Drama of Scripture: The Story in Six Parts
REVIEW:
Act One: God Creates His Kingdom
Act Two: Rebellion in God’s Kingdom
Act Three: Promise of Restoration of Kingdom: Israel’s Mission
Act Four: Kingdom Restored: Jesus’ Mission
Act Five: Kingdom Tasted and Displayed: Church’s Mission
I. Jesus has stunning intentions for the church.
a. He said that we were to finish his work.
i. His work was…
Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
What was lost?
a. Adam, Eve and all their offspring.
b. Creation and all that Adam and Eve were charged to look after.
ii. His work is our work…
John 20:21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”
iii. He said that we would do greater works than he.
John 14:12 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father.
Matt. 28:18-20 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Luke 10:17-19 The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name.” And He said to them, “I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you.
iv. He said that he would build his church.
Matt. 16:18 “…I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”
1. We believe in Jesus as the king, Lord of all.
a. Our faith releases the resurrection power of Jesus in our souls.
i. We are transformed by the Spirit.
ii. We are corporately transformed by the Spirit.
iii. We fulfill the call of Jesus by the Spirit.
2. We believe in the Church.
a. If Jesus said he will build it.
b. then we know that he will do that through us.
3. We must be the Church. Acts 2:42ff
Acts 2:42-47 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need.
Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.
Goheen & Bartholomew
a. We are the church in our devotion to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer; in that, we experience the life of the KINGDOM.
b. We are the church when we live out the life of Christ singly and corporately.
i. Signs of saving power—2:43
ii. Justice and mercy—2:44-45
iii. Joy—2:46
iv. Worship—2:47
c. We know we are being the church when we see the Lord use his presence in us to draw others to himself.
Overlapping Story---G&B: This too fulfills OT prophecies about God’s kingdom. The prophets picture the drawing power of a renewed Israel (Isaiah 60:2-3; Zech. 8:20-23): “A decisive element of the prophetic conception of the pilgrimage of the nations to Zion is that the Gentiles, fascinated by the salvation visible in Israel, are driven of their own accord to the people of God. They do not become believers as a result of missionary activity; rather, the fascination emitted by the people of God draws them close.” This newly formed community of the early church is attractive to outsiders. The life of the believing community radiates the light of the kingdom and thus draws people from darkness (cf. Ephesians 5:8; 1 Peter 2:9).
…he promised to gather his people again one day, pouring out his Spirit on them so they might at last fulfill their calling. The prophets looked forward to the day when Israel would be regathered. Now, in Jesus, the regathering has begun. He has appointed twelve apostles, representing the twelve tribes of Israel, to be the foundation of his kingdom, the new nation of God’s people. At Pentecost, in response to Peter’s preaching and the power of the HS, three thousand people are added to that foundation. The remainder of the book of Acts tells the story of how this new community of believers continues Jesus’ mission of gathering the lost from within Israel, then moves beyond old ethnic and cultural barriers to gather Samaritans and Gentiles into the kingdom.
Jesus has stunning intentions for the church
This is the work of the church!!
Today, we wrestle to have faith in the church at all.
II. We fulfill the INTENTIONS of Jesus by being the Church.
a. The Apostles Creed says “I believe in the holy catholic Church.”
b. Our greatest challenge is NOT to convince people that there is a God, that Jesus was a real person, but that the church is trustworthy.
i. Many say that they are “spiritual but not religious.”
ii. Another way of saying this is “I don’t believe in ORGANIZED RELIGION.”
iii. Or, “I don’t trust the INSTITUTIONALIZED CHURCH.”
iv. All this to say that the church has let them down.
G.K. Chesterton—by far the most powerful argument against the truth of Christianity are Christians.
HOW CAN WE BE THE CHURCH? HOW CAN WE POSSIBLY DRAW PEOPLE TO JESUS WHEN THEY HATE THE CHURCH?
v. The way we live together makes the church believable.
John 21—placed here to show us what the church should be in the world.
a. Contrast Luke 5—put your net in over here, one more time.
b. He’s in the boat, now they find fish!
c. John 21—no fish; then Jesus says, try over here and they are overwhelmed. What’s the difference? Now, JESUS IS NOT IN THE BOAT [not even recognized], though he had been in the boat in Luke 5.
d. Keller: Even if you don’t recognize me, even if I am not physically present, I still want you to do my work in the world, and I will see that it is done.
i. I want you to bring people from one realm into another realm, not merely fish! You are a city on a hill.
* Jesus has stunning intentions for the church
* We fulfill the INTENTIONS of Jesus by being the Church.
We are to be the kind of community where people can see what they long to experience. We are called to be the Community of the King.
III. We as a congregation are on the front lines of spiritual & social combat; Jesus has stunning intentions for us.
a. What did Jesus do?
1. He offered himself for Israel and as Israel.
2. He gathered TWELVE DISCIPLES, a renewed Israel, and charged them to take the story of his Mission, his Redemption, and his Promise to all peoples.
3. He sent his followers into the world to be the Church.
b. What can we do? THE SAME: offer, gather, send
We could grow faster if we were to abandon the marginalized.
We could draw more middle class folk if we were in a safer place.
BUT,
God has sent us to Hamilton to make a beachhead in the struggle for lives.
We send others to dark places in the world where their quality of life is challenging, their possessions are stolen, for some, even their lives are threatened. Rather than shrink from our call, let’s make sure that we have not HIRED OUT others to fulfill God’s intentions for us.
What’s next?
Tonight: Rachel Tulloch, apologist with RZIM, Answering the Hard Questions
Next week: Act 6: The Return of the King: Redemption Completed
Apostles’ Creed
I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of Heaven and earth.
I believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into Hell.
On the third day He rose again.
He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins,the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Drama of Scripture: Jesus Launches the Kingdom
Drama of Scripture: The Story in Six Parts
Cf. Drama of Scripture by Bartholomew & Goheen
[check out the weblink for B&G's content and extras]
1. God’s mission is to restore creation.
i. God chose a people to embody God’s creational purposes for humanity and so be a light to the nations…the OT narrates the history of Israel’s response to their divine calling.
ii. Jesus comes on the scene and in his mission takes upon humanity and accomplishes the victory over sin, opening the way to a new world.
iii. When his earthly ministry is over, he leaves his church with the mandate to continue in that same mission.
iv. Standing as we do between Pentecost and the return of Jesus, our central task as God’s people is to witness to the rule of Jesus Christ over all of life.
v. What is the New Creation?
Luke 24:13-27
2. The Story…
a. Adam encouraged us last week to read the Scriptures as The Story of God. He summarized the first three acts of that Story…
i. ACT ONE--Creation:
1. The world was made by God as God intended it to be.
a. He provided all the shelter, food, and relationships that Adam & Eve needed to flourish.
b. He provided boundaries to ensure that harm would not come to his creation.
2. He came to the Garden himself, to enjoy his own.
ii. ACT TWO--Fall
1. Adam & Eve shunned the protection of God, the provision of God, and the personal experience of God for the right to make their own contrary choice.
2. God immediately responded by providing skins to cover their shame, demonstrating the first death, and foreshadowing sacrificial death.
3. God removed them from the Garden as an act of mercy, to prevent them from living forever in decaying bodies.
iii. ACT THREE--Israel, God’s chosen people.
1. God determined to reestablish his earthly presence by revealing himself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob = Israel.
2. Israel was instructed in the Law of God, designed to explain the drastic steps required to deal with going one’s own way. Only the death of an innocent animal could delay the justice of God.
3. The nation Israel was in turn to tell the nations of the world of the grace and mercy of God; they did not.
iv. ACT FOUR--Today, we examine the fourth act of the Story: the CHRIST, Jesus comes on the scene and in his mission takes upon humanity and
1. accomplishes the victory over sin,
2. opening the way to a new world.
3. Introduces the story of how the history of God’s gracious dealings with his rebellious creatures comes to a climax in his own death and resurrection.
a. Takes up mission of Israel
b. Accomplishes redemption
c. Gathers renewed Israel: Commissions them to continue his mission
What did Jesus do?
1. He offered himself for Israel and as Israel:
a. Jesus was baptized in the Jordan, as Israel had entered the Land to be a light for the Gentiles.
b. Jesus simultaneously healed and forgave those he encountered.
c. Jesus cleared the Temple in Jerusalem, declaring that this had been intended as the place for all peoples to gather in worship of the God of Israel; instead, those who controlled the Temple sealed it off from the Gentiles, and used the space to profit from the worshipers. Jesus declared HIMSELF TO BE THE NEW TEMPLE, THE PLACE WHERE ALL PEOPLE CAN FIND THE FATHER.
2. He offered himself for Israel and the world as the fulfillment of all the sacrifices of the past.
a. Jesus lived the same life that the God of Israel had expected of them.
b. Jesus died an innocent death, becoming THE LAMB OF SACRIFICE that had been central to the levitical ceremonies.
c. Jesus overcame death by resurrecting.
3. He gathered TWELVE DISCIPLES, a renewed Israel, and charged them to take the story of his Mission, his Redemption, and his Promise to all peoples.
a. Jesus called twelve men of Israel to launch a new Israel, modeling the life that he expected of them.
b. Jesus demonstrated to them that he has power to overcome death, subverting all social threats.
c. Jesus sent the Spirit of God to those disciples.
How should I respond to what Jesus said and did?
1. If God’s Story is alien and compelling to me, then I need to invite God to write my story so that I can participate in his Story.
a. At the Cross, I find forgiveness for having fallen short of God’s standards.
b. Through the Cross, I can see hope for the life to come, here and in the kingdom.
c. Because of the Cross, Jesus transforms me into a transformer; not for fighting space aliens, but to bring justice and mercy to the whole world.
2. If God’s story has been written into my soul, then I ask myself each day: HOW HAS THE RESURRECTION POWER OF JESUS BEEN VISIBLE IN MY LIFE TODAY?
a. Am I fully satisfied with all that God is to me in Christ?
b. Am I living at peace with all those around me?
i. “Be angry but do not sin, don’t let the sun go down on your anger.” Eph. 4:26
ii. Do the weaknesses of those around me call me to humble reflection or criticism? Matt. 7:3 “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?
c. Am I seeing that sort of power impact those close to me?
i. 2Cor. 2:14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.
Come to the Cross!
Cf. Drama of Scripture by Bartholomew & Goheen
[check out the weblink for B&G's content and extras]
1. God’s mission is to restore creation.
i. God chose a people to embody God’s creational purposes for humanity and so be a light to the nations…the OT narrates the history of Israel’s response to their divine calling.
ii. Jesus comes on the scene and in his mission takes upon humanity and accomplishes the victory over sin, opening the way to a new world.
iii. When his earthly ministry is over, he leaves his church with the mandate to continue in that same mission.
iv. Standing as we do between Pentecost and the return of Jesus, our central task as God’s people is to witness to the rule of Jesus Christ over all of life.
v. What is the New Creation?
Luke 24:13-27
2. The Story…
a. Adam encouraged us last week to read the Scriptures as The Story of God. He summarized the first three acts of that Story…
i. ACT ONE--Creation:
1. The world was made by God as God intended it to be.
a. He provided all the shelter, food, and relationships that Adam & Eve needed to flourish.
b. He provided boundaries to ensure that harm would not come to his creation.
2. He came to the Garden himself, to enjoy his own.
ii. ACT TWO--Fall
1. Adam & Eve shunned the protection of God, the provision of God, and the personal experience of God for the right to make their own contrary choice.
2. God immediately responded by providing skins to cover their shame, demonstrating the first death, and foreshadowing sacrificial death.
3. God removed them from the Garden as an act of mercy, to prevent them from living forever in decaying bodies.
iii. ACT THREE--Israel, God’s chosen people.
1. God determined to reestablish his earthly presence by revealing himself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob = Israel.
2. Israel was instructed in the Law of God, designed to explain the drastic steps required to deal with going one’s own way. Only the death of an innocent animal could delay the justice of God.
3. The nation Israel was in turn to tell the nations of the world of the grace and mercy of God; they did not.
iv. ACT FOUR--Today, we examine the fourth act of the Story: the CHRIST, Jesus comes on the scene and in his mission takes upon humanity and
1. accomplishes the victory over sin,
2. opening the way to a new world.
3. Introduces the story of how the history of God’s gracious dealings with his rebellious creatures comes to a climax in his own death and resurrection.
a. Takes up mission of Israel
b. Accomplishes redemption
c. Gathers renewed Israel: Commissions them to continue his mission
What did Jesus do?
1. He offered himself for Israel and as Israel:
a. Jesus was baptized in the Jordan, as Israel had entered the Land to be a light for the Gentiles.
b. Jesus simultaneously healed and forgave those he encountered.
c. Jesus cleared the Temple in Jerusalem, declaring that this had been intended as the place for all peoples to gather in worship of the God of Israel; instead, those who controlled the Temple sealed it off from the Gentiles, and used the space to profit from the worshipers. Jesus declared HIMSELF TO BE THE NEW TEMPLE, THE PLACE WHERE ALL PEOPLE CAN FIND THE FATHER.
2. He offered himself for Israel and the world as the fulfillment of all the sacrifices of the past.
a. Jesus lived the same life that the God of Israel had expected of them.
b. Jesus died an innocent death, becoming THE LAMB OF SACRIFICE that had been central to the levitical ceremonies.
c. Jesus overcame death by resurrecting.
3. He gathered TWELVE DISCIPLES, a renewed Israel, and charged them to take the story of his Mission, his Redemption, and his Promise to all peoples.
a. Jesus called twelve men of Israel to launch a new Israel, modeling the life that he expected of them.
b. Jesus demonstrated to them that he has power to overcome death, subverting all social threats.
c. Jesus sent the Spirit of God to those disciples.
How should I respond to what Jesus said and did?
1. If God’s Story is alien and compelling to me, then I need to invite God to write my story so that I can participate in his Story.
a. At the Cross, I find forgiveness for having fallen short of God’s standards.
b. Through the Cross, I can see hope for the life to come, here and in the kingdom.
c. Because of the Cross, Jesus transforms me into a transformer; not for fighting space aliens, but to bring justice and mercy to the whole world.
2. If God’s story has been written into my soul, then I ask myself each day: HOW HAS THE RESURRECTION POWER OF JESUS BEEN VISIBLE IN MY LIFE TODAY?
a. Am I fully satisfied with all that God is to me in Christ?
b. Am I living at peace with all those around me?
i. “Be angry but do not sin, don’t let the sun go down on your anger.” Eph. 4:26
ii. Do the weaknesses of those around me call me to humble reflection or criticism? Matt. 7:3 “Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?
c. Am I seeing that sort of power impact those close to me?
i. 2Cor. 2:14 But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.
Come to the Cross!
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