Bartimaeus Baptist Temple Bartimaeus Baptist Temple

It's no wonder that some people in our society have tried to diminish the importance of fatherhood. God has revealed Himself as our Heavenly Father, so of course our enemy seeks to destroy the role and respect of our earthly fathers. Yet studies have shown what happens when the father is absent. Children without a father figure in the home are: at greater risk of poverty, more likely to have behavioral problems, more likely to go to prison, more likely to become pregnant as teenagers, more likely to be abused, more likely to use drugs or alcohol, and More likely to drop out of school. Those are just some of the findings published by the National Fatherhood Initiative.



Of course, not all fathers are good, so it is reasonable to ask what makes a good father. A good father guides, protects, and disciplines, but most importantly he does so out of love. A good father sets boundaries in order to protect his children. So it is with our Heavenly father. When we look at the Bible as a collection of rules, we miss the whole point, but the rules are there for a reason. God is saying, just like our parents may have said more times than we can remember, "Don't hurt yourself!" The boundaries are there because He loves us. When we do things the way He intended, life may not be perfect, but it will definitely be better.



Sin has consequences. God may choose to punish us because He loves us. The book of Hebrews, chapter 12, tells us that we should expect discipline from Him if we are truly His children. But I believe most of said punishment simply comes as the natural consequence of violating the natural order that He established. Sin is a cruel master, and it will eventually destroy us. Our text this week is from Romans 6:16-23.

If you’ve been involved in church a while, you may have heard someone make mention of the proper procedure for dealing with someone who has wronged you drawn from Matthew 18.  It is of course a sound approach, but it takes on much more gravity when we consider the context in which Jesus gave it to us.  The most important thing to know about it is that its purpose is redemptive.  The goal, stated simply in verse 15, is to “have won your brother.”



As we continue to rebuild, I want to shore up our foundation by bringing to mind some basic principles that should inform the choices we make, particularly with regard to sinful behavior and the conflicts that inevitably arise among us imperfect people.  We read Matthew 18:15-20, but it will be helpful to have read the entire chapter and have it in front of you as you listen.  It all fits together.

I know that I'm talking to people who don't need to be convinced of God's existence. I also know that we all have people in our lives who aren't so sure. It is estimated that 3 out of 4 young people raised in the church leave it while in college, in part because of the intellectual challenges they find there. No one explained to them the facts that actually support our believe. When they encounter atheist professors, they have no defense. In too many cases, adults have never really thought through their belief either, so how could they share with their children? Scientists with lots of knowledge and ego to match look down their noses and call us foolish for believing in a creator, but if we look at the evidence, it takes more faith to believe there isn’t one. Paul says in his letter to the Romans, “From the creation of the world His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what He has made. As a result, people are without excuse.” (1:20 CSB) We’ll cover at a high level some of the reasons why belief in God is completely logical, and I’ll share some resources with you that you can study for yourself and share with others. I know how much it helped me when I began to discover that one doesn’t have to check in the brain at the door of the church. Following Jesus requires faith. There are some things we cannot know and yet we must trust Him. But there is much that we can and should know so that we can effectively stand against the enemy’s deceit and help others to stand as well.

When we are walking with the Lord, why does stuff still happen?

Sometimes I stop to think about the mission our church. Why do we do what we do? What drives us to keep going even when things get messy?  I think there is genuine compassion and a desire to give, to comfort, and to love.  I also think that occasionally we need to remind ourselves that there’s a greater mission than what appears on the surface.  We can get caught up in all the good things we do.  Pastor David used to exhort us each week to go out and do something good for someone, but why?  We can and should spend ourselves doing good for others, but we dare not forget the greatest good.  Our objective is ultimately that people are led to the place where Jesus becomes Lord and savior of their lives.  If we miss that, we’ve wasted everything.  We’ve provided a bit of temporary comfort in the place of eternal salvation.



So are good works important?  Absolutely yes!  On Sunday, we’ll read from Matthew 5:14-16.  There we find that it is our good works that should lead others to glorify our Father in Heaven.  But it is not the works themselves.  Many well-meaning people do good works but they don’t necessarily point to God.  It is the light, illuminating the good works, that draws them in.  The reasons why we do what we do are more important than the works.  When we reach out in compassion for the broken bodies, let us not forget that it is the broken souls that we really must reach.  Sometimes a doctor can heal the body, but only the Holy Spirit can heal the soul.

Does it seem to you like the world is falling apart around us? Throughout history, Christians have thought that they must surely be living in the end times. We have always lived in a fallen world, and it will be that way until Jesus comes back to reclaim it. We hardly have anything to complain about here in the U.S., though there is much cause for concern. Around the world, Christians are suffering and dying for the cause of Christ.



I have often contemplated how I might do in such circumstances. I don't know anyone who truly believes who thinks they would fold under pressure, but does one ever really know until it happens? I find comfort in the knowledge that I belong to Him, and He would never leave me without hope. My hope is not in my own strength, but in His. I pray that we will never have to find out, but we may.



Consider Jesus' words in Matthew 16:24-27. If we are to be His disciples, we must take up the cross. We have reduced the cross to a pretty symbol, but to His hearers, the imagery would have been vivid and bloody. They saw crucifixions regularly and knew what He was saying. When he said "follow me," He invited them, and us, to die. For many who heard Him that day, it would be literal. All but one of his closest followers was martyred. But we are all called to die to ourselves, to our flesh, to our sinful desires, to anything that draws us away from following Him.



Salvation is a free gift (Eph 2:8-10.)  The thief on the cross who believed at the last moment is hanging out in Heaven with the likes of the apostle Paul.  None of us can earn it.  None of us deserve it.  Yet when we accept it, we are making a choice that changes our lives.  Jesus has called us all to a life of sacrifice.  We don’t live for ourselves anymore.  We live for Him.  We die to ourselves that we might have life eternally. This is what it means to follow Him.