Restoring Gratitude

As I write this article, October is winding down, and the anticipation of November already piques a sense of gratitude. Certainly, we anticipate our annual Thanksgiving observation that we will celebrate with friends and family, within the church, and throughout our nation with various expressions of gratitude. With many folks, especially within the church, prayer is the primary expression of our gratitude, giving thanks specifically to God for the blessings we have received. Many people also have traditions of sharing thoughts of thanksgiving, often around a dinner table with family and friends for whom many will express their gratitude for many varied reasons.

The apostle Paul had a habit of praying with thanksgiving for his brothers and sisters in Christ. In all but a couple of his letters, Paul stated his gratitude for each church to which he was writing, often stating it as a prayer of thanksgiving to God for them. One notable thanksgiving prayer of Paul is found in Philippians 1:3-6:

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. (NIV)

As we read through Paul’s prayer, we find several significant points. Paul thought about the church in his absence from them, and when he remembered them, he thanked God. He remembered all of them, and he prayed for all of them. His memories and prayers prompted joy within Paul and gave him confidence in their faith and in their faithful God who continued to work within each of them, among all of them, and through them together. Paul’s thanksgiving and prayer for the church was prompted by their shared faith, their partnership in the work of the gospel, and their shared future into eternity together in Christ.

As Paul remembered the church and prayed for them, giving thanks to God for them, his gratitude restored him; it buoyed him. Paul wrote, “It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart and, whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel, all of you share in God’s grace with me” (Philippians 1:7). Not only does gratitude reflect our faith, it supports it. Because Paul and the church shared their faith in common and because they were partners in the work of the gospel, his gratitude to God for their faith and partnership bolstered his own faith, he wrote, whether he was working in the ministry or suffering in that work. This gave Paul joy.

I must confess that this work is hard, sometimes nearly overwhelming. However, like Paul, I find myself restored by gratitude to God for the faith we share together and your partnership in this work. Obviously, I don’t face the same kind of hardships or opposition that Paul and the early church faced, that many other ministers face, or that many Christians face in parts of the world where they are not free to worship and serve God as we do; however, I am restored, even encouraged, by the faith that we share and the partnership we have in the gospel.

I pray with gratitude for all of you as I consider the many ways we share in this work. God, forgive me when I am distracted by the lack of obvious results of my work, of our work. I am grateful for the shared faith and partnership of our elders, deacons, ministry leaders, and volunteers. I pray that you will consider those who serve within our congregation and be encouraged and restored by gratitude to God who began this work in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, who sustains it by the presence of the Holy Spirit within us and among us, and who will complete it when Jesus returns. I pray that this gratitude will sustain us as we continue to work together in the ministry of the gospel, through good times and bad, all the while thanking God for one another.

Restoring Purpose

As I continue to preach through 1 Corinthians, focusing on Paul’s explanation of love being “the most excellent way” (1 Corinthians 12:31), I have to remind myself – all of us, actually – that Paul wrote this letter to a body of believers who were missing the point of God’s love (chapter 13), namely the fulfillment of God’s plan through Jesus’ death and resurrection (chapter 15). Because God loves the people he created and despite our ongoing sinful efforts to separate ourselves from God and others, he sent his Son Jesus to restore us to himself. John wrote, “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:10).

God’s love reveals God’s purpose. Again, John wrote, “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). I’m sure we understand this at a fundamental level, which is very personal. However, while it is important that each person know and understand the Good News of God’s love that leads to salvation through faith in Jesus, it is also important that we, the church as a whole, understand where that love should lead us. Since God’s love reveals God’s purpose of restoring sinful people to himself, the church must understand that our purpose, our mission is to participate in God’s work of restoration. Paul explains God’s purpose for the church this way, writing in Ephesians 3:10-12:

His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

God’s purpose for the church is to reveal the fulfillment of his plan to reconcile the world to himself through Jesus.

Unfortunately, throughout the history of the church, we, the church, have missed the point or simply shirked our responsibility to fulfill our purpose. Many times, as we’ve seen with the church in Corinth, many individuals within the church have focused solely on their own salvation – getting it and keeping it – at the expense of the church and its unity as the body of Christ and at the expense of the world that still needs to hear, see, and experience God’s restoring love. As individuals focus on their own wants and needs, their own faith, gifts, and experiences, they lose sight of the Good News of God’s love for the world and keep it to themselves. That’s when the church becomes the “holy huddle,” a collection of people who gather around God because of what he gives, being content to spend a few hours together Sunday morning, singing the right songs, hearing the right words, and doing the right things. It sounds right; it looks right; it might even feel right, but it’s not quite right.

Church, if that’s as far as we’re going to take our faith, we need to restore our purpose. Peter explains our purpose as the church in this way, writing in 1 Peter 2:9-12:

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.

Yes, we need to gather and praise God for who he is and what he has done through Jesus, but our purpose goes further than that. We need to keep our focus on Christ: knowing him, following him, reflecting him, and leading other people to him. We need to share his love and grace that we ourselves have received.

Restoring Love

There’s a lot of misunderstanding about love these days. In the world at large, love is often reduced to a feeling. People fall in and out of love on a whim, it seems. Dating relationships often begin with a flutter of feelings – attraction, affection, connection, desire, lust – and they often end abruptly when the feelings stop or when they are formed elsewhere. Marriages suffer in the same way, though the consequences are more damaging and far reaching. When people get their feelings hurt or don’t get what they want, they often accuse others, “You don’t love me!” or withhold love until they get what they want, and while that is terribly childish, it’s not just children who do it.

Even in the church we have a distorted understanding of what love is. While we might be thoughtful enough to know that love is not merely an emotion – church folk are often quick to say “love is a verb” – our actions and responses that we call love are often driven by emotions. When we say or do something to correct someone else’s sin, even with solidly biblical reasons, our words and actions are far too often harsh and our motivation far too often comes out of our own hurt or anger.

Those who have spent even a small amount of time reading, studying, or meditating on the Scriptures know that the Bible tells us that “God is love” (1 John 4:8). In fact, the more we grow in our faith and in our knowledge of God’s Word, we discover that not only is love God defined and demonstrated by who God is and what God does but that God’s love sustains us. John also tells us, “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them” (1 John 4:16). We exist because God is love, so when we struggle to understand love and live by love, we’re really struggling with God.

Unfortunately, we relegate love to being only a relationship tool or a standard for evaluating our relationships: in friendships, in marriage, in families, in neighborhoods, even in the church. If we’ve got troubles in our relationships, we know we need to examine our love, so we pull out our go-to passage: 1 Corinthians 13. Paul wrote, in part:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:4-8)

Using these sixteen descriptions of what love is and isn’t, what love does and doesn’t do, we try to diagnose and fix our problems. However, love isn’t merely a 16-in-1 super tool, and using or pursuing each of these attributes isn’t a quick-fix solution. Yes, Paul wrote these words to address the problems of a terribly dysfunctional church body, and we certainly must take note of them ourselves to deal with our own problems, but he wasn’t simply telling them, “This is what you should do,” as much as he was telling them, “This is how you should be” or, better, “This is who you should be.”

If we remember that “God is love,” then Paul’s words are not mere instructions – “You need to be more patient, more kind, etc.” They are reminders, encouragement – “You need to be more like God.” In this current series of messages, I am preaching through 1 Corinthians 13. I’m calling the series “Restoring Love,” as in, we need to get back to love, love that restores us. Ultimately, this is the Gospel, the Good News that God has a plan to restore us to himself, a plan that is motivated and accomplished by God’s love, the plan that has been fulfilled through Jesus. As we focus on love, we’re focusing on God, and he will continue to transform us that we might be more like him.

Restoring Discipleship

When I first considered preaching through Genesis, I recognized that many Christians have established a disconnect between the Old and New Testaments, so I had to be intentional in showing the unity of God’s plan from “the beginning.” Throughout the series, I have been reminding us that Genesis was written and given to Israel by Moses some time between their exodus from slavery in Egypt and their entrance into the Promised Land. During the nation’s 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, God had been teaching them not only about their beginnings but also his work through the generations to restore mankind to himself after the sin of Adam and Eve in the garden and the ongoing sin throughout the generations up to and including Israel itself.

As God led Israel through the wilderness, the people were beginning to see that their primary place in relationship to God was following him. When God told Adam not to eat from the one tree, God expected him to follow his command. When God placed Eve in the garden with Adam, God expected Adam to follow his lead by leading Eve to follow God’s command. When Cain and Abel brought sacrifices to God, God expected them to follow his instructions. When God commanded Noah to build the ark and take his family and the animals into it so that God might deliver them from the flood, God expected him to follow his command. When God called Abram, God expected him to leave his homeland and family and to follow him to Canaan. Whatever it was God commanded or led, he expected the people he created to follow.

Of course, since mankind has been resisting God’s plan from the beginning, following God has required repentance, turning back to God in faith, away from our own sinful desires and direction. Here’s where we find the clearest connection between Genesis and the Gospel and Jesus. In his account of Jesus’ life and ministry, John begins where Moses began:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. (John 1:1-4)

With these words, John makes it clear that God’s ideal, very good creation was both established and restored through Jesus. In his account of Jesus’ life and ministry, Matthew tells us that both John the Baptist and Jesus preached the Good News of God’s restoration saying, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven has come near” (Matthew 3:2; 4:17). Matthew, Mark, and Luke each record what Jesus said is the appropriate response to that Good News, the appropriate action of faithful repentance: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23).

Very simply, from the beginning, God’s plan of restoration of the world to himself is a matter of discipleship. Jesus commanded his disciples in Matthew 28:18-20:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

The authority of the Word of God who created the heavens and the earth sends faithful followers of God out into the world to call all people back to God in faithful repentance. From the beginning God has called people to repent and be disciples of himself, of his Word. May we all respond in faithful repentance as he calls and sends us to be disciples who make disciples.

Restored for Future Freedom

On September 12, 1777, the day after General Washington’s defeat at the Battle of Brandywine, Thomas Paine wrote in his pamphlet series The American Crisis, “Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it.” Paine wrote to encourage Americans that, despite the previous day’s defeat, their cause was right and they were sure to be victorious in the end. However, within two weeks, Philadelphia was captured by the British and held for nine months. Certainly, our new country felt the fatigue of supporting its freedom, but Paine was right; as the troops and the country as a whole continued to defend their freedom, little by little, the war was won and freedom secured.

When Paine wrote this pamphlet, he wrote with several assumptions: that the people were already free, that there were blessings yet to come from that freedom, and that they must strive to maintain that freedom and secure those blessings. Clearly, Paine knew what our country’s history bears out, that the Declaration of Independence was not the goal but the beginning, as the war continued another six years and as the struggle to maintain that freedom continues.

Paul recognized a similar struggle in our spiritual lives. Paul knew that those who put their faith in Jesus – believing that he is the Son of God who died for our sins and rose to give us new life; repenting of our sins; confessing Jesus as Lord; and joining with him in baptism – are saved, freed from sin, but he also knew that there is an ongoing struggle to live within that freedom and to receive the blessings that are yet to come. Paul wrote to the early church about that struggle and future blessings in Romans 8:18-21:

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

Just as Paine described the newfound American freedom, Paul reminded the early church that while they had received salvation and freedom in Christ there is more to come and toward that future blessing there will be an ongoing struggle.

We know that life is a struggle because human sin has corrupted the physical world itself, even our bodies, which Paul explained throughout Romans 8. We also know the Good News: because of Jesus’ death and resurrection, even the physical universe will be restored. Paul tells us (Romans 8:21) that our salvation through faith in Jesus is evidence of that future freedom for all of God’s creation. However, even though we have already been saved, we still wait for that final restoration, as Paul writes in Romans 8:23-25:

Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

“Wait for it patiently”; easier said than done, right? Praise God that we don’t have to do it alone! Paul also reminds us: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness” (Romans 8:26).

Because we are saved by God’s grace through our faith in Jesus, we have received the gift of the Holy Spirit who helps us to live this newly restored life as we anticipate future freedom. This is why and how we can praise and serve God despite our ongoing struggles. Celebrate your freedom because there’s more to come!

Restoration Through Sacrifice

The Declaration of Independence states, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” With that foundational perspective, the Founding Fathers of our nation continued to enumerate the grievances against the King of Great Britain and the reasons for this declaration, essentially stating that they were pursuing action to restore their God-given rights as human beings which the King had denied. Concluding their argument and announcement, they also stated, “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor,” signaling their willingness and intent to sacrifice all they had to restore those rights to themselves, to their fellow citizens, and for future generations. With that declaration, not only was this country born but its people set themselves on a course of restoration through sacrifice.

Considering the closeness of the dates of our observations of Memorial Day and Independence Day, the relationship between those holidays is important to consider. Certainly, the Founding Fathers considered those “unalienable rights” to be worth fighting and dying for, and for that reason, more than simply celebrating independence won, we also remember those who sacrificed all to secure that freedom – for themselves, for their families, for their countrymen, and for us, as well. Clearly, there is a delicate tension between being grateful for the sacrifices of those who have served, fought, and died for the sake of freedom and celebrating freedom won through their sacrifice – I can’t describe the discomfort I feel whenever I hear someone saying, “Happy Memorial Day!”

Greater still is the discomfort I wrestle with whenever I think or talk about “celebrating” the Lord’s Supper. In the memorial supper that we observe every Sunday, we not only remember Jesus’ broken body when we eat the bread and remember his spilled blood when we drink from the cup, as Jesus taught his disciples in Luke 22 and as Paul reminded the early church in 1 Corinthians 11:24-25, but we also proclaim it (vs. 26). Memorial Day parades, speeches, and ceremonies help us to remember the sacrifices, but they also proclaim that those sacrifices were made to secure something worthy of the sacrifices. Of much greater importance, our “celebration” of the Lord’s Supper not only reminds us of Jesus’ sacrifice but also proclaims that our salvation is worthy of his sacrifice.

While the signers of the Declaration were likely unsure of the outcome of their words and actions, as I am certain are all who enter the service of their country, they pursued a higher purpose and good, willing to sacrifice everything they had for the sake of others. While the commemorations of Memorial Day focus our attention on what others have sacrificed for our country and for ourselves, Jesus’ sacrifice overshadows it all, having secured the forgiveness of sins and eternal life for everyone who puts their faith in God, as John reminded the early church in 1 John 2:2, “He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”

Sometimes it seems that the emphasis on remembrance is focused primarily on gratitude, whether at Memorial Day or at the Lord’s Supper. Yes, we ought to be grateful for the sacrifices made on our behalf, but remembrance ought to prompt an active response, especially through our faith. While Memorial Day observations remind us of our freedom, for which we ought to be thankful, they truly ought to prompt us to live as good citizens, working toward common good. More than that, however, our remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice in the Lord’s Supper should reveal both gratitude and transformation, his sacrifice enabling us to serve and lead others to new life in Jesus, following his example of sacrifice to restore others.

Restoring Leadership

I started the new year writing about how God continues to restore us within the church with the help of our leaders, noting my new, additional role as an elder within this body. Having served as an elder for only four months, I am noticing a few things about myself and about leadership that I had not expected. First, I don’t think of myself as much of a leader (and it would not surprise me in the least to discover exactly how many folks would agree with me). My personality and experiences throughout life have always put me somewhere in the background; full disclosure: I’d rather work behind the scenes, helping others do great things, supporting “the team” to get the job done. Throughout my life, I have often been impressed with true leaders who demonstrate an understanding of servanthood, people who are not afraid or ashamed to get their hands dirty doing what needs to be done, people who lead by example. I think I’d rather be that kind of leader than the kind that needs to assert the authority of their role or to project an attitude of superiority or power.

However, the second thing I’ve learned in the past few months is how tempting it can be to do just that, to flex that authority or to wield it like a blunt object, whether to “get the job done” or to smack down resistance. For whatever reason, many people seem to like a powerful, authoritarian leader simply because they tend to get things done, that is, until they’re doing something “I/we” don’t like. We don’t mind a dictatorial steamroller leading the way, unless they’re rolling over us or what we like. However, if we can get them on our side or doing what we want, a little wreckage is the cost of doing business, right? I don’t want to be that kind of leader, either, but I am shocked how appealing it can be.

As I continue to preach and teach about God’s plan to restore sinful people to himself and how he has worked that plan and continues to accomplish that plan through Jesus, I am determined to focus on restoring leadership. I’m not referring merely to a process of reestablishing godly leadership but to a process of leadership that is restoring or restorative. This is the kind of leadership Jesus demonstrated in his own life, and it’s a good illustration of God’s plan and process of restoration through the Gospel.

At one point in Jesus’ ministry, he left a synagogue on the Sabbath and then healed a man who had a withered hand (Matthew 12:9-13). In doing this, Jesus found himself squaring off against the Pharisees, people who wielded their spiritual authority among the people like a weapon, and Matthew 12:14 says, “The Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.” Knowing who Jesus is – the Messiah, the Son of God – we know that Jesus had the power and authority to take these guys on and deal with them definitively, physically, emotionally, theologically, even eternally. Yet, Jesus didn’t flex his authority; instead, Matthew 12:15, 16 tell us, “Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place. A large crowd followed him, and he healed all who were ill. He warned them not to tell others about him.” Even though Jesus had the power, authority, and right to judge and condemn the Pharisees, instead of wielding his power in that way, he just continued to do what he had been doing.

Matthew goes on to tell us that this was in fulfillment of what the prophet Isaiah had predicted the Messiah would be like, writing in Matthew 12:18-21:

“Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations. He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he has brought justice through to victory. In his name the nations will put their hope.”

Jesus didn’t come to bust heads; he wouldn’t even break a bruised reed or snuff a smoldering candle. Jesus came to restore and to lead others toward restoration. As I consider this ongoing transition in my life as a leader and in our life as the church, please pray that I/we focus on restoring leadership.

Restoration Through the Cross

At the end of Jesus’ life, as he was dying on the cross, Jesus said, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34). While the people standing near the cross thought Jesus was calling to Elijah to rescue him, it is clear that Jesus did not cry out in desperation but to call attention to God’s work of restoration that was being accomplished. Here Jesus quoted the first line of Psalm 22, a song written by David that captures not only the deep despair of someone who was separated from God but also their faith in God because of who he is and what he does, despite their horrible circumstances.

Certainly, it is easy to see some of the parallels between the suffering described in Psalm 22 and the suffering Jesus experienced on the cross. Verses 7, 8 predict the abuse and insults of those who mocked Jesus as he died; in Matthew 27:43 they said, “He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now.” Verse 15 anticipates Jesus’ thirst, which we find in John 19:28. Verse 16 describes crucifixion itself. Verse 18 predicts how the soldiers gambled for Jesus’ clothing (Mark 15:24). Among these and other statements, we find clear evidence that Jesus was not merely killed by his enemies but that he died to fulfill God’s plan, which was established before the creation of the universe (1 Peter 1:20).

As we approach our annual commemoration of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, we most often focus on those prophetic statements about Jesus’ suffering on the cross and the separation from God that is caused by sin. Obviously, Psalm 22 shows us that David was well aware of how his own sin separated him from God. However, while he was in despair over the separation from God that comes through sin, he also had hope for restoration as well. Even though he began crying out to God about being forsaken by God, David continues with praise and clarification, writing in Psalm 22:23, 24: “You who fear the LORD, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel! For he has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.”

Even in the midst of suffering, David knew that God is “enthroned as the Holy One… the one Israel praises” (Psalm 22:3), so he praised God for who he is and for what he has done and for what he will do for those whose faith is in God. What will God do for the faithful, despite their suffering? He will restore them, and they will praise him; David wrote Psalm 22:6, “The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the LORD will praise him – may your hearts live forever!”

As we have been following Mark’s account of Jesus’ life and ministry, we have seen how Jesus gave the people indisputable signs that he was bringing restoration for all people in God’s kingdom, signs such as feeding thousands, healing people, casting out demons, and more. However, while those signs should have given the people who witnessed them assurance that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, they were only temporal signs that pointed toward the eternal, as David said, “May your hearts live forever!”

That kind of restoration was made possible through the cross. In calling attention to his own suffering on the cross by quoting Psalm 22, Jesus also called attention to God’s plan of restoration for all humanity, something that David could only imagine, and he did! Anticipating one final parallel between Psalm 22 and the crucifixion, David wrote about what was yet to come: “Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord. They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it!” (Psalm 22:30, 31). David praised God saying, “He has done it!” Jesus fulfilled what God was doing, saying his last words in John 19:30, “It is finished.” Mark 15:38 states that the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, telling us that God removed the separation between himself and humanity and brought restoration through the cross.

Restored by the Holy Spirit

There has been a lot of talk lately about the Holy Spirit and God’s working among people in a very public way. Unfortunately, it seems that many people, even many Christians, view the Holy Spirit only from a perspective that expects dramatic or even miraculous work or actions, thinking that if there is no work of God unless there is some kind of spectacular event. While the Bible does record such events – such as we read in Acts 2 (the day of Pentecost), Acts 4 (after Peter and John were released by the Sanhedrin), and Acts 10 (the conversion of Cornelius and his family) – the work of the Holy Spirit is often missed simply because it is an ongoing work of restoration within and among those who have put their faith in Jesus.

Paul wrote to Titus to encourage the early church to remember what God has done through Jesus by the Holy Spirit. He wrote in Titus 3:3-7:

At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. (NIV)

Here Paul reminds us of how we were all separated from God because of our sin but also of how God restored us.

The key point is that we have been saved (vs. 5), that we have been justified by God’s grace (vs. 7) through our faith in Jesus’ death and resurrection by the power of the Holy Spirit. If this is not a spectacular work of God, I don’t know what is! What’s more, because of that work and our faith in Christ, we are no longer in that state of separation and are being transformed so that we are no longer characterized by foolishness, disobedience, deceit, or enslavement to sinful passions and pleasures. Again, what a spectacular work of God!

So why do so many people seem so unexcited by or even unaware of the Holy Spirit’s dramatic work within and among us? Perhaps it is because the process is ongoing. Paul describes the Holy Spirit’s work of restoration in verse 5 as a process of “rebirth and renewal,” words that allude to transformations that occur over longer periods of time. While the birth of a child is a dramatic event, pregnancy is a long process of development, and despite the planning and preparation for the birth, many families are often “surprised” by the birth. Growing up from infancy to maturity takes a lifetime, and children are often frustrated by what seems to be a long process; however, as adults, we are often surprised by how “quickly” the time has gone by. There is an amazing paradox within life, that the time for growth both plods along from day to day and also flies by.

Through that process of renewal and restoration, we have good news. When we put our faith in Jesus – believing that he is the Christ, the Son of God who died for our sins and who rose again to give us new life; repenting of our old, sinful way of living; confessing Jesus as Lord of our life; and joining with him in baptism for the forgiveness of our sins – we are saved, in an instant, justified in front of God. As we continue living in faith, then, by the continued presence, power, and care of the Holy Spirit, we are being transformed from the way we were into what God wants us to be right now and being prepared for eternal life in heaven to come. May we always be amazed and encouraged by the Holy Spirit who is living and working in us and among us.

Leading to Restoration

As I wrote last month, my theme for preaching and teaching through 2023 is “restoration in Christ,” understanding that the gospel is good news for both those who do not know Jesus, as well as those who do. We most often think of restoration in Christ in the context of restoring sinners to God through faith in Jesus, but the restoration continues throughout the lives of Christians.

The word restore points to a process. In general, the restoration process is a change from one condition to another, which is why transformation and sanctification are important aspects of our lives. While our transformation is certainly from old life to new life, from sinner to saint, restoration reminds us that the change God is making in us is to help us regain something we lost. Ultimately, we have lost the intimate relationship with God that Adam and Eve experienced in the Garden, when they were able to walk with God “in the cool of the day” (Genesis 3:8). God’s restoration through our faith in Jesus is helping us to regain that lost relationship.

Jesus came to restore that relationship between sinful people and God, providing new life for everyone who will believe. However, that restoration doesn’t end once we have put our faith in Jesus; God continues to restore us through the church, particularly with the help of our leaders, the elders. Peter gives the elders of the church these instructions in 1 Peter 5:2, 3:

Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them – not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.

Essentially Peter tells the elders to care for the church, watching over them, serving them, being an example to them. Then in verse 5, he tells the rest of us to submit to our elders, which is a specific statement about the leaders of the church and not merely a statement of younger folks submitting to older folks; however, in verses 5 and 6 he also tells us to humble ourselves toward one another in submission to God.

Why does Peter give the church these instructions? Just to keep order within the church, setting a hierarchy of submission? Ultimately, Peter tells the church that this is a matter of resisting our enemy Satan, who is seeking to devour us like a lion (vs. 8) and who is causing suffering among all believers around the world (vs. 9) and that our elders are helping us through this suffering, leading us to restoration in Christ. The reason why God established this arrangement of elders leading the church is to create an environment of relationships in which we can help strengthen one another as God continues to restore us. Peter writes in 1 Peter 5:10, “And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.”

For the past nine years, I have been working under the leadership of the elders of our church, different men throughout those years but all who have been serving diligently, watching over this body and caring for it, so that we might all be “strong, firm and steadfast” through the suffering we experience in this world. Now that I have been appointed to serve as an elder with them, I want to acknowledge the transition in my role.

Perhaps it won’t look much different. I will certainly continue to fulfill the tasks of preaching and teaching, but I hope that by accepting this responsibility to lead it will be clear that I am not fulfilling these tasks simply because it’s my job but because this is my family. As I preach and teach through 2023, please know that when I am leading us toward restoration in Christ that we are not simply heading back in time to “the way it used to be” but back to God who is making us who he created us to be.