friend's and somebody saw 
you on the way, they said, my, you look happy. Well, I've been 
invited to go to my friend's house. That bespeaks fellowship, 
it bespeaks communion, it bespeaks intimacy. Well, certainly on 
the Lord's Day Sabbath, we are getting to go be with our God 
in His house. We get to cease and desist from 
our worldly activities, and we get to come into the presence 
of our great and our glorious God. We ought to appreciate, 
before we move on, the divine necessity imposed upon Timothy, 
I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself. Dale Ralph Davis in his commentary 
on Joshua 22, we'll refer to that a little bit later in a 
few moments, but he says with reference to the church, he says, 
part of the problem in our day is that many erroneously assume 
that the church is a democracy. That is an erroneous idea, isn't 
it? The church is not a democracy. 
It really isn't. He says, therefore pluralism, 
even in essential doctrines, is to be expected, allowed, and 
welcomed. For after all, who are we to judge others or bring 
them under discipline? We must be nice to people, you 
know, or they will leave the church. He says, but the church 
is not a democracy. Rather, she lives under the kingship 
of Jesus. This house of God concept gives 
the impetus for the divine necessity, the oughtness of how we conduct 
ourselves in the house of God. She lives under the kingship 
of Jesus, who has entrusted the care of His flock to elders who 
are to guard, protect, and discipline it. Certainly the under-shepherds 
of Christ's flock must apply New Testament principles of discipline 
in the church. They will find the proper attitude 
toward their task in Joshua 22. Essentially what Joshua 22 records. 
is that the eastern tribes went back to the east, the east side 
of the river Jordan. And when they got over there, 
they built an altar. The people in the west got wind 
that they had built an altar. Now, if you lived in Israel in 
this particular time, you were governed by the dictates of Deuteronomy 
12, the centralized sanctuary. There wasn't supposed to be sanctuaries 
all over the land. There was supposed to be a central 
sanctuary to protect and to guard against the encroaching idolatry 
that would certainly affect the children of Israel and the land 
of Canaan. So they get wind that there's this altar over on the 
east and they arm up for battle. They're going to wage war against 
the persons in the East. Well, when they get there, they 
first tried diplomacy, thankfully. And they asked the people in 
the East why they did such and such. And they said, well, we 
didn't build this to sacrifice. We didn't build this for burnt 
offerings. We built it as a witness. And thankfully, the people of 
God dwelt in unity and in peace and in harmony, and there was 
no war waged at that particular time. But you see the concern 
in the West. They understood the problem. If they just start throwing up 
altars in any old place, they're going to start worshipping any 
old god. And we can't have that. And that's 
the reference there to Joshua 22. So, Paul's portrayal of the 
church. It is, in the first place, the 
house of God. Notice, secondly, it is the church 
of the living God. The church of the living God. 
The church is God's special possession. The church is God's special possession. You remember the language imposed 
or stated concerning Israel in Exodus chapter 19. They were 
God's special possession when they went into the land. They 
were His privileged people. They were His chosen nation. Well, all of that is appropriated 
by the New Testament apostles and applied to the church of 
the living God. It is the church of the living 
God. We read at the outset, Psalm 87, 2, Yahweh loves the gates 
of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. Spurgeon comments that 
God delights in the prayers and praises of Christian families 
and individuals, but He has a special eye to the assemblies of the 
faithful, and He has a special delight in their devotions in 
their church capacity. He loves the dwelling places 
of Jacob, or He loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings 
of Jacob. He certainly loves the dwellings of Jacob. God is 
an anti-family, and He's certainly not anti-individual, but He loves 
the gates of Zion. He loves it when God's people 
gather together. He loves it when God's people 
sing and pray and worship and adore Him. This is God's special 
possession. As well, the church is that blessed 
entity that Christ died to save. Remember that admonition from 
the Apostle Paul to those Ephesian elders in Acts chapter 20. He 
says, therefore, take heed to yourselves and to all the flock 
among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. He says, 
to shepherd the church of God which he has purchased with his 
own blood. Do you understand that? On the 
Lord's Day Sabbath, we are going to a place that is described 
as the house of God. It's the church of the living 
God. That means that we have been bought with a price. We 
have been saved to serve. We have been saved to worship. 
We have been saved to glorify and honor Him. And then as well, 
the church is the dwelling place of the living God, not the place 
of dead idols. If we were the pagan, we would 
serve gods who had mouths but could not speak. We would serve 
gods who had eyes but could not see. We would serve gods who 
had ears but could not hear. So it really doesn't matter what 
we do when we gather together to worship, because that idol 
is dumb, that idol is deaf, that idol is mute, that idol is no 
living authority in his so-called churches. Not so with us. We 
serve the living God. He doesn't die. He doesn't not 
hear. He doesn't not see. He doesn't 
not speak. But we're always and forever 
under His binding authority. And as a result, we are to imbibe 
the truth as it's been revealed to us in Scripture. And then 
in the third place, he describes it as the pillar and ground of 
the truth. This word pillar means ground, 
or seat, or even protector. It has the idea as well of foundation. Fairbairn remarks that the truth 
is not of the church's making, but of God's revealing. All that 
to say, notice what the church is the pillar and ground of. 
Truth. See, the church really betrays 
its calling when it becomes the place of entertainment. The church 
really betrays its calling when it becomes the place of political 
activism. Again, I think the Word of God 
certainly lends itself to our view of politics. But, when we 
come together as a church, the center focus is God Most High 
and the glory of the Christian gospel. If we become something 
other than the pillar and the ground of the truth as it's revealed 
to us in the Scripture, then we have betrayed our calling. 
The church's primary task is the propagation and defense of 
God's truth. Notice several passages just 
in these pastoral epistles concerning the emphasis upon truth. 1 Timothy 
1, verse 10. 1 Timothy 1, verse 10, for fornicators, 
for sodomites, for kidnappers, for liars, for perjurers, and 
if there is any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine. This is what Paul emphasizes 
in these pastoral epistles. Notice in verse 6. If you instruct 
the brethren in these things, you will be a good minister of 
Jesus Christ, nourished in the words of faith and of the good 
doctrine which you have carefully followed." Notice 4.13, "'Til 
I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine." 
Notice in 4.16, "'Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. 
Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself 
and those who hear you.'" Notice in 6.3, 6, 3, if anyone teaches otherwise and 
does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness. You see, do you want to be godly? 
It's doctrine, it's truth, it's scripture, it's knowledge, it's 
understanding. Isn't this what Jesus prays in 
the high priestly prayer? There is this mindset out there 
that doctrine is somehow opposed to practical godliness. That 
is the furthest thing from the truth. I see it on the internet. Oh, you know, I spent all this 
time studying and my practical desire for holiness has waned. 
That has nothing to do with the reception of the truth. The problem 
is with you. The truth ought to always spur 
us on to godliness and righteousness. What does Jesus pray in John 
17, 17? Sanctify them by what? By thy 
truth. I would submit that without sound 
doctrine, there will not be practical holiness. There will not be godliness. There will not be righteousness. 
There will not be practical fruit of your Christian profession. 
It is the truth that fuels the man to pursue and fear the living 
and true God. But this is out there. Well, 
you reformers, you spend all this time studying and your religion 
is only cerebral. That is absolutely not the connection 
that we find in the Bible. Now, I don't doubt that that 
happens to persons. They get caught up in study and 
they forget to pray. They get caught up in reading 
books and they forget to commune with Christ. That's certainly 
a problem. In fact, B.B. Warfield wrote a little booklet 
concerning the religious life of seminary or theological students 
to address that very issue. You're parsing Greek verbs, you're 
dealing with Hebrew grammar, you're dealing with the intricacies 
of the hypostatic union. Remember to worship the God whom 
you serve. So certainly there is the tendency, 
or perhaps the temptation, but to argue that somehow theology 
deadens practice is to miss the emphasis of God's holy work. 
My people are destroyed for what? According to the prophet Hosea, 
for a lack of knowledge. They don't know God, they don't 
serve God, they don't fear God, and they live like it. It is 
the truth of God's Holy Word that fires up a man to pursue 
practical holiness and righteousness and godliness. There is a doctrine 
which accords with godliness, according to 1 Timothy 6.3. Notice 
2 Timothy 1.13. 2 Timothy 1.13 Hold fast the pattern 
of sound words which you have heard from me, and faith and 
love which are in Christ Jesus. That good thing which was committed 
to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. 2.15 Be diligent to present yourself 
approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed. 
Rightly dividing what? The word of truth. Do you see 
the emphasis? We can multiply text at this very point, but 
you get the point. It is the pillar and the ground 
of the truth. This is the rationale for Paul's 
commands to Timothy. The reason why Timothy is to 
root out false teachers, 1 Timothy 1.3. The reason why Timothy is 
to teach the right use of the law, 1 Timothy 1.8. Why Timothy 
used to proclaim the Gospel, 1.11, and wage the good warfare, 
1.18? Because the church is the pillar and the ground of the 
truth. Paul's argument seems to be that when men take their 
battering rams of heresy and assault the church, then the 
men of God who are faithful ought to combat it with the truth. 
Meet that resistance with the truth of Holy Scripture and do 
not shrink back. Gordon Clark comments concerning 
this section. He says, in less metaphorical 
language, this means that the church proclaims, defends, and 
propagates the Gospel. Its task is to declare all of 
God's revealed truth. George Knight, in his excellent 
commentary on 1 and 2 Timothy, says on the whole, in summary, 
Timothy and the church will conduct their lives appropriately if 
They remember that they are the home built and owned by God, 
and indwelt by Him as the Living One, and also remember that they 
are called on to undergird and hold aloft God's truth in word 
and deed." So that's the identity of the church. Notice the confession 
of the church in verse 16. There's a close connection here. 
The church exists to confess this. This is what the church 
is about. Christ. It's about the Lord Jesus. The church exists in order to 
make known the truth that it confesses. The confession of 
verse 16 points us forward and backwards. The truth concerning 
Christ is the basis for all that Paul writes. Again, Knight says, 
the preceding and following instructions have as their theological basis, 
this great truth concerning the cosmic Christ, who is Lord and 
Savior of His church. Look at the language. And without 
controversy, great is the mystery of godliness. The ESV translates 
it. Great indeed, we confess, is 
the mystery of godliness. And even better, the New American 
Standard. By common confession, great is the mystery of godliness. This is the church's confession. And notice that the church's 
confession is all about the Lord Jesus. The church's confession 
isn't about their experience. The church's confession isn't 
their testimony. The church's confession isn't 
entertainment, but rather the church's confession focuses upon 
the Lord of glory, Jesus Christ. Fairbairn says, this was the 
thought in St. Paul's mind, that the great revelation 
of the religious life is Christ. In other words, the church is 
defined by its Christology. And very intriguing, what's Ephesus 
in the book of Acts? It's the city of Diana worshipped. What was the common confession 
prior to the reception of the Gospel? They said, great is Diana 
of the Ephesians. But when Paul and his companions 
come in there in Acts chapter 19, and they preach the Gospel, 
we find people who have their books of black magic burning 
those books, destroying that occultic literature, confessing 
the greatness of the Lord Jesus Christ instead of Diana. What 
else happens? The idol makers are being put 
out of business. They have a little meeting together. 
It's a trade, a union meeting. They essentially say, if this 
Paul keeps preaching, we're going to be out of business. Imagine 
that. You're a fashioner of idols, 
and they sell quite well, because everybody's duped into thinking 
that Diana somehow is a god who could provide benefit and blessing 
and boons for your life. So you go to the market, and 
you sell your wares, and you peddle those things. Then Paul 
and his companions in, they start preaching Jesus Christ, and persons 
get their idols of Diana, and they throw them in the fire alongside 
of their books of magic, black magic. So these men are concerned. These men are upset. Paul's going 
to put us out of business. The economic impact of the truth 
of God's holy gospel. I always love to reflect upon 
that. Preach the gospel and God will 
deal with the marketplace. Notice, specifically, the confession 
speaks of Christ's work accomplished, Christ's work proclaimed, and 
Christ's work believed or embraced. Notice, God was manifested in 
the flesh. This refers to the incarnation 
of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. John Calvin helpfully 
notes there are three things to observe here. There is the 
expressed testimony of both natures. God was manifested in the flesh. As well, there is a distinction 
between the two natures, and thirdly, the unity of the person. 
In other words, this is a great Christological confession concerning 
the hypostatic union of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ was justified 
in the Spirit. The word justified here has the 
idea of vindication, not at the right hand in terms of the judgment 
that He brought upon Jerusalem, say, in the first century, but 
the vindication that when He was raised from the dead, He 
was, in the language of Romans 4, declared to be the Son of 
God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the 
resurrection from the dead. Notice His work proclaimed. He 
is seen by angels. He was seen by angels, the fallen 
angels, Colossians 2, 15. He triumphs over those wretched 
angels. The elect angels saw His work. Christ is preached among the 
Gentiles. Knight says it is the universalism 
demanded and promised by Jesus that is confessed here. Not a 
universalism the way that liberal theologians teach, that every 
single human being will be saved. But there is a biblical universalism, 
and that's what we find at the end of Matthew 28. Go therefore 
and make disciples of all the nations. In other words, leave 
the tribes of the land and go to Africa. Leave the tribes of 
the land and go to Europe. Leave the tribes of the land 
and go to America. Go all over the earth and preach 
the glorious Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is preached 
among the Gentiles in order for the salvation of a great multitude 
that no man can number. And then notice, His work is 
embraced. Christ was believed on in the 
world. Love that statement. He's believed 
on in the world. Christ didn't come to help us 
save ourselves, Christ didn't come to make men save a bull, 
but Christ came to save His people from their sins. And that gospel, 
that atonement, that sacrifice, that redemptive act is proclaimed 
and it's believed on. Brethren, this is what we ought 
to pray on a Lord's Day morning. We have unconverted people that 
visit with us and we pray to God Almighty, open their eyes, 
open their hearts, cause them to see the glory and the majesty 
of Jesus Christ and cause them to believe. I hope that you join 
with us in prayer. I hope that that is something 
that drives you on a Lord's Day morning. There is something bigger 
than just our attendance here. Certainly that's something that 
is commanded and it's something that we ought to imbibe. But 
brethren, What about our kids? What about the young people? 
What about those who have yet to profess saving faith in Christ? We believe in the preaching of 
the Gospel as a means of grace. For since in the wisdom of God, 
the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God 
through what? Through the foolishness of the message preached to save 
those who believe. Certainly we encourage persons 
to read the Scriptures on their own. We're not always with them. 
We can't make sure they do that. We don't hold rubber hoses and 
beat them on the head if they don't read, you know, Romans 
chapter 1 to 3. But when we come to church, very 
few people will just actually get up and walk out. I've seen 
it happen before, but very few people over the 20 years that 
I've been here. For some reason, and thankfully 
so, people feel a bit nervous to get up in the midst of a social 
gathering like this and walk out. So pray. Pray that God will 
open their hearts. Pray that the Spirit will attend. 
Pray that they'll pass from darkness into light. Pray that they'll 
move from death into life. Pray that God Most High would 
rend the heavens and come down. Pray that the Lord of Glory would 
see the travail of His soul and be satisfied. Saturday night, 
Sunday morning, prayerfully go into the house of God. Pray that 
the Lord of the harvest would indeed save souls. This is what 
it says. Believed on in the world. And 
Christ was then received up in glory. The resurrection, the 
ascension, the exaltation, and the current session of our Lord 
Christ. All of these things confessed 
by the early church, still confessed today by the 21st century church. 
Let's move quickly and finally to some Reformation emphases 
and the continuing relevance for us. Now, this is an exhaustive 
list and it's probably not even the best list. I was thinking 
about this and I thought about, you know, the Reformation and 
why we like it. I thought, well, these were some of the things 
that we appreciate. First is the authority of Scripture. 
the authority of the Word that governs the church. Now certainly 
the Romish church, popery, the papistical ones, they had a different 
view of authority. They had the Word of God as an 
authority, but they also had papal infallibility. That means 
the pope could sit ex cathedra and make declarations that were 
on par with Scripture. As well, traditions that were 
encapsulated in creeds and confessions and whatnot were on par with 
those particular pronouncements. The Reformers insisted on sola 
scriptura. Now, sola scriptura does not 
mean the scripture only. It means the scripture alone 
in terms of authority. But consider our confession of 
faith. They're not against confessions 
of faith. It would be interesting for a 
confession of faith to be written that takes an anti-confession 
of faith position. It doesn't do that. Here's chapter 
1, paragraph 10. The Supreme Judge, by which all 
controversies of religion are to be determined, and all decrees 
or counsels, opinions of ancient writers, doctrines of men and 
private spirits are to be examined, and in whose sentence we are 
to rest can be no other but the Holy Scripture, delivered by 
the Spirit, into which Scripture so delivered our faith is finally 
resolved. You see, it's not saying we ought 
not to have confessions, we ought not to have creeds, we ought 
not to have church councils, we ought not to have Calvin's 
Institutes, we ought not to have John Gill's Body of Doctrinal 
and Practical Divinity, we ought not to have Calvin's Commentaries 
or John Gill's Commentaries. It's not saying that. It is saying 
that ultimately all those things must be measured by and tested 
by and they're metal-proved by the Word of God. Sola Scriptura. Doesn't mean the Bible only. 
but it does mean the Bible alone as the absolute authority in 
the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. A second emphasis, well, 
before we move on, why is that continuing in relevance for us? 
Because men don't like the Bible, do they? I'm not even talking 
about godless men. I'm talking about in the church 
at times. Our experience, more often than 
not, trumps the Word. Well, you know, my Uncle Chewy 
lost his salvation, so that must mean you can. But the Bible says 
Uncle Chewy, if he's actually saved, can't lose his salvation. 
Do you see that experience trumps the Word of God in our lives? It's not supposed to do that. 
Our experience is to be regulated by the Word of God. If your Uncle 
Chewy lost his salvation, he was never saved to begin with. 
Because Paul said, I'm confident of this thing. He who began a 
good work in you will complete it to the day of Christ. Paul 
says in Romans 8, I am persuaded that none of these things that 
he describes can separate us from the love of God which is 
in Christ Jesus our Lord. Jesus Christ himself says, no 
one can pluck you out of the hand of my Father. Can you imagine 
a salvation where we're saved on Monday and lost on Thursday? 
Is there comfort there? Is there stability there? Is 
there peace there? Spurgeon says of such a gospel, I abhor. We're going to actually posit 
the thought that Jesus Christ came into this world, sinners 
to save, and He saves them for a time, but boy, He just can't 
hold on to them. Your experience is subject to 
the Word of God. As Luther said, feelings come 
and feelings go, but feelings are deceiving. My warrant is 
the Word of God. None else is worth believing. 
It's one of the reasons why we sang 582. I love that emphasis. I dare not trust the sweetest 
frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. We're prone to and inclined 
to trust sweet frames. If my frame is sweet on a Tuesday, 
I really feel close to God. But if my frame is particularly 
sour on a Thursday, I feel like I'm an Esau. I feel like I'm 
a reprobate. I feel like I'm cast off. Well, 
brethren, feelings come and feelings go, but feelings are deceiving. 
My warrant is the Word of God. None else is worth believing. 
There is continuing relevance for us as the Church to maintain 
this emphasis upon sola scriptura. Secondly, the doctrine of salvation 
by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. It's interesting how each of 
these are affixed or attached in some sense to this particular 
text. The question as to who is a member 
of God's household was emphasized. Who's a member of God's household? 
Who is a participant in the redemptive benefits of Christ? Who is it 
that's going to go to heaven? Is it the one who pays the money 
for the indulgences? Is it the one who fulfills the 
sacramental obligations toward the Church of Rome? Is it the 
one who mingles works with faith in order to present themselves 
to God? No. It's by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ 
Jesus alone. This was an emphasis that came 
out during the Protestant Reformation, and an emphasis that we need 
to hold on to. Because man continues to have 
a very difficult time with the aloneness of faith in Christ, 
doesn't he? Even us, brethren. I've got to 
do more. Well, you've got to do more, 
but if you think it's going to commend you to God, in terms 
of acceptance, then you've got a faulty view of justification 
and sanctification. Justification is about Christ. 
Sanctification is the Spirit's work in us, and we bless God 
for that. Justification is Christ's work 
for us, and we bless God for that. It is because of the active 
and the passive obedience of Jesus Christ. It is through the 
forgiveness of sins and the imputation of righteousness received by 
faith alone. Not word alone, blessed. That 
word alone is glorious. That word alone should speak 
comfort to the hearts of God's people throughout the ages. We're justified by faith alone. It's not by works of righteousness. 
It's not the deeds that we do. It's all that Christ has accomplished 
on our behalf. This is relevant because Roman 
Catholicism continues, the covenantal nomism of the new perspective 
on Paul, and as well the covenantal nomism of the federal vision, 
where they essentially Romanize the Christian faith and they 
conflate or they break down or they put into one big glob justification 
and sanctification. That's a very problematic way 
to live. It's not only my faith in Jesus, 
but it's my faithfulness to Jesus. No, it's faith alone, and in 
this we greatly rejoice. Sola Fide. A third emphasis was 
the regulative principle of worship. The regulative principle of worship. They fought against those popish 
abuses. They fought against those popish 
impositions upon the church. And they had biblical warrant 
to do this, the first and the second commandments speak to 
the worship of God. The first commandment defines 
for us, or prohibits to us, the worship of false gods. You shall 
have no other gods before me. You shall have no other gods 
besides me. In other words, you're not supposed 
to go after Moloch. You're not supposed to go after 
Baal. You're not supposed to bow to Asherah. You're not supposed 
to worship your money. You're not supposed to worship 
your things, your stuff. The first commandment defines 
or prohibits us from worshipping a false god. The second commandment 
forbids us from worshipping the true God falsely. God is different. God is unique. God is incomparable. Therefore, you're not supposed 
to make images. You're not supposed to take creative 
license. You're not supposed to, you know, 
just sort of disengage and paint a picture and bow to it. No, 
that's the way Asherah and Baal and Molech are worshipped, but 
not Yahweh. You saw no form. You saw no thing. You're supposed to worship in 
spirit and in truth. The express statement in Deuteronomy 
12.32, whatever I command you, be careful to observe it, you 
shall not add to it, nor take away from it. A young man recently 
said that as he reads through the Old Testament, he understands 
the regulative principle of worship. That basically means we do nothing 
more, nothing less, and nothing else than what God has commanded. 
Or as Terry Johnson says, we sing the Bible, we pray the Bible, 
we read the Bible, we preach the Bible, and we see the Bible 
in the sacraments. This young man said, as I go 
through the Old Testament, I see the high places that weren't 
completely obliterated by certain kings, and, you know, what do 
I do with that? Or the Feast of Purim that's 
instituted at the time of Esther, and it seems that Jesus even 
followed that particular feast. I said to him, there are certain 
anomalies in the scripture. We need to understand that the 
scripture reports what is. It doesn't always report what 
ought to be. The scriptural writers understand 
that you are to be governed by what ought to be. 2 Kings 17, 
when Assyria repopulates Samaria, there are still some Israelites 
in the land. And we read that the Assyrians 
that came there brought their gods. That's what they would 
do, and they would worship or set up these gods. And so the 
Israelites that had remained, it says that they were, along 
with the fear of Yahweh, worshiping these gods. Now the author is 
not telling you that this is legit. He expects you to reflect 
upon the first and second commandments and say, they're really not fearing 
Yahweh, because Yahweh Brooke's no rival. Yahweh doesn't share 
himself with Yim and Baal. There's no approach to Yahweh 
and Nimrod. There's no sort of harmony betwixt 
the two. The author assumes that you will 
be regulated and governed by those clear declarations concerning 
what ought to be in worship. So as you read through the Old 
Testament, you see those high places that weren't obliterated. 
You see some of the anomalies. Do not say, well therefore we 
can do whatever we want in the church. No, we cannot. We are 
to do what God commands. That is in essence what the regulative 
principle of worship states. The practical situation in Joshua 
22, I referred to that earlier. Here's Davis' comment, and I 
think this hits at the crux of the issue. He says, a look at 
Deuteronomy 12 answers this, the idea of centralized worship. 
So the West hears the East erected an altar, and the West arms for 
battle to go and obliterate them. A look at Deuteronomy 12 answers 
this. There Israel is commanded to offer their only sacrifices 
only at the place that Yahweh your God will choose out of all 
Israel's tribes. This place stands opposed to 
all the places where the Canaanites had customarily conducted their 
orgies. The restriction of sacrifice 
to one sanctuary was preventive theology, intended to preserve 
the purity of worship. To oversimplify it meant one 
altar, one faith, and one people. but allow such worship wherever 
folks hankered to experience God, and it would soon take on 
a Canaanite color, soak up Canaanite belief, sport Canaanite practices, 
adore Canaanite gods. In short, it would at one blow 
kill both fidelity to Yahweh and the unity of Israel. So to 
the Western tribes, wind of another altar suggested man-chosen worship 
and sacrifice and reeked of the first step toward apostasy. You see, we are to do what God 
says, because if we don't, no doubt will we stray. The New 
Testament expression here, the oughtness, the necessity ought 
to be apparent. Hebrews 12, 28, 30, Therefore, 
since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us 
have grace by which we may serve God acceptably. God defines acceptable 
worship. The confessional expression, 
but the acceptable way of worshiping the true God is instituted by 
Himself. So they fought against this popish 
sort of imposition upon the church to do a whole host of things 
that God had never commanded. And in the fourth place, the 
doctrine of Christology. The doctrine of Christology seen 
in the debates about Communion or the Lord's Supper. Richard 
Barcelos in his book, On the Lord's Supper, makes this observation. 
He says, more ink was spilled over the issue of the sacrament 
of Communion or the Lord's Supper at the time of the Reformation 
than over the issue of Sola Fide. Did you know that? More ink was 
spilled over the doctrine of the supper than over faith alone. Now, that doesn't mean faith 
alone isn't important. You see, what happens with reference 
to our view of the Lord's Supper impinges on Christology. Rome transubstantiates Jesus 
into bread and wine. Lutherans consubstantiate Jesus 
by divinizing his humanity. You see, we need to make sure 
that we have a proper understanding of Christology. We need to understand 
the one person and the two natures. We can go from nature to person, 
nature to person, but we don't go nature to nature, because 
then we'll end up with consubstantiation or transubstantiation. If you 
have more questions about that, you can ask Pastor Cam later. 
But all that to point out that what we see here, with reference 
to the common confession, with reference to the common confession 
concerning the mystery of godliness, these things, touching on who 
Jesus Christ is, is most important for the Church. So those are 
some emphases that came out in the Reformation and why they 
ought to have continuing relevance for us. We ought to guard against 
pragmatism. Pragmatism doesn't ask, is it 
true? Pragmatism asks, does it work? This is where we're at in the 
21st century. This is what it's about in church growth circles. Does it work? Did it bring people 
in? What happened? Is it true? J. Gressom Machen said, in the first 
place, a true Christian church, now as always, will be radically 
doctrinal. It will never use the shibboleths 
of a pragmatic skepticism. It will never say that doctrine 
is the expression of experience. It will never confuse the useful 
with the true, but will place truth at the basis of all its 
striving and all its life. into the welter of changing human 
opinion, into the modern despair with regard to the meaning of 
life, it will come with a clear and imperious message. That message 
it will find in the Bible, which it will hold to contain not a 
record of man's religious experience, but a record of a revelation 
from God. As the Church imbibes the Apostles' 
instruction here, as we do what we are commanded, as we accept 
the oughtness and the divine necessity behind God's commands 
to us, then, and only then, brethren, will we see the growth of God's 
people being conformed unto the image of Jesus Christ, And when 
truth is at a premium, and truth is proclaimed, and the Spirit 
of God attends it, then we will see the conversion of sinners. 
It's not through experience. It's not through disengagement. 
It's through engagement with the Word of the Truth by the 
power of the Holy Spirit that sinners are brought effectually 
out of darkness into marvelous light. And if you are not a believer 
tonight, great is the mystery of godliness. This blessed Christ 
was manifested in the flesh. He lived in obedience to the 
Father. He died as a sacrifice and a substitute at Calvary. 
He was raised the third day. And all those who look to Him 
in faith will have everlasting life. Well, let us pray. Our 
Father, we thank You that we are a part of a tradition of 
Reformation. I pray that You would help us, 
Lord God, to see the continuing relevance of each of these doctrines, 
and help us, God, to be regulated by the Word of Truth. We ask 
that you would go with us now, we ask that you would watch over 
us in this coming week, that you would bless all those in 
our church with special needs, and watch over all of us with 
the spiritual needs that we have. Go with us, we pray, through 
Christ our Lord. Amen.